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September 14th 2008 10:55
In the spirit of wasting less, not spending any more than necessary and attempting to cull the freezer of it's many unmarked bubbles of frozen plastic covered mysteries - I took out a kilo of mince and attempted to make it into dinner.
Of course, I could of defrosted it. But that would have taken time. So I just cranked up the burner, and bunged the whole rectangle slab right into the frying pan. I was somewhat enthusiastic in my cranking of said burner - and the icy chunk began to let of some carbony wafts rather than gently defrosting and turning into crushed meat of the more pliable variety.
The mince chunk was too large for the pan, and the bit over the end was bothering me. I had envisaged the solid rectangle breaking up into smaller bits, and then smaller and smaller again. To facilitate this plan, I thought i'd soften the meat brick with some boiling water. This just made the top layer turn a nasty shade of grey and the pan franitcally emit hisses of steam. Not wanting to be deterred, I thought adding more water would do the trick. Not learning from my prior mistake was clearly rubbed in when the meat morphed into futher greyscale and then appeared to be boiling in what now was a full pan of water.
I was boiling a kilo of frozen mince. Trying my best to view this experience as a crazy cooking experiment rather than a 'Jesus, I'm hungry, when is this going to be over' way. I decided to let in boil for a bit longer - then I had a change of heart (or stomach perhaps) and took the pan of the heat and poured the foamy, meaty liquid down the sink. With the pan back on the stove top, I attempted to mash the crap out the meat - but the best I could get it down to after all my wooden spoon efforts were mangaled thumb size chunks. It was then I attempted the taste test - which proved that it tasted as good as it looked; grey, rubbery and souless.
A rescue mission to salvage my revolting mince began with a hefty dollop of tomato paste,, allsorted pinches of mystery herbs, a cup of wine (going on the theory that wine makes everything better) and a generous dose of other freezer goodies in the form of peas and corn.
To be honest. It was still revolting.
Next time, I'll definatlely take the time to defrost the mince.
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Who doesn't love a canape! Not that long ago - sitting through a rather dull public lecture the promise of finger food at the end was the light at the end of my great boredom tunnel- when the speaker finally retired and everybody politely clapped, I said to my friend in true Kath and Kim tonality 'Let's get into the Ca-napes!' The girl sitting next me, turned around and sneered 'It's pronounced can-a-pay' . I refrained from explaining my postmodern use of the vernacular - and drowned my laughter at her horror in free champagne and ciculating nibblies...Call them what you will - Canapes are cute, bite sized parcels of goodness that can be made out of all sorts of foods. This recipe is quick, refreshing and a crowd pleaser.
You will need:
2 cucumbers (Telegraph is best- you want a long even cucumber so when cut into rounds, they are all roughly the same size)
Some shaved or thinly sliced cold rare roast beef or pastrami
Half a cup of sourcream (Creme Fraiche also works well as a substitute)
Some hot english mustard, or horseradish or thinly sliced fresh radishes
Use a fork to scrape down the cucmbers in an even motion, from top to bottom. This creates a nice pattern in the skin (it makes no difference to the taste- but canapes generally look a bit posh and this is an easy way to sex up the cucumber)
Cut the cucumbers into rounds just under 1cm thick - lay these out on a tray.
If you are using mustard or horseradish - add a teaspoon of this to your sourcream and stir -if you like it a bit stronger add more.
Put a little dollop of sourcream mixture on each round. Don't put on too much as it will get messy and drip everywhere.
If not using mustard or horseradish - just dollop on sourcream and then top with a slice of the radish.
Finish by adding a small curl of the cold meat and if you want to make it even fancier- top with a eurpoean parsley leaf!
And get that plate circulating around your next cocktail party!
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As my grocery bill keeps reaching new and amazing heights, and with the constant media bombardment saying we should all be eating less processed foods I have become a keen advocate of the humble rice and beans - a dish that costs only a few buckaroonies to make, tastes good and is like totally good for you!
(for the grammar Nazi's out there, I used 'like' in the previous sentence in an intentionally ironic way)
Let's start with the beans. I prefer the dried type myself- not only are they cheaper, but I personally find them somehow cleaner than the tinned variety. For making rice and bean dishes good one to go for are black eyed peas or red kidney beans. Soak them overnight and freeze any left overs that you don't use.
Rice. Remember when there used to be just one type around? That said, I like a more glutinous rice (such as aborrio) when making rice and beans. But as I am also a big advocate of improvising with whatever you have in the cupboard - so make do with whatever you have on hand.
The ratio to rice and beans works well at one to one (e.g. one cup of rice to one cup of beans).
How to make the magic of rice and beans happen -
Get a large stockpot, and over a medium heat add some oil and a diced onion
when the onion is golden, add a cup of rice
Stir the rice around to soak up some of the oil
Add a cup of liquid to the rice (this can be stock, wine or water), when it has been absorbed add another cup of liquid
Throw in the beans (either tinned, freshly soaked or if you have soaked and frozen, you can use them straight from the freezer), some crushed garlic, some herbs (paprika and oregano work well)
Continue stirring (making sure to scrape up from the bottom to stop the mixture sticking and burning)
Continue adding liquid until the rice has absorbed it all and has cooked (the amount of liquid you need will depend on how much rice you use)
Season and sprinkle with some grated cheese
Voila - Rice and beans for dinner (and lunch and dinner again the next night - this freezes well)
If you omit the oregano and cheese, try adding a handful of fresh chopped corriander to the mix just before serving - and give it a dollop of sour cream.
Another way to get more veggies in your diet is by adding some chopped up capsicum or carrot to the mix, and not to mention frozen peas.
The beauty of this dish is that it is a one pot recipe - so less washing up!
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Stew comes in many great forms, notably the one you can eat, and the hilarious angry, gay baby from Family Guy - this post will be focusing on the former, as I even have one on go as I type. Too bad smell-o-net hasn't been invented yet cos this bad boy packs a fantastic olfactory punch.
I am a firm beliver, that like the curry, a stew can be made out of anything. It's also an awesome way to make all that left over crap in the pantry cooperate to form a decent meal
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I've recently discovered Moules, really that just is the fancy (read: french) way of saying mussels. I first had them at the Belgium Beer Cafe in Canberra, where for about twenty bucks you can get a big bowl of them, fresh and steaming served with another big bowl of crisp and salty frites (that's right, the fancy way of saying hot chips, or french fries if you will). They also have lots of great beer, served in fancy cups, which can be hard to replicate at home.
Word on the street is that in all their shellfishy glory, Moules are the national dish of Belgium. When I think of this little country, another type of mollusc springs to mind, but of the chocolate seashell variety. I have never got my head around the concept of shaping pralines into the fruits of the sea- but those flemish kids seem to love it. But I digress, here is how to save yourself twenty bucks and make your own moules
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This humble italian restaurant gracing Sargood St, at the O'Connor shops in Canberra is somewhat of a mystery, shrouded in intrigue, wrapped in an engima. Luckily, on the whole all such ambiguities are downright delicious- Marinetti delivers fantastic food at very reasonable prices. The traditional italian fare is both hearty and fresh. Generous portions, cooked to perfection without any pretentions at all.
In fact, ja ja chi chi pretensious wank is something that Marinetti is certainly sans. The decor is basic - unadorned orange walls looms over a scattering of non descript tables and chairs. There are no gentle grooves pulsing from the speakers to alleviate ambience- rather the sound of this place is of a hundred laughs and chatters of the guests that regularly pack this place out. If you want to have a talk with someone, this might not be a good place to come, as it is pretty noisy- but if you feel you have the vocal capacity to get over that slight hurdle and are after a looooooooooonnnnnnnng talk- then this is it- because it seriously will take well over an hour for you to get served
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Fresh from the success of a cupboard forage feast I write this post. The feast was one very tasty Pumpkin and Two pea Curry, a dish I have long regarded a staple and has a base for easy improvisation. Even for a vegan dish it is surprisingly delicious - and it is quite possible to serve it to anti-veganites without them realising the meal is sans meat. So, here's the curry crunchdown;
1. Get home from work and realise only have a pumpkin
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Welcome back boys and girls to the second round of the Foodmage Cookbook Off! (insert wooting here). Today we will be looking at the "complete book of ingrediants and recipes for the Australian kitchen" which is none other than The Cook's Companion by one Stephanie Alexander.
This really is a great cookbook. If you could only ever have one cookbook for your entire life, this would be the one you want. In fact,I just had a look at the backcover and it has 'The book for a lifetime of cooking' written on it. At over a THOUSAND pages it might come across a bit scary, but the beauty of this book is it's designed for kitchen novices and masters alike
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The Cook's Companion by Stephanie Alexander and Maggie's Harvest by Maggie Beer get boiled down!
Firstly, both these books are in the heavy weight division. It would be advisable to do some light stretching before picking either of these babies up as at over 1000 pages each these are serious cook books. All warmed up then? Let's go...today gentle reader, we will start by looking at Maggie Beer's recent publication Maggie's Harvest
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Tilley's Devine Cafe is somewhat of an institution here in the national capital. Sprawled over a corner of the Lyneham shops this cafe/bar/restaurant/venue is fabled to once been a domain for the exclusive use and enjoyment by women- rumour has it that after a while the militant lesbians let up and started allowing blokes in to sip a latte or two- but only if they were chaperoned in by a lady. Now-a-days however, one finds all sorts at the establishment; book clubs a gossiping, students a studying, couples a dating, parents ignoring their screaming children running amok...
Tilley Devine was a notorious figure of the Sydney underworld during the 1930's - a bordello madam it's claimed she once stabbed a lover through the throat with a pair of scissors (what happened to hiding a fish in the curtains?) I'm not sure if the owners of Tilley's knew about the life and times of their cafe's namesake, but one visit to Tilley's shows that they know a little about ambience and nothing about food
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