::macabrown::

macabrown, still the same macawrong story, if you remove the b and the w, it is indeed macaron. but i am one step ahead,  making progress.. instead of macaron, this batch is a little brown, so macabrown is it.

i went a little wild with the shell, it is supposed to be purple as i added lavender buds to the almond and sugar mixture. the problem is i didn't get the deep purple that lavender should have as i was afraid to fold the batter too much by adding the additional coloring.

 as a result a slightly brown lavender chocolate macaron

i have no problem in getting the skirt and overcome the hollow shell by making sure the batter is cooked through and as a result macabrown instead of macaron.

the taste is not affected, slightly scented and subtle lavender macaron shell and dark chocolate ganache.

have i reached the holy grail? nope. may be still a few more rounds to go. i can control the size and able to judge if the shells are cooked through but i yet to understand my oven, as the temperature cannot be change without resetting, 160c is perhaps too high but my next lower temperature is 130c and that wouldn't help either.  the parchment paper is a savior while with baking paper, i got sticky shells.

frankly speaking i am a little obsessed by macaron making but i will have to wait till next weekend.

dutch.summer.japanese.lunch

the weather has been like this, it really feels more like autumn than summer except the humidity is higher in the air.

because of the rian, the field becomes greener.  the flocks, the cows, sheep are a lot happier out there in the field. i had a bit of nature too when when we drive through the country road to amsterdam.  this is what i missed since i no longer drive to amsterdam these days, my office is in the middle of the country and frankly speaking i do miss the country side a little bit...

we met up with a friend in amsterdam, a friend (or rather his friend) that we have not seen for about six years. and the meeting point is okura hotel where we had our lunch.

 i ordered a set lunch, and my starter consists of small bites of chicken, tofu and eggplant. all in bite size.

 and my sashimi, serves in a bowl of ice cube, fresh and delicious

 the sushi is a little disappointing, i would prefer all the toppings raw but they came in lightly seared manner.

 my main course, i chose teriyaki wagyu over tempura ebi (prawn) which was a right choice.

 and finished off with this dessert, red bean and matcha ice cream and a mango tofu pudding which was delicate and good.

meanwhile, he ordered a tempura set which i thought the tempura is not up to the reputation of yamazato restaurant of okura.  i would expect the tempura to be served with a lighter batter that resemble flakes but these came in a rather thick batter.  

perhaps my expectations were too high, but really we ate here before and the quality of food were a lot better than this time, or perhaps i have lived in tokyo for 5 months and that changes my perspective about japanese food. 

nonetheless we enjoyed the chit-chats, the travel updates and the company. it was a good way to spend a gloomy saturday indoor when outdoor is not really an option.

it's late now, good night all!

cotton.cheese.and.smoky.fish

 i know the two things don't belong to one another, but...

it's friday and end of the month.

i am one month in my new job and i am loving it to the fullest.  the flexibility of working from home, the joy of working in a global company with regional role.  the privilege of being the first one in the department that is expanding.  exciting yet challenging in the same time. i spoke more dutch these days and the words just came out naturally and at time i finished the entire conversation without the urge to switch to english.  one month down the road but i only got my work cellphone today.  if there's anything to complain the cellphone is probably the only one problem i had so far. but i also like those days without a cellphone, a bit inconvenience but it didn't border me much. i break the habit of wanting to connect to social network anytime, anywhere.  once i had two iphones (japan and lowland) and now i only have a android phone, still learning the new interface, android is not as intuitive as iphone, but that's what i have to cope with for the time being. and it's okay.  it's already a blessing to have a taste and joy of iphones for free for the last six months. so i count my blessing, and now i am happy with my android phone.

this week, i finished two major activities  and  i bake a japanese cream cheese cake (cotton cake) to celebrate the weekend. although a cheese cake, the texture is really light and airily. it's definitely not the typical american rich cheese cake. first time baking this but a bite to it, we both like it so much...

meanwhile he saw a red snapper in the fridge. sometime we are blessed with food turn show up of the blue in our fridge or on our kitchen, but that a different story.

the fish is fresh and so he decided to make this smoked fish inspired by a renowned japanese chef (wakiya) who is specializing in chinese cuisine with a japanese twist.

the recipe calls for some smoke agent, the fish is soaked in some fresh juice for a long time being it's steamed. and then induced by the smoke agent.

as a result a super fresh and delicate fish, a perfect balance of earthy smokiness and tangerine freshness.

