Australian Dinner Feast

Mango & Prawn Salad Medley

Hello knackers! It's Chrissy month already...

Christmas is coming and it is the best time for me to think of a dinner feast! I always love cooking dinner feast for people who are dear to me. I remember that I cooked a very special dinner for the people of Liverpool, Sydney Australia. That was two years ago. How time flies. Now with the feeling of Dinner Feast and Christmas I ended concluding something. And that is to go back to Australia come Yuletide 2010. I'd be excited to cook not just dinner feast but some cooking stints for the people of Liverpool and nearby towns. Of course I'd be back to Melbourne too since I agree now with Bourdain that it's the Food and Art Capital of OZ. I am also wishing that I can pass by Perth to visit a friend and to meet a famous Australian boxer. Another thing I also want to have a side trip to New Zealand if given the chance. Hope things will work out so I can finally go back down under next year. I want to spend my next Christmas in a place I called HOME. Australia.

Meanwhile, lemme share you some photos of the food I cooked for fellow Filipinos in Liverpool. It happened at the house of my very kind and accommodating cousin Gary. His dear wifey Yons is like a sister to me the way she treated me and accommodated me not just during my Aussie days but until now. The couple gave me so much help not just during my stay there but also in times of my emotional crisis last year. Now that I am okay, they are still here to listen to my happy stories and giggles. They still spare me some time and accommodate me whenever they can.

Clam & Basil Linguine

Chicken Curry

Indian Corn Fried Rice

Australian Bistek

Kind peeps from Liverpool, Sydney NSW

The cake was given by our guest Lucci Olmedo

I am always happy when I cook. It makes me wear a smile on my face whenever I see the people eating it and enjoying it. Most of all when I see the food almost empty, my heart will definitely smile too. I am thankful I had a brigade of helpers who helped me with the food preparation. Now this is my mindset, I also want to cook for friends in London, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy & Spain. European tour is getting near. I will apply my visa early next year. That's another story. Anyways, I will post the recipe of these foods here and at Jamie Oliver's website. Hope to do it very soon.

Excited about Christmas!

hugs,
joanie xxx

Simple Food and a couple of resto plugs

Hi Everyone!  Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with lots to be thankful for.  We were lucky enough to have our boys home for an entire week - a wonderful gift, considering they are 27 and 25 and have their own busy lives away from Atlanta.  It was good family time.

The first thing they did was displace Henry from his "room" (the one with that ridiculously oversized TV).  Out came the XBox, off went the lights, closed went the blinds and here came the video games.  And if they weren't doing that, they were watching movies.  Or sporting events.  The "BOOM BOOM BOOM" sounds reverberated from the darkened depths of that man cave all week!

It was just like old times.  They were probably texting each other while they were in there, too.  (It's been known to happen before).  Guess there are things I am too old to understand!

And of course we ate too much.  Friends invited us up to their farm for Thanksgiving dinner and it was memorable.  It began as we gathered around the wood burning oven in their outside kitchen and feasted on roasted fois gras and freshly foraged oyster mushrooms.  I'll leave it at that so you won't know how much I really ate, but I will tell you that it just kept getting better from there... 

Here are two pictures of the beautifully decorated tables:

Friday brought the long-standing tradition of a riotous dinner here when all of their friends show up, drink a little too much (don't worry, they spend the night) and reminisce about old times.  We learned WAY too much about some of their prior escapades in high school (oy vey!) and some of their current ones (let's just say "Cubs and Cougars" - not my kids, fortunately, but double oy veh!!).  Anyway, it was a good time with too much good food.  That would be BBQ ribs, pulled pork and brisket from the recently opened Community Q BBQ here in Decatur.  If you live in Atlanta, you want to beat a path to their door as soon as you can.  It's really, really good.  Here is the link:  http://www.communityqbbq.com/

Dinner at Miller Union was Saturday's highlight.  OMG - if you live in Atlanta (or within a 50 mile radius, even) GO, GO, GO!!!  Steven Satterfield, formerly of Watershed and Float-a-Way, is the chef-owner and his business partner is the very savvy Neal McCarthy who is well-known from Sotto Sotto.  Beautiful space (industrial, yet warm and cozy - an oxymoron, I know) and beautiful, yet simple food.  The staff rocks, too.  Here is the link:  http://www.millerunion.com/

Okay, so back to the simple food concept.  Folks, I am TIRED.  I spent most of the day taking back my house.  It was a disaster after all those guys and all those kids hanging around.  I will not describe the lingering (beer and sweat) odor in the man cave.  "Disgusting" doesn't even come close.

