Macarons are Not my friends.

Every spring, my mum gets asked to bake some goodies for a year-end music recital for students.  This year, she’s enlisted me to make 200 macaron shells for her.  But it hasn’t been easy.

I've had to repipe...

my macaron batter was too liquidy but I test-baked anyway...

I thought I figured out the right amount of colour...

only to find out that they were hard and had huge air pockets... (and "nipples").

Well, I kind of figured out how to make strawberry shells (with freeze-dried fruit powder).. but I still have the "nipples".

Out of SEVEN batches... only two and a half came out with "great success" and they were the chocolate and strawberry ones. Coloured macarons are my frenemy.

Soup S.O.S.

I have been feeling under the weather for the past five days.  Everything came to a head yesterday morning.  After the alarm went off I wasn’t feeling so hot.  Today was slightly better and spent most of it sleeping.  My appetite has come back but my tastebuds are not quite to par.  I needed soup but I didn’t have any meats thawed about.  What to do…?  What to do?  I pondered.

I remember before feeling sick that Denise from Quickies on the Dinner Table had conjured up a wonderful chilled minted cucumber yoghurt soup.  YES!!!  This should be the remedy.  I actually had everything except for the mint, much to my chagrin.  Instead, I substituted for the ubiquitous dill.  Now I love dill as much as the next gal, but I also didn’t want a-typical flavours.  I wanted that mint with its refreshingness.  What’s a girl to do?

Cucumber and Dill and Lemon.

Into the food processor my pretties. Buwahahahahahahah!

Lovely chilled soup with extra dollop of yoghurt.

Ok Mr. Dill, you win this time.  You were a lovely, spot-on substitute.  But next time, next time I call on Ms. Mint because she’s so saucy.  Wonderful, wonderful soup.  No word of a lie, I could barely taste before but now I can taste the garlic, the dill, the cucumber… *sigh*.  Thanks for your help on this Denise, not only am I feeling better but I can taste again!!! *mua*

P.S.: Reading/replying/commenting will resume later this week, possibly on the weekend.  Going back to bed now.  Night night.

Tarte au Citron

"One of these things just doesn't belong..."

I don’t know what’s up with me, but lately I’ve been wanting to express myself in French.  Sometimes, things just make more sense in French or maybe it’s just that it sounds better?  My once-mad skillz aren’t all that excellent enough to write fluently anymore.  And when I’ve been calling La Belle Province, they pick up right away that I’m Anglophone and they switch on to Language: Anglais.

Sigh.

Cher Liberté

Cher Liberté,

You had me at 10% Milk Fat.

xoxo.

Le meilleur yaourt produit en Canada.  [Translation: The best Canadian-made yoghurt.]

***UPDATE April 20, 2010***

I have finally met my yogurt match.  10% M.F. is too much! for a yoghurt-holic like myself.  I concede defeat to one of the greatest food foes ever.  I salute you Liberté 10% M.F. natural yoghurt.  I salute you.

Cherry Turnovers with Stella’s magic

This past weekend, the kitchen offerings were weak and burnt at best.  Melted gummi bears running amuck, melted, and rather bitter.  A mango madness that fizzled and left me in near tears.  What to do to get me back on my game?  Probably something simpler and more comfort-foody.

I had eyed Stella’s Quick Pastry Dough and decided with her magical abilities, I could make cherry turnovers.  Ideally, I would have loved to have gotten my hands on some guava jelly, but I was in comfy yoga pants and didn’t want to venture out into the real world.  I wanted to make something that I could consume while watching The Blindside.

Here’s how it went down: