Dipa's Daily Dumplings

Going Veggie in Baguio

2012-02-08T17:20:00.002+08:00

Baguio stands out as a unique town in the Philippines. As thecapital city of the mountainous province of the Cordilleras, it is 1500meterabove sea level, making it cooler and fresher then Manila. With itssurroundings of mountains and lush pines forests, it can sometimes feel likebeing in a Swiss town. Because of it's proximity to the capital city and it’s beautiful surroundings, Baguio was chosen by the American's as an Army base in the early twentieth century - the perfectplace for troops in recovery to pass time, and recuperate. The buildings arereplicas of American lodges and are surprisingly well maintained for thePhilippines. The city attracts a younger crowd because of its reputation as theeducational capitol of the Philippines due to its many Universities. The manycafes and bars that dot the newer part of the city are packed with oddlydressed students till the early hours of the mornings. It’s well worth visitingthese establishments for their open mic sessions, art exhibitions andinteresting cocktails. Even though the Philippines is very accepting of gays, Ihave only ever seen gay couples in Baguio proudly holding hands and kissing inpublic. Sexualities are not questioned and count for nothing in a town wereexperimenting and expression are encouraged. Baguio is said to be the bestplace in Asia for its Ukay Ukay, second hand clothing, which tends to come fromKorean, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan. It’s the perfect place to buy a jacket,some warm boots and a woolly hat for an evening stroll up and down the city streets. Vegetarian restaurants are becoming increasingly popular and this isunderstandable with the town’s many vegetarian establishments. In a strange way, the place reminded me so much of Brighton. I suppose every country has a Baguio, when you think about it.

Our first day in Baguio was a little more active then weexpected it to be, with high ropes and horse ridding at Camp John Hay. We hadread there was a cute little vegetarian restaurant not to far away, serving upsome interesting takes on Philippino classics and some tasty Indian dishes. Inthe most unassuming venue of Hotel Elizabeth, is Bliss Café, an eclectic,kitch, meditating retreat owned by Buddhists, Jim and Shanti Ward. Serving purevegetarian food, and the option of vegan food, this café goes all out inoffering the Bliss experience: an extensive menu to suit novices to vegetarianfood and to vegetarians who want to try something unusual; a nice collection ofbooks to read; a meditation area; some beautiful paintings and ornaments fromthe couple’s travels; and blissful music playing in the background.

We were ravenous and ordered two currys, one with pannier theother with chickpeas, veggie sisig, lumpia, veggie chincharon (porkscratchings), bangal rice, a blueberry lassie, and a chai tea. We had a littlegander around the café whilst our food was being prepared by Shanti. I noticedthere was a table with a “we will doodle”design on it. I asked where theygot it from, and Shanti informed me it was actually done by We Will Doddlethemselves a few weeks prior at an exhibition held in the café.

The food came out surprisingly fast, especially with ourlarge order. It all smelt so good, and with a huge choice, we didn't know whereto start. We gobbled down the lumpia and chincharon, savoured the salty sisig, thentucked into the beautifully fragrant curries.

We broke all the Bhuddist rules… we over indulged and gaveinto gluttony with no will power. We enjoyed ourselves though. I can safely saythat Shanti’s curries are the best I’ve had in the Philippines. They had such aunique flavour, it was clear, the spices used had been chosen carefully to workwell will the chickpeas and the pannier… oh and her pannier was homemade! Therice was really tasty, I could have eaten it on it’s ones.

We were told by Jim that the couple have a room in theirhouse that they rent out for people wanting to stay in Baguio. We thought thisperfect especially as we were hoping to extend our stay. So the next day wecame back to the café and checked into our tranquil retreat, which continuedthe theme of the restaurant. The room was basic, but had all we needed: a hotshower, a comfy mattress on the floor, and a fireplace.

The same day, Shanti recommended we went to Oh My Gulay!(Translation: Oh My Veggie!) on session road in town. We were told it was aquirky art space that served up good veggie food. It didn't take too long tofind it. Located at the top of an opal green tower block. The space was hugeand had buildings within buildings. The interior was a miss match of styles andornaments. I loved it. Even though we were inside a building, it felt like wewere outdoors because of the light and open space.

The views from the top were astounding. We sat and had along coffee, took in the fresh air and watched the sun set over Baguio.

We were determined to hit some Ukay Ukay shops near SessionRoad, then head to a night market selling some more Ukay Ukay. We had no spacein our bags, but that didn't deter us. I bought five… yes FIVE pairs of shoes.I had made it a mission to find Timberlands for a good price. I found itincreasingly hard to find a pair that fit, and so substituted with another pairof shoes. After my fourth pair, I told my self this was ridiculous and it hadto stop… surly enough, just as we planned on heading back… I found them! Thebeauts. Only cost me 550peso (£10).

So, satisfied and very hungry, we wondered around the streetfood stalls to see what tickled our fancy. Shwarmas, beef mami, sweetcorn, andstreet bbq… all so tempting. But the one thing that we were not expecting, butdrew us in was tacos. A guy who looked curiously like Che Guvara in a blue TacoJeep, serving tasty meaty goodness dolloped with spicy salsa… yes please!

My only complaint was it was too small! Our veggie stay inBaguio was tainted by my lust for meaty Taco… oh well. Only live once eh, only inBaguio once, only Blue Taco Jeep once.

So the day of our departure, we organised with Shanti andJim to volunteer in their café for a few hours. It was a good chance to get to knowShanti and her lovely staff, and land an hand for their good cause restaurant. Wewere made to feel very welcome. We chopped and squeezed and chopped some more.It was actually really nice to sit in the café’s conservatory and just chop andchat.

We left Baguio that day rather mystified by our experience.It had been so different to our other previous trips in the country. Thepeople, the food, the culture, the surroundings, all made it seem as if we werein a totally different country. In all honesty we didn't want to leave. We hadsuch a good time, and met some amazing people. But there is only so many times onecan keep extending one’s stay before it starts to interfere with work, thebudget and reality. I know I’ll be back thought, if not for the Ukay Ukay then defiantly for Shanti's tasty curries.

“Killing me softly chicken” and Dog for dinner

2012-01-31T15:58:00.001+08:00

(Warning: this may not beeveryone’s taste)

When in a place that is proud of their tradition, a fewoddities are bound to be found. This is the best way I can put it. Sagada alongwith its Animist ways has a few culinary ceremonies that they hold on to, whichwould throw WWF and Greenpeace up in arms. It has to be remembered that this istradition, which dates back for centauries, and something that the Sagadanpeople are proud of. Gohan and his sister invited us for dinner at Bana’s Caféand cooked us some local delicacies, including….

Gohan and Rob in Bana's Cafe

Dog meat (asocena) is commonly available on menus in theMountain province and it gets even more bizarre then this the more rural yougo. Bats and ants are not uncommon foods for local tribes. It’s understandable,as larger protein sources tend to become scarce when in dense rainforests.Chickens and pigs are saved only for special occasions.

So how did eating dog come about? Well, my source ofinformation has come directly from Sagadans who eat dog on a regular bases.They informed me that dogs were originally kept for hunting and protection.Before war or during a time of crisis a dog would be sacrificed as it was andis still believed, the spirit of the dog will offer protection. According toresearch, the number of tribal wars and internal conflict in theMountain Province is directly proportional to the number of slaughtered familydogs.

Times of unsettlement between tribesstill continues to this day. The last feud was between Sagada and Bontoc tenyears ago and resulted in the loss of three lives. Dogs were sacrificedthousands of years ago, continue to be sacrificed, and will continue to besacrificed for the right reasons. The dilemma that is being faced by the peopleof the mountain province is the growing demand to see dog meat on the menus oflocal restaurants. The dogs are not sacrificed for any other reason then theconsumption of their meat. A law was passed in 1998 as part of the Philippines AnimalWelfare Act, stating that dogs should not be killed unless it is part of areligious ceremony (and a few other reasons which are not relevant in thistopic more info: http://askville.amazon.com/countries-people-eat-dogs/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=415239).This resulted in a large number of restaurants being shut down in Baguio,Bontoc, and surrounding towns of the Cordilleras. You are now less likely tosee Asocena on the menu in Baguio then in a smaller more rural town, as it isharder for these restaurants to be regulated by the law. In most cases, thepolice of these smaller towns see it as tradition, and do nothing to report it.The locals deem the clamp down on asocena a threat to traditional ways.

…So asocena meat was for dinner. It wasactually meat from a dog, which had been sacrificed the day before for theannual Meeting of Local Guides. I was told by Gohan black dingoes are preferred as they are considered to be the tastiest. The hair of the dog isburnt of and the skin is kept on the meat.

Asoceno

Well…. I tried it. I truly expected itto taste like “dog”… but it didn't. It was gamey, beefy, and almost goaty. Themeat was defiantly tough, but I don't know if that’s how dog meat is supposedto be. The cuts were unfamiliar to me, so I wasn't sure which bits I waseating, nor which bits were supposed to be tastier. I avoided the skin, and truth be told, I also avoided takingsecond helpings. Like balut, it was a mind over mater thing. If I was servedasocena without being told what it was and it was slow cooked in a tasty gravy, I think I’d chomp it down happily. But as it was served, skin on and veryvisibly “dog”, I found it hard to digest. I tried to copy Gohan in how he waseating his piece, but he obviously had years of experience ahead of himcompared to me. I doubt I’ll try it again knowingly. Maybe next time I won’tknow and I’ll actually truly enjoy it!

Pinikpikan was next on the menu, or aslocals call it: “killing me softly chicken.” I couldn't believe my ears when Iwas told about this local delicacy. Again, it is something reserved for specialoccasions only, and we were honored, but also slightly scared to be the specialoccasion… this is why: Pinikpikan is a chicken which has been beaten with astick whilst still alive, it is then killed butchered and cooked. It is claimedthat beating the chicken whilst alive bruises the skin therefore bringing bloodto the surface and thus improving the taste of the chicken. The occasion follows with the chicken being shared out amongst the guests. Theyoungest girl gets the wing, the youngest boy gets the leg, the oldest manreceives the head, and the eldest women… the chicken bum (an actually pricedpart of the chicken in the Philippines, as the chicken only has one!) Weweren’t around when the “killing me softly” part was happening, but I did seethe plucked chicken in a thin blue plastic bag, and it was a sight to behold. Ifelt horrible for having been the reason that an animal had to go through anykind of pain. The killing had been done, and the only thing I could do was eatthe poor bugger. I kept telling myself it’s tradition, it’s tradition, it’stradition and that the foie gras I’ve had in the past is no different.

Pinikpiken

As you can see from the image above, thechicken’s skin is quite dark. This darkening isn’t from soya sauce, but fromthe bruising. I got the wing, as tradition states. I found the meat to berather tough and chewy, but then again, that’s the preferred texture for mostPhilippinos. The taste was meatier then regular chicken. It was cooked in areally interesting way: with smoked venison at the bottom of a tall pot;followed by smoked pork belly; then the chicken; a few crushed, but still wholestems of ginger; finally all covered with water and left to simmer on the hobwhilst the flavours mixed for a couple of hours. Lastly some Pac Choy, orChinese cabbage as they call it here, was added on top in the final few minuets of cooking. The broth was served in a bowl, and it had the most fragrant and smoky aroma. It tasted really good. The smoked venison fell apart in my mouthand the pork belly was so soft and salty, I savored every mouthful.

Smoked pork belly, smoked venison, pac choy and ginger flavoured the tasty broth

I can’t say I really enjoyed the asocenanor the pinikpiken. I was however, extremely grateful that Gohan went out of his way togive us the true taste of the Mountain Province. Around the world there aresome very different, sometimes bizarre, culinary traditions in practice. Forsome people it may seem backwards and un-civilised, and for other’s it’s aninsight into a culture trying to hold on to tradition. Gohan had taught us somuch about the culture of the Mountain Province. It’s a place we found very difficultto leave. The people, the culture, and defiantly the food all took us bysupprise. I know I will return as I believe there is still so much to learn fromthe area. But for now I know two things for sure: I will never look at a dogthe same way and that the spirit of bruised chicken will always hunt me….

Sagada, Fresh and Tasty

2012-01-31T12:10:00.002+08:00

It’s hard to be disappointed with food in Sagada. You can besure that the food being served in the local restaurants has been grown/rearedlocally. This is evident by the sculpted mountains that flow through theMountain Province, terraces that have been systematically carved from the sidesof the mountains. The organic farms ensure the sustainable use of water, andmake crop rotation easier for the year.

Our days started with a killer breakfast at Bana’s Café. Thefull works, as the likelihood of having a proper lunch was slim, especiallywhen caving and hiking. So we splurged a little, and after all, Bana's was the best place in town to get some proper coffee:

Bananas with fresh, homemade thick and deliciously creamy yogurt.It’s hard to find decent yogurt in the Philippines as cows are rarely milked,and the “fresh milk” that is available tends to be imported from New Zealand.The milk used to make Bana’s yogurt comes from the Carabu – the waterbuffalo.In the Philippines, the buffalo is considered the farmer’s best friend, as it ploughsthe land, produces vitamin rich dairy produce and is a symbol of strength andagriculture. The meat is leaner then, and contains as much iron, as beef. I wasrecently told, that Buffalo dairy products are now being seen as a lucrativebusiness. The milk of the buffalo has more nutrients then that of the cow, andbuying milk from the buffalo which has been reared domestically, is cheaperthen importing long life cow’s milk from Australasia.

Next on the morning menu was either:

Bana’s Longsilog, which was delectable. The sausage had beenpartly opened so the fatty porky bits on the inside crisped up. They had,possibly the best fried egg I had had since leaving Manila. The yolk was runnyand the whites slightly crispy…

…Or it would be one of Bana’sselection of omelettes served with whole grain toast and local marmalade.Lighter then the Longsilog and a little healthy if vegetables were chosen forthe filling. The egg was nice an fluffy and the vegetables still retained someintegrity, and weren’t soggy. It was a perfect breakfast before a hike, as itwasn't too greasy and filling to impair mobility… unlike the next break fast….

…So the Bana’s Favourite, was probably our favouritebreakfast opotion. It consists of whole grain toast, local bacon, two eggs,marmalade and fresh fruit. This was saved for the day of departure, before wehade to make a six hour journey to Baguio. The intension was to eat enough thatwe would want to fall back asleep on the bus, but this was impossible with thewinding roads, and the rickety seats.

After a day's trip, and depending on what time you get backinto Sagada Town, a drink or a snack is surely in order to gain back all thelost energy. This can either be in the form of a super strong Red Horse, orequally pleasant: A lemon meringue pie from the Lemon Pie Inn. We stumbled hereafter a long hike. The Inn was bright yellow, and I remember reading about itin one of my favourite Philippino food/travel blogs (http://lakad-pilipinas.blogspot.com)as a place that was recommended.

We sat ordered their famous Lemon Pie, and whilst we waitedwe took in the interior. A mix of traditional Sagadan design with an artytwist. Colourful art broke up the traditional wooden interior, with no eclecticornament seeming out of place. The seating was low, with cushions and lowtables, which I can imagine can get a little uncomfortable after a while. I wasdisappointed not to see any alcohol on the menu, as we were hoping to come backfor evening drinks, but we figure, with the early closing time of 8.30pm, theestablishment was more of a café then a bar.

We got speaking to the writer of another travel blogBiyaheng Pinoy (http://www.biyahengpinoy.blogspot.com)whilst at the Lemon Pie Inn. He told us he decided to stay on in Sagada andhelp promote the Lemon Pie as he loved the idea so much. He has been reallyvery successful in all efforts of making the Lemon Pie Inn customer friendly,from decorating the interior, to promoting the Inn on social networking sites,and generally creating a buzz for the tangtastic homemade pies. They are now sofamous, one of the main culinary attractions of Sagada.

The story of the Lemon pie goes back a few generations. Arecipe was passed down the family and 12 years improvements were made to createwhat is now the most famous Lemon Pie in the Philippines. The pies wereoriginally take up town to the market where they were sold, but now, as thetown develops further downtown, the owner decided to stay put and let peoplecome to him for his delicious treat. The pie has now been enjoyed by manylocals and travellers alike, and continues to be bogged about by avid foodie(like myself).

Bana’s Café, Sagada, In search of some fine poop!

2012-01-26T17:22:00.000+08:00

The town of Sagada nestled in the Mountains of Cordillera

A six-hour drive up one of the world’s most dangerousmotorways, and five thousand feet above sea level, lays the stunning town ofSagada, high up in the Mountain Province of Cordillera. Lime stone cliffs,lush thick pine forests, along with what seems like endless rice terraces, surround thetown of Sagada. The culture in the area is vastly different from the rest ofthe Philippines, as majority practice Animism. The belief that everything has aspirit and nature is to be respected is very evident in the organic developmentof the town. The houses are made of natural material, garbage is disposed ofproperly, and the youth have picnics in caves. There is very little Spanish orAmerican influence, which means the town still retains a lot of tradition.

Sagada’s lush terrain along with it cool temperature isideal for growing coffee. This was the reason for our visit: to see how theworld’s most expensive coffee, civet or alamid coffee, is produced. Our searchled us to Melay and Gohan Sibayen, a couple who have dedicated their lives tosourcing and roasting the best coffee available in the Cordilleras.

Bana's Cafe

With the support of Bote Central (a member of The World FairTrade Organisation), the couple were given an 18-day roasting machine so thatthe sourced coffee can be freshly roasted at the back of their cafe, saving oncosts and giving the smaller farmers an even better price. Some of the coffeegets sent to Bote Central and some is kept in their café in Sagada, and sold topassing travellers.

The café opened five years ago, the same time as the birthof their daughter Bana. Since then they have sourced and continue to sourceorganically grown coffee, and Civet coffee from around the Mountain Province. Theyhave encouraged the DTI, the local Department of Trade and Industry torecognise coffee as a lucrative crop, which should be encouraged amongstfarmers. Now, Cordillera is recognised world-wide for it’s good quality and wonderfullyaromatic Arabica coffee. This is still something that is reasonably new to alot of Philippinos who are used to instant 3-in-1 pouches, but things aregradually changing, as more coffee shops are popping up.

The hanging coffins of Sagada

So we wanted in on the buzz. Gohan took us for a scenicstroll through Echo Vally, where, as the name suggest, you can get a good echoreverberating through the Vally. We had some fun here, then headed down to seethe hanging coffins, a tradition which is unique to Animist cultures, as it isbelieved the spirits can be free instead of buried in the ground. What I found so fascinating was how anybody got both the coffin and the body up suchsteep cliffs, and then even managed to nail it to the rock.

We walked further down the vally. The soil became slimierand the vegetation denser. My grip-less, white canvas trainers were notprepared for the hike, and I could feel every rock and twig underneath my feet.I wondered how Gohan was doing this in flip flops! As we approached an openingof a cave, Gohan pointed in the distance “look, that’s a coffee tree!” Ihonestly had no clue what I was looking at. Then as we moved further on, Irealised a cluster of small trees with bright red berries hanging off them.

A coffee tree

We were specifically looking for civet poop, and in a densemuddy forest, it’s not easy to find. We were told Civets live around limestone,and after eating the coffee berries, they find a high spot on which to sit and digesttheir dinner. This is were we would be likely to find their pricey droppings. We searchedaround for a good while but found only one bean!

Pooped civet coffee bean

We continued up to another farm, where some new Arabica plantswere being grown. We stopped to have a rest and chomp on some oranges.

Gohan

As we munched away, Gohan explained how the farmer haddesigned the plotting of the plants to create a bio-diverse farming area. Heexplained the trees grown around the coffee plants were there to act as greenmanures, weed control and also as a shade for the little Arabica plants.

Young Arabica coffee plants

So off we set again on thesearch. We didn’t find any more droppings, but we did find some civet “spitouts” which apparently can be classed as second class to the poop beans.

Spat out civet coffee beans

Happy with our findings, we heading back to the café. Alongthe way we passed a running stream that led to another cave opening. Gohan toldus there are 118 cave opening in the Sagada area, all connected. Some of thesecaves are accessible, but only with a guide. Others are only for experiencedcavers. The intricate network is familiar with the locals as ceremonies arestill held deep down in the caves, even to this day.

A cave with a running stream below a Sagadan house

Once back at the café we studied the difference between thecivet poop bean, and the spit out bean. The difference was obvious even to theuntrained eye. The reason why civet coffee is so revered in taste, is theprocess of bean selection and digestion done by the civet. Firstly itpicks the most ripe bean, then if the whole bean is digested, only the softflesh of the fruit is broken down, whilst the bean stays intact. The emzynes inthe civet are said to enter the bean creating shorter peptides thus creatingmore amino acids. The taste of the coffee is smoother and chocolatier thenregular coffee. As you can see from the picture below, the digested coffee beanhas a rougher surface then the spat out coffee bean. As the spat out coffeebean has also been exposed to the enzymes, but for a shorter period of time, itis second class to the digested bean and still reaches a high price.

Left: Pooped bean (rougher exterior) Right: Spat out bean

So now it was time to try some civet coffee. As expected, itwas lovely. It was the first properly brewed coffee I had since leaving Vigan.The taste was not exactly as I expected though. There was a hint of nuttiness,almost hazelnutty. It was defiantly smoother then regular black coffee, butalso had a drier after taste. Anyways… I’m no coffee expert, but I diddefiantly enjoy it, especially after the long hike and whilst enjoying thebeautiful views over Sagada.

A cup of civet coffee and a beautiful view

Ilocos Norte, Laoag and around

2012-01-25T17:45:00.000+08:00

Paoay Church

The food in Laoag is lighter, healthier and fresher thenthat of Manila. The temperature as you go further north of Luzon gets instantlycooler. The terrain also starts to change, which at the time of travel (earlyJanuary), at times looked like the South of Italy. This sets the scene, perfect for growing seasonal vegetables.Pinakbet is a dish seen at nearlyevery restaurant in Ilocos North. It’s an assortment of local vegetables:bitter gourd, string bean, tomatoes, okra, chilie peppers, winged beans and eggplant,all fried with some onion and garlic. There are a few places in Laoag conjuring up western combinations with pinakbet, like pinakbet pasta, pinakbet curry, andpinakbet pie, but the most interesting and tastiest combination we tried waspinakbet pizza at the Herencia Café opposite the Paoay Church in the town ofPaoay. I thought it would taste alittle strange and soggy with so many vegetables on top, but I can safely sayit’s the best pizza I’v had in the Philippines so far. The base was thinenough, still crispy, not too cheesy (and not the plasticy stuff either),the vegetables still had a bit to them, and the combination felt healthy and vibrant.