And now it's time for dinner.  This is going to be simple beyond belief.  I have a plethora of farm-fresh eggs, courtesy of my weekly CSA.  I have some beautiful fresh arugula from the same source.  Looks to me like baked eggs and a simple salad are on the menu.  I can throw it together in no time.  And it will be really good.  No more fois gras for me in the forseeable future!

BAKED EGGS

For each serving:

2 farm fresh eggs
2 T. half-and-half
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

1 T grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Preheat oven to 400-degrees.  Carefully break eggs into a ramekin.  Add half-and-half to just cover whites.  Sprinkle over with salt, pepper, rosemary and Reggiano.

Place in oven and bake until whites are just set - 10-14 minutes.

Serves 1

If you are really a good person and not the food police like I am, you will serve this with some freshly toasted baguette.  Sorry, Henry!

Obviously, this was bread-deficient.

Trust me, he survived!

Walima November Challenge: Sheesh Barak - شيش برك

This month's Walima Cooking Club challenge is representing the Lebanese Cuisine.
We share this recipe also with the Turkish cuisine and with a little difference in preparation, they call it "mantee" or "manti" and the shish barak word that we use is I would say comes from the Turkish and Balkan word "burek". I used the manti this time in my recipe which is the dough filled with meat, it's the same except that it comes in a different shape. In Lebanon, we shape it (the Sheesh Barak) like tortellini.

Here are the ingredients as given by Walima Club founder Arlette from Phoenician Gourmet blog:

Lebanese Style Sheesh Barak

INGREDIENTS:
1 ½ kg of plain Greek style yogurt or home made
1/2 quantity of Ajeen or basic dough recipe
3 cloves garlic, crushed with a dash of salt
1 cup finely chopped fresh mint (if fresh is not available use couple spoons dried)
½ kg (16 oz) ground meat (either beef or lamb)
3 medium sized onions, finely chopped
¼ cup fried pine nuts
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp butter

Basic Dough or Ajeen
(this is used in many savory pastries)

INGREDIENTS:
1 kg (32 oz / 5 cups) plain flour
1 ¼ cups warm water
½ cup olive oil
½ cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp sugar

PREPARATION:
Sift the flour into a working surface.Mix in salt and sugar. Make a well in the center. Pour olive oil and vegetable oil in the well. Mix the dry ingredients into the liquid. Add water gradually. Knead the dough into a ball (if the dough is too stiff add some water). Knead the dough on a floured working surface until it is smooth and elastic this can be done in an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, or in a food processor. Form the dough into a ball and put into a lightly floured bowl, covered with a damp cloth. Leave in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size.

For the Cooked Yogurt:

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 kg of plain Greek Style Yogurt
or home made you can check my blog for home made yogurt (you can check my blog for homemade yogurt)
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp salt
1 cup water + 1 beaten egg (or egg's white)

PREPARATION:
Strain yogurt using a smooth colander into a pot. Add egg or egg's white. Dissolve cornstarch in 1 cup of water. Stir into cold yogurt for 2 minutes.Place on medium heat, stirring constantly until it boils.
Preparing the Sheesh Barak:

Roll out the dough with a rolling pin to about 1 cm thickness. Using a round cookie cutter (medium size), press over dough to get equal rounds.
Fry onion in shortening till color changes a little. Add meat, salt, allspice and cinnamon. Stir occasionally and fry for 7-8 minutes. Add pine nuts and Mix. Drain the mixture as butter would affect closing the pastries.

Spread the round a little with your fingers. Place 1 tspn of the filling on it. Fold over one end to make a semi-circle. Press edges down to seal. Take the two ends from the straight side, bring them together to make a small ring. Press well. Repeat till rounds are done.

You will have left over dough , (this is the best part) roll the remaining dough in thin rope and cut into diagonals. Place the stuffed dough and the cut pastries in a tray with parchment, Bake in a hot oven (400F) for 10 minutes or until golden. During this time prepare and cook the yogurt and when it starts to boil add the baked pastries to the boiling cooked yogurt one by one. Let it boil over low heat for 10 minutes or till pastries are cooked.


