Peaches and Grapes from Japan

While shopping at the Elements Shopping Mall in Hong Kong ( same place where I bought the PETiTS cupcakes), my family and I decided to check out the upscale grocery store Three-Sixty.  They sell many foreign products at foreign prices, but we weren't turned off by the prices since there were food items we haven't seen since past travels.  We were actually quite excited and spent over an hour scouring up and down all the aisles.  Plus there were samples available, my family never turns down free food or drinks. (lol)

We came out of there with several bags of goodies, but our prize purchases were two Japanese water peaches and a box of Japanese perfume grapes.  (I'm not sure what the true names are, but water peach and perfume grapes are direct translation from Cantonese).  

I've never had the grapes before, so I was excited to try one.  Both Jess and mom said they don't like them much due to their weird perfume-y taste.  Looking inside the box, I can see the grapes were HUGE.  I don't really like grapes with seeds, and I know big grapes equal seeds.  Bummer.  

But these were very expensive grapes, so I wasn't going to let them go to waste.  As you can see one small box was $336 HKD which is about $48 USD.  At that price if it meant eating them all by myself, I was up for the challenge.  

I bit my first grape in half, so I can pick out the seeds.  The skin was thick and crunched when I bit into it.  The flesh of the grape actually popped out of the skin when I chewed.  And you know what, NO SEEDS!  Yeah, I love these grapes.  But wait, they taste weird.  It did taste kind of perfume-y.  Hhhhmmm, not so good.  

Dad had a few, stopped eating and said he rather have the peach.  Oh man, I was going to have to eat all of it myself.  Great...  But as I was sucking the flesh out of the skin (the skin can be a bit tart), the taste grew on me, and I was starting to enjoy them.  

Watching me eat, Jess decided to give the grapes another try, (our family gives food many chances to change our mind - pork fat candy, I have a feeling we will meet again).  She actually liked the skin more than the flesh.  She felt the skin was the best part being crispy, crunchy, and fruity, kind of like candy.  

Watching Jess eat, mom eventually came around and said she would lend us a hand in finishing.  We knew she couldn't help herself, and we eventually polished off the entire box.   Yum!

Now for the peach.  Ohhhh man, these are so good.  They are much better in Japan (I think Japan exports their rejects), but these were better than any other peach I've had outside of Japan.  If you've had one before, you know exactly what I'm talking about.  If you have not, you must try one at least once in your lifetime.  

When we first had them in Japan some 15 or so years ago, we visited a fruit stand where the shop owner was furious with dad when he tried to pick a peach up.  The owner came over and yell at dad and showed him a sign that said "NO TOUCHING".  Dad was confused since he'd never shopped for produce without touching or smelling.  The owner said by touching even with gentle pressure, we would bruise the fruit and the juices would break through.  Then he guaranteed us that each peach was equally sweet, juicy, and ripe, and it would be the best we would have ever eaten, if not we can come back for a refund.  

We bought one for $6 USD.  Yep, it was outrageously expensive.  We never did get our money back, instead we had bought a whole box to carry back to Hong Kong to share with dad's family.

When we saw they were selling them at Three-Sixty for $45 HKD (about $6.50 USD), it was a bargain, and we grabbed two!  (And went back for a couple more the next day!)

A little advice, when you bite into one, have a large towel available preferably somewhere near your mouth and arms.  It's that juicy!  The juice just flows like a water fall out of the fruit, hence the name water peach.  The skin is thick and can be eaten with the flesh, but this leads to more overflowing of juices due to the force of the bite.  Instead  after the first bite, we chose to peel the skin off, which comes off like peeling a sticker from its sheet.  The juice is sweet and fragrant, very similar to peach candy or more like the Japanese peach drinks.  

A fellow blogger, whose Japanese, told me the peaches are killer with vanilla ice cream.  OMG, that sounds so divine!!   I must try them with ice cream next time.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Honey!!!

Today is my husbee's birthday.  It is also my uncle's birthday.  They are both poker fanatics, and I was going to make them a poker theme cake to share.  I have been planning it for a while and was super excited to give it a try.  But you ask where is the poker theme cake?  Well, it's been delayed since my uncle is out of town for today.  :-(  I wanted to make one anyway for D, but he's not much of a cake man, but doesn't mind cupcakes.

