almond thumbprint jam cookies

thumbprint cookies is one of my favorite cookies to make and not only do they look cute but they are delicious too. filling in the indentation of these thumbprints with jams is the best part. cookies are based from this recipe.  xxx happy baking xxx

matcha cookies

*// recipe //

it was a matcha baking day yesterday. first, i made matcha macarons which turned out looking alright from the outside but didn't taste right on the inside. it's been a long while since i made macarons and now i'm back to square one. the shells were really hard and not eatable so i had to toss all the baked macarons. then i moved onto making matcha cookies since i had leftover egg yolks and the recipe calls for three yolks and it was just the perfect amount that i had. it was a bit challenging to think of what to use with the remaining yolks when using only egg whites for the macarons. at the end, i was happy with the overall result of the matcha cookies. by the way, i will be posting more often on instagram, follow me @petitpaperie if you like. 

white peach galette

using fresh white peaches picked at the farm from last weekend and recipe is based on this stone fruit galette. the galette pie is easy to make and you can simply substitute peaches with berries/apples/pears or do a mix berries or a peach/apricot combo which i haven't tried yet but think they will work wonderfully. and the most lovely part is that it makes your entire house smells like sweet peach afterwards. photos are also shared on instagram .

macaron class

i been wanting to take a macaron class and it finally happened this past saturday. the macaron class was held at venus of la vie douce design home studio in san leandro and were greeted by a table full of her yummy sweets including macarons, tarts, and verrines. venus was very informative when demonstrating both french and italian methods in macaron making and afterwards, students get to select which method they prefer in  making the macarons. the class session ended with bringing a box of your baked goods home and we all agreed to assorted macarons so we can try each others work. i learned some great tips from venus in making macarons and enjoyed her class very much.  

stone-fruit galette

a simple and delicious fruit tart made with some fresh semi-ripe peaches. here's the recipe i used.

march

*// spring into march // random photos // blooming flowers // light lime cheesecake topped with apricot jam // an array of blue to black fabrics in 3 7/8" squares // making a zig zag quilt  //*

lemon bars

after two weeks, the other half of the lemons i saved to make lemon bars are still looking great and the other thing i forgot to mention, they smell so fragrant. i'm using them up to make my all-time favorite lemon bar, a recipe from the mrs.fields cookie book which i haven't baked in a very long time. i tried a few lemon bars recipe before but it's this recipe i always come back to. the crust is flaky and has a cookie-like texture and the lemon curd part is not overly sweet and has a tangy, tartness to it. it's just the perfect combination of a delicious lemon bar. 

triple-ginger cookies

i made triple-ginger cookies the other day and they were so good that i ate so many of them. here's the link to the recipe.

holiday baking

hope you all had a wonderful holiday! my holiday was doing nothing but eating, relaxing, cooking a holiday meal, baking cookies, and more eating. ahhh, there's only one more day until 2012. what are your new year's resolutions? mine are eating healthy, reorganizing my things, saving money, and creating card designs for my etsy shop (i've been saying this for awhile now, hopefully i can accomplish it in 2012). happy new year and wishing everyone an amazing 2012! 

*cookies are made using the neiman marcus recipe. they are delicious. i added a touch of dried cranberries to the cookies for the spirit of the holidays!

coffee macarons II

i <3 coffee. coffee is my everyday morning ritual and like breakfast, i can't skip it. so i present you a double dose of caffeine, coffee macarons filled with coffee buttercream, my last batch of macarons of the year, and i got it right this time. they are so good that i can't stop eating them.

*i used the same recipe from the rose macarons. i omitted the rose flavoring and added espresso powder.

*see also my previous coffee macarons experience and see why practice makes perfect. 

matcha macarons

lately i've been obsessed with making macarons. i tried making them in coffee and chocolate flavors; however, they were unsuccessful. so i decided to make them again but this time in matcha which is my favorite flavor. after many tries and failures, this makes it only my second successful attempt in macarons making. for my matcha macarons, i like the intense flavor of matcha so i added more matcha powder to the macaron shells and to the matcha buttercream filling. i ate a few cookies already and could really taste the matcha flavor in them and that's what i'm striving for. i can't wait to eat the rest of the matcha macarons after they are aged in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours. btw, i used the same recipe from the rose macarons; just omit the rose flavoring and add matcha powder to it. hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving.

rose macarons

after an unsuccessful attempt in making rose macarons last week, this time they came out looking almost perfect but i still need more practice and work on them. as far as piping macarons in a uniform circle or shape, i'm having a little trouble on what temperature to bake them in. some recipes indicate 300 F and some use 325 F. i baked mine at 300 F and find the macarons to be chewy and sort of uncooked so I had to pop them back into the oven for a few minutes. the tricky part is obtaining the right temperature. for my next batch of macarons, i will bake them in 325 F and see if that works for me. anyway, i'm happy to see some improvements in my macarons and looking forward in making them in other flavors too.

pumpkin doughnuts

with maple glaze. i never made doughnuts from scratch or straight out from a doughnut mix box before so this is a first. stonewall kitchen's pumpkin doughnut mix makes doughnuts baking at home super easy and fast and the doughnuts came out unbelievably moist, cakey and delicious. wow, i wouldn't expect doughnuts to be this good from a box. i received this pumpkin doughnut mix as a gift and it is available at sur la table for purchase. i suspect the doughnut mix comes in different flavors too. apparently, i didn't have a doughnut pan; therefore, i used my bundt pan instead and filled each bundt with only 1/3 batter. i have to say the bundt-shaped pan created some marvelous looking doughnuts, don't you think? 

making cookies

on a hot day doesn't help when the oven is turned on but it feels refreshing just to have some cookies on a wonderful friday. happy weekend! 

pineapple cakes

.: recipe here

i first learned about feng li su as known as taiwanese pineapple cake during my visit to taiwan four years ago and bought back a few boxes of these treats from a famous taiwanese bakery called vigor kobo. since then, i've been looking for a bakery type of taiwanese pineapple cake in the states but the closest thing i can find and purchase is the low-end product sold in asian markets/grocers which cost only a few bucks. apparently, they are not that great tasting compared to the freshly baked ones but are edible and do satisfying my craving from time to time. so finally, i decided to make my own feng li su instead and found a recipe that is doable. the shortbread dough was very sticky to work with and i had a hard time shaping the pineapple cake into a square or rectangle using my hands. if only i had those square/rectangle molds then the cake can easily be placed into each mold and will come out perfectly shaped. my first batch of pineapple cakes looked wonky and weird-shaped and the bottoms were burnt. afterwards, i made the second batch into mini pineapple tarts instead using a mini muffin pan. they tasted pretty good despite the way they looked. 

cookies madness

*thumbprint jam cookies :: re-make :: recipe here

*perfect chocolate chip cookies :: recipe here :: my third ccc taste-test and i am pretty pleased with this

  recipe.

*oatmeal raisin cookies :: recipe in the cookbook biscotti :: a cute little cookie book containing easy to

  follow recipes.

this past sunday was non-stop cookies making/baking day for moi and i also took advantage of the cooling weather to turn on the oven. i haven't made cookies in awhile and crave eating them. i made three different kinds of cookies in one day which i've never done before. usually, i spend the whole day perfecting one cookie. well, i didn't keep all the cookies for myself but i did eat a dozen of them though. i shared most of the cookies with friends and colleagues at work and it makes me happy when i see smiley faces.