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

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 

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.

Mr Huang Jin - Melbourne CBD

I've been wanting to try this place for quite a while but could not be bothered to drive into the city on my own on a friday night with congested traffic. So the opportunity came up one Friday when my husband wanted to have Japanese and went we got there the restaurant was close down. So without further hesitation I suggested we try Huang Jin which was just a few streets away. 

It was not too crowded when we got there and there was plenty of empty tables available. The wait staff showed us to the table and handed us our menu, which I did not really need as I already knew what I wanted since I had already checked out the menu beforehand. 

Taiwanese Fried Chicken 

Spring onion cakes with egg on top

The fried chicken was awesome in my daughter's words, she enjoyed every bite of it and so did me and hubby. It was crispy on the outside and really moist and juicy tender meat. It came serve with a chilli mayo which we had to ask for more that was how good it was. As for the spring onion pancake I did not really enjoy that as it had egg on the top and I do not want to be biase in my opinion but my daughter love it. 

Soft shell crab on sticky rice

Then came the soft shell crab, note that this was not on the menu as it was a chef's special which the wait staff forgot to mention but I knew it existed because I read some blog reviews previously. The crab was a bit too oily for my liking I could feel the oil travel down my throat as I ate it and it was a small piece of crab which did not justify the price, the portion was really small.

Chilli Wantons

Salmon Wrap

Next we had the chilli wantons which was a generous portion and the sauce that came with it complimented the dish well, it was not too spicy. The salmon wrap is another chef's special which you will not find on the menu, the salmon was crumbed and wrapped with vegetables and mayo. This was divine and all I can say is it's a must try. 

Xiao Long Bao

We had ordered the xiao long bao's (shanghai dumplings) as well and after all the dishes had arrived we still have not got it yet. So I had to remind them we were waiting for it and they had actually forgot to add that in which they were apologetic for. I must say that I was disappointed though when I bite into it, for one they were definitely a lot smaller in size than the wantons and they did not have much of the broth in the fillings. So there was really no burst at the bite sort of feel. All I can say is that I've tasted better elsewhere.

Red bean pancake with sesame ice cream

To finish off the meal we had the red bean pancake and what can I say it was the best way to complete the meal. The red bean filling was generous and although the pancake was fried in batter it was not oily like the soft shell crab. The sesame ice cream was really good you get the taste of sesame in every mouthful, it was so good I ask the wait staff who their supplier was as I wanted a whole tub. She mention that it was made in house.

Overall this place has got a few hits and misses, there were some dishes that did not live up to my expectations where some shone thru like the dessert which I'm definitely going back for. But the price certainly did not justify the tapas size portions. 

Location:

The Rialto

525 Collins St

Melbourne 3000

Man Tong Kitchen - Crown

This restaurant recently open in Crown and when there's a new kid on the block I'm definitely one of those who would want to be the first few to try them out in the first few months when they open their doors for business. So when a friend's birthday came up it only seem the right time and opportunity to savor what they had to offer. We did not make reservations for dinner on a Saturday night and that was a mistake but because we thought that we were having a late dinner it should not matter, well we were wrong. It was a half an hour wait for a table but the waitress was apologetic and came out with nuts to appease our patience which we politely declined. The place was really crowded and the wait staff was busy running from table to table. When we were shown our table the menus were already there which was a good thing so we got stuck into looking at what was going to be our choice for that night. Dumplings seems to be their signature dish as mention in their menu so we thought we can't go wrong with that to start off. 

Boneless chicken in chinese rice wine

Wontons in hot chilli

I personally found the boneless chicken a little bland and also I'm not a big fan of steam chicken. The wantons were yummy, the skin was thin and it was not overcooked on the inside. Note that we ordered the shanghai dumplings aka xiao long bao as part of the appetiser but by the time the mains was serve we still had not got our dumplings so began the chase and wait game.

Fish fillet in ginger and spring onion sauce

Stir fried string beans with szechuan chilli sauce

The first two mains that arrive was the fish which was not too oily and seasoning was just right. The string beans we enjoyed thoroughly, it was cook just right and the crsipy bits of garlic and mince meat gave it a depth of flavour. This was by far a favourite dish. 

Spicy Szechuan Noodles with Mince Meat

And after 45 mins have passed we still have not got our shanghai dumplings and the rest of our mains, we felt service was a little bit slack. The next dish to arrive was the noodles but we had to send this dish back to the kitchen as it was serve in broth and that was not the way it is usually cooked. Szechuan noodles are like spaghetti it is noodle cooked al dente serve with a meat sauce. So we told the wait staff that we wanted it dry and there was no mention in the menu that it was going to be served in soup. But what return to the table was a disappointment, as picture above there was hardly any sauce on the noodles. 

