Beef Cheeks - braised in cider and Mexican drinking chocolate

Winter, slow cooked braises, deep piles of mashed potatoes enhanced with garlic and mustard, glorious deep tastes and satisfaction.

Moore Wilson's have started selling packs of Beef Cheeks and for some reason people appear to be walking past them. Not me, I read the posts on northern blogs, this is a cut of meat destined for the stupid price rises we saw a few years back when lamb shanks went from 'I'll throw a few in for the dog" to over $10 for two small sized ones.

Beef Cheeks - these are amazing chunks of meat.

As pieces of meat they are in constant motion when attached to the animal, these muscles are chomping away on those mouthfuls of grass and cud, so they are tough, full of connective tissues and let me tell you, when cutting into dice, take some muscle to do so, even with a good knife.

Just on the matter of knives, I've gone and paid a fair amount of $ for knives over the years, Wusthof, Victorinox etc. and what do I use day in day out?

Kiwi Brand - made in Thailand and they cost me about $5 each for vege knives and the same for small cleaver style shapes. These are thin; don't hold an edge for long, months not years but they are the sharpest and cleanest cutting knives I have ever used.

Yans - next door to A E Prestons in Wellington stock them (not always) and I buy a new set of them about twice a year. Not a bad result for $20 - $25 every 6 months.

I took four cheeks (two packs at approx $6.50 per pack) diced and browned in a non stick pan. Wiped it out and added a sliced red onion, one sliced leek and about six big stalks of flat leaf parsley, leaves chopped roughly and the stalks just tossed in, and two small rosemary stalks.

All of that softened in a puddle of olive oil with a touch of Maldon salt and ground black pepper.

Then rather than the option of red wine I used apple cider (I didn't have any red wine in the house) with a splash of balsamic vinegar as I felt that would melt down to round out over the cooking process and then the slightly offbeat ingredient.

The original recipe called for a can of peeled, seeded tomatoes, I had slightly soft over ripe 'real' tomatoes so just chopped those roughly and tossed into the pot.

According the recipes I was 'following' the additional ingredient was to be drinking cocoa, of course in our house that sort of ingredient doesn't last due to two teenage children with what I can only describe as brutal appetites for sweet drinks, so what to use?

Well when Zoe and I were in Melbourne earlier this year we had dinner at the South American restaurant down the road from where we were staying and Zoe bought some Mexican drinking chocolate which comes in the shape of tablets, wrapped one by one for the perfect delivery of a great hot drink.

The good news is that you can add this once the cooking process has started so when I realised it was in the pantry I was able to add it in.

This is Nestle Abuelita and when you use the vege peeler to scrape the tablet down into the mix it just blends in and combines with the juices to thicken and enhance the dish.

I used my large Le Crueset casserole dish set at the bottom of the oven on about 120 degrees and let it cook stirring only on occasion for over 3 hours, then turned the oven off and let it sit while I got the mash cooking.

To the boiled Agrias I added milk, garlic puree (yes from a tube - I cheat, never claimed to be a purist) and two large teaspoons of seed mustard. This added some bite to the mash to go alongside the unctuous stew and what I thought would be more than enough for the three of us, there's just enough to fill a very small container so next time, double the volume for the whole family so I have some for lunch the next day.

So - Beef Cheeks are something that I'll add into my basket each time I stop by Moore's - toss them into the freezer and when we get (finally) up the mountain later this year, the slow cooker will deliver this (or something like it) for the end of the day when we stagger down the hill craving comfort food.

If you'd like a full recipe (something I don't think is needed as any dish like this is a changeable dish as every piece of meat is different in size as is everything else) and as I've commented above I changed most of what the original recipe called for, then by all means let me know and I'll provide it. But as I've heard said (and like to say myself) cooking is art, and your expression is as valid as mine or anyone else's.

Enjoy whatever version of this you choose to make. I'm thinking that a mix of beef cheeks, brisket steak or even venison could be a great option, a real grunty Italian Primitovo or Aussie Shiraz along with whole garlic cloves or even pearl onions added about half way through the cooking process.
Anyway - whatever - enjoy

May already?

Ok, here it is May 2011 and I missed posting in April so maybe I have to manage a couple this month. I've been spending a fair bit of time settling into new routines recently, Zoe is now fully engaged in her leading globally, London this past weekend, New York the weekend prior and she's been to Dublin on very short notice (6.30am Tuesday morning request to be in Dublin for the Friday to start a course then) and I have changed my role at work.

Having been a mobility specialist for approx 13 years I've shifted into the Gen-i procurement team to work on 'connected and specialised' devices, laptops, tablets and so on - a change being a good as a holiday is being tested out.

Food wise the seasons have changed also, with the first real southerly gusts wafting through bringing a chill, although the winds have been more northerly and the temperatures holding at 15+, this morning down to 10 (according to the car's temperature screen) so the mind begins to wander towards the slower braises, the soups, stews etc. so I'm beginning to re-read my recipe files looking for some new options and old favourites.

I'm also looking for baking recipes, and that's not my forte at all, baking = chemistry and cooking = art and all that.

BUT - I did promise to bake a GF bread and to do so more than once, so following up on some recipes on the Gluten Free Girl site http://glutenfreegirl.com/ and also some links from her site as she seems to have some wonderful contacts / friends http://www.celiacteen.com/2011/scones-ratio-rally/ and others.

