Italiano, Jamie-style.

With a birthday looming and wonderful friends with excellent taste in food, the girls took me off for a feast at Jamie's Italian Sydney.

Unfortunately, this is one of those "no booking" restaurants and due to the restaurant's central location and the horrible weather, when we got there at 6pm, there was a line out the door about 20 people deep. Not a good start. Thankfully, it was pretty fast moving and we were at the front counter in no time and requesting a table of 5. We were asked if we were all there yet, and due to the weather, my friend Kasey was stuck on the bridge and running a little late. Because of this, we weren't given the table, but asked to wait in the almost non-existent bar area until we were all present. During this time, I kept an eye on the door, noticing that smaller tables were given a waiting time of about 1.5 hrs, a definite downside of the "no book" system. I started to get worried that we might be given the same wait time if all the large tables were taken before we were all present. Luckily Kasey arrived just in time (and just as our first drink was being finished) and we got a table straight away. From the entryway, the restaurant looks tiny, but it actually is quite big, with an upstairs area and plenty of tables.

As I do with most restaurants I'm keen to eat at, I had been perusing the menu all week, trying to decide what I would order. The menu is quite extensive with antipasti, pasta and mains to choose from and this made the decision very difficult. I knew I had to have pasta for at least one meal, considering they make it fresh daily, so chose a Scappato mussel linguine with garlic, chilli & parsley. The other girls decided on antipasti - chilli squid, mushroom fritti, arancini and ricotta stuffed mini chilli peppers - and some polenta chips to share.

Polenta chips (top); Arancini balls

Chilli squid; Stuffed mini chilli; Fried mushrooms; Mussel linguine

During our wait for the entrees (which really wasn't that long considering how packed the restaurant was) we got some house made breads with oil and vinegar to tide us over. This is on the house but it isn't just offered, you have to ask for it. Entrees arrived and were presented "Jamie-style", not too fancy but just nice, displaying the best of the produce and easily edible. I have to say, I was a bit disappointed with the size of my mussels (not so much with my muscles, ha!). While there was a few of them, they were really tiny, and if I'd ordered that pasta for main, I wouldn't be too happy. Having said that, they were plump and flavoursome and the sauce is pretty standard to compliment the mild seafood flavour. The pasta was another story. Now, I know Italian's like their pasta 'al dente', but this just seemed more or less undercooked. It was really hard to even tell that it was fresh pasta...

Mains didn't follow too far behind (a plus!) and my Lamb osso bucco looked and smelled delightful - and it was! My only complaint with this was that, because it was lamb, it was quite small and I was still pretty hungry when I'd finished off the plate. Of the other girl's meals - pumpkin panzerotti and black angel spaghetti - the comments were fairly positive. I did get a chance to try the squid ink pasta (my first time) and absolutely loved it!! It was salty and fishy, but somehow sweet as well, probably from the scallops it was served with.

Pumpkin panzerotti; Lamb osso bucco; Black angel pasta

Time for dessert, and the girls sneakily ordered me an Italian ice-cream bombe with a candle and some chocolate letters, spelling out "Happy Birthday". Too cute! This was yummy, but I'd already scoped out my dessert of choice, so had to go back for seconds!! The Italian bakewell tart was zesty (orange) and moist, but not like the bakewell tarts I've had before - there was no jammy bottom, but there was some stewed fruit mixed through to give it the added sweet hit. Tasting the other girl's dessert, the clear winner was definitely the "ultimate brownie" - served warm, with fresh raspberries throughout and vanilla ice-cream. Perfect!

Happy birthday to me! Italian ice-cream bombe.

Sugar hit!! Creamy pannacotta; Italian bakewell tart; Ultimate brownie.

Overall, we had a really great night. Aside from the shaky start, the staff were attentive, the atmosphere was warming and the food was tasty. The only thing that was really missing was a guest appearance from the man himself... Jamie joining us at the table for a little chit chat would have topped the night off. In the hopes of this eventually happening,  I'll be going back with the BF in the near future and recommend you do the same!

Enjoy!

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A forest of chocolate and cherry.

I have become known as a bit of a 'caker' around school. Earlier this year, I foolishly asked my year 12 class (which is thankfully very small) for a list of their favourite cakes so that I could make them something special for their birthdays (Note: I was a bit too ambitious and I don't think I'll be doing this again!!). I've had everything from chocolate mud to pavlova to cheesecake. But when I looked down the list and saw "Black Forest", I cringed. I've never eaten a Black Forest, so I don't really know what they're supposed to taste like (or even what was in it!). And not really being a big chocolate fan, it didn't seem all that appealing. To add to my apprehension about making this cake, almost every recipe I read used "chocolate cake mix" as the base ingredient... Something I'm not a big fan of unless absolutely necessary. Finally, I found a recipe where you make everything from scratch and get something that does a good job of resembling the chocolate and cherry assemblage of a Black Forest.

