The Rolling Pin

Time Off From Baking

2011-05-21T21:04:00.000-07:00

I've been taking some time off from baking, for a multitude of reasons.

Alvin and I have decided to treat ourselves to a big trip to Africa later in the year, and since we will be going in the peak season, I feel the impetuous to do my research/bookings during any spare time I can get in order to secure whatever camps/permits necessary for our travel dates.

Work has been pretty grueling and has been taking a toll on my body and mind. And since baking can be physically tiring as I have to stand on my feet for a couple of hours straight, I feel even more fatigued after a session.

I've noticed that over the course of these past few months, I've lost sight of the macro picture. I need to work harder on the values I hold dear to me - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self control. I'm thankful for Alvin - he always reminds me of the verse from Luke that John F. Kennedy used in his presidential inauguration speech: To whom much is given, much is expected. Which makes me question, what have I given back of late? So I shall be taking some time off to work on myself.

修身，养家，治国，平天下

Finally, time to share a treasured recipe

2011-05-01T23:25:00.000-07:00

I am uber worn out from work. My team works closely with the London and DC offices, so it's not incorrect to say that we're on global shift work. We're a couple of people down in the team and not to mention, there's been an influx of new business. So we have been overwhelmed. In fact, last week, my back ached so badly from fatigue, I had to book myself into a spa to get a massage (note: this is not an excuse).

I'm still really weary, so shall keep this post real short. Today, I would like to share my precious sticky date pudding secret recipe here. I've made this numerous times for gatherings and parties and have even sold a couple of them and have received rave reviews, but all I've done, actually, is to improvise upon an already excellent recipe.

Sticky Date Pudding

Adapted from Simmone Logue

Makes 6

For the cake:

90g dried medjool dates, pitted and chopped into small pieces (note: use only good quality medjool dates as they make up the entire flavour of the cake!)

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1/2 cup boiling water

25g unsalted butter

75g brown sugar

1 egg

90g self raising flour, sifted

Prepare the cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.

Combine the dates and bicarbonate of soda in a heatproof bowl.

Pour over 1/2 cup boiling water.

Set dates for 30 minutes until room temperature.

Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until pale.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating until smooth.

Use a metal spoon to gently fold in the flour, then stir in the date mixture.

Pour the mixture into a greased muffin pan - the mixture should fill 6 muffin cups. Bake for 30-35 minutes until cooked through. Set aside for 5 minutes before turning out.

For the toffee sauce:

75g brown sugar

1/2 cup thin cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

10g unsalted butter

Prepare the toffee sauce:

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan over low heat, stirring, until the butter has melted.

Simmer for 5 minutes.

Assemble the pudding:

Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of the pudding and generously pour over the hot toffee sauce.

Very proud to be Singaporean

2011-04-15T08:58:00.000-07:00

The content of this post was triggered by a cab ride. This evening, on my way to Lung King Heen for dinner with my parents and Alvin, the cabby asked which country I hailed from and when I said "Singapore", he immediately alluded to the fact that Singaporeans and Hong Kongers were the same - at the end of the day, we're all (mainland) Chinese. I corrected him immediately to say that I am Singaporean, and that Singaporeans are not (mainland) Chinese.

So. I haven't baked in quite a while. The past couple of weeks have been kind of busy, with Alvin and I being back in Singapore over the Ching Ming holiday weekend and with my parents in town this week. And then next week we return to Singapore again for the Easter long weekend.

I always enjoy my visits back to Singapore, albeit them being really packed with meet-up sessions with friends and family. Alvin and my first priority is to spend time with our 8 year old maltese-silky terrier pooch, Sasha. Then comes family, followed by close friends.

These days, the media in Singapore is abuzz with coverage about the upcoming General Elections. There has been alot of debate about the quality of candidates that the ruling party (PAP) will be fielding this time round, and as usual, alot of talk about political freedom and democracy in Singapore. Having lived abroad, I do not deny the fact that there is certainly room for improvement in turns of the implementation of certain government policies, but by and large, the PAP have done a pretty good job for the nation. Unfortunately, in a tiny country (also known as the 'Little Red Dot', a disparaging term coined by a former leader of a neighbouring country) such as Singapore which has absolutely no natural resources, a certain kind of governance may be a 'necessary evil' as a means for speedy economic development. In this sense, the tradeoff between political freedom and economic prosperity is portrayed as a cruel choice. I personally see that as a small price to pay.

Anyway, what is the common denominator of majority of the content of this post and what I baked the other day? To the less informed, the colours on the Singapore flag are red and white. How apt.

Strawberry And Meyer Lemon Mousse Cake

Adapted from Helen Dujardin

Makes 4

For the cake base:

120g all purpose flour

140g sugar

½ tablespoon baking powder

3 egg whites

120ml fresh milk

45ml lemon juice

75g butter, melted

Prepare the cake base:

Preheat oven at 300°F/150°C.

In a bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine the egg whites and the milk.

Make a well in the center of the flour mix and slowly add in the egg white mixture while stirring with a whisk.

Add in the butter and lemon juice.

Mix with a whisk until smooth.

Line a 9x13 inch pan with parchment paper and pour in the batter.

Bake for 25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes back clean. Let cook and cut out 4 3-inch cake rounds.

For the soaking syrup:

45ml lemon juice

45ml water

1 tablespoon of sugar

Prepare the soaking syrup:

In a small saucepan set over low heat, dissolve tablespoon of sugar in lemon juice and water. Let cool and bring to room temperature.

For the lemon mousse:

2 sheets gelatin

20ml cold water

200ml fresh milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 egg yolks

35g sugar

30g corn starch

45ml lemon juice

180ml heavy cream

Prepare the lemon mousse:

In a small bowl, place the gelatin sheets in the cold water.

In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar and egg yolks together, add the cornstarch and mix until you get a smooth paste.

Meanwhile, combine the vanilla extract and milk in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat and add slowly to egg mixture, whisking constantly to prevent curdling. Place the egg mixture back into the saucepan and cook until thick under medium heat. Keep close watch and stir constantly to prevent curdling. Add the lemon juice and cook for another 30 seconds and remove from the heat. Immediately add in the gelatin and stir until completely dissolved. Cool to room temperature.

Whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form and gently fold it into the pastry cream.

For Assembly:

1 punnett of strawberries

Line cake rounds with parchment paper. Dip cake base into soaking syrup. Fit the cake bases at the bottom of the cake round. Cut strawberries into half and line the cake rounds with them. Spoon the mousse immediately into the cake rounds, level the top with an offset spatula and refrigerate.

2 very poor encounters in the past week

2011-04-07T08:41:00.000-07:00

I know this blog is supposed to chronicle my baking adventures, but I can't help but express my anger at a brief encounter I had today with a stranger I met at dinner. D and I were in a Vietnamese joint for some good old pho when this dude (let's call him "Obnoxious") strutted in with a companion in tow. Turns out that D and "Obnoxious" were ex-colleagues back in Singapore. D introduced me to him and this is how the rest of the conversation went:

Obnoxious: So how long have you been in Hong Kong for?

Me: Since last July

Obnoxious: Oh, so what do you do?

Me: I'm in the media industry

Obnoxious: Oh! Pass me your name card!

Me: What line are you in? (I then proceed to offer Obnoxious my name card)

Obnoxious: I'm in advertising. At a bank (D chirped in and said that Obnoxious is working for UBS)

Me: Ah!

