Saturday, April 30, 2011

Chocolate High Tea at Hippopotamus, Wellington

While this may seem Royal Wedding appropriate, I assure you it's not related. ;-) Though we did go and watch it with friends, it was more about the friends (okay, so I like a pretty dress as much as the next person and would have watched it anyway, but Mr Cake may have been scratching his eyes out if he was stuck in our little apartment with just me and the wedding - so it seemed sensible to join our friends, where he had other males to keep him sane and where we played Royal Wedding Bingo and had fun as well as keeping an eye on the proceedings) than the wedding. Apologies if anyone is disappointed I didn't replicate William's biscuit wedding cake or anything. ;-)


This high tea was actually last weekend, an Easter event. We'd never been to Hippopotamus restaurant, though we've heard plenty of good reports, and the chocolate high tea seemed like a good first visit. We weren't the other ones who thought it was a good idea - all the available tables were set, and though we were among the earlier diners by the time we were left it was bustling.

Each diner had their own matching cup, saucer and plate trio, and the tea was served in matching teapots. The china differed between the tables, which made it feel nicely homely but still well coordinated, if you know what I mean. I don't mind quirky mismatched china but I think it might have been a bit strange in such a fancy restaurant. Anyway: pretty cups!


As well as a selection of teas a 'chocolate' cocktail was included - I believe it was white chocolate and some kind of citrus, but we didn't actually get the rundown - pretty tasty, not something I'd usually choose (I'm not too much into cocktails, though). I also had a ginger tea, which was really nice, with a very zingy ginger kick to it which was enough to make me enjoy it (I'm also not usually a tea drinker - a bit boring on the beverage side, me!).  The tea was poured for us and we were regularly offered top ups - though the waiters were clearly quite busy they were certainly attentive.


We were seated by the window so the view was lovely, and there were plenty of families out enjoying the long weekend, so there wasn't a chance we'd be bored at any stage, but we didn't have to wait long before we were presented with a tower of treats.


The bottom tier featured savoury items - puff pastry tarts with chutney; cucumber sandwiches; salmon crostini; and mushroom, onion and brie on rye bread. All the morsels were delicious, and I particularly enjoyed the salmon - the fish tasted very fresh and cleansing and the bread was nice and crunchy, so texturally it had it all. The chutney in the puff pastry tart was also very tasty - I believe it featured apricots, so it had that nice sweet/savoury balance. 


The middle tier was round one of chocolatey treats, with a macaron, a chocolate-filled profiterole, and a white chocolate cup for each of us to try. I found the macaron really disappointing, as though it looked the real deal it was very hard and crunchy - so far as I'm aware macarons should have a very distinct chewiness in the centre, and take on flavour and moisture from the filling. This was quite dry - really more a chocolate meringue. The profiterole was nice, though a little soggy, and the chocolate filling was rich and just my style. The white chocolate cup was my favourite of the three, with a creamy, rich centre and plenty of vanilla flavour through it. 


The top tier was clearly the fancy save-till-last stuff - chocolate mousse in wee glasses, and mille feuille with chocolate filling and icing. The mille feuille was okay - again, the pastry was a bit too soggy, but the filling good - but definitely not something I'd bother with again. The mousse was lovely and rich, and had marshmallow hidden in it for that extra Easter emphasis. It was topped with rose petals, pine nuts and pear, and though the pear was nice enough I found the pine nuts a bit jarring - the flavour of them remained with me long after the mousse was gone, despite the pine nuts vanishing in the first mouthful - so though the topping was pretty I would have enjoyed it more without the nuts!


When all the chocolate was gone we received a madeleine each, as a final touch. These were hot and fresh, light and fluffy and a great ending to the chocolate overload.

Overall we felt it was pretty good, a fun way to spend an afternoon, but some of the food didn't quite live up to expectations. I was also a bit disappointed the chef wasn't more creative - I had thought that maybe chocolate might have been incorporated into the savoury items and perhaps I'd meet some more unusual food items - and the macaron would have counted had it been chewy!

