tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52022568771443608222024-03-14T01:48:22.942+10:00meemuncherWriting about eating, thinking about writing, talking while cooking and dreaming while eating.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-1671069079725119062014-03-12T11:12:00.000+10:002014-03-12T11:12:24.084+10:00A slice of paradisoOur first year in Tasmania is almost concluded. Before we celebrate our first year here in a few weeks' time, the idea of reflecting upon the year that was seems like a good one. And what a year it’s been! It doesn’t seem that long ago when we drove our cars onto the Spirit of Tasmania and traversed Bass Strait. As I sit here this evening to ponder upon the year that was, I find myself distracted by the clouds. This time of year the clouds seem to take on a magical form. They move quickly across the landscape metamorphosing before my eyes. Layer upon layer, palimpsests of cotton wool against merino wool, marshmallow and wisp, drifting – some fill out and mushroom outwards and upwards. The evening’s sun sets alight the canvases with hazy lilacs, warm yellows, garish oranges and pinks that blend into greys. Some hang low on Bruny’s frame, softening its dry paddocks with a broad watercolour wash; the ones high in the sky reflect wild palettes of orange and pinks onto D’Entrecasteaux Channel. The Channel really is alive with colour as I set to write this piece.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">We get double rainbows around these parts</span></div>
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For the first time, I properly learned about seasons and had first-hand experience of its rhythms. The winding up of summer was met with relief for our Brisbane summer had been a hot, humid and very wet one. The vestiges of renovations in the height of summer and open houses during monsoonal downpours were a thing of the past. We arrived in the Apple Isle during autumn when most of the small orchard was bare so we couldn’t identify most of the fruit trees. Autumn gave us lots and lots of leaf litter, some fabulous evening skies, interesting fungi and a glimpse into what winter might be like.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">A striking find in the paddock:<i> Aleuria Aurantia </i>or Orange Peel Fungus</span></div>
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All winter long, the wood heater got a vigorous workout while we waited eagerly to see what would burst forth from the orchard. Our neighbours plied us with their delightful nashi pears and quinces. For weeks we had poached quinces with porridge, used them as toppings for tarts and flans, and the leftover quinces turned into jelly. I will never forget the perfume of quinces ripening in the pantry, filling the entire house with their distinct aromas. Just as we thought winter would never end, Spring arrived - late, and with lots of rain.<br />
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The spike in temperature saw the almonds racing ahead first with flowers, the plums weren’t far behind with their glorious white and pink blossoms. The orchard turned into a veritable confetti wonderland. The cherries came second with their own beautiful blossoms. I imagine this is what Japan is like at cherry blossom time! Apples took their time with their own intensely pink pretty flowers. The orchard buzzed with hundreds of bees, insects and birds.<br />
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Just as Summer woke from its long slumber, the noisy swamp hens packed up and left, so did the wild ducks, herons and eagles, they’ve all raised their young and flown the coop. All that’s left are broken shells at the bottom of trees – evidence of a family made. Just as we thought the birds had abandoned us, tribes of honey warblers, wrens, finches, swallows and other tiny birds moved in. I've recently discovered the joys of bird watching. Summer’s bounty of fruit saw my first batches of cherry and plum jams. I frequented op shops and bought as many jars and bottles as I could find. Lots of pies, tarts and cakes were eaten during the course of our first year. I learned to make bread and bagels and all sorts of baked goodies. Wet, cold dreary days will force you indoors and cooking I assure you! Now I have to turn my attention to crab apples and blackberries. The op shops await.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Cherries, raspberries, red currants from the garden Blackberries galore!</span></div>
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Weekends of leisurely newspaper and lifestyle magazine reading have given way to scouring the Ag and farming newspapers for clearing sales and auctions. Advertisements for bargain second hand tractors and its accoutrements excite us. Is it hydrostatic or manual? Has it got 4WD? Come with ag wheels, four-in-one buckets, slashers and post-hole digger? Bonus. Yes, if you thought my Blundstones were daggy, gum boots are now de rigueur in my shoe collection.<br />
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In the course of the year: old oyster middens have been uncovered by king tides and wild winds, majestic eucalypts, pines and stringybarks felled, five garden beds constructed, fencing built, gullies of blackberries slashed, neglected fruit trees released from the onslaught of bramble, wild weeds and mushrooms foraged, tonnes of firewood cut and collected, and our biggest investment so far, a ride-on mower!<br />
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I had no expectations of country living a year ago. Given that I had never lived on property or anywhere far from cities, how could I know what it would be like? Living on a bit of land demands time - every free, available spare moment is filled with 'doing'. There never seems to be enough hours in the day to do everything we want to do. Something is always demanding attention – the rabbit holes need filling up, the compost needs turning, the worms need feeding, gardens need watering, paddocks need slashing, blackberries need more cutting and controlling and the trees need pruning. Work aside, living in the country has its peaks and troughs – mostly it is uplifting – the spatial freedom is wonderful. There's something special about Tasmania’s clean air and water and every measure to protect its natural assets is to be commended and encouraged. There is something magnificent and special about being able to walk down to the ocean in search of solitude, a spot of fishing, a beachcomb or forage. With this privilege comes a certain responsibility for the guardianship of our land and sea. The most profound thing so far this year, is the realisation that I don’t want to live in a city anytime soon. <br />
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<br />meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-8057931074573426322013-08-05T11:57:00.005+10:002013-08-05T12:00:27.186+10:00Trees and how to feel when they fall<div class="MsoNormal">
To own land means having accountability and a set of
responsibilities. This is what I am discovering as a first-time owner of a
parcel of land. To have land that contains a heritage conservation on its trees
carries even more responsibility. The foreshore of the length of the
D’Entrecasteaux Channel is home to the swift parrots, <st1:state>Tasmania</st1:state>’s
endangered birds. These birds’ natural habitat is in the blue gums that are
found on our parcel of land. Environmentalists talk of conservation corridors
and community of natives – for me, the combination of towering blue gums,
silver peppermint gums and stringybarks make for beautiful features of the land
and make up a distinct part of <st1:place>Southern Tasmania</st1:place>’s
landscape. </div>
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For the record, I am not an avid environmentalist nor am I
an eco-warrior. My reaction to the decision to fell some of the very
established native trees on our land was one of horror. I even feel sad that
the dead, but strangely beautiful wattle tree that frames the cottage garden has
to go. In order to make our land working and ‘productive’ for us fruit trees,
garden beds, berry vines and nut groves need enough sun and they need proper
nourishment from the earth. Dams need reinforcing and revitalizing, and chooks
need a pen in which to return home from running around foraging. Sometimes to
eke out a sustainable living lifestyle demands certain sacrifices – that, I
have come to realise. It has taken months to accept that the huge pine trees by
the dam have to go (they are sucking the dam dry and making the soil very
acidic and unusable); the very established and beautiful blue gums that shade a
lot of the property are in paths of future fruit trees and berry vines; the
majestic silver peppermints and stringybarks also are in the way of edible
species being planted. So they have to go. The local Council said yes to
our request of removal of some trees but with the compromise of an offset
planting of more blue gums. So the offset deal is four blue gums for every
established felled tree. </div>
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As the men outside hack away at <i>my</i> trees with much
gusto, the whirr-whirr of chainsaws remind me of the shrill drilling of
dentists – only these guys are uprooting perfectly good trees. I hide in my
office and am unable to go outside to see the destruction as it is happening. I
hear the distinct cracks of wood, and the first sickening giant thud – and then a second. And there's more to come. I feel a bit sick in
the gut. Old country hands might call me a softy but my heart died a little
today as the trees came down. Never did I think I would ever feel this way
about trees and the bond I feel towards them on my land. Perhaps the birds will
forgive us a little and the possums will move on. There is another conservation
corridor on the other side of the property which I hope will flourish as time
moves on. For now, I only hope we do the land justice by enriching its soil and
planting lovely things. The neglected water course overgrown by blackberries is
being rejunevated slowly by hand and I hope we can create a proper rock/creek
bed that will attract many species of wildlife to compensate for the loss of
trees and restore balance in the native-introduced environmental/agricultural
framework. </div>
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(a mighty stringbark in all its glory)</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
(a silver peppermint)</div>
meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-22978966247471380962013-07-16T21:59:00.005+10:002013-07-17T08:31:59.044+10:00<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>My Family Feast</i> cookbook: recipe review for spanakopita</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
I looked at this
book again with a more critical eye. First came the index review,
then I looked at the recipes and then to test my hunch that
publishers don't always test their recipes; I put one of the Greek
recipes to test on the weekend. A visit to a country produce market
yielded the freshest bunch of silverbeet so spanakopita was the logical choice. I don't usually follow recipes religiously as I tend to alter
ingredients to suit what I have available. <i>My Family Feast'</i>s
spanakopita gives the recipe for its filo pastry. I had never made
filo pastry before so I thought I'd give it a go. It was also the only
pastry recipe in the book that had exact measurements for its dough.</div>
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The pastry recipe calls for:</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
525g (3<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">½</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">
C) plain flour</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">1
tsp salt</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">3
tbsp olive oil</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">3
tbsp warm water</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">100g
butter melted and mixed with 1 extra tablespoon olive oil</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5NIh1FJUqOasmMe3Ju9wLVAiaDaDFwtujtMC-Q852IFZZrLAS4J0WEKF0343zqHzLnqUbyzw44T2iuz2ls1n3tgyXohZih-PL2EhBMTJEodDDPtXw8PNd8qhW6m9BTtpvbAFYxNJKTq43/s1600/IMG_0995.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5NIh1FJUqOasmMe3Ju9wLVAiaDaDFwtujtMC-Q852IFZZrLAS4J0WEKF0343zqHzLnqUbyzw44T2iuz2ls1n3tgyXohZih-PL2EhBMTJEodDDPtXw8PNd8qhW6m9BTtpvbAFYxNJKTq43/s320/IMG_0995.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
(spanakopita recipe from<i> My Family Feast</i>)</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Those
of you who are well acquainted with making pastry and breads will
know that these liquid-to-dry ingredients ratio don't add up. In
fact, if you do follow this recipe to a tee you'll notice that the
dough consistency is that of dry sand. The butter/oil mixture is for brushing between layers, by the way. There is no chance that this
dough was forming a soft dough. I kneaded and kneaded and
nothing happened so I added more oil, more water – so much more
than I thought I'd better check another recipe to see if I was going
down the right track. </span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">I
had an old copy of an SBS <i>Feast</i> magazine lying about – I happened
to remember seeing a spanakopita recipe. I found it in the June 2013
edition. Its recipe for spanakopita pastry called for:</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">1kg
plain flour</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">500ml
lukewarm water</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">250ml
vegetable oil</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">¼
tsp salt</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Notice
the difference in dry ingredients-to-liquid ratio? No wonder I had
trouble forming a soft dough! By this time I had lost count of how
much oil and warm water I had added. I ended up with what I thought
should be a fairly pliable dough and crossed my fingers. </span>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;">
(SBS <i>Feast</i> magazine's spanakopita recipe, June 2013)
</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Here
is the end result. The pastry was a tad too thick but the filling was delicious, the end result
was nice thankfully. </span>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Picking
a successful recipe out of a cookbook shouldn't be a matter of a
lucky draw. Needless to say I will think twice about making anything
from this particular cookbook in the future. How many more incorrect recipes are
there I wonder?</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Whilst
I was researching more spanakopita recipes for this post, I ended up
finding this recipe on the SBS <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipe/10572/Spinach_and_fetta_pie_(spanakopita)" target="_blank">food</a> website. The pastry is identical
to the <i>My Family Feast'</i>s except that it uses ¼ C warm water – not 3
tablespoons. Wish I had seen this when I was frantically looking for alternate backup when it really mattered. </span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Anybody
have any similar experiences with recipes that just didn't work?</span></div>
meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-24793129331601633502013-07-12T17:54:00.003+10:002013-07-15T14:13:48.698+10:00<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>My Family Feast: a world of family
recipes and tradition</i> by Sean Connolly</div>
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Sean Connolly hosted SBS's
multicultural extravaganza of how Australian migrants and refugees
keep their culinary heritage alive. This compelling show made its
television debut in 2009 – the book tie-in was published in 2010. I
watched the series with interest and looked forward to the book when
it came out.
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The book is attractively produced with
stories of families featured in Sean's series interspersed with their
traditional recipes. One endearing element of the book is that we are
told who contributed recipes – it's nice to acknowledge these
folks. There are lots of recipes to try some using everyday
ingredients and other not so common ingredients.
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(note that Helen Greenwood's name is not advertised on the cover but the inside cover. The copyright for the text in this cookbook belongs to Greenwood too. Wonder why SBS didn't get Greenwood to host the program as she's a wonderful food writer/reviewer)</div>
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I have been a fan of the Afghani bulani
for quite some time now, having had them about half a dozen times. I
was happy to see the inclusion of these addictive wafer-thin stuffed
breads. Now I admit I am a novice baker and maker of breads and baked
goods; imagine my surprise when I read the recipe for bulani. The
recipe calls for 1kg plain flour, 1 teaspoon salt and water.</div>
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The recipe says I should mix them
together until the dough is soft.</div>
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Now as a learner-maker of baked goods
and breads – this sort of vagueness filled me with fear. 1 kg of
flour is a lot of flour to waste if I get the dough mixture wrong.
How much water is needed? Should the water be cold, hot or lukewarm?
What exactly is a soft dough? How should it feel in my hands? Sticky,
tacky, wet? Dry, smooth and elastic? These are the sorts of questions
I ask.
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(recipe for bulani)</div>
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I looked up the <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipe/10737/Bulani/search/true" target="_blank">SBS website</a> for some
enlightenment but instead there was this:</div>
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<i>Plain flour</i></div>
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<i>water</i></div>
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<i>½ tsp salt</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Place flour in a large mixing bowl
and gradually add water, mixing with your hands until it becomes
doughy.</i></div>
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<i>Leave the dough to settle for 15–20
minutes.</i></div>
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<i>Separate dough into large handfuls,
and rolling each one into a ball shape.</i></div>
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<i>Scatter some flour on the bench
surface and roll the balls flat with a rolling pin keeping the
circular shape.</i></div>
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Clear as mud? There are even less
measurements on the website. How much flour is needed? How thin do
you roll it out? How large or small is an authentic bulani? I've
eaten a few bulanis so at least I have some idea. Imagine if you have
never eaten this and was feeling adventurous – you'd have no idea
how to attempt this. The website recipe doesn't even specify how the
dough should feel!
</div>
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There are plenty measurements for the
filling – down to very precise teaspoons full of spices and oil
quantities. So why such imprecise dough requirements?
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Further research for recipes on the
internet consistently ask for lukewarm water and even a bit of oil to
be added to the dough mix. It seems it's roughly about 1 part water
to 3.5 parts flour.
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And if you're like me and love
dumplings – you'd probably want to attempt the Afghani version
called mantu – made with lamb in this case. Lots of precise
quantities for the filling but no real measurement for the dough
wrapper. All it requires is apparently 500grams of plain flour and
water. Again mix enough water until a soft dough forms....</div>
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<br /></div>
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I am perplexed as to why these Afghani
recipes have been written this way. The Greek spanakopita actually
has exact measurements for its filo pastry component; meanwhile the
gozleme dough has, again, fairly vague amounts. I know some people
cook by feel and approximation, like my my late grandmother but to
have a combination of exact and inadequate measurements in the one
publication, is frustrating and unhelpful – especially when the
cuisine is unfamiliar to a mainstream readership.
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Some thought has gone into the index
but unfortunately there are some curious inconsistencies. There are
some inconsistencies with capitalisations throughout: why 'Potato
tortilla'? But 'potato bulani'?
</div>
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Typesetting glitches see indentation
skewed, making a dish sound like it's two dishes at first glance, etc.
</div>
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There are only three dishes listed
under dessert – arroz con leche, flan de leche and black sticky
rice are the only sweet treats recognised. What happened to date,
sesame and walnut balls, caramel coconut balls (naru), honey balls
(loukoumades) and honey jumbles (medenjake)? Don't these sweeties
warrant a dessert rating? There's not a 'Sweets' header where I
thought I'd find them.
</div>
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The double entries for the ethnic name
and English names are I think redundant. The index is quite a small
one and I think to make it easier and clearer for readers – either put the ethnic or English name in brackets - that would have done the trick and
might have saved a few lines in the scheme of things.
</div>
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bread</div>
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bulani 13, 21</div>
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flatbread 204</div>
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….............</div>
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..........</div>
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stuffed breads 21</div>
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Instead of having bulani appear twice
as a subheading – would it not have been clearer as:</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
bread</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
bulani (stuffed breads) 13, 21</div>
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<br /></div>
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This way the reader makes a quick
connection that a bulani is a stuffed bread, rather than forgetting
and seeing a separate 'stuffed bread' entry and thinking it's a
different product – only to discover it's a bulani after you've
flicked back! Confused?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-bNyjToamrqu0PLseafSNAz7-wwV6UbB7gkQ22w9Gp08z93c_IB0a-SLPThIY_T6uLQsT3jefoDs43ol7JjA30_htAAEmziynpwhrmImp_T_HbeAC7cBfcekHcXoQ6jPdSchNWuww_TJk/s1600/IMG_0973.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-bNyjToamrqu0PLseafSNAz7-wwV6UbB7gkQ22w9Gp08z93c_IB0a-SLPThIY_T6uLQsT3jefoDs43ol7JjA30_htAAEmziynpwhrmImp_T_HbeAC7cBfcekHcXoQ6jPdSchNWuww_TJk/s320/IMG_0973.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7YayWcM8lZqI_X5OJZyAur2oHfuFM6GFSDnlIso_YXcztLBwgX_bcHC3XZKVpsB1cDvNVhAQF6Q0FPzqsEMICLqXg3HtLy-viclA0ekR3Sqg_jtB281h6yJwRtdj6DMjh709s0oiaD6f4/s1600/IMG_0972.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7YayWcM8lZqI_X5OJZyAur2oHfuFM6GFSDnlIso_YXcztLBwgX_bcHC3XZKVpsB1cDvNVhAQF6Q0FPzqsEMICLqXg3HtLy-viclA0ekR3Sqg_jtB281h6yJwRtdj6DMjh709s0oiaD6f4/s320/IMG_0972.JPG" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(examples of the index)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I looked up gozleme under bread and it
was not there. I found gozleme under 'Pies, tarts and pastries'.
Perhaps this is where a cross reference would have been helfpul.
</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
bread <i>See also</i> pies, tarts and
pastries</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
tarts <i>See</i> pies, tarts and
pastries</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
pastries <i>See</i> pies, tarts and
pastries</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Having said all that, the index is not
altogether bad - like the rest of the
book and its usability – the editorial inconsistencies make it less
usable than it should be. I wanted to use this book over and over
again but instead, I have had to go to other sources for
clarification and validation. The point is to have a book that we can
cook from and use with a sense of confidence that all the recipes
have been tried and tested – in this case, I'm just not so sure
that they have. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
What do cooks look for when they use cookbooks? If recipes don't work - do you try another recipe to test the waters? </div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-21891694216603985132013-07-05T16:29:00.001+10:002013-07-05T16:29:34.940+10:00Cookbook indexing woes II<div class="MsoNormal">
Here is the second instalment of my cookbook indexing woes.
Back in 2011 I gave a talk as a member of <a href="http://www.anzsi.org/site/" target="_blank">ANZSI </a>QLD about cookbook indexing.
