kitchen conversations

Frozen Butternut Squash Chocolate Terrine

2012-11-27T00:16:00.002Z

In preparation for my Thanksgiving Supper Club, I was toying with the idea of serving multiple desserts. I always serve traditional pumpkin pie, but I thought it might be fun to showcase pumpkin in another way. I tested this recipe with butternut squash as that was easier to get a hold of for the test session and really once you have added spices the flavour of butternut squash and pumpkin is very similar. This recipe fits in perfect with Kavey's Blogger's Scream for Ice Cream November Challenge, which requires using a savoury ingredient (butternut squash) in a frozen dessert.

250 ml double cream, divided
400g condensed milk, divided
400g puréed butternut squash (or pumpkin)*
1 cup dark chocolate chips
2 teaspoons vanilla, divided
1 teaspoon cinnamon, divided
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon crushed chile flakes

* To prepare the butternut squash or pumpkin purée cut the squash into large pieces and roast with butter until tender. Scoop from skin and drain in the fridge overnight (this is more important with pumpkin as it is very watery). The next day blend until smooth or mash with a potato masher. I always do this, but buying canned pumpkin is also an option.

Line a loaf pan with cling film and put in the freezer to chill.

Melt the chocolate in a pan set over water (but not touching the water) and combine with half of the condensed milk. Add a teaspoon of vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Set aside to cool slightly, stirring occasionally to keep the mixture smooth.

In one a mixing bowl combine the puréed pumpkin, the other half of the condensed milk, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon of ginger and a 1/4 teaspoon of crushed chile flakes. Whisk to combine.

In another mixing bowl, whip the cream to stiff peaks. Fold half of the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture and half into the chocolate mixture. Since the warm chocolate will quickly start to melt the cream fold it in and put the mixture in the freezer.

Put half of the pumpkin mixture in the loaf pan and freeze for 30min to an hour or until partially set so the chocolate layer doesn't mix in. Add the chocolate layer and spoon the final pumpkin layer on top. Freeze it overnight.

Take out of the freezer and allow to soften slightly before serving (unless your freezer isn't as cold as mine!).

Slice and serve.

It was very good and my housemates loved it...particularly my gluten-free housemate that cannot enjoy my pumpkin pie! I thought the chocolate overpowered the pumpkin a bit but the kick of the chile and the spices really added something special. Ultimately, I decided it was too rich to serve alongside the pumpkin pie so it did not make it to my Thanksgiving menu...but it is still worth trying...especially if you are looking for something egg and/or gluten-free!

Global Feast 2012...Latin American Night!

2012-08-29T17:01:00.000+01:00

Global Feast 2012 was an awesome event and I contributed to the cooking...twice!

What was it?
Global Feast was a feasting event held around an amazing 15 meter table...well not just a table... more like a table shaped flattened globe. An incredible artistic feat created by Alex Haw of Latitudinal Cuisine. Latitudinal Cuisine hosts meals year round based on the local cuisine of a particular Longitude. The summer finds them in the middle of the ocean so to fill in the gap Alex came up with Global Feast.

Global Feast coincided with the Olympics and was held just down the road from the Olympic Park at Stratford Town Hall. It included twenty meals each with guest chef representing a different cuisine for up to 80 guests. The first night showcased British cuisine while guests viewed the Opening ceremony and sipped Cava. The last evening was a Brazilian feast held the night after the closing ceremony symbolising the hand-off of the torch to the new hosts in Rio. Kerstin Rodgers (aka MsMarmiteLover) food blogger for The English Can Cook and a well-known London supper club host curated the event by coordinating supper club hosts as guest chefs and sourcing the ingredients for their exotic menus.

I got involved because Cherry of FedByTang supper club invited me along as helper for her Chinese Night. It was incredible...have a look at the details here. While there, I discovered Kerstin herself was guest chef for Mexican/Latin American night. As you can imagine, her task of curating this 20 day eating extravaganza was massive, so she asked if I would help her for Mexican night. My task? Prepare dessert for 80 (Yes 80) the night before...lug it to Stratford and then help her prepare canapes, starter and main. Thursday night I was up to the wee hours baking chile chocolate cake and preparing custard for cinnamon ice cream. A taxi ride took me, my 6 cakes and 16 pints of custard to Stratford at 9am Friday morning where cooking commenced.

What an ambitious menu to prepare on the day...80 tamales were part of the starter and then freshly seared tuna for the main. I recently had a tamale cooking practice session in Arizona (blog coming soon)...the practice definitely came in handy. We prepared the tamales and then we steamed them for 2 hours. The time involved in this meant we realistically could not prepare 80 corn tortillas as well so we sent someone to purchase fresh corn tortillas from Casa Mexico.

**All photos by Kerstin Rodgers**

Several boxes of extra spring onions were grilled to accompany the vegetarian tacos. The tacos were filled with sweet corn cooked with poblano and new mexican chile powder, and topped with huitlacoche (mexican corn fungus) and a sprig of corinader.

For the main, Kerstin took control with her special black bean recipe, freshly seared tuna steaks and tomatillo salsa made from fresh tomatillos that she had bent over backwards to track down that morning. An amazing feat to source tomatillos in London the morning of!!

A crazy day of cooking but definitely worth it and a fun way to get in the Mexican cooking spirit for the launch of my Mexican Supper Club in September.

This is what we served...

Nibbles: guacamole and salsa served with watermelon margaritas.

Canape: Jalapeno Poppers (recipe in Kerstin's book, Supper Club)

Starter: Green Chile, cheese tamales with veggie tacos and grilled spring onions

Main: Grilled tuna steak with tomatillo salsa on black beans...and steamed rice
Veggie option: Portobello mushroom steak (prepared by Celia Brooks)

Dessert: Chipotle-Chile Chocolate Cake with Mexican Cinnamon Ice Cream
*this will be served at my Mexican Supper Club

Entertainment: Havana Barbie

**Photo credit to Kerstin Rodgers**

Tortillas...some corn, some flour

2012-07-29T22:43:00.000+01:00

One of the food items I miss most from life in Arizona is tortillas...proper, fresh, delicious tortillas. Sooo good! Here in the UK, the tortillas you get at the shop have a plastically shiny look to them, a different texture and a bit of an acidic taste? PLUS it is impossible to get corn tortillas without going to a speciality shop like the Cool Chile UK stand at Borough Market. Fortunately, they are SUPER easy to make.

I am trying to perfect my tortilla making skills so that I can make them in bulk for my upcoming Mexican Supper Club events. Today was a sporadically rainy, thundery day and I stupidly cancelled an amazing Singaporean/Malaysian pop-up meal to spend the day with an Italian-Paris man who buggered off to visit someone else. Plus, I couldn't manage to get the Olympics on our TV, so it made sense to make tortillas. Corn and flour tortillas.

Flour Tortillas
Flour tortillas are not traditionally Mexican and are mostly found in northern Mexico or in southwestern USA... They vary slightly from region to region. In Arizona and California they are thinner than in New Mexico. You can play with the recipe by varying the amount of baking powder and shortening to find your preference. I like them thin, light and airy.

I only wanted to make a few (about 8) so here is a small recipe...sorry for the cups but that's how I make tortillas...anyway all measurements are approximate and should really depend on feel and texture.

2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 Tablespoons vegetable shortening.
1 teaspoon sea salt
about 1 cup of warm water

Use a fork to mix the shortening into the dry ingredients. Slowly mix in lukewarm water to make a soft dough. Flour your hands and knead the dough a few times. This is where I am careful. I like my dough soft for soft tortillas...working it more gives them a stiffer texture. Flour your work surface and break off a small piece of dough. Practice will help you learn how big you need for the size tortilla you want...Roll it out with a rolling pin. Adding flour if the dough is sticky. I try to get mine very thin and I don't worry too much about how circular they are.

Heat a skillet on medium high...keep it dry NO OIL. Once hot put in the tortilla. You'll hear a little sizzle. After about 10-15 seconds it will bubble. This is good! After about 45-60 seconds flip and cook on the other side. Then put it in a tea towel (or a tortilla warmer if you have all the props) to keep warm while you cook the rest. Eat as fresh as possible. Plain or with a bit of cheese, or some red chile sauce, or some beans or guacamole...yum!

Corn Tortillas
Corn tortillas are an essential ingredient to any Mexican meal. You name it...tacos, enchiladas, flautas, gorditas... I could go on and on...they are ALL made with corn tortillas. I am very picky about corn tortillas and very judgemental of my own. I HATE them when they are too thick. Today I made a bit of a break through, they were the best corn tortillas I have ever made!

1 cup masa harina (ground dry corn kernels...can be purchased from Cool Chile UK, Mex Grocer or Casa Mexico in Bethnal Green)
1/2 t salt

about 3/4 cup warm water

Mix dry ingredients together and slowly add water stirring with a fork. Do this slowly as you don't want it to get too wet. Once all the dry masa is incorporated, stop. Gently roll into a log about 2 inches in diameter, wrap in cling film and let it sit for about 30 minutes.

Pre-heat the skillet to medium high heat with NO oil...just dry. Cut the log into about 8 slices. Here it would be ideal to have a tortilla press (a purchase I am now ready to make), but if you don't then find something to improvise with... I used a coffee thingy...so my tortillas were a bit small! Place a slice of dough between two sheets of cling film and flatten with tortilla press or whatever you decide to use. Rolling pins really don't work here. You need to flatten it uniformly or the dough just falls apart. Carefully peel the tortilla off the cling film and place on the skillet (you might ruin 2-3 before you get this right). Give it 1-2 minutes on each side. They are perfect if they are flecked with brown...the sign of a homemade corn tortilla :) As you finish each one, stack it in a tea towel to keep warm. Try not to eat them all as you go!

Once I was finished. I made a green chile, tomato omelette to enjoy with a couple of flour tortillas!

If you aren't quite ready to make your own or you just want to taste mine...come over for dinner...details here.

lessons in Tuscan cooking...by invitation

2012-07-01T23:44:00.000+01:00

Last week I was invited to a Tuscan cookery evening featuring Tuscan chef Anna Bini. Anna was born and raised in a small town near Florence and now owns three restaurants in Paris including Casa Bini. She and other chefs offer private cooking lessons to guests renting villas from Tuscany Now. Tuscany Now sponsored this cooking evening to give a few of London's food bloggers a chance to experience a Tuscan cooking class as offered in the villas in Tuscany.

