A Father’s day special: brunch at Garfish with my Dad. Plus a big happy Father’s Day to all my favourite fathers!

 

My Dad is in Innamincka today, having a Father’s day barbeque. I’m jealous and I wish I was going to be there later this afternoon to share a steak with him and his travelling companion (Uncle B) with Mum and Mr L, the GFD, my SIL, the super neph and the rest of our family. In their absence and in honour of Father’s day, I’ve decided to tell you about a day that my Dad and I had together a few weeks ago. 

Walking with my Dad means more burgers are possible (don’t tell Mum!)

I mentioned previously that I’ve been enjoying doing the Bay Walk recently. Going it alone is cool, but I love to walk with company. My Dad has become a top walking buddy – and recently we’ve tried to do the walk a couple of times a week. Being far more of a talker than Dad, I generally talk my way around about 6,550 metres and the remaining 450 are filled by Dad’s words or silence.  

I know you've seen it before - the avenue up to the Rozelle section of the Bay Walk

On our first walking day, we discussed the concept that more walking (and calorie burning) meant that it was possible for us to eat more burgers (as we’d burn them off faster), and of course, by the time we’d made it around the 7 km circuit, had made ourselves somewhat ravenous. I’d spent much of the time chattering incessantly about recent food exploits – to the point where within his alloted 450 m of talk time, Dad said “Is there anywhere you haven’t eaten?”  (FYI – there are lots of places I haven’t eaten… Watch this space!) In particular we spoke about my love for corn fritters, with those that I’d shared with BF at Adriano Zumbo’s Balmain cafe still lingering in my mind from the weekend before. 

We resolved to find some and headed off in search of Orange Peel Cafe on Beattie Street at Balmain.  (Hey – you get hungry after a 7km walk!)

A lesson learnt – not all cafes are open on Monday mornings!

It was a Monday morning and after finding prime parking positions right near the cafe, we spirited towards it and noticed a distinct lack of buzz around the usually vibrant cafe… Seems they’re closed on a Monday. Damnit!

I suggested to Dad that we try back over my way and we headed for Thelma and Louise’s harbour front cafe at Hayes Street Wharf in Neutral Bay.  (NotQuiteNigella – I loved your post on our local cafe!)  Again – conspicuously great parking spots were easily procured and we bounced down the street towards the cafe. The front door was ajar, but inside the cafe was dark… One of the ladies that works the coffee machine was in there, but there were no diners, no aromas and I was sure the news was bad… Turns out it was. The coffee machine was broken, so they closed the cafe while they waited for the repair man to come and fix it.

My credibility was fast diminishing! Still, Dad remained enthusiastic and we pushed on, undeterred.

There was a cafe that I wanted to try near the Nandos at the corner of Clark and Kurraba Roads. We drove there to find that it too was closed! We didn’t even stop this time – I pointed the car towards Kirribilli and after a loop or two, found a spot on Broughton Street at Kirribilli and strode with purpose up the street towards the waiting cafes.

We happened upon Garfish at Kirribilli – a pleasant surprise option for a Monday brunch

It has intrigued me previously to see Garfish open so early in the morning – I thought it was only open for lunch and dinner, and mainly focused on fish. I’m very pleased to inform that I was wrong. It’s open for breakfast also, and I now know that it’s open for breakfast on Mondays – which on that particular day, was a very welcome thing! We had a quick look at the menu. There were no corn fritters, but by now our hunger had escalated to the point where we didn’t mind too much. The options sounded appealing and impressively extensive.  We found a table for two on the street in the sun.

A waitress promptly arrived and offered us drinks. We ordered coffee and water and she left us to ponder what to eat. Dad was looking at eggs benedict, and I told him that Mr L and I love to have eggs benedict with bacon instead of ham or salmon, and I always delight in adding mushrooms as a side dish. Seems I’d spoken the magic words, for Dad quickly decided to go with that. (I know Mum – I’m a bad influence… But really, bacon with eggs benedict is just so delicious, and well mushrooms are so good for you! )

I love fetta and I love baby spinach. It has been suggested by Mr L that my intense love for those things can be boring, but (though he did turn his nose up at the distinct lack of meat in the meal!) Dad didn’t poke too much fun when I ordered toasted sourdough with spinach and goat’s milk fetta.

Water arrived first and was refilled regularly. Our coffees came next and didn’t last long. Then came the food.  Dad’s eggs benny arrived first with our share plate of mushies.

I told Dad to start (Prince Charles says that modern day ettiquette stipulates that one must only wait for one’s fellow diner to start if the meal is cold.  In this case, it was hot, so Dad tucked in) and made some appreciative noises  as the eggs benedict hit the palate.  I wouldn’t be surprised if his future eggs benedict orders include bacon – it appeared to hit the spot!  (Sorry Mum!)

 

Dad's eggs benedict with lushrooms to share at Garfish, Kirribilli

My breakfast arrived and I couldn’t wait to tuck in.  Walking and driving and hunting for cafes really is hungry business.  Enough talk.  I got into it.  The sourdough was crunchy and the big chunks of fetta combined so well with the wilted spinach.  I was in my own personal, brunchy kind of heaven!  Every now and then we each went in for a mushroom and commented on how tasty they were. 

My brunch in the foreground, Dad's eggs benny and our shared plate of mushrooms in the background. Good times!

It was a good morning!

 

Garfish also provides good people watching as Broughton Street is busy with all walks of life walking to and from cafes, visiting the bank, dropping kids at school, etc.  I’d certainly recommend it as a breakie spot.  While it wasn’t cheap (I think it cost about $45), it wasn’t all that expensive; the service was good and the food was fresh and tasty.  If you have walked past Garfish and put it in the lunch and dinner category, dear reader it’s time to reassess your thinking and hop on down there for breakie or brunch – I’m sure you won’t be disappointed!

For the gluten free foodies amongst us

I know this post doesn’t paint me as being particularly committed to the cause, but I’m rather more irritated by wheat than allergic to it.  Sometimes, I find it hard to resist!  Anyway – have a look at the Garfish menu and I’m sure you’ll find dishes that suit you too.  I did see one of their omelettes swing past and it looked pretty good.  The spanish omelette w/ chorizo, peppers and potato ($16) and the open faced prawn and scallop omelette w/ kipfler potatoes, roasted capsicum and basil pesto do sound rather appealing.  I’m sure that I’ll be back to try those out some time soon – will report back!

The low down

Garfish restaurants are located at Kirribilli, Crows Nest and Manly.  I’ve only visited the one at Kirribilli and have now experienced brunch, lunch and dinner – each of which have been really very enjoyable.  The restaurant is in an excellent position to catch the afternoon sun, so if you’re a cat like me, who likes to stretch her paws in the sun, get along for a late brunch, or lunch.  If you go to the Crows Nest or Manly restaurants – leave a comment and let me know what you thought!

Garfish Kirribilli is located at 6/29 Broughton Street, Kirribilli.  Their phone number is 02 9922 4322.  Have a look at their website at www.garfish.com.au.

