Red

In one of those funny coincidences I have been to two restaurants with "red" in the title in the last two days.

Last night I ended up at Red Spice Road (we were intending to go to the night market at Queen Vic, but it was so damn hot that we stopped for a drink at Workshop and never made it any further north...).  I think the best description of Red Spice Road would be "corporate curry", if that makes sense - higher end Asian fusion cuisine served to lots of drunk suits.  The food was good but not great, as it was almost cloyingly rich and was a little too salt-saturated for my liking.  Interestingly my friend Liz who I was dining with has the Red Spice Road cookbook and finds the recipes pretty darn salty.  The chef must love his salt.  We had an eggplant dish and a vension curry, which came out in one chunk of meat Flinstones-style on a massive bone, 'twas kind of hilarious presentation.

And then tonight I had a delicate and beautifully balanced dish at Red Silks with my friend Julie (another Melbourne friend who is about to move to Sydney, nooo) .  A whole steamed barramundi with assam sauce, which is a sour sauce with a touch of chilli complemented by sweetness from pineapple chunks.  Instead of the usual steamed broccoli, cauliflower and tinned baby corn (yuck) one often finds in such dishes, this dish came with a mound of okra (Liz take note, I know it's your fave...), eggplant, slender green beans and fresh tomato.  YUM I will definitely be back for more.  And check out the cool staircase up there:

Thank you Heidi...

Hmmm, I have managed to let my life get REALLY out of balance over the last few months.  I started a project at work that became all-consuming and involved a bit of travel, and combined with the long-awaited trip to Fiji and a sprained foot, all the healthy eating and exercise (and blogging) went out the window.  It was a real lesson to me in how good habits can very easily be broken - after eight months of being so good it was extremely easy to become rather bad.  I knew I'd hit a new low when I ordered pizza for dinner on Sunday night, then proceeded to have leftover pizza for breakfast (!!!), lunch and dinner the next day.

So when work ended today I logged onto Heidi Swanson's fantastic 101 Cookbooks website and found myself a light wholefoods recipe that I could easily make after work.  Broccoli has to be one of the best foods to eat when you feel like you've been bad to your body, and her Broccoli Crunch was sooo just what I was after.  I made myself a single serve, and served it with the crunchy shallots, but I don't think they're totally necessary, just a decadent addition if you're in the mood.  I also didn't have almond butter but used almond/cashew/brazil nut spread instead and I'm sure in a pinch you could use peanut butter!

Recent Dining Experiences of Note

I had better start writing down some of the fabulous dishes I've had recently in case I start forgetting!  In no particular order:

• Money Order Office, Postal Lane, Melbourne: Duck breast with mushrooms and various other ingredients I can't remember - wonderfully earthy winter dish.  Also oysters with shallots and sherry, yum.
• Kazbah, Balmain, Sydney: Breakfast tagine with huge chunks of the most beautifully cooked pumpkin I've ever tasted with spinach, roasted capsicum, caramelised onions, roasted tomatoes and feta, baked eggs nestled in between and generous serves of toasted turkish and lebanese bread. 
• Adriano Zumbo, Balmain, Sydney: passionfruit macaroons and a lemon meringue pie-inspired dessert.

Me with Zumbo's latest creation!

Tastes like summer

I went to the Tast of Melbourne festival last weekend (which will be the subject of a future post) and discovered pear cider... mmm... pears are one of my favourite fruits and this stuff is dangerous as it barely tastes alcoholic (it's 5.5%).  Note to my brother: if you are considering making your own pear cider I will definitely be willing to assist with "quality control" at any time!  Note to Belinda: if the homebrewing doesn't work out, look for this one made by Yarra Valley's Napoleone and Co!

Last of the winter dinner parties

I really hope that during my week in Fiji (we fly out next weekend, can't wait!!!), Melbourne will magically transition into warm springtime weather and that it will be time to swap winter comfort food for light sunny fare.  To this end I held what I am hoping is the last of my winter dinner parties on Saturday.  It was all very last minute and I was lucky that all my invitees were free.  I was also lucky that it was indeed possible to fit six people into my small apartment!  So I finally cooked poultry for the first time ever and made a Duck Ragu with Parpadelle.  It was actually pretty confronting having to debone something; I certainly have moved on from vegetarianism now.  We had my "signature dish" of 42 Below Feijoa vodka-cured salmon on sweet potato rosti for an entree (as I couldn't find any kumara at the market this week).  Below is a photo of all the fabulous fresh (mostly) organic ingredients, : ) I love shopping for dinner parties at Queen Vic.  And the other photo is of the cool table setting Liz created (she also helped me prep, cook and clean up, thank you my friend!!!).

Duck Ragu with Parpadelle

Serves 6.  If you can't be bothered deboning the meat, you could always use duck breasts instead. 

120ml olive oil
1 small brown onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced
Sea salt
750g duck (3 Marylands, which have the thigh and bone attached), bones removed and set aside, and the flesh and skin cut into 2.5cm pieces
50g tomato paste
2 sprigs rosemary, stripped
500ml red wine
20ml sherry vinegar
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
Pepper
Pecorino or parmesan
Handful of parsley, roughly chopped

1) Heat a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat and add half of the olive olive oil. Add the celery, carrot, onion, garlic and some sea salt, stir and sauté over low heat for 15 minutes until translucent. Add the bones from the duck and cook until the remaining meat on the bones starts to brown.

2) Add the tomato paste and cook for a minute.  Add the wine and vinegar and reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, or until reduced by half.

3) Heat the rest of the oil in a separate pan, then add the stripped rosemary, the duck meat and a pinch of salt, and sauté until the meat is lightly browned.

4) Remove the bones from the sauce, add the duck meat, rosemary and chopped tomatoes, and simmer slowly for 1.5 to 2 hours.  You may want to leave the lid on for the first half hour or so, and then remove it to allow the sauce to thicken.

5) Cook the parpadelle pasta, toss some olive oil through it, and serve with the ragu topped with the 3 Ps: pepper, pecorino and parsley.

A Week's Food From Around the World

Someone sent me an email once with photos of families from a range of countries showing all the groceries they bought in a week.  It's both funny (how unenthused is the German kid? and what's with the giant stuffed elephant in the Polish photo?) and also kind of sad (the lack of fresh food in the photos from Chad and America). 