Obnoxious: (After looking at my name card) So, is it your job that brought you to Hong Kong?

Me: No. I moved here for my husband. He found a job here

Obnoxious: Ah! No wonder. I was wondering why you would come all the way to Hong Kong to be an __________ (He then continues to name the position printed on my name card). Yes, I'm the client. Are you going to try to sell me something?

Actually, I'm not sure if I'm angry with him. I suppose angry could be the wrong word to use here. I'm more flabbergasted at his lack of sensitivity and the fact that he thinks that just because I'm in ad sales, I'm trying to sell him something. He can take his company's money and stuff it up his sorry whatever. Tonight's encounter left me with a fire in my belly. And I think good things could potentially come out of it.

Then let me tell you about the lady I met on Saturday at E's baby shower. Let's call her "Mrs Fake Humility". She dropped in on us briefly and this is part of the conversation which transpired with E and "Mrs Fake Humility":

Mrs Fake Humility: We can't stay long, we're going to a charity thing later in the evening. By the way, any of you want to go? We've got lots of free tickets.

E: Oh! Is it the ball that costs $350 a seat?

Mrs Fake Humility: I don't know. We just gave them a wad (Mrs Fake Humility then catches herself in time and corrects her statement), a belt of cash.

That was a jaw dropping moment. As much as E explained (after Mrs Fake Humility cleared the scene) how nice her friend was, I could not comprehend why someone would say something like that. A wad of cash to the needy? I really think this quote from the bible is so wise: When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. This, to me, is true humility and generosity.

My long-suffering Alvin

2011-04-06T09:25:00.000-07:00

Each time I encounter an unsuccessful bake, Alvin always reminds me of this proverb - 失败是成攻之母 (failure is the mother of success). And surprisingly, I have been taking my baking failures pretty well. Though I am heart broken each time my macarons fail to rise gloriously, or when my creme brulee fails to curdle sufficiently, I always take it in my stride and vow to improve my skills with time, albeit some complaining and frustration.

Anand commented the other day about my FB post. He said that Alvin was a lucky guy because he gets to feast first hand, on the baked goods that are produced straight from the oven. However, I would be the first to say that the more accurate term to use here is long-suffering than lucky. He has to put up with my reckless abandon to satisfy a sudden baking impetuous (in turn, the state of the house suffers). He only gets to eat imperfectly shaped cookies or cracked macarons or cupcakes that hadn't been iced prettily enough to see the light of day. In short, he really gets the crumbs. But he has never complained. He's always been supportive. He says he hopes that one day, I will establish my own equivalent of the Martha Stewart empire and earn so much money that he can quit his job and live off me. Well, we shall see ;p

So anyway, after 4 tries, here are a batch of macarons that I baked successfully. I had originally intended to make them for Ji-Ye's farewell party. But unfortunately, because the eclairs took up so much time, I didn't actually have the time to work on the filling of the macaron, so I didn't manage to complete them in time for the party. As a result, my colleagues were the beneficiaries of my poor time management.

Green Tea Macarons with White Chocolate Green Tea Ganache

Makes 30

For the macaron shells:

120g powdered sugar

90g ground almonds

2 egg whites

30g sugar

½ teaspoon matcha powder

A dash of green food coloring/gel

For the white chocolate green tea ganache:

100g white chocolate

95g cream

½ teaspoon matcha powder

Prepare the macaron shells:

Preheat oven at 300°F/150°C.

Line a baking tray with 2 layers of baking paper.

Sift the powdered sugar together with the matcha powder and ground almond in a bowl. Mix well.

Add green coloring to the electric mixer and simultaneously whisk egg whites until foamy and white. Add the sugar and continue whisking until meringue is and soft peaks are formed.

Add dry ingredients to whisked egg whites and gently fold with a spatula. When dry ingredients have been fully incorporated, transfer it into a piping bag with a 10mm piping tip.

Pipe circles of 3.5 cm diameter, spacing them every 3 cm on baking paper. Once done, let the shells rest, preferably in an air-conditioned room for at least an hr.

Bake for 12-15 mins.

Prepare the white chocolate green tea ganache:

Heat cream to a boil then pour over the chocolate. Let chocolate melt on its own for a while then stir with a spatula until smooth and even. Add in matcha powder and stir.

Transfer to piping bag and place in fridge to cool before using.

Prepare the macaron:

Pipe white chocolate ganache onto cooled maracon shell. Sandwich with another shell.

Feeling French

2011-03-28T07:48:00.000-07:00

This weekend, I suffered from an overdose of baking. I was asked by May to bake something for Ji-Ye's farewell party (she invited about 80 folks from SP) and so I excitedly set out to bake 40 chocolate eclairs and an assortment of macarons.

I started out early on Saturday and followed a recipe from a pastry cookbook to make eclair shells. After 1 hour of cracking eggs and melting butter and mixing ingredients, I was so disappointed to find that the eclair shells that came out of the oven were too soft. They had no body to them, and could not, for sure, be cut open to sandwich whipped cream. So I thought I'd give myself a break and make macarons instead. I proceeded with trepidation. I have only ever succeeded once (out of 9 tries) in baking macarons, so you can understand how nervous I was. So no surprises here - the first batch of 30 shells that came out of the oven didn't rise properly. So into the bin they went.

I was so cheesed off (with I don't even know what) when I left to meet John and Alvin (who had been playing soccer earlier in the morning) for brunch at Soho. I had accomplished nothing the entire morning. Thank goodness brunch was yummy. I love hanging out at the Supper Club. I mentioned to John that perhaps the reason why I love it so much is because it feels as though I've just stepped out of Hong Kong, into New York or Sydney. The casual, laid back atmosphere strikes a chord with me.

When we came home from brunch, I started baking in a frenzy. I decided to try out Pierre Herme's recipe and thank goodness that was a success. I like how he assures readers that certain outcomes of certain actions are natural, and that we need not panic. For instance, when adding eggs into batter, he mentions in his book that the batter will separate and coagulate into a weird form, but that's okay, it will come together after the addition of the forth egg. I baked till 11pm that evening.

Chocolate Eclairs

Adapted from Pierre Herme & Catherine Atkinson

Makes 15

For the cream puff dough:

½ cup whole milk

½ cup water

115g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

¼ teaspoon sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

3 large eggs

Prepare the cream puff dough:

Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and keep them close at hand.

Bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the boil in a saucepan. When the mixture is boiling rapidly, add the flour all at once, reduce the heat to medium, and start stirring the mixture like mad with a wooden spoon immediately. The dough will come together very quickly and a slight crust will form on the bottom of the pan, but you need to keep stirring vigorously for another 3 minutes to dry the dough. At the end of this time, the dough will be very smooth.

Turn the dough into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.

One by one, add in the eggs to the dough, beating until each egg is thoroughly incorporated. Don't be discouraged - as soon as you add the first egg, the dough will separate. Keep working and by the time the third egg is added, the batter will start coming together again. When all the eggs are incorporated, the dough will be thick and shiny and when you lift some of it up, it will fall back into the bowl in a ribbon.

Spoon the warm dough into a large pastry bag fitted with a 2cm plain tip. Pipe out the dough onto the baking sheets in chubby fingers, about 10cm long. Make sure to leave about 5cm of puff space between each strip of dough.

Slide the baking sheets into the oven and bake for 7 minutes, then slip the handle of a wooden spoon into the door so that it remains slightly ajar. Continue to bake for another 13 minutes.

