Date Archives November 2010

Thermomix

Review November 30, 2010 2 Comments

When I heard from Cate’s blog that I could book in a demonstration for a Thermomix party, I was so there! Just a little background info:

The Thermomix is basically a blender with a heating element. It’s really popular in Europe, and with chefs around the world. You can control the heat settings, and you can also choose to put the blender bit in reverse. All that control provides you with the versatility to work many different recipes just with the one machine!

So the lovely Jan came over one Sunday afternoon, and we made a whole bunch of things. There was buckwheat bread done entirely with the thermomix – no messing around with warm water trying to get the yeast to start!

And we also pulverised some parmesean to go with the rissotto we were going to make later.

First up, hummus, which took minutes! I’m not a fan of chickpeas usually, but this was so full of flavour, and tasted really hearty. So addictive.

Then the beetroot/carrot/mint/apple salad. It was so refreshing, we finished the whole plate practically as it came out.

And look how well chopped it came out with under a minute in the thermomix!

And the piece de resistance for me – the mushroom rissotto. The Thermomix did all the cooking – no stirring or messing with ladles and stock, it’s all done for you!!!!! How crazy is that? And it just smelt so SO good. Everything was in the one bowl – onions were sauteed in the Thermomix, and so was the stirring of the rice and so on. It was absolutely crazy.

And for those of you wondering how the bread would turn out:

How sexy is that? Soft on the inside, and crusty on the outside, Jan even ground her own buckwheat flour. Right in front of us!!

She also made some lemon custard.

It was soft and goey and thick. Just like a good custard should be!

So yes, it is a fantastic piece of machinery, and it works wonders fast. It is on the expensive side, but it does replace a whole host of appliances you might need. A home demonstration is completely free, so if you’d like to see what it can do for yourself, you can call Jan and set up a home demo!

Thermomix Consultant:
Jan
jan.vandergraaf@optusnet.com.au

These are a few of my flavour-ite things

Food For Thought November 27, 2010 7 Comments

Just a light post for the weekend…

This is absolutely nuts!! I am a professed bacon lover and even I think this is crazy (and a part of me wants to try it). I found this on Craftgossip, and naturally I followed the link to the shop website. They’ve got an entire bacon themed section!!! They even have things like bacon flavoured jelly beans (in a stylish bacon looking tin of course), bacon flavoured lip balm…and a whole host of other things.

It’s like my fantasies coming true in a carnival-funhouse-mirror kind of way. I LIKE!

Did I mention that I actually have bacon-flavoured salt in my cupboard? hehe.

Lord of the Fries

Review November 25, 2010 9 Comments

I went to Melbourne for a quick trip, and I just had to try Lord of the Fries! As you know, I kinda have an obsession with fries. You can choose different sauces for your fries, and that’s where the variety comes in. We had French Canadian (Cheese and gravy – pictured below), Indian (Indian spices (?) and mango chutney pictured above) and Mexican (Salsa and Sour Cream).

To be honest, as great as the fries sound, it wasn’t all that crash hot. The fries were wayyyy overcooked and stale, and the Indian sauce was uninspiring. The French Canadian was ok, but I’m pretty sure that it’s no where close to poutine and just tastes a lot like chips and gravy.

We requested the salsa to be served on the side, and they completely forgot the sour cream! We actually had another order with aoli sauce, but they completely forgot that too. It’s so disappointing, and it’s not like they were really quick about it. We could finish just about a whole soft-serve before the food even came out. The salsa was also very watery and doesn’t have the chunk that you’d associate with really good salsa.

It was a lot better when I went previously, but I think that it was because we went to the LOTF in the city. Just yeah.

Disappointing.

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I miss.

Food For Thought November 22, 2010 3 Comments

Durians. This spiky fruit that holds pungently fragrant yellow custard within.

Some people say that it’s smelly. I like blue cheese.

I WANT DURIANS!

Nuffnang Christmas Party!!

