My Prince brought me out!

My hubby and I went for a date night yesterday. It was so special, I wish I could have saved the whole experience in a virtual reality DVD and re-play it all day, everyday!

Why was it so good???

Because I had absolutely nothing to do with the planning of it! Hub actually planned the entire thing!

He arranged the babysitter. He decided on the day and time. He researched on venues of where to bring me annnd he kept me in surprise until the day itself!

I had NO idea where we were going! It felt like we were singletons exploring a brand-new city!

We went to a German restaurant that we've never been to. He researched on TripAdvisor and brought me to the #1 restaurant in Stuttgart!

I really enjoyed being the one who could sit back and not do anything and just be treated like a princess for an evening!

I have a confession. Since we got married 11.5 years ago, and more so since we started having kids 6 years ago, I'm the organiser. I decide when, where and what to do. As much as I like surprises, I'm too impatient not knowing what's going on. I like knowing what to expect and as a Mom, I don't like last-minute changes.

Yes, changes are to be expected - especially with kids. But that's also why I hate being unplanned. I know how unpredictable kids can be so as far as possible, I try to minimise last-min changes in my regular schedule.

That said, I also complain that the hub doesn't court me anymore. You know what I mean. Or that Stuttgart is BORING. (Sorry to you Germans reading my blog).

Coming from a city with 5 million people, I do like the hustle and bustle of a big city. I like exploring new eateries, going for new experiences and doing new stuff.

Our usual Sunday hangouts alternate between hmmm.... 5 restaurants? Many Germans that we know don't even eat out. We eat out on weekends and that's considered extravagant for many already. Call me spoilt, but I can't wrap my head around the idea of cooking every.single.freaking.day! Mummies need a break too, yo!

Plus, I don't like what the Germans call "Abendbrot" - evening bread, which means bread with cold cuts. Gosh. I can maybe have that once a week but don't expect me to eat it every dinner! Even my kids don't like Abendbrot all the time. If we've had Abendbrot one evening, they will be like "not again" if we have the next evening. That simply means that I have to cook for lunch and dinner.

Right, so let's go back to our Date Night! It was sooo lovely! We first went for dinner and thereafter went for a Skybar! Like wow!!!

Ok, let me put a disclaimer. Our sky bar is on the 10th floor in an old town. My camera battery died, if not I would have taken a photo of the skybar.

To be far, we don't have skyscrapers here. So the 10th floor here while every other building is a maximum of 3 floors means that we are still on the highest point in town. I had to poke fun that in Singapore, a skybar means 55 floors and in Schorndorf, a skybar is on the 10th floor.
(Mental reminder: Stop comparing Pris!)

Right, it was really lovely being right up there though. Neither of us had our phones working more. I ordered an Aperol Spritz while Stephan got himself a glass of white wine.

We sat next to each other and I enjoyed the feel of the hub's arms around my shoulders. That's really what I miss a lot! With 3 kids, we rarely have time to hold each other hands, let alone him putting his arm around my shoulder. You do need 2 hands to push a stroller and the 2 older monkeys still need some supervision.

It was such a wonderful evening. I think I told the hub a million times "I'm so happy you organised this."

I really truly appreciated that the hub took the initiative to organise something! I really loved the element of surprise he brought in with it. To be fair, he refused to tell me the agenda for the day because he was half scared that I would shoot down his idea.

It's such a learning experience for me though. I realised that I need to step back so the hub can take the lead in this relationship. At the risk of sounding corny, I do really miss being the Princess and being brought on a nice journey by my Prince.

I feel that one of the main dangers of being married for a while is that we go on autopilot. We each assume our roles and just sorta keep doing what we're doing. But I've missed the spark you know. Just the feeling / memory of our lives before we had kids. Us just enjoying our lives together. I don't want a marriage that is just an empty shell after the kids move out. We're far from where we want to be, but this date night was definitely a huge step in the right direction!