So over the month I hope to have some time to enjoy trying these out and in the meantime here's a recipe I've found and have made a few times for a quick side dish or simple dinner - it a Nigel Slater recipe to start from but I've adapted in a few minor ways.

BUTTER BEANS WITH MUSTARD AND TOMATO

I am very happy to eat this as it is, but it also makes a cheap and warming accompaniment to grilled bacon or sausages. Serves 4 if used as a main dish

3 medium-sized onions, peeled and chopped into medium dice
3 large cloves garlic, peeled and chopped finely
3 tbsp olive oil
a few whole sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
2 x 400g cans of crushed tomatoes (or passata)
2 x 400g cans of butter beans, rinse and drain
2 medium-sized whole chillies (I use a mid-range chilli, most often a Jalapeno but have used a squirt or three of sriracha suace if I have none handy)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_sauce is a handy source of knowledge around the Scoville heat range and uses for the varied chillies out there in sauces and condiments)

2 tbsp black treacle (optional - I have used palm sugar instead as I have this as a pantry staple, simply take a palm sugar cake and shave enough off to replace the treacle)
1 tablespoon grain mustard
1 tablespoon smooth French mustard

Peel and chop the onions and the garlic, put them in a heavy-based casserole with the olive oil and leave over a moderate heat till they are soft. An occasional stir will prevent them from sticking to the pan.

Add the dried thyme and the bay leaves, the crushed tomato, 250ml of water and the drained beans, and then bring to the boil. Season with salt and black pepper, the two chillies (or your selected sauce option) , treacle and the mustards.

If you choose to use the palm sugar then the sweetness will be less and the mixture will be slightly less syrupy.

Partially cover with a lid and leave to simmer gently for 30 minutes or so – you want the sauce to thicken a little. Serve hot.

If you can prepare the day prior and gently warm though the tastes will marry together - works well with a dry white, perhaps a dry riesling (the Whitehaven Marlborough Riesling 2010 would be a great partner) for the sweeter note a viogner (a easy option is the Yalumba Y series or a for a bit more coin, the Alpha Domus option will offer a more rounded relationship)

enjoy

So it was a very busy month in March. First, let me explain the photo above.

Our good friend Anne-Marie had a birthday party (one of the important ones) and so we went to Melbourne to attend. As you may be able to work out from the photo- a 70's theme was declared; I grew a beard and man-scaped down to the Lemmy seen above, Zoe went onto TradeMe and found the kaftan for $10. All set.

And of course visiting Melbourne means visiting other friends as well - and eating. Of Course.

So we arrived on the Wednesday afternoon and headed to the Melbourne offices, then out around the corner to a little place called Pekopeko (181 Wells St, Southbank) where Zoe had got takeaway from on a couple of occasions. They were full but would hold a table for us in 20 minutes. No problem, after a flight, shuttle and sitting in the office a brisk walk would be good. So we wandered for the 20 minutes picking up a Yalumba Viogner at the local IGA on the way.

Seated and menus in hand, I was spoilt for choice, a very large list of options all looking great. A quick check with the waitress and she suggested a 2nd option to my choice as that one was crisp fried in a flour batter, and we started with Gyoza. Large and yummy with a good chilli sauce to dip into.

My box meal of honey chicken came as below (sorry photo taken on the IPhone) with a side of steamed broccoli in a peanut / chilli sauce (I was told the chef there created this and won't share the recipe) steamed rice and a nice sized chunk of tofu, beautifully cooked chicken pieces and I wiped the compartments clean and attacked Zoe's meal as well.

Finished off with the green tea icecream on a black rice pudding

Day two we met friends at St Ali - http://stali.com.au/outpost.php a super cool cafe down a side alleyway, one of those ones you find in Melbourne with the cobblestones and interesting little workshops etc. It was close to lunchtime so I went with the dish that seems to have become a staple of the Melbourne cafe scene, steak with a green salad or variants of that.

The St Ali version is decent sized sirloin, cut slightly thinner than standard served with a mixed greens salad with a mustard dressing. Perfect protein boost for midday along with a couple of long blacks and got to meet Julie and mark's new son, Wilbur while their first climbed under the roller door into the street and got chased by his aunt.

Both Julie and Angela enthused about a restaurant they thought may be close to where we were staying, called Los Latinos which serves a mix of South American dishes, a mix of Mexican, Chilean, Salvadorian, and Costa Rica.

Later that day when I went down that street there it was, barely 500m from our friends house and perfect for dinner that night. http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/restaurants-and-bars/los-latinos-20101004-163lr.html This place is amazing, tucked into a slightly dingy strip of shops of the side of a busy street is a bright and shiny and little cafe that when we arrived was almost full with a large very obviously South American family all the way from grand parents down the very latest addition to the family.

A table for two though - no problem and in minutes after a quick consultation with the waitress we'd ordered the nachos as a starter and I'd ordered the Pupusas as my main; these are hot round discs made from maize flour, stuffed with deep-fried pork or refried beans or two cheeses (or a combination of all three fillings) and cooked on a hotplate.

They're served with pickled cabbage (curtido) and tomato salsa and are mighty tasty. I asked for and got a mixed plate of four - that for $10 and was more than enough though I made sure I finished the plate. Zoe had the tacos which she told me were very good indeed!

