Macaron Swaaagg!

The past week was intensely crazy. Imagine, I had to make four Macaron towers (Macenbouche) for different orders. Look, I haven't really made a successful Macaron tower for special orders before aside from the one that is displayed at Le Petit Cheri dessert counter. I guess the photos will show my progress :) I'm excited to show everyone my recent Macaron mileage. It has always been a dream to construct my own Macaron tower, I actually wrote it in my To-do list.

For Southern Living Magazine

To constuct one is not a piece of cake, same with Ginger bread houses, you got to be patient. There are few technical skills I would like to give importance in order for one to create his Macaron tower successfully.

1.      Royal Icing – Yes it’s simple to make. But the freshly made ones with right consistency will work best. A batch of Royal Icing with loose consistency will likely dry longer and just drip off the Macarons.

2.      Chocolate Tempering – If you are working on edible or all edible Macaron tower, I suggest using Tempered Chocolates vs. Compound, since Tempered Chocolates will not melt easily and will dry faster.

3.      Macaronage – Of course! One must create his own Macaron Tower if he is already able to bake perfect shells of perfect colors and perfect shades..yes yes,  with perfect feet.

4.      Carving your Cake Base – I would like to site that my Macaron tower is categorized into 2: The All edible tower (with real cake as the “cone” base) and The Macaron tower with crafted cone.

5.      Creating your “Cone” Base – You may order your Cone shaped Styros at speciality stores, While I’m more confident with my own makeshift Cone Base.

The All Edible Macaron Towers with Cake as Cone Base

Black & White

Black & White

Twick O' Tweat!

Twick O' Tweat!

The Edible Macaron Towers with Crafted Cone Base

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays!

Sweet 16 <3

Sweet 16 <3

#TeamPatisserie

No rest baby! =Macaron Swag

The very first one I made months ago..

One does not simply make a Macaron Tower *winks*

Thanks for viewing! I hope I shared my petite discovery with you and  Happy Macaron Tower Making!

Love Always,

My Top 80 Comfort Food & The Memories That Came Along

Holla! Inspired from my current blog hopping, I made my Top 80+ comfort food list just out of fun. Yes, kind a long because obviously I have a passionate and aggressive appetite :) :) My list just brought back thread of memories that came along the emotions (whether it was a happy or sad time), the persons I was with during those times (or even at times I was alone, confronting my alter ego) and the lessons learned (sure there is at least one).

The end of my list brought tears in my eyes as I conclude that it was and still it is, Food that gives me the happiness and best reward for myself :) Each experiences of a bad day, long day, stormy day and days to celebrate, to be lazy, and to be just yourself, is never complete without your favourite people in the world that makes each dinning worthwhile.

1. When you are able to finish your laundry before you run out of undies = A very cold glass of pulpy cranberry juice or raspberry juice infused in brewed white tea, best enjoyed when sitting princessy on a couch!

2. Watching Carrie Diaries with your soul sister= While munching bags and bags of American potato chips and Holy Kettle Popcorn, forget about the calories! This is my type of girls’ night out.

3. My first heartbreak= Generous servings of Artisan gelato/ Gourmet Ice creams every day or splurging on family style Korean dinner all by yourself on a Friday night (Kimchi, Bibimbap, Samgyeopsal, Japchae, Ddeokbokki and Jeon) And if I could, if only.. My Mum's special buko salad

4. Rolling in and rolling out of bed an hour before your class/work = A serving of Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate with Mini Marshmallows or Kopiko's Kopiccino

5. Working and Running your ass out = Rewarding yourself with unlimited crisp Romaine Lettuce, fresh Mangoes and Salmon Sashimi

6. A dinner out with the coolest Pap in the world= Thin crust Hawaiian Pizza with extra Mozzarella, I love it when my old chum cuts my pizza into mini bites on my plate, feels so princess-like.

7. Shit talking with your best friends over Skype or at sleepovers = A mug of frosty Coke and Red Label. But if it was a really hard day, all you need is a tall bottle of Emperador, Orange juice and all the bullshit thrown up into the thin air.

8. Watching your favourite cartoon without commercials, which your brother took time recording by the way. = Slurpee or a frozen pack of Nestle Chuckie.

