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Second Cup – Maple Tea

Tea’s have been becoming more and more popular, and special flavours that are offered year round is no exception. Now that spring is here, Second Cup has put out a neat new Maple Tea made with Rooibos tea with the delicious aroma of warm maple syrup.

This option is Caffeine-free and Rainforest Alliance Certified™, so not only does it taste good, it’s kind of good for the environment too! The colour that infused out of the Maple Tea Bag is really quite pretty, and the scent definitely smells like maple. It’s delicious as is or with a tad of honey!

Be sure to try the Second Cup’s Maple Latte if you’re looking for a fantastic latte with sweet maple flavours!

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Second Cup – Maple Latte

Sure, spring is coming back, but Second Cup has brought back a sweet favourite of mine, the Maple Latte! It’s sweeter than a lot of other lattes, since obviously they use maple flavours which is a wonderful latte flavour.

This wonderful latte is made with Second Cups signature spring latte with delicious maple notes, velvety microfoam, and robust espresso taste. It really is as delicious as it sounds and trust me, 100 times better than it looks too!

Be sure to try Second Cup’s Maple Tea as a lighter option!

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Superior Tofu – Fresh Soy Milk

I’ve been looking for a great Soy Milk to make some Chinese recipes with. One particular recipe that was a lot more finicky would be making dou fu fa. I’ve tried my favourite brand of soy milk, and it had 3 ingredients on it’s list. I was thinking it would be okay, but it didn’t set.

During my search, I found exactly what I was looking for! Just Fresh Soy Milk! This was Superior Tofu brand that I found at the Asian grocery store. Because it doesn’t have preservatives, it doesn’t last long – so be sure you have something to do with it before purchasing it! Another option of course is making the soy milk at home, which again wouldn’t last long!

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Homemade Sai Mai Lo – 西米露

Home Made Chinese Coconut Tapioca Dessert Recipe

There’s nothing more refreshing on a hot day, or just a blah day than a bowl of tapioca pudding (or better yet, soup) which is thick, flavourful and creamy!

Ingredients (makes 2 Chinese bowls)
1/4 Tapioca Pearls – 西米 (dried)
1/4 cup rock sugar
1 can coconut milk (165mL)
1/2 can 2% milk or evaporated milk (about 82.5mL)

First, rinse the tapioca pearls off well, it helps with getting rid of the “tapioca starch” sediments, so rinse with cold water. Then, let the pearls sit and soak for a few hours until it has at least doubled or tripled in size. The longer they soak, the less time it takes for them to cook!

I like to rinse the pearls again, before putting them in a pot of boiling water. So, bring some water up to a boil and pour the pearls in there. Don’t step away long if you have to, these pearls do cook up fast! The pearls will become clear or translucent – but pour them through a fine mesh strainer when there is a bit of whiteness still in the centre! Rinse WELL under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Meanwhile, pour the can of coconut milk and half a can (the can the coconut milk was in) of either milk or evaporated milk. Dissolve some brown rock sugar in the milk making sure the milk never comes to a full boil – otherwise, you’ll start getting a film on top when it begins to cool. You can also dissolve the sugar in some boiling water if you’re afraid of the film.

Once the mixture has combined thoroughly, stir in the pearls and you’re ready to enjoy! I like my sai mai lo both hot and cold, and since I can make 2 bowls with this recipe, I normally eat one right away and the other goes into the fridge!

If you don’t really want to make your own, a delicious option would be to get it at T&T Supermarket! They make a really good one, and it comes in a convenient cup, and it’s the same portion size! Their Sai Mai Lo is actually not bad at all!

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Homemade Ma Lai Go – 馬拉糕

Home Made Chinese Steamed Sponge Cake

I didn’t know what to make – besides knowing I wanted to make a cake. I’m no good at baking, so I opted for a steamed cake. The first one that came to my mind was the ma lai go which is a common cake that you’d get during dim sum. This is a simple recipe for a small batch, which was all I needed!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup cake flour
1/2 cup of sugar
2 eggs beaten

First you cream the eggs and sugar together until it becomes “thick” and forms kind of “ribbons” from your whisk. This does take a long time, so use an electric beater or have lots of energy! Make sure you get your steamer ready as you need it right away! The steamer and everything has to be hot and ready – or the cake won’t rise and you’ll just get a block of cake.

Once the mixture is creamy, thick and frothy, then you’re ready to add in the flour. Mix the flour in gently until incorporated – do not over mix!

Then, just pour the batter into the container of choice. I used 2 small ramekins, which worked great for my purpose!

Steam for 30 minutes and you’ll know it’s ready when the cake starts pulling away from the sides. You can do the clean toothpick test too just to verify!

Serve hot/warm, and I just pulled my little cake out of the ramekin so you can see the great bubbles.