Girly lunch and strange event - too many desserts

There was movement in the blogosphere 'cos word had got around that... Ellie from Almost Bourdain was organising a girly lunch!

So, with no boys allowed, we congregated on a sunny weekend at Ellie's place for an afternoon of food and hospitality.  Each of the 15 ladies who attended brought at least one dish, and Ellie provided some delicious food as well.  There was lots of laughter, meeting of new faces, and ... sixteen (count them, 16) desserts.

Here's a rundown of what we had:

Ellie is a fabulous cook, as evidenced by her beef rendang, which has also been featured on her blog.  To accompany this Malaysian specialty, there was sambal ikan bilis (made by crushing dried anchovies) and side dishes of fresh pineapple and toasted peanuts with salty fried mini fish.  Trissa brought a tasty dish of chorizo with capsicum.

Other Malay dishes that stood out were the chicken kapitan (with coconut milk, chilli and lemongrass) that was served with coconut rice.  Teresa brought a jar of risoni and beans that, when upturned into a bowl, magically transformed into a colourful salad (sprinkled with goat's cheese).

Karen had prepared the plump little profiteroles for a croquembouche beforehand, then she and Linda boiled up some sugar, and while we watched in amazement, they spun the caramel into an intricate yet delicate nest which would surely win any MasterChef challenge.  And look at the shiny cachous pressed into the sugar.

After eating the savoury dishes, there were faint cries of "I'm so full.." heard around the room.  But don't you know that there are desserts still to be had??!!  I suppose it's telling, and typical, that when you get that many girls together, the sweets have to outnumber the savouries, and we did not disappoint.

Get ready for the onslaught.

Linda had prepared a light-as-air lemon tart that was served with an amazing honeyed cream.  Lisa's lemon tart also stood out for its brilliant colour and flavour.  Ellie proved that she's a whiz not only at the mains by providing a fudgey brownie studded with Reese's pieces, and there was also a hazelnut chocolate tart that her daughter helped to decorate.

Can't get over the brilliance of the croquembouche.  It went well with Trisha's green grass jelly (nice and refreshing after the rendang).  Ellie had also scored some tubs of Ben and Jerry's ice cream, and I tried Chunky Monkey for the first time in all its banana goodness.

Helen's popcorn cupcakes were a winner with me - the cake was smooth and moist, and the icing was amazing - salty is the way of the future, my friends!  Speaking of amazing, Suze's chocolate bowls, moulded using a balloon, were filled with brownies and fresh berries. They looked almost too good to eat.

Would it surprise you to hear that there was a lot of dessert left over.  No matter, all the more for us to take home!  It just goes to show that too many sweets can be enough for 15 lady bloggers.

Thanks to Ellie for her hospitality, and these lovelies for a great afternoon:
Suze from chocolatesuze
Karen from Citrus and Candy
Linda, Minh and Teresa from eatshowandtell
Helen from grabyourfork
Betty from The Hungry Girl
Jen from Jenius
Leona from pigged-out
Steph from raspberri cupcakes
Lisa from Spicy Icecream
Trisha from Sugarlace
Trissa from Trissalicious

And thanks to Trissa for being my brilliant chauffeur - the GPS lady needs a lesson in directions, though.

Saigon Saigon in Glebe - my lucky lucky door prize

A few weeks ago, at Jenius’s launch of ‘I Ate My Way Through Singapore and Vietnam’, I was fortunate to win a lucky door prize – a dining voucher at Saigon Saigon Vietnamese Restaurant in Glebe. So we made use of it on the weekend, and here is the story (in pictures, of course).

The first thing that struck me about Saigon Saigon is the décor – it is not your usual suburban Asian restaurant, you know, with laminate tables and plain walls. The setting here is all striking red walls and dark lacquered floors, punctuated with white coolie hat decorations and a tinkling water feature near the entrance. It means that the clientele are a bit more, um, ‘urbane’.

There are two main dining areas, both open to the street, which provides a nice through-breeze on warm nights. You could almost be in Saigon, if you imagine it hard enough...

The menu has usual Vietnamese dishes, such as the rice paper rolls, the salads and the deep-frieds. We tried each of these vital food groups.