For those of you who don’t know what ANZSI is – it stands for Australian and
New Zealand Society of Indexers. Like professional editors and their societies,
we indexers also have our own, believe it not! For a bit of fun I brought along
a few cookbooks that I owned and ones I had borrowed from the library. The
night was a rowdy one, who knew that people felt so strongly about the
usability of cookbook indexes! We discussed very passionately about the
cookbooks we loved, and there was the odd disagreement about how we look up
dishes, etc. Among some of the issues we discussed were the usability of ethnic
food cookbooks, food memoir/cookbooks, and cookbooks that are published for one
local market but what happens when you take it out of its local context. </div>
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<br /></div>
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How do we look up or refer to ethnic dishes that have no
English equivalents? How over-indexed are some books? For example, instead of having an entry for
‘Sriracha chilli sauce’ – how about indexing an entry under ‘chilli’ or ‘sauce’
for those who don’t know that Sriracha is a type of Thai chilli sauce. It’s
details like these that matter when one is cooking with foreign ingredients. </div>
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There are many books to discuss and look at but one of the cookbooks that I want to briefly discuss is the
beautifully produced memoir/cookbook hybrid – Pauline Nguyen’s<i> Secrets of
the Red Lantern: Stories and Vietnamese Recipes From the Heart</i>.<br />
<br /></div>
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(a well-worn and thumbed through copy from the library!)</div>
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Sumptuous, mouthwatering-looking photographs of dishes feature throughout the book alongside with
photographs of the author’s family – past and present. These photographs of
people and place tell an important but sad story of displacement and an attempt
by a family to hang onto one’s cultural integrity in a foreign land.
What it does is it gives Red Lantern’s food an irresistible appeal given its
context of the rags-to-riches Vietnamese migrant/refugee narrative and the
difference food and culture can make in our lives. Each chapter opens with
narrative and ends with recipes. </div>
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The index targets a Western/English-speaking audience. The index itself is not inadequate – in fact – it’s a
good recipe index. What I find curious is while all the recipes have Vietnamese
names and their English equivalents – only the English names are indexed.
Perhaps economy of pages dictated this decision.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DjfQ_mJWZWd85IXa4AA4e6Pk9XdfzlN3CWEyFj4GwQ-UDQ5t6h1x8N3orOT0yN0wmrGgIvLNWtIJ9cDpMJF1DiVG2gbdXuWD0fI_olKNkLTXVo7Bje9OUET7zMvYQL4T363WeZ7slaH8/s1600/secrets+of+red+lantern+002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DjfQ_mJWZWd85IXa4AA4e6Pk9XdfzlN3CWEyFj4GwQ-UDQ5t6h1x8N3orOT0yN0wmrGgIvLNWtIJ9cDpMJF1DiVG2gbdXuWD0fI_olKNkLTXVo7Bje9OUET7zMvYQL4T363WeZ7slaH8/s320/secrets+of+red+lantern+002.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5TMec819KfuBPXFZY8C5e1nt1mhHcxgpxHsVC3APDxsWmNx-rvo2G8uMfOIQhfqReS9WQiBH9zO6NhGgDOw0WPSVLHUxS4jnJAZyvoTuU69bY5BV3girEyUNdDxM0DQ6dS4PR8NhPZcs4/s1600/secrets+of+red+lantern+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5TMec819KfuBPXFZY8C5e1nt1mhHcxgpxHsVC3APDxsWmNx-rvo2G8uMfOIQhfqReS9WQiBH9zO6NhGgDOw0WPSVLHUxS4jnJAZyvoTuU69bY5BV3girEyUNdDxM0DQ6dS4PR8NhPZcs4/s320/secrets+of+red+lantern+003.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
(Examples of the index from the book: simple and concise)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
The memoir component is an
interesting one – Pauline gives us her family history, talks about the fall of <st1:place>Saigon</st1:place>
and its consequences, the rise of communism and the escape from political
tyranny by boat to arrive in <st1:country-region>Thailand</st1:country-region>
and their subsequent arrival in <st1:country-region>Australia</st1:country-region>,
etc, (there’s a typo too with the spelling of Pilau Bidong – it should be ‘Pulau’). We’re taken through the social and cultural history of Cabramatta in
the early 1980s when it was a place of migrants and refugees. She gives readers another
perspective on life there as a migrant family, most of us would only know Cabramatta for its druggy
reputation from the media.<br />
<br />
Imagine my disappointment when I went to the index
to look up Aunty Eight’s corn business – only to find that the entire memoir
section is unindexed. I am not sure if this was a conscious decision – perhaps
marketing decided that this is sold predominantly as a cookbook? Surely the backstory to Red
Lantern is important too? There are plenty of interesting characters dotted
throughout the book - don't they deserve a mention in the index? I’m sure many
bought the book for its memoir component too? I think this lack of a separate general
index for the memoir is a shame – it would have given the book more weight and
it would have carried far more historical/social and cultural insight
had there been an index. By not acknowledging the story in the index (and I'm sure this was not their intention), I think the publisher has diluted the effect of Pauline’s story - for me, that is
disappointing. Not that the Nguyen’s family story is not fascinating enough – it is precisely that it is interesting that I want the option of looking certain aspects up! This
could have been an important reference for the present and future generational
Nguyen clan in search of family history and the events that have been so
significant in their lives.</div>
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Those who are after an unconventional review for the book,
I found this <a href="http://www.syrupandtang.com/200710/review-secrets-of-the-red-lantern-by-pauline-nguyen/" target="_blank">site</a>, Syrup and Tang, which I only came across recently; it highlights some
important publishing issues. It doesn't shy away from being really critical. The reviewer has a valid point: it's important for publishers to make books accessible to its readers; we value the integrity of good editing but we also want to allow the author’s authentic voice to come through the page. Interesting
reading, indeed!</div>
meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-77303665483426307562013-06-15T21:19:00.003+10:002013-06-15T21:19:32.506+10:00Cookbook indexing blues<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<i>One of the great
defects of English books printed in the last century is the want of an index<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Lafcadio Hearn</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Indexing is perhaps the most neglected, unloved and
undervalued aspect of book publishing. Dare I say it, indexes are so often
dropped because budgets have blown out or the time frame for the print schedule
has gone haywire, and the publisher has decided to leave it out altogether. Or,
they get staff to cobble together a few keywords and hope for the best. These
token indexes don’t serve much purpose or meaning except to infuriate the
reader. For readers researching or undertaking intelligent reading, a good
index underpins, contextualises and provides accurate, quick access to a book. And
an index is essential to a cookbook tome that may have 1000 recipes within it. It’s
not just War-and-Peace cookbooks that demand an index – all cookbooks, no matter
their size should have an index. To all those people who love cookbooks – have
you noticed how many number of bad or inadequate indexes there are? </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Just the other day I joined my nearest local library – and
what a thing of joy a library is, I might add! I happened to flick through a
random cookbook and started to look at its index. I am sad to report that
although the publishers thought to update and revise a 2005 published cookbook
in 2009 – nobody, I gather paid any attention to the index. I don’t have the
first edition of the cookbook to compare so I can’t comment on the integrity of
the index but I can comment on the updated edition!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The book I am referring to is ‘Café food at home’ by Rosanna
Thomson published by New Holland. If any of you have this at home or have
access to a library, have a look through the index and you’ll soon learn a
thing or two about how not to index a book. <br />
<br />
Check out part of the cookbook mentioned here: <a href="http://www.newholland.com.au/products/docs/9781741108576.pdf" target="_blank">cafe food at home</a><br />
<br />
The entry under Juice has this: ‘juice, see beverages’</div>
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Turn to ‘beverages’ and there are no entries.</div>
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Always check your cross-references to make sure you don’t
direct readers to a non-existent entry.<o:p></o:p></div>
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(snippet of the index - can you find beverages?)</div>
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(snippet of the index: juice <i>see </i>beverages)</div>
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Indexing recipes listed under ingredients is always useful but not
so in this case. The randomness in this case is not helpful. Yes, there are recipes
under ‘bananas, beef, chicken, chocolate, mushroom, eggs’, etc, which are
great. But what happened to headings under ‘pasta, seafood, fish, soups,
salads, rice or desserts’? Want to make risotto? Forget looking under ‘R’ for
risotto or rice – look instead under ‘S’ for seafood risotto. Look under
‘chicken’ and see if you can find ‘barbecued chicken wraps’. No? <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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If we want to make a healthy beverage/juice – we have to <i>know</i>
to look up ‘afternoon kick’ or ‘breakfast in a glass’, or go to contents table
and look up the beverages chapter and flick through it to find what you want. And yes, you can go back to the contents page and look up headings and page ranges but that would defeat the purpose of having an index - is it not easier to be directed straight to the source? I
could go on but I’d better stop here, you get picture.</div>
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<br /></div>
Please publishers, put a little more care and thought about
how you want indexes created and how readers might look up ingredients and
recipes. I’ll have more examples to come in the near future – in the meantime, please
feel free to share your cookbook indexing stories.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-82446867458839165632013-06-11T18:49:00.001+10:002013-06-11T20:55:39.477+10:00From brown thumbs green things grow<div class="MsoNormal">
Blackberries, blackberries, blackberries! Those sweet,
luscious, juicy, t-shirt staining fruits! I loved looking for them alongside
saffron milkcap mushrooms in the pine forests. Deep in the <st1:state>New
South Wales</st1:state> hills, they always seemed to pop up just
about the same time pine mushrooms would be ready for the picking. Those
idyllic forest forages for fungi and fruit are long behind me and I must admit, I would be happy if I never see another blackberry bramble again. You see,
the property we’ve bought is over-run by the introduced European blackberry or <i>rubus fruticosus</i>. These suckers are so prolific that they've made the list on the <a href="http://www.weeds.org.au/WoNS/blackberry/docs/Blackberry_WMG.pdf" target="_blank">weeds of national significance</a> register. </div>
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Gullies are full of them – these European blackberries are so tall the shrubs tower
heads above me (remember that these are growing from a gully <i>up</i>!). They
sprout from between the cracks in bitumen, they strangle fruit trees, smother slow-growing
natives, shred the succulents to smithereens and like jungle vines – from the
trees hang sinister trailing super-sharp vines- all entangled – metres up in
the air! It’s threatening to impinge upon the dams – some are actually growing in
water! There isn't a stop button for the growth of these plants.
There doesn’t seem to be any downtime for this rampaging perennial. Its flowers
are beautiful and delicate, and yes, its fruits are delicious but these positive
aspects are negated by thorns so fierce they rip flesh like tissue paper. Vines
when pulled hard occasionally whip back – lashing me in the face, arms and
legs. It can be dangerous business clearing blackberry by hand. </div>
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(blackberry obscuring silver wattle and banksia)</div>
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(close-up of spikiness)</div>
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(carpet of thorns, post-brushcutting)</div>
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The only
benefactors here seem to be the rabbits and hares that have burrowed and made
their homes under these thorny shrubs. Basil the dog has been tramping through
these shrubs in search of rabbits and often comes back completely bloodied from
being ripped by thorns. We often pull out thorns stuck in his head and his poor soft
ears will never be the same again – having been shredded over and over again. </div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxDPQZCfcdpDKqpfhSST0fqygYhaEXOL438TN_ux3DEQHrmILsO57F2hdnFCXUMxrFfNeXIIPSx82q-qd6-3vHhSKCjWJGByZb6BHyR5gj8GM9J36HIgsGe_phZNSOCNGGoX6bF513Pd8x/s1600/giant+burrows.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxDPQZCfcdpDKqpfhSST0fqygYhaEXOL438TN_ux3DEQHrmILsO57F2hdnFCXUMxrFfNeXIIPSx82q-qd6-3vHhSKCjWJGByZb6BHyR5gj8GM9J36HIgsGe_phZNSOCNGGoX6bF513Pd8x/s320/giant+burrows.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<o:p> (holes big enough for wombats to burrow, let alone rabbits!)</o:p></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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We have eschewed heavy machinery and the use of pesticides
and toxic weed killer in the quest to rid our land of weeds. We plan to go down
the organic/natural road for our fruit and nut trees in the future so spraying isn't a logical choice or fit. Instead, we’re opting to hand clear the
weeds – the locals might laugh at our methods but I don’t see an easy way out.
The previous owner had completely neglected the land and its upkeep. It’s sad
to see a perfectly good piece of land being left to neglect. There are some
interesting and beautiful plants on the property – all overtaken by weeds and
blackberry. Slowly we’re clearing one patch at a time and discovering and
uncovering all manner of plant life, and an incinerator in the process (!) under thick blankets of
blackberry. With the use of a heavy duty brushcutter and some muscles, we’re finally
seeing progress. While S slashes away like a frenzied Freddie Krueger in the
gully – I watch the sea of thorns parting like the red sea. Meanwhile, I have
the job of freeing up and disentangling the fruit trees and other plants from
the clutches of the evil berry. </div>
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(the parting of the blackberry sea)</div>
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(hillocks of vines raked up) </div>
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(a birthday candle uncovered after a clearing) </div>
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( a clump of native grass and tree ferns uncovered, albeit a little worse for wear after a brushcutter haircut - these were previously hidden!)</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<o:p>(life's little ironies - on top a pile of vines, a healthy crop of nasturtium has spread its canopy. Now to figure out how to get rid of vines without disturbing the lovely spread!)</o:p></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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They say it’s the simple things in life that matter most and
in this case, it’s the small things that really a difference. The relief and
joy I feel every time I clear the vines from a tree – I can almost hear the tree
breathing a sigh of relief! So the clearing continues and the berries will no
doubt sprawl again through its vast network of infinite roots; this time though,
we’ll be there ready with hardy gloves, a pair of secateurs, mattock and shovel.</div>
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<br /></div>
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It will be some time before I look fondly at a blackberry
again. I intend on gorging on them when summer arrives as my act of revenge for
all my pricked fingers, bloodied hands and multiple scratches. </div>
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meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-32644266866614151062013-06-03T15:23:00.000+10:002013-06-03T21:22:42.847+10:00Foraging Workshop <div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The first day of winter heralded not
just a change of seasons, for me, it was the start of learning and
exploring the natural, local world of edibles around me. I have always
been interested in finding out what's edible and what isn't. I
suppose the fear of being lost and starving in the wilderness has
fuelled some of this curiosity. I am known to wonder out loud if the
ducks and swans in the lakes are edible. Channel
Living (Woodbridge's not-for-profit community organisation) put
together a foraging workshop with the help of the knowledgeable and passionate Paulette Whitney from
Provenance Growers recently. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
My first introduction to foraged foods
go back to high school where I remember vividly an Indigenous bush
tucker chef came to demonstrate to our Home Economics class a lesson
in Indigenous foods. We tried all sorts of bush tucker – Davidson's
plums, warrigal greens, lemon myrtle, quandongs, macadamias and a few
wriggly specimens. I remember the fat, creamy Witchetty grubs being
flash fried in butter. Not wanting to be squeamish, I tried one and
then a second one – they tasted a bit like prawns I remember.
Rather delicious! I have not forgotten that Home Ec lesson and have
always longed to be able to repeat that day of experimenting with
food that was completely alien to me. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The foraging workshop took
place in one of the Co-op member's property. The property is up in the hills of Birchs Bay with stunning views overlooking
d'Entrecasteux Channel and Bruny Island. From above we could see
clouds rolling in on the horizon and down below, in the calm waters
were floating big pens of salmon where aquaculture, I believe is
thriving. Paulette had brought some samples with
her and laid out on the table were specimens she had picked from her
property and from nearby parks. These were then passed around so we
could all try. </div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;">
(view from the hills of Birchs Bay)
</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;">
(beautiful day for foraging)</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
These were some of the plants we tried:</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
sea celery/sea parsley</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
samphire</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
sea blite</div>
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chick weed</div>
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flick weed</div>
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sheep's sorrel
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corn spurry</div>
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shepherd's purse</div>
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mallow</div>
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fat hen</div>
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fumitory</div>
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borage</div>
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nettles</div>
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cress</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPlib6jErqwtUYPrbQ2Xbgwn22VIElla93SS1SlXYA4YWeJRPNj6CHe-p9FuKsZ-7zAI4JXixnWS_35_Lgl-07MBshi5gaD9fXKZ595EtisLuylmFisSl8YJVQw24zp7g8EGgSOrs5tQKr/s1600/IMG_2579.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPlib6jErqwtUYPrbQ2Xbgwn22VIElla93SS1SlXYA4YWeJRPNj6CHe-p9FuKsZ-7zAI4JXixnWS_35_Lgl-07MBshi5gaD9fXKZ595EtisLuylmFisSl8YJVQw24zp7g8EGgSOrs5tQKr/s320/IMG_2579.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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(table full of edibles)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhY823DQ_6QSaGerKbJizBkBG_g1-BggjLukmrajgQyYwsQKvgqfjxZliNDrxaDhls9KwMP3OrYIiFbTWJbEihYiEN5dJQyvSy9hZXrk3DzxE4aQ0saN3V8DPrVTvY2YKfeJ4btY9yKDGD/s1600/IMG_2586.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhY823DQ_6QSaGerKbJizBkBG_g1-BggjLukmrajgQyYwsQKvgqfjxZliNDrxaDhls9KwMP3OrYIiFbTWJbEihYiEN5dJQyvSy9hZXrk3DzxE4aQ0saN3V8DPrVTvY2YKfeJ4btY9yKDGD/s320/IMG_2586.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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(the blackberry nightshade)</div>
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Some of the plants that stood out for
me were sea celery with its lovely salty flavour, samphire – little
pops of salt and texture, sheep's sorrel with its refreshing lemony
aftertaste, fumitory for its bitter effect and nettles for its slight
buzzy tingling in my throat. I must say after a morning of trying all
sorts of plants and weeds – the herbaceous, grassy green
after-taste lingered long in my mouth.
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(silver wattle)</div>
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We walked around the property to see
what we could forage and we did find a few things. Some of the edible
things we found on our walk were: buckhorn plantain (a common weed in
lots of gardens); blackberry nightshade, Hawthorn, red native
currants, Kangaroo apples (make sure the berries are super ripe
before you eat them). Silver wattle flowers, according to Paulette
make a good sweet addition to pancake batter. She continued to tell
us that Spanish heath flowers were being used to smoke
mutton birds as part of the Savour Tasmania food festival. That would
have been an interesting combination! I learned that tree ferns are
edible although at the expense of the plant – as to crack open its
starchy heart would mean killing the tree. Native cherry berries are
also edible, reeds. clumps of miners lettuce and sticky weed were
among some of the found edibles in the property. There were a few
more edibles I didn't quite catch unfortunately. A few helpful tips
cropped up too in Paulette's workshop. Fumitory is used in
cheesemaking to curdle milk. Plantain is good for healing cuts and
wounds, petty spurge's milky sap is used to treat skin cancers and
eczema.
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Another important thing to note with
foraging is that with some plants look like other plants and one can
easily mistake a poisonous plant for an edible one. I certainly made
that mistake – in certain section of our own property I've seen a mass
of what I thought to be comfrey, luckily I checked with Paulette.
These turned out to be the not so edible Fox Glove. She also made us aware of the fashionable trend of restaurant chefs foraging for
ingredients - with Tasmanian chefs leading the way - and it makes sense when we have such a variety of edibles right on our doorstep.The good news is I have
buckhorn plantain, Spanish heath, sticky weed and fumitory growing
everywhere, a ton of forget-me-nots and nasturtiums and a
good-looking silver wattle which I intend to add to my pancakes. I
don't think I'll look at 'weeds' the same again but now, at least, I
don't just have the sole option of composting them – I can choose
to eat them as well. Imagine eating more than a dozen herbs and
plants all collected from your garden – give your lettuce and
rocket salad a break and your body will thank you for the diversity
of minerals and vitamins you're introducing to your system.</div>
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For more information on the good things that Channel Living do - visit: </div>
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<a href="http://channelliving.org/" target="_blank">http://channelliving.org/</a></div>
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<br /></div>
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For a thorough read on Tassie's wild grown and cultivated foods, and thoughtful writing, read:</div>
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<a href="http://provenancegrowers.blogspot.com.au/">http://provenancegrowers.blogspot.com.au/</a> </div>
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(of course, i couldn't resist taking a pic of this cute fungi growing out of this piece of dung)</div>
meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-88019002630036234922013-05-31T17:18:00.002+10:002013-05-31T17:18:16.215+10:00New beginnings It’s been such a long time since I posted, and in the meantime, the world in between posts has shifted dramatically in these two and a half years. My running around as a food reviewer and food guide publisher has come to an end this year. The world of eating out endlessly, meeting busy schedules and impossible deadlines; the ongoing financial and emotional challenges of running an independent food guide has caused great stress and harm. And perhaps for want of privacy, I stopped communicating through the social media sphere. My love and appetite for eating out and discovering new places have not diminished but I feel the time for home-cooking and rediscovery of what cooking skills I have left ought to be nurtured, and is important at this stage in my life. So thank you to all those who supported me for years by buying my little food guide and making my dream of publishing an independent food guide come true.
