i think most people would know by now that i really am a macha fanatic. i've pledged my undying love for it a million times and i just can't live without my daily strong dose of homemade macha latte, made possible with the immersion handheld blender. and while i love complex french/japanese gateaux and entremets, i adore simple french tea cakes like madeleines, financiers and caneles as well. at times when i just wanna make something simple, i usually go for madeleines and financiers instead of pound cakes, muffins or brownies. plus, my sweet friend claire gave me a really big pack of macha powder, so i just wanted to try it out :)
and whats a madeleine without its characteristic bump? i didn't think it matters until i started aiming for perfection in my bakes. perfection to me means the asthethics, baking method & final results should adhere to its given characteristics, for eg. feet in macarons or that financiers should be made using the beurre noisette (browned butter) method. anything else just won't do. yes, i'm THAT fussy now.
to be frank, i was kinda scarred after the pancake episode. now whenever i mix in a cake batter, i keep asking myself whether i've overmixed or not. in this case, i mixed the madeleine batter really thoroughly but still they came out light & fluffy, so apparently it doesn't really matter. and i should probably stick to what i'm good at in future - baking, and not cooking something over the stove.
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste or 1 tsp vanilla extract
directions :
1. in a bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder & macha powder.
2. in another bowl, whisk sugar & eggs until pale & fluffy. add in vanilla bean paste or extract & mix well.
3. fold flour mixture thoroughly into the egg mixture followed by the melted butter.
4. cover with cling film and refrigerate at least 3 hrs or overnight.
5. fill mixture in madeleine mold until almost to the rim. bake in a preheated oven of 200C for 10-13 mins until puffed & golden or a skewer inserted into the middle of the madeleine comes out clean.
was back at canele again yesterday and for a change, we had their mains as well as the ala carte desserts. didn't have any individual entremets this time round and i really really enjoyed the food big time. i can safely say that if there's only ONE place that doesn't disappoint, canele would have to be it.
i had the carbonara ($14.50) and it was SO GOOD! serving of bacon was really generous and despite it being a cream sauce, it wasn't cloying or anything. poached egg was also done really nicely. pasta was also cooked al dente but the nicest thing was the aged shaved parmesan. definitely the best carbonara i've eaten.
salad "concorde" ($9.50) for the gf who's perpetually on diet :p
earl grey ice cream with raspberry jelly & milk choc shards ($8) was really good too. prominent taste of earl grey without being overly sweet. i think it tastes alot like milk tea!
nougatine ($13.50) - crepes filled with nutella, salty caramel, caramelized filo, nougatine ice cream and vanilla crème chantilly. only one word to describe - awesome. the combination was so right and the filo was really buttery. salted caramel is my weakness and i just cant say no.
definitely one of the best meals i've had in a long time. of coz company and ambience matters too. everything was right, all at the same time. now i think my favorite branch would have to be the shaw centre one. i just love it there, cosy and classy. and i notice something. i take the ugliest pictures of the best tasting food and prettiest pictures of the lousiest food, wonder why? i definitely didn't have the best pictures this time but who cares? it was one of the better and least expensive meals i had ;) from now on, i forsee i'll be going back often to places that don't disappoint rather than venturing, looking for new restaurants all the time. and yes, i've became less adventurous.
p/s : are filipinos generally friendlier and more polite? so far i've YET to come across those rude ones with attitude problem in the service line. kudos to them!
i haven't had much kitchen failures lately and that really boosted my confidence quite abit. even my first attempt at pizza dough was a success though i was expecting it to fail, but it didn't. never had much luck with yeast thats why. even for macarons, i succeeded on the second attempt, so, i don't know why i'm always having issues with pancakes. my nth time making pancakes but no matter whether i'm using an instant pancake mix or one thats made from scratch - i keep getting the dense, eggy, kueh-like texture and i dunno why. the gf made it, and hers turned out light & fluffy, "almost similar to macdonalds' hotcakes", she said. could be several factors, i don't know, but i have somemore leftover pancake mix so thats about all i'm gonna try. if i still fail, thats it, i'm giving up. not like pancake's my favorite food anyway. funny how i always succeed in making complex and multi-component desserts that take 4-5 hrs to put together, i fail to succeed in making such simple stuff like pancakes. damn, now that i recall, i even manage to temper the choc sheets for the plasir sucre IN our weather. i'm amused, really.
berries are really photogenic and i can't help but take a picture of them. got these really cute tins that are meant for planting cactuses in, but i think they complement the berries really well :)
light and fluffy not, but definitely edible. i think they're ok, i like the taste of it just not the texture. recipe from here. see how gorgeous the gf's rendition are??
even though i said i wasn't gonna make anymore cupcakes, i just couldn't help it, especially not after seeing the luscious red velvet from hummingbird bakery at my new friend diva's blog. the only problem was finding the right recipe. two failed attempts in the past left me with rock hard and bland results fit for the trash, adding on to the fact that red velvets are notorious for being "neither here nor there" coz the taste is somewhat between a chocolate and a vanilla cake, i just wanted one from a "reputable source" this time round so i singled out magnolia bakery's and sprinkles cupcakes' recipes. both are well known cupcakeries in the US but i chose the former even though there were mixed reviews.
