Raspberry Macarons

My mission was to get rid of raspberries in my fridge because I won't be home for the next two weeks... Started with raspberries, but ended up with macarons!

I decided to turn my raspberries and lemon into raspberry jam with no sugar added. I also threw in one orange and some mulberries I picked from my backyard. It turned out to be a super sour jam that I like a lot. I thought this could be a good filling for macarons..... the sweet shell and super sour raspberry filling!

I didn't want the bright red color, so I borrowed the idea of making red velvet cake in order to achieve my desired color. I added some dark cocoa powder in the batter and some red coloring. To be honest,I was not sure what exact color it would turn out because I baked it at night and my kitchen wasn't bright.

The first thing I woke up this morning was to take a closer look at my macarons....yes, I got the color that I wanted. I added the filling, took a few shots and brought them to work with me with smile. Of course, I shared them with my colleagues......they said it's very nice and kept coming for more. I'm glad they helped me finished them up in a jiffy. Now I have an excuse to make a new batch!

I really really have fun baking this little princess....a happy macaron.

Blueberry mille-feuille ....

I'm still in the mood for puff pastry......let's enjoy blueberry mille-feuille with me.

I could just use a storebought puff pastry for an easier life( and a more pretty mille-feuille), but I chose to make it my own... I need to practice more on puff pastry. It's also a great way to shred some extra pounds while making life sweeter in the kitchen.

I started my mille-feuille from mixing butter with flour, chilled it, kneaded it, folded it, turned it, chilled it, shaped it and baked it. Finally I ended up with a stack of three layers of puff pastry. I love to incorporate fresh fruits into my desserts, so I chose to sandwich them with blueberries and did some simple decorationson top with macarons.

Now there are many fresh berries in the market, so I need to take advantage of that. I really love its deep dark purple color. Fresh blueberries do not only look nice on dessert, but they also add great favour.

This kind of dessert is very easy to put together...just let our imagination bring us there. Not a very good looking mille-feuille like those in the bakery store, but it's very delicious!

Life is sweeter with this blueberry mille-feuille......enjoy your beautiful day.

Sweet Vol-Au-Vent

Sweet vol-au-vent in a hot sunny day....... I know that Iwas not supposed to make pastry in a hot day, but I already did without knowing that I chose the wrong menu for the sunny day.

I have been wanted to make vol-au-vent for a long time, but the opportunity to sit down and make my own puff pastry didn't allow me to do so. It's my day off and I needed to get my house chores done....that means I would be in my house all day long. Making puff pastry is a long process..not sure that a lazy baker like me could do it!

I had friends came over for an afternoon tea...so I decided to make this dessert. To avoid the problem of oozing butter, I chose to make rough puff pastry instead of the traditional way. It was my first time using this method...what you see is what I get. If you would like to try, click here for recipe.

My kitchen was quite warm which was my big obstacle. It was a big mess trying to knead the dough and move it back and forth between my work station and the fridge. Unfortunately, I couldn't manage to get 6 turns as I was supposed to. My time was running out, so I baked it after finishing 4 turns. My vol-au-vent is not as pretty as the storebought puff pastry, but it was light, crispy and very flavorful.

If showmanship doesn't involve, I think it's fine to make just 4 turns. However, if you are Ms.Perfect, invest your sweat in another 2 turns for a "flying in the wind" case. Next time I would knead it a little bit thicker than this time, so I can see more layers in my final product. While baking I put silicone baking mat on top of the pastry to make them puff up evenly and it helped.

My guests said it's nice, but it's too small for her. She said she could have three by herself....I told her "Good things always come in small !"

Enjoy your beautiful day.