A Week's Food From Around the World

German Family Melander

Food expenditure for one week: 375.39 Euros or $500.07

United States : The Revis family of North Carolina

Food expenditure for one week: $341.98

Japan : The Ukita family of Kodaira City

Food expenditure for one week: 37,699 Yen or $317.25

Italy : The Manzo family of Sicily

Food expenditure for one week: 214.36 Euros or $260.11

Mexico : The Casales family of Cuernavaca

Food expenditure for one week: 1,862.78 Mexican Pesos or $189.09

Poland : The Sobczynscy family of Konstancin-Jeziorna

Food expenditure for one week: 582.48 Zlotys or $151.27

Egypt : The Ahmed family of Cairo

Food expenditure for one week: 387.85 Egyptian Pounds or $68.53

Ecuador : The Ayme family of Tingo

Food expenditure for one week: $31.55

Bhutan : The Namgay family of Shingkhey Village

Food expenditure for one week: 224.93 ngultrum or $5.03

Chad : The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp

Food expenditure for one week: 685 CFA Francs or $1.23

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

So I've totally cheated here by taking a photo of the most healthy lot of groceries I've ever bought!  Am on a strict eating plan given to me by my personal trainer - and given how much $$$ I'm giving her each week it's guilting me into following it.  Anyway, I do intend to take photos like this again out of interest - and also to see whether I eat all of this food over the next 7 days.  The pic is missing eggs, kangaroo and almonds which I will also be dining on.  This cost me about $80 I think.

Lemon and herb baked tofu

My sister introduced me to baked tofu the other week which sounded totally hippie but was pretty damn good, so since then I've been trying some variations, and I came across this recipe which is meant to mimic lemon chicken.  As I am currently paying $$$ for a personal trainer I'm trying to follow the meal plan she created for me and eat very healthily for the next wee while - which means I've been leaving the olive oil out.

Lemon and Herb Baked Tofu

Serves two - or a meal and a lunch for one.  Baked tofu can be used cold in salads.

1 block firm or extra-firm tofu, well pressed (you press tofu by putting some paper towels on a chopping board, then placing the tofu on the towels and weighting it down with a bowl holding a can of beans or something for 15 mins)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2-3 tablespoons lemon juice ( I like mine lemony, mmm)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon fresh or 1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon fresh or dried thyme
Salt and pepper

1. Slice the tofu into 7cm thick strips.
2. Whisk together all ingredients except for tofu. Transfer to a shallow pan or zip-lock bag and add tofu, coating well.

3. Allow tofu to marinate for at least 1 hour (the longer the better), turning to coat well with marinade.

4. Heat oven to 190 degrees.

5. Transfer tofu and marinade to baking dish and bake for 20-30 minutes, turning halfway through and pouring extra marinade over the tofu as needed.

I've finally cracked the eggplant

I received a great cookbook for Christmas (from the lovely Bob and Bel, cheers bro and very-soon-to-be-sis-in-law) called "Greek Cookery from the Hellenic Heart" by George Calombaris of Masterchef fame.  It has beautiful silver-edged pages and a blue ribbon page marker, and is filled with rustic peasant-style recipes.  I remember when it arrived via post at my apartment and my sister and I read it as we waited for dinner to cook, and how we were both drawn to an eggplant dish that sounded divine.  I've cooked it a few times and have been playing around with the ingredients, as George's recipe is quite light on flavour, and I've now found a combination of flavours that I'm satisfied with... including anchovies, which goes to show how the trends I noticed in my previous blog are continuing, ha.

Melitzana or Eggplant and Tomato Bake

Serves 4.  I've also made a version without anchovies with feta crumbled on top instead of pecorino, as per the picture.  I'll put the recipe up for the potato dish at the back some time soon.

4 medium eggplants
2 tablespoons olive oil (or you could use olive oil spray)
2 brown onions, diced
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 cup tinned tomatoes
3 tablespoons parsley, shredded
80g anchovies (1 small can), drained and roughly chopped (optional)
Salt and pepper
Grated pecorino or parmesan (or feta if you are making the anchovy-less version)
300ml water

1. Slice the eggplant in half lengthways and score the flesh without breaking the skin.  Rub or spray flesh with olive oil and roast at 200 degrees until almost cooked ( I find this takes around half an hour in my oven).

2. Once cool enough to handle, scoop out half the flesh, reserving the shells.

3. Saute onion in olive oil until tender.  Add garlic, cumin, oregano and reserved eggplant flesh.  Cook for two minutes.

4. Stir in the chopped tomatoes, parsley and anchovies (if using), then season with salt and pepper.

5. Place eggplant shells into a tray, fill with the mixture, and top with the cheese.  Add water to cover the bottom of the tray and bake at 200 degrees for 20 minutes.

It's still all about pastry... and we have a friend in cheeses

Ha I had yet another pastry-dominated weekend!  That's one thing I'm loving about blogging, I am starting to notice trends in my cooking.  It seems that pastry, pumpkin and anchovies are featuring regularly at the moment with my winter cooking (although not all in the same dish!).  I'm interested to see how my favourite ingredients change as the seasons advance. 

Anyway, the pastry tastiness was all thanks to my friend Narelle, who was visiting from Sydney.  She took me to Richmond Hill Cafe and Larder (http://www.rhcl.com.au/) on Bridge Road... and even though it took 45 minutes to be seated for a Saturday lunch it was undoubtedly worth the wait.  With its own cheese room, the menu showcases cheese throughout many of its dishes, so I just had to pick the "Carles Roquefort, buttered leek and chive tart in oatmeal pastry with a salad of candied walnuts, sundried figs, grilled king brown mushrooms and shaved cornichons".  Thin crust short pastry with the lightest, silkiest filling of slow-cooked leeks and the tang of roquefort cheese... so damn good. 

After lunch we headed to Thomas Dux grocers to pick up the ingredients for dinner, which just might also have been a tart, two lots of pastry in one day is fine, right???  Hmmm my personal trainer is going to P.U.N.I.S.H. me on Thursday...

The recipe is one that Narelle found in a 2008 Delicious magazine that I've adapted.  As per my earlier entry on the individual pies, this is also a dish that could be made with ingredients like pumpkin, mushrooms, semi-dried tomatoes, different cheeses etc.  And again as these are individual pies you can cater to various tastes - Emily caught me just in time the other night before I was about to put onions in hers!

Spinach, Marinated Feta and Onion Tarts

Serves 3 to 4 - I only made three pies from this amount, and think that four would have resulted in slightly skimpy fillings.

Will post a photo soon to demonstrate the overlapping edges!

1 large bunch of English spinach, trimmed, leaves chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 to 4 sheets shortcrust pastry, thawed
100g marinated (Persian) feta, drained
1/3 cup kalamata olives
1 to 2 tablespoons pine nuts
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten

1.  Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and line 2 baking trays with paper. 

2.  Trim the stalks from the spinach, and wash and chop the leaves.  Shake off excess water and set aside.

3.  Heat the oil in a frypan over a medium-high heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes until softened, and then transfer to a bowl.  Add the spinach and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes or until the spinach has just wilted.  Transfer to a sieve and press the spinach against the sides to remove the excess water, then leave to cool.

4. Cut a 22cm circle from each pastry sheet and place on the trays.  Spread the spinach in the centre of each pastry circle, leaving a 2.5cm border.  Break the chunks of feta over the spinach, then scatter with the onion mixture, olives, pine nuts and thyme.  Season sparingly, given the presence of the salty olives and feta.

