Herbe Charteuse Chocolate Crispy Cake

Herbe Charteuse Chocolate Crispy Cake

Introducing Hilton's Easter Creation - Herbe Chartreuse Chocolate Crispy Cake ($45+). Fusing choclate with Chartreuse, a French herbal liqeur that is produced with extracts from 132 medicinal and aromatic plants, the layers of milk chocolate, flourless chocolate sponge and crispy chocolate crumble result to a smooth, velvety and crispy delight of dark chocolate flavours.


Our readers would know that we are impressed by Chef Christophe's works especially when you consider that it is smooth chocolate mousse and yet managed to stay in shape for some time. What is outstanding is the moist chocolate sponge in between. The herbal liqueur infused in white chocolate is unique but it is also an acquired taste. I found it a little similar to those tea infused dessert taste but Fen found it too strong for her liking.

Apart from the Herbe Chartreuse Chocolate Crispy Cake, other Easter goodies include hot cross buns and kouglof, a celebratory brioche bejeweled with dried fruits from Northern Europe. Also not forgeting Chef Christophe's Easter macaroons - Apricot and Cherry Kirsch & White Chocolate.

Apart from Desserts, readers may want to take note of Hilton's Easter Sunday Brunch. The brunch features special roasts such as Roast Leg of Young Veal, Spit-Roasted Whole Young Lamb and Baked Salt-Crusted Whole Cod Fillet, along with Fresh Burrata Cheese, Premium Cured Meats including Parma Ham and Pata Negra as well as a Seafood selection including Oysters and Canadian Maine Lobsters. Completing the fiesta, diners can take their pick of anything within the Deli for dessert.

Easter Sunday Brunch
24 April 2011, 12 noon-3pm
Checkers Brasserie, Hilton Singapore
$105++ for adults and $35++ for children 6-12 yrs

Special thanks to Ms Joyce Moo, Marketing Communications Manager for the chance to taste this wonderful cake.

Easter Treats Promotion
Checkers Deli
4- 24 April 2011
For Enquiries and orders, call 6730 3392 or email Checkers.Singapore@hilton.com

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Jupiter @ Canele (a re-visit)

Jupiter @ Canele (a re-visit)

Written by Yuan,
The strength of Canele's cakes have always been the rich chocolate content. Jupiter is really an acquired taste. When I first tried this cake, I had the impression that there were berries which made it sour. Later I realised the slight sourness comes from the chocolate. I have came to enjoy this slight sour taste admist rich chocolate. Pecan nuts add to the crunch and I must say that this is a good alternative to the usual hazelnut praline.


We seldom show what goes behind the scene for the photos taken at home. Hence for a change, we included a photo of us in action. It's through this blog which we build our interest in photography and it is through this blog which made Yuan hooked on desserts. We seek to improve on every photo which we take to do justice to the effort put in by the pastry chef and we hope you will enjoy all the entries which we have put up.


Lastly, Canele is a place I have always neglected when it comes to blog entries. I ate so many of their cakes but I have never attempt to take-away their cakes to take pictures. Perhaps, this is pure indulgence without the intention to blog.

Canelé Pâtisserie Chocolaterie
Shaw Centre
1 Scotts Road
#01-01A, Shaw Centre
Singapore 228208
Tel: 6738 9020
Website

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K ki's Little Red Riding Hood

K ki's Little Red Riding Hood

One of the strengths in Kki's creations lie in minimal "contamination" (e.g. gelatin and artificial flavourings), thereby making their creations very pure in taste. Yuan describes the taste of this cake to be the closest to Valrhona Chocolate Bar, thus bringing the goodness of chocolate in every bite.

Surprisingly, I am one that don't fancy the combination of chocolate and raspberry since my threshold for sour is very low. Moreover, I am one that prefers to have chocolate mousse on its own or at the very most with hazelnut feuilletine. But setting aside these two factors (which happens to conflict my preference), I have to admit the chocolate mousse is very smooth and the dark chocolate mousse has boost my endorphins levels to the next height.

For more detailed description of the various componenets and its cross-section, check out at Ice's blog.

