Tuesday 31 December 2013
Cheat's Dinner Party
I
don't often do dinner parties – and when I do I have a habit of wildly
over-catering. So this time I was
determined to do something easy with almost no cooking involved.
And
even given that, it still took about the same amount of time as if I'd cooked
something simple. And I still had much
too much food. A work in progress!
Here's
the menu:
Dinner rolls and crostinis with 2
Dips
(Chimichurris on Hummus and Roasted capsicum w cashews & parmesan)
***
Peking roast duck (bought from a specialty
store and chopped up by them – I bought it the day before which was a mistake –
should have bought it just a couple of hours before)
Cold
roast chicken (cooked by me the day
before and cut up into bits) served with rocket
Sliced tomatoes with onion and oil
Aioli Potato Bacon salad (from supermarket) –
checked seasoning and added dill garnish
Sliced
champagne ham (on lettuce)
Smoked salmon platter with olives, stuffed
peppers etc
Smoked Chicken pasta salad (bought) with added
chicken, seasoning and herbs on top
Green salad (not strictly all green but at least made by me)
***
Cheesecake
– berry swirl – bought
So
would you have enjoyed the food???
Monday 30 December 2013
Capital city of the week - Damascus
Damascus has had its share of
troubles but the word means the City of Jasmine in English
Damascus
was once conquered by Alexander the Great.
Damascus
was also once part of the Ottoman Empire
There
are lots of mosques in Damascus
So
where in the world is Damascus?
Rembrandt
The Rich Man from the Parable |
So
what do you know about Rembrandt. I realised I only knew that he was an Old
Master but not much more. So I got a
couple of books about him out of the library and found out some interesting
stuff.
The Jewish Bride |
Rembrandt
was born in 1606 and died in 1669 aged 63.
He
was one of 9 children – five of his siblings died while they were
children. He was born in Leiden a town
on the Rhine in what is now Holland.
Saskia as Minerva, 1635 (wife) |
He
married well (ie into money) but was unlucky.
His first 3 children all died as babies and when his son was only 9
months old his wife died.
Rembrandt's mother 1631 etching |
Even
though quite famous for his painting and etchings, and with various
aristocratic patrons, he managed to get into financial difficulties and went
bankrupt. When he died he was buried in
an unmarked grave.
Self-Portrait 1629 |
Unlike
many other artists of his time he kept all or almost all of his preparatory
drawings.
Winter Landscape 1646 |
Somewhat
weirdly, he did over 75 self-portraits but only 14 landscapes. Most of his work were portraits.
Portrait of Jan Six 1654 |
I hope you enjoyed seeing a few of his works!
Sunday 29 December 2013
Brined butter poached pork with fries and bok choy
This
dish was a completely new technique for me.
First I brined the pork by leaving it to soak in salted water overnight and
then I poached it in butter – which sounds decadent I know – but actually I
kept the butter afterwards and used it in a variety of dishes over the next
week or so.
To
poach the pork, I simply popped it into large pot and covered it with melted
butter – no boiling just a gentle simmer – took less than half an hour. I didn't sear the pork first so that is why
it looks quite pale.
As
you can see I served it accompanied by hand cut baked fries and bok choy.
Before
baking the fries I par boiled them for 5 minutes – which helps them be nice and
fluffy in the middle and then the baking crisps up the outside. To bake them I sprinkled them with salt
flakes and tossed them in olive oil.
The
bok choy was quickly sautéed with ginger and chopped brazil nuts. I cut the stalks up finely and gave them a
couple of minutes before putting the leafy parts in.
Saturday 28 December 2013
Need some extra inspiration? Try some pancakes, galettes & crepes!
Daisy Pancakes |
For
your inspiration today I have chosen a few of the many fantastic pancakes in
the Food
on Friday: Pancakes, galettes & crepes collection. Unbelievably
there were almost 200 to choose from. To
see more, go to this Pinboard.
The
stunning first pic is Daisy
Pancakes by Jenny Eatwell's
Rhubarb & Ginger
Corn
& chive pikelets w Smoked Salmon & Sour Cream by Sugar et al
Gram's
Buttermilk Pancakes by
Sugar Cookies to Peterbilts
Bacon
Cheeseburger Pancakes by
The Midnight Baker
Tiramisu Crepes by Tramplingrose
Scrambled
Egg Breakfast Crepes by
Meatless Mediterranean
Peach
Galettes w Cream Cheese Filling by Welcome to Lea's Cooking
Friday 27 December 2013
Food on Friday: Nuts
ON
We
have an excuse to go quite "nutty" today! Food on Friday is collecting dishes with nuts
in them. Apologies to anyone with nut
allergies.
Almonds go well with – apricots, berries,
cherries, chicken, chocolate, cream, dried fruit, honey, peaches, quinces,
rice, trout and vanilla.
Cashews go well with – almonds, beans, cauliflower,
chicken, coconut milk, cracked wheat, fish, pork and rice.
Hazelnuts go well with – almonds,
chocolate, cinnamon, duck, oranges, pork and salad leaves.
Peanuts go well with – beef, chicken,
chillies, coriander (cilantro), cucumber, pork, snake beans and tamarind.
Pecans go well with – bitter greens, blue
cheese, cream, croutons, duck, garlic, goat's cheese, lemon juice, maple syru,
molasses and quinces.
Pine nuts go well with – basil,
dried currants, garlic, parmesan cheese, pasta, quail, rice, rosemary, salad
leaves, silver beet and veal.
Pistachios go well with – almonds,
chocolate, dried fruit, ham, honey, rice, sausages, semolina, terrines,
watermelons and yoghurt.
Walnuts (not my faves) go well with –
apples, bitter greens, blue cheese, celery, chocolate, cream, croutons, dates,
duck, figs, garlic, goat's cheese, mussels, pears, potatoes, quinces, salad
leaves and verjuice.
To
add your contribution to the collection, just put your name and the name of the
dish into the first Mr Linky box and then paste the url for your post into the
second one.
I'll
be pinning the dishes to this Pinboard. If you pop over to it you will be able to see
the collection at a glance and choose which ones you want to visit.
Happy
Linking.
Thursday 26 December 2013
Need some inspiration? Try Recipes that Kids Will Love!
Macaroni N' Cheese |
There
were over 120 dishes in Food
on Friday: Recipes Kids Will Love! So there is pretty much something
for everyone there. I have selected a
few to show you in this post but do recommend that you pop on over to this Pinboard
to see them all.
The
first pic is from Feed Your Soul Too – it
is, of course, Macaroni
N' Cheese
Doughnuts
Like Mother Used to Make by Favourite Old
English Recipes from your Childhood
Quiche
Frittata Stars by
Shine On
Gingerbread Man
Pancakes by
We-Made-That.com
Panda
cupcake by
Cook with Arthy Shama
Little
Lemon Tarts by Ask
Sarah
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