Tag: Appetizers

Frosted Tomato Cocktail

The frosted tomato cocktail was my pick from the Adventurous Appetizers section of The A-Z of Cooking. 

Frosted Tomato Cocktail
Frosted Tomato Cocktail

But first, each section of The A-Z of Cooking comes with a sentence or two to introduce it vis a vis:

A is for… ADVENTUROUS APPETIZERS: start a dinner party or special family supper with a new and exciting idea.

Booooooring.

How much more fun if they’d done them all in verse:

There was a young girl called Eliza

Who wanted to make appetizers

She tried the tomat-er

As an exciting new starter

And the result did really surprise her.

Yeah, I know that was hardly “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day” but the A-Z of Cooking is hardly The Larousse Gastronomique either.

You know what they say, water finds its level.

I nearly chose a recipe called Sweetcorn Scallops but the only thing scallopy about them was that they were served in scalloped shaped dishes or shells, neither of which I own.

I feel they were already drawing a slightly long bow in naming it. If I’d made it in a normal dish you guys would have left wondering if I’d lost my mind…

I can hear it now  “Errmmmm, that’s bacon, honey, not scallops”

Sweetcorn Scallops
Sweetcorn Scallops

Anyhow, I really liked the picture of the Frosted Tomato Cocktail  from The A-Z of Cooking which is why I chose this one to make. I love that glass.   And  just so you don’t think it’s me, they love a long skinny photo in The A-Z of Cooking.

Frosted Tomato Cocktail - Picture
Frosted Tomato Cocktail – Picture

Here is the original recipe:

Frosted Tomato Cocktail - Recipe
Frosted Tomato Cocktail – Recipe

This was really nice.  So refreshing.  It would be a gorgeous starter for a hot day in mid summer when tomatoes are at their very best.  Or even as a palate cleanser between courses.

However, I felt it was missing something.  Because you know what?  As far as I’m concerned if you’re going to call something a cocktail, it better damn well have some booze in it.  Also, you really needed to ramp up the flavourings in the original.  .

My fennelly  take on the Frosted Tomato Cocktail was inspired by this Serious Eats recipe. You could put the fennel salt around the rim of the glass as they suggest or just include it in the mix like I did.  Celery salt would also be great here, in which case, I would garnish with a celery stalk instead of the mint.

I wanted mine to be vegan so I also omitted the Worcestershire and replaced it with tabasco. It may also be the most delicious thing I have ever made that is zero fat.

Frosted Tomato Cocktail 2
Frosted Tomato Cocktail 2

We’ll be sticking with the letter A for the next sortie into The A-Z of Cooking where we will be looking at the world of after school snacks.  And I might try a haiku.

Have a great week!

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Frosted Tomato Cocktail

A lovely refreshing start to a meal with a slight kick of heat!

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 kilo tomatoes, skinned and chopped
  • 125 mls tequla
  • 4 tbsp water
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • juice of 1 lime
  • dash of Tabasco Sauce
  • 1 tbsp sea salt, I used Maldon
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • Mint Leaves to garnish
  • Pepper

Instructions

  1. Toast the fennel seeds in a skillet over medium heat until fragrant. Place the salt and toasted fennel seeds in a mortar and grind until they are well combined and the seeds have broken down. Pass through a very fine sieve and set aside.
  2. Place the tomatoes, tequila, lime juice, and sugar into a blender and puree until smooth. Add the fennel salt, pepper and Tabasco sauce to taste.
  3. Pour mixture into large ice cube trays and freeze. Just before serving remove from freezer, take the frozen cubes out of ice tray and place them back in the blender.
  4. Puree until smooth but still frozen.
  5. Spoon into chilled glasses, garnish with mint and serve immediately.

 

Joan Crawford Inspired Dinner For Two

A few weeks ago Jenny at Silver Screen Suppers invited her readers to celebrate the launch of her book of Joan Crawford recipes by taking part in a cookalong.  I was so excited to be a part of this and I set Melbourne Cup Day as the day because strangely enough, I was going to be at the races on the actual day.

Jenny very kindly provided us with three of Joan’s recipes.  One was for Crepes Suzette.  Having recently had Crepes Suzette expertly cooked for me at the Lotus Blanc in Cambodia, I thought I might give this a miss.  I wasn’t sure my attempts at flipping and flaming would compare. However, I was well and truly up for the other two, starting with

Joan’s Crawford’s Danti-Chips

Joan Crawford's Danti-Chips
Joan Crawford’s Danti-Chips

I was so excited about these. I was even more excited when the jars of devilled ham were two for one at the local supermarket.

And then, dear readers, I made a newbie, amateur, doofus mistake.  Because logic should tell you that when you are confronted with a jar of pink paste called Devilled Ham, you just need to accept that all it contains is ham and…other….stuff.  Don’t ever go wondering what that other stuff might be.  For the love of all that’s good in the world….