My beloved and I have turned inner city living on its head and headed into the country – specifically, into Tasmania’s southern countryside. The hills here are rich and perfect for animals and orchards, and its shores teem with seafood. There isn’t a better time to look to the land and sea for inspiration and creativity than now. So perhaps it is fitting that I should kick start meemuncher with my reflections of the journal of new writing and ideas, Griffith Review’s #39 Tasmania: The Tipping Point that I’ve had the pleasure to read.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4wAZpsQuO7fHysr_-2Jo1CrbSaRk43Wg8jk2jISKpXLmnTIfIzEJ4bkUMBjO7EDVsp08AyYBBkgOu3X6aguSrGcw2vtC6Nrd5QtY45NZGqRB0_dbQwkKgpBhr8ORAAf2HP0PqDgum_cj/s1600/Griffith+Review+39.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4wAZpsQuO7fHysr_-2Jo1CrbSaRk43Wg8jk2jISKpXLmnTIfIzEJ4bkUMBjO7EDVsp08AyYBBkgOu3X6aguSrGcw2vtC6Nrd5QtY45NZGqRB0_dbQwkKgpBhr8ORAAf2HP0PqDgum_cj/s320/Griffith+Review+39.jpg" /></a><br />
Those interested in this edition check out: <a href="https://griffithreview.com/edition-39-tasmania-the-tipping-point/">https://griffithreview.com/edition-39-tasmania-the-tipping-point/</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://https//griffithreview.com/edition-39-tasmania-the-tipping-point/"></a>To celebrate new beginnings in a new land – what better way to get a grip on what the island is about by reading this collection of essays, memoirs and writing by people who have lived, continue to live and by those who were born on the Apple Isle, left and re-entered island life after a period of absence. This is an enticing entrée for those who want to get to know Tasmania a little bit more. I only knew of the tourism clichés that fill print and advertising media. I certainly have learned a bit more about the complexities of green and mainstream politics through the essay about the collapse of the timber industry; saddened about the whaling stations on Bruny Island and absolutely appalled about the forced incarceration of Indigenous peoples on Flinders Island and the genocide that took place not very far from here. And as for the purposeful destruction of apple orchards when the 1970s’ export market crash, it decimated much of Tasmania’s economy – it was a gargantuan waste of orchardists’ efforts and resources, and perfectly good apples!<br />
<br />
Many of the articles don’t shy away from the ‘un-niceties’ of living in isolated circumstances, of being stuck in horrendous weather conditions and the reminders of the realities of dealing with inward-looking individuals. There is so much to inspire as well – the hope of progressive individuals, the connection to place and the genuine love people have for Tasmania is to be admired. Natasha Cica opens up about what it’s like to re-enter Island life after a period of absence. Cassandra Pybus writes eloquently of her conundrum of not being able to live anywhere else but Tasmania but yet wanting to flee at the same time. I found David Walsh’s essay refreshing – forget government bureaucracy and art farting around – his frank admission that MONA came about simply because he wanted to put his art collection on walls – more or less. Matthew Evans makes an impassioned plea to the dairy industry to think about over-commercialising and dumbing down of the uniqueness of their products. Evans, and I’m sure a swag of food lovers want food producers to make the best of Tasmania’s terroir and the unique regional flavours that come from that. This edition makes a valuable contribution to Australia’s understanding of what is going on in the Apple Isle, and provides great dinner party conversation starters.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
Friends are constantly asking how the dogs are doing. We tell them that they’ve found paradise – and so have we.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-25880993049569987282011-01-27T13:57:00.020+10:002011-01-27T14:27:15.824+10:00Me'a Kai : The Food and Flavours of the South Pacific book review<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRTravaZlVi2Co9BMdTRZYKCIc3cb_jMVqewusKnE_Ra785NVl42RvZ_4UYTukBXBL6J8ZaNSYdhjlctYgSdvHBAETjZFbAYaZEpn7r_P_uqp9JteAUUm7V7UpzNGkP0nJ2ASPhtHljzhX/s1600/Mea+Kai+cookbook+001.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRTravaZlVi2Co9BMdTRZYKCIc3cb_jMVqewusKnE_Ra785NVl42RvZ_4UYTukBXBL6J8ZaNSYdhjlctYgSdvHBAETjZFbAYaZEpn7r_P_uqp9JteAUUm7V7UpzNGkP0nJ2ASPhtHljzhX/s320/Mea+Kai+cookbook+001.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566711130501220082" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Me’a Kai: The Food and Flavours of the South Pacific</span><br />By Robert Oliver with Dr Tracy Berno and photos by Shiri Ram<br /><br /><br />As Australia Day rolls around every year, I always pause to deliberate on the issues that inevitably crop up during this time of year. What it means to be Australian, how Australian-ness is celebrated and what is deemed to be un-Australian. There are quite a few perspectives floating around. It is often not a unanimous celebratory day for all, depending on which side of the fence you sit. Most call it Australia Day, others Invasion Day and some, even Survival Day. All are legitimate perspectives in my opinion and should be acknowledged. Neighbours of mine cooked up a fantastic barbecue lamb feast that would have put a huge smile of Sam Kekovich’s face! I thought I might celebrate a bit of reflective post-Australia Day with a book review on a cuisine that is not part of our vocabulary. Many groups of Islander peoples have contributed significantly to the building of the Australian nation up in northern Queensland and Northern Territory. So why don’t we celebrate Australia Day with some islander food? Australia is an island nation surrounded by water. The Pacific is also made up of island nations and is surrounded by a bounty of beautiful produce from the sea. <br /><br />Recently, I found a comprehensive and beautiful book on Pacific Islander cooking. This publication comes from <a href="http://www.randomhouse.co.nz/">Random House New Zealand</a>. And what a fantastic job they’ve done. This book will prove an invaluable resource for those craving diverse South Pacific recipes and stories from Samoa, Rarotonga, the Cook Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tahiti and Tonga. The author, Robert Oliver has mapped out the book with care. In it you’ll find cultural and social narratives about land, lost heritage and how locals are regaining cultural pride through keeping alive traditional recipes. This is a big project – all these stories and recipes are captured within its 493 pages. This book will no doubt inspire you to plan a holiday to the South Pacific with its photographs of toddlers sipping from young coconuts, landscapes full of swaying, coconut-laden trees, perfect idyllic beaches, hyper-colourful markets and smiling friendly locals. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1yRF7w3z55t3haJ5XC1IpIO7nNmImcTSDaFUZY9RZe6V3tFRJ2t6rgXrgOwcmb7BqRkZtb2NPwD_hc7WmJwod7TeIxTvWkdNacDJH7ZvluqLJ9El_CggoB28lFSD8nfVF6Wc3Eau-4XTG/s1600/Mea+Kai+cookbook+003.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1yRF7w3z55t3haJ5XC1IpIO7nNmImcTSDaFUZY9RZe6V3tFRJ2t6rgXrgOwcmb7BqRkZtb2NPwD_hc7WmJwod7TeIxTvWkdNacDJH7ZvluqLJ9El_CggoB28lFSD8nfVF6Wc3Eau-4XTG/s320/Mea+Kai+cookbook+003.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566712424517966594" /></a><br />(preparing lap lap over hot rocks)<br /><br /><br />Readers are introduced to cooking with coconut in all its various uses. You can drink it, milk it, turn it into oil, grate it for food and ferment it for an extra taste sensation. Banana leaves get a big look-in. Surely it’s nature’s original, environmentally-friendly food wrapper. Lovos (earth ovens) or hangis to you Kiwis out there are lovingly described; let’s not forget the Samoan umu (or above-ground spit) and we learn all sorts of interesting ways of cooking with seawater and bamboo. There is a useful market guide to ingredients too. Oliver writes of South Pacific markets brimmingwith amaranth (also a Chinese favourite leafy veg), Fijian river ferns, sweet potato leaves, taro leaves, bananas and plantains, wild lemons called molikana, mangoes, Tahitian apples. Seasonal seafood harvests like balolo (or coral worm tails – apparently they taste like caviar according to the author), sea cucumbers, glassweed (a seaweed gelling agent), and sea grapes. Exotic ingredients like duruka (Fiji asparagus) or heart of sugarcane, hearts of palm, and Polynesian chestnuts. All these things I have yet to try!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs7yj3bvoOEFRkxPHomypgUlPc3xXJrqzKrZDcSEYUHCcf-x6xKyyuV6xl-vs7gxbdKdnISzOPkXk7JmBZyMeF2-YAK3lPW1MMm4Bv6pjQ9y675XOSRT7pznDBVwGgtlGGcA8VRIRFxX2y/s1600/Mea+Kai+cookbook.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs7yj3bvoOEFRkxPHomypgUlPc3xXJrqzKrZDcSEYUHCcf-x6xKyyuV6xl-vs7gxbdKdnISzOPkXk7JmBZyMeF2-YAK3lPW1MMm4Bv6pjQ9y675XOSRT7pznDBVwGgtlGGcA8VRIRFxX2y/s320/Mea+Kai+cookbook.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566716900846941586" /></a><br />(that's not a spread - <span style="font-style:italic;">THIS</span> is a spread!)<br /><br /><br />From Samoa, we have umu-baked pawpaw bread (wrapped in banana leaves) with coconut caramel sauce. Plantain soup with ginger, balsamic vinegar and curry powder being predominant bedmates, and reef clams with tomato, chilli and vodka salsa. <br /><br />Rarotongans love their pawpaw breakfast jams, starfruit chutneys, uto pancakes (uto is fruit that develops inside a sprouting coconut!), raw tuna salad with pawpaw seeds and coconut rolls. Those who want to try these coconut-rich rolls can buy them at selected Islander bakeries in Brisbane. <br /><br />Fijian delicacies are featured, such as taro-leaf wrapped river shrimps, octopus baked in banana leaf, roasted chicken with Polynesian chestnuts and Tamarind gravy, Kokoda (a kind of South Pacific ceviche marinated in coconut milk and limes. <br /><br />Oliver also gives the Indo-Fijian communities a look-in. We don’t find a lot of Fijian-Indian food much in Brisbane. Cowpeas with aubergines, mangrove mud crab curry, goat and green pawpaw curry. Oliver also sweeps the Fijian-Euro communities for fusion gems. Try chilled rourou soup (taro leaf) with coconut milk, coconut cream pies and mango puddings. <br /><br />In Tahiti, the locals love raw fish. Fish tartares abound – these are made with super fresh cuts of mahi mahi, tuna and snapper. The French influence can be seen in pawpaw ratatouille, La Bouillabaise Tahitienne with fresh seafood and coconut milks – these dishes always have an Islander twist. It may be fish steaks with a blue cheese sauce but served with breadfruit chips. <br /><br />Tonga serves up watermelon smoothies (complete with fresh grated coconut and coconut milk!), warm young coconut drink with lemongrass and cassava flour and the delicious Ota Ika (Tongan ceviche). Those interested in trying some of these Islander delicacies head to Matauaina’s Takeaway at 268 Kingston Road, Slacks Creek.<br /> <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nOz2n4d1qIBK8ln68NFH_H1rofj8NBsWg-WyHpET8Xyon8CdXw5KHXh68sT_m8DtOD08ulXV-APjxLNp0UWAeiRmJNKXfBcSoAPKantCfL_08-3rAxYEVbid_9Tx1GHh10vHqTOv5yXD/s1600/Mea+Kai+cookbook+005.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nOz2n4d1qIBK8ln68NFH_H1rofj8NBsWg-WyHpET8Xyon8CdXw5KHXh68sT_m8DtOD08ulXV-APjxLNp0UWAeiRmJNKXfBcSoAPKantCfL_08-3rAxYEVbid_9Tx1GHh10vHqTOv5yXD/s320/Mea+Kai+cookbook+005.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566713892172409378" /></a><br />(Ota Ika - tuna loin marinated in lime juice & coconut milk)<br /><br /><br />Me’a Kai celebrates the diversity that exists in the Pacific and although they share a lot of common ingredients, each island nation imbues its food with different and daring twists. I have learnt so much from reading this book and thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful photographs taken by Fijian photographer, Shiri Ram. Now if only Brisbane has more Islander food places! This is a must-read for all foodies.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-62889083566019692682010-12-06T16:24:00.023+10:002010-12-06T16:56:47.252+10:00A dash of Baba NyonyaThink pineapple tarts. Think beaded shoes. Think antiques. Think Nyonya kuihs (cakes) and pastries. Where do we think when we think of these things? We think of Melaka, of course! After a somewhat underwhelming eating sojourn in Singapore, we made our way into Malaysia with the promise of good, cheap street food. Melaka is known for its Portuguese ruins and promises an interesting historical past. I never paid too much attention when I was in school in Malaysia but I do recall tidbits of Melakan history. Melaka was a thriving port in the early 15th century. It was an important trading route with China being one of its biggest traders. To cut the history lesson short: Chinese merchants and families intermarried with local Malays over the ensuing generations, and as a result, we have a very unique group called the Peranakans. Or baba and nyonyas as they are so often called. Their cuisine is unique and is a fusion of Chinese and Malay flavours. You don’t find much representation of this subgenre of Malaysian food in restaurants overseas so we were very excited to see there were lots of Nyonya restaurants to choose from while we were in Melaka. Alas, Monday evenings, we discovered, is not conducive to dining in restaurants in town. Most interesting Nyonya restaurants we’d walked past in the day, and made mental notes to visit later were all shut. Our hotel concierge had recommended two well-reputed restaurants but they were all shut. After much disappointment and a lot more walking around we found one restaurant that was open – just. We had to ask the proprietor to open the doors for us – they were closing up for the night. They very kindly took pity on us and our loud, rumbling stomachs helped a bit. We tried to order some dishes but many of them had sold out so these were our picks. <br /><br />Itik Tim soup here consists of salty duck pieces with preserved salted mustard leaves. My grandmother does a fabulous Teo Chew version of this preserved vegetable and duck soup for my father (but with leftover roast duck, salted mustard, fresh mustard, dried whole chillies, tamarind peel and tomatoes). It’s his favourite soup and he can drink gallons of this rich, hot, sour and salty broth. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwEo2hEGcNefYFSkA5F_ahyqnzy7MBQ5I5UbLwRnexG4TTNir40r_8h6sSn8pskM7qpoukgfuAZKRmGHANMOYMp2ncdmAtTMeKmr2zv7OwvoPoLQzYiZOMNLyzpweBmJ8Pz5vHAQ6dJpE7/s1600/Anak+Nyonya+Restoran.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwEo2hEGcNefYFSkA5F_ahyqnzy7MBQ5I5UbLwRnexG4TTNir40r_8h6sSn8pskM7qpoukgfuAZKRmGHANMOYMp2ncdmAtTMeKmr2zv7OwvoPoLQzYiZOMNLyzpweBmJ8Pz5vHAQ6dJpE7/s320/Anak+Nyonya+Restoran.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547452254121299458" /></a><br />(our dinner at Anak Nyonya Restoran)<br /><br />The cubes of spongy-looking custard is otak otak Melaka-style. The otak otak I’m used to are usually wrapped up in banana leaves and either steamed or grilled. These cubes were an onslaught of flavours, chilli, turmeric and kaffir lime leaves punch through and the texture was a good mixture of smooth and slightly coarse fish meal. Think spicy fish mousse for those of you who haven’t yet tried it. <br /><br />Ayam masak merah or red chilli chicken is a favourite dish with many Malaysians, and is usually eaten with mounds of rice. This version had some fiery chilli heat for extra kick. The sauce was very rich and had an almost caramelized/treacley consistency.<br /><br />Cincaluk omelette is another popular Nyonya dish. Fermented tiny shrimps are beaten into the egg mix and shallow-fried – the texture is springy and very light. Delicious!<br /><br />Our last dish, chap chye is a typical vegetarian dish you’ll find in many households on the first and fifteenth days of the month. Devout Buddhists observe vegetarian days on the first and fifteenth days of the month and this dish features heavily on the menu. It’s a comforting dish of braised cabbage, wood ear fungus, lily buds, mung bean vermicelli and bean curd skin. <br />Here are other food ramblings in Melaka town. <br /><br />The Jonker Street markets offer a mix of touristy offerings and locally-made products. You’ll find this gentleman who runs a mobile popiah stall at the markets. Popiah fillings can be as economical or as luxurious as you want. Typical fillings consist of shredded yam bean, carrots, firm bean curd, pork and a heap of shallots and finely shredded lettuce. Some more upmarket popiah makers fill their thin skin wrappers with crab and other such indulgent fillings!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCILOCPdu9mV41Fcggh5P362NwXWB8qhwZcyNzE9cYlhL3jxlhcavPGV0F934yKH70zB90-Q5nG_ZhzSociVgduX0YR-YM5MyYweFe8jBhjijoqdaM8LpVF2sZTr8hvWIpcWTVhyCqNkAN/s1600/popiah+maker.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCILOCPdu9mV41Fcggh5P362NwXWB8qhwZcyNzE9cYlhL3jxlhcavPGV0F934yKH70zB90-Q5nG_ZhzSociVgduX0YR-YM5MyYweFe8jBhjijoqdaM8LpVF2sZTr8hvWIpcWTVhyCqNkAN/s320/popiah+maker.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547452692569825458" /></a><br />This Jonker Street Market popiah seller’s fillings (from memory) were very tasty despite lacking in luxurious ingredients, and made extra tasty by a dash of hoisin and chilli sauce. The guy handled dirty notes and coins – all the while preparing these parcels! Maybe that’s why they tasted so good! <br /><br />Here is another memorable meal. Lunch at Hoe Kee for Melaka’s famous chicken rice balls. Imagine Hainan chicken rice packed up and rolled in giant golf ball-sized morsels. Call me boring but I think I preferred the normal chicken rice. The chicken was super smooth and tender and the accompanying sticky soy and gingery chilli sauce went down a treat. I didn’t think I’d get excited about cabbage but the stir-fried cabbage here is the goods! I could’ve eaten a whole plate of it if I weren’t with other people and had to share!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_wA78LMZrt7b_RIyvI53W4vxlh0TPlaoaFcBJTLcB8DtkewTKkOCBtqOVOv4IJFo_ZQY_VCtth98US_dTR9paXAVTD9Iek8V2ZfyPx2I7aVFxTr-BNL44r6QJ3OOtI5mXR8V3gtPkS9d1/s1600/Melaka+2010+%252829%2529.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_wA78LMZrt7b_RIyvI53W4vxlh0TPlaoaFcBJTLcB8DtkewTKkOCBtqOVOv4IJFo_ZQY_VCtth98US_dTR9paXAVTD9Iek8V2ZfyPx2I7aVFxTr-BNL44r6QJ3OOtI5mXR8V3gtPkS9d1/s320/Melaka+2010+%252829%2529.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547453975759175666" /></a><br />The soup was very tasty if you can get past the chopped up bits of chicken feet. Boil pork bones, black beans (also called turtle beans), ginger and lots of chicken feet for hours and you have a really tasty broth. My grandmother makes a version of black bean soup but with lamb shanks, ginger and honey dates. This makes the perfect winter pick-me-up. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNJcxC3vEZBYdv9PdyDR_x-pYhbBBNHfgmuUOtyWd0SCI-SNASM5mkXTYFhv5MjpjLWgAD7fj9uCzkYKHMl3GruzCFCop1Um2-kNcO0A5JoHEK7UU7HgtWJ-FpXi530QuI3kX82Q7cGRjQ/s1600/Melaka+2010+%252830%2529.