Eating with your ears

Having some leftover cream in the fridge, I decided to make crème brûlée yesterday. This classic custard dessert of questionable origin is ubiquitous these days, found on almost every fine dining restaurant menu, usually as the traditional vanilla bean version or sometimes with a modern flavour twist. Because it is made with just cream, possibly some milk, sugar, and egg yolks, crème brûlée can be a blank canvas into which teas, spices, herbs, liqueurs, chocolate, fruits, nut pastes, and whatever you dare are added.


Although the custard part may change, the smooth glistening thin layer of caramelized sugar is, undoubtedly, the main reason I enjoy the crème brûlée experience, both as creator and consumer. At home, my small hand-held butane torch, which was a gift from a friend given years ago, is perfect for small-scale use. During my practicum at the Pan Pacific, I recall cradling two industrial propane torches in each arm to caramelize over 300 crème brûlées for a large function. The roar was deafening and I felt strangely powerful, not unlike some fire wielding superhero. These days, my enjoyment is from the satisfying thwack of breaking the caramel layer to enter the creamy goodness underneath.

Creative juices

Aloha! Our trip to the Big Island of Hawaii was a short but enjoyable escape from slushy Vancouver. With such diverse geology and biology in one BIG island, there was so much to explore. Highlights included the windy lava fields of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, snorkelling in crystalline Kealakekua Bay, and stargazing at over 13,000 feet elevation on Mauna Kea. While in Hilo, we also visited the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Factory to purchase the requisite teal blue tins for friends and family. Meanwhile, I may have overdosed on pineapple juice during my stay but I needed all the Vitamin C available to me to nurse my cold.


With so much pineapple and macadamia nut surrounding me, I could not refrain from dreaming up dessert ideas with these two ingredients in mind. I had bought a pound of ground toasted unsalted macadamia nut which could be used in a million different ways but I decided to make macadamia nut financiers to be served with a roasted pineapple and mint salsa.


Next, I made macadamia nut roca which was crumbled to support a scoop of caramelized banana and Malibu rum ice cream. So good, I must admit. Finally, presented in a glass, my version of a "Shirley Temple" gelée (orange-pineapple juice with grenadine) contrasted with a creamy coconut milk pannacotta. To anyone out there who is biochemically inclined, fresh pineapple juice actually does not set with gelatin because of bromelain, a protease found in pineapples. Heating the juice first solves this enzymatic dilemma.


This impromptu plated dessert exercise also gave me an opportunity to pull out my souvenir glass from Pierre Hermé which previously contained his Sensation Satine. It seemed appropriate since this dessert was the finale to a Parisian themed night which I shared with a good friend (okay, more like Ratatouille the movie themed night). Whatever the excuse, it was a pleasure to get my creative juices flowing once again.

Going bananas

Happy New Year! The past few weeks have been reminiscent of my university days, filled with concentrated mental and physical effort of December exam time which is quickly followed by viral illness during the subsequent holiday period. I was able to valiantly fight off a cold while working this Christmas but as soon as relaxation was imminent, my immune system seemed to be the first one out the door. Regardless, we had a lovely getaway which provided new flavour inspirations that I will hopefully showcase next week (stay tuned!).


Within an hour of returning home from my holiday, I had to begin thinking about cakes again, in particular, a Curious George birthday cake for three year old Devon. Instead of fondant, the obvious choice for decorating this inquisitive primate was chocolate and so ganache glaze and chocolate modeling paste were used. Inside, three layers of chocolate cake surrounded caramelized bananas and whipped ganache.


Chocolate modeling paste is a very versatile medium that is easy to make and tastes so much better than fondant. My sculpting skills are minimal but I think George's nose is a reasonable replica. Beauty is in the details and as always, my favourite items were the tiny fondant bananas, yellow hat, and ball.


Finally, I have been so busy with birthday cakes that I have not wished my little blog a Happy 1st Birthday! It is a work-in-progress which has been a source of pride and at times, catharsis and I humbly thank you for following my personal journey with me.

Merry Christmas!

When you think Christmas cookie, macarons do not usually come into mind, unless you are me and have accumulated way too many egg whites. These pink and brown beauties are strawberry macarons with strawberry passionfruit ganache and chocolate macarons with dark chocolate mint ganache. Packaging macarons is always a challenge since they are quite delicate and do not possess any flat surfaces. I must admit that I had a stroke of genius when I realized that the three toilet paper tubes awaiting the recycling bin (cut in half and covered with clean parchment paper, of course) were the perfect holders for six rows of macarons.