5. Fold the pastry border in over the filling, overlapping as you go to form a neat ring.  Brush the edges of the pastry with the beaten egg, and bake for 15 or so minutes until the tarts are golden and cooked through.

Share the lunch, share the love

Since I'm saving my pennies for my brother Bob and his lovely fiance Bel's Fiji wedding (8 weeks to go, yay!), I'm trying not to spend too much on eating out at the moment.  When I suggested to my friend Sal that we meet up with packed lunches instead of going out for lunch during the workday, she came up with the great alternative of bringing packed lunches to shared - loved it!  Sal brought a roasted vegetable salad and served it warm with goats cheese and capers.  I made some egg salad and served it on toasted pumpernickel bread with some sliced tomato.

Egg Salad Sandwiches

Serves 2

3 eggs
1 stalk celery chopped into fine cubes
1 to 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise
Squeeze of lime juice
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon chopped flat leaf parsley
Salt and pepper
4 slices bread (I use toasted pumpernickel)

1. Hardboil the eggs - always put them straight into cold or iced water for a few minutes as soon as you take them off the stove to halt the cooking process immediately. 

2. Once they are cool, finely chop the eggs.

3. Gently mix in a bowl with the remainder of the ingredients.

4. Serve on bread or toast.

It's all about the pies...

...yes, I've had another pastry-dominated weekend!  Last night was my first attempt at making a kangaroo, red wine and mushroom pie.  I had a great winter's afternoon at home slow cooking all the ingredients while the weather raged outside.  I took the meat out after just under two hours and it wasn't quite the tender melted taste I was after - but I don't know if kangaroo really gets that way, being such a lean meat.  Anyway, even if the meat was only ok the sauce was delicious (although I didn't have time to search for juniper berries - next time I will as I think an acidic berry taste would be fabulous).  Dave and Tina kindly agreed to be my guinea pigs - cheers guys : )

The next winter dish I'm looking to make is a duck ragout with pappardelle.  I haven't cooked with duck before so it will be a new food adventure...

Oh yes, and to complete my pastry weekend I also had a pie today!  Had a great Sunday - a 2.5 hour walk from Red Hill to Merrick and back again, a wine tasting, a stout at Red Hill Brewery (http://www.redhillbrewery.com.au/), and then the best pie I've ever had anywhere - the duck and red wine pie from Red Hill Bakery - so good that I had to buy a cold one to take home as well.  Absolutely gutted that they don't stock anywhere in Melbourne - apparently people drive down from the city just to buy them and I can understand why.  Sigh...

Individual Kangaroo, Red Wine and Mushroom Pies

Serves 4.  As I don't have ramekins, I just heated the pie filling in a dish, baked some pastry circles, and served the pies in bowls covered with a pastry lid.  From http://www.henschke.com.au/

2 tbsp butter

400g onions - cut into 1cm dice
300g celeriac - cut into 1cm dice
1 tbsp olive oil
500g kangaroo - cut in 2-3cm dice
120g mushrooms - field or swiss brown, cut into 1-2cm dice
2 cups brown stock
2 cups red wine
½ tsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp chopped parsley
4 juniper berries - crushed
1 tbsp ketcap manis (sweet soy sauce)
2 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tbsp water
Puff pastry
1 egg yolk for glaze

1. Melt half the butter and toss through the onion and celeriac in a casserole dish. Roast in the oven, uncovered, at 180°C until the onion is golden coloured.

2. Heat heavy-based pan, add olive oil and seal the kangaroo in 3 batches, ensuring meat is coloured on all sides. Remove meat to casserole after each batch.

3. Add half a cup of the stock to the pan and use to remove any kangaroo residue by stirring over the heat for a few minutes; add to the casserole.

4. Add the remaining butter to the pan and fry mushrooms; add remaining stock and reduce together by half.

5. Add mushrooms and stock to casserole together with wine. Cover and cook in the oven at 150°C for 2-3 hours or until kangaroo is tender.

6. Strain all juices from casserole into a saucepan; add crushed juniper berries, parsley and ketchap manis. Bring to a simmer and thicken with cornflour and water mixture.

7. Add braised meat and vegetables into thickened sauce and mix gently, taking care not to break up the cooked ingredients.

8. Divide between four small individual ovenproof pie dishes. Allow to cool and top each with puff pastry; glaze with egg yolk. (Recipe can be made to this stage a day or so before requirement.) Bake when required for 10-15 minutes at 180°C.

+39

Last night we had a cousins dinner at +39 Pizzeria on Little Bourke Street.  The service was slow but when the food arrived the authenticity of the pizza dough kept our table quiet while we devoured our meals!  I had a simple pasta dish with prawns and chillis (although not enough of the latter), which reminded me of one of my favourite Rick Stein pasta dishes.  Don't be scared of the anchovies if you are not a major fan of chunks of salty fishiness - the recipe calls for them to be melted through the hot oil, resulting in a dilution of the flavour throughout the dish.  And by the way orecchiette translates to "little ears" : )

Orecchiette with Cavalo Nero

Serves 4

500g cavalo nero, silver beet or spinach
500g dried orecchiette pasta
6 tablespoons oilve oil
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon crushed dried chillies
6 anchovy fillets in olive oil
Freshly grated parmesan or pecorino cheese
Salt and pepper

1) Bring 4.5 litres of water to the boil in a large saucepan with 8 teaspoons of salt.  Trim any stalks from the green leaves and cut into lengths.  Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook for 12 minutes.  Four minutes before the pasta is cooked, add the greens and cook until they are tender and the pasta is al dente.

2) Meanwhile, put the oil, garlic and chilli flakes into a large deep frying pan and place over a medium heat.  As soon as the garlic begins to sizzle, leave it to cook for a few seconds then stir in the anchovy fillets, breaking them up with a wooden spoon, until they have melted into the oil.  Remove from the heat.

3) Drain the pasta and greens and just before all the water has drained off them add to the frying pan and toss well (sometimes I keep a little of the drained water in case I need to add more to the pan).  Place over a high heat and shake around for a few seconds until the cooking liquid still clinging to the pasta and leaves has amalgamated with the oil to create a sauce.

4) Divide between warmed bowls and serve sprinkled with cheese.  If you do add salt and pepper, I would use a light touch as it already contains saltiness from the anchovies and heat from the chillies.

Lime and Coriander Flash-Roasted Fish

This recipe from a great "Savour the Pacific" cookbook my lovely cousin gave me for my birthday.  I adore seafood and tropical fruit - can't wait to go to Fiji in a few weeks for my brother's wedding - so I am finding this book is whetting my appetite for the fresh zing of island flavours I'll soon be devouring.

What I loved about this recipe was how quick it was (about 10 minutes including prep and cooking time), and that it needed no additional fats yet had some texture to the outer formed during its time in a super-hot oven.  I used some red snapper fillets from Queen Victoria market for a quick dinner for one.

