Tasting Texas

Back in March, I flew to Austin, Texas to attend SXSW 2014. Without blabbering on too much, I wanted to share with you some of my culinary exploits that I experienced while I was in the US.

Day One - Waiting for a transfer in Philadelphia, I began feeding my iced tea addiction. 

Our first meal in Austin, after nearly 24 hours without a proper meal. We visited Iron Works Barbecue.

Beef Ribs were had, along with Beef Brisket. Everything is served with a slice of white bread. 

A visit to the Flagship Wholefoods got me very excited and I bought a ticket for the Kombucha train. Kombucha is lightly effervescent fermented drink of sweetened black tea made with live bacteria and yeast. This concoction was particularly tasty due to the incredible flavour combination of Grapefruit, Lemon, Lime, Orange, Ginger, Sea Salt and Agave.

The next morning we started our day with a good cup of Tazo English Breakfast Tea. Yes I did go and find tea on my first day in the US. But to accompany we had deliciously sticky and sickly cinnamon buns (or chinnabons as they were soon to be renamed). Indulgence at it's best.

Our film badges did come with some perks. At a screening of TNT's The Last Ship, we were given free drinks, 'candy' and Bluetooth Speakers! Wonka Sweetarts were my top candy discovery of the trip. They are like eating dextrose tablets. Hyperness ensued.

I have a confession. Until this trip I had never really eaten Fried Chicken. So I'm extremely glad that my first experience was at Gus'. This was one of the food highlights of our trip. The chicken was moist and flavourful, the crust was crispy and moreish, the coleslaw was something particularly special and we all got to keep our soda cups! 

Rob and I had a more sophisticated lunch at La Condesa - my personal favourite restaurant in Austin. It was beautiful, fresh and the food was heavenly.

I had an Alma Blanca cocktail which was habanero-infused siembra azul blanco tequila, ginger liqueur, agave nectar, pineapple juice, fresh corn, hoja de hierba santa and a hisbiscus-rose-infused salt rim. It was almost too beautiful to drink but it was the best cocktail I have ever tasted. So intricate and delightful.

For lunch we had Tortas (mexican sandwiches). I had the Pambazo, which was homemade chorizo, black bean puree, mexican crema, cotija, baby romaine, avocado, duck fat-braised potatoes and a guajillo-tomato salsa.The potatoes were the unusual aspect yet highlight of this dish with the homemade chorizo adding an incredible richness. 

Brunch at the Moonshine Diner was a must. A ferocious bloody mary to start...

Followed by Gumbo - something that I was very excited to actually try whilst in the States as we have only made it ourselves at home before. Trying real andouille sausage was a treat.

Breakfast at Holborn Dining Room

It may not be as catchy as Breakfast at Tiffanys, but that doesn't mean you should be any less enthralled by the classy charm of Rosewood London's newest edition, The Holborn Dining Room.

Attending for a leisurely breakfast on a beautiful Saturday morning, we were greeted and sat in a cosy booth for two. With all the character of a Parisian bistro and the sophistication of The Savoy, this airy and stylish dining room is instantly enchanting.

Staff were delightful although we we're frequented by a number of different servers and very keen to offer up their knowledge and passion for the different dishes.

We started with a fresh mint tea and a refreshing earl grey, followed by a fresh grapefruit juice that had the perfect balance of sweet and sharp. I dined on Poached Eggs, Kale and Holborn Beans, while my companion sampled Eggs Benedict and Crushed Avocado and Tomato on English Muffin.

My beautiful mounds of delicate, white flesh burst with the satisfying and vibrant egg yolk that accompanies a perfect poached egg, soaking my kale and merging with my beans. The 'holborn beans' were deliciously sweet and smoky, made with luscious pancetta and cooked for over a day to develop their flavour. I could have eaten double the portion of this dish and perhaps some hot, buttered sourdough on the side for dipping and scooping.

The perfect poaching and fresh yolks continued with the Eggs Benedict, covered with a delectably rich hollandaise and crisp toasted muffin. One of the stand out components to our meal was the avocado, one of the ripest and most creamy fruits we have come across in a while - unusual for Britain. Mixed with juicy, sweet tomato and layered onto a sumptuous muffin base, this particular dish did not last very long. 

