HOW TO MAKE HOT CHOCOLATE WITH CACAO POWDER| COLD HOT CHOCOLATE RECIPE

This week, I explain how to make hot chocolate with cacao powder. You can enjoy this cold, hot chocolate recipe, any time at all! It’s honestly the healthiest hot chocolate recipe, I know, so keep reading!

Difference between cocoa and cacao

Just before I describe just how easy it is to learn how to make hot chocolate with cacao powder, I just wanna talk about the difference between cocoa and cacao. Just in case, you’re struggling with this like I was, a couple of months ago. Cocoa is chemically processed and roasted, so that makes cacao the clear winner.

Benefits of raw cacao powder

Cacao is the purest, most natural form of chocolate that has gone through minimal processing so all the active, life-giving enzymes are still intact! And it doesn’t contain any add ons. But what it does inherently contain is loads of health-promoting nutrients that help regulate blood sugar, blood pressure and blood cholesterol, promoting and boosting brain and heart health. Cacao also contains the most amount of plant-based calcium, magnesium and iron for our overall well-being! But perhaps the most apparent of these all, is the fact that consuming cacao or raw chocolate triggers the release of happy hormones.

Cold, Hot Chocolate Recipe (Serves 1)

INGREDIENTS:

Fresh almond milk        250ml

Raw cacao powder        1T

METHOD:

1    Pour 200ml of cold almond milk into milk frother

2    Follow the directions on your machine to froth      almond milk

3    Add one tablespoon of raw cacao powder into shaker

      or leak-proof water bottle

4    Add remaining 50ml of almond milk, shake well

5    Pour chocolate almond milk into serving glass

6    Add frothy almond milk to top up serving glass

7    Add a dash of cacao powder or cinnamon powder,      serve immediately.

If you’re craving something warm, then all you have to do is hit the button on your milk frother to warm up the almond milk first, before frothing it. Otherwise, you could also warm your almond milk in a small saucepan on a stove top. Turn off the fire just before it comes to a boil.

Healthiest Hot Chocolate Recipe

And that’s how to make hot chocolate with cacao powder. You can have it cold or hot and because there’s no sugar in it at all, this is just about the healthiest hot chocolate recipe, I know. You can even have this late at night to help you sleep better.

I hope you got value out of this and if you did learn something, like it and share it with your friends. Till next time, have a beautiful day!

Love, Lynette Tan

P.S. Follow @lovelynettetan for more!

How to Apply Magnetic Lashes for Beginners | Best Magnetic Lashes:MLEN

 

Now before you give up on wearing false lashes of any kind, you gotta read this!

This week, I explain how easy it is to apply magnetic lashes for beginners using the best magnetic lashes that I have tried and tested myself. Yup! So I can tell you, these magnetic lashes actually work. And they're a real game-changer!

Magnetic lashes that actually work

My youngest sister, Wylyn, introduced me to these soft magnetic lashes a couple of months ago because one of her friends was using them, a lot! 

Wylyn said to me, "They look very natural! And you don’t have to put on any makeup - mascara, eyeshadow, foundation, whatever, no need! You don’t even have to draw on eyeliner!" 

And I was like a fish on a hook. Sold!

I’ve always been using glue-on lashes simply because I didn't know any better or similar alternatives that would stick just as well.  

Magnetic lashes vs lash extensions

I, for one, am so reluctant to even try eyelash extensions for fear of having allergic reactions to the semi-permanent glue adhesive that's often being used.

But more than that, I can't for the life of me imagine going to sleep, waking up, washing my face and wearing these super long lashes day in and day out for six weeks or more! Not to mention, how hideous-looking they all become overtime when they start falling off lash by lash. I won't be able to resist pulling the rest of the remaining faux lashes out and I'll end up hurting myself, and whatever's left of my own lashes, inevitably.  

So, I really appreciate being able to remove the magnetic lashes at the end of the day, or whenever I want. Because truth be told, I hate wearing these things for extended periods of time, simply because they can become really annoying! I can’t rub my eyes. And sometimes when a single eyelash decides to be naughty, curling inwards instead of out, it’s super pokey and I’ll start tearing like nobody’s business. Of course, I wanna look nice, but I also wanna be free.

I wanna be ME!  