In addition, Christmas must include chocolate. Dark chocolate truffles filled with my leftover strawberry passionfruit ganache are sparkling from edible copper dust. I also knocked out some molded bon bons which were filled with a gianduja ganache. So now, my home kitchen is quiet and closed for the season. Luckily, my busy work schedule will help me burn off the many calories which are headed my way in the very near future.

Gift giving

There has been flurry of activity in my kitchen lately with the completion of another birthday cake and the start of my personal Christmas gift production. This whimsical polka-dot present cake was for a little girl's first birthday and created from layers of yellow cake, lemon curd, and lemon mousse. My design inspiration was from this baggage tag that I bought in Paris from Pylones, one of the few non-pastry related stores I actually visited.


As always, I threw the leftovers into a 6" cake ring and used some of the leftover egg whites to make meringue sticks for decor. Personally, lemon is a classic all-time favourite of my taste buds. My non-existent sweet tooth prefers tart flavours like lemon, lime, and passionfruit rather than rich chocolatey ones. The red ribbon added a touch of Christmas to an otherwise simple cake.


Speaking of leftovers, the excess egg whites will certainly be used frugally towards my Christmas gift production. I traditionally make gifts for my friends and family, edible or non-edible, and this year is no different even though I will be busily working throughout my first holiday season employed in the food industry. What will I make with egg whites? The answer should be obvious to anyone who has been reading my blog this year...

The little fire engine that could

When somebody asks me to make a cake, the first question I ask is always "how many people does it need to feed?". This critical number obviously decides the size of the potential cake and since my refrigerator and freezer space is limited, size definitely matters. Perhaps there will be a day when my cakes do not need to share space with my leftover chow mein or get cozy beside the frozen peas.


Meanwhile, this fire engine cake was for a very lucky little boy named Owen who just turned three. Originally, I had planned for it to feed 10 to 12 people but when I designed it on paper, the dimensions became approximately 12 x 5 x 5 inches. Apparently, I lack the gene that gives the ability to estimate volume because in the end, the fire engine cake could probably have fed 24 people easily.


Owen had requested a chocolate cake so I created the fire engine from layers of chocolate cake and chocolate German buttercream. Covering the cake with the red rolled fondant caused a small panic attack because after prolonged kneading in almost half the vial of Wilton Red Red colour paste, the fondant was so soft that it started to shred at the corners. Luckily, I rescued it in time and smoothed it out fairly well. Seven hours later, the cake was finished.


My favourite details on the fire engine cake are actually all found in the above photo. The pastillage fire hydrant (I really wanted to keep it) and the pastillage tires, complete with hubcap and tire treads, were adorable. Because I did not want to put lettering on the actual fire engine, I decided to connect a hose to my fire hydrant which would be squirting out watery blue royal icing to spell out Happy Birthday Owen. With the addition of some silvery details, the fire engine cake was certainly an accomplishment of which I am proud. Thankfully, I was not at the party to witness its eventual destruction!

Three trees

Yesterday, a seven feet tall Fraser fir was the newest addition to our home and dressed up with festive finery and glitter. Even though I voice my share of "bah-humbugs" during the holidays, at heart, I love Christmas and in particular, Christmas trees. Green and gold ornaments adorn our tree, with a lovely hand-made quilted tree skirt underneath.


This time last year, pastry school graduation was imminent and I had a mild obsession with pastillage snowmen. As a result, this snowman family was born and will continue to grace my mantle for years to come. I can honestly say that, next to my wedding day, graduation from pastry school was the happiest day of my life. It represented the start of a new chapter in my professional life which I had always believed was unachievable due to my own insecurities and fears.


Perhaps, I should have just succumbed to a life in pastry, full of sore backs, achy wrists, and scraped hands, over 10 years ago when my good friend Shelley created a personalized miniature Christmas tree as a Christmas gift. The central ornament, handcrafted by Shelley, is supposed to be me, in a chef's hat with the words, Baking Queen, now faded with time. Every year, I put my little tree on display and admired the tiny cookies and wooden spoons made of Fimo with a twinge of sadness. This year, I happily know that this tree does truly represent me.