The whole experience was a delight and we plan to return for dinner very soon! 

Easy Weeknight Puttanesca

Is anyone else still feeling a little bit lazy post Christmas and wishing they'd done a little more lying around and a little less doing "stuff"? The return to work has definitely been a shock to the system for me and I'm lacking any kind of energy in the evening to cook. 

The temptation to order pizza is growing greater but with this date night standard pasta recipe, you'll be glad that you got.off the sofa. Plus you won't have those greasy cardboard boxes to deal with.

Fresh Pasta with Puttanesca Sauce

This recipe is sans olives. I would recommend including a handful of chopped black olives at the end.

Serves 2

Ingredients:
Fresh Pasta (type and amount is to your discretion)
2 cloves of Garlic, crushed
5 fresh Plum Tomatoes, chopped into chunks
1 tin of Plum Tomatoes
100ml Red Wine (I recommend a Sangiovese)
5 tinned Anchovies, finely chopped
1tbsp Capers, finely chopped
1 Shallot, finely chopped
A Hunk of Butter
1tsp Dried Oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

Heat a saucepan, add your hunk of butter, crushed garlic, anchovies, capers and oregano. Stir for a few minutes until the mixture gains colour.

Add your shallots and fresh tomato and turn down the heat. You want to sweat these until soft in the already fragrant mixture.

When the shallots and tomatoes have softened, add the red wine and increase the heat. You want to boil off the alcohol content aggressively for a minute or so.

Now add your tin of Plum tomatoes and simmer for ten minutes until you've got a luscious, thick ragu-like sauce. Add any salt and pepper at the end of the cooking process.

I served mine with a fresh garden salad (dressed with olive oil), garlic ciabatta.... and the rest of that Sangiovese!

A Winter Salad

Let's face it, we've all over indulged during the Christmas period. The warm fuzzy feeling has worn off and we're all left feeling a little regretful and wobbly. Or is it just me? But winter doesn't have to mean stews and roast dinners, there are some beautiful vegetables in season and it's time we remembered them.

Winter Beetroot Salad with a Wholegrain Mustard Dressing and Fresh Spinach

Serves 2

3 Different Beetroot varieties (try to get hold of a Golden Beetroot for its delicate sweetness)

1 Small Packet of Fresh Baby Spinach

1 Small Red Onion

1 tbsp Whole Grain Mustard

1 Garlic Clove, thinly sliced

2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tsp Cider Vinegar

Method

Roast your beetroots and red onion in the oven for 1 hour at 160C.

Let them cool slightly before thinly slicing your beetroots and red onion. 

Mix together in a bowl with the baby spinach.

In a jug or small container, mix your mustard, garlic, cider vinegar. 

Slowly add the olive oil, whilst whisking the mixture.

Pour over your salad and use tongs (or your well washed hands!) to ensure the dressing covers every little leaf.

Bacon Wrapped Green Beans with Colcannon

For a few months now, we've been getting a weekly mini veg box from Riverford Farm. It's something we've always considered, but they managed to get Rob to sign up on a door to door visit and it's completely changed the way we're eating. Each box delivery is an exciting event as I never know what's coming (although I could look online but that would be cheating). They also gave us a fantastically thick Riverford cookbook for all our vegetable using needs. We've had to be a lot more creative in our food and generally only need to buy some meat if necessary for our dish. So here is a recipe for a veggie filled delight, plus a naughty bit of bacon.

Bacon Wrapped Green Beans with Colcannon

Serves One

Ingredients

Fresh Green Beans

4 Rashers of Bacon/Pancetta (preferably streaky smoked bacon)

Two Medium Potatoes

A Handful of Cabbage/Kale or another Leafy Green

Butter for Mashing

Salt and Pepper

Gravy to Serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Prepare your green beans by washing, trimming the tops and bottoms and then separate into two piles.

Wrap each pile with two rashers of bacon and season with salt and pepper.

