food

Our daughter Nora, born in January 2009, couple of weeks ago. I wish all my readers a very happy new year. Hope that 2010 will be filled with exciting culinary discoveries, comforting old favourites and lots of delicious everyday meals. Thank you so much for being here! PS Those of you who are wondering about Nora's "woolly fleece" - it's from Hiiu Vill (see here ).

Where did the year go? It must be a sign of getting older when the year swoops by faster than a food blogger's camera over your main course.People often say to me "you seem to eat out a lot" to which I always reply "oh no, not really, just a few meals here and there". And yet reviewing a year's worth of posts seems to prove otherwise - so much food. How did I fit it all in?With ease, of course.In

Oh yes. They really are donuts.A meet-up with food bloggers is guaranteed to bring a few interesting dishes. We gathered at Richard's for a post-Christmas catch-up, but perhaps the star of the show was Suze's Luther Burgers.The Luther Burger, a bacon cheeseburgersandwiched with a Krispy Kreme donut by SuzeThe Luther Burger is named after Luther Vandross - some say it was his favourite snack,

Chocolate with olive oil and saltI really am grateful. I'm grateful for a family, friends, good health and a bounty of amazing food. All too often it can be easy to get caught up in the trivial squabbles of life, and whilst there are many things you cannot change, there are many more you wouldn't want to - moments of good fortune you take for granted every day.I like to think that this is what

Hope you've all had a lovely Christmas with lots of delicious food! We celebrated the Christmas Eve (the main event in Estonia) with a large traditional meal at our home, and we've also had several other festive dinners over the last week. I'm now ready for some non-Christmassy food, though there are still some festive recipes I'll post over the next week. First up is a simple fruit soup ( kissel ) that I made last Christmas. You'll need a carton of light non-alcoholic glögg for this - I'm pretty sure your local Scandinavian store or IKEA food isle serves something suitable. Apricot and Mulled Wine Fruit Soup ( Jõulune aprikoosikissell vahukoorega ) Source: Finnish Valio Serves 6 1 litre of light (non-alcoholic) glögg or mulled wine 250 g dried apricots 3-4 Tbsp sugar 2 Tbsp potato starch or cornflour Heat glögg and apricots in a saucepan. Simmer on low heat, covered, for about 30 minutes, until apricots are softened. Blend with an immersion blender until smooth...

Eating well?Don't forget to check out the round-up of Christmas pics on the Christmas feasting post. 32 pics of an Australian Christmas - thanks everyone for sharing!

EDIT 27/12/09: Latest food pics added at the end of this postRoast turkey or seafood?I love that despite the heat of an Australian summer, so many of us continue to indulge in the traditional English Christmas dinner of roast turkey, gravy, plum pudding and all the trimmings. Our family has always done leg ham and seafood - it's so much easier with minimal preparation, and besides, Mum always

After reading about the popular American Christmas tipple, eggnog , for years, I finally took the plunge and made some last weekend. We loved it, and I'm probably making another batch tonight for tomorrow's Christmas Eve dinner, and then another one for the New Year's Eve party. The recipe below is based on Melissa's and Elise's recipes, and make an excellent Christmas-time drink. Eggnog ( Eggnogi jõulujook ) 1 litre (serves about 6) 4 large eggyolks 100 g caster sugar 500 ml milk (2 cups) 1 vanilla pod 1 cinnamon stick 250 ml whipping cream 2 Tbsp bourbon whisky 2 Tbsp dark rum freshly grated nutmeg, to serve In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks until frothy, then slowly beat in the sugar, whisking until fluffy. Combine milk, cinnamon stick and vanilla pod (halved lengthwise) in a thick-bottomed saucepan. Slowly heat mixture on medium heat until it is steaming hot. Do not boil! (If you're not in a hurry, then remove the saucepan from the heat and let infuse for 3...

I've always had a romanticised affection for diners.Blame it on a childhood brought up on American sitcoms, movies and teenage fiction, but alongside Twinkies, Kool Aid and Milk Duds, diners have always been that elusive promise of the quintessential American experience. The jingle of the bell as the door opens, the gum-chewing waitress with a pen tucked behind her ear, the cosy booths in which

Food photography? It's not so hard is it?I know it is. As a food blogger, personal experience tells me I have much to learn when it comes to droolworthy food photography.Hence when Billy contacted me to get involved with a food photography job for Mad Mex I leapt at the opportunity. Officially I was hired as his lighting assistant. Primarily this meant I was in charge of the softbox lights. It

Congratulations to the winners of the Bright Star movie ticket giveaway.The winners are: Arradius, nvmeii, Andrea, gillianlisa and the fashionate traveller. Enjoy the film!

