Hong Kong Style Egg Tarts (港式蛋撻) - Cookie base

I haven't found a store in Singapore that sell exactly the same style of egg tarts I used to have in Hong Kong, so today I tried to make this myself at home. I test below recipe and it works. My in-laws also think they are yummy!

Serving size: 16 tarts (each tart is 7 cm diameter x 2 cm height)

Preparation time: 45 minutes (most time spend on spreading the dough on each tin)
Cooking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients of custard:
2 eggs      
75ml        Evaporated milk
150g        Hot water
70g          Caster sugar
1/2 tsp    Vanilla extract

Ingredients of crust:
200g        All-purpose / plain flour
25g          Cake flour
125g        Butter
55g          Caster sugar
1 egg       Lightly whisked
A dash vanilla extract


Steps to make the custard fillings:

1. Add sugar into hot water, mix until completely dissolved. Let it cool.
2. Whisk the egg with evaporated milk. Pour in the sugar water and vanilla extract. Mix well.
3. Sift the egg mixture to get rid of any foam into a measuring cup or a tea pot. This make the later pouring into the tart shell easy. Set aside.

Steps to make the crusts:

1. Place butter at room temperature until softened. Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer over medium speed until the mixture is smooth, fluffy and light in colour.
2. Add the whisked egg, half at a time. Beat at low speed. Add vanilla extract, mix well.
3. Sift in the 2 type of flours in two batches, scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions with a spatula. Make sure all ingredients are combined well. Knead into a dough.
4. Roll out the dough into 0.5 cm in thickness. Cut the dough with a tart tin or a cookie cutter which is just a bit smaller than your tin size.
5. Line dough in the middle of the tart tin, one by one. Lightly press the dough with your thumbs, starting from the bottom then up to the sides in circular motions to make an even tart shell. Trim away any excess dough.
6. Preheat oven to 200C / 395F. 
7. Pour the fillings into each tart shell carefully. Place the rack in the lowest level of the oven. Placing the tarts on the lower rack in oven can help to bake the crust bottom properly before the custard gets heat up too quickly. Bake the tarts for about 10-15 minutes until the shell edges are lightly brown.
8. Reduce the heat to 180C / 356F. Observe the tarts and once you see the filling puffing up a bit, open the oven door and leave about 2-3 inches gap. This is to avoid the custard from becoming puffed too high. Otherwise, the custard will collapse once it cools down. Bake for another 10-15 minutes until the custard is set.
9. Check the custard by inserting a toothpick. If it can stand on its own, it is cooked.

My Tips:

• Since this is my first time, I divided the ingredients by half to make 8 tarts instead of 16 this round.
• If cake flour is not available, can replace with plain flour, which total 225g.
• Use your thumb to feel the dough thickness in the tart tin. Avoid making it too thick or over cooked.

My comments: Singapore weather is too hot, so my dough was too soft, which I need to spend extra time to have them set in the tart tin.

1st Book Recommendation

The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

This book is easy and fun to read! I appreciate Gretchen's honesty and sharing at her personal level on her challenges and struggles. I also found the topics of each month is very relevant to my current and future situation. 

For example, January is about boost energy, which reminds me of resuming my regular exercise regime after giving birth to my child. May is about be serious about play, this reminds me of "work hard, play hard", seems I forgot to play hard for few years already. June is about make time for friends, then I set one of my resolutions is to initiate message to one friend each week to see how are they doing, especially after I moved to Singapore about 1.5 years ago and leaving my family and friends in Hong Kong.

Overall, I found her sharing is inspiring and encouraging. I have prepared my own 2017 resolutions after reading this book. One of my resolutions is to start my own blog by February which I did! :)

Click here to check this out!

Natural Yogurt Face Scrub

This is a step 1 before the honey yogurt mask that I introduced some time ago. I tried this natural face scrub many times and still find it very effective.

It is all natural and very economical! All you need is just plain yogurt! I can't think of a reason you will be reluctant to try this out...

