A very industrious bug bit me yesterday, and quite frankly I'd be very happy to be at home today still being bit that by that bug and churning out jams and chutneys and whatever 'homely' things I can get my hands onto.
It all started on Sunday when I did a quick once-over the fridge to see what was needed in the grocery shopping. There, stuck at the back of the fridge was the bag of kiwifruit that Marty had sworn black and blue he was going to eat and enjoy! They were on special, 8 for $2 - bargain, and although I'll eat the odd one here and there, I'm not the world's greatest fan. But a week on, there they sat taunting me with their 'uneatenness'. So, I reached up onto the shelf for the Edmond's Cookbook for a kiwifruit chutney or jam recipe. It seemed an obvious starting point, and they certainly didn't disappoint. AND, it was easy!
My 8 kiwifruit were peeled and chopped, I even had a couple of old apples in the fridge that got used up in the recipe. However, presumption is the mother of all f%#k ups, and I presumed there was malt vinegar in the pantry. There wasn't and chutney-making was halted until Marty got home. I did have red wine vinegar, but learning my previous lesson with presumptions, I didn't presume that it would be a perfectly apt substitute. I couldn't get hold of the expert at the time, so back to waiting. As a good housewife I used this time productively to hang out washing, wash dishes and prepare the meat for dinner. And then rewarded my good behaviour with a glass of red! On his arrival, he informed me that yes red or white wine vinegar would have been fine and that malt vinegar was just what was 'in' at the time of the recipe. Good to know.
Chutney making resumed. The base of ingredients - spices, onions, apples, vinegar - were set to a gentle boil until they thickened and soften and then the kiwifruit was added. After an hour of cooking, it was set aside to cool, and I must admit that it tasted pretty good when I sampled a little before it went into the jar. I will definitely give a teaspoon a go tonight with my dinner, and we have a jar of it that will be a nice accompaniment to cheeses, or even a curry.
All this industry has got my fingers itching and I'm looking forward to the next fruit or vegetable that comes in excess. I'm hoping for some peppers and chillies so I can give Jamie's Cheeky Chili Chutney a go, and I can't wait to get the tomato plants into the garden so that next year we can make some more sun dried tomatoes, but also some tomato chutneys and sauces.
Now I'm going to spend the afternoon looking up other interesting things to preserve and make, and maybe another visit to the supermarket to get some more kiwifruit if it tastes good. Would love to try it with the white wine vinegar so that the actual chutney can retain some of the green of the kiwifruit, as opposed to it all turning a darker shade of brown. I'll explore the options before I succumb to green food colouring!
Ciao
xoxo
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Friday, September 02, 2011
Some dining out delights...
I don't often, if ever review a restaurant except in conversation but there were 2 a couple of weeks ago that warrant a mention. It was my birthday a couple of weeks ago, yippee! I was blessed to not only have my wonderful husband for the weekend as he took a day off, but a whole week's holiday and most importantly a visit from the parental unit!
We walked ourselves around Melbourne's Art Precinct and shopped a little but most importantly dined in a couple of fabulous spots. The first on the Saturday night was Bistro Thierry on Malvern road. A true French bistro and a fantastic meal! I was too consumed by my food to take photos of every one's dishes so you'll just have to let your imagination wander free! I had perused the menu beforehand, as you do, and had decided on dessert, but i was waiting to see what my dinner companions ordered and how I felt that evening. We all had something different as an entree which was great. We all went pretty traditional except the chef. Dad had lambs brains, which he enjoyed. Mom had the French onion soup, which was delicious but a little rich for her, Marty had the calamari and I had l'escargot. The little snails were drowning in a lake of garlic and parsley butter and they were fabulous. I did use some of the freshly cut baguette to soak up the garlic butter and I could have had double the portion, but I'm really glad it was the size it was, light and delicious, because my main was fantastic!
Again, I went a little more traditional and had the duck which was roasted with oranges and served with a plum sauce. Marty had Steak Frites - steak and chips essentially, Mom and Dad had the flounder special - a whole flounder cooked to perfection. All delicious, and mine was the perfect size!
