November's Daring Bakers Challenge---Cannoli

So....if you happen to be a Daring Baker who happens to peruse the DB forum quite a bit, you would know that I completed my challenge early this month. Whaa..? Hang on, am I not the incorrigible procrastinator that you knew me to be? I am, actually. But not on Cannoli month.

I actually made, assmbled, and photographed my cannoli a few days before the deadline, and if you have access to the DB forum and take a look at the 'Share Completed Challenges' section for November, you can see my version of Cannoli right there, along with an explanation which states that I will be switching internet providers around the time of the posting date, and will therefore be posting late due to the interruption of internet connectivity.

The above is partly true. I was telling the truth when I said that I was switching providers, but no when I said that there was interruption. Because believe it or not, the transition was smoother than I expected, in spite of a few glitches along the way. Now that my internet speed is brought up to this century, I can hopefully take the time I used to spend twiddling my fingers in front of the computer waiting for the pages to load up, and turn it productive blogging hours. I don't even need to take a magazine with me anymore to the computer---this is great!!
I decided to bake my cannoli this month because baked cannoli = less time cleaning up. And I HATE oil stains. I mean, I can't suffer as little as a drop on anything in the kitchen. I'm sure deep frying them is the way to go, and as much as I love anything battered and deep-fried, I am not yet willing to subject my entire kitchen surface to a thin coating of cooking oil.

But moving on to the business at hand...the cannoli...I wanted something light and easy to eat to combat the November heatwave in Melbourne. As I did not have time to plan this dessert very well, I took a look inside my fridge and found, among other things, a half-tub of sheep's milk yogurt and some tinned peaches. Wait now, what? Ah, the shame. Yes, ladies and gentlemen readers of my blog, I eat tinned peaches. But please do not judge me. What are you to do when you are faced with an incessant and insistent craving for peaches, went to the market and bough a couple, only to find, hopes dashed and love lost, that the peaches are sour and tasteless. Blame it on the early season, or blame it on commercial growers who sacrificed taste for mass production, or even blame my local farmers' markets for not having it in stock yet.

But it was good. A hint of tangy sweetness from the yogurt mousse, the delectable taste of sweet peaches, and the crunch of the thin sheets of cannoli, layered into something resembling, but not quite, a millefeuille.

I enjoyed every last bit of it.

The November 2009 Daring Bakers Challenge was chosen and hosted by Lisa Michele of Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. She chose the Italian Pastry, Cannolo (Cannoli is plural), using the cookbooks Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and The Sopranos Family Cookbook by Allen Rucker; recipes by Michelle Scicolone, as ingredient/direction guides. She added her own modifications/changes, so the recipe is not 100% verbatim from either book.

Finally, Some Results

Yes, it's that time of the month already. Where did my time go? Again??!! I feel as though someone is playing a trick on me, ripping the pages off the daily calendar (does anyone still use those anyway?) way ahead of the current date so that it somehow makes them feel that they are very close to Christmas. Because they are. Hell, we all are. It is already October. Less than 90 days to Christmas. Are you freaking out, because I am.

I know I'm not the only one having trouble adjusting my work life with my blogging life, and borrowing words from my friend Mallory, 'I blog because I want to, not because I have to'.

It's not very often that I'm at a lack for words or stories to embellish my posts with, but I'm going to make this one a short one, and let the photos tell you the rest of the story.



The September 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon. She chose the French treat, Vols-au-Vent based on the Puff Pastry recipe by Michel Richard from the cookbook Baking With Julia by Dorie Greenspan.

This is what I've been busy with lately. Like it??

Oh, and see that table cloth that's actually a piece of fabric? I'm in love with it, and I intend to use it for the market stall. Coming soon, I promise!! I just need a clear 'yes' for the to-go date from the Council.

