Snacks: Hmmm, what's that?! - Taiwanese dessert chocolate candies

Wow, haven't done a snacks post in a long time.  Been eating a little healthier and trying to save money to feed my addition for tea, but this treat I could not pass up trying!

Two of Taiwan's most iconic foods are now little chocolate candies: bubble tea and pineapple cake.

I have a soft spot for the company's strawberry chocolate so am always looking out for their chocolates.  These squares are also very cute (IMO).

So, how were they?

First, I have to say I like the wrappers.

Second, marks for trying to incorporate texture in both pieces.  Adding a "BUBBLE" or tapioca-like pearl into the tea flavoured chocolate and some cookie like texture into the pineapple flavoured chocolate.

But, in terms of taste there was something a little off in the bubble tea one, not quite the tea flavour I was expecting but it is milky.  The pineapple tasted more real but I'm a little put off by the orange colour.  Anyway, I think they are great to try for the novelty of it all or as a gift to bubble tea loving people, but not sure if I'd buy it regularly if I was in the mood for sweets.

Ingredients list for those interested...

Dazzling Cafe in Toronto

For months I could only see a glimpse of the distinct pink and white front signage for Dazzling Cafe from afar but never confirmed what it was till recently.  In Taipei, Dazzling Cafe is well known for it's desserts and specifically honey toast.  When they first opened, line ups would be so long that on my last visit to Taiwan, I didn't attempt to go.  But upon realizing they have opened a Toronto location just down the street from where I am, I decided it was time to try this dessert cafe.

The decor is very cute and feminine; typical of some places in Taiwan where girlfriends love to gather for brunch or dessert.  It definitely makes you feel quite "girly" and although I'm past the age of baby doll dresses and reading ViVi magazine, I still love the dining experience of something so cute.

Chairs with bunny ears :)

We had gone for dinner despite knowing the food options were not going to be plenty nor were portions going to be large.  I figured we'd make up the calories with dessert!  :)

Ordered popcorn chicken, came heavily seasoned with five spice powder and pepper, not bad.

I had the bacon and poached egg pasta which looked and tasted good but portions were small for North America.  Very normal for Taiwan though.  You also don't get much in the way of bacon but the egg was poached well.  The pasta wasn't very heavy, if you're used to rich sauces you may not enjoy it as it was more light and pleasant.

My partner had the pork jowl baked rice.  Tasted good as well but very small portions.

We each got a milk tea which tasted fine, nothing spectacular though.  We did ask for reduced sugar and ice.  Too bad they didn't have any special set meals where the drink is at a discount.

Dessert...

Hazelnut chocolate honey toast was a mountain of bread, ice cream and whipped cream.  It was good but definitely lacked enough ice cream and had too much whipped cream to really make it an extraordinary dessert.  And I think I was disappointed that the ice cream was vanilla.  They cut the inside of the toast into cubes and the hazelnut choocalate part was a small amount of nutella piped into each cube.  In the end, we had quite a bit of the toast shell left over.  If they made this with even just one more scoop of ice cream it'd be much better.

Service was great which always makes the experience better.  They have a small upper level and I noticed a few high chairs were available for those bringing little ones.  Overall, it is expensive for what you get, but I'd consider coming back again for a bubble tea and/or dessert with friends.


Dazzling Cafe

37 Sheppard Avenue E
Toronto, ON M2N 7K1

T:  647-723-7300

http://dazzlingcafecanada.com/

Snacks: Hmmm, What's That?! - Satsumaimo Caramels

So, I've been snacking on little treats lately but haven't had time to post.  Most have been just okay.  But, on a recent visit to T&T, I noticed a cute little box.  Well, actually, it kinda looks a bit retro, not necessarily "cute" so I had to pick it up.  It turned out to be sweet potato caramels and although I don't particularly eat caramels, the sweet potato in it was interesting enough to make me want to try it. 

Taste - mild sweet potato taste and yes, it is like caramel but less sweet.
Texture - soft, chewy, but a little less chewy and sticky that regular caramels.  Consistency is not as thick as your typical caramel which I quite liked.

The little squares are actually wrapped in paper candy.  Yes, if you are familiar with Asian treats, some of the more stickier candies are wrapped in paper that is edible.  On the packaging they refer to it as "a thin edible layer of starch".  I always thought this was neat :)  Reminds me of a blog post I read on this paper factory in Taiwan where part of the factory makes edible paper.

I'd definitely buy again as it's a nice little treat. Too bad I don't have a use for the box though!