Miniature ramen replicasWhy does everything look so much better in miniature?The first thing I did was grab the camera when I spotted these in the display cabinet at the home of Silverlily and Supermario. Collected from toy stores on a recent trip to Japan, they held pride of place in the cabinet. I was enamoured immediately.Tiny bowls of ramen with chopsticks suspended mid-air, steaks of wagyu,

Remember the Chorizo Choux Puffs ? When I published the recipe on my Estonian site , then one of the readers mentioned that she replaced the chorizo with finely chopped black pudding and liked the result. I liked the sound of that, so nicked the idea, adding a spoonful of roasted onion flakes for an extra depth of flavour. The result? Soft and Christmassy choux puffs with character :) We shared these with some friends, who were just as keen on these large profiteroles as we were. Definitely a keeper and a great addition to any Christmas buffét table. You could even dip them into lingonberry jam - that'd be even more Christmassy! If you're making these in Estonia, I recommend Saaremaa advendivorstikesed - small and moderately spicy and thin-skinned black sausages. Black Pudding Choux Puffs ( Keedutainapallid e. profitroolid verivorstiga ) Makes about 24 large profiteroles 175 ml water 75 g butter 0.5 tsp salt 110 g plain flour/all-purpose flour (200 ml) 3 large eggs 100 g black...

Do you like it saucy?No, no, I'm talking food. Of course I am. Are you the kind of person who gets your spoon into the bottom of the casserole dish to get the last dregs of sauce? Do you sneak a spoon into the bottom of the takeaway container of roast duck to collect the puddle of rich juices for your rice?Me too.My obsession with sauce explains my affection for Wuxi pork ribs. You have meat on

I say 'nice' in the title, as I cannot remember eating a Christmas fruitcake that I really liked when I lived in the UK (and I tried quite a few during my seven years there), but I LOVED this one. I know you're supposed to bake your fruitcake weeks in advance, and let it age and develop in a cool storage before eating it. I baked the one on the photo on Monday, and am dangerously close to having none left by tomorrow evening. That's why bought another several bags of dried fruit today, mixed them with booze. Will be baking another one of this tomorrow, just to make sure I have some to take along to the first of the many Christmas parties this weekend... The type of dried fruit you use is entirely up to you. I used dried sweetened cherries, seedless raisins, dried apricots and dried pineapple pieces on Monday. At the moment I've got all these plus dried papaya pieces macerating away. As for the booze, anything rum-based will work best, I think. I've used rum-base...

It's been a over a year since I made some delicious rugelach-cookies with hazelnut filling . After seeing a very talented young American pastry chef, Heidi Park (now based here in Tallinn), sharing her recipe for rugelach-cookies in a local food magazine, I felt the urge to make these again. I used my old recipe , and adapted the filling from Martha Stewart's recipe for Prune Rugelach . Very pleased with the final result, so sharing it with my dear readers :) Rugelach with Prune Filling ( Rugelach-küpsised ploomitäidisega ) Makes 32 small pastries For the pastry: 200 g butter, softened 200 g full-fat Philadelphia cream cheese, softened 2 tsp caster sugar 200 g all-purpose/plain flour, sifted a pinch of salt For the filling: 200 g dried plums/prunes 100 ml brandy or cognac Breadcrumb mixture: 4 Tbsp breadcrumbs 4 Tbsp caster sugar 0.5 tsp cinnamon For glazing: 1 egg white, beaten with a little water On the night before: Pour brandy over the prunes and let soak for up to 24 hour...

Baba ghanouj eggplant dipIt's always funny to watch your friends get pulled up to join the belly dancer, until you realise, with horror, she's coming straight for you.There's a belly dancer at Rowda Ya Habibi most Friday and Saturday nights. This spot seems to have become my fall-back venue for group functions. It's not hard to see why. The most expensive banquet will only cost you $30 per head,

Stop and Go coastersIt's the coasters that excite me most.For a while now, I've been meaning to get to Churrasco--not just for the promise of all-you-can-eat meat; not because the meat is served to you on swords that are brought to your table; but primarily because you can control the arrival of food to your table by flipping your personal coaster to Red (stop, I'm full) or Green (keep it coming!

Congratulations to Kate who has won a copy of the cookbook And the love is free... by Jules Clancy. If you missed out, dont forget that Grab Your Fork readers qualify for a 10% discount on all orders placed before Christmas. Simply use the discount code "Christmas" when you order online or call Naomi Clancy on 0407 014 232. Free postage applies anywhere in Australia.Like the idea of seeing a

How big is Sydney's food blogging community?It numbers at about 112 according to research by Suze and I. We know this because this was the number of invitations we sent out for the first all-inclusive Sydney food bloggers' event, a Christmas picnic in Hyde Park.A gluttony of 50 food bloggers descended on the day, each bearing a plate of sweets or savouries for our afternoon tea. I revelled in the

Are you all set for the silly season?What with the hive of activity in the lead-up to Christmas, it's usually not until Boxing Day that everyone breathes as sigh of relief. Traditionally a big day for movie-goers, why pay when you win yourself free tickets courtesy of this week's Freebie Friday.Movie tickets to Bright Star(five in-season double passes to win)Bright Star is the latest film by

Have you ever seen a recipe for Jerusalem artichoke/Sunchoke/Topinambur-something that begins with "Wash and peel the Jerusalem artichokes". I have. While I obviously understand the washing bit, then I'm a bit unsure about the peeling. See the specimen above? That's just one example of an artichoke I had to deal with earlier today, when preparing lunch for K's mum who came to visit her grand-daughter (who's doing splendidly, by the way:)). Have you ever seen such a knobbly Jerusalem artichoke before? It was beautiful - crisp and fresh, but had I attempted to peel it, there wouldn't have been much left. So I gave it a very good wash and scrub, and simply chopped it. And that's what I'll do from now on - I'll only buy Jerusalem artichokes with thin and beautiful skin, so I can omit that tricky "peel the artichoke" bit... The inspiration for combining mushrooms and Jerusalem artichokes came from one Estonian monthly, but I've changed...