The Saigon Saigon lemon soda ($4.50) is flagged as a chef’s speciality on the menu. The restaurant is BYO, and in the absence/forgetfulness of bringing any grog, the soda was a thirst-quenching burst of minty sweetness.

The mixed entree ($18 for 2 persons) always seems like a cop-out in Asian restaurants, but I like it because it gives you a taste of different items on the menu. I’d already tried the summer rolls and prawn wontons at the book launch, and here they were on the plate again. The serving was a slight disappointment – half a roll for each person is a bit miserly, but the chicken satay and grilled prawns made up for it by their rich flavours.

The waitress had asked whether we wanted everything to come at once or entrees first. We had asked for entrees first, so were surprised when the roast duck salad ($17.50) turned up. I then realised that it is probably not classified as a ‘main’. Nonetheless, it was a substantial and colourful serving of fresh and pickled vegetables and thick slices of duck breast, anointed with a delicious dressing. It looks great, doesn’t it?

As the empty entree plates were whisked away, our main of deep-fried soft shell crab ($23) arrived. Again, this was a generous serving of lightly battered crab – and it was freshly fried because it was nice and hot when you bit into it. I loved this dish, even the copious amounts of garlic.

When I read a menu, I always look at the desserts first – can’t stand it when the desserts are on a separate menu. Fortunately, Saigon Saigon’s desserts ($8.50 each) are on the main menu. So I knew I wanted the deep-fried fritters to finish. But would I go for the banana or pineapple? Banana wins!
We also had a fried ice cream – not my favourite, but this one had a good (thin) crumb coating and the ice cream was rich and not too hard.

Both desserts came with a little pot of ‘sago sauce’ which I thought deserved a place of its own – it was lovely, with lots of sago in a coconut sauce.

The desserts come dusted with cocoa!  The bill comes in a carved wooden box.

Glebe Point Road, where restaurant sits, is packed with places that come alive after dark and Saigon Saigon shines like a rich red jewel from the shadows.... Er, sorry, don’t know what came over me just now... Just trying to say that we had a great meal there. The food comes at a snappy pace, and the service and setting are really pleasant. I think I’ll be back, even without a lucky door prize in my hand.

Saigon Saigon is at 95-97 Glebe Point Road, Glebe, NSW.  Ph: 02 9660 3888
 

MasterChef Australia Cookbook: First recipe and it's a winner

Today, I was thrilled and excited to receive a copy of the MasterChef Australia Cookbook (Volume 1).  Thanks to Mel (representing Adriano Zumbo) and Random House (publishers), it arrived in time for me to rush home and whip up a recipe from one of the MasterChef contestants.

So what is the book like?  It covers the basics, such as how to julienne a carrot and make stock, through to the recipe for Adriano Zumbo's croqembouche and Matt Moran's chocolate tart.  And everything in between.  The dishes made by the contestants are also featured, and it's fun to relive those episodes from the television series (I'd forgotten that Aaron made a lychee and raspberry Ispahan) - and the text in the book contains quotes from the contestants, as well.

The photos in the book are wonderful, with the closeup detail of the celebrity chefs' dishes being particularly good.  Of course, there are also lots of pictures of the MasterChef contestants, though they don't overwhelm what is essentially a cookbook.  Sprinkled throughout are useful tips from the chefs and judges, such as how to weigh eggwhites, and not to cover your pig's head when it's resting (it will cause leathery skin if you do: 'Steam is the enemy of crackle' - Matt Preston).

Living out my fantasy of being on MasterChef Australia

Premiering tonight is Sam's chicken and rosti dish.  This was mainly because it looked good, and I needed something quick for dinner.  Sam says in the book that the dish was part of the invention test for which they had 45 minutes.  Mine took about an hour, all because I had to stop and take photos (that's my excuse, at least).  I also changed the recipe slightly to use chicken pieces  (2 thighs and 2 drumsticks) instead of a whole chicken. 

The final dish was fantastic - the chicken was moist, the tomatoes were sweet and caramelly, and the rosti were cooked to perfection.  In the words of judge George Calombaris, 'I could eat a whole plate of this'.  Well, it is dinner after all...