Keep the eclair shells in a cool dry room for several hours before filling.

For the chocolate sauce:

115g dark chocolate

2 tbs water

25g unsalted butter

Prepare the chocolate sauce:

Place the chocolate and water in a small bowl set over a pan of hot water. Melt, stirring until smooth.

Remove from the heat and gradually stir in the butter.

For the whipped cream:
300ml double cream

2 tsp icing sugar, sifted

½ tsp vanilla essence

Prepare the whipped cream:

Whip the cream with the icing sugar and vanilla essence until it just holds its shape.

Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain tip.

To assemble:

Cut each eclair shell horizontally into two using a serrated knife.

Carefully dip the top of each eclair shell in the melted chocolate. Cool in fridge until chocolate is set.

Pipe the whipped cream to fill the eclairs.

Not having time to bake

2011-03-20T04:36:00.000-07:00

I know I've been slack with baking and posting. Wait. No. Actually, I haven't been slack. It's just that I haven't had the capacity nor energy to bake. Work has been utterly crazy and the long hours have certainly taken its toll on my body. Baking can serve as a form of relaxation after a hard day in the office, but since I've been working 15 hour days, something's got to give and unfortunately, it has to be my time in the pantry. I made this Nutella tart some time back, before work got crazy, but I just did not have the time to post it. So here goes. This is one really decadent tart.

Nutella Tart

Adapted from Pierre Herme

Makes one 9-inch tarts

For the crust:

70g unsalted butter, at room temperature

35g confectioners' sugar, sifted

25g finely ground almond powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg, at room temperature, beaten with a fork

125g all-purpose flour

As you'll get the best texture if you make a larger quantity of this dough, I would recommend doubling the quantity of ingredients to make dough enough for 2 tarts, and then keeping the remaining portion in the freezer.

Prepare the crust:

Place the butter in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on low speed until creamy. Add the sugar, almond powder, salt, vanilla and eggs and, still working on low speed, beat to blend the ingredients, scraping down the paddle and the sides of the bowl as needed. The dough may look curdled - that's alright. With the machine on low, add the flour in three or four additions and mix only until the mixture comes together to form a soft, moist dough - a matter of seconds. Don't overdo it.

Gather dough into a ball and divide it into 3 or 4 pieces. Gently press each piece into a disk and wrap each disk in plastic. Allow the dough to rest in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or for up to 2 days, before rolling and baking.

For each tart, place a 9-inch buttered tart ring on a parchment-lined baking sheet and keep close at hand. Work with one piece of dough at a time; keep the remaining dough in the refrigerator. Working on a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to a thickness of between 2 and 4 cm, lifting the dough often and making certain the work surface and the dough are amply floured at all times. Roll the dough up around your rolling pin and unroll it onto the tart ring. Fit the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the ring, then run your rolling pin across the top of the ring to cut off the excess. If the dough cracks or splits as you work, don't worry, patch the cracks with scraps. Prick the dough all over with the tines of a fork and chill it for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

When you are ready to bake the crust, preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C. Fit a circle of parchment paper or foil into the crust and fill with dried beans or rice. Bake the crust for 18 to 20 minutes, just until it is very lightly colored. If the crust needs to be fully baked, remove the parchment and beans an bake the crust for another 3 to 5 minutes, or until golden. Transfer the crust to a rack to cool.

For the filling:
200g Nutella
140g bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
200g unsalted butter
1 large egg, at room temperature, stirred with a folk
3 large egg yolks, at room temperature, stirred with a fork
2 tablespoons sugar
140g hazelnuts, toasted, skinned and cut into large pieces

Prepare the filling:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.
Spread the Nutella evenly over the bottom of the crust and set it aside while you make the ganache.
Melt the chocolate and the butter in separate bowls either over (not touching) simmering water or in a microwave oven. Allow them to cool until they feel only just warm to the touch.
Using a small whisk, stir the egg into the chocolate, stirring gently in ever-widening circles and taking care not to agitate the mixture - you don't want to beat air into the ganache. Little by little, stir in the egg yolks, then the sugar. Finally, still working gently, stir in the warm melted butter. Pour the ganache over the Nutella in the tart shell. Scatter the toasted hazelnuts over the top.
Bake the tart for 11 minutes. The center of the tart will shimmy if jiggled. Remove the tart from the oven and slide it onto a rack. Allow the tart to cool for at least 20 minutes or until it reaches room temperature - the best temperature at which to serve it.

Eating soap

2011-03-05T08:33:00.000-08:00

Have I mentioned before that eating lavender infused food remind me of eating soap or body lotion? First time I ate a lavender something was at a lavender farm in Hunter Valley, NSW, Australia. I had lavender scones with strawberry jam. All I can say is that it's definitely an acquired taste.

When I fed Alvin a spoonful of this creme brulee I made, first words that came out of his mouth were, "But it's strange". So, friends, don't say I didn't warn you. Proceed with caution!

Lavender Crème brûlée

Adapted from Bea

Serves 3

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon culinary lavender

1½ tablespoon caster sugar

3 egg yolks

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons caster sugar to caramelize on the top

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C.

Bring the cream to a gentle boil in a saucepan. Once it starts boiling, remove from heat. Immediately throw in culinary lavender and steep for 15 minutes.

Strain.

Beat the egg yolks and mix with caster sugar and vanilla extract till light in colour.

Pour in the cream slowly and mix.

Divide the cream mixture between the 3 ramekins.

Fill the baking dish with boiling water so that the water line is half way up to the height of the ramekins. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. Let cool before placing the ramekins in the fridge for a few hours.

When ready to serve, sprinkle top of cream with caster sugar and caramelize with blow torch or put under the broil for a few minutes.

A great end to a weird day

2011-02-28T23:57:00.000-08:00

Today was somewhat of a weird day. I was trying to think of a good term to describe my weird day - I think I shall call it the "spirit is willing but the flesh is weak" day. I journeyed to work, well aware of the multitude of work to be accomplished, but somehow after setting foot into the office, I switched on my monitor and simply slumped onto my chair. I felt so lethargic, I had to drag my feet to the coffee machine to fix myself a macchiato. And it's not as though I had a full-on weekend. In fact, we had a really slow weekend. Alvin and I woke up at noon on Saturday (something which does not happen very often) and after lunch, I went back to bed and napped for 2 more hours. It definitely had something to do with the hectic pace at work the week before.

So anyway, 2 huge deals amounting to several millions of dollars were closed today. When the first email came, I didn't quite know how to react. In fact, it was rather anti-climatic. The team had been working painstakingly on this deal for the past 2 years and quite out of the blue, we received a sign-off today. Okay, so I kind of exclaimed loudly to my teammates that the deal was closed. There were gasps and some cheers, but in general, just pretty low energy celebration. And then at 1711hrs, another email came. I was working on something else and because the subject header was such a non-event kind of header, I left it for another 30 minutes before clicking on it. Then I exclaimed loudly again. No screaming, no cartwheels, just a congregation of folks crowding around my PC reading and re-reading that email to make sure our eyes weren't playing tricks on us. We had closed yet another deal.

I came home after work and I baked. It was extremely therapeutic. And it was extremely fruitful. I usually hate working with pastry (because I'm bad at it), but tonight, the pastry must have taken pity on me because it was a breeze to roll. I made beautiful quiche tarts for Alvin's and my breakfast and I was mighty pleased with the end result.

