What's New in Melbourne?

To me, Melbourne is one of the food Mecca’s of the world. However each time I visit it is not to return to my old favorite haunts but to experience what is new and exciting on the dining scene.

While there recently I sampled just a few of the latest restaurants to open.

The paint was barely dry at Pei Modern, Mark Best’s venture at the Sofitel Hotel on Collins Street when we popped in for a late breakfast. In a distinct departure from his Sydney fine dining eatery Marque, Pei Modern is, as the name suggests, contemporary in both style and menu.

We found the breakfast menu slightly disappointing, although the coffee and the house-made pastries were both perfectly passable. However a look at the dinner menu confirmed that this would be well worth a re-visit for dishes such as Dutch Creams (potatoes) Mojama, Coffee and Bone Marrow or Roast Rabbit, Salt Bush, Sea Parsley Wakame.

Albert Street Food and Wine opened a few months ago with Phillippa Sibley heading the kitchens. Located right up Sydney Street in an old bank, it’s been nicely decked out to incorporate a food store on one side where their own label preserves and olive oil are sold, alongside other tasty treats and Phillippa’s books.

A wood fired grill turns out delicious morsels like sardines with a Sicilian style salsa, a brochette of smoked mozzarella, anchovy and oregano or haloumi with green tomato relish and zucchini pickle (both of which, if you love them, you can buy next door). A pile of crunchy school prawns completed our feast.

Great bread, organic shaped and glazed dishes, wooden boards and the clever use of a metal stand so more plates can be accommodated on the small tables all contribute to the overall appeal. And, remembering Phillippa Sibley’s pedigree as a pastry chef, the dessert menu should not be ignored.

Andrew McConnell’s new Golden Fields sits behind a rather ordinary store front on St Kilda’s Fitzroy Street. Inside though you’ll find a smart space with a few subtle hints of the Orient here and there – just enough to indicate what might be on offer on the menu.

White tiles and a long marble bar down one wall, place settings waiting for diners to claim them, eclectically displayed vases of golden chrysanthemums and black lacquer chairs create an instant charm and I chuckled at the tiny goldfish decorated tin bucket the salt came in. Modern Asian is usually only ever good or bad but this is very, very good. With time to sample just two dishes I opted for a cold dish of shredded chicken, sesame paste, house-made flat rice noodles, and chilli oil. What was presented was a beautiful plate of tender poached chicken accented with the pale green of cucumber and coriander leaves. I swooned until the gentle kick of the chilli hit me. Perfect.

My other choice was the twice cooked duck with its clever crispy ‘skin’ of mung bean paste flavoured with Szechwan pepper. It came with plum sauce, black vinegar and three steaming buns into which I piled the duck, some cucumber sticks and plum sauce. Dipped in the vinegar this was just the best thing I’d eaten in a long time. This will definitely be on my ‘return to’ list.

The Atlantic on Southbank was in ‘soft opening’ phase when I was last in Melbourne a year ago but I decided to treat it as new anyway. We settled down in the Oyster Bar - dark wood, accents of turquoise and earthy pottery dishes - where the menu is a condensed version of the restaurant one but still with plenty to tempt us.

Three icy-cold Duck Bay oysters from Tasmania were amongst the best I’ve ever eaten  - even if, as I discovered later while chatting with chef Donovan Cooke, they’d been opened earlier that day and not just before serving as expected. The soft red wine vinegar and shallot dressing was perfect. Same couldn’t be said about the tired, cut yesterday, lemon wedge.

We bypassed the caviar and lobster in favour of some tasty grilled bug tails and a whole grilled garfish which came with just salt, pepper and lime.

The simplicity reminded me of how fish is served around the Med. A salad of shredded cos (yes shredded!) with orange, pinenuts and a miso dressing was quite a revelation.

So some good stuff and some not so good – I’d still recommend it though.