We (me and several other invited food bloggers) arrived at the event and were served wine with a delicious mixture of meats and cheeses...

While we enjoyed the wine, we discovered we were going to participate in a Tuscan cookery challenge. This involved each of us preparing the dish, courgette flan and chicken liver pâté, after watching Anna demonstrate it. I was excited to find out the recipe was something a bit unusual. I have never cooked with chicken liver so what a great opportunity to do something new! To have a look, the recipe can be found here.

Anna emphasised the importance of looking for the right texture and consistency when adding the ingredients rather than blindly adding the exact amount written in the recipe. This meant she recommended NOT measuring.

The final result was good although a bit salty from the stock cubes and anchovies. It was interesting to be able to taste so many versions of the exact same recipe. Each individual's dish had a subtle difference in taste and texture. This is not a recipe I would have ever prepared otherwise, but it was tasty and it would be fun to try it again with a few changes. The recipe mentioned parsley or mint...we used parsley but I would use both and also serve the final dish with fresh sprigs of each. My main change would be to replace about half of the chicken livers with porcini mushrooms. This is also a Tuscan ingredient that would hopefully add a nice earthiness to the dish and make it a bit less meaty.

Below is Anna's final version of the dish and a vegetarian version prepared by another blogger with fried mozzarella balls instead of chicken liver (yum!!).

I really enjoyed the evening...and I ate an obscene amount of chicken liver!! ...that and olive oil...oh yeah and the wine, lots of wine. Maybe that's obvious in the pictures of me from the event which can be found in the photo gallery here.

The evening offered a unique opportunity to cook something different, meet new people and learn a bit more about Tuscany. I love cookery lessons on holiday so if in Tuscany this might be something worth looking into.

Villas in Tuscany

by Tuscany Now

Oh and if you would like to see what the other bloggers thought...

Pasta Bites

Hot and Chilli

ramen in soho. spicy ramen. and beer

2012-06-19T22:21:00.000+01:00

I have blogged about them twice before while they tested their recipes and looked for a venue. First, the fabulous spicy ramen and then the beautiful seafood ramen... I also went along for the signature tonkotsu ramen. This week Tonkotsu finally opened its doors in Soho. I was there for the pre-opening. They served the Spicy Ramen...just as delicious as last time. Actually, quite possibly better. I don't want to repeat myself, but the perfect soft boiled egg, the flavourful broth they've put so much effort into perfecting, the noodles just slightly chewy like they should be, and the crunchy, spicy bits. Plus, the venue is lovely. The chefs are on view at the front and there is a bar toward the back. Simple, modern Asian décor. I didn't take pictures because my phone broke, but also because you should go see it yourself.

I also tried a starter I hadn't had before...Tofu Hiya Yakko. Soft tofu topped with spring onion and dried tuna flakes. I topped it with a bit of soy sauce as suggested. It was soft and creamy...perfect for summer. Nice and light and tasty. I loved it. But don't forget I also love the Chicken Karaage, and the gyoza is great too. Try it all.

I was recommended Punk IPA...a very good match. I had two. Silly idea since I was there alone and my iphone was broken, but it was really good. I people-watched while I quickly drank my second beer. I recommend taking a friend to avoid this.

This would have come to about £22...but it was the pre-opening so I only paid £10. The soft opening lasts from tomorrow 20th June to the 25th with 50% off food. Get in there. Hurry. Go.

Tonkotsu Bar and Ramen
@tonkotsulondon

63 Dean Street
Soho
London
http://www.tonkotsu.co.uk/

Filipino cooking...some puppy love

2012-06-06T18:00:00.000+01:00

I know very little...OK I know nothing about Filipino food. That was the featured cuisine at the most recent London Cooking Club event hosted by Luiz Hara, The London Foodie. These events are held at Luiz’s house and co-hosted by an expert in the cuisine. This time the expert was Tina, she designed an amazing menu highlighting a selection of dishes. We each signed up to prepare one and I prepared The Kinilaw na Tuna – vinegar cured tuna. Here is the full menu:

Discovering the Cuisine of the Phillipines

Appetizer
Kinilaw na Tuna - Vinegar-cured Tuna
Pork Barbecue - Grilled Skewered Pork
Lumpiang Shanghai - Fried Spring Rolls with pineapple sweet and sour sauce
Soup
Pancit Molo - Pork Dumpling Soup
Vegetable
Adobong Kangkong - Braised Water Spinach
Main
Lechon Kawali - Deep Fried Pork Belly
Guinataang Sugpo - Prawns in Coconut Milk and Vinegar
Kare Kare - Ox Tail Stewed in Peanut Sauce
Chicken Adobo - Stewed Chicken in Vinegar and Soy Sauce
Dessert
Turron - Crisp Banana Rolls
Leche Flan - Milk Custard

The event was held on Sunday at lunch time so I went to find my tuna Saturday late afternoon (lucky I got to the fishmonger 15 minutes before closing)!

I purchased a lovely 750g chunk of tuna from The Fishmonger in Greenwich.

Sunday morning I cut the tuna into chunks and prepared the ingredients at home and packaged them for assembly at Luiz's house.

Kinilaw na Tuna

Vinegar-cured Tuna

Serves 12

6 pcs / 60 g shallots

1 thumb sized piece / 25 g ginger

3 pcs / 40 g green finger chilies

1 small / 50 g red bell pepper

3 Spring onions

725 grams tuna fillets, skin and bones removed

1 cup white vinegar

¾ cup coconut milk

2 tsp / 10 g salt

½ tsp / 2 g ground black pepper

Preparation

Peel and slice the shallots finely.
Peel and chop the ginger finely.
Seed and chop the green finger chilies finely
Cut bell pepper in half lengthwise. Remove and discard the stem and white membranes. Slice red pepper into fine strips.
Chop the spring onion.
Cut the fish into 2 cm / ¾ inch cubes.
Marinate the fish cubes with half of the vinegar (1/2 cup). When fish turns opaque, strain and discard the vinegar, then set fish aside. Washing the fish with vinegar cures the raw fish.
In a non-reactive bowl, combine the coconut milk and the remaining vinegar.

Assembly

To the bowl with coconut milk and vinegar, add the fish cubes, shallots, ginger, chilies, salt and pepper. Toss gently but thoroughly.
Chill in the refrigerator.
Before serving, garnish with chopped onion and red bell pepper.

Tips: Use only the freshest fish, thoroughly cleaned. Prepare only in non-reactive bowls and dishes such as glass or ceramic. Assemble the dish no more than 30 minutes before serving.

When I arrived at Luiz's house, I marinated the fish cubes and combined them with the vegetables...I think my shallots were larger than the recipe intended as they seemed to take over!

I arranged the red pepper and chopped green onion on the serving dishes...

I topped each with a portion of tuna...I served my dish with a glass of Rose

Then we headed downstairs for the other two starters... Sarah made the pork skewers and Mae made the spring rolls

May of Malaysian by May made the delicious pork dumpling soup...

Everyone's favourite...Deep Fried Pork Belly was made by Luiz...it was cooked three times!!

The next two mains: Prawns (oops not sure who made this!) and Stewed Chicken by Frederico were served with rice

Then Oxtail stewed in Peanut Sauce made by Natalie

Finally dessert...a very simple but delicious milk custard and crispy banana rolls

As these events always are, it was an incredible afternoon!! So much fabulous food and great company. Tina planned an amazing menu and Luiz was, as always, a perfect host. It was great to learn a little bit about the Phillipines. Four of the guests were Filipino so their input on each dish and how similar it is to what they do at home was really interesting.

If you are interested have a look at Luiz's blog for upcoming cooking club dates. I might be co-hosting a Mexican one in the very near future! Or if you would rather not cook, you should sign up for his amazing Japanese Home Cooking Supper Club which I have reviewed here.

This time Luiz provided some additional entertainment... His dog had recently had puppies and I fell in love with this one :)

korean comfort...dok bokki

2012-06-05T16:13:00.000+01:00

When I was younger we used to spend the summers at my grandmother's house in Seattle...next door lived Steffanie. We became very close summertime friends from about age 10. Her mum is Korean and would often cook us dok bokki for lunch. These are Korean rice cakes. I loved them... Her mum made them very simple with just the rice cakes and a spicy sauce. The recipe I now use incorporates a few vegetables and I have recently started adding a boiled egg on top.

I used to get the ingredients from a Korean shop in Tucson. The owner asked me one day if my mum was Korean! Despite not looking remotely Korean, he was so surprised I would be familiar with, much less cook this home cooking type dish that he had to finally ask. In fact, when I spent two weeks in Korea I saw this dish in the markets but they used a very thick sauce and often added dubious looking fish cakes. I think it's something best eaten in a Korean home or you can try my version...it's really easy!

2 ounces Carrots (grated)

4 ounces Napa cabbage (finely sliced)

2 ounces Onion (sliced)

2 ounces Spring onion (chopped

16 ounces Rice cakes (fresh or frozen...available frozen from any asian shop or fresh if you head to a Korean shop New Malden...you can get them in tubes or flat oval shapes. I prefer tubes for this recipe.)

Sauce

2 t Red pepper paste (the red tub...available at any Asian shop)

2 T Sesame oil

4 T Soy sauce

2 t Brown sugar

2 t Crushed red pepper

2 t Garlic (minced)

Optional:
Boiled egg
Sesame Seeds

Mix ingredients for sauce together in a cooking pot and add all other ingredients…cover and cook over medium heat stirring frequently until the sauce thickens and the rice cakes feel soft. Serve hot…. I like to sprinkle sesame seeds on top and serve with a boiled egg.

wild serai...malaysian street food

2012-06-04T16:31:00.000+01:00

A little while ago I attended the Malaysian Street Food Brunch held by Wild Serai. They live in New Malden (south west of London) and just started a new supper club. I had heard about there first event so was excited to make the trek for this second one. It ended up being very much a bloggers haven. Several other posts have come out of the afternoon which you can find with these links...

Dini
HollowLegs
Feast to the World

We arrived to find the table set with the biggest shrimp crackers I have ever seen!!

Soon after we were served charcoal grilled chicken satay with peanut sauce...so tender and I LOVED the peanut sauce. Not too sweet and a little bit spicy! It was delicious. I would like to mention that Wild Serai specifically only used Free Range Halal meat.