Place into a small baking dish with a drizzle of olive oil and place into the oven for 25 minutes (or until the bacon is as crispy as you prefer)

Boil your potatoes until soft. I like to keep the skins on for extra nutrients but you can peel them before boiling if you prefer. 

Wash and slice your cabbage or other leafy green into strips.

Once your potatoes are soft, drain them and mash with a knob of butter. You can also add a bit of cream here if you'd like for an extra touch of luxury.

Add your greens to the mash and stir through. 

Transfer your mash/greens mixture to a hot, well oiled or buttered frying pan and saute for 2 minutes to ensure you've got a few extra crispy bits.

Serve your parcels with the mash and a nice helping of gravy.

Street Feast London at Hawker House

I have to admit something. I'm not a trendy person. I wear jeans from GAP and my boyfriends fleece and I binge watch early 2000 US teen dramas. I barely ever leave South West London, let alone venture East. So when my good friend suggested we try out Street Feast London at Hawker House on a *gasp* Saturday night, I could feel my slippers begin to fuse to my feet.

But also as a youthful person in this country's vibrant capital, it would be a crime not to throw caution to the wind occasionally, take my slippers off and leave the house. I will do it for you food, my love.

Hawker House in Hoxton is a new venue for Street Feast London. An indoor night food market where you can sample a great variety of street food and cocktails. Running from 5pm til late with free entry before 8pm, we arrived at 7pm and Hawker House looks a little like a homeless shelter, complete with hipsters crowding around a burning oil drum. But inside, it was already full of people eating and enjoying cocktails such as Hot Buttered Rum.

On Tonight's menu was Hawker House cocktails, where we sampled margaritas and hot toddys. The classic margarita was lifted by fresh orange, bringing a different dimension to the usual version. At £10 a pop, they do provide you with quite large portion. I personally headed to the Whisky Bar where I discussed my options with the knowledgeable bartender. Talking me out of the regular buffalo trace and into the buffalo trace reserve whisky, the reserve had a much smokier taste with a more complex depth of flavour than its cheaper counterpart. Later we sampled the Whisky Bar Old Fashioned made with Wild Turkey Rye. A treat.

Food was provided by Smokestak - a moist, smoky selection of ribs with tender meat, which left you with gloriously sticky fingers. Then The Slider Bar, where we ordered 3 Chilli Cheeseburgers. I'm yet to find my ultimate chilli cheeseburger (MeatLiqour comes the closest by far), and although these looked like little bites of heaven, they only had one taste - GARLIC. I usually love garlic. I will eat raw cloves when I'm poorly, but this was so unexpected. No chilli flavour... Was there cheese? If there was it must have been GARLIC CHEESE. We were all left with perplexed expressions.

Then there were the tacos, also done by The Slider Bar. Petite little morsels of juicy goodness. Chipotle beef and Chicken tacos were both flavoursome yet a little sloppy. I suffered through the drippings of Caitlin's juice onto my arm while she munched and I held the tray.

For dessert we indulged in a couple of Apple Crumble Sundaes from Sorbitum. These were perfect for a winters night and a really innovative way to use ice cream in colder weather. The caramel bourbon sauce was the highlight.

The best dish of the night was Baba Gs Lamb Biryani. This was bought by Rob (lover of Biryanis) as a 'still hungry' afterthought. But it turned out to be the dark horse at Hawker House. Fragrant, soft meat that melts like butter, the best lime pickle I've ever tasted and more layers of Biryani goodness. I'm not usually a fan of rice based dishes but this was so delectable that I will definitely be tracking them down again. Best Biryani we've ever had.

So Hawker House is worth a punt. Providing you get there early and are prepared to spent a bit of hard earned cash exploring their culinary delights.

Cake and Bake Show 2013

Back in September, myself and my ladies spent a day at Earl's Court sampling cake, cocktails and stalking Great British Bake Off contestants. Here are a few photos from our day...

A Selection of Delectable Stalls

 Showstopping Cake Displays

 

 

Intricate Cakes inspired by Fashion through the Ages

Winner's Bake Off Live featuring John Whaite and Edd Kimber

Me meeting Edd Kimber - so exciting!