tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82149072005931011242024-03-19T13:10:51.496+01:00The Nomadic Feast KitchenNomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-8143476650546685642012-07-04T00:39:00.000+02:002012-07-04T14:08:26.300+02:00Fig and chèvre toastie<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAXMxcLmFrUyiUafIq0uqsdP81lO2k4-bs1CypprFu6di2GcBMZGGWqKYm6nqgFicR_3sXW6uRio_4BDeDppvppN7HUzGorT3hx4WjV3n0I7pSr5-jfKBrt3JcVdizbcMfGbYo150truz5/s1600/DSC02554.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAXMxcLmFrUyiUafIq0uqsdP81lO2k4-bs1CypprFu6di2GcBMZGGWqKYm6nqgFicR_3sXW6uRio_4BDeDppvppN7HUzGorT3hx4WjV3n0I7pSr5-jfKBrt3JcVdizbcMfGbYo150truz5/s640/DSC02554.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">An </span><span style="background-color: white;">ü</span><span style="background-color: white;">ber-schnell sweet & savoury snack which saved me from just-got-home-from-a-long-day
hunger pangs. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="color: #073763; font-size: large;"><b>Fig and chevre
toastie</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Serves 2 for
pre-dinner snack</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Ingredients</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">About 2
tablespoons of <span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">ch</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">vre </span>(goats cheese)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 slices of
crusty bread, slightly toasted<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2-3 cherry
tomatoes, halved<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large fig,
quartered<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">ground black
pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Method</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Lightly
toast the slices of crusty bread in an oven. Spread the goats cheese on top and
put back in the oven until the cheese has slightly melted (about 2 minutes). Take
the cheesy toasties out of the oven and sprinkle black pepper liberally. Top
with figs, cherry tomatoes and whatever green salad leaves you have. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Devour. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-26419657774210176182012-06-29T14:00:00.000+02:002012-06-30T03:43:19.166+02:00Rendang: world's most delicious food<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk079ro0uPyeFz0xh80OpYWHsuVNP63GHhyphenhyphenPgRYL4NOwh04_R5bp54dx-zdFCBR3pHANHF_Pf81M7o2kXm6LQEkHkIYE0OijT7NGTOweiCYIaj8UcpOq-7WtbcPZv28KI7wFaHEGUlMNUz/s1600/DSC02536.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk079ro0uPyeFz0xh80OpYWHsuVNP63GHhyphenhyphenPgRYL4NOwh04_R5bp54dx-zdFCBR3pHANHF_Pf81M7o2kXm6LQEkHkIYE0OijT7NGTOweiCYIaj8UcpOq-7WtbcPZv28KI7wFaHEGUlMNUz/s640/DSC02536.JPG" title="Homemade beef rendang - Nomadic feast kitchen" width="640" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It's totally true! <a href="http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/eat/readers-choice-worlds-50-most-delicious-foods-012321?page=0,2" target="_blank">Beef rendang took the top spot in CNN GO's list of best food in the world</a>. OK, so Facebook polling isn't exactly scientific. But whatevs, a dish that takes hours to labour over definitely deserves to be named the best food in the world.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This the second installment to my (seemingly ridiculous) journey to cooking the <a href="http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/eat/40-foods-indonesians-cant-live-without-327106" target="_blank">Top 40 Indonesian food</a>. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This version of rendang slightly omits some spices which I couldn't find in Swiss supermarkets. It's probably not the most traditional way to cook it, but for me it worked. And I figured it still tastes pretty good, since I made this at a dinner party last weekend and not a scrape of rendang sauce was left on the plate :) </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><b style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Sustainable cooking tip</span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Use a pressure cooker if you have one, as it is a much more energy efficient way for slow cooking. Portland Tribune did this<a href="http://www.portlandtribune.com/sustainable/print_story.php?story_id=127367763136048200" target="_blank"> experiment in testing out the most sustainable way to cook a leg of lamb</a> (same principles as beef rendang, right?) and found out that pressure cooker on electric stovetop range consumes the least amount of energy. This really saves like 3 hours of my life, plus because you can brown the meat straight in the pot that means less dishes to wash up :)</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Pressure cooker on electric stovetop range</b></span></li>
<ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cooking time 45 mins, energy used 0.45kWh</span></li>
</ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Crock-Pot or countertop slow cooker</b></span></li>
<ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cooking time 4 hours, energy used 1.1kWh</span></li>
</ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Stainless steel pot in oven</b></span></li>
<ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cooking time 3 hours, energy used 2.3kWh</span></li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Rendang</b></span> </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #073763; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>For the meat use a type of meat that is as lean as possible, as fat is hard to break down and makes the rendang a bit chewy. Try grass-fed beef (who hopefully have had a happy life grazing around under the summer sun) or buffallo or maybe kangaroo (don't diss Skippy, it's the cheapest, leanest, most sustainable meat around). I haven't really tried the roo option yet, but will give it a go when I'm back in Oz</i>. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1kg of lean meat, fat-trimmed, cubed (give it a good bash to tenderize the meat before cooking) </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">5 shallots, chopped finely</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">5 cloves of garlic, crushed</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 bunch of coriander leaves, chopped finely</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 x 400 ml of coconut milk </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon of cloves</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon of nutmeg</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tbsp of cumin</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 cm ginger, grated</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tbsp of tamarind paste (use vinegar if you don't have tamarind)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 stalks of lemon grass, crush the bottom part to release the flavours</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 birds eye chili (go as mild or as crazy as you like)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 cups of stock (you might not need all of it)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3-4 bay leaves</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cinnamon stick</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tbsp peanut or sunflower oil</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Optional: baby potatoes or other slow cooking vegetables</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method:</span><br />
