Julesgourmond

Brownies from Bill's Basics

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 23:28:55 GMT

Sorry it has been so long since I last posted, but having a baby kind of limits your baking and food adventures! Anyway, during Josh's 2 hour sleep yesterday, I decided to make brownies, from Bill Granger's new cookbook, Bill's Basics. Hooray! I had just received it in the mail the day before (thank you, Borders Online 25% off sale), and was very excited about all the new baking recipes, which seem fantastic. I basically chose to start with this recipe from the book as I had all the ingredients, and it didn't require using Ruby, my Kitchenaid mixer, which I was worried would wake up Josh - next on the agenda, butterscotch madeleines. Yum!

This is just a melt-and-mix recipe, and is very, very quick. I do LOVE a good brownie.

INGREDIENTS

350g (1.5 cups) caster sugar
80g (2/3 cup) cocoa (I used good quality dutch cocoa, which I sifted.)
60g plain plour
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs, lightly beaten
200g unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
200g dark chocolate, chopped (I guess you could also use choc chips, and save yourself even more time, or use half white/half dark chocolate, or add nuts or craisins...)

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 160C. Line a 22cm square baking tin with parchment paper (I have a 20cm tin)
Stir together the sugar, cocoa, flour and baking powder.
Mix in the eggs, butter and vanilla until well combined, then mix in the chopped chocolate.
Pour into the tin and bake for 40-45 minutes.
Leave to cool slightly in the tin, then turn out onto a wire rack. Cut into squares.

The most difficult thing about brownies is knowing when they are cooked, as I still like them gooey in the middle. I baked mine for the full 45 minutes, until a skewer came out mostly clean and the mixture didn't look wobbly when jiggled ;)

Bill says you can make a topping out of half double cream and half melted chocolate to spread over the top, but I just dusted them with vanilla dusting sugar when they were cool.

Easy Spinach and Fetta Pie

Tue, 08 Jun 2010 00:07:57 GMT

I made this recipe last night for the first time, which sort of resembles a Greek Spanakopita. It comes originally from the Good Food Magazine. Unfortunately I don't know which edition as I ripped out the recipe and placed it in my Favourite Recipes File. As the name suggests, it is extremely easy, even for a pastry novice like me who has rarely worked with even pre-made pastry.

EASY SPINACH & FETTA PIE

INGREDIENTS
250g frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed to remove excess liquid
1 white or brown onion, chopped
200g cottage cheese (I used low-fat)
200g fetta, crumbled (I used Coles brand Danish Fetta)
1/4 cup grated parmesan
4 eggs
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
8 sheets filo pastry (I used Pampas frozen Fillo - remember to thaw at room temperature for 2 hours prior)
Melted butter
Salt and Pepper

METHOD
- Preheat oven to 200C or 180C fanforced.
- In a bowl, combine spinach, onion, cottage cheese, fetta, parmesan, eggs and nutmeg. Season.
- Grease a 6-cup capacity ovenproof dish (I used a medium sized rectangular dish).
- Place a filo sheet in dish, edges overhanging the long sides of dish. Brush with butter. Top with another filo sheet. Brush with butter. Fold 2 filo sheets in half lengthwise, brushing with butter between each layer. Lay in dish at 90 degree angle to first filo sheets, edges overhanging the short sides of dish.
- Fill dish with spinach mixture.
- Repeat process with filo sheets to cover pie. Brush with butter. Roll up pastry edges to form a border and brush with butter again.
- Bake for 45 minutes, until browned slightly (I cooked mine for 35 minutes).
- Stand for 10 minutes before serving. Serve with a rocket salad.

Smoked Salmon and Asparagus Frittata

Thu, 08 Apr 2010 22:47:38 GMT

This recipe comes straight from the latest edition of the BBC Good Food Magazine. Although smoked salmon is a no-no in pregnancy (and feta is a bit iffy) - I figured that this recipe is cooked through so it should be fine. It uses up a lot of eggs so is very handy in that way.