anyway, this is just some random thoughts on a chilly summer friday evening. i feel like going to the nature but the weather doesn't permit so far.

have a nice weekend.

lui.cha.擂.茶

another childhood dish. another nostalgic moment.  another memory journey.  another old photo. 

mum made this quite often when i was young.  i have to help with chopping, cutting, pounding... i also remember my uncle (from my mum side) made this dish rather differently.

on our recent trip home, he is constantly craving for lui cha in the night, while this dish is generally serve more as a breakfast or brunch.  so on the next morning, we got to this home stall where their lui cha has been featured on astro television. 

the broth is great, creamy and not greasy, so as the vegetables, fragrant but without grease. 

 the soup is think, rich in body and complexity of taste, lui cha such a palate cleansing meal. he loved it so much that he ordered the second bowl.

and a day after, we were at my SIL's kopitiam where my uncle (my mum's younger brother) has a stall selling lui cha.  uncle uses puffed rice (when he made it at home) and a really bitter grinned tea...  from young, i never enjoy my uncle's version as i was not use to the bitterness of the  soup back then.

my uncle's version is alright, the broth is thinner but the vegetable bowl comes with generous dried anchovies.  the soup is a lot bitter but less texture and complexity. we got the broth recipe from my uncle but we will never be able to reproduce this in the lowland as some of the herbs used in the broth is nonexistence here.

on our very last day in kota kinabalu, my sister brought us to a stall in foushan for the lui cha but this is really a disappointing greasy bowl. although i ordered an extra bitter broth but the grease in the vegetable bowl ruined the entire lui cha experience.

on the contrary, i enjoyed mum's simpler and lighter version, just using steamed rice and very hot and strong oolong tea as the broth.

of course living in the europe, some of these ingredients don't come easy and is depending on the season.  we eat this so often that we can improvise and substitute some ingredients but still maintain the taste of this heritage dish. we couldn't find the native green here, kaylan is the closest but is usually expensive and only sold in asian grocery stores, so we finally substitute with brussels sprouts as both give the bitter after tone that is needed for lui cha.

and as a result a home made lui cha is attainable at home.

::wall::

you love walls and doors, because it is a journey of discovery. 

walls that bring a tale of culture, beliefs and value system...
doors that you wonder how many people had step in and out

walls that bring a tale of culture, beliefs and value system...

walls that bring a commercial message

walls that make you stood there appreciating the colors and the details.

walls with stories

walls with bright colors

walls that speak about the past and the present 

 walls that barely survived yesterday and may not be there tomorrow and future.

and most of the walls that fascinating you are the rustic, faded and aged walls

walls with history, walls with a story to tell, walls that make you ponder who live behind them once upon a time.

you found your walls and doors in melaka

and these are just a small set of walls in your collection.
you would like to end with the quote you read about today that give you some food for thought.


new mercies every morning,
grace for every day,
new hope for every trial,
and courage all the way. —McVeig

maca-wrong

macawrong  well, if you take away the w and the g, it is indeed macaron. a home made version, first attempt. it is probably the holy grail everyone passionate about french pastries would like to try at least once or eventually reach the holy grail...

you never thought it is possible to make this at home. you usually buy them whenever you see them especially the prestigious one.  these little things are sweet but one is usually enough to satisfy the sweet tooth and brings forth complete satisfaction - cloud nine so to speak especially the prestigious one not only gives you the color but also complexity of taste in the ganache.  
but you have seen your friends from near to afar, from novice baker to experience ones did these and they all got to the perfect macaronage, the holy of holiness, the ultimate holy grail. well, some may not be perfect and still way to go compare to the laduree, pierre herme and many other french or japanese patisseries chefs.  but if they can do it, why can't you?

so you finally got hold of a packet of almond powder, the essential ingredient for macaron and your kenwood is there to help, so why don't give it a try?

you have a number of recipes in hand, after reading the tips and techniques a few rounds, you are ready to attempt.

obviously the batter looks okay,  but the distance between the batter is too close, so they ended up sticking to one another. but there are a handful in perfect size and shape, but it is hollow...

your macawrongs have skirt, they rose but they gave a hollow shell, so you don't know what and where gone wrong, your oven couldn't give you 150c but 160c. perhaps you rest your batter too long at room temperature, some recipes say 15 min other advised an hour. perhaps the baking paper is too thin for macaron, perhaps well there are thousands of reasons...   but you have not given up, not yet.

