The Artisan

S.C. bought 2 very nice boxes of chocolates for me, and asked l.t. to bring them back to Singapore. Irony was, when I was happily savouring the sweet treats, she was down with a nasty bout of chicken pox in London. I haven't gotten the depressing and potentially scarring pox yet, and I was praying tight my vaccination (some more than 12 years ago) might still be keeping the nasty virus at bay. "Probably not..." friends told me the vaccination doesn't last more than 10 years, and if Wikipedia is a reliable good source (protection of no more than 5 years), I should have lost the immunity for at least 7 years by now! Huh... I should stop procrastination and get ready for further immunization.

Well, s.c., if you are reading this, I am hoping you feel better and all the herbal teas you mom prepared has helped. Look on the bright side, now you are likely to have lifelong immunity. No risk of getting it during pregnancy, which can cause serious problems for babies... :(

Okie, let's talk about something less itch-inducing...




I have finished the whole box of L'artisan du chocolat (the one in camel brown square box). A big YUUUUMMMMMMM... each little piece has a different flavour. Though I can't make out the flavours of more than half of them (in some cases, I was very greedy and ate them a little too quickly.. heh), I love them all. The texture is great; the ganache is smooth and melt in the mouth. Those with nuts and seeds were very finely crushed (but not powdery) and form a velvety paste with good "口感“. (how do I translate that?) The chocolate taste lingered a long time after the eating, which is real nice...



I really like it that they were all simple rectangular blocks (not to mention it's really bite size, so I really didn't need to share with anyone... haha), and the many flavours distinguished in very simple subtle ways. They were neat, pretty and uniformly irregular enough, to evoke a certain sense of "handmadeness" with skill and professionism. Many chocolatiers have different moulds for different flavours, and I personally find most moulds too elaborate and the finish too "sleek" and polished. Personal choice really! I am a sucker for great packaging and presentation, but what really matters is the taste...

What would very absolutely enticing, is the inclusion of a little flavour booklet that would fit in the box, featuring all the flavours like what they did on their online flavour catalogue. Guess there are just too many flavours... ^_^

I won't act like a connoisseur because I am really not one, but I hope to recommend to whoever might have a similar box to taste their chocolates at room temperature. I tasted a few pieces before putting the box in the fridge, and they melt almost instantly in the mouth, and the flavour very distinct. After refrigerating them (I really have to, because it's an average of 28 degree celsius all day here), and eating them straight from the fridge, it (of course) took a long time to melt in the mouth, and I was very tempted (and some cases succumbed) to chew them before they started to melt, which I find didn't do justice to getting full utility from these delightful treats. Subsequently, I ate them only after resting them for a while (after refrigeration) at room temperature, and I enjoyed them a lot more.

I dedicate this entry to dear s.c.. Though it's a trifle too late to wish you something like "speedy recovery"(hahaha... and I'm sure you feel better already), just want to let you know that little box is absolutely treasure-ful! Thanks madame!

Ribbons Galore...

It's wonderful to receive presents, and more so to be presented with a prettily wrapped one. Since Christmas last year and my wedding recently, I have accumulated a vast collection of ribbons and textured papers (as I handmake all the wedding favors/cards etc.). It gives great satisfaction to tie a perfect bow, and I can't seem to get enough of it. After the invitations, I used ribbons for wedding favors, and after I am done with favors, I designed another post-wedding album which uses ribbons too. To make things slightly worse, I have a weakness for double faced ribbons which often cost up to twice as much as single faced ribbons. In lay man terms, double faced ribbons have same texture on both sides. I find them a whole lot more "intergral" and "ribbony". But as a friend has described, she feels this fetish is a mere extension of my sometimes-senseless pursuit of perfectionism. Erm.... I can almost agree with her on that...

But as the months passed, the fascination grew. I didn't buy them what I needed, I bought everything I fancied, and I bought them in bulk from manufacturers and distributors. (some really great stuff are only available from rare collections from hard-to-find distributors, and I can't bear to get just a few yards since I travelled such a distance). It's scary how much there is now. I have a dedicated drawer to ribbons. I probably have enough supplies for gift wrapping for the next 50 years; friends and folks can probably bring their gifts over for the next 50 years too, and I bet I will still have a surplus.

As with all things in a series or collection, it brings great joy to photograph, and a neat challenge for ribbons because I wanted to capture the textures accurately. I started off photographing some for auctioning on ebay. Then it became more of a hobby. I waited for early mornings and late afternoons, which seem to work well for me (gives very good daylighting) given my resources (my apartment cum studio/camera etc.). Here are some pictures.

Merry Marie Belle!

I am no connoisseur at tasting chocolates compared to Chloé Doutre-Roussel, and though as we all know we should engage the 5 senses, I can't bear to engage the 5th test (to taste it!!!) on these Marie Belle chocolates! They are like small pieces of art, and it's the first chocolate I feel bad about imagining them melt in my mouth! Arghhhh... yet.... the smell of it lingers below my nose as I work on my laptop, continuing to entice.





I hope my pictures do them justice, as these little gems really are utmostly lovely to look at. Each flavour come with a different picture, most of which are French-flavoured and some others are retro prints. There seems to be little correlation between the print and flavour except the passion fruit flavoured, which is a silhouette of a kissing couple, but who cares about what makes sense when they all look so pretty!



