Hello there!

To my buddies who check this space, i've max'd out my free photo memory capacity, so this space won't be updated for awhile......hehehe.

If i'm not lazy, i'll start yet another blog. will post the link here......

:)

"Hostess" Babycakes

due to a fire on tuesday, there are power outages in Copley, so my neighbor & i've been work'n/rot'n @ home the past 2 days. hehe. so we took walks around the block, separately. then Eman & Snickers decided to grab cupcakes from Babycakes, in which neither of us have try'd.

Eman got 2 "Hostess" cupcakes, coincidentally: a chocolate one & a "Twinkies" one. they were both yummy! i loved how airy the frosting was on the "Twinkies" one & how dark & moist the chocolate one was. guess we'll be "regulars" soon enough! :)

Spring Festival in Boston :)

SO EXCITED ABOUT THE SPRING FESTIVAL in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Kyoto's gift of Sakura Cherry Blossom Trees to Washington DC! :)

The event is taking place 2 days before we fly to Asia. WOOHOO!!! :)

more info here: http://japanfestivalboston.org/

Happy Girl's Day! 祝ひな祭り!

March 3rd is Girl's Day in Japan. it's a day when families celebrate their daughters' youth & pray for their health & happiness. traditionally, when a baby girl is born, she is gift'd with a set of ひな人形 Hina Dolls. i bought myself a non-traditional set last year, featuring none other but Hello Kitty & her beau Dear Daniel :) 

i took the excuse of Girl's Day to bake a Hinamatsuri-themed cake. it was too exciting to miss out baking something pink, white & green! i remember all the beautiful Hinamatsuri cakes i saw in Japan when i was there in 2007 & 2010. the pink, white & green ones were the most memorable cos the colors were wayyyyy too pretty to miss! of course, i couldn't miss the "sparkling" strawberry cakes, Matcha green tea everything & all the Mont Blanc chestnut desserts!!! MMMMMMM!!! DROOL'n just think'n about them. can't wait to go back to Japan!!! SOOOOOOO look forward to pig'n out @ Sweets Paradise!!! (will write a post for this!)

back to my Hinamatsuri cake. I baked a souffle sponge from Okashi, the moistest sponge ever! i half'd the batter, add'd green tea to half & dehydrated strawberry powder & pink food coloring to the other half. the cakes were sandwich'd with strawberries & whip'd cream. for the peach tree, i piped the tree w/ melt'd chocolate, then dot'd the branches with pink whip'd cream to resemble peach blossoms :)

Hello Kitty's 2nd Curry Bath

there's skinny-dip'n...then there's curry-dip'n. Hello Kitty prefers the latter. :P

i was craving Korean curry & of course i couldn't resist Hello Kitty-fy'n it up again. hehe.

i cook'd up some OTTOGI brand curry (오뚜기카레) with chicken & potatoes. YUMMY! i buy OTTOGI curry in 2 forms - powder'd (just add water & veggies) or the 3-minute (3분) boxes with chunks of potatoes and carrots (just heat & serve). think i prefer the box'd one, seems to taste better. i usually sautee some ground pork & heat the box'd curry with it, then serve it over rice. READY TO ENJOY IN MINUTES! :)

curry, curry, curry. Thai curry, Japanese curry, Korean curry, Chinese curry, Indian curry. i love 'em all :)

homemade sushi

last night's homemade dinner

手巻き (temaki/handroll) - salmon, avocado, cucumber, tobiko, scallion & spicy mayo (sriracha & mayonnaise) w/ rice wrap'd in seaweed :)

アボカドサラダ (avocado salad) - avocado, imitation crabmeat, cucumber, tobiko & spicy mayo :)

Soy Chai Tea Latte Chiffon Cake

i always loved the smell of Chai Tea Lattes! the taste, however, i wasn't ever too fond of. work'n as a Barista @ Starbucks for 6 yrs, i never really drank anything aside from whole milk w/ peppermint & vanilla syrups, apple juice, soy hot chocolate w/ almond syrup, Tazoberry (long-gone frozen sugary berry drink) & when Starbucks brought the Green Tea Latte, all i ever drank from then on was soy green tea latte :)

back to Chai! i indeed always loved the smell of it! and i always somehow loved Chai lattes made w/ soymilk, it just seem'd to be a perfect blend. but i never drank it, or enjoy'd it. LOL!