9 Your birth day dinner= which means all your favourite food in one night! Courtesy of your much loved ones

10. Waking up in a stormy morning, with class suspension being announced on TV = your busybee parents' home cooking (Arroz Caldo and Meatballs Sotanghon)

11. Watching your favourite series while running on thread mill = Multiasking it is, Skyflakes with Nutella and finger licking the paper lid of Nutella

12 Feeling awful about your Trigonometry grades= Binge eating with Tiya’s best in the world Lechon Kawali

13. Going through the end of Hell week = Bowls and bowls of Giniling with hardboiled egg or Chicken Adobo sa Gata

14. A cloudy windy day and an extra cute Sunday dress= Red Velvet Cheesecake

15 Working overtime for the peak season or making 6,000 pieces handmade Chocolate Pralines =KFC Fried chicken with a pitcher of gravy and Pansit Bihon, and if you are extra lucky, a bag of Nanay Eva’s Special Chicharon

16. Making a stranger smile= These Strawberry Milk Shake flavoured candies my little Libyan friends gave me at a gelato shop

18. When your brother says he will miss you after you told him you will move in another city to learn independence. = Beef Caldereta with extra Reno Liver Spread

19. When your best friends supports your emotional eating outrage because they love you and you are sad = BBQ, Mango with Bagoong and Sinampalukang Manok

20. Going out of the country for the very first time= = Hay Hay kitchen's Charsu Pork, Pecking Duck and 7 eleven's Ube Mochi Ice Cream

21. Baking your first cake= Eating your first cake with tears in your eyes!

22. When your family loves everything that you bake = Everything that you bakes! The traces of his first Chocolate Cake

23. Having a job that feels no work at all, working with best workmates in the world and working for the coolest boss in the world = Malatang Kanin! Unlimited!!!

24. Getting employed for the first time = Cheese Burger, French Fries and Coke Float!

25. Reminiscing your childhood = Filipino Style Spaghetti :) or Jollibee's!!

26. Rainy night= Cookies and Cream Ice Cream, Pancakes at midnight and Corn muffins

27. First Anniverssary= Unlimited Crabs :)

28. When your neighbor's wifi dont has no password = opening a jar of Stick-O and some dancing *wink wink*

29. Unplanned dinner with your busy sister = Pho Bo Koh and fresh Vegetable Spring Rolls

30. Your first expensive designer bag = Salted Coffee Macarons

31. Biking= Chocolate Chips cookies and Double Chocolate Chip cookies :)

32. Long drives at night= more chips

33. Sundays = Misua with Patola and blue Crabs

34. Early out from work= A very beautiful bowl of Tantanmen Ramen and sushi! Lots of sushi!

35. Your classmate throws her 16 th birthday during home room = Estrel's Caramel

36. Getting wasted-drunk for the first time= Sinigang na Ribs!!

37. Long walks in UP Oval= Isaw! isaw party!

38. Recieving unexpected notes from someone you miss a lot, which includes your past teachers, childhood
friends and someone you love = Warm bowl of Laksa and Kuching tea

39. When your super crush has a super crush on you too= the taste of your first Laduree

40. A serious suitor = A shared tub of ice cream and doughnuts: P

41.  Valentine's day = fresh flowers and Chocnut

42. Everybody is home= Popping out a sachet of Milo and Kare-Kare of course, of course!

43. Winning your first competition/ winning your next competitions which feels like first time every time= Elvis Sandwich

