Happy Chinese New Year 2011

Another year has passed and for the Chinese Lunar calendar this Thursday marks the new year for us. It is the year of Rabbit and one of my colleagues told me that Rabbit year is always a good year. People born in the year of Rabbit are (quoted from a site) "articulate, talented, and ambitious. They are virtuous, reserved, and have an excellent taste. Rabbit people are admired, trusted, and are often financially lucky". Now how I wish I was born in the year of Rabbit!

Living in Australia and being away from my family during Chinese New Year means missing the fun of family gathering during new year's eve and the big feast. Also not to be missed are the cookies and sweets that my Mum usually prepares(either bought or gift from friends) for the new year celebration.

So I decided to make pineapple tart since it is one of the cookies that my Mum prepares for Chinese New Year. I have adapted the recipe from GroupRecipes.

 

Ingredients

125g butter

125g margarine

50g icing sugar

3 egg yolks

400g all purpose flour

1 egg yolk extra for garnish

Filling: Homemade pineapple jam

2 pineapples, cut in chunks

1/2 tsp salt

12 tbs caster sugar

1 stick cinnamon

1 sachet vanilla sugar (I used 1 tsp vanilla essence)

Method

1. Blend the pineapple chunks in an electric blender.

2. Sift to drain off excess juice.

3. Cook pineapple, sugar, cinnamon stick, vanilla sugar, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat and let them simmer.

4. Stir until the mixture dry and thick.

5. Beat in egg yolks, icing sugar, margarine and butter with a high speed mixer for about 2 minutes.

6. Fold in flour.

7. Roll the dough and fill with pineapple jam.

8. Place on grease baking trays then brush the top of cookies with egg yolk.

9. Bake in preheat oven at 180C for about 20 minutes or until golden.

Happy Chinese New Year to all readers who are celebrating!
May the new year bring good luck and good fortune for everyone.

Sweet Infinity, The Strand

I have fallen into my own trap, I call it the lazy trap. As you can see the last blog I posted was more than a month ago when my family was here visiting. So this week with much hesitation I forced myself out of my laziness and start blogging again.

Last week when I was looking for a camera strap at The Strand, I stumbled upon Sweet Infinity. I have been wanting to go to Sweet Infinity at Woolloomooloo for quite some time now, but I can't see to find the time to do it. I was quite disappointed to find a limited selection of cakes, nevertheless I still managed to leave the shop with a box of goodies.

Sweet Infinity is famous for its brownies, they make around 400 a week. As a chocolate lover, this is one treat not to be miss! Unfortunately I was not entirely satisfied with the brownie, to be honest I've tasted better ones. The outer layer was almost too crispy and crumbly for my liking, however the texture inside was soft. Mostly it just tasted of sugar, which overpowers the chocolate flavour.

My two(2) favourites would be the custard berry tart and lemon meringue tart. They come in two(2) sizes, small and regular. Since I wanted to try both flavours, I opted for the more reasonably (less greedy) small size. The custard berry tart, which was topped with fresh blueberries has a milder flavour compared to the lemon meringue. However if you are a HUGE fan of lemon meringue like myself, then you will love the burst of citrus flavour as you bite through it.

When it comes to tarts, I love the pastry to be just crumbly enough to bite and not overly sweet custard filling. I have to admit that both tarts delivered the same excellent consistency in the pastry and filling.

The chocolate wafer mousse was such a delicious treat. Its small bite size made it so innocent for me to have more than just one. Crunchy chocolate wafer filled with soft dark chocolate mousse that was sweet enough and topped with a blueberry for a touch of freshness.

Head over to Sweet Infinity at The Strand or Woolloomooloo for an afternoon tea indulgence. You can also grab a quick lunch - delicious selection of pies and sandwiches to choose from.

Sweet Infinity
53 Riley Street
Woolloomooloo
NSW 2011

tel 02 9331 2448

Opening hours
Mon - Fri: 7am - 4pm
Sat: 7am - 1pm

Indonesian Pineapple Tart

Pineapple tarts, small bite-size pastries filled with pineapple jam and shiny finishing top. They are very popular in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, and are usually consumed during the Chinese New Year season.

I grew up eating this buttery tarts and was once involved in the process of baking these with my 'pastry chef' aunt. They are not on my 'must have' hometown food list, but occasionally I do crave it. My beloved mum is here visiting me and she brought some pineapple tarts along with other goodies!