Lunch the next day was with Julie and Angela and their folks - refugees from Christchurch who had taken up the Air NZ chance to get away and also visit the new baby. The Cafe up the road - Le Chien is their local and we wandered up there for lunch. Again the steak option was there and this time with a side of a potato and beetroot dauphinoise, something I'd not considered before. I'll have to take a shot at this at some stage.
 
Then after a quick bite to eat we headed to the big party! I'll deal with that in a separate post.
 

Saturday we visited more friends, Mark and Lynne adopted three Indian children late last year, two sisters and a brother so we went and had lunch and a wine or two there, then went to AAMI stadium to watch the Melbourne Storm thrash the Titans.

The kids, are fabulous with the youngest (only 4 and she re-programmed my IPhone for me) likely to rule the world at some stage.

 

A very late dinner at China Bar was next on the list. http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/71/760455/restaurant/Victoria/CBD/China-Bar-Melbourne

 

Again Zoe was the instigator, this place is one of those Melbourne eateries where the basics are done well, very well. A rapid fire menu, even faster service and bare floors, formica tables etc. and lots of options. Braised brisket with rice arrived inside of 5 minutes of me ordering, obviously simmering away in a huge pan out back this was moist, spicy, sweet and perfect, followed it up with the seafood fried kueh tiaw with extra chilli sauce while others around me had all sorts of mixed dishes along with custard buns to finish.

 

After all of that it was back onto a plane early the next morning and back to Wellington - a great mini break away, enough new foods to spark up the cooking juices and get me going again, so here's to travel and friends, the best excuse I've found to eat a lot in a very short time frame.

 

cheers all.

Heat in the backyard

In the past two years I've been lucky enough to travel to a couple of places where heat is an integral part of the cuisines on show, Bangkok in 2010 and Delhi-Agra-Jaipur-Mumbai in 2009.

Each country and indeed each region within each country weaves this into their dishes in differing ways, but in most cases the humble chile plays a main part. So this year in a visit to the garden centre I grabbed a few plants and some planter bags and got growing.

this one's a Thai version, Thai Dragon;

Cayenne, Jalapeno and Sweet Banana peppers round out the mix. The Jalapeno are back left, not showing much in the way of chiles as yet.

Thai Dragon, top in the blue bowl, the Cayenne in the green one, and no prizes for guessing the Sweet Banana peppers in the red bowl. The Jalapeno seem to be slowest to come through and are still at the 'just started' point, but I've started harvesting the others.

Checking on the internet I've discovered the following about what I've grown;

Thai Dragon: Scoville units 75,000 - 100,000 meaning 'very' hot, each plant can produce up to 200 chiles in a single season

Cayenne: Scoville units 30,000 - 50,000 meaning hot enough

Jalapeno: Scoville units 2,500 - 5,000, so warmish if you believe the scale and the

Sweet Banana: Scoville units negligible so downright cool

and here's a run down on the Scolville units as advised online

Scoville Units

15,000,000 Pure Capsaicin
5,300,000 Police-Grade Pepper Spray
2,000,000 Common Pepper Spray
855,000 Naga Jolokia
580,000 Red Savina™ Habanero
350,000 Habanero Pepper
325,000 Scotch Bonnet Pepper
200,000 Jamaican Hot Pepper
100,000 Thai Pepper
50,000 Cayenne Pepper
30,000 Manzano Pepper
23,000 Serrano Pepper
10,000 Chipotle Pepper
8,000 Jalapeno Pepper
5,000 Tabasco™ Sauce
2,500 Rocotilla Pepper
2,000 Ancho Pepper
2,000 Poblano Pepper
1,000 Coronado Pepper
500 Pepperoncini Pepper
500 Pimento
0 Sweet Bell Pepper

So based on this it now looks like I'll have a whole heap of very hot chiles available to me to use, looks like some trawling through the internet is ahead of me, any ideas, I'll happily take them.

cheers all

Missed my first blog of the year? the January one, yes I did miss writing it......

So I sat down in late December 2010 and said that one of my goals for 2011 was to be more efficient at adding new posts to this blog, at least one per month I comitted to, and here it is the 21st of February and I'm just starting the January post. How did that much time go by?

Well for starters, since we got back from Miami it's been a blur, Zoe jetted off almost straight away for her final training and then she was signed off by Cathy and so is now leading Advanced Courses, the Communication Course and is still the Operations Manager, which means that last weekend was the one she was home for out of the seven weekend prior to and following (three each side)

And last weekend we also had friends in from Brisbane (ex-Wellingtonians) so the foodie tour went into full swing. Apparently Brisbane is a bit of a foodie wasteland which seems strange to me but if anyone was going to find good food it would be Lydia. And she reports back that Yum Ch is poor there, the markets and stores well short of the Moore Wilson and open weekend markets we have.

So anyway, having established my reason why not and having bored you with "I'm so busy" heres an update.

While Zoe travels the kids and I often indulge in sticky chicken wings, not really a recipe, much more a mindset. (Zoe's not keen on this option as she doesn't like 'sweet sauces on meat')

It's always fairly simple, a tray or more of nibbles, wings or even small drumsticks marinated in a combination of sauces, herbs, spices and flavours (normally in a snaplock bag as that allows me to roll the chicken around and get everything coated completely) for several hours and then baked slowly in a medium heat oven or on the barbeque

(useful hint here - use a tinfoil baking dish, they are cheap and easy to use and you can just throw them away at the end)

The latest lot were a tray of nibbles ($15 the tray at AE Prestons in town), the marinade included, sokey BBQ sauce, a Jamaican chicken and honey baste), crushed garlic - about a tablespoon, Hoisin sauce (makes it quite sticky) a chilli sauce from the back of the fridge I re-found recently, lots of freshly ground black pepper and some Sambal Olek to punch it all up a bit.