We did enjoy it, though - it's always good to do something special and perhaps my expectations were set too high - and I am keen to visit Hippopotamus for dinner sometime.

Did you experience a chocolate overload last weekend, or were you restrained and sensible, very unlike me? ;-)




Hippopotamus is located in the Museum Hotel, 90 Cable Street, Wellington, ph 04 803 8935, www.hippopotamus.co.nz

Thursday, April 28, 2011

My Favourite Kitchen Toys

I'm sure every cook has things they couldn't bear to be without - and depending what you cook and how you cook these will vary. I thought I'd show you a few of the bits and pieces I use all the time - most of my key gear is pretty basic, which I think is good - I'd rather have less clutter in my teeny cupboards!


For everyday cooking, we have a cast iron pot that ends up being used for almost every meal. It was $50 from Farmers - go the no-name brand (while I would love Le Creuset I am just not committed enough to pay hundreds of dollars for one pot) - and serves us well. Only problem; it's not big enough! I often wish for a larger version, for when we're making chilli or other meals we make go a long way. And sadly apparently budget cast iron cookware is hard to find in gargantuan proportions.

As well as a few regular saucepans, which are mostly used for rice and pasta (or when we're too lazy to clean the still-dirty cast iron from the previous day!), we have a non-stick frypan, which is perfect for healthy stir fry meals, browning off anything, and pancakes and omelettes. At this point we just buy cheapies and replace them every year or so, but I am tempted by the spiel of things like stoneware as a long-term solution - have you tried stoneware, or something else that doesn't lose its non-stickness? Does it live up to the hype?


Baking wise, I have a largish stack of bowls (fortuitously, since they're mismatched, they all nest neatly) - mostly glass, in varying sizes, but one stainless steel one (good for whipping up egg whites - they do get fluffier faster in stainless steel) and a Tupperware one. It was pretty pricey (about $70, if I remember correctly) but its big draw is that it has splashguard lid - basically a lid with a hole in the middle - which is fantastic if you're trying to beat anything prone to splashing, like, say, cake batter - I clean specks of butter off the wall far less often now I have it. ;-)


I also love my handheld electric beater - while stand mixers are fantastic, in a small apartment I reckon this is better solution - and unless you keep your stand mixer on the bench all the time it's much easier for most things anyway - and gives me better control over my batter. I have thrashed mine - it's a bit over a year old but I'd say I've probably aged it about 10 years in that time. ;-)

In the appliance category I also have a Braun stick blender, which I use most often with its mini food processor - impressively grunty for a wee thing, it grinds nuts, pulverises chickpeas for felafel, and even managed to blend a cinnamon stick into powder for me once, when I was desperate!


For measuring I can't go past my scales - they are used several times a week and I'd be perfectly happy if all recipe quantities were in grams, as I often plonk the bowl on top and just tare the scales off between additions (actually, I often just do the addition in my head but that has resulted in near disaster more than once - living on the edge?). For when I need teaspoon measures I have a few options - for teaspoons and tablespoons I like my regular measuring spoons, but the big red spoon (actually measures 100ml) is pretty good for dolloping batter into cupcake papers. The shot glass measure is ideal if I need, say, a couple of tablespoons of oil or some other liquid - much easier to handle than a spoon. 


For cleaning the bowl I quite like my Tupperware spatula - again, pricey compared with most - $30 - but it is firmer and gets all the batter out of the bowl (much to Mr Cake's dismay!). It also seems to be standing the test of time better than the Briscoes silicone equivalent, though sadly being silicone doesn't get the lifetime guarantee of other Tupperware stuff.


Last, but definitely not least, and probably the only unusual thing on the list - my kitchen computer! Made from my old laptop, pulled apart and reassembled in a neat wooden slot purpose-made by my dad, it's my main recipe source these days. I do use recipe books too - but more often bake straight from online sources, either other blogs or recipes I've already written up.

