Wednesday Girls Dinner - Karolina

We visited Karolina at her new house in Manly. She has recently purchased the new Bill Granger’s Holiday cookbook and so her yummy dinner was inspired by Bills tasty recipes.

Entrée Eggplant salad with chilli and mint

Main Braised Lamb Shanks

Dessert Apple griddle scones with blackberries

Eggplant salad with chilli and mint 

Ingredients - serves 4-6

3 large eggplants

2 tbls extra virgin olive oil

2 tbls red wine vinegar

1 long red chilli, seeded, finely chopped

3 tbls shredded fresh mint leaves

3 tbls shredded fresh flat leaf parsley

Sea salt and black pepper 

 

Method

Cut each eggplant into thinck slices. Preheat a bbq or chargrill pan to high and cook the eggplant for -3 minutes on each side or until lightly charred and cooked through. Transfer to a heatproof bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the olive oil and red wine vinegar in a small bowl. Add the chilli, mint and parsley, season with salt and pepper and stir together.

Tear the eggplant into rough strips with your fingers and place in a serving bowl. Add the dressing and gently toss together.

Braised Lamb Shanks

Ingredients - Serves 4

4 Lamb shanks

Plain (all purpose) flour, season with salt and pepper, to toss

2 tbls olive oil

1 large onion, cut into thin wedges

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1 large long red chille, seeded and finely chopped

2 tsp five spice powder

400g tin chopped tomatoes

3 tbls light soy sauce

2 tsp brown sugar

To serve

Steamed leafy greens

Steamed rice or mashed potato

Lime wedges

Place lamb shanks, flour, salt & pepper into a bag and toss to coat shanks.

In a heavy based casserole dish or electric fry pan gently saute onion and garlic until opaque add the next 5 ingredients followed by the coated lamb shanks. Turn the heat to low and cook for approximitely 2 hours or until the meat deliciously falls off the bone.

Serve with steamed leafy greens, steamed rice or mash potato and a lime wedge.

Apple griddle scones with blackberries

Ingredients - makes 2 large or 8 small

2-3 punnets blackberries90g caster sugar

2 small Bramley apples, peeled, cored and diced

110g wholemeal flour

110g self-raising flour

1 tsp mixed spice

110g butter, softened plus extra for frying

1 egg beaten

1 tbls buttermilk

Clotted cream or crème fraiche, to serve

Bistrot Bistro

I know I know it’s been a while…. Weddings, baby showers, Easter; you know how it gets.

Wednesday night Party Mouth Foodie and some very close friends took a trip to a modern Australian French bistro in Woolloongabba - Bistrot Bistro. I wrote about the renovated Woolloongabba precinct back in February; 'Woolloongabba's where it's at" I mentioned a few restaurants and pubs in the area but oddly bypassed this little gem. Set in the historic Good Year Tyre and Rubber building; Bistrot Bistro still has some of it's original interiors. Timber floors, window frames, and if you look closely enough you can even see the original brick archways. I loved the seating arrangements; if you have 2-4 people dining you can snap up one of their cute pin-striped booths. They also have a long leather seat with cute little tables running along front; just like in France. They certainly have done a superb job of renovating this abandoned building; and with Edith Piaf singing in the background, the room oozes French la de da.

P.S Check out their cellar room function area...impressive let me tell you.

Foooooood time!!! Their menu is indeed inviting and the service absolute. Our waiter was very helpful with suggestions and very patient; you should see me I'm hopeless! I can never decide what to order.

I could describe in detail my every mouthful, but we all know a picture speaks louder than words.

For entree we ended up ordering the same thing.... could you resist soft figs with fromage (similar to quark) and watercress? We couldn't. We ate it too quickly to take a picture :)

Changing the subject for a second. I love it that when I go out for dinner with my close friends, I get the opportunity to have a tiny taste of everyone's meals; yeah it's called sharing and if you don't do it you should start right now!