Combine all of that (and the additions are endless, soy, oyster sauce, garlic and black bean, Char Siu, worcestershire, mustard - either as a powder or a made variety etc etc) with about 1/4 cup oil to prevent the chicken to stick to the pan too much and then pour the marinade over the chicken in the bag.

A couple of hours later, I poured all this into the big pan and placed in the oven, pre-heated to 180. Gave it all about 30 minutes, then mixed it through, getting the nibbles coated again.

Another 30 minutes and I then poured off the extra fat/oil that's released and lowered the heat to about 100 degrees and gave it all another 30 minutes.

One final mix and then let the chicken 'rest' in the turned off oven for 15 minutes and served up with with a simple green salad Bryn and I had dinner and leftovers for the next day.


As I've said above, the options are endless and I have never writen down a recipe for this as I dont always have the same sauces or herbs etc each time I make - but here are my basic rules;
1 - make sure there's a base sauce, normally a tomato or steak/bbq style
2 - some level of sweet sauce, Asian preferably, something that will add the 'sticky'
3 - something spicy, Rocket sauce, a chilli paste, this will blend down unless you overdo it, but should be a lingering sense on the mouth
4 - spices, garlic, ginger, pepper etc
5 - let it all sit blended then add to the chicken and let the mix sit for as long as you can
6 - the resting in the oven at the end allows the final glaze thicken slightly

and finally - eat with your fingers and have a wet napkin at hand, you should need it if it's all worked out well

cheers



Miami - a fleeting vist, part 1

Hi all, writing this sitting in the JW Marriot hotel, it's the location for the Landmark Forum Leader Forward and I'm here because my darling Zoe is to be accepted as a Landmark Forum Leader Candidate during the 3 1/2 days we are here. that's right we are here for three and a half days only but it's the most important place to be.

Well, it takes some time to get from Wellington to Miami, 1 hours flight to Auckland, then wait 4 hours for the flight to Los Angeles, that's 12 hours and 30 minutes, then wait 3 hours (though most of that is the security process on arrival) then another 4 hours and 50 minutes to Miami.

Total elapsed time - just over 24 hours and we left Wellington at 9.15am the 26th and arrived Miami at 5pm the 26th, no wonder the brains slower than is usual.

Apart from the lack of a requested GF meal on the Auck - LA leg all went very well, even managed some sleep on the flights. And we faired better than those on the LA flight who had plans to fly onwards to New York, an hour out of LA they got told that they'd be set up in LA hotels for at least two days as NY was under blizzard conditions and all airports closed.

That was the 26th and today (28th) JFK is just beginning to accept inbound flights. Watching the news here the attitude is much the same as what I've seen from the UK news services "how could this happen?" "why aren't we better prepared?" etc as roads close, airports get shut down and so on.

Seems like when an unusual occurrence happens everyone expects 'someone' to fix it for them without specifying exactly who that would be. I'm sure that northern US states experience snowfall most years, that it's this much this early may be unusual but really?

Weather worldwide is different than it's been recently, yes, that's a given, but if you read back these conditions are within normal parameters, maybe the global weather is resetting itself somewhat, getting back to where it was and we've just had it easy for the last while?

Whatever, it would be nice if some of the snow made it's way south for the 2011 winter season in NZ, we have season passes for the mountain and want to get as much time in there as possible.

Miami, so far, what I've seen is big buildings, and a Mall. Shopping here is a pastime and at this time of year, it's sales season. The Dolphin Mall has 250+ stores and all are at 50% sales or more. I've benefited by two Ralph Lauren shirts, another two from Kenneth Cole and Bryn has new size 15 FootJoy golf shoes. Those alone saved me enough to cover the costs on the shirts as the pair in NZ he wanted were over $200, these $53US ($70NZ)

So far, spent approx. $166NZ - $125US so not bad going.

Today's I'm hanging out with David, he's married to Jane, the other NZ Landmark Forum Leader, he's got a car so we are going to head to the Cuban quarter, somewhere I probably wouldn't get to otherwise and there's a promise of Cuban food (Versailles restaurant) which will be great. So far the foods been way better than expected.

The lamb chops (French cutlets x 8) and chips, in the bar last night cost $16, and when I mentioned I'm a kiwi, the chap taking my order immediately said, you'll want them rare then!

Scary place for food though was the mall, a huge food court, all selling immense portions of fried stuff, either that or claiming they sold the biggest, the cheesiest, the beefiest, the bestest etc. etc.

I'll throw up some photos later on, haven't really had the camera out so far, just a few shots on the phone so far, cheers

Miami, that's right, Miami

Boxing Day (26th Dec) morning 9.15am, Zoe and I will be lifting off the tarmac at Wellington Airport headed to Auckland, from there the next step is Los Angeles and then onto Miami.

Zoe's in sessions each of the 3 1/2 days we are there while I get to spend tourist time and shop and so on.

So I'm hoping to be able to take heaps of photos, taste some decent food and ride an airboat in the Everglades!.

