winosandfoodies

Tortilla Espanola From Spain And The World Table

I love this book,  Spain and The World Table  from the Culinary Institute of America. It isn't a book for the novice cook.  I doubt I'll cook  from it very much - like using 18 egg yolks for Crema Catalana.  And there are things in I don't approve of - like Sushi Paella or Red Wine Sushi Rice. And there are things in there I love - like Paella Valencia or Mission Fig Flan. And recipes using salt cod -  if I can find salt cod in Australia.

Every spare moment this week I've found myself curling up on the couch a cup of coffee in one hand the book in the other. From the gorgeous looking Shrimp in Garlic on the cover to the final recipe on the last page for Crema Catalana, I imagine I'm back in Spain.

During our 6 weeks in Spain in 2004 we ate a lot of Tortilla Espanola and Creme Catalana. Every bar offered tortilla and every menu del dia featured flan . So I'm a pretty good judge of Tortilla Espanola. I make it often, sometimes following a recipe, sometimes winging it with whatever is in the fridge and how much time I have. With this one I followed the recipe but substituted  some ingredients with what I had available.

Here is the original recipe.

TORTILLA ESPANOLA

900G (2 lbs) Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick
1 3/4 teasp salt, divided use
1/2 cup, plus 2 tablesp extra virgin olive oil, divided use
1 cup chopped yellow onions
1/3 cup chopped red bell peppers
1/3 cup chopped green peppers
1/2 cup diced choriizo sausage
1 cup diced Serrano ha
10 large eggs

Toss together the sliced potatoes and 1 teasp salt in  a medium bowl.
Heat 1/2 cup olive oil in a large heavy non stick or well seasoned cast iron skillet over medium heat and add the potatoes.
Cook stirring occasionally, until the potatoes start to soften but not brown, about 5 minutes.
Add the onions, peppers, sausage, and ham.
Continue to cook, stirring often, until the potatoes are tender, the chorizo cooked through, and the ingredients well blended, another 5 to 10 minutes.
Transfer the potato and onion mixture to a colander placed over a large bowl and drain.
Clean the pan.
Beat the eggs in a large bowl until smooth, then stir in the potato mixture.
Season with 3/4 teasp salt.
Return the pan to medium heat and add 2 tablesp of olive oil.
When the oil is very hot, add the egg mixture to the pan.
Tilt the pan so that the eggs run over the bottom of the pan in an even layer, then turn the heat to low.
Cook, shaking the pan from time to time until the omelet has set, about 8 minutes.
Cover the pan with an omelet turner or flat bottomed pot lid. Then carefully slide the inverted omelet back into the pan.
Return to the heat and cook the other side until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
Slide the omelet out onto a plate.
Allow to cool to room temperature, cut into 8 wedges  to serve.

I did things a little different with the ingredients I had on hand. I used red onions; green peppers only, no red; salami in place of the  chorizo and Serrano ham. Real Serrano ham is so expensive here I'd never put it in a tortilla. I'd rather just eat it on its own. I didn't bother with turning the omelet over, instead I placed it under the grill to set the top.

It was excellent. Everyone loved it.

For a more academic review of the book visit this blog.

I received Spain And The World Table as gift from DK Publishing.

Beer Or Wine

 
Which do you prefer with your prawns , beer or wine?

I recently received this book for review. Written by Marnie Old, an award winning sommelier and Sam Calagione, brewer and founder of Dogfish Head Brewery it approaches the question of serving wine or beer with food.

I would say it is aimed at the younger market. Specifically those people just discovering wine and wanting to know more about pairing alcohol with food. Sometimes beer works better and this book will help you understand when that is.

I personally didn't like the style of writing but I'm sure that's an age thing. At 256 pages it covers everything you need to know. From how beer and wine are made to how to read labels, understanding styles and finishing with ideas on hosting a beer/ wine tasting party. The final section includes recipes complete with a recommended beer and wine to complement the dish.

I confess I have not read the entire book cover to cover, I just don't have time for that. However it is one of those books you can dip in and out of as you please...or as you are plannning your menu and looking for appropriate matches.

