It Just Has To Be Delicious

Smoothie Bowls

24 05 20

Smoothie bowls are a great breakfast idea and they can be made up in advance. The possibilities are endless, but one of my favourite breakfast smoothies is a combination of frozen blueberries, frozen cherries, almond milk, soy milk and protein powder. I bulked this up a bit by adding some cooked quinoa and then topped it with sliced banana, chia, strawberries, dried apricots, almonds and a few chocolate nibs.

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To get the best smoothie bowls, you need to be a little bit organised at the start of the week. If using quinoa, wash and cook up a small amount and keep it in the fridge in a sealed container. Put some chia seeds in a jar and soak them – they should swell with the water and form a gel like slurry. The smoothie can be made up in advance but will probably need a stir in the morning, then all you need to do is add your toppings.

Frozen berries make a great smoothie base because you don’t have to add ice. You can use blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, cherries and some of the mixed berries too. Fresh berries are also good but don’t add the coldness to the smoothie.

You can use whatever milk you like and add yoghurt – thick greek yoghurt has a great protein content – and if you prefer not to add dairy you can use coconut yoghurt. For a bulkier smoothie you can add protein powder, quinoa, oats, psyllium husk and shredded coconut, and you can also soak cashews in water and whizz them up in the blender for a lovely cashew cream. I like to mix my milks so that I get a good fat/carb/protein mix.

Toppings can be fresh or tinned fruits – peaches, pears, apples, banana, strawberries, kiwi, lychees, pineapple.

You can also add nuts – if they are slightly toasted, that’s even better, and you can crush them too. You can also sprinkle desiccated coconut over the top.
Dried fruits make a great topping – sultanas, apricots, dates, figs.

Soaked chia is a nice addition, also agave syrup, maple syrup, honey and even a slight drizzle of nutella. Yum. Every bowl can be different, and they are fun to make.

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Recipe, Vegan/Vegetarian

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Tiramisu

24 05 20

What do you think of when you think of Tiramisu? Is it creamy, is it chocolatey, is it custardy? I imagine that every Italian home and restaurant has their own special recipe, but the one that I really enjoy that reminds me of Italy is the recipe that I devised after tasting the house speciality tiramisu at Alla Rampa Restaurant in Rome.

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Alla Rampa is just under the Spanish Steps, and I was so impressed with the dessert that I went back for seconds the next night. Their version is dished up from a large flat baking tray, and is coffee and sponge covered in the most delightfully light custard with marscapone and sprinkled with powdered chocolate. No creamy layers or chocolate layers in sight. I once made this for Nancy Lam and she cleaned up the dish by scooping out the remnants with her fingers and licking them, such an amazing compliment from a great lady.

If you are ever in Rome, please make sure that you pay a visit to Alla Rampa to try this amazing dessert. If you are not likely to go to Rome in the near future, follow the recipe below and let me know what you think – I hope you love it. The quantities are approximate because I made the recipe up, please feel free to adjust them to suit your taste.

Recipe
1 pack of Boudoir or Savoiardi biscuits (these are sponge fingers which soak up the coffee and liqueur)
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1 coffee based liqueur miniature such as Tia Maria or Kahlua (approx 100mls)
1 cup of strong black coffee (e.g. use 3 heaped teaspoons of instant coffee, or if you prefer,
make ‘proper’ coffee) cooled
4 eggs – separated – whisk 2 of the whites into stiff peaks, save the other 2 whites for when
you want to make a meringue
100g caster sugar
4 level tablespoons plain flour
4 level tablespoons cornflour
600mls milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
250g – 300g marscapone
chocolate powder for sprinkling

Method
1. Take a large shallow dish and arrange the savoiardi biscuits in the dish so that the base is completely covered. If you have an oval dish like me, you will need to line the biscuits up like soldiers and then break some to fill the gaps around the edge.

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2. Pour the liqueur over the biscuits trying to ensure that each biscuit gets a splash of liqueur. Now pour the coffee over the biscuits – use half the coffee first and see how it goes. The biscuits are very absorbent, so you are likely to need all of the coffee.

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3. Whisk together 4 egg yolks and the sugar until thick and pale. Beat in the flour and cornflour along with a large splash of the milk.
4. Heat the rest of the milk in a medium-large saucepan until almost boiling, and pour it onto the egg mixture, stirring constantly.
5. Now tip the whole mixture back into the saucepan (use a spatula to scrape every drop out of the bowl), and heat again on a low heat, stirring all the time (otherwise it will stick). When it has boiled and thickened, remove it from the heat.
6. Fold in the whisked egg whites and return to the heat for a few minutes, you can also add the vanilla extract at this point.
7. Remove from the heat, cool for a few minutes and stir in the marscapone. The marscapone should melt quite nicely into the mixture, keep stirring until it is smooth and lovely (taste a nice big spoonful just to be sure). You can add extra marscapone if you like a creamier texture, it’s up to you.

