Happy Thanksgiving!

There are many things to be thankful for. Simple things. Big things. I feel extremely blessed and thankful to God for everything.
Over this weekend, J lent me a movie called "The Secret." It is a vcd that shares the "secret" to life or rather, a new-age philosphy. Some parts of the movie were thought-provoking.

For example, several lives were turned around when they started to make a list of the things they were grateful for. The first few waking thoughts were of gratefulness and thankfulness. ( It is similar to Christians who pray in the morning. It should not be a routine to pray but to feel the feelings of gratitude to God). It is human nature to wallow in negativity but it has to be combated.

AT LLUBMC, we had a special thanksgiving meal for patients and employees.
~Menu~
-Gardean Chicken style Breast w/ home made Roasted Sage Gravy
-Turkey Slice with Gravy & Cranberry sauce
-Stuffing
-Mashed potatoes w/ gravy
-Green bean casserole
-Corn
- Roasted butternut squash soup
-Candied yams
-Salad bar w/ homemade ranch or Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressings
-Potato Roll w/ Margarine
-Fresh pumpkin Pie w/ Whipped topping
-Apple Torte Cake
-Apple Juice

Gratitude is the way to bring more into your life. We become what we think about. Focus on the positive.

Thank you Lord for family, friends and so many intangible things in life! :)

Bake Sale @ LLUBMC

Apple Walnut Raisin Cake

Freshly Whipped apple cream to go along with the apple cake.

Zuchinni Bread

These recipes were passed down from K's great grandmother and hence, it is a tradiiton to have it at holiday events. I love these breads and they really taste delicious. She shared with me the recipe and I have promised to keep it a secret. :)

Torte Caprese

This enticing advert made me sign up for the cooking class in LA..."Craving yummy dessert? Need a spectacular item for entertaining? This class will show you how easy it is to turn that craving into a scrumptious treat. Learn to make a beautiful Marjolaine Almond Cake, Espresso Cream Cake, Torte Caprese, Fallen Chocolate Soufflé Cake (perfect to make ahead), Whipped Cream Pound Cake with Citrus Icing, Light Triple Layer Coconut Cream Cake, Traditional and Delicious Carrot Cake with Icing, and Devil’s Food Cake with Milk Chocolate Butter Cream Frosting. Have a dessert party for your friends with these new and delightful recipes or just make them for your family!"

The method of teaching cooking classes in LA is quite different from Singapore.
My partner and I made a torte caprese. "Torte" is a thin cake with nuts. "Caprese" is named after the island Caprese. Hence, as the name suggests, this fluffy and light cake has nuts in it. It is a winner recipe...which I modified a little.
Ingredients:
Butter, brown sugar, bittersweet chocolate (melted), almonds (ground), flour, eggs (separated).
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter and flour one 10 inch cake pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and butter and flour.
2. Cream butter and half of the sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the COOLED melted chocolate. Mix to combine. With the machine on low speed, add the egg yolks, one at a time, mixing well between each addition.
3. With a spatula, gently add the ground almonds and flour to the chocolate mixture.
4. In a clean, bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy. Gradually add the sugar while constantly beating until soft peaks. Fold the egg whites into the chocolate base 1/3 " at a time. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 40 minutes.
5. Remove the cake from the oven and let cool slightly. When completely cool, dust with powdered sugar.

Halloween Party & Step -it-Up Event

Well, I am not an advocate for Halloween-type parties where gory costumes or atmosphere scare my wits. However, I do enjoy making fun foods i.e. Halloween- type foods. :p We did a fun event for the Child and Adolescent unit at LLUBMC.

Muddy Chocolate pudding

Cheese pizza with olives in the shape of a spider

Pop corn monster hands ( the tips are candy corn)

Green punch

They get to decorate their own cupcakes with fun toppings!
I did not expect the kids to enjoy it so much. They did a hand-made card to thank the department for the special lunch and snacks they received. The administrative director of Youth Services and Social Services also sent us an email of thanks...
"Cherry & dietary team,
Thank you so much for the special treats for the kids for Halloween. They absolutely loved the cupcake decorating table, great decorations, special foods, and the cauldron of punch. It was fun to see how much the kids enjoyed it – and the staff too. Several staff commented on how special it was and how much it meant to the kids.
You and your team made the kids feel special – and that is so important to kids in the hospital. Thank you!"

A nice quote to remember to be all that you can be...you'll never know when you're making a difference to someone!
"To the world, you might be one person...but to one person, you might be the world!" -anonymous

As for the cafeteria, we had ready-made cupcakes.

STEP -IT-UP AWARDS!
~ Encourage all BMC employees to walk and the person/ team with the highest number wins!

We did the catering for them...and one of the highlights was-

FAT-FREE brownies~

People loved it...it was moist and chocolate-rich. *YUM* Comparing the calories between the regular one and fat-free one is astounding. 9 CAL vs 54 CAL for an 11 gm brownie.

Secret trick- add apple sauce instead of oil to the box of brownies mix. :)

I made a TARO fresh cream cake just for Reed :)