<ol>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare your rendang paste. In a mortar and pestle crush up the shallots, garlic, chili, nutmeg, cumin, ginger, tamarind and coriander leaves. If you want a more intense flavour you can chop up the lemongrass as well. Keep crushing until you get a fine pulp. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat up the oil in a wok or straight in the pressure cooker. Throw in the rendang paste that you gloriously laboured over, fry until the fragrances fill up the kitchen, reminding your boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife/kids that they are lucky to have an in-house awesome cook. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Chuck in the meat and brown them for a few minutes, making sure they are coated in the paste. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pour in the coconut milk, bay leaves, cloves and cinnamon stick. Add the stock to make sure the meat is completely covered. </span></li>
</ol>
<ul><ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If you're using a pressure cooker, check the instructions to make sure you have the right amount of liquid. Adjust the amount of stock accordingly to reach above the minimum line, pop the lid on and cook under pressure (I set mine on high pressure) for about 30 mins. Release pressure, open the lid and check that the meat is ready (almost crumbles when you poke it). Then continue cooking for about 15-20 minutes uncovered under medium-low heat to let the sauce darken and thicken. </span></li>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If cooking on stove top, bring to the boil and then cook on simmer uncovered for 3 hours until the liquid is reduced. </span></li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serve with a steaming bowl of white rice. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-24420641981589516932012-06-28T07:12:00.000+02:002012-07-05T17:50:34.692+02:0040 of Indonesia's best dishes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVhtB5Elo4PuSLHNP8TdpIHSX3mliIr1_wYHBBZodqrzi_hfJl-zPmFCEcLKQDe15NTlCDuHnNvWOdZ8FX5zZNC8w7DZu1BlPO9jb3jkzMwL-FkGwnOSHODg6Cxbhlb4_0XaFCb5ZE2Kts/s1600/IMG_0137.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVhtB5Elo4PuSLHNP8TdpIHSX3mliIr1_wYHBBZodqrzi_hfJl-zPmFCEcLKQDe15NTlCDuHnNvWOdZ8FX5zZNC8w7DZu1BlPO9jb3jkzMwL-FkGwnOSHODg6Cxbhlb4_0XaFCb5ZE2Kts/s640/IMG_0137.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The best Indonesian foods are hands down the old school, simple, traditional ones that you get from kaki limas. <i><b>Kaki lima</b></i> (meaning five legs) is a terminology for an Indonesian food cart (3 wooden 'legs' and 1 front wheel) which is rolled down the city streets by a seller (the 2 legs). OK, so of course if you're not used to 'street food' you risk catching some variation of Bali belly. But I'm sure that 7.5 out of 10 times you will <i>probably </i>be fine... </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here is the complete list of the </span><a href="http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/eat/40-foods-indonesians-cant-live-without-327106" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">best 40 Indonesian dishes</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> compiled by CNN. My goal is to attempt to cook every single one of them at some point while living in Europe, and where possible substituting the tropical ingredients with local produce I can find here. A bit of a Euro-Indo fusion ;) </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sambal: a chili-based sauce</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2011/11/peanut-free-sweet-chicken-satay-sate.html" target="_blank">Satay</a>: meat on sticks with <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/03/peanut-sauce-sambal-kacang.html" target="_blank">peanut sauce</a> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bakso: meatball soup</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Soto: coconut-milk based soup</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Nasi goreng: fried rice</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Gado-gado: steamed vegetables doused in <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/03/peanut-sauce-sambal-kacang.html" target="_blank">peanut sauce</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Nasi uduk: coconut rice</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Nasi padang: a rijsttafel with super spicy Sumatran side dishes</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ayam goreng: fried chicken with chili</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2011/10/makan-makan.html" target="_blank">Mie goreng</a>: fried noodles</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Gudeg: Javanese sweet and coconut-y jackfruit stew</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Rawon: dark, sticky and sweet East Javanese beef stew</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pecel lele: fried catfish served with raw green vegetables and sambal</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Opor ayam: silky white coconut-milk based chicken curry</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Mie ayam: braised chicken and noodle soup</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Babi guling: pig-on-a-spit</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Gulai: North Sumatran curry </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bubur ayam: chicken congee</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bakpao: sweet (chocolate or red-bean paste filling) or savoury (chicken) buns</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Asinan