Review November 19, 2010

Went to the “Blue Hawaii” themed Nuffnang Christmas Party at the Bavarian Bier Cafe! Just as a note for anyone who is going to BBC in the city, there are two – I actually went to the wrong one. =( (Sorry to Cate and Ann who waited for me!!)

There was a prize for most Hawaiian, of course, and I dressed up too, but Cate definitely took the prize with her inflatable palm tree!! Congrats!

She won a blue Shuffle for her efforts. =)

There was a bar tab too, but as mentioned before, I can’t drink beer. They had interesting selections of Lychee and Peach though! And served in a very cocktail-looking glass!

And the food. I missed out on the cheese platter, but I had the vegetarian platter, and a meat one.

The Mushroom and Garlic Flemmenbrot was absolutely divine, with its buttery mushrooms and crisp base. A little cold, but still AWESOME! Definitely one of the more memorable bites of the night.

The rosti was tasty, but really, no one can go wrong with a rosti!! Mmm potato.

I’m not quite sure what this was, but I remember tasting avocado, and that it was fruity and light. Very refreshing when you’ve had the meat platter (coming soon my lovelies!).

I’m not quite sure what this was too – but it was quite nice. Nothing memorable though.

And finally…

The MEAT PLATTER!

A selection of schnitzel, potato wedges and…

PORK BELLY. Juicy pork belly with its succulent meat and crispy cracking. And the sauerkraut. YUM.

This, and my previous experience with the BBC has told me that their pork belly is definitely worth paying for. Time and time again, it’s never failed.

Man this will haunt my dreams tonight.

We ate at:

Bavarian Bier Cafe
16 O’Connell Street Sydney, NSW 2000
02 9221 0100

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Being Cheesy

Recipe November 17, 2010 8 Comments

So, after raving about the cheese bread in my review of Braza, I was inspired to try making them!

I got the recipe from this page, and tweaked it just a little because I kinda ran out of flour halfway. *sheepish*

Brazillian Cheese Bread (from allrecipes.com)

1/2 cup olive oil or butter

1/3 cup water

1/3 cup milk or soy milk

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups tapioca (arrowroot) flour (I mixed it in with some cornflour cause I ran out of tapioca flour)

2 teaspoons minced garlic

2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

2 beaten eggs

Preheat your oven to 190C (375F)

Put all the wet ingredients into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Please use a saucepan that’s big enough to incorporate all the ingredients – it’s like making chioux pastry, you will add the other ingredients into this pan.

Once it comes to the boil, take the pan off the heat. Stir in the flour, garlic and salt till well combined. Rest for 15 minutes.

After resting, stir in the eggs and cheese, until well combined. It’ll be a bit lumpy, and for me, it was just a bit thicker than a successful chioux batter.

Drop by tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased, lined baking try (it’s going to practically fry in its own oil) and chuck into the oven till golden brown.

And voila!

It’s pretty close to what I had, except that mine was had slightly more texture to it – not enough liquid maybe? Sean says that he prefers the crispier outside though, so it all worked out! The inside was also lovely, squishy and chewy, so that’s perfect for me. It’s so moreish too!! Be careful when you make it – I would suggest a double batch cause you’ll just end up snacking on the first batch while waiting for the rest to come out of the oven!!

Great for parties for sure. :D:D

B&B: Beef and Beer

Review November 15, 2010 4 Comments

I won a beef and beer masterclass at Mumu Grill with my crazy hat at the food bloggers’ picnic, and I finally managed to attend it! I had such a ball of a time, and of course, had fab food.

Head chef Craig Macindoe sharing all his precious meat information with us! He talked about the difference between grass-fed and grain-fed beef, and all the different cuts.We even got to participate in the kitchen!! How awesome is that? He also shared his top tip when it came to cooking the meat (besides picking good meat) – don’t touch it! Apparently too many cooks keep turning the steak on the barbecue and completely massacre what could have been a really juicy steak.