i was skeptical at first but i was SO GLAD i made them afterall! they turned out moist, crumbly, not too sweet and were chocolatey enough. in fact i was quite happy to eat them without any frosting. but of coz, they were even better when frosted. seriously for those who gave negative reviews, i dunno where the "too dry" came from. it was so moist & fluffy that the cake crumbled really easily! and y'know, cupcakes are still big in the west. i realised i don't dislike them, i just detest the local ones where they're always adorned with lotsa sugar sprinkles, pearls, quins, fondant butterflies, gumpaste flowers and what-nots. in my opinion, they're ugly and typical. cupcakes from countries like US & UK look absolutely scrummy, edible and extremely classy without all these "unnecessary toppings". so, i'll never be caught dead with using another fondant butterfly in my cupcakes like i used to. never. ever.
6 tbsps red food coloring (i used a combination of liquid strawberry red color & wilton's no-taste red color gel)
3 tbsps unsweetened cocoa
1 ½ tsps vanilla extract
1 ½ tsps salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk *
1 ½ tsps cider vinegar
1 ½ tsps baking soda
for the cream cheese frosting :
2x226g packages cream cheese, softened & cut into pcs
6 tbsps unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
5 cups sifted powdered sugar, or to taste
directions :
1. In a small bowl, sift the cake flour and set aside. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
2. in a small bowl, whisk together the red food coloring, cocoa, and vanilla. Add to the batter and beat well.
3. In a measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. Add to the batter in three parts, alternating with the flour. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overbeat.
4. In a small bowl, stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. Add to the batter and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.
5. spoon batter into cupcake liners until 2/3 full. bake in a preheated oven of 170C for 20-25 mins or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
6. to make the cream cheese frosting, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth on medium speed, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat well. Gradually add the sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating continuously until smooth and creamy. Cover and refrigerate icing for 2 to 3 hours, but no longer, to thicken before using.
* if you don't hv buttermilk, you can substitute it with 1/2 cup evaporated milk + 1/2 cup low fat milk and add in 1 tbsp of vinegar for every cup of buttermilk.
my first time making pizza dough from scratch and i was pretty excited about it. been dreaming about a really good parma ham & rocket pizza ever since i had it earlier this year at bistro senso but i've been procrasting about making my own coz i haven't come across any pizza dough recipe that i felt i could trust (ok i promise to use my bread baker's apprentice book by peter reinhart nx time). so happened i picked up the latest copy of donna hay (yes, again!) and there were lotsa pizza recipes in there. decided to make use of the basic dough recipe and i thought it was quite good tho' it tasted rather similar to the flatbread i made not too long ago. the only mistake i made was not brushing the dough with oil before baking, ended up with burnt bits around the sides :( and since i hv so much leftover dough in the freezer, i'm gonna make a quattro formaggi (four cheese) pizza next :) btw, parma ham is REALLY expensive. at about $2 per slice, i'm never buying again!
recipe source : donna hay magazine, issue 47 (oct/nov 09)
ingredients (makes two 30cm round pizzas or up to twelve 15cm round mini pizzas) :
1 tbsp dry yeast
1 tsp caster sugar
250ml lukewarm water
375g OO flour* (i used plain flour)
1 tsp sea salt flakes
1 tbsp olive oil
70g baby rocket leaves
12 slices parma ham (prosciutto)
1 cup tomato puree (sauce)
olive oil for brushing
shaved parmigiano reggiano or parmesan
directions :
1. to make the basic dough, place the yeast, sugar & water in a bowl and mix to combine. set aside in a warm place for 5 mins or until bubbles appear on the surface. this means the yeast has been activated.
2. place flour, salt & olive oil in a bowl and make a well in the centre. add the yeast mixture and mix together with lightly floured hands to form a dough.
3. knead dough on a lightly floured surface for 3-4 mins or with a standmixer fitted with the dough hook until smooth & elastic.
4. divide the dough into equal size pieces and place on a lightly oiled tray under a clean damp cloth and set aside in a warm place for 30 mins or until the balls hv doubled in size.
5. press each dough ball into a round and roll out on a lightly floured surface to the desired size as per recipe instruction.
6. preheat oven to 220C and place pizza tray inside oven and heat for 5-10 mins.
7. brush olive oil on dough, spread tomato puree on it using the back of a spoon and place on heated pizza tray.
8. bake for 10-15 mins until the base is crispy and crust golden.
9. top with parma ham, rocket leaves and shaved parmigiano reggiano cheese.
*OO flour is superfine flour used for making a good pizza dough to ensure a soft malleable dough and crisp crust when cooked.
* when making pizza its important to preheat the pizza tray or stone at 220C for 10-15 mins before baking. this maximises the amt of heat that reaches the base, ensuring a crispy crust.
* keep rolled out unused pizza bases in the freezer layered between non-stick baking paper and cover well in plastic wrap for up to a month.
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