{Universal Studios Singapore}

As I looked around me in a chilly cabin, I could see my little sister breathing slowly, deep in sleep, and my mom absorbed in an engrossing book. I could hear snippets of a conversation between my dad and my brother about soccer (defense, scoring goals, how renowned soccer players were transferred to other teams...). As the plane launched into the sky, I knew I was ready for it to take us to our desired destination. After a few hours of flipping pages of different books, listening to a variety of music, from classical to rock to pop, and (unsuccessfully) trying to fall asleep, my family and I finally arrived in Singapore. The first two days there were full of shopping and devouring delectable food, but on Monday we went to Universal Studios on Sentosa Island for the first time. Universal Studios had different zones in it: New York, Ancient Egypt, Madagascar, Hollywood, Far Far Away, Sci - Fi City, The Lost World... even the shops were nicely themed!

I always feel elated when I am in a theme park - everything is so bright and colorful, and there are numerous things you can do there in just one day. Whenever I look at something elaborate there, I can imagine the hard work that was put into it to make others feel like they are in a very cheerful place. I was able to take a lot of pictures there, but being in a euphoric place like that one felt bittersweet to me. I had a fantastic time, but it was my last day in Singapore, and one of the last days of summer.

Sometimes I thought about how many more days I had until school started - it would be the end of sleeping late, waking up late, and reading whenever I felt like it. Arriving at the beach, feeling the cool and comforting breeze, seeing the trees lazily sway in the wind, and the familiar feeling of sand between my toes. Being able to bake more than twice a day, and taking photographs whenever I wanted to. I realized that I had to have as much fun as possible there, because even though I was leaving that place soon, I should always remember every moment I have had that was filled with bliss.

First up - Madagascar!

We then went to the Lost World Zone. One of our favorite attractions at the theme park was Waterworld.

It was filled with breathtaking stunts and amazing explosions!

Yes, he really is on fire!

I was so surprised when the plane crashed in - I'm glad I was able to take this picture!

This part of the show was really action - packed. People were falling in the water, riding on jet skis, and more! I can't believe that I took this photo while he was midair. Some of my pictures were taken once the people in the show had already fallen in the water!

It was so cool whenever someone was thrown into the toxic waste!

This big explosion occurred at the end of the Waterworld show.

I really like New York and Hollywood - it really felt like I was in the actual places!

Everybody was kung fu fighting, na na na na na na na na na na!

This is where we ate for lunch. We had dim sum, chicken satay, fried rice, and a barbecue platter with roast duck, suckling pig, roast pork, and soy chicken. Delicious!

Hopefully we can eat here next time - pizza, pasta, salad...yum!

Lights, Camera, Action! Hosted by Steven Spielberg

This was a really great attraction from Universal Studios. We witnessed how special effects were used for a scene wherein a big hurricane was about to hit New York City.

I wasn't aware of the people in the background until now!

There were two attractions that we went to that were in this castle: Shrek 4-D Adventure and Donkey Live!

Donkey was hilarious He made a lot of jokes and interacted with people from the audience!

As we were leaving Universal Studios, we stopped by a Hershey's store. Giant Hershey Bars were being sold there - they are so huge compared to the regular Hershey's bars!

I have put all these pictures and the other pictures on my blog into a flickr account that I have just made recently. Do any of you have a flickr account? If you do, please tell me in the comments section below so that I can add you as a contact.

Here's to the end of a magnificent summer. I hope that this upcoming school year will be even better!

{Banana Ice Cream With Just One Ingredient}

Usually when I get a cookbook I flip over to the desserts section first. Banana Caramel Chocolate Walnut Brownie Pie... Strawberry Shortcake... Cinnamon Raisin Bread... they all seem so delicious, but today I wanted to make something perfect for one of the last few days of summer. Finally, I found a recipe for Banana "Ice Cream", but I did not remember seeing this recipe in the cookbook before. I could not believe how easy it was to make, and it even claimed that this "ice cream" really looks and tastes like the real thing! I had to find out if it was true.

All you need are 3 to 4 medium sized frozen bananas (they must be very ripe), a rubber spatula, and a food processor!

1. Dice the bananas and place them in the freezer.

2. Put the bananas in the food processor once they are frozen and blend them up. Stir occasionally with a rubber spatula.

At first, the bananas might become very chunky or look like crumbs, but if you mix them up a bit more they will become very creamy. I was very surprised once I tasted the "ice cream", because it really tasted and felt like real ice cream. Now, I can have a very healthy treat that I can eat whenever I want!

This "ice cream" tastes really good, but you can make it even better by adding more ingredients. Try eating it with honey, peanut butter, chocolate syrup/chips, maple syrup, cinnamon, or more fruits!