Pinakbet Pizza

As we walked around town, we saw people selling bundles ofbamboo with a gold seal around the end. We never really clocked it was food,until we were approached and asked if we wanted to try sticky coconut rice.Sounded delicious, hard to turn down an offer to try free food. The rice had been mixed withgrated coconut and placed inside the bamboo. The bamboo is steamed for a while,and vola! sticky coconut rice you have. A quick yet firm smack on the floor splits the bamboo making it easierto obtain the sticky rice. Care has to be taken though when eating as the edgesof the bamboo can be rather sharp. We bought a whole bundle for our trip…little did we realise it was something that had to be eaten within the day,otherwise it dries out and becomes inedible. We ended up chucking half ourbundle away, which was a real shame.

Sticky coconut rice in bamboo

A dish which is available pretty much every where in thecountry, and a dish loved by pretty much every Philippino is sizzling sisig. Ieat it regularly when out with friends in Manila. Best served with chips and anice cold San Miguel. But I never really questioned what went in it. From havingtried quite a few sisigs, I got the impression it wasn't just pork mince… Iassumed it also had belly fat and maybe even bits of crispy pork skin. Agood sisig is fried with onions, chilles, and garlic, then has a raw eggcracked on the top of the sizzling mixture. Some sisigs have been chewy andindigestible, others have been crispy, some have even had more vegetables thenmeat in it. So I needed to ask the question: “what's in my Sisig?” The answerwas not at all what I expected. Apparently sisig is a combination of all the offcuts: head, intestines, liver and ear all chopped up and fried with theremaining ingredients. This got me thinking… I rarely ever see the “other” cutsof pork, like pork chops, pork lion, ham on menus or in supermarkets, it’salways the stranger cuts and either chewy or crispy pork skin. When I questionedwhat happened to these finer cuts, I was jokingly told: “we chuck ‘em away!”….“Joke Lang”… “We give ‘em to our dogs!”

Sizzling sisig

So with this knowledge, I seek to find what makes theperfect sisig. What is it that, for Philippinos, makes their best-loved snacksuper tasty? It will take a lot of research and a lot of tasting and trying ofdifferent sisigs. I feel it is something I would be proud of accomplishingduring my two months left in the country, to be able to say “I can make a sisigthat any Philippino would be proud of!” Check back on my for that one ; )

Bobby’s House

2012-01-25T11:58:00.001+08:00

Whilst in Vigan, we met an interesting chap called Bobby. APhilippino living in northwest London, Bobby returns to his hometown of Bantay,just outside of Vigan, at least once a year to visit friends and family. Bobbywas a character, from the moment we met him with his “Death is Certain” t-shirt,his Monster yellow sport bike and his wildly fierce tattoos. We were actuallytaken aback by his unassuming hospitality. Bobby, like a true Philippino, tookus under his wing and gave us a gastronomic tour of the town. After seeing oureagerness to find and try the true Vigan cuisine, we were invited to his house for“light lunch” the following day to try his family’s lutong bahay (home cooked meals) before catching a bus for Laoag.

If you were to ask any Philippino whilst travelling in thecountry where you’d be able to fine “good” food, their response would be: “myhouse!” Even with the abundance of restaurants/stalls/grills, most Philippinospatron their wife’s/mothers/grandmothers cooking. Being a guest at aPhilippino’s house is like being treated like the Queen. Your cup will never beempty, you plate will never have a bear space on it, and food will be broughtout in what seems like endless courses. Philippinos believe in abundance whenit comes to food: there should always be more then what can actually beconsumed. So if you finish a bowl of noodles is a sign that you enjoyed it somuch that you want some more, so expect to have more noodles put in your bowl!

We were shown around Bobby’s casa: his family’s fields ofcorn, rice and banana trees, which his parents still farm and sell at themarket, even at the age of 78! Their organic garden which had a tilapia pond,mango tress, jackfruit tress, papaya tress, an avocado tree and even coconuttrees, showed how fertile the Philippino soil really is. As we chomped on asour green mango, bobby showed us pictures of his pride and joy: his two sons….Oh and he showed us his other other pride and joys: his two automatic machine guns he keeps by his bed, “…Because peopleknow I’m a foreigner, so I have to be careful” he said jokingly, but with deadly serious eyes.

We sat outside to enjoy our meal, along with his friends andfamily. What was supposed to be one drink quickly turned into… well quite a fewdrinks. A steady stream of food was brought out: first a whole grilled yellowfin tuna; then chicken noodle soup; followed green papaya pickle; then bybanana fritters; fresh coconut; and some more alcohol. We missed our 4’oclockbus, and the next bus after that… and the next bus after that again.Eventually, as the deliriousness from the food and drink set in, we realised wehad to get on the next bus, otherwise we would never make it Laoag, and wouldproperly have to face more food! So we said good bye, to Bobby and his lovelyfamily, and got on the last bus of the day, feeling content that we trulyexperience Vigan lutong bahay.

Ilocos Sur, a Food Adventure

2012-01-24T18:06:00.001+08:00

We were told that the province of Ilocos, northwest of thePhilippines, serves up some of the best and most bizarre foods to be found inthe country. Of course this is debateable if you're a Philippino, but as aforeigner wanting to try all the lovely delicacies of the country, I went wherethe majority suggested. Our trip started in La Union, where we learnt to surfat the La Union Surf Resort. Highly recommended for the personal instructor…but very disappointing when it came to dinner time. With little else choice, wewondered down the beach and found a cute little café called Lolla Nanny’s.Hidden away, behind the loud obnoxious “surf resorts” with overly bronzed, andbleached blonde surfer types, lies a cute little B&B, with basicaccommodation, but lip smackingly tasty food. The menu is a bit eclecticserving anything from curry to sushi to steak and even Vietnamese spring rolls.We ordered a little more then we should have, but after a day off falling ofboards, being smacked in the face by unexpected waves and generally being rapedby the sea, one feels a little hungry. We ordered the curry, tuna steakand a Vietnamese spring roll with vegetables. Tasty. Probably the most inexpensive and best value for money food establishment there is on La Union’s everdeveloping beach front.

Outside Lola Nanny's

Longanisa forbreakfast, lunch and dinner

The next day we headed on up to Vigan where time has stoodstill for nearly two hundred years. The buildings are a unique mix of Chinese, Spanish,and Philippino architecture. It’s a beautiful town with lovely roads steeped in history andwonder. We stayed in an old mansion house, the famous Villa Angela. Abeautiful building, although, like a lot of the Philippines, it needed a bit ofmaintenance and a lick of TLC.

Vigan Street

This is where we began our hunt for some Vigan Longanisa.Let me quickly explain: Longanisa is like a Philippino chorizo/sausage. Theytend to be smaller then the English banger, but they have a strong distinctiveflavour depending on where they come from. Longanisa from Pampanga (near Manila) tends to be sweeterand more of a cylindrical shape, where as longanisa from Vigan tends to befatter but more garlicky and spicy. They tend to be served as Longsilog, a popular breakfast dishconsisting of Longanisa, garlic rice, a fried egg and some pickled vegetables.As a fan of longanisa, I wanted to try ALL the types available in the town.Every family/restaurant has their own version, and I was intrigued to find outwhat made a good longanisa.

So the plan was to eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner.We started of with good intentions, but after a while, as you can imagine, wegot a little bored. But here are a few establishments with longanisa werecommend:

Rated #3, Villa Angela, Vigan, for breakfast. Tasty longanisa,garlicy, but rather fatty and chewy. The rice was plain, and the egg over done.The tomatoes on the side were a good accompliment though.

Rated #2, Uno Grille, Vigan, for dinner. These longanisa were herbyand garlicy. Really tasty. The side pickles were even better. Appologies forthe picture, we were too egger to tuck in!

Rated #1, Café Leona, Vigan, for Lunch. Garlicy longanisa with a hintto pepper, The rice was really tasty, although the my egg was slightly overdone for my liking, but it did have nice crispy whites. So good we forgot totake a picture before we tucked in!

So as the pictures show, the more tasty the longanisa, theworse the picture due uncontrollable gluttony. That’s proof!

One Night in Vigan

So on our last night in Vigan we met up with Bobby (moreabout Bobby later) for a few drinks. We had some Philippino barbeque whichincludes: chicken intestine, giblets, quail eggs, and fish balls. Tasty, alldeep fried and covered in either a chillie or a hot and sour sauce. This wasonly the beginning of our night, little did we know what we were in for…

So after a few drinks, we headed over to find the Balut man.Balut for those who don't know is a half developed chicken or duck (in this caseduck) which has been steamed for 8 hrs and eaten whilst still warm with a pinchof salt. There are steps to eating balut though...

1. Crack the top and peel back the shell. Sip thejuices.

2. Peel the egg further down and suck out thechick. This has to be done quick or you get the claw stuck in your tooth.

3. Once the chick is down, eat the soft yellowyolk.

4. Eat the whites if you wish, but they tend to bea bit rubbery.

How to eat balut

The key is not to look at the chick, and it’s better to doit at night and after a few drinks for dutch courage. I must say here…. That Idid not complete the egg. I actually looked down as I peeled the shell, andwhat I saw was no thing of beauty. I found the soft chick on my lips and it’sslightly feathery skin to be too much for me to handle. The soup was finethough, tasted like strong chicken soup and the yolk was okay, but a bit chalky forme.

Philippinos love Balut. After 4pm the streets echo withbalut sellers calling out to the public wanting what is now more of a streetfood rather then a delicacy. I have seen barbequed balut embryos, sizzlingbalut, and even balut with chips, but I know the most popular way to have it ishot, still in the shell and straight from the vendor. I have a theory as to whythe balut is so popular among pinoys, and this is open for debate… but in anation so obsessed with youth and beauty, balut is allegedly supposed to keepyou young and youthful, whilst also being an aphrodisiac. Scientifically, it could be true as the egg is high in nutrients, and with a half developed chickinside, the nutrients are more and greater. It kind of reminds me of theChinese film, Dumpling, where a women "suffering" from mid life crises goes to theextreme by eating human embryos to keep herself youthful…. Anyways. It’s onlymy theory of why the snack is so popular in a nation where everyone looks tenyears younger then they are.

Along with other bizarre fare in Ilocos is one day oldchick. This is exactly what it sounds like. It’s one day old chick, plucked,but still with it’s innards, on a stick and fried till golden brown. We were notbrave enough to try this… I think it was they way it was described to us: soft,crunchy and chewy. It’s defiantly a mind over matter thing, but the matter camethree on a stick, was comical and sad at the same time, and very very beaky!Next time.

One day old chick

Okay, so now on to the not so gross stuff. After the balutwe headed to some stalls where there vendors selling Vigan Empanada. The familyrun stalls seemed to have a good, and very effective system running, with eachfamily member at each station. Empanadas are made by rolling out a flour dough,very thinly on banana leaf. This works well as a cheap non stick surface. Thefilling of cabbage, sausage meat and a raw egg goes on and is quickly closedand sealed for deep frying which only takes seconds. The result is a crispyempanada with a tasty filling of peppery meat, crunchy cabbage, and a runnyyolk.

Empanada stall: a family affair with grandmother, mum, daughter and granddaughter

We had this with Okie, a fried batter of onions, cabbage andlittle shrimp. Okie means crustations/crusty/crunchy… one of them, the meaning got lost intranslation. This was all accompanied with vinegar and shallots. Tasty, leavingus with a film of yolky crease around our lips and fingers.

Vigan Empanada and Okie

It was defiantly a good night, both an assault and apleasure on the taste buds. I do recommend people to go to the stalls by thePlaza in Vigan, as when we were there there didn't seem to be many Tourists,just locals. I think this is when the Lonely Planet can be a God send, but alsoa Curse. The restaurants mentioned in the book were all packed out withtourists. They restaurants were/are good, but a little over priced. Theatmosphere's generic, and the service is to good to be true. The stalls had a buzz;there were families squashed on the benches; the food was chomped, forget aboutmanors; there were genuine toothless smiles on the vendors faces; and a senseof excitement when we saw our empanada being fried in front of our eyes.

Vigan lived up to it’s expectations. Beautiful town,beautiful food… hehe… well kind of ; )

The Bohol Bee Farm

2012-01-03T16:33:00.002+08:00

The view from our room

We decided to book two nights at the Bohol Bee Farm to endour trip around Cebu and Bohol. We arrived for check in, and to our delight, wewere told we had been upgraded to one of the newer rooms with a sea view. Weweren’t complaining and after a week of cold showers, mossy bites and surprisevisits from creepy crawlies in our room, we couldn't have asked for anythingbetter to end our trip with.

I don't know what I was expecting from the Bohol Bee Farm. Iwas recommended to stay here by a few Philippino friends in Manila. I was toldthe food was great and the location stunning. I guess I really didn't expectfor it to be like that, as we had had bad experiences with previousaccommodation that had been described as “nice”, and “homely” on tripadvisor.We anyway, our stay was truly exceptional. I couldn't find any faults with theroom, the view was stunning, the location was out of this world, and theconcept…. Well, lets just say, I wish every hotel could be like this.

I read in the Philippines Lonely Planet that the Bee Farmhad only started seven years ago, but taking into consideration when the LP waspublished, it’d be more like 8-10 years. Still what has been accomplished inthat time is remarkable. What started out as an organic farm selling produce onsite and in the Capital, Tagbilaran, has now turned into one of the most lovedhotels in the whole of the Philippines. Surprisingly, for a country thatdoesn't consider organic to have much weight (as there isn’t much demand for itin local markets), the Bohol Bee Farm is very popular with the Pinoytourist. I suppose it’s thenatural, organic lifestyle the Bee Farm sells with it’s accommodation, it’son-site bakery, it’s ice cream hut with traditional Pinoy flavours and thegreat local, yet healthy food served in the restaurant which is something thatis hard to find anywhere else in such stunning surroundings.

Ube (purple yam) and Malungay ice cream in a casava cone

The hotel has great facilities also. It’s ideal, as it’s 20minuets away from Alona beach where all the “action” is and 20 minuets awayfrom the main town where too much action is.

A day can easily be spent just around the grounds of theBohol Bee Farm.

I would: wake up, and go for a dip in the sea, early in themorning whilst the tide is low and the sea is calm.

I would then go and enjoy their complimentary breakfasts,which is served by a great view of the endless sea.

Before the afternoon sun comes out and beats it’s rays, Iwould go have a lesson in organic farming that can be organised for you atreception.

Then to relax my “sore” muscles, I would walk down to theirspa and indulge in a full body massage.

A beer and a dip in their indoor swimming pool is a greatplace to escape the mid day sun. Maybe read that book you never got around tocause you’ve been so dam busy on your holidays!

Lunch down by the sunbathing area along with a long cocktail, followed by a mid afternoon dive/snorkel, which can also be organised by the hotel in their very own dive shop, would be a nice relax chance to see the beautiful coral and fish that inhabit the surrounding waters.

Another cocktail whilst you sit in on of their five hottubes and watched the sun set. Think about what you’re gonna have for dinnerand take in the serine beauty.

I highly recommend staying at the Bee Farm is you areplanning on going to Bohol. It offers something I haven’t really seen in otherplaces we stayed, and that’s comfort and calm surroundings at a very reasonableprice. Even though the Bee Farm has expanded over the years, it doesn't feeltoo big. They have 34 rooms that accommodate for all types of travellers. Idon't normally stay in “hotel’s”, preferring to stay in smaller B&Bs orPension Houses. But to me the Bee Farm didn't feel like a “hotel”. I think anymore expansion may lose the charm it has now, and unfortunately, I did feellike the tour we had of the farm was a selling tool of making us buy thereproducts from the shop, which was a shame. When something is so organic and sogood, it’s almost better to let things run as they are. Even though the tourguide was friendly, she did seem like a sales person rather then a tour guide.I suppose with all great things: bands; brands; restaurants; and evencharities, to name a few, have a fine line between success and wanting toomuch. I really hope the Bee Farmdoesn't cross this, other wise it may lose everything that make it’s so ideal.

Spanish Sardine Producers, Guiwanon Multi Purpose Cooperative, Bantayan

2012-01-03T14:33:00.003+08:00

The Ladies of GMPC

The island of Bantayan, north west of Cebu Island, can onlybe described as quaint and idealistic. With no big vehicles or many cars onthe road, the best way to get around the island is by bicycle, scooter ormotorbike. So we rented a scooter and went on a bit of a wonder around theisland, with our midway stop being the Guiwanon Multi Purpose Cooperative, orGMPC.

The journey was stunning. The day before, a storm had hitthe neighbouring islands of Negros and Mindano, but Bantayan seemed to havebeen little effected. Our ride past mangroves and up along the coast was ourfirst glimpse at an Island economically sustained by the fishing industry. Itwas a little surprise that the women we were on our way to meet, were utilisingthis abundance of fresh fish to produce a product for sale that captures thetaste of Bantayan’s best: Spanish style sardines in oil.

Our arrival was greeted with warm smiles and even warmer hugs.We were shown around the GMPC’s community building, built and developed by theJustic Peace and Integrity of Creation- Integrated Development Center, INC(JPIC-IDC), a Christian NGO working in the Cebu region. JPIC helped the womenof Guiwanon to develop business skills, they also provided them with training in agriculturalsustainability, and helped in bringing the community together with a projectaimed at empowering women in rural areas.

The GMPC Community Building

The community building had a shop, offices, a dinning venue,a conference room and a purpose built kitchen that the women could use in theirbusiness endeavours. We sat in the kitchen whilst the women finished of sealingand labelling some 93 bottles for shipment, and we realised the simplicity ofthe operation. There was nothing complicated about the process, it was a fewsimple steps from having fresh sardines to having preserved sardines that wouldlast on a shop shelf for months to come. It was the training in health andsafety and in quality control, which was the most important thing the women hadlearnt, and to put it into practice for their products to be marketable on awider scale.

The Kitchen where the sardines are produced

The women told me they bought their fish from the samefisherman every time, and assured me he practised environmentally friendly fishingmethods. Along with the sardines, there are chillies, carrots, bay leaves andpeppercorns in the preserve. The women told me all the produce comes from theirgardens.

Along with the sardines, the women also produced Kropic. Arice cracker, which is dried to be preserved and then fried just before eating.They women made kropic in four different flavours: carrot, mulugay, squid, andshrimp. The weather needed to be hot and sunny in order to make the kropic asit requires drying in the sun for the whole day. But as unfortunately the rainyseasons were prolonging, the production of kropic had to be put on hold.

Left to right: Carrot kropic and mulungay kropic

So it was time for, what I consider the best bit… thetasting!!! We got some bread, fried some kropic and opened a jar of sardinesand dug in! I can’t say I’ve ever been a fan of sardines unless they were deep friedin batter, but these little shiny beauties were delectable. They had a lovelyyet very mild flavour. I asked the ladies how they preferred to eat thesardines, and some suggestions were: fried and with noodles, with rice, in asandwhich and ground up with liver as an accompliment to a meal. One women saidhere mother in-law liked then in her Lumpia (kind of like a large spring roll).

I really enjoyed meeting the women of GMPC. I personallyfelt they were living a decent life, where they were empowered to make theirown living, help others in the community, and to stand an example of successfulrural development. Programmes like this give people a chance, and shows thatcommunity improvement and development is they way forward to a better life, notmoving to the city as many people see as a way of escaping problems. A lot offarmers and fishermen in the Philippines are moving to the cities to find jobs,due to crop failure, land disputes, visions of riches and even because ofclimate change problems. My visits to small producers has shown me that thereare ways of making a living in rural Philippines with the right help and withmore of an integration within village/town communities. Obviously the right guidance is needed,and people need to see the benefits before part embarking on a project. But asI have seen: with the right support, the hope and the driven determination fora better future, this is the happenings for a better Philippines.

On the way back, we stopped for a swim in the sea to watchthe sunset. I can’t even begin to tell you how beautiful Bantayan and howlovely the people are. I really recommend a visit. Enjoy the quite beaches, thelocal cuisine and the beautiful sunsets. It’s unspoilt and far from the crowds.It’s my heaven on earth : )

Coco Sugar

2012-01-03T11:01:00.000+08:00

The Philippines is the largest producer of Coco Sugar. Madefrom the sap of the cut flower buds from the coconut tree, the coco sugar isfull of beneficial properties, even for people with diabetes. Coco sugar hasbeen used around Asia for centuries as a natural sweetener, but the truenutritional properties of the sugar have only been discovered in the last twodecades. The Philippines is abundant in coconut trees, and in export of coconutproduce. Due to the recent western interest in coco sugar, many coco farmershave taken to producing coco sugar/syrup for the foreign market. It has beenreported that the benefits of coco sugar have been so evident, that healthstores are selling out in record time.

People want in, and because of this, many companies arebuying coco sugar from producers, putting the goods in their own packaging, andreaping the financial rewards, which exploits the rights of the farmers whoproduced the sugar in the first place. We met a young man called Vip, whilst inCebu, and he told us about his endeavor to help small coconut farmers toproducer, market and sell their own coco sugar. Vip was briefly in politics,before researching and developing a plan to help farmers in Cebu build up theirself-esteem, by being businessmen as well as farmers, teaching them ways of notbeing cheated, and understanding the market of their product. His coco sugarproject, called the Argao Coco Suagr Producer’s Coop, has been hugely successful with newfarmers even coming to his house in the middle of the night to be let on theprogramme. When we spoke to him, he told us his latest plan was to invest indwarf coconut trees, which means the farmer’s are not dangering their lives,and wasting time by climbing 30-50meter high trees.

The process is nearly always organic, varying every batchmade. This is entirely dependant on the tree and the minor time differences inthe cooking process. Vip told us, the best way to extract sap from a coconuttree is to prevent the fruit from growing and placing natural tubes in the sapproducing part of the flower buds. This gives a greater amount of sap then ifthey were to extract it from the bark with the fruits still being produced. Thesap is then collected, and before it ferments, it has to be cooked instantly.The heat temperature and the timing is curtail in retaining the nutritionalbenefits of the sugar.