That's why I kept nagging telling the hub that I wanted him to organise ONE date night. Like just one. So that I feel like he's taking me out on a date and not that we're going out a date that I organised.

And I need to say this once.

YOU did GREAT darling!!! I'm so proud of you!

For you wives  - Let your husbands take over some of the roles that you've assumed for a while. You never know! They might just surprise you with what they can do!

For you husbands - Bring your wives out! Surprise them! Pursue them even when you're married! Do something new with her! You know what they say, Happy Wife = Happy Life!

I went for a haircut and root colouring for my date night!

He dressed up for me too! With a suit!

I had a house cocktail speciality! It totally hit the right spot!

Spätzle (Swäbish egg noodles) with Beef Gulash (14€)

This was THE BOMB! Beef fillet with truffle noodles and sugar peas. Gosh, the smell!! (25€)

Chocolate soufflé with caramel vanilla ice-cream (7€)

Hub's cheese platter with the spiciest ginger sauce! (7€)

#1 Restaurant in Stuttgart!

http://www.derrotehirsch.de/

Der Rote Hirsch Marktstraße 46, Eingang Marktplatz

D-70372 Stuttgart

eMail: info@derrotehirsch.de

Tel: 0711 84969373

Salmon-Spinach-Cream Rolls

We have to prepare finger food quite often. Once a month we have a church leaders' meeting. Once every few months we have a regional cell group when all the cell groups get together for a XXL-cell group in the entire region. Whenever someone celebrates a birthday or has a get-together, its usual protocol to bring some finger food, salad or dessert.

For someone from Singapore who had zero idea of what or how to cook, these "please bring something to the party" words would use to terrify me. While I'm quite capable of cooking warm meals, finger food that doesn't have to be kept warm is another issue altogether. I used to wonder what can one eat that would be filling enough for dinner but still doesn't require to be heated up - and doesn't need to be served on a plate?

Most people bring some form of bread topped with cheese or ham or just butter. However, the Asian in me craves for something more delicious or just more appetizing. So yeah, you can say that I do cause myself more trouble when I'm more picky about what I eat.

However, every cloud has a silver lining. The efforts I put into researching on great food usually pays off and people tend to ask me for my recipes whenever I bring my little contribution to these gatherings.

I must proudly say that the following recipe is German! Yup! I got it from a German website, here. However, for the sake of my non-German-speaking readers, I have taken the liberty to translate it for you. The recipe is idiot-proof, mouth-watering and healthy!

- 4 Eggs

- 200grams Mozzarella Cheese

- 250grams Frozen Rahm Spinach (Spinach with cream)

- 200grams double cream fresh cheese (Doppelrahmfrischkäse)

- 1 Packet of Smoked Salmon

1. Half-thaw the rahm spinach only enough until you can mix it with the rest of the ingredients. Heat oven to 180 degrees.

2. Mix eggs, 100grams of mozarella cheese and thawed spinach together. Put baking paper on a baking tray. Spread the mixture on the baking tray and bake for 15 minutes.

3. Remove the baking tray and spread the remaining 100grams of mozarella cheese. Bake for a further 5 minutes in the oven. Remove the tray from the oven and let it cool.

4. Spread the fresh cheese on the cooled spinach layer. Put the salmon pieces on top of the fresh cheese.

5. Carefully roll the entire thing into a tight roll. Wrap it in clear foil and let it cool in the refrigerator.

6. Before you serve, cut it into thin slices. Enjoy.

Züricher Geschnetzeltes (Zurich sliced meat)

I tried a new recipe today. This is hubby´s favourite and he usually only gets to eat it once a year during Christmas at his parents´.

I figured why not try and cook yourself so that he gets to have it more than once a year?

I always thought it would be soo difficult to cook this dish because one pays almost 40€ for this dish in Zürich. However, when I looked up my Dr. Oetker book, I realized that it was really easy!Much faster and simplier than my Hainanese Chicken rice.