Oh, and just to add to the sweet potato theme, I came across really nice pictures of soft serve ice cream and ice cream served in a sweet potato skin that I'd love to try (at SobokSobok Korean Dessert Cafe)!  Unfortunately it's in Seoul, Korea!

Snacks: Hmmm, What's That - Roasted Soy Melty Kiss

This box was one I had been eyeing, but waited for a sale to buy.  The flavour is roasted soybean which might sound odd but it‘s very good.

I've never actually had the "Meltykiss" line of chocolates.  They usually have strawberry and green tea which are two flavours I gravitate to but still, I've never had it.  The squares are small chocolate coated with a dusting of cocoa powder. Smaller than I expected but each bite is quite yummy. I also expected it to be very soft or "melty" in the centre but although it was soft, it was not really "melty".

So, what does roasted soy taste like?  I find it similar to peanut butter but not as strong and more umami tasting.  I've been a fan of roasted soy ever since I bought a package of roasted soy powder (kinako) to use in baking and making mochi.  You can find this at Korean, Chinese, or Japanese supermarkets.

I would purchase this again and also try the other flavours too!

 

 

Snack Foods: Hmmm, What's That?! - Sicilia Lemon Pocky!!

As soon as I saw Lemon Pocky I stopped in my tracks and had to pick up a box.  Another shopper whispered to herself, "lemon pocky?!" as well.  Needless to say, we both popped a box into our shopping carts.  Apparently it's a limited summer edition Pocky - Sicilia Lemon Resort Pocky to be exact.  (Love Furochan's post on limited edition snacks/treats (also known as 'gentai' snacks) in Japan.)

So, how does it taste?

A sweet lemon taste that is very pleasant.  The Pocky stick is coated very thinly but the flavour is strong enough and it's slightly creamy.  It's not tart if that is what you're looking for though. 

The packaging is also very nice, I really thought the drawing on the inside foil bag was quite nice.  This would be very nice at an outdoor dinner party or even an afternoon baby or bridal shower.  I went to a baby shower recently and we got Lindt Lindor chocolates as a thank you treat which was nice as I enjoy Lindt chocolates, but I can definitely see this lemon Pocky being a hit too!

I could definitely eat the whole box in one sitting...but of course, since they are packaged into 2 portions, I stopped :)

The other limited summer edition is a chocolate coconut flavoured Pocky and both were selling at T&T for $1.99.

Sometimes we are in need of a little treat and need to turn to something boxed, bagged, or wrapped.
Snack Foods: Hmmm, What's That? will be my space for highlighting snack foods from Japan and Taiwan or snacks new on the Toronto marketplace.



An Ji Bai Cha (安吉白茶) - a delicate green tea

Anji baicha
-I love looking at the leaves after brewing, totally amazing that the bud and 2 leaves can look like it was just plucked!

After completing the Tea Sommelier Certificate Courses at George Brown College several years ago, my sampling of a multitude of teas every week had ceased and I returned to drinking only my favourite teas, occasionally having a chai or a sencha.  So it was nice to sample a range of teas again and loved doing it at Tao's Tea Leaf Spring Tasting Event.  Anji baicha is one tea I picked up at the event.


Anji baicha - dry leaves, rolled thin and long


An Ji Bai Cha (安吉白茶) is a light green tea whose flavour is mild and delicate.  The characters 安吉 "An Ji"  is in reference to the city/town in China the tea leaf originates from and the characters 白茶 "Bai Cha" which translates to "white tea" refer to the colour of the leaf before harvest.  The buds are whitish-green in colour and are only this colour before the first harvest.  The term 'Bai cha' is commonly used for white teas such as Silver Needle or Bai Mu Dan (White Peony), but this is not a white tea.

This is actually a new green tea, it was discovered in the 1980s but some believe this is a lost tea that was referenced in a 900 year old ancient book.  According to the Seven Cups Tea Shop, this tea must be picked before the temperature rises above 25 degrees Celcius, otherwise the leaves start to turn brighter green, losing their white-green colour.  This apparently changes the characteristics of the tea.

I brewed this quite mild at first.

2g in 6oz of water for 1.5 mins.
Water temp 175F

But I found it was better with 3g in 6 oz of water.  Taste is grassy with notes of some sort of vegetable like asparagus...can‘t really say.