July Daring Bakers Challenge---and the update

It's been a long time since I wrote anything of significance on this space. Do not fret, I am still here. But between testing recipes, figuring out the next move, and a myriad of other issues that have kept me awake at night, my nervous disposition notwithstanding, I just haven't found the time, or the mood, to post anything here. Although I do not have any good news to share with you yet---I am a firm believer of not counting my chickens before they hatch---what I do have is a few works in progress. I'm getting my logo designed by a friend/graphic designer, and I just can't wait for her to finish up the final drawing, colours and all. She's shown me a few sketches that she made so far, and I simply fell in love with all of them (T, you're amazing!). It's just like how I've always dreamed it, but a lot better.

I'm still in the middle of sending out applications to good markets around Melbourne---a task that was much harder and took way longer than I anticipated, much of it due to the bureaucracy imposed by the local council and market management---but I am working on a promising one which hopefully will not fall through.




I am Nervous. Scared. Excited. But mostly unsure. Unsure of whether or not this would work. Unsure of whether or not we will make enough profit to make this worthwhile. Unsure of whether or not I have what it takes to do this. Just unsure.

But I'm halfway there, and there's no sense in stopping or looking back. I am on a forward moving train that is my will to make this work, and I will not stop until I reach my destination. I have to make this work. I have to. Because it is the only thing I can see myself doing.



The July Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

Cumquats and Bakewell Tart

First of all, let me thank you all sincerely for the kind words of encouragement. I really appreciate it, and although I don't say it enough, please know that I am very grateful of all the support and readership I have received in the past year. I could not remember when I started blogging---perhaps my one year blog anniversary is long over, perhaps not, and even though to check is as easy as a mouse click, I could not be bothered.

I have never been the sentimental type, I think; and even though I reminisce a lot about past experiences, I tend to spend more of my time on thinking about the future. Speaking of which, in my excitement to announce my plans, I forgot to mention that I am not selling at the markets as yet. I am very grateful for all the expressions of interests, and I will keep all of you updated through this blog.


As I have only been baking to test recipes for the business this past month, I welcomed this the June Daring Bakers Challenge with wide open arms. Still, the anticipation of being able to make something different did not stop me from leaving it to the very last minute.


The Bakewell tart consists of a sweet shortcrust base, a jam/curd layer, and a frangipane filling. I've never made it before, and the shortcrust pastry is different from the sweet pastry base that I normally use for baking, thus I was curious on how it would turn out. I was very pleasantly surprised by how pliable and how easy to handle the raw dough was. Baked, it was arguably the best part of the Bakewell tart-- tender, crumbly and slightly savoury; beautiful even when unadorned. It is a recipe that I'm definitely keeping.

Since I have been buying kumquats by the truckloads this winter---so fascinated I am by their sweet skin and bitter flesh, and their versatility---I decided to use it to make a curd and confit to go on the Bakewell tart. I also decided to experiment a little with their presentation. Those who know me would know that I am not so good when it comes to plated desserts. So the best way to go about it is just to keep practicing until I get better.



The June Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart… er… pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800’s in England.

As you can find the recipe for the frangipane and the shortcrust pastry from Jasmine's and Annemarie's blogs, I am not going to include it here. I will, however, give you the recipes for the confit and the curd. Feel free to substitue any citrus fruits you can find.


Kumquat Curd
makes 180ml
from Christine Manfield's Desserts

3 large egg yolks
50g caster sugar
55g kumquat puree
63g unsalted butter

Wash kumquats and remove stalks. Puree, whole and unpeeled, in a blender. Strain. Whisk yolks and sugar until pale. Add puree, and whisk over a bain marie until thick. Add butter piece by piece, whicking to incorporate. Remove bowl from heat and store in a covered container until set and firm.


Confit Cumquats
adapted from Australian Gourmet Traveller September 2008 issue

200g cumquats, washed and stalks removed
100g caster sugar
1 cinnamon bark
1 1/2 teaspoon anise

Prick cumquats with a fork, and combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to boil. Turn down heat and simmer for about 25 minutes, or until tender and transluscent. Cool, and store in the fridge in an airtight container.

Daring Bakers May: Strudel!!