Mee goreng mamak - Spicy fried noodles with prawns, fish cake, fish balls & vegetables topped with crispy fried onions and lime

I really enjoyed this...I ate way too much of it despite knowing loads more food was coming. The fish balls and cakes were fresh and tasty the onions added a perfect crunch and the lime flavour complemented the spicyness perfect.

Penang Rojak – Mixed vegetable & crunchy fruit salad in a tangy sweet and sour paste sauce, topped with peanuts and crunchy crackers

There were a variety of vegetables and some fried tofu pieces. I liked the tofu, but I actually found the sauce a bit too sweet and the tang just didn't do it for me. This wasn't my favourite but I think it was just a matter of taste preference.

Nyonya fried chicken – Deep fried chicken morsels that have been marinated for 48 hours in curry leaves, shrimp paste, lemongrass and blue ginger

This isn't pictured...but it was very tasty...

Nasi lemak 60 sen – A Malaysian breakfast staple. We kick ours up a gastro notch, serving it with delicate quails eggs and Grandma’s secret sambal chilli

I loved this and have had it a couple times before at Malaysian restaurants. The sweet spicy sambal chilli was delicious!

Roti jala and tender Malay lamb curry – Feathery light Malaysian pancakes served with lamb curry, slow cooked till the meat melts in your mouth

Ais kacang – The ultimate Malaysian sorbet served with rose syrup, palm sugar syrup and evaporated milk

Dessert was my favourite dish! I love these types of asian desserts...lots of surprises and lot of yummy textures...tapioca balls, beans, and a variety of fruit, with jelly, sorbet and the soft taste of rose syrup! So good!

Nyonya Kuih – Sticky cakes from the Chinese Straits Teh tarik – Old school tea-chino

Finally these sweet and delicious cakes were served with Malaysian tea before we all began the trek home!

A brilliant afternoon. The next Wild Serai Event is a Seafood Feast! I am away, but if you would like to book visit Edible Experiences. This delicious brunch afternoon was a very reasonable £25!

Wild Serai Supper Club
@WildSerai

Spicy Crispy Boiled Eggs...YUM

2012-06-03T13:12:00.003+01:00

+(65)/Plusixfive is London's ONLY Singaporean supper club. Goz was born in Singapore and set it up nearly a year ago to bring authentic Singaporean cuisine to London. It has proven popular and books up very quickly. I was lucky to get myself a place at the Fish Head Curry event. It was the night after my Guardian Blind Date (see last post for details). I had told my date about my supper club obsession and this event in particular. He was intrigued so I promised to try and get him a spot. Early Sunday morning I was up tweeting Goz to see if there were any cancellations. There weren't, but during our tweet chat someone cut in and said she was meant to attend and didn't feel well sooo... lucky us we got an extra seat. I was excited to have met someone with food tastes ambitious enough to join me for a Fish Head Curry! Plus he had never been to a supper club so it was great to introduce him to this different way of dining.

We and the other 18 guests arrived at Goz's small flat at 7:30pm. The theme had turned from Fish Head Curry to Lip-to-Tail...Goz decided to challenge our taste buds and feed us dishes using some of the more neglected bits of the fish! It was an epic 10 dish meal. Served by Christine and Shu Han.

Bitternut Cracker and Spicy Tapioca Crisps with chilli and lime
Skin and Bones with yoghurt and lime dipping sauce
I really liked the bones!

Sardine Puffs... These were delicious! Perfectly cooked and moorish...I could have eaten them all night.

Chwee kueh... Rice cake topped with preserved turnip...I love rice cakes. These were softer and not as chewy as Korean rice cakes which are one of my favourite things in the world! The preserved turnip was both salty and sweet. Yum!

Singaporen Noodles packaged takeaway style... The byline of Goz's supperclub is to dispel the myth of Singaporean noodles. They are not neon yellow! But you'll never know. Once the package was opened I was too excited to eat and forgot to take another picture. It was a tasty dish of rice noodles and...spam. Yes spam, I ate it and it was tasty!

Otah-Otah... Fish Paste on Toast... Crunchy toast and smooth, salty, tasty fish paste. Very good.

Assam Fish Head Curry... This was meant to be the highlight of the evening and the pics of the head going in that Goz posted on twitter that morning were very scary! However, the dish itself looked like a normal curry. The head had cooked down to be un-identifiable and what resulted was a very flavoursome dish.

Sambal Eggs by Shu Han
For me this was the highlight...these eggs were AMAZING!! I am a bit egg crazy as it is...but these ticked every box. Spicy and fried for a little crunch. They were prepared by a guest chef Shu Han. She has an excellent food blog and posted the recipe here...there is a picture of me on there too! She boiled the eggs, fried them and then smothered them in sambal chile paste. The outside was just slightly crispy and then inside the yolk was soft and creamy! I plan to attempt this in the future, but am also hoping Shu Han might be convinced to have a Sambal cooking class ;) She warned that the smell of cooking sambal is pretty potent!

Nestum Prawns... By this stage I was getting full (yeah well I did eat most of the eggs), but these prawns were also delicious. They were stir fried in oats and spices. Tasty and a bit salty!

Milo Dinosaur Ice Cream... This ended the meal...my picture does not do it any favours but it was a simple dessert. A very nice ending. Corn flakes, sweetened condensed milk, and milo all on top of ice cream.

Conclusion: This was such an amazing meal. The food was fantastic. The company was also great...particularly my date ;) but I loved meeting all the other guests too. So much to eat and such interesting dishes that were clearly made with a love of Singapore and a desire to share that love with us! I highly recommend you try to get yourself a place at the next one. It's £35 and bring your own beer/wine. Follow Goz on twitter or just go to Edible Experiences and book yourself a seat. Also Goz has a great blog...he's a funny guy and they are a joy to read...plus you might learn something. His most recent post isn't so funny. He has a friend with blood cancer and is asking people to get tested as potential matching bone marrow donors. If you do this and prove to be a match he'll cook you dinner...have a look.

For another review of this evening...Jason who is an actual Singaporean wrote a more knowledgeable post here.

Plusixfive Supper Club
twitter: @Plusixfive

swept away...thanks to Vinopolis and The Guardian

2012-06-02T17:53:00.000+01:00

Disclaimer: No pictures, it was a first date.

A few months ago my blog included the occasional dating story. I was online dating and the whole thing was a bit frustrating...really just not for me. While it was all in full swing my friend Katrina suggested Guardian Blind Date. The weekend magazine insert that features a blind date each week arranged by The Guardian. I sent an email requesting a date “with someone amazing” and thought nothing of it. A week later I was asked for more information. Then, surprisingly, in mid-April I was told that I had been matched asked if I was still interested. I reluctantly replied that I was. A date was arranged for dinner at Cantina Vinopolis and a couple weeks later my picture was taken at The Guardian studios. Yes...my picture will be in The Guardian... :-/

He and I were both busy so there was about a month of anticipation before the day arrived. I have never been on a blind date so it was a strange experience heading off to meet someone I knew next to nothing about. I didn't expect anything from it, I hoped, at least, I would have a good time. Despite all the online dates I have been on and my experiences couchsurfing with strangers, I found this nerve racking. Perhaps it's because I knew if it went terribly wrong it would still be printed for all to read.

As I was getting ready, I decided (at the last minute) to paint my nails before putting my tights on...um...this did not go well. Fortunately, my mangy fingernails and varnish speckled tights seemed to go unnoticed. Yes, I am actually a disaster. I arrived early and wandered around Vinopolis, tried to call my mum, and then finally wandered over to the restaurant. I turned the wrong way in the short walk over and ended up being a tad later than I had intended. I nervously waited until the hostess led me through the restaurant and pointed to a table in the corner where a lone man sat...waiting for me...eek!!

Initially, I wanted to turn and run, but I walked over and was pleasantly surprised. He was a bit short (my only complaint) but had gorgeous eyes and a lovely smile. We started by talking about why we had signed up and I was immediately comfortable.

Cantina Vinopolis offered us a mini-wine tasting…I think (sorry my memory of the details fails me!) we had a Chenin Blanc, a Savignon Blanc and a Malbec. The sommelier gave a few pointers on tasting and recognising sugar/alcohol content. It was a nice activity that had we not had plenty to talk about might have given us something to go on.

I had a delicious scallop dish to start (Pan fried Scallops with Black Olives, Tomato Salsa and Herb Salad) and he had the Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli with Sage Butter. For our main, we shared the steak for 2 (Cote De Boeuf (matured for 4-5 weeks) served with Grilled Mushrooms, Roast Tomato, Chips and Béarnaise Sauce). I was going to order the Sea Bass, but he seemed disappointed that the steak was meant for two so I offered to share. Unusual to share with someone I have known less than an hour, but I was pleased we did. I would have gone with medium rare but we compromised on medium. Despite it being more cooked than I like, it was still good; but I did end up eating more béarnaise sauce than I normally would.

For dessert we both went for the Cappuccino Panna Cotta and Crunchy Hazelnut Crumble. I would describe this dessert as more of a mousse than a panna cotta, but no matter the name it was lovely. Creamy and crunchy a smooth coffee flavour. I nearly took a picture as by then we had both admitted our mutual twitter/blog interests, but it just didn't seem right.

Conclusion: It was one of my best first dates...thank you to the Guardian! We've since been out three more times. The knowledge that our first impressions would be publicly printed was causing a bit of awkwardness so we shared our Guardian answers on date 3. I was disappointed to realise I will seem űber keen...oops. I had thought we were both on the same page...it really is impossible to read other people! Don't get me wrong his answers are very nice, but this has changed things for me somewhat and made me less sure of the whole situation. Interest levels rise and fall when you're getting to know someone so it's a bit odd to share first impressions so early on!

Stay tuned for the details...our date will be printed in The Guardian in June...

Update: Here it is...http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/jun/08/blind-date

As for Cantina Vinopolis. I recommend it. Good food and great service. An excellent place to take a first date. We were guests of Cantina Vinopolis, but our bill would have been about £100. The wine tasting packages are normally only available to groups of 10 or more and start at £20 per person.

raspberry-cassis ice cream sandwiches...oh yes...

2012-05-23T22:39:00.003+01:00

Disclaimer: This recipe is AMAZING!

I have developed a new obsession...you know something to take over my mind on evenings and weekends when work is super busy and a bit overwhelming. Something that benefits me and all my lovely housemates. Benefits us in a smiley, happy, lovey way not really a super skinny healthy way...

