Pineapply Pastry Workshop 新款鳳梨酥工作坊

This is love by first sight. Traditional pastry put in a new mold with the same fresh and tasty ingredients. Welcome to join my second workshop in Chinese Evangelical Free Church in Monterey Park, CA.

Details and RSVP: visit www.cefcla.org or https://www.facebook.com/events/1097744560979881/?ref=newsfeed

or https://www.facebook.com/morethanbread.net

 

Mango Roll 芒果腸粉

Long time no post! As I looked back to my 275 posts throughout the years, mango is one of my favorite subjects--with over 13 different recipes!

Here is my latest and new beloved dessert:

Black Forest Tart (No Bake) 黑森林撻 (免焗)

This is a nice summer-friendly, no-bake variation of the traditional black forest cake. I used dark chocolate mousse as the filling and dark sweet cherries. Use the finest chocolate for best flavor. Both homemade or store bought tart crusts do not require baking, so it is a superb dessert for hot summer days. If you keep the tart in the freezer and eat it frozen, the texture of the chocolate mousse becomes almost like ice cream.

Special note about silky and smooth chocolate mousse: the temperatures of the three different mixtures--egg, melted chocolate and whipped cream--have to be very close, if not the same. If the chocolate or egg mixture is too warm, the whipped cream will deflate, resulting with a dense mousse. If the cream is too cold, the chocolate will seize into flecks, making the mousse grainy.

Walnut and Date Tartlet 合桃棗蓉撻

This is a great finger food for parties because it involves minimal preparation. All the ingredients are store bought--date paste, puff pastries, and walnuts. I call it semi-homemade. The date paste is made with 100% dates, no sugar added, so it is naturally sweet. It is very convenient to use and work with and can be found in Mediterranean/Middle Eastern or international grocery stores. Puff pastries are also available in the frozen section of most American grocery stores. I always keep some in my freezer. The spices in this recipe--nutmeg and cardamom--are best whole, and freshly ground right before being used.

Mango Sago with Pomelo 楊枝甘露

I use mangoes the most in making desserts, especially during summer--ice cream, jelly, panna cotta, mochi, mille crepes, pudding, souffle. Yet this one is a bit different from the rest. It is in liquid form, much like dessert soups common in Asian cuisine. Unlike baking, dessert soups are very forgiving and easy to make. There is almost no way to mess up or fail. Adjust the amount of sugar or use sugar substitute according to your palate.

Using mango puree and dice mangoes together increases the mango flavor and it matches so well with coconut milk and sago. I wonder why I haven't made this before!

Mango Panna Cotta 香芒奶凍

If you like mango pudding, then you might like this dessert with panna cotta for an extra smoothness and richness. What a way to beat summer heat!

Apple Cake (no added sugar) 萍果蛋糕 (無添加白糖)

This is my first time baking without granulated sugar and the result is surprisingly good. Maple syrup gives the cake a fine and moist crumb. A good choice for Fall dessert.

It is a straightforward recipe and easy to follow. It uses the simple muffin method which the dry ingredients are mixed in a bowl and the wet in another bowl then they are mixed together and bake.

Lemon Bar 檸檬吧

One of the benefits of living in Southern California is the abundance of sunshine. Many people have backyards with different types of fruit trees: lemon, peach, orange, loquat, pear, passion fruit.....Even though I don't have any, I am blessed to know friends who do : )

What can I with so much fruit, especially lemon, other than making lemonade? Here is a great recipe to make lemon bars with the right balance of sweetness and tanginess.

Ginger, Tangerine and Lemon Peel in Vinegar 八珍陳皮檸檬薑

Oh my, it is cold these days in Los Angeles with daily highs only at around the 50s fahrenheit and below freezing in the early morning hours in many parts of Southern California. Jackets, sweaters and scarves are flying off the shelves in stores. Hot pots and clay pot with rice are very popular foods in many Asian homes in the winter. Warm food and soup can really warm not just the body but the soul.

What usually accompanies winter is a cold or flu. Therefore getting enough sleep, and having good, nutritious food are very important to boost the immune system. Ginger is a treasured food that promotes blood circulation and helps fight infection. Together with tangerine peel, they are two of the three "Treasures from Guangdong," the third being straw grass.

For more about the nutritional values of ginger, click here.

Red, White and Blue Panna Cotta 三色奶凍

Happy 239th Birthday America! 

Strawberry mousse, panna cotta and blueberry mousse--made with fresh fruits, vanilla pods, fresh cream and milk. A great way to celebrate with this wholesome and refreshing dessert!

Raspberry Chocolate Mousse Panna Cotta 紅桑子朱古力奶凍

This is my take on the classic Italian dessert panna cotta. It means "cooked cream" in Italian and is very much like a Western version of a popular Chinese dessert, steamed eggs with milk. By adding two other flavors--raspberry and chocolate mousse--I have created a new combination that compliments each other and at the same time adds depth to the flavor. With the right amount of gelatin to firm up the liquid, the texture of the panna cotta becomes delicately smooth and silky. They are served in small glasses of the perfect serving size. Mmm....yummy!

Since there are three layers and they all need to be refrigerated and set before adding another one, a bit of patience is needed. It can be prepared one to two days before serving.