Before I was married I hung out with a group which included a couple of Greek boys. Their family owned a large fishing company so seafood was often part of our weekends. Every Saturday we would gather at someones apartment and feast on prawns with rye bread washed down with lager beer. Back then it was the fashion to add a dash of Rose's lime juice to our beer. Now days you just stick a quarter of lime into the beer bottle neck.

The book features a recipe for Spicy Gulf Shrimp and has been paired with a rose and a malt beer.

Over the weekend I recreated the prawn lunch of my past. Only this time I added a bottle of wine to the table to see if I would prefer the prawns with wine.  The only cold white I had was a De Bortoli Windy Peak Viognier which was okay , but I think a semillon or sauvignon blanc would have been better.

The beer was my preferred drink -  a Grand Ridge Brewery Natural Blonde. The slight citrus taste complemented the prawns perfectly. I'm finding I enjoy beer more and more  in the warmer climate where we now live.

If you want to know the difference between a prawn and a shrimp  it is here.

Book He Said Beer She Said Wine
Authors Marnie Old and Sam Calagione
Publisher DK
RRP US$25 CA$28

Adventures Of An Italian Food Lover

We met seventeen years ago and I still remember our first conversation. It was about a book called The City Of Joy  by Dominque Lapierre. 

It is surprising we became friends as we were so different. Where she teased her hair into curls, I gelled mine into spikes. She wore pretty little dresses and taught literature at a girls school, I wore black and was a stay at home Mum. She served her roast lamb with potatoes and gravy, I served mine with roasted capsicum and pomegranate vinaigrette. She watched TV seated nicely in a chair, I sat with my feet tucked under me. Her children studied law and marketing, mine studied music and film.  She was ruled by her head, I let my heart make my decisions.

I think she saw in me a little of the off beat person she'd like to be, I know I saw in her a little of the more conservative woman I'd like to be.

Our friendship grew, fuelled by a mutual love of travel, literature and film.  We went on holidays together, sometimes with our husbands, sometimes without.  One year we spent a month in France. In Paris she took me to Printemps,   I took her to Dehillerin .  We spent a week driving through Provence in our little red rental car.   Our first night in Monaco  we got drunk as we celebrated surviving a week of driving on the wrong side of the road . We went into Italy to the markets at Ventimiglia. She took an hour to choose 1 pair of leather gloves, I bought 4 pairs in 10 minutes.

She carried a secret. A secret about a lost love.

She moved overseas to take up an exciting teaching position in a  large corporation. I made plans to visit. We looked forward to discovering Tong Li together. Then came her phone call, she was unwell, she had been flown by private jet to a Hong Kong hospital. Next a phone call from her son, she would be having surgery for a brain tumour, could I come to Hong Kong.  I spent a week in Hong Kong supporting her children and helping where I could.  One night her daughter and I  filled her hospital room with candles, music and rose petals. The doctors came in and blew the candles out with warnings about oxygen cylinders and fires. We all flew home to New Zealand and she came and lived with us while undergoing further treatment. The day came when I realised she needed more care than we could give. Eventually she was moved to a hospice. Every day I would go for my morning walk stopping off at the hospice  to visit her.

She knew she was dying.  On the day the doctors told her I poured us each a glass of Grand Marnier. We sculled the drinks and threw the glasses into the fireplace, smashing them into tiny shards.

The lost love was on her mind. I could see she was troubled and I encouraged her to talk about it. I felt it would help her let him go.  She promised  she would tell me  the story when she was ready.

One day  I missed  my  morning visit to the hospice. It was  after lunch when I arrived. She began to talk about the lost love. I could see how painful it was for her. I reached over and hugged her and said I don't need to know. We hugged and cried, we both knew it would be our last conversation. That night she slipped into a coma and was soon gone.

When Cath  invited me to participate in the  Adventures of an Italian Food Lover event about friendship I had  a feeling this friendship would stand out and would be the one I chose to share. It was when I came to Faith's memories of her friend Zia Enza Tarli  I found my friend in the  sentence "She's an expert on family traditions, knows about obscure Italian holidays and festivities".  I knew then it would be Zia's Tiramisu I would make.

