your probably think when will i make my actual NEXT cake? think right, i am baking 4 this week and one is as big as 60! coming soon. . .
for now, love to share pictures of two birthday gifts when i celebrated with ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113), mango take.
organic coffee roasted in Hawaii’s north shore, beans grown in Peru!
a bag, one yet need to owns, a paddle bag! yellow ribbon included
ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113). beginnings: my favorite restaurant, where i’ve been celebrating birthdays since my 19th. beginnings: my double chocolate valentine with mango begins with whipped cream rosettes.
endings: the same restaurant, this year starts charging a $25 cake cutting fee. endings: my double chocolate valentine with mango, the last cut.
i am not against the cake cutting fee, and i understand the reasons. needless to say, it was a rough feeling, specially after all these years. but everything felt normal again, when the cake was unveiled and enjoyed with my guests, and the waiter said “mr. wong, we normally place candles when we bring out birthday cakes, but this cake looks so special that i felt a candle would hurt it”
my day started with ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113), waiting to be taken.
then a morning Hawaiian outrigger canoe paddle, which goes like this:
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then breakfast at the Hau Tree Lanai in waikiki
then lunch with my niece after her ballet performance
then dinner at “old” Roy’s, with the “new” $25 cake cutting fee:
and i sure do, after spending countless hours on the drawing table, for ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113), with mango!
does fresh mango go with chocolate? the answer is YES
YES means: pipe (or spread) 2 cups of whipped cream on the cake, this makes a generous layer of whipped cream. then lay the mango. serve slightly cold, like at wine chiller temperature 65-70 oF. just imagine, it is like having a fresh fruit dessert topped with whipped cream and over a base of chocolate cake. YUM!
yes, i make it sound so easy. stay tuned, i’ve been invited to a “mango festival” so maybe somebody will video tape my demonstration on how to lay mango!
click here for Rose’s posting of the 4 amigos
strawberries are red and chocolate is chocolate. I adore this take for ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113)!
[ food styling and photo by craig de silva ]
people always ask what chocolate to use. the answer is more than one: make two chocolate groups, each as deliciously taken by ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113),
(1) an earthy, natural, minimally processed, and minimally flavored chocolate, such as hawaiian dark chocolate, for cakes where chocolate is presented with complimentary flavors; for example my take on the ‘deep passion wedding cake’ with the glorious vanilla beans or my take on ‘le succes’ with lemon tea ganache.
(2) a chocolate with long flavor profile (perceived sensations of bloosoms, nuts, woods, berries, spices, etc), meticulously processed, refined, single origin, year specific, aged, such as valrhona palmira, for cakes where chocolate is the main and only flavor, isn’t baked, and is mixed with less than a handful ingredients; for example my take of ‘le succes’ without adding lemon tea on the ganache or my take on the baby chocolate oblivion truffles.
listen up! there is one more secret of success: add one drop of french chocolate arome (i get mine’s from www.lacuisineus.com), and (1) and (2) above become a level higher! in my opinion, the french chocolate arome heightens existing chocolate flavors rather than adding new ones. i have found light on the dark side of my soul!
this is the same take for ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113) with hawaiian chocolate ganache glaze and with holly macs, prior glazing the macs with apple jewel glaze.
which take do you prefer? the flavor of the apple jewel glaze is non distracting, the shine is eye catching!
i was saving this cake for mother’s day, but on the 7th day after valentine’s day my enduring friend axel flew in his cousin from germany and requested a hawaii take.
this is ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113) with hawaiian chocolate ganache glaze and holly macs. the macs are brushed with apple jewel glaze (cake bible recipe).
the cake is a hit: tender melt in your mouth texture, a touch grainy and dry, then reached with oozing ganache and a dollop of whipped cream (whipped cream not pictured). truly inspirational to watch guests take 15 minutes or longer and come up with all sort of facial and verbal expressions to describe the cake: “this cake is dry at first bite, just perfectly dry to welcome the inmediate smoothness of the ganache glaze, then the cake absorbs into your tongue like a brush of chocolate, to final with crunchy holly macs and a grand final of home made whipped cream.” this isn’t exaggeration, this is one ultimate single layer chocolate cake, and it is easy to do!
a secret of my success is adding 1 drop of french chocolate arome (from www.lacuisineus.com) to the ganache glaze. in my experience, this french chocolate arome enhances the natural flavors of chocolate present on your choice of chocolate, rather than adding new flavors.
ingredients were meassured twice, saving 1x recipe for a cake-mix-easy mother’s day. dissolve the cocoa as indicated on the recipe, cool the mix, measure and drop the butter over the cocoa mix. then, mix yolks with 10 percent sugar, add water and vanilla. then, measure all dry ingredients and whisk. also, make the ganache glaze. depending how the choice of chocolate is manufactured, add 1 or 2 extra tbsp of cream to make the glaze thinner if needed for the cake to absorb the glaze within a reasonable amount of time. then, individually vacuum pack each mix and store at -20oF. do you think this will make a great mother’s day?
coming soon, ROSE’S heavenly CAKES: Double Chocolate Valentine (page 113), Hector’s take!