So if you're interested, swing by over the break and I'll share what I see, taste and experience on the trip, and if you're in Wellington on the late afternoon / evening of the 1st of January 2011, we'll in back and barbecuing in the backyard - all welcome.

cheers

Caramelised Lemon Rice Pudding

I know, I know, I know, for some of you, Rice Pudding brings back some old sad and scary memories of childhood and perhaps this may be a post that you want to skip straight past and move onto something else.

But this may be an option to change your life because this option may just bring your taste buds back into line with those of us who enjoy and love this dish.

So be brave - here goes, step into the future because this ties in several variances that may just do it for you.

Caramelised Lemon Rice Pudding (with options)
and feel free to run wild, I used Tangeloes as the citrus option recently (the photos below) and am wanting to have a crack at grapefruit soon.

200g short grain rice (arborio works really well as an option)
600ml each full cream milk & thickened plain cream
Zest of 2 lemons or 3 oranges (avoid the pith - bitter)
Juice of 2-3 lemons or oranges (make sure you sieve - no pips)
1 ½ cups caster or white sugar (I often use vanilla sugar if I have on hand - see below)
Pinch salt

2 tablespoons icing sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon for dusting

Preheat oven to 150c.

Put all ingredients into an ovenproof dish with a tight fitting lid, mixing the cream, juice, zest and sugar well through.

As you can see I've used a Le Crueset casserole dish, nice and deep and able to go from the oven to the table.........

Let the mixture sit for 10-15 minutes to allow the ingredients to combine fully. The rice will glug up a touch - just stir and it'll be fine.

Mix well and place in the oven, bake for two hours at about 180. I usually check it every 30 minutes or so, stirring occasionally but leave undisturbed for the final 30 minutes.

The mix will occasionally look as if the liquid has curdled but this is part of the process, simply mix well again and replace in the oven.

It's really important that the mixture thickens as the pudding cooks.

Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the lemon or orange juice and serve with scoops of ice cream along with the icing sugar and cinnamon.

 

 

Serves 6-8

Variation – spoon the rice pudding mix into individual ramekins and sprinkle with soft brown or muscovado sugar, either run under a hot grill to brulee or use a blowtorch to do the same.

This pudding may well remove the stigma rice pudding carries with some - enjoy!

Wine (well food) and roses

When we rebuilt (and by that I mean paid othesr to do it) our front wall we lost the plants and trees that had been planted over the years and the most missed was an old Daphne bush in that far right corner.

Despite all sorts of entreaties to the builders, their subbies didn't get the request and it along with an olive tree gifted to us few years earlier they all finished up bare rooted and dieing on the back lawn.

So once the wall was back in place and the soil back filled we had a virgin garden to re-plant. Year one, the veges went in, leeks, cabbages, lettuce and spinach in the main. But once that was done, what next?

Zoe said - white roses please, so here we go.  And job one, prepare the ground, and lay out the planting plan.

And in they go, and into my fingers go the thorns (it takes me two weeks to get one of them out of my finger) damn things. Anyway, as I go I also plant out two varieties of strawberries between the roses so as to provide Bella with berries when she comes over to visit.

And to make sure all grows nicely the irrigation system is being installed around the roses and to cover the berries as well.

As of today - how do they look, well pretty good so far (and I ate the first berries today - Chandler variety)

and the whites are just about there



and room in the far corner for the standard yellow that's been pining away in the container in the backyard - root bound and no matter how much water we pumped into it, always looking dry, with a little love and irrigation hopefully this will also kick back into bloom.

Also added two Guatemalan Guava plants between the roses, according to the wording on the plants they have lots of yummy little berries that are good to eat straight from the plant or even better as jam or as a compote, can't wait.

cheers all

The wonderful world of the Internet allows for immediate access to such a wide number of ways to communicate and share information no matter where in the world the various parties are - yesterday I saw a Facebook post from a friend Francoise who while very French is currently residing in London.


Zoe and I met Francoise when she worked here in Wellington for a NZ wine /beverage company and where able to visit her in a small village near Lyon about 8 years back when she worked at a family winery in Tournon sur Rhone.

So when I saw her request for a cassoulet recipe it was a simple thing to ask what version she wanted and offer several from my recipe files.

[to deliver a Gluten Free end result all you need to do is make sure the sausage is GF and replace the breadcrumbs with either a pre-prepared GF option (several versions available here in NZ) or with rice crumbs or as you're already going to some effort bake a GF loaf for the purpose)

First option is the one below, the full on, throw everything into the pot option, this is a big production item, a long shopping list and a number of steps to follow, but set the time aside and just relax into it and the end result is very well worth it.


The ultimate cassoulet

Serves 8 / Preparation time - overnight / Cooking time over - 2 hours

Ingredients

300g/10oz dried white haricot beans, soaked in cold water overnight
1 onion, studded with a few cloves
1 bouquet garni (2 bay leaves, a few sprigs each of thyme and flat leaf parsley and a 7.5cm/3in celery stick, tied together)
4 fat garlic cloves, finely chopped
4 Toulouse sausages
4 duck legs
350g/12oz belly pork rashers, skinned and diced
2 tbsp goose or duck fat (or oil)
1 large onion, chopped roughly
1 large carrot, chopped roughly
2 celery sticks, chopped roughly
350g/12oz lamb neck fillet, diced
350g/12oz boneless casserole pork, diced
290ml/½ pint dry white wine
400g/14oz can chopped tomatoes + 1 tbsp tomato puree
2 heaped tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 heaped tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
salt and pepper


A mixed green salad with mustard vinaigrette, to serve

For the topping:

1 large day-old baguette
2 fat garlic cloves, halved
4 tbsp goose or duck fat (or half butter, half oil)
2 heaped tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 heaped tbsp fresh thyme, chopped


Method

1. Drain and rinse the beans, tip into a large pan and cover generously with cold water. Bring to the boil and skim off the scum, then add the studded onion, the bouquet garni, half the garlic and lots of pepper. Stir, half cover and boil for 30 minutes more. Stir occasionally and top up with water when necessary.

2. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7. Prick the duck all over with a fork and put on a rack in a roasting tin. Roast for 30 minutes, then remove and set aside. Lower the oven to 140C/275F/Gas 1.

3. When the beans have been cooking for 1 hour, tip them into a sieve, discard the onion and bouquet garni. Set sausages aside.

4. Put the belly pork in a 4l/7pt flameproof dish and heat gently until the fat runs, then increase the heat and fry until just crispy. Add the poultry fat and heat until sizzling, and then add the onion, carrot, celery and remaining garlic, scraping up the bits from the base. Fry over a gentle heat, stirring often, for 10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to a plate.

5. Increase the heat and add the lamb. Stir fry until coloured on all sides, then transfer to the plate and repeat with the pork. Tip the ingredients from the plate back into the dish. Add the tomatoes, tomato puree and herbs, then season with sea salt and pepper to taste.

6. Add the haricot beans and 850ml/1½pt water to the dish and bring to the boil. Stir, then lower the heat so the liquid is just simmering. Keep the mixture in the same dish to cook or transfer it to an earthenware dish.

7. Remove the skin from the duck, and then tuck the duck legs into the liquid. Peel off the sausage skins, slice the sausage meat thickly on the diagonal and add to the dish.

8. Cover the dish and bake for 1 hour, stirring once. Stir, and then cook uncovered for a further 1-1½ hours, stirring halfway, until the meat is really tender and the sauce is thickened. Take the dish out of the oven and remove the duck legs.

Strip the meat from the bones (it will fall off easily) and return the meat to the dish. Stir and add a little water, if necessary. Season if necessary, then return to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes until all the meat and beans are very tender.

9. Cut the crusts off the baguette, tear the bread into pieces and put in a food processor. Add the garlic and chop into coarse crumbs (you should have about 200g/8oz).

Heat the fat in a large frying pan until sizzling, then stir fry the breadcrumbs and garlic over a moderate to high heat for 7-8 minutes until crisp and golden. Remove from the heat, toss in the herbs and stir to mix, then season well with salt and pepper.

10. Give the cassoulet a good stir. The consistency should be quite thick, but not stodgy. If you prefer it slightly runnier, add a little water.

Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary, then sprinkle the topping over the surface in a thick even layer. Serve in warm bowls with a green salad dressed in mustard vinaigrette.


Option two - a much shorter shopping list and the end result while still very good has less work involved and a very much shorter shopping list.


Duck Cassoulet

Serves 4 (double the ingredients for a larger group)

Duck, pork and flageolet beans cooked slowly in a garlicky tomato broth is a perfect winter supper. The recipe uses duck legs that have been confited or cooked slowly in duck fat so you need a source for those or to have laid some down yourself.

If you want to use fresh duck legs, cook them at the start with the ribs.

This is a total meal served with hot sourdough or crusty bread, or serve some crisp French beans parboiled and quickly fried with olive oil and garlic.

A green salad with a sharp vinaigrette also works well against the richness of the main dish

4tbsp olive oil
4 belly pork ribs
Freshly ground pepper
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 to 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 stick celery, finely sliced
1 leek, finely sliced
1l brown chicken stock
6 plum tomatoes, skinned and deseeded
225g cooked flageolet beans
4 confit duck legs
2-3tbsp good pesto or 3-4tbsp freshly chopped basil

Method

Heat the oil in large metal casserole or pan, add the belly pork and cook until golden brown.

Season with pepper, then add the onion, garlic, celery and leek, and sauté for a few mins until the onion is translucent.

Add the stock and tomatoes, bring to the boil and add the duck. Cover and simmer for 90 min.

Add the beans and cook for another 30 min. Scatter with the fresh basil or pesto and serve.

What's next?

So with the two options - which option will Francoise choose? (I have my guess, but will she surprise me?)

OK Francoise, over to you, I'll expect photos and commentary from you and the intended guests as to the end result, I look forward to all of that.

Bon Appetite! (in my worst Julia accent)

Turoa week & weekend

Turoa is one on NZ's best skiing and snowboarding areas - the mountain has two sides, Turoa (Southern facing) and Whakapapa (Northern) and we all board and prefer the longer runs at Turoa.

I've spent a few years off the slopes with a bad knee but got back up this year and we are all fully kitted out, esp Eve who got a new board, binding and boots at the 50% off sale this morning. $855 worth on the till reciept so $1,710 off the floor in one small - short timeframe.

This time up we are staying at the Old Courthouse in nearby Raetihi ( http://www.holidayhouses.co.nz/properties/6861.asp ) which is just a stunning place, a well managed adaption of the actual courthouse used to pronounce sentence on the local baddies of the region in the years gone by. The kitchen is where the Judge sat and the lounge down below where the legal counsel and watching locals would have sat in wait.

There are two bedrooms and a bathroom downstairs and upstairs two more plus a second lounge area and second bathroom.