Fried White Bait in Salt & Pepper

Xiao Long Bao

The last two dishes to arrive was the white bait which we had to remind the wait staff that we were waiting on and finally the dumplings. the white bait was crispy and not oily at all. As for the dumpling after the long wait all I can say is that I've tasted better. It did not burst with broth and flavour.

Overall this place is a hit and miss, there are a couple of good dishes. Does it warrant a return visit? Perhaps but not anytime soon.


Location:
Man Tong Kitchen
Crown Casino

Bailey's Irish Cream Cupcakes

It's spring in November and what that also means is the that the races are on too. And I got an invite to a friend's Melbourne Cup day party, which by the way is a public holiday only in Melbourne, we take our racing very seriously. So putting on my thinking cap I started to wonder what to bring, to make things easier she has all the food taken care of except for dessert. So I browse the website and found this one and thought how appropriate to bring cupcakes meant only for adults. That had beer, whiskey and liqueur all in the one place.

INGREDIENTS:

For the Cupcakes:
1 cup Guinness stout
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons baking soda
¾ teaspoons salt
2 eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

Plain looking cupcakes

 DIRECTIONS:

1. To Make the Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring the Guinness and butter to a simmer in a heavy, medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

2. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl to combine. Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sour cream on medium speed until combined. Add the Guinness-chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and beat just to combine. Reduce the speed to low, add the flour mixture and beat briefly. Using a rubber spatula, fold the batter until completely combined. Divide the batter among the cupcake liners. Bake until a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean, about 17 minutes. Cool the cupcakes on a rack.

 For the Whiskey Ganache Filling:

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
2 teaspoons Irish whiskey

Whiskey ganache in the centre

3. To Make the Whiskey Ganache Filling: Finely chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then, using a rubber spatula, stir it from the center outward until smooth. Add the butter and whiskey and stir until combined. Let the ganache cool until thick but still soft enough to be piped.

4. To Fill the Cupcakes: Using a 1-inch round cookie cutter (or the bottom of a large decorating tip), cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes, going about two-thirds of the way down. Transfer the ganache to a piping back with a wide tip and fill the holes in each cupcake to the top.

For the Baileys Frosting:
2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups powdered sugar
6 tablespoons Bailey's Irish Cream

Pretty bailey's frosting

5. To Make the Baileys Frosting: Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Reduce the speed to medium-low and gradually add the powdered sugar until all of it is incorporated. Add the Baileys, increase the speed to medium-high and whip for another 2 to 3 minutes, until it is light and fluffy.

6. Using your favorite decorating tip (I use the wilton 1M), or an offset spatula, frost the cupcakes and decorate with sprinkles, if desired. Store the cupcakes in an airtight container.

X-section of the cupcake

Again this was a bit of a process to make, not difficult at all just cumbersome, but they turn out really good. My daughter mention that they smell really good too which was from the bailey's. I actually got high on the cupcakes as they had a pretty good alcohol content or maybe my measurement which was left much to be desired was not that accurate a splash more here and there won't hurt hey....

I've use stout in cooking but not in baking so I was surprise that there was'nt a strong hint of it in the cupcakes but it did make the cupcakes moist and sponge like. And the ganache just added a depth to the whole cupcake hidden in innocent only to be revealed when you take a bite out of it. 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcake

Wow the title was a mouthful so was the taste of it, it was just unbelievable. I was looking for interesting cupcake recipes and chance upon this one and I thought why not? So many steps, just what I like NOT! But I guess this must be the year I decided that I'm going to live on the edge a little and try recipes outside my comfort zone. There are 3 steps to this recipe; the cookie dough which is the filling, then the cupcake and lastly the icing to decorate the cupcakes. 

Because the cookie dough needs to be frozen when being place in the cupcakes, it's best to do it the night before shape it into balls and then freeze them. You do this as you do not want the cookie dough to melt in the cupcake and lose shape while baking.

For the cookie dough:
2 sticks softened butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup mini chocolate chips

Method:

Combine the butter and sugars in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 mins. Beat in milk and vanilla until incorporated and smooth. Beat in the flour and salt until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Shape the dough into balls or tubes. Freeze on a parchment lined baking sheet overnight.

For the cupcakes:
3 sticks softened butter
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
4 large eggs
2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup milk

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350° F/170 deg.  Line two cupcake pans with paper liners (24 total).  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and brown sugar.  Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.  Stir together to blend.  Add the dry ingredients to the mixer bowl on low speed, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, mixing each addition just until incorporated.  Blend in the vanilla.

Using a scoop, fill the prepared cupcake liners 2/3 full with the cupcake batter. Place a frozen cookie dough ball on the top center of each cupcake.

Bake for 16-18 mins.

For the frosting:
3 sticks softened butter
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tablespoons milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Method:

Combine the butter and brown sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.  Beat in the powdered sugar until smooth.  Beat in the salt, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth and combined. Decorate cupcakes.