 

I paired it with a red bean taiyaki treat from Kevin's Taiyaki that we picked up from Galleria supermarket.  The taiyaki complemented the tea nicely.  Since the tea was a little more delicate, I'm glad the red bean wasn't too sweet.  My only comment about the taiyaki was that there was actually too much filling and not enough cake!  There were certain sections of the cake that only had a very, very thin layer surrounding the red bean filling which is actually quite impressive that it didn't leak out.  

 

This cross-section shows a good balance between cake and red bean filling but aside from the centre, red bean was much more dominate in other parts of the cake.

Overall a nice green tea.

 

 

Snack Foods: Hmmm, What's That? - Meiji Strawberry (Hershey-Kiss-Shaped) Chocolates

I've decided to start a new series on my blog called Snack Foods: Hmmm, What's That?

Over the last couple of weeks, I've been debating about whether to start this series.  As a kid, we always got Asian type snack foods as a treat.  Pocky, dried mango, and dried cuttlefish were the most frequent (yes, dried seafood was better than chips to me, lol!).  My sisters and I loved getting these treats, and they were treats to be shared so we always just got a bit.  Enough to enjoy but never enough to get bored of it and frequent enough that we didn't crave it and go overboard the next time.  But now, I don't eat too many snacks these days.  For whatever reason, snacks usually reach the expiry date before I get to them.  So, I didn't want to start something I wasn't going to update regularly. 

But sometimes, just sometimes, I'll see a package and want to try it.  I'm usually quite fascinated by products from Japan or Taiwan.  But, usually they're very expensive for the portion size (definitely good for portion control though!).  And usually I wonder what it'll taste like but often not buy.  In comes the Meiji brand with a strawberry chocolate snack that I found hard to resist (my eyes light up when I see strawberry chocolates, unless it's ultra sweet strawberry syrup filled chocolates which I don't particularly enjoy). So, to indulge my curiosity and inner child, I purchased this pretty little pink box, and so begins this series...

the back panel

Individually wrapped, cute packaging and there is a symbol for recycling (I think), but it's in Japanese.

Now for the most important part, how it tastes.  Yummy :)  The strawberry filling is like strawberry mousse but dehydrated (if you can imagine that), not sticky or chalky though.  The strawberry flavour is present and mild and seems natural which is nice.  Shaped like a Hershey Kiss, it's coated with a thin layer of chocolate and cocoa powder and the bottom is a chocolate cookie. 

It's not as sweet as North American chocolates/candies, so if you're expecting that, you'll be disappointed.  I'm not floored by this candy but it's still a cute treat, quite light, and definitely good if you like strawberry flavoured sweets.

Luckily in Toronto, there are a number of places to buy treats from Japan and Taiwan.  This box was purchased at T&T Supermarket for $5.49 (for a 49g box), it's a little steep, but I guess it's like getting a bubble tea, a sweet treat.  Well, there goes my bubble tea for the week!

Sometimes we are in need of a little treat and need to turn to something boxed, bagged, or wrapped.  
Snack Foods: Hmmm, What's That? will be my space for highlighting snack foods from Japan and Taiwan or snacks new on the Toronto marketplace. 

Don't Throw Away Those Seeds! (Jackfruit Seeds)

Boiled jackfruit seeds (with skin still on)

We don't grow tropical fruits in Toronto but are lucky to import quite a selection.  Jackfruit is one such fruit and my brother-in-law picked one up from a Chinese supermarket to share.  This was a massive thing, 20 lbs!  And it wasn't even the biggest!  Anyway, I've had canned and fresh jackfruit so I was happy to partake in this feast.  But what made me happier was to find out you could eat the seeds!  Yes, I kept repeating, "How interesting!"

Cross-section of jackfruit

 It's very common for people to eat pumpkin seeds and other types of seeds but if I were to cut a jackfruit open, I'd never consider eating the seeds.  

What do the seeds taste like? First thought, chestnuts! They're not exactly like chestnuts but the taste resembles chestnut but a little less sweet. Others' like Serious Eats have noted they taste like lotus seeds.  But you can't just eat it straight from the fruit.  

How to prepare the seed:

- Place seeds in a pot of water, water level about 1" above seeds.  Optional: add a 1/2 tsp of salt.

- Boil for 15 mins or 20 if you would like it softer

- Strain and let cool, until you can easily pull off the thin skin

You can also roast them or I've read that they can be sun-dried and saved for use later.

Sorry for the blurry pic!  The inside of the cooked seed.

These would be a great snack, I'm surprised no one has ever packaged it!  Hmmm, guess people are more interested in the fruit or it's just a special treat for those willing to buy a whole jackfruit!