What couldn't you live without in your kitchen - and do you have lots of toys and gadgets, or do you prefer to keep it simple?

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Pescatore, Christchurch

Since it was Mr Cake's birthday last week his parents offered to take us out for dinner while we were in Christchurch over the evening. Mr Cake's mum stealthily booked something and wouldn't tell us where we were going - though she did tell me to bring our Entertainment Book/card down, and a lot of the restaurants in it are sadly currently unable to operate so that did narrow down the choices - but it was supposed to be a surprise. We would have been completely in the dark - except that Mr Cake answered the phone in the afternoon when the restaurant called to confirm our booking. Busted!

Mr Cake and I had dined at Pescatore once before, about three years ago, and thoroughly enjoyed it, so were pleased to be going back (good choice, Mr Cake's Mum) and it surpassed our expectations.


Pescatore is one of two restaurants in The George Hotel, which is on Park Terrace, not far from the fenced-off apartments I mentioned the other day - so though access via Montreal Street is straightforward the other (driving) routes in are still blocked.


We were greeted in what the Maitre'd referred to as his "padded cell" - a small white room with, indeed, padded walls. We were offered berry foam to start, which was light and refreshing, and then led to our table. The waiter explained the menu options - they have a 10 course degustation ("Evolution") menu, a five course "Middle" menu (which gives two choices for three of the courses), and the a la carte. We dined from the Middle menu.


Shortly after ordering we were presented with an amuse bouche of fish and chips. Unexpected (fish and chips in a high end restaurant?) - but fantastic! A tiny morsel of tender fish, cooked just so, and wafer-thin, perfectly seasoned chips, wrapped in a little cone of paper. I have to say at this point that I love amuse bouche - I find it really exciting to see what the chef concocts, as some can be completely off the wall, or, like this, a different take on a classic. It's also quite fun to get something you haven't chosen - to challenge your own palate (though any one of my family can tell you I have always loved fish and chips, so I guess this one wasn't so much a challenge) and a nice wee surprise.


Shortly afterwards we were brought bread, which came in paper bags - we each had a brioche roll, and a fennel seed ficelle (i.e. long skinny bun), and there was olive oil and truffle butter on the table. Mmm, truffle butter... Both breads were fantastic, and it wasn't long before we'd all scarfed down every last crumb.


The first course was called "Perception" and was described as a ham salad. As you can see from the photo, perceptions are indeed challenged with this dish! It was delicious, though - basically, the elements of the salad - ham, beetroot, lettuce, onion and apple, and even rye bread, had been dehydrated, and it was served with "onion whip" - a creamy concoction reminiscent of the classic Kiwi onion dip, only much better, which gave the vegies the perfect amount of moisture. I didn't rate the lettuce too highly (though it worked better than I expected!) - after some experimentation I concluded the best combo was apple with a bit of ham and some of the dip - but all the elements were good, and as a bonus it was fun to eat.


The next round was our starter course, and we had chosen between salmon and duck. I do love duck but Mr Cake had put dibs on that option and I knew I could steal off his plate a bit, so I went with the salmon. The salmon was lovely and fresh tasting, really delicious, and perfect paired with the creme fraiche pearls and avocado. The creme fraiche pearls sort of popped when you cut into them, with the liquidy centre flowing out - looked cool on the plate but even better in your mouth. Mr Cake's duck was also fantastic, the meat being very tender, and the raspberry vinegar marshmallows providing a tart aspect to the dish - a surprising but good combination.


For the main, I chose the Canterbury lamb trio - poached loin, braised lamb neck and lamb bacon. The waiter advised us that the chef makes his own bacon - and it was delicious, too, I would buy that from the supermarket - come on, New World, where's my lamb bacon? The lamb was all wonderful and having the different textures pleased me. The potato came in a round croquette - reminiscent of those potato pom-poms you can buy from the supermarket, but a million times better tasting.