sayur: picked vegetable salad</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/06/cah-kangkung-stir-fried-spinach-being.html" target="_blank">Cah kangkung</a>: stir fried water spinach</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pepes ikan: steamed spicy fish</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pempek: South Sumatran fish cakes</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Perkadel: corn fritters</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Martabak: sweet or sour multi layered pancakes</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sayur asem: tamarind-based vegetable soup</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sop buntut: oxtail soup</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ketoprak: vermicelli, tofu and rice cake salad doused in spicy <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/03/peanut-sauce-sambal-kacang.html" target="_blank">peanut sauce</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/06/terong-balado-spicy-eggplant-being.html" target="_blank">Balado terong</a>: spicy eggplant</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Lontong sayur: rice cake in yellow coconut-milk based curry</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2011/11/rendang-worlds-most-delicious-food.html" target="_blank">Rendang</a>: the BEST melt-in-your-mouth beef curry</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Tahu gejrot: fried tofu</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sop kambing: clear goat soup</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/03/siomay-bandung-dumplings-fleeting-visit.html" target="_blank">Siomay</a>: dumplings</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ikan bakar: grilled fish</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Daun papaya: papaya leaves stir fry</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Otak otak: another fish cake</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bebek goreng: fried duck</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Gorengan: anything deep fried</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Indomie: the revered Indonesian instant noodles, possibly Indonesia's biggest export</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-16663271991458000352012-06-18T08:00:00.000+02:002012-06-18T17:59:02.173+02:00Meatless Mondays: Caprese Polenta Pizza<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDGugVSMo6h_lAVGvKD2nyb8jfkxc8NEhI5D-EWTgfiO8kj7uSsM7ZrH50r91QhxKDu8lNMgtjKTokx3XJg_yobw2ap2gFS-UHX7V6_iAfez3xRyFmE18sh7jif79RNtE6pI3OAWi0Jg4C/s1600/DSC01909.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDGugVSMo6h_lAVGvKD2nyb8jfkxc8NEhI5D-EWTgfiO8kj7uSsM7ZrH50r91QhxKDu8lNMgtjKTokx3XJg_yobw2ap2gFS-UHX7V6_iAfez3xRyFmE18sh7jif79RNtE6pI3OAWi0Jg4C/s640/DSC01909.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">These days I am constantly running between my master <a href="http://www.sustec.ethz.ch/people/sryantoror" target="_blank">thesis</a>
work and my (paid) work. I should really get a bike... So when I get home
starving, express cooking is the way to go. That, and when even takeaway Chinese
costs 20 bucks, there is just no option but to home cook all the time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So, I am super happy to have found out about polenta. It cooks so
quickly and is ready in minutes. This vegetarian version of the <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/06/smoked-trout-and-carpione-polenta-pizza.html" target="_blank">polenta pizza I made last week</a> makes a super speedy and colourful dinner!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Caprese polenta pizza</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Polenta pizza</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">125g instant polenta<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">500mL water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 bouillon cube<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Caprese topping </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tomato, sliced thinly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2-3 cherry tomatoes, halved, optional<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 bunch of fresh basil leave<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ ball of light mozzarella cheese<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1-2 tablespoons of caramelized onion or onion jam<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Olive oil to drizzle<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cracked black pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the polenta pizza base. Line a pizza tray with baking paper. In
a pot bring the water to the boil and stir in the bouillon cube. Add in the
instant polenta. Turn heat down to simmer and stir the mixture until the
polenta incorporates all the water. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pour the cooked polenta onto the lined
pizza pan. Working quickly (use a cake frosting spreader if possible), spread
the polenta across the pizza pan until you get a thin base (about 1.5cm thin).
Leave to cool and set for about 5-minutes.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat the oven to 200 degrees. Spread the caramelized onions on top of
the polenta pizza base. For the topping, place an arrangement of tomato slices,
mozzarella slices and basil leaves alternately, going around the diameter of
the pizza base. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Place halved cherry tomatoes in the middle. Drizzle with olive
oil and top with cracked black pepper. Don’t worry too much about salt because
the polenta pizza base will already be salty from the bouillon cube. Bake in
the oven for about 15 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the base has
lightly crisped up. Scatter fresh basil leaves on top just before serving. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Yum. </span></div>
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<br />Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-59678930521013260722012-06-17T11:08:00.000+02:002012-06-18T19:51:33.804+02:00(Vegan) Chocolatey Strawberry Tart: erdbeer pfluecken in Urdorf<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTbjes5rmlVW_GPC3kUIBOk5Bos-PgqwyVSrQH-KuUJ6cViaq3ALmKo7rzuOC4NHhzd6INDeAAB2FKfAYxT94G1PR7l-FmJ8tI0R7cVH40hNePVVTuyXpB6BScQOUauBBrr1vlGYwFEIIm/s1600/Foto+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTbjes5rmlVW_GPC3kUIBOk5Bos-PgqwyVSrQH-KuUJ6cViaq3ALmKo7rzuOC4NHhzd6INDeAAB2FKfAYxT94G1PR7l-FmJ8tI0R7cVH40hNePVVTuyXpB6BScQOUauBBrr1vlGYwFEIIm/s640/Foto+2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It’s the first sunny weekend in a while and I am dying to go