The taste of coco sugar isnot as sweet as normal white sugar, but it has a caramel after taste, which isnice when used in baking and with tea and coffee. It also has a subtle taste ofcoconut that means Philippinos eat it almost as if it were a sweet. Why notwhen the glycemic index is 35, and when it has 10 times the amount of zinc thenthat found in brown sugar. We were even told that we could eat as much cocosugar as we pleased in one seating with out it having a negative effect on ourbodies like sugar would.

Sea Urchin, Bohol

2012-01-02T12:57:00.001+08:00

So whilst on a trip to Virgin Island, Bohol, we wereapproached by a guy selling sea urchins. This was something I’d been meaning totry for a while now, but at 7 in the morning? I needed some time to think aboutwhether I wanted to take the risk of eating something that could possibly makeme feel ill whilst out Island hoping for the day. As we walked around thevirgin island and snorkelled in the warm crystal clear waters, it was evidentthe water was abundant with the spiny sea creatures. The Urchin man bragged about the freshness of his catch,which made me feel better. After all, I wondered when I’d get the chance again.

I decided to takethe risk. I even asked our skipper for the day whether he’d like to part takein a morning feast of a salty slimy delicacy, but he clearly stated, he wasn't much of a fan.

I was very intrigued. I had never been sure what the insidelooked like, and what bits were actually edible. But as the spiny, sphere wasopen, I was shocked at the lack of roe on the inside. The orangy slime onlyseemed to coat the inside dome of the urchin. This slime was scooped out andplaced straight in my hand. I took a few snaps, then straight in my mouth,where I tried to take in textures and tastes. But like my first oyster, it sliddown my trough before any gag reflexes spurted the slime back out!

What can I say. Like most sea foods, it’s an acquired taste.Slimy, salty, and almost snotty, I wouldn't say it’s something I’d like to haveevery morning. But like all good fresh seafoods, and the location it’s eaten,there is something that sticks in the mind as being a rather special moment. Itmay have been the salty water on my skin, the sun on my back, and the sandbetween my toes. All my senses were awakened with my environment, and this was toped of with the taste the sea.

Namaba Coconut producers - Sibonga

2012-01-01T15:10:00.002+08:00

Our visit to the Namaba coconut producers in Sibonga was aninsight into a prominent problem faced by many farmers in the Philippines. Theland disputes, mainly between landowner and a group of farmers can last manyyears, and is something that can bubble up over time. As the rich nearly alwaysget their way in a corrupt country, the farmers stand little chance in savingtheir lively-hoods. They are often forced to move else where and find otherjobs, whilst the land they had once grafted so hard on is demolished to makeway for new concrete houses, or sold to large plantation companies. Thequestion here is: “is it not the land owner’s job to protect the people whoinhabit his/her land?”

The story of the Namaba producers was actually more hopefulthen sad. From the community, 37strong-minded farmers came together and tried to get as much help and supportas possible in their feud. As it happens, the coconut farmers are 100% entitledto the land they inhibit. The owner is an American-Philippino who spends mostof his time in America. He also doesn't legally own the land as it wasoriginally sold to and is under the name of his mother in-law. The farmers claimthe so-called “land-owner” is abusing his powers and wants to evict the farmersfrom the land because he can…. Why? Well, like most things it was a series of events that escalated out ofcontrol. I was told a few stories that seemed rather petty, but they all seemedto agree the problems worsened after the Namaba community got together to signa petition to close a battery chicken farm owned by the Land Owner, which satamongst the farms and houses of the Namaba people. They claimed the chickenfarm was making their children ill, and that it emitted a bad smell. The farmers were successful, and thefarm was shut down. As you can imagine, the landowner wasn’t best pleased withthe outcome.

So from then the problems got worse. The landowner claimedthe coconut farmers were selling “stolen” coconuts as it had come from hisland. As things work in the Philippines, the owner is entitled to a percentageshare of the over all produce from his/her land. The farmers even claimed thelandowner was caught a couple of times trying to harvest the crops for his ownbenefits. Because of this, the famers won their case. As things worsened, thelandowner called the police who brought arms and batons. Unjustly accused, thegovernment got involved, and so did SPFTC, they got the Namaba people a lawyerto fight their case. With the support behind them, the coco farmers weresuccessful and won the case….

…But during our visit, there was talk that the landowner wasto come back from America with a stronger case against the farmers. This wasworrying for the farmers, as even with the government support, corrupt tieswithin the rich can mean the law stands for little or nothing in many cases. SPFTCis also now finding it hard to fund the many land dispute cases that are nowongoing through out Southern Philippines. They are asking the government tosupply a lawyer, as it is the job of the government to protect it’s people, butagain this is a problematic and long process.

I have faith that the Namaba farmers will be able to beatsuch the corrupt system, and a bully of a landowner. The sense of community Ifelt during my visit was wonderful. They were so determined to fight what waswrong, and continued doing what was right, like still supplying the percentageof produced owned to the landowner. Because of this, they have so much supportfrom the government, SPFTC, and the media. The coming together of a communityduring hard times is so curtail as I had seen. The farmers were smiling andtalked of the optimism they held for the future of their children. I suppose itis in the Philippino culture “bahala na,”and expression used by the Philippinos, “all things will pass, and life is tobe lived on.”

So as life was to be lived on, we sat in their meeting area,a community built outdoor bamboo structure, we ate some home made coconut ice-cream, andtook in the beautiful views. This was defiantly something worth fighting for.

The SPFTC production plant

2011-12-28T22:04:00.001+08:00

In a small sleepy village outside of Cebu lies the heart ofSPFTC’s Fair Trade production of their products, which include dried mangoes,mango balls, dried manangy, dried spices, tamerind, and virgin coconut oil. Theirsis an environmentally sound development consisting of a production area, anoffice, workshops, delivery vehicles all alongside allotments, plants andtrees. We were shown around their site, which was built 16 years ago on leasedland. The site gradually grew over the years, designed to be as environmentallyfriendly as possible. This was evident form the moment we drove through theentrance of the plant; pass gates and fences made from recycled plasticbottles. A great idea and a cleaver solution to the huge problem of plasticrecycling and garbage disposal.

Rolo, the manager and overseer of the production side ofSPFTC’s products showed us around. He’s sense of humour and approachable manor,made the tour really interesting. Rolo knew every statistic, all the ins andouts and had insightful answers for our every question. We are very gratefulfor his patience with us and for letting us pick his brain on the productionprocesses.

The main body of the siteis their production area that is made from three cargo containers. We were toldthat along with using a cheap recyclable structure, it was also chosen as aneasy means of moving if they had to due to not owning the land their site ison.

The SPFTC office was also made from a cargo container, whichhad a bit of work done to it. With wooden floors, an out door seating area andtwo large office spaces for admin.

The grounds consisted of twomango trees, banana trees, managy trees and tamarind. Only the tamarind wasgrown for the processing process. The other produce came in from Fair Tradesuppliers from around Cebu for production. The plants on sight were mainly forexperimental processes only.

When we were there, SPFTC wereexperimenting with making mango balls from dried mangoes as an alternativehealthy snack. And instead of buying in machines, Rolo and his team ofengineers were coming up with their own inventions in production machines.

Mango ball machine in the making

We were shown through the stepsof process when making dried mangos, which is the same for other dried fruits,but with different timings in the process for depending on the water content ofthe fruit. We had to wear funny protective gear so not to contaminate thesanitised production areas. As no mangoes were being processed at the time, weweren’t actually able to see much production, but the picture give a good ideaof the steps.

Rolo (left), shows us the production stages for dried mango in a sanitised container

1. Fist we were shown the area in which the mangoes are cleaned, peeled andsliced. Each mango had two large slices and four small slices. They haddesigned special peelers specifically for the mangoes so the inside fruit isn’tdamaged and little flesh is removed with the skin.

SPFTC's own design for a mango peeler

When we were there, a batch of malangy had come in for asimilar process, they were placed in the cleaning up room to be ready to beprocessed.

Malangy, ready to be processed

2. Then the mangoes are placed in large bowls filled with a syrup which then goes into an osmosis tank. This helps remove with the osmosis process, removing the water from the fruit. As mangoes are 80% water, the process of removing the water takes longer then a lot of other fruit. The mangoes are left in syrup for a day.

3. After being removed from the syrup, the mangoes have lost 15% of their water. They are then blanched in hot water to remove excess syrup.

4. They are then placed on racks that go into the dehydration ovens. This gives the mangoes a steady warm heat and an air flow allowing the mangoes to dry fully and lose all their water so they are just fruit. SPFTC has two dehydrating ovens that are heated using a water system that heats up from burning natural waste from coconuts, mango skins, and other waste from the plant. This process takes a day also.

Dehydration ovens

5.. After the dried mango comes out of the dehydrator it has lost all water and is pure fruit. They are left to sit in dark room, then packaged and labelled on site.

6. From 1000kg of mangoes the outcome is 150kg of dried mangoes. The mango stone is used in making mango puree. The stone is put through a specially design machine which removes as much pulp as possible. The pulp is then used to make mango juice. The syrup used in the osmosis process is also used in their juices.

7. Each batch goes through quality control. A sample from each batch is kept if any future problems were to occur.

Mangoes ready for export

After our tour, we were taken to the meeting room for refreshments and snacks. Her we discovered the full extent of the scale of work SPFTC did. To meet demands from the West and Japan, they had to make changes in their machines, in their production methods, in their packaging and labelling. This was interesting to hear. The changes took a long time, but there were creative solutions around this. For example, the dehydrators were run on a reverse fridge system. This was extremely bad for energy consumption, but with help and guidance, they came up with a water system that was heated using waste from the site.

Cleaver solutions like this and the inventions of machines for the production process not only makes me feel like SPFTC are advanced compare to larger producers in the Cebu area, but that they are very good at adapting to a greener, more sustainable way of manufacturing.

We had a great time, at the production plant. I almost have a problem calling it a “production plant”, because it didn't feel like that at all. It felt more like a place where good ideas sprang and greener possibilities were seen. It felt homely, lush with vegetation, clean, welcoming, and most of all a good example for production of similar products around the world.

“Nearly Organic!” Mango Farmers, GBP Pusto - Carcar

2011-12-27T13:31:00.000+08:00

Joel (right) and the Mango Farmers

Two hours car journey west of Cebu City, and 45 minuets byfoot, high up in the Carcar mountains (and I mean really high up in the mountains),are 16 mango trees and 6 enthusiastic mango farmers. The journey by foot wewere told is not too bad, you can wear flip-flops and do it easily. Well as wefound out that was a huge exaggeration. No motorised vehicles could go up after a certain point as the path getrockier and steeper, and even by foot, it was very dangerous as we carried ourpicnic in one hand and tried to balance with the other. I was surprised when wewere told the mango farmers go down the same rout with 50kg of mangoes on theirheads!

View from the top, with the sea, which can just be seen form behind the mountains

Once we got to the top, we understood the reason for the location. On ahill, direct sunlight, cool breeze from the sea, and seclusion. We had a picnicwith the farmers and then took a brief moment to absorb our surroundings.

Our epic picnic, with Yam, Hanging rice, Chicken,
Fish cakes, peanut butter sandwiches and fresh coconuts

The six farmers of GBP came together with the help of Joel,from Safi and The Cebu Fair Trade Network, in an attempt to see whether theonce heavily sprayed Mango trees can return to being 100% organic. Joel warnedthe farmers the road would be hard and there would be loses to start with, butif successful, the farmers would stand as an example to many other Mangofarmers in Cebu. The farmers were brave and took the risk on their 16 mediumsized mango trees.

As the trees had been sprayed heavily for 40-50 ears, witheach year the percentage dose of chemicals increasing, the trees were in a badstate. Mango trees should only harvest once a year, but these trees were beingharvested at least three times a year. There were 16 course of spaying done ineach harvest. Meaning the tree was sprayed with chemicals 48 times in one year.There was a spray to increase the flowering of the tree, a spray for theinsects (which also killed the good insects), a spray for the weeds and a sprayfor the mangoes. Sometimes the farmers never read the labels with instructionof dosage ratio, and often over dosed the tree. Sometimes the chemical companywould put ground up insects in the spray, resulting in more tree pests, thusthe farmer having to buy more pesticide spray. This all resulted in the treesand insects being more and more immune to the chemicals, and with thechemicals, not producing any fruit.

One of the 16 mango trees

So Joel had a big job on his hand, and he needed to come upwith a way of weaning the trees of the chemicals. The way he and SAFI suggestedthe farmers do this, was to still spray the trees, but to reduce the dosageeach time, and eventually only harvesting the tree once a year. This meant thetrees would still produce mangos, but each year the yield would decline, but asit did the mangoes were making their way to being more organic.

This process began in 2005, and next year they are hopingto have 100% organic mangoes. The trees looked healthy and the farmers even reportedless insects. The numbers are estimated to be 3,000 mangoes per tree. Thismakes 48,000 mangoes in total for the harvest. It was so good to see thefarmers were happy to have been taking a risk which they saw as beingbeneficial. From talking to other Fair Trade organisation I got the impressionthat some mango farmers still didn't see the benefits of changing when theycould sell mangoes in the market, as organic doesn't have any weight in thesmaller local markets. The farmers of GBP had good training from SAFI, and withJoel, they see a positive future in which they can produce marketable mangoswhich will reach a higher price, and have healthy trees which they can passdown to their children.

Sat under the mango trees

The mangoes will then be sold to SPFTC to be processed intomango products, which get turned into dried mangoes, mango puree, mango jam,and mango juice. These will be exported to Japan, Itally, Germany, England,Hong Kong and Singapore.

School and Soya for Street Children, K & H – Talamban

2011-12-27T12:48:00.001+08:00

I can safely say Ms Kathy from K&H, Talamban is probablyone of the most inspiring women I have every had the pleasure of meeting. Beingin her presence I felt she had a sense of modesty that I have only ever seen inpeople who feel they don't need recognition for their work, rather their rewardis the positive impact they make. Ms Kathy ran a school every Wednesday andSunday for the street children of Cebu City. With up to 90 students in her classes,ranging from 4-19, she still managed to teach a wide range of subjects frommaths, social science, english, with even personal care and future planning.Before the lessons, the children get to have a shower, they also get given SoyaShakes and healthy snacks made by Ms Kathy herself, and then attend class.

Chocolate Soya Milk for the children

Ms Kathy made a fresh Banana Soya shake for us to try

“The children are taught they are worth more then to beg,”Ms Kathy told us, “they don't sing Christmas carols on the street anymore toearn money.” Part of the education aims at giving the children a sense of selfesteem, and teaches them how to get jobs. This is tough as sometime thechildren come from families where their parents beg as a means of getting by.If this has been happening for generations, it’s hard to uninstall from thechildren’s minds. Ms Kathy hopes one day she can get the parents in for specialtraining as well.

Talking to Ms Kathy

Another project K&H are also involved in is educatingand teaching pregnant girls/women living on the street about motherhood. Theyare also given soya milk and snacks. I have heard Philippinoes call themselvesthe baby making country. As contraception is still forbidden due to the heavypresence of the Church, the growing population is a huge problem. Even familiesliving on the streets will have up to 16 children. Ms Kathy helps to educatedthe women in future planning, giving them advise, and other options in life.

Even though Ms Kathy is busy with two time-consuming projects, she gets time to help local women farmers and supports them by buying their products: soya, chocolate, bananas, mangos, malangay and coconuts. She makes her soya milk from scratch and uses the other produce in the shakes and varies the flavours each week. She also makes coco syrup, coco vinegar and virgin coco oil, which she sells in the market, using the profits to help fund her projects. Her next aim is to have a day nursery for the women farmers, so they can have a safe place to leave their children during the day time when working.

K&H's produce left to right: 100% chocolate; soya shakes; bananas; nuts; coco syrup, vinegar and virgin oil

The problem is the lack of helpers on hand. Ms Kathy does alot of work herself, and doesn't have any volunteers. This is something I amworking on helping her with. Having her work along side local Universities, sostudents can gain experience, and Ms Kathy can have extra pairs of hands tohelp her continuing and expanding the great work she does. The one amazingthing I have found is very evident in the Philippines, is the youth’s interestin helping NGO’s and wanting to make a difference to helping their country.Universities are a great place to start for NGOs in the Philippines, as thereis so much enthusiasm from willing, bright students.

Southern Partners and Fair Trade Cooperation (SPFTC), Cebu, Philippines

2011-12-27T12:11:00.001+08:00

My recent trip to Cebu to visit SPFT and their memberproducers was a great insight into how a successful Fair Trade Organisationruns in a country where a vast majority are still unaware of Fair Trade. Yes,the concept is still there: better for the environment, better for theproducer, better for the consumer, but this is a general and very obviousswitch to meet buyer’s needs in the west. The term “Fair Trade” is still aconfusion to many Philippinos and Asians. So I was surprised when I met Ms Gigiand her team at SPFTC, and what a tight nit organisation they ran. With manyproducers who supply the organisation, and many more that are making a switchto be under the SPFTC title. She has defiantly created a little buzz in Cebu,the second biggest city in Cebu.

SPFTC's Fair Trade Shop, Cebu

So what do SPFTC do, and why are they so prominent in amarket sector that is on a steadily growing? SPFTC help small producers in theSouthern regions of the Philippines in all matters of things. From communitydevelopment, to trainings, promotion, finding buyers, product development andpackaging. The region of the Visayas, the central region of the Philippines islush, and is perfect for growing almost anything! Cebu and Bohol are twoislands protected by larger islands, and so they are effected less by thetyphoons. The Visayas main agricultural produce include: coconuts; mangoes;mascavado sugar; bananas and nuts. So as the West showed more interest inbuying Fair Trade products, more producers and farmers wanted help in tappingthis market. As the benefits were seen, more wanted to get on board. With thestandards of Fair Trade being high, and with there being a lot Fair Tradecriteria to meet, the change can take a long time. This is where SPFTC come in.

It is claimed the mangoes from Cebu are the best in theworld, and because of this, there has been a massive increase in mango farmersin Cebu. Most of these mangoes get processed into dried mangos, mango puree, andmango juice. To meet large demands from the west, the farmers were sprayingtheir trees. This was something that had been happening for the lat 40-50years,and every year the dosage was being increased. The mango trees were and a largepercentage still are under great strain. So SPFTC along with SAFI and the CebuFair Trade Network, are working with a select few mango farmers in helping themconvert their strained trees to becoming 100% organic. If successful, it willmake a massive change to many farmers and be hugely beneficial to theenvironment. But you can read more about this in a later post.

Dried Mango for the Japanese market

So with Ms Gigi’s help and guidance, I was able to go aroundthe Cebu area visiting small producers and farmers, understanding their trade,how Fair Trade has helped them and their community, and any problems they have…which you will see in future posts. I was lucky enough to have met some amazingpeople in some beautiful locations doing great work.

Helping with an order of 1500 Banana Chips for Japan

Pinoy Popular Food Culture So far…

2011-11-29T11:25:00.001+08:00

So far I haven’t actually had a bad meal in the Philippinesyet. I think I have a good balance of eating out and cooking at home. Convenienceis key to Pinoys. Most families who can afford it have cooks, family’s andfriends dine out on a regular basis, and instant noodles are as common aspackets of crisps. The selectionhas to be admired though. With noodles from Japan, China, Korea and thePhilippines, you are spoilt for choice.

Fast food chains line the main streets of Manila. Popularplaces to hang out, and expensive even for the common Manileneo. From Inasal (grilledchicken and rice), to Joilibee, Mc Donalds, and Chowking (chineese fast food).To name but a few. It's always interesting to observe to change in menu fromone country to another when global fast food chains are concerned. For exampleMc Donalds, Burger King, and KFC all have rice combo meals, as pinoys LOVEtheir rice – “a meal is only a meal once rice is included, otherwise it’s asnack”. A recent meal in Chowking after a whole afternoon of bargaining, provedto be actually very filling, cheap and tasty.

Even chains like Starbucks have an interesting ambiance anda menu to match. Entering one of the many Starbuck in Manila, you escape thesticky heat and enter into a plush environment, clean, air-conditioned, warmlyfurnished, jazzy Christmas songs playing the background, and the sweet sweetaromas of coffee fills your nostrils and takes you to a comfy place in youhead. Ah, yes… Starbucks, a million clone replicas each the same as the last.No matter which country you are in, you could be any where. The one thing thathas to be admired though, is there drink selection as you can imagine has warmdrinks and a good selection of frappuccinos…. But one drink stood out for me…Green Tea Latte… yep. I’m a fan of Latte’s and a huge fan of green tea’s, sowhen I saw them together, I know I had found my drink. Now, I’m not Starbuck’sbiggest fan, and I try and stay away at any cost, a “grande Green Tea Latte”has been my after grocery-shopping perk. Defiantly an idea I’ll be taking backwith me.

A rather amusing craze at the moment is Angry Birds. Angrybird t-shirts, hair bands, Shoes, Earings, stationary, Computer game, AngryBird toys…. Etc etc. IT is literally everywhere, and I’m pretty cure most ofthese people purchasing these copyright infringed products have never reallyeven played Angry Birds! Anyways, there’s a cake shop near me called KinkyCakes, and I saw this on display and thought it hilariously funny! I alsorecommend visiting Kinky Cakes’s website…the name says it all!!!

Fair Trade, Philippines

2011-11-29T10:33:00.001+08:00

Many pardons for not having blogged in a long time, but I’vebeen a little busy… in the Philippines. I arrived in early October to for fillmy duty as an intern-volunteer for the World Fair Trade Organisation Asia. Based in their main office in Quezon City,Manila, I have been given the task of designing them a new website and offinding ways in which the smaller producers can change production methods,improve packaging and improve marketing so they appeal more to the Asian Market.As of now, there is what is called a “South-North” bond which means that mostof the Fair Trade products from producing countries tend to end up in the West,due to market demand. But slowly and surely, the wealthier countries in the East are starting topick up on the benefits of buying and supporting Fair Trade. These countriesare: Hong Kong; Korea; Japan; Singapore; Malaysia and India.

“WFTO ASIA commits itself towardsenabling disadvantaged producers to improve their livelihoods through FairTrade by linking, promoting, and protecting the integrity of Fair Tradeorganizations, and speaking out for greater trade justice in world trade”

My task specifically, will be toinvestigate three of the most consumed Fair Trade products in Asia: Coco and MascavadoSugar from the Philippines; Tea from Nepal; and Coffee from Timor Leste. Itrequires visiting the producers and liaising with possible buyers, a lot oftalking and researching, investigating new agricultural methods and reading upon standards.

