Earl-grey macarons 얼그레이 마카롱

Sorry for the late update! I have been really busy with mocks and stuff...But yeah! I'm finally done with it! woot. :D

As the title says, I'm gonna write about macarons again! I forgot when I started to make macarons...but I remember I wasn't interested until I started baking macarons for someone close (since he loves macarons and told me to try to make it). Yup, I took his advice, tried to master them and eventually fell in love with them :o Still working my way out - the perfect macaron with crispy outer shells with a soft, moist and chewy inner shell AND most importantly, the right amount of SWEETNESS (I personally dislike over-sweet macarons...too much for me).

OKAY! So...a while ago, I kept on getting hollow macaron shells until the time when that special someone came back to Hong Kong. OF COURSE I had to bake something for him, so I chose to bake his favourite earl-grey macarons the day before he arrived...and TADDDAAAAAAAAAA
Here it is!

In the oven....

Out of the oven...

Hahahaha I think I achieved a consistency closer to the right one...because...the shells...weren't hollow ANYMORE!! I was really satisfied with the results :D Finally overcome the flaw - hollow macaron shells. But, as usual, there are many more flaws for me to overcome D:

Oh! Forgot to mention that I used a different recipe. Thus, the macarons came out to be more chewy compared to pierre herme's recipe.

If you are frustrated about your hollow macaron shells...you should give it one more try! Good luck ;)

.................................
Ingredients
..................................
Egg white              65g
Caster sugar          25g
Egg white powder   1g
Ground Almond    50g
Icing sugar             90g
Cocoa powder          7g


..................................
Recipe
..................................
1. Sieve together the icing sugar, ground almond and cocoa powder.
2. Add egg white powder and aged egg whites into a steel bowl. Using an electric beater, beat on high speed until peaks are formed.
3. When the peaks are formed, add in 1/3 of the caster sugar each time.
4. Continue to beat the egg whites until stiff peaks are formed.
5. Add in 1/2 of the sieved icing sugar,ground almond and cocoa powder into the bowl of egg whites. Gently fold in the dry mixture with the wet mixture until it is partially combined.
6. Add in the other 1/2 of the dry mixture and continue to fold GENTLY until it is thoroughly combined (Prevent breaking the air bubbles). The batter should be fluffy at this point
7. Macaronnage - Fold the batter while deflating the air bubbles by putting pressure onto the batter with a spatula (do not over mix- you do not want to deflate too much air bubbles- if over mixed - the shells will come out flat and crunchy).
8. Continue deflating the air bubbles until the batter becomes glossy.
9. Pipe out round batters of 3.5cm (2cm apart) on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
Note: You can use a template to make sure that the macarons are equally sized. A template can be printed off from here: http://www.puregourmandise.com/astuces/Gabarit%20macarons%2035%20mm.pdf
10. Rap the baking tray on the kitchen table to get rid of air bubbles.
11. Dry the macarons with a hair dryer until a skin is formed.
TEST: Touch the macaron batter and see if it sticks to your hand. If it doesn't stick, it is ready!
Note: DO NOT skip this step. This is crucial to prevent the outcome of cracked shells. 
12. Place it into a 160 degrees celsius preheated oven. Then, lower the oven temperature to 130 degrees Celsius and bake for 15 minutes.
13. Remove shells from tray when they are COOLED.
Note: Be patient! Otherwise you will break the shells.




...................................................................
Earl-grey chocolate ganache - Ingredients
..................................................................
Thickened cream      92g
Glucose                    15g
Chocolate 66%         83g
Earl grey tea leaves    5g
Unsalted cold butter 17g

............................................................
Earl-grey chocolate ganache - Recipe
............................................................
1. Chop up the chocolate into small pieces and place it in a metal bow. Place the metal bowl over a pot of simmering water (the base of the bowl should not touch the bowl - so it is better if the bowl is bigger than the pot). Stir until the chocolate has melted.
2. In the meantime, heat up the cream in a pan over medium-heat. Remove from heat once it starts to simmer.
3. Pour cream over the tea leaves and glucose.
4. Add in the cold butter and mix the chocolate mixture until it becomes a smooth and glossy ganache.
5. Place ganache in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
6. Get piping when it is ready!