do outdoorsy stuff. I have a slightly embarrassing confession. Instead of opting
for erm… more respectable/strenuous Swiss activities along the lines of hiking
and biking, I decided to have a ‘domesticated Saturday morning’ and (very nicely) dragged
Mark to this <a href="http://www.agroservice.ch/cms/index.php?id=28" target="_blank">strawberry farm in Urdorf</a>, just 20 minutes outside of Zurich.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When you get to the farm (it’s very easy to reach by
<a href="http://www.sbb.ch/" target="_blank">public transport</a>), you are given a paper basket to collect your
strawberries. Then a nice man in a fluoro orange reflector jacket will give you
a row of strawberry plants which you can pick from. You can’t go to any other
rows! Remember to follow the rules, this is Switzerland! You then start picking
strawberries from that row, as much and as long as you want. Afterwards, you
check out, weigh and pay the strawberries you take home (5CHF per kilo,
bargain!). This is much cheaper than supermarket strawberries which are
normally transported from Spain! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDCrLQ4gCK-0Kx32RfaPIaSMS0rrPWy4sgc3jdbQB4FElYt8oLLfRlEu99QS1wo2OMUVncrYjW5ttYzBELIiq3zJebs7dbt1rgqaKHRwNYmzcEX7R_5j9ev1e3zlJ5tMbGhse6Rf2s2YGT/s1600/urdorf2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDCrLQ4gCK-0Kx32RfaPIaSMS0rrPWy4sgc3jdbQB4FElYt8oLLfRlEu99QS1wo2OMUVncrYjW5ttYzBELIiq3zJebs7dbt1rgqaKHRwNYmzcEX7R_5j9ev1e3zlJ5tMbGhse6Rf2s2YGT/s640/urdorf2.jpg" width="474" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So we went home with 2 kilos of strawberries and I
immediately started researching recipes on the train back home. I had big plans
for a million dishes. But the strawberries were so freaking good we kept eating them fresh,
and now only a few hours (and one very rich tart) later we are down to half of
the harvest!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here is my new found knowledge on strawberries:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Strawberry season in Switzerland goes between May – July,
peaking around June – July.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heaps of farms allow strawberry picking (selber pfl</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">ü</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">cken),
but some places are open only on certain days or weekends. Check out </span><a href="http://www.selberpfluecken.ch/" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">www.selberpfluecken.ch</a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> for a list of these farms. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">New tip I learned: store strawberries uncovered in a
colander in the fridge, and don’t wash them until just before you eat or cook
them. Eat within three days of purchasing.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If you can’t finish them all before the 'expiry date', you can always turn them into
coulis (recipe below), strawberry syrup (boiled strawberries in water, sugar and
cornstarch, which is then strained) or strawberry jam.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This is a simple vegan strawberry tart recipe. I used an
almond flour-based tart crust and avocado-based filling. The avocado filling is
actually inspired by a sugar-ladden Indonesian dessert, jus alpukat (avocado juice).
It’s a simple mix of ripe avocadoes, sweet condensed milk and sugar. It’s a
very similar consistency to pudding or a thick shake, which makes it perfect
for a tart filling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Although this tart sounds pretty healthy, it’s actually very
high in calories (513 cals per serve) which mainly come from the avocado and
almond flour. So try not to eat all in one sitting, if you can help it!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Vegan Strawberry Tart with Chocolatey
Avocado Filling and Strawberry Coulis</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serves 6 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients
<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Tart crust:<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 ½ cups of
almond flour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ teaspoon
baking soda<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ teaspoon
salt <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon
psyllium husk <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 heaped tablespoons
applesauce <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup canola
oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Filling<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 ripe
avocadoes <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 ripe
banana<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4-5
tablespoons agave nectar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon
vanilla essence<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup coconut
cream (the top layer of coconut milk which is a lot thicker than the coconut
water)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 heaped
tablespoon cocoa powder<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">About 200g slices
of strawberries, to top the filling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Strawberry coulis<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">7-8 normal sized
strawberries, hulled and quartered<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2-3 tablespoons
agave nectar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2
tablespoons water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 teaspoons
cornstarch<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Firstly,
prepare the tart crust. In a big bowl mix all crust ingredients together until well
combined. Shape into a ball. Place the tart crust dough in a 9-inch spring form
cake tin. Using the back of a spoon (or your knuckles) press down the dough
onto the bottom and up the sides of the pan to create the tart shell. Make sure
to create a deep enough ‘wall’ to contain the filling (about 2-3 cm high). Then, using
a fork, poke a lot of holes on the tart base. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pour yourself a glass of champagne (erm, or prosecco…) with strawberry.
Baking is hard work. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Turn on the
oven to 180 degrees Celcius. Bake the crust in the oven for about 10 minutes or until the
sides start to turn golden. Take the tin out of the oven and let the crust cool for 20 – 30 minutes.
