The Last Touch Bakery

Tiramisu:

Last summer I had dinner with an old friend in Berkeley, and she chose her favorite Italian restaurant on Shattuck ave. A bite of Lo Coco’s tiramisu and I was hooked. It was creamy and light with the perfect amount of coffee and cocoa powder.

Too bad I didn’t know about Lo Coco’s when I was at Cal!

Here is my tiramisu macaron:

Mascarpone cheese made in-house, then added to coffee reduction. The shell is dusted with cocoa powder. The almond in the shell adds a nice dimension to this classic flavor.

Pumpkin cream pie:

When I lived in France, there was no pumpkin dessert. I am not sure why pumpkin pie isn’t popular there. Perhaps it’s because the French don’t really cook with spices like the Americans do. 

My pumpkin cream macaron has a light pumpkin buttercream infused with cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. 

 The shell is colored with turmeric and sprinkled with cinnamon.

Candied Pecan:

Last spring I spent an afternoon at Yo’s house removing pecans from their shells. It was so much work! I now see shelled pecans as a treasure from above.

The candied pecan macaron has a creamy pecan buttercream with a candied pecan in the middle. Soft, chewy, and crunchy; this macaron’s got texturality!

I have always wanted to have an Italian nonna, who would take the time to patiently

teach me the art of authentic, Italian cuisine. After another disastrous ‘pasta day’ in

my kitchen, I couldn’t help complaining to my friend, Frances. She invited me to her

home, and introduced me to her family’s best cook –her mother, Mrs. Angelina.

From Puglia, Italy, Mrs. Angelina’s warm smile made me feel right at home! Her smile

faded a bit when I accidentally called her “nonni” (a vulgar word), but she quickly

laughed off my mistake.

Mrs. Angelina is exactly how I imagined a nonna would be: energetic, talkative, and incredibly

passionate about her food.

For six hours, she patiently taught me how to slowly incorporate the water with the

flour, when to knead to dough and when to let it rest, and how roll it out ever so thinly!

First add some flour to a large bowl and make a well in the center where you drop a beaten egg.

Mix the egg with the flour in circular motion;Add 2 TBS of water and “squeeze” the egg-flour mixture with the water. Do this until all the water has been completely incorporated

 Wrap the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Next, knead the dough until it is as soft as a baby’s behind. Let it rest again

for another 30 minutes.

To roll, you roll the dough onto itself and use this very long rolling pin;

Roll and stretch out the dough simultaneously like this:

Once the dough is nice and thin, you can cut it into different shapes.

To cook, add the pasta to the boiling water. When the pasta floats to the top,

it is ready! YUM! Light and soft, yet with a hint of chewiness. So delicious!

Frances, Angelina, Bobby, and Robert: Thank you for welcoming me into your

home and teaching me the art of making pasta! My belly thanks you, too!

I love traveling the world to learn of new people, cultures, and foods. I try to live like locals to learn where they eat and how they prepare their food. This traveling style has taken me to restaurants off the beaten paths, holes-in-the-walls, outdoor markets, and lots of street food.

On the streets of Arequipa, ‘La Ciudad Blanca ‘or ‘The White City’.  Food-wise, everything is fried here. Fried meat, fried potatoes, and very little vegetables! Good thing I brought stretchable yoga pants!

Santa Catalina convent is a must-see!   Bright colored walls, beautiful architecture, and there’s a fun pastry shop owned by the sisters where they sell homemade cakes. This convent was the place where wealthy girls lived if they were not married.  Talk about pressure! 

We then  headed to Cusco, the capital of Peru. It’s altitude was 11,200 ft! Once we adjusted to the elevation, we visited the San Pedro Market and searched for spices and souvenirs.

Here is my favorite: alfajores!  Doesn’t it resemble a macaron? Melt- in-your-mouth cookies sandwiching a thick flavorful dulce de Leche.  You can find these delicious treats everywhere in Peru. For a recipe, click here.  An alfajores macaron is definitely in the works!

Although our trip to Peru was cut short due to Alfred’s injury (i.e. right knee shattered in seven pieces and a left broken ankle), I’m thankful we made is back somewhat safely, and I treasure our fantastic times there. Once he is able to walk again, we plan to return to Peru and finally visit Machu Picchu! This means we’ll get to try more peruvian dishes! I can’t wait.

In the meantime, don’t forget to purchase travel insurance with Medevac evacuation! We learned the hard way…

I’ve been spending a lot of time in the test kitchen lately to create some fun and delicious  new flavors.

I am proud to present you the red velvet macaron! Just in time for Valentine’s day, this one has a cream cheese filling with a subtle hint of chocolate. This macaron is moist, light yet creamy, sweet yet slightly tart & chocolaty…so decadent!

Next, chocolate covered strawberry macaron!

Our macarons were voted best dessert at NetApp! How exciting!

My friend R.C. LOVES red velvet cakes. After every trip from NYC, I can expect to see him first thing in the morning, still jet-lagged from his red-eye flight, with a box of cupcakes in hand. After tasting several red velvets one morning, he describes the ultimate red velvet: It should have a light yet creamy cream cheese frosting, a nice color, a hint of cocoa, and it must have the big M.

“The big M? ” I ask. “Yes, Moisture.”

Here are few tips to give your cakes the big M:

1. Reducing the amount of sugar in a recipe will lead to a dry cake. When sugar melts, it’s a liquid. And less liquid means less moisture.

2. Are you adding too much flour? First stir the flour in its container, then scoop the required amount in measuring cup. Finally level off with a chopstick.

3. Over mixing the batter once the flour is in will also lead to a dry cake. So, fold in the flour gently and walk away.

4. If your cake is dry, try saving it by brushing some syrup over it and then continue with the frosting. Yes, moisture injection therapy!

This article on Yahoo! describes the ultimate Red Velvet and gives a recipe

Good luck!

My good friend is celebrating her baby’s 1st birthday this weekend, and I decided to make some macaron lollipops for the party!
Special thanks to Bakerella.com for such a cool idea!

Strawberry macaron lollipops

I’ll be giving out free macaron samples tomorrow at Country Cheese Coffee Market from 10-noon! Try earl grey milk chocolate and/or strawberry macarons!

You can now find our macarons at Country Cheese Coffee Market!

1578 Hopkins Street

Berkeley, CA 94707

(510) 526-1333

http://www.yelp.com/biz/country-cheese-coffee-market-berkeley

I was so excited when Cliff Brunk, my very talented wedding photographer, accepted to do a photo shoot for the website. The quality of these pictures reflect his artistic ability and eye for details! Check out a preview on his blog, http://brunkblog.com/2010/10/07/macarons/

In the mean time, here he is  hard at work:

This site will soon be looking fantastic! Thanks for the beautiful pictures of my macarons, Cliff!