{Peanut Butter Cookies}

Peanut butter has been with me ever since I was a little girl. Peanut butter with chocolate fudge, peanut butter sandwiches - I was even able to try peanut butter frozen yogurt once! I remember when I tried my first peanut butter cookie a few years ago. It was soft, chewy, and had just the right amount of peanut butter, and I have wanted to try and make them ever since. I found a good recipe, but it had a plethora of different ingredients. This is why I was very surprised when I found another recipe that only needed three ingredients. I was delighted to find out that I had all of the ingredients on hand, and went straight to work.

Adapted from Kraft Recipes

Ingredients:

1 cup peanut butter (creamy or crunchy)

1 egg
1/2 cup sugar

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (160 degrees Celsius).

2. Beat the sugar, eggs, and the peanut butter until well combined.

3. Refrigerate this for 30 minutes.

4. Once out of the fridge, roll into 15 balls, and place them on a cookie sheet.

5. Flatten each ball by making a criss-cross pattern with a fork.

6. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

I was not sure what to expect with these cookies. I had a feeling that they would become hard and very crunchy, which i something that I never like in a cookie. I might try the other recipe sometime, but I was so curious about how the cookies from this recipe would turn out that I just had to try it.


Unfortunately, the peanut butter was very oily, and I needed to use paper towels to blot the oil from the cookie sheet. I also had to shorten the baking time, because they would have burned if they stayed in the oven for a few more minutes. The cookies were surprisingly chewy, and not crumbly and crunchy like I expected them to be. I think that although they turned out not quite what I expected , they were pretty good for my first try. I think that the next time I make peanut butter cookies, I will try and take out most of the oil that comes with the peanut butter.

{Brownies}

Recipe adapted from Hershey's

I bought some Hershey's Cocoa Powder the other day, and normally I use it to make hot chocolate on a chilly night. After searching the Hershey's website, I found a brownie recipe using the Hershey's Cocoa Powder. You can add more ingredients to this recipe, like chocolate chips and/or nuts. The recipe says that you can frost the brownies if you want, but I decided not to since the frosting would make the brownies too sweet.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Hershey's Cocoa

4 eggs

1 cup (2 sticks) melted butter

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups white sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius). Grease a 13x9x2-inch baking pan.

2. Mix the butter, sugar, and vanilla extract together. Add the eggs and cocoa. Beat all of the ingredient until they are fully combined. Add the flour, salt, and baking powder and mix. Put this batter into the pan.

3. Bake the batter for 30 to 35 minutes. After they have cooled completely, cut into desired sizes.

Remember not to bake it for too long, or you will get a very dry brownie. You might even get a very crunchy outer crust, so be careful!

{Baking Tip 8}

If you use a food processor or an electric mixer, your ingredients may get over mixed or over beaten. This can change the outcome of what you want to bake (sometimes you may get something very dry or hard). Just mix until everything is combined.

{Baking Tip 7}

Always utilize light and shiny cookie sheets. Your cookies will not get overly brown at the bottom because these sheets reflect light. If you have dark cookie sheets, try to put aluminum foil on top of them.

A Recipe As Easy As {Key Lime} Pie

Sometimes, I get so excited about something that I find it hard to sleep at night. A trip to a new place... the release of a new book the next day... whenever I wait for something it can seem like forever. Last night, I found myself tossing and turning because I was so thrilled to make this pie. Before I went to sleep I was looking at different food blogs and came across the recipe for this pie. It was too late to make the pie at that time, so I would have to wait to make it the next day. I could imagine it already... sour and smooth, served cold with a scoop of ice cream...

Before trying my first ever slice of key lime pie, I always thought that key lime pies should be green. I found out that key lime pies are actually supposed to be yellow, and even though I have always thought that these pies were hard to make, I realize now that making them is a breeze. They are so delicious, and I thought that they contained a lot of different ingredients to give them their distinct flavor.


All of the pie recipes that I have found do not ask for a lot of ingredients, and are very easy to perform. If you have a ready made pie crust like I did, then all you need to do is make the filling, which consists of beating the condensed milk, lime rind, lime juice, and egg yolks. Then, just pour it in the crust and bake it!

Ingredients:
4 egg yolks
grated rind of 3 limes
400 mL of condensed milk
125 mL/4 fl oz. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 Graham Pie Crust (I used the Keebler Ready Crust)

1. Set oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (160 degrees Celsius).
2. Beat the condensed milk, lime rind, lime juice, and egg yolks until well combined.

3. Pour the mixture into the pie crust, and bake in the oven for 15 minutes, or until the sides are firm but the center is still shaky.

4. Let it cool on a wire rack, and then place it in the refrigerator for at least two hours.*

*Note: The recipe said to leave the pie for at least two hours in the refrigerator, but when I took it out it was really wet and runny. I put it back in the fridge, and after a few more hours it became firmer.

My pie was very plain here, but you can add different toppings on it, like whipped cream, powdered sugar, and lemon or lime slices.

I think that if I do fall asleep tonight, I will surely be dreaming about this pie.