So here are the raw materials you need:-
- Fresh brown mushrooms (250grams)
- Whipped cream (200 grams)
- Flour (2 tablespoons)
- White wine (150grams)
- 2 onions (I took one normal onion and one shallot)
- 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
- A bit of lemon juice (not more than 1/4 of a lemon)
- 500 grams of veal
- Butter or cooking oil

Instructions:-
1) Fry the meat for 2-3 mins in a pan with either cooking oil or butter
2) Remove the meat and set aside
3) Fry the onions and garlic in the fat leftover from the meat
4) Add the mushrooms and fry for 2-3 mins
5) Add the white wine and whipped cream
6) Let the entire mixture cook for a while
7) Add in the veal to warm up the meat. Ensure that the sauce doesn´t boil so as not to overcook the meat
8) Season with salt, pepper, sugar, lemon juice and taste.
9) Serve warm with rosti and fresh salad

Veal is pretty expensive, we paid about 15€ for 500grams, but I figured out that since this is the first time I´m trying this recipe, I´d want to taste it in all its wholeness. Its definitely more tender and tastier than pork. For a more economic alternative, pork fillet works just as well.

Isn´t cooking such an art? From this.....

To this!

Walah, the completed dish with green salad. Hubby was in 7th heaven, savouring every bite of his beloved dish.....so you know that I don´t only cook Asian food...heehee.

Random

I´ve earned my next 10€ from Google Ads! :) Yay, remember my post earlier? (click here) I said that I earned my first 10€ and now I´ve got more than 20€ in my account! That makes it about 10€ a month!

Thanks to you faithful readers who click on the ads. I´ll continue to post entries of my life, which I enjoy doing anyway and this is really cool to earn some part-time money for something that doesn´t even feel like work!

We´re having a quiet evening today after I met up with my dear friend Becky in the afternoon, who´s pregnant and expecting her first baby girl in a month´s time! So excited for her!

I love fish! We went to Gosch for yummy fish. I had mixed fish plate with Thai noodles, which was pretty greasy but very delicious nevertheless.

That´s Pangasius fillet with salad and fried potatoes

Our self-taken close-up shot together. Boy, the last time we met was my birthday in 2008! That makes it about 6 mths since we last saw each other!

One of the youths from our cell is getting married tomorrow at 20! (hee, see I wasn´t too young when I got married at 23). Really looking forward to it! :)

We had to cancel a dinner appointment (so sad) because I´m feeling under the weather - a cold and slight temperature. Hope that everything clears up soon so that I can be in good shape for the wedding tomorrow!

German lemon cake

I tried to use my Dr Oetker´s cookbook for the first time last weekend. My dear friend, Gerline gave it to me as my birthday present a year ago and I realized that other than tagging a couple of interesting recipes that I wanted to try, I have not actually used the recipes! So last Sunday, when we had brunch-cum-regional church service, I decided to bake a German lemon cake - which was actually quite easy. Soft, fluffy and light, I was very satisfied with the results and even happier still that it was finished up pretty fast. It was also the first time I tried baking with the baking sheet...quite a cool experience actually.....easy and fast to bake a cake for a big group of people.

The big baking sheet.....

The finished product, complete with labelling so people knew what it was....

German Goose

A Singaporean friend of mine celebrated her birthday 1 day before I celebrated mine. She belongs the "Singaporean moms with children" category, but I would say that she´s probably one of the most modern one. Don´t mean to point fingers, but there are some stay-home-moms whom I have no idea what or how to talk to them. Its like somehow the common topics are missing. Not that they are not nice, but its just that we seem to be on different wavelengths. Which is why I´m so thankful for the Sg couple bunch that I have, cos we´re on similar wavelengths and it makes it so much easier when there are common topics of interest to talk about....eg. work and food hahah....

