The Food Blogger Exhibition.

 The Food Blogger Exhibition is sponsored by SBS Food, The Essential Ingredient and  St Ali. The competition is open to both Australian and New Zealand food and drink bloggers. Fortunately my sister told me about the competition and so I have entered some food shots!  Fingers crossed!

Coming Soon!

I will be posting more of my original recipes in the next couple of weeks and this is a taste of what you can expect!

• Twice cooked pork belly with a five spice crackle and fragrant jasmine rice
• Rich winter lamb shank soup with leek, carrot, lentils, peas and butter beans
• Sweet coconut sago with taro
• Thai style barbecued chicken thighs marinated in lemongrass, garlic, chilli and coriander root
• Twice cooked Asian style duck breast with thick sweet soy and star anise sauce
• Sticky pork belly with a garlic, birds eye chilli and sesame marinade
• Fresh mon thong durian in warm coconut milk
• Beef and lamb mince kebabs Persian style with roasted egg tomatoes
• Double chocolate fudge brownies with raspberries and chocolate chunks

Blueberry & Orange Buttermilk Pancakes

 

  

Buttermilk is ideal when making pancakes and baked goods because it gives a light and fluffy texture and it tastes great. To make my delicious and simple pancakes just follow my recipe below!

Dara's Blueberry & Orange Buttermilk Pancake Recipe

You will need:

• 2 cups of unbleached self raising flour
• 350ml of buttermilk
• freshly squeezed juice of one orange
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 2 tbs of caster sugar
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• finely grated orange rind from one orange
• 1 punnet of fresh blueberries

In a large mixing bowl sift the self raising flour then add the caster sugar and orange rind. In another bowl lightly beat the buttermilk, egg, orange juice and vanilla extract. Add this to the bowl with the self raising flour and mix until smooth. Now add the fresh blueberries to the mix and gently fold it in until well combined.


Heat a non-stick fry pan on a low to medium heat with a little bit of butter. Spoon the pancake mix onto the pan and turn them with a spatula when little bubbles start to appear. 


To serve the pancakes, garnish with a fresh sprig of mint and blueberries, a dusting of icing sugar, a dollop of fresh mascarpone cream and quality maple syrup on the side.

Friday 26th February 2010

 

 Over Pass, City West Link.

  

 Pale Pink Rose, In My Garden.

  

Bondi Beach

Treachery Beach, Seal Rocks

Our Place on Darling

 Our Place has become a favourite for my best friends and I. The menu is always changing using fresh produce that is in season which is important. It take's time deciding what to choose because there are so many delicious thing's on the menu. If you love oyster's then I recommend the freshly shucked oyster's with the champagne and cucumber relish. The relish complement's the flavour of the oyster instead of overpowering it.

Some main meals off the menu include a roast duck breast served medium rare with sarladaise potato, wilted greens and beetroot jam. If that doesn't tickle your fancy then how about the marinated lamb loin wrapped in a herb stuffed potato crepe with jerusalem artichoke puree and sautéed spring vegetables. The specials menu is always outstanding, I think most times my best friend's and I have been there we order off the specials menu because it all just sounds too good.

If you decide to finish off with the cheese plate or a dessert like the almond parfait with caramelised pear and butterscotch sauce, then I recommend the Innocent Bystander Pink Moscato to accompany it. Now that is saying alot considering I only enjoy drinking red wine and beer. Fortunately we got a bottle on the house, compliments of the owner. It was not too sweet, easy to drink with notes of rose and turkish delight. It really was quite enjoyable.