Best magnetic eyelashes

Anyway,  my sister was thinking of getting a pair of magnetic lashes to try so I thought okay, why not? Just give it a go, and I can tell you, I have been using magnetic lashes ever since!

In fact, I’ve been wearing them, every other day, for more than six months!

I usually just bring them along with me, in the accompanying posh little pouch, and wear them in the car - while I'm waiting for the lights to change at the traffic junction.

Now before we go on any further, let me explain how easy it is to put them on. No it won't even take two seconds and no worries if you can’t at first. Remember, practice makes perfect!  

How to apply magnetic lashes for beginners

STEP 1

Hold the applicator open with your index finger stuck in between, so it won't snap back together, accidentally

STEP 2

Gently peel the lashes apart at the magnetic strip, and here’s a tip. I always hold the lower lash in my left hand so it's easy for me to remember, L.L.L - lower lash in my left (hand).

STEP 3
 
Line up the lower lash to the lower half of the applicator, then line up the top lash to the top half of the applicator.

STEP 4

While holding the applicator open, just like you would hold an eyelash curler, slowly remove the finger that's stuck in between

STEP 5 

Look straight into the mirror, keep your eyes open, tilt back your head and bring the applicator close to the eye.

STEP 6

Line the top of the applicator to the top of your eyelid, as close as you can to your natural lash line. Hold it in place, then gently bring the lower half of the applicator to join up with the top half.

STEP 7 

Do the same for the other eye.  

How to remove magnetic lashes?

Removing the magnetic lashes is even faster. Just gently pull them out with your thumb and index finger and they should slide right off. Then, keep them in the box and pouch provided.  

Magnetic lashes review

So, if you think about it, you’re actually sandwiching your own eyelashes between two pieces of magnetic lashes. And because the MLEN magnetic strips are soft and pliable, they actually follow the contours of your eyes, lining them - giving you a polished look. That’s why there’s no need for eyeliners or mascaras. Now that’s a game-changer! Saves you a ton of time and you'll look really nice! Especially on ZOOM!

Plus, they're completely safe to put on, too! You can wear them snugly with contact lenses. On top of that, because they don't contain any chemicals, mums-to-be can also wear them confidently. Your own natural lashes will still remain intact, I promise!

Nope, they're not supposed to hurt or feel uncomfortable in any way. So, if you feel like something’s off, it probably is. Just remove them and do it again. You might have to practice a couple of times to get it right but when you do, you can literally forget about them. They're very, very comfortable and you can wear them all day. They're wind-proof, but try not to swim or cry in them or they're gonna get all crusty and rusty.  

Magnetic lashes - Pro tip!

As always, here’s a pro-tip. Always bring the case and the applicator out with you in case you need to re-adjust them or your eyes are tired or itching and you just wanna remove those magnetic lashes, to have a good rub and you can! Just pop them back safely, into the box.

And that, in a nutshell, is how to apply magnetic lashes for beginners.

I hope you got value out of this and if you did, like it and share it with your friends.

Get your MLEN magnetic lashes here, today! Free shipping in Singapore and Malaysia!

Till next time, you have a beautiful day!


Love, Lynette Tan

P.S. Follow @lovelynettetan for more! And check out @mlenasia, too!

How to Apply Foundation in 60 seconds | My 1-Minute Foundation Routine

I used to hate wearing foundation simply because it took too long. But now, I can do it in a fraction of that time!

This week, I talk about how to apply foundation in 60 seconds so read on for my one minute foundation routine, plus a bonus tip on how to pick the perfect foundation shade for you. This trick is a real game-changer I tell you, so keep reading! 

Is Liquid or Powder Foundation, Better?

For a season, I stopped wearing foundation simply because I felt like it was such a chore to apply. Powders can be so drying, they settle right into fine lines and wrinkles making me look old, while liquids and creams were too messy to handle and difficult to remove afterwards. Also, not knowing how to choose the right colour for me meant that sometimes I’d end up looking too white or too dark. To top it all, it’s all just so time consuming. Before long, applying foundation became very daunting for me. But, before we talk about how I got around all that, let’s re-think this whole idea of applying foundation, shall we?

Top 3 Benefits of Wearing Foundation

As you can probably tell, I have a newfound appreciation for foundation. For starters, I love how it helps to even out my skin tone to give it a healthy glow. It’s like skin, but better!

