You might want to try the method a friend taught me. Let the bread cool down and cut into slices. Freeze excess pieces in a zipblog bag. Take out the amount you need to defrost the night before, and in the morning, the defrosted bread would still be nice, soft and fresh tasting. If you like, you can also steam the bread. I use a steam oven, so it's very convenient. Give it a try and see if it works for you

worldangel:

peapot:

Normally how long can yr loaf of bread last? Mine only last 3 days after that will turn mouldy. So need to make bread twice a week in order to have bread everyday. Time is what I don't have. Not sure why gardenia bread or sunshine bread can last 5 to 6 days without turning mouldy.

Theirs probably include a lot of preservative to absorb moisture and prevent it from turning mouldy. Mine doesn't turn mouldy after 3 days if I keep it in a dry place or inside the fridge but the texture will not be as soft as the first day of course.

Mine also… ha! In general it’s good to get a strong dark-colored bag as they hide stains better. Also better to get a water-proof bag as the tendency of spillage from water bottles is very high esp when the water bottles and bags are all left on the floor.

White shoes with Cat High socks.


As for bags… to me, they are rather heavy… and seems to get worse as they grow older. In P1, the boys can leave some books under the table. From P3 onwards, the boys are given lockers. Somehow my son doesn’t use this facility and carries all his books every day. Although he packs his books according to the time table, almost all the major subjects are covered every day. On top of that, must bring a storybook everyday for quiet reading in the morning. The Cat High art bag is also bulky.

I think gym classes are good to have… with proper instructors, they can be beneficial for the kids. Mine was very timid and doesn’t like to take risks… I think gym classes helped her become more confident of herself.

I guess that’s fair if it is stated that the fees for enrichment classes are for 4 times a month… My kid told me the gym bus broke down!!!

I usually make a small loaf of around 400-500g. We finish it within 2-3 days. It keeps well when stored in paper bag or wrapped in aluminium foil and kept in tupperware. On 2nd or 3rd day, can make into french toast too


I tried making pasta dough yesterday and was surprised how easy it was. Rolled out manually and cut into tagliatelle since I don't have a pasta roller. It was definitely much better than dried pasta and well worth the effort!

straffan23:

Btw, how many days can a loaf of homemade bread last?

Thanks for the confirmation. I’ve never seen it in the school report book either. Perhaps Sbhy was misinformed…

My son was selected to be in dance as well, and didn’t quite like it after a while. I withdrew him after a discussion with the teacher in charge. He’s now happy in another CCA. There was no hard feelings at all… all very amicable. I also know of several other boys in the same situation. It’s not a major issue, I think.


PS: Is there a "point system" for CCAs at Cat High?.. First time I hear of it

Hi Straffab23 - am happy to share with you my experience as well. I have a Kenwood Classic Chef and a smaller Philip cake mixer. I bought a very basic Takada bread maker about a month ago and have stopped buying commercial bread.


Before I bought the breadmaker, I found it a hassle to make bread dough with my Kenwood Classic Chef even though it is perfect for the job, being very heavy duty, as kneading well for 15 mins is essential to make good bread. The Kenwood Chef is too heavy, and it's a hassle to take it in and out of my cupboard. It isn't practical for me to leave it on the kitchen top since it takes up a lot of space and will gather dust. The Philips cake mixer is too light weight to make bread dough. In addition, it takes you half a day to make bread dough as you'll need to do proofing and rising etc. These steps are rather disruptive if your schedule is tight.

On the other hand, the bread maker is all covered up and I can leave it on the kitchen top. After experimenting with several recipes, I think the bread maker is better for making bread dough. After it has been proved in the bread maker, you can take it out, shape it, leave to rise and then put in the oven to bake. You can also add egg wash etc. You get better control and results this way. The bread maker loaf doesn't taste as nice. In addition, many recipes (eg. from allrecipes.com) are not optimised for our type of weather, and I find the bread dough is too sticky and not malleable... So need to add more flour after the proofing stage. On the other hand, the recipes provided by other forummers on this thread are very good and optimized for our local weather. U should check those out.

I looked at many bread makers before buying the Takada from Gmarket. Mainly the price... it's the cheapest out there. I think it's a good buy esp if you're going to use it mainly for making dough.

Another piece of advice. If you're into making bread, it'll be useful to get a digital scale as well. You can put the bread tin on top, tare the reading, and then add in the ingredients step by step without having to measure the ingredients in separate containers.

Hope this helps... enjoy...

straffan23:

Hello all. I have been reading on bread-making and bread-makers for a few days now. Really tempted to join your club! I am thinking of getting the Z-mini but I do wonder if members here might have any recommendation for a newbie?

Also, is it difficult for a beginner to use a mixer to kneed and then an oven to bake the bread? Use existing gadgets before investing in new gadget, that is!

Thanking everyone in advance for their guidance and comments!!

Hi jheng


For the IP school I think there's no affiliation to primary school. Entry by merit only, right?
[quote]
Hi lchunleo,

P1 & P2 is usually honeymoon years for the kids, heard there is no exam till term 4 in P2, however there is regular assessment. Kids are fast learner and adapts to enviornment faster then adult, do not be overly concern especially if they join a school from P1,they will make friends in no time. My boy used to stay in Hougang St.91 with my parents, the school bus will pick him up at 0615am and there's already a boy living in tampine on the bus. No big deal for kids as they can sleep on the bus

CHS is a good school and teacher are very responsible and concern about the progress of their students. You should not give up your 100% confirm place in CHS. CHS has an affiliated sec school & going IP soon, this is a big advantage for CHS primary boys, as they will usually have lower cut-off points for their boys to go CHS sec school compared to boys from other schools.

As Cherrygal mentioned, many will kill to get in hence consider carefully. In China people is willing to travel 2-3 hours one way on public transport to study into a good school, in Japan people travel 3-4 hours one way on the public transport to go to work, Spore is so small, put your boy on school bus. If it really gets too tough to manage then transfer him to a nearby school at a later date P3/P4.

Just my 2 cents...[/quote]