Also new and recommended but not tried so let me know what you think if you go to:

Senoritas for authentic Mexican
16 Meyers Place,  
(03) 9639 7437

San Telmo Argentinean cuisine

14 Meyers Place

(03) 9650 5525

Cheesy Discoveries

I love cheese and am hugely proud of the wonderful cheese we produce in New Zealand, even if I can’t take credit for any of them myself.

So I headed along to the CheeseFest last week, to sample the winning cheeses from this year’s national awards.

However when I got there I found myself attracted, not to the winners, but to some great examples that were new to me although no necessarily new to market.

Here they are in no particular order:

1/ Rose’s Haloumi with rosemary – fresh out of the pan this was the tastiest morsel I’d had all day. It was too busy for me to be able to chat to the makers and sadly their website is completely devoid of any info except to tell me they also have a butchery.

Email them info@ayyildiz.co.nz or phone 2711383 for stockists

2/ Over the Moon black truffle brie by cheesemaker Neil Willman was delicious – for a truffle lover like me anyway. They have sandwiched brie with truffle paste (sadly imported from Italy) but who’s complaining – this is a perfect marriage.

3/ Gruff Junction 'Darfield' – nicknamed ‘Earthquake’ cheese for the layer of ash that runs through the centre of this pyramid shaped goat's milk cheese. When cut it forms a seismic-like line, hence the name.

4/ Waiheke Island Cheese 'Paniora' Manchego – we all agreed this was a very good rendition of this famous Spanish sheep’s cheese – nutty with a salty tang. They even use authentic Manchego moulds which give the weave pattern on the outside.

5/ Neudorf Mt Crusader – a handcrafted sheep’s milk cheese. This fresh soft cheese has a delicate flavour with just a hint of acidity – could serve it on toasts in a salad or with ripe stone fruits or berries for breakfast.  

And lastly…

6/ Clevedon Valley Buffalo Company Feta – a lovely creamy lightly salted feta which I immediately thought would be great melted and slightly caramelised.

Summer's Bounty - Tomatoes

From now until the end of summer tomatoes will be at their very best. Right now at my local farmers’ market and I am sure at every other one all around the country there are wonderful heirloom tomatoes, ranging from big red convoluted masterpieces that fill my hand to tiny black cherries. Last weekend I bought a selection of beautiful fruit from Miranda Orchards stand at The Parnell Farmer’s Market. With romantic names like Brandywine Pink, Amish Gold and Peron and some not so romantic ones like Oxheart, they all have one thing in common, and that is flavour. They all taste so good! And they are meaty and when cooked don’t collapse into nothing.

Of course to be full of flavour they need to be perfectly ripe and they need to be at room temperature. Please don’t store tomatoes, even the common supermarket varieties, in the fridge. Even commercially grown tomatoes can taste good if left to ripen especially when they are left on the vine.

If you want to grow your own, Kings Seeds have about 50 varieties listed on their website. Or save the seeds from some that you buy – squeeze onto paper towels, dry and store until the next year when you can just plant the paper straight in the ground.

Late summer, when tomatoes are most plentiful and therefore cheap to buy, is the time to be making sauce, chutneys, passata etc to use over the winter. Right now enjoy lots of raw and cooked dishes that allow tomatoes to shine.

• Dice a selection of ripe tomatoes and make a simple pasta sauce, warmed or not, with excellent olive oil, fresh basil and lots of salt and pepper. To that basic sauce you could add a few chilli flakes, some baby rocket leaves, or maybe some capers. Whatever takes your imagination works. It’s the ultimate quick dinner.
• Take sweet cherry tomatoes and toss them in a hot pan until they just start to burst. Season and add a handful of torn basil leaves. Serve alongside grilled fish or meats or cool and add to salads of roasted vegetables for a hint of colour.
• Make Catalan Tomato Bread as a pre-dinner snack. Grill slices of good bread, rub lightly with a cut clove of garlic, drizzle with your best olive oil and then rub over a cut, very ripe tomato, squishing it on but discarding the skin. Devour straight away.
• And the simplest way of all to intensify the flavour of tomatoes is to roast trusses at high heat. 

