While you were waiting

Forgive me followers, for i have sinned! It has been 4 weeks since my last post!

Although I haven't made a post and my life has been very hectic, I have managed to cook some simple & delicious meals! This dish in particular was a highlight! My Sous Chef & I went to visit my Grandparents for a few nights over Aus Day weekend and I promised to cook them something delish! Knowing they normally eat roasts, curries etc I thought I would mix it up for them and cook a modern version one of my favourite's!

Creamy Farfalle with Proscuitto, Mushroom & Peas

I was inspired by a similar recipe from Jamie Oliver's Dinners Cookbook and here's my easy to follow spin:

Ingredients

• 250 g Dried Farfalle (a.k.a Edible Bow-ties)
• 4 slices thick cut Proscuitto (about 1/2 cm thickness) chopped
• A handful of button mushrooms sliced
• 1 clove of Garlic crushed
• 1 cup frozen peas
• Knob of butter
• 100ml thickened cream

Yes that's right - only 7 ingredients and it's also budget friendly!

Steps

Follow packet instructions for pasta - remember to salt the water! Makes a world of a difference!Heat a frypan to a medium-high heat and place butter, mushrooms & pancetta in.

After 5 minutes, add garlic to the pan. You do this now because if you place garlic in at the beginning it will burn and will leave an awful taste. Fry until pancetta is crisp and mushrooms are soft. Turn heat off and set aside.

In the last minute of the pasta, add the peas to the water. Once done, empty pasta & peas into a colander and then once almost drained - add back to the pot along with the pancetta, mushroom and about 100ml of thickened cream! Mix well then season to taste & add shaved parmesan if you like.

Place in a large rustic bowl and let your guests serve themselves!!

I also want to mention that no pasta is complete without bread. Garlic ciabatta being my all time favourite. My part-time Sous Chef, Jonti stepped up and made what can only be described as the BEST garlic bread I've ever had! Perfect balance of garlic, butter, herbs and parmesan! See pics below!

Perfect Poached Eggs

If you're a true egg lover, you will love beautiful fresh poached eggs! You may enjoy them with some smoked salmon, spinach and hollandaise. Maybe you like a big breakfast with bacon, mushrooms, home made baked beans, sausage or simply - poached eggs on some toasted sour dough - this receipe will ensure you always have perfect poached eggs! Thanks Curtis!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jk36el4_Rbc

Just to prove you that you CAN do it, see my breakfast from this morning!

Two beautifully poached eggs on a roasted flat field mushroom, pan fried haloumi, a slice of shortcut bacon, asparagus & some tomato relish! Delicious!

changing jamie up

i got the new Jamie Oliver cookbook 'Jamie's Great Britain' for chrissy and I think i've read it cover to cover about four times. so many delicious recipes and the styling is so rustic, what i love most about jamie. he creates recipes that we can make, recipes that don't need to be perfect. it is with this in mind that I decided to try my first recipe from the book; 'warm tomato salad, crispy black pudding, worcestershire dressing'.

now i'm not one for black pudding, i haven't tried it i admit, but it's also a little tricky to find. so i substituted the black pudding with some spanish chorizo & a little fried proscuitto. serves 2 as a light meal & 4 as a starter. 

ingredients: 3 or 4 handfuls of mixed ripe tomatoes, 1/2 red onion, 150g good quality chorizo, olive oil, sea salt & black pepper, 2 tablespoons demerara sugar, 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 3 tablespoons cider vinegar,a few sprigs of fresh thyme.

it's pretty simple - roughly chop your tomatoes into random sizes & shapes and place in a serving bowl with some sliced red onion. season with salt & pepper.

slice the chorizo on the diagonal (about 1/2 cm thick), place in a fry pan with  with a two slices of proscuitto rizzle of olive oil and cook for 4-5 minutes until crispy. once the chorizo & proscuitto is crisp, place on kitchen paper to drain and pour any excess fat out of the frypan.

put the pan back on a low heat and add the sugar, Worcestershire sauce & cider vinegar. let the mixture come to gentle bubble, then cook and reduce for a few minutes until it is thick & shiny. carefully drizzle this all over the tomatoes, then drizzle some more olive oil. top with chorizo, proscuitto and sprinkle over the thyme leaves to garnish. bread on the side is optional.

this literally took me 15 minutes to make from start to finish. so easy and so delicious. smokiness from the chorizo, saltiness from the proscuitto, fresh tomatoes & red onion and a dressing with lots of flavour but perfect balance. try it for a quick, easy, low carb after-work meal.

must do my research

unfortunately Shucked doesn't serve food until after 8am Monday-Friday, insert a small tear, so i opted for my local near work, Caffeine! Until next time Shucked.....

food for thought

this blog is dedicated to my love for food. cooking food, reading about food, eating food in and eating food out. i'll write about meals I make at home, recipes I read, my favourite chefs and cooks, my favourite restaurants, my new found food experiences and i'll highlight some great produce and where to find them! here are some pics from a great year of fab food, bring on 2012!

a modern take on pea & ham soup - made by mwha!

 a drive up to Noosa was made even better by lunch at The Thomas Street Eatery.

one of many brunch delights from The Chelsea, The Barracks.

i'll cleanse my palate at Brents, Toowong

love melbourne, enough said.

tick off bucket list - make own pizza dough

monday night tapas - any night is a good night for some tapas

celebrating thanks to The Cupcake Parlour!

tomorrow morning I shall try "the best cafe in brisbane" as voted by map magazine - Shucked Coffee House! Can't wait!