Mr Cake's sister has Coeliac disease, so is highly sensitive to gluten, but it wasn't a problem at all here. The restaurant had been warned, and right at the beginning the waiter checked which of us it was, and throughout the evening they quietly substituted where appropriate, and advised and reassured where there may have been doubts. In this case she had also ordered the lamb, and instead of the crumbed croquette she received crunchy cubes of potato (which her brothers, 'helping' her finish her meal, professed to be better than the default option). Excellent service!

Mr Cake's main was the turbot, which was probably the best dish of the night (though all were very good). The fish, which was simply but beautifully cooked, was flavoursome and moist, and prompted a flurry of geeky smartphone reading as we weren't familiar with turbot. The crab pot sticker (a pot sticker is a sort of dumpling) was also very scrummy - I was pretty jealous of this, I have to admit - my taste wasn't enough for me. ;-)    


Before dessert we were each served a light-as-air berry souffle - it was pretty nice, though Mr Cake was more enamoured with this than I - I guess I was hanging out for the real dessert. ;-)  


For dessert, I had the goat cheese cheesecake, which was very light and fluffy, and only hinted of goat cheese (I had been hoping for a stronger flavour, but perhaps that was an unwise wish since this is dessert). The accompanying brandy snap contained a zesty apple and lime mousse (again, not too strong, very tasty) and the mango sorbet was incredibly good - sweet, very intense mango flavour, and not too icy.

Mr Cake's decadent rocky road dessert was pretty cool - the test tube sticking out the top contained cherry milkshake, and the fudgey chocolate part was studded with marshmallow. He also had marshmallow ice-cream, to round out the rocky road experience. Judging by how clean the plate was afterwards and how much he shared with me I'd say it went down a treat. ;-)


Just when our bellies were bursting and we were thinking of waddling back to the car we were presented with one final round of treats - petit fours, and Mr Cake's came with a birthday message too. The perfect end to a wonderful evening!

I loved the fish and chips, the ham salad, and the turbot (oh, that crab pot sticker!) - which dish would you most want to try?




Pescatore is located in The George Hotel, 50 Park Avenue, Christchurch, ph 03 371 0257, www.thegeorge.com/pescatore.htm

Monday, April 25, 2011

Canterbury Cheesemongers

Mr Cake and I nipped down to Christchurch to see our families for the weekend - I finally got to meet my nephew, yay! He is super-cute, though unfortunately we didn't get too much time to get acquainted as we flew in Thursday evening and my sister and her husband were heading off on Friday morning - surely that means I need to visit them in Dunedin sometime and check out the foodie delights down there - surely...

Friday was my nephew's two-month birthday, which means it was also two months since the awful February earthquake. Though we stayed with Mr Cake's parents on the north side of town, where the damage is less apparent (some roads are a little bumpier than they were and some houses and fences are clearly not right) we saw plenty of damage.

On Friday we ventured into town to visit Canterbury Cheesemongers, as Mr Cake's dad adores their roquefort. He'd actually asked for us to see if we could get some here and bring it down, but a little birdie told me the Canterbury Cheesemongers shop, where he had previously bought his cheese, reopened last week, so we were able to provide good tidings as well as cheese.



Driving into town we passed where Saggio di Vino used to be - above left - they were due to complete repairs from September's quake in March, but the Feb 22 shake wrecked those plans - and the building. I have heard they plan to rebuild in the same location but don't have any further details - I hope what I've heard is true.


