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Mum prepped her fried Chicken Cutlet using deboned whole legs of chicken. She also mixed up some ketchup-based sauce to drizzle over the fried chicken. The dish on the right is Stewed Eggplant with minced pork plus a side of steamed rice.

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An afternoon snack of steamed Pau (包) or Buns from Ho Kee Pau (和记包). Took a bite out of the Chicken Big Pau (鸡肉大包) to show you the filling inside. There is also a pork version if you preferred that. It may be called big pau but the size isn’t all that big but the price is at S$2.50. The small Red Bean Paste Pau (豆沙包) is S$1.20 each and is filled with smooth velvety red bean paste.

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Come evening, I headed over to the coffee shop across the street to buy takeaway Roasted Chicken Rice (烧鸡饭) for mum. She requested for chicken drumstick and a portion of roasted pork to go with the savoury rice.

As for myself, I went with Economy Rice (菜饭), choosing a selection of curry cabbage, savoury and crunchy ikan bilis (dried anchovies deep-fried) & peanuts plus a piece of sweet & sour pork chop with rice.

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A two dishes Packed Brunch from the hole in the wall economy rice stall located in Chong Pang Food Centre. Mum chose for me the mutton rendang and omelette with some vegetables in there over steamed white rice.

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When I am tired of eating breads, I will pick up some baked pastries like this Pandan Salted Bean Pastry (香兰咸豆沙饼) from Moji Bakery located within Sembawang MRT Station. Priced at S$1.20 each or S$3 for three pieces. You get a sweet green pandan flavoured bean paste over a savoury bean paste within a flaky pastry shell. But lately, their standard seems to have been fluctuating between good and horrible tasting pastries. Not sure if because of different chefs or quality control issues.

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Bought our dinner from the Economy Rice (菜饭) stall at the Kopitiam Food Court located within Sembawang MRT Station. Mum asked for only two dishes so I got her stewed chicken with potato and stir-fried bitter gourd with oyster sauce. I got the same stewed chicken plus I also add in potato stew and fried egg tofu.

For dessert, it is Pulut Hitam (黑糯米糖水) or Black Glutinous Rice Sweet Soup for mum. This dessert originated from Indonesian and is made from black glutinous rice porridge with coconut milk and palm sugar or cane sugar. I had the Tau Suan (豆爽) or Mung Bean Dessert made from skinned and split mung beans (green beans). The amber colour of the dessert comes from the caramelised sugar used to sweeten it. Typically eaten with small pieces of You Tiao (油条) added into the thickened dessert.

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A box of 45% Dark Milk Chocolate Batons from Singapore’s very own Awfully Chocolate. This was a gift from my colleague. According to the website, most milk chocolates sit within 12-30% cocoa solids range but theirs has 45%. That's why it was called Dark Milk. This results in a smooth, yet strong, great chocolate that is a delight to snack on.

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Not sure if it is mum or sis who bought home a pair of Mango (芒果) which we kept on the tabletop for a few days for it to fully ripen. Then off it goes into the fridge to chill before being peeled and sliced. Juicy and sweet with a little firmness in the texture, just the way I preferred, not the mushy and softness of overripe fruits.

Mum bought this bunch of Green Seedless Grapes (葡萄) from her trip to the market. It cost S$10 per kilogram and there are S$11 worth in this bunch. The berries are extra large with a firm crunchy texture, not to mention juicy and sweet too. Except, that it still has a couple of tiny pips in there so not totally seedless. Seasonal fruits like grapes and most stone fruits cost quite a bit of money over here in Singapore.

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For dinner tonight, we are having something different - Leek Stir-Fry with Char Siu & Pork Belly. Mum usually buys a few pieces of the same type of fish and stores them in the freezer. For the Crispy Barramundi, she defrosts the required pieces in the fridge overnight and cooks them the next day.

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Both sis and I have reminded mum many times not to cook at home if there are only two of us eating since she is no longer young and tired easily. Anyway, I can always pack home dinner on the way home from work. Mum is having Teriyaki Chicken & Chicken Bento while I chose Teriyaki Chicken & Pork Bento. Both the chicken and pork stir-fry are lightly spicy.

