Thursday, April 12, 2012

Easter Part 2 ...

On Easter Sunday, we drove up into the Adelaide hills to Bridgewater Mill Restaurant...
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It is an old flour mill which still has the original working mill wheel turning...
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Our gorgeous girls... (all photo credit to them as I stupidly left my camera home (and nearly had a meltdown because of it!) ...
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Here we are enjoying the day...
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First we had some lovely Croser sparkling wine...
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Entree for Kirby and Gus - caramelised scallops, apple, Jerusalem artichoke, sage & hazelnut butter...
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Brianna chose salad of baby beetroot, Woodside goat's curd, radishes and rye bread (drizzled with honey) ...
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My entree was absolutely delicious - crisp quail, red curry (oh, that sauce!), pickled shallot, sticky rice & duck egg...
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Did I enjoy it??? Yes!
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I enjoyed a nice glass of red wine...
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For main course, Brianna had Pure suffolk lamb porterhouse, shoulder brik, cauliflower, whipped fetta and olive crumbs...
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Kirby and I chose slow roasted organic chicken breast, polenta, honey, Kanmantoo bacon and rosemary... I would have to say the tenderest, plumpest, juiciest, flavoursome chicken I have ever had...
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Angus had the special fish of the day which was Northern Territory Barramundi with a tomato and herb salad...
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Moving on to desserts... Gus had black sherry custard, dark chocolate, pear, prune & roasted macadamia...
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The girls chose white chocolate bavarois, apple parfait, blackberries and dry caramel...
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I cleverly chose the banana creme brulee, maple toffee, vanilla butterscotch & honeycomb icecream ... so very good!
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Outside the windows, a lush fernery...
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Time to go home...
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Joolz

Easter Part 1...

We travelled to Adelaide on Good Friday morning... Kirby bought our seafood supplies - prawns, oyster, fresh whiting fillets...
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This is a recipe that we had last year too (sort of an Easter tradition) - Zesty bbq prawns...
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Oysters Kilpatrick for Gus and me... so fresh and delicious!
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The whiting fillets were delicious too but Gus barbecued them on the grill and they fell to pieces - he was mortified! They still tasted delicious but looked like a car crash! Lol!
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Kirby's Hasselback potatoes with sage and proscuitto...
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Kirby's Pear, Walnut and Rocket salad... I've taught my girls well - they love to cook and make yummy things too!
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Saturday night we dined at a lovely Indian/Singaporean restaurant called Hazara Bistro on the Parade, Norwood. We all enjoyed our meals - we seem to keep going back there as the atmosphere is crisp, clean and you can talk without having to whisper. A fun night!
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Sunday we dined at the Bridgewater Mill restaurant - another post for that gastronomic delight! Sunday dinner was homemade chicken and bean tacos - which we could hardly fit in!
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Monday night I made a naughty potato bake...
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Kirby produced a yummy tossed salad and made garlic bread from a nice fresh baguette we bought...
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Gus did the honours with a butterflied leg of lamb in the BabyQ weber...
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On the way home from Adelaide, we stopped at the fish van in the Coorong (I call it the Roach Coach)...
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They sell fresh Coorong mullet fillets for $20/bag... so fresh it is almost still swimming...
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For dinner, I dusted the fillets with plain flour and lemon pepper seasoning...
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Pan fried in a little oil... we had it with salad and fresh potato salad I made...
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Just a picture of my poor neglected standard roses... I can't quite remember the name of this one (it's Deep Purple or something...) - these roses have been in for about 5 years now and have never given more than 2 buds/blooms at a time, no matter how much I prune, fertilize, water etc. I haven't touched these since they were pruned back before Christmas and just look at them! They have a lovely big bloom which has ruffly petals in a pretty deep pink/purple colour. Perhaps neglect is what they thrive on!? That and a lack of rain through the summer....
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Joolz

Friday, April 6, 2012

Golden Syrup Biscuits & Mini Quiches...

Here are the mini quiches I made to take to Adelaide...
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This morning I got up and made Golden Syrup Biscuits - a recipe from Kim at The Serendipity Cafe. I actually changed the sugar to brown sugar (because I am naughty!)...
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By giving the butter a really good whip, it produces a lovely crunchy crumb - they are delicious and will be a favourite here! Thanks, Kimmie! :)
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Now I'd better get packing!
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Cheers - Joolz

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Happy Easter!

We've had fogs most mornings which turn into day in the high 20C's... Still no rain in sight!
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Today was warm and stuffy but ended with this beautiful sunset - totally untouched and straight out of my camera...
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A picture perfect paint box sky...
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I'm doing some baking to take to my girlies for the weekend - mini quiches, golden syrup biscuits and some Monte Creams... can you tell I love them lots?
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Have a blessed Easter, stay safe on the roads and enjoy time with your families.
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Cheers - Joolz

Monday, April 2, 2012

Missing you...

(my Wedding Day, 1986)
My Dad passed away 23 years ago today (April 2, 1989) - never a day goes by when we don't miss him and wish he could be here ... love you, Dad...
Joolz

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Italian Ricotta Dumplings ...

This recipe is from Episdode 1 of Two Greedy Italians (SBS, Thursday 8.30pm) - I just had to give it a go - it seemed the perfect Sunday lunch!
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In a pot, add a good slurp of good olive oil, 1 chopped chilli (I only had a green one) and 3 cloves of garlic, finely sliced...
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Once they have softened, add in 2 tins of good Italian tomatoes, salt & pepper and I also added a tablespoon of sugar...
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Add in a good handful of chopped, fresh basil...
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For the dumplings... in a bowl, mix 220gms of Ricotta cheese and 3 egg yolks...
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Add a sprinkle of nutmeg, salt and pepper...
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Next, add in 200gms of flour (I used OO Italian flour which is used for pasta making but plain flour would do) ... Once roughly combined, turn it out and give it a gentle kneading until a smooth dough forms...
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Now cut off sections and roll into long sausages ... dust with flour then cut off small amounts...
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It doesn't really matter if they are different sizes, that's the rustic charm of them...
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The dumplings (or gnocco) ready to go into the gently boiling water...
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In they go for about 4 minutes... they sink to the bottom then when they are ready they pop to the surface...
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Toss them into the sauce, stir through then serve...
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Top with a little parmesan cheese... this is a totally 'from scratch' meal with no nasties in it! It must be good for you!
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Best eaten outside on a sunny autumn day with a good wine... (and fresh bread rolls!).
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Cheers - Joolz