Sam's pan-roasted chicken with potato and zucchini rosti
serves 2

Ingredients
2 chicken thighs on the bone, and 2 drumsticks, skin on
2 tbs olive oil
8 cherry truss tomatoes, stem attached
1/4 tsp rosemary
4 tbs butter
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
2 medium scrubbed potatoes, eg. coliban, desiree, grated
2 medium zucchini, grated
1/4 tsp crushed garlic
oil, to shallow fry

Method
1.  Preheat oven to 180 deg C.  Drizzle chicken with oil and season with salt and pepper.  Heat a large ovenproof  frying pan over high heat, add chicken and brown on both sides.
2.  Place pan in the oven and cook for 10 minutes.  Add cherry tomatoes and rosemary to the pan and cook for a further 10-15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
3.  Meanwhile, mix the butter with the parsley until combined.  Put the mixture into some cling wrap, roll into a log shape and seal.  Chill in refrigerator.
4.  Squeeze as much liquid as possible from the grated potato and zucchini.  Place in a bowl with the garlic and season with salt and pepper.
5.  Heat about 3mm of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.  Divide potato mixture into 4 portions and roll into a ball.  Flatten them out and place  in the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side, or until golden.
6.  To 'plate up', place a fritter on the plate, and top with chicken pieces.  Top with parsley butter and serve with tomatoes.

Recipe adapted from MasterChef Australia The Cookbook (Vol 1)

Pan frying the chicken before baking in the with the tomatoes.  You will notice that I am using the STOVEN part of my Microstoven pan for this.  The zucchini and potato rosti are then pan-fried.

The cherry truss tomatoes were fantastic - being baked in chicken juices definitely helped.

Good one, Sam!  This is a great simple dish, and a worth winner of the first invention test.

Other recipes I'm keen to try are Justine's lamb roulade and Matt Moran and Andrew Honeysett's warm pear tart.  Poh's Buddha's delight with its fried gluten and vegetables is another one that leaps out.  I'm feeling rather inspired now, and I suppose that's the sign of a good cookbook.

Visit to Bacco Wine Bar and Pasticceria - no longer alone

Isn't it strange (or is that ironic) when you don't see someone for years, then you bump into them several times in a matter of weeks?  So it was when I went back to Bacco Wine Bar and Pasticceria in Chifley Plaza - it had been ages since my first (lone) visit, then I ended up there twice in as many weeks.

So what you see here is a combination of the lunches that I had with some friends...

The Bacco Wine Bar is a cafe that is at the back of the foyer of the Chifley building.  It's a dark, inviting space with a preparation area to one side, where fresh pasta is rolled out, and a separate wine 'cellar' that has a door handle shaped like a bunch of grapes.

The menu is Italian, and is split into sections, including Antipasti, Formaggi, Salumi, and Pesci.  You also get bread with olive oil when you order.  On both occasions that I ate there, my friends and I stuck with the Primi pasta dishes (same menu both times).

First visit: The risotto con scampi ($24) was a reasonable serve of creamy risotto in scampi bisque topped with scampi pieces.  Slightly over-salted, but flavoursome, so I'm told. 

I had the gnocchi di rape rose ($23), which was beetroot gnocchi with calamari pieces and broccolini puree.  This was really good, with the small-sized  gnocchi being smooth and beautifully cooked. 

The tortelli di asparagi ($22) was tortelli filled with asparagus puree and fresh ricotta, served with 'montasio fondue', which was a cheese sauce.  My friend was hoping that this wasn't going to be a single tortelli, so was pleased when five fat tortelli arrived on the plate.

A nice touch: the waitstaff place the plates with the Bacco insignia facing the diner.

Second visit: I wanted to have the beetroot gnocchi again, but decided to go with the fettucine al cervo ($22), which was pasta tossed with venison ragu.  While the fettucine and sauce were very good, I found the venison pieces a bit dry.  And while I was eating, I thought I tasted cleaning product - has this ever happened to you? You know, where you get a whiff of fragrance but don't actually taste it?  Strange.