The Philippines was ranked in thetop 10 Countries most effected by climate change, and when visiting foodmarkets and going to the countryside, this is ever evident. Flood fields,houses destroyed by typhoons and earthquakes, and even drought. The Philippinesexperiences it all. With 70% of the population some how involved inagriculture, this is seen as a major problem which needs resolving. I have afriend who works for the government in the Climate Change department, and shehas given me a massive insight into ways the government are helping bysuggesting new modern techniques of agriculture. This may be farming new crops,or even suggesting to go organic. As you can imagine, the Philippines is veryfertile and dotted with countless Volcanoes making it ideal to grow almostanything. But even with this, small scale farmers are very reluctant to makechanges, making it very difficult to convince and persuade. Understandably so,as they are putting their livelihoods at risk.

So this is one of my majorproblems. I am also having a hard time of getting the producers to supply basicinformation, as they are ties into contracts with Western buyers, who controlthe producers a lot more then one would think.

It’s a challenging task, but I’mfully enjoying it so far. It’s taken me to some stunning places, and I have metsome lovely people. People who are so helpful and willing to share informationabout Fair Trade.

The new website will be under frommid December through to early January 2011, but please visit the WFTO website in the mean while, and visit our new website in thenew year. Show your support and buy Fair Trade. It’s fair for the producers,fair for the environment and fair for you.

Mushroom and Chorizo Risotto

2011-09-25T03:49:00.001+08:00

So, it’s been a while since I last cooked risotto. I remember cooking it whilst in halls in Hackney. It was the first proper meal I cooked for myself… and others, and probably the last as our kitchen just got messier and messier. The last time I ate risotto, it was almost bad enough experience to put me off for life. A trip to Jamie’s Italian left me with an overly salty taste in my mouth. The squid ink and crab risotto was so packed full of sodium chloride, either from the squid ink, or from over seasoning. It brought up mucus from the back of my throat, the same thing that happens after a dive in the sea. Even after being offered to have another dish cooked for me, I had to refuse. I put me off for a while….

…Until, by request from my brother who is about to leave for university, I was asked to make my mushroom and Parmesan risotto. When the “R” word was mentioned I shivered a little. I hadn’t cooked it for a while, and even though it may not be that hard, how can I cook something if I don’t have the passion or desire to eat it?

As I made a chorizo salad, it came to me: I needed to add something to the dish, something I find taste bud tantalising, and maybe it will lift and distract from the idea of cooking risotto. I have a pork obsession at the moment, and thought of all the different types of pork I could incorporate into the dish: bacon, pancetta, Parma ham, salami… then it hit me… chorizo, the very thing that gave me the inspiration! Not only does it have a beautiful colour, but it also goes well with mushroom and Parmesan. The flavour is strong enough to distract and not as salty compared to other types of ham.

So here’s a recipe for a beautifully colourful and tasty dish. A dish I enjoyed cooking and enjoyed eating even more. I am back on the risotto, and planning on cooking a bacon and stilton risotto next… watch this space.

Ingredients

2 Shallots thinly sliced
2 Gloves of garlic crushed
Half a dozen mini Portobello Mushrooms, roughly chopped
Half a dozen Porcini Mushrooms, roughly chopped
Glass of a good quality white wine
2 pints vegetable stock
As much chorizo as desired, skinned and roughly chopped
1 cup aborio rice
80 ml of full fat crème fresh
As much Grated Parmesan cheese as desired
Handful of chives
Unsalted butter
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper to season

Method

Heat up a large pan. Pour some oil on the base, and add a knob of butter. Before the butter has completely melted add the shallots and the garlic. Stir constantly till golden brown. Add the mushrooms and allow to realises water and reduces in size slightly.

Add the aborio rice and mix until the rice turns translucent. Add the wine and stir constantly until it is all absorbed. Ladle in the stock, which must be kept simmering at all times. This takes patience. Adding the stock bit by bit, making sure all the liquids have been absorbed before adding the next ladle full, is vitally essential. It is also important that the heat is kept on medium full, as this will ensure evenly cooked rice.

You will know when the rice is done when you push a single grain between your fingers and it gives with ease. Five minuets before you think the risotto is done, add the chorizo to a hot pan with only a tiny drizzle of olive oil. Over cooking the chorizo can make it chewy, we only want to make the outside slightly crispy and to release the oil. Once the rice is done, stir in a few knobs of butter and add the crème fresh, parmesan, chives, and season. Serve and lastly add the chorizo pieces and drizzle with the flavoured oil. The contrast is lovely and it also means there is still some texture to the chorizo. I served with the same white wine I cooked with and a fresh tomato salad.

I took my time over eating it, as I do with most things I enjoy. I even had the left overs for lunch the next day, and simply heated it up in a pan, added a dash of wine and cooked up some chorizo again. It tasted even better the next day ; )

Dr Pepper Ribs with Apple and Red cabbage ‘slaw

2011-09-24T19:49:00.005+08:00

It’s surprising what you can do with cheaper cuts of meat. Chicken wings and ribs are sometimes seen as messy eating, and less desired because of the bone to meat ratio. My latest obsession… is ribs. I recall I starting four months ago when I discovered a good value Chinese/Japanese restaurant near me in New Cross. I had been in the studio all day and had been sustaining myself on lucozade and quavers. I needed some protein and some cards, and wasn’t really expecting too much on my tight budget. Maybe it was the hunger, or maybe it was the dark sweet and sticky sauce, but that was the day I feel in love with ribs.

Since that day, if ribs were on the menu, it would be on my plate. Salt and pepper, barbeque, dry rubbed ribs, smoked ribs, cider glazed ribs… and baby back ribs. All YUM! So I had heard of this technique of cooking pork with coke/soda, as it tenderises and sweetens. I’d seen Nigela do it, and I have been to a BBQ where it has also been done. But I wasn’t wholly convinced. Then, two weeks ago, I came across an artiocle/experiment on http://blog.ideasinfood.com/ideas_in_food/2008/02/dr-pepper-pork.html where belly pork was brined and cooked using Dr Pepper. The idea was genius, not only because Dr Pepper has a fruiter flavour then normal coke, but it also contains more sugar.

So I set about thinking up a recipe for Dr Pepper Ribs, and an acompliment of a sweet, crunchy and fresh apple ‘slaw:

Dr Pepper Ribs:

2 cans Dr Pepper
Rack of ribs (membrane removed)

For dry rub:
3 tbsp Powdered onion
3 tbsp Powdered Garlic
3 tbsp Chilli powder
2 tbsp Cumin Powder
2 tbsp Cayenne Pepper
2 tbsp Paprika
2 tbsp Coriander Seeds
1 tbsp Dried Parsley
2 Bay leaves
1 tbsp Black Pepper

Dr Pepper BBQ Sauce:
1 can Dr Pepper
3 tbsp Sriracha Sauce
3 tbsp Lingham Sauce
1 tbsp Mushroom extract
1 tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
1 tbsp Cider Vinegar

Method:
Cut ribs into individual rib portions, rub and marinade in the dry rub with a drizzle of olive oil for 6 hrs or even better, over night.

Pre heat oven to 150° Celsius. Move ribs into an oven proof dish and pour ¾ of a can of Dr Pepper into the base of the dish. Cover with tin foil and place on bottom shelf of the oven. Allow to cook for an hour.

Whilst the ribs are in the oven, make a glaze. Pour one can of Dr Pepper into a sauce pan and allow to reduce on a high heat. Add the other ingredients and continue reducing until a sticky glaze consistency is reached.

After the ribs are cooked, there will be quite a bit of liquid at the bottom of the oven dish. Carefully pour into the sauce pan with the glaze, and heat up again. Turn the oven up to 230° Celsius. Glaze the ribs and place on the top shelf. Continue glazing every 4 minuets or so until the ribs are sticky. I served the remainder if the glaze as a dipping sauce.

Apple and Red Cabbage ‘Slaw:

Quarter red cabbage
One green granny smith apple
One Turnip
Juice of half a lemon
Finely Chives
Half tub of Crème Fresh
2 tsp Mustard Powder
Salt & Pepper

Method:
Using the fine blade on the mandolin I grated the cabbage, apple and turnip. I poured the juice of half a lemon over to stop discolouring.

I made a dressing combining the chives, mustard powder, and the salt and pepper in with the crème fresh. I mixed everything up and served after keeping cool in the fridge for about and hour.

Mexican style cheese on toast

2011-09-05T04:11:00.003+08:00

I know the Mexican make good dips, but I only found out recently they also make good pickled accompliments. One of which is pickled onion with gloves and lime. I made this the other day by simply slicing 2 large white onions really thin, then pouring the juice of three limes over them and a drizzle of rice wine vinegar over the onions, and adding a handful of gloves to the concoction. I stored it in a jar, and in a couple of days it was good to use.

Delicately spiced, yet acidic in flavour, the onions became soft and almost sweet. I had some sweet, nutty Manchego in the fridge and decided to make a rather special cheese on toast. I toasted a couple of slices of crusty white bread, and liberally spread the grated manchego over. I added the onions, some finely chopped green chilies and corriander, then seasoned and drizzled with olive oil. I placed under the grill and let the sweet, glovey, and fragrant smell fill the kitchen.

The combination isn’t by any means authentic Mexican, but it has good potential if used in a quesadilla instead of Warburtons crusty white bread…

Super Brekkie

2011-07-27T18:11:00.006+08:00

Since finishing university, and starting a new job as a waitress, I’ve been fortunate to have a lot more free time on my hand during the day. Lazy mornings are being followed by equally lazy afternoons. And due to super lazy behaviour, I chose to have brunch more often then a breakfast and a lunch. They have to be filling and packed full of energy, as I don’t really get the chance to eat much during work, and my next meal tends to be very late at night, or even very early the next morning when I get back from work.

So I have a few super brekkies that fulfil these requirements. I either chose between something meaty, wholesome and packed full of carbs, like a fry up sub. Or something that is healthy, naturally tasty, and that releases energy slowly, like a Milo and banana porridge.

Buttered baguette, Chipolatas, Bacon, Sunny side fried egg, Fried Portobello mushrooms, Spring Onions.

Heart attack? Maybe… but this is my only meal of the day, and I make the most of it. It does sometimes make me sleepy after having consumed half a baguette’s worth. I tend to make this for me and anyone else who happens to be around, as the guilt is shared, and it feels less like me vs the super sub!

Scottish oat porridge slow cooked in whole fat milk, 1 Banana, 1 tbsp Powdered Milo

I made this when in Ghana one early morning before going out to play golf. An hour after consumption, I had a great boost of energy, and it powered me through for a whole 18 holes!!! It was a definite winner, which is deliciously malty and wholesome.

Food Mile Receipt

2011-06-22T21:04:00.005+08:00

I made a food mile receipt, showing where our food comes from and carbon emissions of an average weekly shop, from the supermarket
Supermarkets are the biggest culprits for food miles and waste. This needs to change and they need to take responsibility

Food mile wheel

2011-06-22T20:58:00.005+08:00

After the government made it mandatory for supermarkets to show the nutritional value of their products, production of certain products were stopped, as consumers made better choices. I feel the same can be done with products with massive food miles, if the carbon emission was included in the wheel. Above is a rough idea of what it would look like. I included it in the nutrition wheel, as the environment's health is as important as our health.

This would take effect on a larger scale, and in return, the country as a WHOLE will make better choices

Pro-Algae

2011-06-21T21:03:00.014+08:00

The EU currently have tight laws around GM farming, which has kept a lot of Monsanto's ugly side out of Britian, but in a world war three situation, these laws may have to be relaxed. I explored the possibility of Monsanto investing in Algae farming in the UK,.
The Celtic sea would be the perfect environment for this as it has a great deal of nutrients for micro organisms to survive quite happily.

What would be the consequences, If Monsanto were to create an algae using genetic engineering: which thrived in cooler water, and less sunlight then usual. An algae high in protein, omega 3 and other nutrients… I gave this aqua crop the name of pro-algae.
Ofcource, pro -algae would be patented like all their other crops. It’d be used in food manufacturing as a nutrient buffer, getting one of the country’s industry reliant on Monsanto… having control over yet another economy.

I designed a few products that could have Pro-Algae in it….
This citrus flavoured algae drink… full of protein, vitamins and minerals. It’s a convenient way of getting essential nutritional requirements.

I wanted this product to question our relationship with food… is it something we indulge in for the pleasure, or a just a basic necessity to live?
Products like this one, would be curtail for lot of people, to keep their wellbeing up, in a time when food is at a shortage.
age.

Seaweed and kelp is part of the algae family, and full of glutamate acid, which is what gives food the umami flavour.

This brought me back to my ‘Who’s U-mami Sauce”. If Monsanto created an algae which was high in Glutamate Acid, it could be used as a flavour enhancer and like MSG, would make Britain dependant on their product.

The catch 22 situation Monsanto put farmers in, made me think back to my ‘sugar coated’ pop-aganda. Monsanto portray themselves as ethical and the future of agriculture, masking the truth behind the matter. This mock pinapple lollypop (made from rhubarb and strawberry, which when combines recreates the taste of pineapple) which is aimed at kids, supports the war, by giving a percentage of profits to war efforts… children buying the lolly pops are instantly playing their part in the war.

I wanted the sauce and the lolly pop to draw parallels with the farmers who get sucked in by buying Monsanto’s seeds, that their lively hoods become dependant on.

These pieces of critical design are more of a insight into a more apocalyptic scenario. Algae is a super food, but because of it's powerful possibilities, it could end up being another one in a long list of super materials that has seen a growth in capitalism, and greater divides in society. Materials like, iron, oil, and patented seeds which has influenced the economic and political world around us.

QR coding: know more about the food you eat

2011-06-21T20:06:00.005+08:00

QR coding is everywhere. In newspapers, magazines, on posters, and even on goods we buy from the supermarket. It's fun, easy and very quick. But i feel it has been used as more of a marketing ploy.

As a way of sharing information quicker, i looked at the idea that QR coding could give people more information on what they're eating/purchasing. My idea of eating new protein can be scary and foreign especially when i comes to cooking. I have used the New Protein Farm as an example. …. After weighing and pricing the meat/fish, a label is printed, and stuck on the packaging,It has a QR code on it. When scanned into an android….

… the customer geta taken to the New Protein Blog, where they can get seasonal recipes on meat they’ve just purchased.
In this case, a recipe for my rabbit liver pate comes up, from The New Protein Blog.

The Urban Protein Farm

2011-06-21T19:09:00.006+08:00

I scripted and recorded a spoof BBC radio 4 Food Programme interview with an Urban farmer in South East London. A lifestock farmer who, farmers unconventional animals and fish which are better suited for the city environment, using new methods. This is all in the context scenario of WWIII, which would create a forced change in our food culture, and would make us rethink our farming methods...

This piece dated the 8th of May 2018, was to go along side the article in the times newspaper which mentions the relaxation of laws on livestock farming. This audio piece is supposed to be a solution to the problem:

GOATS MILK & ROSE HIP PORRIDGE

2011-05-02T19:25:00.003+08:00

Full of vitamin C, rosehip, is easy to preserve as tea, jam, or even as a concentrated syrup. Coupled with an energy food like oats, which are good for lowering cholesterol and packed full of fiber, this porridge is a great start to the day, especially during the colder months. Like a lot of unprocessed grain, oats also contains phytochemicals, a chemical that lowers the chances of cancer. Compared to soya milk and cow’s milk, goats milk is high in essential fats, amino acids and high in protein content. It’s rich and creamy flavour sometimes has a slightly salty undertone that works well in cooking, especially in porridge. Goats are easier and more economical to farm compared to cows. They eat scraps, take up less space, and unlike cows they’re milk doesn’t have to be homogenized.

Ingredients

1 Cup Scottish oats
2 Cups goats’ milk
1 tbsp Rosehip tea, loose
Handful of Dried Rosehip
Honey to taste

Method

In a saucepan bring the goats milk and loose rosehip tea, to a boil. Turn down and allow to simmer for a further minuet. Strain and return the infused milk to the saucepan. Gently heat, adding the oats and the dried rosehip, stirring continuously on a simmer for four to five minuets or until the milk thickens and the oats are cooked. Drizzle with honey, and serve piping hot.

Protein Politics

2011-04-25T21:36:00.005+08:00

I really like the idea of looking into the future and seeing what situations we may find our selves in regarding our gluttonous relationship with food. Our over dependance on foreign imports has made me think about how Britain may have to come to compromising terms with this. Again, i have set these spoof newspapers in a scenario of WWIII, as this would be a forced change in our food culture... it's just something to think about really... please click on the newspapers to enlarge and have a read.

SHOES LACE & SARI PROSCIUTTO

2011-04-18T03:54:00.001+08:00

I’ve been looking at ways of preserving meat, and curing seems like a simple method that anyone could do at home. A simple thing to start with is duck prosciutto, as long as one has acquired the distinctive taste for duck. I decided to flavour the duck with bay leaves, Szechwan peppers and marjoram. Really simple, but strong flavours to counteract that of the duck. So I bought two mallard duck breasts from the butchers, and salted them over night. I rinsed, and patted dry, then added my herbs and spices. I wrapped them up in my mum’s old sari. Really I should have used gauze, but a sari worked well enough. I tied it up in string (actually a clean, never used before shoe lace). I weighted them and labeled them with their weight. I hung them up in the back of my shed, and surrounded them with cardboard boxes to protect them from any creepy crawlies. My brother kindly weighted them every other day until they went down by 30% in weight. This took around a week and a half.

The final outcome was a ducky and I’m pretty sure the sari gave it a perfumed background flavour. It’s pretty bizarre, but it works. The shoe laces were soft enough compared to string, and I think this may have played a part in the evenness of colour in the fleshy side of the duck.

Shoelaces and saris are not ideal, but this just shows how easy it is to do home charcuterie. I’ve read a few blogs, which get really particular about how home charcuterie should be done, but I believe doing it your own way, results in a more personal tasting cure. As long as the concept is understood and care is taken with hygiene, then there is a world of meat waiting to be salted, cured and hung!

DAMN-SON! BBQ EELS (Damson BBQ eels)

2011-04-18T03:46:00.002+08:00

I have been trying to find eels for a while, and found it more difficult then it should be, especially living in South East London. I found out Billingsgate sold fresh eels, but the catch was… they came from New Zealand! Ridiculous. Eventually, after much research, I found a fishmonger near me in Nun-Head, who could find fresh water eels for me, from Ireland. I ordered one at a kilo for £21. Not too bad, it was big enough to feed four people happily. So I have had a BBQ sauce recipe in my head for a while, using only British ingredients. I have been dying to try it out, but on something that could handle the sweet/sour flavour, and eels are perfect for this. They have a rich, but not fishy flavour. They’re rich in omega 3 and have a firm flesh surrounded by a fair bit of fat, and a thick skin, perfect for barbequing.

I served the eels with stir fried broccoli and celeriac chips. Kinda English/Oriental fusion. It was absolutely delicious. I will defiantly be cooking with eel more often. It is difficult to get hold of, but good fishmongers should be able to order it with a bit of notice. It’s worth a try, especially as nutritionally it’s better compared to the more popular edible fishes. One word of warning though, the eel still wriggles about a good 30 minuets after being killed and gutted. Was funny at first, until when having a fry-up, I found my bag of eels had slithered behind me!

Ingredients:

1kg Eel, filleted
½ Cup Damson/Plum Jam
½ Cup Honey
¼ Cup Mushroom Ketchup
3 Cloves Crushed Garlic
Rape Seed Oil
Sesame seeds to garnish

Method:

Add the damson jam, honey, mushrooms and garlic to a saucepan and bring to a slow simmer. Allow the garlic to cook off. Rub some oil on the skin of the eel, and place on a hot BBQ or griddle. Once the skin begins to crisp up, add the sauce over the soft flesh. Close the barbeque or place under the grill. Baste the eels with the sauce every 2 minuets. The eel only needs eight minuets to fully cook. Serve with celeriac chips. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds for added flavour and texture.

I decided to do an experiment and see how well eel steamed. So I wrapped 1/3 of the eel in tin foil with soy, ginger, fish sauce and sliced red chilli. This was surprising. Almost a like having cooked a whole different fish. The fish sauce gave the fresh water fish a saltiness, and skin just fell off. The fat of the eel ensure the flesh remained tender and flaky. Beautiful.

Ingredients:

1 kg Eel, on the bone
3” Grated Ginger
¼ Cup Soy Sauce
¼ Cup Fish Sauce
2 Large chillies sliced
4 Sliced spring onions to garnish

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 180°c. Scored the eel on both sides. Leave gaps of 2inches between each score. Place the fish in a tin-foil bag and place on a baking tray. Mix the ginger, soy, fish sauce and chillies in a bowl and pour over the fish. Close the bag and place in oven for 30 minuets. Once cooked, garnish with spring onions and serve with sticky rice.

AVERAGE MEAT CONSUMPTION...

2011-04-06T03:35:00.001+08:00

I found some shocking stats whilst watching Marcel Dicke's talk for ted on why we should be thinking of a different source of protein to the conventional. This stat of how much meat the average person consumes was shocking to compare. I made the information more visual:

FOOD WEEKLY

2011-03-27T22:33:00.004+08:00

I design and wrote a spoof front page for a newspaper called Food Weekly. It's a look at what could happen during a future WWIII, regarding food and imports in the UK. Click on the image for a larger version to read...

CHESTNUT AND BACON SOUP

2011-03-24T22:34:00.002+08:00

Chestnuts are full of protein and energy. Although they’re only available during the colder months, they are easy to preserve buy peeling, cooking, and vacuum forming into airtight bags. This soup also stores in the fridge for a couple of days, and is a great snack if you’re feeling peckish. It’s filling and very hearty, and best of all, all the ingredients are cheap/easy to grow in an allotment/garden. Bacon lardons are equally cheap from the butchers.