DO NOT EVER READ THE LABEL ON THE BACK  OF THE JAR OF DEVILLED HAM.

And yes, I am shouting at you.  Because it was over a week ago and I still feel sick thinking about it. And you know, Deviled Ham was one of my pleasures in life.  Admittedly not high on the list but it was there.  And now it has gone.  Forever.  Just like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

I’m not going to tell you what was in it.  Just don’t read the label.  Even though now you really want to.  I know you do.  do not give into the temptation. Imagine that jar of Peck’s Paste is local Nazi Colonel and you are an oversexed French Cafe owner hiding some English airmen and a priceless painting of The Fallen Madonna with The Big Boobies and resist!

(And if you had absolutely no idea what that last bit was about, your parents obviously didn’t watch enough British sit coms during your formative years….

You can find out more about that particular tangent here:

‘Allo ‘Allo)

So anyway, I chose the vegetarian option.  I used a mushroom and spinach tapenade for my chips.  He had the devilled ham, Far be it from me to spoil anyone’s enjoyment of life the way mine has been destroyed.  Plus, we have two jars of it to get through.     Ignorance?  Bliss.

These do look really pretty though don’t they?  And they tasted really delicious.  I added some chopped up pickled chillies to my pickle garnish and they went really well with the other flavours as well as adding a little colour.

Danti-Chips2
Danti-Chips2

We ate these mid’-afternoon whilst watching the races. And believe me, it took no time at all for that plate to become this…

Where have all the Danti-Chips gone?
Where have all the Danti-Chips gone?

 STEAK WITH ROQUEFORT

Later on in the evening it was time for the second of Joan’s recipes and….it’s making my mouth water even as I think about it.

Ooooohhhhh yeah…Steak with Roquefort come on down. (Although technically mine was Steak with Stilton as the local supermarket does not stock Roquefort).

Joan Crawford's Steak with Roquefort
Joan Crawford’s Steak with Roquefort

We had this with some kale and beans  I also doubled up with a book club recipe and made the Turmeric and Cumin Potatoes from Persiana.  Which were also super!

Steak with Roquefort
Steak with Roquefort

 

Persiana Turmeric and Cumin Potatoes
Persiana Turmeric and Cumin Potatoes

Meal to remember!!!!!

Steak and any sort of blue cheese is amazing.  And Joan’s little twist with the….not telling…you need to buy the book to find out….is awesome!

Oh, and if, like me you happen to have some leftover corn chips from the Danti-Chips and some leftover roquefort mixture from the steak you can combine these with any leftover kale and some very finely chopped red onions to create a delicious spin on Nachos the night after!

Leftover Nachos

Hopefully Joan would approve!!!

Thanks Jenny for the wonderful opportunity to be a part of this!!!!  I loved the recipes and can’t wait to see the rest of the book!

 I think it’s only fair this week to have the sign off to come from the lady herself.  Have a fabulous week – maybe think about how you can add some old Hollywood glamour into your life.  And buy Jenny’s book!  If the recipes I tried are any reflection it will be awesome!!!

Link here:

Cooking with Joan Crawford

And remember

Rebel With A Cause – Smoked Trout Empanadas

Have you ever read a recipe where the ingredients seem right….but the execution just seems horribly wrong?

Smoked Trout Empandas8
Smoked Trout Empandas8

The other day I was looking for something in…you know THAT room?  Otherwise known as the room where we dumped all the crap we didn’t have a specific home for when we first moved in.  Nearly a year later?  It’s all still there.  Thank the Lord for whoever invented doors.  It makes it so much easier to metaphorically close the door and walk away from the room when you can literally close the door and walk away from the room.

I didn’t find what I was looking for in the room, because most things that go in there don’t come out.  What I did find was a manilla folder full of old recipe clippings which included one for something called for Trout and Mascarpone Triangles.

Before we get to the point does anyone else have problems spelling mascarpone?  For some reason in my mind it’s marscapone. I also can’t say the word “Preliminary” – that one just ends up a hot mess of r’s and l’s where they shouldn’t be.

But anyway, immediately in my head, (yeah the same one that can’t spell ma-scar-pone or pronounce pre-lim-in-ary) I had a vision of what these would be.  They would look like exactly like these:

Smoked Trout EmpanadasHmm…except….maybe a little more triangular.

So, I was bitterly disappointed when I actually read the recipe and found it was nothing like that.

Trout & Mascarpone TrianglesIn fact, that whole recipe annoyed the hell out of me.  In most cooking circles when you call something an X & Y triangle it’s pretty much a given that the X and Y are IN the triangle. Take these delicious looking cheese and spinach triangles from taste.com.au.    Spinach and Cheese both EXACTLY where they should be i.e. inside the pastry triangle.