Lime and Coriander Flash-Roasted Fish

Serves 6.

6 very fresh, boneless fish fillets
1 teaspoon minced or finely chopped red chilli
Finely grated rind (no pith) of one lime
2 teaspoons lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper
1.4 cup chopped fresh coriander

1. Heat the oven to 240 degrees and line a shallow pan with baking paper.

2. Arrange fish on prepared pan, leaving a little space betweenthe  pieces.  Combine chilli, lime rind, juice and sugar, and spread over the fillets.  Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with coriander.

3. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes until the flesh is opaque and the fish is cooked through.  Stand for two minutes before serving.

Queen of the Rice

Aaargh I have so many food thoughts running around my head and not enough time to write them all down!  Have cooked some yummy winter dishes lately and been to some more great Melbourne eateries, all of which I will write about eventually, but tonight I only have time for a quick post about the bold and flavoursome Rice Queen on Smith Street.  I went there for a post-movie meal on Sunday after seeing the quiet but menacing movie Animal Kingdom (and after a couple of White Rabbit Dark Ales at Little Creatures... which I think is my new favourite beer).  We had the cauliflower, cashew and lentil curry, which came with a bonus piquant tamarind chutney on the side, nice one!  And complemented it with a vietnamese salad that was so damn good it beat any salad from Victoria St hands down.  I'll be back soon, that's for sure.

http://www.ricequeen.com.au/
http://www.animalkingdomthefilm.com.au/
www.littlecreatures.com.au/Melbourne/melbourne/menu-id-67.html
http://www.whiterabbitbeer.com.au/

The Winter Blues

I'm loving blues music at the moment - my interest in it was sparked a few years ago when I went to see a random blues night at a random pub in London, and was rekindled when I saw the movie Black Snake Moan last year.  Anyway, a friend recently recommended The Black Keys (http://www.theblackkeys.com/) so I've been buying some of their stuff off iTunes to add to my collection.  And since then I've been trying to think of a recipe that would work with it so I can have a dinner party with blues as the background music.  I remembered a spicy creole prawn recipe I made a few years ago in New Zealand that seemed appropriate, and thought it would be even better making it here in Australia with all the fabulous fresh prawns available here. 

I'm actually writing this blog the night before the dinner party - since it's a midweek one I've actually made the creole sauce tonight so that hopefully I can just rush home from work, heat it and cook the prawns fresh.  Will see how it goes!  If it works I might make the base again, freeze it in portions, and then use it with fresh prawns for an easy meal for one.

Post dinner party comments: Yes it did work making the sauce the night before.  I've also since made another batch and froze some portions, which also worked well.  I used one portion with some white beans for a vegetarian version one night.  I've also added some paprika and thyme to add further depth to its flavour.

Post-post comments: I've added okra too.

Prawns in Creole Sauce

Serves 4. 

2 tablespoons oil
2 large onions, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 red pepper, deseeded and diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 large fresh tomates, chopped
1 can chopped tomatoes in juice
1 cup fish, chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 cup red wine
1 teaspoon chilli paste, or a pinch or two of chilli flakes to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon lime juice
200g okra cut into 2.5cm lengths
500g raw shelled prawns
Fresh coriander to garnish

1. Heat the oil and gently saute the onion for 5 minutes.  Add the garlic, peppers and celery and continue sauteeing until tender.

2. Add the fresh and canned tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste, chilli paste or flakes, cayenne pepper, bay leaves, paprika, thyme, stock, wine and lime juice and bring to the boil.  Add the okra.  Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.

3.  Add the prawns and cook for a further five minutes or until the prawns are tender.

4. Serve sprinkled with chopped coriander.

As easy as pie

I've always had a weakness for pastry, so I invented a pie that I can whip up as a quick meal for one or can use as a simple mid-week dinner party recipe.  What's particularly good in respect of the latter is that as it involves making individual pies, you can cater for individual tastes.  So when I made them for Narelle the other night I left the mushrooms out of hers : )  I've also found some low-fat pastry sheets that are a little healthier than the full fat ones (http://www.pampas.com.au/products/products.php?cat_id=1), and they only take 10 minutes to defrost so you can keep them in the freezer.

Hasty Tasty Pastry: Individual Cheese and Vegetable Pies

Serves as many as you want!

Packet of frozen individual puff pastry sheets
1 beaten egg for glazing
Filling: Any combination of vegetables and cheese that you like.  I often use spinach leaves, sliced portobello mushrooms, semi-dried tomatoes and goats cheese.  I've also used blanched pumpkin (cut it into thin slices and drop into boiling water for 1-2 minutes), pesto and kalamata olives. 

1. Set the oven to 220 degrees and take the pastry sheets from the freezer to defrost.

2. Wash the spinach, thinly slice the mushrooms and blanch the pumpkin (if you are using).

3. Once the pastry is defrosted, make cuts in the top half of the pastry sheet(s) using a 1.5cm spacing and leaving a 1.5cm border.  I've included a sketch of this below as I'm writing this from work - next time I make them I'll take a photo!

4. Layer the filling on the bottom half of the pastry, leaving a 1.5cm border. I would usually put the spinach down first, then the mushrooms, the tomatoes, and the cheese.

5. Brush the border of the bottom half of the pastry with some beaten egg.  Fold the top half over it and crimp the edges with a fork (just the three cut edges, not the folded edge).

6. Brush the top of the pastry with some more of the beaten egg and bake until golden brown (about 20 minutes).

Meals on Wheels

Sadly Thursday was my friend Narelle's last night in Melbourne before she moved to Sydney.  To mark the occasion we had dinner on the Tram Car Restaurant, that most Melbourne of activities immortalised by Kath and Kim in one of their episodes.  I was relatively dubious when Narelle suggested it a few weeks ago, but after being told by several people that it is in fact a great night out, I warmed to the idea.  It turned out to be a fantastic and very memorable night!  Food-wise it had more of an emphasis on quantity than quality, but the novelty of being in a tram lasted for the whole night - and as they keep your glass filled up at all times, you certainly leave feeling happy.  I would definitely recommend it : )

http://www.tramrestaurant.com.au/

Pub Grub

One of the multitude of things I love about Melbourne is the high quality low price food that is served in the pubs.  Some of my favourites are:

• The Napier Hotel - home of the Bogan Burger, which is not a dish I'm willing to try but damn it is funny watching people struggle to finish it - could you eat a burger that contains steak, chicken schnitzel, caramalised onions, cheese, pineapple, beetroot, potato cake, bacon, egg, lettuce, and tomato?  
• The Gertrude Hotel
• Roo and wine for $11.99 on Mondays at the Edinburgh Castle
• Two for one meals at the Wesley Anne on Monday nights

http://www.thenapierhotel.com/
http://www.thegertrudehotel.com.au/
www.myspace.com/edinburghcastlehotel
http://www.wesleyanne.com.au/

Coda: NFR?