As Cantabrians are all painfully aware, getting around town is not as simple as it used to be. Though the cordons around the CBD are reducing all the time, there is still a large area of the city fenced off, with the army manning all the possible routes in. As well as the main cordoned area some smaller areas are fenced off to prevent people walking in the path of precarious buildings.  The apartment buildings in the middle photo are on Park Terrace, just next to Hagley Park, and are an example of this; Park Terrace is accessible by car on either side of the apartments (though the routes in are limited) but they have clearly been deemed very risky, as fences prevent anyone using the road in the drop zone surrounding them. The building is quite an eerie sight, as from the other side of the street the structural damage isn't obvious, but we could clearly see many of the apartment doors and windows are wide open, with blinds hanging out windows, some patio furniture upended on balconies - all as it must have been on February 22. Anyway, due to the fence across Park Terrace we couldn't drive that way down to the Arts Centre (Montreal Street is open but one-way in the wrong direction), so we parked next to the fence and walked to Montreal Street.

The photo on the right is the old Girls' High School (the school was relocated to a new site many years ago - but this was my Mum's school). A little further along Montreal Street (right opposite the Art Gallery, a.k.a. Civil Defence headquarters) there was a very welcome sight:


Canterbury Cheesemongers were displaced after the September earthquake, and were trading in various creative ways - from their van, the owner's home, and farmers markets - until they were able to relocate to the Arts Centre, so it's wonderful that this time around they've been able to relaunch reasonably quickly.

The new shop is tucked away - the entrance is around the back and as the rest of the Arts Centre is completely fenced off you could easily miss it, but the sign on the pavement guided us.


Inside, though, all the wonderful cheeses are in the cheese room (I love the smell!) - and the main area contains a bakery and a few other useful accompanying morsels. When we arrived they were just glazing the hot cross buns, and we could hardly say no to fresh-out-of-the-oven buns, so naturally had to get some of those too. They even put them in a box for us, to protect them in their precious, fresh state from being beaten about on our walk back to the car. Service with a smile!

The buns were delicious - wonderfully spiced, and though they did contain the dreaded peel even Mr Cake conceded they were excellent - almost as good as the cheese. ;-)




Canterbury Cheesemongers is located at 301 Montreal Street, Christchurch, ph 03 379 0075, www.cheesemongers.co.nz

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Beehive Cafe, Thorndon, Wellington

This post was originally written for the Makan Blog Squad. Mr and Mrs Cake dined anonomously courtesy of Malaysia Kitchen.

The Beehive Cafe is a surprising name for a Malaysian eatery (or so I think) - and indeed, at first look it appears more like a run-of-the-mill sandwich shop, with lots of cafe tables and some display cabinets. Our visit was in the evening – very handy to my work, so an easy on-the-way-home pit stop – and there weren’t many other punters, but it is apparently very popular with the lunch crowd.


We ordered a couple of very yummy-sounding appetisers and a main each, and the servers were very friendly and helpful. After a very reasonable wait (only about 15 minutes) all our dishes arrived.
The mini murtabak were little parcels of deliciousness, basically like roti samosas, with a nicely spiced lamb filling. There was also a wonderful satay dipping sauce, and though not overly peanutty it had a wonderful warm flavour that went wonderfully with the wee parcels.



Our other starter was a dish which combined chicken with lovely fresh salad veggies – and dull as that sounds was really tasty. It was topped with a zingy sweet chilli sauce – I’m not a huge sweet chilli fan but this was very flavoursome, not too sugary. Though this was an appetiser it was a generous portion and would make a perfect light meal option – it would be a great alternative to curry.



My rendang was very good, with a very complex spicy flavour and just a little bit of heat. The beef in it was well cooked and not tough (as I’ve often found in that kind of dish) – and the sauce was so good that I kept nibbling just a little more well after my belly was full.

Mr Cake ordered the fish sambal, which was a firey red colour, and as ordered was nicely hot, though not mouth-burningly so. It was a little sweet and had chunks if fish through it, though the fish wasn’t great – the dish was good but paled next to the rendang. Mr Cake adores roti so we couldn’t not try Beehive Cafe’s version, and it was fantastic – fresh and chewy and not too oily.