INGREDIENTS

6 eggs
1/4 cup skim milk
60g crumbled feta (I just used half a packet)
200g smoked salmon, cut each piece in half (This seemed like way too much, 100g should suffice)
1 bunch fresh asparagus spears, cut into smaller pieces
3 small potatoes, peeled
1 onion, thickly sliced
1-2 tbsp olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
I added chilli flakes and garlic powder for a bit of extra flavour

METHOD

- Heat your oven to 180C (160C fan forced).
- In a frypan, heat up olive oil, then add onions on a low-medium heat and allow to caramellise for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Meanwhile, in a pot of boiling water, parboil your potatoes for 10 minutes. In another pot of boiling water, cook your asparagus for 1 minute, then rinse.
- Slice the potato and arrange at the bottom of a 6-cup baking dish. Add the caramellised onions, a layer of smoked salmon, then asparagus, then feta.
- Whisk the eggs and milk together, add seasoning, then carefully pour into dish.
- Cook in the oven for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden and the egg is cooked through. Serve with a green salad and crusty bread. Great for lunch the next day.

Broad Bean Vegeroni pasta

Wed, 17 Mar 2010 22:10:58 GMT

Yesterday I made up my own dish for dinner, while attempting to use up my broad beans in the freezer. I didn't realise how long it would take me to de-shell them prior to cooking, but it was well worth the effort in the end. You could also use ricotta instead of feta if you wished.

INGREDIENTS
1 packet vegeroni pasta (spirals)
1 x block 200g feta cheese, cubed
1/2 packet frozen broad beans, thawed and de-shelled.
1 x zucchini, grated into long strips
50g pine nuts
2 garlic cloves, sliced
A sprinkle of chilli flakes
Olive oil, 1-2 tbsps (I like flavoured olive oil, but I have almost run out!)
Optional: Parmesan, A tiny bit of butter, say 20g, 1/2 tsp lemon zest, salt and pepper to taste.

METHOD

- Cook the pasta until al dente.
- Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts in a little olive oil on the stove, until they are slightly browned.
- Add garlic, chilli and broad beans (plus butter and lemon zest if desired) and cook through for 2 minutes.
- Mix in grated zucchini, and cook for another 2 minutes. Add feta and mix through, season if needed.
- Serve on pasta, with parmesan on top and a further drizzle of olive oil.

Caramel and Coconut Icecream

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 01:21:08 GMT

I got this recipe from the 4 Ingredients TV show on Foxtel. It is VERY easy to make and quite impressive. I know it is not true icecream (made by the custard method and then churned), but it still tastes yum. I'm sure you could adapt it and add crushed up crunchie or whatever takes your fancy. Beware - it freezes hard and needed some nuking in the microwave prior to serving. It probably makes 6-8 servings.

CARAMEL & COCONUT ICECREAM

- 600ml of pure cream
- 1 x tin of Top-n-fill Caramel (found in the long-life milk section of the supermarket)
- 1-2 tbsps of Kahlua, if desired.
- 1/4 cup shredded coconut, toasted until lightly brown.

With an electric beater, mix the cream and caramel until increased in volume and nice and bubbly. Add the kahlua and coconut, mix through.
Pour into a freezable container (I just used a medium sized plastic Decor container) and place in the freezer overnight or until frozen.

Eggplant and Goat's cheese Pasta

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 05:34:04 GMT

This is another super-easy recipe from the Good Food Magazine. I subsituted feta for goat's cheese as it is more readily available. Feel free to season as you desire, I always like a touch of chili in this sort of pasta.

INGREDIENTS
300g penne or another short pasta
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 eggplant, cut into small chunks
400g chopped tomatoes
pinch of sugar
1/2 cup basil, plus extra to garnish
200g goat's cheese, cubed.

METHOD
Cook pasta according to packet instructions in a large saucepan with salted water.
Heat oil in a saucepan, add onion and cook for 5 minutes, until softened. Add eggplant and cook for 3 minutes, until lightly browned.
Add tomato and sugar and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 minutes, until sauce reduces slightly.
Stir through basil and goat's cheese. Add pasta and toss to combine. Serve garnished with extra basil.

Tomato, Spinach and Mascarpone Gnocchi

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 05:28:16 GMT

I made this recipe a few months back using a handout of recipes from the Good Food magazine (thanks again for the subscription, Renno!)
It is quite rich, but very easy. If you can't find mascarpone, cream cheese might work.