There are a lot of recipes on the net and different variation according to the country of origin. However the main ingredients for the pastry are butter, egg yolk and cornstarch. The pineapple jam filling is usually made by slowly reducing and caramelizing grated fresh pineapple that has been mixed with sugar and spices.

Warning: These rich, tender, melt-in-the-mouth and not overly sweet tarts are so addictive. The tiny bite-size does not help either as I can easily eat five(5) tarts without feeling guilty.

A Weekend of Self-pampering

Every now and then we deserve to pamper ourselves, give our mind and body a relaxing treatment. Last week I received a gift voucher, free footbath and facial at Endota Spa. I decided to use it on the weekend and treat myself to an hour of pampering. It was a really nice and relaxing treatment, so much so that I fell asleep towards the end.

As a dessert lover, self-pampering also means an afternoon of cake indulgence. I went to La Renaissance for lunch, sat at the backyard and enjoyed the warm and sunny day. I ordered the Baguette Saucisson et Crudités and Lemon Tart.

I really love the Baguette, fresh and crunchy. The salami was not too spicy and it was complimented with fresh mixed salad, a light and refreshing meal.

Hungarian salami with mixed salad and cornichon mayonnaise $9

The lemon tart was a real delight for me, it was the perfect dessert to complete my meal. The tart was of the right texture, almost crumbly when you bite it. The lemon custard is probably not for everyone's tastebud, but if you love lemon or sour flavour then you will love this. It was soft and creamy, I just kept wanting more and more. The only complain I have about the cake is the size, it was way too small for me!

Lemon Tart $6

Now it's your turn to pamper yourself!

Pecan & Chocolate Tart

I finally had the courage to invite two of our closest friends over to our place for dinner. For most natural cooks, having two guests is hardly a challenge but for me it's like cooking for a major event. My cooking style is very simple or in my own definition 'lazy'. I use condiments to a bare minimum and prefer to throw everything in the oven.

Knowing the fact that I can never prepare a feast as good as my guest(mydatewithfood.blogspot.com) and her husband, I kept my menu to a simple 3-course meal. However, I promised myself to put a lot more effort in making the desserts. Mixing the known with the unknown, I made Passionfruit Crème Brûlée (you can get the recipe here) and Pecan & Chocolate Tart.

So here comes my real challenge, baking the perfect Pecan & Chocolate Tart.

To bake the perfect tart is to get the right texture in the pastry. Too hard and you are left with a chipped tooth or flying pastry like what our guests and myself experienced that night. Or if it's too soft, you are basically eating uncooked pastry. A perfect pastry should be crumbly enough to hold its shape when you cut through it without making a mess.

Unfortunately my pastry was almost as solid as a rock. It would have been a disastrous dessert if not for the perfect combination of the pecan & chocolate filling and the crème fraîche. 

Recipe adopted from Delicious Sweet edition.

Serves 8

50g unsalted butter, softened
125g light brown sugar (I reduced it to 100g)
150ml golden syrup (I replaced it with maple syrup)
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
100g milk chocolate, melted
200 pecan nuts, chopped, plus extra chopped pecans to serve (optional)
Icing sugar, to dust
Thick cream or ice cream, to serve (I used crème fraîche)

Pastry
1 2/3 cups (250g) plain flour
110 icing sugar, sifted
110g chilled unsalted butter, chopped
1 egg

For the pastry, place flour and icing sugar in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add butter and process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add egg and process until mixture comes together and form a ball. Enclose in plastic wrap, then chill for 30 minutes.
Roll pastry out on a lightly floured workbench and use to line a 23cm loose-bottomed tart pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to chill.
Preheat oven to 180C. Line tart with baking paper, then fill with pastry weights or uncooked rice and blind-bake for 10 minutes. Remove paper and weights, then return the tart to the oven for a further 5 minutes until golden and dry.
Meanwhile, place butter, sugar and golden syrup in a bowl and beat until smooth. Add egg, vanilla, chocolate and nuts. Pour into tart case and bake for 30 minutes or until set. Set aside to cool.
Dust with icing sugar and serve at room temperature with cream or ice cream. Garnish with extra nuts, if desired.

Apple Tart for Our Beloved Mom

Happy Mother's Day!

"Mothers hold their children's hands for a short while, but their hearts forever." Anonymous

A special day dedicated to all moms for their unconditional love, who never ask for anything in return. Thanks for being through the tears, laughter and sleepless nights.