All in all we thought it was fantastic – it’s only open till 8pm so a good option for lunch or an early dinner, and being up by Parliament means it’s not in the prime evening eating zone – but we’ll definitely be back for more of that rendang!



 Beehive Cafe is located at 100 Molesworth Street (Molesworth Arcade), Thorndon, Wellington, ph 04 473 3370

Friday, April 22, 2011

Half Homemade Easter Eggs

I like to make things for Easter - not that I don't love a Lindt bunny to hop into my life on Easter Sunday - as I find most of the shop eggs either boring and/or not very tasty. Unfortunately I've been a bit short on time lately (you may have noticed my erratic posts, sorry!) and making eggs from scratch seemed to be asking for trouble. So I worked out a cheaty way to jazz up bought eggs.

There are two variations - I was experimenting! - and I'm yet to taste/experience test either of them, but surely they can't go far wrong. ;-) 



Type 1 is filled with lollies - jet planes, maltesers, pebbles, mini eggs - or whatever you feel like. I sort of did this last year, only went all out and made my own eggs - but it was hugely time consuming. This time around I bought large eggs from the supermarket, as well as a big stash of candy, to take the pain out of it.



To get the lollies inside the egg you'll need a small serrated knife with a sharp tip. I found that gentle pressing would get the knife through the shell (if it doesn't work try a different spot as even the store-bought eggs have thick and thin bits and you might just be trying to cut through a thick part), and then a sawing motion started would work for a little bit. The egg inevitably cracks before you get a nice neat porthole but though the piece that breaks off will be irregular you should still be able to easily glue it back in afterwards.


Then the fun part - stuff in as many lollies (or whatever else you want - who said it had to be food hiding inside?) as you can. To glue the chocolate back on you either need to carefully apply heat to the edges of the lid or melt some extra chocolate separately and apply a small amount to the edges - and then just place it carefully back on the rest of the egg. I used my brulee torch (actually a bit too hot - a hairdryer with something to funnel the heat would do). Easy peasy! If you are careful with the foil when you open it you can rewrap it and fool your recipient into thinking it's a really boring hollow egg - or you could wrap it yourself for added pizazz. 


Type 2 is my take on the marshmallow eggs that are prolific at this time of year. I do like them but the chocolate is too thin and isn't really chocolate anyway. Sooo... Same general principle, store-bought eggs, carefully incised, but this time filled with marshmallow and caramel. Once again I went for the completely lazy option, and bought both marshmallows and caramel.


I melted the marshmallows in a saucepan over a low heat (stir often or the bottom will burn!) - a double burner would also be effective and you probably wouldn't have to watch so closely.


When the marshmallow was in a liquid state (and you could equally do this with your own marshmallow) I scooped it into a piping bag (warning! You will get sticky!) and piped it into the eggs. The astute among you may already be wondering "but won't that melt the chocolate?" Well, the answer is yes, Sort of. Some eggs more than others. My recommendation is to prepare a big bowl or tray of ice, loosely cover with gladwrap and rest the eggs on that before filling. This should keep the chocolate nice and cool and hopefully intact. Don't try to move them for a little while afterwards, either, to allow them to firm up should there be any soft spots.  


To give the eggs a caramelly yolk I initially only piped them about two thirds full of marshmallow, then squirted some caramel in, followed by a little more marshmallow to fill them up. I found that just placing the lids back on these eggs was enough to seal them - the marshmallow holds the broken bit in place well enough.


Leave them to cool and firm up for a few hours, then wrap them up again and voila! Surprise eggs! As you can see from the photo above right a few of mine did get a bit too squishy. Wrapping them gently up in the foil brought most of them back to being roughly the right shape, and the sticky marshmallow filling held together any bits that were a bit structurally compromised. And they will still taste just as good.


I can get away with posting this as all my egg recipients are safely without internet for the weekend. Convenient!

How do you do Easter eggs? Store-bought, homemade or a mixture?
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