A very important note – to all my favourite fathers

I love my Dad.  And I love my Father in law.  And there are lots of other dads around that I’m really very fond of - you know who you are!  Here’s wishing all of you a wonderful Father’s Day!  Whether you’re watching the Sunday Roast, having a sausage sizzle in Innamincka, seeing the new elephant at the zoo, having a cook off with your kids, languishing in Hervey Bay, building a boat or just cracking really bad Dad jokes that you know will make us groan – may you have a fabulous day and be spoilt rotten by your adoring offspring.

 To my Dad particularly, I hope your special RM Williams shirt is doing the trick in the desert! And to my FIL – as soon as I’ve hit Publish on this blog, you can have your present back – may it keep you entertained, and your lap warm! xxx

 

 

 

Happy Father's day to all the super dads I know xxx

 

 

A birthday bite to remember at Oscillate Wildly, Newtown for Mr L and moi

 

Verdict

“Oscilatte Wildly” = two words. Upfront, our verdict in one word: brilliant.

Preamble ramble

I had read that Oscillate Wildly, the one hatted restaurant in Newtown was generally booked out for two months in advance, so I knew it was a long shot when I phoned last Wednesday hoping for a table. I spoke with Adrian, the friendly-voiced fellow on the other end of the phone and said “Hello Adrian, I know it’s an incredibly ridiculous long shot, but is there any chance at all that you might have a table for two available this Friday night?” The response was “No”, followed by “But we did have a cancellation a moment ago for a table for two. We do have two other couples on the wait list for that table, but I’ll phone them, then phone you back, okay?” Absolutely!

We exchanged numbers and I carried my phone with me all night in the hope my new friend Adrian would phone me back…

I heard nothing that night, so I phoned at about 9:30 the next morning. Listened to the answering machine tell me to phone between 3-6pm for bookings, and set my Outlook to remind me. At about 3:30 I phoned through and spoke with a lovely, equally friendly lady. I explained the conversation that I’d had with Adrian and she said “Well I’m sorry we didn’t get to phone you back last night. I’m still waiting on another lady to phone me back about the table for two, but let me just check on something….” (insert hold music here) She came back onto the phone and said “You know what? You seem so enthusiastic that I’m just going to give you the table, it’s your lucky day.” I gushed my thanks and we agreed that Mr L and I would arrive for an “early sitting” at 7pm.

I had a spring in my step from the moment I hung up the phone… I don’t know how I’d done it, but with a combination of luck and sheer enthusiasm, I’d sweet talked my way past a two month waiting list into a table at Osciallate Wildly for Mr L’s birthday. Brilliant!

On Friday afternoon, Mr L was extremely excited but had no concept of why… Our destination was a secret you see, which meant I was in charge of getting us to the restaurant on time.  Let it be noted that noone has ever accused me of being too punctual.  I figured we’d need about half an hour to get to the restaurant – and therefore needed to leave home at 6:30.  At about 6:40 we pulled out of the drive way.

Mr L had been requested to find directions to Australia St, Newtown, and given no other detail. I put my foot down on the accelerator and we fanged over the Harbour Bridge, through Glebe and to the back of Newtown. We were running late. It was my fault (as per usual) and, like David Bowie and Queen who were aptly playing on the radio, I was under pressure. My palms were sweating. I couldn’t let my restaurant friends down. Normally he would have been scalding with his criticism at a time like this, but given the circumstances, Mr L was providing calming encouragement. For that, and for his deft Google Maps operation, I was thankful.

Somehow, we managed to get from Neutral Bay to Australia Street, Newtown in about 17 minutes flat. That included the packed, peak hour traffic on the Harbour Bridge and sitting behind inconveniently sensible drivers slowly moving off Anzac Bridge! I must have really been driving fast. In any event, when we were pulling onto Parramatta Road, I figured I’d need to tell Mr L where we were going in case he needed to go in to meet my new friends while I parked the car.

I found a spot around the corner. Perfect. Now for the main game.

The main game

I sort of calmly walked a bit, then excitedly ran a bit to get to the restaurant. I was greeted by none other than Adrian, and then found Mr L sitting in the back, right hand corner of the restaurant. A glass of Squawking Magpie Sav Blanc was poured for me (yes, I had a glass of wine) and Mr L had a coopers in hand. We settled in for the fiesta.

Oscillate Wildly's 8 course degustation menu - well worth the price, and if you have one, the wait

 

First up – the bread rolls. Sour dough. Just right. Hot from the oven. Delicious. We had to remind ourselves that we had eight courses, so not to peak too early. Still – the rolls were gone before they even had a chance to announce their arrival. All that remained of them was a lingering fresh bread aroma.

Adrian arrived around the corner with elegant glass bowls filled with jerusalem artichoke soup, topped with walnut crumble. It was smooth and flavoursome. Just as a good soup should be. Down the hatch it went.

The second course was our favourite.  On the menu it’s simply called “scallops, picada, foie gras“.  Essentially, two perfectly seared, plump and juicy scallops sit on top of a perfect smear of foie gras, accompanied by a strip of crumbly, nutty praline-ish goodness (that was the picada.)  When the three elements sat on the palate at once, they reminded me of a Guilian praline.  Soft, creamy, delectable.  Microherbs sat amongst the picada.  The dish was a masterpiece.

I borrowed the following shot from Foraging Otaku. I felt weird taking photos in such an intimate restaurant, so I didn't get many shots. My thanks to Foraging Otaku who own the full copyright and have also written an excellent piece on Oscillate Wildly

The next course was described as “bantam egg, Ortiz anchovies, rye” on the menu.  Adrian told us that the “bantam” is a small chicken.  It is used in this dish because the egg is very rich and brings an extra volume  of flavour to the dish.  The egg is slow poached on a very low heat.  It was wobbly and I could tell that it would run like a proper poached egg should.  It sat on a bed of dark, rye noodles which were about the same size as thin hokkien noodles.  I don’t know where the anchovy lived within the meal – perhaps it was infused in the noodles?  Along the top of the egg ran a thick line of “parsely powder”, designed to intensify the flavour of the dish.  It did.  The dish was amazing – like nothing I’ve ever tasted.  Too hard to explain.  The textures and flavours mixed to make something I could not make sense of.  But I liked it, and I’d have it again!

A break in our programming to examine the situation…

We sat there waiting for our fourth course feeling a bit dazed.  I was starting to feel a bit like I was sitting in Willy Wonker’s Chocolate Factory and Daniel Puskas, the Head Chef was Willy Wonker.  I was Veruca Salt (the character, not the band) and I had just put something in my mouth which was created in a lab.  I couldn’t believe my palate.  But I had no concern that I was going to get sucked up a tube, or inflate and turn into a giant, round, purple beast.  I was excited to see what would come next.

Back to the game

Our next dish was described on the menu as “mulloway, fennel, speck, black sesame pearls“.  Mulloway is another name for jewfish.  I like jewfish.  I think to myself that I’m not really that keen on fennel.  I know I like speck.  The pearls intrigued me.  In we both went.  Seems I like fennel.  What’s more, I love the combination and I’m SO going to be crisping speck in the future!  The whole lot sits in a fennel veloute (fancy word for foam) it’s light, but satisfying.