The two familesi are mostly Gluten Free and in some cases lactose intolerant as well so dancing through the meals has taken some planning and care.

First night we had chicken drumsticks coated in a herb and spice enhanced GF plan flour then baked alongside roasted potatoes and other vegetables. I cooked four kilos to go around 9 people and there were 3 drums left at the end.

Night two I started dinner just after cleaning up night one's dinner. A mix of rosemary, Maldon salt, lemon pepper, Ras el Hanout, garlic powder and Olive oil, rubbed into a full leg of lamb and sat in a covered roasting pan through the night and the next day. Then placed in the heated over at 250 degrees with the lid on for 75 minutes, then the lid removed and the heat dropped to 180 for the final 45 minutes and then left aside to rest for another 20 minutes before carving. Melt in the mouth meat and alongside the potatoes, kumara and courgettes, carrots etc. went down very well.

Tonight, pork ribs marinated in a mix of BBQ sauces, garlic powder, pepper and chilli sauces for 60 minutes, again in a covered roasting dish for an hour to cook through and then the lid off, the oven cranked up and fan bake on to crisp and caramelise the edges.

All involved have been very happy with the offerings so far, and at the end of three busy days, two up the mountain in great sunny conditions, then today when the winds blew and the rains fell a quieter day but two hours in the hot pools at Tokaanu caused as much tiredness as the first two days.

We have two more days and the weather forecast is horrible for the next three days, following that it looks great so Bryn and I will come up again next weekend to a shared lodge and hopefully get a long weekend in and all three days up the hill in good conditions.

Dancing in the Kitchen with the Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef

Three Gluten Free dishes courtesy of Shauna James-Ahern (The Gluten Free Girl)


I recently saw a post on FaceBook from Shauna inviting readers to register and they would be sent three recipes from her upcoming new book to prepare, photograph etc. and of course Blog about.

The book's called  - Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef: A Love Story with 100 Tempting Recipes

Now, when I found out about my GF state being a foodie I had certain concerns and went straight to the internet, every GF site seemed to be about how to make GF muffins that looked simply terrifying, stodgy and boring, then I stumbled on a link and found Shauna.

What a revelation, here was someone who once diagnosed as GF had found her life, a thrill for food and an excitement about all the foods you could eat as GF - instead of the 'you can't eat this' sites I had previously found.

I emailed Shauna straight away and she replied - wishing me luck and fun in re-discovering food. Over the past few years I have watched from the other side of the world (according to Answers.com - the distance between Wellington New Zealand, and Seattle is 7253 miles, or 11671 km) as Shauna has met, fell in love, and married The Chef (Danny)  and then along came Lil Bean Lucy), possibly the most watched over baby in the foodie world.

So, when Shauna threw up a 'wanna try some of the new recipes early?' question I sent off an email and got the email back with the recipes enclosed;

Seared Shrimp with an almond-garlic sauce

Fresh pasta with anchovies, lemons, and olives

Chocolate peanut butter brownies

Immediately I saw a problem, the brownies, I don't bake, never really have and have even dismissed baking as 'chemistry' while cooking is 'art'

Have to eat those words if I was to fulfill on Shauna's request......

So - step one - buying the baking ingredients, Wellington has a wonderful store called Commonsense Organics, they stock every organic, GF, dairy free etc. etc. requirement you could ever have so I head there for GF flours and so on, they even had Oat flour in stock though not listed as GF it's organic and from Canada, the staff believe it is GF but have never checked this.

I decide to risk it in the first batch. (all good, no side effects at all so will report back to the good folks at CommonSense)

Issue one - almost everything required was in stock except for sweet rice flour which according to a quick Google search is milled from Glutinous Rice with a high starch level - but none in stock and the Asian food store I tried next was also out of stock. So - soldier on and manage none the less.


Issue two - the almonds for the sauce, Shauna and the Chef suggested a brand not available here in NZ so, improvise, again Google is my friend and raw almonds quickly toasted with a light olive oil and sprinkled with Maldon sea salt appears to be a good replacement.

Issue three - I don't have a mixer blender (broken motor in my multi mixer) so pasta is going to have to made by hand, but I'm not a 70 year old Tuscan Nonna so not sure how that's going to go.

 
Recipe One - seared shrimp with garlic-almond sauce
 
This is so simple (even if you have to prepare the sauce in a mortar and pestle - damm broken mixer)
 
 

 
The blend of fresh garlic, the toasted almonds along with the simplicity of the shrimp deliver an extremely subtle blend that had my 16 year old and I diving into the sauce time and time again.

Suffice it to say, this is a very nice recipe and one that I'll make many times again

 
Recipe Two - fresh pasta with anchovies, lemons and olives
 
Next the pasta - and this was a touch of a mission, as I noted above this is a whole new world and doing it by hand, let's just say that the experiment was slightly flawed. No matter what I did, how long I kneaded the dough, smooth and shiny didn't happen, gritty and lumpy was the best I could do. So when it came to running it through the pasta machine (thanks Megan) it didn't really slide out the far side in smooth supple sheets.
 
Next option, a trusty old wooden rolling pin, this worked to a point, but by now the dough was getting a touch dry so an extra egg yolk and a drop or two of water and more hand kneading and we were rolling again. End result some uneven strips of dough to be hand cut into ribbons.

 
The sauce came together quickly and easily, the anchovies, olives etc merging into a smooth viscous mass ready to accept the cooked pasta.
 