While cooling the crust will crisp up. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the
filling. In a blender, mix all the filling ingredients except for the
strawberries until you get a pudding consistency. Spread the chocolate filling
inside the pre-baked tart. Set in the fridge for about an hour. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the
strawberry coulis. Place all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to boil,
then reduce to simmer. Use a hand blender (or transfer the coulis mix into a
blender) to blend the coulis mix into a syrup. Continue cooking for about 5
minutes until the sauce has starts to thicken. Take off heat and cool. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After an
hour, take out the filling and crust. Arrange slices of strawberries on top of
the filling. Place back in the fridge. Place coulis also in the fridge. Chill
for 4 hours before serving, preferably overnight.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serve a
slice of the tart with a drizzle of the strawberry coulis. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRv5kzKmIRll20VHBeA1DyheYRcnbhd11pDeXIGCmT67z8dAlHYqupkeBWZ1OTJcieawes-biyMoIm3VV8Cksd6JalLTmt41JvdgD3Q3LnxC3FwjYjF3PDJp9SWAn0Rl8tGvsLIhuE7E8S/s640/DSC02145.JPG" width="640" /></div>
<br /></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-22575787927442642452012-06-14T07:00:00.000+02:002012-06-18T19:53:57.617+02:00Terong Balado (Spicy eggplant): Being Indonesian means – part 2<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaQcrcuAfN9mM5_nlGkxISV0ptW9C29oNDnmJ5hI0va_BQUKL3ikqOcKlj-wxBRGaCOFUYHX9MS0XfBjA7iUcmXL7pEk47jqX3k-bJaZjnYEKoxOubIIXl5rcLgwVXlPeeMTMMtIwZBvMX/s1600/DSC01986.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaQcrcuAfN9mM5_nlGkxISV0ptW9C29oNDnmJ5hI0va_BQUKL3ikqOcKlj-wxBRGaCOFUYHX9MS0XfBjA7iUcmXL7pEk47jqX3k-bJaZjnYEKoxOubIIXl5rcLgwVXlPeeMTMMtIwZBvMX/s640/DSC01986.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/06/cah-kangkung-stir-fried-spinach-being.html" target="_blank">... continued from here</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Being
Indonesian means…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You can never make up your mind when
ordering in restaurants, so you just order everything and end up with too much
food. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">See, what
people don’t understand is when one grows up having a rijsttafel (rice table) at
every meal, it’s hard to pick ONE main dish per meal. A rice table is when you
eat rice with multiple options of side dishes (‘lauk pauk’), anywhere between 3
(typical lunch) to 40 (a feast). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Rice cooker is a primary appliance in your
kitchen. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If you can’t
find your favourite brand you bring it directly from Indonesia, forgoing your luggage
allowance to make room for the precious rice cooker. Unfortunately we don't have room for one in our kitchen, so I have had to learn the method of perfecting the pan-cooked rice...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The smell of shrimp paste is not offensive to
you<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To those who
don’t like it, it might be as disgusting as marmite and vegemite. Admittedly, I
store mine in an airtight container, wrapped in plastic, in the back of the
fridge. So yes, the raw version doesn't have the nicest smell. But really, it is gold as a cooking spice! Use it in curries and stir fries to give the dishes
a tangy kick. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In the spirit of my epiphany, this is another <a href="http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/eat/40-foods-indonesians-cant-live-without-327106" target="_blank">favourite Indonesian recipe</a>. It’s a simple grilled eggplant dish topped with balado sauce. It looks
a lot more evil and spicy than it actually tastes because of the colour. But (at
least the version I make) has a more sweet and sour taste. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Terong Balado (Spicy eggplant)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serves 4 as
a side dish in an Indonesian rijsttafel / rice table (try other Indonesian
recipes <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/search/label/Indonesia" target="_blank">here</a>). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Ingredients</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large tomato, diced into small pieces<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 clove of garlic, minced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 shallots, sliced thinly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 birds eye chili, deseeded and sliced thinly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoons white vinegar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large eggplant, sliced to 1cm thickness<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Oil to fry and grill (I prefer sunflower oil)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Method</b></span></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the eggplant. Spray a grill pan with oil, grill eggplant for
5-8 minutes or until soft. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the spicy sauce. Heat a glug of oil in a frying pan over medium
– high heat. Fry the garlic, chilli and shallots until fragrant. Add the tomato,
white vinegar and sugar. Stir the sauce mix and cook until
the tomatoes slightly break apart (about 3-4 minutes). Pour the sauce over the
grilled eggplant slices. Serve immediately with steaming hot white rice. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-57688995606256958662012-06-13T21:31:00.001+02:002012-06-18T19:53:54.974+02:00Cah Kangkung (stir fried spinach): Being Indonesian means - part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cC3zx1I3CFusWBS0vKTerriylTq8wIlANF8bQHQRf2ic8W1c8-uDkz9TuHj0ZGwSLL4AnurZhix0p7uhKna7Ra99QlHqeJgGmKHieos94kSM4nnY6wZjI5wWK4IalNObpxRi0cjwJH9M/s1600/DSC01965.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cC3zx1I3CFusWBS0vKTerriylTq8wIlANF8bQHQRf2ic8W1c8-uDkz9TuHj0ZGwSLL4AnurZhix0p7uhKna7Ra99QlHqeJgGmKHieos94kSM4nnY6wZjI5wWK4IalNObpxRi0cjwJH9M/s640/DSC01965.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cah Kangkung (Stir fried spinach)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I was just thinking about this today and decided to write it down... Of course it's nothing serious, just a small reflection :) </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Being Indonesian means…</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>You need a hint of chilli in every single dish you eat, no matter where