but recently, after buy'n a mini-fridge w/ a freezer, to solely make ice & house beverages (and ice cream, and butter), now i have 24/7 access to ice cubes, so all the possibilities of drink'n cold drinks at home became realities. within the endless list of cold drinks, soy chai was one of them, along with thai iced tea, bubble tea, strawberry lemonade, iced espresso drinks, etc. happy happy joy joy!

i start'd slow with soy chai's, add'n a splash for taste to my glass of soymilk. then i start'd craving it here & there. then i made chai cupcakes, twice! once for a baby shower & once w/ cinnamon cream cheese frosting. today, i made 2 mini chiffon cakes :) i had want'd to make these for a whole month now. had want'd to make it for Helen's bday, but i got lazy & distract'd. i still owe her one. think i'll send one her way today :)

i frost'd them w/ vanilla whip'd cream & pop'd on some fondant flowers. i made 2 tablespoons of fondant!!!

Soy Chai Tea Latte Chiffon Cake

2 eggs, separated
60g granulated sugar
95g flour
1t baking powder
1/2t salt
30ml soymilk
30ml Tazo Chai Tea concentrate
1/2t vanilla extract

1. preheat oven to 350F.
2. in a bowl, whisk yolks & 30g sugar until pale, add soymilk, chai concentrate & vanilla extract. mix.
3. in another bowl, stir together flour, baking powder & salt.
4. in a clean & dry bowl, beat egg whites until foamy, sprinkle 30g sugar in, continue to beat until meringue is very stiff
5. fold in half of meringue into the yolk mixture, fold in half the flour mixture. repeat. do not overmix. when batter is blended, pour batter into pan(s) & bake for 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean.

i used 2 4-inch mini chiffon cake pans. after the cakes are done baking, turn them upside down in a bowl to prevent sinking.

Homemade Marshmallow Fondant

1 bag of mini marshmallows (10.5 oz bag)
8 cups of powdered sugar
1/4 cup water
cornstarch

microwave marshmallows on half-power for 2 minutes with the water. mix. microwave longer, in 30 second intervals, as needed, until no longer chunky. add all the sugar. mix well. it's gonna be STICKY!!! dump mixture on a clean surface dust'd with cornstarch & knead until it's no longer sticky. wrap with saran wrap, leave at room temperature for 1 hour. knead to use. color. cut. cover cake. let dry. etc.

for the 2 tablespoons of fondant, i used 20 marshmallows, 1/2t water & 10t powdered sugar. kinda wing'd it. then i knead'd it with cornstarch. :)

ENJOY!

Happy Birthday Sonia! (Guinness Baileys Cake)

finally made an “Irish Car Bomb” cake! for Sonia’s bday cake, i made a Guinness & Baileys chocolate cake, shaped as a glass of Guinness beer & top’d with Sonia’s picture of her drink’n Guinness & sport’n a Guinness mustache :)

ta-dah!!! the photo for the topper was so memorable! it's from Judy's work holiday party in 2007!!! when i came up with the idea, i instantly knew i had to use this shot! HAHAHA. Good Times~! :)

the cake is made of 5 layers of Guinness beer chocolate cake, layer'd with Baileys buttercream frosting, cover'd w/ Baileys chocolate ganache & top'd w/ Baileys chocolate whip'd cream. MMM!!! i used the usual Ghirardelli chocolate cake recipe (red velvet, black sesame), but replaced the milk w/ Guinness beer. the beer taste wasn't very prevalent, so next time i might try to evaporate 2 portions into 1. see how that goes. i baked one square 8" cake, and used a cake ring to cut out 4 circles, which i sliced across into 8 circles. then i frost'd 4 layers & stack'd the cakes into a vertical log. after refrigerating an hour or so, i "sculpt'd" the beer glass & cover'd the cake with ganache. finally, i piped whip'd cream all over the top.