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Nameko Saibai Roll Cake なめこ栽培ロールケーキ 나메코 롤케이크

んふんふ〜　私を食べないでください
                    Please don't eat me D:

抹茶のスポンジ X かぼちゃのクリーム

I'm sure many of you know about the popular japanese app "Nameko Saibai" (fungi cultivation), if not, you should really check it out because it's extremely cute :D The best part of it is that you get to collect different species of Nameko, my favourite ones are "No. 25 True love本命なめこ" (because it pops out from a box - how cute is that!), "No.14 Stewtwoナベなめこ", "No.57 Gourmand 食いしん坊なめこ" (because it's similar to me in a way?), "No.49 Bridalブライダルなめこ" (because it's too pretty), "No.54 Fireworks" (because it turns into a beautiful firework when you harvest it...just like a real one!) and many more...OHHH the most important one "No. 47 Kappa かっぱなめこ"！Another reason to play this game is to collect all the nameko wallpapers! However...it take AGES to harvest the required amount of nameko in order to obtain the wallpaper you like. 

 　　

After reading the recipe book that I bought in Vanguard, I immediately had an urge to make a kappanda swiss roll...Okay I did, and that cracked. -0-' So, I attempted to make ANOTHER one until I SUCCEED. AND YES I DID! I originally planned to make another kappanda swiss roll, but after seeing my sister's nameko folder, I decided to make a nameko swiss roll instead (since I like it, and many others like it too). 

I slightly tweaked the 花かっぱ recipe to make this roll cake. 

Ingredients:

Cake

4  Eggs (Need 3 egg whites, 1 egg white, 3 egg yolks)

65g  Caster Sugar (separate it into two portions)
2 tsp Matcha powder
40 ml Salad Oil
1/2 tsp Vanilla Essence/oil
80g Cake Flour
1 tsp Corn Starch
52g water
8g  hot water

Coloring
1 tsp Dark cocoa powder
1 tsp Light cocoa powder
Can substitue with brown powdered food coloring 

Syrup:
10g Granulated sugar
20ml Water

Instructions
Cake
Mixture A:
1. Beat the 3 egg yolks with one portion of the caster sugar until it becomes light and fluffy.
2. Add in the salad oil, water, vanilla essence, stir until combined.
3. Sieve in the cake flour and beat until it's well blended.
Yes you can use the electric beater

Pattern
4. Take out:
             a) For the outlines: 1 tsp of batter - Add 1 tsp of dark cocoa powder MIX
             b) For the tummy, arms and legs: 2 tsp of batter - Add 1 tsp of flour MIX
             c) For the main body: 1 tsp of batter - Add 1/4 tsp of flour  MIX
5. Add one egg white into a bowl and abit of corn starch. Whip until stiff peaks are formed.
6. Take out and mix:
             2 tbsp of egg whites to put in a)
             3.5 tbsp of egg whites to put in b)
             2 tbsp of egg whites to put in c)
7. Fill in three handmade piping  bags with a), b) and c).
8. Outline Nameko with a). Bake for 1 minute.
9. Colour the body of Nameko with b) and c). Bake for 1- 1.30 minutes.

Cake
Mixture B:
10. Add in 3 egg whites into another bowl, with less than 1 tsp of corn starch and the other portion of caster sugar. Whip the 3 egg whites until stiff peaks are formed.
11. Take out 1/3 of the egg white batter and mix it with mixture A until it is well blended.
12. Take out the rest of the egg white batter and fold it into mixture A until it is well blended.
13. Pour the batter into the baking tray (lined with baking paper and the pattern you've created).
14. Bake in a preheated oven of 170 degrees celsius for 14 minutes.
15. Remove from baking tray. Slowly peel off the baking paper (to prevent breaking the pattern) and let it cool.

Ingredients:
Pumpkin cream filling
200g cooked pumpkin かぼちゃ
100g Whipping cream 　生クリーム
1 tbsp alcohol (I used rum) 小さじ１ 洋酒
10g Butter　バター
20g Sugar　砂糖

1. Heat up the pumpkin.　
2. Mix with sugar until it's well incorporated.
3. Mix with butter until it is melted and well blended.
4. Add in the rum.
5. Whip up the cream until the right consistency is achieved. (Make sure it is  stiff enough).
6. Mix the pumpkin mixture with the whipped cream until it is well blended.

んふんふんふんふんふんふんふんふんふんふんふんふんふんふ

Matcha (Green tea) cupcakes 녹차 컵케이크

Made these for an event held at Japanese school, HK. CHARITY AGAIN! :)

Packed and ready to go~

Made these for donation - MECO.  11.3.12

I am obsessed with Japanese food, products...and more. Of course, including Matcha. Matcha (maccha) is a fine, high-quality powdered green tea. Due to its natural bright green color, it is often used to dye mochis and also used to flavor Japanese sweets. Now, it is commonly used in many desserts and I UNDERSTAND WHY. What can I say? because it goes great with anything! It's healthy, tastes great and gives a pretty color (no food coloring needed)! How good is that?



