Oh gosh.

This cake was a bit different. I will let you know how bad it was in a bit. =(

Hello All!

Okay, here I stand, before my work of art. This cheesecake was for my significant other's father as a birthday gift and yes, it looked good and ready but everyone was in for surpirse.

Green tea cheesecake

• 2 (8 ounce) containers fat-free cream cheese, softened
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon green tea powder
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker pie crust

As you can see, it was a straight forward bake and take away cake. The only thing I would complain about is the lack of green tea matcha. The only thing I didn't use was the graham cracker pie crust. I always refer to the Jamie Oliver one and it has always gotten many praises for it's buttery cookie aroma. Upon tasting it, it was salty and I had no clue why! The only thing I could come up with is the fact that it was not cold enough.

When I took it home and refrigerate it over the course of the day, it was fine. My grandma had a slice and said it was too sweet and my mom said it was perfect. So I am as confused as you are. But boy, was I ever so embarassed at the fact that it was salty and no I did not add salt. No way in hell I did. Oh well, I will let this be a lesson for me. =)

Hello friends!

It's been way too long since I baked something real nice but here I am with fresh new stuff! My friend from the UK lent me her books and I decided to give it a try since there will always be macaroon fans out there. To me, it's basically just meringue with food colouring so nothing I have not done before. The only hard part was hunting down the ground almonds. =(

Meringue  
75g ground almonds 
115g icing sugar 
2 large egg whites 
50g sugar 
pink food colouring  

Filling  
55g unsalted butter softened 
1/2 tsp vanilla extract 
115g icing sugar 
4 strawberries finely chopped

The stage that really made me a bit frustrated was the piping of the meringue, I hate piping to be honest but it's a skill that I will have to develop and get use to. I wish there was an easier way, I will have to ask my master bakers or if you have any ideas you can message me. =) Everything else was pretty straight foward, blending the meringue and folding in the dry ingredients. The one mistake I came across was I didn't strain all the water from the strawberries beforehand and I added it in the filling making it a bit watery. But other than that, the taste was legit and my family loved it!

Can't wait to make another batch! Keep you posted. =)

 

Hello! =)

Summerlicious lunch at Oliver's was such a success. I am very pleased with the results and so were my guests!  

Update Its been a while but here we go!  

App: - Avocado lettuce wraps with tomato bacon Dressing  
1/4 cup red wine vinegar 
2 tbsp finely chopped shallots 
1 tbsp finely chopped jalapeno 
 3/4 cup olive oil salt and pepper  

Grilled  
2 avocados, cut in half pitted and peeled 
olive oil 
1ime juice 
1/4 hot sauce 
pinch of sugar 
salt and pepper

wraps  
olive oil 
salt and pepper 
4 tbsp prepared dressing 
8 strips bacon 
4 hard boiled eggs chopped 
2 tomatoes diced 
2 heads boston lettuce, cleaned and leaves removed

Oh my goodness, this appetizer was one of the most hardest to prepare for but it was very, very rewarding! The guacamole was bang on! It had a very unique taste, the lime juice and hot sauce really work well together to give your taste buds some excitment. In the end, everyone was all over the guacamole.  

Side App - Watermelon soup
6 cups watermelon juice of one lime 
30ml grated ginger salt 
6 mint leaves

This was a really good chiller, a break in between meals and also a conversation starter. The watermelon juice or soup with the mint gave a breathe of freshness in the mix and it was just so easy to down. Served in chilled shot glasses, it was a good way to entertain guests.  

Main - Salmon en papillote with herb sauce

4 salmon fillets 
10g butter 
8 thin slices of lemon halved 

HERB SAUCE 
315ml fish stock 
80 ml white wine 
2 french shallots 
250 ml cream 
4 tablespoons of herbs of your choice

I have never poached a salmon this way before but it was a good experience. I wrapped it with parchment paper and seasoned the fillet with butter, salt, pepper and lemons. Bake for 10-15 minutes depending on thickness. Once it's done, serve right away with the herb sauce. The creamy herb sauce really brings back memories of my old man's cooking but this seem a bit more legit since its straight out of a french book haha.  