the entire Penang waitstaff made their way over to check out the cake. hehe. i had plan'd on offer'n them some since we were soooo stuff'd! but the cake was too good, the Birthday girl had to take it home for later indulgence. :P

my idea sketch'd out :)

i made 11 “irish cake bomb” pops from the leftover baked cake pieces & "sculpt'd" off scraps. did i ever mention that i dislike Candymelts? or should i say Candymelts dislike me? i always have a hard time w/ Candymelts! they never ever ever ever melt to the consistency that i want, or that others, such as Bakerella or my co-worker's wife, can achieve. somehow, every time i work with Candymelts, it becomes a chunky messy mess :( i microwave it. i melt it in a ziplock bag in warm water. i melt it in wilton squeeze bottles over water. i add shortening. i add vegetable oil. nothing ever work'd. :( no idea why...anyhow, these tasted yummy! and the sprinkles made up for the messy pink Candymelts coating. :)

with the same batch of batter, i also made 24 mini cupcakes :) i should've thought of this a long time ago. make mini cupcakes! they're cuter! they're bitesize! they're less filling (if u have less...). one batch of my usual Ghirardelli chocolate cake recipe usually yields 24 cupcakes, so i knew i wouldn't have enough cupcakes for my friend's party, so i bot a mini pan & made mini ones. i brought 15 for 7 people, and there were leftovers. HAHAHA. everyone got too full from hot-pot.

can't wait for my next fun baking project! it'll be for Rosie & i think i know what i'm gonna bake. hehe. it may be this!!! Rosie loves tokidoki, so do i! we also both LOVE the cactus pups!!! my favorite is this one. Rosie's favorite color of all time is blue, so maybe i'll make him blue :)

Nutella Cupcakes

work'n from home today because tofu got neuter'd yesterday & i wanna watch after him. i'm a lil stress'd & super annoy'd @ the moment cos i've been work'n since 6:15am, with over 20 different people email'n & msg'n me all day with questions that i consider to be commonsense...sigh...the 2hr+ phone calls will come as soon as my boss is done with all his other conference calls...i'm sure! why today?! :(

anyways, to de-stress, i bake! i baked! :)

last night, i was craving chocolate chip muffins, then i decided to go with a nutella recipe since my container of nutella has been sit'n in the shelf for months, unopen'd.

found a recipe that i couldn't resist from Torview since it only requires 4 ingredients & 10 minutes from batter to tummy. there were 100 comments for this post, but no one really said "i baked them & they're awesome!" so i was a tad bit skeptical to try. but i try'd & now i can say "i baked them & they're awesome!" :P

Nutella Cupcakes
recipe from Torview, makes 5 cupcakes

1/2 C nutella
1 egg
5 T flour
1/4 t baking soda

preheat oven to 350F. mix everything together. bake 18-20 minutes (original recipe said 9-10, but the cuppies were still wet & sunken then. maybe it's my oven, or maybe it's cos i kept open'n it to check HAHA). enjoy!

i'll definitely make this recipe again, but with less nutella (on the sweet side) & think'n to add some almond flour to it next time -MMMMM almond & hazelnut together! perfect match!

pair'd my nutella cupcakes with fresh-brew'd Starbucks Blonde Roast. i like my coffee French-press'd, black & consumed within minutes while it's nice & hot, just like a true (ex-)barista :)

February Bakes

i start'd the year right w/ two fun baking projects & i plan on continuing what i start'd in 2011: taking every opportunity to bake, to put smiles on faces, to surprise family & friends, and to practice :)

tomorrow, i plan on baking a cake w/ chai tea concentrate. i want to bake a fluffy moist cake, not too sweet - so either my 1st chiffon cake or a "souffle sponge" from Okashi. then i'll cover it w/ lightly sweeten'd whip'd cinnamon cream cheese buttercream :) it's actually for my dear "sister" Helen, who, along with her 3 sisters, are my lovely non-blood sisters since birth, literally, & for life! Helen's birthday is Thursday. i'm plan'n on surprising her with it. Helen loves chai tea lattes!!! :)

another bday cake on way is for the Guinness-loving Sonia. so...i wanna bake her a giant Guinness cupcake w/ Bailey's buttercream. been meaning to make one for awhile. can't wait!
i myself LOVE Bailey's!!! i usually order it on the rocks. Yes! i always go for the fattie drinks & the fattie foods. hahaha.