I recommend going during a week night and making a reservation because it is quite popular especially with the locals. They are located at 225 Darling Street Balmain, opposite Gladestone Park. To check out the website click on the link below.

http://www.ourplaceondarling.com.au/index.html

We ordered the Margan Shiraz Saignee Rosè the last time we dined there and it was easy to drink with a pleasant note of strawberry. Margan Winery have a good range and variety of wines. They are located at 1238 Milbrodale Road, Broke of  New South Wales. I just discovered they also have a restaurant called Margan Restaurant and I am yet to get my friends and I to go try the food and enjoy the winery. The menu is on the website and it looks and sounds very tantilising! Some dishes off the February 2010 dinner menu include a ravioli of scampi with chives and verjus buerre blanc, Kurobuta pork cutlet with celeriac and fennel remoulade and spiced cherries, and poached peach with amaretto parfait and sugar bark. All the dishes have matching wines. To view their website click on the link below.

http://www.margan.com.au/index.php


Innocent Bystander Winery is definitely on my 'to do list'! Not only do they make wine they also roast their own coffee, have a bistro, an artison bakery, make beer, have a cheese room, and last but not least a pizzeria! To purchase The Innocent Bystander Pink Moscato or to have a look at their interesting website and their beautifully crafted wines click on the link below.  I think you will want to visit the winery too after having a browse.

http://www.innocentbystander.com.au/public_panel/home.php




Happy dining!

Ricotta Stuffed Zucchini Flowers

Zucchini flowers are best enjoyed when in season. A couple of years ago I bought some well sized zucchini flowers from Franks Grocer on Ramsay Rd Haberfield. You can buy them from Harris Farm but they are pre-packaged, nowhere near as fresh and smaller than Franks Grocer. They lie delicately on sheets of paper in a box asking to be picked. They can be pricey here but they are the best I have seen anywhere that I have come across.

You can stuff the flowers or leave them plain. I like mine stuffed with fresh full cream ricotta and some moroccan spices. If you are feeling a bit more indulgent then I suggest using a soft goats cheese. It is divine! I had delicious tempura zucchini flowers with a goats cheese and herb stuffing from Our Place.

When stuffing the flowers you must be delicate or the petals will tear. I like to tie the ends of the petals together to help hold the stuffing in. Only batter the flowers lightly and just before frying. What you want to achieve are plump golden flowers that are just crisp.

Coffee Addict

I must admit I am addicted to coffee. It can be hard to find a place that can get a coffee right, seriously. I like my coffee strong and hot and I need at least two shots in the morning to get me going. I don't want a gigantic cup and I believe coffee in a mug from a café  is so very wrong. I have come across two Sydney coffee roasters that roast their own coffee on the premises and have a quality range.

Café Henandez is perfect any time and you will usually see ambulance officers and taxi drivers at all hours in the café. I personally like the Spanish Blend because it is strong, rich and aromatic. They are open 24/7 and are located at 60 Kings Cross Rd, Darlinghurst.

Sacks Coffee is my new favourite place to get coffee. What I really like about Sacks Coffee is that they only use and support Fairtrade, Organic and Rainforest Alliance coffee beans and sugar. I ordered a piccolo latte which is made with the House Blend, a good strong, rich full bodied creamy coffee. I bought some freshly grounded 7 Star Blend coffee to take home which the barista recommended. The 7 Star Blend is strong, full bodied, creamy and sweet with chocolate undertones.

If you have a sweet tooth Sacks also make poffertjes which are mini Dutch pancakes and they smell amazing! You can by Sacks Coffee over the internet and their site is worth having look at. They can be found at 343 King Street Newtown. Click on the link below to visit their site.

http://www.sackscoffee.com.au/aboutsacks.php

Click on the link below to check out the Café Henandez website.

www.cafehernandez.com.au

On a Rainy Day

 

I took these shots one day when it was raining all weekend on my film SLR. I liked how the window became fogged up and you could just make out what was outside.

Paddington Reservoir Gardens Photoshoot

 

 

 

                                       

                                                 
I stumbled upon Paddington Reservoir Gardens almost over a year ago while waiting at the bus stop to get back into the city. When I first went down the steps from Oxford Street I was surprised to find nobody else there. I guess what I find so attractive about this place is the sandstone, arches and pillars.

Even to this day it is still really quiet. My best friend needed some shots for her casting agent and I always thought the Paddington Reservoir Gardens would be a great location. We drove over on an overcast Wednesday and the clouds shifted for me just when I needed some light but I also had some help from my twin who held the reflector. Luckily we got our shots done before it stormed later that day. These are just some of the shots from the day.

I have some other great locations in mind where I would like to shoot more portraits and hopefully I will get them posted soon.

