17
Oct
25
Let there be 'cake'
The history of cake dates back to ancient times. According to the food historians, the ancient Egyptians were the first culture to show evidence of advanced baking skills. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the English word ‘cake’ back to the 13th century. According to food historians, the precursors of modern cakes (round ones with icing) were first baked in Europe sometime in the mid-17th century. It was not until the middle of the 19th century that cake as we know it today arrived on the scene and the birthday cake became an integral part of the birthday celebrations in Western cultures since the middle of the 19th century. With the development of culinary and confectionery advancement, what we have now is just a delectable masterpiece of rich ingredients, combined to tantalize all senses.
Well, can you imagine a world without cake?
Wait, wait - can you imagine a birthday without cake?
No, never.
So, here's presenting a slice of sin, from Shakespeare & Co, Dubai - the Mogador. Moist sponge with hanzenut cream, oozing rich milk chocolate, finished with whole roasted hazelnuts and dark chocolate. One word - divine.
Oct
01
*The* Iced Tea, Brunetti
I am a man of simple pleasures. And for those who know me, Iced Tea is my simplest pleasure. Which reminds me, I need to go place my iced tea bottle into the freezer for a quick chill.
Where was I again? Right, so this afternoon we strolled down to one of my favorite dessert shops, Brunetti. Jumping straight for the usual suspects, their little tiramisu container and some cappuccino, we wandered around to see what else attracted our eye. Their cheesecake looked alright, but sitting smugly next to it was a pear and cheese crumble that we proceeded to...crumble. Good stuff.
We also came across a Bacio. This was pretty much a chocolate mousse with some hazelnut but it looked oh so pretty with the little layer of chocolate around it.
As we started ordering drinks - we went with a cappuccino, espresso and an orange juice, I started fumbling, unable to decide as my impatient company towered over me telling me to hurry up, unable to understand why I needed more time than I was given while they decided. I tried to read a very italian name (which I will need to go back to Brunetti to get exactly and then update here Te freddo al limone) and was like man, I can't imagine what that would be...until in little tiny characters I read the words that always get me going: homemade iced-tea with lemon. Voila!
I've got to set up a disclaimer here. When in the US, reading those words were like gold. It meant I was in for a treat. Out here sadly, the words iced tea tend to be abused pretty easily. So despite reading those words, and my general affinity for Brunetti, I expect little until this mammoth glass was deposited on the table.
The hell was this...?
Sep
27
Evil Mud Cake @ C’est ici Brasserie
Say hello to the newest kid on the block (wow, I need new band references) and our very own resident food explorer, Siddhi!
A self-confessed lover of food that's been plated well, Siddhi is known for snapping up dishes all around town (and beyond), and starts off with the extremely craving-inducing dessert all the way from C'est ici Brasserie in London.
Presenting the Evil mud cake with a dark Belgian chocolate center and chamomile ice cream. Quite a mouthful. She claims it took her mere seconds to devour!
Feb
12
Devil's Food Cake topped with Chocolate Ganache
Visit my blog for more on this: http://redpandabakes.blogspot.com
Jan
19
Chocopologie
Earlier this week, I was taking a stroll around Festival Marina, Dubai Festival City. There's a few new restaurants open there but this one place caught my eye: Chocopologie. Needless to say, the name alone was intriguing enough to get me in there within 5 minutes.
After being shown around by a friendly waitress, I promised myself I would go there for brunch since they served all-day breakfast! (How exciting is that?! I love breakfast food!)
So within the next few days, I was craving for some french toast. I usually make my own but I do get my extra lazy days when I'd prefer to just sit down at a nice place, order it and have it sitting right in front of me just waiting to be wolfed down. Okay, enough ranting now..
I told my friend Hamna (Twitter Handle: @hamna_), who is a fellow chocolate-eating zombie, about Chocopologie and we decided to have brunch there. We were welcomed and seated by our waiter Ray, who was very helpful and friendly.
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Hamna had the omelette stuffed with tomatoes and cheese with a side salad |
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I had the french toast with maple syrup and a side of strawberry salad. |
The verdict: YUM! That is all.
Ray was also kind enough to offer us some chocolates to try.
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On the left: Patricia - dark chocolate on the outside, white chocolate inside with sweet mexican & ancho chilli filling.
Top: Lauren - milk chocolate covered in walnuts with a pear ganache filling.
Right: Kelly - 64% dark chocolate with a strawberry and lemon tart filling (my personal favorite).
Bottom: Charlotte (named after the founder's sister) - milk chocolate with a basil and apricot filling.
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They were divine, to say the least |
Interestingly enough, most of the chocolates are named after women. Ray informed us that they were women the founder had met on his travels around the world (ahem) in search for unique ingredients to use to make his chocolates.
The interior of the café has a Victorian theme, not my personal favorite style but quite interesting for a café.
Here's some more pictures of what they have to offer from chocolates and pastries.
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These truffles are one of the world's most expensive chocolates. |
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I'll definitely be visiting them again soon to have a taste of some of their unique pastries. Till then, I'll settle for drooling over the photos.
Find out more about Chocopologie!