as for Valentine's, i feel like giving Valentine's treats to all my girls, so i gotta think of something soon :)

Happy Birthday Kai! =D

Here's Kai's BDay Cake: Nerdy Domo & Turtle @ the Beach on a Sunny Day! :)

2-pc funfetti cake complete with "beachy sand" made of cookie crumbs & cocoa powder

 

the Birthday Boy...ahem...Man with his cake. Silly Kai is one super fun dude! :)

Bistro Chi / Kama Lounge

i've found my new niche! it's a Chinese restaurant call'd Bistro Chi, connect'n to a bar call'd Kama Lounge. of my 3 visits to Bistro Chi & 1 to Kama Lounge, i was never disappoint'd w/ the entire experience from the food, to the drinks, to the service :) it's a great place for dining & chill'n w/ friends. and yes, i've taken my friends there! :)

i love how the setting is modern, yet the Chinese food is still authentic Chinese food (though there is not a speck of Chinese characters in sight on the menus or inside/outside the place)! peek'n thru the window into the space, u would never guess it was a Chinese restaurant. HaHa. i like that! alongside the usual Chinese food, Bistro Chi offers bar food & yummy cocktails. i super like!

my first visit was with my cousin, his gf & their elementary school classmates who are now my neighbors in a different state! SMALL WORLD! we order'd 3 dishes, plus sweet potato fries. one of them was very unique to me: the sweet deep-fry'd t-bone steak (no picture...dunno why). it was yummy! i've never really had/seen/heard of deep-fry'd beef except IHOP's country-fry'd steak & a really yummy beef dish in Toronto that tasted almost like it should've come in the form of junk food.

the other 2 dishes we order'd were tender stir-fry'd flounder & lemon chicken.

the presentation of the lemon chicken was novel & instead of the usual cubes, these were breast fillets. a little dry, but still good.

then we got dessert on the house cos my neighbor knows the Bistro Chi people! EXTRA SWEET! we had a slice of espresso mousse cake & a slice of peanut butter cake - both were DELICIOUS! unlikely made in-house, but who cares!? they were GOOD!!!

Second time i went, i brought my friends for lunch. i had the best egg drop soup ever! then i had black pepper steak w/ rice - a little too generous w/ the sauce (tad too salty), but i finish'd the entire plate! YUMMY! no pictures.

third time i went, i went w/ friends to the connect'n Kama Lounge for drinks after dinner. i order'd the Kama cocktail - a fruity concoction of passionfruit rum, pineapple, pomegranate & such. DELICIOUS! we also order'd sweet potato fries (again), mango sorbet & Chinese-style salt-&-pepper fry'd calamari. i never ever ate calamari before, but i couldn't resist this time - it's fry'd! haha. i'm an oddball when it comes to try'n new things: if i didn't eat it grow'n up, i'm stubborn to try it, but in the past 3 yrs, i've try'd & favorited lots of food - asparagus, mango, strawberries, eggplant, salads, sushi. it was yummy!

my Kama drink, the sweet potato fries served w/ ranch & chop'd red onion & the mango sorbet w/ fresh sliced mango.

this was YUMMY!!!

my 1st time eat'n calamari :)

my fourth visit was 2 days ago w/ friends. we shared a few tapas & a few Chinese dishes.

my Kama drink

  

pull'd pork quesadillas - GOOD!

the usual sweet potato fries - GOOD!

curry lemongrass shrimp skewers - didn't get to try one, but they must've been GOOD! will try next time!

crab cakes w/ dijonaise sauce - the sauce was overpower'n & salty.