Another strange thing - whenever someone at the table orders dessert, I have to have a dessert, too!  So we had a tiramisu ($12) and the cestino di ricotta alla Siciliana ($12). I was disappointed with my cestino - it was a pastry basket, according to the menu, with 'ricotta, berries and vanilla sauce'.  They must have run out of berries, because it came with a bunch of grapes, so I felt a bit ripped off.  The pastry basket had gone soft sticky so it was hard to snap pieces off it, so I left most of it.  The tiramisu was a much better option.

We also had a variety of coffees - another nice touch is that the ladies' coffees had a heart drawn into the foam...

All up, both meals were good, reasonable value.  The service is friendly and efficient, and you feel like you are being looked after.

On the way out, you have to walk past the Pasticceria, where there is an amazing array of cakes displayed in the glass cabinet.

Being quite satisfied from lunch, I bought some macarons to take away - can't remember what was what although the white one was coconut.  No discernible flavour (except sweet), but they did look good.  The Pasticceria remains a place to ogle the cakes and plan my next visit.  I might take bets on when that will be.

Bacco Wine Bar and Pasticceria is on the ground floor of 2 Chifley Square, Sydney, NSW.  Ph: 02 9223 9552

More Zumbo Summer Range - and an honest opinion

A3YNKP59F3N6

Here are some more of Adriano Zumbo's Summer collection.  They weren't in the store when I got my first fix, but one of the benefits of living local is being able to drop into the patisserie when the mood strikes.  And it strikes, oh, a couple of times a week...

First, we have 'Alessia, I like big buns'.  I saw this on the Zumbo description sheet and was fascinated by the name most of all, then by the ingredients.  Then I actually saw the cake and, wow, it looks fantastic.

So how does it taste?  Unfortunately it didn't do it for me.  The green pistachio creme mousseline tastes like marzipan (not my fave), and the centre of pale yellow Dijon mustard creme Anglaise is unusual but does not go with the rest of the cake.  The strip of brown dukkah in the centre is crunchy and not unpleasant.  To me, the best part of the cake are the fresh raspberries around the edge.  All up, I'd give this one 8/10 for looks, and 4/10 for taste.

Picture below is of a sleeping Tabitha cat being used as a TV tray:

Today, we had 'Nancy's Crumbed Cloud'.  Like the previous Clouds, it is meringue on citrus in a sable shell.  This one has citrus curd, yoghurt and green apple pieces.  The meringue was sort of runny on the one I had, though I did like the 'crumbed cauliflower meringue', which were crunchy bits on the meringue, blowtorched to a dark hue.  There was a hint of gas or butane in it that reminded me of a barbeque, for some reason.
I give this one 7/10 for looks, and 7/10 for taste.

And have you seen Adriano Zumbo's feature in Gourmet Traveller (Dec 2009)? Lots of Christmas sweets that are as exotic as they are picturesque - passionfruit, lychee and coconut buche de Noel, anyone? Yes, please!

Adriano Zumbo Summer range - he thinks and builds

Welcome to another round of crazy names and out-of-this world pastry confections - the Summer Autumn Adriano Zumbo Patissier range is out now!

Named 'I thought it You brang it I built it You bought it', the range consists of nearly 20 new cakes, and several new macaron flavours (you would have thought they'd be macaroned out after Macaron Day).

I only managed to make it to the shop late this Saturday afternoon, but thankfully there were several cakes still available.  Here are some of the ones I saw:

1.  Ed & Sons First Day at School - the cake (hazelnut biscuit, coffee creme, tonka bean mousse, creme citron) resembles a sandwich, and its contained in a paper lunch box with a fruit of the day and juice of the day.  10/10 for presentation!
2.  Clancy, the rains are coming - remember the McCain corn cobbettes advert, where the kids are eating juicy corn on a tin roof and their father thinks it's raining?  This dessert in a glass has corn and mango salsa with saffron creme brulee, mango jelly and pain d'epice, and citron punch in a squirter.
3.  Pink finger - like a finger bun, this is choux with creme patissier and raisin, coconut and cinnamon.