--> Ice cream making! Who knew it was so flipping easy! Also who knew it uses soooo many eggs... so please be sure they are FREE RANGE...and also help me come up with some interesting SAVOURY recipes to use up the dozens of leftover egg whites that now fill my refrigerator!! This obsession was ignited by the lovely Rosana of Hot and Chilli, she unloaded her ice cream maker on me and well this happened...

This particular recipe was inspired by a friend that visited New York several months ago. He came back raving about the ice cream sandwiches and said that they are something the UK is missing out on. These were definitely a sweet treat common in my childhood but I hadn't really noticed their absence in the UK. Once I was informed a craving ensued and it was essential that I attempt to make them. I could have just made them with simple vanilla ice cream but the more I thought about it the more ideas I came up with. Inspired by the tastes of the friend that had suggested them in the first place I decided to try to make an ice cream with Cassis. A recipe search gave me Raspberry-Cassis...To die for.

Raspberry-Cassis Ice Cream (inspired by Epicurious.com)

1 18 oz frozen unsweetened raspberries, thawed
2 tablespoons plus 1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons Crème de Cassis (blackcurrant liqueur)
7 medium egg yolks
2 cups full fat milk
2 cups double cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Purée raspberries, 2 tablespoons sugar, and crème de cassis. Let stand 15 minutes. Strain purée into a bowl and press on the seeds to extract as much fruit as possible; discard seeds.

Whisk the yolks and the remaining 1 cup of sugar in a medium bowl to blend. Bring milk and cream to a simmer in a heavy medium saucepan. Gradually whisk the hot cream mixture into the yolk mixture; return custard to pan. Stir over medium heat until custard thickens, about 6 minutes (try not to boil). Immediately pour custard into large bowl; mix in vanilla.

Place bowl of custard over another large bowl filled with ice and water and cool, stirring occasionally, about 40 minutes. Stir in raspberry purée.

Process custard in ice cream maker until thick. (At this stage I added in a few more crushed raspberries lightly flavoured with Cassis.) I thought it was nice to have a few actual raspberries in the final product. While this is *freezing continue on to make the sandwich bit...

*Ok...this is where I had a problem. The addition of the Cassis makes freezing difficult. After freaking out for an hour or two and tweeting that my ice cream had failed, I was told by some twitter geniuses that it just needed to be COLDER. We have a free standing freezer that is colder than the one attached to the fridge. I put the ice cream in there and in about 40 minutes to an hour it was thick enough to spread as below....

Classic Ice Cream Sandwich (inspired by Martha Stewart)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
1/2 cup sugar
1 medium egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plain flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Divine)
Raspberry-Cassis ice cream...not completely frozen...soft and spreadable

Directions

Preheat oven to 175C. Butter a cookie sheet/jelly roll pan or something flat with a short edge. Line with parchment paper, leaving a small overhang on the two shorter sides.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the butter and sugar until combined; whisk in the egg, vanilla, and salt. Add flour and cocoa, and mix just until smooth. Spread in prepared baking pan. Bake until cake is dry to the touch and edges begin to pull away from the sides, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool completely in pan. **I had to make this twice as the first time it was overcooked. So mine actually took less than 10 minutes. You want it soft. So as soon as it is dry and the edges pull from the side TAKE IT OUT.
Using paper overhang, lift cake onto a work surface. With a serrated knife, halve crosswise. Place one half of cake, flat side down, on a large piece of plastic wrap. Spread with ice cream, then top with remaining half of cake, flat side up. Return ice-cream sandwich to baking pan, and wrap tightly in plastic. Freeze until firm, about 2 hours.
Unwrap sandwich; using a serrated knife, cut into pieces of desired size. Serve ice-cream sandwiches immediately...or wrap and freeze. Be sure to be patient and defrost before eating, they are much tastier when they aren't too hard and cold.

Sorry I don't have a really pretty plated final version. We ate them too fast.

They. Were. Amazing.

This is also my entry into Kavey Eats Bloggers Scream for Ice Cream May Challenge.

a lesson in espresso...by invitation

2012-05-11T19:58:00.001+01:00

Coffee is something I love. However, I almost NEVER make it for myself... there is something about having it made for me that my dad started many years ago. This is why I love coffee shops. I have always been a coffee shop regular. However, the costs add up and in an effort to save money I have tried to enjoy making it for myself...

Recently, I was invited to an espresso tasting. Learning more about coffee is part of the key to enjoying making it at home. It becomes more interesting and then I can make sure it is actually tasty and exactly what I like. I often enjoy espresso, but as far as knowing the differences in taste I am an amateur. The Nespresso event was an excellent opportunity to learn a bit more. The event was dedicated to the launch of Naora...their 2012 limited edition espresso which is on the verge of sell out so if you are interested BUY IT NOW! It's a late harvest Columbian Arabica...the late harvest gives it a fruitier taste. The technique they used to produce it is a new one similar to wine making in that the fruit is left on the branch for as long as possible. OK this might sound like jibberish to you...I must admit...I didn't know what they were on about with the fruit taste description until I got to taste another coffee.

The next one we tasted was a Livanto AND I really could taste the difference. Livanto is a pure Arabica from South and Central America. It is traditionally cultivated and medium roasted for a malted, caramelized taste. This was fabulous...I think I prefer my espresso less fruity and more malty. However, more experimentation is required and Nespresso has a total of 16 different Grand Crus. The Naora and Livanto were both delicious and if I had not had the opportunity to taste them together I wouldn't have been able to define the difference.

In case you are a little dubious about these capsules (like I was)...we got to look inside and have a smell. The coffee inside is protected from air and light and kept extremely fresh for up to 12 months.

To get others involved in appreciating coffees diversity in taste Nespresso is opening a boutique store on Regent Street in July. A highlight will be the coffee bar where you can enjoy their high quality espresso and compare all the flavours!

The Nespresso event also included demonstrations of their espresso machines. I was very tempted by The Pixie picture above. It is very compact and reasonably priced at £139. I could keep it in my room and wake myself up with a beautiful cup of espresso. It would soon pay for itself if I could leave my coffee shop habit...even just a few days a week. hmmm tempting ;)

The fancier ones have their benefits too...they can steam milk for a gorgeous cappuccino or latte, amongst other benefits including cup warming, hot water and volume control...

I have to say I enjoyed the afternoon and I definitely learned a lot. I now take a slightly more educated approach to my coffee drinking! Also it seems that as a company Nespresso really makes an effort to source high quality products and to take care of the producers and the environment they source from. Details of this process are well described on their website.

I plan to take advantage of the tasting bar when the boutique store opens in July. I have also discovered a machine on someone's desk on my floor!!! I am trying to get up the nerve to get to know this person. As a freebee I got a few Naora capsules to take home. I could offer a capsule or two in return for use. If I make a new friend I might be able to buy some Livanto capsules...that's the plan...£139 saved.

Nespresso Boutique Store
Opening in London (Regent Street) in July

lesson in organic wine...by invitation

2012-04-12T18:17:00.112+01:00

Green and Blue is a wine shop, wine bar and restaurant in East Dulwich. I have heard many good things including some great reviews of their school of wine. Unfortunately I had never had a chance to stop. Luckily, several weeks ago, owner Kate Thal, sent me an invite to a special wine and menu tasting.

Kate is a trained sommelier with a passion for real, natural wines produced by independent, small vineyards. She had set up a few specific pairings for us to get a taste for the difference in wines/champagnes that are made using natural methods by small producers. Small producers have the ability to focus on the quality of the starting ingredients and therefore don't have to put the wine through as much processing later on keeping the wine more natural. Our tasting started with an extremely processed champagne Moet and also included a completely organic wine to show the massive contrast. The other wines we tasted represented moderately processed natural wines produced by small wineries.

We started with a comparison of two champagnes. Moet is a well known, mass produced champagne. We compared that to the Larmandier-Bernier Terre de Vertus 1er Cru. This highlighted very quickly the difference between a good champagne and an over-processed champagne. Larmandier-Bernier produces just over 100,000 bottles per year compared to the millions produced by Moet. We all noticed the difference just with a sniff. The Moet smelled harsh and flat while the Larmandier-Bernier was fresh, floral and inviting. The Moet has the kick that you tend to associate with champagne, but the taste of the Larmandier-Bernier was so smooth and soft you realise the harshness isn't necessary. The Larmandier-Bernier is made almost entirely from Chardonnay grapes and very little sugar is added as is common with the mass produced champagnes. There is a price difference...the Moet retails for £25-30 while Green and Blue sell the Larmandier-Bernier for £46. However, if you are looking for something delicious, well-made and don't mind spending a bit more then this is an excellent choice.

Our next tasting included two white sancerres that can be purchased at Green and Blue. The first was a 2007 Gerard Bouley Sancerre (£19) from the Loire Valley in France and the second a 2007 Sebastian Riffault Akemine Sancerre Blanc (£19). Sebastian Riffault is passionate about biodynamic viticulture and does not use manure on his vineyards, he uses no sulphur during fermentation, and the wine in not filtered or fined before bottling. This results in the cloudy appearance seen in the wine on the right.

Gerard Bouley also keeps things as natural as possible and many of his wines are top rated for the region. His wine was delicious. Clean and fresh like you would expect of a good quality wine of this type. The Riffault was also delicious but in a completely different way. It almost tasted like apple juice. It took a bit of getting used to, but by the end of the evening we were all fans. You had the feeling you could drink it all night long and have no ill effects the next morning. I struggled with it to start, it just didn't have the kick that I associate with wine. However, I am definitely going to experiment some more. It was a great chance to taste a good organic wine. Kate mentioned many people that don't know what to expect return it thinking it has gone off. This is the initial feeling because it is so different, but with continued sips you really begin to appreciate it for it's raw, fresh, natural taste.

The final two wines were Riojas. The 2005 Bodegas Palacios Remondo Crianza (£13) and the 2008 Olivier Riviere Rioja 'Rayas Uva' from Logrono (£14.50). These were both lovely. We chose a bottle of the Crianza to enjoy with our meal, but I think the Riffault really grabbed our attention for the evening.

Following the wine tasting, we enjoyed a lovely meal...

Beet root and pistachio salad. This was excellent. Several different types of beet root, fresh flavours.

The main was slow cooked pork belly in Breton cider with potatoes and salsa verde... The salsa verde was fresh and delicious and the pork belly perfectly prepared.

Finally, a Fino sherry matched with a rich and delicious chocolate pot...