  

  

Ten Ren's Tea Class - Sign up if you're a tea fan!

I usually take any chance I get to learn more about tea, so when Ten Ren's Tea began offering a tea class, I immediately signed up.  Even though I got my tea sommelier certification from George Brown College, I don't mind hearing information again and sometimes there may be small pieces of info that might be new.  Tea is also a very vast topic and even brewing methods can be different.  Offered in English and in Mandarin/Cantonese, I took the English class.

What you'll get...

• basic introduction to tea production and brewing
• some info on the company and products
• Gong fu cha presentation
• chance to brew your own tea gong fu style

Who this is for...

• Interest in tea but you have very little knowledge
• Interest in trying to brew tea gong fu style

Not for you...

• If you have advanced/expert knowledge on tea (unless you're like me and love to soak up any info)

Cost:  FREE



If you're interested in a little more detail...

We got to sample Jin Xuan oolong or what some call "milky" oolong and it was smooth and quite nice. This tea naturally has a subtle "milky" flavour and fragrance to it but contains no milk additives.  The "milky" flavour is a natural characteristic for this cultivar but I believe the environmental conditions aid in whether it is stronger one year versus the next.  I've heard that there must be a temperature drop during the growing period before it is picked to ensure this characteristic is there.  Often, high mountain oolong gets this temperature drop.  But, I've also read that it has to do with the processing as well but this is an area I'm not too sure about the details.  (Be aware that there are milky oolong teas that have been processed with milk essence or additives to give the tea a strong milk fragrance and they are not the same.)

Tea master brewing tea

We got to brew two types of tea.  Both were okay, not extraordinary but one was a bit nostalgic for me.  We weren't told what kind of oolong tea at first but upon first taste I noticed something familiar about it.  I couldn't pinpoint it...something about the flavour?  Mouthfeel?  When I was told it was Dong Ding oolong I immediately went "ahhh" (in my head of course).

Dong Ding Oolong tea is actually one of the first oolong teas I started drinking.  When the Ten Ren's Tea on Highway 7 first opened, I had ordered a pot of Dong Ding Oolong tea.  Not knowing much about tea at the time I still experienced something different, a type of "cooling" sensation after I drank the tea and then a slight sweetness.  Not like menthol cooling but a very natural feeling and it was subtle but I was intrigued and loved it.  But, on a subsequent visit I ordered the tea again and unfortunately didn't really get the same feeling.  I remember that year Ten Ren's carried 2 grades of Dong Ding; one was approximately $20 for a cannister and the other >$100 so I purchased the lower grade because I just couldn't bring myself to buy the higher grade.  It wasn't the same but still was okay.  In some ways, I think that first experience was the higher grade tea and was served in error.  Now I always wonder...was it the grade of tea, the temperature of the water, or just my imagination...

Anyway, back to the class.  I think I enjoyed the class because I got to just relax and think only about tea and tea brewing.  Sometimes brewing tea is a very thoughtful process and drinking tea can take you to a very calming place and I miss that aspect during my regular day of chores and responsibilities.  Definitely a good 2 hours in my opinion.

Aside from the presentation and drinking tea, we also got some tea treats which were quite nice.

L: Green tea tea cookies, Middle: Candied Guava with Green Tea, R: Sun Moon Lake Black Tea with Walnut

All were actually better than I expected for different reasons.  The tea cookie had green tea flavour but also the hint of seaweed gave it a twist.  The cookie also had the taste of "HK style waffle".  The candied guava didn't have much tea flavour, but what I liked about it was the softness of the dried fruit and it wasn't overly sweet.  You'll also notice they have bits of green tea in the package.  The sun moon lake walnut candy was soft and chewy with some tea flavour, not too sweet and the walnut was a good accompaniment.

Overall, a nice experience (thanks Ten Ren's)!  Definitely renewed my interest in the brand.  And, I got to ask why the tea drinks at the flagship location on Highway 7 were not offered at the other locations.  The response: it was a new concept at the time to have tea centred food and drinks made with fresh fruits and increased tea flavour.  Now they are slowly going to roll it out to other locations.  My response, yay!!

Iced Tea Candy

I found this new tea flavoured candy at T & T Supermarket.  I'm generally not a fan of hard candies, but when it's tea flavoured I'm more interested. So, I gave it a go.