Note: The egg and the cornstarch are there as stabilizers so that the yogurt won’t separate.
Make sure to cook the yogurt on medium low heat , high heat could ruin the sauce.

In a separate skillet you’ll want to quickly sautée the garlic and mint in one tbsp extra virgin olive oil and add it to the Sheesh Barak. And cook for another 2 minutes .

Serve hot in bowls, or you can serve with it Lebanese Rice Pilaf with Vermicelli.

Split Pea Soup

    

    

Split pea soup is a comfort food for me and it is also extremely easy to make.  I pair it with with a pork sausage, such as kielbasa, for a hearty, cool weather meal.  Choose the consistency you want by leaving the cooked peas in the broth, or mashing them to create a thicker soup.  Serves 2.

   
Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1/2 stalk celery, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 bay leaf
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 pound green split peas, washed in a strainer
1/2 link polish kielbasa, chopped
salt/pepper

Directions:
Heat oil in a medium pot over medium heat.  Add kielbasa and brown on all sides, approximately 5 minutes.  Transfer the kielbasa with a slotted spoon to a bowl, reduce the heat in the pot to medium-low, and add onion, carrot, celery, garlic and bay leaf, sauteeing gently to soften, 8 minutes.  Add chicken stock, bring to a boil, and then lower heat and simmer covered for 1 hour.  If softer peas are desired, continue cooking up to an additional 30 minutes.  Remove the bay leaf.  If a thicker soup is desired, mash some of the peas with as potato masher.  Return kielbasa to soup and warm a few minutes.  Serve.

Legal pot: Kind for restaurant sales or cause of chronic absenteeism?

November 30

There was an interesting article in last Monday’s Washington Post, saying that support for legalization of marijuana is growing rapidly in the United States.

It took the Great Depression to repeal the prohibition of alcohol (the 76th anniversary of that is being celebrated this coming weekend in what has become a sort of holiday in the mixology world). Will our current economic crisis lead to the legalization of another substance that is used widely by Americans to relieve stress? The tax revenues alone would be enormous.

Obviously, we at Nation’s Restaurant News like to look at this from the restaurateurs’ perspective.

And so I would like to ask you how you think legalization of marijuana would affect the restaurant world.

Please participate in the poll (you can choose multiple answers), comment below or do both.

I don't know if it's gonna raining for today...

Monday, the weather is colder than on the past days and I feel glad about it... you know, I've been expecting the cold to come for a long time, and now it seems that is here!

How was your weekend? Mine was good, full of activities!

On friday, I went with Rocio, Esther, Edo and Jess to a Barbie expo... but it was closed! You see, on the website they didn't say that on friday and saturday it was closed... anyway, we had lunch in a japanese restaurant and we had a lovely time!

 

Coat - Green Coast

T-shirt - Handmade

Skirt - Metamorphose

Tights - Calzedonia

Shoes - Taobao

Bag - Swimmer

Bow - Primark

Scarf - Claire's

Then by the night, I went with Esther and her boyfriend Kim to the presentation of the new Bibian Bule's book. Bibian Blue is a corset and fashion designer from Barcelona that creates wondeful pieces of clothes... and she gave a party in order to promote the book of photos of her brand!

Bibian and one of the models with a wedding dress. 

Esther, Darko and me.

With Kim (and his sexy look, so funny, hahaha!)

One of the performers. 

Me!

Fur and minihat - H&M

T-shirt - Handmade

Bustier - Offbrand

Skirt - Putumayo

Tights - Topshop and Calzedonia

Boots - Vintage

Fan - Oysho

I spent all saturday in shopping at Encants and Rieira Baixa with Naila, Micky and Laia, I found some good treasures... but the best one was my new Sonia Rykiel's shoes... only for 15€! Second hand is so good...

  

I love this dress!

From H&M! So new-rave, hahaha!

And yesterday, sunday, we went to the  Creativa convention... it wasn't really good, and I almost didn't find anything interesting... I bought some things for customice the letters and a lollipop that I'll use as a necklace... and a cute piece of fabric for doing ribbons. By the way, I fix the clock I bought at Encants, and now is a necklace!