The taste of this cupcakes were out of this world and I  must caution that this is not something you have all the time due to the rich ingredients in this calorie laden recipe. Calorie aside with the effort it took to make this I must say each bite was worth every calorie.

Steakhouse 66 - Docklands

It was Father's Day on September 1st and no prizes for guessing who chose this place, because it's was father's day the restaurant had on a special, all dad's get a free beer and kids eat free which was a bonus. When I called to make reservations the restaurant was fully booked out which is no surprise and the earliest we could get in was 2pm. So we got there right on time, walked into the restaurant and waited to be served.

The restaurant was still full when we got there at that time although it looked like most guest were finishing up their meals, the wait staff was busy running from one table to another, no one notice we were standing waiting to be served, it was a good 10 mins before we manage to get the attention of someone which I think was the restaurant manager as he was in a suit. It was good thing he was apologetic for making us wait as by that time I was ready to walk off as I'm not the most patient person. Since it was a nice spring sunny day we opted to seat outside.

Looking thru the menu we ordered the salt and pepper calamari as an entree to share because we were all starving by that time since we had no breakfast all of us scoff the entree down in no time even our daughter had a go at it. Hunger aside the entree was done really well, the calamari was cooked just right and the salad that accompanied it was light and fresh.

Our daughter had her meal serve to her first which she was grateful for as the poor child was absolutely famish, she decided on the kids fish & chips. The fish was really fresh and the batter was light, I had a pinch of it as remember we had not had anything to eat since morning.

Hubby opted for the porterhouse steak with peppercorn sauce which is served with mash and onion marmalade because he has to have salad with his meals he ordered the mix green salad on the side, the steak was cooked the way he liked it and the mash just melted in your mouth.

I had the seafood pasta which was tossed with an olive oil dressing, it was light and pasta was done just right. There were generous serving of fish, clams, mussels and succulent prawn which unfortunately I could not have so hubby benefited from it. Overall the food was tasty and will definitely make a return visit to try their other items on the menu.


Location:
66 NewQuay Promenade
Docklands

Beef Rendang (Spicy Beef Stew)

I have a friend who cooks great malaysian curries and my husband had the beef rendang she made one day and absolutely love it since then he has been bugging me to make it and I have been putting it off for the longest time as previously mention I'm not one for complicated recipes but after a while between having him constantly harassing to me getting down to do it I gave in. So what is Beef Rendang?

Beef Rendang originated from Indonesia, is somewhat like a beef stew which is slow cooked in spices and coconut milk for over 3 hours until the meat is soft and tender. Due to the long cooking and preparation time that is required this dish is something you serve for special occasions. 

I had never make this before although I've eaten this many times before and I personally like this dish too so I started by looking for recipes and where else do I look than my dear Mr google. I found the recipe on Rasa Malaysia and found that they have recipes for other local dishes that I use to eat when I was in Singapore which I'll try for another time.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pound boneless beef short ribs (cut into cubes)
5 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cinnamon stick (about 2-inch long)
3 cloves
3 star anise
3 cardamom pods
1 lemongrass (cut into 4-inch length and pounded)
1 cup thick coconut milk
1 cup water
2 teaspoons tamarind pulp (soaked in some warm water for the juice and discard the seeds )
6 kaffir lime leaves (very finely sliced)
6 tablespoons kerisik (toasted coconut)
1 tablespoon sugar/palm sugar or to taste
Salt to taste

Spice Paste:

5 shallots
1 inch galangal
3 lemongrass (white part only)
5 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger
10-12 dried chilies (soaked in warm water and seeded)

Method:

1. Chop the spice paste ingredients and then blend it in a food processor until fine.
2. Heat the oil in a stew pot, add the spice paste, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, and cardamom and stir-fry them until aromatic.
3. Add the beef and the pounded lemongrass and stir for 1 minute.
4. Add the coconut milk, tamarind juice, water, and simmer on medium heat, stirring frequently until the meat is almost cooked.
5. Add the kaffir lime leaves, kerisik (toasted coconut), sugar/palm sugar, stirring to blend well with the meat.
6. Lower the heat to low, cover the lid, and simmer for 1 – 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is really tender and the gravy has dried up.
7. Add salt to taste. If not sweet enough, add more sugar to taste.
8. Serve immediately with steamed rice and save some for overnight.

Cook’s Notes:

1. To prepare the kerisik or toasted coconut, just add the grated coconut to a dry wok and stir continuosly until they turn golden brown.

I had bought beef short ribs and make the mistake of buying those pre packed ones and the bones were so chunky that my pot was not big enough, therefore it make stirring really difficult so the bottom got a bit burnt so I loss a bit of gravy due to that. If I ever make this dish again I would buy it direct from my butcher and get him to chop it into smaller pieces. Overall it looked and tasted exactly like how I use to remember, so it's a success.