• French people are skinny. By no means do I think I'm fat, but in Paris, I feel like an elephant. Everyone is a toothpick.
• Parisians dress really well. They look really put together all the time! It reminds me of New York folks, who also look really nice all the time.
• Paris is expensive. Our hotel was selling candy for 7 Euros. That's a bar of chocolate for $11! Internet was 39 Euros per day, or sixty freakin' dollars. Water runs around 2 Euros per bottle, or $3.50. Yikes.
• The Louvre is amazing. It's prettier than any pictures I've seen. I could spend weeks in that place.
• SF could learn a thing or two about efficient subways from the European metro systems. It is so easy to get around in Europe and I love not having to drive.
• Madrid is crowded. Their metro system is really clean too. Paris' metro system is older and grittier and reminds me of New York subways.
• I've heard a lot of people get pickpocketed in Spain. I can see how that's true. The metro system is crowded. When A and I hopped on the metro from the airport, it was packed like sardines. My backpack was pushed up against other passengers. I noticed right away that there were a handful of questionable people who kept glancing at our bags. When I stared them, they finally looked away.
• I know why people take siestas in Spain. Everyone is awake and in the streets at 1am! I grabbed a late night bite yesterday, and the streets were alive  and crowded with people eating, hanging out, and drinking. All the shops were open too. How do these people go to work in the mornings?

current mood: content

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Darling friends, I have received the yummiest recipe for red velvet cake. My co-worker, who used to be a pastry chef at the Ritz Carlton, is starting her own cupcake business. I told her that I wanted to make a red velvet birthday cake for a girlfriend and she gave me her fool proof recipe. She also gave me recipes for a ton of other goodies that I'll be baking in the future. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.  

I made the cake twice in one weekend: first, a test batch of delicious cupcakes topped with cream cheese frosting and later, a double layer cake, frosted with vanilla buttercream. Heaven in a mouthful!

But first, the scrumptious pictures:



Red velvet, pre frosting. Soooooooooo goooood.




And with the outside frosted!




My practice batch made about 16-18 cupcakes.




Frosted with chocolate sprinkles. NOM NOM NOM.

I know my cake decorating skills aren't up to par, but I promise the reicpe was delicious. It was the perfect texture: moist, fluffy, and scrumdiddlyumptious. In fact, it was so good that I ate it three days in a row. *burp*  My friends all took home leftovers too!

Now, for the yummy recipe! You'll need a food scale for this one. It’s in grams because my co-worker is a pastry chef and she measures everything very precisely.

RED VELVET CAKE

Ingredients:
328g All Purpose Flour
288g Sugar
4g Baking Soda
6g Salt
10g Cocoa Powder
286g Veg. Oil
252g Buttermilk
2ea Eggs
2 Tbsp Red Food Coloring
6g White Vinegar
6g Vanilla Extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 (measure your oven with an oven thermometer to ensure accurate temp).
2. Combine all dry and sifted.
3. Combine all wet (I combined the sugar with the wet ingredients).
4. Add dry into wet and mix lightly. Pour into two cake pans. If you're making cupcakes with the recipe, fill the cupcake liners 2/3 to 3/4 full, but no more than 3/4.
5. Bake for 20 minutes. Touch the top of the cake. If it springs back with slight resistance, it is done. Otherwise, bake for 5 minutes and check again. Or, insert a toothpick diagonally into the center of the cake. It should come out mostly clean with a few crumbs attached.
6. Cool the cake to room temp before decorating.
7. Slice the rounded tops off the cakes and frost with desired icing.

BUTTER CREAM ICING
(I found this recipe on Chowhound and it worked perfectly with the cake)

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp Cornstarch
1 Cup Whole Milk
1 Cup Butter (softened to room temp)
1 Cup Superfine Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Directions:
1. Mix cornstarch with milk. Cook on medium heat until thick, whisking the entire time. Set aside to cool.
2. Cream butter until fluffy.
3. Add vanilla and cooked cornstarch mixture slowly. Beat until it feels like whipped cream. The sugar should be dissolved and the frosting should not be grainy. (Touch with your fingertip to test)
4. Ice your cake!

Personally, I preferred the buttercream frosting, but if cream cheese is your liking, I used this recipe on the cupcakes:

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Ingredients
2  8oz packages of cream cheese softened to room temp
1 stick of butter (unsalted) softened to room temp
2-3 cups of sifted powdered sugar (depending on how sweet you like the frosting)
1 tsp vanilla extract 

Directions

1. Cream the butter + cream cheese together with an electric mixer until fluffy.
2. Add vanilla extract.
3. Gradually whip in the sifted powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until you reach the desired sweetness.
4. Continue to whip until fluffy.
5. Scoop into a pastry bag with a decorating tip and pipe onto your cupcakes!

Happy eating, folks!

current mood: hungry

I LOVE coffee. Ever since I was a child, I've loved coffee flavored everything... cakes, ice cream, even coffee-flavored short ribs. The hubs doesn't like coffee at all, but he calls me a coffee snob. I admit, I'm VERY particular about my coffee. Ever since I've been exposed to the good stuff, I can't go back to drinking the tasteless, brown dirt-water that S-Bux considers coffee.

This week, I picked myself up a new burr grinder. I gave the same grinder to my parents as a Christmas gift last year and it's the best gift I ever purchased for them. They use it every single day. I was debating between buying the Capresso or the Gaggia, but since I make my coffee with a French press, I decided to save $100 and go with the Capresso.

If you're a coffee lover and haven't yet tried a cup-a-joe made with a French press, you must try it. A French press is the single best method to brew non-espresso coffee and it's very quick and easy. The reason that press pot brewing is recommended over drip, is because the coffee is not brewed through a paper filter so you don't lose any of the good flavors that get stuck in the filter or pick up any weird paper flavors. I'm an espresso lover myself, but I don't have the luxury of owning a machine. French press satisfies my cravings for a good cup just as much as a latte. I taught my parents how to brew with a press and now they are converts. All they drink is French press.

Anyway, here is Kel's method on how to make a single serving of deliciously brewed coffee using a French press:

This is my coffee brewing equipment: A canister to store the whole beans, a 2 tbsp metal measuring spoon, my burr grinder, and a 12oz Bodum press pot.



Many people don't know this, but coffee quickly loses it's aroma and flavor once it's ground. To optimize the coffee freshness, beans should be stored in an airtight container and ground right before brewing.

I can't believe it has already been a month of marriage!

A surprised me yesterday and took me out to celebrate our first month of newlywed bliss. We had a delicious meal at Clementine, a wonderful little French restaurant in the Richmond district of San Francisco. The food and service was excellent. We'll definitely be visiting again soon. 

A snapped a picture of me while we were waiting for our food.

This is my goofball of a husband.

Our appetizer was marinated salmon and tuna tartar with sliced almonds and hazelnut oil. It was SO GOOD. I could eat a bowl of this everyday.

current mood: happy