Foundation also helps protect the skin against impurities and contaminants present in thee air.

Most importantly, many formulations these days contain sunscreen - our best defence against skin damage and aging.

With that in mind, here's how to apply foundation in 60 seconds. I can’t wait to share with you my one minute foundation routine!

How to Apply Foundation with Brush

Before applying foundation, do your eye makeup and eyebrows first. This way, you get to clean up all of the usual eyeshadow fallout with some micellar water and start with a clean canvas. Apply primer to your face but leave out the eyelids - they're usually naturally oily.

Then, apply foundation with brush in a downwards and outwards motion - following the direction of the facial hair growth. And remember to blend, blend, blend the foundation so it "disappears" down the neck. This technique, presented in the above video is applicable to all types of foundations, be it tinted moisturisers, BB creams, CC creams, mousse or whipped foundations, serum foundations, liquid or cream foundations - they all work just as well!

Using a large enough foundation brush to apply foundation to the whole face in under 60 seconds, really saves you a ton of time!

To complete the look, and because you already have foundation on, you just need to dab on the tiniest bit of concealer under the eyes and around the nose. More on that in another post.

And don’t worry about having to remove all of that. It’s easy once you learn the right way to double cleanse the face and while you’re at it, you can also check out my latest video on how to apply contour for a slimmer face.    

How to Choose Foundation Shade?

As promised, here’s a bonus tip on how to choose the perfect foundation shade. So do this, the next time you go shopping for foundation - always ask to test foundation on your collarbone.

This is because your neck is likely to be fairer than your face and your face is likely to be fairer than your body and I’m guessing you’d wanna look somewhat uniformed throughout so, always try foundation on your collarbone. Blend it in with your finger and if that colour just disappears and melts into your skin, you know that that’s the colour for you!

Remember it’s not supposed to look patchy, stand out or look like makeup in anyway. But, it’s supposed to look like skin, only better!

Well, I hope you enjoyed this and my other quick and easy makeup tutorials and if you did, share them with your friends. Till next time, have a beautiful day!

Love, Lynette Tan

P.S. Follow @lovelynettetan for more!

HOW TO MAKE SOURDOUGH BREAD FROM START TO FINISH|WARM CLIMATE, TROPICS

So you live in the tropics, where it’s mostly wet and warm. You wanna try your hand at making sourdough bread but you just keep failing. Is it me, or is it the weather? What is it?

You wonder.

This week, I show you how to make sourdough bread from start to finish! And you’ll never need to fear failing again, I promise!

I started making sourdough bread a little over a year ago now and I was always failing. You'll always find me diligently following a well known, tried and tested recipe, dutifully doing what it says to do. But, in the end, I would still fail. And I recall feeling so disappointed, discouraged and defeated. I even remember thinking to myself, "Maybe, I’m just not cut out to be a baker!" But you know what? That’s a lie! And if you’ve been telling that to yourself, stop! You can be as good a home baker as anyone else!

The trick is really to keep the dough cool instead of keeping it warm like you see in a lot in other videos, especially if you live in the tropics where you have a persistently warm climate. Where I live, it’s just hot and humid all year round. It's summer in Singapore 365 days a year! And if you don’t get the dough temperature right, you pretty much can’t get anything else right.

So the first thing you gotta remember is this - you have to start with cold ingredients, like straight from the fridge if you can. Even your flour must be cold, if possible.

Another way to ensure you achieve that is to get an infrared food or cooking thermometer. With it, you can then monitor the dough temperature and make sure that it never, ever exceeds 25°C.

With that in mind, here's the recipe for a basic sourdough loaf.

INGREDIENTS

Bread flour                 240g

Whole Wheat flour        60g

Ice cold water            210g

Sourdough starter        60g

Pink salt                        6g

METHOD (approximate timings)

DAY 1

1000 - Feed starter - 20g LSD: 20g flour: 20g water

1400 - Mix the bread flour, whole wheat flour and ice cold water in your stand mixer for 3 minutes at low speed. Cover and leave it in your fridge for one hour.

