A feast to bring in 2011

Good day! How are you liking 2011 so far? I think it is quite good. Back to work tomorrow so my views may change, however, for now, I thought I would share my NYE feast.

You may recall the menu. Well, I started to prepare in the morning, making our desserts which were both cold. The chocolate mousse was first. Straight into the fridge!


Then, I made the Green Apple Granita. It was such a simple recipe. I don't have an icecream maker, so I simply froze the mixture in icecube trays and then whizzed them with my hand-held kitchen whizz. Here are the apples simmering in the sugar and juice.

Cold things done, I started on the first dish on the menu, the Tomato Soup. I made it from a recipe in the book Movida Rustica, a Spanish cookbook from the Melbourne restaurant. J's Dad gave it to me for Christmas last year. The soup needed to simmer for quite a while on the stove so I got it going early. Please note my blatant exhibitionism of my new kitchen spoons from Beehive Kitchenware!


Soup done, it was time for little things. Making the sauce for the fish dish, cooking the buttery leeks (another recipe from Movida Rustica), getting out all the plates for the different dishes. Here is Jon preparing his ceviche, with all our plates ready for action.

Then, after a brief pause for some sustenance, we tackled the trickiest part of the day: deboning a spatchcock for the ballotine. A ballotine is simply a fancy French word for a roll of deboned, stuffed meat. We watched this absolutely awesome and amazing video tutorial with Jacques Pepin, and it was actually really fun! Once deboned, I stuffed the spatchcock with a carrot poached in stock, chives, and bacon. Here I am wrapping it tightly in clingwrap, ready for poaching!

So! Into the fridge for the ballotine, and it was time to set the table and chill the wine. This photo shows our sashimi course, which I bought from the fantastic Claudios at the Sydney Fish Market.

I must apologise: from here on in, we were enjoying the meal so much that the photos are few and far between. We did snap a quick one of the vegetable course. Yummo vinagered carrots and the smooth and buttery leeks, and fresh radish.

I have to say that I am quite sad that by far the best course of the night - the Pan Seared Snapper with Corn Puree, Roasted Shallots, Chorizo and Basil - does not have any pictures. It looked and tasted absolutely amazing. I highly recommend you try it if you are looking for a fish dish to impress!

The spatchcock ballotine was absolutely delicious also - even though the preparation was a bit of a disaster. After feeling super proud about deboning and rolling so well, my cling-wrapped friend burst in the simmering water, and so poached without his covering. I thought that would be the end of the flavour, but we fished him out, and pan fried him to finish off the cooking. He was totally fine - and ended up looking very much like my inspiration photograph from Not Quite Nigella's dining experience at Astral restaurant.

After the ballotine came the delicious eye fillet with mash and artichokes, and then, after a brief sojourn to see the fireworks down the road, we came home to enjoy our granita and chocolate mousse in the New Year. And then, an epic washing up session later, there we were in 2011!

How did you spend your New Year? Any cooking adventures planned for 2011?

Last post for 2010!

Well, it's about that time. Only a few hours left until we start a New Year. What are you doing to celebrate? J and I thought we would keep it quiet this year, and are cooking a fancy degustation dinner at home. I have been preparing food since yesterday, and I am excited to sit down to dine tonight! Here is the menu:



Doesn't it sound delicious! I can't wait to eat it. The first post of next year will have some pictures and recipes.

Have a lovely New Year everyone, and a joyful 2011.

Pinata

You guessed right!

DIY costume

Jon is turning 30. We are having a fun party to celebrate, and it is fancy dress - the theme is "something from Mexico". Of course, this is the perfect opportunity to make something fun to wear. So what do you think that I am coming as?

...Three guesses!

Baby Gocco Steps

A little while ago you may remember that I purchased a Print Gocco machine to make our engagement party invites. It didn't arrive in time, so I used other methods... and then I found myself with a lovely package of Gocco goodness with nothing to print. Until now!