Thanks again to Foraging Otaku - this is your pic of "mulloway, fennel, speck, black sesame pearls"

I know I’ve said a lot already and we’re only at course four, but I’m clearly excited about this experience!  I just want to tell you quickly that I asked about the black sesame pearls.  One mustn’t ask where to buy these things..  It seems one doesn’t go to a shop and buy a black sesame pearl.  One makes the pearls using some sort of roasted sesame extract which is eye droppered into poaching liquid (? – don’t quote me on that) and cooked at a certain temperature..  Eventually, someone clever within the Oscillate Wildly kitchen determines the pearls are ready, and the pearls are ready!  Amazing…  Remember what I said about the Chocolate Factory?

Dish five: “chicken, celeriac, puffed grains” – from above, the chicken looks to me like thick slices of bread roll, browned on top with roast sesames.  It’s sitting on a bed of charred grains and a celeriac puree.  I taste the grains first – they pique my interest.  I taste them again.  They taste like burnt popcorn, but they resemble something like dense, puffed rice in texture.  I think I love them.  I cut the chicken.  It’s so tender, but so perfect and round and so evenly and expertly cooked that I feel like it’s a trick.  The celeriac is a good plate fellow for the chicken and grains.  It works. 

Foraging Otaku's pic of "chicken, celeriac, puffed grains" - thanks again!

Break time…

We’re feeling a bit full and voice that to our hosts.  They tell us not to feel obliged to eat everything.  (Does not compute for me, but Mr L takes note.) 

We also notice that they slow down the service to give us a breather.  While we’re catching our breath, we notice a steady stream of diners arriving to fill up the tables around the restaurant.  We’d originally thought that they must do two sets of sittings per night, but after asking the lovely lady that also served us with Adrian (I’m so sorry – I wish I caught your name – you were so tremendous with us!) we determined that they just stagger the bookings throughout the evening, starting from 6pm and with the last table seated at 8pm to ensure diners get the best from their degustation dinner.

The pork

I broke the rule of not taking photos when the pork came out.   It just looked incredible on the plate.  Sitting to the left of the pork, and on top of the round kartoffel knodel (the round potato dumpling) were dehydrated cabbage leaves.  They looked so elegant on the plate, and quite despite my distinct lack of love for cabbage (aka “kale”), I wanted to eat them!  So I did – like the parsley powder previously, they were intensely flavoured, and we went on to discover that everything else on the plate was too.  The pork did not have crackling, which was a bit disappointing for a crackling lover like me, but the meat itself was bursting with flavour and had just enough fat on it to almost make up for the lack of crackling.  A salad accompanied the dish, which was helpful for breaking up the richness of the pork, cabbage and potato. 

The "pork, kartoffefel knodel, kale" dish - our sixth course.

The extra dish… if only we had the power, captain!

At this point, we were offered the option to take up an extra course – a platter of delicious sounding cheeses.  Knowing our (read “my”) propensity to overlook our capacity, we (read “Mr L strongly recommended that I”) took the adult approach and regretfully declined the offer of the extra dish.

 Deep breath… time for dessert. 

After a while our “calvados, custard, jasmine, pink lady” dessert dish (one of two!) arrived.  Sitting on top was a good dose of persian fairy floss which provided Mr L with comical inspiration that had me laughing my head off!  When I wasn’t watching, he picked up a piece of the fairy floss (who says one can’t play with one’s food on one’s 34th birthday?) and stuck it to his top lip.  He then impersonated Brad Pitt’s hillarious Italian pronounciation of “bongiorno” and “grazie” from Inglourious Basterds.  My raucous laughter didn’t raise an eyebrow, for by this stage, the restaurant was filled with diners maintaining a steady buzz of chatter and giggling.

Anyway – back to the dessert!  The combo was going to be interesting for the birthday boy does not love custard nor cooked fruit.  I looked on with baited breath.  Somehow, Willy Wonker worked his wonderous ways with this particular dessert and it got a big, smiling thumbs up from Mr L.  Hoorah! 

Thanks, thanks, thanks Foraging Otaku! The “calvados, custard, jasmine, pink lady” dessert – the first of two

The finish line

We had the finish line in sight.  We’d seen, tasted, touched, smelt, listened to and learnt so much.  We almost didn’t want it to end, but then we were getting oh so full, and bed was calling.  The final dessert was “pear, chocolate, celery sorbet” – sounds strange, I know.  Adrian told us that the trick with this one was to not try and separate the elements ”put some of everything in your mouth at once.”  His tip paid off – together, it worked.  Separately, the celery sorbet was intriguing, but a bit weird.  The ganache was made of 71% cocoa chocolate, so was bitter in taste  - but still moreish for a chocolate lover like me.  The round title at the bottom is poached pear.  Swimming around the outside of the pear are basil seeds.

By this stage, I’m not planning on asking if the basil seeds are actually seeds that come from a basil plant.  I don’t know if they do or not, but I don’t really care.  It all works, and again, I’m blown away by the brilliance of the unexpected group of flavours.

Foraging Otaku’s pic of the “pear, chocolate, celery sorbet” dessert dish – our second dessert

Tea and wine

It wouldn’t be right for me to wrap up without telling you that Mr L had a great sticky with dessert.  I think it was Italian (?)  I had a sip, it matched perfectly with the first dessert.  Just like Adrian’s counterpart assured us it would.  Mr L was in heaven!

Coffee and tea is included in the cost of the $95 degustation.  I asked what kinds of teas they had and I was given a long list which appealed to my tea loving side.  I set out to get a black tea and ended up with some sort of burnt grain sencha.  I’ve been thinking about it ever since, and feel I might have to go back just for the tea

The low down

Oscillate Wildly is located at 275 Australia Street, Newtown (02 9517 4700) it is open from 6-10pm Tuesday to Saturday.  Phone way in advance if you’re looking to book for a special occasion. 

I believe they also hire out the entire restaurant, but you have to be willing to pay the equivalent of $95 x 28 (number of seats) + incidentals - ie. booze or corkage; tips; etc.  If it’s still there, maybe I’ll hire it for my 40th – hopefully it will still be as magical in eight years!

Thank you to Foraging Otaku for unknowingly allowing me to borrow your photos.  They are terrific and I love your blog post on this topic too!

 

A gorgeous gluten free quiche – mostly thanks to taste.com.au

 

During Mr L’s birthday week we went overboard with bad food.  This week we’re back on track, and being my father’s daughter, I’ve gone completely overboard with getting back on the bandwagon.. At the beginning of the week it was declared (by myself) that we were going to eat as many home cooked meals during the week as possible!  We’re off to a good start – tonight I made a quiche and not just any old wheat-laden wonder… tonight’s quiche, dear friends, was one hundred percent, bona fide, gluten free, and two thousand percent tasty!

So this morning I hopped online and (after checking with Mr L that it was a suitable dinner prospect) searched for a gluten free quiche recipe.  I came across this recipe for a “Spinach, Bacon and Parmesan Quiche“ on the www.taste.com.au website.  It looked good and sounded easy, so I figured I’d give it a go.

You may be surprised to know that this was my virginal foray into the world of baking quiches.  It seems that I’ve only fairly recently come to like them, so I’ve never aspired to make one before.  Naturally I had to go shopping to buy a proper quiche pan, and well… my rolling pin was in need of an upgrade too.  Per yield, I expect tonight’s quiche would have been more costly than the average, but I have been able to rationalise that the pin and pan were an investment into future quiches (or similar baked goods.)  

