Eat Cake Cafe, Rowland Heights, CA

I had a wonderful weekend of meeting up with family and friends.  Over the weekend, my sister bought me some very "fancy" and good looking petite cakes from a new bakery, called Eat Cake Cafe in Rowland Heights, Ca.  The cakes are all so cute and hard for me to destroy them and put them in my mouth. 

Bottom left - Mango Mousse Cake
Top left - Italian Tiramisu Cake
Bottom right - Red Bean Cake
Top right - Green Tea Chiffon Cake

Just like its fellow bakeries, 85 degree (Taiwanese mixed with Western) and Cream Pan (Japanese mixed with Western), this is a Korean fusion bakery.  A lot of their creations are inspired by Asian or tropical ingredients (green tea, passion fruit, red beans, mango...), but also they have a lot of Western inspired cakes, cookies and pastries, such as well decorated sugar cookies, strawberry short cakes, tiramisu... 

Green Tea Chiffon Cake

Tiramisu

Inside of the cake

My sister got me a total of four cakes to try out - Mango Mousse cake, Italian Tiramisu, Red Bean Cake and Green Tea Chiffon Cake. The Mango Mousse Cake was heavenly good - very refreshing, light and moist cake.  The Tiramisu Cake with chocolate wrapped around and inside of the cake was a creamy body with a hint of alcohol in it (so sexy).  The Green Tea Chiffon Cake was light, flavorful and fluffy. And last but not the least, the Red Bean Cake was absolutely delightful.  I got lucky to have my sister delivered the cakes for me this time.  I will definitely check them out in person the next time when I am around the area. Based one what my sister and my foodies friends told me about this place and also all the reviews on yelp (4 and a half stars rating), I don't think I am going to be disappointed.  Even better, most of their pastries are gluten free and organic.  I didn't even notice I was eatting some amazing pastries without gluten.

Eat Cake Cafe

19705 E Colima Rd
Ste 6
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

(909) 468-2253
Hours: 

Hours:  Mon-Thu 7:30 am - 7:30 pm

  Fri 7:30 am - 9 pm

            Sat 9 am - 9 pm

(check out their website for more inforamtion and menu) 

P.S. More pictures will be uploaded soon, stay tuned!

I burn calories so I can eat them.

I love blogging all the sweet things I made, saw, tasted, and read.  I also like following bloggers, who share the same interest; I am going to dedicate two posts to introduce two blogs that I have religiously been following for a while.

(Pictures from the blog of the Cupcake Activist and Orange County Register)

The first blog I have been following for a while, is a blog called the Cupcake Activist.  Why Cupcake Activist?  Elise Wallace, a girl with a HUGE sweet tooth, a hard-core runner and triathlete and a busy new mommy, writes about her love of cupcakes on her blog, the Cupcake Activist.  You might think cupcakes and running don't go together, right?  Yes, it is in theory; however, it is not in the Cupcake Activist's book.  According to Elise, "She burns calories so she can eat them." (this belief makes her two loves, two very different things living harmony.)  When I first came across this blog, I immediately fell in love with it.  The blog is full of reference and information for those who love cupcakes.  Elise goes to different cupcakes places and writes reviews about what she felt about the places she visited.  It's a good source to plan my trip, so I know which cupcakes places are worth to stop by, and which are not.  She also shares recipe she used or interesting recipes she found online.  Beside sharing her passion of cupcakes, she also talks about her passion of running and competing, and her struggle against sweet especially before each race.  I am NOT a hard core runner or triathlete; however, I am a hard core work out addict, who work out 5-6 days a week.  As a work out addict, I TOTALLY understand and could related to how she feels.

Get started -
how I fell in love with the blog of the Cupcake Activist

run, swim, bike and be happy!

I tried to get as details as possible on the watch

Who doesn't love a pair of hot pink running shoes? 
Mine are hot pink with black=)

Go get the gold!!!