INGREDIENTS
500g gnocchi
350g jar tomato pasta sauce
100g baby spinach
1/2 cup (125g) mascarpone
1/2 cup shaved parmesan (I just used grated)
Salad greens to serve

METHOD
- Cook gnocchi according to packet instructions in a large saucepan and drain. Preheat grill on high.
- Meanwhile, heat tomato sauce in a saucepan on medium. Add baby spinach and cook until just wilted. Add gnocchi and stir until coated. Season to taste (I suggest some salt, pepper, some chilli flakes and bit of lemon zest if you have lemons on hand. A chopped clove of garlic would be good too).
- Transfer to 1 8-cup ovenproof dish or 4 1-cup ramekins.
-Spoon dollops of mascarpone over gnocchi and scatter with parmesan. Cook under hot grill for 5-10 minutes until cheese is golden and bubbling. Serve with salad greens.

Cooper and Milla's

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:20:53 GMT

Last weekend, on a very warm Saturday, my friends and I dropped in to Cooper and Milla's, High St Armadale for a drink. We had been bridal dress shopping and needed some refreshments, so we all decided to have some freshly squeezed orange juice. While we were there, we perused the breakfast menu, which looked quite tasty.

So the following day, I decided that hubby and I would have brunch at Cooper and Milla's. Luckily the place is not crazy popular, with plenty of tables for two, so we easily found a table and sat down. Because it was another hot day, we decided against coffees and both had some very good iced chocolates, which came in large bulbous glasses, filled with chocolate milk, icecream and lots of ice. Yum.

Brunch itself took about 20 minutes to arrive, which is fairly average. I had the ricotta pancakes with homemade honeycomb butter. It came swimming in a golden sea of maple syrup. The pancakes themselves were very light and well made, but i found it all a bit too much and couldn't finish it all - surprising for me, right? The honeycomb butter tasted of cinnamon and honey, a great combo.

Hubby had the beetroot-cured salmon with scrambled eggs on house brioche. The salmon was bright pink, thanks to the beetroot, and had a light beet-y flavour. It was a huge serve as well, but he thoroughly enjoyed it.

Cooper and Milla's also has a large display of homemade treats and lunch goodies. The large lamingtons (with shaved coconut) looked amazing, but we decided to take home some spanakopita for dinner. Unfortunately, the spanakopita was a bit of a disappointment, and I would have preferred some more flavour. I think next time I might eat in for their gourmet salads and veal cabbage rolls!

My Accidental Risoni Bake

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 07:39:15 GMT

For lunch today, I decided to make the Tuna bake from last month's BBC Good Food Magazine. I took what I thought was arborio rice, as the recipe suggested, and put the dish in the oven. When I was 'plating' it, I realised I had used risoni instead of arborio - silly me really needs to get a label maker to use in the kitchen! Anyway, it turned our excellently, and I really liked the texture.

So here is my updated version, with some other additions, that I am calling Julie's accidental risoni bake - don't forget the full name if you remake it!

INGREDIENTS

1 x can 425 g tuna in springwater
1 x brown onion, chopped
1/2 tsp lemon zest
olive oil
2 gloves of garlic, sliced
1 cup risoni (or arborio)
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 400g can chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped continental parsley
1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used mozzarella)
s&p

METHOD

- Cook the onion and garlic in the oil for 2-3 minutes. Add the risoni, stir to coat.
- Mix in paste, tomatoes, tuna, zest and 1/2 the parsley. Season to taste.
- In a medium rectangle casserole dish, add the mixture and mix in the mushrooms. Top with cheese.
- Cook in a 170C fan-forced oven for about 30 mins, until the cheese is bubbling and the risoni is cooked.
- Serve topped with extra parsley. I served a side dish of rocket with a lemon juice/balsamic dressing.

Very easy and quick :)

My top 5 tastes of August 2009

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 07:48:35 GMT

Well, I owe you a lot of blog posts, and that is a bit daunting for me. So I thought I would borrow from some of my favourite makeup Youtube gurus, who do their top 5 products of any particular month...

And I have decided to do my top 5 tastes! Some of these might be 'LE', known in the makeup world as 'limited edition', i.e. specials of the day. But I am sure you can find similar quality dishes at these places all year round!

1. Delices (Macarons) at Lindt Cafe, Collins St
Thank you to my friend Lana who introduced me to these delicious morsels. Each delice retails for $2, but they're worth it - eat it slowly and savour the flavour. My fave of the moment is 'passion'; a unique tart passionfruit flavour which is true to its derivative. A special mention should also go to Laurent's pistachio macarons, a steal at $1.70 each. I'm not sure how they compare to true Parisian macarons, but they suit me just fine.

Lindt Cafe has just recently opened here in Melbourne; I have also walked past the Chadstone cafe, but I am yet to try their wares. Everything looks as delicious.