My mom and I live in a different country, so every mother's day all I can do is wish her Happy Mother's Day over the phone. However, I am fortunate enough to have my mom-in-law here in Australia with us. Today we made her breakfast and I baked this apple tart (recipe from here) as it is one of her favourite all-time dessert.

The recipe is quite easy to follow and I fancy the idea of using cream cheese as the filling. A touch of cinnamon adds a spicy-sweet taste to the sliced apples. A delicious apple tart topped with almond flakes that will leave you wanting more with every single bite.

Recipe

Crust:
1 cup (140 grams) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup (35 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar
12 cup (1 stick) (113 grams) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Filling:
One 8-ounce (227 grams) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Topping:
1/4 cup (grams) granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) ground cinnamon
4 cups (50 ml) Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch (.6 cm) slices (about 3-4 large apples)
1/3 cup (35 grams) sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Grease (or spray with Pam) a 9 inch (22 cm) springform pan.

Crust: In the bowl of your food processor place the flour and sugar. Pulse to blend together. Add butter and pulse until dough just begins to come together. Pat the dough onto the bottom and once inch (2.5 cm) up the sides of the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator while you make the filling.

Filling: In a food processor process the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar and mix well. Blend in the egg and vanilla extract and process until smooth. Remove the crust from the fridge and pour in the filling. Return to refrigerator while you prepare the topping.

Topping: Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a large bowl. Toss the sliced apples in the sugar mixture. Spoon the apples evenly over the cream cheese layer and sprinkle with almonds. Place the springform pan on a larger baking sheet to catch the drips.

Bake at 450 degrees F (230 degrees C) for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown (apples are soft when pierced with a fork), and filling is almost set. Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar and serve at room temperature. Leftovers can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated.

Lemon Tart

My obsession with lemon tart started with Jamies Oliver's restaurant Fifteen in Melbourne. It was the best lemon tart I have ever tried so far. Here I am trying to rekindle that wonderful experience by baking my own lemon tart. I found this recipe and meticulously followed every step of the way. The hardest part for me was making the pastry from scratch and transferring it (without breaking) to the pan. Did I successfully transfer the pastry without breaking it? Definitely NOT. The edge of the pastry was breaking into pieces and I inelegantly 'stitch' them back together. Let's hope for a better luck next time!

My imperfect pastry - with all the holes & unevenness

Making full use of my blowtorch to create a caramelized top

Do treat yourself with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream or crème fraiche which goes really well with the sourness of the lemon tart.

Sensational Night at Blancmange

A couple of weeks ago, I came across this restaurant opposite Petersham Park on our way to dinner with friends at Enmore. Blancmange, as soon as I saw the restaurant I told my husband that we should definitely try it. Booking is highly recommended as it took us two(2) weeks to get ourselves a table on a Saturday night.

Once inside you feel a warm welcoming, homey ambiance. It is a cosy, unpretentious, yet an extraordinary dinning experience.

We were immediately served by the complimentary homemade sourdough bread and a menu that is printed daily.

One of the staff kindly introduced us to the meaning of Blancmange and how it relates to the dishes that the restaurant has to offer. The word Blancmange derives from Old French blanc mangier which means "whitedish". Blancmange is a dessert made with milk or cream, sugar and often flavoured with almonds - a close resemblance to the Italian Panna Cotta. It's a French dessert, however the English do make a similar dessert using rice flour. Therefore, Blancmange menu is very much French and English influenced.

The staff advised us to be regulars as they change the menu every 7-8 weeks and recommends that we go for the three(3) course meal, $55 per person. In silent agreement, my husband & I immediately set our eyes on the menu.

Entrée $18

Top: Salad of Warm Confit Duck Leg, Fresh Fig, Olive Oil Bread Croutons, Fennel & Watercress with Fig Compote & Red Wine Vinaigrette

Bottom: Roasted Mushrooms à la Grecque with Enoki Mushrooms, Parsley & Tarragon

The word to describe the two(2) entrées is Fresh! The warm confit duck leg goes well with the fresh fig, fennel and watercress. The croutons are so crunchy - adds to the freshness of the dish and the red wine vinaigrette enhances the whole flavour. Whereas the mushrooms are roasted/cooked just enough to retain its flavour and rustic texture. The parsley and tarragon certainly spiced up the mushroom flavour.