Anyways, the bday girl invited us to eat a German speciality for this time of the year - goose with red cabbage and some potato starch thing.....dunno how to translate properly but in German its "Ganse mit Rotkohl und Kuddeln". The food was SUPERB! It came with soup too, which I loved! I´m quite particular about soup, since I don´t like "artificial powdered soup". But the soup they served there was awesome. This place is so popular that its constantly full and one has to book the restaurant at least 2 mths in advance to get a table. Well, the restaurant is not opened the entire year either, its like a seasonal restaurant.

The meat was juicy, sauce awesome and for one who doesn´t like red cabbage, I ate it all up! Oh, I did scrap out the thick layer of fat under the skin though

Where you go for superb goose
Besin - Höhenstraße 1, 70736 Fellbach
http://www.fruechtle.com/

Social gathering

That´s me in my new long-sleeved white top that I bought from Zara (15€) instead of 20€. Love the way my necklace matches so well with it!

We met up with Stephan´s friend and his family (whom he got to know while studying for tax advisor´s exams). They were so sweet and treated us to German food, even though its the first time the girls met each other!

A very old German restaurant that used to be a mill

My meal of salmon with prawns. The sauce was awesome!

Stephan took the German speciality: Rump steak (400g) done to perfection

Serene´s birthday and Hamburg fish market

Gerline and I met up with Serene and her boyfriend, Olav to celebrate her 28th birthday one day after Geli celebrated hers. She cooked chinese food and we happily made our way to her place to enjoy delicious chinese food - Chinese mushroom with spicy sauce, soup and carrot cake! Boy, she really did put in a lot of effort. It was such a relaxing time to chill out together, blabber mindlessly in Singlish and that particular weekend coincided with the annual Hamburg fish market in Stuttgart. Its events like this that makes me realize that I´ve been in Germany for a while, since I was beginning to experience annual events twice! Come August, I would be here for 2 years now! How time flies.....

The aroma of grilled fish and seafood permeated the summer air and I felt the pleasure of living in beautiful Europe all over again....just to be able to sit outdoors and not sweat like crazy, in summer clothes and listening to a jazz band play in the background..... The prices were naturally on the higher end, but still worth it. The funny thing is, Serene and Gerline both happen to know my sister. Apparently, Serene and sis were in the same JC, while Gerline got to know my sis in Zouk...haha, of all places. Anyways, that was a long time ago, but its still funny to realize how small the world is......

That´s Serene and Olav on the left, Gerline & I on the right

Mushrooms with yummy cream sauce and bread (4€)

Grilled sotong with prawns (8€)

Fun with baking - Laugenbrot

I had a mini-baking session at my home last Friday. It was such a wonderful and fun time with a few friends whom I simply got together, even though some of them don't know each other. I cooked lasagne (from scratch), which tasted awesome, albeit a little watery - not my fault, I followed the recipe....will have to decrease the liquid next time round. Yah, I figured out that since all of them worked except for me, I could simply cook dinner for them and then we could have a baking session.

Prayed that it would turn out to be an enjoyable evening and it turned out exactly that! We were laughing so much! Over various stuff, over the baking experience for each person and we arranged to have a movie night 2 weeks from now....wow, I'm glad that I have a certain plan to entertain myself on Friday evenings when Stephan is busy slogging away in his tax advisor's course. Poor hubby, God bless him and keep him and help him to persevere until the very end. Amen!

In the meantime, I shall put on my creative cap and think of various ways to occupy my time without burning a hole in my pocket....Some photos of our Backen-und-Spass Abend.....For more photos, go here.

First, you need to knead the dough
Everybody had their turn with rolling the dough into balls
That's Gabi (in black) our teacher inspecting the breadrolls

Into the oven!

Waiting with anticipation for it to be baked


Tata! Our babies!

The baking group! That's Kristian (the only guy), Gabi (face covered), Miriam (extreme right), Geli (rolled eyes)..... Wow, such a fun, young group! So glad that we had such an awesome time this evening and I'm so looking forward to even more superb times together