I loved the passion and knowledge that Kate Thal exuded as she explained the wines. It was an evening of learning. It's great to learn from someone that truly loves what they do. Green and Blue is a special find. A great place just to buy an excellent bottle of well-made wine, or a lovely cosy place to have a fresh and delicious meal. I was a guest of Green and Blue, but the meal would have cost about £25.

For more information on natural and organic wines, the Real Wine Fair will be held in London on the 20th May 2012. Many of the wines found on sale at Green and Blue will be featured. Tickets for this event are £20 and can be purchased from the website.

Fine Dining...Cattle Class

2012-04-10T16:56:00.004+01:00

Everyone is familiar with the numerous voucher programs these days. Groupon and LivingSocial are the most well-known and offer tremendous discounts at businesses enticing us to make purchases we wouldn't normally consider. These vouchers are most common for restaurants and beauty/spa treatments, but are available for a broad spectrum of activities including horseback riding, holidays, rental cars and gym visits just to name a few. I have taken advantage of these discounts on a few occasions and as a result have been introduced to businesses that I now use that I wouldn't have found otherwise. In my opinion, for it to benefit the business, they should aim to provide an experience that you enjoy so much that you return and pay full price and rave to friends who might also pay full price. I usually avoid restaurant vouchers as I am worried about the quality of food if they are offering extreme discounts. However, recently, my close friend Katrina, found us a voucher for Roux at Parliament Square on TravelZoo. I am not familiar with TravelZoo but it is a website for finding discounts. She had heard great things about this restaurant and I read a positive review from the Critical Couple on their visit last summer so we were looking forward to it. Unfortunately, our experience was far from enjoyable.

We were seated in a room toward the back of the restaurant. I wasn't too keen on the décor and it soon became clear this back room was reserved for voucher holders. The main room of the restaurant was for full paying guests. We were asked what we wanted to drink twice and in reply requested the wine menu twice. While waiting for the wine menu, we were served canapés...mini shepherds pie and beetroot cured salmon. The salmon was lovely, but the shepherds pie was cold and grisly. Like when you fry mince and leave a bit of leftover in the pan for a few hours and the fat congeals...that's what it tasted like...with some mash on top.

We finally received the wine menu and considered the tasting flight for £45, but opted to purchase a bottle instead and went for a New Zealand white that was not on the menu but was recommended by the waiter.

Not too long after we were served a cauliflower velouté topped with woodland mushrooms and a Gruyère gougère on the side (a pastry puff filled with cheese). The velouté was nice, light and creamy offset by the woody taste of the mushrooms. The cheese puff...very cold. I imagine it could have been delicious. The cheese filling was creamy with a nice strong nutty flavour, but I think it would have been better warm or at least room temperature.

Next up- Terrine of cornfed chicken & smoked ham hock, dandelion salad, mustard cream. The terrine was tasty, but topped with a sprinkling of very salty and not so crunchy pork scratching bits.

Next- Risotto Nero with salt and pepper squid. This was served in parley oil and topped with a garlic emulsion. The risotto was delightful. Well cooked and the flavours of the parsley oil and garlic emulsion married perfectly in my mouth with each bite of risotto. Unfortunately, the squid was horribly overcooked and chewy with soggy breading. It could have been a perfect dish, but was far from it.

This is about when the meal began to go horribly wrong. I think we had nearly an hour wait before our next course. I began to observe other diners and found many of them were having a difficult experience as well. The table near us was brought dessert THREE times and they hadn't yet received their main. When it was finally time for their dessert they had to wait nearly an hour. In addition, a woman a couple tables away had clearly mentioned a nut allergy when arriving and received her dessert loaded with almonds. Both of these tables received a complementary glass of dessert wine and an apology.

When we finally received our next course I mentioned the long wait and was told it was very busy in the other room and the chef was struggling. I felt like the implication was that the "other" room was more important.

The first main was a grilled fillet of trout, Jersey Royals and vinaigrette of sea vegetables with dill and cucumber. The fish was lovely but I found the sea vegetables made it overly salty. This is when we ran out of wine and were never offered any more. We tried several times to get the attention of a staff member to order another bottle, but that failed. Our wait for the next main was another 30 minutes or so and we were so happy to receive it we forgot to ask for the wine...and of course they didn't come back.

This course was a roast quail with honey and truffle glaze, creamed potatoes and hispi cabbage. We enjoyed this course. Everything was done well, the mash was creamy and delicious and the sweet glaze complemented the tender quail perfectly.

We then received a pre-dessert. Apple panacotta, apple jelly and cucumber granita. I really enjoyed this. The flavours were light and fresh - very cleansing.

The dessert was Poached Yorkshire Rhubarb 'pavlova', stem ginger chantilly topped with almonds. Despite the rhubarb pieces being undercooked to the point of being inedible this was a beautiful and tasty dish. It was a shame the rhubarb ruined it.

On a trip to the restroom, I had noticed the cheese board...it was amazing. Full of about 15 different types of cheese. When the waitress came for our coffee order we asked about the cheese. She said it was for the a' la carte menu, but if we really wanted some she could send someone over. I said I was interested. No one arrived until just after we received our coffee. He first went to the poor table next to us that had been offered their dessert three time before the main. They were still waiting for the dessert...so were probably not impressed when they were asked about cheese. He didn't wheel over the large cheese board, but instead announced to us that they had a "blue one, a goats one, a soft one and a hard one" and that we could have a plate of really small slices of each for £14. Seriously? Obviously I wasn't enticed by that sales pitch so I declined.

We had long finished our coffee while still waiting for our petit fours. Not sure the reason for the massive wait...plenty of staff members were wandering about not knowing what to do. When it arrived it was a plate with a passion fruit marshmallow and a lemon madeline that had obviously been previously prepared. We mentioned we would have liked to have them with coffee...instead of offering us a second one the waitress shrugged. The madeline was stale, the marshmallow nothing special but by this stage we were quite angry.

We had paid £45 each for this meal. Normal menu price is £70. I will say we weren't charged for our wine. However, I think this was a mistake rather than a comp as we did not receive any apology for the service. It seemed the normal freebie for all the other complaints around us was a glass of dessert wine. To be honest I would have much rather paid for this bottle of wine and another than to have sat wine-less and annoyed for so long. Our meal was a gruelling 3.5 hours long. We listed our complaints on our way out and the friendly receptionist was very apologetic. I delayed this post as Katrina wrote a letter and I wanted to see if she got a reply, but there was none. I was appalled by the service we and every other table in the "voucher" room received on this evening. I would forgive slow service, but combined with all the other mistakes and the weird cheese situation I just don't understand what was going on. It really seemed as if the possession of a voucher had put us in the equivalent of economy class on an airline. I think that full paying guests probably receive a very different experience, but I won't be returning to find out.

lessons in fish filleting...easier than it looks

2012-04-02T17:55:00.001+01:00

I love fish and seafood! Really I love anything that has to do with water. Rowing, scuba diving, swimming... This is possibly a bit odd having grown up in Arizona where water of any type is a rarity. I think the obsession was sparked by the long summers spent with my dad's side of the family in Seattle. I loved the fishmongers at Pike Place Market and the trips to Mukilteo to visit my aunt and uncle. My uncle had a homemade rowing boat and afternoons with him rowing on Puget Sound are amongst my best memories.

Since we almost never had fish when I was growing up, cooking it is something I have mostly taught myself. I have always been intimidated by the idea of gutting and filleting a fish. I did learn how to gut a squid in a university marine biology class, but other than that I usually get the fishmonger to do it for me.

Several months ago (it was actually in August...was slow with this post), I took a Beginner's Filleting and Cooking Fish course at the Waitrose Cookery School and learned that actually filleting fish is super easy!!

I arrived at the Waitrose Cookery School and enjoyed bubbly and nibbles (bread, olives, and cheese) while we waited for the class to start. The school is located just near Finchley Road Tube Station around the back of the Waitrose. It has been open just over a year and is a beautiful facility with a dining area, a lecture room and a large kitchen with stations for at least 20 students. After the nibbles we headed into the lecture room for an introduction and a lesson on recognizing fresh fish. This was followed by a demonstration on how to fillet a flat fish before we went off to try it ourselves.

The flat fish we were given was lemon sole to make lemon sole rolled and steamed with grain mustard. Filleting it was unbelievable easy and I enjoyed it. Once we had the two fillets we simply spread a layer of grain mustard and rolled them up, securing them with a tooth pick and broiled until flaky. A simple recipe, but really delicious...great for a weeknight.

We watched a second demonstration on how to fillet a round fish. This was a bit more difficult. Well not really, but some people were grossed out by the need to remove the guts and rinse it clean. The round fish we were given was mackerel and once it was filleted we simply placed it on a pan with oil and salt and pepper and grilled until flaky. It's best if it's brown and crispy on the outside.

In addition to the filleting we learned several quick and delicious recipes for different types of fish and some easy yummy sauces to accompany them.

This salsa verde was delicious and went with the grilled mackerel...

Salsa Verde
20g fresh flat leaf parsley
20g fresh mint
20g fresh basil
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp salted capers, rinsed
4 anchovy fillets in oil, drained
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice

We also deep fried some cod in a deep fat fryer at 190C using this beer batter recipe. It was served with a simple and fresh tarter sauce...

Beer Batter
125g self-raising flour
100ml soda water
100ml light beer
flour for dusting

Finally, we made simple Seared Tuna with Salt and Pepper (pictured on the left) and Sauteed Scallops with Butter and Parsley (on the right). Both took less than 10 minutes, but were delicious.

I really enjoyed this course, but did find it was targeted at those with little to no cooking experience. So if that's you definitely don't be intimidated. I am signed up to try a course at Billingsgate Market this week and hope that it will be a bit more challenging! I do recommend Waitrose Cookery School. It's a beautiful facility and the staff were great...I had a lot of fun! Plus for an evening after work it's nice if it's not too challenging.