44. Tiring day from school = Fried Tilapia, Bagoong, Okra, Eggplant and Vinegar

45. Staying out late with your best friend= Bacon, bags and bags of Bacon

46. Nice shoes, the pretty one = Dirty Ice Cream on Sugar Cone

47. Tummy growls at dawn= TapSiLog!! Or left over Adobo

48. Making someone’s wish come true = Rem’s first ever birth day cake

49. Your first airplane ride= Egg or Tuna Sandwich and Royal Tru Orange

50. When you are able to write something awesome! Or Developing a new recipe= Medium Angus steak

51. Beaches, with fine white sand= fresh Grilled Tilapia and Grilled Stuffed Bangus

52. Cracking a really funny joke that everyone buys = Buffalo wings

53. Being taken cared when you are sick= Chicken Joy

54. Lazer Tag= Chicken Tikka Masala, Rogan Josh and Chapati, Frozen Yoghurts and Lhassi

55. Mountain Hiking= Spam, fresh Lazones,ripe Mangoes and cherry picked Mangosteens

56. Watching the clouds while lying down on soft grass= buttered sweetcorn

57. Play games with younger neighbors/nephews and nieces= Taho and Mango Ice Candy

58. Graduation= Crispy pata and Crispy Spring Chicken

59. Missing college= Wicked Oreos and Fish & Chips

61. Humbled dinner prepared by your staff= Best Adobo, Liempo and Sinugba in the World

62. Long showers= A stock pot of warm, homemade soup :)

63. Pedicure and Foot scrubs! = Wintermelon Milk Tea with Egg Pudding

64. Flower crowns= Homemade Sangrias with edible flowers and berries

65. Korean Movies = Instant Korean noodles while crying over Korean dramas T.T

66. Riding the bus alone, going nowhere = taffy candies

67. European Trip and riding trains= Brie, grapes and Gewurtzraminer

68. Feeling studious = Moussaka, Baklava,Hummus, Tzatziki, and Pears with Bleu Cheese

69. Pretty hair day and waking up with oooooozing confidence= Cupcakes

70. New Year's Eve = Conchinillo, Leche Flan, Canonigo, Ube Halaya and Embotido

71. Your monthly birth day cakes= Thank you Mommy for inspiring me to be the person I am today

72. Bad Day= Siomai, Spareribs and Rice cakes or Titel's baked Spaghetti

73. Playing Girl on the Go= Subway

74. Movies= Onion rings!!!!!

75. Reading a new book= Spanish Sardines Pasta, Lemon squares and Mango Crepe

76. Studying over night for the midterms or finals = Persian Kebab, Keema and grilled vegetable

77. Lazy Saturday afternoon = the center of Cinnamon rolls or Razon's Halo-Halo :)

78. Walking in an unfamiliar city = Starbucks' Iced White Chocolate Mocha

79. First alcohol= Bailey's and Tequila Rose

80. Picnics = Barbecues and grilled Hotdogs! And anything you can share for potluck. I love potlucks

I’m looking forward to more memorable dinning. :) As an emotional eater, I learned to accept that Food; creating, eating and writing about it is what makes me passionate about life. I may have a muffin top, but these are constant reminders that the best companion beside the table is no one, but your inner Anthony Bourdain. Don't forget to pray each and over the food blessed upon. Thanks for reading!

Love always,

My Beginner's Writing Exercises

My class today on Food Writing is basically describing food using similes and metaphors instead of adjectives. Sounds easy? But actually it's a little complicated. I need more practice:)

Here it goes..

Writing Exercise #1

Subject: To write about a particular/favorite fruit.

My chosen fruit is the Lanzones.

One of the tropical gems of my country is the Lanzones. The beige colored, tiny round fruit that comes on vines, resembles the Malaysian Longan only with softer skin with dark brown to black irregular spots. The skin is very thin,soft like a grape and velvety like a purple suede. As the skin is easily torn by hands.. a sweet-tangy mist of Lanzones squeezes towards the air, the scent of ripeness is like a panorama of a vintage summer afternoon, it invites you, convinces you that its humble transparent flesh is cherry-picked.

Writing Exercise # 2

Subject: To write about the last dish you had

The thought of old fashioned Apple Pie is classic as ballet. Every spoonful is graceful as If listening to Sinatra. The bed of soggy, buttery pastry crust and the additional notes of cinnamon and oven caramelised  granny smith creates a symphony of textures. The generous amount of burnt sugar, toasted pecan and crumbs are sediments of a beautiful finale.. It felt as if I was in Serendipity.

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Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice! Something Perplexed To Try!

I love the Powerpuff girls, I'm Buttercup (My sisters Cowe is Blossom and Bebeng is Bubbles) . Now, back on the dessert-given blog. :) I have learned to play with few spices, which are all commonly used for savories..into desserts. Some people call it "Perplexed Desserts" which means the fusion of savory ingredient into desserts, may it be the main flavor or main component. 

So something Perplexed but not so scary to eat? I have a handful. :)
My first Perplexed dessert creation is a Chocolate Chili Creme Brulee Tartlet.However, since it was one of my "firsts" recipes, I have to find time to look for that in my recipe trunk.:) will post it as soon as I find it. Basically, the tiny red Labuyo chilis was infused into the cream and tempered into the egg yolks. I prefer it bite size than serving it as an individual dessert.

Chocolate Chili Creme Brulee Tartlet (Left)

To create something Perplexed, one must be adventurous and experimental. Spices are best incorporated after roasting; the process somehow makes the oil present in the powdered/grounded spice active producing a nice aroma and flavor.

You may try Herbs that are store bought or home grown. Some herbs are better incorporated when dried as per Rosemary, Tarragon and Thyme. Some are better for infusions while fresh like Spear Mint, Pepper Mint, Lemongrass, Basil and Dill.

There are now more pantry ingredients that had become my dessert staples; Bacon, Salted Egg,Bleu Cheese, Black Olives, Sun Dried Tomato,Olive Oil,Parmesan Cheese, Balsamic Vinegar, Black Sessame, Polenta, Soft Tofu, Zucchini, and much much more.

As you read on, you will be entitled to my handful Perplexed desserts inspirations. I will post the recipes on my next features..