Earlier last month, I contacted Elise, the Cupcake Activist and offered a dozen of free decorated cupcakes for her to try.  We met few weeks ago in a heavy rainy day at the Starbucks in the charming Old Towne Orange (we both reside in the lovely City of Orange).  I was so nervous to meet her at the coffee shop (it reminded me of a blind date, except for I know how she looks like; but she didn't.).  We got to chat a little bits and get to know each other; I love this girl even more than before!  She was a very sweet girl and I could totally tell she is very passionate towards cupcakes (meeting a total stranger, who also loves cupcakes in a heavy rainny day) and running (hey, she just finished running a 5k before meeting me up and started racing again after just 3 month of birth giving.)

To the one and only Cupcake Activist...

Totally ready

Sweat and get some aqua

I specially crafted her some running and triathlon themed cupcake toppers.  The cake is apple cinnamon cupcakes with caramel butter cream.  I am glad she and her friends loved the cupcakes I made for her with my heart (Check out here to see what she felt about the decoration and the cupcakes.).  That was a very plesant blind date=)

Good job, well done!



Models Eat...and Bake Too - Petite Amanda Patisserie (Hong Kong)

Last month, I shared with everyone how a movie and two wonderful ladies have changed my life (click here to find out who have inspired me).  Today, I am going to share another inspiring story with you about how a model has turned to become a baker and the owner of a French patisserie in Hong Kong.

Amanda Strang, my favorite model has just opened her first patisserie in IFC, Hong Kong.  I am so excited to hear that her "baby" is finally out after all these years of her hard works.  Most American might not know who she is.  She is a successful model and a TV food show host in Hong Kong.  I fell in love with Amanda when I first saw her face.  She is always cute and classy and reminds me of a mixed (Taiwanese and French) version of Aurdry Hepburn.

Let me give you a little background about Amanda -

Amanda had lived in French, India and Taiwan most of her life when she was a kid.  She went to Boston for college.  After graduating from college, she visited Hong Kong for fun and got discovered by a modeling agency.  She immediately started her modeling career and got very successful in Asia (especially in Hong Kong).  However, her passion towards food and French pastry had stopped her to think about taking a break from her successful modeling career and enroll at Le Cordon Bleu to prusuit her dream of opening her own store.  She has interned at Caprice and Ladurée as well as with Jacques Genin for NON-PAID for couple years.  After years of preparation, her first patisserie has just opened in August 2011.  If you want to know more about what made her decided to give up her catwalk career and turned to baking and making desserts (click here for a recent interview).  She also has a blog to share her recipes and her journey in French, if you are interested, click here.

I have not had chance to check out her patisserie yet, so I could not tell you what my verdict is.  But I could share some pictures I found from various websites with you.  So you could check out her patisserie if you have chance, and let me know how it is.

*Note:  to see what other people think about her pastisserie, click here.

Petite Amanda. Open Monday - Friday 8 a.m. 8 p.m.; Saturday - Sunday 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
Shop 2096, International Finance Centre Mall 2, Central, +852 2234 7222 (just next by Starbucks)

The design and colors of her patisserie matches Amanda's classy and clean-cut style.

 Amanda's Verrine ($70.00 HKD), made of maple syrup jelly, orange compote,
whipped cream and sweet crumble topping
[Note:  you could keep the the exclusive Le Creuset ramekin it's serve in.]

The Delice Aux Abricots is a cute-as-a-button dome of white chocolate mousse with an apricot compote filling and a crushed biscuit bottom.

They also made various French breads daily - Pain au Levain

Their signature triangled cake box

One of the desserts at the store

This is Amanda's signature dessert.  A quote from her - 

"Ah! That has to be my chocolate cake. I make it with three layers of different textures so they all contrast and meld together with different flavour infusions in a really satisfying way."

Amanda is introducing her deserts to her customers.  

A lot of reviewers said that she is SUPER nice and thoughtful.  She asked about what they like and suggested them what kinds of desserts they should get.

I somehow feel a strong connection between Amanda and myself.  Of course, I am not talking about our faces or bodies (she is out of my league).  I feel that we both have the passion towards food and food industry and pursuing our dreams are not easy, but we did at least try.  

I  know her new journey has just began, and I truly wish that her new career will become as successful as her modeling career.  And please keep introducing great French pastries to everyone in the world.