Here a couple of favourite recipes. In this first one the tomatoes are the hero of the dish so use the best ones you can find.

Vine-Ripened Tomatoes with Fresh Ricotta

Tomatoes and ricotta are a match made in heaven and even better when teamed with toasted sourdough. It’s a favourite for breakfast or brunch in our house. 

8 large and 12 small tomatoes, variety of colours and shapes

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

flaky sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 sourdough baguette

300 grams fresh firm ricotta ( my favourites are Zany Zeus or Clevedon Buffalo)

basil leaves to garnish

Slice the large tomatoes thickly and cut the smaller ones in half.

Combine the olive oil and balsamic vinegar and season with the salt and pepper.  Pour over the tomatoes, toss gently to coat and leave for 15 minutes to half an hour.

Cut 4 diagonal slices from the baguette and toast or grill them. Generously spread them with ricotta, season with salt and pepper and place each one on a plate.

Spoon the tomatoes over the ricotta toasts and drizzle a little dressing over each. Garnish with basil and serve immediately. Serves 4

Niçoise Tart

This tasty tart is reminiscent of the Mediterranean and really should only be made at the height of summer when tomatoes and capsicums are at their best. If in a hurry you can of course use ready rolled short pastry although the flavour of the thyme and mustard in this pastry adds to the overall deliciousness. However you could always spread a little mustard and sprinkle some thyme over the base of the tart before you fill it. This pastry though is very short and utterly delicious. By way of variation I sometimes use 50/50 onions and capsicum and capers instead of olives on the top.

Pastry

1¼ cups flour

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

½ teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper

120 grams cold, unsalted butter

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons iced water

Filling

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

4 red capsicums, seeded and sliced 1cm

1 onion, sliced

Topping

5 ripe fleshy tomatoes such as Roma

10 anchovy fillets, rinsed and drained (I like the Ortiz brand)

15 black olives, halved and pitted ( Always Fresh do a good pitted kalamata which is so easy to use)

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

Pastry: Place the flour, thyme, salt, pepper and butter in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.  Add the mustard and enough iced water for the mixture to hold together.  Tip out on the bench and bring together quickly into a disc with your hands. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

Filling: Heat the oil in a large skillet.  Add the capsicum and onion to the pan. Season and cook until soft and thick, about 30 minutes.  Transfer to a bowl and cool.

Preheat the oven to 190°C and place a flat baking sheet in the oven to heat.

Assembly: Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and line a tart tin with a removable base (24cm round or 21x29cm rectangular).  Using a slotted spoon spread the filling over the base.

Halve the tomatoes through the core, scoop out and discard the seeds.  Cut the tomatoes in half again and arrange in rows alternating with the anchovies. Scatter with the olives and thyme leaves.  Combine the garlic and oil and spoon over the tart. 

  

Give the top a good grind of pepper and bake until the filling is bubbling and the crust is golden, about 35 minutes.  Rest for 10 minutes before serving. Serves 8

Italian Salumi with New Zealand style

Two Italians, equally passionate about their homeland as they are of their adopted country of New Zealand have created a range of unique salumi based on age-old Italian traditions but with a distinct NZ flavour.

Owners Luca and Paolo both hail from the same region of Lombardia, south of Milano and use the knowledge and traditions handed down through generation in both their families to prepare their Otello’s range of fresh sausages and cured meats, using prime organic NZ products – even the salt and pepper used is organic

A few nights ago I was privileged to be Luca and Paolo’s guest at a special Giro d’Italia (Tour of Italy) dinner at Toto’s Restaurant. Chef Sergio prepared a series of dishes using Otello’s products and matched with Italian wines.