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNJcxC3vEZBYdv9PdyDR_x-pYhbBBNHfgmuUOtyWd0SCI-SNASM5mkXTYFhv5MjpjLWgAD7fj9uCzkYKHMl3GruzCFCop1Um2-kNcO0A5JoHEK7UU7HgtWJ-FpXi530QuI3kX82Q7cGRjQ/s320/Melaka+2010+%252830%2529.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547454189101151890" /></a><br />(Hainan chicken rice balls in close up)<br /><br /><br />Melaka is a touristy town but with a bit of heart and soul and we had a great time walking around town looking at the old Chinese shop houses with their intricate carvings and plasterwork. The hotel we stayed at, Hotel Puri is a beautiful space to relax in. It’s a heritage Nyonya house with lots of interesting nooks and crannies filled with antique artifacts, kitchen and cooking utensils. <br /><br />Here is a demonstration setup of a typical old-fashioned Malay kuih-making kitchen. ! <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVYsrtw3UIS3KIY0Sp-ENAU57_2CGv9IL9JXHCLvZsWDM-0PE-fLsQx9hZFGg8qM6jMA9xn5nWglkpjuF95v1EjgvDUFFAwaXEhpaLmcn9DCT7NcXYyAqdKLKRmn6QBTkIwDVOhRd461G/s1600/Melaka+2010+%252822%2529.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVYsrtw3UIS3KIY0Sp-ENAU57_2CGv9IL9JXHCLvZsWDM-0PE-fLsQx9hZFGg8qM6jMA9xn5nWglkpjuF95v1EjgvDUFFAwaXEhpaLmcn9DCT7NcXYyAqdKLKRmn6QBTkIwDVOhRd461G/s320/Melaka+2010+%252822%2529.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547454505217533890" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfqPgdeHlBD_q4mKE65TEEjvSqlRfHYmKQgx-ynsfvareXxCfhgSF1W3UN-egxR5VpxO25TKLrvzfi7z2q7xdotCiFt712l5Qzq8LYwVHzAOOh6IqBQ0mY6s97NJZiJAL67EYANqb_VZg4/s1600/Melaka+2010+%252823%2529.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfqPgdeHlBD_q4mKE65TEEjvSqlRfHYmKQgx-ynsfvareXxCfhgSF1W3UN-egxR5VpxO25TKLrvzfi7z2q7xdotCiFt712l5Qzq8LYwVHzAOOh6IqBQ0mY6s97NJZiJAL67EYANqb_VZg4/s320/Melaka+2010+%252823%2529.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547457420293589490" /></a><br />(Such interesting kuih moulds)<br /><br />The hotel is so ambient and relaxing even the swallows have found their way in and made comfortable homes in one of the foyers! It’s the most magical thing to walk into this room in the late evening and have these birds fly in and out encircling the room in search of a perch stop. The concierge told us that the owner of the hotel harvests the birds’ nests for soups every now and again. Birds nest can costs up to several thousand ringgit per kilo so this is a good omen indeed! There is a huge market for birds nest we discovered in Malaysia’s east coast (post of this later down the track!).<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ZUS6kWQ8MHZ-Fk1zYSbWezqA5Byxz7QJi2_sAuSql8QxDiKrxqbW4nDN2FmPZxQ9JcySOdL4Oem6spn0ga9E_DqopX4fK_Z6T6vtTmXKJ_GvSsui-KPDdm90f7vN9OC3CnqE1s0Ajuxd/s1600/RIMG0036.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ZUS6kWQ8MHZ-Fk1zYSbWezqA5Byxz7QJi2_sAuSql8QxDiKrxqbW4nDN2FmPZxQ9JcySOdL4Oem6spn0ga9E_DqopX4fK_Z6T6vtTmXKJ_GvSsui-KPDdm90f7vN9OC3CnqE1s0Ajuxd/s320/RIMG0036.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547455443071889890" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuy0Bbe-Erf3cDWyREGNcTN0f_-JKJqz6khH2S3TkVUUgBc-WR7_QSdDIXK7hzEagNWHcllaqfY9i6xKyp7gSTv32rhDgx9u-ViPdJFQcqtoBNTYbCzJSHF5g9K-NYBTZ1-ikYFOEoSeAo/s1600/Melaka+2010+%252818%2529.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuy0Bbe-Erf3cDWyREGNcTN0f_-JKJqz6khH2S3TkVUUgBc-WR7_QSdDIXK7hzEagNWHcllaqfY9i6xKyp7gSTv32rhDgx9u-ViPdJFQcqtoBNTYbCzJSHF5g9K-NYBTZ1-ikYFOEoSeAo/s320/Melaka+2010+%252818%2529.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547455706730407922" /></a><br />(There must be several generations of birds in the one room - oh the noise!)<br /><br />Restaurants featured are:<br /><br />Anak Nyonya Restoran, 88 Jalan Tokong, Melaka (closed Wednesdays) from 10:30am - 9:30pm<br /><br />Hoe Kee Hainanese Chicken Rice Ball, 4-8 Jalan Hang Jebat, Melaka <br /><br />Jonker Street night markets from 6pm - 12 midnight Saturdays and Sundays.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-36105204402724369652010-12-01T20:34:00.009+10:002010-12-01T20:42:57.006+10:00Pass the mush, we're in hospital nowLast week I had my first taste of hospital food. How did I come by hospital food? My grandmother was admitted to hospital and her condition was looking critical so I flew down to Sydney to visit her. Her lunch arrived – she didn’t have any appetite (the woman had an appetite that would shame us all in her younger years) so I ate some of it. I thought at the time, this isn’t as bad as people say it is. Then I changed my mind when I saw what she was served for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Hospital food is, at best, tolerable, for a day or two. Stretch it out three times a day, five , six, seven days in a row and you start to see a pattern – a very repetitive one. I was there for four days and was already bored with the menu. Yes, I know hospital food is not meant to be palatable but patients have to eat in order to regain their strength, surely. In my research about hospital food, I came across a couple of articles about vulnerable patients in hospitals suffering from malnutrition. Read about <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/hospital-food-fails-those-too-ill-to-eat-it-20100723-10or4.html">malnutrition </a>in hospitals. <br /><br />I didn’t think it was polite to take photographs of my grandmother’s hospital meals do I didn’t. Readers out there will have to use their imaginations. I was surprised to see the number of non-nutritious food items that is being served up in our hospitals. The next time you're visiting someone in hospital - look around you - sugary juices, syrupy fruits and spongey white bread abound. On the menu featured items like two fruits, chicken and gravy, lamb and gravy, seasonal vegetables, tuna pasta bake, mashed potato, rice pudding and apple or orange juice. What they mean by fruit is individual servings of fruit in syrup – the kind you peel off a plastic tab and dig a spoon in. Fresh fruit is an apple (not so appropriate when the patient can’t really eat and has dentures). Chicken is an anaemic rubber ball, potatoes dry, sweet potato water logged, beans leathery and tough as old boots. This is what I suspect lies in wait for most public hospital patients. Perhaps readers who have been in private hospitals have a different experience?<br /><br />My grandmother gathered up her strength to screw up her face when I lifted the lid of her lunch. A plate of indeterminate meat slathered in packet gravy, surrounded by hunks of sweet potato, potato and beans. She turned away and said feebly, I can’t eat that. A Caucasian woman who was sharing my grandmother’s ward; when I asked her what she was having for lunch – she stopped chewing and stopped for several seconds then said, rather embarrassedly, I don’t know what meat this is. <br /><br />You have to eat, I said, to get better. Deep down, I wouldn’t have wanted to eat that either to tell the truth. She managed about a quarter of a potato and a mouthful of sweet potato. My mother and I ended up making her some thin fish congee and some vegetarian noodles the next couple of days. Her lunches and dinners continued to arrive – they sat untouched. <br /><br />Cultural diversity must be a pain to address in public health settings. We often forget that Australia is becoming so much more multicultural these days; as a result, we end up alienating a large part of the population that end up in hospitals don’t eat the Anglo-Saxon way. Yes, it’s convenient and easy to roast a hunk of meat, chuck a heap of beans and potatoes in a big pot and forget about it. I can appreciate the logistical nightmare of cooking for a niche group but some considerations for menu planning would be so much appreciated by patients. If hospitals presented better quality, better thought-out food, patients <span style="font-style:italic;">will</span> eat more and faster, regain their strength a lot quicker and hopefully leave these dire places pronto. This <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npF_w9YES_U">youtube</a> clip about hospital food pretty much sums it up!<br /><br />While I write this, my grandmother is still in hospital, no doubt wanting to get better faster but very likely refusing another round of chicken in gravy and two fruits. Maybe Jamie Oliver should start a Ministry of Better Hospital Food for All Vulnerable Patients?meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-35298418174861693542010-11-07T18:09:00.036+10:002010-11-07T21:38:29.023+10:00Book launching a goMy little food guide celebrated its third edition just this Friday, 5th November 2010. Like all good book launches before, it was backed by a supportive crew of booksellers at Avid Reader. An interested audience came along and an interesting foodie panel discussed, well, food and coffee! The fabulous duo, Margaret Connolly (on violin)and Dorothy Williams (contralto singer) entertained us with <span style="font-style:italic;">Black Coffee</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">One Meatball</span>. I had a food and travel writer (Karen Reyment also wrote the foreword to my book), baker-food blogger (Julia Tuomainen), food journalist (Natascha Mirosch), cooking school/food tour operator (Sally Lynch) and a fantastic barista (Ben Graham).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48KJakfiak7nb1-2YX5cQDnz7WKmHBXDXso6NRE5NASqxGSrZs764dzHaCF5KJTNoAP6ELt5fj70DrYlm90DzRy5DA9OT97oQgcoanCOuNril2IUNBk3ivM8kfS9h1xqmNCtm85f610gf/s1600/Book+launch+display+Nov+2010.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48KJakfiak7nb1-2YX5cQDnz7WKmHBXDXso6NRE5NASqxGSrZs764dzHaCF5KJTNoAP6ELt5fj70DrYlm90DzRy5DA9OT97oQgcoanCOuNril2IUNBk3ivM8kfS9h1xqmNCtm85f610gf/s320/Book+launch+display+Nov+2010.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536747246201650962" /></a><br />What a great window display - thanks Avid crew!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVijfHILFtjneECe2WuEMWQuF7L_k2lb1-OW2ZciMy1ynHObM16yYyJqyRspboelOgGZwosqWiFdA9INOieJUm0NeTNZEVDFHt1zIKcyKu-BvvWCimsLO_JJV3favlOxmmHQBPjDO0s8s/s1600/Book+launch+Nov+2010+052.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVijfHILFtjneECe2WuEMWQuF7L_k2lb1-OW2ZciMy1ynHObM16yYyJqyRspboelOgGZwosqWiFdA9INOieJUm0NeTNZEVDFHt1zIKcyKu-BvvWCimsLO_JJV3favlOxmmHQBPjDO0s8s/s320/Book+launch+Nov+2010+052.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536748111913967074" /></a><br />The foodie panel at work<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM2hrxv6EHDPPtkqGB2NNX1F6ADxHeh7WbJdtTFVRv3FLvw_OXsP5lr3kwAtgX_FI9QrGMA1hw9FILv8RBm00q307QLMLu3E5PaMX010L1qx0MvWvWF04KXgRvRry7WIXryZpeM2sCnxB0/s1600/Book+launch+Nov+2010+050.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM2hrxv6EHDPPtkqGB2NNX1F6ADxHeh7WbJdtTFVRv3FLvw_OXsP5lr3kwAtgX_FI9QrGMA1hw9FILv8RBm00q307QLMLu3E5PaMX010L1qx0MvWvWF04KXgRvRry7WIXryZpeM2sCnxB0/s320/Book+launch+Nov+2010+050.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536748820716843458" /></a><br />More foodie panel.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvkfbwsRk6cNAgHbgafO_uo7cIfeqA8MFWYE1b4cvBa77eplbp58PbeN-W812RdPzDbunvM_XAF0ig4fnKBAOSyR10j23egJDjqv4pRdDTHhbcJW1t01JMV6BHoEQYmLquUhyphenhyphenZ7Hp-JiJH/s1600/Book+launch+Nov+2010+037.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvkfbwsRk6cNAgHbgafO_uo7cIfeqA8MFWYE1b4cvBa77eplbp58PbeN-W812RdPzDbunvM_XAF0ig4fnKBAOSyR10j23egJDjqv4pRdDTHhbcJW1t01JMV6BHoEQYmLquUhyphenhyphenZ7Hp-JiJH/s320/Book+launch+Nov+2010+037.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536751331474561378" /></a><br />M & D doing their thing.<br /><br />In the year of writing the guide, getting caught up in the craze of MasterChef and other food-related madness - one thing always disturbed me. The fact that while a large percentage of Brisbanites are gorging on food in every way possible, a growing percentage of people are increasingly left with nothing or not enough to eat. <br /><br />About 14 years ago I decided to have a meal in a soup kitchen in Sydney. It was an experiment for my writing. What I didn't expect was that the experience left me completely humbled. I walked away feeling ashamed of my excesses even though I was a uni student then surviving on using past use-by-date milk and two minute noodles. That soup kitchen meal has never left me. I was lucky to stumble on Mama Rene's charity recently. The charity is locally run by a Pastor John Dowell. They run a mobile soup kitchen and grocery distribution from a carpark in Spring Hill and have other operations down on the Gold Coast and other suburbs around Brisbane. They don't turn anybody away - individuals that need a hot meal and groceries are welcome. For my third book launch, I had a fundraiser event for Mama Rene's. Daniel and Tina are two very hardworking and generous souls from Mama Rene's who came and spoke to the audience about the work they do for the homeless. Together we raised a neat amount of funds that I hope will help them. So thank you to all who generously donated their time and money on Friday night. The money will be put to good use I am sure of it. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2FZ43Ng4tj-JYhB4FsrXvnUe2zZozVZ10k7Di2sjyZdtHawz5z70SWcdEU28mHGDgU730OlkBQBIOl_TZmfORAag7v4qRseVMcBmT2LbxdLsENsDZml4aUFQ1dIlV-1ftYRBuQ4t8U-XC/s1600/Book+launch+Nov+2010+005.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2FZ43Ng4tj-JYhB4FsrXvnUe2zZozVZ10k7Di2sjyZdtHawz5z70SWcdEU28mHGDgU730OlkBQBIOl_TZmfORAag7v4qRseVMcBmT2LbxdLsENsDZml4aUFQ1dIlV-1ftYRBuQ4t8U-XC/s320/Book+launch+Nov+2010+005.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536749357223363250" /></a><br />The queue lining up for groceries on a rainy night in a Spring Hill carpark. <br /><br />Those who want to check out what Mama Rene's website can go to www.mamarenes.org<br /><br />For delicious baking check out www.melangerbaking.com<br /><br />For budding travel and food writers www.adayinthelifeimages.com/profilekarenreyment<br /><br />Food journo's foodie adventures check out http://blogs.news.com.au/couriermail/food/ <br /><br />Coffee lovers drink this up http://onedropspecialtycoffee.com/<br /><br />Brush up on your cooking skills? http://www.tastetrekkers.com.au/<br /><br />Intrepid foodies who want a copy of my book go to www.brisbanebudgetbites.com.au<br /><br /><br />Below is a short piece I wrote all those years ago about the soup kitchen I ate in. <br /> <br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Meanwhile on the other side of Chinatown</span><br /><br />It was the sign that did it. It read <span style="font-style:italic;">Free Meals – All Welcome</span>!<br /><br />The soured smells of old men with bags for hats and cans for cash hang in the air. In the dead of winter, a bare-chested man with a leather jacket sits hunched up rolling cigarettes while he waits for his four course meal. He has rings for knuckles and sunglasses for eyes. The leather man shreds bread as if feeding pigeons, scattering crumbs into his dishwater soup. He waits for the bread to suck up the hot soup, waits patiently for them to plump up into wheaten dumplings before gulping them down greedily.<br /><br />Another man, more decrepit, holds two slices of bread in his left hand spoons soup slowly and meticulously into his mouth. He has a plastic bag for a bib and looking a little like a displaced cricket player, sports a smear of sunscreen on his forehead and above his eyes. His hand luggage is a swagger of plastic bags. Bags within bags. The balloon of bags rustle as they rub against his body. Huge rubber bands clump together around his shoes to keep him from losing the sole from the rest of his shoe. His hands shake. <br /><br />A toothless old man with a brown hat and a brown jumper stares at the men inside and the other men stare at his brand new shoes. The toothless man leaves almost immediately after he finishes his meal. He is uncomfortable. He eyes the men as he walks out, his brand new shoes squeaking and clicking under him. <br /><br />Pictures of Jesus and Mary loom overhead together with cardboard cut-outs of the Easter bunny. The volunteers all stand around in plastic aprons, strangely grim, all of them with beards. An older volunteer suggests to the leather man that perhaps he should say grace. The volunteer and the leather man both break out in laughter. Leather man is obviously a regular.<br /><br />Skinless sausages with gritty gravy is on the menu. Dishwater soup with bloated vermicelli, a floret of cauliflower, a spoonful of spinach, a small serving of boiled pumpkin, a handful of mushy chips on the side also feature on the menu. The basket of soy and linseed bread is a nice surprise. It sits there on the communal table – touched by all hands. Hands that have rifled through old newspapers. Hands that have dug into rubbish bins for edible scraps the night before. The fruit salad is close to fermenting as it sits in the plastic container. The old men imagine fermenting grapes turning into wine before squashing the rotting grapes and mandarins down their throats. <br /><br />A child and his mother pass by the soup kitchen and the boy yells out to his mother that there are free meals here. The mother pulls her child away and chastises him that this is no place to eat. No place for <span style="font-style:italic;">them</span> to eat. <br /><br />The old man with the two slices of bread in his hand gnaws at his bread, obviously leaving the best for last. He fastens his plastic bag bib, brings the plastic bowl to his lips and drinks every last drop, mops up sausage gravy and swallows every grape seed and savours the hot tea. This is a place where homeless men and women break bread, eat like it is their last meal. This is also a place where the arrogant are humbled.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-52236374424879923322010-10-13T15:59:00.009+10:002010-10-13T16:19:23.668+10:00Mooncake madnessNot once did I ever think that I would make mooncakes. It’s not something that a layperson does or thinks that he or she can make. For one, they’re fiddly as hell to make. And the mid-autumn season is so short, it’s way easier to just go down to the shops to buy them. After about two decades of not eating them, here I am, suddenly obsessed by these sweet morsels from my childhood. As a child eating lotus paste mooncakes were already indulgent, if we were lucky, we’d get a double salty egg yolk bunger – now that was luxury in my time. <br /><br />Having just returned from Singapore and Malaysia where the mooncake is seeing a modern revival, I was blown away by the breadth of variety of these suckers. I was hooked. The mooncakes in Asia are like pieces of mini art works – the pastry skin takes on the intricate carvings of flowers and Chinese calligraphy and the fillings infinite and cleverly combined with western ingredients. I also had to justify my recent horde of mooncake moulds – what good are they sitting in the cupboard?<br /><br />I happened to buy a Malaysian food magazine, <a href="http://mobile88.com.my/thestar/bookstore/magsubdetails.asp?catId=13000&ProdId=15125">Flavours</a> at the airport on the way back to Australia. My mooncake obsession could take hold – there was a spread on mooncakes and recipes. What luck! So today, I made my first batch of mooncake dough. I didn’t want to make both dough and filling – thought I’d take baby steps first. I’m not the best of bakers – most of my baking expeditions veer off in unexpected tangents! I used a peanut-shaped mould, a traditional calligraphy mould and a tablet shaped mould. <br /><br />The peach-shaped calligraphy mould was by far the most diffcult mould to use. The dough stuck furiously to its sides and it took a bit of beating mould on bench to unmould the sticky stuff. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN1OxV1xYAjvJ4-EvRq0Y-f4VShKYgiyiV85NtXj7FvYhLk0s7JcmqE6jQlpzUhfGabRurIdqTk3rMSUamrv9onzKbO7aNvi-qVq-YVd7-pkG4joGZ9Jv49dB-V6Xg0sjliyt8yNm8S3Mx/s1600/mooncake+dough+experiment+001.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN1OxV1xYAjvJ4-EvRq0Y-f4VShKYgiyiV85NtXj7FvYhLk0s7JcmqE6jQlpzUhfGabRurIdqTk3rMSUamrv9onzKbO7aNvi-qVq-YVd7-pkG4joGZ9Jv49dB-V6Xg0sjliyt8yNm8S3Mx/s320/mooncake+dough+experiment+001.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527408005114079554" /></a><br />(golden syrup, lye water and oil mix resting)<br /><br /><br />I have used the dough on its own as biscuits although its purpose is to form a skin around fillings. The dough works quite well on its own though a bit sweet. I divided my dough and mixed half of it with a mixture of grated nutmeg and ground cinnamon for a slightly spicy flavour. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbU9dileDOY7V9zNHsEhZuRLTYhysj1ZEsFU6m7jXmaciHm1v215pRf9_pK3jmRVaBqm5SB6LaLERV3dlsixQ2fjH-4P8YY5yGczyxgBMJcDcmJtCe1xTBFjZWQ7re7Hyd2vuZd0If_uN/s1600/mooncake+dough+experiment+002.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbU9dileDOY7V9zNHsEhZuRLTYhysj1ZEsFU6m7jXmaciHm1v215pRf9_pK3jmRVaBqm5SB6LaLERV3dlsixQ2fjH-4P8YY5yGczyxgBMJcDcmJtCe1xTBFjZWQ7re7Hyd2vuZd0If_uN/s320/mooncake+dough+experiment+002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527408801514319330" /></a><br />(this is the shiniest dough mix ever!)<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs08VDg9TLIc84EbJ_qLWP1fAwxin9nTY2ScibzaP5zjh25Q0x1ZYZKDe_BtAWXX0VHymaWO5Ulr-aLDgul3lkgmHN_FoiDqWccjUoFlqOhyHnTx-0ezFVFa4qnNdl2iMxCgs6ULuZln6y/s1600/mooncake+dough+experiment+005.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs08VDg9TLIc84EbJ_qLWP1fAwxin9nTY2ScibzaP5zjh25Q0x1ZYZKDe_BtAWXX0VHymaWO5Ulr-aLDgul3lkgmHN_FoiDqWccjUoFlqOhyHnTx-0ezFVFa4qnNdl2iMxCgs6ULuZln6y/s320/mooncake+dough+experiment+005.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527409338296262658" /></a><br />(pre-oven specimens)<br /><br />My version puffed up about double and as a result, lost most of its intricate patterns. Perhaps I put too much sodium bicarbonate in? Or maybe with a filling the dough keeps its shape better. I will make some lotus paste for the next batch and see what happens. The texture is pretty good, it's slightly chewy and spicy from nutmeg and cinnamon - not unlike a German Christmas cookie! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5emfyxT2ih1GQUGEHPh8KGfz-CCVNuQt_J6tNkQUQRGdVXJkdbTxiKUhP1Xf2fPEOT8X4BLJo-Mqe2ARpmvxH5Q4QBFkbt6mtEQM88oizGwNdLnBDnGVqFeljVRH8azWEKj6IEUsJNYpg/s1600/mooncake+dough+experiment+006.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5emfyxT2ih1GQUGEHPh8KGfz-CCVNuQt_J6tNkQUQRGdVXJkdbTxiKUhP1Xf2fPEOT8X4BLJo-Mqe2ARpmvxH5Q4QBFkbt6mtEQM88oizGwNdLnBDnGVqFeljVRH8azWEKj6IEUsJNYpg/s320/mooncake+dough+experiment+006.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527409732784796194" /></a><br />(post-oven specimens)<br /><br />Here is Flavours basic mooncake dough recipe.<br /><br />250ml golden syrup<br />110ml peanut oil (I substituted this with canola oil)<br />1tsp alkaline (lye) water<br />430g plain flour sifted<br />¼tsp sodium bicarbonate<br /><br />1 egg lightly beaten for egg wash <br /><br />Mix golden syrup, oil and lye water in a bowl until well combined. Cover with cling film and set aside for 1 hour.<br /><br />Sift in flour and sodium bicarbonate . Mix to firm a dough – if the dough is too sticky, work in 1 to 2 tbsp flour. When the dough looks shiny and smooth, cover with cling film and rest for another hour before filling and shaping. <br /><br />Baking: Preheat oven to 170°C. Place shaped mooncake biscuits on greased or greaseproof lined tray. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove and brush with egg wash. Lower heat to 160°C and bake another 10 minutes. Remove from oven when biscuits are golden brown.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-92085834620248684232010-10-10T16:33:00.061+10:002010-10-10T18:06:15.444+10:00Singapore Singapore!The quest for great food is always a good excuse to leave the country in exchange for new culinary experiences. A wedding is an even better excuse to leave the country. My cousin YW finally tied the knot having found his soulmate in Singapore. Many family members traveled from Malaysia and with family and friends coming from various overseas countries. The wedding was beautiful. The bride and groom looked tired but very happy. I’ve got the menu from the wedding reception to reflect what is typically on offer if you do decide on a Chinese-style reception in a big hotel.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Erd2IUpxP6QhWIQvNV75dFYdC9XKAwNvQpQbjJFcD3CoxQfjigC921lRlrqxP0cZjpkqg6rmYgGBnsXar-SunhcdLQUmiwgR9KdctJt4nH4aZDMEZ6xqG8sSdjLAXKMFo1kUU3CYzWgu/s1600/Singapore+2010+(95).jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Erd2IUpxP6QhWIQvNV75dFYdC9XKAwNvQpQbjJFcD3CoxQfjigC921lRlrqxP0cZjpkqg6rmYgGBnsXar-SunhcdLQUmiwgR9KdctJt4nH4aZDMEZ6xqG8sSdjLAXKMFo1kUU3CYzWgu/s320/Singapore+2010+(95).jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526303173488427858" /></a><br />(menu from Chinese wedding) <br /><br />The streets of Singapore seem almost swept clean of debris and most eating places on the surface look sanitised and very clean. Street food in Singapore has been kept confined in ‘coffeeshops’ in specially-built buildings for this purpose. There are no longer sit-on-footpath type eating. As a result of the government’s zeal for cleanliness, Singaporean food stalls shoved into custom-built buildings have lost a part of their street appeal – the vibrancy and authenticity just isn’t there. Food isn’t overly expensive but neither is it overly cheap. A typical bowl of noodles will cost around $5. Don’t get me wrong, there is good food to be had in Singapore, just don’t expect raw, edgy street food, like you would in the rest of South-east Asia.<br /><br />A good place for a cheap eats is Singapore Zam Zam Restaurant, recommended by fellow Brisbane blogger, Tunaf_ranch was a hit. The murtabaks here are pretty big and crispy perfect with a pint of frothy teh tarik. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7xqf9jVLWowjPCIWJxknA1JuNsih-ie6whIH6Si5KPG25Sw5bejqS8qvkpIMLiREwGIK01cu-WOq1NYnlPFDuOGviF8C7CIieUV94Rjra-zjXe6QxGmDTIeULvB2yD6sr9xytTMcjfYUL/s1600/murtabak+at+Zam+Zam+restaurant.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7xqf9jVLWowjPCIWJxknA1JuNsih-ie6whIH6Si5KPG25Sw5bejqS8qvkpIMLiREwGIK01cu-WOq1NYnlPFDuOGviF8C7CIieUV94Rjra-zjXe6QxGmDTIeULvB2yD6sr9xytTMcjfYUL/s320/murtabak+at+Zam+Zam+restaurant.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526311101252401202" /></a><br />(fat crispy parcels of goodness at Zam Zam) <br /><br />A good friend of mine and Singapore resident, D brought us to a Teo Chew restaurant, Hung Kang for dinner. It was a joy to find beautifully prepared food at very reasonable prices. We started with pomegranate-shaped bags with crispy spring roll skin filled with diced chicken, crunchy chestnuts and spring onions. A thick, sweet soy sauce made a good dipping accompaniment. Stir fried kai lan (Chinese broccoli) with shiitake mushrooms and crispy fish skin was a textural sensation. The match of crunchy vegetables with silky mushrooms and crispy skin is so clever. The century egg stir fried with water chestnuts and black fungus was a highlight. The century egg loses a bit of its pungency but marries perfectly with the other ingredients. Deep fried goose was tender and very moist.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhryKuonAmCEQSQAFSTGd4IBI3N0BvIu78optKCyNks-_OkZCRvFNPz3Nj-2pHcSJ1sL5Z2fZhBGF0PavV_xDdYL2IRP83pnqp8lypw2C32nGnshOKVAK8fnbJj2dMcY2OEL6P5m-Ppd__U/s1600/Singapore+2010+(18).jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhryKuonAmCEQSQAFSTGd4IBI3N0BvIu78optKCyNks-_OkZCRvFNPz3Nj-2pHcSJ1sL5Z2fZhBGF0PavV_xDdYL2IRP83pnqp8lypw2C32nGnshOKVAK8fnbJj2dMcY2OEL6P5m-Ppd__U/s320/Singapore+2010+(18).jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526303699451143986" /></a><br />(dinner at Hung Kang)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The pork thigh braised in a complex soy broth with chestnuts was excellent eating – the meat perfectly fall apart tender with nutty chestnuts and a layer of gelatinous rendered fat. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfsCpVJLl-wlYNg4ukTxsa0QZ1LKAvtlslckYZ2MNOhlzxDXqRzFrSvyR4nDRLUUtRMVvELOMjjR62pDSGLyZNaMfAwQpaw8qwb-BuAMCNExmvds7AV3rY2rPBFQtF2G9bbF_Z-EPsppw5/s1600/Singapore+2010+(20).jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfsCpVJLl-wlYNg4ukTxsa0QZ1LKAvtlslckYZ2MNOhlzxDXqRzFrSvyR4nDRLUUtRMVvELOMjjR62pDSGLyZNaMfAwQpaw8qwb-BuAMCNExmvds7AV3rY2rPBFQtF2G9bbF_Z-EPsppw5/s320/Singapore+2010+(20).jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526309686527126850" /></a><br /><br />(this braised pork dish was absolutely delicious!)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmP5x8iZgaPQHLbP2T38nKhI1QkEnpWlciQUy7iOeJDKW0IDyjUNAhpVauVJl6BIpqn-nmx32-GavExpczPvckFG_MIuOlZ0ih5xhE9FSWnDqs1u1MZ2AhUBNpwi9HlsZsXjiNO5bW9NW_/s1600/frogs'+glands+%26+gingko+nuts+in+syrup.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmP5x8iZgaPQHLbP2T38nKhI1QkEnpWlciQUy7iOeJDKW0IDyjUNAhpVauVJl6BIpqn-nmx32-GavExpczPvckFG_MIuOlZ0ih5xhE9FSWnDqs1u1MZ2AhUBNpwi9HlsZsXjiNO5bW9NW_/s320/frogs'+glands+%26+gingko+nuts+in+syrup.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526304230117453042" /></a><br /><br />(Hashima (or frogs glands)with gingko nuts)<br /><br />We finished off with snow frog glands with gingko nuts warmed in a sweet soup and oh nee (yam in lard and sugar) and cheng teng (cold clear dessert soup with longans, snow fungus, dried jujubes). It was an interesting array of textures, flavours and ingredients and acted as a good palate cleanser. <br /><br />We were also lucky to visit while the mooncake festival was on. There were mooncakes everywhere we looked. Some of the streets downtown turned into mooncake alleys. Dozens of Chinese bakeries and specialist mooncake makers displayed their colourful wares in tents. Singapore has not only modernised its street food, the traditional mooncake of my childhood has also been transformed into elaborate pieces of artworks. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsElbTCPHrLLtbFAVP3gQpeCfwEAALf2C-alk4So0lkYgPeFrYxcPW7Dt4o6StBdJgx79C4EwGfT-Ll31l2VWQFK07ZXJAlIOI9sm7kCdWKUOZvFNH_MfNHuAVMhhuulodhw0crdF-0dK6/s1600/mooncake+mania+in+singapore.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsElbTCPHrLLtbFAVP3gQpeCfwEAALf2C-alk4So0lkYgPeFrYxcPW7Dt4o6StBdJgx79C4EwGfT-Ll31l2VWQFK07ZXJAlIOI9sm7kCdWKUOZvFNH_MfNHuAVMhhuulodhw0crdF-0dK6/s320/mooncake+mania+in+singapore.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526304868432712018" /></a><br />(this photo doesn't do the mooncake booths justice but imagine these stalls multiplied by about thirty)<br /><br />Hundreds of mooncakes were on show – the traditional pastry with lotus paste with egg yolks were a minority. The east-meets west samples seemed to rule. Five star hotels have also gotten in on the action – hotels like Raffles, Shangri-La, Goodwood Park Hotel were showcasing exquisite-looking specimens. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrapr5e8mRZNWfnFmiIB8nQzHFjPBJ5k3hBsu9GXMB_NGRzoZOL8Gb19WW3cl9odFOLoltY8rWsItEGrOBOSMmWzyVvJqVrPV2ifZ0XeePM-xa3KRnYGFXEPocnj1gP_oq0Rgey4CbbXz5/s1600/mini+piglet+shaped+mooncakes.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrapr5e8mRZNWfnFmiIB8nQzHFjPBJ5k3hBsu9GXMB_NGRzoZOL8Gb19WW3cl9odFOLoltY8rWsItEGrOBOSMmWzyVvJqVrPV2ifZ0XeePM-xa3KRnYGFXEPocnj1gP_oq0Rgey4CbbXz5/s320/mini+piglet+shaped+mooncakes.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526305249268246466" /></a><br />(and these little mooncake piglets went to market...)<br /><br />We said goodbye to the old-style baked pastry with lotus seed varieties and said hello to a new variety of dewy delicate snowskin mooncakes. These snowskins come in D24 durian paste, apple caramel, mango and pomelo, single malt whiskey, chocolate with rum and raisin and the piece de resistance – champagne and truffle. These exotic specimens don’t come cheap – expect to pay from $42 for four pieces. We moved around these mooncake booths trying their free samples. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuuYaf123T9CExVjAI6q_AfTZiy4MHstYSkMZJjXWW2-L5LWqvTv6Qm3FfQxqRALeB9Y5BCdtdPYFyx4S20yzUtqFi_zfrNxYpnT1fIV37gygIaQVxmKnyNeqZm2qv6JnSS4fec8JOg47G/s1600/mooncake+moulds+seasoned+001.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuuYaf123T9CExVjAI6q_AfTZiy4MHstYSkMZJjXWW2-L5LWqvTv6Qm3FfQxqRALeB9Y5BCdtdPYFyx4S20yzUtqFi_zfrNxYpnT1fIV37gygIaQVxmKnyNeqZm2qv6JnSS4fec8JOg47G/s320/mooncake+moulds+seasoned+001.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526318419326811410" /></a><br /><br />(sample of local bakery, Bakerzin's snowskin mooncakes from their 2010 collection!)<br /><br />I managed to find some traditional wooden mooncake moulds in Malaysia and am going to start to try and make some mooncakes. It’s all a bit sad but wooden moulds are becoming harder and harder to source – plastic is gaining momentum with cooks everywhere apparently. I am going to attempt making some mooncakes in the next couple of weeks time so stay tuned.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgykZ-B-SFYk6j7u25bS7GbTB6M1cB9HZzs9pC0puVss7obJAmTrmz-gruiWfPpf-yvo11qFo17U9HsXI45WDNEnA3UbkS3iz3cytNP4Bryr0XHgeg8UoufwOUCSC_AxOFpTv0G3EjZl3ON/s1600/mooncake+moulds+seasoned.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgykZ-B-SFYk6j7u25bS7GbTB6M1cB9HZzs9pC0puVss7obJAmTrmz-gruiWfPpf-yvo11qFo17U9HsXI45WDNEnA3UbkS3iz3cytNP4Bryr0XHgeg8UoufwOUCSC_AxOFpTv0G3EjZl3ON/s320/mooncake+moulds+seasoned.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526309104146018914" /></a><br />(mooncake moulds washed and seasoned with oil)<br /><br /><br /><br />D also brought us to sample beef balls noodle soups at Purvis Street. It was a memorable lunch at a beef ball koay teow restaurant in Purvis Street in Singapore. <br /><br />The appetisers of lor bak (spiced fragrant meat with a crispy bean curd skin) and century egg were a good combination.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSRfws65yUYdBQd9farmTLaXg3ZfeqzArSusoQ9DhDw3Rdsl9uZXEeEiT1Uzdppah-UISxcuR-kHZTXL1LadmCvmOE7lg7_7NFZtQj9M-DkIcZvGA2MG20NS0DqaThZfcEuOZ3Pkj5ImPv/s1600/loh+bak+and+century+egg+appetisers.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSRfws65yUYdBQd9farmTLaXg3ZfeqzArSusoQ9DhDw3Rdsl9uZXEeEiT1Uzdppah-UISxcuR-kHZTXL1LadmCvmOE7lg7_7NFZtQj9M-DkIcZvGA2MG20NS0DqaThZfcEuOZ3Pkj5ImPv/s320/loh+bak+and+century+egg+appetisers.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526323516155588946" /></a><br /><br />(lor bak with century egg appetisers)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZUr39KI4878tCc379JtKSIVF6etlBz204eyyOXo6eBvfmUI2BkKOwEigfh5inaPUqhEmkWVwg5zhTw8HWjZ2kOObNenJ5a47pGN3vZU2dU5eW5MJTMerijtRTOYcVzSpYKKthvXtaPSht/s1600/_DSC0232.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZUr39KI4878tCc379JtKSIVF6etlBz204eyyOXo6eBvfmUI2BkKOwEigfh5inaPUqhEmkWVwg5zhTw8HWjZ2kOObNenJ5a47pGN3vZU2dU5eW5MJTMerijtRTOYcVzSpYKKthvXtaPSht/s320/_DSC0232.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526324812321074226" /></a><br /><br />(beef ball noodle soup. Photo by Neil Lee)<br />The broth was complex and rich without being overpowering and the beef balls were very tasty. The chilli sauce with Calamansi limes gave the beef some kick too.<br /><br />The Teo Chew dinner, murtabak at Zam Zam and beef ball noodles lunch were some of my more memorable eats in Singapore.<br /><br />The mid autumn mooncake festival ran from 10 August to 22 September 2010. <br />Singapore Zam Zam Restaurant can be found at 697, 699 North Bridge Road, Singapore.<br />Hung Kang Teochew Restaurant can be found at 28 North Canal Road, Singapore.<br />7th Storey Hainan Cafe, 27 Purvis Street, Singapore.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-43721977565221679582010-09-06T14:35:00.015+10:002010-09-06T14:52:36.764+10:00Real Food Companion by Matthew Evans<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBb4HIMPJLZV5bqCV9BtzV2Vrw5IgOef1TkSykoFg18P4QLTaxSC4QfKCH2fp_DZYHAmfFa-KcoXqQHPrV42ooqr2LkBde2JhXWXGUxYBFUGJ9eaV3UcdLoyNk_nN4Civ1UdFLN15eezjY/s1600/real+food+companion+002.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBb4HIMPJLZV5bqCV9BtzV2Vrw5IgOef1TkSykoFg18P4QLTaxSC4QfKCH2fp_DZYHAmfFa-KcoXqQHPrV42ooqr2LkBde2JhXWXGUxYBFUGJ9eaV3UcdLoyNk_nN4Civ1UdFLN15eezjY/s320/real+food+companion+002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513655690889450978" /></a><br />The <span style="font-style:italic;">Real Food Companio</span>n by Matthew Evans<br /><br />I had the pleasure of meeting Matthew Evans at his book launch earlier this year. His talk was informative and passionate. His attitude towards food and his frankness about not having a lot of agricultural knowledge to begin with provided me with motivation for learning more. Matthew Evan’s event was sponsored by <a href="http://www.foodconnect.com.au/about-us/">Food Connect</a> (a great organisation committed to farming sustainability and communities). I had much respect for Evans when he was a <span style="font-style:italic;">Sydney Morning Herald</span> food reviewer and I have even more respect for him now that he’s championing the awareness of sustainable farming and opting for simpler eating and living. For those of you not so familiar with his written work, you may be more familiar with his television show, the <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/shows/gourmetfarmer/watchonline/page/i/1/show/gourmetfarmer">SBS food documentary </a><span style="font-style:italic;">Gourmet Farmer</span>.<br /><br />I’m a big fan of Murdoch food books in general, but this tome is really a little bit special. Not only is the book beautifully made, from the rustic jacket to the photographs and text – a lot of care and love has gone into it. Evan’s prologue is especially touching. The publication of the book coincides with the birth of his first child. The prologue turns into a kind of ‘life’ letter, which I guess, is also a form of love letter to his first born. With this, Evans introduces his family and his food aspirations to his child. He sagely advises his child to “Dine in front of the television at your own peril. Keep your self-esteem intact and your front door open to visitors. Keep the pantry full and the larder enriched. Keep the invitations going to those who seek refuge, as well as those who come to bring joy. Be generous with the ladle and cavalier with the wine. Cook, my child, for hospitality is the glue that binds humanity together.” What lovely sentiments.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZZfqUZ94r0ptG0VzMAPq9sCpNiHAIsdQuzjkJin9D2WQ-OPFHbkFtO0TbNeyH6pnxFrutYApEhm95ruZmcSgqba5VNFGKRK3pTbM85g1NIjER_InKBasXAou2Kkim1wV2KwG3HtsGB3Dz/s1600/real+food+companion+001.