Popcorn cupcakesSo yes, I'm starting to get a reputation. Bring a dish? I always end up bringing cupcakes. They're so easy to make, they come in easy individual packaging, and I love the way you can tailor them with different decorations or flavours for every occasion.After variations that included black sesame, Coca Cola and chocolate bacon, I decided to continue my current salty obsession with

Silence.There's a welcome sense of peace and quiet at Malacca Straits, tucked away in the courtyard of the Quadrant building, off Broadway. You wouldn't know that, less than 100 yards away, six lanes of traffic are steadily weaving their way across the Great Western Highway.A signboard outside is a helpful reminder to passersby. And yet Malacca Straits seems to enjoy a steady stream of customers,

Christmas and clementines go together. At this time of the year, the shops are flooded with tiny clementines from Morocco and slightly larger specimens from Spain, and I keep buying wooden trays of the orange fruit. Mostly we simply eat them au naturel , but I've been experimenting with few dessert and cake recipes as well. There's a lovely recipe for flourless almond and orange cake in Claudia Roden 's excellent book on Jewish food that I had been wanting to make for ages. The idea of boiling whole oranges and using the whole lot - zest, pith, fruit - in a cake sounded intriguing. Nigella Lawson has adapted the recipe and uses clementines, but I followed Claudia's original instructions here. However, I used clementines instead of oranges, and an excellent Swedish clementine-flavoured glögg Blossa instead of orange flower water. We loved the resulting cake a lot - slightly bitter (from the zest and pith), very moist and just rather unusual. We'd definitely make t...

Three time's the charm.After two foiled attempts to visit South Restaurant, it's not until my third attempt that we finally get a table. The difference? Trying to book on a Friday and Saturday night, a week prior. On a Tuesday evening, we ring up on the spur on the moment and get a table with no problem.Once we arrive, it soon becomes apparent why getting a table can be difficult - the restaurant

The orange red walls of Chairman Mao Chinese Restaurant are an ideal backdrop for the propaganda posters that adorn its walls. The hue might also give an indication of the heat your tongue is about to endure - this is a restaurant that specialises in Hunanese cuisine, its spicy offerings favoured by Chairman Mao.Celery salad (complimentary)Most of us love chilli; Suze, not so much. She obligingly

Did you know that the 'ansjovis' in Jansson's Temptation, the ever-popular creamy Swedish potato gratin, is not anchovis ( Engraulis encrasicolus ), but sprat ( Sprattus sprattus )? Sprats in brine have been called 'ansjovis' in Sweden since 17th century, which is obviously rather confusing for an English-speaking recipe translator. That's why you see 'anchovies' in most English recipes. However, the Swedish 'ansjovis' are pickled in a rather sweet brine, so substituting regular anchovies wouldn't give you the same flavour sensation. It'd be still a tasty potato gratin, but not the same.. Luckily you can find Swedish ansjovis at the food aisle of your nearest IKEA - alongside cloudberry and lingonberry jam and gingerbread cookies. Here's how I made Jansson's Temptation last night. (For my readers in Estonia - I used "Kipperi anšoovis" - a sprat preserve with a highest sugar content). Janssons Frestelse ( Janssoni kiusatu...

Allllllll my friends are getting married...Friends The Department and Wingdingo got hitched recently, but rather than go the route of a church service or a garden wedding, they headed straight to Las Vegas to exhange vows with Elvis at the Graceland Chapel. A few weeks after they returned, friends and family were invited to a casual low-key party to celebrate.Balloon cupcakesThe wedding cake was

Adding caraway seeds to your teacake does not seem like an obvious idea, but it works. Caraway seeds are much beloved in the Northern and Eastern Europe. In Estonia we add them liberally to rye bread, to oven-baked potato wedges, into sauerkraut soups and side dishes. We usually do not add them to desserts, but there's something about the spicy earthiness of caraway seeds that complements the rich flavour of this typical Estonian teacake. The recipe below results in a flavoursome cake with nice, dense and moist crumb. Perfect with a cup of afternoon tea.. Caraway Cake ( Köömnekeeks ) About 10 slices 180 g butter, melted and cooled 2 large eggs 170 g caster sugar (200 ml) 250 g all-purpose flour (450 ml) 1 tsp baking powder a pinch of salt 2 Tbsp whole caraway seeds 200 ml sour milk or kefir or fermented buttermilk Whisk the eggs and sugar until pale and thick. Stir in the kefir or fermented buttermilk. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and caraway seeds, then ge...