However, the dessert was by far the stand out of the meal and my mouth is watering just thinking about it! Mom and Dad shared the Crepe Suzette which I'm told was lovely! And Marty had the Profiterole, but I had the Souffle Chocolat. Unbelievable! When it arrived at the table the waiter - a surly Frenchman who eventually cracked a grin - broke open the top of it and poured thick dark chocolate sauce into the chocolaty goodness that as the heart of this dessert. It was served with vanilla bean ice cream which offset the rich goodness that this dish was. The ganache centre was melt-in-your-mouth, and the chocolate sauce dreamy. I kept filling up my cup of goodness until there was nothing left! Had it not been a classy establishment I would have been tempted to lick the bowl out.
On the Sunday, after taking in the sunshine at the Art Centre Market, we took a tram down to Lygon Street to show the folks 'Little Italy" and the various landmarks there - Brunetti's mainly. We purchased some cakes for dessert that night, but went across the road to D.O.C for a bite to eat. The food gods must have been smiling down on us because as we walked up a table in the sun opened up and there wasn't even a queue! We shared a baby spinach salad, a prosciutto pizza and a anchovy, olive, tomato pizza. I don't know if it was just the pizza or if the weather, the cold beer and the most wonderful company, contributed to that being one of the best Italian meals I've had here so far! The prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella pizza was by far my favourite and had a healthy amount of topping.
And then that night, Marty revisited the Beef Tagine and we had little bites of Brunetti's pastries to round it all off! All in all, a gastronomically pleasing weekend and one I had to work off the next week in the gym! I can't wait to do it all again!
Ciao
xoxo
We walked ourselves around Melbourne's Art Precinct and shopped a little but most importantly dined in a couple of fabulous spots. The first on the Saturday night was Bistro Thierry on Malvern road. A true French bistro and a fantastic meal! I was too consumed by my food to take photos of every one's dishes so you'll just have to let your imagination wander free! I had perused the menu beforehand, as you do, and had decided on dessert, but i was waiting to see what my dinner companions ordered and how I felt that evening. We all had something different as an entree which was great. We all went pretty traditional except the chef. Dad had lambs brains, which he enjoyed. Mom had the French onion soup, which was delicious but a little rich for her, Marty had the calamari and I had l'escargot. The little snails were drowning in a lake of garlic and parsley butter and they were fabulous. I did use some of the freshly cut baguette to soak up the garlic butter and I could have had double the portion, but I'm really glad it was the size it was, light and delicious, because my main was fantastic!
Again, I went a little more traditional and had the duck which was roasted with oranges and served with a plum sauce. Marty had Steak Frites - steak and chips essentially, Mom and Dad had the flounder special - a whole flounder cooked to perfection. All delicious, and mine was the perfect size!
However, the dessert was by far the stand out of the meal and my mouth is watering just thinking about it! Mom and Dad shared the Crepe Suzette which I'm told was lovely! And Marty had the Profiterole, but I had the Souffle Chocolat. Unbelievable! When it arrived at the table the waiter - a surly Frenchman who eventually cracked a grin - broke open the top of it and poured thick dark chocolate sauce into the chocolaty goodness that as the heart of this dessert. It was served with vanilla bean ice cream which offset the rich goodness that this dish was. The ganache centre was melt-in-your-mouth, and the chocolate sauce dreamy. I kept filling up my cup of goodness until there was nothing left! Had it not been a classy establishment I would have been tempted to lick the bowl out.
On the Sunday, after taking in the sunshine at the Art Centre Market, we took a tram down to Lygon Street to show the folks 'Little Italy" and the various landmarks there - Brunetti's mainly. We purchased some cakes for dessert that night, but went across the road to D.O.C for a bite to eat. The food gods must have been smiling down on us because as we walked up a table in the sun opened up and there wasn't even a queue! We shared a baby spinach salad, a prosciutto pizza and a anchovy, olive, tomato pizza. I don't know if it was just the pizza or if the weather, the cold beer and the most wonderful company, contributed to that being one of the best Italian meals I've had here so far! The prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella pizza was by far my favourite and had a healthy amount of topping.
And then that night, Marty revisited the Beef Tagine and we had little bites of Brunetti's pastries to round it all off! All in all, a gastronomically pleasing weekend and one I had to work off the next week in the gym! I can't wait to do it all again!
Ciao
xoxo
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