RECIPE: FRUIT TARTS

My appetite tends to change when the temperature increases to 30 degrees Celsius or above. I no longer enjoy eating starchy foods such as rice, pasta, and even sponge cakes (even when they're served with fresh fruits and a dollop of chantilly cream). 

In place of sponge cakes which I love to make and subsequently eat, I've been making lots of fresh fruit tarts lately.

Strawberry tart 

A crisp, flaky, buttery crust is extremely enjoyable when topped with a delicate custard or cream cheese and whipping cream or meringue mixture, covered by a bed of juicy berries (or whatever fruit you like to eat).

I can really only give you the recipe for the pastry base, as the rest are all up to your creativity and preferences, and available ingredients! 

This pastry base is taken from author and blogger Mercotte, who recreates Jacques Genin's famous flan parisien. I've scaled down her measurements to half because I simply didn't need to make that much pâte à foncer (flan pastry). Although on her site she called it pâte brisée, I've been told that it turns into what is called pâte à foncer upon the addition of egg yolks. 

Remember to prick the pastry all over with a fork!

Here is the recipe for pâte à foncer / flan pastry:

~ Ingredients ~

180 g cold (can be frozen) unsalted butter

250 g flour 

4 g salt

5 g sugar

50 g cold milk

20 g egg yolk

~ Method ~ 

1. Cut the butter into small cubes and process in a food processor with the flour, salt and sugar. It's fine if it's still rather chunky.

2. Add the egg yolk and milk and process. It may not come together but that's okay.

3. Place the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and with your hands, compress the dough into a ball, taking care to not overwork the dough because you don't want the butter to melt. There should still be bits and small pieces of butter scattered around your dough!

4. Place another sheet of plastic wrap on top and roll it to fit whatever pan you want to put it in.

5. Line your pan with the pastry then freeze it.

6. When it's fully frozen, poke it all over with a fork then place it in a preheated 350 F oven for 20 - 25 minutes.

Alternatively, if you don't have a food processor, you can place the cubes cold cold butter in a bowl with all the dry ingredients and cut it up using a sharp knife. Then mix in the yolk and milk. I made my pastry this way because my magic bullet couldn't handle cold butter!

Cherry tart

For the filling, I've used cream cheese mixed with a French meringue (egg whites whipped with caster sugar), sugar to your tasting, and a liberal dash of Baileys Irish cream. I also made it another time with cream cheese and chantilly cream (35% cream whipped to soft peaks with sugar to your tasting and a bit of vanilla flavouring). 

I used a cream cheese, Baileys, and french meringue filling on top of a chocolate covered base

Make sure your cream cheese is room temperature because you need to beat it until creamy to mix in your meringue/chantilly cream. Of course, you can also use pudding or custard mixes which are super fast to prepare and are available readily at your local supermarket in a plethora of flavours! 

I like to flavour my fillings with vanilla, Baileys, Frangelico (a hazelnut flavoured liqueur), and other liqueurs because I feel that it complements fresh summer fruits the best.



The 66 cherries I pitted, on a tart

Being slightly more ambitious than usual, I convinced myself to pit a total of 66 cherries to top a rectangular pâte à foncer base. How did I manage to do that? - I kept reminding myself of the satisfaction of biting a perfectly pitless, fresh, juicy cherry. 

This recipe is my gift to you

Definitely top this pastry with whatever fresh fruits you make like: pineapple, banana, apple, pear, berries, mango... And after doing so you might like to drizzle some melted chocolate, sprinkle some toasted coconut, or just finish off with a clear glaze to make those fruits appear as though they glow underneath the bright, almost-summer sun. 

X

MUAH MUAH MUAH

VICKI CHOW

P/S

Yesterday was Victoria Day, one of only two days where we are allowed to fire fireworks. And then it began to pour rain the moment I stepped outside the door, drenching all the hope and anticipation that had built up inside us *boo*

Cake scraps (the ends of roll cake pictured here) are all I need to satisfy my cake quota

On a very side note, I've noticed I don't like to eat my own cakes, but my friends have pointed out that the reason for that is because I eat my quota's worth from the cake scraps already!

And I'll be leaving in 2 days for my Asia trip! Since I'll be on vacation for almost 3 months, I really want to update you on my food adventures during that time so come back often to see pictures *yay*


What are you eating during this warmer season?

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GUU SAKABAR, TORONTO

When I was young, I only remember having Baskin Robins' ice cream cake in mango or cookies and cream flavour for my birthday, or an Asian bakery sponge cream cake when I was too young to choose my own cake. 