   

Thank you  Cath  and Ivonne  for inviting me to be part of this memorable event.  I look forward to reading the friendship memories of my fellow bloggers.

Molly's Mostly True

It has recently been debated  on how acceptable it is for bloggers to receive free copies of books in the hope they will read and review it favourably.  I personally do not have a problem with it if an honest review is written.  I'm quite sure all food and wine bloggers I read would give an honest review - good or bad.

So when the publisher of Molly O'Neill's book Mostly True  offered me a free copy I said yes.  Books tend to be ridiculously expensive in New Zealand and it takes a while for many books to reach here.  I was being offered a book that was unlikely to be available here.  I knew who Molly was as I have a copy of her New York Cookbook .  Forty Eight percent of my readers are from the United States so it seemed appropriate to accept the offer.

For me the book was a little heavy on the baseball and I would have preferred more of her experiences as a chef and food writer.  Baseball is not a popular sport in New Zealand or Australia, however I'm sure Americans who grew up with baseball will enjoy reading about the O'Neill family's dedication to the game.

It seems  growing up in the fifties and sixties in America was much like growing up in Australia at that time. Molly portrays the period well and her words brought back fond memories of my own childhood and teenage years.

I mostly enjoyed the chapters on Molly's  life as a chef and food writer.  It never ceases to amaze me how hard chefs work.  It is not a career for the fainthearted. 

Mostly True is a light hearted read, a book to pick up and put down as the mood takes. A book to be enjoyed by men or women.

Kitchen Sense by Mitchell Davis

When Cathy at A Blithe Palate  asked me to participate in the Cookbook  Spotlight  I jumped at the chance to receive a free cookbook.  Who wouldn't?   The publisher would send us the book and our instructions were to read the book, make a recipe and blog  our thoughts. 

The book in question was Kitchen Sense  by Mitchell Davis.  My copy arrived, I read, I cooked, I tasted, I read some more and here are my thoughts.

Kitchen Sense is the ideal book if you are just starting out at cooking or to give as a gift to someone new to the kitchen.  It is 515 pages of the basics, handy hints and some nice sounding recipes. I have a copy of  Stephanie Alexander's  The Cooks Companion , very similar to Kitchen Sense,  and it is the most used book on my bookshelf.

Kitchen Sense is written for the American market without a thought for the rest of the world. I couldn't find any conversion chart for weights, measurements or temperature.  Exactly how much is a stick of butter? All measurements are in cups because Mitchell is of the opinion not enough American cooks have scales.  That's my only complaint.

So what did I cook.  Firstly I made a Rosemary Herb Syrup which  was easy and I'm thinking it might be quite nice as a syrup poured over a baklava made using pine nuts. 

Then because it was such a cold day in Auckland and some comfort food would go down well with the family  when they came in from work, I made a Bourbon Bread and Butter Pudding.  I didn't have any Bourbon in the cupboard so I replaced it with Grand Marnier. It worked just as well as the Bourbon.  The recipe was easy, the taste  excellent with a butterscotchy tang to it and I'm looking forward to the leftovers for lunch today.

A couple of things I'm looking forward to trying - Mitchell's slightly different  method for muffins, Streusel Coffee Cake, and the Chardonnay Poached Salmon with Mustard Tarragon Sauce

Truffles - All you want to Know

On my first trip to Paris I came home with four souvenirs. An  Hermés  scarf, a tiny jar of confits from breakfast at the Hotel Negresco  in Nice, a wrapped sugar cube from Musée d'Orsay  restaurant and this tiny tin of truffle pieces.  Despite buying the truffles at great expense I decided not to open them. They would be well past their use by date now.

After reading  The Truffle Book  this week I decided to check the small print on my tin to see if they were the real thing.  Sadly it doesn't list their type. 

The Truffle Book by Gareth Renowden who lives in the South Island of New Zealand has given me an insight into the world of truffles.  Fungi truffles that is, not chocolate truffles. Which incidentally were named after the fungal variety due to their shape.