With the party over, I took off to Brisbane with work, and then we decided to move house. So it was only yesterday that we took the plunge and set up the Gocco for his first trial run.
...Am I pleased? Yes - to get the initial testing out of the way. Did I have problems? Yes, with photocopies sticking to the master, and ink bleeding. But overall, I like our little design - even though it may look a bit "rustic" - and I think that there is vast room for improvement. I have read so many inspirational blog posts of savvy ladies tackling the Gocco for their wedding invites, and I really want to be one of them!

I am older.

Whilst I was in Victoria on an unexpected holiday, it was my birthday. Seeing as no-one had planned for this momentous occasion being away from home and away from most modern ammenities, it was a lovely un-bothered and casual day, and one of the nicest I have had.

I received a beautiful bunch of flowers from the garden (and psst... check out the gorgeous old vase that belonged to my great grandmother).


Then my aunt made me a sponge cake. Being devoid of birthday candles, food colouring, or any decorative bits and bobs, we found some funny flower candles in a box of random bathroom smelly things, and I collected some little flowers from the garden to decorate the cake. It was filled with whipped cream and my aunt's homemade strawberry and loganberry jam.

Birthday dinner was a delicious Thai chicken curry that my aunt cooked, with fresh vegetables from her garden. So yummy, and such a memorable day.

What do you like doing for your birthday? What was your most memorable one?

Swimming in Cake

Inspired by RubyJo and her memories of her Swimming Pool Cake for her 5th Birthday, I felt I should share my version of the cake with you.

When I was 5, I too had the swimming pool cake as my birthday cake, but as I was a Picky Young Lady, I didn't want jelly in the middle. Blue icing sufficed.

When I turned 25, I asked Mum to do the cake again, seeing it was such a hit the first time round. Now that I look closely, it was more of a desert island than a swimming pool!

For those that DID like jelly, we also had frog in a pond.

The 21st Annual Academy Awards

So, this weekend I attended my cousin's 21st birthday. It was a mask party, and it was fun. It got me thinking of my own 21st party (all those years ago!) and what a great night it was.

The theme was the Academy Awards: you had to come dressed as a movie character or actor. The response was AMAZING. Some of my friends I didn't even recognise. I thought I would share some of the characters with you... can you guess which one is me?

L to R: Daphne (Scooby Doo), Hermione (Harry Potter), a Flapper, Cleopatra, Sabine (Moulin Rouge).

L to R: Tony Montana (Scarface), Alex (A Clockwork Orange), King Kong (and girl)!

HINT: I am not the Barbie doll. Tee hee!

Moroccan Dinner Party

On Friday night we had friends around for dinner. Of course, being the culinary whizz that I am, I decided to make 3 dishes that I had never attempted before. Yes, I know this is a cardinal sin of dinner parties, and that you should always cook something that you know turns out well. Ok. But I saw these yummy Moroccan recipes, and I got a bit excited. So here's the menu:

Entree
Baby Spinach and Haloumi salad with Asparagus and Avocado

Main
Bisteeya (Moroccan Chicken and Almond Filo Pie)
Spiced Honey and Lemon Carrots with fresh herbs

Dessert
Golden Syrup Dumplings with Vanilla Bean Icecream

I admit, I cheated with the Golden Syrup Dumplings. They are an old family classic and sooo easy to make. But the other dishes were all new! And I was so pleased with how they turned out. But I think the Bisteeya was the highlight of the night. Chicken, red onions, coriander, ginger, garlic, saffron, cinnamon stick, chilli and stock all cooked slowly on the stove - and then baked in a filo casing with almonds, cinnamon and icing sugar between the layers. Delicious.

Let's...

Lately I have been getting the urge to throw a wild, loud, crazy fun houseparty. I haven't had one for ages, and the feeling just keeps creeping up on me. This fantastic party sign got me really excited. Made me start thinking of cocktail umbrellas and fairy lights. Slinky dresses and songs to make you jump around.

Top Left MadMaud's Umbrellas 11 x 14; Top Right MarketStoreShoppe's Slinky Shimmery Gold Dress; Bottom Left P.J.K's DJ at a House Party, Pacific Beach; Bottom Right Whimsidoodle's Origami Lights.

Happy New Year!

This was our vantage point. Nice.