Shark Fin Soup in Macau

While in Macau, my parents and their friends insisted on having dinner at this place.  They were introduced to this restaurant by a famous local friend (he has connections) last time they were in Macau.  We had spent most of the first and part of the second night in town walking around all the old and narrow alleyways looking for it.  It happens to be a few blocks from Pastelaria Koi Kei.

We finally found it. YEAH!  But as you can see from the first picture, it didn't look impressive on the outside.  I was thinking my parents and their friends must have gotten it wrong, but they recognized the owner who immediately called the celebrity friend, who was out of town at that time, and verified that our group was indeed this famous man's friends.  Once that was all settled the owner told us she knew what to serve us but wanted to know how much we wanted.  

The first dish (the only one I had time to take pictures of - boo me) which was the soup - WOW!  It's their signature shark fin soup.  I've had my fair share of shark fin soups, but I've never seen shark fin soup like this.  

The fins are cooked separately from the soup and are ordered by weight.  I think we ordered one kilograms worth.  Jess said last time they were here is was about three times as much and looked like a mountain.  Again WOW!  

The soup is chicken broth, but not like any chicken broth I've ever seen or tasted.  It tasted so chicken-y, free range chicken-y.  The broth was creamy in color, not clear, and the aroma made my stomach growl.  As I had my first sip, my tummy was all warm and happy.  I'm smiling as I'm rethinking about it.  hhhhmmmmm...  :-)

    

I don't think anyone can ever make chicken broth like that at home.  Look at all that shark fin in just one spoonful of soup and every spoon was that full!!  I was in heaven.  I walked out of there totally satisfied and knowing I could never have another bowl of regular shark fin soup without sighing and remember that one night in some tiny alley in Macau.  

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!!

Pastelaria Koi Kei in Macau

Pastelaria Koi Kei

As I was flipping through a magazine that I had picked up in Asia Destination Macau, I came across an article about the streets of Old Taipa Village, a historical area of Macau.  And one of the places featured was a cookie store I had been to, Pasterlaria Koi Kei.  It is highly recommended by both locals and repeat tourists.  It is the number gift purchased in Macau.

Macau's Old Red Light District

The store is located on the narrow street of Rua da Cunha commonly known as the food street in Cantonese.  The area was previously a happening red light district, but now it's home to a few residents, restaurants, and shops selling cookies, candies, BBQ pork, jellies, and many other famous Macau snacks.  

The streets were fairly quiet since it was close to 11pm.  All the other stores were closed and most residents were already in bed.  But as we approached our destination, I noticed that every person walking away from us was carrying a yellow brown plastic bag.  And then that's when I saw it. 

Busy Pastelaria Koi Kei

With bright lights and people spilling out, Jess groaned, "Oh no, we'll be here all night.  Last time we were here, mom went nuts and bought 4 big bags of cookies."  She decided to stay outside and wait for mom since she didn't want to fight with the mob of shoppers, and I was thinking she had the right idea.  

But the clerks were shouting, "Free samples," and were passing out cookies and candies that would put any Costco to shame.  I wanted some of their 300 plus varieties of treats, so I took a deep breath and ventured in.  Before I knew it I was given original almond cookie, chunky almond cookie, walnut almond cookie, a handful of mini almond cookies, almond cookie with pork floss, and many, many other varieties of almond cookies.  These were not cut up pieces or sample sizes.  These were full size cookies right out of the boxes!  I was getting so parched from tasting, I had to leave the almond cookie area.  

Jess Making It Out Alive

I walked around to the dried fruits and candies section, which had less people, and before I knew it, Jess was right beside me asking me to pass her some samples.  The clerks were wonderful.  When we wanted to try something and they didn't have a sample available, they would just grab a new box and open it for us.  We tasted everything!  Most items were yummy, but some were really an acquired taste, like pork fat candy - well I don't know if that's what it is, but it was a candy with meat in it that tasted like a piece of cold fat.  I'm gagging just thinking about it, but there were several people buying boxes of them including my mom. 

After an hour in the store, my mom bought four bags of cookies and candies which Jess is holding in the photo above, but then thinking she didn't have enough mom went back in and bought two more bags.

Pasrelaria Koi Kei's Famous Yellow Brown Bag

I bought six boxes of mini almond cookies, two boxes of phoenix egg rolls with seaweed and pork floss, one bag of lemon ginger candy, one bag of mango peanut nougat, and a box of variety almond cookies.  All my stash fit into one bag, so you can see how much mom bought.  She did go nuts in there!

