Monday, August 13, 2012

Summer Tour of The Boot

Every summer, my family travels; most of the time we enjoy swimming and eating on tropical islands. This summer, we ventured to Italy, the beautiful and laid-back country in South-Central Europe. And some people doubt this but yes, we did have gelato every single day.

Our first stop was Rome; here we mostly visited historical monuments and sweat a lot (NEVER cut your hair to a length that you cannot tie it in the summer because you WILL die). 

Piazza Spagna


Colosseum
Giovanni DeSimone
A modern artist who died a decade ago. My family loves his potteries and have a few of his collections at home. The figures he drew have cartoonish features and geometrical shapes that remind me of Picasso's cubism.


Second Stop: Florence, the medieval town; a lot of churches, duomos...


River along the leather street; I was thrilled to go home with a leather cross-body bag!


Beef Tartare- my new love!
Fun Fact: Italy has more than 300 kinds of pasta!
The famous Florentine steak: perfecto-ly cooked!
Wish I had a dessert cart at home...
Stopping by Pisa
I had my most memorable dinner at Fiesole, the summit of Florence. The scenery was spectacular, let alone the amazing weather, music, and needless to say: food.









Third Stop: Venice, the City of Water. After arriving, we decided to take a train to Verona first as it was nearby (and forever I've been dreading to go there because of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet). We visited the House of Juliet!

City of Love

Romeo's Costume
Juliet's Dress
Surreal Mixture of Fantasy & Reality

Murano: Glass Factory

Two pieces of artworks my parents decided to buy:


Murano Glass Pandora

When there is water, there is also fresh seafood.

Last stop: Milan, the fashion city. Seriously, there is nothing to do except to shop and eat. 

Louis Vuitton Octopus everywhere...
Best gelato in the world!
FYI, the bottom of the cone is filled with dark melted chocolate.









MY ITALIAN DREAM IS FULFILLED!

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

FRESHEST Seafood I've Ever Feasted

My dad's friend's family owns the one and only restaurant at the fish market in Aberdeen. He invited us to lunch this Sunday. The road to the restaurant was slippery and smelled fishy; as I was getting my feet wet, I imagined the odor tagging along and chewing up corroding my feet.

Calamari
When the first dish came, I immediately knew that the pre-meal whiff was all worth it. The calamari was crispy, tender and rightly spiced- just the combination for great calamari!


Deep-Fried Abalone

I've always eaten them steamed. I'm not a big fan of deep-fried seafood like tempura, but this was unexpectedly delicious with a firm-to-the-bite texture (their signature dish).


Mantis Shrimp/"Pissing Shrimp"
My personal favorite of the day! Though it took me so long to actually peel off the shell and taste it, the spices were so neatly flavored that they the "hard"work rewarding.


I struggled with getting my hands dirty (ocd symptoms? haha), but eventually I gave up and dug into it. 




The soup came last and by the time I was all stuffed. I managed to finish my bowl and could have craved for more. One of the best soups I've ever drank- amazing rich seafood flavor with tomato. 


French Toast with Condensed Milk
Dessert made with thought- the bread is cut into 6 pieces in order to get all the edges crispy as well. I could not resist having more even though I was stuffed by then.

Hong Kong Style-Milk Tea
G/F,
102 Shek Pai Wan Road,
Aberdeen, Hong Kong
(852)2552-7555
*Remember to make an earlier reservation!

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Friday, July 6, 2012

Home Baking x Strawberry Cupcake

The world knows how much I LOVE desserts; and speaking of cupcakes & strawberries...!
Ingredients for the cake: 2 tbsp strawberry jam or preserves, 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh strawberries, 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt, 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 cup unsalted butter (at room temperature), 3 large egg whites (at room temperature), 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 4 drops red food coloring, 1/3 cup whole milk. 
1. Preheat the oven to 350 (177). 
2. In a small bowl, stir together the jam and chopped fresh strawberries. 
3. In a bowl, whisk together the flour baking powder, and salt.  
4. In another bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the sugar and butter together until light and fluffy for 2-3 minutes. Add the egg whites, vanilla, and red food coloring and beat until combined. Add the flour mixture in 3 addition, alternating with the milk in 2 additions, beating on low speed until just combined; scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Fold in the strawberry mixture until just combined. 
5. Fill the batter in each muffin cup (lined on muffin pan) about three-fourths full. Bake until lightly golden for 25 minutes (larger ones) and 20 minutes (smaller ones). Test: inset a toothpick in the center of a cupcake, if it comes out clean then your cupcakes are ready! 
6. Remember to let the cupcakes cool before transferring them to the wire rack. 




Ingredients for the frosting: 3 large egg whites (at room temperature), 1/4 cup sugar, pinch salt, 1 cup unsalted butter (at room temperature), 6 drops of red food coloring, 1/3 cup strained strawberry preserves/jam (Do NOT use fresh strawberries if you don't want to end up with watery frosting like mine!). 
1. In a large, clean heatproof bowl, combine the egg whites and sugar. Set the bowl over (but not touching) simmering water (be careful not to cook the egg whites) in a saucepan and heat the mixture, whisking constantly until the sugar has completely dissolved and the mixture is very warm to the touch.  
2. Remove the bowl from the saucepan. Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the egg white mixture until it is fluffy, cooled to room temperature, and holds stiff peaks (the mixture should not look too watery or dry) for about 6 minutes. 
3. With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the salt and the butter (sliced), a few pieces at a time and beat well. Continue to beat on him speed if the frosting appears to separate or very liquid after all the butter is added. You want to achieve a smooth and creamy frosting!  
4. Add strained strawberry preserves/jam and red food coloring. Beat until combined and scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.


This cupcake tastes amazing with a strong strawberry aroma and is comparable to those you can buy at cake shops. And honestly speaking, who doesn't love strawberries!?

© Cupcakes by Shelly Kaldunski