K Ki Sweets
7 Ann Siang Hill
#01-00
Tel 6225 6650
Their website and facebook group

Operating hours:
12pm - 7pm (Sun to Fri)
12pm - 4pm (Sat)
Closed on Mondays

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Carolines cake

Carolines cake

Recommended by the article “Best in dough” on Business Times, 07 March 09, this is one cake to try if you have only limited room for desserts. Why so? One get to try their macaron shell, their Choux a la crème caramel (vanilla praline puff) and chocolate mousse.

Carolines cake ($6.20)

Quoted from Business Times, this is a “sticky chewy chocolate mousse cake layered with chocolate and almond biscuits topped with caramelised profiteroles filled with vanilla praline cream imported from France”.

Yuan personally highlighted his liking for the caramel vanilla puff as the caramel gives the puff the additional crunch. The chocolate mousse is no doubt smooth and is comparable to most of the good chocolate mousse cakes which we have tried but on the sweeter side. The chocolate cake that is sandwiched between the chocolate mousse is springy and contrast pretty well with the mousse. The almond biscuit at the bottom of the cake were pretty ordinary and was soft like their tart base. Worth a try if you happen to be at Sembawang Shopping Centre.

Le Grenier à pain (Closed)
#01-01 Sembawang Shopping Centre
Singapore 758459
Tel 6752 7627
Operating hours – 10am to 10pm (daily)

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Raspberry Chocolate from B Bakery

Raspberry Chocolate from B Bakery

This is the owner's favourite chocolate cake and she wanted to hear our opinion about this. The chocolate couverture and mousse used are similar to the ones found in the praline mousse but the difference lies in its accompanying flavour.
For praline mousse, the combination is coffee, hazelnut praline and chocolate mousse. As for this, it has interlocking layers of dark chocolate mousse and a small portion of raspberry compote.

Often, Yuan and I don't fancy sourishness in chocolate but this actually caught us by surprise. The raspberry compote is not extremely sour and it goes very well with the smooth chocolate mousse. I would actually recommend this if people has a liking for sour desserts.

As for the pink cap, it is actually a raspberry meringue but we find it just plain sweet. Nothing special about that.

B Bakery
15 Bussorah Street
Singapore 199436
Tel: 6293 9010

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Jupiter from Canelé Pâtisserie Chocolaterie

Jupiter from Canelé Pâtisserie Chocolaterie

After reading Brad's entry and have seen Evan's photos on Bistro Sense, I have the sudden urge to try this Italian restaurant @ the Singapore Flyer but alas, due to some hiccups, I have decided to settle with a quick meal and drop by Canelé Pâtisserie Chocolaterie.

There seems to be some debate between BakerZin and Canelé Pâtisserie Chocolaterie but both have their hits and misses and personally I would prefer the sweet treats from BakerZin. Since I am reluctant to walk a distance for the former, that explains my next 2 entries on Canelé Pâtisserie Chocolaterie.

As usual, we will usually admire the array of desserts displayed at the entrance of Canelé and I have to admit that Canelé has a better ambience than BakerZin. We have tried a fair selection from Canelé so it wasn't hard for Yuan to settle down with Jupiter. One of the chocolate creation which we have yet to try. So here is our reviews...



Jupiter
Parfait Manjari, exotic caramel and pecan nut nougatine on a flourless chocolate sponge with exotic coulis.
Priced at $7.00++ per slice
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Fen's comments

Canelé has always impressed me with its generous use of premium ingredients and this is no exception. We were captivated by its esthetically appearance and what do you expect from this luxurious dark chocolate mousse with flourless chocolate sponge and pecans. The end result is simply overpowering, in a similar manner as the Grand Cru Alpaco from Peaberry and Pretzel.

The tempting blend of crunchy pecans and smooth, creamy caramel provides an additional richness to this cake. What I like about Jupiter the most is the introduction of bitter flourless chocolate sponge to make it less cloying.

For those who have tried this cake, one wouldn't have missed out the sourish tint of the chocolate mousse, some felt that passionfruit was introduced into it while others thought that is the nature of Majari chocolate (i.e. As described on Valrhona's site for Manjari, it is supposed to be fruity Dark Valrhona Grand Cru chocolate of 64% cocoa content from the Indian Ocean).