(I hoped fairly feverently that the meal would A) work and B) get a nod from my toughest critic. )

I am very pleased to report that the quiche was a success!  It took about two hours to make, but I feel satisfied that the effort was worth the result.  From the “oohs” and “aahs” that appreciatively ensued from the diner to my left, this cluey detective cleverly deduced that Mr L concurred with my opinion. 

Hello gorgeous! The quiche "perfect the way it was" (according to Mr L.)

I followed the taste.com.au recipe, but I also added:

• Two cloves of garlic
• Swiss brown mushrooms
• Cherry tomatoes and
• Instead of using an onion, I used leek.  Of course I seasoned it with quite a lot of pepper as well, but there wasn’t much need to add salt as the bacon (I used 200g instead of 100g) already contributed a lot of salt to the dish.

Some of the taste.com.au website message board participants had used pre made pastry (short crust or puff) for a faster result.  That is a good idea for time saving, but I must confess that my favourite part was getting my hands dirty making the pastry and the general satisfaction that I got knowing that I made a baked gluten free product from scratch that actually tasted tremendous!

The obligatory "product with piece of product missing" shot. (Cheese aside, look at that filling!)

We had the quiche with a very simple green salad – just mixed leaves, some shredded beetroot and carrot, apple, avocado and tomato.  Lady Flaxalot would be pleased to know that I dressed it in flax seed oil – I’ve been using it quite a lot on its own as a salad dressing and enjoying its nutty flavour.

The quiche and green salad - such a delicious combination!

I’ve already been rambling on to Mr L about the brilliance and versatility of the quiche and suggesting a number of different ingredients that could be substituted…  Let it be recorded that he’s stopped me in my tracks… Apparently the recipe is “perfect the way it was tonight.”  Anyway – if you do decide to make it and use different ingredients, please do let me know how it turned out?  (Sometimes one really must put one’s foot down and buck the system!) 

I must thank Mr L for the photos.  Hopefully they will please the Elder Mr L in the lead up to Fathers’ day.  Tonight’s photos were taken on Mr L’s new Canon 50D – as opposed to my flashless, inconspicuous iphone!

Deep, deep inside the quiche - what a lovely place to be.

Two nights down, four to go (we’re having dinner with the fam on Saturday night)… I wonder what inspiration tomorrow will bring!  Got any ideas?  If so, send them through! 

I’ll be back tomorrow to tell you about the dinner to top all dinners that we had on Friday night at Oscillate Wildly, Newtown for Mr L’s birthday.  Mamma Mia – what a treat!

BTW – those who are still wondering about the fate of that salmon – you’ll be pleased to know we did eat it, and it was the star of that particular meal.   Hooray for you little salmon, hooray!

A sad piece of salmon, and money well spent at Relish Noodle Star

 

It’s Mr L’s birthday week and that is bad news if you’re the piece of salmon in our fridge, and you’re hoping to be eaten!  I won’t provide you with all the gory details of what’s been on the dinner menu this week, but I can tell you that it’s not been salmon – and it has been whatever Mr L has fancied. 

Tonight, the dinner we had that left the salmon sobbing in the fridge, came from Relish Noodle Star at Neutral Bay. 

Relish Noodle Star - 55 Military Road, Neutral Bay - taken from inside the restaurant. (Tricky and confusing, I know!)

We had been driving past this little noodle shop for a couple of years before we set foot inside.  We decided to visit a couple of months ago.  Tonight’s visit was our third.  I can summarise why:

1. Heard the phrase cheap and cheerful?  It is.  Both.  Tonight our dinner cost $30.40.  Every dish was delivered with a cheery smile by happy, respectful people.  Nice.

Cheap and cheerful - Relish Noodle Star knocked the salmon out of contention - again!

2. The menu is lengthy and for the most part, pictorial.  That appeals to Mr L, who some years ago, thought he might be particularly well suited to a career of menu consulting.  His general feeling was that restauranteurs should focus on using pictures to describe dishes - what better device to bridge the divide between languages? 

Alas, he did not pursue that line of work, but the admiration for the pictorial menu has not been lost, and those that cater to his preferred format win favour.

The menu is largely pictorial - and appeals to Mr L's consulting aspirations

3. The food is freakin tasty.  A couple of examples follow:

- The steamed dim sims with light soy that we had for an entree were bursting with flavour.  There were four of them.  I think they cost us $3!  I have to admit – the sauce was so good that both Mr L and I picked up our little saucers and drank the remaining sauce!  Lady Flaxalot would have been proud!

Four flavoursome dim sims for less than a fiver!

 This shot’s for you Lady Flaxalot:

No dim sims here! (Mum - if you're reading - of COURSE we didn't pick up the plates and drink the remaining sauce!)

- The Szechuan beef came with loads of red and green capsicum and onion to technically satisfy “the Mrs Chick three or more vegetables must be had for dinner” test (will tell you about that another time) – while the sauce wasn’t as good as the fabled sauce at North Ryde Chinese Kitchen, overall, the beef was juicy, the veggies fresh, and the dish was pretty good.

The beef - succulent and colourful

- For the second time (and the first time was last time), we ordered pork chops in peking sauce.  They are like salt and pepper pork chops, but instead of having salt and pepper on them, they swim in peking sauce.  They were so good that we had to negotiate on the last pork chop.

Pork chops in peking sauce - the kind of dish the GFD and my Dad would like - all meat. Where veggies featured, they were where they should be (according to said men in my family) - on the side as a garnish!

- With each of the mains, we got big bowls of fluffy, white boiled rice.

We ate less than one of our generously proportioned bowls of rice

4. I mentioned Relish Noodle Star is cheap and cheerful, but really – the portions are huge, they give you free tea, and water and they are such good, honest people that they just don’t want you to leave them a tip!  Did I mention that we got all that dinner for $30.40?

Tea for two for free - sounds good to me!

By the time we left, the whole restaurant was full.  There were also people that streamed in and out the whole time we were there picking up takeaway orders, and the phone was ringing off the hook.  Clearly it’s a badly kept secret!

We’ve now assembled a group of people in our minds that would love this place – look out because you’re likely to be one of them – if you’re eating with Mr L and me, you may well find yourself eating at Relish Noodle Star…

Oh – and if the salmon in the fridge is reading this – keep the faith… You have not been forgotten, but I wouldn’t hold your breath for a gurnsey tomorrow night – it’s tennis night, and I reckon the birthday boy has a spag bol on his radar!

 

The low down

Relish Noodle Star is located at 55 Military Road, Neutral Bay  NSW  2089.  There is no need to book – just rock up.  You can even wear your trackies!  More info at True Local.

Somebody say cheese?

Last night the GFD was still in town, and we resolved to go two for two in the dinner stakes.  Feeling somewhat nawty after dissing Mr L’s wish that Monday’s dinner be cheapncheerful, we were on a mission to find a hearty meal at an anti spend lock price.

We happened upon Verve Cafe and Bar which I’d walked past a few times before.  Each time I’d been past previously I had a bag of shopping from Woolies in my hot little, overplanning, good wife hand.  It was good to have an excuse to go in with the GFD.

