Dessert

Mork Chocolate Brew House

Peanut Brittle Brownie Ball

Tremendously rich and decadent, with a fudge-like centre and a sweet crunchy exterior.

★★★☆☆

Original Dark Hot Chocolate (70% cacao)

Quality cocoa powder, thin slightly powdery drink.

★★☆☆☆

Layered Chocolate (chilled chocolate, warm orange zest and vanilla bean custard)

The chilled chocolate tasted like regular chocolate milk however the custard was simply amazing. Not only was it delicious but it was also light and airy which meant that it was able to sit on top of the chocolate layer. We were told not to mix the chocolate and custard together but to drink it as it was, allowing the chocolate to carry through the custard with each sip.

★★★★☆

Overall:

Expect to find quality chocolate drinks and rich desserts at this popular little place. We were told that the wait for a table was 40 minutes so decided to get takeaways instead (because who in their right mind would wait that long for a hot chocolate?) We were told that the Chocolate Soda, A Chocolate Bar and the Campfire Chocolate were not available as takeaways which was a shame because I really wanted to try the Campfire Chocolate as it is served with actual smoke. Service was friendly however due to the limited seating and pricey menu items, I won’t be in a rush to come back here any time soon. I’d rather buy some Mörk chocolate powder and enjoy it at home.

Mork Chocolate Brew House

150 Errol St, North Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9328 1386

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A La Folie

Raspberry vanilla macaron

Praline petits choux, Rose delight macaron, White peach and blood peach petits choux, Salted caramel macaron

Chai latte & Soy latte

Overall:

A delightful French patisserie that specialises in macarons and petits choux. The macarons were good however the petits choux were simply marvellous. Light and delicate choux pastry filled with delicious crème patissière and topped with a colourful fondant. My favourite was the praline petits choux. Unfortunately the drinks we had were very watery so I suggest that you stick to the pastries. Definitely try one of their petits choux the next time you are on Chapel St.

A La Folie 2

A La Folie

589 Chapel St, South Yarra, VIC

(03) 9827 3337

http://www.alafolie.com.au/

*Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of A La Folie.

Miss Fitzy’s

I was invited to a menu tasting at Miss Fitzy’s a little while ago and had the pleasant opportunity to sample a range of their mouthwatering dishes.

Monica’s Melting Majik

(Van Gogh coconut vodka, strega liqueur, housemade chai syrup, coconut water, candied cherry)

Smoked quail, parsley and mustard fruits on rye

Spicy fried school prawns served with garlic aioli

Organic tomato, buffalo mozzarella, herbs

Roasted squid, chorizo, parsley, pickled onion

Smoked chicken wings, pork belly, mustard fruits

Grilled Robbins Island wagyu bavette steak, poached quail eggs, truffle

Scallops, bacon, truffle, watercress, black caviar

Grilled goats’ cheese, beetroot, quinoa, hazelnut

Whole 1kg crispy fried snapper, asparagus, sauce grenobloise

(deboned and reconstructed!)

Asparagus, snow peas, parmesan & egg

Smoked saskia beer corn fed chicken, roasted celeriac, brussel sprouts

Cape Grim black Angus 2+ Tri Tip, charred onions, roasted carrots, duck fat potato

(from left to right)

Bitter chocolate, olive oil & peanut brittle, brown butter sherbet

Cinnamon doughnut custard, chocolate, coffee, shortbread

Rhubarb & pear jelly, liquid puff pastry, prune and Armagnac ice cream

Overall:

Located at the beach end of Fitzroy Street in St Kilda, Miss Fitzy’s is a great place to head to if you are after a tasty sharing menu or a decent late night feed. The menu has French and Spanish influences and has been created by head chef Lachy Cashman (Circa, Sloaney Pony, Salsa Bar and Grill Port Douglas) who has a background in butchery and meat curing. So it came as no surprise to discover that Miss Fitzy’s has their own custom-built smoker and curing room. Every dish I sampled was terrific but I particularly enjoyed the prawns, smoked chicken wings, scallops and the duck fat chips (oh so amazing!). The decor here is simple and chic, with impressive 1920s inspired murals along the back walls. Note that this place is closed on Mondays.

Miss Fitzy’s

23 Fitzroy St, St Kilda, VIC

(03) 9537 1653

http://missfitzys.com.au/

*Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of Miss Fitzy’s.

Ten Minutes By Tractor

1333 Mornington-Flinders Rd, Main Ridge 5989 6455

Olive and multigrain bread served with caramelised Myrtleford butter, pink salt and olive oil

Yellow beetroot, quinoa, goats curd

Grilled pear, quince, brioche

Red Hill Somers Soft goats cheese, roast pumpkin, chickpea, green beans, hazelnut vinaigrette

Roasted Whiting fillet, fried mussel, confit tomatoes, fennel, olive oil pomme purée

Mustard glazed quail, onion & pearl barley risotto, peppered pancetta and mulled wine apples,

served with freshly baked brioche

Roasted wallaby loin, beetroot, parsnip, chestnut cream, quinoa, fig jus

Tamarillo sorbet

Michel Cluizel chocolate & hazelnut pavé, honey ice cream, poached pears

Brie and crackers

Overall:

We opted for the five course degustation menu which turned out to be the right choice as we were already quite sated by the fourth course. The food was beautifully presented and each dish comprised of fresh, well complemented ingredients. However the standout item for me was without a doubt the EXTRAORDINARY caramelised Myrtleford butter! Served warm, it was exquisitely creamy yet light and had a delicious hint of sweetness to it. The cheese served here was also divine and is well worth trying. The decor was polished, and the service was professional yet slightly stand-offish. The dining room offers splendid views of the winery but only seats around 50 people so reservations are recommended as this place does get busy. It was a lovely experience but the only reason why I would come back would be for the butter.