After a glass of Prosecco – the very best precursor to any Italian meal, we enjoyed an beautifully presented antipasti of their cured meats including bresaola, coppa, pancetta and a wild boar salami, served with marinated vegetables, a young pecorino and a scattering of young broad beans. Each of the meats was unique in it's texture and flavour - I particularly liked the pancetta - it was sweet and almost melted on my tongue.

 photo by Geoff Dale

Guanciale is Italian style bacon made using the pig’s cheek cured with salt and pepper and hung to dry for several months. Thick sliced, diced and fried until crisp and utterly delicious, it was used to garnish a fragrant dish of goat’s cheese ravioli with truffle and a red wine sauce. With this we drank a 2009 Vensevo Falanghina DOC Campania – a grape that only grows north of Naples.

photo by Geoff Dale

Confit duck – the leg stuffed with fresh wild boar sausage and served on soft polenta with morello cherries came next. The recipe for this dish follows. The matched wine here was a wonderful Barbera D’Asti from Fiulot in Piemonte

photo by Geoff Dale

Dessert was also described on the menu as an antipasti and was in fact a lovely collection of lovely Italian specialties such as Sicilian cannoli and cassata with a little glass of a luscious Marsala Superiore from Pellegrino.

You can find Otello’s sausages and salumi at farmers’ markets around Auckland and at selected gourmet stores or you can order on-line.  Watch out for new products, including Prosciutto, which will be available soon

Confit Duck Leg filled with Otello's Wild Boar Sausage

4 duck legs with the thigh deboned

4 Otello's fresh wild boar sausages

duck fat, enough to half cover the duck legs

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

300 grams cherries, fresh or tinned

2 cloves

500 mls chicken stock

1 litre water

750 mls good red wine

Preheat the oven to 150°C.

Remove any excess fat from the duck and open out the boned thigh, skin down. Remove the sausage meat from the casing and divide it between the duck legs.

Fold the duck tightly around the stuffing to enclose it.

Wrap each leg in tin foil lined with baking paper and secure tightly.

Place enough duck fat in a deep oven try and warm it until it is liquid before placing the duck legs into the fat. Cover the dish and cook for 2 hours or until the meat is very tender. Remove the legs from the duck fat, unwrap and place in an ovenproof frying pan.

Increase the oven to 180°C. Season the duck and roast until the skin is golden and crisp.

While the duck is slow cooking, combine the stock and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 1 hour then add the wine. Continue simmering for another hour then add the cherries and cloves. Reduce further until the sauce is the right consistency.

Serve the duck on top of soft polenta (made according to the instructions on the packet) with the red wine, cherry sauce and a final drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil.

And as Luca and Paolo would say - Buon Appetito!

Another Spring Favorite

A big thrill at my local farmers' market this weekend – new season's garlic - which I just love! Following on from asparagus, broad beans and globe artichokes this is another of my most favorite spring things.

Just dug, the rosy hued outer covering of each head is still velvety soft and when peeled back reveals a cluster of pearly white garlic cloves – mild and sweet in flavour and juicy and crunchy like a carrot.

I’ve been a fan ever since I first ate new garlic at Chez Panisse in San Francisco many years ago, so I bought plenty – some to hang up to dry and the rest to use now.

Last night I cooked the first of my whole heads with some young Swiss chard leaves from my garden to have with slow roasted pork. I removed the outer skin, separated the cloves and gently peeled off the soft white skin from each. This is very much easier than peeling a dried clove.

I then ‘poached’ them whole in a little water to which I added a good splash of olive oil, a bay leaf and some salt until just softened then added the chopped stems from the  chard. Once they were tender I added the leaves, roughly chopped, and wilted them down. By this time the water had evaporated and the olive oil provided a lovely gloss and flavour to the leaves. A grind of pepper and a little extra salt and it was done – and quite delicious I must say.

You can also roast the bulbs whole – just like you would regular garlic – slice off the top to reveal the cloves and drizzle them with a little olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and add a couple of fresh thyme sprigs.  Place in a covered dish or wrap in aluminium foil and roast at 200°C until soft when you give it a gentle squeeze.

Once cool it is delicious spread on toasted sourdough with a sprinkle of salt and a drizzle of good olive oil. It is wonderful used like this under toppings for bruschetta   or you can use it to make roasted garlic aioli.

