Thursday, May 31, 2012
167/656 - Potato frittata
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
166/656 - Claudia Roden's Middle Eastern orange cake
Thursday, May 24, 2012
165/656 - Australian old-fashioned gramma pie
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
164/656 - Labna - yoghurt cheese
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
163/656 - Roasted rosemary potatoes
Sunday, May 6, 2012
162/656 - French onion soup from Stephanie's with home-made sourdough
Saturday, May 5, 2012
161/656 - Rabbit baked with thyme and mustard
It was worth it though! After rubbing the marinated meat
with dijon mustard (and squealing all the while because the rabbit pieces were
so cold!) it was baked in the oven for 40 minutes. The result was a lovely
tender rabbit with the most gorgeous tasty juices, which I happily poured over
my entire meal.
A little bunny is the perfect size to feed our family of
four and so disappointingly there were no leftovers. If I were a terrible
mother I might start cooking the extra special meals when the boys are not
here. But of course only a terrible mother would think of doing that...
160/656 - Chocolate sorbet
Unlike any other chocolate sorbet I have tasted, this
version tastes of chocolate (of course) but there are also subtle traces of
coffee and cinnamon coming through which complement the chocolate flavour
beautifully.
I actually made this last night but my ice cream maker does not always play ball and so I had to pop the semi-frozen mixture into the freezer overnight to harden. It's a shame because the result is probably icier than it should be, but I don't think I will be hearing any complaints from my chocolate loving family.
Thursday, May 3, 2012
159/656 - Atlantic salmon with parsley and breadcrumb crust
Presenting yet more of our wonderful bounty from the Yarra
Valley! This time some superb Atlantic salmon caught by a very patient Trev
at Marysville
trout and salmon ponds. This salmon was enormous, weighing in at 2.6kg and
tasted absolutely amazing. Even after it had been frozen (we couldn't eat it
all at once!) the flesh was still oily and fresh tasting.
The parsley and breadcrumb crust was simple to put together,
with the parsley, olive oil, bread and garlic being whizzed up together in the
Thermomix. Have I mentioned that I am in love with my Thermomix? It was an
insanely expensive addition to my kitchen but the hours it has saved me have
made the purchase worth it, time and time again.
I don't think I would have looked at this recipe twice had it not been for this challenge. In fact in my life pre-challenge I don't think I gave the parsley chapter a second glance. Little gems like these then, are surely what this challenge is all about.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
157&158/656 - Osso Buco & Gremolata
Many years ago I ordered Osso Buco at an Italian restaurant
and was served a plate of quite tasteless, tough meat. After that experience I
found myself looking at people strangely when they ordered this dish, wondering
why on earth they would want to eat such a horrible meal. Only a few months ago
I had my second experience of Osso Buco at my friend Lydia's house. Her version
was absolutely wonderful and I finally understood what all the fuss was about!
So tonight I ate my third Osso Buco and thanks to
Stephanie's guidance, it was superb. The meat was so tender it fell off the
bone as I was serving it up and we absolutely loved the sauce which was course
enhanced by the lovely fresh gremolata.
Thanks to Lydia and Stephanie, I am now officially an Osso
Buco convert.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
156/656 - Salsa of mixed peppers
What a lovely simple way to make fish taste great!
This little salsa of peppers was chopped up and left to
marinate, or as Stephanie says, it was left to "mellow". I like this
turn of phrase and think I may use it both in and out of the kitchen.
"Boys can you please be like the salsa and go and mellow for 30
minutes?" Not sure how well that will work but at least I will get a kick
out of saying it.
A choice between cider vinegar and red wine vinegar was
given for this recipe, and I decided to use a little of each. The truth is that
I had a slurp of apple cider vinegar left in the cupboard that I feared might
live there forever if I didn't use it up tonight. Red wine vinegar I go
through like it is going out of fashion. Apple cider vinegar not so much.
All going well this is looking like being quite a productive week in my little kitchen so watch this space!