December, The Month Of Love...

December...A month filled with many joyous occasions for me :-) Engagements & weddings happening mostly every week...I loved my December as I could feel love lingering in the air most of the time :-x Nonetheless, it was also the month where my skill as a novice baker was put to test ;-)

I was already 'buried' under several orders of cupcakes when I received an order from Ms. Puteri...She requested that I do her wedding cupcakes as part of her wedding gift for her hubby to be, Najib...Always a sucker when it comes to love, I simply couldn't refuse Puteri's request & despite my full schedule, I accepted her order...I also can't deny Puteri when she said 'please' several times :-P...Apart from her wedding gift cupcakes, Puteri also ordered additional cupcakes for her to present to her family...

Purple Damask Themed Cupcakes

My 1st Time Trying My Hands In Doing Ribbon Deco :-)

Orange Poppy Seed Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting & Fondant Deco

Puteri's Gift To Her Family

To Puteri, thank you so much for allowing Ritz Passion goodies to be a part of your wedding day...I am truly humbled by your trust & support :-)

Wishing you a & Najib a happy marriage & hoping that your life together will be rich in joy & love...Congratulations!

His & Hers Engagement Gifts

I was so excited yet at the same time scared when I received this order from a lovely couple, Rexxa & Dilla...Their order thrilled me as I get to 'play' with more of my newly purchased baking tools :-P It also had my tummy tied in knots as not only will my goodies be part of their engagement gifts, but it is also my first time ( ever! ) baking for a Chef! Yes, Rexxa is a Chef attached to one of the prominent hotels in Singapore & when he sent me his email telling me of his intention, my jaw practically dropped to the floor! Me, a novice baker baking for a Chef?!!! I had to re-read my email several times just to make sure I got it right! He..he...

Rexxa told me that he wishes to order both his & Dilla's engagement gifts from me as they love what they saw in my blog...I admit that it was such an honor hearing that from Rexxa & Dilla...Nevertheless, it didn't help to put my mind at ease when they insisted that I do their engagement goodies :-P I was straight-out honest with Rexxa, saying that I am REALLY a novice baker & wonder if he might want to re-consider ordering from me...Not that I don't want to take their order, but again, me baking for a Chef? I somehow felt as though Ramsay Gordon is breathing down my neck ( seriously! )...He..He...

After much 'pep' talk from Rexxa & Dilla, not forgetting Rexxa coming all the way to Kuala Lumpur to see me & discuss on his order, I put on a 'brave' face & accepted their orders ( not without tonnes of warnings to them though! )...He..He...

For Rexxa's side, he wished to present Dilla with a set of cupcakes, decorated in red & gold...

Orange Poppy Seed Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting & Fondant Deco

The Groom-To-Be

Red & Gold Themed Cupcakes

As for Dilla's side, she wanted something different & opted for my new product, mini cakes...Her theme color was light blue & silver...

American Carrot Cake Flavored Mini Cakes With Cream Cheese & Fondant Deco

Love The Wordings On These Mini Cakes - Rexxa Loves Dilla :-)

The Bride-To-Be

To Rexxa & Dilla, my utmost gratitude for your support & confidence in me...It's such an honor being able to bake for the both of you & to be part of your special day...I do pray that the goodies turned out as good as what you have expected it to be ;-) 

Thank you once again & my sincere congratulations on your engagement, Rexxa & Dilla!

A Lazy Sunday

Sigh! Have you ever had one of those lazy...lazy day? A day when you just don't feel like doing anything :-P It's a day after Christmas ( also known as 'Boxing Day' ) today & I'm having such an extremely lazy Sunday :-P All I want to do is kick back & rest, especially after a hectic marathon of fulfilling cupcake orders...Oh! By the way, thanks so much to those who had ordered my goodies in conjunction with the Christmas celebration :-) I do hope my goodies cheered up your special day...To those who celebrated Christmas, my best wishes to you & may your celebration be a joyous one, shared with family & friends...and to those not celebrating, do have a wonderful weekend kay :-)

The weather is just nice today & so perfect for my lazy day :-) Wasn't in the mood to cook up any dishes, what more fancy ones...Was happy just to lay down infront of the tv & watch all those wonderful programmes :-P Yet a girl has to eat, rite?...

After much dragging of my feet into the kitchen, here's what I've whipped up for my simple comfort lunch, or should I say brunch ;-)

Butter Prawn With Steamed Man Tao

A Quick, Simple Yet Very Comforting Dish ;-)

Now to excuse myself & get some work done on my back-logged posts :-P Have a great Sunday everyone!

Confession Of A Novice Baker

Yes, I am a novice...A fact that I cannot hide when it comes to cake baking & decorating :-P So...so novice am I in this trade that I've never even attended any cake making or decorating classes! That's truly how 'green' I am! *blushing*

Nevertheless, my lack of talent & experiences have never stopped me from pursuing my love & passion for cake baking & decorating ( which honestly was only discovered recently! ) :-P I loved it when I get to play dough & experiment with all my baking tools :-P Though I have to admit that I do not know how to use half of the tools that I have in my storage! Ha...ha...

