Saturday 28 December 2013

MissChu - South Yarra

Me and a girlfriend was out one Saturday afternoon and we did not really have a plan on what we wanted to have for lunch and decided that we will just walk down Toorak road and discover what would wetch our appetite. We parked at the Como centre and from opposite the street our eyes caught this quaint little eatery and decided to check out the menu. Misschu is an unassuming restaurant which has a fusion of asian nostalgia with modern western twist.

It is known as a tuckshop which is what we they call food stalls in schools in the Asia region. We were well received as we walk in and the wait staff was nice and friendly. There is a menu and drinks notepad on the table, you tick in the boxes what you want and the wait staff will come take the paper menu from you.

We did not have to wait long before our food arrive. We started off with the egg omelet, avocado and balsamic caramelised onion fresh rice paper rolls which came accompanied with a sweet spicy sauce sprinkled on top with nuts. I enjoyed how the ingredients in the rolls were fresh. We also had the pork and prawn deep fried rice paper spring rolls, which came in little bite size with a chilli dipping sauce. I was glad that although fried it was not oily at all and I love the crunch of the paper rolls.

It was not long after that we had the lemongrass beef and seared atlantic salmon warm vermicelli salad. The lemongrass beef vermicelli was a little dry and could do with a bit more sauce but it had good flavour nonetheless. The salmon however had more sauce which tasted a little tangy, sweet and spicy all at the same time. The salmon was not over cooked which was a little pick in the centre.


Overall this place serves well if you after a quick simple meal. The portion was generous and we had some salad leftovers, we left with a full and contented belly.


Location:
276 Toorak Road
South Yarra


Miss Chu on Urbanspoon

Wednesday 18 December 2013

Adriano Zumbo - South Yarra


 
Adriano is no stranger in the patisserie world, he has a few times been on Masterchef creating his unique cakes and pastries. He is also well known for his Zumbarons which we know as macaroons and I've been wanting to try his creations for a long time. Even a few times contemplating getting on a plane and flying to Sydney just to get my hands on those cakes and zumbarons, so imagine my excitement when I found out that he had open an outlet in Melbourne. I was warn in advance by a few colleagues that there was long queues and to be prepared to wait a while before being served but that was not going to put me off.



So off I went on a Sunday afternoon and lo and behold I was surprise when I got to Adriano Zumbo and there was'nt a queue, good for me so that I can take my time to savour each and every sight, sound and taste of that place. The cakes were nicely displayed and look delectable each and every single one of them. Then there was a showcase of the most talk about zumbarons, there was at least 13 unique flavors. And the last display was all the pastries which had a few unique ones.


I ordered 3 different cakes which was $9 each, some zumbarons which was $2.50 each if I had my choice I would have bought all the flavors and the zonut at $5 from the pastry section. I chose the Dr Dot Cake which was chocolate, white nougat, roasted cocoa nib creme brulee, raspberry vinegar jelly, gianduja mousse and dark chocolate glaze. It was like a chocolate mousse cake with very interesting flavors in between. It was light and not too rich.

The other choice I had was the carrot cake which had layer of baked cheese cake, cream cheese mousse, semi dried carrots and caramalise pecans. I did not really enjoy this particular cake, I found the cake layer a little dry. And the last cake was the wassup bii which unfortunately I did not take down the description but from the name of the cake you can pretty much guess that wasabi was one of the ingredients, it was not overpowering and it left a nice after taste.

I was happy that I finally had the chance to taste this most talk about delectable creations by Adriano and I'll definitely be back for more.


Location:
14 Claremont St 
South Yarra 


Adriano Zumbo Pâtissier on Urbanspoon

Monday 2 December 2013

Double Chocolate Layer Cake

I had a request from a friend to bake some cupcakes for her baby's christening, I had in mind the flavor and frosting I was going to make. But due to work and personal commitments I had left too late to buying the tip I needed to frost the cupcake with. So instead I adapted the recipe I was going to use into a whole cake and it was such a success I'm now on the top of the best baker in her circle of friends and frankly it did not take too much effort to make just a little creativity to make it look award winning.


For cake layers
  • 3 ounces fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut
  • 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
  • 3/4 teaspoon vanilla

For ganache frosting
  • 1 pound fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
  • 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
Special equipment 2x10- by 2-inch round cake pans
  • Preheat oven to 180 deg celcius and grease pans. Line bottoms with rounds of wax paper and grease paper.
  • Finely chop chocolate. In a saucepan bring cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a boil over moderately low heat, whisking until sugar is dissolved. 
  • Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. 
  • Cut butter into pieces and add to frosting, whisking until smooth.

Make cake layers:
  • Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
  • Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. 
  • In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs until thickened slightly and lemon colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. 
  • Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined well. 
  • Divide batter between pans and bake in middle of oven until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, baking time varies between 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.
  • Cool layers completely in pans on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove wax paper and cool layers completely. 
  • Cake layers may be made 1 day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature.

Make frosting:
  • Transfer frosting to a bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until spreadable (depending on chocolate used, it may be necessary to chill frosting to spreadable consistency).
  • Spread frosting between cake layers and over top and sides. Then add any berries of your choice
  • Cake keeps, covered and chilled, 3 days. 


This is the most moist rich chocolate cake recipe I've come across and it make everyone who had a slice of it go ooh and ahh. And it's amazing the effect it created with some berries decorated on the top and an artistic splash of chocolate ganache to finish it off.