C.M. did a big favour to help bring these back from NY, and asked me to try them, but I still can't give her a verdict on the taste. I am trying to stretch my utility by looking at them, and will put them in the fridge to keep fresh (though I hate to, because I am afraid of blooming). Silly as it may sound, I will only taste them close to their expiry date. "No! Please don't do that!" is a little voice at the back of my head. Chocolates taste BEST when fresh. Nothing beats fresh melt-in-the-mouth ganache. *dilemma*




The great thing about having chocolates in a box secured with ribbons (no sticker seal please), is that (I am going to sound very stupid)... is that... you can still keep the box, package it like how you had received it, and voila! it's brand new and it's easy to pretend you had not eaten them. I must sound like some psycho to you now, well, now that I had typed it out, I am starting to feel I am one. (*_*)




I will definitely hit the Marie Belle Cacao Bar when I have a chance. Friends who have visited said it's utterly French and pretty. I can't wait! Also a visit to Kee's Chocolates, Black Hound, Jacques Torres Chocolates are musts!

Gourmet luxurious bread

It's a pity the pecan roll was hungrily chewed up before it could make its way before the camera. I wanted to stop myself midway of the relishing moments, but it was hard (and not to mention unhygienic) to make a half eaten roll look good. I continued chewing, and chewing, and chewing. It's hard to tell you how much was packed in that portion of bread. Crusty, heavily-textured, moist, chewy (sorry I have to use this word again!) with a generous dose of pecans, flavoured lightly with cinnamon. Mmmmm..... Mmmm.... "Maison Kayser..." I looked at the paper bag and checked out their website. For those who can read French, you have more luck than me to check out their product lines and bread making stories.

I don't eat a lot of bread though I love them. There are loads of native carbos in Asia (and I do like them too) and great bread is not too accessible where I reside. And when you do feel like having a sandwich for lunch (and spot a cafe with good loaves) you could face some mild objections from friends/colleagues who have cravings for laksa, fish noodles (鱼片米粉）and many other local delights. Huh... "okie lor, chew kee chicken rice also can..." is an usual answer. I am not very picky on food, though I enjoy good food tremendously. I guess I don't qualify as a foodie do I? ^^




What a sidetrack. Back to the pecan roll. The reason why I am writing about it is because I found it exorbitantly priced. Though NTD 85 (SGD 3.90) did not burn a big hole in the pocket, I start to wonder why this bread (the size of 2 fists put together, about 9 cm in diameter) costs more than the usual, and why people were making a beeline for them. Most have an average of 4-5 rolls/loaves on their trays. It was more out of curiosity that motivated the purchase. Conclusion: I enjoyed the bread tremendously and I do think I would buy it again (probably the same flavour as I tend to eat the same good thing repeatedly) when I get a chance to go back. Probably only 1 roll though... ^^




What started out as a trip to the Dean & Deluca store in Taipei gave some other nice surprises. The French gourmet bakery and chic haven for food lovers are just side by side in basement 2 of Breeze Centre (微风广场）at No.39, Fu Hsing South Road Section 2.

Darker Than Dark Chocolate Cake

Good morning Taipei! I was craving for some hot you tiao (deep fried dough, 油条), but ended up getting some chocolate cakes instead when I saw 2 interesting looking cafes. Just a side track, and it's purely my guess:- I noticed there are plentiful "Yong He Dou Jiang"s (永和豆浆) in Singapore, China and Taiwan. Please don't quote me on this, but I think I have chanced upon the place of origin. Yong He （永和）is a district in southwest Taipei, and yes I witnessed more than a handful of shops with the same name, with almost the same palate of delightful morning snacks, with a steady stream of patrons on scooters and regulars from the neighbourhood.



Yes! Back to the cake. And no, I have not added a black filter over the picture. I had a shock when I unwrapped the translucent wrapper, (though I had expected it won't be a regular choc cake since it's named Black Chocolate Cake "黑炭巧克力蛋糕" and I hope I remembered that correctly as I don't read traditional Chinese too well). It revealed to be charred-er-than-charred-brownie cake! Pleasantly amused and not-too-hungry, I decided to keep it back in the fridge for some better photos tomorrow morning.




Having bought 2 cakes from 2 shops just 3 metres away from each other (added some night shots of the 2 when I passed them again), it is interesting to find similar looking packaging in similar colours. I got home with a choc mousse cake from Cafe 85°C and a dark (a-hem, i mean a really dark) choc cake from Cafe 8. The cakes don't come with ribbons actually (sorry to mislead!). They are some of my rewards from 2 hours of ribbon shopping at the wholesalers'. I am not sure if anyone of you reading this share this fetish (or being anal, as a friend has put it), but I really have this thing for double faced ribbon; They do a neat job of completing a knot effortlessly. You need to twist and turn single faced ones to have the shiny-sides-up! If you bother, that is. ^__^




I am overall very impressed with the cute and chic appeal of the cake boxes. They are especially neat in such small packages. I don't do them justice with such bad lighting and photography. If someone have some good tips on photography (especially for food), please do drop me a note!

On a finishing note and a prelude to some sweet dreams, I will try to hit the Taipei store of Dean & Deluca tomorrow. It would be tempting not to window shop, and almost insurmountable to exit the shop without aa long and big lunch, but we should always press on when we are in a city with such a street-food galore and some of the best Chinese food around yeah? (in my opinion that is!)