24.12.12

A tea party


Can you believe there's only 1 day left until Christmas? In this fast-paced world, time seems to only accelerate with each passing year! But for me, being back in Jakarta after a brief stint in Auckland and Sydney, I am relieved to finally be able to empty my suitcase and relax with the family.

Recently, I received a large folder of pictures in my inbox of my high tea fundraiser in Auckland taken by power couple Clint and Jo Chang. To give you international folks a snapshot of the lovely event, a blog post was no doubt in order. So let's look through the pictures and recount a beautiful summer afternoon of tea and cakes in Auckland's Grey Lynn.





Out of a desire to share the delicious foods I have been posting on this blog with readers and friends who have shown great support for my sweet endeavors, a tea party seemed like a fun way to share the love. The profits of the event has gone towards the production and pressing of my band Teacups' final record, as because of me being away in Paris this past year, we were unable to perform any gigs and therefore have no money. With the help of the ever resourceful Sarah Firmston from Bread and Butter Letter, we were able to attain a few sponsorships which helped the event to take shape and materialize. 

11.12.12

LYCHEE, ROSE AND RASPBERRIES


It sure is good to be back in the southern hemisphere; about to have me a summer Christmas like I'm used to. To me, December means lazy days at the beach, long lunches with friends and super cold bottles of summer cider. 

Some friends and I enjoying lunch at The Oyster Inn in Waiheke Island.

To mark the start of the summer season, a friend had asked me to create a simple raspberry tart to be featured on the Glassons blog. I wanted the tart to be fresh, simple and feature the freshness of this season's latest harvest. 


After coming across reasonably priced punnets of plump red raspberries, I decided to have a little play with Pierre Hermé's classic flavor combination, the Ispahan. It must have been a moment of divine inspiration when Monsieur Hermé had the idea to combine lychee, rose and raspberries together. The trio of aromas just blends and blooms together so nicely on the palate, you should really give him a well deserved pat on the back next time you see him.