Quick run-down:

• Brand: Bali's Best (also makes coffee candy which I've seen before)
• Hard candy
• Made with tea extracts
• Indonesian tea, from the Java region

The one I purchased was Classic Iced Tea but the other flavours were Green Tea Latte and Citrus Green Tea.  Whole green tea leaves are apparently used to make the green tea candies which was interesting to note and I was tempted to get the green tea latte as that would be the drink I'd choose, but classic iced tea in a candy was a little different.  Indonesian black tea is supposed to be similar to Assam or Ceylon tea rather than Chinese black tea (although I don't think I've had loose leaf Indonesian tea yet), so I expected it to be like the iced tea we know in North America. 

Taste:  Good tea flavour and tastes slightly lemon-y.  More Ceylon tea flavour then citrus.  Some black teas can naturally have more citrus notes to it and it's possible that the tea used has this flavour profile (but I wonder if it can be detected in extracts).  I remember doing a tea tasting using various estate teas and they produced different iced tea flavours without the addition of lemon (i.e. Court Lodge FBOP had citrus notes compared to Kenmare FBOP...and yes, I had to look at my past notes for the names).

Sweetness level is good, not too sweet where you only taste sugar.

But, if you're looking for a strong tea taste, especially if you're used to drinking your tea strong, you won't find the candy as good.

Ingredients: glucose syrup (tapioca), cane sugar, tea extract, natural tea flavor, salt.
I inquired about the tea leaves and it is primarily made from black tea leaves.  They also note on their packaging that they are "all natural".

Price at T&T was $2.99 for 42 pieces.

Overall: This is a pretty good tasting tea candy.  Yes, I'd purchase again and I'd definitely try the other flavours!  

Matcha Pocky vs Green Tea Pocky

We went to the new supermarket Seasons (in Thornhill) to check it out and I ended up buying Pocky.  I have't bought it in years!!  It's one of those treats as a kid that made going grocery shopping with my parents fun.  If you don't know what Pocky is, it basically is a biscuit stick covered in a cream or flavoured chocolate coating.  I noticed they carried both a green tea flavoured Pocky and a matcha flavoured one.  Not sure when they came out, I'm guessing both have probably been out on the market for awhile.  In a drink the difference can be noticeable, but what about a snack like Pocky, is there a difference?

The green tea Pocky (right side) comes in a larger size, I just bought the smaller pack since I wanted to just try them out.

Many people think matcha and green tea powder are the same but there is a difference.  Matcha is basically steamed green tea (tencha leaf) that has been grown partially in the shade and later ground into a fine powder.  Steaming green tea is a method mainly used by the Japanese in the production of green tea (stops the oxidation of the leaf) and produces a different flavour profile compared to other methods of heating the leaf.  The leaf is grown partially in the shade to eliminate/reduce astringency and provide a stronger and "sweet" taste.  There is ceremonial grade (very expensive) and culinary grade which is more affordable and is commonly used in baked goods and confections.  More info can be found here.

Green tea powder is basically green tea finely ground into a powder.  Likely not grown in shade (which costs more).  

The Matcha Pocky was slightly more expensive ($2.99 for 61g vs $2.59 for 70g), so is it worth it?

Aroma:
Both had a nice green tea smell when you first open the package.

Taste:
Both taste like green tea, only a slight difference in taste when you just bite and chew.  However, if you allow the cream to melt on your tongue, the Matcha Pocky is stronger in tea flavour and slightly sweeter and creamier. The Green Tea Pocky while okay in taste, had a slight bitter after taste.

Packaging:
The ingredients lists show 2 notable differences. One, the Matcha Chocolate Pocky lists cocoa butter while the Green Tea Pocky does not (expected since it doesn't mention chocolate).  And two, the Matcha Chocolate Pocky lists 2 types of green tea, "green tea powder, roasted green tea powder".  I'm surprised the translation doesn't include "matcha" but I'm guessing when they say green tea powder it is the matcha in this case and the roasted indicates regular green tea powder.  The Green Tea Pocky lists "green tea powder" only.

The Matcha Pocky is a product of Japan while the Green Tea Pocky is made in Thailand.  To some, this makes no difference but to others, Japanese products generally are associated with having a higher quality.  I have to admit, there are times where something is made makes a difference in whether I buy one product over another given all other factors are fairly equal.

Verdict:
I prefer the Matcha Chocolate Pocky.  I'd spend a little more for a slightly more flavourful and better tasting product, the itty-bitty amount of matcha tea powder, and cocoa butter.  However, if the Matcha Pocky was not available or became more expensive than the already premium $2.99 price tag, I'd happily choose the Green Tea Pocky since the taste is acceptable and it's more economical.