What would you do without your mum?When Jules Clancy's mum passed away suddenly in August 2007, she was inspired to create a cookbook of family recipes as a tribute to her mother. After the book was completed, Jules decided to self-publish the book and share her mum's life and recipes with others. The result is "And the Love is Free", a cookbook with 57 classic Australian recipes (each with

Selection of cured sausages at La Boqueria, Barcelona. Another recipe that I've adapted from Eric Treuille's Canapeś (sold as Hors d'Oeuvres in the US). I served these at a brunch couple of weeks ago, and although there were enough of these for everyone, I barely managed to save one for Kristjan - these disappeared just so quickly! There's no need to fill these with anything, as the chorizo lends plenty of flavour. Chorizo Choux Puffs ( Chorizo-profitroolid ) Makes about 24 large profiteroles 175 ml water 75 g butter 0.5 tsp salt 110 g plain flour/all-purpose flour (200 ml) 3 large eggs 100 g chorizo sausage Peel the chorizo sausage and chop finely. Put water, cubed butter and salt into a medium saucepan and bring to a rolling boil. Take off the heat and stir in all the flour. Return to the heat and "boil" for about two minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon, until you have a smooth paste that leaves the sides of the saucepan. Remove from the heat and cool fo...

Confit baby artichokes and Shaw River buffalo mozzarellawith tomato butter and pangrattatoserved with 2009 Tahblik MarsanneIs there really a bitter rivalry between Sydney-siders and Melbourne-ites about which city is best?It's a question we debate at our table during the [Sydney] media launch for the 2010 Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. Sydney has its iconic harbour, Opera House, Harbour Bridge

I'm not sure whether I'm filling out a census form or taking a test.The Build Your Own Burger concept at The Counter is either a blessing or a curse for hungry customers. On the one hand, the five-step process gives you the opportunity to customise your burger with the exact toppings you like, down to the size of burger patty, the type of cheese and which sauce you'd like.On the other hand, the

Miang Goong Gaa Tong KrobThai king prawn salad with lime, garlic, galangal, shallot, gingerwith roasted peanut and chilli served in a crispy shellI like to look at my food.As I'd admired the deep-fried fluted cup on my entree plate, I'd remembered wondering if these delicate cups were bought in to the Spice I Am Restaurant. It's not until a cooking demonstration halfway through our meal that I

Last night I attended my first ever Thanksgiving dinner. Few days late, I know, but for various logistic reasons, our Tallinn-based American hosts, Rachel & Stefano, decided to throw a party on Sunday night instead. Four couples, four kids and lots of good food (including a locally sourced non-frozen 8 kg turkey!). Rachel had asked me to bring along a Pecan Pie, and as I couldn't decide which recipe to choose, I decided to make a non-traditional pie instead. I liked it - a pre-baked pie crust is covered with dark chocolate ganache that hides a cup of caramelized crunchy pecans - an idea I got from a Finnish Ruokamaailma magazine. Truly chocolaty - and thus a 10-inch cake easily feeds a dozen! Chocolate Pecan Pie ( Šokolaadi-pekanipähklikook ) Serves 10-12 Pastry: 100 g unsalted butter, softened 85 g caster sugar (100 ml) 200 g all-purpose/plain flour 1 large egg a pinch of salt For praline: 100 g pecans, very coarsley chopped 4 Tbsp muscovado sugar Ganache: 300 g dark chocolate...

Congratulations to the following winners:Andrea has won a copy of Lyndey Milan: The Best Collection and Raine has won a copy of Great, Grand and Famous Chefs.Missed out this time? Don't forget to submit your entries for the Freebie Friday competitions still open!Win a bottle of Bundaberg Reserve Rum with personalised label (5 to win!)Win a gift box of Achacha fruitWin a copy of MasterChef

Arab Street, SingaporeFor years I foolishly dismissed Singapore as a travel destination because of its reputation for being ultra clean and super strict, where citizens were fined for chewing gum, littering or not flushing the toilet. When I finally visited its humid shores, I could see how wrong I had been.In addition to exploring the hawker stalls and kopitiam cafes that reassuringly dot much

Achacha. Try saying that out loud without shaking your hips.I first encountered achacha at the Eveleigh farmers market earlier this year. A native Amazonian fruit, the first commercial plantation outside of Bolivia commenced in Northern Queensland in 2002.Achacha are a distant relative to the mangosteen and have a similar creamy sweet flesh with a slight sherbet tang. The modest crop late last

Ever since I enjoyed my first tuna-filled Galician turnover, empanada gallega , on a hillside picnic about an hour's drive from Madrid last Spring - in a lovely company of Ximena and her hubby J - I've been wanting to make these at home. I have been waiting for Ximena's special recipe to appear on Lobstersquad (soon!), but meanwhile I came up with this version of the famous Spanish pastry. I must admit I was thoroughly satisfied with the result - and I hope that my Spanish friends approve. Basically, it's a yeast pastry (tinged slightly red with the help of the very special and wonderful smoked Spanish paprika powder, Pimentón de la Vera ) that's encasing a moist and flavoursome tuna, egg and tomato filling. Although we had small turnovers on that memorable hillside picnic - empanadillas gallegas - then it's more traditional to make one large pie that's cut into wedges. Empanada Gallega de Atun or Galician Tuna Pie ( Galiitsia tuunikalapirukas ) Serves s...