Who knew there were so many different varieties and they grow in other parts of the world, not just France and Italy?  Even the Chinese are flooding the world with home grown truffles. They are  not up to the standard of the French grown truffle though so be wary.

By the time I was half way into the book I was planning my own little truffle farm, or the correct term truffière.  And not for the money that can be made, although that would be nice. I'd just like to have access to truffles to enjoy when the mood strikes.

On a trip to Paris  we were fortunate to be treated to dinner at La Grande Cascade  by a business contact. I ordered an entrée of white truffle which came stuffed into a pasta parcel and served with a cream sauce.  That was ten years ago and I can still remember how fabulous it tasted.

The Truffle Book is well worth the read if you want to know anything and everything about truffles. It covers everything from the history of the truffle to  how to grow your own. Being a book about food it even includes a few recipes. I particularly enjoyed Gareth's chapter on the fungal feast he enjoyed at restaurant Il Coccio in Italy as part of his research for the book.

Check it out here .

Taste on line

The Taste magazine article on food blogs is now on line. Check it out HERE :

The April issue has some terrific recipes so check them out while you are there.

Holiday Reading

Holiday Hospital Reading

Bring some reading material Jonathon  said.  This little stack should get me through 7 days in hospital .  While everyone else is out Christmas shopping and partying I will be undergoing life saving surgery on 14th December.  Last night we gathered a group of friends together and picnicked with wonderful food and wine at our local Carols by Candlelight. You must try my latest sandwich filling - softened blue cheese with chopped candied walnuts.  Sensational.

The good news is I'll be home for Christmas, the liver regenerates and I can still drink wine, and combined with further chemo my future outlook is positive.

These are the books I've chosen and why.
1.    God Calling. A collection of daily meditations given to me by my good friend Elaine.
2.    Lonely Planet World Food - France. I can dip into this book and decide on my next foodie discovery when I visit France again.
3.    The Passionate Epicure (Marcel Rouff). I love old literature from France and Proust was too heavy to pack.
4.    Pilgrims Guide to the Roads through France to Santiago de Compostela (Alison Raju). This is the route I planned on walking in 2006 which will happen a bit later now, but will happen.
5.    You Can Conquer Cancer (Ian Gawler) An inspirational book about surviving cancer.
6.    The Olive Season (Carol Drinkwater)  A light read for when I need to chill out.
7.    The Troubadour's Testament (James Cowan) A more challenging read.
8.    Prospero's Cell (Laurence Durrell) This man knew how to write. Every sentence is stunningly beautiful.
9.    Long Ago in France (MFK Fisher) My favourite food writer.
10.    The Pedant in the Kitchen (Julian Barnes) To dip into and reread favourite essays.
11.    Buddhism for Busy People (David Michie) David is my cousin in law , meditation mentor and one of my all time favourite people.
12.   The Cheese Room (Patricia Michelson) I restricted myself to one cookery book and this was a book I bought on a special outing in Sydney with Madame Shawshank. It will remind me there will be more  good days to look forward to with foodie friends.

 

 

Perfect Reading

This is the story of Bernard Loiseau, the three star chef who took his own life in February 2003.  He finished the lunch service at his restaurant   in Saulieu, folded his apron and went home and shot himself.

It is more than just the story of Bernard Loiseau though. For anyone with an interest in food this is  an insight into the world of haute cuisine.  The  ambition to succeed, the dedication required to reach the top and once there,  the pressure to remain.

Toward the end of the book I  found myself wishing I'd known Bernard.  I think I would have liked him.

This book will make you think about how you treat people.   Bloggers writing restaurant reviews should all read this book. 

Kurlansky, Food Writers and the Great Debate

Coming to Auckland next month - The New Zealand Writers Festival   19 -22 May...and with the title Nourish: Feasting the Mind/Feeding the Soul we can expect some emphasis on food.   

Beginning on Friday morning with The First Meal of the Day: Breakfast hosted by Peta Mathias and featuring Australian foodie  Maggie Beer.  On Saturday we have Star Food Writers and the line up includes Mark Kurlansky and Maggie Beer along with Auckland chefs Simon Gault and Ray McVinnie.   