Okay. So here it goes.

I know I have been missing from my blog for quite some time. I also have not left as many comments on your blogs. For this, I apologise. I'm there, always, but these days time seem to be getting shorter for me, and before I knew it, it's already time for bed.

Now, I've kept the reason for this under wraps for a few months---except from a couple of fellow bloggers, mainly because I did not want to jinx my chances, and I did not know how things are going to pan out. A few months ago, I left the hospitality industry completely. The hours just do not agree with me anymore, and with restaurants closing down/cutting back on staff due to the economic recession, even if I had managed to get a job at a restaurant somewhere, it would mean that I would have to work longer hours for lower pay. Not that I am afraid of hard work, mind you, but I had to make a choice between a job in patisserie, and seeing J on a regular basis (we don't live together) and keeping the relationship together. I chose the latter.

Besides, working to recreate other people's visions and ideas has never been what I saw myself doing in my future. I have always wanted to do my own thing in patisserie, even right from the start. But I had no idea it was going to have to happen right now.

When a door closes, another one opens. I have no passion for my day job, and I don't see myself being at it for very long. So I toyed with the idea of having my own little venture, just as a daydream at first, and then evolving into something that I could almost see in front of me. And best of all, I could actually see myself very clearly in that dream.


And so, I did all the necessary research and came up with a decision. I am going to have my own business. It is only something that I will do on the side-- working from my home kitchen, selling once a week at the weekend markets, making small but high-quality batches using the best locally-sourced ingredients-- but which I hope to expand into something a lot more.

Now, I am far from being the most experienced pastry chef around, and some of you might start to think: who does she think she is, attempting something like this when she's only had a couple of years of experience in the food industry?

Well, you know what, I thought that too at first. But now I trust the feeling in my gut a lot more. And I believe that if you have an idea of what you want, if you could see how it would work, that maybe you don't get it right the first time, but you will get there eventually. Much like cooking and baking, no?

And so I spent a fair amount of time researching this and that, testing recipes, and getting my kitchen registered. Yes, you actually have to register your kitchen with your local council here in Australia if you want to operate from home, and get the health inspector to come check it. Among the requirements are 3 sinks (one for hand-washing, one for rinsing and one for sanitising, and I haven't even gotten to the food prep sink yet), which I passed with flying colours thanks to the Smeg dishwasher that came with the apartment; non-permeable surfaces (no wood), and separate equipment for home and business. I have never been more thankful of my contemporary kitchen, and instantly dismissed all former thoughts of having a rustic looking, cozy one instead.

And so she came on Wednesday, the same day of this month's DB challenge posting---which half explains why I couldn't post until now, and I'll explain the other half later, because I insist that no one uses the kitchen for the whole day for anything at all. J, who came to help me whip the apartment into shape, had to settle with microwave soup for lunch, girlfriend-of-the-year that I am.

And she passed it!! So $700 later ($500 of which I will pay tomorrow), my kitchen will be fully registered for a year. Yup, you read that one right, I have to do this every year. And I thought home-based businesses are supposed to cost nothing at all to set up.

So this would mean that from now on I would be eligible to sell my products at any markets across Victoria---after the application of a Temporary Events Permit to whatever council the market is under, of course, but that is another story---and that I can legally make stuff to sell from my home kitchen!! Woohoo!!

It may not sound like a big deal, but I really need to work from home in to make any minimal profits at all, and since renting a kitchen space would cost around $60/hour, let's just say that I am over the moon that my kitchen's been approved.


After the health inspector's visit, I had a 3kg order of biscotti to do for 6 people, my first 'big' one so far. I know it sounds like nothing compared to the quantities a commercial kitchen produce on a daily basis, but I had to do all 3kg of it on my little bench-top stand mixer, using only 2 oven trays (I have yet to purchase more equipment). Now since we all know that biscotti are baked twice, the whole thing took me quite some time to finish.

In the end I got to making the strudel on Sunday, and since we are approaching winter in the Southern Hemisphere, I wanted to make it rich, warm, and comforting. Like a good boyfriend.