2. Pimiento de Piquillo at Movida, Hosier Lane
I was lucky enough to visit Movida for the first time with my mate Susan for her birthday dinner mid-August. Despite not making a booking (oops), and waiting >30 minutes, we finally got two seats at the famous bar. We decided to order mostly tapas, and our favourite pick were these large bites of hickory smoked piquillo pepper with salt cod and potato. We also loved the portobello mushrooms in sherry vinegar, which were very moreish.

My only gripe - no welcome or list of specials provided to us by the barman/waiter on our arrival. Other patrons who arrived after us were warmly welcomed and given the specials list. We felt a bit lost when we first sat down and didn't even know who to order from. I still think Movida is definitely a must for those visiting Melbourne - just remember to book!

3. Poached eggs with dukkah and babaghanoush on Turkish, Inkr7, St Kilda
This was one of the house specials at our favourite local brunch spot, Ink7. Always reliably delicious, I know that any choice will be the right one. When I ordered the dukkah poached eggs, the owner was very happy with my decision, and came back to check that I was enjoying it. The middle eastern flavours really worked well with the eggs, and I liked making my own messy eggy sandwich.

Another fave of mine for those who don't like eggs would have to be their bircher muesli, layered in a fancy glass with fresh fruit and natural yoghurt. You should also try the coconut hot chocolate - Bounty in a glass!

4. Ginger nut crumble with clotted cream mousse, The Boathouse stand, Taste of Melbourne event
I have already blogged about our fun time at Taste of Melbourne. One of the stand-out dishes in my mind is this cream and crumble combination from Gary Mehigan's restaurant in Maribyrnong, which I am yet to visit. Even though my husband actually ordered this, I remember wrestling him for my share of the dessert. A few people walked past and wanted to know where we got it from. I might have to try making something similar at home soon.

5. Grainwaves chips in sweet chilli flavour, ~$3.80 per bag from Coles
I love chips and I love sweet chilli, so I had to try this new product and bring it home. I think my hubby and I wrestled for the bag and he won, but that just meant that I had to go buy some more. Made from wholegrains and less fat than regular chips, I guess you don't have to feel so bad for buying them, right? These also come in original and sour cream and chives flavour, which are also worth a try.

So what do you think of my top 5 tastes? What were yours?

Taste of Melbourne 2009

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 02:02:25 GMT

Yesterday I visited the Taste of Melbourne festival, at Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton. It was my second year, and after such a great time last year, I had to revisit. This time, I had my tickets and 'Crowns' (the currency used at the festival) posted to me, so I didn't have to wait in a long line like last year. We also bought extra Crowns from a nice pink-shirted seller prior to going in (30 Crowns each is just not enough).

Everything was very orderly and well-designed, and despite the large crowd we were able to move around the venue easily enough and find what we wanted. This is the best way to try famous, exclusive restaurants that you have always wanted to visit, without paying a huge price, but still getting an impressive feed with the small tasting plates on offer.

Most of the biggies were there - Press Club, Movida, Nobu, The Boathouse, Jacques Reymond, Verge etc. Even Gary Mehigan, George Calmobaris and Jacques Reymond were patrolling around their stations, happy to be in pics with fans. Too bad I didn't bring my camera! I guess a couple of names that were missing was Longrain, who were there last year, and no Rockpool or Vue De Monde, a couple that I would have wanted to try out.

So here's what I had:
- Prawn 'popcorn' with Citrus Aioli from Oyster Little Bourke
- Confit duck in puff pastry with smoked tomato sauce from The Courthouse
- Tempura quail breast with tajine flavours from Jacques Reymond
- Shared 'Ginger nut crumble with clotted cream mousse' with my hubby, from The Boathouse (Gary Mehigan's restaurant)
- Chocolate honeycomb and salted caramel crunch from Circa, The prince - also shared
- Cinnamon doughnuts with warm valrhona chocolate sauce, also from The Courthouse
- Lemon Z and Cranberry cocktail from the Lemon Z stand
- Takeaway baby cupcakes from BabyCakes.

Susan, who accompanied us, enjoyed her Pork Belly with Spicy Miso, from Nobu (her fave), whilst my hubby liked his coffee-cured ocean trout from Verge.

Everything was excellent, with the duck, crumble and doughnuts probably the stand-outs for me. We didn't stay and look at the other exhibitors for very long, so we might have missed out on some other good stuff!