And speaking of juicy meat, LUNCH!! For lunch that day, we had a variety of dishes, and they were all cooked with such precision

I don’t think I got a picture of everything, but we had a garlic and rosemary T-bone, a prosciutto-wrapped steak, a Szechuan pepper and coffee crusted steak and…

THE RIBS!!!

These ribs were first cooked in salted boiling water, before it was glazed with a tangy barbecue sauce and browned on the barbecue. Mmmmm…everything was falling off the bone and just so so tasty!! Definitely my favourite.

And just to reiterate the point about perfectly cooked steak:

Just look at that gorgeous, juicy, medium rare. I’m hungry again!!

And of course, the beer.

I feel so bad that I went to the beef and beer masterclass and well, I can’t drink beer. In fact, I get severe headaches and nausea whenever I drink alcohol. =( But I did learn however, that you always drink beer in a glass because the aroma is a lot of the flavour as well, and the many different kinds of craft beers are worth paying for and trying. If you want to find out more about the beer bit of it, the man who led the discussion in the beer part of the masterclass is Dan from Beersnobs. He’s very affable and easy to understand (especially for someone who doesn’t know anything about beers), and ladies, it helps that he’s quite easy on the eyes. 😉

And to end of this post, I shall leave you with the Bambi that greeted me at the door.

MUAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Mumu Grill
94606877
70 Alexander Street, Crows Nest
www.mumugrill.com.au

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Carnivorous Fantasies

Review November 13, 2010 6 Comments

I love all-you-can-eat places. I just always have, and the glutton within me relishes the feeling of being so full you have to be rolled out of the restaurant. There’s something so satisfactory about it. The lazy person within me also loves it when the food is brought out to you, instead of having to walk to it!!

Which is why churrascaria is so AWESOME!

The concept is simple. There’s meat. Meat on sticks. Carved on to your plate. Omg it’s so awesome.

But you need to be hungry. Sean and I always are, haha. That’s his hungry face. :D:D

And we begin!!

These little wooden blocks on the table indicate whether you want more food or not. Green means yes, red means, “I’m really full, but convince me. =)”

We start off with cheese bread.

It’s wonderful chewyness is so addictive!! I need to get a recipe for this soon.

Chewy!

They also serve a whole variety of sides to go with your MEAT. (You have to say it with a growly manly voice. haha!)

This itty bitty chillies carry a heat that belies their little sizes. Each one is a happy explosion in my mouth, and always makes me want more food. Very appetizing.

The salsa is tangy, and also whets your appetite. It’s a perfect foil to the heavy meat, and I always go through multiple bowls of it.

The crumbed and fried bananas remind me of Goreng Pisang (which is a battered and fried banana snack from South East Asia). I miss home!

Black beans cooked with garlic. Lovely, but very filling.

Salad with artichokes, olives and tomatoes. It’s really refreshing, like the salsa, but not as tangy. Addictive, and it sometimes is a case of get your veggies in cause you’re not going to get fiber anywhere else! haha.

And now, for the main event.

MEAT.

MEAT

MEATTTTTTTT!!!!!!

Just posting these pictures makes me hungry again. *salivates*

To be honest, it is kind of expensive ($42 a head), but it’s great for a once in awhile thing. =)

And we always finish off with the grilled pineapple, with cinnamon. YUM!

There is a lunch option as well, from Wednesday to Friday, but there aren’t as many meat options. I say if you’re going to make it all the way there, you might as well go the whole hock.

Oh and it gets really busy over dinner, especially weekend nights. Remember to call ahead and make your reservation!

We ate at:

Braza Churrascaria
13 Norton Street
Leichardt NSW2040

Opening Hours:
Lunch: Wed to Sun – 12 to 3.30
Dinner: 7 nights – 6 till late

Phone: (02) 95727921

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Breaking Dawn

Recipe November 12, 2010 6 Comments

I’m not often awake early, but when I am, I like to get industrious with breakfast!! People say that it’s the most important meal of the day and yada yada (no really. It’s important.) but I love it just because I think bacon&eggs is the best combination EVER!