The flavour is very subtle in comparison to regular garlic that has been allowed to dry and become pungent.

It’s delicious with lamb ( just serve it as a condiment) and I also like to add the whole new cloves to a dish of spring vegetables (artichokes, broad beans, tiny carrots and turnips etc) that I poach in a little chicken stock with a bay leaf, some thyme sprigs and olive oil.

Ode to Asparagus

For me there is no better way to eat asparagus than with my fingers, dripping with butter and lemon juice and seasoned generously with sea salt and freshly ground pepper! And with the growing season for this most unusual of vegetables being a short one – mid/late September to just after Christmas -we make the most of it while we can.

For the last few weeks I’ve had to be at my local farmers market extra early to be sure not to miss out on the first of the season’s crop. The vendor there has new beds so the spears are thin and spindly. These are what I enjoy the most although I know others prefer the fattest spears they can find. Each week though the supply has gradually increased and I can now have an extra half hour in bed.

Other than butter and lemon, asparagus goes with many other wonderful flavours which include but are not limited to:

anchovies ▪ avocado ▪ bacon, prosciutto and pancetta ▪ eggs ▪ fennel ▪ garlic ▪ hollandaise sauce ▪ mushrooms ▪ mustard ▪ olive oil ▪ olives ▪ Parmesan, gruyere and goats cheeses ▪ potatoes ▪ smoked salmon, scallops ▪ tarragon, parsley, rosemary ▪ toast ▪ tomatoes ▪ walnuts, pinenuts.

Use asparagus as soon as possible after it is picked or purchased. The best way to store it until you need it is to stand it upright in a container with a little water in the bottom and cover the whole with a plastic bag. If the spears get wet they will spoil rapidly. 

When you are ready to cook it, snap off the woody ends (each spear will break at the right point between the tough end and tender part) or, if you prefer them all the same length, trim with a knife and even peel the end with a vegetable peeler. Personally I leave this to the restaurants.

Finally wash the spears well in cold water to remove any grit or sand.

Blanch asparagus using one of two methods:

1/ Stand upright in an asparagus basket so only the thick ends are in salted, simmering water. Cover and steam.

2/ Bring a shallow, wide pan of salted water, about an inch deep, to the boil and lay the asparagus spears flat in a single layer. Simmer gently until the asparagus is just tender.

Whichever method you choose drain and serve the asparagus immediately or if you wish to use it cold, refresh it in iced water to halt the cooking process. Once cool, remove from the water and lay on kitchen towels. If you leave it in the water too long the asparagus may start to break down.

This salad is an easy way to ‘dress’ asparagus up. Prepared this way it is delicious with barbecued lamb and baby new potatoes just like we had for dinner last night

Grilled Asparagus Salad

500 grams asparagus

olive oil

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Dressing

50 ml extra virgin olive oil

1-2 tablespoons chardonnay vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

lemon juice

1 tablespoon capers, drained and rinsed

1 egg, hard boiled and chopped

1 red onion, sliced

150 grams firm feta cheese, crumbled

a small handful Italian parsley, chopped

Blanch the asparagus quickly in boiling water to set the colour, remove and refresh under cold water. Transfer to paper kitchen towels to drain.

Preheat a barbecue or ridged grill.

Toss the asparagus gently with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill on the barbecue until nicely coloured and tender. Remove to a platter.

Toss the sliced onion with a little olive oil and salt and grill until golden and tender. Make a vinaigrette from the olive oil, vinegar and mustard and salt. Add a squeeze of lemon juice if more acid is required. Season with pepper and add the other ingredients. Combine gently and spoon on top of the asparagus.  Serve at room temperature.

Time to bake - Christmas is coming!

It’s the end of October and the other day my thoughts suddenly turned to Christmas. I was wandering through my local cookware store and spied the gorgeous wooden cake boxes that I used to sell hundreds of at The Epicurean Workshop all those years ago.

Time to bake the Christmas cake!