Ingredients:

Bacon lardons
5 sticks of celery
1 large white onion
1 large leek
1 medium sized carrot
Approximately 30 peeled and roasted chestnuts
Sprigs of Thyme
Rapeseed oil

Method

Chop up the vegetables into small chunks. Fry in a small amount of oil, on a high heat till the vegetables turn brown, but do not burn. This requires constant stirring. Add the chestnuts and the thyme leaves, continue stirring for a further 5 minuets. Cover with water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and simmer on a low heat for 30 minuets. Leave to cool down, before blending. In this time, get on frying the bacon lardons in a very hot pan. There is no need to add oil, as the fat on the lardons should be sufficient. Once crisped up, turn out onto some kitchen towels. Blend the soup in a blender. Return to the pan and heat up again. Serve with the lardons, and optional croutons or bread.

RED ONION, BASIL AND THREE GOATS CHEESE QUICHE

2011-03-18T00:50:00.001+08:00

Ingrediants

200g Plain flour
100g salted butter
3 tbsp water

5 red onions, thinly sliced
Hand full, fresh basil
Good quality balsamic vinegar
Olive oil

Three british Goat’s Cheese:
Abergavenny Goats Cheese: full fat soft cheese with a smooth texture
Gevrik Goats Cheese: a soft mould ripened goats' cheese, rich and nutty Cornish goats cheese
Somerset Goats Cheese: a mild creamy soft cheese

1 cup Jersey milk
3 large eggs
Salt and pepper

Method

I started by making the pastry, by simply adding the flour, and butter to a food processer and blitzing till the contents resembled bread crumbs. I slowly added the water through the funnel whilst continuing to blitz. Once the mixture came together, I wrapper it up in cling film, and let set in the fridge. It’s essential, the mixture never gets too warm, as this can cause the dough to loosen up.

An hour later, and I started on lining my quiche tin. I heated the oven to 180°c. I then rolled out my dough, keeping things dry with plenty of flour on my work surface. Once the dough was an even thickness, and large enough to line my tine, I lifted it up with my rolling pin and gently placed over the tin. I carefully pressed in the sides and trimmed the edges. The lined tin was left to set in the fridge for 30minuets. I then blind baked the pastry in the oven for 15 minuets with baking paper and rice. After 15 minuets, I removed the rice and baking paper and allowed further cooking for 5 minuets. Once coloured and cooked, I poked the base with a fork to allow any air to escape when cooking the quiche.

Whilst the pasty was in the oven, I cooked my onions in some olive oil on a low heat, and allowed to reduce to half the size. This requires constant stirring and attention, as to make sure the onions don’t burn. Once just nearly caramelised, I added the basil, roughly torn, and the balsamic vinegar. I continued cooking for a further 5 minuets, until the harshness of the vinegar turned into a gooey sweetness. I seasoned, then added the onions to the base of the quiche. The three cheeses was roughly chopped and also dotted around with the onions.

In a separate bowl, I whisked up the eggs and the creamy jersey milk. I added salt and pepper, and poured the mixture in and around the onions and cheese. I mixed things around with a fork, so some of the onion and cheese came to the surface. I think it’s always nice to have the ingredients of the quiche visible on the surface, instead of sunken at the bottom. I placed the quiche back in the still hot oven at 200°c. After 15 minuets, I turned it down to 160°c for 20 minuets. This ensures a soft, well cooked centre. After 35 minuets of impatience, the quiche came out, to be cooled by an open window on a cooling rack. After it was cool enough to handle I took it out of the tin and sliced it up into generous portions, for all to share and enjoy : )

SWEET ELDERFLOWER AND CARROT HALWA

2011-03-18T00:45:00.001+08:00

Carrots have a natural sweetness which when used in sweet dishes means less sugar is needed. Carrot halwa is an Indian dish, which typically has cardamom, a selection of nuts and uses ghee and rich condensed milk. In this recipe, I have used elderflower syrup as a complimenting flavour and sweetener, unsweetened butter, and powdered milk. The flavours are fragrant and delicate. I topped it with a couple of plump, sticky, brandy soaked raisin, from the larder. Best served warm.

Ingredients

1 cup water
4 large carrots peeled and grated
4 tbsp elderflower syrup
25g unsalted butter
2 tbsp powdered milk
Brandy soaked raisins (optional)

Method

In a pan bring the cup of water up to boil. Add the grated carrots and stir for 10 minuets on a low flame. Add the powdered milk and syrup and continue stirring until all the carrots start to soften. Add the butter and stir till melted. Leave to simmer, stirring occasionally, for 40 minuets or until the liquid has reduced to a rich sticky syrup. Plate, ready to serve, and top with brandy soaked raisins.

FOUR ROOT GRATIN

2011-03-18T00:39:00.002+08:00

In the UK we have a wide selection of root vegetable’s available all year round. Full of energy and complimentary to any main dish, roots are versatile in any situation. I used four different types of roots in my gratin: potato, turnip, parsnip and swede. All have a distinctly different flavour: starchy, acidic, sharp, and sweet. The combination of the four is a well-balanced dish, which can be eaten as a meal its self. Delicious any time of the year; eaten warm straight from the oven, or cold from the fridge.

Ingrediants:

One small swede
One medium sized potato
One medium sized parsnip
One large turnip
2 cups full fat milk
Grated cheddar
3 tbsp of bread crumbs
Pinch of powdered mustard
Salt & Pepper

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 180°c. Peel and wash the root vegetables. Either using a mandoline or a very sharp knife, slice the roots as thinly as possible. Pour the milk in a large bowl and mix in the mustard, pepper and salt. Introduce the sliced roots and mix well with hands, being carful not to damage or break the slices. Transfer the contents of the bowl into a shallow oven proof baking tray. In a separate bowl, mix the grated cheddar with the bread crumbs and a pinch of salt and pepper. Sprinkle the mixture over the gratin and place on the middle shelf in the oven for 30 minuets.

SARAH VOWELL, BOOK TRAILER

2011-03-09T20:02:00.000+08:00

MOCK GIANT WICHETTY

2011-03-06T21:49:00.001+08:00

My recent interest in entomophagy isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Most find the idea repulsive, other think I may come in time, and some have even re-thought their diet. In the last two months I have found it hard to get people seeing enotmophagy as a way of the future, rather then novelty. It will take a while yet, and one step towards this movement is a restaurant or a British based supplier.

My new area of interest is Protein Politics; where we’re heading with our obsessive protein consumption, and the coloration between wealth and protein intake/spending. I’ve been exploring possible future scenarios and designing objects or dishes which have a sense of irony to them. It’s almost designing for the future, but with a sense of humour.

I combined my recent ventures in entomophagy and mock meats to create my Mock Veggie Giant Wichetty. As possible as the idea of entomophagy is, I’m trying to question whether we will ever reach the point of exploiting this new protein source. Something that has been done for centuries, may become a large industry… maybe like beef, we end up in short supply?

My Veggie Wichetty is also rather mockingly resembles the almost cartoony mock meats, especially popular in Japan and China. Both my parents are vegetarians, and when living in Malaysia used to eat in Buddhist restaurants, where mock fish, poultry, pork and even beef was recreated using soya and mushrooms. They tasted very similar to the meats they were trying to imitate. They fish and prawns did look like they were taken from a Japanese anime. Here’s a link to veggie world, a restaurant and supplier of Buddhist pure vegetarian food in Milton Keynes.

My idea with this dish was to make something that resembles a Wichetty sliced, with a gooey, bloody inside… just like the type Bear Grills eats. It explodes all over the camera. Jokes:

Getting my Wichetty to explode would be a little ambitious. I thought maybe i could achieve this by using poached egg yolks, but i would run into difficulties when rolling. I instead settled for the bloody red of beetroot.

I tried to keep ingredients British and seasonal as much as possible. The filling is all from Tooting market: carrots, spring onion, grated beetroot, the tender stem of broccoli and egg (make into an omelette). I wrapped this up in Nori Seaweed sheets, into a tight roll. I then wrapped this is sushi rice, and cling filmed it up really tight, and let it in the fridge to set for a few hours.

I tried to make Yuba (tofu skin), but this was fruitless. I think the fat content in the soya milk wasn’t sufficient, and didn’t form a proper skin. So I bought some from my local Vietnamese supermarket in Deptford. I soaked in warm water for five minuets. The texture is really bizarre, almost like thick human skin… perfect for recreating a crispy fried wichettty though! It takes a lot of patients, but eventually it was rolled up nice and tight. I brushed a paste of corn flour and water over the top, wrapped up in cling film, and left over night.

Lunch time the next day, and my beauties were ready to fry! The oil needs to be super hot, and it’s always better to use part old oil, and new oil when frying. I let drain, then sliced into my Yuba rolls.

I plated it up and decorated with flowers. I used a cherry tomato, wrapped in sushi rice and nori seaweed with a glaze of soy, honey and chilli for the head. As comical as it looks, it tasted great. A had a selection of dips to go with it. The yuba is great to create a crispy, not necessarily healthy, but gluten free wrap. The whole thing has a very oriental taste to it… not wichetty really, apart from the beetroot, which has a slightly earthy taste to it. It was very fun to make. Time consuming, yes indeed, but well worth all the work and sourcing the ingredients. Happy Eatings : )

Ant Bombay Mix

2011-03-01T19:39:00.001+08:00

I started looking at groups of people who may be interested in the nutritional value of insects. A group who are will to push their bodies to the extreme, whilst also being selective with what they eat, is bodybuilders. Bodybuilders need a lot of protein in their diet, and if they were to start eating insects instead, they may be getting more protein intake then eating conventional meat.

So to try out on bodybuilders, I made an Ant Bombay Mix. A healthy snack for any, but may appeal to bodybuilders because of the nutritional value. Full of protein and carbs with:
roasted chickpeas
lentils
mung beans
dhal
and a mixture of roasted cereals

I flavoured it with a little bit of
salt, turmeric, light chilli powder, and dried coriander leaves

ENTOMOPHAGY VISUAL FACTS

2011-02-18T00:21:00.003+08:00

It can sometimes be easier to see data visually, so i created three visual data pieces which may help people see why entomophagy may be the future of protein in take:

Entomophagy: The practice of eating insects

2011-02-09T08:16:00.003+08:00

Encouraging people to start incorporating insects into their diet is tricky. Most people see it as novelty in the west. 70% of the world population is said to eat insects regularly. South America, Africa, Asia, and Australasia all eat insects as part of their protein intake. This is mainly because these continents all have large populations of diverse insects and arachnids. Entomophagy is not only considered a better source of nutrients and protein, but is also much better for food miles and the environment.

In developed countries, the average intake of protein per person is 80kg a year, in the USA, this is much higher at 120kg. In the developing countries, the number significantly decreases to 25kg. All figures are rising, and because of this, we need to reassess our protein intake. Traditional meat (beef, lamb, pork and chicken) when imported have massive food miles and release high levels of CO2. Most people tend to forget about animal feed also. For 10kg of animal feed, you get 1kg of beef, 3kg of pork, and 5kg of chicken…

So how are insects better nutritionally and environmentally?

For every 10kg of animal feed you get 9kg of locus
Insects need less space to be farmed
Insects need less energy and maintenance
Insects reproduce at a higher rate and in bigger numbers
A short life cycle – reached maturity quicker
Insects need 1/10 of the energy it requires to rear traditional farm animals
100grams of insects has as much protein as 150g of chicken
Insects contain, fiber, protein, sugars, minerals and even omega 3
In the UK we can eat worms, grasshoppers, ants, slugs, snails, larvae, termites & wood lice

Even with such impressive stats, the west is still a little bit sceptical about this ancient protein source. We eat insects everyday without realising: 1 in 20 dates has a caterpillar in it; muesli sometimes contains the larvae of varies beetles; food colourings made from the shell of beetles. The idea of eating insects can seems unhygienic, primitive, and even disgusting, but if this is the future of protein intake, we may have to change our perceptions of insects. It may seem drastic, but many scientists have looked into it as a way of solving the world food crises. Even if the insects aren’t eaten whole, protein and nutrients can be extracted and used in food manufacturing or to boost protein levels in food.

I’ve tried to come up with a welcome recipe for people who are unsure of the idea. Insects need to be farmed properly in order for them to take on a good flavour. Oven baking and frying insects results in a crispy texture, but a lack in flavour. I found these BBQ worms at edible.com, and thought it was a good easy way to introduce the idea of eating bugs:

Nacho Worms:

Corn Chips
Ice-burg lettuce, shredded
Avocado
Lemon Juice
Crispy BBQ worms from edible.com

Salsa:
Tomato
Tomato paste
Red onion
Red chilli
Coriander

I chopped the ingredients for the salsa as fine as I possibly could. I mashed the ripened avocado with a fork and squeezed lemon juice over it to stop it discolouring. I assembled… and munch munch munch!

They went down well with my friends. I think they were easy to digest due to the salsa and avocado. The worms were more crunchy then anything. To get more nutritional value from them, I would have had to put twice as much on the top… one step at a time though eh?

With a new cuisine out there, I’m up for the challenge. Maybe the flavours need to be worked on as this is something so new, our pallets are not accustomed to the textures and flavours. It will be interesting to see how willing people can be to new ideas and new avenues for food.

CRISPY CRICKETS & PEARL BARLEY STIR FRY

2011-01-30T00:20:00.003+08:00

Pear barley is a great substitute for rice. Produced in the UK, it has less food miles then rice, and is healthier as it releases energy slowly. Beetroot and leek are both flavoursome and compliment each other well. Dehydrating, sound more difficult and nerdy then it really is. This way of cooking concentrates the flavour and can be done at home with a conventional oven. In this case, dehydrating the leeks and beetroot makes the dish less stodgy and stops the beetroot turning the whole dish purple. The crickets can be bought from pet shops or specialist bug shops. It “art” of eating insects is called enthomophagy, and is practiced around the world, but there is reluctance in the West. Many people have claimed that this could be the future of protein consumption, as not only are insets high in nutritional value and low in fat, but they are abundant and beneficial to the environment. Whilst it takes 10kg of animal feed to produce 1kg of beef, with locust, we see nine times as much being the outcome. 9kg of locust contains enough protein to keep a person sustained for just over a month. Insects can be cultivated at home, and need not be killed before eating. It is vital to feed the crickets on fruit or herby leaves for a few days before cooking. This gives them a nicer flavour. The day before cooking, place the crickets in the freezer, as this allows them to fall into a deep sleep, making the cooking process easier and preventing any guilty feelings.

Ingredients

2 Cups Pearl Barley
4 Cups Chicken stock
Fresh Grated Beetroot
Thinly sliced Leeks
Field Crickets
Rapeseed Oil
Salt & Pepper

Method

Turn the oven on to 130 degrees Celsius. Place the pearl in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Place over heat and allow to boil. Drain, and rinse thoroughly under cold water. This washes of the starch and prevents the pearls from sticking to each other. Return the barley to the pan and cover with cold chicken stock. Bring up to the boil, then reduce and let simmer for an hour and a half, stirring occasionally. Cover two baking trays with greaseproof paper, and spread the beetroot on one, and the leeks on the other. Place on the bottom shelf in the oven, and leave the oven door ajar. After about an hour, the beetroot and leek should have turned crispy. For even dehydration, carefully move the small pieces around every so often. To cook the crickets, heat up some oil in a frying pan. Once the oil starts to steam, place the crickets in and cook for about 2 minuets on each side, depending on the size. Place on tissue paper and allow to cool. Assemble plate, and sprinkle liberally with the crispy crickets. The legs are especially delicious, as are the heads.

Crispy Gnocchi With Mushroom Gravy and Cheddar

2011-01-22T09:35:00.001+08:00

Gnocchi is a classic Italian staple made from potato. In England we are lucky to be abundant in many different varieties of spuds. Using standard British ingredients, I have given a twist to an Italian favourite. Meatless, but still rich in protein and carbohydrates, this dish is filling and warming and is perfectly satisfactory for winter blues. I used cold pressed rapeseed oil, a more sustainable British oil which is seeing a reappearance in British cooking. Subtler in taste then olive oil, which also doesn’t overpower the palate. Perfect for when you want the ingredients to speak for them selves.

Ingredients

2 cups mashed potatoes
1 cup plain flour
Salt to taste
One large red onion
Garlic
Chucky chopped chestnut mushrooms
One large red onion
½ pint of Vegetable stock
Salt
Pepper
Cold pressed Rape Seed Oil

Method

Boil skinned potatoes. Mash well whist hot to a smooth consistency, and sieve in the flour. Mix well, and then turn out to a wooden board, or surface. Kneed with hand until the gnocchi mixture is slightly glutinous. Divide the mixture into six, and roll each section into long cylinders then cut into walnut sized pieces. Put to one side to let dry out. Start boiling a saucepan full f water for the gnocchi, thill then, fry thinly sliced onions and crushed garlic to rapeseed oil in a pan. Fry till tinged, then add the roughly chopped mushroom. Add the vegetable stock to the mushrooms and season well, then allow to reduce. Whist the mushroom gravy reduces, add the gnocchi pieces to boiling water. Once they float to the surface, drain then fry in a hot pan of rapeseed oil. Stir regularly. Once the pieces have crisped and gardened, remove from pan, and serve with the mushroom sauce and a liberal grating of cheddar cheese. Enyjoy!

Rabbit Liver Pate

2011-01-22T09:21:00.001+08:00

Rabbits are available all year round, and are also considered pests to rural framers. The heart, liver and kidneys of the rabbit are all edible. Rabbits are suitable for both rural and urban environments. If one can get beyond the idea of eating Thumper, then one will find the meat lean, and very similar to chicken, but more flavoursome.

Ingredients

2 Rabbit livers
1 white onion, diced finely
Handful of parsley stalks
Pinch of ground nutmeg
Black pepper
Sea salt
Good quality cider
50 grams salted butter
250 ml whisked double cream

Method

Fry the onion in some oil with the parsley stalks, until the stalks wilt and the onions start to turn brown. Add the livers to the pan and sears on either side add the cider to the pan and a pinch of nutmeg. After the sauce has reduced, and the livers are fully cooked, drain and blend with the butter in a food processor. Once blended to a fine consistency, fold into the whisked cream. Once the mixture is an evenly mixed, pour into ramekins, and let set in the fridge for 4 hours. Serve with crusty bread.

Mock Pineapple Jelly

2011-01-22T09:18:00.002+08:00

Mock Pineapple Jelly

The combination of Rhubarb and Strawberry recreates a very similar flavour to Pineapple. So I have called this Jelly recipe mock Pineapple, as during the war time there were quite a few “mock” recipes which tried to recreate flavours and textures of unavailable or expensive ingredients. I decided to add natural yellow food colouring as it looks more like pineapple jelly.

Ingredients

Preserved Rhubarb in syrup
Preserved Strawberry in syrup
Gelatine leaves
Natural yellow food colouring

Method

Soak the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water. It is recommended that four leaves are sufficient for a pint of liquid, but this is all dependant on how firm you like your jelly. In a saucepan, heat up some preserved strawberries and rhubarb in their syrup, but be careful not to boil. Once the gelatine leaves are softened, add them to the saucepan and whisk till totally dissolved. Pour into mould, and leave to cool to room temperature. Pop in the fridge to set for five hours. Serve with whipped cream.

Vegetarian Manchurian, making the best of left over Chinese

2010-12-19T00:02:00.003+08:00

It’s really annoying when you order food online/over the phone, and what you get is not exactly what you expected. It’s even more annoying when the take away can charge ridiculous prices for their food because they’re the only restaurant that deliver in the area, and accept card. Anywho, so I believe one has to at least try and make most of a shit take away. So when I had loads of disgustingly sweet Kung Bo “Seasonal” veg and fried rice left over from my Chinese take away last night, I thought even though it was shit, I was going to try and rectify it by turning the two very dull dishes into one very excitingly tasty dish: vegetarian Manchurian.

The kung bo “seasonal” veg already had in it (nothing seasonal at all):
Cashewnuts
Pineapple
Pak Choi
Mushrooms
Carrots
Water Chestnuts

I drained the veg of the horrible sauce, and to add a bit more flavour, I added:

Chinese Five Spice
Chopped Chilies
Shallots
Grated carrots
Roughly chopped Spring Onions

I blended all the above in a food processor. To make the mixture thicker and well bound I added some rice flour. I used a teaspoon and shaped the mixture into roughly formed balls. I deep fried in batched of 8, careful not to over crowd as this can cause sticking and could also mean lack of colouration. I wanted the rice in the mixture to give the balls a dark brown exterior, and a nice crisp coating. When cut open, they should retain a moistness, although the rawness of the rice flour should be cooked off. It’s essential that the oil be kept over a consistently medium flame and that the balls be around the size of a golf ball. This should ensure well-cooked Manchurians.

To make the sauce, I fried some thinly sliced garlic and chilies in some oil till the garlic started to turn slightly brown. I then added some Saracha sauce, light soy sauce, and honey. I let the mixture bubble and reduce till it became a sticky constancy. I added the Manchurian balls, turned the heat off and rolled the balls so they were coated. I didn’t want them sitting in the sauce for too long as they would start to absorb the liquid and lose they’re crunchiness. Lastly I garnished with a healthy hand full of spring onions.

I personally think as a dish, it can be eaten by it’s self, but just to bulk it our I had it with some left over noodles from the night before…. Happy Eatings : )

HAPPY FOOD

2010-12-04T22:42:00.003+08:00

I designed a poster for a concept website where people can get recipes for umami sauces, depending on their region (locally sourced/grown food), seasonality and choice of ingredients. The aim is for people to realise the variety of flavours there are out there and the ways they can make their food more interesting by using the taste of umami, even with limited ingredients.

WHO’S U-MAMI SAUCE

2010-12-04T22:31:00.003+08:00

So with all my research into the umami flavour, I wanted to great a sauce that could be used in cooking as a way of enhancing or bringing out the natural flavour of ingredients when used in small amounts. When used in larger amounts, the flavour of the sauce would mask any nasty tastes of unpleasant foods, that would be eaten for nutritional value (eg, brussel sprouts, soya, offal).

I looked into ingredients that could be found in England, and suitable ways of preserving them. Making a sauce seemed the most convenient. Most of the ingredients used are easily preserved in their state, but I had a few cherry tomatoes which was given to me by a friend who has started growing indoors.

Ingredients:
Soy Extract (umami ingredient)
Mushroom Extract (umami ingredient)
Cherry Tomato Puree (umami ingredient)
Anchovies (umami ingredient)
Shallots
Garlic
Scotch Bonnet
Szechuan Pepper
Molasses
White wine vinegar

Method:
I started by frying off 4 garlic gloves, 4 shallots, 2 scotch bonnets and a table spoon of Szechuan pepper, until the oil was flavoured. I then added Mushroom extract and soy extract and let simmer on a low heat for about 10 minuets.