duck confit w/ raspberry preserves - i don't eat duck anymore (just because...), but the toast was good. hehe.

shrimp & scallop over a bed of garlic-y vermicelli - YUMMY! the vermicelli was nice & greasy & very garlic-y. :)

our regular Chinese veggies dish - garlic stir-fry'd peapods - YUMMY!

stir-fry'd beef & veggies - YUMMY!

although my tummy expands forward & sideways, i couldn't fit dessert this time around. :P 

BUT we went for more drinks @ their other restaurant one block away - Fuji 1546. they (people i don't know) also own shabu, beni & fuji @ kendall. i like these people! their food is good and their locations work for me! :) have yet to try shabu & fuji @ kendall, but i'm sure i'll be there soon enough!

Happy Eat'n! :)

[recipe] black sesame cupcakes

black sesame cupcakes

makes 24 cupcakes
adapt'd from Ghirardelli's Grand Fudge Cake recipe on the cocoa powder container



- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup black sesame powder (original recipe uses 3/4 cup cocoa instead of black sesame. i bot the black sesame powder from the Chinese market, it's just ground black sesame seeds, costs around $2.50 for a brand from Taiwan w/ a cute cow on it)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks), soften'd (take out of fridge for 30 minutes or longer, or microwave both sticks together for 15 seconds right after you take out of the fridge)
- 1 cup sugar (original recipe takes 1 & 3/4 cups)
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 large eggs
- 1 & 1/3 cups milk (water is OK too; i use water whenever i don't have milk)

*Red Velvet cupcakes - i use this same recipe for red velvet cupcakes, but use only 1/4 cups cocoa & add 1T red food coloring

Preheat oven to 350F. In a medium bowl, combine flour, black sesame powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar on medium high speed (using handmixer or standmixer) until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add vanilla and eggs one at a time, scraping bowl after each addition. Alternately add flour mixture and milk (starting and ending with the flour mixture), while mixing on low speed. Only mix until everything's combined & smooth. DO NOT OVERMIX or the cake will be dense! Spoon mixture into cupcake pan lined with cupcake baking cups. Bake 25-30 minutes (for me, it always seem to take longer than the recipe says)

this cake is delicious on its own, but would go well w/ any vanilla, white chocolate, green tea, or black sesame frostings. i usually do swiss meringue buttercream (egg whites, butter & sugar) or cream cheese buttercream (cream cheese, butter & sugar).

ENJOY!!!

Colin's 100th Day Celebration Cake

after a crazy day of 2 under-baked cakes, my 5th fail'd souffle cheesecake, an always delicious wing'd-by-me tiramisu, 3 more black sesame cakes, a double batch of green tea swiss meringue buttercream, and lots of rush'n to walk the dog, pack for an overnight trip, and figuring how to safely transport my yummy goods (and lots of butter, eggs & sugar used), Colin's cake was complete, just in time for Pearl to pick me up & drive to NY! hahaha. good thing i finish'd the cardboard monkey a week before.

Baby Colin's 1st Cake: 2 tiers of black sesame cake w/ green tea swiss meringue buttercream top'd w/ the monkey that i design'd for the parents in 2008. (wish i had bot a cake-decorating turn table)

the Happy Parents with Baby Colin & my cakes :)

luckily the cake only mess'd up a little bit from the 250+ miles commute - it tilt'd a lil.

the tiramisu could've used a good dust'n of cocoa to be re-pretty'd up (saran wrap ate the cake!)