you are.</b> This may lead to (erm, interesting) habits such as:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Having packets of chilli sauce (the stock standard sambal ABC) in your
handbag ready to whip out and pour on any meals from street food to Michelin
star food. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Knowing the word for chilli sauce options in many cuisines. I can count
the words sambal, togarashi, aji, tabasco, chipotle, la jiao you, piri piri, and
harissa in my vocabulary. I thank my mum for teaching me most of these (she is completely obsessed with chili).</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBiGl1CkLXUATHufrivjwfmY5DwTkOf2Wpw3tVw_a6SD0YVJF7CDXKxViHVIYZzyDc7xWQbp3e_Rxiq5RcQxjBibbBhtA6A11HP6XPYJNmVCfFJfHLo5JpGMTQfeKFrKA6R9PStYAXvkwo/s1600/miegoreng.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBiGl1CkLXUATHufrivjwfmY5DwTkOf2Wpw3tVw_a6SD0YVJF7CDXKxViHVIYZzyDc7xWQbp3e_Rxiq5RcQxjBibbBhtA6A11HP6XPYJNmVCfFJfHLo5JpGMTQfeKFrKA6R9PStYAXvkwo/s400/miegoreng.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The revered mie goreng</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You think instant Indofood mie goreng is the bomb and you cannot live without it</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You hoard packets of instant mie goreng in your kitchen. If you live
overseas, when your parents come to visit you, you demand that they bring a
suitcase full of instant mie goreng.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You think it’s a perfectly acceptable mid afternoon snack, despite the
400 calorie tag. But who cares! (PS: to make your own healthier homemade version, or when you ran out of the instant ones try this <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2011/10/makan-makan.html" target="_blank">recipe</a>)</span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>You eat rice multiple times a day in any shape or form. </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Your day might start with bubur ayam (chicken congee) for breakfast,
lemper (savoury rice cake) for a snack, nasi goreng (fried rice) for lunch and
nasi uduk (coconut rice) for dinner. Sounds familiar?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Whenever you travel overseas you need to know the closest Chinese or Japanese
restaurant. Despite wanting to be adventurous in trying out the local cuisine,
you know you will crave rice by the second day.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here is a recipe for cah kangkung, a stir fried water convolvulus dish
listed as one of the <a href="http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/eat/40-foods-indonesians-cant-live-without-327106" target="_blank">Top 40 Indonesian food</a>. But since it’s a
vegetable available only in the tropics, I decided to substitute it with
regular spinach. Regular spinach has a lot less 'structure' to water convolvulus because it doesn't have the more solid stem. But seriously, let's not be picky here...</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Cah Kangkung
(Spinach stir fry)</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serves 4 as
a side dish, as part of a rijsttafel/rice table (for example serve with these other <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/search/label/Indonesia" target="_blank">Indo recipes</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Ingredients</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">500g spinach
(1 bag)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 clove of
garlic, minced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 piece of ginger
(about ½ cm thick, 1½ cm diameter), sliced thinly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 shallots,
sliced thinly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 red
chilli, deseeded and sliced thinly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ teaspoon terasi
/ shrimp paste <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon
fish sauce<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3
tablespoons soy sauce<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon
kecap manis /sweet soy sauce (or about 1-2 teaspoon brown sugar)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1-2
tablespoon oil, I prefer sunflower oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Method</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat oil in
a frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry garlic, ginger, shallots, chilli and
shrimp paste until fragrant. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, kecap manis and water
into the pan. Stir in the spinach, cover in the sauce mix and cook until wilted
(about 2 minutes). Serve immediately on a bed of steaming white rice. </span><o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/06/terong-balado-spicy-eggplant-being.html" target="_blank">This post continues here...</a></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-86156443479929912152012-06-12T03:20:00.001+02:002012-06-30T04:56:48.320+02:00Smoked Trout and Carpione Polenta Pizza: I Heart Como<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLpDnb3Hcu6_XtZT2wQdJPGZQB6gyhfoZp0kTR2CjuEz3RI-zuB1UiCRB8vFBuw5Lf1npPPBvwgDDcMGigJd6H6-xscWUU9XXLYJQ4Zr3a5TBxFTyYPOwAIy6E2W3HlPtMyaHyhalMNmgQ/s1600/Como1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLpDnb3Hcu6_XtZT2wQdJPGZQB6gyhfoZp0kTR2CjuEz3RI-zuB1UiCRB8vFBuw5Lf1npPPBvwgDDcMGigJd6H6-xscWUU9XXLYJQ4Zr3a5TBxFTyYPOwAIy6E2W3HlPtMyaHyhalMNmgQ/s640/Como1.jpg" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After living in Zurich for the past 18 months, we finally
decided to see what the fuss is about with Lake Como. You see, everyone raves
about Lake Como. It’s the perfect weekend break from Zurich (only 3 hours by
train), amazingly picturesque train ride through the Alps, the impossibly regal
named villages (Bellagio, Menaggio, Cernobbio), and the offensively
humongous lakeside villas (including the one that belongs to George Clooney, of
course).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">But yes, all the rumours are true. Lake Como and its
villages are ridiculously beautiful. The sea(lake)food is as fresh as it gets and
it was a real treat for us to be able to have 3-course meals for like less than
25€ per person. Walking around seeing the well-groomed villas, the uncountable
yachts doting the ports, and the ‘Grand Hotels’, the worries of Italy’s recession
seems like a foreign concept here.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Friday<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We took an afternoon <a href="http://www.trenitalia.it/" target="_blank">Trenitalia</a>/<a href="http://www.sbb.ch/" target="_blank">SBB </a>train from Zurich to
Como San Giovanni and arrived around 7pm. As we arrived pretty late, we had to
take the bus to Menaggio, where we were staying (1 hour ride, €3.80 bargain!).