Here I’ve got an egg baked in a tomato, covered in diced bacon, with a side of a yoghurt parfait with dried cranberries and cereal.

Eggs en cocotte de tomat (An original recipe):

Ingredients
Eggs
Tomatoes
Basil
Bacon
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil

Preheat your oven to 220C.

Carefully cut off the top of the tomatoes (I would use 1 or 2 per person) and scoop out the insides. (You don’t need the insides for this, but don’t waste it! I would suggest making your own ketchup. :)) Please make sure that you scoop out enough flesh – I didn’t for the first one and there was egg spilling out everywhere! Put a basil leaf in the bottom on the tomato, and crack some salt and pepper into the tomato shell. Then crack an egg into it and place into an oven proof tray. (On hindsight, I would’ve used muffin trays, cause it was a little finicky trying to get the cooked tomatoes off the tray.)

Drizzle the filled tomatoes and tops with olive oil (don’t ‘cap’ the tomatoes first!) and bake for about 5 min, or until just set. Then cap the tomatoes and bake for a little while longer, till the yolks are the way you want them.

While the eggs are baking, fry up some bacon.

When the tomatoes are done, serve up with yummy salty bacon!! =)

Yoghurt parfait:

Yoghurt
Cereal of your choice
Dried fruit of your choice

This one’s pretty easy. I just layered thick yoghurt, dried cranberries, weetbix, and oatmeal in a washed out jar. Et voila! Simple, and I think the jar looks super cute as little serving cups. heh heh.

The closest yoghurt to what I used would be a Greek style yoghurt (I made my own), but remember that not all yoghurts are sweetened, so taste them first! I do think though that the slight tartness of Greek yoghurts are a good foil to the sweetened dried fruit. But really, use whatever you want! =)

Churros!

Review November 9, 2010 2 Comments

What else can I say hey, it’s crispy-on-the-outside-chewy-on-the-inside-covered-in-icing-sugar-dipped-in-chocolate goodness!

I must say though, there is a Max Brenner vs San Churros debate in my household. We just can’t decide which one we prefer, and we live pretty much an equal distance from the both of them. Well, I guess it’s just another reason to keep going to both to erm…research!

Sean very nicely thought that since I like chilli and chocolate, he would get me the new-ish Fire and Ice truffle. It’s basically dark chocolate with chilli and mint. The idea sounds really appealing, and I really think that it would work, but unfortunately, this particular balance is not for me. I’m not the biggest mint+chocolate fan, but I’m not completely adverse to the combination. With this particular chocolate, however, I can’t really taste much of the chilli before I’m promptly slapped in the face by the mint. And not in the good-chilli-hits-you-like-a-two-tonne-truck kinda way. It’s more like a challenging-slap-you-with-a-glove kind of way, and I’m not sure that I like it.

The White Chocolate and Raspberry Cheesecake is rich and decadent. The tartness of the raspberry delicately balances the thick fudge-y texture of the cheesecake, and the sweet nuttiness of the almonds finish the mouthful nicely.

I didn’t try the hot chocolate, but I heard that it was very good!! Love the mug.

…doop dee doo…

On to more food!!

My favourite: the cookie milkshake!!! Mmm..Cookie Cha Cha. It’s basically a cookies and cream milkshake, and how can anyone not like that!

The churros are fantastic, as they always are, and for those who are unfamiliar with this tasty pastry, it’s pretty much been described as a Spanish doughnut. And I don’t think it’s that far off…but who can fight with the magnetism of fried dough! All fried dough is good.

I love the little inscription on the side of the hot chocolate mug. It adds an air of worship to the consumption of these sweet morsels.

And the napkins are fabulous too!! I definitely agree with them. hehe.

“Chocolate shall be your salvation” indeed. 😉