One of the things I love about the cold weather is the variety of seasonal produce that results from it. Chestnuts, a rarity in the tropics, were going for a cheap $8/kg at the farmers' markets. I thought back to just a few weeks ago when they were twice that, and I just had to buy them. I bought a few varieties of apples too---Braeburn, Granny Smith and Red Splendour---since they were in season, and since I was very much mesmerised by Erica Bauermeister's addictive and wonderful book 'The School of Essential Ingredients'. If you haven't read it, please, run out and get a copy now, for I have never read anything better.

So, after much digression, I chose to make two fillings for my strudel: Apple and Chestnuts; and Apple, Sultanas and Almonds. But instead of putting the apple cubes in the dough raw, I decided to saute them in butter and brown sugar until caramelised but are still firm enough to keep their shapes during the 30 minute baking time.

I still cannot make up my mind which filling I like better, so I guess I'll just have to keep trying.

The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.

Fig and Blackberry Crostata....am I a sugar addict?

I made this crostata a few weeks ago with the last of the good blackberries, and at a time when figs were at their peak. No, it's not a pizza. It is, indeed, a crostata.

Being one to believe that more is more, I may have misread (ignored) the instructions to leave at least a 5cm wide border all around the sides. As a result, there was not enough to cover enough of the fruits to sufficiently transform what is meant to be a freeform pie into the work of art called a crostata.

J had a birthday last Tuesday. No, I did not make him anything special. In self defense though, I did ask if he wanted me to make anything for his birthday. His answered no. And being someone who never takes things at face value, I began to wonder if his lack of enthusiasm for my food is directly related to the fact that I only ever make sweet foods. While I am more than happy to munch on sweets all day--- which I do on a frequent basis, forgoing main, proper meals in place of sugary goodness---J has a (much) lower threshold for sweet things. He likes a few mouthfuls here and there, but on an average day, I'd say that three servings of anything sweet is his limit of sugar intake in one sitting. Which works for me, because I end up polishing off the rest of the food. Life is good.


Or so I thought. I have been pondering about this lately: do all the people in your lives enjoy most of the things that you make? Because here's a BIG revelation: the people in mine surely don't. With the exception of my siblings, who are borderline carnivorous, most of my friends don't eat or even buy sweets, which I find completely unimaginable. One of my friends confessed at a recent lunch meeting that he could not even remember when he last bought a candy bar/cookie/anything sweet from the supermarket. The horror!!

After observing how most of the ladies at work took 2 days to finish a small bag of 6 shortbread biscuits that I made and gave to them, I can't help but wonder if the problem has always been mine. I take on average 5 minutes flat to polish off 6 shortbread squares for breakfast with my morning tea. And no, this is not the embarrassing scenario where I am the only one who do not realise how bad her cooking/baking really is, so get that thought outta your head!



What I want to know is what you, my readers, consider to be your sweetness threshold. Whether it is something like mine (I can polish off ten 2cmx4cm pistachio nougat bars in half a day---ohhohoh I'm a patissier's and a dentist's dream!!), or somewhere along the lines of my friend, who thinks that sugar is just another type of food he does not need. I look forward to reading your comments!!

This crostata recipe is adapted from Chef Catherine Adams' recipe which was featured in the Australian Gourmet Traveller magazine. Please click on this link to get to the recipe page. I took the liberty of substituting the raspberries with the blackberries; feel free to use any other fruits that are in season.

A Story of Classic French Pastry, and of Unexpected Disappointments

When I encountered this month's Daring Bakers Challenge, hosted by Meeta of What's for Lunch Honey, and Tony of Tony Tahhan, I was both excited and disappointed. Excited because they have chosen something from pastry demi-god Pierre Herme's book, Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Herme, and disappointed because that something turns out to be chocolate eclairs. I've made these at least three times in the past year, and although they are undoubtedly delicious, I don't find them particularly challenging to make.