However a much cooler way to travel would have been by the super-fast,
almost-airborne hydrofoils (buy tickets at the ferry port which is 10-minute
walk from the station). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Menaggio village gave us the first glimpse of the villages
in the area. Vespas blazing through cobbled stone streets, bright coloured
stone houses, vines wrapped around wrought iron fences, ridiculously groomed
promenade by the lake… You know… the usual stuff :) Basically this was repeated. In every single village we went to! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Since the <a href="http://www.lakecomohostel.com/" target="_blank"><b>Menaggio hostel</b></a> was all booked out, we ended up
staying at the studio apartment of the hostel manager’s, a good 10-minute hike
from the town in the residential area. Had an early night after a quick gelato at
<b>Panna e Cioccolato</b> by the Piazza Garibaldi. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1AJGxanbkOYCZL78Sh-VFCNNoSjoJ9VowaFAplTxg3-dU0EXmjoD9_6PTtlOBRevp6L17crqTdIJ-V3qy_zD3HG5ytanIZbWnn8j_hdzI8ZjBKplqg5ltVwU47uT7w3JjLHgUFmmIIsBD/s1600/Como3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1AJGxanbkOYCZL78Sh-VFCNNoSjoJ9VowaFAplTxg3-dU0EXmjoD9_6PTtlOBRevp6L17crqTdIJ-V3qy_zD3HG5ytanIZbWnn8j_hdzI8ZjBKplqg5ltVwU47uT7w3JjLHgUFmmIIsBD/s640/Como3.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Saturday<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After an ultra-long brunch at the <a href="http://www.hoteldulacmenaggio.it/" target="_blank"><b>Hôtel du Lac</b></a> (outside seats
facing the lake of course), we raided the supermarket for (wine and cheese) supplies
since it was a Republic Day weekend and some shops were closed early. The first
wine and bellini stop of the day was <b>Chic n Freak</b> (Via 4 Novembre 43 Menaggio), a decently priced
wine-cocktail bar/gelataria/restaurant with a mini balcony directly facing the
lake shore. If you can’t afford the balcony lake views from the next door Hotel
Victoria, this is your best and cheapest alternative. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Feeling a bit gluttonous after my pasta lunch and pizza
afternoon snack, we decided to go kayaking. You can rent them from nearby the Youth
Hostel or <a href="http://www.acboatrentals.com/" target="_blank">AC Boat Rentals</a>, where you can also rent and drive a motor boat to
shoot your own music video clip if you want to. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I found out about a local dish called Missoltino (salted
dried fish) and made it my business to find a restaurant that served it. It
actually wasn’t hard at all in the end. <b>La Trattoria</b> (Via Camozzi 16) served a good portion of this
traditional dish with baked polenta. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It actually reminded me a lot of Indonesian ikan asin…</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The lakefish options (trout and lavarello)
are definitely worth trying as well. The whole bill for the four of us (2-course with a half
bottle of wine each)… comes to… €115! I am so moving here. Period.</span></div>
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<o:p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5k0c9gHW0xlh8D81-tR43Tq7rf-2ggMGVXcrKp9E0uFGQvmd5q55KRbz-ESqyMpSUD0HzLAyxnTk-uqeIyRtyEhL_QAJbBMbB_IOeb-lrgjuQNwZRWDZ440pwZfbJ6MjZnngD05FUhmYi/s1600/Como4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5k0c9gHW0xlh8D81-tR43Tq7rf-2ggMGVXcrKp9E0uFGQvmd5q55KRbz-ESqyMpSUD0HzLAyxnTk-uqeIyRtyEhL_QAJbBMbB_IOeb-lrgjuQNwZRWDZ440pwZfbJ6MjZnngD05FUhmYi/s640/Como4.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The next day we decided to take a day trip to the other
villages around Lake Como. After dragging ourselves out of bed, we finally made
it to the ferry dock. For a pretty cheap €15 per day you can get an unlimited
hop-on, hop-off pass for all the <a href="http://www.navlaghi.it/" target="_blank">ferries</a> (except the Service Rapido). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">First stop was Bellagio, the pearl of the lake. Even though
it was a pretty rainy day, the town was still full of tourists walking around
and admiring the little town. Lots of boutique shops scattered around time and
(thankfully) plenty of places for cappuccino stops and wine tasting. Visit
Villa Serbollini if you have time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After a lakeside picnic lunch, we hopped on the ferry
towards Lenno. There are plenty of stops along the way worthwhile visiting.