Fresh pasta normally cooks faster than dried and GF pasta often faster again, well due to the - how do I say this - structural integrity (thickness) of my pasta this took just a touch longer than expected. Finally al dente and ready to be combined

Another simple dish and one that with a tweak or two (my family aren't big olive fans) will be a standby in future, they'll never ever know about the anchovies as they just melt away into the body of the sauce.

Baking Time

Recipe Three - Chocolate peanut butter brownies

The big one for me and a step that as I said above necessitated not only the purchase of GF flours but when I thought about it, I needed baking trays as well. So Moore Wilson's is my local wholesale all-in-one outlet, fresh veges, meat, fish, breads, and full wholesale grocery and equipment areas, + a wine/spirits and beer store, this is my local one stop shop.

Into the mixing process and here came the exactness I never ever show in my cooking, measuring the flours correctly, reading and re-reading the instructions to make sure I didn't skip anything. The dry ingredients sifted and combined, the chocolate and butter melted in the bain marie and then the mix came together, the baking tray was greased and dusted and all was ready. The peanut butter didn't want to spread so I put it in the microwave for a few seconds and then that worked too.

In my search for GF ingredients I had located an imported GF chocolate (dark chocolate + mint flavour) but also noticed that our own excellent brand Whittakers appears to be fully GF. I used the import option but will use the Whittakers next time (yes - I will bake again)

 
Now the end result wasn't perfect, (oh no I hear you say - no surprise seeing it's your first time) but the only reason for this is that I forgot our oven cooks higher than the settings say, so at the prescribed heat, I singed the brownies and in less than the suggested baking time. Still both Bryn and I both think it's a pretty good first time go.

 
Dense and chewy outer layer and soft and gooey inside, the mint in the chocolate came through as a light aftertaste and the peanut butter next time might be a cashew or almond butter instead but I might even be tempted to take a shot at Shauna's other baking recipes on her blog site.
 
http://www.amazon.com/Gluten-Free-Girl-Shauna-James-Ahern/dp/0470419717

The book is available for order on the above link, well worth a look, even if you aren't Gluten Free the recipes (as they will all be like these three) will be ones that are simple, exciting and will taste good no matter what you can or cannot eat.

All in all, this was a fun exercise, three dishes, four different processes to follow (and all those who know me are very aware that recipes to me are normally simply a vague guide as I amend, and change on the go) and one I'm very pleased to have been a part of.

All the team at work will get to taste (if not the first batch) the second or third batches of the brownies as I play with the options there and with summer about to arrive down here in NZ, the shrimp and pasta with make appearances on those long summer evenings in the backyard.

thanks Shauna, Danny and Lucy for being who you are, for what you provide and offer so freely, you're a gift to the world

cheers

Campbell 

Wednesday night - Bangkok (I know out of date order)

Well just realised I didn't post Wednesday night's food excursion, an old friend from NZ - David Wickens, is living and working here in Bangkok and trekked across town in torrential rain to meet Zoe and I for dinner.

I know a local place he says, nothing much but great food, turns out to be an open air site, market during the day and several food stalls in the evening, plastic seats, metal tables and a picture menu. The staff are young and friendly and very eager to assist and make sure we are well looked after.

We order a range of options, green papaya salad, tom yum goong soup, a whole fish deep fried and garnished with fried shallots, ginger and garlic, rice noodles and squid, deep fried on a bed of bean sprouts and onions.

All beautiful and along with some soft drinks all comes to 540 Baht = NZ$21

When we leave the lady who owns the restaurant thanks us for eating and wishes us good luck. Zoe and I walk back with David while he works out if he can get his wife to come to Bangkok over the weekend to take me around.

Thursday Bangkok - 5th August

With Zoe working here we get away to a fairly slow start to the day and really only get away into a taxi for the Platinum Mall at about 8.30. This is a wholesale mall with most stalls about 2-3m wide and maybe 6m deep, crammed into 5 floors of about 200 stalls per floor.

about 1/3 of the far wall of the floor

Each shows the price for one item, discounted for two, more for three etc.  

So first things first, top floor for breakfast, 1500 seats, they say over 100 food choices though I'd say more like 500 based on the menus above each stall - from here I got 6 Gyoza and Yakitori Chickren rice - all for 95Baht, about NZ$4.

Zoe tried the maple waffles and had Gyoza as well, then we plunged into the mall proper, within 10 minutes Zoe's 5 got new pashminas under her arm and we've sorted some bits and pieces for the 5 and 3 year olds.

Funky outsized watches for NZ$2 each, t-shirts, polos all join the booty, but we restrain ourselves as on each floor there are just so many options, I'll return on the weekend to check out more.

Lunch - back upstairs and the place (mostly empty earlier is heaving) so we take turns to grab food, Zoe's much excited by a banana crepe and goes for that, memories of banana pancakes in Koh Samui 22 years ago)

I go for two options, Hoy Tod, an oyster, bean sprout stir fry in a crispy omelet, and a Pad Thai full of fresh seafood, inc tiny mussels, squid, shrimp etc etc both together cost me 150 Baht = NZ$6, just so good and whipped up in seconds right in front of you.

I get brave and load on the chili sauce, nam prik and onion shoots and chili flasks and experiment with variations through the meal.

Zoe's away setting up the team over at the Landmark offices so dinner will be late and close by tonight, will report in once that's sorted, eaten and digesting, cheers