*~ Caramel ~*

Was back in Singapore recently and met up with Amrita during her office lunch break at this really quaint cafe called Caramel.

Amri & I - We were both dressed in canary yellow that day! Lol!

I heard it had just opened its doors and not many people knew of its existence (yet). Which probably explains why there were only about 10 people (Amri and myself included) seated indoors at 1pm - Singapore's peak lunch hour.

Caramel charmed me at first sight. It felt.... English and whimsical.... Kinda like Alice in Wonderland.... The Madhatter minus the havoc. =) And the bunnies.


I'm not complaining - I do hate the lunch crowd after all - but I am rather shocked as the food was good, albeit pricey, and definitely interesting. The menu came in a charming B4 size and was printed on both sides.

As you must have surmised, there weren't many choices for food and I thought that that was a rather pleasant change from the norm. Too many choices lead to uncertainty and uncertainty leads to 10mins worth of juggling between meal A and meal B.

So, for the first time ever, I made my decision in under 20seconds. Unbelievable but true.

Here's what I ordered:-

Tofu Salad with Toasted Walnuts and sesame dressing. YUM.

And Amri got herself:-

Grilled chicken sandwich with sesame dressing. Yum too!

Being girls.... And dessert lovers, despite how stuffed we were, we still had an extra tummy for desserts and I was enchanted by the cute and colourful array of cupcakes and other desserts sitting in their cooler. Without hesitation, we pounced on three cupcakes....

Cupcake #1: Apple Cinnamon

Yum! It smelt sooo good!

Delicious! The apples were coated not only in cinnamon but plum powder too! Tangy, zesty and interesting.

Cupcake #2: Rum & Raisin

Never a big fan of rum & raisin but this was surprisingly good, though a tad dry and too strong after a few bites.

Raisins were soaked too long in too much rum. *wince* The cake was also a tad dry.

Cupcake #3: Chocolate Mint

Looked/Sounded fab.

But this was the biggest let down of the lot. It was dry, tasteless and had no mint at all! Bah.

Final verdict: Worth a visit. Decent prices, but cupcakes need improvement..... A gooey centre perhaps?

contact

Caramel Cafe
100 Beach Road
#01-50/52 Shaw Towers
Singapore 189702

Tel: 62952188

hairloomandcaramel@gmail.com

Operating hours

Mondays - Thursdays

12pm - 8pm

Fridays & Saturdays

12pm - 10pm
Sundays & Public Holidays
Closed

Russian Cherry Teacakes

I've bought a new toaster oven!

And conveniently burnt myself making my 1st batch of cookies since the death of my previous one.

Took this recipe from the FoodNetwork.com (a great place for recipes by the way), and altered it (unintentionally, but I have a problem following recipes. Haha).

What I didn't know till AFTER I prepped the dough was that this is a twist on a traditional Christmas cookie - the Russian Teacake. Well, Noel had one and said it tasted like Christmas.

I guess I succeeded, aye?

cookies cooling on the tray....

Cookies ready to eat!

Nyom nyom nyom.

Russian Cherry Teacakes - I love thee.

24.

I just got back from my last visit to Singapore for about at least another year or so.

And though I often comlain and whine about wanting to return to HK asap, I honestly loathe leaving my friends behind.

I didn't know just how much I missed them until I left on the plane yesterday for HK and then a wave of melancholy struck. I wish I had another 2 weeks; I wish I could relive my recent visits back to Singapore and do it all over again. I wish for many things, but that is wishing for the past and unfortunately (or fortunately), I live in the now.

I'm listening to ballads tonight - a perfect companion to the blues of my heart strings.

*sigh*

I'm guessing that one of the reasons why I'm hit incredibly hard this time is because, for the first time since the nightmare begun (and tapered to an end), I can finally see the joy and fortune and blessings I have with regard to the friends I've made in Singapore and to the new friends I've made on my trips back this time around.

I wish I could've spent more time getting to know AJ & B - my lovely cousins - and definitely more time with friends I've always cherished and cherish even more now that I've grown and am less burdened with the scars/burns of my past.

I find it easier to be open about things now, to be more honest with respect to my thoughts/feelings and I am pleasantly assured that honesty, is not always taken badly - I suppose it's çoz my delivery has mellowed and I am less blunt/angsty.... And also, less self-conscious.

Amazingly, albeit what many think of me, I used to be shy and incredibly insecure with a very very low self-esteem. Though the low self-esteem has yet to ompletely dissipate, I can say with much certainty that that self-esteem of mine is sure as hell climbing its way up slowly.

I'm loving it.

I have many people to thank for having stuck with me through the bad (and I mean really bad) times and sharing the good times with me. I have many to thank for believing in me and having faith that I'm not a lost case and mostly importantly, I have many to thank for understanding me when I was unable to express myself effectively/without pain.

It is because of such fantastic persons in my life that I find comfort in knowing that I am not a loss cause and that I am not some big mistake that God put on this earth to torture and to punish others with.

I am happy.

At 24, I finally am somewhat at peace.

For that, I am glad.