Main $30

Top: New York Cut Black Angus Steak with Café de Paris Butter & Shoestring Chips

Main Special $34

Bottom: Roasted Fillet of Angus Beef, Sautéed Mushrooms, Wilted Baby Spinach with Pomme Puree & Bordelaise Sauce

Both mains are perfectly cooked medium rare as requested. The French butter is definitely the highlight of the New York Cut Angus Steak, and how can you not enjoy the freshly made fries. As for the Roasted Fillet, the meat is very tender and creamy. And a touch of the pomme puree & bordelaise sauce to complete the warm-hearty roast meal.

Dessert $16

Top: Spiced Red Wine Poached Pear William with Vanilla Ice Cream & Hazelnut Praline

Bottom: Warm Fig & Almond Frangipane Tart with Almond Crumble, Sweet Red Wine Glaze, Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

A unique poached pear that is full of red wine flavour, a light and succulent dessert that sums up my husband's meal. As for the tart - warm, rich, custardy and utterly satisfying. The pastry is thin and crunchy, just enough to hold the filling.

Blancmange, a lovely encounter that made us leave with a contented smile and a mission to return every 7-8 weeks.

Sweet Belem for a Sweet Saturday Afternoon Fix

Sweet Belem Portuguese Custard Tart, what's not to love about it? The pastry is ultra-crispy, the custard is not overly sweet and the top is sprinkled with a generous amount of cinnamon. You can easily cut through the soft-flaky-crispy tart without losing the original shape. A touch of cinnamon definitely adds a twist to this spectacular treat.
Located in the heart of Portuguese suburb, Petersham, it is one of the most visited Pâtisserie in the neighbourhood. Once inside the shop, you are welcomed with a painted ceiling of clouds in a blue sky and dangling chandeliers. Not to mention the wall decor and the beautiful display of the cakes, tarts etc.

Sweet Belem's Tart $3 each

Look at that crispy/flaky pastry!

If you are in the neighbourhood and looking for an original portuguese chicken, head across to the Petersham Charcoal Chicken. The chicken is grilled long enough to have the meat still soft and not too dry.

Upon chatting with one of the staff, he recommended Honeymoon if I want to try a more common portuguese tart. The custard is too sweet to my liking and I struggle to cut through the tart as the pastry is not as soft as Sweet Belem's. Personally I prefer Sweet Belem's tart, the custard has more of an egg/milky taste to it.

Check out my blogger buddy's entry on Petersham Charcoal Chicken and Honeymoon Portuguese Tart at mydatewithfood.blogspot.com

Petersham Charcoal Chicken, famous for its Portuguese chicken. You can dine-in or take away.

Honeymoon's Portuguese Tart, $1.50 each

Not to be confused with the Sweet Belem's tart, this is the more traditional portuguese tart which I bought from Honeymoon, located next to the Petersham Charcoal Chicken.

Sweet Belem

35B New Canterbury Rd

Petersham NSW 2049

(02) 9572 6685

Rekindle my love with Strudel Baron

After our delicious breakfast at Rosebud, we dropped by Strudel Baron (only a few doors away) to stock up for our Sunday night desserts.
Studel Baron at 172 Victoria Road, Drummoyne, used to be our occasional breakfast/dessert place when we lived around the area. I was delighted to see that they have ventured out to the neighbouring suburb, Balmain.

Freshly made pastries...

Plum Tart $4.90

Lemon Roulade $4.50

Passionfruit Tart $4.90

I can definitely taste the freshness of the pastry on both the tarts, soft and crunchy at the same time. The plum was more on the mild side, however my favourite was the passionfruit tart. The passionfruit flavour was very strong and the seeds were not only for decorative purpose but added that playful crunchy bite to the tart. The lemon roulade was soft and light, unfortunately missing the sharp lemon taste. 

Overall, I am glad to have stumble upon Strudel Baron again.

My First Love of Pancakes at Brasserie Bread

I have finally found the best pancakes in Sydney! At Brasserie Bread, 1737 Botany Road, Banksmeadow 2019, you will find pancakes with a twist. It is one of the signature dishes, along with the Croque Monsieur, Mushroom & Ricotta, Bruschetta, and Garlic Bread.

Sourdough Pancakes

'Stack of Sourdough pancakes served with honeycomb cream and seasonal berries'

The pancakes were light and the sourdough taste was subtle. The honeycomb cream and berries added a finishing touch to the pancakes, without taking the distraction away from the pancakes itself.