Whichever case it is, you will never go wrong with chocolate at Canelé.
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Yuan's comments

I chose this cake as I really needed some chocolate to curve my craving. Choosing a dark chocolate mousse at Canele can't be wrong. Although I really liked their chocolate mousse, but it has this layer of salted caramel and this sourish raspberry taste which puts me off. But eating it separately, the chocolate mousse is really good.
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Canelé Pâtisserie Chocolaterie (Raffles City Shopping Centre)
252 North Bridge Road
#B1-81/82
Raffles City Shopping Centre
Singapore 179103
Tel: 6334 7377

Operating hours - 11am to 10pm daily
http://www.canele.com.sg/

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Grand Cru Alpaco from Peaberry and Pretzel

Grand Cru Alpaco from Peaberry and Pretzel

As mentioned in my previous entry, the dessert platter did impress and thus Yuan has decided to order one of the two cakes that has caught his attention when he first stepped into the cafe. Since we have tried Peaberry espresso chocolate cake in the dessert platter, we settled with their bestseller, the Grand Cru Alpaco ($5.50 excluding 7% GST and 10% service charge).


Basically, this is a dark chocolate mousse and a layer of chocolate cake coated with glossy dark chocolate glaze.

For those who are wondering if macarons are available in this cafe, the answer is no. Those macaron shells seen in the glass display are only for decorative purposes.

I didn't take a close-up of the display as there were dining guests earlier in the evening and as it was closer to closing hours, there were a handful of take-away customers. Moreover, from my understanding from the staff, they don't usually allow customers to take pictures of the place and thus it would be appreciated if the intention was made known right from the start. They didn't stop me but I have decided to ask for permission before firing my camera.
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Fen's comments

Grand Cru Alpaco is a typical combination of dark chocolate glaze, chocolate mousse with a layer of chocolate cake. Since it is available in various bakeries such as Aroma, BakerZin and BreadTalk, what will make such a cake outshine the rest, is an additional ingredient to bring out the chocolate combination. Aroma has a vanilla brulee inlay and since milk chocolate was used, it is generally on the sweeter side. BakerZin, on the other hand, introduce lavender essence, thus appeal more to females. BreadTalk though has a similar combination but its texture was just too rough to reach any verdict.

So where does Grand Cru Alpaco stand? For a price of $5.50++, I would say it is definitely one of the better few. Using dark chocolate mousse, this is not sweet but the chocolate cake fails to stand out. In my personal opinion, I always thought that chocolate cake should be sandwiched between chocolate mousse and not layered at the bottom.

I would recommend this cake if one prefers Caraibe for its high chocolate content as this is a dark chocolate creation but with a softer and smoother texture.
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Yuan's comments
Without doubts, this is one of the best dark chocolate creation which I have eaten. As I mentioned before, a cake which can make you crave and finish when you are full is really good. This cake has just the right composition - rich but not overly rich. Smooth chocolate mousse and chocolate fudge... I am craving for it again.
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Peaberry and Pretzel
Blk 106
Clementi Street 12,
#01-52
Singapore 120106
Tel: 6777 3477

Operating hours
12:30pm to 10:30pm (Tues to Fri),
10:30am to 10:30pm (Weekends),
Closed on all Mondays except PH
http://www.peaberryandpretzel.com.sg/

Peaberry and Pretzel has closed but re-opened as Buttercake N Cream.

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Chocolate Terrine with Coconut Mousse

Chocolate Terrine with Coconut Mousse

As usual, Yuan did his visual inspection and has targeted on a slice of chocolate truffle. Believe it or not, his taste buds seems to get more and more sensitive and his eyes seems to be able to pick out the right cake, unlike me.

Chocolate Terrine with Coconut Mousse
Light coconut mousse infused into ganache

Each slice of chocolate truffle is $6.00 (excluding 7% GST and 10% service charge) and they have the following offers:-

• 20% off Total Food Bill with American Express Platinum Card
• From Mondays to Fridays, 1/2 Price for all sliced cakes from 12pm to 3pm (Applicable for takeaways, dine-ins and with purchase of one drink
• 10% off bill with HSBC cardholders and 15% discount for HSBC Premier and Visa Platinum

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Fen's comments

The chocolate truffle is of a high cocoa content and for those who fancy Canele's Gateaux Chocolat. I would highly recommend this. The chocolate is velvety smooth that tempts Yuan to finish the entire cake within minutes. Among the dense chocolate mousse, a thin layer of flourless chocolate cake provides the ultimate decadence sensation for chocoholics.