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Qing Ming Festival (清明节) is a Chinese festival honouring ancestors that is celebrated on the 15th day after the spring equinox, generally falling in early April. The main activity of the Qing Ming Festival is the cleaning or sweeping of ancestral tombs, and thus it is sometimes referred to as “Tomb Sweeping Day.”

My brother drove mum, me, my sister and youngest brother to Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery (光明山普觉禅寺). There were already plenty of worshippers. The picture below shows just a corner of the temporary prayer area which is on the ground floor of the multistorey carpark. One can also engage one of the monks to come chant and pray for the deceased.

Mum bought Vegetarian Food in a tingkat, two boxes of steamed rice, fa gao (发糕), a cup each of black and milk coffee since the temple encourage worshippers to go vegetarian or fruits only. If you would like to donate the fruits used in the prayers, there are donation boxes around too.

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More of the crispy Fried Barramundi (Lates calcarifer) for tonight’s dinner. Also on the menu is Cauliflower & King Oyster Mushroom Stir-Fry with prawns and minced pork. Mum just loves buying the Roasted Pork which she reheats to crisp up the skin.

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Mum didn’t go to the market so she went to the coffee shop a few blocks down the road. She bought for herself Roasted Duck Rice (烧鸭饭) with a chopped up roasted duck drumstick and some roasted pork.

For me, she bought Economy Rice (菜饭). The pack came with a crispy Thai-style spicy, sweet & sour chicken cutlet, sweet & sour pork and a side of stir-fry eggplant over fluffy steamed rice.

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I did not see it mentioned anywhere on their social media sites, but The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Singapore is having four slices of cake for S$20 promotion. Considering that each piece used to cost S$7.80 to S$8.50; now is your chance to grab some. Bought one each of Pandan Gula Melaka Cake (comes with separately packed gula melaka syrup), Chocolate of a Thousand Leaves, Biscoff Cheesecake and Mint Cookies & Cream Cake.

Pandan Gula Melaka Cake image courtesy of The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Singapore.

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Took the travelator down to the basement level of Sembawang Shopping Centre to have our dinner at Saizeriya (サイゼリヤ). Picked up the menu and noticed that they have a Seasonal Menu though I didn’t order from it. Instead, I went for the pasta, flatbread and a side of chicken wings.

When the pastas were served, I realized that I have inputted the order wrongly via my handphone. Instead of black pepper chicken spaghetti, I had selected the Black Truffle & Mushroom Spaghetti (S$7.90) for mum and she didn’t even like cream-based pasta. :( So, I let mum have my Pesto Genovese Spaghetti (S$7.90). At least this one comes with just pesto sauce with bacon and cheese.

The Chicken Wings (S$4.90) and Cheesy Focaccia (S$2.50) are for sharing. Both mum and I enjoyed the succulent and juicy wings along with the cheesy flatbread.

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In conjunction with the soon to be release A Minecraft Movie, McDonald’s Singapore is offering an exclusive blind box with every Minecraft Movie Meal purchased! Each blind box can contain one of the 6 collectibles given out randomly. So be prepare to swop with others if you are trying to collect them all.

New with this promotion is Cotton Candy Cone and Cotton Candy Twist Cone (S$1.30 each). A baby blue soft serve infused with the fun taste of cotton candy that is creamy, dreamy, and oh-so-satisfying!

Selected images and video courtesy of McDonald’s Singapore.

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Australian called it Barramundi (Lates calcarifer) but locally, it is known as (Asian) Sea Bass (金目鲈). Again, mum chose to deep-fry it which isn’t bad but we do wish she had steamed it instead. The next dish is Bitter Gourd Stir-Fry with eggs, prawns and minced pork.

Mum also like to buy Fishcakes (鱼饼) to fry them though sis doesn’t really fancy it. There you have it, two fish and a vegetable dish with prawns for a seafood dinner. I love the bitter gourd as mum prepared it by sprinkling salt on the sliced gourd then squeezing out some of the bitter juice before cooking it.