Super Sarap » Sweet Stuff

Sweet Lorraine Bakeshop

lorrainemarie — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:11:07 +0000

I’m pleased to finally announce the launch of my new baking business: Sweet Lorraine Bakeshop!

My products currently include some of the best cupcakes you’ll ever have, as well as some cookies and bars that I’ve developed throughout the years. Please do check it out »

Piping Hot

lorrainemarie — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 15:49:48 +0000

Much to the horror of my thighs, I’ve started baking again. It began when my sister asked me to bake a cake for her baby’s baptism party on Sunday. I decided that not only would I make my tried-and-tested Chocolate Mousse Cake (from Nigella Lawson’s How to Be a Domestic Goddess), I would surround the latter with vanilla cupcakes in varying sizes. Since I’ve never made vanilla cupcakes before (I know… I’m a chocolate person), I made a test run yesterday, using Billy’s Vanilla, Vanilla Cupcakes recipe from Martha Stewart.

The cupcakes were delicious. I cut down on the sugar in both the cake and frosting recipes, and they were still fantastic. Soft and moist and very light. But the best part was icing them.

I only have a very old, very cheap hand-me-down plastic icing decorating kit, so it was quite messy, but the cupcakes came out so pretty. Sorry, no photos- but I served some to guests last night, then sent the rest to various family members- and they were all gone before I could remember to photograph them!

Anyway, what I really want to say is that I LOVED piping the frosting. Even with my hot hands, even hotter kitchen, and el cheapo of the cheapest decorating sets, I had such a blast doing it. Now I want to buy a new set- but I need some advice. Should I order one of these?

…or stick to a more traditional set like this?

Your comments and suggestions please!

Krispy Kreme Easter

lorrainemarie — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 07:31:01 +0000

As if those chocolate bunnies (which I’ve always had a weakness for- especially the giant ones from the hotels!) weren’t bad enough for my diet, Krispy Kreme Philippines is now offering up these special Easter doughnuts:

The springtime colors are adorable, and I would love to set out a bowl much like the one above at our Easter Sunday table. You see, because these doughnuts are Krispy Kreme, you know that they’re not just pretty- they probably taste awesome as well.

Visit Krispy Kreme Philippines’ website or one of their shops at Bonifacio High Street, TriNoma, SM Megamall, Mall of Asia, or Greenhills Shopping Center.

Christmas Eats

lorrainemarie — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 16:33:15 +0000

Merry Christmas, everyone! The husband and I spent an quiet eve alone, opening presents, feasting on chinese food, and having a Christmas movie marathon. But I’m not here to tell you about the tears I shed while watching It’s a Wonderful Life, I wanted to share with you all the holiday goodies we’ve been enjoying (too much!):

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
I mentioned previously that I would be baking these and giving them away to close friends and family. Each batch, of course, required a taste test… which we were more than happy to do! Never mind that our recipe, based loosely on Alton Brown’s The Chewy, is something we’ve perfected in the past.

Frozen Brazo de Mercedes
My best friend gifted us with a gigantic tray of this, one of the most decadent, delicious things I’ve ever put in my mouth. I know I should post the telephone number of where it came from, but I’m too lazy to go to the freezer and write it down. I will soon, though. You simply MUST try it. *UPDATE: The frozen brazo is from Ana’s Kitchen, telephone 852-8224.

Christmas Ham from Santis
I love ham, especially Santis ham, anytime of the year, but Christmas ham is somehow more special. Taken with some thinly sliced queso de bola, it’s a holiday must-eat for me.

Queso de Bola
I love having one (or two) of these shiny red balls around. For breakfast today, I grated some up and made giant cheese omelettes for us. Creamy, salty, and awesome.

I could go on, I suppose- listing every naughty treat we’ve received from well-meaning friends and neighbors (don’t you love having neighbors? I LOVE having neighbors!) this year, but I need to go have a cup of hot chocolate and watch Home Alone on DVD now. What goodies are you enjoying this season?

Hot enough for car-baked cookies?

lorrainemarie — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 14:45:40 +0000

I’ve heard of days that are hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk, but what about baking cookies in your car? Baking Bites first wrote about other people doing it, then decided to try it out for themselves- and it worked (after about 2 1/2 hours). The cookies didn’t brown, but were “slightly crisp at the edges and chewy in the center”. Read more at Baking Bites.

Tokidoki Cake

lorrainemarie — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 15:02:18 +0000

I am LOVING this right now- not only is it Tokidoki, it’s Le Sportsac- AND it’s a cake!

outside: tons of fondant to make the tokidoki figure (and a lot of toothpicks), and to create the bag. the hearts and crossbones were hand-piped by her assistant, claire, onto wax paper, then dried and applied to the cake with more royal icing. inside: eight layers of vanilla macadamia nut cake with buttercream and a generous lashing of grand marnier.
(via the scent of green bananas)

Cupcake Heaven

lorrainemarie — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 17:23:51 +0000

We had to bring the husband’s iMac in for repairs at the lovely Apple Store yesterday, and thought we’d drop by Cupcakes by Sonja on our way home. The cupcakes, all eight that we bought, went quickly- so quickly that all I could photograph was the box they came in. But it’s a pretty box.

This was the second time we’ve had Sonja’s cupcakes, and have already chosen our favorites, which are:

Red Velvet Vixen. Traditional Southern Cake made with Belgian Cocoa and Cream cheese icing. My personal favorite. I will not share this, not even with my dear sweet husband.

Bunny Huggers Carrot Cake. Very moist cake made with fresh carrots topped with cream cheese frosting. Okay, so I’m a sucker for cream cheese frosting- and for carrot cake, for that matter. This is nicely done, not too spicy.

Lemon Drop. Delicious vanilla cake smoothered in our signature lemon buttercream frosting. Tangy lemon, mmmm!

Read more about Cupcakes by Sonja at these blogs (external links):

Nigella’s Chocolate Chip Muffins

lorrainemarie — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:51:35 +0000

Believe me, I have no intention of turning this into a video blog- but when I came across Nigella’s Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe on YouTube, I couldn’t resist embedding it here. I love how messy Nigella is in the kitchen, because I’m the same way (see how she drips batter all over the pan while scooping).

If that isn’t super sarap, I don’t know what is.

Ice Cream Making Afoot

lorrainemarie — Fri, 04 May 2007 16:09:48 +0000

It has arrived… as one of (yes, I spoil him) my birthday gifts to my sweet husband: The Cuisipro Donvier Ice Cream Maker. It weighs a ton, but is quite well-reviewed.

Happy Birthday, baby!

Disappointing Dessert

lorrainemarie — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 11:22:58 +0000

Recently, Louie and I decided we wanted something sweet and gooey- and thought that a slice of TGIFriday’s Chocolate Pecan Cluster would satisfy.

What a complete disappointment. It didn’t even come close to the photo on their menu- it was small, narrow and flat, and the accompanying cup of caramel was strangely… grainy.

Ordered as take-out from TGIFriday’s in Alabang Town Center.