Posts filed under 'Uncategorized'

Very happy

TasteSpotting is back!!!!
-L

Add comment June 28, 2008

Waiting patiently

   I didn’t have a food post ready but I’ve been wanting for weeks to share this photo.

Happy news! According to tastespotting, they are close to resolving their issues and will be making a comeback soon. :)

-Lina


1 comment June 20, 2008

Michael Caine’s in ABode Manchester


Millefeuille banana parfait -
caramelised banana and lime coulis

Lunch was a grazing affair at Michael Caine’s in ABode Manchester with many dainty little dishes to excite your palette in different ways. The idea of a western dim sum style lunch to have as much choice as possible without over stuffing oneself was well executed here as I was thoroughly satisfied.
The marrying of Asian herbs with scallops was skilfully done and the Japanese mushrooms with sesame seaweed and bean sprouts that accompanied the fish served as a refreshing counterpoint to the strong lemongrass foam sauce.
Not that the classical European styled dishes were lacking in any quality either! The duck risotto is probably one of the best risotto I’ve ever had and I really hope it is something the chef can pull off consistently and not just an one-off on the day. Nothing much to say about the lamb as it was just classically cooked, but very flavourful and presented very elegantly.
Overall, 3.8/5 as I felt the chef was a little too enthusiastic about using foam as a novelty point in the dishes. Service was very friendly and attentive (might have to do with how only 3 tables were occupied) and the staff knew the menu well. Very enjoyable experience and I am looking forward to returning and try the set lunch menu.

Duck confit risotto -
Wild mushrooms

Pan-fried scallops -
Caramelised cauliflower purée,
sweet raisin vinaigrette and cauliflower
and cumin velouté

Best-end of Herdwick lamb
Onion and thyme purée, fondant potato
and tapenade jus
Slow poached sea bass -
Thai purée, stir-fry of mangetout,
shiitake mushrooms and bean sprouts
with lemongrass foam
Passion fruit soufflée -
vanilla bourbon ice cream
by Png

1 comment May 14, 2008

Granola like

The hubby loves cereal (mainly Nature’s Path Optimum Power) and soymilk in the morning, afternoon, late at night, and whenever he feels like eating something. He doesn’t really miss it when we go weeks without buying any but when it’s there he’ll go thru a box in two days (maybe three). I tried buying in bulk, but it still doesn’t feel like much of a deal. The cheapest organic cereals are plain puffed grains of some sort. I prefer granola, but most of the granola I see at the stores aren’t organic and they are still expensive. A one pound bag of organic rolled oats is moderate in price. To make a bowl of oatmeal you would use less than you would normally consume in a bowl of granola.

So here’s my attempt in trying to solve my cereal dilemma, involving some cheap organic puffed brown rice and organic rolled oats. However, with the added costs of nuts, fruits and other extras, I don’t think I can conclusively calculate it as a real savings. But it’s tasty and makes use of my new glass container.

Granola cereal with almonds, coconut, and raisins

  • 2 1/2 – 3 cups rolled oats (I eyeballed it)
  • 2 cups puffed rice or kamut
  • 1 cup slivered almonds
  • 2/3 cup flaked coconut
  • 2/3 cup raisins
  • 1/4 cup golden syrup or maple syrup/rice bran syrup (more or less according to your taste)
  • 1 tsp molasses (optional)
  • 1 tbsp of oil or more if needed

Makes about 2 1/2 quarts (roughly)

Preheat oven to 350º. Coat large mixing bowl with the oil. Mix everything except the raisins together in the bowl with the liquids. Pour and spread evenly onto a parchment lined sheet pan. Bake for 20mins (or till golden brown), stirring it half way thru. When cooled mix in raisins, and store in an airtight container if you intend to keep for long. The non-airtight container is ok for a day or two (which is exactly how long it’s gonna last here).

Will be making more soon, but I ran out of raisins, and walnuts might be cheaper.

-L


6 comments May 9, 2008

April showers bring May… herbs

Micro greens.

Every year, my herb aspirations grow. I don’t have the greenest thumbs but I keep trying. This year I am growing cilantro again which I haven’t tried in years. I always screw up and they go straight to seed. Last year I had pretty good luck with basil, rosemary, oregano and micro greens (which were zero effort). The rosemary and oregano had survived the winter and started to grow on their own since March, and some thyme that didn’t really do so well are also making a comeback. I sowed the seeds for basil, cilantro, dill and micro greens a few weeks ago and everything is sprouting. I’ll give the micro greens another week or so before I start trimming.

 

These are wet pots, they are terra cotta inside glass which you fill with water and it’ll stay moist for 2 weeks. Basil for indoors.

This is the big outdoor pot of basil.

This is mint and chives I left in a box over winter. They never really got very tall.

I have 3 pots for cilantro, fingers crossed.

Oregano, the other half of the box held a rosemary plant which has been transplanted to a larger pot. I added some more oregano seeds to the empty side, hopefully the oregano will also start to expand on it’s own.

The rosemary was very reddish, it’s slowly getting greener. I hope it will grow into a small bush.

Don’t know how the thyme will fare this year. I had to transfer boxes so it’s kind of a mess.

And http://www.terracycle.net/main_plant_food.htm for organic fertilizers made from worm poo. :)

 -L


Add comment May 2, 2008


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