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Snacking in the Kitchen

~ Culinary Adventures In & Out of the Kitchen. Recipes, Reviews, Culinary Musings.

Monthly Archives: September 2015

Adventures in French Macaron Baking

30 Wednesday Sep 2015

Posted by snackingkitchen in Uncategorized

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Tags

allrecipes, baking, dessert, french, gluten free, macarons

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The first time I had a French macaron was on my first visit to Paris, France at the famous and breathtakingly beautiful Ladurée Bakery. Up to this point, still in my early 20s, the only macaron I have experienced was actually the coconut macaroons I’d eat for Passover. And I must admit, I wasn’t expecting much more from the French macarons as I did from the chewy, overly sweet coconut concoctions. Boy, was I wrong!

As I fell in love with France, I fell in love with these almond meringue cookies that ranged in color from the softest Easter pastels to the deepest and brightest jewel tones. With a crispy skin on the outside, the cookies are soft and tender and slightly chewy as you bite into them and discover the flavor of the butter cream or chocolate ganache that holds them together. Eating just once is too difficult. You want to get a selection of several and savor them on their own. Skip the coffee.

A decade has flown by in front of my eyes, and I have enjoyed plenty of macarons during that time. From another Ladurée Bakery in Italy and from one of my favorite bakeries in Seattle, Bakery Nouveau.

But it wasn’t until last week that I baked French macarons on my own (I don’t even remember baking them while studying culinary arts at The Culinary Institute of America).IMG_20150910_113827

The opportunity presented itself at work, and I rose up to the challenge. As I’ve mentioned in my previous posts, trying out new recipes and techniques is one of the things that I love and appreciate the most about my job as a Food Stylist and Editor at allrecipes.com.

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You guys! These little things are tricky business! Finicky, super time sensitive and require a lot of patience and attention to detail (think measuring all ingredients up to a gram!).

This kitchen experiment will require you to step up, buckle in, and perhaps even say a prayer or two. I know, I’ve said my share of prayers to the Macaron Goddess to ensure that my macarons bake up evenly, with beautiful, tall feet, and smooth, shiny tops.

With the 5 batches of the same recipe, some turned out better than the others. Thanks to my friends and family for encouragement along the way and readily consumption of the baked goods.

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Above is a photo of what my kitchen at home looked like when I tested the recipe. I colored the cookies almost a black currant color and sandwiched them with chocolate ganache flavored with pomegranate liqueur. These got served for a Rosh Hashanah celebration (the Jewish New Year) to add sweetness to the year ahead!

If you are a fan of baking, new challenges, and delicious, French sweets, do give this project a try. There are plenty of recipes out there, ranging in ratios of almond flour and sugar, baking temperature and times. I encourage you to try a few and find the one that best suits your preferences. Enjoy!IMG_20150922_161447

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Malaysian Food in Seattle: Kedai Makan

26 Saturday Sep 2015

Posted by snackingkitchen in Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

dinner, eating out, malaysian, restaurants, seattle

In all my culinary adventures, I have never experienced Malaysian food, until yesterday. How lucky we are here in Seattle to have this gem of the restaurant open, serving up the flavors of Malaysia.

Up until now, Kedai Makan was a small walk up, where you could pick up Malaysia’s traditional dishes, without much of an opportunity to sit down and enjoy the food right then and there.

Recently, the restaurant has moved to its new location, with plenty of tables for you to sit and enjoy the food. I might be a bit biased, but the combination of bright turquoise with the orange containers that hold silverware and napkins is fantastic!

Find Kedai Makan at 1802 Bellevue Ave, Seattle, WAIMG_20150925_164821

Being warned that the restaurant fills up pretty quickly, my friend and I showed up at 4:45pm, 5 minutes before they open, and were the first ones in line.

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What did I tell you? How gorgeous does the orange look against the bright turquoise walls and the dark, lacquered tables?

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We started with Padam Masala, a crispy papadum with tomato, cucumber, cilantro, chili, chat masala. Perhaps a version of Mexico’s chips and salsa. This was bright, crispy, light, and packed with flavor.IMG_20150925_184021

For our second course, we went with Roti Babi, bread stuffed with pork, mushrooms, coriander, and nutmeg. This whole sandwich is dipped in egg, and served with worscheshire and thai chilis. This was outstanding and I would be happy to eat it at any point for breakfast. Both my friend and I were not fans of the dipping sauce. Good thing, the sandwich didn’t suffer without it.IMG_20150925_194855

Finally, a bowl of noodles arrived at our table. Mee Hoon Kueh, the hard torn and pinched wheat noodles were served with mushrooms, ground pork, crispy anchovies and a bowl of earthy broth. And you know what? They put an egg on it! A perfectly poached egg that we stirred into with the noodles for a decadent sauce.

At the end, I wish we had more room in our stomachs and could order more food. Alas, we were happily full. Which only means, we’ll be back to try out more dishes on the menu!

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