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8. When it has cooled down sufficiently, it can be lukewarm, but not hot, pour it over the soaked biscuits so that all of the biscuits are covered.

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9. Using a sieve, sprinkle chocolate powder over the top so that it is completely covered. Chill for at least an hour, and serve only to your most deserving friends.

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Recipe

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The Milk Barrel, Hillarys

24 05 20

There’s nothing like a great ice cream, and with so many parlours to choose from, it can be difficult to find a parlour that provides the right balance.
Many establishments are geared up towards children offering an array of sauces, sprinkles and chocolate bar additions, and although nice occasionally, I generally find them quite sickly.
Gusto in Leederville is a great parlour – the guy who owns it took the trouble to go to Italy and learn the true artisan craft of gelato making. Thus far it has been my favourite. When I saw that Milk Barrel had won numerous awards at the Perth Royal Show, I thought it was worth a try and was very pleasantly surprised – the gelato is certainly as good a standard as Gusto, although the Milk Barrel tend to have fewer vegan options as standard.

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I chose the Tiramisu gelato, which was beautiful. With sponge pieces, gooey chocolate and a not too sweet creamy coffee gelato backdrop, it was really well constructed and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
One of our group chose the pavlova special, which tasted just like a pavlova with raspberry, passionfruit and chunks of meringue. The lemon and lime bitters sorbet tasted exactly like lemon and lime bitters, wonderful and refreshing.
The cookies and cream was again not too sweet, but tasty and creamily delicious.

It’s great to see a good quality gelato bar in the northern suburbs, I look forward to going back to try the other flavours.

Last Visit Date – February 2020

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Fun thing to do

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Pinchos, Leederville

24 05 20

We stopped off at Pinchos for some Sunday afternoon tapas. It occupies a corner position in the heart of the Leederville strip with tables outside as well as inside. When they first opened a few years back, they had a small shop, but have expanded into the shop next door, a move that was needed because they are always busy.
The menus are the type where you tick what you want – at least the wait staff can’t get your order wrong. There are Pinchos classics, small bites, salads, ham and cheese, grilled bread with toppings, tortillas, croquettes, tapas, and a few bigger plates.
We started off with Pan Arabe – flatbread, saffron labne, olives, beetroot, guindilla pickle, grpaes and dukkah. This was one of my favourites, a really nice combination, and the flatbreads were beautifully prepared. I could have happily eaten a very large plate of this and nothing else.

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Next came Berenjena – Grilled bread with eggplant, brie and pear chutney. This was nice but quite mildly flavoured and could have benefited from a bit more seasoning.

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Then my favourite Patatas Bravas – beautiful roasted potatoes with paprika, tomato and aioli. My only wish was that all of the potatoes were coated with the sauces.

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Then the salad arrived – Frutos Secos – rocket, confit nuts, pear, goats cheese and orange segments. A nice mixture that I thought went well together, but my companion wasn’t overimpressed – describing it as a ‘trail mix’ salad.

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The last dish was a tapas favourite Campinones con Queso Azul – grilled mushrooms with px vinegar, blue cheese and roasted candied almonds. This was probably the best dish – full of flavour and not too overpowering.

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It was a very nice late afternoon lunch, and Pinchos is a casual relaxed atmosphere where you can sit outside and watch the world go by. It’s very tempting to compare it with Duende which is just around the corner, but I think that they are two different vibes. Duende is much more polished and had more of a gourmet feel to it, whereas Pinchos is perfect for dropping by to eat simple but delicious bites. Both venues have a place in Leederville, and they are certainly well loved by the locals.

Last Visit – October 2018

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Pictures from other visits:

Flatbread, pickles, labne, olives, grapes:
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Spanish pate with bread:
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Mushrooms with blue cheese, PX vinegar and almond crumb:
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Roast pork belly with cumin and lemon:
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Restaurant review

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Pho 4 U, Malaga

24 05 20

Pho 4 U is a casual cafe in amongst the parade of shops between Illawara Crescent and Beach Road facing Alexander Avenue. It is clean and modern, with a stereo that plays Asian pop and emits coloured lights while you eat. The staff are lovely and helpful, and the food is good. The menu is quite extensive, with the usual Vietnamese favourites as well as Chinese style sharing dishes.
While we perused the menu, the waitress brought us some peanuts – nice slightly spicy peanuts.

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We chose some crab claws and stuffed chicken wings to start.

