Macau Soul - A Portuguese wine paradise

Nice Portuguese wine lounge near the Ruins of St. Paul's (大三巴)!! 

We opened a bottle of Quinta do Crasto Douro 2008 Reserva, I am no expert in wines but what I can only tell is this is a blend red wine with 35 grape varieties, which is produced by one of the very best wineries in Portugal. You could tell from first sip it's a wine to enjoy but not to drink. It is full bodied, intense, complex and fruity in taste, and very smooth to the palate.

The owner David told us Macau Soul is the only place in Macau that sells this wine. It only costed us MOP350, which it's normally sold at over HKD2,000 in restaurants in HK!! Such a great value of money for this quality! The prices for other wines (only Portuguese) are friendly too. You could get a good wine at under MOP200 and spend an evening there. But I'm sure you will not limit yourselves to only tasting wines coz. they have delicious home made food, and generous portion of cheese plates too! 

This is David decanting the wine (he and his wife, Jacky, are enthusiasts in travelling and photography, and of course in wines too!).

We managed to ask for a Pecan and dried fruit cake served with double scoops of homemade vanilla ice cream and a splash of Jack Daniel...omg...speechless!

One last tip, call in advance to visiting to make sure they are open and make reservation. David and Jacky run the lounge themselves but this lovely old couple travels a lot!

Macau Soul 澳感廊

Address : 大三巴街31A

Tel : (853) 2836 5182,(853) 6686 2205

URL: www.macausoul.com

Recipe: Strawberry Custard Tarts...totally irresistible!

In this festive season full of laughter and joy, what would you associate the color red with? Santa Claus? Presents? Christmas party? For me, red is the color of festival, happiness and energy, and it just so happened to be the color of a couple of my favorite fruits too! Aww...just take a look at these beautiful strawberry custard tarts... tell me if you know anybody who won't get fanatical seeing red like this- a shrink may well be needed :P

So here is the recipe of this cheerful and luscious dessert that could stir up your festival mood right away (yea! put even more brandy in :P)~ try this for New Year ^^

Strawberry Custard Tart (yields 6 - 5" tarts)

Ingredients:

- 3 dozens Strawberries (6 on top of each tart - variable depending on personal preference)

- 6 thin slices vanilla-flavored chiffon cake (Optional - for placing inside the custard layer)

Tart base

- 80g unsalted butter (soft to touch at room temperature)

- 150g cake flour

- 35g sugar

- 1 egg yolk

- 2g salt

Custard

Part A)

- 300ml milk

Part B)

- 2 egg yolks

- 60g sugar

Part C)

- 50g cake flour

- 10g corn starch

- 100ml milk

Part D)

- 30g unsalted butter

- 20ml brandy (or rum) <-- Trust me this can't be skipped!!

Gelatin dressing (this is optional but it's so much more shiny and bubbly with the dressing on!!)

- 2 tbl spoon gelatin powder

- 20ml warm water

- 50g strawberry jam 

Alternative: simply crush approx. 8 fresh strawberries and cook with 40g sugar and 2 tbl spoon lemon juice)

Method:

Tart shells

1. Beat butter till creamy

2. Add in sugar, salt, egg yolk and mix well

3. Sieve in cake flour in two batches and knead the dough by folding and pressing forward by hand until consistently combined

4. Wrap the dough in plastic wraps and place in freezer for 30min

5. Lightly flour the table surface 

6. Pre-heat oven at 180°C

7. Take out a small dough ball and place in the centre of the tart mold 

8. Spread out and press the dough against the sides of the mold with even thickness

9. Trim around the top of the rim to make the tart shell clean looking inside the mold

10. Poke around the tart mold with a fork
11. Bake for 20min until golden color (cover the tarts with aluminium foil if becoming too dark)
12. Let the shell cool and dry