OK what we ate.....

Grilled Pork and white bean salad
The white beans were cooked in a broth of pork bones and stock, so yummy!

Braised Lamb, red grapes and crumbed sweet bread
The dish is compared to pork belly but a little less fattening. The warm grapes were very complementarity of the lamb. If you're hungry though this isn't going to hit the spot, but you can opt for one of their yummy side dishes to solve that problem.

Ragout of clams with sauce rouille & fresh sourdough
Bistrot Bistro had run out of mussels that day sadly, but they offered to do the same meal but replacing the mussels for clams; it was most enjoyable. The fresh sourdough was perfect to soak up all the creamy rouille deliciousness.

Desert o'clock....

Creme Caramel
The caramel in this was so sweet and tasty, even toffee like. If I remember correctly I nearly licked the bowl.

Blueberry Frangipane Tart with Buerre Noisette ice cream
The spoon was dug into this before we got to take the photo lol so it did look perfect on arrival to our table. The Buerre Noisette (hazelnut butter) ice cream was so nice beautiful and the blueberry franipane tart was light and fruity.

Chocolate marquise topped with creme fraiche
I didn't personally taste this because it looked far too rich for me but the moans around the table when people were tasting it certainly tells me it was decadently sweet.

Would I dine at Bistrot Bistro again? Yes.
Was Bistrot Bistro the best food I have ever tasted? No.
Is the food really really yummy? Yes.
Is the decor warm, cosy and inviting and perfect for a romantic dinner or catch up with friends? Most definitely!

I'll let you make up your own mind; but I certainly know that this modern Australian French bistro hasn't let the reputation of the Woolloongabba precinct down one bit.

Wednesday Girls Dinner - Miss Foodie

Entrée Garlic Tiger Prawns with Peanut Satay Dipping Sauce & Natural Tasmanian Oysters with Asian Vinaigrette
Main Asian Turkey Balls with Rice Noodles, Snow Peas and Radishes
Desert White Chocolate, Mango & Passionfruit Trifle

Tiger Prawns with Peanut Satay Dipping Sauce

 

Ingredients

Fresh Tiger Prawns (tip: if a prawns feelers are long and intact you know they're fresh; once they're frozen they break off you see).

Peanut Satay Sauce. Recipe hmmm yeah well I could make it but honestly it's so easy to head to your local Thai Takeaway and order a small container, its like $4.

Method

Cook your prawns in a hot wok with garlic and a fresh squeeze of lime at the end. Lay out and serve with dipping sauce. Easy!!

Natural Tasmanian Oysters with Asian Vinaigrette

Ingredients

2 tbs light soy sauce
2 tbs rice wine vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
24 Pacific oysters, in the half shell
2 green shallots, ends trimmed, thinly sliced

Method

Shake all ingredients together in an old glass jar or whisk in a small bowl. Spoon over fresh oysters. Another easy one :)

Asian Turkey Balls with Rice Noodles, Snow Peas and Radishes

Recipe on it's way...

Northshore Riverside Cafe - Hamilton

I was a bit hesitant on telling you about Riverside Cafe because no one really knows about this Hamilton gem yet. I discovered this superb bistro through a close friend of mine. I work in Hamilton and I didn't even know what lay beyond the Hamilton industrial area. Most of us are familiar with the Portside restaurant precinct in Hamilton, but have you delved down Macarthur Ave? Well I recommend that you do.

Every mouthful I have experienced at Riverside Cafe has been sensational. Now you're going to hate me because I guarantee you're going to be hungry once you check out the meals I've had.

Interior of Riverside Cafe

Outside view from the balcony seats

Balcony seat

Beef Ragu Gnocchi with watercress
(this was a special and sadly isn't a regular on the menu)

This one is on the menu and is my absolute favourite!!
Coconut Crusted Tiger Prawns, Mango and Macadamia Salad with a Star Anise Chutney

Roasted Tomato, Capsicum and Walnut Tart with reduced balsamic glaze and micro herbs

Scallop Caesar Salad

DESERT TIME!!