I didn't actually intend to blog about this because I didn't really think it was going to be that exciting. But when I realised that this is the easiest chocolate cake, and the final product actually looks pretty spectacular, I thought I should share.

Blackforest cake (serves 10-12)
185 mL milk
125 g butter
275 g dark brown sugar
50 g good-quality cocoa powder
150 g self raising flour
50 g plain flour
1 tsp bicarb soda
1 can morello cherries, drained, liquid reserved
1/2 cup caster sugar
300 mL thickened cream, whipped
Grated chocolate, for decoration

1. Grease and line your tin/s (either 1 x 22-23cm or 2 x 20cm pans - springforms work best). Preheat oven to 160C (fan-forced).
2. In the microwave, melt together your butter and milk (about 2 minutes). Pour into a large mixing bowl.
3. Add the brown sugar and cocoa powder and mix with a whisk until dissolved.
4. Add the flours and bicarb soda and mix with the whisk until combined.
5. Pour mixture into prepared tin/s. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool in tin on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then turn out to cool completely.
6.To make cherry sugar syrup: Dissolve caster sugar in 1/2 cup water over low heat. Add the liquid from the cherry can and increase to medium heat. Gently boil for 20 minutes, or until liquid has reduced by half and thickened slightly.
7. To assemble: Slice each cake in half (or one cake into 3). Place one base on a cake plate and top with cherry syrup, whipped cream and some halved cherries. Top with next layer and repeat with remaining layers. On the top layer, top with remaining cherry syrup (carefully as it doesn't seep into the top layers easily), remaining cream and whole cherries. Grate chocolate over top layer.

Due to this being for a school affair, I had to emit the kirsch (cherry liquor) but that's why I made the cherry syrup. If you're in need of a little booze hit, just substitute this in your recipe for the syrup.

This was a big hit with the class, both in terms of presentation and taste. So next time you're in need of the wow factor, chuck this super easy cake in the oven and wow away!

Enjoy!

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A winter warmer

I am more than happy to stand corrected as a write this blog post. Beef and Guinness Pie always seemed to taste like there was so much work involved in making it. Its not just a beef pie, there's all these different homely flavours that just make it taste so yummy. So with a bit of time on my hands and the ugly winter weather Sydney is putting on at the moment, I decided to put in the effort required and give Beef and Guinness Pie a try. I was pleasantly surprised. Not only does this pie take almost zero effort to make (ie. you pretty much put it everything a pot and leave it on the stove top for a few hours), but all those beautiful 'flavours' are pretty much just what comes out of stewing beef in some Guinness (ie. no extensive ingredients list required). In fact, this pie is so easy that next time I make it, I'm even going to make my own pastry!!

Beef and Guinness Pies (makes 4 individual pies)
1/4 cup plain flour
800g beef chuck steak, cut into 3cm pieces
2 tbs olive oil
4 large brown onions, cut into thick wedges
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
440ml Guinness draught beer
1 1/2 cups beef stock
2 dried bay leaves
8 fresh thyme sprigs
1 sheet (25cm) ready-rolled frozen puff pastry
1 egg, lightly whisked
Mashed sweet potato and something green, to serve

1. Place the flour in a large bowl and season well with salt and pepper. Add the beef and gently toss to lightly coat with the flour mixture. Heat half the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish over high heat. Add one-quarter of the beef and cook, turning occasionally, for 5 minutes or until brown all over. Transfer to a heatproof bowl. Continue in 3 more batches.
2. Heat the remaining oil in the pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until onion is lightly golden. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until aromatic. Add the beef, Guinness, beef stock, bay leaves and thyme and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to very low and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for 2 hours or until beef is tender and sauce thickens slightly. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. Set aside for 30 minutes to cool slightly.
   
   
3. Preheat oven to 200°C. Spoon beef mixture evenly among four 1 1/2-cup ovenproof dishes. Cut the pastry into quarters and lightly brush with egg. Place a piece of pastry over each dish and use a small, sharp knife to cut a small slit in the top of each pie to help release steam. Place on an oven tray and bake for 15 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden. Remove from oven and serve immediately with mashed potatoes and peas or beans.
   
   
   
   
   

Whenever my boyfriend has a Guinness, he comments that it is his "steak and veg" drink. Luckily, this pie doesn't make you feel like you've had steak and veg AND a pie, but it definitely warms the belly - a perfect winter dinner.

