Swiss meringue buttercream

These cupcakes were made in November in celebration of Yulee's birthday which I never got around to make a post. I have only made cupcakes a handful of times before and they were all before my great culinary breakthrough. I'm not a fan of the traditional buttercream which is literally butter and frightening amount of powdered sugar. I like whipped cream frosting, but it is difficult to keep outside the fridge for too long. I've used nutella before and just sprinkled some chopped almond. It was quite good, but is limited in flavor creativity. So I'm very happy to have found a new alternative that actually doesn't taste like sugar! Be warned though, it is still extremely high in butter, which makes it tastes oh silky smooth.

Christollen

Ich liebe deutsche Weihnachten!!! Do the Germans know Christmas or what?? Well, they certainly know what food to eat during the holiday. Pfeffernüsse and Vanillekipferl can't hold a candle to stollen, or at least this stollen recipe. Remember my Christmas in July post? Well, that doesn't even hold half a candle to this stollen. This not-cake-nor-bread texture tastes just like the store bought version, except it has significantly more flavor than the store bought ones. In fact, this recipe is said to come from Dresden, Germany, the motherland of Stollen.

Handmade Soaps

This is my first handmade soap post, and I do hope to post more on this subject in the future. I started to get into soap making back in May when I purchased my first handmade soap from 維爾康天然小舖. It was horribly expensive, $5 for a tiny little soap, but I couldn't resist trying it because the lady was such a good saleswoman. She told me about how her miracle soaps have cured many skin problems. I have a slight obsession with skin products and am always on the hunt for products that will help with my skin issues...mild acne to put it mildly. She said that handmade soaps are without preservatives and other added harmful chemicals. I was completely sold. In all honesty, I really did like the soap I purchased from her, and that one little bar of breast-milk soap lasted more than a few months when I used it as a face wash. Then while I was reading my detox book, the author also warned about the same preservatives and chemicals in everyday beauty products, so I decided that I definitely want to start making soaps myself. I finally made the first batch in October. And since handmade soaps take more than 1 month to mature, I only started using these soaps in late November. I'm very satisfied with the products, at the very least, they work as well as store bought soaps but less the harmful ingredients. I made a few more batches after the first, and my mom gave them out as holiday gifts to her colleagues.

Chap Chae (Korean Transparent Noodle)

One of the very few things that I like about being in the US is that you get an abundance of international foods easily accessible. Chap Chae has quickly become a family favorite in the past month after I got this wonderful recipe from Yonza. I love the hard texture of the transparent noodle and the sesame dressing is just fantastic. This is a step-by-step instruction for Nick.

Christmas in a basket Teil II

I'm here to reveal the final two treats in my treat basket for the gift exchange: truffles! While some cookies are dubbed with the names Christmas cookies, it is the truffles that usually flood your supermarkets during this season. Last Christmas it took us a whole month to gobble down 3 delicious boxes of fine Belgium chocolates.

Christmas in a basket Teil II

Christmas in a basket Teil I

Last Tuesday I had a gift exchange at work, and I took the opportunity to try out several new recipes. Since it's a holiday gift exchange, I want everything to be Christmas specials. I've done a lot of Italian recipes in the past, and Spain doesn't offer much Christmas sweets, so I turned to my third love, Germany, for some delicious inspirations. 

  

Turkey Day 2010

This might actually be the first time that "Turkey Day" is an appropriate name for my Thanksgiving, although I am deeply disappointed at my first turkey. In fact, I'm so disappointed at my dry turkey, I don't know if I will have the motivation to try again in the future. I brined, I buttered, and I labored, but my 10lb petite turkey still turned out like chopped winter skin. I checked the internal temperature around 2 hrs, and its fat little thigh registered at 153 *F of unsafetyness. I let it roasted for another 45 minutes but covered the white meat part with Alton Brown's aluminum turkey diaper...it simply was not a good turkey day in terms of turkey for me.

Garlic and Scallion Brioche

I realize that my postings are becoming few and far between these days. I was surprised that my last post was November 2, and now it's almost December! This makes me appreciate more than ever the effort many bloggers out there put into their blog to be able to update so often. I guess I'm just not very good with words, so I never know what to write. Also, my audiences have gone so varied, I have a hard time distinguishing what and what not to say on here. What's even more unbelievable is that my blog is actually approaching it's first anniversary in a few month's time, and I have about 90 entries (though not all of equal substance) already. Time flew. 

Garlic & Scallion Butter Roll

Tiramisu cake

Wake me up when September ends...title of one of my favorite Green Day songs seem to suit my hiatus from this blog. Actually, October has passed as well, oh well, who's counting? My memory is short, so I won't offer any reason for my prolonged absence, only my apology.

I haven't stopped baking, but now that I'm starting to make handmade cold-processed soaps I have to make time for my new hobby. In fact, the first batch of my soap will mature and be ready for use in about 3 days! You'll hear more on that later.

For now, I hope you are satisfied with my Tiramisu recipe. I'm pretty sure I promised the recipe many entries ago, but never got around to it.

Banana Steamed Cake

Ingredients: (6 big muffins)
2 Eggs
100g sugar (50g agave)
2 ripe bananas, mashed (200g)
150g Self-raising Flour
1/8 tsp Baking Soda
75g oil (any flavorless oil)(50g with agave)

Steps:

1. Sift together self-raising flour and baking soda, set aside.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together Eggs and sugar till ribbon stage.
3. Mix in mashed bananas, beat till combine.
4. Gently fold in flour mixture and Oil, taking care not to deflate the eggs and sugar mixture.
   
5. Pour Batter into muffin pan, lined with muffin cups.
6. Steam over high heat for 15mins or till an inserted skewer comes out clean.

Honey Early Grey Madeleine

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think I've ever posted about Madeleines. Oh Madeleines, another one of those fancy French pastries. I really admire the French for inventing all sorts of delicate, delicious, and dandy desserts. The French certainly has the Spain beat in this area, because I can't think off the top of my head any famous Spanish dessert! I have been searching for the perfect Madeleine recipe ever since I bought my Madeleine pan almost a year ago. Still...the search continues. I've tried many recipes, and this one came closest to replicating Costco Madeleines' texture that I love so much. It's more cakey and buttery than the others I've tried. I still have to work out how to flour the pan so my madeleines don't come out looking burnt. They just look dark, but they don't taste burnt at all. I'm quite pleased with this recipe, so I think I will just work off this one from now on.