Verve Cafe - Basement, 109 Edward Street, Brisbane (yes, I know the picture is dodgey)

We had a look at the sandwich boards out the front and all the hanger rounderers and agreed it looked like a goer, so down the stairs we went, into the basement.

A very funny waiter dude met us at the bottom of the stairs and looked a bit concerned that he may not have a table.  Looking around we noted the reason for his concern – the place was packed.  Trivia night was on – we arrived half way through – and the players all appeared to be enjoying themselves.

We were led to a table and given some menus.  Everything appealed to my taste!  Hurrah!  What’s more – they had several gluten free options on the menu.  Including a gluten free version of this excellent bread that we had called Pan Bread.  The Pan Bread that we chose was covered in lots of delicious cheese and a good amount of chili.  It was superfreakintasty and appealed to the GFD’s previously stated desire for pizza.

Supercalafragalisticfreakintastypanbread - with GFD's professional modelling hands

Very funny waiter man (VFWM) gave us the run through of the specials and one stood out for the GFD.  It was fish and chips, but the description from VFWM was theatrical – delivered with a flourish, and I think the beer battered chips won the GFD over.  We couldn’t wait to order.  I was having chicken and pumpkin GF risotto.  Fabulous.  Mr L would have been impressed, for he is a risotto afficionado!

VFWM was down the back end of the room when we were looking to order, but another lovely waitress lady swung by to take our orders.  The GFD’s plea for the fish n chips was apologetically rejected… Fish of the day (unbenownst to VFWM) was swordfish with vegetable ragout (or something of the like) with lentils.  GFD was trying to hold it together, but it was pretty clear his hopes were dashed..  We sent lovely waitress lady away as the GFD needed some thinking time (and music.)

Say cheese? No.... The GFD tries to look unimpressed!

A couple of minutes later another waiter – I’m calling him Swedish dreadlock dude (SDD) came by to take our revised order.  The GFD went for meatballs linguini – braised lamb & beef, Lambrusco, rosemary, napoletana.  And I enthusiastically put in an order with SDD for my chicken and pumpkin risotto.

The meals arrived.

Meat Balls Linguini – braised lamb & beef, Lambrusco, rosemary, napoletana - $17.90

The meat balls were really delicious.  I love a rich sauce and if I don’t get a lot of meatballs in my meatbal dish, I generally feel gypped.  Having adequately scrutinised the GFD’s dish and comparing with his similar view, I can completely recommend those scrumptious little numbers!

My gluten free, and therefore guilt free risotto was talking to me.  It was saying “I am so guilt free and gorgeous, you want to tuck in now!”  So I did.  The risotto was made up of chicken, pumpkin, green peas, caramelised onion, mint, fetta, herbs and chicken stock.  It was so tasty, I was sure I was eating one of Mr L’s famous home-style risottos (of course, I taught him everything he knows !)

Lushariffic - chicken and pumpkin risotto with green peas, mint, fetta, caramelised onion, herbs, chicken stock - $18.90

We weren’t up for a big night.  GFD had a glass of red, and I had a pot of green tea.  I was pleased to receive real green tea (it was in a bag, but I’m okay with that) – nothing too fancy – no value added jasmine scents – just plain Madura green tea.  It was just what I was after.

The meals were large, the ambience was good and the service was fast and attentive.  VFWM did have that small stumble over the fish and chips, but I think GFD got past that, and in fact, probably decided that Mrs GFD would have been happier with his final choice.  One day, GFD, we will go back for their beer battered chips!

The bill came in at $54.70.  Pretty bloody good.

Check out the menu for Verve Cafe on their website at www.vervecafe.com.au.  They do lunch and dinner most days, and have all sorts of entertainment on throughout the week.

If you do decide to go, make sure you check out the art around the walls – we couldn’t tell whether the framed pics were lithographs, photographs, or someothersortofgraphs, but they were all pretty cool.  I tried to take a photo, but my iphone had a tough time with the lack of light in the basement – anyway, drop in and see for yourself!

—

By the way….

Has anyone seen that new KFC ad?  Does the music not sound like the Ready Steady Cook theme song?  Do do do do do do dooooooooo…

And… is anyone else surprised that The Fonze is in the new series of Numbers?  Heeeeeey….  What’s with that?

Cha Cha Char (much to Charlie’s chagrin) with the GFD

 

My brother, the Good Food Dude (GFD) is in Brisbane this week and since I am too, we decided to catch up for dinner last night.  Mr L had given me instructions… Since I’d eaten my way through the weekend and spent quite a lot of dosh in the process (while he was out drinking with benevolent round-shouting friends) it had been suggested that a cheaper dinner be in order last night.

So I’m staying on Queen Street and GFD came up to see my pad.  From here it made sense to walk to Eagle Street Pier, so we set off and decided to find something middle of the road for dinner.  The restaurants all looked pretty good, and offered diversity in cuisine and price.  We had to stop and take a photo of Aria Brisbane which was having its official opening night last night.  The photo is for my sister-in-law (SIL) for whom Aria Brisbane is held rather dear!

ARIA Brisbane's sign shines from its location on Eagle Street Pier

Dazzled by the brilliance of Aria, and exhilarated by the thought of rebelling against the spend lock imposed by Mr L, we took the photo then snuck away to investigate the other offerings.  Despite the thrill at the thought of breaking the spend lock, we decided upon Cha Cha Char, which really, we did choose as a homage to Mr L who is often called Charlie, despite the fact that it’s not his actual name.  (And, well… because their wagyu and mustard fruit spring rolls sounded might tasty!)

So through the front door we went, GFD in search of a beer, and me looking for a water.  No tables were available, so we sat at the bar and had a couple of drinks.  The ambience was good and the restaurant bustling, which was a mean feat for a Monday night in Brisbane. 

The GFD was very pleased to be able to order one of Matilda Bay’s Fat Yak beers (slogan: “big, hairy, but nice”, which he tells me is a bit like a Beez Neez, or a Little Creatures.  I have a sniff, and agree they seem similar.  The Fat Yak is a good experience beer for the GFD, for it had been fed to him in the Virgin Lounge on Virgin’s tab, thanks to a full priced corporate fare.  He seemed pleased with the result.

After about 30 mins we were moved on to our table.  When we sat down and really looked at the menu, it dawned on us that we were about to well and truly break spend lock.  Not quite the same sorts of pricing as Aria, but, um… not far off!  I’m pretty sure it was at that point that we adapted an “if you can’t beat em, join em” mentality, and set about deciding on entrees.  We resolved we’d order a couple and share. 

We probably should have thought more about that.

Our choices were:

• Wagyu Beef & Mustard Fruit Spring Rolls ω chilli plum dipping sauce & Asian herb salad and
• Seared Scallops ω twice cooked pork belly, Szechuan spiced tofu, watermelon syrup & chilli caramel

The Wagyu was what got us through the door and helped us wait 30 minutes for dinner.  And well, GFD and I are genetically linked… It appears we both got the “I freakin love pork belly so much that I’ll order it at every available opportunity” gene, so it was only natural that we ordered it too!