How does a food blogger celebrate her birthday? With food. And lots of it.I was fortunate enough to celebrate my birthday with homemade dumplings on the weekend, a happy huddle of food bloggers industriously pleating packages of pork and veal mince. It's been ages since I'd made wontons or dumplings. I love the ritual of seasoning the mince and then settling down for a few hours to patiently

Touch screen menu orderingI feel like I'm back in high school. Or, more accurately, I feel like I'm hanging out after high school.The cheerful red and white colour scheme has something to do with this burst of youthful exuberance. Shiny plastic stools--with a very generous seat--cluster around a table at the front and line the kitchen counter. But most of the dining area is situtated on a raised

Here's another canapé idea that I brought back from London. Simple, yes, but with good creamy'n'tangy goat's cheese and soft'n'sweet Medjool dates it's an excellent combination. Although dried dates can hardly be called seasonal, then there's something very Christmassy in them, in my opinion, so this would be an excellent hors d'oeuvre with a mug of hot mulled wine or glögg between now and Christmas. Medjool dates stuffed with goat's cheese ( Kitsejuustuga täidetud datlid ) Makes 12 12 large soft Medjool dates* 100 g creamy and tangy goat's cheese couple of sprigs of fresh thyme Using a small knife, carefully make a slit into each date and remove the stone. Cut the goat cheese into 12 disks and insert a piece of cheese into each date. Place on a serving tray, garnish with fresh thyme and serve. * I haven't seen Medjool dates anywhere in Estonia, so I bought couple of packets in London. You could use the dried dates available here, but th...

"I didn't realise there would be so many women."I feel a little sorry for the lone male at our table during a tea-gustation at L'etoile. As women in floaty summer dresses and strappy heels stream into the outdoor tiered deck area of L'etoile, the hapless husband maintains he thought he'd be enjoying a champagne tasting.Whilst there is a glass of champagne Loire sparkling at the start, today's

We spent a long weekend in London in the beginning of November, mixing work with some pleasure. The latter part included spending two full days with the always lovely Johanna and her family in Kingston. Johanna is the Queen of Canapeś , and I used the opportunity to browse through her library of canapé and fingerfood and appetisers cookbooks, looking for simple and delicious ideas I could manage myself. We're likely to host a number of festive buffets over the next few weeks, so I could do with an extra idea or two. Here's one super-simple canapé idea that I served to a bunch of my girlfriends last Sunday. You need good-quality smoked salmon for this, as the salmon is served almost au naturel . I spotted this in Canapeś (sold as Hors d'Oeuvres in the US). You need small cocktail sticks for this appetizer. Smoked Salmon Canapés with Lemon Pepper ( Suitsulõhesuupisted "sidrunipipraga" ) Serves a dozen 100 g smoked salmon* half a lemon, preferably organic freshly...

My dear K. celebrated his umpteenth birthday last Friday. He wondered if I'd bake him a cake that he could take along and share with his colleagues during the day. At first he asked me to bake my Manhattan cheesecake , but then we remembered how much his colleagues had enjoyed a dense chocolate and lingonberry cake I made few weeks ago, and decided to try a chocolate cheesecake instead. The recipe below is based on a chocolate cheesecake recipe published in the November issue of Food & Travel , but I've changed the base completely, as trust me, there is such thing as too much chocolate :) It was delicious, very rich and dense. It's rather sweet, so you should serve this with some nice raspberries or perhaps a generous spoonful of spicy crab-apple marmalade (on the photo) to counter-balance the sweetness a bit. Chocolate Cheesecake ( Šokolaadi-toorjuustukook ) Serves 10 to 12 Crumb base: 175 g Digestive biscuits 2 Tbsp cacao powder 75 g butter, melted Topping: 4 lar...

It's Freebie Friday!This week we're giving away five bottles of Bundaberg Reserve Rum. Reserve Rum is a premium spirit that has a rich, dark character with hints of oak and caramel.For a limited time, Bundaberg is also offering personalised labels, so the winners will be able to have their own name printed on the bottle - that's one way to stop people raiding your liquor cabinet! You can also

A selection of pumpkins at Tallinn Central Market, September 2007 Last week I got an email from a young American women who had recently moved to a small town in South-West Estonia. She wants to host a Thanksgiving dinner to her family and local friends, but didn't know where to get a whole turkey (not the most popular poultry bird here in Estonia) nor did she had a recipe for pumpkin pie that didn't use canned pumpkin and Crisco. I promised to post a recipe for an "Estonian" version of the American pumpkin pie, using the widely available yellow pumpkin, just like the one pictured above on the left. This is for you, Laura W. :) Pumpkin Pie ( Ameerika kõrvitsapirukas ) Serves 10 For the pie crust: 175 g plain flour 2 Tbsp sugar 125 g butter 1 egg yolk Filling: 300 g coarsely chopped yellow pumpkin 2 eggs 175 g caster sugar 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp powdered ginger a pinch of salt 2 Tbsp plain flour 200 ml whipping cream (35%) For serving: whipped cream and cinnamon Make the...