Custard

1. Bring the milk in Part A into simmer
2. Sieve and mix the cake flour and corn starch in Part C
3. Pour in the 100ml milk in Part C into the flour mix, stir to mix
4. Beat the egg yolks and sugar in Part B
5. Mix the combined Part C into Part B
6. Pour the hot milk of Part A slowly into the B+C mixture, stir to mix
7. Heat the mixture with low heat, keep stirring until just thickened then leave the heat immediately
8. Stir in butter and brandy in Part D for the flavor

9. Let the custard cool and then refrigerate for 20min, covered with plastic wrap

Build the tart!
1. Take out the tart shells from the molds (better place each in separate dish to avoid too much transferring when it comes to serve - just to lower the risk :P)
2. Spread a thin layer of custard in the shells
3. Place a thin slice of chiffon cake on each shell

4. Fill the remaining wells of the tarts with custard
5. Decorate with fresh strawberries :)

Gelatin dressing
1. Melt the gelatin powder in hot water
2. Mix in the jam
3. Drizzle carefully on the strawberries without letting it overflow down the outside of the tart shells 

Each tart is good for one or two to share~ perfect for this time of the year that encourages giving and sharing :) Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2014! <3

Chiffon cake recipe - so easy and versatile you will get addicted to making it!

This time of the year is like honeymoon - work is less crazy, I got annual leave days to clear, Christmas and New Year are around - meaning more holidays, and the main point is - finally I got some real leisure time to enjoy myself yay! :DD

So I made 2 variations of chiffon cakes in a row this weekend - one with bananas + dried cranberries, another with cinnamon poached pears & apples (omg it's the taste of Christmas!). Chiffon cake is relatively light as it doesn't contain butter~ so yea I guess I won't become a 肥妹 yet after this long weekend :D

This recipe I followed can yield spongy yet substantial cake texture, and it won't be too sweet (just the right sweetness I like) - the flavor is up to your choice of fruits/ ingredients and here are two types you can try~

Banana and cranberry chiffon cake

(8" cake pan - serves 4-6)

Ingredients:                     

- 5 eggs (separate yolks and whites)

- 60g sugar (10g for flour mix*; 50g for egg white foam**)

- 40g olive oil (or vegetable oil)

- 90g cake flour (or 60g cake flour + 30g wheat flour)

- 1/2 lemon (for juice)

- 2-3 bananas (crushed and have 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice added)

- 30g dried cranberries

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven at 160°C

*Flour mix

2. Mix the egg yolks with 10g sugar

3. Add in olive oil 

4. Stir in crushed bananas

5. Sieve and add in cake flour, stir till all mixed

*Egg white foam

6. Beat the egg white till a bit foamy

7. Add in 50g sugar and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice in 2 batches 

8. Keep beating till the foam is firm and smooth, and be able to form soft peaks

Get ready for the bake!

9. Fold in egg white foam into the flour mix in 3 batches

10. Add dried cranberries to the mix

11. Pour the melange into the cake pan and send it off to the oven for 50 minutes (at 160°C)

Enjoy watching the lovely cake puff up and get bronzed~

To serve:

12. Insert a toothpick into the center of the cake, if it comes out clean, it's done!

12. Place the cake upside down to cool once it's out of the oven (you could refer to the 2 methods below)

13. Optional: may decorate the cake top with icing sugar, and enjoy with apricot or whatever jam you like

Variation (which replaces bananas if you are not a fan): Spiced apple and pear chiffon cake

Ingredients:

- Same as above, except no bananas and cranberries

- 1 apple & 1 pear (anjou / bosc pear), chopped / finely diced

- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

- 60g sugar

Preparation:

1. Heat 60g sugar and about 2cups (500mL) of water in a saucepan

2. When the sugar has melted and starts to boil, add in chopped apples and pears, and cinnamon

3. Stir and bring the mix to simmer for 20 minutes till the fruits soften

4. Cover the saucepan and let the mixture sit for at least 2 hours (or overnight in the fridge)

5. Right before use, drain excess sugar water, and slightly dry the surfaces of the chopped fruits on a kitchen towel 

Method (95% the same as above, but pay attention to the slight differences~):

Pre-heat oven at 160°C 

*Flour mix - same as above but DON'T add in the fruits yet

 <-- Don't do this! It will moist the batter too much (bad example :P) 

and become this --> 

*Egg white foam - same treatment as above

The last mile before the bake...

