Only four of us this hot Christmas day, so we decided to have a Chinese hot-pot. Cooking everything at the table is the ultimate slow food but very satisfying and delicious! Our home-made stock was made with pork bones, chicken and ginger. Before serving we seasoned to taste with salt and added a black cardamom…… Continue reading christmas 2018
lemon and blueberry polenta cake
A lovely lemony cake with pockets of moist blueberry and no wheat. This recipe makes one small 15cm (6″) cake. Preheat your oven to 180°C (350ºF) and grease and line your cake tin with baking paper. Cream 100g of unsalted butter with 100g of caster sugar until soft and pale. Beat in 2 eggs, one at…… Continue reading lemon and blueberry polenta cake
kohlrabi, quinoa, radish and apple salad
This lovely crunchy salad goes well with any smoked meat or fish and is an excellent addition to any smorgasbord. We ate it with smoked duck. Rinse ½ – ¾ of a cup of white quinoa and boil in a generous amount of water until cooked but still retaining some texture. Rinse with cold water and…… Continue reading kohlrabi, quinoa, radish and apple salad
spaghetti with mussels
It’s definitely worthwhile taking the mussels out of their shells for this wonderful spaghetti dish. Clean 3 kg (6½ lbs) of mussels. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add the mussels, cover and cook over high heat until all open. This should take about 5 minutes. Drain the…… Continue reading spaghetti with mussels
hazelnut, ricotta and chocolate cake
Here’s another cake from Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh’s SWEET. Instead of mini cakes with chocolate ganache I opted for one 6″ cake and kept it plain. This cake performs a balancing act between hazelnut cake and baked ricotta cake. With little dots of dark chocolate throughout it’s dense, super moist and keeps incredibly well.…… Continue reading hazelnut, ricotta and chocolate cake
mexican brunch
We love our lazy late breakfast or brunch. And Mexican food is the perfect way to wake up your tastebuds. Finely chop 1 onion, 1 red pepper, 1 chorizo and 1 fresh chilli and fry them in a little oil until the onions are translucent and soft. Add a drained can of kidney beans, some…… Continue reading mexican brunch
cooking in the fire
It’s winter here and when the wood-burning stove is going we take the opportunity to use it for cooking. Sadly, the previous owners who installed the stove didn’t buy one with a stovetop but cooking in coals is an age-old method and seasoned cast iron camp ovens (Dutch ovens) have been used for hundreds of…… Continue reading cooking in the fire
Milk Bar
Being an Australian, I grew up with the Milk Bar – our version of a corner store. They were the place to go for a milkshake and would sell lollies (candy) by the piece. Now there’s a new kind of Milk Bar – a chain of dessert and bakery restaurants in the U.S. Christina Tosi…… Continue reading Milk Bar
New York casual and fast food
Here are a few more New York foods served in a less formal setting. Definitely worth trying, though. Barney Greengrass has been around since 1908 and since their window says ‘The Sturgeon King’, that’s what we decided to try. Absolutely delicious both with scrambled eggs and onions and served with a bagel, cream cheese, tomato, onion and pickle.…… Continue reading New York casual and fast food
New York
I’m back in New York with the luxury of time – time to try some more wonderful food! Here are just a few of the stand-out establishments: Balaboosta (a Yiddish term that means the perfect housewife and mother) is a modern Israeli restaurant by chef/owner Eidnat Admony. On the menu are Mediterranean dishes packed full of…… Continue reading New York
michelle picker cooks 