if it would to be successful you would have whipped up some grapefruit ganache to sandwich them. since it is macawrong, you just use it to decorate your nectarine vanilla verrines.

when.tempura.meets.soba

still a rather cold week to start with... almost like a "christmas in july" a term you came across today.
o mine, your mind is thinking of these tempura and a bowl of hot soba to warm you up.
here is what you had on one of the last days in tokyo...

tempura shrimps and vegetables. the tempura is not as flaky and light as most of the tempura you find in japan, you were told this is asakusa style tempura authentic to this place.  it's a bit heavier on the batter but the seafood and the green are yummy.

green tea soba, you had it cold because the weather was warm. so instead of a bowl of hot broth, you were dipping your soba into the small bowl of dipping sauce (menshoyu)...

at owariya (尾張屋) a famous soba house, just along the main street of kaminarimon dori (雷門通り).  
right here you had your last tempura and super good matcha soba.

summer.palace.颐.和.园

it's mid july and peak summer yet you are drinking hot chocolate, wearing your jumper and shawl at home.  you took out your autumn trench coat and been wearing it outdoor against the rain... frankly speaking, you don't mind the 15 temperature but the rain, the wind and the gray cloudy sky, suck...

you missed the summer palace (颐和园) of beijing and the time of the year. it was the month of may with a pleasant temperature of just above 20c.

you met your friend here because you thought you never visited summer palace before and would like to have some space to escape the crowd of the city. and you love the willow trees that danced according to the rhythm of  the wind sweeping on the floor, on the surface of the lake, dancing like a group of elegant imperial dancers.

it was a time where peonies were blooming and you were in love with peonies...

and there are many pretty windows tinted with some painting and every scenery beyond the glass window was a surprise to discover.

summer palace is big, it took you almost the entire afternoon and early evening to stroll through the various compounds. some places were full of tourists, other spots were completely deserted and it was just you and your girlfriend. and you chatted your hearts out. it has been a good eight years, there're lots to catch up... so you walked and you chatted, you paused and posed for photo moments and before you know it's evening. and all you remember is that was a totally pleasant time with nice temperature and breeze and great company.

 there're plenty of photo opportunities when you looked to the details like these patterns in green and red.  

and this pillar in green, red, blue, gold and white colors. imperial colors. striking and profoundly beautiful to you.

and even the pattern on the tree caught your attention in contrast with the imperial red and green against the woody earth brown color.

and you missed your friend too.. interestingly both of you are now working for the same company, except she is based in beijing and you in the lowland...

in reality, today is sunday (a cold and rainy summer day) and a new week is coming. a week full of surprises and blessings and hopefully the weather will improve too.

::wet::

the weather is really gloomy lately. rain, wind with intermittent sunshine, it has been like this for more than a week, where are my summer??

i am not sure if it is the weather, or it's my new laptop from my work that i have been having constant headache for a few days continuously...

i would love to go out there to catch the sun and some summer flowers but no opportunity so far, so i retreat to the kitchen to create my own version of summer and sunshine...

 

since the sakura mousse cake, i am quite into anything that mousse-y and yogurt-y.  i make some nectarine vanilla mousse verrines. fancy french name but nothing more than fruit compote and mousse presented in a transparent glass so that one can enjoy the pattern and the different taste from the layers...

something bright and beautiful, and overdose myself with fruity vitamin c, my own version of sunshine

wherever you are, i hope your weather is better than mine.

::sublime::

never a fan of bananas yourself but it's a taste that reminds you of a bbq one night at kota kinabalu....

when you see a few banana lying on the fruit basket at home, you pick them up naturally and mashed them into chocolate banana cupcakes.

and you know it goes well with anything coconut-y, so you tweak the recipe a little...

replacing the milk with coconut cream that sits in your fridge.

and instead of chocolate fudge, you look at the additional avocados in the fridge screaming out at you, and so you conceive a peculiar idea... and you did a bit of research on the inernet and it turns out avocado butter-cream is not entirely radical at all....

and so with your new kenwood, you whisk up avocado buttercream, well, literally avocado cream without butter...

and you seize the moment to practice some pipping, something that you are not good at, and still not good as you can see from the photo...

but it turns out that avocado cream works very well with chocolate banana cake, a super moist chocolate banana cake and a little lemon-ty and buttery avocado cream.

it is a sublime.

happy friday.