For next time:
- I will actually slow cook the meat so it's really gelatinous and falling apart. 6 hours on low heat should do it a lot of justice in the slow cooker.
- For a really nice crispy pie, I'm going to attempt Maggie Beer's Sour Cream Pastry - place 200g chilled, unsalted, chopped butter and 250g plain flour and a pinch of salt in the bowl of a food processor, then blend until the mixture resembles large breadcrumbs. Gradually add 1/2 cup sour cream, mixing until the pastry just comes together. Shape into a disc, then wrap in plastic wrap then chill for at least 20 minutes. Roll out the pastry, cut to size and place in a greased pie dish. Top with beef mix and more pastry, wetting the edges with water before crimping to seal.

Enjoy!

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Melbourne - Foodie heaven

Heading to Melbourne for the weekend is one of the ultimate getaways for a foodie. The only problem? There's not enough meals in one weekend to fit all the food in the city into my belly!

I feel pretty jealous of the people that live in and around Melbourne city because they have access to the freshest, and most extensive range of organic produce I have ever seen in one place. The Queen Victoria Markets Organics section boasts fresh fruit and vegetables, organic snacks, jams and relishes, super fresh eggs (the chickens are even sold at the stall), all for incredibly cheap prices.

 

Then there's the dairy hall - every type of cheese you can imagine, beautiful displays of antipasto (the marscapone figs were to DIE for!), fresh bread and endless cakes on display.

The best part of all of this, and the main reason for my jealousy - they're open 5 days a week!! I hope the Melbournians realise how lucky they are...

The next best thing about Melbourne for a foodie is the laneway cafes. These can be tricky to find (or find again as we found out trying to go back one of the cafes we'd seen for a coffee). Take a walk down Flinders lane and the laneways the line this street make you feel like you've entered a European country.

Although many of the cafes are just that, cafes, many are attempting to bring a unique edge to their selections, like "the soup place" is doing.

The last thing that makes Melbourne "foodie heaven" is the vast and varied dining experiences you can have all over the city.

For lunch, Cruzao Arepa Bar is a great choice. They serve Venezuelan-style food, specialising in Arepas - gluten free, cornflour pockets cooked on a hot grill and stuffed with a range of fillings. Really tasty and not overly filling.

For dinner, nose-to-tail eating is definitely a different choice. Josie Bones dishes up a delightfully tasty range of cuts from the whole beast, pairing that with a range of local and international beers (check out my beast feast).

Like I said, one weekend is no where near enough time to eat the immense range of dining experiences to be had in Melbourne... But there's plenty left to explore on the next visit!

Enjoy!

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Pig ears and big beers (review)

I'm always one for wanting to try something new and different so when Ryan told me about a restaurant in Melbourne that dabbles in 'nose-to-tail' eating and matches that with an incredibly expansive beer selection, which they also use in their cooking wherever possible, I knew we had to try it out.

Being a Saturday night, we were a bit apprehensive about getting a table without a booking. Luckily though, this wasn't a problem and we were seated at the bar (in front of the beer taps!) and served by Chris, who also happens to be one of the co-owners - perfect! Presented with a beer menu about 50 pages long, Chris asked us what we would like to drink.. uhhh? Of the 250+ beers to choose from, I decided on a tapped wheat beer to start off the night (which was on the first page of the beer menu) with some pork crackling to nibble on while we perused the menu.

The menu is intended for grazing - a series of small 'share' plates so you get to sample a lot of different textures and flavours. I would have loved to try everything on the menu, but Chris recommended 4 to 6 dishes between the two of us, so we selected two to start - Grilled hop-smoked ox tongue with piccalilli and Braised rabbit with chorizo and creme fraiche.

The ox tongue was incredibly tender and had the most intense smoky flavour which was perfectly matched by the pickled flavour of the piccalilli. I've had ox tongue before at a barbecue restaurant in Japan and I thought that was tasty, but this definitely over shone my previous experiences.
 
This was my first taste of rabbit and I have to say, I was pretty impressed. The meat was moist and flavoursome (and really not the flavour that I had expected!) and the chorizo was tender and smoky and added a great flavour to the dish.

Ready for round two, we ordered one of the specials of the evening - Pork shoulder. The meat was, again, deliciously tender and moist and the sauce provided a beautiful flavour, dotted with little bursts of saltiness from the capers in it.

By this stage I was ready for another beer and looked a bit more closely at the selection. I found a page of "fruity ales" and was taken by the raspberry ale. Chris asked me if I liked sweet things, which, of course, I do, but he made the suggestion that the raspberry is excessively sweet and that the framboise Belgian style might be a better choice. I was thinking it was going to be a hint of a raspberry flavour, but still taste like beer. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Even the framboise, the less sweet version, was incredibly sweet and tasted more like a raspberry cider than a beer. Bad choice on my part. Luckily, this was the only one of the night.


