HOT ADDICTION

I must admit, I am refusing to accept the fact winter is rearing its brutishly cold head around the corner.  I can also admit, although I am certain most people who know me have figured this out already, that I seem to have an addiction with chilli.

This is a good thing and a bad thing. Good? It sure as hell warms me up when I'm cold (I'm looking at you, Melbourne).  Bad?  The more chillies I eat, the hotter I like them.  Now I want to use it in everything I cook.  Add a recent trip to Thailand and the household's chilli harvest afternoon not too long ago to the equation... and there's nothing to curb the addiction in sight anytime soon.  This is coming from the girl who, at 9 years old, considered a smattering of cracked pepper on her dinner plate to be "too spicy" and refused to eat a bite of her tainted dinner.  Where did it go all wrong?

I'm going to roll with this chilli vibe for a while - at the very least until I have mastered the art of central heating 101... and because I have years of childhood chilli neglect to make up for.

I whipped up an incredibly quick and easy dinner tonight to satisfy the craving, using the same thai dressing I made with my fish and coconut rice the other day.  The free range chicken was on super-special this evening so I grabbed a couple of breasts (the chicken's ones, don't worry), poached them for 25 minutes, shredded them and tossed in the dressing with a sliced capsicum and cucumber & served atop a mound of steaming hot coconut rice and a mammoth wedge of lime.  What more could you ask for (more chilli, perhaps?).

CREPETASTIC

I got a bit ambitious in the kitchen the other day - the result being a fragrant rhubarb and rosewater upside down cake (posted, just so you know).  This sprightly burst of energy also resulted in a humongous excess of rosewater syrup, which I am in no way complaining about, but how much can you actually do with it?

A lot, it turns out.  My go-to would be a breakfast dish I often crave, being semolina porridge with rosewater, pistachios and stewed berries.  The other, I have independently decided, is used to satisfy late night cravings in the form of paper-thin crepes with caramelised walnuts and a swirl of the delicately pink syrup.  This decision was made after an early dinner (I overshot the mark when I got home) and when I was suddenly gripped with a sweet tooth craving at the same time cooking shows appeared on the television.  Coincidence?  Debatable.

(Don't worry, we'll come back to the semolina porridge.  It's too good not to share.)

crepes

  1 cup plain flour, sifted

  pinch salt

  2 free range eggs

  1 1/4 cups milk

  15g butter, melted

Place plain flour and salt in a large bowl, making a well in the centre. Set aside. Using a whisk, mix together the eggs milk and melted butter in a separate bowl or jug.

Gradually pour the milk mixture into flour and whisk, slowly incorporating the flour, until smooth and well combined. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat a crepe pan or heavy based frying pan over a medium heat. Lightly grease with butter. Pour 1/4 cup of crepe batter into the pan at a time and swirl to coat the base. Cook for 2 minutes or until golden, turn over and cook for a further 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining batter.

You can serve these deceptively delicious wafers of goodness with a simple squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkling of sugar, or you can go all out (as I do 100% of the time) and pan-fry chopped walnuts, sugar and butter in a pan until golden, spread over each crepe, and drizzle rosewater over the top. My idea sounds better? Thought so.

JUICY BUNS

Everybody (who is carnivorous, might I add) has a favourite meat. Topping the pickles hierarchy would most definitely have to be pork, which is evident when you see how many posts I have made in my little online food diary showcasing the most succulent features of this fine animal.

I am most certain that we all have primal urges.  And I am also most certain that sometimes, no matter how inappropriate you know it is, sometimes you just have to satisfy your food cravings - because if you're anything like me, they don't let down.  Ever.

Case in point? An undying urge for pork belly at around 3pm today.  This was problematic for me as, having already eaten an enormous (and good value) bento box an hour prior, I knew reasoning myself out of cooking said dish for dinner was never going to happen.  I feigned reluctance as I wrote out a mental shopping list for the trip home.

And here was the result.  Urge satisfied?  Most definitely.

roast pork belly baguette with quince paste, potato and brie

  300g pork belly

  4 kipfler potatoes, washed

  1/2 wheel brie

  1 head fancy lettuce, washed and shredded

  quince paste

  dijonnaise

  3 sprigs rosemary

  4 sprigs thyme

  salt and pepper

  olive oil  

This is quite simple (but still incredibly fancy for a sandwich).  Preheat oven to 210 degrees celsius.  Place rosemary and thyme in a roasting dish and drizzle with olive oil.  Place pork belly, rind side up, over the herbs.  Score the rind and drizzle with more olive oil and a generous amount of salt and pepper, rubbing into the flesh well.  Place the potatoes in the dish, whole, and place in the oven for 45 minutes or until the pork begins to turn a rich caramel colour on the top (this is subjective, as you may like your belly more juicy than I do).