Take a breath, there's more to come:

4.  Weekend in the Cross - what do these names mean? This one looks and sounds incredible: pistachio pate sucree, rose brulee (oh, yes!), rhubarb compote, fresh watermelon and watermelon powder in a little plastic sachet.  Oh, I get it now...
5.  Tin Tin Mandago - another interesting combo: mango sable shell, genmaicha (green tea) ganache with mango agar and rice crispies
6.  Not too s-h-a-b-b-y - flourless biscuit, muscavado creme brulee, chocolate mousse, choc malt creme legere.  Not too shabby, indeed!
7.  5 6 7 8 - pineapple palm sugar sous vide, lemongrass pandan and vanilla creme leger, coriander creameaux, peanut sable.  The only thing I don't like about this one is the coriander, but the rest sounds nice.

 And the orange cone one (that looks like Finding Nemo) is called 'Is Anybody Working?' - apricot mousse, avocado creme, almond jelly, coconut dacquoise.

And for those who are gluten-intolerant, some of the cakes are gluten-free. 

There are also some great macaron flavours, including Mint and Lemon Verbena, Sweet corn, Saffron and Vanilla, and Mango and Sticky Rice.  There is a chocolate tart, too, with a cherry on top:

There is a thoughtful cheat sheet available at the shop that lists all the cakes.  Not all the cakes were in-store when I went today, and I for one am waiting for the 'Alessia, I like big buns' and 'All in one builders friend'. *snigger, snigger*

I did get this cake, though.  It is 'Your Frund in the Frudge.... Toasted!':

It looks like a sandwich, and tastes burnt.  See those black flecks?  They are burnt bits in the toast mousse.  The 'bread' is caramelised puff pastry, and there is also tomato jelly and melted cheese creameaux.  The tomato jelly was the best bit.

I also got some macarons, but I'll show you them next time.  Oh, and if you have any idea where the names come from, please let me know.
Toodle-loo for now!

Adriano Zumbo Patissier is at 296 Darling St, Balmain, NSW.  Web: adrianozumbo.com

Cheese and Avocado Quesadillas - a Mexican hit

Definition: Quesadillas are a Mexican snack consisting of cheese cooked in a flour or wheat tortilla. In fact, roughly translated in Spanish, queso is cheese, and dilla is tortilla.

Lately, I have tried the quesadillas from one of the Mexican fast food places that have sprung up like shady sombreros. However, I’ve found them a bit lacking in flavour and substance, so the next best thing is to make your own. This is no real hardship, as quesadillas are simple to make, and unlike tortillas and burritos, the ingredients do not have to be cooked beforehand. While we are on the topic, quesadillas also differ from tortillas and burritos in that they are usually folded, not wrapped.

So here is my interpretation of the quesadilla. And while taking advantage of the ‘no pre-cooked ingredients’ adage, I am aware that during preparation, this quesadilla looks somewhat like a pizza.

Cheese and Avocado Quesadillas
The ingredients here are for 1 quesadilla. Serve 1 to 2 quesadillas per person, depending on their appetite.

Ingredients
2 soft flour tortillas
2 tblsp store-bought tomato salsa (mild or hot, depending on preference)
½ an avocado, sliced
1 large handful of spinach or rocket leaves
15-20g (about ¼ cup) cheddar cheese, grated
Sour cream and extra salsa, to serve


Method
1.  Heat a non-stick frypan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle or spray pan with a little olive oil.
2.  Place one flour tortilla on a plate and top with the salsa, avocado, spinach and cheese.
3.  Put the other tortilla on top and place the whole thing into the frypan.
4.  Press down on the quesadilla with a spatula while it cooks for 2-3 minutes, until the bottom becomes slightly golden and crisp.
5.  Spray a bit of oil on the top of the quesadilla before turning it over and pressing and cooking for another minute or so.
6.  Transfer to a plate and serve with sour cream and more salsa.

Ingredients. 
Health tip: I used 'reduced fat' tortillas (El Paso brand), and they tasted great.

Marvel at how the quesadilla resembles a pizza at this stage. 
You could cook it in the oven if you want, I suppose.

But I cooked the quesadilla in a frypan.

Olé and ¡Buen apetito!
Serve with sour cream and salsa