All the goodies that you've seen in my blog was honestly done out of my 'do-or-die' motto :-P A motto that I always use in challenging myself :-P

I greatly admire the work of all those talented cake artists & decorators, namely Peggy Porschen, Carol Deacon, Alan Dunn and many more...Their talent in turning a simple cake into such elegant & beautiful edible creations never ceased to amaze me...It just took my breath away each time I look at their hand-work...Gosh! If only I'm blessed with half of their talent *sighing*

I was looking through some gorgeous mini cake photos in the internet recently when I was suddenly hit by another one of my 'do-or-die' attack! :-P I just couldn't shake off the urge & after daysssssssssssss of 'psyching' myself up, I finally relented & talked myself into making mini cakes :-P

Here are my "I-didn't-go-to-class-yet-still-want-to-try" mini cakes...A warning though, IT IS my very first attempt at doing mini cakes, so please don't laugh okay ;-)

Mini Cakes ( Flavor : American Carrot Cake ) 

Trying My Hands At Doing Several Mini Cake Decorations

Was Trying To Create The 'Lace' Pattern Trimmings :-P

Creme Caramel With Vanilla Beans

Those of you who had been following my baking experience via this blog of mine, you'll know that I've recently 'cured' my phobia in using Vanilla Beans :-P Have to admit that I'm still going ga-ga over the usage of REAL Vanilla Beans! No more using essence for me ;-) To those who have missed out on reading about my new experience, do check this link to read more ;-)

As promised, here are the photos of my Creme Caramel which was infused with Vanilla Beans...It took me about 40 minutes to bake & one night to refrigerate it, yet the Creme Caramel was gulped down by three of my loved ones in a matter of 15 minutes! I kid you not!

I'm just happy that they have enjoyed it :-)

Creme Caramel With Vanilla Beans

Happy Birthday Sweet Aliya & Alisa!

I've always loved it when I received new clients & orders :-) My heart couldn't resist a little flutter each time it happened...Not only do I get to share my baking products, but it also gives me an excuse to 'play dough' & expand my imagination in creating the goodies...

I recently received a call from Sheena who wishes to order cupcakes for her darling daughter, Aliya's birthday...Aliya is turning 9 years old & according to Sheena, Aliya loves the color pink & blue...Sheena also requested that I put two names on the cupcakes as Aliya will be celebrating her special day with her best friend, Alisa ( Ain't that so sweet! )...

While taking down Sheena's order details, my mind was already running wild thinking of all the decorations that I'm going to do for Aliya's birthday cake cuppies ;-) I couldn't help flashing back & remembering the times when I was at that age...Oh! How I love birthdays during that age! I still do, though I don't enjoy blowing out the ever growing candles on my cakes :-P

Sheena's order was for a Vanilla with Strawberry Fillings Cupcakes & Cream Cheese Frosting...I was feeling like a kid when I did Aliya's cupcakes & here was the result :-P

Vanilla With Strawberry Fillings & Cream Cheese Frosting Birthday Cake Cuppies

Pink & Blue Theme Decorations

One Of My Childhood's Best Memories - Lollipop! :-)

Hope Aliya & Alisa Enjoyed The Lollipops :-P

I can't truly describe what a joy it was for me baking & decorating Aliya's birthday cake cuppies...It brought back soooooooo many sweet memories :-) I do hope this cupcakes will bring sweet memories to Aliya & Alisa as well :-)

To Sheena, I'm truly humbled that you've choosen Ritz Passion's goodies to grace Aliya's special day...My sincere thank you & I do hope you've enjoyed the cupcakes :-)

To sweet Aliya & Alisa, a warm birthday hugs to the both of you! Hopefully you've enjoyed the cupcakes as much as I've enjoyed baking it for you :-x

Happy 9th Birthday Sweet Aliya & Alisa!

Vanilla Bean Phobia - Cured!

 Image Taken From The Wide World Of Web

Ohhh! At the time I'm typing this it's 3:38 am & I've just put my Creme Caramel into the oven :-) It's never too early to bake for me :-P

To tell you honestly, I'm just TOO excited right now! *grinning like a fool at the moment!* No, it's not my first time baking Creme Caramel...I've baked it thousands of times before as it's one of my family's favorite dessert...The only difference this time is that I'm using real Vanilla Beans!!! No more using the Vanilla Essence like I always do...Ha...ha...Some of you might say it's nothing to crow about, right? Believe me, to me, it's a biggggggggggggggg thing as I've always felt so intimidated by the mere idea of using Vanilla Beans :-P Call me silly, but I considered Vanilla Beans as a luxury item in baking....Being a novice baker, I've always been too scared to use it in my cooking @ baking...Not that I don't love it ( cause I do! ), but I have this idea planted in my head that Vanilla Bean is an item used only by the professionals! :-)

Each time I watched those cooking programs & saw the Chefs using Vanilla Beans, I was filled with envy...Seeing them scrapping the beans & adding it to their cooking...Sigh! I can always imagined their food tasting soooooo delicious!