I made these cupcakes for an event held at HKIS on the 11th of March, 2012. I participated as a member of MECO (March Eleventh Charity for Orphans - A charity that aims to raise money for those who have suffered from the devastating earthquake in japan, March 11th) to help raise money by selling stuff, including my cupcakes! Other than cupcakes, I also designed and made postcards to raise awareness...please SUPPORT us, SUPPORT the needy, SUPPORT Japan!

I am planning to sell my bakes in this blog/instagram in the future (hopefully when it gets popular) and will donate parts of the profit to the charity! So please support :) Thank you!Okay, back to the topic. This recipe makes fluffy matcha cupcakes, so you don't need to worry about the cupcakes turning hard after getting refrigerated. But remember to leave it in room temperature before serving (to soften the frosting).

Here's the recipe!
Enjoy the matcha paradise! wooooohoooooo
Good luck everyone :)

Preparation: 
- Leave butter and eggs at room temperature
- Sift the icing sugar
- Mix the flour, baking powder and matcha powder - sift it

Ingredients 
Matcha Cupcake - makes 16 regular cupcakes
Unsalted butter        1/2 cup (113 g)
Caster sugar             1 cup  (225 g)
Egg                                2
All-purpose flour     1 1/2 cup (188 g)
Baking powder        2  1/4 tsp (10 g)
Salt                           1/4 tsp
Milk                         1/2 cup (125 ml)
Matcha Powder        1 tablespoon adjust to your liking 

Instructions
1) Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
2) Cream the softened butter and sugar together (use a hand mixer) until it becomes light and fluffy.

It should look like this

3) Add in one egg at a time. Make sure it is completely blended before adding the next egg.

                                          

   

4) Add in half of the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, matcha powder). Stir until combined.
5) Pour in the milk and the other half of the dry ingredients, stirring until just combined.
6) Spoon batter into cupcake cups (should be 1/2 full).
7) Bake for 12 minutes.
Note: The baking time varies from oven to oven. To test if they are done, you can insert a toothpick into the middle of the cake, if it comes out clean, it's done. 

Ingredients
Matcha buttercream frosting
Unsalted butter        2/3 cup (152 g)
Powdered sugar      1 cup (125 g)
Matcha powder       4 tsp
Milk                        2-4 tsp

Instructions
1) Beat butter until smooth.
2) Add in the powdered sugar. Beat on low speed and gradually increase it to medium speed and stop when the mixture becomes becomes light and fluffy.
3) Add in the matcha powder and beat until it's well incorporated.
4) Fill a piping bag with the frosting and pipe it onto the cooled cupcakes.

Recipe adapted from: http://www.patentandthepantry.com/2008/09/21/earl-grey-cupcakes-with-lemon-buttercream/

Made this on another day - sold these at school for donation! Looks more green eh? 

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How to make macarons - Macaron Mogador 如何親手製作法式小圓餅 - 마카롱 만드는법

"The Mollomar-shaped cookie must have a 'foot', a crackly ringlet that surrounds the flat side. The outer shell is thinner than an eggshell but has an eggshell-like quality. Poking through the shell gives way to soft, almost-meringue texture. The macaron is just a tiny little thing made of only sugar, egg white, and almonds, yet it has bunches of texture and flavor that you can play with ad infinitum".

I used to think that macarons are really difficult to make, especially when I came through a comment made by an instructor "People usually take around 5 times to master the making of macarons". However, this thought changed when I decided to challenge myself for once.

我常想，製作法式小圓餅應該很考工夫，尤其當我聽到評論員的意見時，我更是嚇了一跳。他這樣說︰「一般人大約需要試做5次，才能掌握製作這種小圓餅的秘訣。」然而，當我抱着挑戰一下自己的心態試做一次後，我對這個想法徹底改觀。

One day, I was looking for some good macaron recipe and came across this recipe in Pierre Herme's macaron book. Knowing that this recipe belonged to the world-famous patisserie - Pierre Herme, I immediately picked this without any hesitation.