Dessert - Chocolate and blueberry crepes  
Crepes 
3 eggs 
salt 
50ml butter 
250ml flour 
300ml milk 

Blueberries 
4 cups blueberries 
250ml sugar 
zest of 1 lemon 
juice of 1/2 lemon 

Ganache 
175ml 35% cream 
8oz dark chocolate 
25ml butter 
salt

I had no idea why I chose such a complicated dessert but this had some assembly to do as well. I felt bad for making my guest wait on dessert but I had some trouble finding the right pan for this. It turns out that the cast iron pan was a good pan to use but I decided to use this weird one, oh well. The crepes were very tasteful, you can really taste the hint of milk which was very smooth. The blueberry sauce was the WOW factor, same with the chocolate sauce. Both very sweet so be cautious when garnishing your plate with these.

Aside from my foodie craze, I also, like many others, enjoy good slow music. This artist here captured this song in a whole new way and he gave it new life. Almost like a different way of eating an orange.

Check it out.

Hello Friends!

This weekend has been such a relaxed one. My cousin Eric is on his summer vacation and decided to come hang out at my place for 2 days. We took advantage of this time and played on the Playstation and of course, did some baking. He is so eager to learn, it's inspiring. So, I took him in as my apprentice haha. His goal is to learn how to bake and cook. What a good kid. =) Sometimes I wish I can make a phone call to the future, if that makes any sense or maybe a phone call to the past? Haha. Excuse me, I am a bit drugged up from the antibiotics my doctor gave me this morning.

Anyways, we got the chance to tackle France by making some Crepes.

Updates on the ingredients in a bit. =)

Hello Guys

I am so tired, I feel so drained today although I didn't do much. I think its work, it has just been a tough week filled with the cover designs and all. I feel like I can't with them win and its not fair. Oh well, life, what can I do about it. A couple of days ago, I got the chance to make Floating Islands in a Chocolate Lake. It was definitely fun to be working with chocolate again.

Heres how it goes:


Chocolate custard
2 cups of milk 
5 egg yolks 
1/4 sugar 
2.25 oz dark chocolate 


Islands 
5 egg whites 
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar 
dark brown sugar 


I have to admit, I really suck at making custard. I can never really know when it is ready. The next thing you know, it starts to get chunky and that is not what you want. There is a technique that Jamie taught me and it was to drain it over a strainer so that you can get all the chunky bits out. But overall, it was a great. The chocolate wasn't too sweet and the island gave it a really nice balance since it doesn't really have any sugar at all.

my lovely grandma enjoying it

Hello All!

It is such a joyous weekend! My friends and I went to a Night Market and had the chance to experience some really nice street eats. Nothing beats getting together at night and taking advantage of this nice weather. I don't know what has gotten into to me recently but I don't feel like myself. That's why I have cooking. Yes, yes, I have been a little inactive but I didn't forget about this blog. Last week, I made a really nice salmon called Poached Salmon with Basil Mousseline. It was an easy fix for you lazy people out there (like me).

What you need:
Basil Mousseline
 1/3 cup Mayo 
1/2 basil chopped 
1/4 cup green onion 
2/3 cup whipped cream 
lemon juice 
salt and pepper

Poached Salmon 
2 cups dry white wine 
2 cups water 
2 lemons sliced 
1 medium onion 
2 sprigs dill or oregano 
salmon fillets 
1/2 cup red pepper (optional)

How Anna poached her salmon was pretty unique. It was half sub merged in the liquid while the top of the salmon was covered with a lid and popped in the oven. The beauty of salmon is that, it does not take long for it to cook and even if it was a little rare, its okay.

The taste was very light but the mousseline gave it a nice zingy taste. Even my grandma loved it and shes not a big fan of french cuisine.

Enjoy. =)