I do have Vanilla Beans stocked up in my pantry...It's been sitting in a jar, just waiting for me to gather enough courage to use it :-P You might be thinking what a silly thing for me to be so scared in using Vanilla Beans, ehhh? Let me tell you why...Not only do I think it's an item fit only for professionals, but the price here in Malaysia is quite expensive! Roughly it's RM20 per pod ( equivalent to USD6.36 per pod )!! Imagine me using it & screwed up my recipe...Gosh! What a waste that would be!

I was cleaning up my kitchen just now when I suddenly felt that it's time for me to face my phobia of using Vanilla Beans...After all, if you want to succeed, you have to be willing to make mistakes, rite? If I don't try, how else would I know what Vanilla Beans can do to my cooking, rite?

Gosh! I'm sure glad I've faced my fears in using Vanilla Beans! I can't believe what a difference a pod of Vanilla Bean could make to my Creme Caramel! Not only  does it releases such an inviting aroma while I steep it in boiling milk, but it also intensified the taste of Vanilla in the Creme Caramel! Even right now, the smell that's whiffing through my oven is sooooooo yummylicious! I really can't wait to taste it later, but of course I need to cool my caramel first :-P

Now that I've faced my phobia of using Vanilla Beans, I'm sooooooo looking forward to adding it in my other recipes! Owhhh!! I can already imagine tonnes of recipes that I'm gonna alter ;-)

To those facing similar phobia as I did, I do encourage you to try the Vanilla Beans! Go ahead & give it a try ;-) If I can do it, so can you...And if you are still pretty unsure, buzz me & I'll be more than happy to help you out :-P

It's nearing 5:00 am already & I guess it's time for me to hit the sack...Nighty nite all!! ( or should I bid good morning instead? )

**Psst! Hopefully I'll remember to snap a photo of my Creme Caramel with Vanilla Beans before it is being 'attacked' ;-)

Sweet Memories With Anna Olson

Oh dear! I was in the midst of uploading the photos taken during my "Sweet Secrets With Anna Olson" into my previous post when I suddenly ran out of free space for photo loading :-( Being someone who's totally lousy with anything IT, I got panicky for a while...Took me nearly half a day & several 'emergency' calls to my blogger friends to figure out on the best solution. Nearly gave up as I've zero knowledge when it comes to anything IT but for the sake of sharing my experience with all of you, not to mention my promises of sharing my photos with my table mates during my lunch with Anna Olson ( Irene, Jennifer, Christina, Farah & Azimah ), I persevered & try out this Flickr thingy :-P

I hope I got this Flickr photo sharing right :-P I better not ramble like I did in my previous post...Instead I'll let you enjoy the tonnes of photos which I snapped to commemorate one of the best times of my life ;-)

Anna Olson During Her Cooking Demonstration

Anna Olson Showing How To Frost The Lady Baltimore Cake

I Love Seeing Anna & Michael Olson In Action...Such A Great Couple! :-P

Sharing The Day With These Lovely Ladies

With My Table Mates & Anna Olson

Anna Olson Was Kind Enough To Personally Greet Us At Our Table...Much To My Delight! :-P

Irene & Anna Olson

Rozie ( Extreme Left ) & Her Table Mates With Anna Olson

Can You Just See The Look Of Glee On My Face? :-P

We Were Treated To A Surprise Dessert Buffet! I Practically Jumped With Joy In My Seat! :-)

Love...Love...Loveeeeeeeeeeeee The Macaroons!

Cappuccino Nanaimo Bars...I'm Already Thinking Of Doing My Own Version Of Nanaimo Bars ;-)

With Chef Michael Olson, Anna's Better Half

Chef Michael Teasing Me :-P

I hope you've enjoyed my photos as much as I did ;-) To Irene, Christina, Farah, Jennifer & Azimah, it was really nice meeting you...I do hope to hear from you again ;-) To Tunku Muna Iskandar & Puteri Wan Zanariah, I've truly enjoyed both your company. You are such a joy to be with :-) To my Mate a.k.a Rozie, though we were not seated together, knowing you are there sharing the special moments meant so much to me :-x I just hope I didn't embarassed you with my over-the-top excitement :-P

Last but not least, to the best friends anyone could ever ask for - Rozie, Azni, Dura, Mona, Zilo, Era & Sharifah, my ever lasting love & thank you to each & every one of you for the joy that you've given me. You gals are the greatest! Thank you sooooooooooooooo much for one of the best experience of my life :-) Love you tonnessssssssss!!

Take care all!