Otis #2

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 03:14:08 GMT

We had our second visit at Otis, Albert Park yesterday. This time it was for a late lunch; the weather in the morning was all windy and rainy and we didn't want to get out of bed! Of course, it started raining when we left the house again, but what can you do.

I really wanted the seafood chowder with homemade chilli cornbread, but they had run out - boohoo! Instead, I had the calamari salad. It came with lots of lettuce and sliced vegies, crunchy crisp shallots and some calamari, which seemed fresh and was lightly battered. I wanted more of the calamari though! The dressing was very, very, yummy, and I finished all of the salad (and felt quite virtuous afterwards.)

Hubby wasn't all that hungry and had the cod fritters, which came with an avocado salad. The fritters looked all crunchified and delicious, and I had a bit of plate envy!

I've decided to have my 'birthday brunch' at Otis in a couple of weeks. There are a number of reasons:
1. The food is excellent
2. None of my friends have been there and i like them to try new places that I recommend
3. The area around is just gorgeous on a Sunday.
4. Otis has lots of space, and isn't crazy popular... yet...
5. It reminds me of Milo & Otis - the best cat and dog/adventure movie EVER!

The only downside is that the service is not the quickest. Oh well, it is worth it for the food.

Tyranny of Distance

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 03:02:02 GMT

If you are on Chapel St, and feel like some good food away from all the pretty people and doof-doof, may I recommend Tyranny of Distance, Union St, Windsor. For us, the 'tyranny of distance' is not really a problem, seeing we live about 7 minutes drive away. We went there last week with some friends, and were impressed by the food, the quick service, and the unusual objects they had used as decorations. Tyranny has a bit of a 'cabana' feel, with most of it open to the street, yet still kept warm by heaters.

Vego options for brunch are a bit restricted, I chose from the eggs + sides part of the menu. The mushies and salmon were good, and the rosti was excellent. All of their eggs also come with their cool home-made flatbread, which ended up being a bit of carb-overload for me. Hubby enjoyed his (huge) smoked salmon omelette, the size of a large dinner plate. Yep, servings are big. They do have specials daily, including a 'flowerless' chocolate cake, which I found quite amusing.

Tyranny would be a great place to spend a few hours on a warm spring afternoon, tucked away from those just leaving the clubs.

Stavros Tavern, Albert Park

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 03:05:36 GMT

Our obsession with Albert Park continues.

Last Saturday night, hubby and I went along with friends for dinner at Stavros Tavern, Victoria Ave, Albert Park. Apparently, Stavros is one of the longstayers of the Melbourne restaurant scene, and has been around since the 1980s. I had previously tried to make a booking on another occasion, but they were all booked out then, 4 days before we wanted to go - so I knew it had to be popular.

Stavros Tavern is a typical Greek family-owned establishment, with a mural of Hellenic life on the wall, a large bar stocked with Ouzo and a colourful bunch of characters serving the patrons. The staff there are extremely attentive. Stavros himself impressed me by offering us the whole menu (usually they have banquets only on Saturday nights) and then remembering all of our order perfectly. They even had a live group of guitar strummers, playing traditional music for us.

To start with, the 3 of us shared dips and bread - I think there was tsatsiki, grilled eggplant and taramsalata. They were lovely, garlicky and acidic and were supplied with a large collection of breads which remained on the table for the whole meal. My hubby, who is obsessed with saganaki, had to order his own entree. The large slab of kefalograviera cheese was delicious - hot, chewy and melty all at once.

For mains, I decided to have the duck special, which came on the bone, with onions, mash and done in a rich tomato-based sauce. Although it was good, and the flavours were tasty, parts of it were luke-warm, which is one of my pet-peeves at restaurants - the food has to be hot! Our friends had a lamb grill and a vege moussaka, which they enjoyed, while hubby tucked into his whole snapper, done in simple oil and lemon flavours.

And then, on to dessert. I couldn't go past the baklava, which was homestyle, with a berry and dried fruit compote, which was quite nice. Hubby had the galaktoboureko (semolina pudding), which he enjoyed, and our friend had the 'Greek' Turkish delights - heaven forbid you call them Turkish delights!

I was definitely a fun meal, with good food and great friends.

Assaggi Italiani

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 02:56:22 GMT

It is always a great thing when your newest neighbourhood restaurant turns out to be fantastic.