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZZfqUZ94r0ptG0VzMAPq9sCpNiHAIsdQuzjkJin9D2WQ-OPFHbkFtO0TbNeyH6pnxFrutYApEhm95ruZmcSgqba5VNFGKRK3pTbM85g1NIjER_InKBasXAou2Kkim1wV2KwG3HtsGB3Dz/s320/real+food+companion+001.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513656889926510530" /></a> <br />(the book with its scarecrow jacket on)<br /><br />Evans’s life-changing journey starts with tasting real milk, which for him, is a driver for uncovering the real, core flavours of ingredients. He is not a fan of mediocrity, he supports ethical eating and like the title of the book suggests, he is interested in real food. Evans could’ve bleated on and on about sustainable eating, farming and the feelgood factor of buying and eating organic. Yes, he espouses all of these food philosophies but he doesn’t come across as greenly pious or shouts obnoxiously from his soapbox. He makes the reader aware of these issues gently; almost reminds us that we shouldn’t neglect the soil that nourishes our vegetables and the welfare of the animals that we depend on for food.<br /><br />The chapters are well laid out and categories of ingredients are explained in simple, easy-to-understand language. The beauty of the Real Food Companion is that it is a personal collection of rustic, delicious recipes combined with introductions to individual farmers and their produce, and explanations of uses for ingredients. The dairy chapter sees recipes like baked nutmeg custard, goats’ milk latte cotto and labna. The flour chapter shows off the flexibility of wheat, whether for turning leftover crusts into a bread and butter pudding or dough being kneaded into silky pappardelle. The recipes are never overcomplicated or fussy. Traditionalists will delight in the English and French comfort foods like homemade bacon baked beans and coq au vin; and the multiculturalists will appreciate the taxi driver’s lamb curry and fattoush.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc20FeNScMrmI4-IMhRXqVdg9D1DTcBd3kag2EktmB0vKkvtFdrVt12jdrWSgficVEYewS1yzXT0rfocd7-k3anHq1c3yO-Y0UQMjkgciAHJ2R91yxsN4S7XXgg1rPuQs1WNNzOs4_jS53/s1600/real+food+companion+003.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc20FeNScMrmI4-IMhRXqVdg9D1DTcBd3kag2EktmB0vKkvtFdrVt12jdrWSgficVEYewS1yzXT0rfocd7-k3anHq1c3yO-Y0UQMjkgciAHJ2R91yxsN4S7XXgg1rPuQs1WNNzOs4_jS53/s320/real+food+companion+003.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513655999708351938" /></a><br />(Matthew Evans's homemade bacon baked beans)<br /><br />And where would a good reference/cookbook be without a workable index? The index is broken up into two separate categories: Food and Topics. The food index is user-friendly and pretty thorough although some food entries could have been more practically thought through. For a book that is part reference and part cookbook, the level of indexing is spot on. The Topics section is easy to use but some entries seem to have been overlooked and locators are not all there. Overall, <span style="font-style:italic;">Real Food Companion</span> is a heartwarming read and provides inspiration to all of us who are vying for a change of pace in our hectic lifestyles. This book makes me want to find time to nourish and grow something wonderful from a little patch of dirt.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-15809308088439079692010-03-31T13:30:00.014+10:002010-03-31T13:47:54.883+10:00Breakfast at The Wolseley book review<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkVVSNIdLMxW0tWek2HPh9IOQqpMDvRJpS6fms-5shyphenhyphenDkt4H-wO3zcJ4bHrXB_N_a0NTKdS6nEYzIBdQ3ZubzwZ64JLTWFbw807luPaL-QaloZO0iVaPce022CNghr1rBf34q4znvcqtlI/s1600/Breakfast+at++the+Wolseley+by+AA+Gill.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 232px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkVVSNIdLMxW0tWek2HPh9IOQqpMDvRJpS6fms-5shyphenhyphenDkt4H-wO3zcJ4bHrXB_N_a0NTKdS6nEYzIBdQ3ZubzwZ64JLTWFbw807luPaL-QaloZO0iVaPce022CNghr1rBf34q4znvcqtlI/s320/Breakfast+at++the+Wolseley+by+AA+Gill.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454639578509901474" /></a><br /><br />Love him or hate him, A.A. Gill certainly has a way with words. The wordsmith puts his intrepid travels and eating adventures aside and goes back to the United Kingdom, in search of breakfast. His book, <a href="http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/book/9781844004447/Breakfast-at-the-Wolseley">Breakfast at The Wolseley</a> is based solely, entirely on the promise of breakfast, actually, the entire book is focused on the famous English institution, The Wolseley in Picadilly, London. This art deco period building was commissioned as a showroom for Wolseley Cars in the 1920s and 30s. This opulent and grand building was used by Barclays bank until the late 1990s. Two men, Chris Corbin and Jeremy King acquired the building in 2003 and commissioned architects to restore the building to its former glory and set about turning it into an European-inspired café/restaurant. A.A. Gill goes behind the scenes at <a href="http://www.thewolseley.com/Menu.aspx">The Wolseley</a> to experience firsthand the machinations behind what it takes to provide first-class breakfasts. This sumptuous book of beautiful photographs of building and its food is something for the coffee table. It’s the perfect time-filler for a rainy Sunday afternoon.<a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/eating_out/a_a_gill/"> A.A. Gill</a> fans will love this. And for those who can’t stomach Gill’s self-indulgent reviews – this one might just be the one to ease you back into the Gill fold. Gill is restraint in this narrative and has kept his sarcastic wit to a minimum in this publication. His take on eating breakfast is poignant and at times I think requires some reflection. <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Breakfast is everything. The beginning, the first thing. It is the mouthful that is the commitment to a new day, a continuing life. …Breakfast – simple, elaborate, hurried, deliberate or skipped – is an unconsidered moment of global communion. Somewhere, someone is starting breakfast and thinking, “Today will be better than yesterday.”</span><br /><br />I like the fact he’s written about breakfast in a completely different light – it’s something that I haven’t taken into much consideration, Gill’s right: it’s something we all kind of take for granted. My breakfasts become more elaborate on weekends, I do like to eat adventurously when I’m traveling. I have no qualms about having cake and coffee or roti and curry for breakfast but I find myself eating almost the exact same breakfast on weekdays. <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Breakfast is a meal apart. It isn’t like the other organized consumptions of food in which we all part. Even though it’s a fixed moment, breakfast is pre-form – a conceptual meal. It doesn’t have courses or an order; it isn’t prescriptively sweet or savoury; there is no generally accepted sense of its length or constituent parts. It’s bespoke, tailor-made to you: a private meal or habit. Breakfast is the most personal and idiosyncratic construction. It is the only meal most of us feel wholly comfortable eating on our own…</span><br /><br />See that wasn’t so bad. None of this smug, self-serving talk – what a relief! The book is split into seven parts. History of the building and place, a short history of breakfast, the concept of the <span style="font-style:italic;">Viennoiserie</span> complete with recipes. Gill’s even provided an eggs section, an English breakfast section,fruit and cereals and Tea, Coffee and Hot Chocolate section - all with recipes and short blurbs. <span style="font-style:italic;">Viennoiserie</span> is the French collective term for pastries from Vienna. And what a collection of butter-enriched pastries there are in the book. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9uxXoJfqM2UBhbS6_CibCL78iMOUVw9-rQenhfzx-GrVm5MuxA0irG3vxAdMIUMn0AtHAJLpr4R0Eg1ECMa6OA3O-GxXpKua3YK5YU26eOgB8OlBWPD7gg83DoMFXNLY9fg1fQ7y6bFXL/s1600/Haggis+%26+duck+egg+recipe.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 232px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9uxXoJfqM2UBhbS6_CibCL78iMOUVw9-rQenhfzx-GrVm5MuxA0irG3vxAdMIUMn0AtHAJLpr4R0Eg1ECMa6OA3O-GxXpKua3YK5YU26eOgB8OlBWPD7gg83DoMFXNLY9fg1fQ7y6bFXL/s320/Haggis+%26+duck+egg+recipe.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454637730763481666" /></a><br />A recipe for haggis and duck eggs from the book<br /><br />Gill’s managed to evoke the goings-on behind the scenes at The Wolseley with great verve and sensitivity. All the ‘invisible’ people that make breakfast possible get a look-in. Almost all nationalities under the sun can be found in the kitchen of this one place, all making European pastries and English breakfasts. We’re introduced to the <span style="font-style:italic;">tourier</span>. I had not heard of, or knew what a <span style="font-style:italic;">tourier</span> was until I read the book. <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">A tourier is a risen-pastry maker. ‘He’s not strictly a baker, or a patissier, or a confectioner; he is a tourier. …the tourier leans over his dough, folding and shaping with practised economy. Watching craftsmen craft is one of the quietest and deepest pleasures of a cack-handled life. The tourier arranges the pastry-pale, embryonic croissants on a slick baking tray and slides them into a rainforest-hot oven.</span><br /><br />I enjoyed leafing through and reading this book, I didn’t think I’d enjoy reading about A.A. Gill’s take on the intricacies of making and serving breakfast as much I did. This book is for anyone interested in food and the social intercourse that surrounds breakfast. It’s also for those who enjoy the thing that is a perfect, crisp, flaky croissant. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9mUnJaN8_iyoBAG9O7Xz-rwhnvEq6eJOaj2BLycJjYq4UFjdg_IPqQSk-ESzhQ-Iv2qj-t1aXU_1rPzLqxEF7AeBLmCdd2Usn1YUvqREHlsLQiaNv4-QpR8A9iHwdbBVMUTOrdbPkCS9t/s1600/croissants+baked+at+Wolseley.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 171px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9mUnJaN8_iyoBAG9O7Xz-rwhnvEq6eJOaj2BLycJjYq4UFjdg_IPqQSk-ESzhQ-Iv2qj-t1aXU_1rPzLqxEF7AeBLmCdd2Usn1YUvqREHlsLQiaNv4-QpR8A9iHwdbBVMUTOrdbPkCS9t/s320/croissants+baked+at+Wolseley.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454636973435372946" /></a><br />Fresh croissants from the oven at The Wolseleymeemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-58225712744923020592010-02-22T21:17:00.014+10:002010-02-22T21:36:43.532+10:00Bangers and Mash scream for ice creamI must say I signed up for this trial of Yoghurt Plus thinking it was literally yoghurt for dogs. I usually give my dogs Bangers and Mash a tablespoon or two of natural yoghurt several times a week. They love it. They lap up the cold stuff like we would ice cream, I imagine! I wasn’t quite so sure it was good for them though so I was very excited when I saw the Yoghurt Plus. I must say I was mistaken about <a href="http://www.yoghurtplus.com.au/dognutrition/">Yoghurt Plus</a> being yoghurt – it turned out to be dog kibble with lactose-free yoghurt added. Never mind my disappointment - Bangers and Mash seemed very excited when the delivery man dropped these off. Interestingly the product was developed by ex AFL player and sports personality John Crosbie Goold. He thought if probiotic bacteria is good for human digestion and general wellbeing, perhaps the same health benefits also could be harnessed in animals. After years of trials on animals in both commercial and domestic environments, Yoghurt Plus was born. The makers of this product believe that feeding our pets with this particular product helps with many health issues.<br /><br />The said benefits that I am interested in trialling on Bangers and Mash are:<br /><br />Reduction in stool volume and odour (poor Mash I am convinced has irritable bowel syndrome) <br />Healthy shiny coats<br />Reduction in lawn burn (this would be particularly helpful too)<br />increased immmunity<br /><br />It will be interesting to see if there are any changes in my dogs in the next several months. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Bangers and Mash take stock</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOVlgcCM5PdwcDAF69gqMWYVC0WGeYbFQe2mUGrCVg3cSNDX9hDR4diJKu8PoiaVvn-IGc5-hGz5JCDOcykRuDHX2wflEqN5qS9ym4NJtsDjrIX77Ez1TGBOvFHJKEgc4WyB5u1aXPUmFU/s1600-h/Yoghurt+Plus+002.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOVlgcCM5PdwcDAF69gqMWYVC0WGeYbFQe2mUGrCVg3cSNDX9hDR4diJKu8PoiaVvn-IGc5-hGz5JCDOcykRuDHX2wflEqN5qS9ym4NJtsDjrIX77Ez1TGBOvFHJKEgc4WyB5u1aXPUmFU/s320/Yoghurt+Plus+002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441026770751340962" /></a><br /><br />Bangers is a border collie/blue heeler/kelpie we think. He’s a rescue dog from the RSPCA.<br /><br />Mash is a border collie/spaniel(?), also a rescue dog from the <a href="http://www.rspca.org.au/">RSPCA</a>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg128p_3z_8anj2yGgRr110CE8SVsfVVCFKeQvioKriO53gltnCDmCNwcQBw6JchrRbCMSWeaKXBzTBkyp4wJYJC9NtjYe7CoknBEMpWjgdzGq13z7TXAzXItBW90ENZrWB_ExPlOFP8SJT/s1600-h/Yoghurt+Plus+001.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg128p_3z_8anj2yGgRr110CE8SVsfVVCFKeQvioKriO53gltnCDmCNwcQBw6JchrRbCMSWeaKXBzTBkyp4wJYJC9NtjYe7CoknBEMpWjgdzGq13z7TXAzXItBW90ENZrWB_ExPlOFP8SJT/s320/Yoghurt+Plus+001.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441027366796618770" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Day One of Yoghurt Plus </span><br />Bangers: Gave usual amount of food. Several hours later Bangers threw up a huge pile of the stuff. I’m not sure if he had a reaction to the new food. Thankfully I didn’t take a photo of his spew, it was rather, how shall we say, unappetising.<br /><br />Mash: Nothing came up – fine as normal.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Day Two</span><br />Bangers: Decreased the amount of food today. Seemed okay no evidence of chuckups in the garden.<br /><br />Mash: Same amout of food as Bangers. Love it. Want some more mum. Mash has terrible morning breath that seems to last all day. Let's see if this stuff clears up her poodle breath.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Day Three</span><br />Bangers & Mash: Nope, all seems okay though amount is less than what I’d give them. I notice that the fat content is 12% and 26% protein - their usual food is 10% fat and usually 20% protein. <br /><br />Both kids hang around in the kitchen a lot more than usual, waiting for scraps methinks.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-52062181001425960602010-02-19T13:44:00.013+10:002010-02-19T14:27:46.631+10:00Ducasse and his cookbook<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrRUNiSbNd49_KLmZJ-G2rdGN53SRWckpDJduZ9wduRe4GeSrZ9vzc-GYi-TsK4B7Mhq-jGGeHFIODlelObPe1F_7IdJV505CjvlH3-y0HJplq6t9liyaVEATKQCovoCJZ3M95gPZpraP/s1600-h/Ducasse+Spoon+Food+%26+Wine.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 144px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrRUNiSbNd49_KLmZJ-G2rdGN53SRWckpDJduZ9wduRe4GeSrZ9vzc-GYi-TsK4B7Mhq-jGGeHFIODlelObPe1F_7IdJV505CjvlH3-y0HJplq6t9liyaVEATKQCovoCJZ3M95gPZpraP/s200/Ducasse+Spoon+Food+%26+Wine.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439800544957807778" /></a><br />Alain Ducasse<br />Spoon Food and Wine review<br /><br />I am a big fan of books in general but have a very soft spot for food books and cook books. A post on Twitter recently by Barbara from <a href="http://www.winosandfoodies.com/2009/12/fail-george-my-big-fat-greek-fail.html">winos and foodies</a> on the unusability of some celebrity chef’s (he who shall be nameless!) recipes got me looking at cookbooks with a more critical eye. Sure, we’ve come across recipes that look good on paper but fail miserably even when you follow it to the tee. I think most of us have had that experience. Some recipes are perhaps inadequately tested in the kitchen, editors may have missed a typo in the amount of ingredients needed. A whole gamut of things can go wrong when dealing with recipes and cookbooks. <br /><br />I was excited when I found a book with Alain Ducasse’s recipes at the library. What was I expecting to see in a cookbook by the famous and very prolific French chef? Did I expect to see elements of haute cuisine reflected in the construction of text and photographs? Did I expect elegance and refinement reflected in the recipes? Monsieur Ducasse has many, many restaurants under his belt: his bars, restaurants and bistros litter the cities and countrysides of France, Monaco, Tokyo, America, Lebanon, Italy, England and Mauritius. Ducasse has a very impressive line up of eateries and yes, even more impressive that some of these restaurants have multiple Michelin stars. So what did I think of this cookbook? <br /><br />The <a href="http://www.alain-ducasse.com/data/communique_presse/0194_0.pdf">Spoon Food and Wine</a> cookbook covers recipes from Ducasse’s Spoon franchise. In his introduction, he states that the book was conceived in the ‘spirit of exploration, analysis and iconoclasm.’ He continues, “Anyway, that is how this book was designed. You will see that there are no one-way streets, that you are not trapped on a ‘motorway’ of taste. It’s a case of ‘as you like it’. If you want to take a side turning, reverse, start again, no one will stop you. But, when it comes to stopping short – no way! …in this sense, the cooking of Spoon is instinctive: chew, munch, eat, drink. These ‘deconstructed’ dishes have all the adapatability of basic cooking. What I like about the ethos of Spoon is that it combines the simplest, most fundamental gesture – dipping a spoon into an earthenware bowl – with modern sophistication.’<br /><br />I laughed at the motor highway metaphor for cooking styles and then I became confused over the description of the spoon being dipped into an earthenware bowl with utter modern sophisticated abandon. Wait a minute, my detection of pretension/wanker siren is going off! I know celebrities have great authority and say in a lot of things but when does an editor not edit or refine a clumsy introduction? It gets worse from here. The recipes seem relatively easy enough and aren’t overly too complicated but the problem with this book lies in its design elements. Surely you can have a well-designed book (think <a href="http://www.murdochbooks.com.au/news.htm">Murdoch Books</a>’ plethora of beautiful and practical cookbooks) with good-looking visuals without the book looking like the contents of a dog’s breakfast. <br /><br />The designer somehow has managed to turn a cookbook into a pseudo-people/fashion shoot and managed to talk the editor into agreeing to use the photos. Shots of attractive young things lounging in restaurants are interspersed throughout the book. Don’t get me wrong, the photographs in the book are beautifully and artistically shot. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif14Mr4oQpHlGVcr0h92tB6iEoFQvhr2GUnnEucg74gM1_slJyjBNmmIie92PpgpVSSLZPjqnel2wksUwF7CgY9ekYj7g16P_XSft8Yu1NaEeTR-ye0EDjgre-APTxen2TU6sZPfwymhpj/s1600-h/ducasse.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 230px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif14Mr4oQpHlGVcr0h92tB6iEoFQvhr2GUnnEucg74gM1_slJyjBNmmIie92PpgpVSSLZPjqnel2wksUwF7CgY9ekYj7g16P_XSft8Yu1NaEeTR-ye0EDjgre-APTxen2TU6sZPfwymhpj/s320/ducasse.