The Wagyu beef spring rolls coaxed us through the door of Cha Cha Char and won favour on the night

Both dishes were nice, but I wouldn’t rate them more than a 7/10.  Of the two, the wagyu spring rolls were the winner.  The mustard fruit added a sweet background to the beef, and a small salad of mint, coriander and mung beans (that’s right baby!) helped to break up the richness of the spring rolls.

The pork belly was a disappointment.  The scallops were nicely done, and the tofu pieces that accompanied the dish were okay, but kind of strange next to their plate fellows.  I wouldn’t recommend it.  I’d probably prefer to be able to buy a scratch n sniff of pork belly and just smell it than receive the tiny little pieces of belly that came on the plate.  And if you think I’m being melodramatic, note, dear friend, the distinct absence of crackling on said pork belly!  Sorry person in the back of the crowd screaming out something?  Oh “cardinal sin!” yes, I agree!

The disappointing pork belly... I forgot to take the photo before we tucked in!

We sat back and waited for our mains to arrive.  The GFD decided to go for the:

• Slow cooked Maryland of Duck ω dauphinoise potato, char grilled chorizo sausage & braised puy lentil

And I somehow convinced myself that I needed the:

• Slow braised Beef Cheek ω goats fetta, black pepper mash & tomato relish

A question for me:

Why?

Why would I have chosen that dish knowing particularly well that I really don’t like slow cooked dishes like that?  I think the words “mash” and “goats fetta” blurred my vision.  I convinced myself I was going to love it!

Another question – not just for me this time… For the GFD too..

Why would we have thought we needed those entrees?

I suppose we weren’t really to know just how big the portions of everything were going to be…  The GFD was full before the mains arrived.  I was pretty stuffed too, but had been practicing eating on the weekend, so my capacity meter wasn’t yet hitting the red line.

The dishes arrived, but our hearts weren’t really in it.

The duck was soon stripped bare. GFD's knife and fork make a celebrity appearance!

I watched the GFD strip down his duck, and make a feeble attempt at the dauphinoise potato.  He enjoyed the chorizo, but even his sausage loving streak couldn’t elevate his eating spirit.  The duck was over before it really started.  Puy lentils lay stranded around his plate.  There was no hope for them. 

How now brown cow? My unappealling looking cheeky coo.

When Donna Hay was on Masterchef, she emphasised the importance of not serving up a plate of brown.  That’s what I got.  My beef cheeks had been cooking for so long that they had become the colour of dark chocolate.  The mash was hidden under the cheeks, and I have no idea where the fetta was. 

I’m so sorry to admit this because I do very much know that there are people in the world who would have appreciated those cheeks, but I really just couldn’t do them.  I ate a bit of one, and swapped a couple of bits for the GFD’s duck dish.

One thing I will say is that Cha Cha Char makes a mean bean.  I had asked our waitress if I could just have a few beans on my plate.  What I got was a lot of beans on their own plate and an extra $9 on the bill!  Anyway, as they often said in the classics, “whatev”!

All in all, I wouldn’t personally recommend Cha Cha Char.  The service wasn’t great, and while the portions were large, the right flavour really just wasn’t there in any of the dishes except the spring rolls.  Our bill total was $151.80.  Far more than Mr L’s spend lock allowed for.     (Bad wife!)

Food aside, the GFD rated the wine list and the beer list, and of course he rated the company – as did I!

29 degrees in Sydney, the Bay Walk past sparking waters and honourable mentions to three establishments!

 

It’s a short, and mostly pictorial post tonight and again, it hasn’t got much to do with food, save for a few honorary mentions to wrap up the weekend… First though, I wanted to tell you about the beauty that was today in Sydney.

The weather man hit the nail on the head with his 29 degree prediction for Sydney, and after a (note: shameless honourable mention approaching for an old favourite) tremendous yum cha at Emperor’s Table, we headed out into the sun to do the Bay Walk. 

The sun glistens on the water, viewed from the Rodd Point section of the walk

Mr L, PC and I started the Bay Walk outside the Drummoyne Rowers Club on Henley Marine Drive at Drummoyne, and followed the 7 km circle around the water from there through Rodd Point, Leichhardt and Rozelle before crossing the Iron Cove Bridge on foot and arriving back where we started from.

Beautiful trees line the hill from Leichhardt through to the Rozelle section of the walk

There were loads of people and their dogs out running, walking, cycling (sadly, we did not see any dogs on bikes), lapping up the sun and admiring the sites along the way.  We took a couple of photos to show you what a gorgeous day it was.

A beautiful Sydney afternoon, viewed from the Leichhardt section of the walk

I’ll be back out on the Bay Walk with my Dad tomorrow morning.  I think we’ve agreed that the more we walk, the more burgers we can eat, so we’re likely to make it something of a regular event!

Now – honorary mentions for the weekend

Adriano Zumbo’s Chocolate Café is definitely well worth a visit.  I did not take photos whilst there, but BF and I shared corn fritters; a chocolate brownie; a chocolate macaroon and a chocolate fondant with injectable raspberry coulis and peanut butter ice cream – I know… it sounds like a lot!  If you haven’t been there and you have a sweet tooth, get your skates on and get over there! The café is hidden in a little arcade on Darling Street and was an oasis of cool shade in yesterday’s warmer afternoon.

Fundamental Food café at Balmain is well known to local residents and I’ve been going there for years.  We went there this afternoon after doing the Bay Walk as PC was in need of a burger (I seem to be talking a lot about burgers this weekend) after a late night without enough fuel.  Everything we ordered was magnificent.  Mr L had the best strawberry milkshake I’ve tasted for a long time.  When he commented on how good the shake was, the chef whizzed up a special soy banana shake for us to try – equally swoon-worthy!

Fundamental is very reasonably priced and all the food is fresh, and well proportioned.  One thing I’d like to do is go there for dinner one night – in the evening it turns into a fish café and the seafood dishes on the menu, such as Prawn Saganaki, sounded delectable.

Of course, the Emperor’s Table always deserves an honourable mention.  We went there with BFs x 2 today and ate up a storm.  I thought I’d previously blogged about this yum cha celebrity before, but checking my posts, it appears I haven’t.  Will put up a post soon so you can drool over the prospect of a visit.

I’m off to Brisbane tomorrow and will be meeting up with my brother, the Good Food Dude (AKA the GFD – not to be confused with the GFC) for dinner.  Will no doubt have more to say about food travels thereafter!

Not drinking – AKA a bit of Dry July and the most of Parched August

 

So it’s been too long since my last blog entry.  If I’m frank (not by name, by nature) it’s not that I’ve not had enough time – I’ve just been embarrassed about my lack of blogging.  Tonight I’ve decided to get back on the horse.  And I’ve also made the decision that I’m not going to blog every time about food.  Though rest assured that food, with its very high position on my life’s list of priorities, will feature most regularly!  Today I’ve decided to write about the strange social experiment I have underway, called “Not drinking – AKA a bit of Dry July and the most of Parched August”.

Four weeks ago, inspired by two significant events, and a decision to attempt to improve a medical condition, I decided to stop drinking for a while.  That also made it easier for me to stop smoking.  The not smoking thing is something I’ve been semi heartedly trying to do for a while (read “years”) and I suppose the not drinking thing has been rattling around in the back of my mind as a “good thing to do” for about the same period.  It’s been four weeks today since I last had an alcoholic bevoir and a bit longer than that since the last cigarette. 

