Need some help on what to prepare for dessert this coming Christmas? Here's the list of some classic holiday desserts:

This time of the year, the Chinese will make tang yuen to celebrate the coming of winter. It is a soup type dessert, served hot and the main ingredient is made of glutinous rice balls.

Chinese myth believes that if you don't eat tang yuen, you won't be able to grow one year older.

Few days before my birthday, Yvonne wanted to give me a surprise. I felt a little bit suspicious that she left the house early. She told me she had to do something in QV. She didn't tell me what she wanted to do, neither did she asked me to accompany her. Anyway, I found out later that she went to The Cupcake Family located at QV Centre to pre-order my birthday cupcakes.


On the same day, (I had no idea she just went there at that time) I went to the same shop to get some macarons after my lunch. Since I had my camera with me, I thought of taking some photos so I could post up in this blog. The sales lady in the shop asked me to delete the photos I took with a stern face. She didn't bother to ask me what I wanted to do with the photos. I could have written a nice review on their shop for free publicity. Too bad, they probably assume that I am some spy that trying to copy their stuff. They could have asked.


On my birthday, I found out Yvonne had gotten me four cupcakes, custom made into Tiffany & Co. and Chanel design. Really lovely...



The day we collected the cupcakes, there were unpleasant experience too. There was a clueless man before us, making up his mind which cupcakes he wanted to get. As he was trying to figure out his choices, Yvonne passed the collection slip to the lady. She looked at Yvonne and said, "Wait!". As a sales lady, I think she should be more courteous and polite instead. We felt that she was ordering us in a way she was trying to execute his discretion.


All she needed to do is to take the collection slip and retrieve our cupcakes to us. That probably will take less than a minute. Instead, we had to wait 15 minutes or more for the man to finally decide what he wants. I know they have first-come-first-served policy. But times like these, you really have to bend the rule so that you'll be more efficient. Don't you think so? If the man is going to take half hour, it doesn't make sense for other customers to wait there without getting served.


We weren't that happy with the cupcakes too. Yvonne ordered two blueberries and two vanillas, and each of the flavor for each design. So we can get different design for different flavor. Instead, they gave us two blueberries for the Chanel design and two vanillas for the T&Co. They totally fucked up the order.


I could have forgive all the misfortunes if the cakes very nice. Sadly, they're not. The cakes were too dry. And the frosting was too sweet. I felt like I just put a cup of sugar into my mouth as I was chewing. The frosting was too hard, I had to peel them off and throw them away to avoid getting diabetes.


If you're wondering... No, I will not go back to this shop. There is a better cupcake store in Melbourne (which I will blog about it after this).




The only credit I will give to this shop is their fabulous design on the cupcakes. The customer service sucks big time. And the most disappointment is the cupcakes taste itself.


The Cupcake Family
22 Red Cape Lane
Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia

Ever tried the famous crepe cake from Japan? If you're living in Malacca (or going there for a visit), be sure to visit Nadeje Bakery for the super fantastic Japanese crepe layer cake.


Nadeje Bakery only sells this cake to keep their business going. Can you imagine the popularity? Although they only sell one type of this layer cake, it comes in different flavours.


If you're a first timer, I would advise you to take the Original flavour first. The white chocolate cheese isn't that nice though. But every other flavours are quite ok. The green tea one is not bad. And the blackforest (or is it the strawberry and chocolate) one is also highly recommended.


Now, what is so special about this layer cake? Other than it's Japan product (everything Japanese is nice ne?), it is very soft. I mean very very very soft. The cake isn't baked from flour and egg like normal cake. They actually layer every single thin crepe and spread the cream in between.


One tip to eat this cake. You must always start from the tip of the cake. Slice them with a fork downwards. Do not use a spoon, it will ruin the cake. If you want to take away on a long journey, they do sell an icebox and it comes with dry ice to keep the cakes fresh.


Sadly, the cake is quite expensive though. It's about RM8.50 or RM9.50 per slice, depending on the flavour. 


Nadaje Patisserie is located at Plaza Mahkota. Currently they have another branch at Dataran Pahlawan. Both in Malacca.

Dear all,

I am giving away 2 bottles of perfume - Chloe's Signature perfume 50ml and Marc Jacobs Oh, Lola! 100ml.

Do find out how to get it from my personal blog <<here>>.

Good luck and have a nice day!

Bun for desserts anyone?

It's kinda weird to have buns for desserts. Normally we all have it as entree. But when you have these buns in your mouth, it's just not weird anymore.

The buns are typical Chinese man dao, lightly pan fried so the skin is crusty. At the same time it's soft and warm on the inside. Then it is glazed with caramel. They just melt in your mouth.

I don't know what the sauce is made of. It looks pretty much like condensed milk. But I taste custard, honey, milk and butter.

I am so sorry I can't tell you where to get this because the shops in China are all homogenous. And I can't read Chinese, so it doesn't help at all.

Introducing the new (but yet not so new) technique in molecular gastronomy (is it the correct term?). Anyway, it's a combination of science technique integrated into cooking method. I believe this method came from France and currently not many chefs use it in their cooking. Do check out the video how cool it is:



If I'm the one enjoying such desserts on my table, it will definitely brings a smile to my face. It is something fresh, something new and something interesting.


Also check out my friend's blog. He's quite a fan of liquid nitrogen cooking and I've seen it in his "Exploding Strawberry Milkshake" and also "Nayarit Chocolate Creameux".

Selamat Hari Raya to all our Muslim readers. Hope you enjoyed your celebration.

Here's a list of typical cookies you can find in most open houses during Raya celebration.