I removed the whole ingredients, and let the concentrate cool. The whole shallots, chillies and garlic could be saved and used in future cooking. As the umami flavours of the soy and mushrooms would have been absorbed, the shallots, garlic, and chillies can be used in other dishes to enhance flavour.

In another pan, I started by frying off a few fillets of anchovies. Once melted, I added my cherry tomato puree. I stirred in the soy and mushroom concentrate, added a couple of table spoons molasses and two table spoons white wine vinegar then left the sauce to simmer for an hour. Once cooled. I poured into my bottle.

I made a label to stick on my bottle:

I spread some of my special sauce on toast before grilling with cheese on top. It’s a delicious sauce, with complex, deep flavours. It gives simpler dishes a fuller flavour. Only very little has to be used as the glutamate levels exceeds roughly about 600mg/100mg from my calculations. This is seven times more then cheddar cheese, and half as much as marmite.

I developed this idea as a sure guarantee of having a tasty meal in the case of a poor harvests, unavailability of certain ingredients, and a way of preserving. If we were to become self sufficient, simple solutions like these would help keep people creative in the kitchen.

UMAMI

2010-12-04T21:09:00.003+08:00

Umami is said to be the 5th taste along with sweet, salty, sour and bitter. Umami, is hard to describe best many do by calling it subtly savoury. Umami was first discovered by the Japanese scientist Dr. Kikunae Ikeda of Tokyo Imperial University in 1907. He did some research into why dashi (a Japanese stock made from Kombu- a type of seaweed), tasted so good. He found that Kombu was high in glutamatic acid, and this was the what gave dashi its delicious flavour. Dr. Ikeda termed this distinctive flavour, Umami. With further research, a wide variety of foods from around the world were discovered to have high levels of glutamatic acid: like tomatoes, anhovies, beef, asparagus, green tea, mushrooms etc.

“Those who pay careful attention to their tastebuds will discover in the complex flavour of asparagus, tomatoes, cheese and meat, a common and yet absolutely singular taste which cannot be called sweet, or sour, or salty, or bitter…” - Dr. Kikunae Ikeda

Dr Ikead, successfully managed to isolate the glutamatic acid from kombu, and from this created sodium glutamate, better known as Monosodium Glutamate. The company Dr Ikead worked for, the Ajinamoto Coperation, took this discovery forward and produced a marketable product. Ajinamoto was sold as a flavour enhancer and spread world wide. Being cheap and as readily available as salt, the product was much welcomed in less developed parts of the world. Places where harvests were less predictable, and where the range of ingredients were limited.

There has been a lot of bad press surrounding MSG, and this tends to be because of its use in manufactured products. There are no serious or harmful effects from it, although claims of migraines have been reported, but this is due to high levels of consumption. Until recently, MSG could be bought in supermarkets, but due to our change in food attitudes, this is no longer available. Many restaurants, though, still use MSG as a way of keeping the level of food consistent. This is an example of a great discovery taken out of context. We have very little room for “unnatural” ingredients, but if we were put in a situation where we had limited food, and a lack of choice when in came to ingredients, would we too re-think an ingredient like Monosodium Glutamate?

POP-AGANDA!

2010-11-26T21:25:00.003+08:00

So, I’ve been really interested in a supposed World War 3 situation, and how we would cope with it. The reduction of imports would mean exotic ingredients wouldn’t be so readily available. Our dependence on locally grown, seasonal and preserved foods would grow. Government propaganda would also surround us, encouraging us to support the choice of war. As you can imagine, a WWIII would be significantly more devastating compared to previous wars. With nuclear weapons and chemical war fare destroying cities with a simple touch of a button. I’m pretty sure, a war on this scale would last for many years, with the consequences being way bigger then ever seen before.

So with all this horror, I came up with a subversive product which the British Government could realise: Popaganda. A lollypop, which bought by kids, would encourage and condition them for war. The lollypop shaped like am army man, would be handed out to kids as a treat. Maybe this sugary treat would lift the moods of children, whilst also being a pre-training for war.

I looked into different flavour combinations, and from reading an extract by Edmund and Dixon, American food writers from the 1800s, I found the combination of rhubarb and strawberries, created a mock Pineapple flavour. This flavour combination could be used in other possible foods and drinks from tarts to cocktails.

I needed to make a casting, so I could make a lollypop shaped like a solider. So I got my mould of a solider from a toy army man. I stood him up on a plinth….

I covered him in a box of clear acrylic. (It wasn’t a perfect box by any means, so I needed to seal up any gaps with some plastering.)

I filled it up with rubber silicon and let him set for a good hour. Once removed from the over, I broke of the acrylic, cut down the sides, so to create the male and female parts of the mould. I filled it up with my sugary rhubarb and strawberry mixture (This was very difficult, as I made the mixture without using a sugar thermometer. I do highly recommend getting one if making any kind of sugar craft). I let it set for 20 minuets, and then removed from mould.

I also made a wrapper to go with it. I used the net, of old ice-lolly wrappers. They seemed well suited. I was in a bit of a debate, as to weather I should have called the flavour pineapple, or Rhubarb and Strawberry, but in the end, as the colour I chose was red, I decided to stick with the latter. I also came up with a few other possible typical English flavours like sherbet and strawberry & cream.

SHOOTING STARS

2010-09-12T04:19:00.002+08:00

I came across some edible paper in the Sainsbury’s the other day, and picked it up, not really knowing what I wanted to do with it, but knew I wanted to do something. It was only 99p for a pack of 12 A5 potato starch sheets, which is very decent, so why not. I found the paper very similar to rice paper. It is a little bit more stiff then rice paper, but still quite malleable, and as the serving suggestion suggests, good for cake decorating. It is pretty taste-less, but this means it can take on not only colour, but taste also. One thing I really like about edible paper, is its “third dimension”: taste. It can also be its downfall though, as any liquid added on it instantly dissolves the paper, reducing it to mush. So great care has to be taken with handling it, but otherwise, it’s a great “new” product available in most supermarkets.

So, anyhow… I was playing about with the paper, trying different origami shapes, and one that seemed to hold really well was the origami star. The stiffness of the potato starch paper means too many folds and creases result in tears and weak edges. But the star holds very well, and has a hollow centre great for filling…

There are a few things I could have tried to fill my starts with, but nothing would have been best suited then a sweet, spongy, meringue filling. So I made a few stars, set them aside, whilst I made a simple meringue mixture: 1 egg white; 70grams caster sugar; 1 tsp corn flour; 1 tsp white vine vinegar. I separated it into three and added strawberry flavouring to one, peppermint to another, and lemon to the last.

I got three syringes (left over from the Cherry Bombs) and filled each with a different meringue mixture. I injected a couple of stars, being carful with how much went in, as the meringue filling would expand during cooking. I also had to be careful that they weren’t sat around for too long between the injecting and popping into the oven phase, as the liquidly filling inside would start dissolving the paper. Before they went into the oven, I gave them a quick brushing of natural food colouring mixed with honey and sugar to give them a slight glazed exterior.

They didn’t take longer then 5 minuets, and came out with a crisp finish. I let them cool for another 5 minuets so that making the holes for the sugar spear was made easier.

I made the sugar spear by melting sugar in a pan, till it just started to turn a rich caramel colour. I then let it cool a little till it was just manageable to handle, and plied it to a spear shape. I must add that this was rather coincidental as I was initially trying to create this shape with a spoon, but as it cooled and stuck to my spoon, I tried to twist and pull it away, and thus… this rather perfect shape was created! I made a pierced the stars through with the needle from the syringe, then very carefully let the sugar spear follow through. This was a very delicate job.

Well, it’s not really a filling desert as such, but it was rather fun to create. It’s quite remarkable what can actually be done with edible paper. Used with the right vegetable ink, edible paper can leave suspended txt/images in jelly. This looks very impressive, but is actually really quite simple. You can also buy edible ink (not for all printer types, mainly inkjet Canons and HPs), which doesn’t have the best quality finish, but does mean you could possibly eat a picture of yourself!!! Homaro Cantu’s restaurant in Chicago, Moto, prides itself on being a futuristic, postmodern eating experience, by using inkjet printing on edible paper in their recipes/inventions. Diners order from, then eat the edible menu which is made of parmesan-flavored rice paper which has been imprinted with edible soy ink. Puffed rice and freeze-dried shallots frame the menu, which sits on bed of crème fraiche. Once the presentation has been admired and the food ordered, the “menu” is stirred up and becomes the first course of risotto. Sounds mental… looks it too. Here’s a link to their website: http://www.motorestaurant.com/ . It’s defiantly worth a gander if molecular gastronomy is your kind of thing. Happy Eatings!

THE ULTI-MELT BLT

2010-09-06T21:41:00.001+08:00

Everyone loves a good BLT, and I’m sure there are a few interesting takes on the classic. I have quite a few: BLT with a healthy spreading of Philly; BLT with dried onions; BLT with mustard and mayo; BLT with a generous dollop of Nando’s sauce…. But this is all dependent on what’s in the fridge really. It’s good to improvise I find. A good veggie take is Baco Bits instead of actual bacon… it’s surprisingly yummy, but nothing compared to real bacon. I have sampled a lot of bought BLTs and none come close to Pret’s. I think it’s the generous filling that does it for me. The equal amount of bacon to tomato and lettuce and the creamy mayo all in between two wholegrain multi seeded buttered slices. I also recommend Madison’s (New Cross). They have a “special BLT” which has the addition of coleslaw, and if you ask, red onion too. The problem with shop bought BLTs is that they tend to use streaky bacon, and as crispy as it is, it’s not as good as a proper rasher of salty, meaty, porkyness. A nice rasher of bacon gives a fullness to the sandwich, so a home made BTL wins hands down, any day for me. It’s something that I think requires a bit of time and dedication. So before my cousin’s engagement do on Sunday, I knocked up a few hearty sandwiches to see us through the day. It didn’t help with getting into our saris, but it kept us content till dinner.

The four essential ingredients: Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, and the Bread, have to be of reasonably good quality. I used free range, beechwood smoked English dry cures back rashers, from Hampshire Bores. Their meat is known for its tenderness and taste. I got my tomatoes and gem lettuces from the local farm shop. The multi seed bread was bought the day before from our local baker. It really isn’t very expensive to ensure the use of good quality food, it just requires a bit of effort and it’s well worth it in the end. My additions were: Camembert cheese, shallots in balsamic vinegar, oxford sauce and mayonnaise. Oxford sauce is difficult to describe. It’s a little bit like HP sauce, but not really. It goes well with mayo. The BLT works well, cause it has the saltiness from the bacon, the crunch from the lettuce, and the tomato acts as a flavour combiner and natural sauce creator. There are so many things that work well with each element of the sandwich that makes combinations limitless. Like cheese, mayo and butter. All quite fatty, but they go well with the salt from the bacon. The freshness of the salad leaves and tomato cut through the salty fattiness, and cleanse the pallet, ready for the next bite. The shallots were caramelised in balsamic vinegar to rid of any acidity and make them a little sweeter. Shallots tend to crisp up a little to, so also add a bit of texture as well as taste.

To cook my bacon, I got my griddle pan out, turned the heat up on the gas, put a little oil in the pan once it got hot, then once it started to smoke, I placed my bacon rashers down. I gave them less then 30 seconds on each side, took then off and placed to sit whilst I got on with toasting my bread. If I were feeling really naughty, I would have got my toasted bread and soaked it in the bacon juices in the pan. But instead of this, I toasted my multi-seeded bread in the grill, then spread on my special oxford-mayo sauce. I then began the stack:

For food porn lovers… here’s a close up….

Right, so I closed the sandwich… sat down with a big cup of tea and took my time over enjoying ever bite. My mother wasn’t very happy, but she’s a vegetarian and got a cream cheese and salad sandwich. “Why are you taking pictures of your sandwich? We’re already running late.” She did have a point. But it was so yummy, I could have had another one… oh well, till the next BLT… Happy Eating!

DRYING FRUIT… THE EASY WAY… AND SOME

2010-09-03T04:29:00.002+08:00

As Autumn comes around the corner, and as less fresh fruit is in season, a good way of preserving the tastes of summer fruits is simply drying them out. I’ve had quite a few apricots and peaches I bought from a local farm in Olney sat in my fruit bowl. I was planning on doing something with them, but just couldn’t make my mind up on what. So a few days passed, and I started to notice my organic apricots were starting to become a little over ripe. I needed to take drastic action. I didn’t want to make apricot jam, as it seemed clichéd and there wasn’t much left to the imagination after the jamming process. So I looked into other preserving methods, and drying seemed the most obvious. Now, the dried fruit you by from the shops tends to have been through a really long soaking and drying process, which I just didn’t have the means of recreating. They also then to have a lot of added sugar in them which takes away from the actual sweetness of the fruit. So I looked into other more traditional ways of drying, but this requited a hot, dry outdoor climate… not going to happen. But I could try and create a hot, dry environment with my oven. This, I found out, could be done by turning the oven up to a very modest temperature of 60°C and leaving the oven door slightly ajar. Also, to ensure the fruits dried evenly, they had to placed on the lower shelf, and straight onto the rack. The cooking process is long, and dependent on how big/dense the fruit pieces are and on how “dry” you want your fruit. All fruit before drying in the oven needs to be preserved in some kind of sugary preserving solution. In mine, I dissolved 1 part sugar and 1 part honey to some water. I placed on the hob till it bubbled and reduced. I then added the pitted and halved apricots and let them sit in the solution for 2 minutes. I removed and placed on my wire rack in the oven. I was initially planning on keeping them in the oven for 6 hours, but after this time, I realised I needed to push the fleshy part of the fruit up a little and let it dry out a little more for a further 2 hours.

Long, yes. But it is well worth it. The flavours are even more concentrated and the skin becomes wonderfully chewy. My apricots were finished by 10 in the evening, and as I had a little munch on my dried fruit whilst watching Top Chef… I had a little brain wave, that just wouldn’t leave the circulating thoughts in my head…. Peach Meringue Roulade. I had all the ingredients… I needed to make it reality. Crisp, but spongy meringue, peach jam, honey vanilla cream, topped with flaked almonds and chopped dry, chewy apricots! I set about making it:

Meringue Base:
5 Egg Whites
300g Organic Unrefined Caster Sugar
3 tbsp Cornflour
1 tbsp White Wine Vinegar

To make the meringue base, I whisked the egg whites till they got to the soft peak stage. I then whisked in the vinegar and gradually added in the cornflour and sugar. The meringue mixture is ready when I becomes glossy and very stiff. I spread out the mixture as evenly as possible at approximately an inch thick on a large piece of greaseproof paper, and then placed in the oven on the middle shelf at 160°C for 15 min. I then turned the temperature down to 110°C for a further 20 min. Once completed, I took it out of the oven to cool.

Peach Jam:
4 Plump Peachy Organic Peaches
200g Organic Unrefined Caster Sugar
4 tbsp Lemon Juice

I firstly got my peaches and scored a cross on the bottom of them. I placed them in boiling water for a couple of minuets. I then removed them and instantly placed them in a bowl of iced water. This process helps making removing the skin a lot easier.

Once skinned, I chopped them up and placed in a saucepan along with the sugar and lemon juice. I read somewhere once, that to keep the colour of any jam, it needs to be cooked on a high heat, and very quickly. So all in all, once blitzed and allowed to bubble, I let it reduce and cook for no longer the 15 minuets. I let it cool by an open window. Once cooled, it becomes more viscous and more jam like. I spread this on the turned-upside-down meringue.

Dried fruit:
I decided to chop up some of my dried apricots to use in my roulade. So I carefully removed, chopped and separated the chewy skin parts and the fleshy inner parts for the apricots. The skins to be used as a topping on the roulade, and the fleshy part to be mixed in with the cream.

Honey, Vanilla, Apricot Cream:
1 Pot Double Cream
1 Pot Crème Fraiche
1 Vanilla Pod
3 tbsp of Honey
10 Fleshy Halves of Apricots
200g Organic Unrefined Icing Sugar

I whisked the cream and crème fraiche together till it became thick. I then mixed in the vanilla seeds, the honey and the apricot halves. I slowly sieved in the icing sugar which I thought I decided to add to give the cream mixture more stiffness… but it became a little more watery at this stage which was worrying. I let it set in the fridge for a good half hour, and nothing changed. It was getting late, so I decided to pour the cream out over the meringue anyways and let it set. I waited another 30 minuets.

The time was coming closer to 2am, and my patience was running thin. I was starting to feel a little tired and run down by the long cooking process. Surely I had the patience to wait, especially after all this hard work…

What can I say. Impatience got the best of me. It was purely a moment of impulse, and if I was thinking straight I would have known, Icing sugar takes a good hour to set properly. I knew it was a destructive reckless moment and there was no way of mending my now very sorry looking roulade.

I was very very upset, but all I could do was make best of what I had. So I plated it up as well as I could, sprinkled my toasted flaked almonds and dried apricot skins over the top. It didn’t look very nice, but it tasted absolutely delicious! It was tangy, sour, creamy, crunchy and so very naturally sweet. They honey and vanilla cream complimented the peach jam very well. The meringue sponge was the right density, but still lovely and crisp on the outside. It was lovely. I think next time I will have to either exclude the icing sugar… or just be more patient, as the next day when I opened my fridge to get some milk, I noticed the cream in the roulade had set nicely to the right consistency… oh well. Made a nice change from Weetabix. Happy Eating!

KEFTA & EGG TAJINE

2010-08-24T06:20:00.003+08:00

The one thing I have always longed to cook with is the Moroccon tajine. Before my trip to Marrakesh this summer, I had only seen the tajine on cooking shows or in the odd Moroccan restaurant in London. I believe the first time I had tried a tajine was at Sidi Maarouf on Edgware Road. It was a lamb tajine with sticky dates and almonds. The ceremony of bringing out the large beautifully decorated tajine, then having it opened in front of you, with the hot steamy aromas of the lamb being wafted over to you, and amongst the steam and simmering bubbles lies the meat surrounded by the most amazing looking self amalgamated juices. I knew then, that the lamb I was about to devour was going to be more special then any lamb had before. It was truely epic. It’s a way of cooking that has to be admired. The deign hasn’t changed for centuries. How does it work? Well, the cone lid isn’t just aesthetic. It increases the surface area for condensation. So as the contents steams and cooks slowly over a low flame, any evaporated moisture hits the lid then drops back down mix and basting at the same time.

When in Marrakesh I sampled a lot of different tajine dishes. I’m not going to lie; I did start to get a little annoyed at the lack of choice when I came to dishes cooked in the tajine. Such a perfect way of cooking but such lack in variety? So one day when wondering through the souk we were invited into a stately home which was also open to the public with a restaurant at the back. We walked in and were amazed at the sheer size of the place. It was a little dated, a lot of faded browns and lime greens trying to fit in with the original traditional Moroccan architecture. We were shown a few pictures of old Morocco and given a short history in the city’s development from the early 20th Century. The young boy giving the tour was clearly opposed to the booming tourism in Marrakesh and Morocco’s reliance on it for a stable economy. After the tour, I felt a little ashamed to be a tourist. I felt a little disgusted at having been sucked into a lot of what we thought was the “real” Morocco, but really, another money making scam aimed at tourists by deceiving money making Moroccans. After the tour, we were led to the Riad (court yard) where the resturant was and offered lunch. We accepted as it was a good chance to sit somewhere cool and out of the sun. Also beacuse it seemed like we were the only visitors they’d had all day, and they seemed like such nice people. So as we sat down and looked through the menu, I was glad not to see yet another chicken in preserved lemon tajine. There wasn’t much choice, so we ordered the Kefta and Egg tajine. I like a good kefta, and I was willing to see what they had to offer in the kefta department. Egg seems like an unlikely accompliment, but I felt a little daring and open to new things. I really had no idea what to expect. And like most things on holiday, the unexpected turned out to be truly memorable and a definite highlight of our eating experiences. And because of that, I felt it appropriate to recreate that very dish in my new fez style tajine. After much research and testing, I have come up with a dish that I think tastes pretty similar, if not a little better too.

To make the Kefta:

500g finely ground lamb
1 white onion, grated
A small bunch of flat leaf parsley
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cayenne pepper
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Firstly I got my dried spices and ground them all together in a pestle and mortar. I then fried off my grated onion in a bit of sunflower oil till it turned a nice golden brown. It’s important to fry the onion off properly as any liquids released whilst in the kefta will cause the balls to fall apart during cooking. I then added the spices with the heat off, but the pan still warm, so the spices didn’t burn. I added the parsley and let to cool by an open window.

Once cooled, I added the onion mixture to the ground mince. Using my hands, I mixed it all together then left it in the fridge to sit whilst I made the sauce.

To make the sauce:

1 tbsp ghee/butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large white onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, sliced
Half inch of ginger, peeled and chopped
1 red chilli, sliced
2 green chillies, sliced
2 fresh tomatoes with pips removed, chopped
1 tbsp tomato puree
2 tsp turmeric
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
Juice of one lemon
Small bunch of parsley, chopped

3 eggs, whisked

In a non-stick pan, I first fried off the onions, garlic, ginger and chillies in the ghee and olive oil till the onion started to turn golden brown. I then added the chopped tomatoes and tomato puree and cooked it off till the tomatoes made a sauce and were not so distinguishable as bits. I then added the dried spices; turmeric, cumin and coriander. Once I had cooked off the spices, I added half a cup of water and let the mixture come up to a boil before adding the lemon juice. I let this simmer for around 20minutes to allow all the ingredients to mingle, and get to know each other. As this happened, I got my mince out of the fridge and started to form little kefta balls no bigger then golf balls. I transferred the sauce into my tajine and placed the balls in and around the sauce. I covered it with the lid and placed it in a preheated oven at 170°c for an hour and a half.

I also made a Moroccon salad to go with it. The salad adds a nice crunch and is a quite refreshing side for a dish with a lot of spice.

Moroccon Salad:

Half a cucumber, cored and finely chopped
1 green pepper, finely chopped
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 red chilli, finely chopped
Sunflower seeds
Small bunch of parsley, finely chopped
Juice of half a lemon
Ground cumin

Mix all the ingredients together. Unlike most salads, it’s actually quite nice to squeeze the lemon and mix in the cumin and leave it in the fridge for a few hours. I wouldn’t leave it more then 6 hours though.