Chocolate Truffles and Pralines

Milk Chocolate & Peppercorn Or the "Poivre"

My favorites are Cayenne with Salt on Milk Chocolate.. I also like freshly cracked Black Peppercorn on Milk Chocolate. Then Black Olives on White Chocolate. I don't like it so much but some people appreciate Curry and Dark Chocolate. 

Milk Chocolate Bacon

Milk Chocolate Grand Marnier & Thyme

Breads and Quick Breads

I love the combination of Cinnamon and Nutmeg in Croissant Bread Pudding. I also like Cinnamon and All Spice together in the traditional Hot Cross Buns and for making Streusel to finish my Blueberry Muffin and Baked Apple Betty.

Cakes & Cold Desserts

I like Chili Bacon Creamcheese Frosting on Chocolate Cupcakes. Freshly shaved Ginger and Milk Chocolate for Ice Cream and also for frozen Mousse.And recently I have this infatuation with Danish Bleu Cheese and fresh Pear slices. I also like Bleu Cheese on Ice Cream and the only one I personally love was by a very good friend RJ Bernabe.  I'm not a fan of Green Tea but I kind of appreciated it together with Lemongrass for Mousse. 

Green Tea & Lemon Grass Mousse (Right)

Olive Oil & Rosemary Cake

I also tried Olive Oil on Cake with Rosemary. Then Tarragon instead of Rosemary in my Lemon Curd Meringue Tart.

Macaron

Black Peppercorn Macaron

For Macaron shells, I tried finishing the top with Black Peppercorn, also with Pink Peppercorn. Dried Black Olives,Then the Salted Caramel whom everybody love. I also have the Salted Coffee which surprisingly became the best seller at Cheri. 

Salted Coffee Macaron

Chocolate & Black Olive Macaron

New dessert ideas kept on coming. Gastronomically and  Scientifically, Desserts now are modern, sexy but still palatable, as per the diners who are now more adventurous., Home bakers who are more experimental and Pastry Chefs who are up to more challenge. What's your something Perplexed?:)

Happy Baking!

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The Delight Of Baking is On Creating: Souffle Cake v.1

It has been a crazy weekend with all the heavy rain pouring! And before everything else, I just want to share something I value and learned from today's worship service. The minister said something like this "It has been raining really hard, and if you also have the heavy rain in your heart and mind right now, you got to make your faith as heavy".

Something to sit down with having all those thoughts? Of course! Something sweet :) My recipe for today is my own version of "Souffle" on a cake. I would like to remind you that this dessert is on progress and I'm still developing it, so I'm naming it "Souffle" cake v.1.

We wanted to create something unique at Le Petit Cheri, something like Souffle but on a cake.My boss loved the idea, we however preferred the "Souffle" cake v.2 with more dense and cake-r structure. And given the permission, I'm sharing the "Souffle" cake v.1 recipe on my blog:)

My "Souffle" cake v.1  is somehow relative and inspired of the Filipino favorite Brazo de Mercedes (which I'm also featuring soon), and the Canonigo of Hispanic originin, Both are meringue based cake.The soft, white and fluffy baked meringue  is really on my list of anything I can eat everyday and die  for overeating! 

The recipe is very simple:

"Souffle" cake v.1

240 g Egg whites
100g Caster Sugar
1 tsp Baking Powder

20g Sugar
10 g Melted butter

1. Preheat oven at 180C
2. Whip egg whites up to soft peaks
3. Add in sugar and baking powder
4. Continue whipping until stiff peaks
5. Brush mold with melted butter and dust with sugar
6. Pour the meringue into the mold
7. Steam bake  for 15 to 18 mins 

You have to pre heat the oven before making your meringue, and make sure you separate the egg whites and egg yolks carefully as traces of fat in the egg whites will prevent it from whipping. Make sure your bowl and attachment is also very dry.

When I say "Steam bake" I actually mean to bake it over bain-marie or hot water. This will distribute the oven heat around the meringue and make it rise as of a Souffle without cooking the eggs like an omelette.

This one is very versatile and pairs with whatever! Kidding aside, as a Souffle is paired with Creme Anglaise, I paired it with a Rhum Anglaise.. Which you may substitute with Bailey's, Grand Marnier or Coffee :) Oh my gosh!

Rhum Anglaise

160 g Egg yolks
50 g Sugar
360 g Fresh Milk
60ml Rhum

1. Scald together the milk, sugar and rhum
2. Slowly pour the milk into the egg yolks while stirring it.
3. Strain the mixing and bring back to low heat
4. Cook until nappe consistency 
5. Strain to remove any curdled egg yolk
6. Chill

Everytime Nani and I have this, we can eat the whole cake in one sitting, it's so light like eating air! Hahaha.

Happy Sunday to you!

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