我先從尋找合適的法式小圓餅製作食譜入手，終於找到Pierre Herme編寫的食譜。看到Pierre Herme 這個舉世知名的糕點師傅，我二話不說馬上把它奉為聖經。

The main feature of macaron Mogador is the ganache - which is made with the two ingredients - milk chocolate and passionfruit juice. As expected from Pierre Herme, the pairing of chocolate and passionfruit is indeed breath-taking. It is definitely a bite of HEAVEN. To be honest, I don't really like macarons out there due to its immense sweetness...But this, macaron Mogador, is the exception. The sweetness of chocolate is well complimented by the tanginess of passionfruit. SO this is by far the best macaron combination I've ever eaten! So why not have a try?;)


Macaron Mogador 最主要的成份莫過於 Ganache。Ganache 是由牛奶巧克力及百香果汁兩種材料糅合而成。Pierre Herme 說得一點也沒錯，巧克力及百香果配合起來真的天衣無縫，這簡直是上天賜給凡間的恩物。說實話，我真的不太喜歡 Macaron 那種滋膩的甜味，唯獨 Macaron Mogador是個例外。巧克力的甜味與百香果濃郁的氣味混然天成。這可以說是至今為止我吃過的法式小圓餅中的極品！您也不妨一試﹗)

Preparation
- Prepare the egg whites a few days before making this
Shortcut: Microwave the egg whites for 10-20 seconds on medium-high speed
- Leave the egg whites at room temperature (before beating)

Macaron shell - Ingredients 
Makes 72 macarons
 Ground almond         300g
 Icing sugar                300g
 Aged egg whites       110g
 Yellow food coloring    5g
 Red food coloring      0.5g

Italian Meringue
 Sugar                        300g
 Water                          75g
 Aged egg whites       110g

Macaron - Instructions
1) Sift icing sugar and ground almond (this will take awhile).
Note: If you want your macarons to look smooth and shiny, DON'T GIVE UP. 
2) Mix the 110g egg whites with food coloring. Pour this into the sugar-almond mixture (don't need to mix yet).
3) Boil water and sugar to 118 degrees celsius.
4) Once the syrup reaches 110 degrees celsius, begin to whip the other portion of egg whites until soft peaks are formed.
5) When the syrup reaches 118 degrees celsius, slowly pour it into the whipped egg whites little by little at a time while mixing the mixture with an electric batter. Stop when the mixture goes down to 50 degrees celsius (shiny, stiff peaks should be formed)
6) Fold the italian meringue into the sugar-almond mixture until the right consistency is achieved.
Note: 'Fold' by using a spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl and bring it back to the top in a circular motion. The right consistency is achieved when a thick ribbon is formed and slightly flattens when it is spooned (but with a sturdy consistency). 
7) Fill the batter into a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle.
8) Pipe out round batters of 3.5cm (2cm apart) on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
Note: You can use a template to make sure that the macarons are equally sized. A template can be printed off from here: http://www.puregourmandise.com/astuces/Gabarit%20macarons%2035%20mm.pdf
9) Rap the baking tray on the kitchen table to get rid of air bubbles.
10) Dry the macarons with a hair dryer until a skin is formed.
TEST: Touch the macaron batter and see if it sticks to your hand. If it doesn't stick, it is ready!
Note: DO NOT skip this step. This is crucial to prevent the outcome of cracked shells. 
11) Place it into a 180 degrees celsius preheated oven and bake for 10-12 minutes.
12) Remove shells from tray when they are COOLED.
Note: Be patient! Otherwise you will break the shells. 

Ganache - Ingredients 
Unsalted butter    100g
Chocolate(40%)  550g
Passionfruit juice 250g (I used canned passionfruit syrup instead - can be found in Wellcome, HK)

Ganache- Instructions
1) Cut the butter into small cubes.
2) Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Put this into a steel bowl.
3) Bring the passionfruit juice to a boil.
4) Partially melt the chocolate in a steel bowl placed over a pot of simmering water. Then pour in the juice. Mix until it's well blended.
5) Add in the butter. Mix until the ganache is smooth.
6) Refrigerate the mixture for it to thicken.
7) Fill the ganache into a pastry bag fitted with a round nozzle.
8) Pipe out a right amount of ganache on one shell. Cover with another shell by slowly pressing it down and twisting it slightly. Top the rest with the same method.
9) Leave the macarons in the fridge for at least 24 hours. Bring out the macarons 2 hours before serving.
Note: I know it's hard to resist eating them. But trust me, it tastes much better when it is matured! 