In between the layers of chocolate mousse, there is a layer of coconut mousse which adopts a jelly-like texture, providing a distinct texture from the smooth chocolate ganache. For $6.00 per slice, this is a must-try for chocoholics and a good substitution for expensive chocolate bonbons.
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Yuan's comments

This is one of my favourite chocolate mousse. Rich and nice. The plus point is that the mousse tasted like chocolate fudge. So its like one layer of fudge and one layer of flourless chocolate cake. This is one cake that can curb your chocolate craving. Highly recommended.
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Nectarie le' Dessert Pâtisserie
Blk C, The Cannery
#01-05,
River Valley Road Clarke Quay,
Sinagpore 179022
Tel: 6305 6728
http://www.nectarie.sg

Operating hours
12pm to 11pm (Sun to Wed)
12pm to 1am (Thurs)
12pm to 2am (Fri & Sat)

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No. 18 Twin Divine from Miss Clarity

No. 18 Twin Divine from Miss Clarity

After ignoring the recommendation from 50 yummiest cakes, I have decided to drop by Miss Clarity Cafe to try their Twin Divine. Featured as No. 18, this was described to be a rich, rich, rich and utterly divine chocolate fudge cake. Bascially, this is a Valrhona chocolate fudge cake paired with French cream cheese on a crisp digestive biscuit.

Anyway, before I move on with twin divine. This is a very casual place that doesn't charge GST and service charge so it is good for gatherings or a quick lunch. As for the decor, either you like it or you hate it. Adopting a princess-like theme with flowery paper latterns, gaily painted walls and cartoons, school canteen-like tables & chairs of green, pink and yellow BUT dim lighting? I don't know, personally, I always associate cheerful places with well-illuminated places. If it is meant to be dim, I would prefer it with more ambience than funky.

Apart from the desserts, we had fish baked rice and bacon aglio oligo. Have to give credits to their extensive menu, reasonable pricing but in terms of taste, I would say it is pretty ordinary. Nothing to rave about nor make us crave for it.

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Fen's comments

Personally, I didn't quite like this cake but at the price of $5.20 per slice, it is worth a try due to the chocolate used. Have to admit that the chocolate is smooth and creamy but I didn't like the combination of cream cheese and chocolate mousse. The cream cheese has a rubbery texture which is pretty different from American cheesecake and thus didn't compliment well enough to my liking.
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Yuan's comments

This cake is similar to the mini O from NYDC. Top layer of chocolate mousse and bottom layer of cheese cake. Both layers are not that appealing though I prefer the cheese cake better than the chocolate mousse. The chocolate mousse is slightly creamy. The cheese cake tasted like philadelphia cream cheese spread. Not too bad generally but I guess I became a little choosy after eating so many cakes.
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Miss Clarity @ Purvis
5 Purvis Street
#01-14
Singapore 188584
Tel: 6339 4803
Operating hours - 11am to 11pm (closed on Sundays)
http://missclaritycafe.com/

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Chocolate Mosaic

Chocolate Mosaic

After a round of buffet, a nice birthday cake and lots of fun at Pitstop Cafe, I kinda regret not continuing my stay at Pitstop (my highly recommended place for gatherings). Anyway, because one of our friends is leaving early, we have decided to drop by tcc for a drink or 2 and have a chat. One of the stuff we ordered was the chocolate mosaic...

A closer view...

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Fen's comments

--------------------------------------Non dessert review--------------------------------------
Before I continue, just a warning for food bloggers. The upper deck of tcc (circular road) does not permit photography and they have put a sign at this level BUT you will only see the sign only after you are leaving the place due to its positioning. How sincere, reason being is that they have art exhibition or paintings displayed at this particular store.

Simply hate it when I was just taking pictures of the food and we were told to keep the camera but the only reason they can give is the mangement, talk to the manager and etc... *#&(*%

My personal take when asking dining customers to put aside the camera is that the waiters or waitresses have to be a little more tactful. I mean things might have been different if I have seen the sign before entering or that the the waiter starts off saying "Sorry, we don't allow photography at this level due to the art display or art exhibitions." Short and sweet, am I right? Anyway, I was pretty patient last evening but I can't deny the fact that my dining mood was alittle foul.