 

That is what I wanted from my trout and mascarpone triangles! Golden puff pastry filled with chunks of gorgeous pink smoked trout, creamy mascarpone, fresh herbs, a touch of chilli….that was what my mind told me a Trout and Mascarpone Triangle could, and should, be.

At best the original recipe is for trout and mascarpone ON triangles.  And who the hell wants that?  No one that’s who.  I’m calling shenanigans on that recipe.

In some circles they say, if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.  In my circle I say if you think their recipe is a crock, make it like you think it should have been.  And while we’re in the spirit of rebellion –  the fancy pants Italian cheese I can’t be bothered writing the name of (because I would only have to re-write it to spell it correctly) can go fuck itself too. I’m using good old Philadelphia Cream Cheese.  Which I forgot to take a photo of.  The rest of the stuff is here:

Smoked Trout Empanadas3
Smoked Trout Empanadas3

I used a smoked trout, you could sub in smoked salmon if you prefer or cook a fillet of fish as per the original recipe.  Or even used canned salmon or tuna to make these.  Up to you.  And I had an empanada maker thing but you could make triangles as per the original recipe.  Or embrace the spririt of doing it your way and make them any shape you want!

If you are going to use an empanada maker, here’s how you do it from an expert,Connie Veneracion.  Shame I didn’t read this until after I had made mine and hence some of mine were a little…shall we call them rustic?     😉

How To Use An Empanada Maker

 

Smoked Trout Empanadas7
Smoked Trout Empanadas7

And here is the revised, and in my not so humble opinion, vastly improved recipe!

Enjoy!

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Smoked Trout Empanadas

Ingredients

Scale
  • 400 smoked trout or cooked fish of choice
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 red onion, finely chopped
  • 100g cream cheese, chopped into a small cubes
  • 1 canned chipotle chilli and approx 1 tbsp of the adobo sauce it came in
  • 1 tbsp dill
  • 1 tbsp parsley
  • 2 sheets ready rolled puff pastry
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • poppy seeds and chilli flakes to garnish (optional)

Instructions

  1. If using a smoked trout, remove the skin and flake the flesh from the bones. Place this in a bowl with the cream cheese, red onion, lemon juice, chilli, dill and parsley. Mix lightly to combine.
  2. Preheat your oven to 200C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
  3. Cut four circles out of each of your pastry sheets, using your empanada maker or tracing around a small plate or cup.
  4. Place 1 tbsp of the trout mixture in the middle of each circle then fold the pastry over to seal in the filling.
  5. Crimp the edges to seal.
  6. Place on the baking tray and brush with the beaten egg.
  7. Sprinkle with the poppy seeds and chilli flakes if using.
  8. Cook for 15 minutes or until puffed up and golden.

Lesson of the week – if you don’t like it, change it.

Have a fabulous week and fight the power!

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Fruity Devils…. and a Life Check

  Ever have those moments where you take a good long hard look at yourself and wonder how on earth you ended up in a certain place? Where your life took that turn?

I had one of those tonight.  And it wasn’t pretty. Unlike these Fruity Devils which we will get to in due course. 

Fruity Devils1
Fruity Devils1

 So, let’s imagine my life as a movie.  Not a very glamorous movie.  But a movie nonetheless. We’ll start with a close up…

Eight o’clock Friday night and I am sitting alone. At home.  Wearing a sweatshirt that had seen better days about five years ago and yoga pants.  Well, that’s what the shop I bought them in called them.  They may have never seen the inside of a yoga studio or known a down dog but technically they are yoga pants.

None of that is is the problem.  He has a new job where he is working nights and I am perfectly comfortable both in my own company and with my attire. 

My PhotoFy_09_19_21_56

So, lets draw the camera back and see where the problem may lie.  Sitting on my lap is a plate of chopped up bananas smothered in peanut butter, wrapped in bacon and grilled.  I had a grand idea to do a take on a Devils on Horseback and call it Elvis on Horseback.  It didn’t really work…Anyway, bacon and peanut butter is admittedly  not the healthiest combination on earth but it wasn’t that that had me cringing either.  I count eating weird stuff as R&D.  I’m eating it so you don’t have to!  And you, know sometimes in this blogging lark you have to take the (super) crunchy with the smooth. 

And boom! 

That peanut butter gag was like the Spanish Inquisition.  (Because no one expects the Spanish Inquisition). 

I’ll stop now. 

Maybe the problem will be apparent if we draw the camera back even further…

My PhotoFy_09_19_21_58
  Yes, that is a very hefty glass of wine in front of me…could that be what has me in a such a state of consternation?  Drinking alone? Am I worried about some incipient alcoholism /the state of my liver / my ability to get up and go the gym tomorrow morning?