I was lucky enough to go to Coda for lunch the other week... and I think it could just be my NFR (New Favourite Restaurant).  On the corner of Flinders Lane and Olivers Lane, it's one of those semi-basement spaces where you can see the footsteps of people walking by from the windows that are set just above the pavement level of the laneway.  The menu is asian-fusion, and features a range of small to large items, including around a dozen "one-bite" dishes... how blissful, no need to pick just one entree when you can have six : )  My favourite was the spanner crab served on a betel leaf with galangal, roasted chilli and lime.  We accompanied our feast with a very drinkable pinot grigio.  And since our group was lucky enough to be shouted lunch by our manager, I'm not sure what the bill was!  Anyway, I will definitely be back to Coda for some more of their amazing food, wine and service. 

http://www.codarestaurant.com.au/

Keeping in tuna

I'm really enjoying Delicious magazine's light food sections at the moment.  Whilst I love the rich decadent recipes in food magazines, I often prefer to cook lighter dinners, especially on weeknights.  Last night Narelle came over for one of our midweek dinner catch ups and I made the following recipe which is adapted from the May 2010 edition of Delicious and which we both agreed was a really nice light meal.

Tuna Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

The Delicious recipe calls for raisins in the sauce but I left them out as I don't really like raisins in savoury dishes.  I made a two thirds batch to serve 2 people. 

1 thick slice of day old sourdough or ciabatta, crusts removed, torn into small pieces
150ml milk (I used rice milk)
500g tuna fillets, trimmed and cut into 5mm cubes
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons grated pecorino or parmesan
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
Salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

For the sauce:
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon caster sugar
Salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. 

2. Soak the bread in the milk for five minutes, then lift out and squeeze it to remove the excess liquid.  Discard the milk and place the bread, tuna, herbs, cheese, lemon zest, salt and pepper in a bowl.  Mix with your hands until well combined (I recommend wearing food preparation gloves for this bit).  Add the egg and mix well, then form into 12 meatballs.  Place on an oiled baking tray, brush or spray with oil, then bake for 15 minutes until firm and lightly golden on the bottom.

3. For the sauce, add the oil and garlic to a pan and heat until the garlic is fragrant.  Add the tomatoes, parsley, sugar, salt and pepper,  bring to the boil and then simmer for 15 minutes until it has reduced slightly.

4. Add the meatballs (browned side up) and simmer for a few minutes until warmed through (you don't want them to start falling apart though).  Divide among 3 to 4 bowls, scatter with pine nuts, and serve.

Sydneytastic

Had a fantastic time in Sydney last weekend visiting Julie and Bel, and of course there were lots of great food moments to record!

Julie and I started the weekend with the Bronte to Bondi coastal walk, which has to be one of the best urban-based coastal walks in the world.  The surf was HUGE, and watching the aquamarine waves roll in from our clifftop vantage point was entrancing.  We rewarded ourselves with beautiful thin crust pizzas at Bondi Pizza (http://www.bondipizza.com.au/) before walking at a somewhat slower pace back to Bronte... I probably should have ordered the small pizza but I just couldn't resist...

On Saturday night Bel had booked a table at The Bentley in Surry Hills (http://www.thebentley.com.au/).  After a very bizarre moment where the maitre d' accused us of cancelling the table earlier (all we can think of is that he mistook Bel's phone call letting him know she'd be 10 minutes late for a cancellation instead???) we were able to start enjoying the creativity of the Bentley's chefs.  After having the worst duck of my life a few weeks ago (see one of my earlier posts!) it was fabulous to have the best duck ever.  It's definitely inspired me to give cooking it a go.

And on Sunday Julie to me to Adriano Zumbo's patisserie (http://www.adrianozumbo.com.au/).  Before you die you have to go there!  His sweet creations are like poetry on a plate... but edgy, off-centre and slightly surreal verse, complemented by eye-popping colours.  The cakes are almost architectural, with layers of texture, density and flavours that you would never think to use together.  We bought a bag of macaroons (including Kalamata Olive and Pumpkin Risotto flavours) and three cakes: the Black Pearl, the Ginger and the custard tart.  I wish I had written down all the the ingredients of Black Pearl - from what I can remember, there was pear, liquorice, and perhaps basil, which sounds inedible but it was delicious.  Kind of like a twisted lemon meringue pie, it had a biscuit base topped with layers that included crunchy pear, maybe a basil jelly, and green and black tipped meringue on top.  Zumbo, I'm in love with your patisserie!

This one's for Miriam!

I had a long-distance phone call with my beloved friend Miriam tonight.  Over the years Miriam and I have lived together in three different houses, including in our first place out of home when we were poor uni students.  The flat in question was a crumbling villa on a slightly dodgy street, but we loved it.  Back then our flat of four people survived on a weekly grocery budget of $80 (in total, not each), which just blows my mind now when I think about it.  We even had to spend $5 of the money on a taxi home as none of us had a car to bring the groceries back in! 

Anyway, Miriam has always been a fantastic supporter of my food obsession, and cooking for her is a joy.  We even used to have a deal where if I cooked dinner she would clean the shower (my most hated cleaning task), ha, it made cooking for her an even more attractive proposition.  Unfortunately now that we are living in different countries we can't make the most of this mutually beneficial arrangement, but at least I can send her a recipe via this website.  Miriam, it was what I was making as we were talking on the phone, and it's gluten free!  I made it up from random ingredients in my fridge, so I didn't measure anything.  If I make it again soon I'll repost the recipe with more exact ingredients and perhaps some variations.

JULY 2011 UPDATE: Miriam came to visit me this month, so I finally got to make this for her, yay!  And I have now updated the recipe with more precise quantities.  And we have decided to call it MIMELLONI.

Pasta-less Pumpkin and Goats Cheese "Cannelloni" AKA Mimelloni

Serves 2 - the perfect amount for Sarah and Miriam!  A variation is to roast instead of boiling the pumpkin (cut it into small 1cm squares and roast them until golden brown).  I have also made a version with spinach instead of pumpkin - just add a bunch of chopped spinach to the pan once the red onion is cooked, wilt it down, and squeeze the excess moisture out.  

"Cannelloni"
1 large eggplant
1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil (I use olive oil spray instead)
1 cup of pumpkin chopped for boiling (or roasting as noted above)
Salt and pepper
60g of goats cheese (or you could use ricotta or feta)
1/2 red onion
1/2 cup of grated pecorino or parmesan cheese

Sauce
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 cloves garlic of, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano (you could use fresh, and add with the tomatoes)
1 pinch chilli flakes (optional)
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons fresh parsely, chopped (optional)

1/2 teaspoon of caster sugar
Salt and pepper

1. Cut the eggplant lengthwise into 1/2 cm slices, spray or brush with olive oil and grill each side until they start to brown.  You want the slices to be soft enough so you can roll them up, but not overcooked as they will fall apart.  Once you are done with the grill, set the eggplant aside and heat the oven to 180 degrees.

