My trip to France was my first international experience ever. As much as I tried to prepare, there really is just no preparing for the unknown. From walking a mile underground in between each subway line to the reality of the hotel rooms, everything seemed...
When I was but a spring chicken who had just graduated from university, I went on a backpacking trip to Italy with one of my friends. It was hot, we were young and Italy was a marvelous cacaphony of ancient ruins, art...
On a hot day in summer, when you don't feel like cooking or baking, yet feel the need to create something yummy isn't an easy task. That's when I rely on agar agar to make cold dessert. I've made mizu yokan before...
There's just something about growing your own food. In this Brave New World of global import/export where you can basically die from eating the wrong vegetable (big cucumber scandal in Germany with lots of casualties), is a home grown meal the...
Can you believe it?!?!? Governor Cuomo and a bunch of super wealthy Republican bankers really said YES to gay marriage in the state of New York. When it was announced that, "Same sex marriage bill has passed", I was overcome with amazement, joy, "it's about...
After having spent my later teen years plowing through the novels of Douglas Coupland, Bret Easton Ellis and other post modern cynics, I can't help but see myself in so many typical Generation X situations. Meaning that you suddenly find yourself in a condition...
After seeing so many people starting a second career by opening gluten-free bakeries around the U.S., I thought, "Martha, you totally missed your chance to capitalize on my MO-dessert line!" Unfortunately, whenever I read recipes for gluten-free items online, it's always so complicated....
I was recently in Holland for a week, and my good friend and travel buddy, Josh, became OBSESSED with stroopwafels, a Dutch delicacy. A stroopwafel is like a big wafer cookie sandwich that's a bit chewy and filled with a sweet syrupy...
I am sure you have been wondering for a week what the hell I was going to do with Barbie doll. I must say, this journey was one of the most hilarious baking experiences I've ever gone through. I made a birthday cake for a...
Oh great, here we go again. Another blog post about Japanese food packaging design. But you know what? The reality is that the Japanese kick our butts many times over when it comes to intelligent, fun and groundbreaking ways to wrap something...
As you know, I love to bake, and I am especially fond of cakes. I do it all--classic cakes, crazy cakes, Japanese cakes, chocolate cakes, wedding cakes (trauma). I love to come up with crazy combinations, that I try to...
After getting canned without reason, the day after her maternity leave was up, Paula Cinini was not sure what to do; she had always worked as a journalist. To find some solace in this devastating situation, and cope with her mother's passing, Paula dug up...
As you may all know, I'm half-Japanese and half-Sri Lankan, so anything to do with either country sparks an immediate interest. So when I began hearing rumours about a new Japanese cake shop and tea salon springing up in...
Dear Microsoft Office (and all you other people who can't differentiate between a macaron from a macaroon), Macaron is not a macaroon. Every time I write "macaron", you always highlight it, suggesting I misspelled the word and replace it with "macaroon" instead. How atrocious. I...
I know this piece of cake doesn't look so hot, but to be fair, it's been through a lot. Last weekend I was at a house party in Williamsburg. It was still Passover, so I was having wine instead of beer, cheese with no...
You may think that coconut custard pudding sounds quite ordinary or not your thing, but trust me, you haven't tried one of Sri Lanka's best-loved desserts. I'm a self-confessed dessert-aholic and one of my favourite sweets is crème caramel (pudding or
Before I go into this week's tear-jerking post, I am fortunate to tell you that all my peeps in Japan are fine, but my thoughts are with everyone who is affected by the earthquake. This is truly awful, sad, and devastating for all of us....
My MO-obsession (baking with rice flour) has returned, and this time, it's the MOcaron. Now that I know exactly what to do when it comes to macaron-making, substituting almond flour with other ingredients is not that hard. Having said that, I had no idea...
PREFACE: Battle ReCPY: Madeleines (Mary Ann + Marcus) Valentine's Day is so overrated. Why do people pay extra for red roses? Why do you have to buy new lingerie? WTF is up with all the chocolate? I don't understand what's so romantic about today--it's...
The kawaii (= cute) world of Japan is a very positive dimension of happiness, beauty, bunnies, rainbows and ribbons. And not just something that contains characters, but also an aesthetic approach that appeals to your heart, with a rather feminine touch and usually a soft...
