Shortbread Promise

I've been promising my husband for shortbread cookies for ages. So last night I finally baked one! :p

I have over baked it that's why the edges of the cookie is brownish... the taste is good though :)

I'm thinking, more practice for this wannabe :p

Bisou bisou,

Charlotte

Not About Dessert

Yesterday, I feel like putting a bit more effort for our dinner.

Our dinner is usually simple like roast this, grill that, steam this, etc... simply cause I don't like doing the dishes after cooking a meal..

So in effect of my mood --> Chicken Fricassee with Duchess Potatoes! :)

I'm made up with the result. At first I was searching for a good recipe of a Chicken Fricassee, but I found the recipes too complicated.

So in the end I just searched for what fricassee means. It's basically any meat (mostly poultry) coated in flour then pan fried. Then add a liquid like wine or stock. Then the liquid would eventually thicken cause of the starch on the meat, which in result gives you gravy:)

So base on that info, I came up with my own Chicken Fricassee :) I marinated my chicken with parsley, garlic and lemon juice. Then I coated them with flour; pan fried. Then I poured the white wine. Simmer until it turned to gravy:) oh, don't forget to season with salt and pepper ;p Voila! :D

Bisou bisou,

Charlotte

What's Next?

Today, I'm in a very uninspired mood... I should be having ideas by now as to what I'll be baking for next week. Ugh! Suggestions anyone??

Bisou bisou,

Charlotte

Still No Answer...

I've been searching through the net about my confusion with bavarois and mousse. Somehow, I can't seem to find a concrete distinction between the two. Search, search, search... hopefully next time I'm in the bookstore that sells English books here, I'd be able to find a reliable baking book for an answer:p

Anyone there who can enlighten me?:)

Bisou bisou,

Charlotte

Bavarois vs Mousse

What's the difference of a bavorois and a mousse? I honestly don't know... (note to self: research about bavarois and mousse) Here's what I think; bavarois uses more gelatin than a mousse therefore the texture of a bavarois is more jelly like and mousses are more creamy.

Two weeks ago, I made a Strawberry Bavarois...

Pity though I wasn't able to use fresh strawberries. So instead I used a strawberry syrup i found at a baking shop. I attempted to make it into mini charlottes by lining my cake rings with lady fingers. My husband and our friend found it quite scrumptious. :D

Then just this week, I decided to make Chocolate Mousse Layered with Meringue Disks...

Hmm.. I think I need to have a serious practice on layering :p It didn't come out as I envisioned it to be... I wanted the mousse to cover all sides of the cake so the meringue won't be showing. Also I think I might have burnt my chocolate as I was melting it. That explains the lumps of chocolates you can see on the mousse... :p Taste wise, maybe too sweet.

Overall, I'm quite pleased with what I've been able to make. Although I know there's a looooooong way for me to go to achieve the elegance I was attempting!:p Practice, practice, practice! :) Love to hear what you think :)

Bisou bisou,

Charlotte

Hello Readers!:)

Happy to be starting my own blog!:) I'm no journalist or professional writer or anything close to those, but I'm going to give this a shot. I'm just a housewife living in a foreign oriental land who has loads of ambitions -- to be able to create sophisticated pastries, host an afternoon tea, know the history of all the classic desserts, speak French and study at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris to name a few:p

My goal is to fulfil some of my ambitions. To begin with, I've been starting to get my hands on baking again. My target is to bake something every other week until every time I go to a patisserie I feel like my cakes are up to their standards!:D

Tomorrow I'll put my first entry of my attempt of a French wannabe dessert, so keep reading!:)

Bisou bisou,

Charlotte