Guide to make the perfect Cream Puff (Choux a la creme) シュークリーム

                       
Warning: Hey guys! This is my FIRST blog post EVER , so please don't rant about it if I suck :P Thanks for understanding! 

Who wants one? 

I suddenly craved for choux cream after watching the popular japanese drama "Zettai Kareshi 絶対彼氏”, which showed many scenes of the leading female character making cream puffs. Plus, I walked through the choux cream store - Beard Papa without having the chance to buy some, which made me crave for choux cream even more. So, I decided to challenge myself again! :)
 絶対彼氏にある主役がシュークリームを作るシーンを見て、そしてシュークリムの店をと通った後。急にシュークリームをたべたくなって、チャレンジして見ました。

Due to the fact that there are only a few ingredients needed to make choux cream, I barely spent much money on the ingredients because I had them all at home! *Phew* With all the ingredients in hand, I started to make the choux pastry.
シュークリームを作る食材が少ないので、ほとんど家にあったんです、だからお金はあんまり使わなかった！！持っている食材を使って、シュークリームを作り始めた。

Surprisingly, that took me less than 40 minutes! Dating back to a year ago...when I only managed to make a standard cream puff after...let me think, four times? Can't believe I've spent so long on it before, but I guess that's the process that all beginners have to go through right? And now, there is a significant improvement. So the beginners out there! Don't give up!
意外と時間あまりかからなかった、４０分ぐらいで出来た。時間をさかのぼって一年前は４回チャレンジしててやっとまあまあなシュークリームしか作れなかった。今思えば如何して前はそんなに時間を掛けたんですら分からない、しかしその段階は誰でも通らなければ行けないですよね？今は前とは違って確かに良くなった。ですから初心者のみんなも諦めずに頑張って下さい。

Note: Although it seems easy to make choux pastry, it is very important that you achieve the right consistency of the batter in order to allow the puffs to expand properly once they're placed in the oven. Right consistency is when the batter looks smooth and flows slowly to form a reversed triangle when spooned with the spatula.
ポイント：シュークリームは簡単で作れるんですけど, 生地は硬すぎるのダメだし垂れすぎるもダメ、そのバランスが大事ですよ。バランスが良かったら生地オーブンに入れたらはちゃんと膨らむ。いい生地とはすくあげたらスムーズそしてゆっくりと垂れてきますよ。

Choux Pastry 

Makes: 25

Water                    200g
Unsalted butter       90g
Salt                           2g
Cake flour             120g
Egg                       225g


Preparations:
- Sift the flour
- Place eggs and butter at room temperature
- Cut the butter into small chunks
- Mix the eggs



Instructions:
1) Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius.
2) In a pot, add in water, butter and salt. Bring it to a boil (medium heat). (Make sure that the butter is fully melted).
3) Add in ALL the sieved flour and stir RAPIDLY until:
           - Everything is well blended (should form a ball)
           - When the bottom of the pot is covered with a white slimy coating. Remove from heat.
4) Put the dough into another bowl. Add in the mixed eggs a little at a time and stir. Add in more egg when the egg is completely absorbed by the dough. Repeat this until the right consistency is achieved.
NOTE: This process is really important! Be patient! 
5) When a smooth batter (with the right consistency) is achieved, it is ready to use! Fill the batter into a pastry bag and pipe out 5cm round batters onto a baking tray lined with baking paper.
5) Spray the batter with water and it's time to put it in a 200 degree celsius oven! Lower the heat to 170 degrees celsius once the shells turn brown, continue to bake. This takes about 45 minutes.
NOTE: DO NOT open the oven while baking. 


I simply used Creme Chantilly (whipped cream) to fill the crispy, hollow shells instead of custard. 
Mmmm...even a simple filling like that made me go Woahhhh!! It tastes just like cream puffs from Beard Papa! 

Creme Chantily

Whipping cream  350g
Caster sugar         25g

1) Pour whipping cream into a steel bowl (place this bowl into an ice bath).
2) Add in sugar. Using an electric beater (or a hand whisk), beat the cream until the right consistency is achieved (should be stiff enough to stand on the whisk, forming a peak).

(recipe adapted from 用科學方式瞭解糕點的「為什麼？」）

MORE PHOTOS, MORE PHOTOS.  Freshly baked choux a la creme, filled with smooth creme chanitily! Sprinkled with icing sugar as decoration.  What a refreshing bite!
Ps: Didn't pipe the cream onto the shells properly so please ignore if it looks bad :p

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