Enchanté

I present to you, Enchanté, my way of spreading the joy of whisking, piping, baking, and everything to do with French pastry.

When I enrolled in Le Cordon Bleu I vaguely had a plan to eventually have some sort of cake business. By the time I finished the basic level I had narrowed it down to a home-based cooking class with the occasional order-made cakes. Two years and three countries later, it has finally come true. Granted, the first actual lesson is not until the end of April but at least the website is up and I have typed up the recipes for the first lesson, in both English and Japanese!

For the first lesson, I’m doing something relatively easy but is yummy to taste and impressive to the eye too. The pineapple coconut cake is a tried and true favorite of mine, which I tend to make whenever I need to whip up a quick gift to give out. All the ingredients are pantry-ready so all I need to do is mix, bake, brush and wrap. The cake is super moist and tastes the best the next day: good for making ahead.


The recipe for the rosette chocolate cookie with ganache filling was discovered recently when we were staying in the serviced apartment before moving into our own place. With limited kitchen appliances, I needed a recipe that doesn’t involve any new purchases, and the rosette filled the bill. A bowl and a wire whisk to whip up the dough; a pastry bag with a star tip to pipe; and a baking sheet with some parchment paper plus a small saucepan to cook the cream for the ganache – Voila! You have yourself a batch of rich crumbly buttery cookies with a smooth chocolate ganache filling that's the perfect sweeness. I did modify the ganache recipe to suit Singapore’s hot climate. The original recipe for the ganache resulted in a runny mess that just would not set in the tropical temperature. Instead I made a Anglaise sauce and added gelatin to it before mixing in the chocolate. This way the ganache will hold its shape when piped so from the side you see three matching layers of pretty swirls. Minor details, I know, but then again, it’s all about the details, always.

Class schedule and reservation.

Bonbons and Truffles, Oh My!

Hey y’all, many of you already know that I have recently started my little business – Enchanté, but some of you may not know that I’m also going to be teaching some classes at a cooking school in Singapore called Palate Sensations. It’s a really cool place set up like a large home-kitchen in a historical black and white house (you’ll need to have visited Singapore to know it). Owner Lynette is an amazing lady who’s so friendly that you’ll feel right at home the minute you step inside the kitchen studio.

After a “practice run”of cooking a sushi dinner for some of Palate Sensations’ sponsors and friends, my firsts lessons at the school are going to be on chocolates! Chocolates are tricky, even under the best of circumstances, so needless to say, I’m a little nervous to be teaching in unfamiliar territory, but hey, people want to learn how to make chocolate candies and somebody’s gotta teach it.

To introduce the novice student to the art of artisan chocolates, my début workshop will consist three easy to make yet delicious chocolates:

- Pictured in the photo are easy orange flavored bonbons in three different coatings for flavor variations. They are your fail-proof recipes whenever you need to whip up a quick batch to give out as gifts.

- Now that you’ve gained some confidence making the bonbons, you will then tackle the classic ganache truffle. After seeing how easy it is to add flavors to the ganache, the only limitation to the variety of truffles you’ll be churning out is your imagination.

- Finally, tempered milk chocolate will be used to make a delightful little candy called “mendiant”: a chocolate disc studded with dried fruits and nuts. Not only is it pleasing to the eye, with Amedei’s rich milky chocolate, you will have a hard time stopping yourself from eating another one of these little treats.

I hope your interest is piqued. I assure you that chocolate-making is addictive and once you start, you simply won’t want to stop. So what are you waiting for? Give Lynette a call and sign up for the class!

Classes are held on May 12th and 16th, from 11am to 2pm. See schedule.