Although it probably wasn't really necessary, we decided to mix up our next meal and order something vegetable based. There was a small selection of these dishes on offer, but what they did have all looked really tasty - quinoa with roasted cauliflower, sheeps milk labneh and mint; pumpkin and smoked cheddar gratin with chestnut crumble; and beetroot carpaccio with grilled haloumi, smoked almonds and pickled beetroot stems, to name a few. Chris suggested the beetroot, as it would go well with the dishes we had already ordered, and when it arrived, we couldn't have been happier with the choice. The plate was beautifully presented and tasted just as good as it looked - the fresh beetroot was super thinly sliced, the haloumi had just the right amount of saltiness and the crunchy smoky almonds provided great texture. Thanks for the suggestion Chris!

By this stage with all the beer and food we were pretty stuffed, but had just enough room for one more round. We consulted the dessert menu - each choice with some hint of beer in it - but decided for one last hit of meat. Possibly what some would consider an 'adventurous' choice, what better to finish the meal than pigs trotters stuffed with black pudding and served with braised lentils and crispy pigs ears. This couldn't have been tastier!!

Perfect balance of pork and apple-infused, house-made black pudding (so it didn't taste like undercooked blood, like some other bad black puddings I've had). The pigs ears were chewy and gelatinous and really tasty!

The verdict? An absolutely incredible meal. It was evident that each dish had so much thought put into the flavours and the presentation and shows that the team at Josie Bones really know their food. Chris was a wonderful host to us, open to answering all our curious questions. He is also incredibly knowledgeable about his beers and easily matches personal tastes to the beers they have on offer.

The decor and layout of the restaurant is rustic but well considered, with hints of quirkiness in every corner.

So, if you're in Collingwood (North-east Melbourne city), I highly recommend heading to 98 Smith Street and treating yourself to a whole beast eating experience. And why not chuck in a few beers while you're at it!

Enjoy!

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More than half-baked

Being struck down by a 'debilitating' illness this week didn't make me physically incapacitated, but rather, verbally incapacitated (hence, being completely unfit for my normal school teacher/yelling-at-the-kiddies duties). Needless to say, I've been bored out of my brains as I'm not really a fan of the repetitive nature of the free-to-air Olympic coverage and I can only watch my Sex & the City box set so many times (No. Wait. Scratch that, SATC never gets old). This, compounded with the fact that I had the bare basic ingredients in the fridge, and payday wasn't coming for another 24 hours, left me with the ultimate challenge... How to use up what I've got in the fridge and not just have eggs on toast for lunch. My solution? Baked eggs! Brilliant recipe creation by the Spaniards (I think!) and the easiest way to use up eggs, sausages and left over canned tomatoes from Friday night's pizza sauce.

This (probably) isn't traditional, especially considering I've used lean Italian sausages from Woolies, and I just sort of chucked in things as I thought of them, but it tasted pretty damn good and so I thought it share-worthy for inspiration the next time you get stuck with this challenge.

Baked Eggs with Sausage and Sourdough (served 1 hungry hippo - but could easily serve 2)
3 sausages
2 eggs
1/2 can tinned tomatoes
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp paprika
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
pinch cayenne pepper
3 sprigs fresh thyme
Grated parmesan to serve (Optional)
Toasted sourdough, to serve

 1. Preheat oven to 180C. Heat oil in a medium frypan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and thyme and cook, stirring, until soft. Remove thyme and save for later. Add paprika and cayenne pepper and cook until fragrant. Reduce heat.
2. Add tomatoes and simmer gently for 5 minutes to reduce liquid. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Meanwhile, heat oil on a griddle pan over medium heat and lightly brown sausages.
4. Place tomato mix in a small baking dish. Top with sausages then gently crack eggs into the middle of the dish (on top of the tomato). Top with sprigs of thyme.

5. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until eggs are just set. Sprinkle with parmesan and serve with sourdough.

Considering how quick this was to prepare and how little thought actually went into the cooking process, I really wasn't expecting anything too special. But I have to say, this is a winner!! The rich tomato sauce, the slight fennel-spicing of the Italian sausages, the gooey yolk and crispy bread was all a perfect combination. This is one of those great dishes that works for pretty much ANY meal - breakfast, brunch, lunch, Sunday dinner...

However, as stated before, this is about as traditional as eating museli for breakfast in Japan. Anyway, to improve the authenticity of this dish, I would suggest using a chorizo sausage (even though the Italian one was tasty). Also, a light sprinkle of something like a manchego, instead of parmesan, is recommended. This will make for a much more 'Spanish' flavour and would probably be even tastier too!

Enjoy!

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