I'm sorry if I have sound unreasonable, but people are never rational when they are pissed. Am I right?
--------------------------------------Non dessert review--------------------------------------

Anyway, chocolate mosaic was said to be one of the signature dessert dishes but I beg to differ, the chocolate devotion was much better. Although the chocolate mousse is smooth with different layers of milk and white (has an after-taste of peppermint) chocolate. Somehow or rather the flourless chocolate cake fails to stand out as much as the Chocolate Amer of BakerZin. Smooth chocolate mousse is pretty easy to get but to get the right accompaniment is rare. This will just pass in my opinion since to me it is pretty ordinary.
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Yuan's comments

I am not a fan of peppermint, hence the Chocolate Mosaic sorts of put me off. Despite me trying to seperate the layers of this cake, the peppermint taste still lingers. The peppermint taste sorts of cover up all other taste. Thus those that dislike peppermint like me, please do not try this dessert. In terms of mousse, I think it is rather smooth but not rich enough for my liking. Overall I doubt I will try it again.
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tcc- Circular Road
51 Circular Road
Singapore 049406
Tel: 6533 9033

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Sliced cakes at $4.50 nett

Sliced cakes at $4.50 nett

So far, hotels' cakes have not disappointed us and thus we have decided to drop by Ah Teng's bakery. Located in Raffles Hotel, this hotel was declared a National Monument in 1987 and reopens after restoration in 1991 (Raffles Hotel opened in 1887 in a rather sombre-looking old bungalow).

Located side-by-side with the Empire Cafe, the bakery adopted a typical 1920s Singapore coffee house style. Anyway, it was a little confusing as entering the bakery leads us to the warm welcome of the Empire cafe. Yes, ended having a pricey local fare...

Here are some of the sliced cakes available off the shelf. Starting from the left, Banana slice, Tiramisu, Manjari Chocolate, Chocolate Fudge...

Briefly, some description...
Tiramisu - Mascapone cheese cream, gelatine, egg yolk, coffee syrup (Nescafe powder), Vanilla sponge, honey...

Manjari chocolate - Strawberry cosume (jelly), Vanilla cream, Raspberry jam, Chocolate sponge, Manjari chocolate mousse, Hazelnut sable (biscuit)

Chocolate Fudge - Chocolate sponge, chocolate ganache

Chocolate cheesecake, Ambroiser, Willams...

Ambroiser - Chocolate mousse with no cake content (similar mousse used as chocolate fudge)

Willams - Pear-flavoured mousse with chocolate sponge

Fruit tart and Croquant...
Croquant - Peanut butter infused chocolate cake, chocolate and vanilla mousse

***

Presenting Fen's choice from the array of cakes... Manjari chocolate

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Fen's comments

Regret not sticking to Yuan's choices, he actually picked Willams and Croquant but he preferred me to have a cake of my choice. Damn, this wasn't up to my expectation at all. Although it is a unique combination of Vanilla cream, Raspberry jam, Chocolate sponge, Manjari chocolate mousse, Hazelnut sable (biscuit). The overall texture was pretty yucky.

Actually, the way I savour my pastries will indicate how much I like it. If I take it by mouthful and allow every single bite to melt in my mouth, that is fantastic. But in this case, I was seperating the different layers and dumping it into my mouth in huge chunks in a pretty fast mode...

The vanilla cream is pretty rich and has a custard-like or rather a thickened texture. It is very smooth and there is no sign of any grainy after-taste. Manjari chocolate mousse was ok on its own, chocolate content was just right but the chocolate sponge and hazelnut biscuit spoils the entire thing. The sponge wasn't soft and springy enough while the hazelnut biscuit was not crunchy at all. Give me the impression that this has been exposed to air and moisture, and that its has started to lose its potency.
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Yuan's comments

I think this cake is your typical neighbourhood confectionery cake. A layer of jam over the top, vanilla cream and chocolate mousse. Well, maybe slightly better then your neighbourhood cakes as it is vanilla cream and not fresh cream. Nonetheless the strength of this cake is that it is not sweet hence a healthier choice. But it will not curb your cake craving. I think this would not be a cake that i will try again.