Steps:
1) Make sure your face is dry.
2) Take about 1 teaspoon of yogurt.
3) Apply evenly on your face but avoid eye areas.
4) Gently rub the yogurt on your face with fingers in circular motions.
5) Rub for about few minutes then start to tap on your face gently. After tapping evenly all over your face for about few minutes, you should start to feel the yogurt become a bit sticky and dry on your fingers.
6) Gently rub your face, you will start to see tiny white colour stripes dropping off, just like you are rubbing with an eraser.
7) Rinse your face thoroughly, then you can do the honey yogurt mask or continue with your usual skin care steps.

Frequency:
Suggest to do once or twice a week  

Basic beauty tips

#5 Hair & Colouring - Strategize your colouring style
     
Before I go to salon to colour my hair, I always have below considerations:

Q: How am I going to maintain this new colour?

• How often and when will be the next round I want to colour my hair either to cover the awkward roots?
• Am I willing to spend another round of money and few hours at the salon every 2 months?
• Too frequent colouring may cause more hair loss and hair damage...
• Am I willing to spend another budget to buy the professional colour protecting shampoo? Or just stick with my current shampoo and conditioner?

My strategy to balance above considerations is always go for highlights! I realise highlight is a good strategy to delay the need to have too frequent colouring to cover the awkward roots growing out. As highlights won't give a very distinct separation between your dyed hair and natural hair colour at the roots. But of course if you bleached your hair until too big contrast, then nobody can help...

In terms of colours, I always go for purple base with red highlights, then when the colours faded out, hair will still look brown and won't look awkward.

Examples with awkward roots growing out:

Example that new roots are not that obvious if do highlight:

Styling - Back to Basic

#2 Underwear - You need a variety of them and check your back before you leave home!
     

I can't stand if I see these especially during workdays, where OLs seem they don't care, but I think is unprofessional to certain extend...

• I can see what style (shape) of underwear you're wearing. Wear seamless underwear please if your dress or skirt or pants are tight fit.
• I can see what colour of bra or underwear you're wearing from behind. Either change your underwears in the morning to match your outfit or plan ahead what are you going to wear the next day and wear the matching colour underwear set. I personally think is very unprofessional to see a pink bra underneath a white shirt. If you want to look sexy, please match with taste, save it after work or in your apartment. 
• Check your back and see if your bra is too tight. Quite often can see some ladies the top and bottom edges are very tight, then the fat got squeezed out in between. Looking from behind, the back curve is not nice and make you look fat.

Remember to check your back before you leave home everyday! I am less harsh during weekends... :)

Useful basic seamless panties choice!

If you're lazy to match the colour or style, then please don't show your bra.

Check your back! Both top and bottom.

Personal Care - Back to Basic

#2 Elbow & Knee Cap - Easily being forgotten!
     
Sorry to be mean here again... But if I see girls with grey-black elbows or knee caps, I will think the girls aren't taking good care of themselves and simply not attention to details!

I know some people may have darker skin colour around elbows or knee caps areas that are inborn, but I believe majority are people never do scrubbing on these areas to remove the dead skin cells. If you have this problem, please scrub regularly!

I am more demanding towards girls on these things. If I see these on guys, I have higher tolerance level, after all men are men...

Is ironic that if you regularly do waxing on your arms, legs, underarm and scrubbing your heels but forget about your elbow and knee caps... Your body caring service isn't complete!

Hey lady, check your elbows and knee caps now!

Some suggestions:
Ways to Get-Rid-of-Dark-Elbows
Remedy and care for your elbows and knees

Basic beauty tips

#4 Hair & Colouring - Don't just focus on the hair colour alone
     
When you plan to dye your hair, the number one most important thing is to pick the right colour that is trendy yet matching your skin tone and character. However, I am not sharing with you what colour to pick. My key message is about how to ensure your new look is pleasing to eyes and look harmony.

The key is whatever your new hair colour is, please take care of your eyebrow colour as well. If your eyebrows are quite dark and you dyed your hair as lighter brown, chestnut, red or purple colour, please also use eyebrow pencil or powder to make your eyebrow colour matching your hair colour. You can use a bit of foundation and loose powder to lighten your eyebrows then apply the eyebrow pencil or powder. More extreme example is when elderly dye their hair into black colour and didn't dye their eyebrows leaving them as silvery grey, image how awkward it is.

In summary, the key is overall harmony and consistency when you present yourself.

Bad examples:

Good examples: