When I was little, every time my family went to Delifrance for breakfast on the weekends, there would only be one thing on my mind — those dainty little fruit tarts filled with custard cream, glistening behind the glass display. After rushing through my scrambled eggs & croissant, I would then slowly and leisurely savour my dessert, til there was not a single crumb left on the plate. Now, even though I’ve outgrown my childhood obsession with those Delifrance pastries, I can never resist a good fruit tart.
I did not plan on making these tarts, at all. It was just the result of trying to use up some shortcrust pastry left after baking Nutella Banana Tarts for a picnic. Crème patisserie flecked with tiny vanilla seeds was spread over the buttery-crisp pâte sucrée tartlets. Then, juicy and ripe in-season nectarines were sliced and arranged over the custard filling. The combination of fresh nectarines bursting with juice and the vanilla custard atop a caramelised tart shell was amazing. It was light, fresh and very satisfying. I decided to skip the usual gelée glaze over the fruit simply because I was feeling lazy. Feel free to glaze the tops with an apricot gelée for a more polished looking dessert. Continue reading »
I chanced upon a photo of these Sparkling Champagne Cupcakes which I made during the festive period last year, and boy did they make me hungry just writing about them! My go-to vanilla cupcake was given an new spin with a good glass of bubbly. Since I was feeling particularly indulgent, they were drizzled with more champagne and filled with an almond-praliné filling. If that wasn’t enough, I decided to dress them up by dipping the tops into a shiny dark chocolate-champagne glaze and some sprinkles. 
The crunchy and nutty praliné provided textural contrast to the moist and delicate cake. Every bite had just enough of that rich luscious glaze to meld all the flavours together. Although these do require quite a bit of effort to make, the results are definitely worth it! They even make a really pretty centrepiece for a birthday party, complete with sparklers on top and sprinkles of fancy sugar pearls or nonpareils. The next time (for that extra bit of decadence), I’m looking at a champagne swiss meringue buttercream frosting with swirls of fresh strawberry puree, to make this a truly over-the-top celebratory dessert.
I have a love-hate relationship with scones. Both homemade or otherwise. They can be pretty unpredictable. The most unforgettable ones are tender, flaky and absolutely divine. Then, there are also the occasional letdowns – those whose picture-perfect appearance belie a dry, tough and tasteless interior. (the guilty ones are most commonly found languishing behind the glass display in cafes for days) Thankfully, after numerous attempts, I think I’ve found the perfect scones.
The perfect scone (in my opinion) is not simply a vehicle for fruit preserves or clotted cream. It should be pretty darn tasty on it’s own, with a sweet buttery, vanilla aroma but never cloying or greasy. To achieve that, I reduced the amount of butter and replaced the milk with some cream instead. The tops then lightly glazed and sprinkled with coarse sugar for a little crunch. Once baked, c
I love my lemon curd unabashedly tart and zesty with just enough sweetness and richness to cut through. The best part? This hardly requires any effort and make for nice, rustic homemade gifts.
Since the cake was so deep and chocolaty, I paired it with just a smidgen of orange-ganache frosting which was adapted from Pierre Hermé’s passionfruit milk chocolate ganache. On hindsight, I could have up the blood orange flavour as it was very very faint. Some major tweaking is in order – maybe some grated zest or orange liqueur added to the batter.
Whipped this up in under an hour for lunch a few days back, to assuage my guilt from too much feasting. Very scrummy combination of vegetables, seasoned with herbs and drizzles of olive oil, baked till they’re just tender. This makes for a quick meal on its own, or a cut into wedges and served as a side dish. Instead of pâte brisée (shortcrust pastry), buttery puff pastry could be substituted if you’re feeling particularly indulgent, with chunks of feta cheese carelessly strewn on top.
Nobody likes eating squishy, over-ripe bananas. To most people, the sight of the ugly black spots covering their once sunny yellow skin, is simply unappetising. However, these are the ones (with the most pronounced flavour & sweetness) that make the most amazing banana cakes!