It's official. I'm a published writer.The latest edition in the To Asia With Love guidebook series is To Japan With Love. Within it are two pieces contributed by yours truly -- in the food section of course.The process entailed in compiling and editing a travel guidebook has been eye-opening. I was first contacted to be a contributor in June 2005 after the editor, Celeste Heiter, noticed my blog

Gargoyles beneath the barYou've probably driven past it countless times. The tall sandstone walls of The Coachmen appear rather ominous, but step through the wrought iron gate, walk up the short stretch of red carpet and then let your gaze rest upon the wonder that is the bar area.Red velvet loungeThere's a wondrous sense of over-the-top spectacle in the Imperial Russian decor. Opulent red velvet

Tetsuya WakudaTwo book launches, both alike in dignity. In fair Sydney where we lay our scene.On Tuesday night it was the launch of Food Safari, the companion book to the popular SBS cooking series hosted by Maeve O'Meara, at Spice I Am Restaurant in Darlinghurst.Food Safari by Maeve O'MearaOn Thursday night it was a smaller launch at the Global Gallery in Paddington for fellow Sydney food

Looking for a new way of preparing salmon? I (and several other Estonian foodbloggers) have discovered a delightful recipe from the 7th issue of the always beautiful and inspirational Finnish food magazine, Glorian Ruoka & Viini (Gloria's Food and Wine). Whereas confit, the old French cooking and preserving method, usually describes food (traditionally goose, duck or pork) that has been salted and then slowly cooked in its own fat, then here's it's a fillet of salmon that has been cured in a sea salt mixture and then slowly cooked in olive oil. The resulting dish is dark opaque pink, extremely moist and delicious both hot or cold. In the magazine, the salmon was served cold on a bed of lentil salad. We enjoyed it both hot and cold, simply with some good home-made mayo. Salmon Confit ( Aeglaselt küpsetatud lõhefilee ) Serves 4 500 g salmon filet Salt cure: 2 Tbsp flaky sea salt (I used Maldon) 1 tsp caster sugar 0.25 tsp freshly ground black pepper For the confit: 2 org...

Happy Friday!You wouldn't believe it, but we have another Freebie Friday Double.This week, it's all about cookbooks. Whether you use them as manuals, sources of inspiration, coffee table talk or bedtime stories -- in my case, all of the above -- you can never have enough cookbooks, especially FREE ones!Prize #1:Great, Grand and Famous Chefs and Their Signature DishesDo the names Thomas Keller,

Breakfast. In the sweltering heat and humidity that is everyday Singapore, an iced coffee never looked so good.Breakfast crowds at Tiong Bahru MarketAfter a long day and late night, Suze, the es&t crew and I end up at Tiong Bahru Market the next day for a mid-morning breakfast. The place is packed with locals, a hive of people eating and drinking and chatting in the sticky 75% humidity.I'm

You don't go to community clubs for the atmosphere. Although perhaps, in a perverse way, you do.The Concordia German Club in Tempe, in Sydney's south, won't win any awards for its design or decor. And yet there's an element of comfort in the dated furniture, the 1980s colour scheme of salmon pink and viridian green, and the quiet unassuming staff who go about their business.The club, in operation

Macaron! Macaron! Macaron!It was macaron mania last Friday, a one-off day of nothing but crazy macaron flavours in-store at Adriano Zumbo, Balmain, to celebrate Adriano Zumbo's birthday.Up to sixty flavours had been promised, a bewildering array of creations, ranging from Vegemite sourdough to cheeseburger to avocado and Golden Gaytime.I arrived early on Friday morning with fellow macaron fans to

Thank God It's Friday!Did you back a winner in the Melbourne Cup? If not, never fear, because Freebie Friday is here!Today we have TWO competitions to enter, and there are SEVEN chances to win! You can enter both competitions and submit entries each day. Please note the different closing dates for each competition.Prize #1:Scanpan Classic RoasterLove a Sunday roast but dread the prospect of

Photo credit: Image courtesy of adrianozumbo.com and imagineationBREAKING NEWS: Do you know whose birthday it is tomorrow?It’s Adriano Zumbo’s!How is he celebrating?Adriano Zumbo is having a macaron party.AND YOU’RE INVITED.We’re not talking about 12 different flavours of macarons.We’re talking about a shop full of nothing but crazy macaron flavours!The team at Adriano Zumbo’s kitchens have been