Ever since mommy introduced me to the world of dessert making, all my birthday cakes have been homemade by myself (which tends to spark some incomprehensibility amongst those whom I share this story). Besides my birthday, my parents' birthday cakes would also be made by myself, and for my brother's first birthday, I made three birthday cakes. 

Guu Sakabar on Urbanspoon!

For my birthday this year (coincidentally landing on mother's day again), I celebrated a couple of days early at Guu Sakabar. Having visited the other Guu on Church, a couple months ago, I wanted to come to this one on Bloor Street - though we only really wanted to come here because it is a closer distance to sake bar.

Without further ado, here is the night's lineup:

Gyu Carpaccio: seared beef sashimi with ponzu, wasabi mayo, & garlic chips

Melt in your mouth thinly sliced beef which I think it almost identical to the one served at JJ Japanese Thai, but served more chilled. The garlic chips are a must to have with your slice of beef.

I mentioned this dish to an uncle who is a sushi chef at a Japanese restuarant in Oakville. He told me he was the one who set the menu (dishes) for JJ Japanese Thai which is why the beef tataki is on JJ's menu (amongst the rest of the Japanese-style dishes on the menu) *no way*

Sadly, due to conflicting views, he left JJ to work at another restaurant, but the menu he set for JJ still remains. 

Salmon Tataki: seared B.C. salmon with ponzu, wasabi mayo & garlic chips 

I've had salmon tataki several times at several different places, but I still find myself preferring salmon sashimi to salmon tataki if I have the chance to choose.

Maguro Tataki: seared B.C. tuna with ponzu & garlic chips

Saba Oshizushi: blowtorched cured mackerel pressed sushi

I wasn't even aware of ordering this, but when it came I was surprised and after I ate it I was happy. The fish is cured so the taste is extremely flavourful and briny. It tastes perfect when paired with the sushi rice.

Kinoko Bibimbap: rice, mushrooms, cheese, with seaweed sauce in sizzling stone pot bowl

I had this at the other Guu - and again, nothing special but very creamy, if you like that kind of stuff. 



Horumon: pan fried pork intestine with sweet garlic soy sauce


I have a liking for innards of animals, such as the liver, kidney, gizzards, flank, stomach... the list goes on. Though I haven't tried pork intestine before, I really enjoy the slightly chewy texture, and the delicious sauce. My friend enjoyed the sauce so much I felt that it was necessary to hand over the spoon from the bibimbap to her so she could drink the sauce.

Chili Mame Bibimbap: rice, chili beans, lettuce & salsa in stone pot bowl


I'm not a fan of cooked lettuce when its mixed with a variety of other foods, but since there were many of us to share this dish among, I only had to have a spoonful of it. Oh, and I didn't know there was salsa in this until I was looking at their menu again just now (to copy their descriptions so you know what I'm eating of course).

Ikapiri: deep fried calamari with spicy ketchup and wasabi mayo

A nice crisp, thin batter coats the succulent calamari, which tastes amazing with the spicy topping.

Ebimayo: deep fried prawn in spicy mayo


The batter was thicker than I had hoped, and the spicy mayo wasn't very mind blowing. I'll have to pass on this one the next time I come.

Tontoro: grilled pork cheek with salt and yuzu pepper


Pork meat is best with pork fat, and this dish pairs them together so well. The yuzu on the side cut through the overly saltiness quite well.

Gyu tongue: grilled beef tongue with salt


Remembering the experience that was going on in my mouth the last time I had this at Guu Izakaya, I had to order it again at their Sakabar. You also have to eat this with the freshly grated wasabi that's on the side of the plate - the fat and oil in the beef almost rids the nasal-clearing effects of wasabi.

Brie cheese: deep fried brie cheese with mango and blueberry sauce

I don't understand people who don't like Brie, after its deep fried, and served with two fruity sauces.

Karaage: deep fried soy sauce marinated chicken with garlic mayo

Boneless chicken, or as I call it, lazy-people chicken (you don't have to eat around the bones or use your hands). But wait, we were given garlic mayo? I don't think the garlic really shone through as I just tasted regular mayo.

Though the food is the same at both Guu locations in Toronto, do head to the Sakabar on Bloor if you are with a larger group of people as it is easier for them to accommodate you there than at the one on Church which is smaller cosier.

I enjoyed my experience at the Guu Izakaya on Church more than my most recent Guu experience at the Sakabar, but I would very probably go to Sakabar again just for its location in the Annex (right beside Koreatown).