Mini Almond Cookies

I know some of you out there might say, "These are available where I'm at."  Pastelaria Koi Kei does sell their products in many Asia super markets around the world.  But as an auntie told us, "This is where they make all these treats.  This is the original store and bakery.  Everything comes out of here.  The selections are greater and fresher.  Plus you won't be able to experience this kind of shopping back home."  But with our giant stash of treats we did get to share a little bit of our experience at Pastelaria Koi Kei with all our family and friends.  

Pastelaria Koi Kei

Rua Do Cunha, No. 11-13 

R/C Taipa Macau

Tel: (853) 2882 7458

PETiTS by Deschamps in Hong Kong

While shopping at one of Hong Kong's newest malls Elements, I discovered PETiTS by Deschamps.  It was packed with customers inside and congregating all around the store front were people with forks digging into plastic cups and little boxes filled with cupcakes.  

Store Front Display

I really wanted one, and my sister Jess wasn't one to pass on sweets.  We ventured in and browsed through the cupcakes, cakes, cookies, and chocolates on display. 

 Green Tea Cupcake on Stand

The store itself was quite dark and very modern.  The sales associates were very friendly and allowed me to take photos.  I don't think they baked the treats onsite since the store didn't smell of baked goods.  The cupcakes on the cupcake stands which are the ones featured on their signage were just for show.  

PETiTS' Display Case

But we were definitely more interested in the cupcakes for sale.  There were three fridges filled with cupcakes and cakes.  The flavors included tiramisu, coffee, mango, lychee, Bailey's, white peach, s'mores, cinnamon apple, cookies and cream, caramel, eggy, and many more. 

PETiTS' Display Case

They all looked delicious, and it was so hard to decide.  Then we saw a chalkboard that listed mini cupcakes 3 for $48 HKD, regular cupcakes 1 for $25 HKD.  Well, even though the choices for the minis were less, but they looked just as good, plus this way we could share 3 instead of 2.  How could we go wrong with that?

PETiTS' Display Case

Jess immediately decided on the Bailey's, and the Eggy was too cute to pass up.  Our final choice was Shaddock.  We didn't know what it was, but it had on a chocolate hat and that sealed the deal.

Back at the Hotel

The sales associate boxed our treats in a fancy box and placed it in a fancy bag with a fancy sticker, but all we wanted to do was rip the whole thing open and dig into the cupcakes.  We rushed back to the hotel and immediately dug in.

Eggy, Shaddock, and Bailey's Mini Cupcakes

Well, once out of the box, they definitely looked better than they tasted.  The cakes of all three were quite dry and the flavors were bland but sweet.  Now I'm sure they didn't bake onsite.

Eggy Mini Cupcake

The Eggy Mini Cupcake, though extremely cute with the sunny side up egg frosting on top, didn't have much flavor.  I assume it's suppose to taste like eggs, but it just tasted like a sweet white cake (not even vanilla) with a marshmallow topping.  There was a custard filling, but it wasn't very creamy.  

Shaddock Mini Cupcake

The Shaddock Mini Cupcake was the best out of all three.  We weren't sure what the flavor was suppose to be.  We just assumed it would be a chocolate cupcake, so we were surprised to find it filled with lemon custard with lemon peels.  It also had the non-flavored cake base as the eggy.  The frosting was marshmallowy (not as sticky as the eggy), which was lighter than buttercream but heavier than meringue, but it complimented the tart custard fairly well.  

Bailey's Mini Cupcake

The Bailey's Mini Cupcake was our least favorite.  It might have something to do with the fact that we thought it was topped with crunchy sugar crystals instead it was gelatin cubes.  We didn't taste any Bailey's and once again it was the plain white cake, but with no custard to cut down the dryness.

All in all we were disappointed with the cupcakes, but then we also didn't let any of it go to waste.  And if I ever get to visit them again, I think I will try their regular size ones and give them one more chance to change my mind.  All those customers couldn't be wrong!

PETiTS by Deschamps

Shop 2004, Level 2, Elements, Union Square,

1 Austin Road West, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Tel: (852) 2882 7477

Cabining in Chilliwack

Hello again!  I've been MIA for some time, and I apologize from the bottom of my heart.  The trip was awesome, but I am also so happy to be back.  I ate so much and saw so much.  Between my sis and I, we took over 2000 pictures!  I know 2000!!  I've been trying to upload some of them onto my flickr account for the past week and am still uploading.  So if you have time, check out our pics.

I really want to write about all the yummy and questionable delicacies I've tasted, but I'm still sorting through all the photos and memories.  As soon as that's all done, I promise I'll share with everyone.

In the meantime, D and I went camping this holiday weekend with a few friends.  I've never been camping so I was very excited.  Well, we didn't really go camping, since Chris has a cabin, so it was more like cabin-ing.  