The in house made sweets are always different upon every visit.

Sticky Banana and Caramel Pudding

Lemon Delicious Tart

Do you still love me? You're hungry now aren't you ha ha..... Well you know what to do then. Cruise down to Riverside Cafe soon. They are open from 9am to 4pm everyday and serve breakfast from 8:30am to 11:30am Saturday and Sunday only. If you want to check out the regular menu click here, mind you the specials are always very hard to go past.

When you venture to this neck of the woods not only can you enjoy some fine bistro cuisine, you also have the option to bring a picnic or BBQ lunch along with you. The surrounding grounds include beautiful green lawns which are wonderfully maintained along with BBQ areas.

The below pictures are care of Northshore Hamilton. They're taken when they first built up the area; there are a lot more trees and plants now-a-days.

Wednesday Girls Dinner - Megsie

Entrée Cured Meat with Gorgonzola Figs
Main Home made Mushroom Pizza + Pumpkin Pizza with Salads
Dessert Italian style Chocolate Custard Tart

Recipes are coming and you definitely want to have these. The Gorgonzola Figs were out of this world!!! From memory I think Megsie simply put a piece of Gorgonzola cheece into a fresh fig and wrapped a piece of prosciutto around it.  She put that in the oven until the fig was crispy. Meanwhile melt the remaining Gorgonzola cheese in a pot set at low heat. To serve drizzle melted Gorgonzola over the cooked fig.  My mouth is watering as I type this! Such simple ingredients but such a knock out taste!

2011 Wednesday Girls Dinners are back

After our Christmas break the girls and I are back in full swing with Wednesday Girls Dinners. With all of us living busy lives we've decided to meet up every second Wednesday this year rather than every Wednesday. 

Dear Megsie is getting married in Yamba in exactly 15 days.... wowza so exciting!! Plus owning and running her own Advertising and PR businesses you can imagine what her time has been spent on lately. With Sarah heavy into the third last semester MBBS Bachelor of Med and Surgery degree (yup you heard right she’s going to be a Doctor) this amazing lady is definitely working to the bone. Lovely Alyssa is well into her Education Primary School degree and onto the prac side of things; this woman barely has a moment to herself. And last but by no means least we have our Swedish beauty Karolina. With a recent move to the lovely bayside town of Manly, starting new employment plus caring for her husband and gorgeous little boy Oskar she too is a busy little bee.

As you can see fortnightly dinner catch ups works well for us all. So lets get to our tasty recipes shall we....

Alyssa’s Week

Entrée Tangy Thai Chicken Salad
Main Asian-marinated baked salmon
Deserts Honey-roasted pears with caramel & pecan sauce

Tangy Thai Chicken Salad

Ingredients

1/4 cup (60ml) light coconut milk
2 tbs fish sauce
2 tbs grated palm sugar*
500g chicken thigh fillets, trimmed
2 tsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tbs lime juice
4 kaffir lime leaves*, centre vein removed, finely sliced
150g baby Asian salad leaves
1/3 cup canned water chestnuts*, sliced
1 red onion, finely sliced
2 spring onions, finely sliced on the diagonal
1 tsp finely chopped galangal*
1 red chilli, seeds removed, finely sliced
1/3 cup each mint and coriander leaves, plus extra to garnish
50g roasted peanuts, roughly chopped

Method

In a large saucepan, stir together coconut milk, fish sauce and palm sugar over low heat until sugar dissolves, then bring to the boil. Add chicken, cover and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes or until cooked. Remove from heat and let chicken cool. Remove chicken and reserve liquid.

For the dressing, add chilli sauce, lime juice and kaffir lime to poaching liquid. Stir to combine. Shred chicken and mix in a bowl with salad leaves, water chestnuts, onions, galangal, chilli and herbs. Divide between plates, garnish with peanuts and extra herbs. Drizzle with dressing.