We also had cumin bread with it. Any bread is fine, even rice or cous cous would be good.

I got the recipe from: http://www.ichef.com/recipe.cfm/recipe/Alexandrian%20Cumin%20Bread/itemid/75238/task/display/recipeid/74901/recipecategoryid/36.

When cooking with a tajine, it is essential that the tajine is not opened during the cooking process. This requires a lot of patience. It’s pretty difficult to burn things with the tajine. Although, there are two different types of tajine: the heavier clay tajine, which is suitable for gas top cooking. This kind of tajine needs to be treated before use. As this kind of tajine is in direct contact with the heat, there is sometimes the chance of burning on the bottom. It’s not necessarily a bad thing though, as whist in Marrakesh, a burnt bottom was my favourite bit to scrape at with bread. I bought an oven safe tajine, which had already been treated and glazed. These types of tajines are lighter, and easier to transport back home. They are not suitable for gas tops, and therefore not exposed to direct heat, so not very likely to burn. The tajine is also very very hot when it comes out of the oven, and contains the heat for a good period of time, so care has to be taken. Especially when placing on certain surfaces, as I learnt the hard way (melted my plastic chopping board!) If you don’t own a tajine, it’s really easy to make most dishes in clay pots, or even in ovenproof dishes, just make sure it’s covered and sealed well.

The time came to removed the tajine from the oven. I opened the lid… and I can not even begin to describe how amazing it smelt. I poured the whisked eggs over the sauce with the keftas still poking through. I placed the lid back on and put it back in the oven for 15 minuets.

Once the egg was cooked through, I sprinkled a handful of chopped parsley over the top, and served. There was also the option of Greek yogurt for those who found it a little too hot. Personally it wasn’t needed. Like most Moroccan dishes, instead of being spicy, the dish was more aromatic. There were quite a few fragrant spices in the keftas that were echoed through into the sauce, and this worked really well. The soft bread and fresh salad worked as perfect sides.

It defiantly took me back to the stately house in Marrakech with it’s 70s Moroccon décor and outdated furnishings, and it made me realise… this dish is oddly rather retro too. The whisked egg covering the unassumed sauce with the little brown keftas popping through. It reminded me of those gluten free pies I'd once and been appalled by in an Atkins cook book. Maybe the menu in the restaurant hadn’t changed since the 70s. I hadn’t seen this recipe in any other restaurant whilst on holiday. I even had a lot of difficulty finding it on the internet. A similar recipe with a whole cracked egg was more common, and understandably, but that’s not how I had it. Maybe this dish was popular back then with the beginning of tourism in Morocco, and maybe like the remaining charming interior, the menu is still stuck in time. A time that saw the beginning of change in Marrakech… for better or worse is debatable, but for the people who owned this stately house, they were clearly happy with the way things were.

As nice as the dish was, my soul purpose for buying the tajine is for its amazing slow cooking abilities. I don’t think it should just be restricted to cooking Moroccon food, but anything that would be good slow cooked – vegetables, joints of meat, casseroles, curries, maybe even soups. A whole world of tajine cooking awaits me and I’m really really excited! Happy Eatings! : )

Potato & Nutmeg Ice Creams

2010-08-16T22:31:00.003+08:00

I’ve never really had much appreciation for ice creams. I’ve always tended to favour more substantial desserts if I had the choice. One reason for this is my sensitive teeth situation: biting into cold solid ice-creams leaves my mouth feeling numb, my fingers feeling sticky and my teeth zinging with pain. But all this was put behind me when I had my first ever Italian Galati. A creamy, silky, rich scoop of melon and passion fruit galatia saw the beginning of my love affair with ice creams. It opened up my world to the many different possible flavours out there and even more exciting, the combinations! I started replacing my shopping break coffees with galatias, picking a different flavour each time. This even continued back in England. Despite an erratic summer and the lack of sun, I was spending money which would otherwise have be spent on alcohol, on ice-creams and lolly pops. I rediscovered childhood favourites like Mr Whippy, Mint Choc Chip, Solaro, and even Milk Ice Creams. When I felt like being adventurous I’d pick the most colourful or most bizarre looking ice cream; discovering the more unusual flavours like Pistachio, Chilli, Saffron, Blue Diamond, Macaroon, and Oreo Cheesecake. Yep, there are so many possibilities when I come to ice creams, you could be well spoilt for choice.

So one day, after having a very unusual conversation with a friend about how surprisingly nice cold mash potato is, and then coincidentally coming across a recipe for purple yam ice-cream that very same day, I decided to embark on making potato ice-cream. I could have well used sweet potato, yam, or cassava, but I happened to have left over boiled potatoes in the fridge from lunch so I used them

It was rather late at night when I decided to make this, so had to work with what I had in the fridge. I decided just potato wouldn’t hack it, so needed something suitable to work with the texture and ordinary taste of your standard potato. I decided to play it safe and use nutmeg. So in a bowl I popping in boiled, skinned and chopped up potatoes; single cream; unsalted butter; caster sugar; and a pinch of nutmeg. As it was rather late and my mum was asleep upstairs, I thought it rude to wake her up by using the food processer. So the considerate person that I am, I took the hard route and mashed up all the ingredients together with a fork. This was very very hard work. So I got out a sieve and pressed it through so the mixture had no lumps and was smooth, but not too runny. I wanted to keep the texture of the potato so added enough cream to make it silky, but not too smooth so it resembled the consistency of clotted cream. I put it in a tub and let it set, mixing it every 30 min. But as it was rather late, I only managed to mix it twice before hitting the sack.

The next morning I woke up in much excitement. I ran down stairs, went into the kitchen, opened the freezer, opened the freezer drawer, took out my ice-cream tub… and it looked normal! Thank heavens! I got a spoon scrapped at the top layer… normal again. Then I put a bit in my mouth. Interesting… tasted like cold mash potato, but sweeter. The nutmeg came through and worked well with the creamy potato texture. It did feel more dense then normal ice-creams, but the smoothness counteracted this buy melting evenly on the tongue. Overall it was a pretty good breakfast. The more I ate, the more I enjoyed the complexity of the simple flavours. Next time, I’d probably improve it by adding another layer of flavour to it instead of nutmeg. I'd keep the smooth texture of the potato though as it made the ice cream rich and creamy. So maybe to replace the nutmeg I'd add ground up cashew nuts or even almonds. Maybe even using cashew nut/almond milk instead of cream. Till then I think my potato and nutmeg ice cream was probably the most unexpectedly rewarding ice cream I’ve eaten this summer and I really do recommend it. Happy Eatings!

Suini Sudato (Sweaty Pigs)

2010-06-07T05:02:00.001+08:00

Don’t be put off by the name. Basically posh pigs in blankets or for the more common person, like me and you, posh sausage rolls. I chose the name as sausage rolls, or pigs in blankets, tend to be associated with colder periods of the year. Heavy and baked, they are best eaten warm, and preferably in large portions. This is where my sweaty pigs differ… my love for sausage rolls is a round the year affair, and preferring The Cornish Pasty Shop’s warm, flaky and butter recipe. I have sampled a fair few sausage rolls in my time, but haven’t found a single one that’s more adventurous with their filling. I recently came across a recipe for pork and brambly apple rolls, and this gave me some confidence to come up with my very own pork mixture. I wanted a filling that would compliment good quality pork, but also be light on the palate.

I wanted to use puff pastry instead of flaky pastry, so it would be lighter but still buttery. I chose a filling of red onion, balsamic, parsley and mozzarella. An Italian filling, hence the Italian name. I heard an Italian friend say this recently and thought it the perfect name for my new recipe. It was important to chop up the red onion as fine as possible, and sweat them down properly. I them added the balsamic and made a thick reduction. I added this to lean pork mince mixed with bread crumbs, chopped parsley, salt and pepper. I was in a bit of a dilemma as how to add the mozzarella: if served warm, it would have been better to have added a strip of mozzarella on top of the pork mixture before rolling in the pastry. But as they were being served cold out doors, I decided to break it up and add it to the pork mixture. Which was a good in a way, as it was a beautiful ball of mozzarella, not the stringy type typically found on commercial pizza, but soft and moist.

So all mixed up and allowed to rest in the fridge for an hour, I got the pastry ready (ready made off course). I wanted the rolls to be two bits sized, so it was easier to manage. The small size meant that each bit had a crispy end where the pasty went extra crusty and the meat went nice and brown. I brushed on some melted butter on the top, then placed in the oven for 15 mins at 170 °C. They acted as more of a snack and went down really well along side my mum’s chilli chutney and a glass of bubbly. I defiantly recommend making your own sausage rolls. It really is easy, and even if you don’t want to make your own filling, use your favorite sausage, remove the skin and place in bought pastry, roll, brush with butter/egg wash and put in the oven. It’s so simple, and better then any bought sausage roll. You’ll never go back. Trust me. Happy eatings : )

KADHI KACHORI

2010-05-15T20:19:00.004+08:00

Kadhi is a north Indian soup dish typically eaten with a meal. It’s made from yogurt and gram flour and has a variety of spices in it to give it a distinct flavour. Every house hold has a different way of making kadhi, and a different concoction of spices that goes into the soup. When back home, we have kadhi a couple of times a week. Said to be good for your insides due to the yogurt, turmeric and spices, warm kadhi is also supposed to be a good way of cooling down in the hot Indian sun. Classic complements include dhal and pigeon peas. Kachori is a popular Indian fried snack; in my case only eaten on special occasions. A fried dough ball, with a range of different fillings including peas, dhal, or even meat. I decided I should learn how to make kachori, because I’ve found it rather hard to find a good enough ready made kachori. So I did some research and asked my mum how she makes her kachori. Her filling of peas, onions and mustard seeds are really nice eaten simply straight from the fryer. This is mainly because of the thin layer of pastry she manages to create, with a generous filling. But most frozen varieties have more dough to filling ratio resulting in a doughy, not crunchy surrounding, and therefore requiring ketchup or chilly sauce to dip in to making it less dry and easier to swallow.

So why combine the two? Well, it has never been done before, and when the flavour combinations are an Indian classic why the hell not? It could almost be like an Indian dumpling soup. I chose to fill the kachori with both dhal, peas and a variety of spices. Having just dhal or just peas as the filling would make it far too dense, so the combination would keep things more interesting and lighter on the palate.

So to begin, I had to make kadhi. I started of by adding:
8 Cups water
4 Cups of natural Yogurt
1 Cup Gram Flour
Generous Pinch of salt
1 Chillie chopped finely
½ inch of Ginger grated
2 teaspoons of turmeric

This has to be stirred or whisked thoroughly over a medium heat to prevent the yogurt from splitting and till the gram flour is cooked through. At this point the mixture will begin to boil. The kadhi will have thickened and taken on the consistency of double cream. The kadhi should be left to simmer whilst the spices are prepared.

So the list of spices to flavour our kadhi can be changed to suit individual preference. The spices are fried in ghee (clarified butter) in a separate pan. This is then added to the kadhi to give it it’s distinctive flavour. In my mum’s kadhi, she puts in order: broken cinnamon sticks and cloves; she then adds the cumin and mustard seeds till they start to pop; the garlic is added next till it turns a golden brown; then the asafetida; then the nim leaves and then the coriander. The kitchen will fill up with the most aromatic smell and just before the coriander starts to discolour, add it to the kadhi. The kadhi is then ready to be consumed. Add a little bit more salt if needed.

So whilst the kadhi sat, I got on with making the kachori. I started by making a simple dough of; 4 Cups Plain flour; 4 Tablespoons Sun Flower Oil; pinch of salt; and mixed together with warm water till a soft dough was formed. I left this for 30 mins with a cloth over the top.

So whilst the dough was left to sit, I got on with the kachori filling. I let a cup full of split dhal soak in enough water to cover for 10 minuets. I then added a cup full of frozen peas, aniseed, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and a pinch of salt to the dhal. I added ¼ of a cup of water and put in a pressure cooker to let cook for around 20 minuets. After the whistle blew, I let the mixture cool down then added some fresh coriander, mustard seeds and a little bit of chili powder.

So once the mixture was cooled down, I began making the kachori. It is vital to wait till the filling is cooled, so the dough doesn’t become soggy. It also prevents holes when frying. Also remember to have a well floured surface to work on, so the dough doesn’t stick.

They don’t take very long to fry, approximately 6minuets, just till the dough goes crispy golden. The choice of shape is purely aesthetic. Traditional kachori is normally round but, you can be a little creative with this. Try and keep the pastry around it as thin as possible, so you don’t have uncooked dough after frying. It can be eaten just as it is, but in this case I rather enjoyed having it with the kadhi. Not only did they compliment each other will, but it was a more interesting way of eating two of my most favorite Indian comfort foods. Happy Eatings!

Salmon, Fennel, Orange and Olive Salad...

2010-05-11T03:45:00.002+08:00

Eating out is all well and good, but even better is trying out dishes tasted and enjoyed in restaurants. Not only is it a chance to change things to ones preference; but it also gets the brain and taste buds working. So inspired by a recent trip to Milan, and after a whole week of eating pizza and pasta, I decided to make a salad I tried and was pleasantly surprised by in a wonderful little restaurant near Milano Corso Genova. I find that when on holiday; one gets a little bit adventurous and daring; especially when ordering from a menu written in a foreign language. I find a good way of trying something new, and something you would never make at home is to abide by a rather childish method of making a decision – ip dip do. Yep, this is a great way of “living on the edge”... that is if the decision is stuck by. Granted, it can be problematic for unadventurous types, but in most cases I have found myself being rather impressed. So, as our lovely Italian waitress was trying her hardest to explain what every single dish on the menu was in broken English, and as my cousins were trying their best to remember what she was saying, I had my heart dead set on the “pink fish and citrus salad.” I couldn’t wait. I had been so disappointed with previous meals for not living up to Italian expectations. Bland Bolognese and sloppy pizzas: I’d had enough! The restaurant was packed and the service was slow, so I picked on the soft, warm bread and sipped on my sparkling wine, careful not to fill myself up or damage my taste buds with the alcohol before my gastronomic experience. A whole day of shopping, walking and poor eating had left a gapping big hole in my stomach and I knew after my four course meal, my little black dress would not look as good as it did when I first walked into the restaurant. This better be worth it...

And it was! When the dish was placed in front of me, I knew instantly from the aniseedy, salmon fresh smell that I was in for a treat. I’m not normally a salad kinda girl, but when good ingredients are used and the salad is more about the celebration of good favours rather than a slimming way to fill one’s self up, I approve. So this wonderful piece of art; at 6 o’clock sat 4 small, but perfectly sized chunks of cured salmon, rolled in dill. At 12 o’clock, a salad of wild leaves with thin slices of fennel, dotted with dark black, firm and plump olives. On top, sat skinned, juicy orange segments, so flavoursome, a dressing of only olive oil was needed to dress the salad along with the juices from the orange. I took my time and enjoyed every mouthful, knowing too well, that this dish could never be recreated back in England the same way. It had a distinctive Italian taste to it, be it the fruity olive oil or even the crisp wild leaves. But it didn’t stop me.

I had the taste in my mouth, and a few days after getting back, I decided to make it as best I could. Late night shopping in Sainsburys is always disappointing, as stocks are low and the most ugliest vegetables tends to be left lonely in the crates. Even worse, there was no salmon, only trout. If it wasn’t for Shakespeare and Shopping (a week of evening shopping combined with immersive theatre in Sainsburys New Cross ), I would have left very angry, cooked very angry and eaten very angry. And if one thing should be remembered it’s - “Food eaten in anger turns to poison in the stomach”- we don’t want this. So I had to work with what I had. Surely a good cook works with what they’ve got and makes it taste good. Maybe this salad will have a distinctive “London” taste to it? So I set to work; Prepped my salad; sliced fennel very thinly and placed over leaves, sliced the trout and layered on top; skinned orange segments (very messy, and rather fruitless due to the poor quality of oranges, but I used as much juice as possible to dress the salad); I added a few olives over the top and sprinkled with dill. To finish off, instead to olive oil, I used Balsamic vinegar with a hint of orange. Done. It did smell and look good, but the proof was in the tasting. And no word of a lie, i was impressed with myself. It didn’t have the distinctive Italian taste like the salad in the restaurant, but it did have something. Something uniquely special. Maybe it was holiday nostalgia. Maybe it was the perfect balance of sweet and sour from the orange, smooth from the trout, the bite from the olives, the fresh crunch from the fennel and the aftertaste of the balsamic. It all worked in harmony, just like the salad in Milan, but this time distinctively different to anything I had ever tasted. I would defiantly make it again. I think it’s a beautifully summery dish.

Next time, I may substitute the orange for a blood orange, maybe even try some grated and dried beetroot, and leave the dill out, as the fennel adds enough flavour. I will also get better ingredients, maybe even go further afield then Sainsburys, just because a salad this good deserves equally good ingredients. Happy Eatings : )

THE CHERRY BOMB!

2010-04-18T05:01:00.002+08:00

I like Bloody Marys, I can’t really see why so many people disapprove. Bloody Marys are not drunk enough in my opinion. I suppose the Bloody Mary is more then often the choice of drink for most middle-aged women or alcoholics concerned with their nutritional intake. It’s not very trendy, and requires a taste for raw tomatoes. It is disputed as to where the cocktail’s name actually came from; either Queen Mary I, infamous for her bloody killings; or Mary Pickford an early Hollywood actress famed for her red locks. I prefer the first, but highly doubt it, as cocktails were invented in America during the Prohibition, also around the same time as the beginning of Hollywood. I think a bit of history helps in gaining appreciation.

What goes into a Bloody Mary can vary. The best Bloody Mary I’ve tasted had: Tomato Juice, Vodka, Tobasco, pepper, wasabi, Worcestershire Sauce, lime, a salt rimmed glass and lots and lots of ice. I don’t understand why and where the celery stick comes into the Bloody Mary equation. I really don’t like raw celery, it’s rabbit food and should be left out. In my opinion it does nothing for the drink apart from getting in the way and tickling my nose with it’s spawning futile leaves. Why leave the leaves on? Is it so hard to chop them off? It’s impractical and a nuisance… in fact the whole stick is. Get rid of it. Leave it for making stock. Rant over…

I want to show people Bloody Mary’s are actually great. But I need to serve it in a way people wouldn’t normally associate with a typical Bloody Mary, as the tomato juice and celery stick can be very off putting. So I’ve had this idea in my head for a while, but never really thought it actually possible to execute well. You never know till you try I suppose. I wanted to create an eatable Bloody Mary shot using cherry tomatoes as my self containing shot. To get the alcohol inside the tomato, I used a needle and a syringe. I bought this online, as it’s not possible to buy over the counter from the pharmacist.

So in my mixture went:

I had a few problems with the pepper, and had to result in grinding it up in a coffee grinder. I kept it in the freezer so it was really cold and an extra surprise when bitten into. It also makes the vodka easier to stomach and makes the spicier ingredients less intense. I was debating whether to heat the mixture up, but think it may be too strong, and could leave a nasty taste in the mouth.

I injected the tomatoes, but had to be really careful not to over fill them. My syringe allowed for the maximum of 50ml. I put around 5ml in each cherry tomato depending on its size. I put a third of the tomatoes in the freezer, a third in the fridge and the other third served straight away. I wanted to see which batch tasted the best.

So I had my cherry tomatoes all set, but they didn’t seem special enough. I thought about how best to serve them and concluded, that, if they’re a bomb they need a shot glass in keeping with the theme in which to serve them. I thought some more and came up with the idea of a cannon shot mug. So I went about designing and making a “cannon shot mug”, big enough to contain an average sized cherry tomato. Okay… so I know cannons don’t shoot out bombs, but cannon bearings, but in this case my cannon shot mug contains a cherry bomb. Cannons and bombs are both instruments of distraction, and this is what I want to get across with my presentation. Lets say a bloody presentation for a bloody concept. After all, the Bloody Mary could have been named after the Queen of bloody acts, Queen Mary I.

So I served it up to some friends, who found the whole think ridiculous… until they tried it. I don’t think any of my food has ever created such excitement. The first batch of Cherry Bombs were cold, and even after a while of sitting out retained its cold temperature. The fridge batch was the best, cold in the mouth and colder when bitten into. The freezer batch was way too cold for my sensitive teeth although the inside was brilliantly cold. There wasn’t quite enough to get drunk on, but it was fun and even more fun to see people’s reactions when biting into the Cherry Bomb! Happy Eatings : )

VIETNAMESE BONE MARROW SPRING ROLLS

2010-04-15T18:28:00.002+08:00

Bone marrow. Are we actually meant to eat it? Does it actually taste good? How does one cook it? Well this is all dependant on the individual. I love bone marrow. I love sucking the marrow out of the bone (especially if it’s been cooked for a while in a stew or curry), and I believe, if you enjoy this, you have the acquired taste for marrow. The texture is a little bit like kidneys, and this can put some people off. The marrow is where all the goodness is, nutrients and favour. When a stock is made with a carcase, the marrow in the bone is where the essence of the beast is and this is what gives the stock it’s flavour. I can understand that some people may find it a rather gross concept, and that’s fine. But allow me to try and convince you marrow is worth trying. I have decided to do a Vietnamese Spring Roll recipe, but using calf’s leg bone marrow to add a subtle taste of beef within a fresh crunchy oriental salad filling.

Firstly I headed down to Deptford to visit the oriental supermarket and the butchers. I asked the butchers for a calf’s leg bone. This is something most butchers keep as scraps. He showed me the whole bone, but the sight of it scared me a little. It was huge! So I asked for him to cut it in two. He did. It still looked daunting. I asked if he could cut it so it’d be easier to remove the bone marrow. He cut each half down the middle, resulting in four cross sections. The best part was the cost, a whole £1.50. Lovely!