2. Cook the pumpkin in some salted boiling water until tender.  Season and mash.

3. Finely chop the red onion and sautee in a little oil until soft and add to the pumpkin.

3. Add the olive oil, garlic, oregano and chilli flakes to a saucepan.  Heat gently until the garlic becomes aromatic then carefully add the tomatoes (they can spit when they hit the oil) and the sugar as well as the parsley if using.  Simmer for two minutes then season with salt and pepper. 

4. Spread half of the tomato sauce in a 20cm x 20cm baking dish.

4.  Lie a slice of eggplant horizontally on a plate, spread the middle third with goats cheese, add some of the pumpkin mixture, then roll up and place cut side down in the dish.  Repeat with all the slices, pour the rest of the sauce around the "cannelloni" and sprinkle with the pecorino or parmesan.  Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted and golden.

Enjoy Mim!!!

Pan fried gnocchi with pumpkin = delicious autumnal goodness

I haven't watched as much of this season's Masterchef as I would like to, even though episodes are available on-line (http://www.masterchef.com.au/).  However I did see the episode where the contestants had to cook Matt Moran's pan-fried quail with gnocchi, roast pumpkin, brown butter and sage.  Quail's not really my thing but I was interested in the pan-friend gnocchi.  I asked my friend Bridie who is an amazing chef (and who has answered many of my cooking questions over the years!) for her gnocchi recipe as she has wowed customers and food critics with it before.  Her main hint was to use desiree potatoes, and I found some great organic ones at the South Melbourne Market.  I then found that the latest Delicious magazine has a recipe for gnocchi where the potatoes are baked rather than boiled, so I incorporated this technique into the recipe - it resulted in wonderfully light fluffy potatoes.  For the rest of the recipe I added some pan-fried pumpkin, rocket, walnuts and blue cheese.  Narelle brought the red wine and we had a great autumnal dinner!

Pan-fried Gnocchi and Pumpkin with Rocket, Walnuts and Blue Cheese

Serves 4

For the gnocchi:
1 kg desiree potatoes with the skins on
2 cups salt
1/2 kg flour
salt and pepper
100gm butter
3 egg yolks
Olive oil
 
For the rest:
500g pumpkin, cut into 1cm cubes
2 T cooking oil
1/2 cup walnuts
150g blue cheese
2 cups rocket
Olive oil
 
1. Spread the salt on a baking tray so it is about 1cm thick.  Prick each potato several times with a fork and bake at 180 degrees until tender. 
 
2. While the potatoes are cooking, blanch the pumpkin cubes for approximately 3 minutes in salted boiling water. Refresh in ice water and then drain.
 
3. Toast the walnuts in a frypan until golden.
 
4. Once the potatoes are cooked, allow to cool a bit, cut in half and scoop the potato from the skins.
 
5. Mash the potatoes and put through a potato ricer if you have one.  Season with salt and pepper and add the flour, melted butter and egg yolks to form a soft dough.
 
6. Spread the dough on a floured board, knead a little and then divide it into 6 pieces.  Roll each piece out until it is 2cm thick and cut into 2cm pieces.  Place on a single layer on a tray and set aside.
 
7. Boil the gnocchi for one minute.  You don't need to wait for all the gnocchi to float to the top like you do with store-bought gnocchi.  Refresh in iced water, drain and then toss with a little bit of extra virgin olive oil.
 
8. Heat the cooking oil in a fry pan, fry the pumpkin 'til golden, then remove and fry the gnocchi 'til golden. 
 
9. Divide the rocket onto 4 plates, and add pumpkin, gnocchi, walnuts and crumbled blue vein cheese.  Drizzle with olive oil.

Forget cheese on toast ... quesadillas are the ultimate melted cheese experience.

I had a great weekend which consisted of dinner and drinks every night at cheap and cheerful places which produced some wonderful dishes (and one terrible one!).  Friday night we started with drinks at the Canary Club (www.yourrestaurants.com.au/guide/canary_club) and finished with dinner at Ants Bistro in Chinatown (www.yourrestaurants.com.au/guide/ants_bistro/map), which has been a relatively regular Friday night haunt for me over the last couple of years.  Julie, if you read this, I think they've changed the chef!  The Kung Po prawns are no longer deep fried and are way less spicy - although it actually makes for a better dish, as I think the removal of the batter and the need to engage in a chilli eating contest to consume it means one can concentrate on the flavours instead. 

Sunday night we had a slightly odd night in Richmond at the Royal Saxon (http://www.royalsaxon.com/) and the Cherry Tree Hotel (http://www.thecherrytree.com.au/) - the first being a very lowly-lit bar to aid the meat market attendees in looking their best for each other, and the second being totally overlit - white walls and bright lights do not make for a great night time venue!  We finished with dinner at Minh Minh (www.yourrestaurants.com.au/guide/minh_minh), where the tofu with lemongrass was divine and the duck in plum sauce was inedible (note to self: never eat deep fried duck again).

But the best food was on Saturday night at De Los Santos (http://www.delossantos.com.au/) on Brunswick with Narelle, Ngaio and Robyn.  I just looooove tapas and DLS didn't dissapoint.  We had piquillo rellenos (piquillo peppers stuffed with persian feta and preserved lemon served with smoked eggplant puree), ensalada maíz y queso (a salad of roasted sweet corn, witlof, spinach, spiced almond salad, grated sheep's cheese, red onion and sherry vinaigrette), bola de queso y patata (pan fried potato dumplings with toasted pine nuts, brandied raisins and olive oil) and quesadillas - the ultimate mexican toasted sandwich.  The latter reminded me of a phase I went through a couple of years ago when I would make a stack of quesadillas for dinner, so I've dug out the recipes I used to make, including a cheese-free one from back in the day before I discovered I could eat goats and sheeps milk cheese (since cow's milk is not my friend...).  I'm also looking forward to trying a few more variations to add to my repertiore, so Ngaio you'll have to remind me what fillings you use when you make them!  I'm also going to experiment with the cooking techniques - you can cook them in a fry pan or in the oven. 

Potato-filled Quesadillas

As this recipe doesn't have cheese to bind the quesadilla, it may be easier to cook it in the oven.  Next time I'm going to make a fresh tomato salsa to go with it.  Serves 4.

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 large floury potato, peeled and cut into 1cm cubes
1 cup vege or chicken stock
Salt and pepper
Eight 20cm flour tortillas
Optional garnishes (I usually go for the tomato): 1 cup sour cream, 1 seeded and chopped tomato, sliced jalapeno peppers

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.  Line two trays with baking paper.

2. Heat the oil in a medium frypan over a medium heat.  Gently fry the onion slices, stirring often, until they are golden.  Add the potato cubes and cook for one minute, then add the stock and cook for 8 to 12 minutes until the potatoes are soft and the liquid has been absorbed.  Season with salt and pepper. 