Note – No chilli was used in this recipe.

delicious. - February 2004, Page 149
Recipe by L Bell, Clayfield, Queensland (Reader)

Asian-marinated Baked Salmon

Ingredients 

2 lemongrass stems (pale part only), chopped
1/2 cup (125ml) dark soy sauce
1/2 bunch coriander, leaves thinly sliced, stalks finely chopped
2cm piece ginger, finely grated
4 garlic cloves, finely grated
1kg piece skinless salmon fillet, pin-boned
1/3 cup (115g) honey, warmed
4 spring onions, finely shredded
2 limes, halved

Method

Mixed pea salad (we used fresh peas, snow peas and pea shoots), to serve
Using a mortar and pestle, bash the lemongrass until fragrant. Stir in the soy sauce, coriander stalks, ginger and garlic. Place the fish in a glass dish, then spread all over with the marinade. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 200°C and line a large tray with baking paper.  Place the salmon on the tray, then brush with the honey. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until the fish is just cooked but still a little pink in the centre.

Carefully transfer the fish to a board or serving platter, sprinkle with spring onion and coriander leaves, then serve warm or at room temperature with lime to squeeze, and salad.

A lovely side dish to go with this absolutely knock out fish of a dish is wilted pok choi with crushed peanuts.

From delicious. - November 2008, Page 92
Recipe by Valli Little

Honey-roasted pears with caramel & pecan sauce

Ingredients (serves 6)

6 firm pears, peeled, quartered, cored
30g butter
2 tbs honey
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
45g (1/3 cup) pecans
185ml (3/4 cup) thickened cream
60g (1/3 cup, lightly packed) brown sugar
Thick cream, to serve

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C. Arrange the pear, in a single layer, in a medium flameproof roasting pan. Place the butter, honey and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until the butter melts. Pour over the pear and turn to coat. Roast in oven, turning once, for 20-25 minutes or until the pear is tender and light golden.

Meanwhile, spread the pecans over a baking tray. Bake in oven for 5 minutes or until toasted. Coarsely chop.

Transfer the pear to a bowl and cover with foil to keep warm. Add the cream and sugar to the roasting pan. Place the pan over low heat and stir until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is well combined. Simmer, stirring often, for 8 minutes or until the sauce thickens.
Pour the caramel sauce over the pear and sprinkle with the pecans. Serve immediately with the cream.

Good Taste - July 2008, Page 86
Recipe by Alison Roberts

Woolloongabba's where it's at....

Saturday saw Party Mouth Foodie dining, antique shopping and a bit more dining about Woolloongabba.

For breakfast I took a visit to the newly opened egg BISTRO at 989 Stanley St East. Chris used to run the Garden Cafe at Cottage Garden Nursery on Stanley St East (just a few doors down from egg BISTRO). The venue itself is very chic and has a very warm, cosy feeling. Together with it's black and white interiors, timber furnishings, old silverware cutlery and soft music, you definitely feel like you've walked into something special. There's a lovely outdoor courtyard that connects itself to Michael Allen's Antique store, so make sure you have a mosy around there after you've tantalised your taste buds.

Talking about taste buds, lets get onto the best part - food! The menu at egg BISTRO is simple and the menu small, just how it should be. I ordered: Soft polenta with balsamic mushrooms, baby spinach and fried halloumi. Though I enjoyed my meal, I was still a little hungry afterwards so I would suggest accompanying a slice of sourdough with the dish.

My partner and close friend couldn't go past the Big Breakfast. This consisted of 2 eggs, sour dough toast, thick bacon, pork sausage, grilled tomato, balsamic mushrooms, home made potato cake and a tasty tomato salsa. They enjoyed the meal greatly; their only criticism was that the balsamic mushrooms were too strong. I felt the same with my dish also (and I love balsamic).

