Teeny Tiny Apple Pie

(Super flaky pie crust + apple & raisin compote) x baked in muffin tins = the very last thing I made in 2009!
Happy 2010, everyone!

Gingerbread Cake House

I decided to make something fun for the nabe party hosted by my friends Mr. & Mrs. T... and here it is! My version of Gingerbread Cake House from Martha Stewart Holiday Sweets 100.

Since I don't have two 9-inch square cake pans, I used two 9-inch round pans instead and cut round cakes into squares... so the final product was much smaller than the original one in the magazine.

5 gingerbread kids represent my friends' kids - S-kun & K-kun of the T family, T-kun, L-kun & L-chan of the A family. It was so rewarding to see them excited to find their own gingies!

L-chan is in charge of decorating their Christmas tree ;)

Wishing you all and your loved ones a happy, safe holiday season from my teeny tiny kitchen!!

Christmas-y Bread Pudding

I used a day-old panettone instead of French bread that's called for in this recipe, which added extra Christmas-iness to this bread pudding.

Napa Cabbage Mille Feuille

Winter has come! This is one of the dishes perfect for a cold winter night. Leaves of Napa cabbage and ground beef are layered alternatingly à la mille feuille.

The sauce is seasoned with soy sauce and dashi. I love the "warmth" given by the thickened sauce.

Spuma di Mele Cotogne (Quince Mousse)

Here's my quince experiment part II: sweet.
The recipe is from Chef Mario Batali.

Quinces.

After 50 minutes in the oven.

The skin and cores, removed. The flesh, sieved and cooked with brown sugar and lemon juice. I just love how the colour changed after heated/cooked.

The cooked quince + whipped cream + a bit of rum = spuma di mele cotogne a.k.a. quince mousse, served here trifle-ishly.

Quince mousse, quince jam (made by my friend V!), and plain white sponge in layers on spoon.