I wanted to make really special ones since he's not getting a cake on his birthday, but he insisted on something simple with little to no decorations.  He wants something more manly.  I can still make manly decorated cupcakes, but he said NO.  hhhhhhmmmmm..... He also doesn't care much for chocolate or anything too sweet.  hhhhhhhmmmmmm.....  It's much easier cooking him dinner.  Well, I know he likes strawberries and mangos, they are pretty much the only fruits he really likes.    

I made a strawberry and mango puree, and I made a batch of cupcakes from the sponge cake recipe from my sisters' cake and a batch of meringue buttercream.  I also made a batch of Martha's one bowl chocolate cupcakes (this is a similar recipe, the one I made is from Martha's Stewart's Baking Handbook, so if anyone needs it, let me know) since I love chocolate (and these cupcakes don't disappoint).

I folded 1/2 cup of the puree into the buttercream to give it that something extra.  I then layered the cupcakes with the puree before piping a swirl of buttercream and topping them with fresh strawberries.  

I tried one of each, they are not bad.  The chocolate cupcake is really moist and yummy, and the sponge one is really spongy, not too sweet, and de-lish.  I didn't really taste the mango which is disappointing, but I think D will love them anyway.  

Happy birthday, baby.  I hope all your wishes come true.  I LOVE YOU!!

Father's Day

Here's the cake I made for my dad for Father's Day.  I got the idea from one of the Wilton's Yearbooks.  I used to make tons of character cakes for my nieces' and nephew's birthdays before their move back to Thailand, but I haven't made one in almost two years.  I was a bit rusty in the piping, I had forgotten many of the techniques, but eventually they started to come back.  In the past I could decorate one of these cakes in about an hour, but this one took me practically an entire day.  In the end, it wasn't perfect, but it is still a cute cake.  

I tried a new recipe for the cake that used fresh blueberry puree made with over a pound of blueberries in the batter.  The cake came out grayish/ purple (not a very appetizing color, but so full of antioxidants), and the middle had a layer of fresh mixed berry mousse.  Yummy!

I brought the cake to dinner with my family.  We went out to a Chinese restaurant downtown.  The food was alright, but the company was good.  Not everyone was there, but we had four generations present, all the way from my 94 year old grandmother to newborn nephew Justin (a future cake recipient).  We all caught up in our activities, including grandma's recent trips to the casino,my dad's plans to go fishing, my uncle's input on this fishing trip, my aunt's update on her trip back from China, and Jayden's and Justin's brotherly bonding experiences.  My sister said Jayden's been a very loving older brother sharing many slobbery kisses and hugs but will occasionally throw away Justin's bottles when he wants some mommy attention (lol).  

Jayden being spoiled, I mean fed, by grandma.

Justin after his dinner waiting for that big burp.

In the end it was a long dinner, and we never did get around to eating the cake.  My parents took it home, and I'm sure my sisters will be enjoying it especially my baby sister who seemed very protective of the cake and the cookies I made yesterday.  She's starting her finals tomorrow, maybe she needs all that sugar for some energy boost.  

Either way, Happy Father's Day, Daddy, I love you, and good luck on your finals, Jess!!

To New Beginnings

Hello Everyone,

This is my first blog ever and what better subject to start with other than my favorite ... FOOD!  It is my husband's idea since he thought it would be nice to share our experiences with food (including the good and the bad).  

My entire family is full of foodaholics.  My parents opened restaurants just to ensure that we can eat whatever and whenever we wanted.  My parents and in-laws are all excellent cooks.  I strive to be able to cook like anyone of them someday.  It's so hard to learn their techniques since none of them understand the concept of measurements.  It's always just a little bit of this and a little bit of that... Well, I try and my husband is my guinea pig.  :-P

I love all kinds of food and will try anything at least once.  Some of the strangest things I've tried include snake while in China for business and on my honeymoon in Taiwan, lobster pee (at least that's what they told me it was) mixed with a very strong local spirit.  It wasn't very tasty, but I felt pretty good afterwards.  

I also love to experiment with new recipes.  Some of my family's favorites include my clam chowder, steamed fish, roast turkey, and key lime pie.  All so simple to make... I promise to share photos and recipes the next time I make any of these.      

So until next time... Cheers, everyone!

P.S. I want to send my love to the newest foodaholic my baby nephew, Justin, who was born yesterday.  Welcome to the family, and I can't wait to share a meal with you.