For us, this was Assaggi Italiani, located at 99 Glenferrie Road Malvern. This new restaurant took the place of Paprika Hussar a couple of months back, which was our favourite Hungarian place - we were very sad when it closed down. But Assaggi's had promise, especially with a sign advertising woodfired pizzas and homemade pasta, plus this excellent review from Mr Cravat, Matt Preston. So, a couple of Sundays ago, we drove the full 3 minutes from our house and had dinner there with my sister and brother-in-law. It was packed, and I would recommend making a booking for any night of the week.

I probably have recommended this restaurant to at least 4 other couples already, and we have dinner plans with 2 groups already to go back, that is how good it was. My only gripe was our Italian (lovely) waitress, who we had difficulty understanding, and who had difficulty understanding us. But that just makes the whole experience more authentic, right?

Wanting to try the woodfired oven, we all shared garlic foccacias, which were hot, tasty and not too overpowering. I combined that with a campari and soda, which was a good bitter accompaniment to the food. We then all got different mains - my sister and her husband both got pizzas - delicious, with fresh ingredients, and a thin crispy crust. Hers was a 'Barbara' with fior di latte, zucchini and eggplant, while his was a mushroom pizza with salami. I kept on wanting to eat hers! Pizzas are large dinner-plate sized, and could definitely be shared.

Despite the moreish sounding specials of trout risotto and lamb shanks, my hubby and I both ordered from the regular menu. He had a porcini risotto with truffle oil, which he deemed to be excellent. I decided I had to try the homemade pasta and went for the seafood fettucine. I am a sucker for a good marinara or seafood pasta and this was a winner. It was my first time having clams, and in combination with the fish, mussels, prawns and squid (unfortunately a little bit chewy) and the soft , dainty ribbons of pasta, which made it more special. It was just done in a simple garlicky oil, but there was something about it that made me polish it off without any trouble.

The two hubbies decided to have the rich chocolate cake for dessert, while the two sisters both wanted the tiramisu. This was a very good version, my only issue being that the large plate it came with was covered with needless excess cocoa. It still is not as good as the one I had from Grossi Florentino's stand at the Taste of Melbourne festival last year, but it gets a 7.5/10.

Thank you Assaggi for a delicious, authentic meal. We will see you soon.

Ginger Cookies with Lemon Drizzle Icing

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 02:50:24 GMT

I tried another cookie recipe on Sunday as part of my new recipe challenge. This one is available from Bill Granger's Holiday, a book which I received recently from my friend Susan for my birthday (even though my bday is in September).

It doesn't make a very big batch, so if you are having a lot of people, either make double or make another recipe as well. I added more lemon juice to make the icing more drizzle-y, but then ended up smearing the icing on. I know, I'm not very neat or good with fiddly things. You could always use less icing sugar to make the icing.

You can find the recipe here: Thank you to 'Laws of the Kitchen' for posting. Hers came up much neater than mine!

Hubby loved this recipe. He said' Who would have thought ginger biscuits could taste so good!'

White Bean and 'Chorizo' Soup

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 03:16:38 GMT

Every weekend, for the last month, I have been giving myself the challenge of making new recipes - usually one savoury and one sweet. I was planning to have another couple over for a dinner party soon, and I wanted to expand my repetoire. Being winter, a lot of the savoury recipes have been soups - including potato and Leek soup, sweet potato and ginger soup and butternut pumpkin and corn soup.

This week, I decided to make Bill Granger's White Bean and Chorizo soup, from his book (my fave), Every Day. As I'm Jewish and Kosher at home, I was unable to use real chorizo, so instead I bought the kosher chorizo from Elsternwick Coles. I have no idea how it compares to the original, or what exactly is in it, but the soup was fabulous and made the house smell delicious. I would only change it by adding 1.25L of stock, rather than 1L, as the soup ended up being a bit too chunky for my liking.

You can find the recipe online here, on Lifestyle Food's website, or just buy the cookbook (trust me!)

Kamel

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 03:03:54 GMT

For some reason, I felt the urgent need to venture to Albert Park again for brunch this week. We walked past The Avenue Foodstore, which looked busy last time, but I'm lazy and wanted table service. So we walked back up to Kamel, on Victoria Ave, for some quality brunching. This was our first visit, but iI don't think it will be our last. Kamel is a small (only about 10 tables) cafe which has a mainly Middle-Eastern bent. There is some Greek and Moroccan food on the menu as well, which made me a little nervous - I hoped it wouldn't be one of those 'throw everything at the customers and see what sticks' kind of place.

