I made a ring cake with canned peach halves. For the glaze, I used the syrup from the can, together with a little apricot jam, which turned out to be quite effective. The sponge is so soft and light that I could eat quite a lot in one go.
The gratin turned out to be very wholesome and soft taste thanks to the sliced cabbage in the minced meat. The potato I used was 'May Queen'. This variety is ideal for the famous French potato gratin, Dauphinoise, since the sliced potatoes retain the shape even when fully cooked, and yet they melt in the mouth.
The sponge is made of fine semolina and almond powder, which prevents the sponge becoming rubbery when based (as is the case with normal flour). The added flavour of the chocolate sauce is very effective.
There is a popular steamed mini cheesecake by a major Japanese bakery firm, which can be bought at any supermarkets and convenience stores in Japan. I have been a fan of it since I first ate it when I returned to Japan in November 1990. Recently, I saw the oblong mini cake moulds on the web and ordered them thinking they would be perfect for mini cheesecakes.
蒸しケーキなので、焼きあがった時点では蒸しパンのように白っぽい。
Right out of the oven, the steamed cakes are white.
それを一個一個、フライパンで焼き色を付けるので、
By pressing the surface against the hot frying pan, you get a nice golden colour. Since this is done mannually, one by one,
焼き色の具合が不揃い。これに関しては将来、練習を積むしかないです。
the golden colour is not uniform - I need to practice in the future.
I made a pumpkin tart with the pumpkin variety that is very sweet and powdery. By using heavy cream, instead of milk, the result was a very rich texture.
I made baked tartlets with firm dessert apples. The filling underneath the apple slices is made up with cream cheese, sour cream, and half an egg yolk.
I made a blue poppy seed cake. Due to the baking soda and acidity reaction, the size of the baked cake became double the original amount of the batter. The txture is very moist and fluffy.
The passion fruit plant is growing in a 30-cm diameter pot, on my balcony. The fruits have started to drop off recently. They taste delicious at the time of falling off, but by allowing them to mature off the vine, they taste even better. Since I have plenty of them now, I made a baked cheesecake with them.
Due to the events in the Eastern Europe, imported American cherries were very expensive this year and I never bought them. However, with canned cherries, I can use them all year round.
I enjoy shaved ice when I come home after walking the dog out every morning. In this extreme summer heat, the shaved ice gives me an instant relief. This is a lot healthier than eating ice cream, since I use 100% fruit juice that I drink every day, instead of using syrups for shaved ice.
The green melon is my favourite and I made a cheese cake using it. Instead of using food colouring to add to the natural colour of the melon flesh, I used some melon syrup which is normally used for shaved ice.
I made the ice cream in the extreme heat of 2 days ago. The ice cream started to melt the moment I got it out of the freezer, so I had to do it all in a rush.
Bread ring with sausage slices, flavoured by grated cheese, cajun seasoning and garlic. It is very flavourful and you only need a plate of salad to make satisfying lunch.