1. Pour the flour + egg white melange into the cake pan

2. Drop the chopped fruit into the cake mix evenly (to allow the least time for the fruit chunks to sink to the bottom)

3. Send off to the oven for 50 minutes (at 160°C)

Done! Same serving method as above :)

Bon appetit! Enjoy!

Spoil Cafe - spoil yourself with no guilt feelings

Star Street Precinct in Wan Chai is famed for restaurants and gourmet. Going further into the neighborhood, you could find even friendlier eateries - Spoil Cafe is one of them. Situated at a little lovely corner on Sun Street, diners could have themselves spoiled by some seriously tasty food.

The ambiance
Spoil is a small restaurant with no more than 20 seats. Despite the small seating area, the high ceiling and full height glass walls create space and make the room look and feel relaxing.

Tiger prawn pasta with Thai style cream sauce
I highly recommend this personally, the sauce resembles the texture of carbonara but with an overwhelming taste of shrimp instead of bacon..absolutely delicious!

 Grilled spring chicken with orange citrus seasoning
The spring chicken was juicy and scrumptious, marinated with an appetizing citrus mix with lemon peel and orange juice.

Their bread loafs were homemade too! Like ciabatta bread but more moist and cake-like, not bad!

Desserts!! Spoil is famous for its crunch cake, but it's so popular that advance reservation is a MUST in order to get a piece...obviously my friend and I didn't due to our impromptu visit >< anyway, the desserts we ordered were delicious too :)

Signature rich chocolate cake & New York cheese cake
New York cheese cake was good, not disappointing, we know it's easier to make tasty NY cheese cakes than awful ones ;) In contrast, the 75% chocolate cake was extraordinary - very rich (didn't get to ask which chocolate they used, Valrhona?), not too sweet and has a lovely texture.

Spoil Cafe, like some of its counterparts in the Star Street Precinct, is good for diners with a quest for good taste, and for those who'd appreciate a relatively quiet neighborhood to take a stroll after dinner.

Spoil Cafe
Address: Shop A, G/F, Shun Ho Building, 1 Sun Street
Tel: 3589 5678

Lab Made Nitrogen Ice-cream - The Art and Science of Forming Ice Crystals

Science is gradually making its way into the world of gourmet, giving rise to molecular cuisines and the fancy terminology called mixology, even to "molecular ice-creams". A year ago, Ronnie and his girlfriend, two UK-graduated pharmacists, gave up their well-paid jobs to open the first nitrogen ice-cream shop in Hong Kong - something thy felt very impressive and passionate for. And the formula justified too, the combination of pharmacists with good understanding of science + experimental spirits + passion for good tastes = Lab Made Nitrogen Ice-cream.

The secret of the smoothness and creaminess of Lab Made's ice-cream is the freezing time. The longer it takes to to freeze ice-cream, the bigger the ice crystals, so the more grainy and icy the texture. Using extremely cold liquid nitrogen at -196℃ to rapidly freeze the ice-creams within only 60 seconds, much smaller ice crystals are resulted, and hence a smoother texture. The vaporization of "boiling" nitrogen at room temperature during the ice-cream production also creates cool visual effects at the open kitchen/ lab.

Not only the texture, the flavors at Lab Made also never fail to impress. Their menu changes every two weeks, creative ice-cream flavors are replaced by even more creative ones, some previous wins include HK Custard Bun (流沙奶皇包!!), purple rice sweet soup (紫米露), super lemon meringue pie, The Big Daddy - whisky chocolate, sea salt caramel...so what's on right now?