It’s been a few years since I baked a Christmas cake, as I’m the only one in the family that enjoys it, but this year I’ll bake a big one, cut it into four squares, keep one for myself and give the other three away as gifts.

My favorite recipe calls for lots of glace fruits so it’s not the cheapest cake to make. For several years in the earlier days of the Epicurean I used to make mini versions of this cake to sell - using large tuna tins that were about 12cm in diameter. We decorated the tops with more glace fruits, glued on with apricot jam. They looked sensational.

Sadly the recipe for this cake is not to be found anywhere so instead I will bake the family recipe. This is a great cake too but more traditional in its ingredients and result. You’ll find the recipe at the end.  My mother always decorated the cake very simply with whole blanched almonds, pushed into the cake batter just as it went in the oven so that they toasted to a golden hue as the cake baked. And that is exactly what I shall do.

One curious aspect to the recipe is the caramelised sugar and butter that is called for. I can only assume this has the effect of darkening the cake slightly. These days Parisienne essence (gravy browning) is often called for.

Getting back to the wooden cake boxes though; these are quite unique in that the wood (kahikatea) insulates the cake mixture as it bakes which means you don’t have to go to all the trouble of lining it with brown paper as you do with a tin. Anthea Dunning, who produces the range, took a family tradition and now has a successful business selling them in four sizes. Each comes with her own family recipe and her website  has a great explanation on how to use them and produce a perfect cake. Over the years, with each consecutive use, the boxes darken and age and become quite beautiful.

I should add that these boxes are square for obvious reasons and to me a Christmas cake should always be square. I wonder what others think about this – round or square? 

The metal bake ware of today no longer has the quality of yesteryear. You need to look hard to find something that looks like it will last. I am lucky enough still have my mother’s heavy Christmas cake tin which is also dark and with a lovely worn patina. But if you are looking to buy one avoid all the lightweight tins out there and seek out one with some weight. Don’t bother about non-stick coatings – you’ll be lining it anyway.

One great brand from the UK that I have found is Silverwood – sold in New Zealand by F.L.Bone – the AGA oven people. The range is extensive but what I like is that it still offers traditional things like pie plates and square Christmas cake tins as well as all the clever new inventions. I love the oblong tart tin with the option of a fluted insert so you can have either a straight sided tart case or a fluted one.

At F.L.Bone they also have a range of Bake-O-Glide Teflon liners for the bases and sides of square and round cake tins - already cut to size. So clever!

So to make my mother Robin’s ( which was originally her mother Ines’) Christmas cake you will need:

450 grams butter, softened

450 grams brown sugar

10 eggs

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons sugar

1 cup brandy or whisky

450 grams raisins

450 grams sultanas

900 grams other mixed dried fruits and nuts such as dates, currants, cherries, glace peel and almonds

675 grams plain flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

whole blanched almonds to decorate

24cm square x 12cm (approximately) deep cake tin

 

Preheat the oven to 150°C, no fan. Line the base and sides of the cake tin with several layers of brown paper with a top layer of baking paper. Weigh or measure all the ingredients. Combine the fruits well and sift the dry ingredients.

Cream the butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer until pale and smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter with the sugar in a small pot and cook until the sugar has caramelised to a nut brown. Remove from the heat and add the brandy. Simmer until the sugar has completely dissolved. Add this immediately to the butter and egg mixture, pouring it in, in a steady stream, while beating fast. (Don’t worry if it looks like it is curdling)

At this point you will need to transfer the mixture to a larger bowl, especially if you are using a stand mixer.

Add the fruit and flour alternately to the mixture, mixing gently with each addition. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and tap the tin gently on the bench once or twice to disburse any air pockets. Decorate the top with the blanched almonds, pushing each one slightly into the cake. Bake for 5 hours.  If the cake starts to brown too much cover it with a piece of foil.

Remove from the oven and pour over a little more brandy or whisky while still warm. Cool, remove from the tin and store airtight until Christmas, or earlier if you can't wait.