The inspirational factors were as follows:

The realisation that not drinking at every social event is not as difficult as one might think – helped along by two wise friends.

My best friend (BF) is pregnant, and at lunch four weeks ago quietly announced her pregnancy to various allies around the table.  One of those allies was one of my two sister in laws (SILs) who were both in attendance.  SIL #1 has recently produced my gorgeous nephew, and while the rest of the ladies in attendance were enjoying a glass of wine, BF and SIL #1 were discussing (with some gusto) just how easy it is to not drink when forced, due to the responsibilities that accompany fostering a small person inside one’s self. 

That night, I stayed with BF and we had a very funny night, eating lots of additional good food, and drinking tea.  We think that is the first time in our 27 million years of friendship that we were not drunk, hung over or in some other way influenced for a whole night at home together! 

The next day, we went to have delicious, varied yum cha at Kam Fook at Chatswood with Mr L.  We were at yum cha for no good reason (ie. not because we were hung over and in need of greasy food) – just because we wanted yum cha (and BF had been experiencing cravings for peking duck pancakes for some weeks) and because we could!

Side note: On the subject of Kam Fook… If you like yum cha; you live in Sydney, and you haven’t yet been to Kam Fook at Chatswood Westfield, go!  The best way to enjoy it is to arrive at 10:30 when they start serving.  Claim a table, then eat slowly.  You’ll see a lot of dumplings come past and will likely feel inclined to fill up, but be patient!  By 12pm, the full breadth of dishes is available.  Peking duck starts arriving around that time, and about 20 minutes later they bring the sang choy bow around.  If you like a veggie with your cha, order the streamed greens.  They make them fresh and they are delicious.

Dry July was in full swing – I missed the start, but my inspirational friend did not

Said lunch with fabulous ladies (in the sun, overlooking the water on a gorgeous day at Ripples, Sydney Wharf, prior to watching Chicago! – highly recommended) fell within the month of July, and another very clever friend (we’ll call him “S”) pledged his allegiance to the cause. 

S sent a note around to friends to let them know that he was participating in Dry July.  While we were offered the option to sponsor S, with proceeds going to hospitals and various other useful beneficiaries, the main reason S chose to do Dry July was because it seemed like a good idea for him to drink less too.

So S cut the drinking at the start of July, and I cut it on the 19th.  During July, Mr L, S and I had dinner a couple of times together, and we also had a very bizarre excursion to see a random cabaret noir band called “Mikelangelo and the Black Sea Gentlemen” at a venue called Notes at Enmore.  During July’s soirees, Mr L generally drank a few beers or glasses of wine while S and I drank water, tea or softies.  Again – we marveled over the hilarity of the lack of drinking at each event for three friends who have historically been good drinking buddies.  And we each woke up feeling energetic on the days which followed said soirees.

About the medical condition

I’ve not mentioned it before because generally it’s boring to talk about, but I’ve got psoriasis.  And not just like a little lesion on my elbow, or an itchy scalp – I’ve got one of the worst cases of psoriasis in Australia.  Boring, but true.  I got it when I was twelve.  They say that people who are born with it will grow out of it, but those that get it when they’re older are unlikely to ever get rid of it. 

Dermatologists will tell you that there is no cure for psoriasis, but there are lots of things you can do to treat it.  I’m 32 now.  I’ve been trying to treat it for 20 years.  I’m over it.  It’s boring.  And ugly.  But boring nonetheless.

I’ve also got psoriatic arthritis.  That’s boring too.  It affects most of the joints in my body. 

Most people that drink too much understand on some level that alcohol isn’t the best thing for your body or mind.  Drinking too much alcohol has an inflammatory effect on your body.  It inflames from the inside out. 

When I drink too much you can read my body like a book – my skin is redder and dryer than usual and I’ll probably scratch a lot because I’m itchy.  It has the same sort of affect on my joints (minus the itchiness) and I spend hung over days whinging to Mr L about how sore my joints are.

Side note on psoriasis: I’m not going to explain what psoriasis is because something like 20% of people now have it, which means you’re likely to have it, or know someone who does.  If you’re interested in reading on it, see Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psoriasis. My psoriasis looks very different, and is far worse to that which is pictured. 

A psoriatic arthritis wiki is here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psoriatic_arthritis. 

Interesting observations resulting from this social experiment

Well – I’m not saying that I’m not going to drink again.  I have very good drinking genes in my family, and I do intend to capitalise on them during my time on this planet.  But I’ve discovered a few things about myself throughout the course of this exercise.

Not drinking at social events is bizarrely easy!

Firstly, I can go out and not drink in social situations.  I hadn’t really tried doing that before.  I’ve noticed that I’ve had just as good a time not drinking as I have while drinking.  The bonus points go to being able to drive Mr L and me to locations far and wide, and then being able to drive us home.  I reckon we’ve saved hundreds of dollars (probably about five hundred dollars) during the four weeks just because I’ve been driving!

Jeepers creepers we’ve been active!

During the four weeks that I’ve not been drinking and Mr L has been drinking less, we have been much more active.  During the past week, I’ve done the Bay Walk twice, we’ve rode our bikes around it once, and we also rode around Neutral Bay and Cremorne (much to my chagrin).  S and I played tennis during the week too.  In previous weeks, the frequency of exercise has been similar.  I’m starting to feel fitter, and I think that I’ve noticed my stomach getting a bit smaller. 

If I keep this up, I may not continue to have one of the worst cases of psoriasis in Australia – that’s a good problem to have!

My skin has improved so much that today I wore a short sleeved shirt and I didn’t notice one person stopping to gawk at my arms.  This is unusual.  And a pleasant turn of events.  The skin on my hands (generally one of the worst affected places on my body by both psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis) appears to be improving to the point where in two weeks, I’m hoping my hands might look like normal hands.  I also noticed today that the skin on my legs is rapidly improving – and of course I’m noticing the improvement all over.

General increased energy levels and happiness

So clearly I’ve had more energy – I’ve been walking, running, playing tennis, swimming, riding my previously cobweb covered bike, bouncing out of bed, making Mr L breakfast, organising lunches for the week, fitting more things into the day, sleeping better, etcetera.  I’ve also been able to think better and produce higher quality work – though, there is something to be said for “creative sessions” over a long lunch with a couple of bottles of red!

Perhaps (reviewing the length of this blog post), I’ve also developed verbal diarrhea!

Weight loss despite my best intentions

So I’ve been exercising more, which of course can result in a loss of weight, but I have seriously been pigging out on food.  During the month, I’ve:

- Had burgers at The Counter twice (in one week!)
- Eaten Thai a number of times – most memorably at Bangkok Sidewalk, in Kirribilli
- Dined in a couple of pubs – had an excellent BLAT at The Courthouse in Newtown!
- Pigged out (and I mean PIGGED OUT) on Chinese at Relish Noodles, a well loved noodle house in Neutral Bay
- Had pizza (Dominos) a number of times
Visited Kam Fook once or twice for yum cha, and the piece de resistance:
- Just today gorged on corn fritters; a chocolate brownie; chocolate macaroons and a chocolate fondant with injectable raspberry coulis and peanut butter icecream at Adriano Zumbo’s Café Chocolate.
- Been served several excellent meals by family and friends, and cooked rather a lot of tasty and wholesome delights myself.