Unfortunately the picture does not do justice at all as it was taken with my phone.

My husband had the Croque Monsieur. "A Croque Monsieur is a hot ham and cheese (typically gruyere) grilled sandwich. It originated in France in the early 1900's as a fast-food snack served in cafes and bars. More elaborate versions are coated in sauce such as Morney or Bechamel. The name is based on the verb croquer ("to crunch" or "to bite hungrily") and the word monsieur ("mister")."

"The Brasserie Bread Croque Monsieur uses crème fresh and Dijon mustard mixed into the melted gruyere cheese. The "crunch" is provided by Brasserie Bread's award winning organic Country Sourdough bread."

A light snack, but full of flavour. Complex in texture, with the crusty sourdough bread and soft filling inside. The subtle chewy melted cheese, thin layer of ham, bitter rocket, and crème & mustard mix all combined to perfection.

And how can I resist the temptation of the cake selection? 

Pineapple & Lime Eclair

'A delicious combination of tangy lime and sweet pineapple'

The pineapple filling was a winner, not overly sweet just the way I love my dessert to be.

Vanilla & Rhubarb Tart

'A delicious tart filled with sweet vanilla and baked rhubarb'

Now this is a very interesting tart. I have never come across tart so crunchy both the filling inside and the base outside. So refreshing!

Bring your kids along every Saturday for a free baking class. Two(2) classes every Saturday at 10am and 12pm, reservations are essential however its FREE. Call Brasserie Bread on 1300 966 845 or fill out the enquiry form.

Tea Time with Pattison's Patisserie

Pattison's Patisserie is one of the newest shop recently opened at Top Ryde City Shopping Centre. I have been wanting to try the cakes every time I do my weekly grocery shopping there. Last Saturday I finally bought myself two(2) cakes. I managed to take a couple of pictures with my phone before the shop assistant told me no pictures allowed. 

Baked Lemon Lime Tart $5.20

'Shortbread base filled with a lemon and lime custard filling consisting of fresh cream, fresh eggs and sugar and of course lemon and lime'

Apple & Cinnamon Tart $4.90

'Shortbread base filled with poached apples and cinnamon finished with a shortbread lattice top and glazed'

I was hoping that the Baked Lemon Lime Tart will be more on the sour side, however I have to actually squeeze the lime juice to give it a kick. The texture of the custard was not as soft as I like it to be. I guess ever since I had Jamie Oliver's Lemon Tart from Fifteen I have high expectation for lemon tart.

As for the Apple & Cinnamon Tart, I like the filling. Its not too sweet and the apple & cinnamon definitely compliment each other. I wish the shortbread was thinner so I get to enjoy more of the filling.

Will I ever go back there and try the other cakes? Maybe...and hopefully I'll have a more satisfying experience.

'Crostata di limone' FIFTEEN

I have been wanting to try Jamie Oliver's restaurant FIFTEEN ever since it opened in Melbourne, located at Basement, 115-117 Collins Street (Enter through George Parade). So with my last minute booking, I managed to get a table for Friday lunch. I made the reservation through the website and received an email confirmation pretty much on the same day.

Upon arrival, we were welcomed by the cozy and relax 'bar' area where you can enjoy you meal.

It was a really hot day when we arrived in Melbourne that morning, so I decided to order a cocktail. Being a vodka lover, my eyes were immediately set on the Pomegranate Caprioska $16.

Just the right amount of sweetness from the raspberry & sourness from the fresh lime!

Patiently waiting for the chef to prepare our feast..

Our Antipasti, Primi and Secondi, which consist of (from top left clockwise):

Parmesan with jamon Serrano, cheese sticks and black pepper $16

Sourdough bruschetta with grilled squid, zucchini ribbons, chilli and salsa rossa piccante $16

Galletto 'al mattone' with chorizo, capers, grapes and a pearl barley salad $35

Risotto (vialone nano) with zucchini, zucchini flowers, king prawns and Shiso cress $20

However, the highlight of my lunch was this lemon tart. It was smooth and creamy, with a refreshing lemon taste. If you like your dessert to be on the sour side, you'll definitely love this dessert! I enjoyed it thoroughly and look forward to make one myself.

'Crostata di limone' with vanilla crème fraiche and fresh raspberries $12