However, in the spirit of the Daring Bakers, I decided to play along. I had initially thought of tweaking and playing with the components and to add a bit of my flair to the whole challenge, but I decided that I should give Pierre Herme's recipe a good go, just because, like many other pastry chefs and bakers out there, I worship the man.

So I set out to make the pate a choux, full of hope and expectations with what the recipe invented by the world's most renowned pastry chef would bring to my humble home kitchen. I read through the instructions and sure enough, they were very close to the recipe I had used in the past. Save for the instructions on baking temperature and times. Monsieur Herme's instructions indicated a baking time of 7 minutes at the temperature of 190 degree Celsius, then it spiralled off into propping the oven door open with a wooden spoon and continue baking for the next 13 minutes.

I have 3 problems with this. One: In my past experience, 7 minutes is not enough time to sufficiently brown the choux pastry and make it puff up to its fullest potential. Two: There is no need to prop open the oven door. All you have to do is reduce your oven temperature down to 170 degree Celcius and continue baking for...Three: a further 20-25 minutes to completely dry out the choux pastry, plus an extra 5-10 minutes sitting in the switched off hot oven.

So in total, Monsieur Herme's baking time is short by a bit too many minutes. But I gave the man the benefit of the doubt and proceeded on as per instruction with the first batch. And, just as I had expected, my choux puffs deflated into miserable little slumps a few minutes out of the oven. So unfortunately, Monsieur Herme, this girl is not impressed. I then proceeded to make the consecutive batches using the baking times stated above...and voila!! Perfectly puffed choux pastry!!


A few more things that the recipe failed to mention in relation to the pate a choux:

1. You can check the readiness of the choux pastry by either cutting one open, or by tapping the bottom with your fingers and listening for the hollow sound. I personally prefer the latter.

2. You should spray or sprinkle your oven tray with water. This action helps to create steam in the oven, aiding your choux puffs to turn out as puffy as gravitationally possible.

If you think that marks the end of my rant, you are wrong. There are few things worse than embarking on a journey ill-equipped with a bad recipe. So even at the risk of receiving threats and hate mails in my inbox from ardent Pierre Herme worshippers, I am willing to brave the odds to continue. So, first I would have to agree that the pastry cream recipe is fabulous. Other than the fact that it seems that the man enjoys making his fans go round in circles the long way about making it. For example, you do not need to put the mixture in the ice bath and continue stirring it with your tired arms. You can simply put the creme patissiere in a stand mixer and let your paddle do its job of smoothing out lumps and cooling down the cream. And then you can add the butter in chunks. Too easy.

By this time I was rightly disillusioned, but the worst was not over for me. The most disappointing part of this challenge is the chocolate glaze. I contemplated using my own chocolate ganache recipe which is 10 times simpler and had never disappoint. I again gave Monsieur Herme the benefit of the doubt and went along with his version.

Sigh. Either the stars are not aligned for me to make any of Herme's creations right, or his recipes are just not what I had expected them to be. To end in a sort of anti-climax, I find the chocolate glaze very difficult to handle. The glaze is too thin at its shiniest stage, and turned dull when cooled. Totally not what I expected. By this time I had completely lost faith and gave up. I did not even bother to decorate it or even to take proper photographs.

Don't get me wrong, I still think that Pierre Herme is one of the greatest pastry chefs in the world, and I would definitely not miss the chance to visit his famous patisserie the next time I'm in Paris. But I don't think that the recipes in his books are a true testament of the man's ability to create the exquisite pastries, cakes and desserts that he is renowned for, and thus I have struck Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Herme off my to-buy list. At least for the moment, or until someone could convince me that it is actually a worthwhile purchase. So here's my second Daring Bakers Challenge, and may the third one be more of a success for me.


PS. Meeta and Tony, thank you both so much for your effort in putting together this challenge. I hope I did not offend you by saying what I said in this post. It is purely my opinion of the recipe, and not at all to put blame on the lovely hosts that have taken the trouble to make this challenge come together for the month of August.