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Ah Teng's Bakery
Raffles Hotel Singapore
1 Beach Road
Singapore 189673
Tel: 6412 1816

Operating hours - 7:30 am to 10.45 pm (Daily)
Website

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Croquant - A peanut butter cake

Croquant - A peanut butter cake

If you were to compare this and Manjari Chocolate, the combination is pretty similar. You have chocolate mousse, chocolate sponge, vanilla cream with peanut butter and a layer of hazelnut biscuit.

However, something makes this taste much better than Manjari Chocolate. Maybe it is the order but it gives me the impression that it is fresher since the moisture content is much higher than Manjari chocolate. In addition, the absence of the strawberry jam enhances the overall chocolate and vanilla combination.

Last but not least, although I am not a peanut butter fan but this cake is really nice with the peanut butter. Since the texture of peanut butter is sticky and thicker, it stands out pretty much within the vanilla cream even though the amount is not alot.

I would say this is worth a try. Something different and not too sweet.
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Yuan's comments

This is the first peanut butter cake which i have tried. Chocolate Mousse + Vanilla Cream + Peanut butter = excellent combination. However if you are looking out for rich chocolate mousse, this would be a disappointment. As i mentioned before, Ah Teng's cakes have a milder and lighter taste than other cake shops. Though it is nice, this cake may not curb your cake craving. Nonetheless I would say this cake is worth a try.
_____________________________________________________________

Ah Teng's Bakery
Raffles Hotel Singapore
1 Beach Road
Singapore 189673
Tel: 6412 1816

Operating hours - 7:30 am to 10.45 pm (Daily)

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Daddy's birthday cake - Valrhona Chocolate Mousse Cake

Daddy's birthday cake - Valrhona Chocolate Mousse Cake

I took this cartoon from Angie the choice and request to be placed on their creation... Angie's fans will recognise this as Freddy.
What they did was to paint the outlines on a small chocolate disc.

Anyway, the original Valrhona Chocolate Mousse Cake is supposed to look like that but with the tender loving care of the Executive Pastry Chef, Mr. Reinhard Lackner, this cake simply melts my daddy's heart. I appreciate all the time and effort to design this cake for me.

According to Mr. Reinhard, the Valrhona Chocolate Mousse cake is a relative to a Chocolate Royal Cake. The Valrhona cake is centred with a vanilla brulee inlay. The sponge and crispy feullatine layer are similiar to their signature Modern Style Sacher Chocolate Cake. For the Chocolate Mousse, Valrhona Equatorial Couverture with 55% Cocoa content was used and of course, the cake is glazed with a very glossy dark chocolate glaze.


The texture of the mousse is so smooth, fine and rich that it tasted like chocolate ice-cream. A highly recommended chocolate mousse for chocoholics. Definitely passed my daddy's requirements in terms of chocolate mousse.

By the way, I thought that the sugar can still be reduced slightly but apart from that, this cake is too perfect for any criticism nor comments. Anyway, this 1kg cake costs $50+ ($53.50 including 7% GST).

Aroma, Intercontinental Singapore
80 Middle Road.
Tel: 6825 1058
Open: 11am to 10pm daily

[ ... ]

Truffle slice from Amande, Only $1.80 per slice!!!

Truffle slice from Amande, Only $1.80 per slice!!!

One will be surprised that at a price of $1.80, there is the existence of a smooth chocolate mousse. Although it is a little sweet but I do find it nice. With alternating layers of chocolate mousse and the texture of the cake similar to Roulade from BakerZin, it is a pleasant treat. Similar to Roulade, the cake has a generally nutty texture which I assumed it to be similar to a génoise cake but because of the light chocolate mousse, the entire texture is better than Roulade. At least it is generally not a hard cake. Dusted with cocoa powder, the top layer is actually a thin layer of dark chocolate mousse.

However, Yuan don't think likewise and as predicted, he didn't enjoy this cake. His comments were
"Well the mousse is nice, i think the layer of cake leave much to be desired. I find that the layer of cake is pretty dry and is close to the texture of bread. Maybe if you enjoy the Roulade from Bakerzin, you may enjoy this cake. But i would prefer wet and soft sponge with chocolate mousse."