1500 - Add sourdough starter, mix it in at low speed for a further 3 minutes, cover and leave in your fridge for 15 minutes

1515 - Add pink salt, mix it in at medium speed for 5 minutes, cover and leave in fridge for another 15 minutes

1530 - Stretch and fold (1)

1545 - Stretch and fold (2)

1600 - Stretch and fold (3)

1630 - Coil fold (1)

1700 - Coil fold (2)

1730 - Coil fold (3)

1830 - Pre-shape the dough

1900 - Final shape the dough into a bâtard, cradle it carefully into floured banneton, cover and fridge it overnight for it to develop flavour.

*Always check on dough temperature to ensure it never exceeds 25°C

** Pop dough in the fridge for 15 minutes to cool it down or use ice packs to keep it cool. Turning on the air-conditioner will also help keep dough temperature low.

DAY 2

0700 - Preheat oven at 250°C, together with oiled dutch oven, for half and hour to one hour

0800 - Remove sourdough from the fridge, score it, mist it to improve oven spring. Put it on a bread sling and into the dutch oven, cover with lid and bake for 20 minutes.

0820 - Remove the lid and bake uncovered for a further 20 minutes at 230°C or until desired browning is achieved.

0840 - Remove sourdough from dutch oven, leave it to cool on a rack for 5 hours or more.

1340 or the next day - Slice the sourdough into desired thickness.

When mixing ingredients together in the stand mixer, don't worry if the dough doesn't come together nicely in a ball. It’s actually more important to check on the dough temperature to make sure it doesn’t exceed 25°C. And don't panic if it does, just stop the mixer, remove the dough hook, put it in there, cover and pop the whole thing in the fridge for fifteen minutes or so to cool it down.

You'll also notice that we're doing 3 sets of stretch and folds and 3 sets of coil folds. These help to strengthen the dough so that it'll be nice and smooth. But, more importantly that the dough will be able to trap all the carbon dioxide and rise up nice and high. Just remember to always wet your hands first so the dough doesn't stick to your hands.

During bulk fermentation, transfer your dough to an oiled container so that it has room to grow and expand. I usually use extra virgin olive oil to oil the container.

Intervals between each stretch and fold or coil fold is essential for the dough to rest, relax, expand and become stronger so investing in a good kitchen timer is essential. Once you set the timer, you're free to do other chores whilst waiting for the dough to be done.

Pre-shaping the dough is also an essential step of the whole process. It's basically suggesting to the dough the final shape you want it to be. Letting it rest for at least 20 minutes or half an hour helps the dough to relax so that it'll take to the final shaping more easily and hold that final shape.

Depending on whether you’re making a batârd or a boule, the final shaping is slightly different. This week, I’ll be showing you how to shape a bâtard.

Remember to have your banneton at the ready. I usually put a disposable hair net on it then before I sprinkle some semolina or rice flour so the dough wouldn’t stick. I’ll also add some flour to the top of the loaf just to make sure it doesn’t stick to the banneton when I remove it the next day. 

Another thing to note is this. Remember the seam side is always up when you cradle the dough into your banneton.

Then cover it with another disposable hair net, on top of that, a tea towel to absorb all the condensation. Finally, pop it in a big enough zip lock bag and leave it in the fridge overnight, for it to develop flavour.

Come next morning, oil your dutch oven with flaxseed oil - best for cast iron. Then, place it on the middle rack and preheat the oven at 250°C for about half an hour or so depending on your oven. Best to check the internal temperature of the oven, because not all ovens are created equal. Once the oven is hot enough, take the dough out from the fridge, lightly flour it, before transferring onto the floured oval bread sling… lightly flour the top as well and score it.

Once you’re done, remove the dutch oven from the preheated oven. Be extra careful, it’s super duper hot! Then, place the batârd into the dutch oven, lightly spritz the top with some distilled water to further improve its oven spring. Then, cover and bake it on the middle rack for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the lid and continue baking for another 20 minutes at 230°C or until the desired browning is achieved.

After removing sourdough from the oven, let it cool on a rack for 5 hours or more, it's still developing flavour. Better still, slice the sourdough the next day.  

Eat it with curry, sardines, or with diced tomatoes and herbs… it’s really up to your imagination.

And that’s how to make sourdough bread from start to finish and this method is especially great for persistently warm climates or tropics. I hope you learnt something useful today and if you did, I hope you share it with your friends especially those who are still struggling to make a good loaf of sourdough bread. It’s easy once you get the hang of it.

More great recipes coming your way, till then, have a beautiful day!