Once cooked, remove from oven and leave to stand for at least 10 minutes.  Now comes the fun part - assembling.  Grab a large slice of crusty white baguette and spread one side with quince paste and the other with dijonnaise.  Place slices of pork, potato and cheese inside and finish off with some lettuce for green factor.

This is a divine combo - might I suggest eating it while the pork is still warm?  It just adds to the sensory explosion.

Bon appetit!

RUBY RHUBARB

Did you know that Rhubarb is in fact a vegetable? So why is it used in so many sweet dishes? The same reason tomato, being a fruit, is used in so many savoury dishes. It's just the way it is.

I recently noticed the seasonal change in fruit and vegetables at the market and got thinking of new recipe ideas that I haven't tried before. Strolling around the market sipping my atomic long mac from the usual weekend coffee haunt, I noticed bunches of ruby red rhubarb had started to appear in the market stalls.

After a recipe search from my usual, reliable sources thinking of a fresh approach as to how I could cook - or bake - with the new season's offering, I made a pit stop for the baking necessities and ran back home to get started (the running was purely an after-effect of the heart-starting coffee I consumed not 10 minutes prior).

This recipe turned out really well - not only was it a perfect way to showcase rhubarb's versatility, but it also gave me an opportunity to FINALLY use some of my precious rosewater that has been sitting in the pantry, all alone and unloved, begging to be used up.

*recipe courtesy of Ginny Grant | Cuisine | Issue 142

rhubarb & rosewater upside down cake

rhubarb

  3-4 rhubarb stems

  25g butter

  25g caster sugar

  1tbsp rosewater

Line the base of a 20cm springform tin with baking paper and grease with butter. Cut the rhubarb diagonally into 3cm-thick slices and set aside. In a small saucepan, gently heat the butter and caster sugar until the mixture begins to caramelise. Remove from heat and add rosewater. Pour into the base of the tin. Arrange the rhubarb in the base and set aside while you make the cake batter.

cake

  100g butter

  150g caster sugar

  1tsp vanilla extract

  2 eggs, separated

  150g plain flour

  1 1⁄2 tsp baking powder

  125ml milk

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Beat the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract then the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sieve the flour and baking powder and add to the egg in 2 lots alternately with the milk.

In a clean separate bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks then fold through the cake batter. Spoon the batter on top of the rhubarb and smooth down. Bake for 50 minutes (you may want to place a baking tray at the bottom of the oven to catch any drips from the rhubarb). The cake should be firm to the touch.

Cool the cake for 5 minutes then run a knife around the sides of the tin and remove the side. Invert the cake on to a serving plate and remove the base and baking paper. Serve warm with whipped cream and/or rhubarb and rosewater syrup (recipe below).

rhubarb & rosewater syrup

  150g caster sugar

  150ml water

  1 rhubarb stem, chopped

  1 tbsp rosewater

  juice of 1⁄2 lemon

In a small saucepan, heat the sugar and water until the sugar dissolves. Add the rhubarb and cook for 5 minutes. Strain through a sieve then add rosewater and lemon juice.

SAME SAME... BUT DIFFERENT

I have finally landed back on home turf after a fantastic - and well deserved - break in the land of smiles.  Not breaking with tradition, I certainly did more than just sample the flavoursome food on offer and gained some holiday weight in the process. Was it worth it? Most certainly.

I arrived back with a suitcase full of new clothing and a head full of food ideas.  I have always loved spicy food and arriving back in Melbourne to a wintry sub-10 degrees day, chilli was a more than ideal ingredient in my welcome home dish.

I've provided a simple recipe for a delicious thai dressing which can be used in a multitude of ways.  Do as I did and grill some fish fillets, serve with coconut rice and drizzle over the top; or simply make a chargrilled beef salad and mix through as a dressing.  How about tossing it through shredded chicken or with grilled prawns?  It's so versatile you could almost do as you please.  If I was feeling incredibly lazy, I would even stir it through coconut rice for an easy dinner (but what purpose would this blog serve if I did that, right?).

the ever-versatile thai dressing

  2tbsp chilli paste (or very hot fresh chilli)

  1 stick lemongrass, finely chopped

  1 tbsp ginger, grated

  2tbsp lime juice

  2tsp fish sauce

  1tbsp soy sauce

  1tbsp peanut oil

  1/2tbsp palm sugar, grated

This is incredibly simple - place all ingredients in a jug and whisk vigorously until well combined.  Get creative and serve as you please.