Waitrose Cookery School
199 Finchley Road
Goldhurst Terrace entrance, (in the Waitrose building)
London
NW3 6NN

breakfast deliciousness...Kedgeree

2012-03-23T20:00:00.013Z

I love a big hearty breakfast... On a sunny Sunday, I invited Katrina over and I made us some Kedgeree. It is debated whether this dish is of Indian or Scottish origin but the typical ingredients include rice, smoked haddock, curry powder and hard boiled eggs. I have never actually had Kedgeree, but knew I would like it. I perused a range of recipes and decided to try this one. Some had a load of different spices to add, while this one was fairly simple and I thought simple might be better rather than overpowering the fish. When planning this breakfast invite I hadn't realised my housemate was going to have a house party the night before. So this recipe was a slight challenge as I dodged empty wine bottles, half filled glasses and other post party rubbish...including leftover guests that were wandering aimlessly through the kitchen with hangovers. They were mostly NOT happy that I was cooking fish in the morning!! :-)

The result? It was very good! A lot of flavour. The black pepper and lemon complemented the smoky fish and curry powder. This was a tasty, filling breakfast and really nice served in the garden on a cold but sunny day with a cup of coffee.

For two...
1 Smoked Haddock
300 ml whole milk
bay leaf

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 large Tbsp of butter
1 medium onion (finely sliced from tip to root)
2 tsp mild curry powder
175 g Basmati Rice

2 free range eggs (hard boiled and peeled)

Fresh ground pepper
2 Tbsp chopped coriander
Lemon wedge

Put 300 ml of milk in a shallow pan with the bay leaf and fish. Add enough water (not more than another 300ml to just cover most of the fish). Cover and bring to a gentle simmer. By the time the liquid is simmering, the fish should be cooked through. If not, turn the fillet over in the hot liquid and leave it, off the heat, for 2–3 minutes to finish cooking.

Remove the fish and set aside. Remove the bay leaf and reserve the poaching milk. When it’s cool enough to handle, break the poached fish into flakes, discarding the skin and picking out any bones. (Be careful to try and get most of the little pin bones)...This is the tough bit.
Heat the olive oil and butter a large saucepan. Add the onion and cook gently for 8–10 minutes. Stir in the curry powder, then the rice. Add 300ml (10fl oz) of the poaching liquid. Bring to the boil and then cover the pan. Turn the heat down to bare minimum and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and fluff up the rice with a fork. Set aside with the lid back on until you’re ready to serve.

Fold the smoked fish flakes into the rice, along with half the coarsely chopped coriander and the second knob of butter. Cut the hard-boiled eggs in half – hopefully still a bit soft in the middle. (I brought water to a boil, turned it off and let the eggs sit for 10 minutes. I then rinsed them in cold water...they were great.)
Spoon the spicy, fishy rice onto two plates or bowls, top with two hard-boiled egg halves per person, and sprinkle with more coriander. Add a wedge of lemon and some freshly ground black pepper. Serve.

Seafood Ramen...in the rain

2012-03-21T20:00:00.004Z

On a really awful, rainy London day I went to Tsuru Sushi for my third ramen tasing event. These events are being held in the lead up to the opening of a new restaurant Tonkotsu Bar and Ramen (previously Tsuru Ramen). This event was Seafood Ramen...just as appropriate for me as the last, Spicy Ramen (because I love spicy and I love seafoody). Basia joined me. She had been tempted by the pictures in my Spicy Ramen blog post...she had cycled in the rain...a big bowl of ramen was exactly what we needed.

We started with the chicken kara-age (chicken marinated in soy, ginger and garlic then deep fried). I had tasted this on my first visit and it was just as good this time. The tender chicken is perfectly fried, juicy and delicious.

We had to wait a bit longer than usual for this bowl but when it arrived it looked amazing! The ramen was topped with prawns, clams, a beautiful piece of sea bass and a soft boiled egg.

The fish was perfectly cooked and the egg was, as on each of my previous visits, delightful. This time, however, I felt that the broth wasn't quite as lovely. I thought it was starchy and Basia found hers was on the salty side. I had expected a light, but tasty seafood broth. Having read the post on the restaurants own blog I discover they were actually aiming to avoid a light seafood broth. Another blogger also loved it so I think this broth just wasn't to my taste.

Out of the three tasting events I have attended (I had the Tonkotsu as well), the Spicy Ramen is still my favourite...oh the bits (crunchy, spicy garlic bits)...the bits and the egg...yum. If you are interested there are still a few more planned before the opening. The seafood ramen was £15, but the rest are £10. This includes a bowl of ramen and a beverage...the starters are extra (but worth it). If you love Asahi Black like I do...they have it...it's hard to find.

The future events can be booked at We Got Tickets.

Tonkotsu Bar and Ramen
@tonkotsulondon

so easy, so good. yum pla muk. thai squid salad.

2012-03-12T21:18:00.007Z

A recent Saturday morning found me wandering around Borough Market... With no plan in mind I ended up at the fishmonger purchasing a few baby squid.

One of my favourite Thai dishes is the yum nua or Thai beef salad. I also love it with squid instead of beef (yum pla muk) but I find it is a pricey dish for something that is 'just' a salad. The beef option typically costs £8 then add on a couple pounds if you choose the squid instead. I like it served with Thai sticky rice which is an addition £2-3. That is £10-12 for a salad, which hasn't taken much effort/skill and the ingredients are pretty cheap.

So...when I arrived home with my 4 baby squid I assessed the ingredients I had on hand and decided to try to make a Thai squid salad. It is ridiculously easy! Here is the recipe I used:

4 baby squid (or about one regular squid)
1 red onion (sliced thin)
1 carrot (shredded)
2 minced garlic cloves (optional...they won't be cooked!)
handful of cherry tomatoes (sliced)
1 or 2 small chiles (minced)
juice of one lemon
coriander (chopped)

lettuce leaves
vermicelli rice noodles (or preferable Thai sticky rice)

I combined the onion, carrot, garlic, tomato, chile and lemon juice first to give the flavours some time to come together while I prepared the squid.

I cleaned the squid (the fishmonger did most of it) and then I sliced the bodies into rings. The tentacles had been removed, but you can slice and add them if you have them. I brought water to a boil and literally dipped the squid in. NOT MORE than 30 seconds. I rinsed them in cold water to stop the cooking and also to cool them down for the salad.

I added the cooked squid to the veggies that were waiting...

This salad is best served with Thai sticky rice...a glutinous rice that is typically steamed in little bamboo baskets. It has a slightly sweet taste to offset the spicy salad. It also has a bit of a sticky, chewy texture that I really enjoy. However, since I do not know how to make it and didn't have any, I served my salad with rice vermicelli noodles. I had dry ones on hand and simply soaked them in boiling water for three minutes and rinsed them in cold water. I layered the noodles on top of lettuce leaves, added the squid salad and then topped it with a small handful of chopped coriander. It ticks all the boxes. Fresh, delicious, healthy, easy, cheap, spicy (cut back on the chile if you are not in to spicy)!! If you have extra time and patience you can let it sit in the fridge for a couple of hours so that the flavours come together a bit more.

men are a mystery...good pizza is simple and delicious.

2012-03-07T23:23:00.009Z

On a Saturday a couple weeks ago, a lovely friend and former housemate, Kasia, was visiting from Poland. It was the day of the planned third date mentioned in my last post (no need to re-hash). We were catching up over a cup of tea and I had just gushed all the girly details when the confused man sent text canceling planned third date. I was disappointed and surprised. Kasia barely skipped a beat as she scooped me up (metaphorically of course...although she is super strong) and took me for pizza and wine.

We went to La Porchetta in Soho near Leceister Square. Just walking in the door I was comforted. It smelt of fresh dough and perfect pizza. It is a cozy little restaurant decorated with lots of piggie paraphernalia including an early 80's style cartoon mural. So ridiculous it makes you smile.

We ordered a bottle of Chianti to get us started. Notice the cutie in the background...he was smirking at me all afternoon :-)

I chose the Gorgonzola pizza. It was topped with Gorgonzola cheese and pears. Definitely unusual, but I was intrigued, and it was in fact very good. The strong blue cheese perfectly complemented the subtle sweetness in the soft wedges of pear.

The Florentina had been my second choice and it was ordered by Kasia's boyfriend. He swapped me a piece and it was amazing. Garlic-y spinach, a soft fried egg (it was actually a bit runny!) and a nice kick from the fresh ground pepper. I think this will be my order next time.

Kasia got the Pesquala, topped with aubergine and sun-dried tomato topped with rocket. She didn't share, but she definitely enjoyed!

With Kasia's boyfriend leading the way, the two of us ordered tiramisu and espresso. The espresso was the best I have had in a long time and, the tiramisu was amazing. I didn't think I would make it through the first half but there was no leaving any. Loads of lovely, creamy mascarpone...it was moan-out-loud good. Delicious no matter what, but perfect if you're in need of some cheering up. Felt like my heart was being padded in sweet fluffy goodness!

This was an idyllic afternoon. Simple pizza, nice red wine, good friends (you have to bring those...unfortunately not on the menu). Decent Italian food is difficult to find in London. It's often overpriced and rarely very good. La Porchetta, however, is special...especially for Soho...cheap and cheerful. The total came to just £60...£20 each.

We finished the evening with other housemates at the newly refurbished New Cross House. It is located at the site where #MeatEasy was temporarily in action last year. I recommend New Cross House...it is a lively place (a bit on the hipster/trendy side) with an amazing selection of bottled and draft beer. The menu looks good and the garden area is fantastic; it will be an excellent place for summer evenings. I can't wait for summer :)

dating lesson learned...then applied.

2012-02-20T07:12:00.015Z

Disclaimer: mostly a dating story with a hint of food at the end.

Paying for online dating has made me go a bit dating mad recently. The more dates I go on the more frustrating it becomes. I really do want a relationship...a real one. By "real" I actually do actually mean serious. I have been trying to deny my interest in anything "serious" for a couple years. Many times I have said..."I am not looking for anything serious". I say it because I think it is what men want to hear...and also because I want to clarify that I am not going to insist we move in, get married and have babies next year. But I do want exclusivity, I want future plans (like holidays), I want frequent communication and I want to be incorporated into their life...and let's actually be honest... I want to work toward the wedding and baby thing. So basically, I realise, I want serious.

Recently online dating sent me on a lovely second date with someone amazing. A very good looking, intelligent, successful, and incredibly sweet 39-year old lawyer. The catch...recently separated (after a 20-year relationship) with 2 kids...3 and 5. He was keen, very keen. Almost put me off with lots of talk of future plans. Maybe you think I should have been put off by the ex-wife/kids, but I don't mind the idea of kids and if he gets along with his ex (they are best friends) then I think it could all work out fine. The problem, however, with dating a divorcee is dating them when it's fresh. This I have experience with...my last relationship was with someone in a disturbingly similar situation.