my slice of yummy & moist black sesame cake w/ green tea swiss meringue buttercream :)

baking project #2 of 2012

my 2nd baking project for 2012 is coming sooner than i had expect'd & i am super duper psych'd about it cos i hav this crazy fun idea combining a character that i currently LIKE A LOT (no, i am not obsess'd...maybe...or am i?) who? it's どーも aka DOMO! last yr i made a DOMO bday cake for my lil bro w/ a DOMO cakepop on top, (see my profile pic), then a month later, i made more DOMO cakepops for my lil cousins. another DOMO cake was definitely on my 2012 to-bake list. :)

my 2nd DOMO cake creation is for my new friend of two months (we met on Thanksgiving) - Kai. he's really fun & nice just as all of the people i met @ Turkey Day dinner. a month after that, we gather'd for Christmas Eve dinner, Secret Santa & Yankee Swap. one of the Yankee Swappers offer'd a much-want'd DOMO lava lamp & a DOMO stuff'd animal backpack (I REALLY WANT'D THEM!). everyone "fought" for them including Kai. since Kai likes DOMO & turtles, i'm making him a DOMO & turtle cake!!! WooHoo! sounds fun, eh? it's gonna be a funfetti vanilla cake dome frost'd as a turtle w/ a big DOMO cake figurine/cakepop sit'n on top, been picturing it for days & smiling nonstop @ the thought of it. can't wait!!!
*2 DAYS LATER*

out with my notebook & time to doodle :)

plan'n for Colin's 1st party

my nephew Colin's turn'n 100 days old this week. he's get'n cuter & cuter! so lovable & full of positive happy energy to cheer up everyone around him!!! now, if only Colin will start sleep'n thru the night, allow'n his parents to rest up for work, then he's Perfect! hehe. parenthood is tough! GOOD LUCK LISA & PAUL! :)

to celebrate, my family will be hold'n a traditional Chinese banquet, which usually consists of a 9-course meal along with the essential red-dyed eggs, "chicken liquor soup" & "ginger vinegar soup". i've no clue how to cook the soups since i don't eat them, but they're the ultimate postpartum soup for new Mommies & usually "truckloads" of the 2 soups are cook'd & shared w/ friends & family, primarily women it seems. grow'n up i never noted any men consuming it...

anyways, so! i'll be baking a cake for the occasion. it'll be Baby Colin's 1st cake (the Baby Shower one was for Mommy Lisa). i wanna make a mini 2-tier one. it'll be mini since the restaurant's already providing a cake & guests usually skip dessert after the 9-course meal. doesn't stop me! hehe. in addition to Colin's cake, i'll be baking a cheesecake for my Aunt's belated bday & also making tiramisu cos 1. i'm craving it nonstop, 2. my Mommy recommend'd it, 3. Haily & Lisa's MIL love tiramisu.

for Colin's cake, it's gonna be 1 tier of green tea cake & 1 tier of black sesame cake. i needa decide on a trusty cake recipe & a frosting recipe. the cake will be baked & assembled up to 30hrs in advance since i'm baking it Friday morning, but it won't be consumed til Saturday night. my brother'll be deliver'n my sweets to Queens, NY on Saturday, while i'll be driving over on Friday night w/ friends to eat & shop. Yippy! No idea how i wanna decorate it yet, but definitely using my monkey design again. gotta bust out my notebook & brainstorm :)

Gift from Japan =D

OMG!!! Boston's get'n sakura trees from Japan in March!!! i can't wait to pig out & get drunk with friends under the Cherry Blossom trees, or let me rephrase, I can't wait for hold an Ohanami blossoms-view'n party :)

SAKURA  FESTIVAL  in  BOSTON

Spring, 2012

2012 marks the 100th Anniversary of the original gift of cherry trees from Japan to the United States in 1912.  Planted at the Tidal Basin of the Potomac River in the nation's capital and supplemented with more cherry trees over the years, the blossoming cherry trees of Washington DC have become a national treasure and attract hundreds of thousands of viewers to the "Cherry Blossom Festival" along the Potomac each spring.  Japan will mark this Centennial with new gifts of cherry trees to Washington and to a number of other American cities, Boston among them.  The Consulate General of Japan in Boston will arrange ceremonial cherry tree plantings in many Boston parks and public places.  To accompany the new cherry trees, planning is now underway for a rich festival of Japanese cultural events in Boston, beginning in March 2012 and spanning more than three springtime months.   Highlights of this festival include the events listed below.  Many, many more festival events will be added during the coming weeks and months.  For detailed information, schedules, details, and ticketing, please keep checking this website:

www.japansocietyboston.org