It is recommended the bones go in the oven on a high heat for 20 minuets, but as I had more surface area exposed, I decided to keep them in for 15 instead, allowing the marrow to really crisp up on the top. The bone is done when it has turned golden. Whilst the bone sat in the oven, I stated on the salad:

I cut the following ingredients into long thin strips (it’s nice to keep things consistent):

• Salted, drained Cucumber (leave the cucumber in a collider with salt to drain off moister
• Unripe mango
• Bean sprouts
• Mushrooms
• The whites of spring onions

For the dressing:

• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• Corriander
• Thai Basil
• Green Chillies (according to taste)
• Salt
• Pepper

Bone marrow:
• Scrapped out of the bone
• Chopped up as fine as possible

So I combined everything together, mixed it up really well, then set to work on the rice papers. These can be tricky buggers if not done right. Some people suggest letting the papers sit in warm water till they soften up, and use as appropriate. I don’t like this technique, I find it rather fiddly. So I got a plate and a cup of warm water; I place the dried rice paper on the plate and using my hand “massaged” 2 tbsp of the water into the paper till malleable. I then take my rice paper and start to roll. After many tried and tested methods of rolling, this is my preferred choice:

After rolled, they can be fried in a tiny bit of oil, to allow the skin to crisp up a little, but I decided to serve them as they were. I do advise leaving them to sit in the fridge for a bit, so they dry out and also have a clean, fresh crunch when bitten into. I toughly enjoyed my spring rolls, and so did my friends. I think it’s a good way of introducing the taste of bone marrow. I dare anyone to tell me they don’t like marrow done this way…. Happy eatings : )

WONDER-LAMB

2010-04-09T05:49:00.002+08:00

Like most people, I like a good roast. My meat of preference has to be lamb. Nothing beats a lovely cut of lamb, slowly cooked. Essential enhancements include the obvious rosemary or thyme; the sweet flavours of roasted garlic; the necessary aid of olive oil and maybe butter; salt and the debatable pepper…. and anchovies. Yep, anchovies. Fish and lamb is a bizarre combination, but anchovies are no ordinary fish. How does this work? Well, anchovies are in so many recipes, people sometimes don’t even realise. For example, it’s in Worcestershire Sauce; it’s also in most Caesar salad dressings. It appears (or doesn’t cause it’s hard to tell in some cases) in a lot of food. It acts as a flavour enhancer due to its salty quality, and because it’s so small, it tends to melt right down and leave no trace of fishiness. It’s defiantly one to try in spaghetti, or as I’ve done here, in a roast lamb.

I invested in a lovely cut of boneless shoulder of lamb. Around 950grams. The shoulder is not that expensive. As it comes rolled and tied in string, there is a good amount of fat going through the meat but still needs to be oiled/buttered well. There is the option of unrolling the meat, stuffing it and rolling it up again. This is great as shoulder can be quite tough, so stuffing can soften the meat and also help it take on some more flavour.

I started off by peeling 8 cloves of garlic and wrapping them in anchovies. I cut eight slots, four down each side of the piece of meat, being careful to cut only halfway deep. I stuffed each slot with my anchovies and garlic. This was satisfying. I can’t quite put my finger on why, but I think it might have something to do with the oily anchovies and the plump meat. Even more satisfying was rubbing the meat with a concoction of olive oil, rosemary, salt, pepper, and butter which I grinded together in a pestle and mortar. I like getting my hands messy, and massaging the meat and smelling the beautiful oils of the rosemary brought back memories…. Memories of the rosemary bush that sat outside my high school’s English department. The same bush I pushed a good friend into as a “friendly” joke. My poor friend smelt of rosemary all day, and when asked why she smelt of rosemary had to explain her unfortunate incident. For this I am very sorry.

So… anywho, I placed the lamb on two thickly sliced onions to help even cooking and flavour. My rule for cooking lamb is as follows; 15 minuets for every 450g, and an initial 20 minuets at the beginning in a pre heated oven at 230°c. The oven should be turned down to 180°c for the remaining cooking time. So in my case it went in for around an hour. I let it rest for a good 20 minuets. I cannot tell you how good the lamb was. The butter and the initial 20 minuets cooking time at a high temperature encouraged the fat on top of the meat to really crisp up. The anchovies disappeared, leaving a subtle and delicate salty flavour. The lamb was medium rare and was easy on the palette. Nothing’s worse then tough lamb that requires more energy to chew then gained when digested. A nicely cooked piece of meat deserves equally nice trimmings; honey mustard roasted carrots, parsnips; sweet red onions; crunchy trimmed beans; and my brother’s amazing roasted potatoes. From the meat came lovely juices to make a red wine jus. To help everything along was of course some mint sauce. Delightful. What more is there to say? TRY IT!!! Forget about anchovies on your dominos pizza, put them in your lamb. Happy eatings guys : )

MY TRIBUTE TO THE KRABBY PATTY

2010-04-07T10:22:00.003+08:00

I’m a big Sponge Bob fan. This is no secret. I know there are many out there who, like me, are a fans of the show. This is for you guys, and a tribute to the pure genius that is Sponge Bob Square Pants and it’s nautical nonsense.

So after watching so many Sponge Bob Square Pants episodes, one starts to wonder what a Krabby Patty actually tastes like. Every time a Krabby Patty gets served up, I wonder, what really is in those brown beauties? The idea of cartoon food is appetizing and one hungry afternoon whilst watching SBSP, I thought I should try make one. I thought about it, and thought, and thought some more, and couldn’t stop thinking about how I was going to make this patty. I had to do it justice. I had to make something that would actually make me feel like I was having a Krabby Patty at the Krusty Krabbs. For those who don’t know, Sponge Bob works in an underwater Fast Food resturant called the Krusty Krabb, owned by a crab called Mr Krabbs. The Krusty Krab’s most popular selling burger (aquivilant to a McDonald’s Big Mac) is the Krabby Pattie. Sponge Bob is the dedicated fry chef who gets to make them.

After having watched so many episodes of SBSP I have subconsciously memorized the contents of the burger. Lame? No. So here it is:

Burger Bun with sesame seeds, ketchup, mustard, mayo seahorse horseradish sauce, cheese, pickles, lettuce, tomato and the all important patty.

Okay, so I decided to go all out. I needed to find a recipe for a crab cakes suitable to put in this burger. I found a really simple and uncomplicated recipe for MaryLand Crab Cakes on http://www.crabcakeguy.com/crab-cake-recipes/. It looked simple enough, and that’s what I needed because there’s quite a lot going on in the burger, including cheese. From experience crab/fish cakes can have a few issues with holding together and keeping firm during the cooking process. It’s not pleasant to have a weak crumbly burger patty. It’s annoying and creates a mess. So I looked for a way to over come this. I have been told by my dad, putting raw onions into meatballs/kebabs/fish cakes etc weakens its structure due to the moisture released during cooking. A good way to get around this is by sweating the moister ingredients before adding them to the mixture. Another good tip is adding extra egg whites as it acts as a glue Delia suggests frying them for 3 minuets on each side (depending on the thickness of the patty) and to avoid disturbing them until the 3 minuets are up.

I made few changes by using white crab meat instead of imitation, adding coriander to make it less dense. I also wanted a golden bread crumb coating, so the usual threesome of flour, egg and bread crumbs were used. It’s important to point out that I also put bread crumbs in the mixture. I shallow fried the patties in a mixture of oil, butter and garlic.

My Version of Krabby Patties:
White Crab meat
Seasoned bread crumbs
Frying breadcrumbs
Plain Flour
1 large egg
Cup mayo
Worcestershire sauce
Dijon mustard
Corriander
Garlic
Salt
Pepper
Butter
Frying oil

So the secret ingredient? Well, this is debatable. Many people believe there is no actual secret formula. It is said the missing secret ingredient is actually just love. This, I think should be the case for most food, and it’d be a huge copout to accept love. One of my “secret” ingredients was lemon juice. It cut through the bulk of the crab patty, and lift the flavors of the crab, which may be drowned in the sauce. Not so much an ingredient as a some times forgotten part of the burger ceremony had to be toasted buns. Toasting only the cut side insures the bun doesn’t dry out and fall apart. It also means it gets less soggy form seeping sauces. I am also going to sear the sliced onions a little as raw onions can be over powering.

Also on the Krusty Krab’s “Krab Land” menu is Krabby Fries and Kelp Shake. This makes the Krabby Combo. I’m going to make normal deep fried fries but with a seaweed dusting. I always have problems with frying chips. Everyone has different methods. I am reading The Man Who Ate Everything, Steingarth, and he suggests the process of hardening. Like any strong iron, or steel frying pans would know, being heated, then suddenly cooled down and repeating this process a few times, results in a stronger material. This as it turns out, works the same for potatoes. So I peeled and sliced some waxy potatoes up into thin strips, washed and rinsed them under cold tap water for a good ten minuets. I fried them in sunflower oil in small batches on a medium high heat. I stained and de-greased them, then put them in the fridge for 30 mins. This was done three times. I crumbled up some nori seaweed and sprinkled it over the chips after the last fry. This acted as a substitute to both salt and pepper.

My Version of Krabby Fries:
Maris Pipers
Nori Seaweed
Sunflower oil

To drink? Kelp shake just wouldn’t have tasted very nice, so instead, I made a Kreamy Koconut Shake. I did this by blitzing together Swedish Glaze smooth vanilla ice cream with grated coconut and some full fat milk.

So the food’s sorted, but I wanted to go a little bit further. So I made some Krusty Krab Burger paper and a Krabby Fries Cup. The only thing that would have put me in a happier mood, would have been to watch an episode of Sponge Bob whilst eating my Krabby Combo, but instead, my house mate and my self ate our Krabby Combos whilst watching Eastenders. Happy eating!

The Water House

2010-04-03T00:54:00.002+08:00

A recent visit to The Water House on Regent's Canal, proved to be a gastronomical, educational and environmental experience. I had a essay to write about how I would turn a local eatery into a more ethical and sustainable environment. I did some research and found that London has a great collection of restaurants concerned with providing great food in comfortable surroundings, whilst lowering theirs and our CO2 footprints. Restaurants create a lot of waste, and this is a problem, not only for the environment, but also for the restaurant's efficiency. The Water House has won awards for coming up with smart ways to get around this. Every little detail has been carefully thought out to be as ethical as possible. How? Well, lets begin with the unique location. Situated right by Regents canal, and in a the middle of a newly built council block in Hackney, The Water House was part of a regeneration scheme started by The Shorditch Trust. The restaurant serves as a place for local people to come and enjoy a fine-dining experience, for a reasonable price. It also serves as a place for trainee eco-chefs to gain experience. Started by chefs from Jamie Oliver's 15, the strain is on making the chefs think more like gardeners as well as thinking like chefs. This hyper-breed, makes chefs more in tune with the seasonality of food and to think more locally. Food is sourced as local as possible. Most food, beer and wine is sourced within the London area. I got talking to our waitress and she told me even the rice is shipped over to cut down on CO2 emissions. Impressive? I think so. Especially as there was a good selection of food on the menu and everything ordered was a delight to my senses. Not only this, but i felt i was actually doing some good for once by eating out. The menu was laid out well, separating daily specials from monthly specials. For my first course, I order sour dough brochette with a selection of toppings. Once finished with my first course, the left over toppings were left on our table to be consumed at our own leisurely pace. This although, small would make all the difference to a restaurant.

Granted, The Water House aren't trying to win any Michelin stars, they want to create a relaxed environment, where people can come and enjoy good food. This couldn't be more different to a recent visit to The Princess of Shorditch, where although the food was sub-standered fine dinning, the atmosphere in there upstairs restaurant, was stiff, dingy and pretentious. I found i just couldn't let my self relax. I was even more disappointed when I had to fork out money for food i didn't really even enjoy and even more so for feeling unsatisfied. The Water House on the other hand is value for money. The bill did come out to £60, but this was for three courses, a glass of wine, and grappa (yes a shot of grappa after dinner, said to help digestion, but really not worth it) for two people. Not bad at all. I left feeling full and content, and better about life. Even the rain on the walk back to the station wasn't all that bad, knowing it was going to be collected by The Water House to be used in flushing their toilets.

Sneakers ‘BUNDT’ cake

2010-02-18T21:27:00.003+08:00

I recently bought a Bundt cake tin online. I’m not much of a pastry cook. I’m far too impatient, always get measurements wrong and I find the whole process too slow and laborious. So why did I buy a Bundt tin? Because they are beautiful bits of kitchen ware. They come in so many different shapes and sixes and the shiny metallic moulds are so attractive. Bundt cakes are originally German and were called ‘Bundt’ because in German Bundt comes from the word Bundtkuchen which means to bundle/wrap around. Bundt cakes have a central hole which the batter is poured around. I don’t know why this is exactly, but it does means you get a nice hard coating around the cake, and the hole means more external surface area for more of this nice hard coating.

Bundt cakes were originally eaten during the German harvest, and were cooked in heavy cast iron pans or delicate ceramic which meant it was rather difficult to handle and the cake often came out unevenly cooked. Then a Mr H. David Dalquist (an American) decided to take this nice ‘bunt cake’ idea and improve it. So he started a company called Nordic Ware, which made bundt cake tins from aluminium, which meant they were easier to make and the cake also cooked more evenly. The aluminium also means more interesting shapes can be tried out. Like my Holiday Tree Tin. This is a very different design to the Bundt tins available before Nordic Ware.

So, I can’t have a beautiful cake tin and not use it really can i? So I looked in my cupboards and found crunchy peanut butter and sneakers…. Oh yes! A Sneakers cake! Made the recipe up from the top of my head baring in mind what I had available in the house… and for someone who doesn’t like making cakes, I think I did rather well.

1 cup Self raising flour
1 cup Caster Sugar
1 cup Milk
½ cup melted butter
2 eggs
1 vanilla pod
6 tablespoons peanut butter
1 sneakers bar

Greased the tin…. Put everything in together into a mixer…. put half the mixture in my tin....cut up my sneakers bar and placed it around the tin...

poured the rest of the mixture over the top....and cooked at 175c for 35 mins in a fan assisted oven….Took out of oven to cool in mould for 10 mins…. Took out of mould and placed on cooling rack… had a sneaky taste whilst still warm… dusted cocoa powder over the top… : )

THE WILD SIDE OF TV DINNERS

2010-02-17T21:26:00.002+08:00

I’ve been getting really bored of TV cooking programmes recently. Nothing seems to tickle my taste buds any more. Gordon’s eccentric behaviour is starting to wear thin, and Ainsley is a tad bit annoying. Everyone’s doing the same thing too. Home grown, eco friendly, healthy living…. Blah blah fucking blah. It’s boring already! Okay, so in our student house, we don’t have UKTV Food, otherwise I’d happily be watching re-runs of Rick Stein.

Not all food programmes are bad. Hugh Fearnley’s River cottage is good, or should I say used to be good. When he first moved to Devon and lived in his little cottage… and actually made mistakes. When his home grown veg didn’t grow as expected, when fishing trips were fruitless, when his chickens were broody, and when the camera shots weren’t so choreographed. This is the human Hugh I miss.

So you can imagine my delight when I found A Cook on The Wild Side and TV Dinners on channel 4OD! I was so very happy. For those who don’t know, these were Hugh’s first ever TV programmes. Made in the 90s, A Cook on The Wild Side, was when Hugh left his life as a successful London chef and hit the road to discover the foraged goods of the UK in the most ingenious automobile ever. His ‘van’ contained a compact kitchen, come living space. For hot summer days it opened up to the outdoors. On the back of the van (and I think this is the piece de resistance) he had a bicycle, which when placed stationary and the paddles were rotated, it generated a fire on which he could cook his found foraged goods. Genius. So on his show he travelled the length and breath of the great British Isles. He picked heather in Scotland, made termite patties on his canal boat (another fantastic mode of transport employed by Hugh), he even went bin diving in London. I can not tell you how good this programme is. It’s a shame there is nothing similar to this especially when we all seem to be short on money. We seem to forget nature is our local super market…. And it’s free. Even London has places to forage.

Another gem on 4OD is TV Dinners. A great idea, where Hugh helps out at different people’s dinner parties. Real people, and some wacky dinner ideas. Again, made in the 90s, but not at all dated. A futurist’s dinner part, a hippy wedding, a Chinese New Year dinner, cooking a trout in the sink (and it actually works!), he even cooks human placenta! I can’t stress how great this show actually is. It’s so entertaining, I watched 5 hours straight. The best thing is, we rarely get to see into other people’s kitchen, and their secrets of cooking. There are some great tips and some really interesting recipes. The problem with TV chefs, it’s the same people/chefs, same ideas and they seem to follow the same trends. But when TV cooking programmes go into people’s homes, you see the many different ways of cooking, most of them passed down through their families. The best part of the programme is when the food is shared with their dinner guests. This is what food is about, sharing. Even if it’s with one other person, it’s what all those hours in the kitchen were spent labouring over. Good food, made with passion and love : )

Chilli Garlic Jumbo Prawns

2010-02-08T23:06:00.002+08:00

My boyfriend has had two large, still with the shell on, jumbo prawns sat in his fridge for a while. We have been unsure what to do with them. Because they were so big, we wanted to make the most of them. But last night i we were hungry and very poor. Being a Sunday, most places had shut, and for some reason the house refused to give BP another penny. So i looked in the fridge. I found some garlic, some butter, and some parmesan cheese. I knew i'd left some chilli flakes in his cupboard. Perfect, some buttery, garlicky and chilli, jumbo prawns.

Now i'm not normally that squeamish, but those prawns had huge beady eyes ad their heads where massive. Each prawn must have been bigger then an average sized banana. I don't mind peeling prawns when they've been cooked, but when they're raw, they have this still life quality about them. like they could come alive any minuet and strangle me with their large spindly antennas. so being a girl, i got rob to do them for me. at one point the shell came off the head, but the brains and facial muscles were left hanging off the limp body.

Once everything was removed and cleaned, i butterflied the prawns. I fried some garlic and chilli in some butter and oil. I cooked the for around 2 mins on each side then removed and placed to one side. i then put in some cooked slightly undercooked spaghetti and a little bit of the salty water it was cooked in. Not only does this give you more sauce when you're not really working with much, but it is also a really good way of thickening up sauces due to the starch released from boiling the pasta. I coated the pasta with the sauce and then let the spaghetti cook till a little bit hard. i grated loads of parmesan cheese over the top and served up. i placed the prawns on top of the paste and oh my days did we enjoy it!

Chicken Biryani & Crunchy Coconut and Corriander Raita

2010-02-08T03:18:00.001+08:00

I've been missing my mum's cooking recently. I've eaten all her frozen dhal. No where near me does good enough Indian. So i decided after yet another dream about food to make biryani. I have attempted it before, but never properly with saffron rice. From the moment i got up that day, i couldn't stop thinking about this biryani. the whole day i was planning my masterpiece. I know what makes a good biryani for me personally. i was adamant to make the best biryani ever! so, a good biryani to me? Chicken in a medium dry sauce, mushrooms, cashew nut, loads of strips of ginger, garlic and chillies (strips are vital), saffron and cardamon rice, crispy onions and coriander to garnish. but most importantly spice. All the biryanis i've had as a child have always been immensely hot. i think it's a good way to introduce people to the indian way of 'hot hot... cool'. basically this is when you eat something spicy, then eat something else that's spicy but is in a milk product. example, spicy bombay mix, then drink some spicy chai. bombay mix is spicy, the tea you drink is spicy and your mouth gets really hot, but the milk cuts the heat almost immediately after and you get this tiny little sense of relief. so you do it again. so with the biryani, i decided to serve a coriander, coconut, and chilli raita.

Chicken marinade;
yogurt,
mixed with the paste of turmeric, chilli powder, grated ginger, crushed galic, tomato puree, chillies.
marinade for 2 hours

Saffron rice;
1/2 cup milk,
1/2 cup water,
saffron,
cardamon
i cooked this earlier on an let cool. this meant the rice wasn't too wet before going in the oven, so it'd properly crisp up.

Chicken curry:
Thinly sliced onion,
thin strips of garlic,
ginger
chilli
cumin powder
coriander powder
garam masala
cream
fry thinly sliced onions in butter and oil till nearly golden. Add the ginger, garlic and chilli and cook with onions till golden. add the cumin and coriander powder. Add the chicken and let cook. then add the garam masala, cook off then add one cup of water and let it simmer for 30 mins on a low heat. Stir in the cream.

i let the chicken sit for another hour till heating it up again then placing into a deep oven prof dish.i removed to cardamon pods from the rice and spread it on top of the chicken. i placed it in the oven for 20 mins at 200c.

whilst that was in the oven i made my raita.
Yogurt,
small dices of cucumber
small dices of shallots,
finely chopped chilli
finely chopped coriander,
grated coconut
the cucumber, shallots and the coconut give it a crunch, the chilli and shallot give it some heat, and the cucumber, yogurt and coriander cool it down. Perfect combination with a spicy biryani : )

i fried some thinly sliced shallots and some coriander(carful cause it really spits)and let dry on some kitchen towel, then sprinkled over the biryani.

i fried some poppadoms and had some cold cobras in the fridge. i plated up and was ready to take a pic for the blog... but my camera ran out of battery. Used a house mate's phone to take a pic... but cause i was so hungry and the food looked so good. so i apologise cause the photo is pretty bad. But i really recommend trying it.

CAKE IN A MUG

2010-02-04T10:08:00.004+08:00

So I've been at the pub tonight. It's ladies's night and all ladies get 7 drinks for £5. Pretty good eh? Even better, my friend behind the bar gave me a few extra drinks. Nice... : ) So all i've had is a BLT (a very nice BLT as well from my uni canteen) today, and i'm very very hungry and so ver smashed. i want food, something simple and yummy. So me and the boyf decide to cook a stew, come hot pot, come cottage pie kind thing. We eat dinner at 12.30, worth the wait really. It was delicious. Really surprising, contrary to the belief that stews only taste good if cooked for a long time... it's not necessarily always true. Anywho... so i needed something nice and sweet to finish off with, and the first thing that came to mind was Cake in a Mug. Attempted once, but a little bit of a disaster... not eatable basically.... too chewy. Looked up the recipe to remind my self and it was so simple. decided to make a few adjustments with measurements. Poped over to BP petrol station and bought eggs and self raising. put it all together in minuets.... topped with strawberry cheese cake ice cream... OH MY DAYS!!!!! so good! Here's the reciepe... please try it, it's so simple. Really worth the few minuets.

2 Tablespoons Self Raising flour
2 Tablespoons Caster Sugar
3 Tablespoons Cocoa
1 Egg
3 Tablespoons milk
3 Tablespoons oil

Get a big mug.... mix the flour, sugar and cocoa together... mix the egg in....then add the milk and oil into the mixture and mix well... put in the microwave for 4 minuets on full power... Take out, leave to stand for 1 minuet... add ice-cream... eat... enjoy....