Do you ever have out-of-body experiences during an amazing meal?I have.Tonight, this is one of them.Fergus Henderon's nose-to-tail barbecue at the Sydney International Food Festival was the catalyst. Nose-to-tail eating is about eating the entire animal and not wasting anything. That means eating heads and hearts and offal and tripe.To me, this philosophy is about making sure we maximise every

Have you ever bought a bunch of bananas that, well, just don't taste right? This happened to me last week. I had bought a small bunch from a local supermarket, so I could give some to our daughter and eat some as a quick afternoon snack. However, these tasted extremely bland, somewhat mushy and rather floury, and were just left hanging in the kitchen. Still, I didn't want to throw them away, so I compared some of my muffin recipes and banana bread recipes, and ended up making these banana muffins. Surprisingly, these tasted really well, so I'll keep that recipe on hand for next time I need to get rid of some bananas and want to eat some muffins. I used pecans, but walnuts would work just as well (for the fraction of the cost)! Banana Muffins with Pecans or Walnuts ( Banaanimuffinid ) Makes 12 3 medium-sized ripe bananas, peeled 2 large eggs 175 g plain/all-purpose flour 100 g caster sugar 2 tsp baking powder 2 tsp vanilla extract or sugar a pinch of salt 100 g unsalted butt...

I can't wait to try the alpaca!It's this carnivorous curiosity that has me most excited about A Taste of Peru, a degustation dinner recently staged by Illapu Peru at The Sheraton on the Park for the Sydney International Food Festival.I've yet to visit Peru - all I can think of is Paddington Bear who came from "darkest Peru"! There are no marmalade sandwiches here, but Peruvian chef Alejandro

Iced coffee SG$1.20 (in a Ribena cup!)Playing the tourist is thirsty work.Our Singapore day tour, hosted by Nuffnang, boasted a jam-packed itinerary. By 1.30pm, we'd already visited the MINT toy museum and the Chinatown Heritage Museum, whilst squeezing in a second breakfast and a heart-shaped barbecued pork snack before lunch at the amazing Maxwell Food Centre hawker market.The touristing

Coffee with condensed milk SG$0.80 and kaya toast SG$0.60Mmm... why can't all takeaway breakfasts look so good.Suze and I had promised each other we'd have kaya toast for breakfast and so, despite the bleary eyes and early start, we traipsed our way from the Link Hotel to Hong Kong Jin Tian Roast Meat for kopi and kaya, Singapore-style.The novelty of buying a hot drink in a plastic bag was not

Congee simpang (mixed) SG$3.00Welcome to Singapore.We step off our Singapore Airlines jumbo from Sydney to Singapore only to be hit by a wall of tropical 30C heat and 75% humidity.Suze and I waste no time in looking for food once we check into our hotel. We explore the surrounding streets and end up at a corner cafe/eating house which will become our regular haunt over the coming days.Hong Kong

This week is school holidays in Estonia, and my 10-year-old nephew stayed with us for a few days. We went for walks, swimming at the local swimming pool, did some homework together, he spent hours entertaining our little daughter. Of course, we also cooked and ate food together (nachos, enchiladas, quesadillas and other food with high kid appeal). Our last meal together was lunch on Wednesday and I offered to cook him something special. His request: makaroni-piimasupp or pasta and milk soup. I was baffled - I hadn't had that humble soup for almost two decades and I didn't think today's kids eat it. I was proven wrong :) Furthermore, I had no intentions to blog about this particular milk soup and didn't focus too much on getting a good picture. But then somebody saw the picture in Flickr and asked for the recipe, so here you go after all... Although the soup has some sugar in it, it's more of a "savoury" soup, served as a meal on its own, preferably with s...

I'm baaaack.Singapore was an absolute blast - a blast of heat and humidity but much fun nonetheless. Food? Photos? Of course there was plenty of both, but because time is of the essence, I'm uploading a backlog of SIFF posts whilst it's still October.Remember this? Last year, Billy hosted a sponsored Stickier and Sweeter Sydney Tour - a quest to consume as many Sugar Hits in one night. We managed

Elderflower curd on home-made white bread. Anyone else 'out there' who likes to smear some lemon curd on toast or spoon some of the yellow goodness over their breakfast yogurt?? I've made more batches of lemon curd over the last few months than I care to remember, all because K. LOVES it. He can eat some straight from the jar (his excuse is that he doesn't want to waste any yogurt or bread!). He also loves elderflower cordial, so I thought to combine these two and make elderflower curd for this weekend. I used my regular lemon curd recipe, just substituting lemon juice with undiluted elderflower cordial, and as the latter is sweetened, I reduced the amount of sugar by one third. We loved the creamy and floral-scented result. So much so that there's not much left for the weekend. I better whip up another batch soon. If it's lemon curd you're after, check out Meeta's extensive post about making lemon curd or Ilva's rosemary twist on the classic . Elde...