Sixties' inspiration days!

Shirt - Vintage

Skirt - Bershka (secondhand)

Shoes - Sonia Rykiel

Bag - Offbrand (my beloved Pizzicato 5 bag!)

So, how was your weekend? Was it good? I really hope so!!

Have a nice monday!

PS: I'm thinking about going next week to see Editors, who are playing at Barcelona... as long as Mando Diao is cancelled (poor dear Gustaf, get well and come back soon) I was thinking of going to see Franz Ferdinand... or Editors... I can't decide!!

PS2: I was tagged by Sher for making a cool game; I'll do it in my next post, because I have to search lots of things in my room in pink!! Thank you dear!!

Glad tidings from Hawaii

November 30

Our loss is Honolulu’s gain. Johan Svensson, who until recently was executive chef at Aquavit, has moved to Hawaii.

If you’re wondering what I’m talking about because you thought celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson was executive chef of Aquavit, Samuelsson is chef-owner of Aquavit and hasn’t been executive chef there for years. He does spend a fair amount of time there, though; Nation’s Restaurant News’ offices are across the street, so I meet people there for drinks with some frequency, and Samuelsson often comes out to say hello.

But of course he can’t be there all the time. Sometimes he’s busy cooking state dinners at the White House, or otherwise occupied as a celebrity. It happens.

Johan was the opening executive chef of Riingo, which is under the same ownership as Aquavit, and he became Aquavit’s executive chef after Nils Noren left that position to work at the French Culinary Institute.

But he is moving to sunny, sunny Honolulu to work for the BLT Steak scheduled to open on Waikiki at the new Trump International Hotel & Tower there.

Details (like exactly what his job is there) haven’t been confirmed, but I’ll write up a news item on that for NRN once they have been.

Meanwhile, back in New York, Marcus Jernmark, who started working at Aquavit in August as a sous-chef, is running the kitchen for the time being.

This particular Marcus is no slouch, either, having recently worked at the residence of Sweden’s consul-general in New York, but. management still seems to be looking for someone to fill the position permanently.

At any rate, congratulations all-around.

Plantains, Trees, and Pancakes

I have officially fried twice in my LIFE. Yesterday, husband and I fried up (in canola oil) a plantain, sprinkled with ground sea salt. Yummm! Husband wasn't expecting to enjoy plantains, but he gives them a thumbs up! Surprise, surprise!

 Looks like one huge, bruised banana..but not the same!!

 

 My second attempt at frying was a success compared to my falafel several weeks back. Though, frying will obviously never be something REMOTELY "regular" in this household!

 

 Fried Plantains -- very popular Puerto Rican food

And like many others out there, we have officially decked out the crib for the season encroaching! We purchased a fake tree at Hobby Lobby last year AFTER Christmas (hello, 75% off sales!!). Mark also won the ornament battle -- we have a tree decorated in orange and blue. Yes, Go Illini!

 

 That THING to the left of our tree is a University of Illinois "Sky Box" (AKA vending machine). *eye roll*...when will my house NOT look like a bachelor pad?

 

 Husband and Lily.

We put the tree in our third bedroom because Lily loves to eat anything and everything she's not supposed to. Next year, I look forward to having the tree in the living room where I can enjoy it every night. I do have a mini tree in the kitchen, though...

Last night we tried PUMPKIN PANCAKES! Allison emailed me this recipe for the Newman's Own Organics Giveaway and her winning entry was the recipe. Thank you, Allison...and keep an eye out for that package, it went out today!

 

 Um, YUMMMMMMMMMMM

 

 A dollop of FF Cool Whip and a sprinkle of cinnamon..nom nom nom!!!

 Pumpkin Pancakes

From Allison

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup oats

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup milk

1 cup water

1 cup pumpkin

In a mixing bowl, stir together dry ingredients. In another bowl, combine eggs, vanilla, milk, water, and pumpkin. Add liquid to dry ingredients. Stir mixture until well blended.

Pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake onto griddle. Cook until golden brown.

I served with fat-free Cool Whip and cinnamon. Husband used maple syrup. Both were delicious!

Questions:

Have you ever tried plantains? How were they prepared? Did you like them?

Do you have a fake Christmas tree or real Christmas tree?