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These were really tasty and cooked to order. The wings stuffed full of filling and the crab claws nice and generous.
For mains we chose fried prawns with salt and chilli. Beautifully cooked, crispy, spicy, and with those lovely fried onion and chilli bits, we ate them hungrily. We also ordered some boiled rice.

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We also chose stir fried chicken with vegetables and sambal sauce. The sauce wasn’t as spicy as I hoped but the vegetables were fresh, colourful and tasty, and the chicken was very nicely cooked.

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All in all it was a very nice and generous meal, and I will definitely go back to try some more traditional dishes.

Visit Date – June 2018

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Restaurant review

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Peppermint Green, Joondalup

24 05 20

Peppermint Green is a lovely cafe just off Winton Road in Delage Street. As soon as you walk in, you can see that it is clean, bright, and welcoming.

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We stopped off for a small bite before shopping. I ordered an orange and cinnamon iced tea which was lovely. They also offer allergy friendly options, and various different milks if you don’t do dairy.

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My partner chose good old English Breakfast tea, served with a cute Teddy biscuit.

I accompanied my tea with some raspberry and pear bread. This was lovely and i really enjoyed it.

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My partner chose raisin toast – again a great fruity rich option with lost of nice spices.

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The cake cabinet is very tempting and nicely laid out:

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I have revisited since and found that staff were very accommodating in preparing scrambled eggs and bacon for me with no cream or butter.

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My partner had smashed avocado on toast with feta, which was nicely prepared and a good texture.

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This coffee house is a local gem, well worth a visit. They also have a good homewares section to browse through.

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Last Visit Date – October 2019

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Coffee shop review, Restaurant review

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Kabalason, Joondalup

24 05 20

We popped into Kabalason one evening on a whim as we were passing. The last time we dined here was many years ago and we ate thali which was nice, but not amazing. I remember the flavours as being very strong and the spices a bit raw. Anyway, that was ages ago and last time we walked past Kabalason there were many people dining and we felt that it was worth another try.
We were quite early, and there was one other diner. A buffet was laid out under heat lamps, but our experience of buffet food is not good, so we decided to eat a la carte. The waitress did try to persuade us to have buffet ($24.50) but we wanted something freshly cooked and relatively light.
We chose chicken tikka, seekh kebab, cauliflower capsicum masala curry and two garlic naans.

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The tikka was served with a limp looking salad and a mint yoghurt sauce. The meat was a bit tough and didn’t taste as if it had been freshly cooked. It tasted more like a part cooked tikka that had been warmed up, the flavour was okay, but the mouthfeel was dense and I have had much better tikkas.

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The seekh kebab was better than the tikka, but again served with a limp salad that we didn’t touch. I suspect that the salad had been made up quite some time earlier and left in the fridge. The meat was nicely spiced, and a bit on the salty side, but a nice flavoured kebab.

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The cauliflower capsicum masala started off okay, but as I ate more of it I found it quite strongly spiced, and the spices had a raw edge to them as if they had not been cooked through. One of the secrets of a great curry is to cook it long and slow so that the spices really get a chance to develop and lose their hot rawness. The first few spoonfuls were okay, but as I ate more, I found it salty, hot and overbearing and I left most of it.

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The garlic naans were nicely flavoured but variable in texture. One was soft and a little doughy, but the better of the two. The other one was quite crisp and stiff, so I couldn’t wrap my curry in it.
So will I go back to Kabalason ? Probably not. I don’t know for sure, but I suspect that they make a lot of food in advance for the buffet and then just reheat as required. Other than the naan nothing tasted really fresh and bright, and the constant throat-clearing and sneezing coming from the kitchen was quite off-putting. We spent over $60 on a very average meal.

Visit date – October 2019

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Gusto Gelato, Leederville

24 05 20

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Gusto Gelato is the brainchild of Sean Lee, a gelato enthusiast who decided to learn his craft in the Italian town of Bologna. He uses traditional artisan techniques and the result is a smooth creamy dreamy gelato which tastes divine.
The parlour is in Leederville at the top end of Newcastle Street, a bright cheery place with pastel coloured tables and chairs so that you can eat in. Sean and his staff are friendly and knowledgeable and they serve the gelato with love and care, washing the scoops in between each flavour.
His flavours are not overly sweet and sickly, he has the balance of sweetness just right and the flavours are full and precise. I chose the Salted Caramel – which tasted exactly like salted caramel – salty but not overly so and caramel but not cloyingly sweet – absolutely delicious. I also had the Brittle Sweet Symphony – honey gelato with almond brittle and dark chocolate pieces – again just divine.
It’s not cheap at $8 for 2 scoops, but you get what you pay for and this is the best gelato in Perth.