I’ve also developed a new codependency – Freedom Foods’ gluten free Triple Chocolate Treat Brownies; and unashamedly demolished rather a lot of Cabury Dairy Milk chocolate despite feeling ripped off by its new reduced weight and shoddy attempt at premium packaging.

I decided that if I wasn’t drinking and I wasn’t smoking, then oh lordie, I was going to eat! 

To my sheer amazement, despite all that input, I appear to have become thinner!

So, where to from here?

Well I had originally planned to keep this up until Mr L’s birthday which falls around the end of August.  We spoke about the concept of me pushing on this morning, and he’s supportive, so I’m going to keep it going.  I think I’ll set a goal to mid September.  That’s a month away.  Hopefully by then I’ll see further improvements to my skin, and some value added weightloss and mental health benefits.

I’ll report back!

Hopefully this post hasn’t been too boring.  It’s probably been more for me than anyone else, but do let me know if it’s been of any interest to you!

The ever so superb, triple chocolate, praline tart.

Ever met a tart you didn’t like?

No?

Well, dear reader, do proceed without fear or trepidation, for I don’t expect you’ll be feeling anything much less than looooove for this delicious, smooth, velvety, very adult, and darkly decadent triple chocolate, praline tart.

Originally published by Gourmet Traveller, my mother in law (Lady Flaxalot!) made this particular, palatable pudding on Saturday night.

Mmmmm... smooth, creamy, velevety love in a tart.

I’ve set aside my shame at not having posted here for such a long time in response to the overwhelming demands from fellow facebookers in need of the recipe.

Massive thanks to Mr L for the facebook images – good thing we got you that new camera… It surely wouldn’t have looked so tantalising if the photos were taken using a far less expensive camera xxx

Enjoy! And let me know if you make the tart, and what you serve it with. It is supreme!!

Click here to view the recipe on the Gourmet Traveller website. (Recipe courtesy of Gourmet Traveller, my Fabulous Father in Law, and Magical and Mysterious Mother in Law)

The final product. So alluring!

is the only word I can use to adquately describe last Friday night. It was the hens weekend for one of my beautiful girlfriends – Lans.  I must say that the food we ate on the night was delicious – salads and skewers, along with, preceded by and followed by many beverages.  Many beverages.  And a nudie swim.  And angry neighbours.  Anyway…  Saturday morning was bright and sunny in Avoca on the NSW Central Coast, but I was not. 

On the way home, I’m mildly ashamed to say we stopped at KFC.  Mr L loves it, and I needed grease, so it didn’t take much arm twisting to get me to the drive through.  We decided to stop at Mr L’s Mum and Dad’s on the way home as they live nearby.  Mrs L (senior), an avid chef and general kitchen wonder woman, has been on a similar wheat free diet to me, so I was interested to hear about what she’d been cooking.

After the KFC had gone down, Mrs L brought out half a muffin, and a small piece of foccacia that she had baked for me to inspect.  Both the muffin and foccacia were made of flax, which I hadn’t eaten before.  Mrs L tells me it is an excellent way to lower one’s cholesterol, and that is one of her current aims, so she has been eating loads of it.  For those who don’t eat wheat, it’s a good alternative to gluten free flour as it’s tasty and it’s fairly light in comparison with some flours.

Mr L (senior) thoughtfully emailed me the recipes that Mrs L had used to make the muffins and focaccia.  I’ve pasted them below.  FYI – you could pretty make any additions to both the muffins and the focaccia.  Mrs L had cranberries in her muffins, but you could use any kind of berry or nut to it.  Raspberries (fresh or frozen) would be delicious.  Similarly – with the focaccia, you could add feta, sun dried tomatoes, etc for a different twist.

If you make these and come up with a great variation – write and let me know!  I’m considering making the focaccia in my Brisbane kitchen tomorrow night – it could well become one of my favourite fruits!

It should be respecfully noted that the following two recipes were created by Laura Dolson.  Thanks Laura!  I guess Laura must be American – her spelling indicates so.  I have not changed any words in either recipe from the original.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chelsie’s Cinnamon Cranberry Flax Muffins

By Laura Dolson
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
• 1 cup whole fresh cranberries
• 1¼ cup flax seed meal (can easily grind your own)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ½ cup sugar-free syrup such as Da Vinci’s or Torinis or ½ C “sweetening power” from
• other artificial sweetener (if powdered, dissolve in 1/2 cup water)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons grated orange peel
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional for topping)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 175ºC.
Liberally butter muffin tins. Makes anywhere from 12 to 24 muffins. Do not use paper muffin liners – they will stick.
1. Pour boiling water over cranberries. Let sit for 5 minutes and pour off water.
2. Mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients (minus the cranberries) separately, then mix them together.
3. Let mixture stand for 10 minutes to thicken.
4. Fold in cranberries.
5. Fill each muffin cup about half way, and sprinkle with nuts.
6. Bake about 15 minutes (a little longer if you’re only making 12) or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Keep up to a week in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer.
For 12 muffins: Each muffin has 2 grams effective carbohydrate plus 6 grams fibre and 6 grams protein.

Focaccia-Style Flax Bread

Photo courtesy Laura Dolson (thanks Laura!) Flaxseed focaccia with fillings. Delicious!

 
 By Laura Dolson

 I call this “focaccia” because it is baked in that style—flat on a sheet pan, and then cut up into whatever sized pieces you want. It works for toast, sandwiches, and other bready uses. It is “rough” in texture like heavy whole grain breads. Since it isn’t made with wheat, it doesn’t have the same kind of grain as wheat breads, but the carb in flax is almost all fiber. Flax is very useful on a low carb diet, as well as being amazingly good for you.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
• 2 cups flax seed meal
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1–2 Tablespoons sweetening power from artificial sweetener
• 5 beaten eggs
• ½ cup water
• 1/3 cup oil
 

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 177ºC. Prepare pan (a 25X38cm pan with sides works best) with oiled parchment paper or a silicone mat.

1. Mix dry ingredients well — a whisk works well.
2. Add wet to dry, and combine well. Make sure there aren’t obvious strings of egg white hanging out in the batter.
3. Let batter set for 2 to 3 minutes to thicken up some (leave it too long and it gets past the point where it’s easy to spread.)
4. Pour batter onto pan. Because it’s going to tend to mound in the middle, you’ll get a more even thickness if you spread it away from the center somewhat, in roughly a rectangle an inch or two from the sides of the pan (you can go all the way to the edge, but it will be thinner).
5. Bake for about 20 minutes, until it springs back when you touch the top and/or is visibly browning even more than flax already is.
6. Cool and cut into whatever size slices you want. You don’t need a sharp knife; I usually just cut it with a spatula.
At 12 servings, each piece of bread has less than one gram of carbohydrate—8 to be exact—plus 5 grams of fibre.

Half of a fabulous flaxseed muffin (left), and plain focaccia (right)