The breakfast menu is slightly more generic, with egg options, cereals and toasts for the less adventurous. There was a sweet ricotta parcel with orange which also looked different, but I was curious about the baked eggs (after having such good ones at Birdman Eating in the past). i had no idea what 'sujuk' was though, and I asked the waiter. He had NO idea, but thought that the dish did have meat in it (turns out Sujuk is the meat, a form of Turkish sausage). Worried that the waiter wouldn't be able to help me out any more, I decided to go with simple poached eggs, toast, smoked salmon and a potato roesti. Definitely a fail mark for waitstaff knowledge. Hubby had the eggs atlantic - I know, what a shock, right?

Well the food was surprisingly good - a $3 serve of smoked salmon at Kamel turned out to be about 50g worth, which is quite impressive for a cafe. The potato roesti was homemade and yummy, and the eggs were well cooked. Hubby very much enjoyed his eggs, likening them to our brunch yardstick, Inkr7. The coffee was also excellent and the food came quickly. I would like to revisit for lunch soon.

Dexter

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 10:29:52 GMT

I'm not really sure how I first heard about Dexter, a cafe on Queens Parade, Clifton Hill. Maybe I was just intrigued by the fact that I had no idea where Clifton Hill was in relation to my house, and thought a visit to a new brunch place would solve that conundrum.

As it turns out, Clifton Hill is a busy suburb not too far away from our abode, and we quite easily found Dexter, nestled between various shops and restaurants. The decor is 70s chic, I wouldn't have been surprised to see the Brady Bunch posing by the long wooden bannister. It seems like the place you could spend the day reading the latest bestseller or typing on away on one's laptop, whilst sipping latte after latte without much bother. It also seemed to come with its own resident barfly, or should that be cafefly?

Brunch savoury options dominate the menu; there's not too much for the sweet tooth here. I chose the field mushrooms on toast, with feta, truffle oil and balsamic. I enjoyed the play between the saltiness of the feta and the sweetness of the balsamic, all in all a very enjoyable dish. Hubby liked his eggs atlantic; the only negative being the slightly 'fishy' smoked salmon.

Service was friendly and relaxed. An adequate 7/10 for us.

Potato and Leek Soup

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 03:07:38 GMT

I have been using my favourite kitchen gadget, my hand mixer a lot recently, and have found some excellent soup recipes. I made potato and leek soup on the weekend; it is a delicious simple soup that anyone can make. The recipe comes from a new cookbook (thanks Susan!) called Everyday in the Kitchen, by Michelle Curtis and Allan Campion.

POTATO AND LEEK SOUP
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 leeks, sliced
- 4 potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 celery sticks, sliced
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed
- 1 litre of vegetable or chicken stock
- Olive oil for cooking
- salt and pepper to taste
- Cream and fresh herbs to garnish, as desired.

METHOD
- In a large heavy-based pot, cook the onion, celery and leek in olive oil for 5-6 minutes.
- Add the potato and garlic, then cook for another 3-4 minutes, stirring occassionally.
- Add stock until the vegetables are just covered, add some salt and pepper. Boil and then simmer (my pot was covered for most of it) for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
- Transfer the soup to another bowl, allow to cool slightly, then puree (I used a hand mixer, the recipe says a food processor). pass through a strainer if necessary.
- When ready to serve, transfer to a clean pot and bring to the boil, add further salt and pepper if desired. Serve in bowls with a dollop of cream and some fresh herbs.

OTIS

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 02:56:53 GMT

No, Not Milo and Otis, the great cat and dog adventure film from the 90s, but Otis, a lovely cafe on Bridport St, Albert Park, that we went to visit on the weekend for brunch. This is a friendly cafe set in the busy cafe strip of Bridport St/Victoria Ave, which we have just recently discovered, thanks to our friends Steven and Renee. Last week, we went to Pagoda, on Victoria Ave, which was also very good - I recommend their hash stack with homemade tomato relish a side of smoked salmon. But Otis is even more special, and a place that we will go back to. I think that was most obvious because I kept on talking about it all day to my friends!

It seems to be the place to take young kids and prams, as it was packed with them, and yet the staff seemed very accommodating. Coffees arrived quickly, with my mochalatte an excellent brew (last week's coffee at Pagoda tasted slightly burnt :( ) The menu is definitely above average and out-of-the-ordinary, and a quick squizz at the lunch and dessert menus made us want to stay longer... Eton mess, yum!

