Tough tasks & a foul attempt, that just aren't too bad

On occassional weekday nights when my husband has to attend functions, I heave a sigh of relief as I am not expected to prepare a good dinner to serve the hungry Bear. I just need to whip up something simple for myself and rest earlier.

Do you know? Being married to a Japanese guy ( especially a s . p . o . i . l . e . d only son brought up in a traditional Japanese family ) is almost like asking for trouble. ( * * ) For first, I have to cook 3 meals a day : an elaborate traditional Japanese breakfast, lunch for myself, and a satisfying dinner. In Japan, eating out is unthinkable especially if you are living with your family, and the wife is staying indoors. While eating out is outright cheap and convenient in Singapore, eating out for a person in Japan can fetch a much sumptuous meal for 2 persons at home, and this excludes the distance of driving out. Besides this, Japanese believes in goodness of homemade food, prepared in ' love '.

Now, I understand the demands and have been performing dutifully. However, though I may not know much about other countries, this obviously is a hell task for most Singaporeans! Back home, my mother cooks only dinner on mere days of a week, I've been brought up knowing the pleasure of eating out! With a population that eats out so often, the sober eating pattern of the Japanese sounds too dreary to believe.

I was embarrassed when a Singaporean friend said it in my face, ' What? You have to do all that? I can't believe it! What a pathetic life you're leading! '. Her sorry countenance puzzled me... Am I all that wretched you might think?

Probably to the Singaporeans, but I must have been ' brainwashed ' that I do not really feel the same, though I can't deny the tire. Jesus knows the best that I'm doing all these for my family, and I know that my effort is pleasing in His eyes. I desire to possess the traits of a beautiful wife, with virtues that edify my husband, and remember to work without complaint.

Fortunately, my husband kindly lets me off on weekends ( Yes, I know that there are many Jap husbands who will not do so... shiver... ). Still, eating out is also an agony cos he's right : homemade food tastes better.

Anyway, on this day when he was not home for dinner, I grabbed the chance to try breadmaking again. Just when I thought I was spared from the usual trouble, I was inviting another by committing a silly mistake!

I was kneading hard this forever wet mess for an hour, but the dough still looked how it first started! I paused for rest and a quick flashback, where could have gone wrong? Then I realized, it was not the wheat flour for bread that I was using, all along I was using the wheat flour for cake making!!

See? See? Was I not silly?

So green bakers like Stardust, learn from my mistake : All purpose wheat flour, ' weak ' wheat flour, or flour for cake will never yield you bread.

Undaunted, I quickly set up another assembly of fresh ingredients and started again. This session, I prepared curried chicken, mayonaise bacon and potato, cheeze and sausage buns. They were baking in the oven when the Bear arrived home, and he adored the delicious aroma that pervaded the room. =) We had them for breakfast the next day, Bear liked them so much that he insisted I make them again.

' Ok. But does that mean that I can be excused from making dinner? ' ;)

P/S : I skipped dinner to make these buns you know? All thanks to the silly mistake, I had to concentrate on the new batch, too tired to prepare dinner for myself. =P