It's finally starting to sink in. I feel so blessed. I'm working in one of the biggest and most successful media conglomerates in the world and I love what I do. Today was a good day.

Bacon, Onion and Asparagus Quiche Tarts

Adapted from Helen Dujardin

Makes 3 3-inch tarts

For the crust:

3/5 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

2 1/2 tablespoon butter, cold and cut into small slices

2 to 3 tablespoon ice cold water

Prepare the crust:

Mix together the flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or a fork until the mixture forms pea-sized pieces. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of water over the flour mixture and toss with fork until moistened. Repeat with the remaining water, one tablespoon at a time and gather the dough into a ball with your hand. Do not handle the dough too long. Wrap into a sheet of plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. This will allow the dough to relax and make it easier to roll, keeping it from becoming tough. Roll dough on a lightly floured surface, applying pressure from the center to the edges until it is about 12 inches in diameter. Cut out six 4 inch circles onto the dough and press them into the tartlet pans (or one 9 inch pan if making a larger tart). Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

For the filling:

3 slices bacon

1/4 green onion, diced

3 stalks asparagus, cut into pieces

2 eggs, slightly beaten

3/4 cup milk

Pinch of salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

1/3 cup shredded Swiss cheese

Prepare the filling:

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. In a medium sauté pan set over medium heat, cook the bacon slices until crispy brown. Drain them on a paper towel. Crumble them and set aside. Wipe the pan of the bacon dripping with a paper towel and place it back over medium heat and cook the onions and asparagus for a couple of minutes. Divide the bacon, onion and asparagus evenly among the tartlets and place them on an oiled baking sheet.

In a bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, salt and pepper until combined and slowly pour the mixture over the tartlets. Divide the cheese evenly in between the tarts and bake for about 30 minutes. Let cool before unmolding and serving.

My first paid job

2011-02-21T23:29:00.000-08:00

I was first introduced to Earl Grey tea when I was waitressing in Coffee Club Singapore - the branch at Holland Village. I had then just completed my GCE 'A' levels exam and was waiting to enter university in Sydney. That is an experience I relish tremendously. Somehow, I enjoyed waiting on tables, taking orders, serving food and ringing tills. Somehow, being around food and people gave me alot of joy. I also loved to people watch. At Coffee Club, I witnessed first dates and break ups; I observed how certain male customers would walk into the joint hand in hand with a different girl each time; I overheard conversations whereby women of a certain nationality plotted to cheat male retirees of their CPF savings. At Coffee Club, I met with some total nut cases from hell, and also some very nice folks who eventually became my friends. I still remember my biggest tip was SGD5 - very small compared to servers at high end restaurant, but it made my day nevertheless. OK. So back to Earl Grey tea. Coffee Club's best seller was Iced Earl Vanilla - essentially, a blend of iced earl grey tea, sugar syrup and vanilla ice cream. Or so I suspect. I never did quite witness the preparation of this beverage, but it is not a difficult guess. Since then, Earl Grey has been my favourite tea blend. It has a distinct aroma derived from the addition of oil extracted from the rind of the bergamot orange. I know not everyone fancies Earl Grey - it's an acquired taste.

My parents visited over the weekend. Alvin and I had good, wholesome fun hanging out with them. They are such conversational and interested (and interesting) people, I love spending time with them. I wish they had stayed longer. They left back for Singapore on Sunday morning, and then my baking itch started. Because I was too lazy to make a trip to the supermarket, I tried to make do with whatever raw ingredients I had in the pantry. Inspired by my new Valentine's Day present from Alvin and love for Earl Grey tea, I decided to whip up an Earl Grey panna cotta to take to the office today. On hind sight, I should have used less gelatine and sugar and also applied normal cream and not thick cream, so I have corrected the recipe here so that you get better results than I did.

Earl Grey Panna Cotta

Adapted from Anna Hansen's recipe in Coco

Makes 6 small glasses

150ml milk

300ml cream

50g sugar

3 gelatin leaves

1 tablespoon Earl Grey tea leaves

Pinch of salt

Bring the milk, cream and sugar to boil in a pan.

Add the tea leaves to the boiling mixture. Remove from heat and let steep for 30 minutes.

Strain through a fine-mesh sieve and heat to a boil again. Once mixture reaches a boil, remove from heat.

Separately, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for a minute or two to soften. Remove excess water from gelatin leaves.

Add gelatin leaves to hot mixture. Stir till gelatin leaves dissolve completely.

Fill molds with panna cotta. Be careful not to stain the sides. If this happens, wipe the spillage with a wet tissue immediately.

Cool the glass containers uncovered at room temperature. When cool, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight before serving.

Better Than Coco Chanel Whatever!

2011-02-15T08:33:00.000-08:00

This is what I got for Valentine's Day from my darling husband - Coco, a 440 page book about the new culinary vanguard shaping the cuisine of the 21st century. This book presents 100 of the best emerging contemporary chefs from all corners of the globe as selected by 10 culinary icons: Ferran Adrià, Mario Batali, Shannon Bennett, Alain Ducasse, Fergus Henderson, Yoshihiro Murata, Gordon Ramsay, René Redzepi, Alice Waters and Jacky Yu.

Main reason why Alvin bought this particular book? It contemplates the humble beginnings of these emerging chefs and narrates the journey each took in order to be where they are today. He wanted it to be an inspiration to me - to achieve my dream of one day starting my own underground restaurant.

Thanks to the riot of glorious information — narrative, visual, and technical, this is a book that I am going to enjoy leafing through. This is better than Coco Chanel bag!

Finally, A Successful Bake

2011-02-13T23:15:00.000-08:00

I went on a baking binge this weekend. I made 2 batches of macarons (unsuccessfully), laid the ground work for ginger brulee tartlets and whipped up 2 souffles in 30 minutes. On top of that, I spent almost every waking moment thinking of what to bake next and how to style the finished product for documentation on The Rolling Pin. I think the baking bug has really caught on.

This week is going to be a busy week. My cousin, KJ, was in town for the weekend, so we hung out over a couple of meals. Another cousin will be here for work on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday, I have my parents visiting. The great thing about living in Hong Kong is its close proximity to Singapore. We've been here for only half a year, but have had more than 15 mutually exclusive sets of friends from back home come visit already.

It so happened that today was a cold and rainy day, so I thought my warm cuppa milk would be best accompanied by a warm delectable dessert. I must confess that due to the macaron mishaps yesterday and the day before, I was in no mood for another misadventure, so I wanted to do something relatively safe and quick. I was in the need for instant (well, almost) gratification.

The thing about souffles is that they are pretty difficult to photograph. They often fall almost as quickly as they rise. They are whimsical and play tricks whenever they please. I can understand why some people find baking souffles nerve wrecking. Thankfully, these fellas behaved themselves today and gave me something to blog about.

Bittersweet Chocolate Molten Souffle

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes 4

1/3 cup caster sugar, plus more for dusting ramekins

3 eggs, yolks and whites separated

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

140g bittersweet chocolate, melted (70% cocoa for dark chocolate lovers, 55% cocoa for those who don't quite like dark chocolate)

2/3 cup whole milk

1 tablespoon cornstarch

3 tablespoons yogurt or sour cream

Pinch of salt

Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C. Butter four 6-ounce ramekins. Dust with granulated sugar, and refrigerate, uncovered.