No, no and resoundingly no.  It’s Friday, it’s been a long, hard week and if a girl wants a drink in the privacy of her own home, she should be able to have one.  Or two.  Don’t judge me.

Peachy Devils with Pomegranate Molasses
Peachy Devils with Pomegranate Molasses

 So what it is?  Why am I pausing for a moment of reflection? Not that I am alone at home on a Friday night, wearing let’s just call them “comfortable” clothes; not that I am eating a banana smothered in peanut butter then wrapped in bacon; not that I am drinking alone but that I am doing all of the above whilst watching a movie where Robert Pattinson is playing Salvador Dali. 

What???????

Why?

WHHYYYYYYY???????

I really need to re-evaluate some of my life choices.  I may need professional help.  Or at the very least some movie recommendations….

Pineapple Devils
Pineapple Devils

 

Who on God’s green earth thought that was a good idea?  (Me apparently seeing as it was on my Netflix queue).  But then again, I’m alone at home on a Friday night eating bacon, bananas and peanut butter!  My judgement is at best questionable. 

But apart from me, who else thought it was a good idea?  It’s TERRIBLE. Well, to be honest, the film itself is probably not so bad.  R Patz, however is more wooden than the stake that should have been driven through his cold dead heart in any one of the billion Twilight films. 

Oh, God, why am I still watching it?

Make it stop…someone please make it stop!!!!!

And does anyone else think Vamp boy looks a lot like the Blackadder?

robert-pattinson-little-ashes-3

Blackadder2jpg

 

I have no idea what possessed me to pick that film.  What is far easier to track is how I ended up thinking bananas and bacon were a good idea. The seed of THAT insanity lies within the book club. One of the ladies brought along one of her mother’s (?) Women’s Weekly cookbooks from the early sixties.  It was AWESOME.  And whilst I really wanted to just grab it and run….I contented myself with flicking through the pages.

Which is when I saw the recipe for Jaffa Devils.  Orange slices wrapped in bacon and grilled.  Two ingredients, easy to remember.  So I made them.  They were ok.  They weren’t the best thing I’ve ever eaten but they sure weren’t the worst!  And it works in theory – bacon and orange mix well at breakfast…so why not in an appetizer? (Mind you, it’s that kind of thinking that leads to coffee flavoured scrambled eggs…and Little Ashes, which incidentally, STILL watching).

Jaffa Devils
Jaffa Devils

 The problem was, the Jaffa Devils became like a gateway drug.  For a while there I was utterly obsessed with wrapping fruit in bacon.  I kind of like it when food is both good and bad for you, bacon and fruit, peanut butter and celery, cranberry juice and booze..it’s the way o’ the world, yin and yang, toxifying and detoxifying in equal measure.  

I wrapped peaches, pineapple, a tangelo…I couldn’t leave the citrus alone.  And the banana.  The banana was not good.  The tangelo, like the orange, was a bit meh…..

The peach and the pineapple?  OMG. Super.  The Bacon and Peach Combo worked best with a sauce made from Pomegranate Molasses.  By which I mean some Pomegranate Molasses poured into a bowl.  But you could use some reduced Balsamic if you did not have the Pomegranate Molasses.  The Bacon and Pineapple Devil worked with both a sweet chilli and a BBQ sauce. 

Peach, Pinepapple and Tangelo Devils
Peach, Pineapple and Tangelo Devils

 Pretty damn good, even if I do say so myself! And super easy and super quick to make as well. 

In all honesty, give the banana and orange ones a miss.  But do try the peach and pineapple.  They are gold!  And for some Dali gold, skip Little Ashes and watch this clip of the real Salvador Dali utterly bamboozling the folks on What’s My Line

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:10]
  Have a great week!

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Retro Food In the News – Vintage Christmas Ideas

I read an article called Have Yourself a Very Vintage Christmas today.  (It is no longer online so I have removed the link.

http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/christmas/have-yourself-a-very-vintage-christmas-20131204-2yqzu.html

The Pita Bread Christmas Trees mentioned in the article  are adorable.  And, will be featuring in my Christmas menus.

The article mentioned Susan’s Party Loaf which is this gorgeous looking thing

However, if you are going down that route you could also try this very pretty version from Betty Crocker.  You really know you’re taking a ride on the way-back machine when you have a completely gratuitous use of food colouring!

Betty Crocker Party Loaf

And the Madras Cocktail ?  Take a look at this piece of awesomeness…

Madras Cocktail
Madras Cocktail

Don’t drink them all they say?  Who are they kidding?   The recipe which is here

put me in mind of the old Dorothy Parker quote:

“I like to have a martini,
Two at the very most.
After three I’m under the table,
after four I’m under the  host.”

This thing might not just knock your socks off, it could take your ankles with it.

I  can’t wait to try it!

So what retro treats are you all planning for Christmas?

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