Luke NguyenThe night before Luke Nguyen's Cabramatta Tour, I read Secrets of the Red Lantern, written by Luke's sister, Pauline.As Pauline unravelled the threads of her family story, there was one anecdote that immediately leapt off the pages, making me smile. It was her description of her younger brother Luke as a kid...It came as no surprise to any of us when Luke told of his plans for Red

Elephant ear stems must be up there as one of the most exotic-sounding and evocative vegetable names in English.The Fairfield City Council guide to South-East Asian Greens explains that Elephant Ear Stem (Khoai So)"...gets its name from its wide elephant-like ear leaf (not shown). The stem and stalk are used for cooking and yield mild grassy flavoured spongy flesh. Khoai So is a good source of

"I'm just crackers about cheese!"- Wallace, The Curse of the Were-RabbitWe were all crackers about cheese, a group of 18 cheese lovers assembled for the Cheese Making Workshop by McIntosh and Bowman as part of the Sydney International Food Festival.Much like making one's own bread, creating your own cheese can seem a little intimidating for the uninitiated. It all seems so complex and

If you're stuck for lingonberry recipe ideas, then let me suggest you this creamy lingonberry cheesecake. A friend of mine came over for a coffee about a fortnight ago, bringing me a large tub of lingonberries she had picked herself. Although I've got some good stand-by lingonberry cake recipes (some of them here on the blog: lingonberry and chocolate cake , Swedish lingonberry cake ), I wanted to try something new and different. Using my regular cheesecake filling, I came up with this lingonberry cheesecake recipe. As all cheesecakes, this is best made a day before you want to serve it, so it is completely cool and set. Lingonberry cheesecake ( Pohla-toorjuustukook ) Serves 6 to 8 Pastry: 100 g butter, softened 85 g caster sugar (100 ml) 1 large egg 175 g plain flour (300 ml) 0.5 tsp baking powder a pinch of salt Filling: 450 g full-fat cream cheese (1 pound) 85 g caster sugar (100 ml) 2 large eggs 0.5 tsp vanilla extract finely grated zest of half a lime Topping: 100 g lingon...

The forks. They are tiny.I've never been known for any semblance of graceful movement, but at Gorkha, the tiny forks that accompany our dishes have tines the width of a pea. It's a struggle to manouevre any more than one cube of food at a time. Perhaps this is a deliberate dietary hint from above I need to take heed.In other ways, the tiny forks match the petite servings. At first glance the

Victor Pisapia with an ancho chilliMention Mexican food to an Australian, and most of us will immediately think of corn chips, sour cream and cheese.It's no wonder that Mexican cuisine tends to get a bad rap. In fact, much of what is labelled here as "Mexican", is more Tex-Mex - an American interpretation of Mexican cuisine that spread from Texas and other states in the southwest. Nachos and

After a fascinating tour of Cabramatta with Sydney chef Luke Nguyen, we stumbled upon an outdoor kichen set-up in the local mall. Only then were we told that we would be shopping and cooking dishes to share with everyone for lunch.I was instantly drawn to the caramelised pork belly, a favourite dish of mine, and one I was keen to learn how to recreate at home.Cooking in public on portable gas

Back in mid-July we had a small Japanese dinner party at our place, attended by some of our Estonian friends and an American couple residing in Tallinn, nine adults in total. We had a mix of Japanese dishes - no sushi, however - and everybody seemed to like the food. Somehow I never got around to sharing the photos from that night until now. I do not intend to blog about each and every dish on the table that night - I am no expert in Japanese cooking, and there are many bloggers out there who'd have much more authentic recipes to share - but if there's a particular dish that interests you, let me know in the comments. We tried to have five different colours on the table - black/purple, white, red/orange, yellow and green; as well as five cooking methods (boiling, grilling, deep-frying, steaming and raw); and five flavours (sweet, salty, spicy, sour, bitter). Below is a "photo reportage" of the dishes we served and enjoyed that night. A selection of Japanese crackers ,...

Proper autumn has come somewhat suddenly this year. I've got vague memories of enjoying the warm autumn sun and a cup of coffee on our newly installed patio only recently. But that's all history now - the winds are really chilly and strong, there's hardly been a day without rain during the last week or so. We've turned on the heating indoors and I'm wrapping our daughter into several layers whenever we're going outdoors. It's been already snowing in the south of Estonia, and we've had night frosts as well. Winter's soon here... Which means it's a perfect time for filling and chunky soups that heat both your heart and your body. Here's something I made for dinner just few days ago. Lentil and Coconut Soup ( Läätsesupp kookospiimaga ) Serves 4 2 cm piece of ginger, peeled and grated 1 onion, peeled and chopped 1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped 1 Tbsp oil 1 tsp turmeric 200 g red lentils ("Egyptian lentils"), rinsed and drained 500 ml...

Luke Nguyen rips open his coat with a flourish.Beneath his assuming attire is a fitted black t-shirt that proclaims "I love pho". It generates a round of laughter amongst the assembled crowd as he stands there, chest puffed and proud like a Vietnamese superman.Luke's family story is not dissimilar to thousands of other Vietnamese refugees who fled to Australia following the fall of Saigon. It's