On Sunday evening Mark Kurlansky will again speak at the closing dinner being held at the Hilton Hotel.   

Mark, a former professional chef  and pastry maker from New York is the author of Salt: A History of the World and Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World.  He also writes a column on food history for  Food and Wine Magazine.

 

And especially for bloggers, hosted by  New Zealands most popular blogger, Russell Brown   -   The Great Blend: Public Address Live -  a discussion on how blog culture has energised the written word.

A Bookish Afternoon

Inspired by Pim over at chezpim   I decided to check out the second hand bookstores to see what old cook books I could find.  A very dismal selection I'm sorry to say.   The usual collection of  books with pretty pictures  that people buy and then never use.  Happily, I did find two  books I'm quite pleased with.

Menus A Trois  - The Soup, Bread and Salad Cookbook -  written by Julia Older and Steve Sherman, published in 1987, but the recipes are still relevant in 2005.  Fifty complete meals featuring one soup, one bread and one salad.  Exactly how I like to eat for weekend lunches.  The bonus is a paragraph on the back cover by our loved Mary Frances (MFK Fisher).

......and Evergreen - Classic Vegetarian Cookery by Annie Bell .  Published in 1992 it was shortlisted for the Glenfiddich and Andre Simon Awards. 

They both have  some great sounding recipes so I look forward to  trying them out.

Tetsuya...Oh Captain, my Captain

                          
             

Tetsuya Wakuda arived in Australia from his native Japan in 1982. He started work as a kitchenhand and worked his way up to become a master chef. He is now considered one of Australia's most respected chefs. You must book a month in advance to get a table at his Sydney restaurant Tetsuya's.


His simply titled cookery book Tetsuya was published in 1999 to celebrate the ten year anniversary of the opening of the restaurant. This is one book that won't sit gathering dust on my shelf when I buy it. For the moment I have the local library copy to read and enjoy.

I have already planned the menu I will cook from it when I'm back in the kitchen full time.

I shall choose a fine Sunday in summer and invite two good friends to share the experience with us. We will begin with a Tian of Marinated Scampi with Pawpaw, Cucumber and Tonburi. Followed by Lobster Ravioli with Tomato and Basil Vinaigrette. For a sweet finish to end the meal, the Granny Smith Apple Sorbet with Sauterne Jelly.

We shall then leave the table and move outside to sit in the afternoon sun and muse over our lives as one does after a good meal and a few glasses of wine, and then a few more glasses of wine. A little later in the day I shall serve coffee with small slices of Tetsuya's Flourless Chocolate Cake. Tetsuya spent 8 months perfecting this recipe. I can only admire him - I once spent a week experimenting to come up with the perfect flourless chocolate cake for a friend's birthday and never did get it right.

Tetsuya has a love of seafood and many of the recipes in the book use the wonderful seafoood Australia is known for. He combines the Japanese philosphy of natural flavours with traditional French cooking techniques and the best Australian produce available.

The recipes are not complicated, the layout is easy to follow and the pictures are oh so inviting. Each recipe comes with a suggested wine to serve to compliment the dish.

I love this book.   If Tetsuya is not already an Australia National Treasure he should be - the man is a genius.........

............and now from the book.......

Tian of Marinated Scampi with pawpaw, Cucumber and Tonburi
2 small scampi, halved
1/4 teaspoon walnut oil
1 teaspoon grapeseed oil
1 drop Banyuls vinegar
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped chives
1 pinch salt
1/4 pinch white pepper
1/4 teaspoon lemon or lime juice
4 tablespoons finely diced pawpaw
4 tablespoons finely diced cucumber
4 heaped teaspoons tonburi (mountain caviar) or standard caviar

Take the meat out of the scampi and finely dice. Mix the scampi with the walnut oil, grapeseed oil, vinegar, chives, salt, white pepper, lemon juice.

Put a round mould (a PVC ring of 5cm diameter is a suitable mould) on each serving plate. Fill first with a layer of pawpaw, followed by a layer of cucumber, scampi, caviar. Remove the ring and serve.

Tetsuya suggests you serve it with  an  aromatic dry white wine such as a Viognier.