Amande, the almond bakery (Closed)
Blk 520
Toa Payoh Lorong 6
#01-50
Singapore 310520
Tel: 6352 2337

They also have another outlet at C.K. Tang, Tangs Market at Kiosk No. 13(a).
12 April 2010: After a comment from the cbox, I called up Amande (9105 8208) and realized both Tangs & Toa Payoh outlets have closed but they are going to set up a store at Carrefour, Plaza Singapura.

[ ... ]

Morbida

Morbida

"Mouth watering chocolate mousse on base a of supple chocolate sponge"

One thing about Riciotti is that all the desserts are in Italian names and trust me, they all look pretty exquistive and sounds ailen to us. We have no clues of what to order and thus we go for something chocolately to be on the safe side... Morbida is one of the pure chocolate dessert that caught our eye and when it is first served on the table, we just treat is as another chocolate dessert. By the way, the colour of Morbida is a unique light yellowish brown (ochre) which gives us the impression that it is not going to be very rich.

Alright, enough of visual inspection, the texture of the mousse is pretty similar to the chocolate mousse of Ambrosia. Very high chocolate content with a creamy and thick texture. Thus, I have the impression that it is going to be a cylindrical block of chocolate mousse. Little did I realize, well hidden in the core of this dessert is a chocolate shell holding a smooth and glossy dark chocolate. This slimy couverture chocolate really gives as a pleasant surprise as this baby is served cold and with such smooth flowing chocolate coming out from the core... There is only one word to describe... "Wow..."

Anyway, since melted chocolate is very temperamental, I guess either this is rich in cocoa butter or the addition of an additive to decrease viscosity and thereby ensure such consistent flow. There is a slight touch of alcohol in this lovely mixture and I simply got a rush of adrenaline after finishing this. Each slice of Morbida costs $7.80++.

Yuan's comments are as follows,
"From appearance, this cake doesn't even look like a chocolate mousse. My first bite of the morbida was that it just tasted like eating chocolate as it was so rich. My thought was that if this whole dessert was full of this chocolate mousse it would be very heaty and I will get sick of it by the 3rd bite. However i had a pleasant surprise when i worked towards the core of this dessert. As i broke the chocolate in the middle, chocolate ozzed out. This is the sort of effect that typically only warm chocolate cake will have. When you mixed the liquid chocolate and the mousse together the effect is excellent. Somewhat similar to the effect you have when you eat those triple chocolate flavoured ice cream. I would highly recomend this dessert if you are a chocoholic like us."


Ricciotti Italian Deli & Pastry
20 Upper Circular Road
B1-49/50 The Riverwalk
Singapore 058416
Tel: 6533 9060
http://www.ricciotti.com.sg/

[ ... ]

Aroma, Intercontinental, Singapore's signature... Modern Style Sacher Chocolate Cake

Aroma, Intercontinental, Singapore's signature... Modern Style Sacher Chocolate Cake

Apart from the Banana Chocolate Cake, this is Aroma's signature cake in which they will recommend all time. Modern style Sacher which consists out of Chocolate sponge, a Crispy layer, Apricot Mousse and Jelly as well as Valrhona Chocolate Mousse.

Some introduction about Sacher Torte, hailing from Vienna in Austria, Sacher Torte was created in 1832 and is dubbed as the most famous cake in the world! This delectable dessert is none other but thick moist chocolate and almond sponge cake layered with apricot jam, and finally coated with rich dark chocolate. Of course, sinfully delicious!

By the time I take pictures of the cakes, upload onto the computer and distribute to my family, the piece of art has loses it foundation and has started to embark its journey to become a Leaning Tower of Pisa. This just prove one point, the chocolate mousse is going to be good.


I like everything about this cake except the sourish taste from the whitish layer which is the apricot mousse and jelly. However, note that this sour taste is only distinct ONLY when you deliberately separate the chocolate from the apricot layer. So this cake settles all cravings for chocoholics if one don't mind the subtle sour taste of the apricot mousse...