Whisk whites with a mixer until frothy, about 2 minutes. Add 1/3 cup caster sugar and whisk until medium peaks form, about 5 minutes.

Whisk milk into cornstarch and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring until thick, for about 1-2 minutes. Set melted chocolate in a bowl. Whisk cooked milk mixture into the melted chocolate. Whisk in yolks and yogurt. Gently fold in egg whites.

Fill ramekins evenly with batter. Bake on baking sheet, rotating halfway through, until souffles rise but centers are still liquid, about 14 minutes. Dust with confectioner's sugar. Serve immediately. When batter is mixed, do not refrigerate for long before baking because batter will not rise nicely.

Unfulfilled. So unfulfilled.

2011-02-12T08:11:00.000-08:00

I am feeling extremely, extremely unfulfilled. I just baked 2 batches of macarons - one last night, and another tonight. Both were unsuccessful. I just can't understand how they operate. Why are they so temperamental? I had intended to bring macarons to the office for Valentine's Day, but I guess I'll be going empty handed now. I am so discouraged and afraid to give it one last attempt tomorrow - I don't think I'd be able to take it if I'm 3 times unlucky. I'm so pissed.

A Strong, Strong Compulsion

2011-02-08T20:51:00.000-08:00

I have somehow suddenly been overcome with a strong compulsion to create, to bake. My 2011 resolution is to try out and document 50 new recipes. This is Week 6 and I have only conquered 2 recipes, one successfully and the other, unfortunately not so successfully. So if you do the math, you would understand that I'm already lagging behind. Maybe this explains my crazy preoccupation with needing to bake.

Dad had bought for me a copy of my favourite magazine, Martha Stewart Living, from Houston, and as I was leafing through the pages, I came across a recipe for chocolate souffles. Seeing that the recipes I had worked on previously involved chocolate, I thought of trying something different and fruity, so I ended up working on a ginger grapefruit recipe which I adapted from the Martha Stewart website.

The first time I had ever tasted a souffle was way back at a bed and breakfast in Foster, Australia. Each morning, we would sit down to a 4 course meal. It wasn't an ordinary jam and toast, muesli and yogurt breakfast - we had blueberry pancakes, bacon and gruyere souffles, spinach and cheddar puffs. And the menu was revised each morning. The food was just impeccable.

Ginger and Grapefruit Souffle
Adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes 4

Unsalted butter, room temperature, for ramekins
1 cup grapefruit juice (from about 2 red grapefruits)
½ tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus more for dusting
½ teaspoon finely grated red-grapefruit zest
2 large egg yolks, room temperature
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plain or Greek yogurt
4 large egg whites, room temperature
Pinch of coarse salt
Pinch of cream of tartar
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter three 6-ounce ramekins. Dust with granulated sugar, and refrigerate, uncovered.
Bring juice to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat, and simmer until reduced to ½ cup, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in ginger. Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar and zest. Whisk in yolks, cornstarch, and flour, and then the juice mixture. Return to pan. Set over medium-high heat. Cook, whisking constantly, until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Let mixture cool, stirring occasionally, to room temperature. Stir in yogurt.
With a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Add salt and cream of tartar, and beat until soft peaks form. With machine running, gradually add remaining sugar, and beat until stiff, glossy peaks form. Gently fold in grapefruit mixture in 3 additions.
Divide mixture among prepared ramekins, and place them on a baking sheet. Bake until golden and puffed, 20 to 25 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve immediately. When batter is mixed, do not refrigerate for long before baking because batter will not rise nicely.

Bourke Street Bakery

2011-01-24T07:32:00.000-08:00

I lived in Sydney for a total of 3.5 awesome years. I completed my undergraduate degree there, and then went back to work for an airline company in 2007. One fine day (literally), Crystal took me to the real McCoy in Bourke Street, Surry Hills, and that was when I first got acquainted with the best cookie ever - the Bourke Street Bakery sour cherry cookie. And as luck would have it, there was actually another Bourke Street Bakery outlet right across my apartment on Gardeners Road. The bakery very quickly became my regular weekend hound. I was there almost every Saturday morning and for months in a row, I ordered the same old thing while reading my morning paper - a cappuccino, a sour cherry cookie (yes, a cookie for breakfast) and a ginger creme brulee (this calls for a separate post altogether).

Photo From Bourke Street Bakery's Website

So you can imagine how ecstatic I was when the good folks at Bourke Street Bakery published their very own cook book which included the recipe to my all-time favourite cookie! I absolutely adore the refreshing acidity the morello cherries lent to this chewy cookie.

One problem I encountered while baking these cookies - I couldn't find dried cherries in the local supermarket, so I opened my precious jar of Trader Joe's morello cherries, fished them out of the syrup and laid them in the oven to dry for 30 minutes. They were still soft and mushy, so I decided to add some dried cranberries to the dough mixture as an extra fruit treat.

Sour Cherry and Cranberry Cookies:

Adapted from Bourke Street Bakery

Makes 35 cookies

235g chopped dark chocolate (70% cocoa for dark chocolate lovers, 55% cocoa for those who don't quite like dark chocolate)
1 cup (150g) plain flour
1/3 cup (40g) cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
100g unsalted butter
220g soft brown sugar
2 eggs
100g dried morello cherries

100g dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 330°F/165°C.

Melt the chocolate over a simmering pot of water or in the microwave.
In another bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.

Whisk the butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, making sure each is well incorporated.
Add the dry ingredients in three batches, mixing well each time, then add the melted chocolate. Stir in the cherries and cranberries. Do not panic if the mixture is gooey. This is normal.

Refrigerate the mixture for 15 minutes before shaping the cookies. Take one heaped tablespoon of dough, roll into a ball and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Allow at least 3cm between each so they have room to spread.

Refrigerate until firm (approx 30 minutes). Bake the cookies in batches, for 15-20 minutes each, or until risen and quite cracked on top. Cool on the trays.

Can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Tis' The Season

2010-12-20T23:05:00.000-08:00

Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year. Carols in the mall, greeting cards in the mail, poinsettias, gift buying and gift giving, nutmeg scented candles, I love them all. And there's the other part of Christmas that I love - the turkey, the traditional Christmas pudding, the bone-in ham, the gingerbread cookie. No Christmas celebration is ever complete without these.

Though I am not a huge fan of gingerbread, it is without doubt the quintessential Christmas cookie. I have been baking this cookie for the past 4 Christmases and have every intention of continuing this baking tradition for as long as I can. They are perfect to finish a meal with and are great gifts - they look stunning in a translucent cookie jar.

This year, Alvin and I will be returning to Singapore to celebrate Christ's birth with the people we love. I can hardly wait. Here's wishing you good health and lots of love this holiday season. Blessed Christmas.

Snowflake Gingerbread Cookies

Makes 3 - 4 dozen depending on size of cookie cutter

For the gingerbread dough:

450g plain flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cardamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon nutmeg (preferably freshly grated)

1 teaspoon salt

225g unsalted butter

150g caster sugar

180g muscovado sugar or dark brown sugar

1 large egg

2 tablespoons boiling water

1 tablespoon black treacle or blackstrap molasses

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

For the meringue powder royal icing:

2 tablespoons meringue powder

300g icing suger (sifted)

4 tablespoons water

Prepare the gingerbread dough:

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, cardamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Set aside.

Fix the mixer with the paddle attachment. Cream the unsalted butter in the mixer bowl for 2 minutes at medium speed.