Love, Lynette Tan

How to Make Your Face Look Thinner, Naturally|Contour for Slimmer Face

Nope, there’s absolutely no need to go under the knife, cut down your food in anyway or go on any crash diet. This week, I’m going to show you how to make your face look thinner, naturally. And I’ll be showing you some makeup tips and tricks so you’ll know exactly how to contour for slimmer face and look amazing in photos and videos. 

Now if you’ve always wanted a smaller forehead, an instant eye lift, a sharper nose, higher cheekbones, a slimmer face, or a V-shape face, you can definitely achieve all of thee above by reshaping your face with the clever use of contouring creams or powders

What is contouring?

Well basically, you’re creating a hint of a shadow on certain parts of your face and hopefully before you finish reading this post, you’ll see how easy it is and you’ll have full confidence to play with shading and sculpting makeup the next time you put on your face. Contouring not only creates dimensions but it also defines our features, accentuating them.

Why contour your face?

Nope, contouring is not a new thing.

Besides, there’s really nothing new under the sun. Contouring actually dates back to the fifteen hundreds where the Elizabethan stage actors would use chalk and soot to define their features so the audience would be able to make out their facial expressions more clearly

Fast forward to today, contouring has become more mainstream. And even in the day to day, it’s definitely useful to know how to use shading so we won’t appear flat in photos and especially in zoom videos. The only exception to the rule, is of course if you already have very strong, sharp and defined features. Then, you might wanna skip this altogether so you don’t end up looking hollow. 

Contouring for beginners

Now if there’s a chance that you’ve been losing hair and gaining more face like me, I’ll talk about how you can stimulate hair growth with some simple scalp massages in a future post but for now, here’s how to hide your receding hairline. Imagine a line that connects the highest point of your forehead to the top of your ear, then fill that space with contour cream or powder.

If you’ve been following me, you’ll remember that creams go with cream or liquid foundations and powders go on powdered faces. And since I’ve already got some primer and cream foundation on, I’m gonna just go ahead and use a cream contour cuz that’s gonna help me blend the contour more easily.

How to contour the eye area?

Moving down to the eye area, here’s how you can achieve an instant eye lift. Just imagine a line that connects thee outer corner of your nose to thee outer corner of your eye that fades to nothingness and blends beautifully into your hairline. I’ll be applying some shadow on my eyelids as well. Just look straight ahead and relax while doing this. And do this only if you have hooded eyes like me. Then, you connect the both lines, seamlessly. This’ll not only give you the much coveted instant eye lift but also help set the stage for when you apply eye shadow, which I’ll talk about in future posts so watch this space.

Remember the principle is this, use shadows to hide what you don’t want to emphasise, which is hooded-ness in this case, and you’d wanna use highlights or shimmer to achieve thee opposite effect and that is to draw attention to that particular point or emphasise just that part of your face. I’ll touch on that a little later on at the end, so read on.

How to contour your nose your nose to make it look smaller?

Meanwhile, here’s how you can use contour to create a sharper, straighter nose. From each side of your nose bridge, blend the shadow right up to the brows because that’ll give you a hint as to where to start your brows at ninety degrees so you look younger and sharper. Do check out my 5 Brow Tips to Look Younger post for more.   

How to create cheekbones with makeup?

And to define the cheekbones, imagine a line connecting the corners of your mouth to the top of the ear. Always blend the cream or powder down to nothingness.

Subtlety is key. And better still, if you can’t tell where it starts and where it ends.

So when the people around you can tell that you have these big brown stripes that are wider than a finger’s width going across your face, you know that you’ve gone over to the dark side my friend. So, go easy on the product, remember a little goes a long way.

How to make your lips look bigger naturally?

Time now to contour the bottom of your lip to give the illusion of fuller, thicker lips.

How to contour your jawline / How to V-shape your face?

And we finish off by shading our jawline. Just imagine a line that connects the bottom of the ear to the lowest point of your chin. Now we’re pretty much done.

And that’s how to make your face look thinner naturally and that’s how to contour for slimmer face. I hope you got value out of this and if you did, hit that like button and share it with your friends. I'll explain, in detail, in my next post the principles behind highlighting certain points on your face to draw attention to or bring these features forward. So remember to follow me or hit subscribe, so you’ll be notified when that post goes live! In the meanwhile, you have a beautiful day!

Love, Lynette Tan