Desserts at Masraff’s for Houston Restaurant Week August 27, 2009

I’m so happy that Houston has this going on.  Houston Restaurant Week (HRW) is an event for participating restaurants and foodies alike to support the Houston Food Bank to help fight hunger.  The event for this year has been extended til the end of August so it’s not too late to put your dining dollars to work for a great cause.

This past weekend I was able to join two of my close friends for a nice dinner at Masraff’s.  On the pre-fixed menu for HRW, there was three options for dessert:

double chocolate fondant

1. Warm double chocolate fondant with vanilla bean ice cream and cream anglaise
2. Warm triple berry bread pudding with white chocolate, blueberry compote, and cream cheese mousse
3. Butter roasted pear creme brulee and whole berry sauce

triple berry bread pudding

We favorably agreed to order one of each and share amongst the three of us.  I almost forgot to take a picture because I was joining in on the excitement by burrowing my fork into it.  Fortunately, I remembered in time and stopped my fellow dinettes from enjoying another bite until I got my shot of each one.  I’m sure they were ready to stick a fork in me because I took awhile but I’m glad I did because I do appreciate the the thought and creativity in plated desserts.  Having said that, the presentation was nice but the desserts were nothing new.  It seems every restaurant has a chocolate molten type of a dessert and creme brulee on their menu.  I’m still a big fan of both but nothing compares to having a dessert exclusively from a pastry shop.

Butter roasted pear creme brulee

Over all, the desserts was a perfect ending to the great food and service at Masraff’s.  The owner, Tony Masraff, visits each table to say hello and thank you which is very genuine of him to do so.

Now, I have yet to try to attempt to make creme brulee.  I guess I would need to purchase one of those mini dessert torches.  I wonder if it’s possible to make a buttercream taste like creme brulee.  I’ve seen creme brulee flavored coffee.  Maybe I can try making a buttercream filling for one of my cakes using those creme brulee coffee beans.  Hmmmm…

Macarons vs. Macaroons August 26, 2009

Before I left for Paris earlier this spring, I looked up travel forums for best things to buy in Paris in hopes of finding something unique and budget friendly.  There were plenty of great suggestions from a jar of Opera Garnier honey to a jar of face cream on St. Germaine.  However, I noticed one item that many reviewers kept suggesting to buy and that was macarons.  This struck me as odd because I assumed that they were referring to macaroons, the coconut confectionery that I was accustomed to eating here in the United States.  I even thought they kept spelling it wrong – silly me!  So I decided to look into this mysterious French macaron and stumbled upon a few websites for sweet spots that carry them.

La Maison du Chocolat – Known for their chocolates and macarons!  Boutiques in Paris, Cannes, London, New York, Tokyo and Hong Kong.

Laduree – Check out the story of the macaron on their website and discover the phenomenon.

These little nifty bite size round cake like cookies come in an assortment of flavors and fillings.  Simply made from ground almonds, eggs, and sugar, the genius is behind the precision, technique and creativity.  No wonder it’s French!

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to try the macarons while I was in Paris.  Can you believe that?!  I can’t, but there was so much to do in only three days that I missed out on my opportunity to taste a bite of heaven.  Nonetheless, I made a promise to myself that I would return!

Well, a second opportunity for me to taste a macaron presented itself when my boyfriend went to New York this past weekend.  I was going to ask him to bring some back from La Maison du Chocolat and I did, sort of.  You see, I really didn’t give him great direction.  You know, I just expected for him to read my mind, right?  Well, he tried.  Instead, he brought back some coconut macaroons from Veniero’s.  Although, fate has it that it’s not my time to taste a macaron yet, I sure did enjoy the coconut macaroons!  It’s been awhile since I’ve had some but the ones from Veniero’s were absolutely divine.  The texture was velvety rich and the chocolate covered ones were an added reward for your taste buds.  Hopefully, I’ll be able to take a trip soon to either Paris or New York again and splurge on both macarons and macaroons.

d Bar desserts July 27, 2009

d Bar desserts Denver, CO

It’s 11:00pm on a Friday night and here I am, navigating our way to 17th street in Denver’s uptown area to experience my first-ever dessert bar.  Mind you that this is my second time to the Mile-High City and when I mentioned navigating – there’s no GPS involved!  Alas, our cost-cutting measures paid off when we finally arrived with thirty minutes to spare before closing time.

Here we are, d Bar Desserts.  Created by Keegan Gerhard and Lisa Bailey.  Ever seen the Food Network Challenge Series with talented pastry chefs competing with each other?  Well, Keegan is host/MC for the must-watch tv series and I got to visit his very own culinary sanctuary.  Although, I am not so familiar with Lisa Bailey’s background, I read her bio and she is just as accomplished.  Plus, she’s from Texas and attended the Art Institute of Houston.

Ok, so now I’m peering through the glass doors to catch dessert making action.  All the while entertaining the thought of tasting pastry heaven outside, in what would be for me, an unusually cool summer evening.  Yes, I’m from Houston and your skin would would win this debate, too.  However, I do suggest sitting at the bar to watch the pastry chef create delectable wonders because what our waitress brought out gave dessert the refinement that a Rolex does for your wrist.  Take a look!

Strawberry Shortcake

Looks scrumptious, eh?  Well, it tasted scrumptious, too!  Here are the donuts listed on their plated dessert menu.  These are not your ordinary Dunkin’ Donuts but definitely donuts to dunk in that creamy sauce.

Not your Dunkin' Donuts

Overall, I enjoyed my first-ever experience at a dessert bar and I’m glad it was at d Bar Desserts in Denver, CO.  Looking forward to visiting more around the world!