Add muscovado sugar (or dark brown sugar) and caster sugar. Cream for 3 minutes at medium speed.

Beat in the egg.

In a separate small bowl, mix the boiling water together with the baking soda and treacle (or molasses) using a small spoon until the baking soda has dissolved completely.

Reduce the mixer to the slowest speed and gradually add the treacle (or molasses) mixture to the butter mixture. Turn up the mixer speed to medium.

Add the dry ingredients which have been previously set aside, in 4 additions, mixing just until combined. Do not panic. The dough will be very soft.

Divide the dough into 4 balls. Sheet a ball of dough by sandwiching between 2 large sheets of cut-up freezer bags and use a rolling pin to flatten ball of dough into an even 5mm thick sheet. Repeat for other 3 balls of dough. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours so that dough can firm up.

When the dough has been firmed up, pre-heat the oven to 350°F/175°C and set the rack in the middle level of the oven. Line several baking trays with parchment paper.

Remove first sheet of dough from refrigerator. Remove the top piece of plastic. Stamp out cookies with cookie cutter and transfer to prepared baking tray. Leave at least 4cm of space around each cookie to give it space for expansion during baking.

Bake for 10-15 minutes, depending on size of the cookie. Monitor the cookies carefully to make sure they don't get burnt. When they are done, the tops should feel set.

Cool the cookies completely on the baking tray on a wire rack.

Repeat the above few steps with the other sheets of dough in the refrigerator.

Cookies can be stored in air-tight containers for up to 3 weeks.

Prepare the meringue powder royal icing:

Fix the mixer with the whisk attachment. Place all the ingredients in the mixer bowl and beat for 10 minutes at medium speed until stiff peaks are formed.

Prepare the snowflake gingerbread cookie:

Fit a disposable piping bag with a piping tip of your choice (this again depends on the size of your cookie).

Fill the bag one-third full with the royal icing.

Pipe away!

The Mysterious Macaron

2010-12-08T23:14:00.000-08:00

The macaron has eluded me for a long time. It took me 4 unsuccessful tries before I finally conquered Mount Macaron tonight. And boy did I gain so much joy just to see the paper-thin dome shaped shells of these little fellas rise gloriously in the oven.

Macarons have been in fashion for a long time now. Some odd balls question the big fuss over this delicate confectionery. Well, I think they can attribute their worldwide success to their petite frame, pastel shades and pretty packaging.

A shout out to Ally and Rodney for introducing me to the wonderful world of Laduree macarons and Luxumburgerlis during the good old days at Batey. Naturally for someone like me, the logical step after discovering the world of macarons and tasting a couple of prototypes was to attempt to make my own. I surprised myself by persevering through 4 failed attempts. And after much concoction, I finally came up with what worked best for me. Funnily enough, after tonight's successful attempt, I couldn't bear to eat more than one - that would mean one macaron less for the folks in the office.

Chocolate Macarons with Chocolate Ganache

Makes 30

For the macaron shells:
120g powdered sugar
90g ground almonds

2 egg whites

30g sugar
50g cocoa powder

For the chocolate ganache:
100g dark chocolate (70% cocoa)
95g cream

Prepare the macaron shells:

Preheat oven at 300°F/150°C.

Line a baking tray with 2 layers of baking paper.
Sift the powdered sugar together with the cocoa powder and ground almond in a bowl. Mix well.
Whisk egg whites with electric mixer until foamy and white. Add the sugar and continue whisking until meringue is and soft peaks are formed.

Add dry ingredients to whisked egg whites and gently fold with a spatula. When dry ingredients have been fully incorporated, transfer it into a piping bag with a 10mm piping tip.
Pipe circles of 3.5 cm diameter, spacing them every 3 cm on baking paper. Once done, let the shells rest, preferably in an air-conditioned room for at least an hr.
Bake for 12-15 mins.

Prepare the chocolate ganache:
Heat cream to a boil then pour over the chocolate. Let chocolate melt on its own for a while then stir with a spatula until smooth and even.
Transfer to piping bag and place in fridge to cool before using.

Prepare the macaron:

Pipe chocolate ganache onto cooled maracon shell. Sandwich with another shell.

Back To The Far East

2010-11-02T22:20:00.000-07:00

I know. It's been ions since I wrote. Alot has transpired within these few months. In short, after Alvin's graduation, we moved across the Pacific, back to the far east. We are now living in Hong Kong.

Truth be told, it has taken us longer than expected to settle down here. In fact, I can't say for sure that we have actually settled down. We are still navigating through the nooks and crannies of this vibrant city and slowly finding new friends amidst this packed metropolis. Nevertheless, I am excited about what this city has got to offer!

Strawberry Fields Forever

2010-04-11T20:52:00.000-07:00

So. It seems to be strawberry season. I got 2 punnets from Shaw's at $1.99 each. Truth be told, they didn't turn out to be as sweet as I had hoped. Maybe that's why they were so cheap. So what did I do with so many strawberries? Make strawberry dessert! Again, we invited some friends over for dessert, wine and chit chat, so I spent some part of Sunday making verrines.

Tonight was a night of great conversation. I was particularly inspired by our Indian friend, Balu. He is a trained physician and spent the past 25 years of his life living and working in the deep forests of south west India. When he first graduated as a physician, he was challenged by someone to work in a reservation area amongst the tribal people. There were no roads, no buildings, nothing. He took up the challenge and has not looked back since. These are the types of people that Alvin interfaces with daily in school. What an inspiration.

Peach, Vanilla Mousse and Strawberry Verrines:
Adapted from Helen Dujardin

Serves 4

For the peach puree:
1 teaspoon powdered gelatin
1 tablespoon cold water
1 cup (200g) peaches, peeled and pitted diced small
1 1/2 tablespoon juice and zest of a lime (or to taste)
2 tablespoons sugar

For the vanilla mousse:
1/2 tablespoon gelatin
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

For the strawberry topping:
1/2 teaspoon gelatin
2 teaspoons water
3/4 cup (115g) fresh strawberries, halved
1 tablespoon of sugar (or to taste)

Prepare the peach puree layer:
Sprinkle the gelatin over the water and reserve. Process the peach dices with the lime juice and zest and the sugar until completely processed. Heat the mixture in a medium saucepan set over medium heat until it starts to bubble. Add the gelatin and stir until it is completely melted. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Divide evenly among 4 glasses. Refrigerate until set.

Prepare the peach mousse:
Sprinkle the gelatin over the water and reserve. Place the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla extract in a medium saucepan set over medium heat and heat until it bubbles. Watch carefully because the cream will quickly rise to the top of the saucepan. Add the gelatin and stir until completely dissolved. Let cool to room temperature. Divide evenly among the glasses. Refrigerate until set.

Prepare the strawberry puree:
Sprinkle the gelatin over the water and reserve. In the bowl of a food processor puree the strawberries with the sugar until completely smooth. Heat that mixture in a small saucepan set over medium high heat and cook until it bubbles. Stir in the gelatin and stir until it dissolves. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Divide it on top of the peach mousse and refrigerate until set.

My Weekend Non-Adventure

2010-04-10T22:48:00.000-07:00

Today, I set out on a journey to Chestnut Hill Mall. Note: Anywhere beyond the Harvard Square area, I consider far. If you don't already know, I love walking up and down the aisles of shops that sell bakeware, cookware, dinnerware, cutlery, kitchen electrics, you get the gist. Surprisingly, there aren't many sophisticated shops selling such stuff in Boston - you would think it's one of the major cities in the US, so you can understand how excited I felt when I found out about Sur La Table over the internet.