We had plans for a third date...the morning of I received a cancellation..."Dating is emotionally frenetic...sorry to halt things. It was nice to meet you". He wasn't ready for something serious. He was just learning how to date...and I was one of the first. He'd made a mistake talking about the future and scared himself more than he had scared me. I replied, letting him know I understood. He followed that with, "...I really do adore you, you are beautiful in every sense...".

A week later, we ended up going out once more. This time we ended up at a restaurant I had been to before, sitting at a table I had sat at before, and I had the opportunity to create a relationship I had had before. We were nearly finished with the main course, when he brought up the events of the previous week. He thanked me for my understanding text, said it was the nicest thing anyone had ever said. I said I had meant it and then there was silence. This silence could have been filled with, "I like you, you like me and since I don't want anything serious...." and I am certain I could have started a slow pseudo-relationship like I spent 5-months in recently. In retrospect given the location and the situation, it seems as though life was testing me. I looked at him, our eyes met, I smiled and I let the moment pass silently. A painful relationship with an amazing man is still painful...and a second one was avoided.

He dropped me off at mine. He went for a kiss, I turned my head and he got my forehead. I said goodnight and I left Mr. Amazing...probably forever.

I am still single, maybe a little bit stronger, but maybe not strong enough to actively seek out the sweet but confused and not-ready-for-relationship? I think I should just let them come to me. Me and online dating might be done.

OK...I will mention the food. I have been there twice after all. It's good and perfect if you fancy thai food, happen to be in Greenwich and you're on a date with a divorced father of two. Last time I had the Yum Nua beef salad, this time I had the squid stir fried with basil and chilli...both dishes are recommended, but I didn't really enjoy the mixed starter to share.

afternoon tea...remembering Matt Damon

2012-02-10T19:57:00.006Z

It is very rare that I get a friend from home (Arizona) visiting London. A couple weeks ago, Linda, happened to be in London on business. She is married to one of my best friends from high school...they started dating about 15 years ago so I feel like I have known her forever. I knew she was going to be visiting so when I saw a Groupon voucher for Afternoon Tea at No. 31 Lounge Bar in The Hempel Hotel I thought that would be a perfect option. Afternoon tea is definitely the perfect thing for visitors. Since I had recently enjoyed the tasting menu from No. 35 (blog here) at The Hempel I wanted to see if their lounge would be as good.

The Hempel is a very modern hotel. Beautiful but not cozy...although I did like the couches and the warm fire in No. 31. I thought it offered a very upscale feeling which was nice for impressing a good friend. The tea menu offered eight different options of organic leaf tea. I chose the Assam and Linda went with Earl Grey.

The finger sandwiches were good. We had ham and cheese, salmon and cream cheese, egg salad and coronation chicken. I really liked the coronation chicken. It's not a sandwich filler I have ever had before as it is never quite clear what it is, but here I trusted it and it was very good.

The cakes were lovely as well. I especially liked the lemon meringue tart. We also had brownies, macaroons and spiced cake. The scones were just OK. They were very soft and didn't have the crunchy outside that I like. Last time Linda visited several years ago, I had taken her to The Orchard in Grantchester near Cambridge. They have the BEST scones and these definitely were not up to that level.

The highlight of Linda's last visit was our trip to Stonehenge where we literally ran into Matt Damon! We were trying to walk through the underground walkway to get to the monument and accidentally headed for the men's bathroom just as he was walking out!!! As it was already 4:30pm we missed out on seeing Stonehenge as we stood starstruck for the next 20 minutes as he and his wife loaded their baby into the van with the help of several body guards! That is my best (maybe only) celebrity story. Unfortunately, Matt Damon did not show up for afternoon tea...but all in all we enjoyed the afternoon. If I went back to No. 31 I would like to try their bar menu. It includes a variety of sandwiches, salads, tapas and snacks and an exciting list of cocktails...or another visit to No. 35 would be well worth it. However, the afternoon tea was nice and I would definitely recommend it if you happen to be staying in the hotel.

The afternoon tea is £20 each and you can upgrade to include a glass of Taittinger champagne for an additional £10.

No. 31 Lounge Bar
The Hempel Hotel
31-35 Craven Hill Gardens
London
W2 3EA

black sesame ice cream...heaven in a bowl

2012-02-01T10:31:00.009Z

One of my favourite places to eat in London has just become slightly more accessible to the foodie public. It is the home of Luiz, The London Foodie. I have been to his house for several London Cooking Club events. At these events, Luiz designs a menu based on a particular cuisine and sometimes a particular cookbook. Each guest signs up for a dish and brings it along with a bottle of wine. It is fabulous...and I look forward to the two I am signed up for in the next couple months (Neopolitan and Filipino). These require that you can and want to cook a dish. However, recently Luiz has changed career paths, remodeled his already amazing kitchen and following on from the success of the Grazing Asia Supper Club (featured in Time Out) has started his own Japanese Home Cooking Supper Club.

I booked this evening the moment Luiz advertised it back in September. I booked it for two and brought along Cath. She was excited to join me at a supper club evening as she has heard me talk so much about them. We had a pre-dinner drink before we headed to Luiz's house where we were the first to arrive. We were greeted and served Gin and Tonic as more guests began to arrive. As we were mingling, we were served canapés of Takoyaki (octopus balls) and pom pom chicken provided by Pom Pom a company that makes these fresh for parties and events. They were really tasty.

Once all 18 guests had arrived, we were led upstairs to a kitchen like no other. It's incredible! I loved their kitchen before it was redone, but now Luiz and Gerard have a wine fridge, a massive beautiful Aga and enough table space for 20 guests! I only wish I owned a decent camera...I apoligise for the pictures that follow!

The tables were set with small stoves for cooking the first course: Spicy Pork and Seafood Nabe. This is a family dish in Japan that is only served to very special guests. The bowl was full of a selection of seafood (prawns, clams, squid), pork belly, enoki mushrooms, cabbage and daikon. Into this Luiz poured a dashi broth with Korean spicy paste. This was left to cook in front of us for a few minutes.

While we waited for the Nabe to cook we enjoyed salmon sashimi with a japanese vinaigrette that cures the fish slightly. It was served with a mix of creme fraiche and avocado. The salmon was so fresh and delicate; I loved the light vinaigrette made with soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and grated onion.

Once finished with the salmon we served each other the Nabe with the communal chopsticks. This was very flavourful. The dashi broth made with dried sea kelp and bonito flakes had flavoured all the seafood and vegetables. I fished around in the near empty bowl to find missed bits of squid and clam :)

Once the goodies were gone lightly fried gyoza (dumplings) were added to the broth, which were immediately consumed.

Finally, udon noodles were added to the broth. This was simple...just noodles and broth, but I really like the texture of udon noodles...thick and a bit chewy so I really enjoyed this.

The next course was Beef Tataki with Creamy Sesame Sauce. The high-quality and perfectly cooked fillet of beef was served on a bed of cooked onion topped with a sauce made from tahini, soy sauce, mirin, rice vinegar, and a bit of sugar and a sprinkling of perfectly cooked crispy garlic slices.

For a mid-meal palate cleanser, we received two slices of tamago-yaki (Japanese omelet). I think I read somewhere that a sushi chef is judged by the quality of his tamago, similar to western chefs being tested by their ability to properly fry an egg. I am not a tamago expert but this was very nice.

Next up were a selection of small plates:

Rice with chicken, carrots, and shitake mushrooms
Aubergine with sweet miso topped with mozzerella
Green beans and fishcakes with spicy mayo... I really liked this. The fishcakes (which can sometimes be dubious at restaurants) were delicious.

The final savoury dish was miso soup with spinach and deep fried tofu. It was made with white miso which is slightly sweeter. I love miso...and this was an excellent version.

To end it all was a trio of ice creams: black sesame, red bean and green tea served with a home-made madeleine. I am a massive fan of mochi filled with red bean paste so I thought the red bean would be my favourite, but the black sesame was AMAZING!! I loved it and I am definitely going to try to make it at home...just as soon as I buy an ice cream maker!!

This was a perfect evening. As always Luiz is the best host, and the food was just phenomenal! I was also very impressed by his attention to detail. He recently returned from a 2-month trip to Japan where he purchased most of the dinnerware we ate on and also glassware for the condiments (soy sauce, chile oil etc).

He even had ice buckets for bottles of water and all of the wine we brought.

Plus I haven't even mentioned how lovely it was to chat with all the other guests. As has become common for me at these events, I knew two others. We had met at the French London Cooking Club.

Many of the recipes and a good portion of Luiz's Japanese cooking knowledge comes from Reiko Hashimoto. She teaches several levels of Japanese cooking courses in London (I am dying to take one). Luiz has taken them all and has even assisted her with several. She recently published the cookbook "Hashi", and Luiz had several copies for purchase. I bought one and cannot wait to try it out...the black sesame ice cream in particular.

Luiz has now released a range of dates for more Japanese Home Cooking Supper Clubs. I highly recommend booking in...his house is most definitely one of London's best kept secrets.

only if you are actually a drunken monkey...

2012-01-29T22:35:00.006Z

Today I spent the afternoon with a lovely Aussie drummer man that I met speed dating. Yes... speed dating. No...I am not that desperate I just thought it would be fun. More fun than online dating which is god-awful. Plus I went along with 3 friends so if all else failed we would have the story to tell for years to come. The idea: you chat to 20 boys for 4 minutes each and when you get home you go online and tick the ones you wouldn't mind meeting again. If they tick you AND you tick them your contact details are exchanged. I did it once 3 years ago. I ticked no one, my friend ticked one. They still live together. This time I decided I would not be such a picky-pain-in-the-ass and I would tick someone. I ticked five...three matched.

So, we met in Shoreditch...at 2:30pm. A nice time for a Sunday date I think. We had a beer, then a coffee and then we wandered around and he suggested we go eat. He said he felt like Asian food. I immediately thought of Lennies...that would have been perfect...alas it is closed on Sunday. Trying to think of another option...I thought of The Drunken Monkey. I knew I had passed it a couple years ago and been told they have good cocktails, Chinese and dim sum. I also knew I follow them on Twitter and thought I had possibly read some good things as well. I suggested we head there.

We arrived and it had a very Shoreditch-y-vibe. Trendy cocktail bar, big Chinese lanterns and large wooden tables. It was fairly busy considering the awkward time of 5ish on a Sunday afternoon. It seemed like it might be a good choice...or it might have been suggested by friends that had been there for lots of cocktails and then had food...or maybe I was just confused because I like monkeys...I couldn't remember. I decided to repeat the fact I hadn't been there just in case.