9/7 – 21/7 flavors
A – Birthday Cake
B – HK Custard Bun
C – Banocolate Rice Crispies
D – Blueberry Breakfast

Another thing that impresses me is that, Lab Made's scientists don't hide in a lab inventing new flavors, they are indeed aggressive in marketing and bringing out their inventions to the public outside Tai Han. They have extended their reach, and made themselves available for private or company parties' catering! Here's a recent adidas event featuring Lab Made - reeeeally CooL!

 This is ice cream re-invented. Happy 1-year Birthday to Lab Made Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream!

Lab Made Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream Laboratory
Address: G/F, 6 Brown Street
Tel: 2670 0071

My Father's Day Weekend with Vero's Chocolates

 

Went to the Landmark for Father's Day cake hunting (I was thinking about Sift's Father's Day special - CARAMOCHA but it was closed the time I got there, so I ended up in Vero). Its Signature Dark 70% chocolate is something I always wanted to try, so glad about the unexpected visit yesterday :) 

As a chocolate drink, Vero's Signature Dark 70% is intense as it's basically a cup of melted 70% dark chocolate. Taking a sip, you'd find it smooth and velvety in the mouth with a balanced bitterness and a slightly nutty flavor, and the fine and subtle sweetness kicks in as the finish - 70% is just a right number. The drink is more a generous portion of molten chocolate tasting than a "chocolate drink" - this expectation has to be set so you could enjoy the most out of it :)

Apart from a variety of chocolates, Vero also has a selection of patisseries. Except a couple (don't really remember which), all others have 1lb size to order. Wherein the "Chuao" was highly recommended by the shop manager. The patisserie is made of one of the best chocolate varieties in the world, Chuao, and chocolate and caramel mousse with fleur de sel, almond praline and chocolate flourless sponge - would love to try it next time! 

 

Okay, here comes the Chocolate Mud Cake I chose for Father's Day. It's one of Vero's best sellers and indeed it's a rich and delightful chocolate cake with consistent texture, one you could imagine as a moist soft brownie with smooth luscious chocolate throughout, in every bite. It's totally addictive and more importantly, my dad loves it :)

The service was incredible too. I visited at their closing time but the staff was still fun and welcoming. When I told them the cake was for Father's Day, the supervisor even offered to write a chocolate "Happy Father's Day" tag for me! It took them an additional 5 min to prepare so - really appreciate that not only because they made this cake special, also because of their spirits to serve. 

Highly recommend Vero for chocolate lovers!

Vero Chocolates

Central

Address: Shop 236, 2/F, The Landmark, 12-16 Des Voeux Road Central, Central 

Tel: 2559 5810

Tsim Sha Tsui

Address: Shop 23, Kiosk, G/F, K11 Art Mall, 18 Hanoi Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Tel: 9709 4868

 

Another beautiful piece of shop display...

Cafe Loisl - A Viennese Corner in Sheung Wan

When the sun comes out after all these damp and rainy days, what's better than spending an afternoon alfresco enjoying a cup of coffee and a piece of delicious cake? The experience would even be greater if the location is quiet without people buzzing around and stressing you to finish your coffee. Cafe Loisl is one of the kind, you only have to walk up a bit for it.

This artisan Vienna style coffee house is located on the stair landing up Po Hing Fong, Sheung Wan. People who have visited would describe it as an oasis, or a corner of Vienna in Hong Kong. Yes, these are all correct descriptions for Cafe Loisl. The place is furnished with a Viennese touch, from the chandelier, marble coffee tables, floor tiles, wall decors to tableware, all the details suggest the owner's passion to bring the Viennese coffee shop culture to Hong Kong.

