Chocolate Raspberry Layer Cake

It's been firmly established that chocolate is my kryptonite, but do you know what makes chocolate even better? Raspberries. I love the flavour of dark chocolate mixed with the tartness of raspberries, so much that I've made a rugelach with this combination.

I first discovered this complementary flavour when I was gifted a chocolate mousse cake filled with a mixed berry coulis, finished with a dark chocolate glaze. It instantly became my favourite cake and in "treat yo' self" mode, purchased it for myself on my birthdays.

I then discovered this recipe and it was like the universe knew exactly what I wanted in a cake. Moist, flavourful chocolate cake? Raspberry filling? Chocolate ganache frosting? Check, check and check. I've made this cake several times and it has never disappointed me.

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Hong Kong 2017

I had two goals for Hong Kong: to eat as much as I can, and to do some hiking.

When people think of Hong Kong, they think of a large, cosmopolitan city filled with skyscrapers. While this is all true, Hong Kong also has a lot of green space with great hiking trails and amazing views. I managed to squeeze in two hikes despite it being ridiculously hot and humid: Dragon's Back and Lion Rock.

I also spent a day in Sai Kung visiting my grandfather's grave and could not believe the view. I can't imagine a more beautiful or peaceful resting place.

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Here are some other memorable things that I ate:

Roast Goose Lai Fun Noodle Soup from Yat Lok

I've eaten a lot of roast duck in my life but not goose so I don't have a lot to compare it to; however, the skin and meat on the goose at Yat Lok was tasty. Get the goose over rice if you don't want the skin to become soggy, though noodle soup is my jam, as you can tell from this list...

Wonton Egg Noodle Soup from Mak's Noodle

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Top Five Desserts in Hong Kong

I just got back from Asia, the majority of it spent in Hong Kong visiting family, and honestly, there was not enough time to eat everything that I wanted to. Food was everywhere in Hong Kong and everything looked scrumptious. I could not stop stuffing my face.

As someone with a sweet tooth, dessert was consumed daily. Here are my top five favourite sweets I ate in Hong Kong:

Steamed Egg Cake (Ma Lai Gao) from Tim Ho Wan

Possibly the best steamed egg cake I've ever had. The brown sugar gave the cake a depth of caramelized flavour, and the cake came out piping hot but perfectly moist and spongey. If only all dim sum places served steamed egg cake like this...!

Double Skin Milk (Shuang Pi Nai) from Yee Shun Milk Company

I've been ambivalent about steamed milk pudding my whole life but this completely changed my mind. The pudding had a clean, smooth milk flavour, so light that it melted on your tongue. Get the original "steamed milk with two films" and you won't regret it.

Hong Kong-Style French Toast (Sai Do Si) from a cha chaan teng in Sha Tin

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Spaghetti alle Vongole

I'm jetting off to Asia for several weeks but wanted to share this before I go:

I made spaghetti alle vongole for the first time. It's one of my favourite pasta dishes and while it wasn't as good as the one I had in Italy (I still dream of it), it was pretty darn close.

Quinoa Tabbouleh

As spring slowly makes its appearance (we're so close to actual spring weather!), I start to crave for lighter meals.

I had a bunch of parsley in the fridge that needed to be used up and tabbouleh sprang into my mind. Instead of the traditional bulgur, I used quinoa as the grain, though I have also used couscous in the past.

I've never been a fan of raw onion because I found it to be too peppery. Recently, I learned the trick where if you soak your cut onion in cold water for 10 minutes, it tames the flavour and makes the onion crispier.

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