I made the painful 1 hour journey by train and foot and sure enough, there were lotsa goodies! Two sad things though:

1. Though graduation is just 1 month away, we're still currently living the frugal student life so it was hard to justify spending $ on pretty but not so necessary/functional things

2. Our plans post-graduation have not firmed up; if I were to buy all this stuff now, I'd probably have to pay more $ to ship it to whichever country we're going to be for the next few years

I left the store with just 4 spoons, and a super long wish list.

Dessert Party At The Tans' Residence

2010-04-08T19:50:00.000-07:00

Alvin and I try to make it a point to invite friends over to our humble abode for intimate dinner or dessert parties just so that we can spend quality time getting to know them better. Often, over the course of the academic year, we bump into each other at the Forum or at school functions and we say we have to get together for a meal, but it seldom happens because finding a common date and time to sit down at one place for 3 hours is such a huge challenge. However, this time, I was determined to make good on my word to some of our good friends, so I badgered Alvin to send out an invite for a dessert party at our place 2.5 weeks prior to tonight to get them to 'save the date'. Amazingly, all 7 people who received the invite showed up. I had been looking forward to tonight for some time now. Firstly, I haven't seen most of them for some time and really wanted to catch up. Secondly, I had an excuse to bake!

Today, I spent 6 hours in the kitchen preparing 3 desserts. Could have spent a lot less time, but one turned out to be a disaster, so I had to reconstruct it. You will find out which one in a moment.

I started planning tonight's menu about 1 week in advance. I had bought a bottle of rose flower water when we were in New York City last summer, but hadn't used it, so I wanted to try out the panna cotta just so that I could use my almost-a-year-old purchase. Don't worry, there wasn't a use by date. You can keep these extracts for years.

Rosewater Panna Cotta

Serves 6 - 8 depending on the size of your ramekins or glass containers

1/3 cup milk

1 (.25 ounce) envelope unflavored gelatin

2 1/2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 tablespoon rose flower water

Pour milk into a small bowl, and stir in the gelatin powder. Don't worry if texture is not consistent or smooth. Set aside.

In a saucepan, stir together the heavy cream and sugar, and set over medium heat. Bring to a full boil, watching carefully, as the cream will quickly rise to the top of the pan. Pour the gelatin and milk into the cream, stirring until completely dissolved. Cook for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in the rose flower water and pour into individual glass containers. Be careful not to stain the sides. If this happens, wipe the spillage with a wet tissue immediately.

Cool the glass containers uncovered at room temperature. When cool, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight before serving. The reason why I decorated it simply with just a strawberry is because drizzling any sauce over the panna cotta would have taken away from the rose scent, which would have defeated the purpose of adding rose flower water instead of vanilla extract.

After I had put the panna cotta in the refrigerator to set, I went about making the pavlova. I love making pavlovas because its majestic presentation never fails to impress guests. I also love the texture - crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside.

Fresh Berry Pavlova

Serves 8 - 10

4 egg whites

1 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 1/4 cups heavy cream, whipped

Mixed berries such as blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries

1 teaspoon icing sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 300°F/150°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Draw a 9 inch circle on the parchment paper.

In a large bowl, bet egg whites until stiff but not dry. Ensure that not a particle of grease or egg yolk gets into the whites. Gradually add in the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat until thick and glossy. This process should take about 8 minutes. Overbeating the egg whites can cause them to lose volume and deflate when other ingredients are folded in. Gently fold in vanilla extract and cornstarch with a spatula. To achieve a pristine white meringue, you will have to use clear vanilla extract. I didn't have that on hand, so the normal one did just fine too - it's just that I got a slightly beige meringue instead.

Spoon mixture into the circle drawn on the parchment paper. Working from the center, spread mixture toward the outside edge, building edge slightly. This should leave a slight depression in the center.

Bake for 1 1/2 hour. After 1 1/2 hours, turn off the heat in the oven, but just leave the pavlova inside the oven for another 1 hour. A good pavlova will be chewy on the itside, but crispy on the outside. You can test the texture of the inside of the pavlova by poking a toothpick or a knife in the middle. Do not panic if the pavlova's crust cracks in the center - it will be disguised in the next step.

Remove the parchment paper carefully and place meringue flat on serving plate. Only place the whipped cream in the center of the meringue when you are about to serve the dessert. Top with berries and dust with icing sugar.

I was pleasantly surprised at how I breezed through these 2 desserts. Little did I know, the third one was going to give me a lot of grieve. I had ordered 2 Nordic Ware baking pans from amazon.com and they were still sitting in the box, unwrapped, so this was the perfect opportunity for me to use them to make swiss rolls. I thought of doing something Asian, and sine I had a can of azuki bean paste in the pantry, I thought a green tea swiss roll would be good. Flopped big time. Somehow, I couldn't roll the sponge without having all the beans spill out. So I decided to reconstruct it. I made another bunch of sponge from scratch (I know. Pat on my own back for perseverance) and cut out heart shapes to make a heart shaped green tea layer cake.

Matcha and Azuki Layer Cake

Serves 8

For the cake:
4 eggs, separated

2 tablespoons butter (melted and cooled)

6 tablespoons sugar

2/3 cup flour

3 tablespoons corn starch

1 tablespoon matcha (finely powdered green tea)

Pinch of salt

For the filling:
300 grams anko (sweetened azuki bean paste)
2/3 cup heavy cream, whipped

Prepare the cake:

Preheat the oven to 400°F/205°C and line a 13-by-9-inch baking pan with parchment paper.

In a mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks with the butter and sugar. Beat well with a wooden spoon. In another bowl, sift together the flour, corn starch, and matcha. Stir the flour mixture into the egg yolk mixture until just blended, without overmixing.

Place the egg whites and the pinch of salt in a clean, grease-free mixing bowl, and whisk until stiff. Stir one third of the egg whites into the batter, then fold in the rest with a spatula, lifting the mixture to keep as much air as possible in the egg whites.

Pour the batter onto the prepared baking pan, making sure it reaches the corners, and smooth out the surface gently with the spatula. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes, keeping a close eye on it, until just set. You do not want it to under-bake (if you insert a toothpick and it comes out clean, you're good to go). You also do not want it to over-bake because the sponge will be too tough.

Once sponge layer is baked, remove parchment paper and place it on a clean dish cloth. Use cookie cutter to cut out shapes. You want to make sure you have 24 (for 8 individual cakes x 3 layers) shapes in hand.

Prepare the filling:

Mix the azuki bean paste together with the whipped cream.

Assemble:

Place one shape at the bottom, spread filling over it, top with another layer, spread filling again and finish with final layer. Dust with matcha powder. Refrigerate before serving.

What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

2010-04-07T20:23:00.001-07:00

I am 28 years of age and I still catch myself asking friends around the same age this question. And I was taken by surprise when Ryan asked me this same question (paraphrased of course) when he and Katie came over for dinner.

I said my dream (and I now add 'for the moment') would be to own a big enough kitchen and dining area in my house to host paying guests for dessert. And just today, I found out there is actually a term for that: underground restaurant. According to wikipedia.com, an underground restaurant is an eating establishment operated out of someone's home, generally (though not invariably) bypassing local zoning and health-code regulations. They are, in effect, paying dinner parties. They are usually advertised by word of mouth or guerrilla advertising, often on Facebook, and may require references to make a reservation.