The Paddington Reservoir Gardens won the 2009 Australian Award for Urban Design and it is worth checking out. It's a perfect spot to grab a coffee and read a book because not many people come down.

Chocolate Mud Cake

 

I enjoy a good moist chocolate mud cake. This was taken when I was at the Scarborough Hotel using natural light and with a 50mm f/1.4G Nikkor lens. The Scarborough Hotel is situated on a cliff on the  Lawrence Hargrave Drive near Wollongong. It is such a nice pub with great ocean views, though the food can be hit and miss. Last time I was there I ordered the lamb shanks and the flavours and presentation were nice but my food was not as hot as it should have been. Food can be a bit expensive but I guess it is the view that you are paying for. It get's very busy on the weekends and it is definitely worth a try with the outdoor seating and bungalows. 

Orange and Black Pepper Pâté

I bought this orange and black pepper pâté from the David Jones Food Hall. It actually was not the best pâté I have ever had. It was not smooth or soft but actually quite firm even at room temperature. In the end I decided to photograph it because despite the bad taste and texture it still looked nice.

I really like pâté especially in a Vietnamese pork roll!!!

Rainbow Trout

 

The photograph of the fresh rainbow trout was also for a photography assignment I had to do. This was shot using natural light on a wire rack in a baking tray. I loved the colours of the scales and how shiny it looked.

After photographing the trout I cooked it with only a few ingredients to keep it simple. I had the fish gutted and scaled to make it easier for me even though it is very easy to do yourself. I sliced a lemon and lay the slices inside the cavity of the fish with knobs of butter, fresh sprigs of dill and Maldon Sea Salt Flakes. I then wrapped the fish up in baking paper and aluminium foil so any juices would not leak.

Cooking times depend on the size of the fish but generally rainbow trouts you buy in your local fish shops are not that big anyway and are perfect for one to two people. I cooked my trout for about 10 minutes in a pre-heated oven at around 180 degrees celcius. This fish would be great with a beurre blanc sauce accompanied with some roast garlic kipfler potatoes and steamed greens. Remember not to cook the fish for too long as it will continue to cook through once you have removed it from the oven or barbeque.

I like to use Maldon Sea Salt when cooking because you do not need alot, it has a nice flavour and it is natural. You can buy a box of Maldon Sea Salt Flakes at your local supermarket for about $10.00 and to check out some other of their other products like their smoked salt, click on the link http://www.maldonsalt.co.uk/index.html

Basket of Duck Egg's

I love how white duck egg's are. This photo was taken in my kitchen for a photography assignment in 2008. I was not sure at first how to photograph the egg's that were just sitting in a plain bowl on the table. With some searching around the house I found a nice basket that was covered in dust and webs. I placed a blue tea towel underneath and arranged them. I used natural window light that was perfect and made the duck egg's glow.

Preserved duck egg's are delicious. I like to eat just the yolk because it is not as salty as the egg white and has a rich flavour. I boil them for about 30 minutes so that they become very rich and have a natural deep orange oil in the yolk. I usually eat them with plain jasmine rice for a quick snack. Otherwise you can combine thinly sliced red onion, freshly chopped bird's eye chilli, fish sauce, lemon juice and mint together with chopped preserved duck egg and serve that with rice.

You can find preserved duck egg's at Asian supermarkets for around $6.00 for half a dozen.

Butter Cake

 

I took this photo while making a cake some time ago one afternoon. I liked the natural light coming from the window and the brown and cream colours together.

Frankie Magazine - Home

Frankie Magazine - Home

I love Frankie Magazine. The Frankie Photo Album Volume One has some great pictures.

Fresh Raspberry & Mascarpone Cream Stack

This is a perfect simple summer treat that would be great for a dinner party dessert or even afternoon tea with the girls . Sandwiched between each butter puff pastry circle is a sweet rich mascarpone cream, fresh raspberries and raspberry sauce. Finally it is dusted with icing sugar and finely grated lemon rind.

For quality pastry products and butter puff pastry check this site out http://www.caremepastry.com/sitepages/products.asp?MainMenuID=4&SubMenuID=3