We got the menu...I became more doubtful. It seemed sort of standard Chinese takeaway options and the dim sum options seemed sort of dull. Just not the menu I would expect from a place that was *meant* to be good. We also ordered some Asahi...a bucket of it to be exact... Then the food arrived.

Special Drunken Rice...rice with prawns and pork. None of it tasted like anything...so I added soy sauce and it tasted like soy sauce.

Chilli Salt Fried Squid...It was limp like it had been fried this morning and sitting there waiting for me to order it. As far as I could tell there was no chilli or salt. It tasted like nothing.

Mongolian Beef Hotpot & Rice...Flavourless fatty beef, onion, and green pepper served on overcooked rice.

Selection of Dumplings... four dumplings. Not sure what was in them.

It was shit. Really shit.

Thank God there was a bucket of Asahi...and my date was interesting and nice and kept saying it was really good. I internally debated whether he really meant that or whether he was just being nice...especially since I had chosen. I nearly asked but I was worried he really meant it.

The bill was £35...way, way too much for this.

...as far as dates go I enjoyed it. He was nice, maybe just nice. But nice enough that I would see him again, but maybe he should pick next time. I failed, failed miserably.

By the way...I was sick at 5am...please don't eat here-ever.

super rich post rowing lasagne

2012-01-25T23:47:00.006Z

New year's resolutions: spend less and work more.... Yes, I know that sounds boring and awful. But for me I have the feeling 2012 will be the year of the career. The spend less bit comes from the fact I desperately wanted to go on an amazing trip to Japan this year and realised I couldn't afford the trip I longed for. So spend less this year ... amazing trip next year!!

Along the lines of spending less...is eating out less...which equals cooking more...not a bad thing... So my blog posts might include a few more recipes these days...something my mum has requested anyway. While I haven't made a New Year's resolution related to exercise and diet, I have re-taken up an old passion for rowing. This covers the exercise bit pretty solidly. It also explains this post and why I may have been craving some uber rich lasagne...the super intense, cold morning on the water left me ravenous.

My lasagne craving led me searching around a website that I often check....Epicurious. The advantage of Epicurious is there is always loads of reviews for every recipe...so it's fun to read how people have adapted it.

Here is my adaptation...some things are the way they are because of what I had on hand. I would much prefer shallots, but I happened to have half a red onion and a ton of spring onion. Plus, I would have loved to use some fresh rosemary, but only had dill and decided that wouldn't work.

Filling

Olive oil
275 grams (about 4) portobello mushrooms, stems trimmed
75grams chopped prosciutto
2/3 cup chopped red and green onion (shallots would be better, but this is what I had)
some fresh rosemary and/or fresh thyme would be good...I didn't have any

Sauce

2 cups milk (I used semi-skimmed)
500ml low-salt chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 cup (about 4 ounces) shredded Gruyère cheese (I used Emmantal)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Lasagna

6 lasagne noodles (the no-boil kind)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (not sure this was really necessary!)

For filling:

Preheat oven to 200°C. Brush a rimmed baking sheet with olive oil. Toss mushrooms with 1 tablespoon olive oil in large bowl to coat. Arrange mushrooms, gill side up, in single layer on prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until tender, about 25 minutes. Cool. Cut mushrooms into 1/3-inch-thick slices.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and rosemary, sauté 2 minutes stirring frequently. Then add prosciutto; continue to sauté until prosciutto is browned, about 3 minutes. Remove from pan and save in a bowl. (Mushrooms and prosciutto-shallot mixture can be made 1 day ahead. Cover separately and chill).

For sauce:
In the same pan (for lots of flavour)... bring milk, broth, and bay leaf to simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat. Let stand 10 minutes; discard bay leaf.

Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour; stir 2 minutes. Whisk in hot milk mixture; bring to boil, whisking frequently. Reduce heat to low; simmer 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in Gruyère, Parmesan, and nutmeg. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I used a lot of pepper, freshly ground in big bits).

For lasagna:
Butter 9x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Spread 1 cup sauce over bottom of prepared dish. Arrange 1/3 of noodles over sauce, overlapping to fit. Spread about 1 2/3 cups sauce over noodles. Arrange 1/2 of mushrooms over sauce. Scatter 1/2 of prosciutto mixture over mushrooms. Arrange 1/2 of remaining noodles over mushrooms, overlapping to fit. Spread 1 2/3 cups sauce over noodles. Arrange remaining mushrooms over sauce, sprinkle with remaining prosciutto, and top with remaining noodles. Spread remaining sauce over noodles, sprinkle Parmesan cheese over, and dot with butter...I am not sure it was necessary to dot with butter but the final product was delicious and I didn't test without. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Preheat oven to 175°C. Bake lasagna until top is golden brown and sauce is bubbling, about 45 minutes (about 1 hour if refrigerated). Let stand 20 to 30 minutes before serving or not if you're impatient like me...

Then serve it up. It was really great...the earthy mushrooms, the distinctive taste of proscuitto, the rich white sauce, and the cheesy goodness all worked together really well. Be sure to save a crispy bit of the cheesy top noodle for the last bite. That was my favourite bit.

Another reason for making lasagne was to have plenty leftover for lunches during the week. This was a good idea (it was great the next day). However, if you lack self control (like I often do) it might be best to have someone to share it with. That way you don't end up eating half the pan...like I did...Yikes! Although I still had enough for three lunches.

food bloggers unplugged...kitchen conversations

2012-01-14T22:49:00.013Z

Recently my dear friend and fellow food blogger, Rosana of Hot & Chilli, tagged me to answer a few questions about my blog and myself...so here goes...

What, or who inspired you to start a blog?
When I first moved to England 6.5 years ago, I had a blog to share photos and stories with my family. I had thought to include food but felt I wasn't qualified to review restaurants or share my recipes...If only I had started then, my food blog would be one of the oldest now. The idea stayed in my mind as something I wanted to do and finally some encouragement at a London Cooking Club event last year got me started...

Who taught you how to cook?
My mum introduced me to food and cooking. She doesn't like to do it everyday but when she is in the mood she is really good and has a lot of knowledge to share. My favourites are her biscuits and gravy (pictured below) and her beef stroganoff...love her omelettes too. I never attempt to cook these dishes as they are so much better when she makes them.

I started cooking once a week when I was about 12. My mum would go play mahjong and I would stay home and make dinner for my dad and sisters. In the beginning, I made ready meals that she would leave for me, but then I started to experiment with adding fresh ingredients or making fresh vegetables to go with. I started reading cookbooks and lots of magazines (Cooking Light was my favourite). Then it just went from there...when I was 14, I basically took over cooking for my family and when I was 16 I started working at a grocery store and doing most of the meal planning, food shopping and cooking. I loved it and the love has just grown...

Who is your foodie inspiration?
It was 10-12 years ago, when I first moved out of my parents house, that my interests went from cooking for family to cooking more complex and exotic dishes. A lot of American TV food personalities from the early 2000's influenced me. I read "Kitchen Confidential" by Anthony Bourdain when it first came out and loved it. Much of the advice he gave in that book has stayed with me...avoiding fish on Mondays and all you can eat sushi always, knowing the chef if you eat mussels, questioning brunch and hollandaise sauce...oh and my favourite knife is a global!! I enjoyed watching Emeril Lagasse in his heyday and was thrilled to visit his restaurant in Las Vegas on my 21st birthday (Emeril's New Orleans Fish House). I also learned a lot of good tips from Rachel Ray's 30 minute meals (probable never aired in the UK).

Your greasiest, batter-splattered food/drink book is?
As I was teaching myself to cook and experimenting with recipes for my family, my mum's copy of "The Joy of Cooking" by Irma S. Rombauer was what I used most. I don't have my own copy so I haven't used it in years, but I think I have read it cover to cover (all 800+ pages) over a dozen times.

What is the one kitchen gadget you would love to have if money were no object?
...and space...space is the biggest problem with having too many gadgets! It would be nice to have a good food processor/mixer, a KitchenAid would be ideal.

Tell us all about the best thing you have ever eaten in another country, where was it, what was it?
I love travelling and eating local when I travel. There is no way I can give one answer to this question so I will name the top three that come to mind first...

I spent 6 months in Costa Rica and absolutely love "Gallo Pinto" for breakfast... rice, black beans and eggs...simple, delicious and a great way to start the day.
A great food holiday was my trip to Florence...just about everything there was amazing, but Tagliderini al Tartufo (Pasta with Truffles) was a revelation.
One of the most amazing meals I've ever had was a Korean "sashimi" feast when I was travelling in Korea on my own...it was the freshest fish I have eaten and it was soooo good (pictured below...some of it anyway).

Another food blogger's table you'd like to eat at is?
Rosana of Hot & Chilli...she's been to my table, now she owes me ;) I have eaten a few of her dishes at London Cooking Club events, but I would love a nice Brazilian Meal cooked in her home!!

I'm coming for dinner, what's your signature dish?
I enjoy introducing friends in the UK to Mexican food as I grew up with it. Here in the UK, Mexican is often a British variation on Tex-Mex, which is very different to what I think of as Mexican food. I have made Mole a few time as many struggle to imagine chocolate in a savoury dish. Enchiladas is another dish I like to share and I am planning to challenge myself and cook some tamales in the near future.

What's your guilty pleasure?
A few sort of strange things that make me really happy...

pasta with fried eggs (great after a night of drinking before I go to sleep...as long as I don't crack eggs all over the kitchen or melt the spoon in the pasta...both of these have happened before)...lots of fresh cracked pepper, some sea salt, and maybe a bit of Encona...
green apples with crunchy peanut butter...a great snack, but I know it does sound a bit odd.
mochi with red bean paste...you get them in packs of eight from asian shops and I end up eating the whole pack in one sitting.
chips and salsa...that used to be my usual guilty pleasure when I lived in Arizona, but now that it requires me to make salsa from scratch it's a rare treat...

Reveal something about yourself that others would be surprised to learn.
I am not a big fan of chocolate...I think this sets me apart from most people ;)

Finally...tag other food bloggers with these questions... like a hot potato pass it on...
I am tagging 2 bloggers that I know in real life... both love food and have great blogs with fabulous recipes!!

Jo @ Afternoon Tease

Lynne @ Kitchen Gurl