Vegan flavours include – Dark chocolate, Coconut and mango, sour cherry, raspberry, lemon, orange and passionfruit and mango. Sometimes they have a fab lemon and lime bitters flavour.

If you also want to learn how to make great gelato, Gusto run classes!

Last Visit – We’re always here – it’s a favourite

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Category:

Fun thing to do, Vegan/Vegetarian

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Heirloom, East Perth

24 05 20

Heirloom is a restaurant in the swish Fraser Suites in East Perth. Pete Evans is apparently the executive chef, but I’m not so sure that he has seen the latest menu.
We were directed to a nice table near the window, and given the menu which is extremely limited and quite ordinary. The kind of menu that I love is one where I can’t decide what to eat because everything sounds so delicious. This menu was the opposite. I struggled to find something that appealed to me. Appetizers were bread and dip, or olives with chorizo, hmm not that inspiring. Small plates were calamari, chicken and avocado tacos, arancini with prawns, duck leg salad or falafel. We ordered drinks while we deliberated over the best option.
I asked for a mocktail, and the very helpful waitress Nicole showed me a choice of two. I picked a lychee version only to be told that they had run out of lychees but the barman would make up a coconut version. I ended up with coconut water containing a few sprigs of mint, lots of cucumber, and a hint of lime. It was plain weird.

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I asked the waiter about the size of the starters and he said that they were about 200 grams each, which I thought was a strange way of describing them. He said that if we ordered arancini, we’d get just three arancini balls and three prawns, and he seemed to be recommending the tacos, so we decided to share the chicken and avocado tacos to start. In my head I imagined soft tacos with lovely slices of green avocado, crispy chicken, and some kind of mayo. What we actually received were 3 crispy tacos with a sandwich style filling, a few diced mango pieces on top, and a lettuce leaf with some further filling. They tasted
okay, but the mango wasn’t really enough to come through, and they could have looked so much more appealing. I also asked the waiter if there were any specials, but he said no, the menu was brand new, and that’s all that was available.

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Nicole came back and asked me how I was enjoying my cocktail. I said that it was a bit odd, and she very helpfully asked if I would like to try a strawberry daiquiri style mocktail instead. I said yes that sounded much better, so she disappeared and then came back and offered me a virgin mojito instead, so I settled for that. When it came up it was much better than the previous cucumber water style effort, although I am not sure if it was very mojito-ey.

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The choice of large plates was equally as dull as the small plates. The waiter told us that the macadamia crusted schnitzel was a very popular option (not my idea of fine dining), but he also advised us to order side dishes because he said that there weren’t many vegetables with the mains. Other options were barramundi, salmon, sirloin steak, lamb rack, mushroom fettucine plus a veggie tian option. My partner chose the barramundi and I chose the sirloin. At this stage I was regretting that we didn’t walk out after first seeing the
menu.
When the mains arrived they were beautifully presented and very tasty. My steak was cooked well, it came with some nicely presented carrots, some charred onions, a fondant potato, and a mushroom puree. As instructed, we also ordered a side of sauteed vegetables which was a nice selection, cooked well.

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The barramundi was again nicely cooked, tasted good and came with a cumin spiced potato galette the cumin was not detectable), a nice snow pea salad, braised fennel, and a quenelle of preserved lemon and pesto.

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The mains were tasty, and well prepared, but not amazing. There was nothing to give them a wow factor, and I am glad that I had 25% discount voucher. We looked at the dessert menu and chose not try the lemon tart, orange honey parfait or the coffee creme brulee.
It was an odd meal and Nicole the waitress did a great job of trying to make everything as good as it could be, but I can’t say that it was memorable, and I won’t go back. It was okay, just boring, very limited, and not the standard that I expected for a restaurant that is claiming serve ‘beautifully crafted’ food.

Visit Date – April 2018

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Hyatt Regency, Perth CBD

24 05 20

I attended the IPAA awards at the Hyatt Regency Grand Ballroom. I know that it can be difficult to cater satisfactorily for hundreds of diners at an event like this, but everything was organised very well and the food was delivered to the table hot and well presented.
I didn’t sample the bread basket, but my colleagues enjoyed their rolls and butter. The starter was chicken breast with quinoa, celery, peas, tabbouleh and local feta salad. This was a delight with a generous portion of succulent chicken and tasty accompaniments with real depth to the flavours.

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The main was Amelia Park medallion rib beef with Pommes Anna, mushroom, kale,
pumpkin puree and Madeira jus. The beef was beautifully tender, and the vegetables again had really good depth of flavour, obviously having been prepared with care.

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We finished off with tea, coffee and some handmade biscuits. A really good example of how to do conference catering – congratulations on a great meal.

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Visit Date – June 2019

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Restaurant review

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