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439801847782532498" /></a> <br /><br />What I would like to know is whether people find over-the-top design/photographic elements in a cookbook detract from the recipes and cooking techniques. I found my eyes roving across the pages, struggling to look for some semblance of ease of readability. Typographic inconsistencies rule on the page – recipe ingredients are condensed and line spacing reduced. The font used for the cooking instructions, on the other hand, is enlarged but printed ultra light with cooking steps in an extra bold red font. These red ‘steps’ punctuate the page too boldly and I found them very distracting because the actual instructions were so light therefore hard to read. Some of the choices of very busy background photographs render the ultra light font almost invisible. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXZ0SMHbtpwbiPoql1AgtmCDnj7Rw2c-QfM85CqtO0md_voaJvTAUVr_ElbQtdki28rkZvG-IV2IlCb0B0Nz8pu9n1CCKwvAh_g_kkpjWfakzQfFXOr5YZnYupvzv9_N3tdy2yQ40I4H_X/s1600-h/ducasse+recipe.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 230px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXZ0SMHbtpwbiPoql1AgtmCDnj7Rw2c-QfM85CqtO0md_voaJvTAUVr_ElbQtdki28rkZvG-IV2IlCb0B0Nz8pu9n1CCKwvAh_g_kkpjWfakzQfFXOr5YZnYupvzv9_N3tdy2yQ40I4H_X/s320/ducasse+recipe.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439802707456578594" /></a><br /><br />By now you’re probably thinking ‘what a bloody nitpicker’ but I am after all, a professional book indexer and I tend to look at things in great detail. If you’re thinking that I can’t pick this book apart anymore, I haven’t even started on the index! Two thirds of the pages dedicated to the index are supplemented by very large photographs of Ducasse’s compotes and salsas in tumblers. What use is an <a href="http://www2b.abc.net.au/tmb/Client/ReviewMessage.aspx?b=65&tn=162165">index</a> if you can’t use it or refer to it? (FYI, this link to a badly indexed book is quite hilarious) <br /><br />If you think you want to look up chicken dishes – you’d look under C for chicken or P for poultry. Well, chicken is not under ‘chicken’ or ‘poultry’ surprise, surprise. It’s under ‘seared chicken fillets’. Seafood is nowhere to be found, instead you’ll find it also under ‘seared red mullet, etc’ Desserts? Ice creams? Try ‘The big meringue’.<br /><br />Tomatoes? Forget it if you think it’s under ‘vegetables’ or ‘tomatoes’ – it’s under ‘stuffed tomatoes and potato straws’. I could go on and on but I won’t bore you. If there was ever a nomination for a bad index: this is it. This thoroughly inadequate index, is after all, a fitting end to a very superficial fashionable book about the way food should look and the kinds of people who aspire to eat at the Spoon establishment. There is no warmth or generosity depicted in any of the pictures – the images of food is gorgeous (yes) but clinical and exacting, devoid of any emotion or spontaneity. This book leaves me stone cold and I am glad I didn’t invest money indulging in something so inaccessible and unapproachable.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-30090384761277589022010-02-09T14:10:00.014+10:002010-02-09T14:37:20.626+10:00A hop, skip and a jump to Grasshopper Kitchen<a href="http://grasshopperkitchen.com/">Grasshopper Kitchen</a> is injecting much life into the retail strip on Vernon Terrace. The interior space utilises the building’s history as a wool store with its part distressed walls, made it part quirky with hessian bag lamp coverings and thrown in a bit of chic with a sleek fitout. This fusion of many design elements extend into the East-meets-West menu. <br /><br />Grasshopper was the venue for the second Brisbane’s food bloggers’ dinner organised by <a href="http://www.gastronomygal.com/">Gastronomy Gal</a> and <a href="http://melangerbaking.com/">Melanger Baking</a>, and what an enjoyable night it was. Todd Rumble, proprietor of the wine bar, Claret House played host and gave an informative and entertaining wine commentary on the night. Six interesting wines were matched with six courses. Australian wines from the Tamar Valley, Margaret River and Orange were featured, Argentinian and French made the rest of the tasting. The six courses were a tasting menu for their autumn set so we all got a taste preview. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUjlz4nu4OXMdDsiZlan2cdZ8BNJRGSvfYJorc-wDEeoQzCMjLjwgjN7r6sg8qVOgsoWofA-CVYORO7IEaj7z75stPPo2MTpunoPejecbuTuXG4Y5tKOpvEHsCRfjIHfdRAk40W3oDgED6/s1600-h/Grasshopper+Kitchen+001.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUjlz4nu4OXMdDsiZlan2cdZ8BNJRGSvfYJorc-wDEeoQzCMjLjwgjN7r6sg8qVOgsoWofA-CVYORO7IEaj7z75stPPo2MTpunoPejecbuTuXG4Y5tKOpvEHsCRfjIHfdRAk40W3oDgED6/s200/Grasshopper+Kitchen+001.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436095013470496674" /></a><br />Japanese scallop with duck ma hor, prosciutto with daikon and wasabi puree<br /><br />Dishes were presented delicately and beautifully – highlights being the slow braised beef cheek in a Vietnamese-style stock with a chilli polenta cake and baby vegetables. The cheek was rich and gelatinous, its flesh melting away from our forks. The scallops presented with sliver of prosciutto and a version of a Thai-style duck ma hor (or also known as galloping horse) was another highlight. The scallop was plump and sweet contrasting nicely with the salty prosciutto; the minced duck with peanuts was spicy and sweet at the same time with I think, minced pineapple on top. The daikon and wasabi puree tasted deceptively like cauliflower – it was very good with a bit of kick. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUozqeHO9fUEs8cOXRv41CJ9iTqDGsgmYRKPTFkdI7xRtXCnj6yEC_TtTJJi6zYEjoCTBzE4LqqMC9hF9btxuT4W1uWwz-6hNSr0FFgIORR-1Xfg_1lmHBChXoPmal_461dGLGA1OWU8S_/s1600-h/Grasshopper+Kitchen+002.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUozqeHO9fUEs8cOXRv41CJ9iTqDGsgmYRKPTFkdI7xRtXCnj6yEC_TtTJJi6zYEjoCTBzE4LqqMC9hF9btxuT4W1uWwz-6hNSr0FFgIORR-1Xfg_1lmHBChXoPmal_461dGLGA1OWU8S_/s200/Grasshopper+Kitchen+002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436095646653151074" /></a><br />Beef cheek slow braised for six hours in Vietnamese-style aromatic stock with coriander chilli polenta cake and baby turnip & carrot<br /><br />Having had a degustation menu here, it will be interesting to see what their normal a la carte menu is like. We didn’t just indulgently enjoy ourselves, the proceeds of our dinner went to Sydney’s Red Lantern restaurateur, Luke Nguyen and Suzanna Boyd’s <a href="http://www.littlelanternfoundation.org/">Little Lantern Foundation,</a> a non profit project for disadvantaged and underprivileged Vietnamese. Grasshopper’s talented head chef Minh Le shares a very similar refugee story to Luke Nguyen, arriving in Australia in 1979. The people who call for an end to accepting boat people should remember that refugees and migrants who come to Australia deserve a chance. Imagine an Australia without Cheong Liew, Frank Camorra, Tetsuya Wakuda, Kylie Kwong, Luke Nguyen, Janni Kyritsis, or George Calombaris (heaven forbid!). What a poor culinary abyss we’d be without them. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.clarethouse.com.au/">Claret House</a>, by the way, is conveniently located next door to Grasshopper if you decide you want to amble along and have a taste of some niche wines.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-76151354387536783142010-01-17T21:42:00.010+10:002010-01-17T22:03:15.173+10:00Buffalo Bill rides againSo the birthday dinner had to wait, so what? Buffalo Club would open a week later than I had wanted, and yes, I realise that chefs and restaurateurs have to have a break sometime too, just like the rest of us.<br /><br />The crew at Buffalo were booked out upon reopening in 2010 so we were put on a waiting list. We didn’t have to wait too long, we were promptly told that somebody had cancelled and we could take their place. We couldn’t wait to eat. <br /><br />The dining room is understated, dark and slightly broody. Juxtapose that sombre, almost monastic atmosphere with the floor-to-ceiling window showcase at the end of the room; and what you have is a window into another world – a little bit of the craziness of the Valley snakes its way into the atmosphere of the space. <br /><br /><a href="http://gourmettraveller.com.au/the-buffalo-clubGT10.htm">Ryan Squires</a> has won many acclaim for his innovative food. The latest gong is for‘Best New Talent’ in the Australian Gourmet Traveller food awards. It’s easy to be caught up in all the media hype and glam, to succumb to food critics’ praises and idiosyncracies. <br /><br />The night we went we were told that there was only one menu and everyone was having the same thing. 10 courses with petit fours for $120. I wondered later about the poor vegetarians. Most establishments these days have a very good degustation menu for vegetarians and most deal well with diners with allergies. I’m glad I don’t fall into the vegetarian camp for I wouldn’t have been able to eat anything – except perhaps one palate cleanser and the dessert courses. <br /><br />I won’t launch into a blow-by-blow account of what we ate in succession but will point out the highlights and lowlights of the night. The Pinkie reef fish sourced from Southport was delicious – the flesh was pink and firm, the flavour of the fish was subtle and sweet. Buffalo yoghurt, paw paw, apricot, date puree and a curious addition, Madras curry flavoured malto and pine nuts. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW49JEkjofo82IxZFCNp7YaOpUEqUPS2mgmLWv5obe_lhyphenhyphendmh96Owoz_8tOyyOm2kD1Iji1fSR2bHsitnX1YqBb91Kzq-sV1lxbgLcHoYs55Oj0u6owG2aWyLASyCMhMTSgUzyAzgERSI-/s1600-h/Pinkie+reef+fish.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW49JEkjofo82IxZFCNp7YaOpUEqUPS2mgmLWv5obe_lhyphenhyphendmh96Owoz_8tOyyOm2kD1Iji1fSR2bHsitnX1YqBb91Kzq-sV1lxbgLcHoYs55Oj0u6owG2aWyLASyCMhMTSgUzyAzgERSI-/s200/Pinkie+reef+fish.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427675013799019906" /></a><br /><br />The ‘Calotte’was the highlight of the night: a cube of grade 12 Wagyu beef with pea and horseradish puree, mushroom and truffle puree, dried garlic slivers, basil, puffed wild rice and red onion dust. The beef had been cooked sous vide in a water bath and then grilled. The double-cooked cube was extremely tender and the fat marbling in the meat worked well, creating a wonderful mouthfeel and flavour. It was so good I wish I had more than a few mouthfuls at this stage! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinXMNmpnTAoRqcPW1kSpFhbsaH-JH-aViS7w-K2xE4n-0OvU3ynKJMcHybAim3fmu-tvvLER8KrNYkX2MsC3LMdFHAv_CD5-YpHKVyPT16xd4aSq_yKRc1bvNAllHbcPp8IhE3PdRC9Y2u/s1600-h/Wagyu+beef.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinXMNmpnTAoRqcPW1kSpFhbsaH-JH-aViS7w-K2xE4n-0OvU3ynKJMcHybAim3fmu-tvvLER8KrNYkX2MsC3LMdFHAv_CD5-YpHKVyPT16xd4aSq_yKRc1bvNAllHbcPp8IhE3PdRC9Y2u/s200/Wagyu+beef.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427675421560644018" /></a><br />An interesting dish was the Iranian Osietra caviar with a selection of heirloom tomatoes with smoked duck fat in malto form with raisins and tiny pillow of pastry. The white powder that is duck fat melts in your mouth to create a pretty great taste sensation with the caviar. Squire’s big on maltodextrin powders to create mouthfeel and flavour sensations. Spain magic must still flow in Squire's blood for a bit of Spain creeps into the menu here – the Spanish touch is realised through the extensive use of Manchego cheese in various guises – it’s used as garnishing, stuffing and starter. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn6pWaCKnuE89ZD8Mn6_kV0DxDJAek-qQI7JUXtwiQeLIbGfzGlODR6emDx1ozl5OHl-IwoyPDltG2ziIRyFDoo96d8GHqFWNRyVbkNwe4RITlypTuATo8STx7bA5l-8Ox9LsKhE5zpdiP/s1600-h/heirloom+tomatoes.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn6pWaCKnuE89ZD8Mn6_kV0DxDJAek-qQI7JUXtwiQeLIbGfzGlODR6emDx1ozl5OHl-IwoyPDltG2ziIRyFDoo96d8GHqFWNRyVbkNwe4RITlypTuATo8STx7bA5l-8Ox9LsKhE5zpdiP/s200/heirloom+tomatoes.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427676097801228130" /></a><br /><br />Some of the lowlights were the ‘Crevette’ – in this case, mine was with baby octopus (I am allergic to prawns) with honey gel, perilla and black sesame paste, avoado puree and eggplant puree. The octopus although tender was completely overpowered by the very salty and overpowering black sesame paste. I tried my best to sort out the flavours in the paste but for the life of me, couldn’t discern the perilla or the black sesame. All I could taste was overpowering sticky soy. It killed all other accompanying flavours and in the end, I left most of the sauce and ate the rest. The honey was overly sweet and the avocado was bland. The eggplant puree was the star – it was naturally smoky and sweet capturing the essence of the fruit. <br /><br />The other course that I wasn’t so sure worked was the foie gras, marshmallow, limoncello jelly and tamari-coated almonds. A very thin sliver of foie gras mousse was completely overpowered by the uber sweet marshmallow pudding, the tamari almonds packed a too-salty punch and the limoncello jelly added to the confusion with its sweet/tangy and sour notes. I’m not sure the foie gras needed all the confused embellishments – which was a shame because not did I once get the taste of liver coming through. <br /><br />What is very clear is that Buffalo Club’s chefs excel in their clever techniques and manipulation of food ingredients and have no doubt, excellent plating-up skills as the dishes are like little works of art. What I felt was lacking is this: ingredients that are fresh and obvious star ingredients in a dish are often compromised by awfully complicated and confused companion gels, foams and purees. These overpowering and sometimes conflicting flavours completely take away from the dish, not complement them. What is also lacking is the professionalism and friendliness of its staff. For an establishment of this calibre, it was disappointing to see staff rushed and abrupt. Instead of providing the highest quality of service, waiters were spilling water on tables, not bothering to clean up after the spill and generally the mood was one of disinterest. In comparable establishments like The Press Club and Vue de Monde, service is noticeably more professional, welcoming and friendly. This is perhaps a little stumble on Buffalo’s part, I feel the potential for a complete package of excellent service and innovative food should be something good restaurants should strive for. It’s got the goods on food and with a little more interest from staff, it’d be an experience worth repeating.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-29619724877774187712009-12-29T15:43:00.007+10:002009-12-29T15:54:39.579+10:00Vapiano Si Si<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFy1iIHY5nSPeNjUi-JXiLDPOIUjhCK7AgoqeBXfOXFgDkx-h6oOZ7DwojtWPidJri9TAMM11Hmhd2r6yEEcvTaNhi-6UFfVxU4hLKWKz-hqwteNsOlNog4xjwE4CVgtKexuGOl7fJpNfY/s1600-h/Vapiano+map.gif"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFy1iIHY5nSPeNjUi-JXiLDPOIUjhCK7AgoqeBXfOXFgDkx-h6oOZ7DwojtWPidJri9TAMM11Hmhd2r6yEEcvTaNhi-6UFfVxU4hLKWKz-hqwteNsOlNog4xjwE4CVgtKexuGOl7fJpNfY/s200/Vapiano+map.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420532029246756786" /></a><br /><br />European Italian pasta/pizza bar <a href="http://www.vapiano.com.au/">Vapiano</a> has officially opened its doors in Brisbane’s revamped Albert Lane. Australia is probably as far flung a venue as it can get, the chain originates from Hamburg. Germany. Its concept stores are found across Europe, the USA and in Mexico, The United Arab Emirates and Korea. <a href="http://http://www.franchise.net.au/Article/Vapiano-expands-into-Aus/508825.aspx">Will Cooke</a>, local director of Vapiano is a courageous man with much confidence in Brisbane. Why courageous? Because he’s chosen Brisbane over Sydney to open the first Vapiano franchise. <a href="http://www.redagency.com.au/people.php">Red Agency’s Marissa Tree </a>extended an invite to me a couple of weeks ago and I was keen to see what Vapiano has in store for Brisbane. It’s set up right at the end of the Albert Lane development – it’s big, bold and spacious. If you thought Melbourne alleyway, you’d be right; but this space is far more spacious than initially meets the eye. There are two levels of beech-coloured wood fitouts, smart and funky seats and nooks for casual lounging and bar hopping. There is a bar on each level with a choice of communal and individual tables for dining. The space doesn’t feel too contrived and the use of natural elements like the twig ball of lights, marble condiment holders and the fact there is a lot of natural light streaming into the space makes this a very pleasant place to eat and linger in. The décor is restrained and it’s nice that an olive tree sits, rather naturally in the middle of the room on the first level. <br /><br />The terracotta pots of sweet basil and rosemary on each table make this a very homely and casual experience. Diners are encouraged to pick from the herb pots to add to their meals. There is chilli oil, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper on all tables so it’s very DIY. I think I’d like to see marjoram, Italian parsley and thyme being added to the family of herbs. The coolest part of the space for me, is the nursery of herbs in the elevated section of the first level – it feels a bit like a greenhouse and provides jaded city shoppers a fresh alternative to a walk in the Botanic Gardens.<br /><br />You may be struck by the amount of people working behind the counters (I was!)– all staff members were going gung-ho at the same time – busy flipping pizza bases, running into each other, cooking pasta and making salads. There were the obvious first day jitters but the staff seem to have relaxed into their new roles on second visit. <br /><br />The chip card system takes a little getting used to but if it works everywhere else around the world, it will work here too. Vapiano’s helpful staff are more than happy to explain how the system works. Order at either the pasta/pizza counters and then swipe your card –pay at the end with minimal fuss of splitting bills, etc. Vapiano may wear the fast food concept badge but Will says that the aim is to use locally-sourced ingredients. Cheeses come from far north Queensland, olive oils sourced from the South Burnett region and other produce from the South East corner. The philosophy behind the brand is admirable and let’s hope they keep it that way. Pastas and pizzas range from $13 to $19, with salads $7 and $13. Order your dish and the food is cooked before you. <br /><br />Drink prices are kept reasonably low as well. Vapiano fills a bit of a gap in the market in Brisbane’s fast food scene – it provides accessible pricing for good quality food. It’s trading hours are also an attractive feature – it’s open 11am–11pm seven days a week. No longer will you have to grab a greasy burger or resort to starvation the next time you’re stuck in the city at night after a gig. The coffees are decently priced and are consistently made too, which is always a bonus in the heart of Queen Street.