Here are some more dishes from the current spring 2012/13 menus.I’ve picked them because they are not only the most photogenic of the pics I took but are fairly interesting as well.

This is the “parmesan gelato ,proscuitto curls,toasted fruit loaf,

balsamic toffee”.It is one of those dessert styles (ice-cream,chocolate curls,topping ) reinterpreted as

an entree.This is a real winner,also good as a canape.

Next  is “tian of avocado,mudcrab,shaved fennel,radish with kataiffi prawn”. Set the avoacado and crab salad in a forming ring then just place your warm prawn on top.The interesting play here is on the textures as much as complimentary flavours.You have the warms and colds as well as the crunchy prawn (plus you don’t have to prepare so many kataiffi prawns as you would if you served them alone as the dish.

Yes here is my version of  ” ham hock terrine “,served with white bean salad , eggplant chutney ,house made grissini .My trick is with jelly set terrines is to use a combination of aspic (gelatine) and agar agar .One gives elasticity ,the other rigidity which is perfect for the job.We use leftover pizza dough to knock up our grissini sticks which allows you to add other stuff like mixed seeds or herbs . That’ll do for now ,more later.

“.Mousseline of wild barramundi ” – a fine mousse is spread over a 5 mm thick fillet , with truffle in the farce . It is then rolled up harlequin style , then placed in a cup and waterbath poached .Served with a verjuice beurre blanc .

“Risotto of herbed rabbit fillet and truffle .”

I wanted to try and showcase different methods of using truffle and how that affected it’s character.This dish was the “braising/stewing ” part of it ,just finished the dish off with a little pomegranate syrup for balance.

“truffle scented poussin with barley stuffing ”

I know this is an interpretation of a classic.But one should remember that the customer has’nt got the same breadth of repetoire as a chef so is most likely unaware of that fact. Still it was to show roasting and with the slice of truffle under the skin it still came up trumps.

The one dish I missed getting a photo of was “Whipped truffle infused brie , caramelised pear and toasted fruit toast”

It was a blast for the kitchen and a great success.

Finally managed to arrange a truffle dinner at the right time of year (winter that is ).I suppose the key is to start the program a few months in advance to secure supply of your precious ingredients.One thing I figured out was using a podiatry implement as a truffle shaver . No I did’nt use mine from home !But you can pick one  up at your local chemist fairly cheaply.

I’ve never lost the joy of terrine making . I can’t always spend a vast amount of time on it , practicality always wins out in the end . but I wanted to share this little beauty with you . It’s 19 inches or 48 cms long . It’s ” Venison and currant with inhouse fig chutney.” Thanks  to David and Rose at Hartdale Park Red Deer Farms www.reddeerfarm.com.au  for the gippsland bred venison . Now that winter is here we get to do our venison repetoire ,yay.

I have spoken to manufacturers who have made hot boxes for  years the same and the response is that no one has ever complained! Well I can guarantee that they will burn you if you use the “floor”of the box. Suffer no longer.

I’m looking forward now to some positive feedback , send your thoughts to info@blockie.com.au.

Happy kitchen tinkering folks.

The safety signs that are a fact of life in a busy kitchen , and rightly so , are always being tripped over (because they sit in the middle of the floor ). The Blockie way of adding a much longer lifespan to the sign is to put a cable tie through the top hinge , best done when new but any time is good really.

Chefs Tip: Make your mustard sauce using the pot juices, add a dash of cream with your particular mustard and thicken with a little cornflour.A pinch of chopped greenery to finish and it looks and tastes pro.

I’m still a bit nervous about distribution protocols but I guess the world has turned on trade for the last 5000  years so it’s time I got with the program.

Can’t wait to upload a photo of the 3 wheeled fire “truck” that I’ve built , it’s crazy.