X

MUAH MUAH MUAH

VICKI CHOW

P/S

We were going to go karaoke afterwards, but after being told beforehand that there would be a $30 fee for cutting the cake that you bring in at Guu, we went to sake bar after our dinner to cut cake. They didn't charge us for just keeping the cake refrigerated in their fridge though *yay*

Green tea sponge on the bottom, vanilla on the top.

This past weekend I attempted to make the famous Jacques Genin's flan parisien. I feel like those words mean nothing to you at all - and I don't quite feel bothered by that, although it would be really exciting if you did (:


I'll be back super soon with a summer friendly recipe in my next post!

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COOKING FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE

I never really had to cook for many people - it was usually for about 3-4 people (my family or a few of my friends), so cooking in big batches is typically not done by me. The large cake and dessert orders are excepted of course. 

But one day my mom was blessed with so much business she had to hand over her apron to me (where in fact, I have my own apron which mommy made me) so I could make the dinner for that day. We were expecting 10 people in total, so I had to start cooking around 1630 to get ready to eat around 1830!

Flan is best served cold

The night before this feast, I made creme caramel, or flan, or custard pudding as Cooking with Dog calls it. I used CWD's recipe, but cut down the sugar in the custard to half because I like the custard to be less sweet since the caramel will be quite sweet. 

Our large scale dinners are more than often served buffet-style. So we will have our salads, hor d'oeuvres, mains, and sides all on one (or two) tables so everyone can help themselves:

I like sweet potato with savoury dishes (like curry), and any kind of meat

The first thing I started on was the beef ribs and sweet potato stew. In a large pot (because there was a lot of beef rib!), I put in the ribs, a large cans of chunked tomato and I skipped the salt for now because the canned tomato is already quite heavily salted! Then keep it simmering on low-medium after it boils, for 1.5 hours. You want to taste it along the way, adding some more sugar or salt as you like. 

When the meat is soft and falls of the bone, transfer just the meat (leaving the sauce in the pot) into your serving dish. Add your chunky cubes sweet potato and simmer until it is cooked thoroughly. When it's time to serve, add your meat into the pot again, heat it thoroughly, plate it, and serve with a big garnish of roughly chopped parsley. 

The chicken and potatoes were topped with a dose of sweet oyster sauce at the last minute

While the beef ribs are simmering, I baked chicken legs (drumsticks and thigh) which were marinated in soy sauce and sugar the night before, atop a bed of cubed potato. 30 minutes into baking at 400 F, I gave them a nice dousing of the juices that collect on the bottom of the pan and kept them baking until thoroughly cooked through.

Parsley should be added at the very last moment, and chopped only once!

After the chicken, I started with a vegetable gratin, consisting of sliced carrot, mushroom, and broccoli. After giving the broccoli a very quick blanch, I layered it onto a oven-safe baking dish with the carrot and mushroom. I poured cream of mushroom over top, sprinkled on some grated cheddar then popped it in the  still hot oven to bake until it becomes bubbly.

For the pasta, I used farfalle because I like how it's so easy to spoon up when serving a buffet-style dinner. I minced three-four cloves of garlic and cooked it in olive oil and butter until golden. To that was sliced asparagus and dried basil and oregano, which was sauteed until it looked it it was grilled, and lastly, the chopped tomato - oh yes, and lots of cracked black pepper. It was still a bit tangy from the fresh tomato, so I put in more butter which did wonders to the sauce. I kept the sauce warm until serving time, when I tossed the al-dente farfalle with the still warm sauce, then put in a large dish.

We also cut bell peppers and celery into sticks to dip in a creamy dressing

When you're making a meal for so many, foods that take little time to make are the best! So I bought mini frozen quiches which have two different flavours, popped them into the oven 30 minutes before my guests are due, and voila: hor d'oeuvres done.

I love salad

Lastly, I toasted sliced garlic bread, and prepared the salad. The salad that night was made of a bed of romaine topped with juicy cut tomatoes, honey roasted peanuts, dried cranberries, and toasted sesame seeds. I combined olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, freshly cracked black pepper, dried basil and oregano, and tossed it with the salad when serving.

Happy eating everyone!

X

MUAH MUAH MUAH

VICKI CHOW

P/S

Here's the cake I made for my little friend's 4th birthday. It was everything she liked: pink and strawberries. It was also everything I liked: pink and strawberries. I had the most amazing time while making this pink batter. I was happy and all grins before it was even baked!

What does your dream birthday cake look like?

It will be mother's day and my birthday soon because my birthday this year lands on mother's day - just like when I was born *yay* 

Now excuse me as I go Google some mother's day brunch ideas.


What are you making for your mom on mother's day?

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