We sipped a couple of delicious coffees while we were there; my skinny flat white wasn't too hot and wasn't to bitter (truly a crime when this occurs!). Overall egg BISTRO is a lovely place to enjoy a quick coffee and home made cake or relaxing breakfast. I'll definitely be going back!

Later that morning I met up with some other friends and headed to the Woolloongabba Antique Centre. This place is awesome!! They have traditional Australian antiques, some amazing vintage clothing, groovy homewares, art and much much more.

Walking further up towards Logan Road, you will find the newly renovated Woolloongabba precinct. I love this place. You've got antique stores, boutique clothing/homeware shops, groovy bars, cute cafe's and top end restaurants.

I will start with a dear favourite of mine, Pearl Cafe. They say good things come in small packages well this place is more like good things come in small venues. The place is quite small and sadly inside can be a little noisy for some but I love it; reminds me of the quaint little alley way cafe/bistro's they have in Melbourne. I often head here for dinner or lunch on the weekends. They have a delicious modern menu comprising of rustic homely style meals. Their specials are always hard to go past! On Saturday I enjoyed the special which was Homemade Ricotta Gnocchi with Crispy Artichokes. I thought it was fresh and tasty, they over killed the olive oil but it was still good, not the greatest but still an enjoyable meal all the same.

My sister delved into the crisp local pork belly with apple and fennel slaw, mustard fruits and almonds. A nice dish but the pork belly wasn't crisp enough, tasty side flavours though.

We shared pickled beetroot with fetta and mint; yum yum yum is all I can say about that. The beetroot was pickled in house as well, it had a wonderful flavour!

There are a number of other venues in the area which I haven't tried but certainly will be in the very near future :)

I popped my head into The Crosstown Eating House. On entry of the 1920's 2 story brick building, I was greeted by some genuinely friendly and helpful staff. I advised the waitress that I wasn't eating but wanted to look around the place (I was thinking potential birthday venue you see) I liked how the tables where tucked away here and there; a nice change to the normal one room outlay. I was escorted to the top floor where the newly completed UPTOWN Drinks Lounge was. Warm timber furnishings, old school table settings and a piano. Instantly I envisioned family and friends walking into this room, piano playing cocktails on bar. I'll be looking into this for sure.

Thursday nights you can enjoy live music by resident pianist Joff Bush. Music starts at 7:30pm. Sundays sessions have just started too; Pub for the Day they like to call it: burgers, beers and maybe even the odd meat raffle thrown in for good measure. Every Sunday 12noon till 6pm.

Moving onto Canvas. I haven't been here when it's been open, but they have some great deals throughout the week that I must check out. Tuesday is Tapas & Tequila - Taste a rustic Spanish / French tapas board teamed with a Margarita for only $30 for two, $55 for four etc... They have a new Margarita each week created by one of their award winning bartenders.

If you're game! They have Absinthe - Canvas Green Hour – They say you can discover your inner bohemian and delve into the magical world of Absinthe every Thursday... They have an Absinthe appreciation society too. I’m not sure I could handle this lol

Sunday is all about my favourite things!! Jazz, wine and cheese. Now tell me you can’t go past that! Cool jazz sounds kick off around 3pm with different local artist performing each week and they have a $20 cheese and wine special to go with it.

Next door you will find 1889 Enoteca. Voted 94 in the Gourmet Travellers Top 100 Restaurants. A few people I know have enjoyed their italian flavours and raved about it; not the price though, pretty expensive. My partner and I popped in for a glass of Pinot Noir a few months ago and we're definitely impressed. The venue itself is gorgeous! Brick walls, timber floors and red furnishings, the menu was to die for too. Like most places in the Woolloongabba precinct its in a heritage listed building, this one is in the Taylor-Heaslop building.

As you can see Woolloongabba has something for everyone. So why not check it out this weekend, I promise you wont be disappointed :)