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-7825442559379273422009-12-08T20:26:00.011+10:002009-12-09T08:03:55.031+10:00Regional Chinese Cooking by Deh-Ta Hsiung<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzhyphenhyphenXCgb9gs_HzCrBlej_3OPh985gEczaM7STftSl2NA6hs8cLToBdf6tZOPoTNLAII0lzSHxfaD8wkUzes5-s7prBokthwH_AKHgtupQbL34FbD8ezWO8A5vFtfV11g7p9IlwlLB0dVk/s1600-h/Regional+chinese+cooking.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 134px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzhyphenhyphenXCgb9gs_HzCrBlej_3OPh985gEczaM7STftSl2NA6hs8cLToBdf6tZOPoTNLAII0lzSHxfaD8wkUzes5-s7prBokthwH_AKHgtupQbL34FbD8ezWO8A5vFtfV11g7p9IlwlLB0dVk/s200/Regional+chinese+cooking.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412988217741927378" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />Regional Chinese Cooking: the art and practice of the world’s most diverse cuisine<br />By Deh-Ta Hsiung<br /><br />Old cookbooks provide such useful social and cultural insights into how and what people ate in a certain period in time. Regional Chinese Cooking is no exception: it’s not entirely that old, printed in 1979 but the pictures, commentary and ingredients used is fascinating and reading through it tells us how much China has changed. The author, <a href="http://www.chinese-at-table.com/index.html">Deh-Ta Hsiung</a> is a self-taught cook, food consultant and ex film assistant director, born in Beijing, living in London for the last 50 years. He boasts a classical Chinese upbringing, his ancestors include a host of scholars and gourmets. His travels around China is well documented in his book, Regional Chinese Cooking. <br /><br />The photographs capture the 70s where everyday people still wore the blue Mao uniforms, and the People’s Liberation Army’s green military-style uniforms. The photos speak of a time when agriculture and subsistence farming was practiced widely and of great importance to the Chinese population. Take photos now and China is a very different place, the skies are polluted in the big cities, motorbikes and cars are now overtaking bicycles, and subsistence farming is well, pretty much being phased out. Nevertheless the photographs and commentary provide an interesting glimpse into Chinese psyche 30 years ago. <br /><br />The book is divided into the basics of Chinese cookery with essentials like common utensils, cooking techniques and ingredients. Cooking styles are broken into Peking or Northern school, Shanghai or Eastern school, Sichuan or Western school and Canton or Southern school. The book is by no means an exhaustive treaty on all the regional dishes available but it does provide a good cross section of food – a lot of which we don’t ever see in restaurants in Australia, let alone Brisbane. <br /><br />There are even recipes from the Imperial kitchens of the Forbidden City. Thousand-layer cake (okay, only 81 layers!) for special occasions complete with lard and walnuts. Sharks’ fin soup also features – no traditional Chinese person worth their salt would consider having a grand banquet, or any kind of celebratory banquet without this status-symbol dish. We all know how wasteful and environmentally unfriendly this little piece of fin is but try convincing the sharks’ fin die-hards that this practice must be stopped. <br /><br />Some dishes border on obsessive about the intricacies of colour and contrasting textures. ‘Mixed Three Whites’ is curiously indexed under ‘Vegetables’ when its major ingredient is chicken breast. I digress. The three whites here are: cooked chicken breast meat, canned (!) white asparagus and white cabbage heart. The three major ingredients are kept as white as possible with the addition of milk and cornflour. The obsession with white continues throughout the book. Another all white dish is the ‘Three Whites Assembly’ again complete with canned white asparagus, abalone and winter bamboo tips. And no, we haven’t accidentally ventured onto Krzysztof Kieslowski’s set of the <a href="http://www.filmref.com/directors/dirpages/kieslowski.html#white">Three Colours:White series</a>. <br /><br />The Chinese appreciate beautiful and poetic-sounding names for dishes – crystal sugar pork, plum blossom and snow competing for spring (a dessert dish of apples, bananas and milk), dragon and phoenix legs, bright moon and red pine chicken, three fairies in their own juice (poussin, duckling and pork in case you’re wondering) and perhaps, not the most flattering – ma pa tofu or its literal translation, ‘pock-marked woman bean curd’. Delicious though! Continuing on from the poetic dish names, <a href="http://www.thegrangerestaurant.com.au/gallery-and-fun">Cheong Liew </a>must have been inspired by the ‘stewed four treasures’ as inspiration for his upmarket version in ‘four dances of the sea’. Hsiung’s version is a much simpler but still complex stew of rehydrated fish lips, abalone, bamboo shoots, broccoli, rice wine vinegar and Chinese aromats. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3gO_rE5hkoN51I6CXWSnIVfshwiIbp0cXCyxwgZdoXuUke92HlbXDONp5BURA_56E8jad9AGBiPOWQaQEKlAsius8ByFMYt1eBqCN9-TVFxSX9WmHJrk0uvk43ykj4f0kG6gZRq5Cn46/s1600-h/Stewed+Four+Treasures.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3gO_rE5hkoN51I6CXWSnIVfshwiIbp0cXCyxwgZdoXuUke92HlbXDONp5BURA_56E8jad9AGBiPOWQaQEKlAsius8ByFMYt1eBqCN9-TVFxSX9WmHJrk0uvk43ykj4f0kG6gZRq5Cn46/s200/Stewed+Four+Treasures.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412812423326080594" /></a><br />The photo above is of the Stewed Four Treasures dish.<br /><br />Kidneys feature highly on Hisung’s cooking radar; about four in total dedicated to the star ingredient, pork kidneys. Other offal are co-stars in his concoctions. How often do you see shredded kidney in wine sauce, five-fragrant kidney slices, stir-fried kidney flowers and hot and sour kidneys in your local Chinese takeaway?<br /><br />You’ll discover in reading this book that monosodium glutamate reigned supreme in the 1970s. Judging by the recipes, it was used liberally in the restaurant industry. You probably won’t find any Chinese cookbooks now urging you to add a teaspoon of the white powder. I remember my grandmother using the msg brand of Ajinomoto liberally in my childhood – no bloody wonder the food tasted so good!<br /><br />Chinese restaurants that pour commercial sweet and sour gloop all over chicken, pork and fish should be ashamed of themselves. They really give Chinese food a bad name. Here, in Hsiung’s book – you’ll find recipes for sweet and sour sauce. Wait for it – it’s not all red food colouring, chemicals and artificial thickeners. Authentic sweet and sour has a balance of sweet, sour and salty. Basic sweet and sour sauce is a combination of wine vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, rice wine and cornstarch with other modifications, or additions, depending on your choice of meat, etc. There really is no excuse for not making your own, especially if you’re a restaurateur with some shred of culinary dignity. <br /><br />Last but not least, Hsiung gives helpful hints to the tea novice – how to pick what teas and the art of drinking and brewing tea leaves. And there’s no better time to drink copious amounts of tea when you’re diving into steamers full of dim sum. <br /><br />This book is really interesting even if you don’t make anything from it – it provides a brilliant culinary time capsule on what was acceptable 30 years ago and how some of those ingredients are almost taboo now, i.e. the use of msg and sharks’ fin. The author’s done a fine job of knowing which popular dishes to showcase; juxtapositioning crowd favourites with more obscure dishes you don’t ever see in restaurants. It gives us a glimpse into how diverse and varied Chinese cuisine really is, and to start to eat like the Chinese, we’ve got to somehow demand for better and more interesting dishes from our Chinese restaurants.meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-35672923157338525962009-12-04T17:09:00.006+10:002009-12-04T17:17:44.663+10:00getting over baking phobia with bananas<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEnE4NmT53s08OsDiXJ2nJwEeTWcmiFzVtu2wdoarcLUGNRu_75Ct7zj8ihKgBEIsCG5YivL2rioUmj4AU3hBIfnqn9l3h6AnTfXj7Msw4yaWufhsWPw8nJcmxykIB4-MrkAxRGxe-9Xj/s1600-h/Blog+banana+cake+002.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEnE4NmT53s08OsDiXJ2nJwEeTWcmiFzVtu2wdoarcLUGNRu_75Ct7zj8ihKgBEIsCG5YivL2rioUmj4AU3hBIfnqn9l3h6AnTfXj7Msw4yaWufhsWPw8nJcmxykIB4-MrkAxRGxe-9Xj/s200/Blog+banana+cake+002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411276026674124626" /></a><br /><br />Baking phobia aside, I am turning over a new leaf by Christmas 2009. I have been compelled to bake recently. I’ve baked two cakes in a week! Perhaps I was bored and perhaps I need to fill in time while I procrastinated by not wanting to finish my index projects. I mean what on earth was I going to do with my very black, almost liquefied bananas fermenting in the fruit bowl? What does a non-baker do when starting to bake? Why, we look up the most easy recipes to work with! It’s surprising to me how many cookbooks don’t have basic recipes for things like banana cake. I finally found one online – it looked so simple and no-fuss, I almost didn’t copy down the recipe. Those who know me will know I didn’t follow it 100%.<br /><br />I tweaked the recipe here and there and the result is I have to say, pretty smashingly delicious! This banana cake recipe is for those who have no time but want to bake and see results within an hour; and useful to those who have festering blackening bananas abuzz with fruit flies in the fruit basket. Apologies to the person who came up with this recipe online, I cannot for the life of me find the site where I found the recipe. This is by far one of the easiest cakes I’ve ever made, it was moist and very tasty.<br /><br />Here is original banana cake recipe:<br /><br />125g butter<br />¾ c sugar<br />1 tsp vanilla essence<br />1 egg<br />2 ripe bananas<br />1½ c self raising flour<br />¼ c milk<br /><br />Melt butter, sugar and vanilla together.<br />Add mashed bananas to the mixture until well blended<br />Add eggs and mix well.<br />Stir in flour, add milk and mix lightly.<br /><br />Bake in 170c oven for around 40 mins. <br /><br />Meemuncher tweaked version of banana cake:<br /><br />125g butter<br />¾ c sugar (a 2/3 mix of caster sugar & rest brown sugar)<br />1 tsp vanilla extract<br />1 egg<br />3 ripe bananas (for extra flavour and moistness)<br />1½ c self raising flour (add another handful of flour to the1½ c as there is slightly more banana now)<br />very small pinch of baking powder<br />¼ milk<br />grating of nutmeg (to taste)<br />a dash of ground cinnamon<br />handful of pecan or walnuts to sit on top of cake<br /><br />Melt butter, sugar and vanilla extract together until all melted through.<br />Mash bananas, add grated nutmeg and cinnamon, throw into melted butter mixture.<br />Add egg and mix well.<br />Stir in flour and lightly mix.<br />Add milk and incorporate thoroughly.<br />Delicately place nuts on top of cake batter.<br />Bake in 170c oven for around 40–45 mins in 20cm tin.<br /><br />Verdict: pretty damn delicious for something that almost takes no effort.The nutmeg and cinnamon give this cake a bit of the oomph factor I think it needed. <br /><br />I was so chuffed I thought I'd post some photos of my cake, minus a big slice!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSgjLHoMgMlaIjw6I8KQSg0If3zLWfFC6ywftDvbNv5dMNyBswc7o9z3MQseL_r6MaGGn6ovSliGD3-fXK8yXa3qzql6WyAGLP_U05bhok9lnz7ZLGThK_RFAUCTQUH8kjdO7W8D_xSZX8/s1600-h/Blog+banana+cake+001.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSgjLHoMgMlaIjw6I8KQSg0If3zLWfFC6ywftDvbNv5dMNyBswc7o9z3MQseL_r6MaGGn6ovSliGD3-fXK8yXa3qzql6WyAGLP_U05bhok9lnz7ZLGThK_RFAUCTQUH8kjdO7W8D_xSZX8/s200/Blog+banana+cake+001.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411275715649574114" /></a>meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5202256877144360822.post-76685818978567774362009-11-17T12:34:00.015+10:002009-11-18T08:14:19.575+10:00Traditional Torres Strait Island Cooking - Ron Edwards<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJjNEs4uDZRC8y9HqhoKEXQoRiQSSnhR6hE2gzQ-rPRIYAaMb24zNOeEjOpb-sU9NEk5r7yqEz0rZlRBXXB9g8YBgCyZwxHC_fecLPWwBqOBmG51VhIcSKlyyWhSRFSsO0TPt8dHXPGP5M/s1600/Torres+Strait+Island+Cooking.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 158px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJjNEs4uDZRC8y9HqhoKEXQoRiQSSnhR6hE2gzQ-rPRIYAaMb24zNOeEjOpb-sU9NEk5r7yqEz0rZlRBXXB9g8YBgCyZwxHC_fecLPWwBqOBmG51VhIcSKlyyWhSRFSsO0TPt8dHXPGP5M/s200/Torres+Strait+Island+Cooking.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404897183827192290" /></a><br /><br />Traditional Torres Strait Islander Cookbook: favourite recipes from the Islands<br />Collected and compiled by Ron Edwards<br /><br />The prolific bushie/folksinger/publisher/bushcraft collector/writer/illustrator <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/news/obituaries/determined-to-keep-the-songs-alive/2008/02/06/1202233938364.html">Ron Edwards</a> died in 2008. He left the rest of us a rich and lasting legacy of the culture of indigenous peoples up north Queensland and beyond to the islands of the Torres Straits. His publishing company <a href="http://www.ramsskullpress.com/indigenous.html">Rams Skull Press</a> published approximately 350 books on bushcraft, leatherwork, whipmaking, bush ballads, songs from indigenous tribes and the odd cookery book. Traditional Torres Strait Island Cooking is a collection of favourite recipes from the Straits. Edwards collected the material back in the 1960s but the collection was only published in 1988. Let’s not underestimate the curiousity in island cooking, with 3 editions under its belt it’s testament of the public’s growing interest in indigenous methods of cooking.<br /><br />The book is apparently being used by younger generations of Islanders trying to reconnect with their ancestry by cooking traditional fare. The cooking of the Torres Straits is an interesting and diverse mix of culinary input from the Chinese, Indonesians and Japanese. This intermix of ingredients and techniques highlight the multicultural diversity of this little known region. <br /><br />Islanders also cook using the ‘kup maori’ method: cooking over hot stones, yes, just like the hangis the Maoris of New Zealand love so much! Coconuts feature heavily in Islander cuisine as it will come as no surprise. Many dishes called ‘sabee’ are meat cuts or cassava and vegetables stewed in coconut milk. Taro and taro leaves and stems are another favourite of the Islanders – these delicious tubers take on another dimension when braised for hours in rich coconut mik. <br /><br />The Islander love their fish and they have a version of the ceviche called numus. Sabee numus (raw fish) is any close, textured raw fish soaked in lime juice and coconut milk. Numus is raw fish steeped in a concoction of onion, garlic, baking soda and vinegar. There is a whole chapter dedicated to the beloved green turtle – a favourite with many traditional Islander and Aboriginal groups. I have partaken in a little green turtle stew, a Maori Islander friend flew all the way back from Weipa once with a tub of the stuff for me to try. It was an interesting texture, the gravy was slightly grainy – the meat tasted a little like pork but stronger flavoured, and I kept thinking there was a distinct aquatic quality to the meat somehow. My friend says that turtle blood is bright green! <br /><br />I remember sucking on rubbery turtle eggs as a child. My grandmother brought them home from the wet markets one day and I remember squishing the rubbery egg sacs to get its contents out. I don’t remember the taste of them but memories of them being like flattened ping pong balls when we finished with them come to mind. <br /><br />The book is broken up into an introduction of traditional cooking utensils; use of coconuts; meat; chicken; seafood; turtles; sambals; fruit; rice and dampers and sweet and savoury fruit salads. <br /><br />There is a whole chapter dedicated to the beloved green turtle – a favourite with many traditional Islander and Aboriginal groups. I have partaken in a little green turtle stew, a Maori Islander friend flew all the way back from Weipa once with a tub of the stuff for me to try. It was an interesting texture, the gravy was slightly grainy – the meat tasted a little like pork but stronger flavoured, and I kept thinking there was a distinct aquatic quality to the meat somehow. My friend says that turtle blood is bright green! There are 8 recipes in the book for turtle. Turtle soup sounds interesting if anybody is up to making it, here is the recipe: <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Turtle Soup</span><br /><br />Turtle tripe, diced<br />1/2 kg turtle fat, diced<br />1kg turtle meat, diced<br />some small pieces of turtle liver, diced<br />set of turtle lungs, diced<br />6 turtle eggs<br />1 bunch lemongrass or 2 knobs of crushed ginger<br />¼ litre turtle blood<br />salt to taste <br />water<br /><br />Place all ingredients except the blood in a pan, cove with water and simmer for one hour. <br />Thin blood with half cup of water, add this to the pan and simmer for another hour. Discard the lemongrass before serving.<br /><br />There’s curried turtle flippers, and turtle sausages and scrambled turtle eggs too. I remember sucking on rubbery turtle eggs as a child. My grandmother brought them home from the wet markets one day and I remember squishing the rubbery egg sacs to get its contents out. I don’t remember the taste of them but memories of them being like flattened ping pong balls when we finished with them come to mind. <br /><br />This recipe caught my eye:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Roast banana and turtle oil</span><br /><br />12 half ripe bananas (plantains)<br />1 cup turtle oil<br /><br />Place the half ripe bananas on hot coals until the skins are charred. Remove the skins by scrapping. Place the bananas in a dish and mash them. Stir in the turtle oil and serve. <br /><br />Turtle oil is obtained by skimming it off when the turtle is being cooked in the shell and keeping it until needed. <br /><br />This is an extremely rich dish and not to everyone’s taste.<br /><br />Having set down some sensationalist-type recipes to tantalise the cogs of your culinary imagination, rest assured, there are some more modest recipes that you can use at home. This is a recommended read for anybody with an anthropological interest in indigenous peoples’ foods.<br /><br />Below is a turtle flipper spatula given to me by my dear friend Muriwai, her family's eating memories are rich and steeped in a mix of traditional and contemporary dishes. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEWil8gWhGpx9L72PbSLG6jIkwRuOFiyKLWNoiMSfU75Hkhm-s1SR08QjWc1nCoebPk-wIxeypEkoSdkKbmk6QxCvDHeUEyvXX5deh3GBYIudLpJJ7bTq5cFL9Lk-HNV0qkSa2z6MxPe8T/s1600/turtle+flipper+utensil.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEWil8gWhGpx9L72PbSLG6jIkwRuOFiyKLWNoiMSfU75Hkhm-s1SR08QjWc1nCoebPk-wIxeypEkoSdkKbmk6QxCvDHeUEyvXX5deh3GBYIudLpJJ7bTq5cFL9Lk-HNV0qkSa2z6MxPe8T/s200/turtle+flipper+utensil.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404896320934754290" /></a>meemuncherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16261921646588597844noreply@blogger.com0