I decided that I had to have the apple crumble pancakes. The name was a bit of misnomer, I would have called them toffee apple pancakes, as inside the pancakes where real bits of apple and crunchy toffee like bits. They were served with maple syrup and some delicious macadamia nut butter. Heaven on a plate. Hubby chose the sweet potato, feta and pea fritters, served with smoked salmon and some rocket. His dish was equally as good and it made me want both!

The food did take a little longer than we are used to, about 20 minutes (ha!), but it wasn't too long and it was definitely worth the wait.

After our brunch, we went for a walk down the street and found some other places to try, such as the Albert Park Deli, which seemed to be the most popular, Dundas and Faussett and The Avenue.

Giant Triple-Choc Crunchy cookies

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 22:10:14 GMT

I made these yesterday, in combination with a batch of traditional Anzac cookies. I think they were really yummy and super easy. I only made them with milk and dark choc chips, as I had run out of milk choc chips. I also didn't flatten them, so ended up with medium-sized thick cookies. The recipe is courtesy of the Taste website.

GIANT TRIPLE-CHOC CRUNCHY COOKIES

INGREDIENTS

125g butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup caster sugar
1 egg
1 1/4 cups self-raising flour
1 cup cornflakes
1 cup choc bits (use a combo of milk, white and dark)

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line 2 baking trays with baking paper. Using an electric hand mixer, beat butter, vanilla, brown sugar, caster sugar and egg in a bowl until mixture is smooth and well combined.
Sift flour over butter mixture and use a large metal spoon to stir in until just combined. Add cornflakes and choc bits. Mix well.
Using 1/4 cup mixture per cookie, roll mixture into balls and place on prepared baking trays, making sure they are at least 6cm apart.
Using damp fingertips, flatten cookies slightly. Bake for 8 minutes. Swap trays over in the oven and bake for a further 7 to 8 minutes or until light golden. Stand cookies on trays for 3 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve.

Passover

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:15:23 GMT

I really don't have any food-related news or reviews as it is Passover at the moment and I am restricted in what I can eat! My favourite dish during passover is matzah with Hashahar H'aole chocolate spread, which you can buy from kosher stores. I only get to eat it once a year so I make sure to have it every morning for breakfast. Indulgent, I know!

I also love the Leiber's hot chocolate mix, but I couldn't find that this year, boo hoo...

I am missing rice and pasta the most. I forget how it forms such a significant part of my cooking. Tonight I made meatballs in a tomato and basil sauce with roasted vegies on the side. It would have been so yum with some wholemeal spaghetti as well... I guess i will just have to wait until after Thursday night., when passover is over. My in-laws are great and have had us over many times. We even got to have delicious kosher duck on Friday night, a once-a-year treat. I even enjoy my mother-in-law's gefilte fish, which go down very well with some chrain or horseradish. Yum.

How is everyone else coping?

Inkr7

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 00:41:22 GMT

I had lovely brunch again at Inkr7 last week - I chose one of the specials: Raisin toast with spiced ricotta, homemade peach jam and pistachios. Yum!!!

Each Peach

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 02:27:28 GMT

Firstly, Happy Birthday Mortonhall :)

Secondly, apologies for the lack of blogging. i will let you know about my Sunday brunch last week, which was had at Each Peach, Lygon St, Brunswick St. Ian and I met up with two of my uni girlfriends and one of their boyfriends for a catch-up session. Each Peach is a tiny two-tabled cafe down from the more hip and happening strip of Lygon, which has Poached, Gingerlee and Small Block. It is definitely cute, with a teatowel collage display and odds and ends antiquey cutlery and crockery used. There is even a selection of homemade jams and preserves available for sale.

Table service is not available however, you pay for your food as you go, using the blackboard of specials as your guide. I chose the taleggio and mushroom piadina, as it was already 12.30 and I felt more like lunch food. Everyone else chose eggs and omelettes, which arrived in about 15 minutes. I waited and waited for mine, as they ate. Eventually it was revealed that they had forgotten my order! When it come (after half an hour), it was tasty, but the piadina was overly toasted almost to a point of being burnt. Ian found his scrambled eggs with chilli were a bit watery and lacking real flavour.

The coffee was the saving grace, it was well made.

So, we won't be back I don't think. Service was a bit slap-dash, and in a cafe with only two large tables, that isn't good enough.