And also today, I realised that I could also be content with being a market stall holder. I don't mean wet markets like those you find in Singapore, but rather farmers' markets or weekend markets. I would set up my stall early in the morning, display all my cakes and pastries, yak with customers all day long and pack up and head home when the sun sets. Just thinking about the amount of pleasure I'd derive out from this puts a wide smile on my face.

New England Cornbread and Maple Butter

2010-04-06T21:07:00.000-07:00

One of my favourite foods in the whole wide world has always been corn. So God must have kept that in mind while orchestrating his grand master plan for Alvin and I because New England is lobster, clam chowder and cornbread central.

With his PAE and job search over, Alvin could finally spend uninterrupted, quality time with me over the weekend. We went to Plymouth, a quaint coastal town an hour's drive from Boston and had lunch at this awesome seafood restaurant which I found via tripadvisor.com. Like most seafood establishments in the Northeast, we were served cornbread, accompanied by delicious, smooth, homemade maple butter.

I have been itching to replicate the maple butter since Friday and guess who found some pure maple syrup that Pin and Vincent got us from Vermont in the refrigerator. Perfect.

New England Cornbread

Yields a 9 inch x 5 inch loaf pan

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 400°F/205°C. Spray or lightly grease a 9 inch x 5 inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder. Stir in egg, milk and vegetable oil until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Maple Butter

Yields 1 stick

1 stick butter
1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
Pinch of salt

Make sure butter is very soft, but also be careful not to leave it out too long because you do not want it to take a liquid form. Put butter, maple syrup and salt in stand mixer and set on 'stir' function for 3 minutes. Then transfer to a container and leave in refrigerator to harden.

Dead beat

2010-04-01T21:01:00.000-07:00

8 hours (on my feet) and 2 dozen eggs later, I am sad to say that my (not 1 but) 2 attempts at Lisa's birthday cake proved futile. I am disappointed, but not deterred. Like I always tell Alvin, tomorrow will be a better day.

Nervousness sets in

2010-03-30T13:23:00.000-07:00

I am nervous. I just committed to baking a birthday cake for Lisa's surprise party. I'm not sure if it's wise to try out a new recipe.

Lemon Lavender Cookies

2010-03-29T23:05:00.000-07:00

Easter is just around the corner, which also means Spring is here. Spring conjures up images of baby animals - chicks, bunnies, lambs. I wonder if it's true if baby animals are always born in Spring like I always see in kids' story books. Sasha was born at the beginning of winter though. Speaking of baby animals. Here's a nugget of information. When I was little, I used to think that cats married dogs, lions married tigers, chickens married ducks. I remember this had to do with some jigsaw puzzle my mum bought for me from Scotland, but I cannot recall why I made this association. I can almost imagine Alvin shaking his head in disapproval and disbelief now......

Back to baking. I decided to make some little lemon lavender chick cookies today. I am still not used to the taste of lavender in my food - I feel like I'm eating soap or body lotion. But then again, I've never really liked the scent of lavender. Give me rose anytime.

Lemon Lavendar Cookies
Adapted from Baking Illustrated

Makes about 4 dozen

3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest + 2 tablespoons juice from 1-2 lemons
2 teaspoons dried culinary lavender
1 3/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2” cubes
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a big food processor, process the sugar, lemon zest and lavender until the sugar looks damp and the zest and lavender are fully incorporated, about 30 seconds. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt, then add to the sugar mixture; pulse to combine, about 10 1-second pulses.

Scatter the butter pieces over and pulse until the mixture resembles fine cornmeal, about 15 1-second pulses. In a measuring cup, beat together the lemon juice, egg yolk and vanilla. With the machine running, add the juice mixture in a slow stream (should take about 10 seconds) and continue processing until the dough forms into a ball, 10 to 15 seconds longer.

Turn the dough and any dry bits onto a clean work surface and gently gather into a ball. Working quickly, roll the dough flat. Center the dough on a piece of parchment or plastic wrap and wrap tightly. Chill the dough until firm and cold, about 45 minutes in the freezer or 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or spray them with nonstick cooking spray.

Take dough out of refrigerator and remove the dough from its wrapper. Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes. Place the shapes on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 1″ apart. Bake until the centers of the cookies just begin to color and the edges are golden brown, about 10-12 minutes (but then again every oven is different, so watch carefully), rotating the baking sheet halfway through the baking time. Cool on sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Vanilla, Salted Caramel and Chocolate Mousse

2010-03-28T17:51:00.000-07:00

Ryan and Katie came over for dinner today. I had wanted to make a dessert which required much more work, but I wisely decided against it because I was also preparing a full dinner (french onion soup, chicken cordon bleu and wild mushroom risotto). I had bought 8 little glass cups from Merida, Mexico at approximately $0.80 each (what a steal!) and have been dying to use them, so I was so happy to come across this recipe. I now regret not getting more glassware from the Mexican corner shop. Dang.

Vanilla, Salted Butter Caramel and Rich Chocolate Mousse
Adapted from Helen Dujardin

Serves 4 to 6 depending on the size of your ramekins

For the caramel:
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon fleur de sel or fine sea salt
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons unsalted butter

For the chocolate:
3 1/2 oz dark semisweet chocolate

For the vanilla mousse base:
4 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup whole milk
1/2 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon powdered gelatin, sprinkled over 3 tablespoons water
1 cup heavy cream

Prepare the caramel:
Place the sugar and water in a medium heavy bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Continue to cook until caramel in color. Remove from the heat and add the salt, heavy cream and butter. Stir with a wooden spoon until completely smooth. Let cool to room temperature.

Prepare the chocolate:
In a medium bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt the chocolate until smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

Prepare the mousse base:
In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until very pale. In the meantime, in a large saucepan set over medium heat, bring the milk and the vanilla bean (split open and scraped over the milk) to a boil. Slowly pour the milk over the yolks, whisking constantly. If you are using an electric whisk, be careful not to over-whisk. You do not want the mixture to become too airy. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan over medium low heat and cook until the cream coats the back of a spoon (as if making creme anglaise). Keep a close watch - you want to make sure that the cream is smooth. If the egg starts to cook and clump together, strain the mixture or start all over again. Add the softened gelatin and stir until melted completely into the cream. Let cool to room temperature. Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks and fold it into the cooled cream base. Divide the base into three equal portions (one will stay untouched).

Assemble:
Add a couple of tablespoons of the base to the caramel to lighten it a bit and stir with a spoon. Gently fold the rest of the portioned mousse base into the caramel with a spatula. First, layer the vanilla mousse, followed by the caramel mousse. Refrigerate for 45 minutes and let the mousse set. Then spoon in the chocolate mousse. This is to prevent the denser chocolate mousse from sinking to the bottom of the ramekins. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Inspiration

2010-03-23T19:29:00.001-07:00

I was inspired to start this blog after watching the movie Julie and Julia. Like Julie, I've never really quite seen any of my non-work related projects to completion. I blame it on the lack of focus. I have a short attention span, and get distracted easily. And I make too many excuses. I had planned to get this blog up and running long ago. But I had no camera to take great photos. And I had no html expertise. And I had no one to eat the goods I baked. And the list goes on. I'm hoping this blog will be a good way to keep me accountable to myself.