3. Place four tortillas on the baking sheets, and add a quarter of the potato mixture to each, spreading it evenly (but leaving a 1.5cm gap at the edges otherwise it will fall out when you flip it).  Top each with a tortilla, press down and spray or brush with some olive oil.  Bake for five minutes each side (I'll admit, it's not the easiest thing in the world turning them over!) or until lightly browned and hot all the way through.  Serve by cutting each into eight wedges.

Corn, Bean and Onion Quesadillas

Next time I make these I'm going to try finely chopped fresh chilli instead of chilli powder, and maybe I'll add some chopped fresh coriander too.  With the corn my view is that fresh is so much better than frozen if available; it's not hard to cut the kernels from the cob and boil them for a couple of minutes and it's so worth it.  On the flipside, I do usually go for canned beans rather than freshly cooked!  Serves 4.

Eight 20cm flour tortillas
1 cup of cooked corn kernels
1 cup cooked kidney beans
1/2 cup paper-thin slivers of red onion
2 cups grated cheese
1 teaspoon chilli powder
Sour cream (optional)

1. Evenly sprinkle four of the tortillas with one quarter of the corn, beans, cheese and chilli powder, leaving a 1.5cm gap at the edge.  Top each with another tortilla and press down to help them stick together.

2. Heat a large ungreased frypan over a medium heat.  Cook each quesadilla for about 4 to 5 minutes each side until the cheese is melted and the tortillas are starting to get brown flecks.  If the tortillas are a bit dry when you buy them you can coat the pan with a little olive oil spray.

3. Cut each quesadilla into eight and serve (with sour cream if you like).

Double soup FAIL... luckily followed by soup success!

I have to be honest here - I managed to stuff up one of the world's easiest recipes (pumpkin soup) not once but twice in the last few weeks!  The first time I used too much of a really salty vege stock that just made it inedible.  Then I overcorrected the next time by adding lots more water and some coconut milk and ended up with something so thin I suppose it could be best described as hot milky pumpkin water.  FAIL.

Finally last night I made a decent roast winter vegetable soup with pumpkin, parsnip and carrot.  It was the perfect dish for the first winter dinner party of the year.  Afterwards my fabulous dinner guest Narelle and I made microwave popcorn on the stove (as my kitchen is too small to accommodate a microwave!) and watched the brilliant movie Revolutionary Road (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolutionary_Road_(film)).  It has probably been 15 years since I made popcorn on a stovetop; I forgot how fun it was - the sound of kernels popping instantly took me back to memories of making it with Mum.

Roast Winter Vegetable Soup

Roasting the vegetables first is so worthwhile as it both makes for a much richer flavour and means you don't have to stand around the stove sauteeing onions like you would for a simmer-only recipe.  I usually make extra vege stock so that I can thin the soup when pureeing it if necessary, or can add more to the pot while the soup is simmering if it's looking a bit too thick.  Sometimes I will add other fresh herbs like thyme to the roasting tray for extra flavour.  Last night I garnished the soup with goats feta since I don't eat cream, which is the usual pumpkin soup garnish.  The saltiness of the feta was a nice contrast to the sweetness from the carrots.  Serves 4. 

1 onion, cut into 8 wedges
6 cloves garlic (unpeeled)
4 cups winter vegetables (such as pumpkin, parsnip, carrot, and kumara) cubed
A few springs of rosemary
Olive oil
4 - 6 cups vege stock (depending on how thick you like your soup)
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper
100g feta cheese (optional; I use goats feta)
Small handful of parsley (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.  Place the onion wedges, unpeeled garlic cloves, springs of rosemary and winter vegetables on a baking tray that has been lined with baking paper (the paper isn't completely necessary but it makes it easy to tip the vegetables into the stock).  Brush with olive oil and roast until vegetables are tender and golden.  Discard the roasted herbs.

2. Bring 4 cups of the vege stock to the boil and add the roasted vegetables (you'll need to squeeze the roasted garlic out of the skins) and the bay leaves.  Simmer for around 15 minutes until the vegetables are soft. 

3. Remove the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper.  Puree with a hand-held blender or in batches in a food processor, adding extra vege stock if you like your soup thinner.

4. Serve garnished with feta cheese and/or chopped parsley if you so desire.

Birthday extravagance

Aaaah, I love extravagant birthday dinners... an excuse to order anything one wants from the menu and wine list!  We started the evening with a bottle of champagne at Syracuse (www.syracuserestaurant.com.au), one of my favourite wine bars in Melbourne.  It has a touch of old school class to it whilst also being quite relaxed.  From there we went to the new Movida Aqui (www.movida.com.au) on Bourke Street - where upon our arrival the bartender brought over another bottle of bubbles, a gift from my bro and his fiancee in Sydney.  It was such a cool present, I felt like I was in a movie! 


We started by immediately ordering a round of the bocadillo de calamares - miniature ciabatta sandwiches filled with fried calamari and garlic mayonnaise.  I would never have thought to put calamari in bread but damn they were tasty and just what we needed to start soaking up some of the alcohol.  Our first "wave" of food included grilled fish, beautifully tender mussells cooked in sherry, and anchovy fillets with the most heavenly smoked tomato sorbet.  The Tasmanian Holm Oak pinot noir was a good drop and a good accompaniment to the smokiness of the sorbet.  The second "wave" began with bravas potatoes, continued with a salad of pumpkin, eggplant, quince, and green olives (my dish of the evening), and ended with a very rich dish of salt bush goat.  We finished by sharing a couple of desserts.  I'm writing this 24 hours later and I think I'm still full!


Hmmm, so this is the bit where I give my overally review of Movida.  I always find this a little difficult, as no matter where you go it's the company that matters most - and my sister and cousin and I had a fantastic night.  So often even if the food or service isn't perfect, it can still be a magical evening.  Aargh, I'm putting this off a bit, aren't it.  I suppose it's just that I built the Movida experience up hugely for the last week, to the point of having butterflies in my stomach during the day as I was so excited, and after lacklustre service and food which was great but maybe not the transcendental experience I was anticipating, I don't feel I can give it 10 out of 10.  It was still damn good, but I think I set the bar pretty high these days.  I would say the food at Bar Lourinha (www.barlourinha.com.au) or Cumulus Inc. (www.cumulusinc.com.au) is just as good.  However, it is handy being able to book a table unlike the latter places, and the food is still yummy enough that I would happily go back there.


So that's another year, another birthday over.  I'm glad that as always it involved plenty of feasting both in Cape Paterson last weekend and at Movida Aqui last night.  Mmmm, all this talk of food, time to start planning another dinner party again soon methinks!

My favourite recipe website

My sister put me on to the 101 Cookbooks website last year, and since then I have incorporated many of Heidi Swanson's wonderful dishes into my repertoire. Her passion for vegetarian wholefood and the inventiveness of the recipes keeps me coming back time and time again, and I have referred countless people to the website. What I particularly like is the "twist" each recipe usually contains - the addition of a few at times unexpected ingredients which elevate the complexity of flavours.