Strawberry Cheesecake (No Bake) 草莓芝士凍餅

This has been the longest stretch since my last post on 2/10/15. What I have been doing for the past month? I took a vacation to visit family and meet some friends whom I have lost contact with for more than two decades. It is a great feeling to reconnect with old friends and catch up with each others' lives. 

What is most precious is after all these years we still treasure our friendship. 

Genuine friendship can pass the test of time!

Mango Cheesecake (Baked) 芒果芝士蛋糕

Are you a cheesecake lover? Do you like mango? If your answers are both positive, then don't miss out on this mango cheesecake. What makes this cheesecake different from all others is the concentrated mango pulp mixed into the mango cheese filling. As you bite into it, you experience an intense mango flavor.

This recipe is adapted from the newly published Baking Bible by renowned baker and cookbook author Rose Levy Beranbaum.

Raspberry Tart with Almond Cream 紅桑子杏仁醬撻

Raspberry is often referred to as the king of berries. It is often used to make all kinds of yummy desserts. When it is paired with the other king of nuts--almond, it makes a superb tart.

紅桑子被稱為莓中之王，實至名歸，用來做各款甜點，都大受歡迎。另外，杏仁也有果仁之王的美譽，將兩者用來做這個撻，實在相得益彰。

Lychee Mousse Cake 茘枝慕斯蛋糕

Oh summer is here...this means there will be plenty of mangoes, peaches, plums, watermelons, and lychee around. Lychee is a tropical fruit that originates in China. Through global trading and local cultivation, many countries around the world can also enjoy this delicious, flavorful fruit.

Lemon Cream Tart 檸檬撻

When pastry chefs develop recipes, there are a few elements that they always have in mind. Being able to incorporate different textures is important in producing a delightful dessert. Furthermore, it would be wonderful if the dessert also has some acidity to balance the sweetness. Therefore this lemon tart truly satisfies all of the above: a creamy, smooth and tangy lemon curd with a sweet and crunchy meringue topping a flaky tart shell. A dessert made in heaven!!

一款美味的甜點，除了甜味之外，如能有不同的質地去提升口感，便能雙得益彰。就以這個檸檬撻為例，甜中帶酸，餡料幼滑，撻皮鬆化，加上脆口的法式蛋白餅，實在是一款絕頂的美點。

Lychee and Mango Snowy Moon Cake 茘枝及香芒冰皮月餅

These little moon cakes are like jewels. I am so tempted to keep them only as ornaments, but they are also so delicious...

This year I have successfully developed two new fruity flavors--lychee and mango. They are made with real fruit puree, without artificial flavoring or preservatives.

這些冰皮月餅尤如珠寶一般,十分精緻,但它們又如此美味,豈可只供觀賞呢!

今年我成功地研製了兩款新口味--茘枝與芒果,它們都是真材實料,沒有人造香料或添加劑。完全附合健康標準。

Lychee Ice Cream 茘枝雪糕

There are so many summer fruits that are suitable for making desserts that I sometimes have a hard time deciding what to use... However, recently I came across frozen lychee puree in a restaurant supply store and could not resist buying some. Although it is quite expensive, this kind of ingredient is hard to find elsewhere.

Imported from France, the puree contains 91% lychee and 9% invert sugar. But what is invert sugar? Essentially it is table sugar sucrose (disaccharide) that has been heated with an acid, usually cream of tartar. It then breaks down into glucose and fructose (monosaccharide), which will remain in liquid form. Invert sugar is widely used in the world of bakery and confectionery. It improves texture and, as a natural preservative, helps to extend shelf life. It is great in making ice cream because it keeps crystallization under control and gives a smoother consistency. (Click here for more information)

Since lychee puree is low in pulp and high in water content, it needs to be cooked with the milk and cream for the extra water to evaporate. Otherwise, the ice cream will have an excess of ice crystals.

Mango Mille Crêpes 香芒千層薄餅

What comes to your mind when you hear the word "cake"? Sweet, soft, something made with flour, eggs, sugar, oil/fat and then baked? According to the Webster dictionary, a cake is "a breadlike food made from a dough or batter that is usually fried or baked in small flat shapes and is often unleavened."
I think this is the first time I make a cake that is not baked but fried. It is called Gâteau de Crêpes in French or Mille Crêpes. Essentially it is a stack of 15-20 plus very thin crêpes with pastry cream or jam spread in between. It is not served at breakfast as Americans do with pancakes but enjoyed as a dessert.
I was a bit shocked to see the price tag of a 9 inch Mille Crêpe Cake sold in a fancy cake shop in New York City (Lady M $75-80). The ingredients are nothing extraordinary. But it does take skill, patience and time to fry those twenty plus pieces of paper thin crêpes. It took me about 30 minutes to fry a batch. After that, just layer with whatever flavored pastry cream you prefer. I picked mango for this one, but you might like strawberry, dark chocolate ganache, vanilla or green tea better. The batter of this French crêpe is much thinner than our regular American pancake batter. Just remember to fry it as thin as possible for best texture.

Mini Fruit Tarts 袖珍水果撻

These little munchkins are good for parties, potlucks, or to end any dinner. You don't need to worry about cutting a big tart; just pick up one and bite right into it. After pre-baking the tart crust, you can put in any pastry cream, Sabayon, Bavarian cream or custard in the bottom, then top it with any fruits you like and it will surely please any palate.