 

For those who have been to Austria, or wish to go there, you'll be happy to find some of the very best of this beautiful country. Number one on my list is definitely the Sacher Torte, this devilish chocolate cake traditionally consists of two layers of dense chocolate sponge cake with a thin layer of apricot jam in the middle, coated in dark chocolate icing on the top and sides, and served with whipped cream. The version at Cafe Loisl is more like a chocolate truffle cake, with alternate layers of chocolate sponge cake and rich ganache, coated with smooth chocolate icings. A Viennese coffee is a must to go with this sumptuous cake. Apfelstrudel, or apple strudel, is also a traditional Viennese dessert available in the menu. I didn't get to try it this time but it looked like a nice treat for people who loves the combination of apples cooked with cinnamon in puff pastry. 

The mille feuilles was a bit on the heavy side with custard.It would have been awesome if there were more layers of puff pastry (and must be fresh and crispy). The taste was great though, just too heavy.

 

Apart from desserts, classics like bratwurst, omelette and currywurst were also available. I was just a happy girl at Cafe Loisl having the food I miss from Europe :)

Cafe Loisl
G/F, 8A Tai On Terrace - Pound Lane, Sheung Wan
9179 0209

Coffee Alley - A Sought-After Taiwanese Coffee Shop Is In Hong Kong

Coffee culture has grown enormous in Taiwan in recent years, visiting a cafe for an ice drip coffee has become part of the itinerary. What would happen if a popular Taiwanese cafe opens in HK? The answer is a two-hour wait in order to get in for its delish menu and be served by its good-looking, friendly and mandarin speaking waiters.

Coffee Alley (咖啡弄),  a sought-after chain coffee shop in Taipei, has just brought a replica to Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. It has all the traits of a good Taiwanese cafe, which would incorporate international food and localize to suit the local taste, pay great attention to details and give an effort to impress customers.

A group size of 4-5 is perfect if you want to taste the most out of Coffee Alley's overwhelming menu. These are what comprised a delightful lunch for 5 girls today:

Baguette with curry beef - A fun 'East meets West' dish, the curry was more peppery than the usual Indian curry, quite appetizing

 

Club sandwich - A fulfilling dish with a nice egg salad and Doritos chips on the side, the marinated chicken in the sandwich was sweet and smoky, which turned up to be a nice surprise

 

Pizza with roast chicken - It's not exactly a pizza but a thin crispy baguette with tasty toppings, it's better named a toast for a more accurate expectation though

 

Waffles with black sesame ice-cream, chestnut paste and sunflower seeds - These phenomenal waffles popped out fresh with beautiful dark brown and light brown colors on both sides, the whipped cream was firm and rich, while the scoop of lightly sweet chestnut paste and sunflower seeds helped add more texture to the waffles. The ideas of black sesame ice-cream and black sesame sauce were nice too, though the sauce could be more intense in sesame flavor, very satisfying overall!

 

Strawberry mille feuilles - it's such an eye-candy already, the crunchy buttery puff pastry, heavenly custard and fresh strawberries with the right ripeness came altogether in harmony, fantastic!

 

Chocolate brownie with vanilla ice-cream - It's good but not for those expecting an avalanche of chocolate sensation, 'cause this brownie has more walnut and black currants than chocolate cake. The good thing is the refreshing berries actually lighten up this massive looking dessert, so you could still manage it after a big meal, quite clever ;)

Other not to be missed are the variety of hand drip coffees from around the world and some unique and devilish ice coffees and lattes (I enjoyed my sea salt caramel latte with hazelnuts and almonds scattered around the whipped cream on the side, very thoughtful). 

It's also perfectly fine if you are not a coffee person because the fresh fruit teas are also to die for. The iced fresh fruit tea with passion fruit seeds, lime, orange, apple..and Lipton breakfast tea is a genius creation, the colorful mocktail comes in a carafe to pour over to a slice of frozen lemon embedded in an ice cube in a glass.

The menu portions are big, I guess it's because Coffee Alley insists to put so much details in each plate to wow its guests with sky-high expectations. Great job! The long wait surely worth it! (Recommended not to go during weekends)

Coffee Alley
Address: Room B1-B3, 1/F, Dragon Rise, 9-11 Pennington Street, Causeway Bay
Tel: 2493 3033