Chipmunk Peninsula

Chris' cabin is right outside of Chilliwack which is about 1 - 1 1/2 hours east of Vancouver.  We arrived Saturday and came home Monday afternoon.  It was a very relaxing weekend with lots of laughter and food.  I baked an apple pie, biscuits, brownies, and my yummy chocolate chip cookies which I made soft and chewy (by accident) by baking at 350 instead of 375. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take photos of the baked goods, but everyone seemed to enjoy them, and I didn't have to bring any leftovers home.

Chipmunk Peninsula

Each morning Chris made us breakfast.  And wow, he can cook.  He even made eggs to order for all six of us!  Beside the eggs, we had hashbrowns, sausages, bacon, toast, homemade strawberry jam (which tasted like fresh strawberries - Chris, I will be needing that recipe), and my biscuits.  Oh, just thinking about it now is making me hungry!

Chilliwack Lake

After breakfast we headed to the beach at Chilliwack Lake.  Okay, it wasn't a beach-beach, but it was as close to one as a lake could get.  The view was right out of a Kokanee or Coor's Light commercial.  It was gorgeous.  The girls laid-out, Joe went to catch us some dinner, and D and Chris just bummed around by getting lost in the forest, almost killing Joe, and tossing the football.  The water was so refreshing and FREEZING.  We found out the lake water is supplied by the melting glaciers on the mountains.  It was like jumping into a big glass of ice water! Every single person out there tried to swim in the lake, but no one lasted for more than 20 seconds.  Your toes would go numb just standing at the edge, but it did feel good in the hot, hot heat.

Joe fishing

We were out there for about 3 hours, none of us girls seemed to see much color, but all three guys have turned brown and red.  Maybe we should have bummed around with them instead.  

Joe wasn't successful in his conquest to catch us dinner.  So to humor him, we accompanied him to Chipmunk Peninsula, where Joe took off on his adventure and the rest of us got eaten alive by flies.  They were every where!  Right away we knew Joe wasn't going to have any luck since we could see the fishes were eating the flies.  But he wasn't going to give up so easily.  After circling the entire lake and with much coaxing from us, he finally returned to shore empty handed.  

Mossy Tree

He was disappointed, and we all had a good laugh.  Luckily we planned ahead and had brought steaks and potatoes for dinner.  Chris slow cooked them on the BBQ, and it was one of the most  tender and best tasting steaks ever!  I will have to try that next time at home.  After dinner Chris started the fire pit and we roasted marshmallows, watched the stars, listened to the sounds of nature, and enjoyed just being good friends hanging out.

Update

Hello Everyone!

I'm currently in Hong Kong.  It's very late right now and I just got off the phone with D (I think he just woke up actually).  I apologize in advance for the missing pictures and for any babbling I might do.  

I've spent an entire day eating all kinds of wonderful foods.  I've had 5 full meals today (hee hee) and ate pretty much from 9:30 am till 10 pm tonight.  I'm so not looking forward to standing on a scale especially since I already need to shed some pounds.  I'm hoping all this sweating I've been doing will counter all the eating.  :-P

So far I've visited Thailand which I wrote about before, Singapore which the 1 1/2 days there wasn't enough, and Malaysia which had awesome food and durian which I will share in a future post.  And tomorrow will be another day full of eating.  I can't wait!  I will write more in the near future.  In the meantime, happy eating, everyone!!

Greetings from Thailand

Sawadikah! Hello everyone,

I am currently in Bangkok,and this is my last night here. Tomorrow I will be heading to Singapore before visiting Maylasia. I'm so excited since I haven't been to Singapore or Malaysia. I've had a wonderful time eating and sightseeing so far. I took tons of photos, but silly me, I didn't bring the camera adaptor to download my pics, so at this moment I have only words to share.

The first night I met up with my nieces and nephew. They have grown so much since I've last seen them. It was so much fun listening to their experiences that has happened in the last year. Of course they miss D a lot too. Mimi is closest with her uncle, and she was heart broken to not see him here. She wanted to fly to Canada that night to see him. Instead I promised her we will bring D next time, and he will take her out. :-) I'm already planning the next trip.

After that we explored the temples and road a boat to the floating market in Bangkok. Unfortunately it was a rainy day, so there wasn't much to buy. But the photos are beautiful. I can' t wait to share. Then we headed to Pataya. There we got Thai massages, saw the famous Tiffany Show, went to Coral Island, road elephants, visited beautiful gardens and snake farms, watched traditional Thai dancing, and ate and ate and ate. The best eatings were at the street vendors and markets. There was so much interesting fruits that I've never seen before, and everything was so yummy.

I will update everyone soon with more details and hopefully with photos। In the meantime I will keep eating and taking pictures! Take care, everyone and see you soon!