Hot Cross Cookies

Recipe from: Donna Hay

Alterations I made were:

substituting the sultanas in the recipe for chocolate chips
using melted white chocolate for the crosses instead of icing sugar

Overall:

I’ve had a cookie craving for the past week now and finally found some time today to make these. These sweet crumbly cookies have a distinctive cinnamon taste and I feel that one teaspoon of cinnamon instead of two is plenty enough. (Note that I didn’t use a piping bag, hence the uneven crosses.)

Hope you all have a Happy Easter!

Mr. Hive Kitchen & Bar – Dessert Degustation

8 Whiteman St, Southbank 9292 8300

Chiboust, exaggerated blackberries, basil sorbet, hazelnuts, hazelnut oil, mint chocolate and puff pastry

Lychee and pine nut tartare, white chocolate, raspberries, gruyere cheese, lychee bubbles and poached raspberries

Mandarin and yogurt ice cream balls

Chestnut honey yogurt, milk crumb, scorched ruby and pink grapefruit poached in elderflower, elderflower jelly, caramelised seville orange, peach/honey/yogurt sorbet and orange isomalt sugar

Housemade dulce leche mousse in a mango glaze, mango poached in kaffir lime leaf, oat cookies, dark ale granita and a multigrain crouton

Dark chocolate sauce, milk chocolate cremeux, dark chocolate frozen soil, pistachio crumb, strawberry sorbet, dried strawberries and strawberry dust

Complimentary take home chocolates: Raspberry milk chocolate & Yuzu and chai dark chocolate

Overall:

I simply LOVE dessert. I am one of those people who always has room for something sweet. So when we decided to come and sample the new dessert degustation menu at Mr. Hive, I was very excited. And I must say, the dessert here did not disappoint.

The dessert bar was overseen by pastry chef John Demetrios, for whom I have a lot of respect. Previously the pastry chef at Circa, he was responsible for some of the best soufflés that I have ever tasted in Melbourne. As we sat at the bar and watched him at work, I marvelled at how quick and neat he was at assembling all the delicate little pieces and tiny details that made up each dessert. Although I thoroughly enjoyed every single dish that John created, the stand out elements for me were the basil sorbet (strikingly fresh with a strong basil flavour), the mandarin yogurt ice cream balls (which were lightly scorched before being served so that the ice cream inside was soft and bursted with flavour once you bit into it) and the dark ale granita (beautifully refreshing).

Note that the dessert degustation menu changes weekly every Tuesday and that the dessert bar only seats 6 people so bookings are recommended.

Le Bon Continental Cake Shop

93 Acland St, St Kilda 9534 2515

Vanilla slice

Boysenberry, pistachio and almond tart

Thoughts:

Vanilla slice – alternating layers of flaky puff pastry and smooth custard, dusted with powdered sugar. Wasn’t overly sweet = Good

Boysenberry, pistachio and almond tart – dense syrupy tart = Not bad

Overall:

You can’t help but slow down and ogle at the huge assortment of desserts that they have on display here. However once you actually step into the shop, the magic and the excitement that you feel while looking through the window is lost. The place felt cold, was too brightly lit and was so quiet that you feel almost uncomfortable having a conversation in there. The waitress who served us was pleasant enough while the owner sat at the table behind us and read from his newspaper the entire time we were there. So if you really want to try any of their desserts, best to get it as a take away.

Vanilla Cakes and Lounge

17-21 Eaton Mall, Oakleigh 9568 3358

Thick Chips

Spanakopita (Greek spinach pie with feta)

Brioche french toast with maple syrup and stewed pears

Moussaka

Pastitsio

Bougatsa (custard)

Portokalopita (Orange phyllo cake)

Desserts

Thoughts:

Thick chips – When they say ‘thick’, they really mean THICK! = Not bad

Spanakopita – Ideal for a light meal = Good

Brioche french toast – It’s hard to go wrong with brioche. What did surprise me though was how fantastic the stewed pears were; not overly sweet with a bit of a crunch = Good

Moussaka – Generous serving that has a thick béchamel sauce layer along with layers of eggplant, potato and beef mince = Excellent

Pastitsio – Found the beef and pasta a bit dry = Not bad

Bougatsa – Oh so scrumptious! Crispy phyllo pastry wrapped around warm tantalising custard, dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon = Excellent

Portokalopita – Firm yet quite moist, syrupy sweet with a distinct citrus taste = Not bad

Overall:

There is a huge food menu on offer (including a breakfast menu), but I recommend that you try the Greek dishes as a lot of their other dishes are rather average. As for the abundant desserts, I love how there is a mixture of standard ones along with traditional Greek ones. The atmosphere is considerably noisy, and the service at times can be slow if you go during peak periods. Nevertheless this is a terrific place to go for grabbing coffee and/or dessert. Especially late at night on a weekday as they open until 1am 7 days a week!

White Chocolate Mud Cake

Ok first of all, please ignore my crappy icing. I was trying to do something fancy, but that ending up failing so i scraped everything off and hid my failure with icing sugar.

Thoughts:

So I found this recipe from Exclusively Food
Changes I made to the recipe: decreasing the amount of white chocolate to 270g and the sugar to 1/2 a cup (this still resulted in a very sweet cake)
Once the mixture is poured into a baking pan, make sure you drop the pan from 10cm or so onto a counter LOTS of times to get rid all the air bubbles before baking

Overall:

A quick and easy recipe that results in a delicious mud cake that will leave you wanting another slice…and another slice