Heidi's brilliant website is: http://www.101cookbooks.com/

The dish I've probably cooked the most often is the Giant White Chipotle Beans recipe - a very more-ish recipe involving beans, silverbeet and feta cheese baked in a spicy tomato chilli sauce topped with emerald green coriander pesto and toasted breadcrumbs.  If I feel like a simpler and less oil-based recipe I sometimes leave the breadcrumbs off and use fresh coriander leaves rather than making the pesto. Oh and I've yet to track down chipotle sauce but am looking forward to the day when I do. 

Sunday afternoon bliss...

On our way back from Cape Paterson on Sunday we stumbled across a most serene winery with an incredible view and soft green grass perfect for lying on whilst watching the clouds drift by... There was even a tree for climbing to get an even better view of Westernport. We were very lucky to have the place to ourselves for a couple of hours while we drank some reisling and pinot noir. As they don't do food you can bring your own picnic. We brought out the leftovers from Saturday's dinner party: asparagus and smoked salmon sandwiches, devilled eggs, sourdough, chevre and my favourite dips from Queen Vic market - smoked eggplant, coriander and macadamia pesto, and moroccan harissa. The winery is called The Gurdies Winery (http://www.thegurdieswinery.com.au/) and I totally recommend it for a picnic lunch. It was the most relaxing meal I've had in a long time (and it was also the first tree I've climbed in many a year!).

The inaugural meeting of the LMC

Following a fantastic birthday dinner party last night in Cape Paterson during which my wonderful friends all pitched in to create the food with me, I realised how much I wanted to keep a record of the meals and food thoughts in my life in a more organised way! And after years of keeping notebooks with my ideas and recipes, a blog seems a much more noughties way to do so. It is also my intention to pay homage to the people who have influenced me and helped spark my passion for cooking.

So I'll begin by recording last night's festivities, which were based on the theme of Mad Men, and thus had a 1960s theme. I wore a Betty Draper-style dress from a great shop in Sydney called Retrospec'd (http://www.retrospecd.com/) that makes reproduction 1940s and 1950s clothes - combined with the red gingham apron my parents bought me in Italy I looked pretty damn retro I think... The menu combined a few classic 196os dishes:

• Hors d'ouevres: Asparagus and Smoked Salmon Rolls and Devilled Eggs
• Entree: Avocado and Prawn Cocktails
• Main: Smoked Fish Pie
• Dessert: Baked Orange Alaska

Asparagus and Smoked Salmon Rolls

These are hilariously retro but also damn tasty. Makes 24.

1 loaf sandwich slice wholemeal bread
12 asparagus spears
150g chevre (soft goats cheese)
250g smoked salmon
Toothpicks

1. Cut the woody ends off the asparagus and steam the spears for around 4 minutes until tender. Allow to cool and then cut in half.

2. Cut the crusts off the bread and discard (or feed them to the ducks if you're into giving wildlife human food). Gently roll the bread with a rolling pin (or a wine bottle if you're in a beach house with limited utensils!) as this will make it easier to work with. 3. Spread one side of the bread with some goats cheese. Lie a slice of smoked salmon and an asparagus spear on an angle so that thespear reaches from one corner to another. Roll up and secure with a toothpick.

Devilled Eggs

I initially made these as a bit of a joke, thinking that they would look great in the photos but wouldn't be exactly popular. I was actually kind of surprised at how good they tasted! Makes 12.

6 free range eggs
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
A few drops of tabasco sauce
1 teaspoon of sweet paprika plus more to garnish
A small handful of italian flat leaf parsley

1. Hard boil the eggs. Allow to cool a little, then cut in half lengthwise and gently remove the yolks. Set the whites aside and place the yolks in a mixing bowl.

2. Use a fork to mash the yolks with the mustard, mayonnaise, tabasco sauce, and 1 teaspoon of paprika.

3. Spoon or pipe the egg mixture into the egg white halves. Sprinkle with paprika and garnish each with a sprig of parsley.

Avocado and Prawn Cocktails

This recipe is about one million times better than the shrimp cocktails I had to serve customers at my first job, which was at a dodgy pub in the deepest darkest suburbs of Christchurch...

My friend Andrew peeled 50 prawns on the night of the dinner party even though he was extremely hungover at the time!

The recipe can be found at www.taste.com.au/recipes/19034/avocado+prawn+cocktail


Smoked Fish Pie

This is a recipe from my favourite "food porn" magazine Cuisine (http://www.cuisine.co.nz/) - a New Zealand publication that's so good I've even got one of my Aussie foodie friends into it. The pie is a really good option for an easy dinner with friends, as it is quite substantial and contains carbs (golden flaky pastry and potatoes), veges (leeks) and protein (smoked fish), making it a meal in one - no need for side dishes! The addition of kalamata olives and garlic butter really set the flavours off. Serves 6.

The recipe can be found at www.cuisine.co.nz/index.cfm?pageId=53348. My friend Julie and I came up with an unintentional but very worthwhile variation whereby we made a little extra garlic butter and added some to the potatoes - otherwise they can be a little bland. I also double the amount of smoked fish used.

Baked Orange Alaska

I remember this recipe from a school cook book... do they even teach kids home economics these days? Anyway, this is a healthy-ish version, although I'm considering trying a less healthy version by soaking the fruit in alcohol. Makes 6.

3 oranges (try to find ones with flat rather than pointy ends as they need to balance on a baking tray)
3 kiwifruit
4 eggs
1/2 cup of caster sugar
300mL icecream (I used Maggie Beer's vanilla with elderflower - see www.maggiebeer.com.au/contactus/distributors/)

1. Cut the oranges in half around the middle and carefully cut out the flesh - I use a paring knife to cut around the edge and then cut segments out. Peel and chop the kiwifruits into chunks and combine with the orange pieces in a bowl.

2. Spoon the fruit mixture back into the orange halves.

3. Beat the egg whites while gradually adding the caster sugar until they are stiff and forming soft peaks.

4. Preheat the grill.

5. Add a scoop of icecream on top of the fruit and cover with a mound of meringue that completely overs the icecream and fruit.

6. Grill for a few minutes until the meringue is golden brown and serve.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

So that was the menu for my birthday dinner party this year. And while we really enjoyed eating it, what I loved even more was how much fun we had creating these dishes together. It was a really lovely example of how food is a social event as much as it is a nutritional necessity.

And what is the Last Mouthful Club? It's a joke that my foodie friend Kate and I made when we realised we both have the same habit - we'll always save a bite of our favourite elements of what's on our plate until last so that we can end a meal with a mouthful that captures the best of the dish. It can mean having to fend off people who tend to sneak bites off other people's plates! But it's always great to end a meal on a high note.

Ciao my lovelies,

Sarah