By the way, I tried this cake twice, first version - Leaning Tower of Pisa (equilibrated to room temperature) and second version - tall and sturdy like the Eiffel tower (chilled, fresh out from the fridge)... The first was velvety smooth and creamy that I practically licked the plate clean... I am dead serious... The second was appreciating every single layer and that is when I notice the sour portion of the cake... Both taste just as good since the quality of chocolate used is fantastic...

Since the chocolate is so good, I have decided to order a chocolate cake from them on daddy's birthday... In the midst of enquiring for their other cakes, I have the honour of having their Executive Pastry Chef to reply my mail... More incentives to support them. Yummy cakes plus fantastic service...

Since when Singapore hotels disappoint... So far, no...

Aroma
InterContinental Singapore
80 Middle Road
Singapore 188966
Tel: 6825 1058
Opens daily from 7am to 10pm

[ ... ]

A modern Austrian dessert creation that melts my taste buds

A modern Austrian dessert creation that melts my taste buds

There is something that Yuan might not know but I am a fan of pistachio and thus this cake caught my attention. Of course, anybody will take a second look of this dessert as it looks lovely behind the glass display.

Aroma only has Mozart Tranche in sliced and now is a good time to eat sliced cakes purchased from Intercontinental, Singapore. Between 5pm to 9:30pm, any 2 slices of cakes cost only $10 and between 9:30pm to 10pm, the cakes are going off at half price.

Consisting of 5 layers in which the top layer as a light hazelnut mousse dusted in pink with traces of blueberry. It does resembles an extremely light version of the mascarpone cheese found in Tiramisu. Pretty light and lightly sweetened…


The thin layer of pistachio cream is sandwiched between 2 layers of almond chocolate sponge which blended pretty well. The top white layer of mousse and the pistachio cream “soften” the taste of chocolate so one won’t get the feeling of eating a very rich chocolate truffle.

Beneath the cake lies a layer of chocolate mousse which provides the ultimate satisfaction.

This is definitely one of my favourite and I don't mind using Yuan as an excuse to get a second slice for myself... It is a pity they do not have a whole cake for this. If not, I would not hesitate getting it for my best friend. Do give it a shot if you happen to drop by Intercontinental Hotel.


By the way, since pistachio flavoured cakes are rare, the other one which I know is the Fraisier from BakerZin. For those who don’t know what I am talking about, it is an almond sponge soaked in strawberry liquor, layered with pistachio butter cream and fresh whole strawberries.

BakerZin classified this under their all-time favourite and I would say this is exclusively found in BakerZin due to its unique composition. With a bountiful of fresh whole strawberries, this creation features an almond sponge cake soaked in strawberry liquor laced with pistachio butter cream. Each bite imparts an invigorating fruity flavour.

Aroma
InterContinental Singapore
80 Middle Road
Singapore 188966
Tel: 6825 1058
Opens daily from 7am to 10pm

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Lavande from BakerZin

Lavande from BakerZin

Lavande is one of the richest chocolate cakes in bazerin. You can see a layer of chocolate fudge (dark chocolate sort) and 2 layers of mousse. The bottom layer (the darker mousse) is soaked with lavender essence. Personally I felt that the lavender smell sort of spoils the taste for a chocolate cake. It is like eating those chocolate with orange. Each slice costs $6.90++.

Verdict 6/10 (try it only if you don’t mind the lavender smell)

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Fen: I have always been a fan of dark chocolate and trust me, this really satisfy your chocolate carving. When you have it parallel with chocolate amer, I would say one is a male and the other is a female. Why is that so? Lavande is of a dark chocolate base and despite the high chocolate content, it maintains the smoothness. I find that this factor makes this cake the best dark chocolate mousse due to the velvety smooth mousse. If you have eaten Nama chocolate from Royce you will know that the bitter version is not as smooth as the other ones. So, with a higher cocoa content, the difficulty of making it smooth is tough and Bravo to BakerZin for such a wonderful piece of art.

Females generally will like this cake as we are always into flowery tea. I am serious, I ate this with Chocolate Amer with 3 females and a male. The only male finds the lavender taste yucky while the females enjoyed it with a satisfied smile on their faces. Maybe there is just this yin-yang factor when it comes to a "masculine" cake.

Bakerzin [http://www.bakerzin.com/]

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