Tremezzo seemed like another amazing village. As the ferry pulled into the
Tremezzo port, which was right in front of Grand Hotel Tremezzo, we noticed a Cristiano
Ronaldo-look alike who was standing naked in his balcony at the penthouse,
probably just loving life. This is what I imagine George to do every day here
in his villa. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFyrK1Iq99s9m13Ocfphb0GYuODCtS7UXo-dYvn83Pji6j5YOuj4NAGZeA4255wMs7LXOz81T6xHTLrBhqGcnV8mbkJTsq9A6RBHBnJbphDC_7vK7_jqk8pzteATXaQjfszMa7qTjxTYaX/s1600/Como5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFyrK1Iq99s9m13Ocfphb0GYuODCtS7UXo-dYvn83Pji6j5YOuj4NAGZeA4255wMs7LXOz81T6xHTLrBhqGcnV8mbkJTsq9A6RBHBnJbphDC_7vK7_jqk8pzteATXaQjfszMa7qTjxTYaX/s640/Como5.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Lenno is a much smaller town in a quiet gulf. It’s much less
touristy than the other villages with only a couple of restaurants by the
waterline. The main attraction here is <b>Villa Balbianello</b>, a 2km walk from the
port through the woods. The villa was originally built in the 1787. The garden
area perched over the lake is the most amazing part of the villa. We took a
1-hour tour exploring inside the villa, but it was a bit... meh... If you get
peckish after the 4km walk to and from the Villa Balbianello, stop by for
gelato at the <b>La Fabbrica del Gelato. </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We had our last dinner at <b>Ristorante Vecchia Menaggio</b> (Via
al Lago 11). The pizzas were great but the entrecote was perfect. The next
morning, it was time to go home and we took the train back to Zurich. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The best thing from the weekend for me is that I finally
discovered polenta which I am now severely addicted to. In the Lake Como area,
polenta is much more prominent than pastas. So, this is a dish inspired by my
Como weekend. A polenta ‘pizza’ topped with smoked trout and carpione (a
thyme-based olive oil sauce). Luckily, it’s pretty easy to source similar types
of lake fish here in Switzerland. Of course this is a slightly flimsy base, the kind where you need knife and fork to eat :) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="color: #274e13;">Eat locally! If trout is not native to where you live, just find a suitable local fish alternative.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4SIU0EdwEzxwiuTMQqsKKU21cU4swbuTEPy2iVGNb_Mx1Ta5XB5S0LgapbLU8uE8k7hLeibflSjj95JL8MyuXj0nkYXahkc9ia7CrPcLTsScTv53dVo7g6CcGB8KvffnNPiMOb4mknwlZ/s1600/Como6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4SIU0EdwEzxwiuTMQqsKKU21cU4swbuTEPy2iVGNb_Mx1Ta5XB5S0LgapbLU8uE8k7hLeibflSjj95JL8MyuXj0nkYXahkc9ia7CrPcLTsScTv53dVo7g6CcGB8KvffnNPiMOb4mknwlZ/s640/Como6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Smoked trout and
carpione polenta pizza</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Polenta pizza</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">125g instant polenta<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">500mL water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 bouillon cube<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Carpione sauce</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 cloves of garlic, crushed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 medium onion, sliced thinly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 bunch of thyme<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon chopped chives<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2-3 tablespoons olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> cup white wine vinegar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> cup water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Topping</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">100g smoked trout<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ ball mozzarella cheese, sliced <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A handful of cherry tomatoes, halved<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1-2 tablespoons of caramelized onion, optional<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the carpione sauce. Fry the garlic and onion in olive oil until aromatic. Add in the thyme and chives. Add in the vinegar and water, cook until slightly reduced. Take off heat.</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> T</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">oss the smoked trout in the carpione sauce, then break into small pieces. Leave to marinade for about an hour, or while you prepare the polenta pizza base. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the polenta pizza base. Line a pizza tray with baking paper. In
a pot bring the water to the boil and stir in the bouillon cube. Add in the
instant polenta. Turn heat down to simmer and stir the mixture until the
polenta incorporates all the water. Pour the cooked polenta onto the lined
pizza pan. Working quickly (use a cake frosting spreader if possible), spread
the polenta across the pizza pan until you get a thin base (about 1.5cm
thin). Leave to cool and set. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat the oven to about 200 degrees Celcius. Scatter the smoked trout, cherry tomatoes, slices of mozarella cheese and caramelized onions over the polenta pizza base. Pour remaining carpione sauce over the toppings for extra flavour. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the base has lightly crisped up. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">PS: check out the vegetarian version (Caprese Polenta Pizza) <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.ch/2012/06/meatless-mondays-caprese-polenta-pizza.html">here</a>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-72781596350268733552012-06-07T17:58:00.000+02:002012-06-19T17:00:29.107+02:00(Vegan) banana and speculoos muffin: un weekend en Belgique<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Road tripping in Belgium: Brugge (left), way-too-picturesque countryside (top right), hanging out by the beach in Knock - Belgium's take on Cannes (bottom right)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've come to the conclusion that Belgium is probably the most underrated travel destination in Western Europe. Before our little visit to Belgium, I have always associated Belgium (yes I just assumed the entire country), with Canberra - a sleepy capital country town with government officials in suits everywhere, talking politics and spy-stuff like in Bourne Identity. I know that's pretty weird.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So I was pleasantly surprised to see a very different place than I expected: high end designer stores doting the streets of Antwerp, trendy-but-non-pretentious restaurants, fresh + cheap seafood, good wines and of course the standard European cobbled-stoned Old Town thing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Belgium is a pretty small country. Since we were only therefor the weekend, we made sure we tried to visit a few cities while we werethere.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Antwerp<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Very pretty old town, seems super trendy and international young crowd, and possibly the highest concentration of designer stores I have seen in a small town (trivia:<a href="http://www.driesvannoten.be/" target="_blank"> Dries van Noten</a> hails from Antwerp, and is part of the famous “Antwerp Six” group of designers). You’ll find all the usual high streetbrands as well as second hand designer and vintage stores. Another random fact: Jean Claude Van Damme is a local, our friends even spotted the muscles from Brussels (well, Antwerp I guess) out in a club on a Saturday night. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pretty Antwerp: smorgasbord of breads and spreads at Pain Quotidien (top-left); Antwerp city centre (top-right); the finish line of Antwerp marathon (bottom-left); strolling by the waterline (bottom-right)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We ate at <a href="http://www.fiskebar.be/" target="_blank">Fiskebar</a> (Marnixplatz 12/13), a tiny but busy fish restaurant with amazing spread of fresh and simple seafood dishes. The menu (written in Flemish on the board) changes every day, so ask for recommendation from the server. Don’t miss out on the oysters! Very reasonable prices and a decent wine list. It’s a super busy restaurant, so make sure to book ahead. If you are waiting for a table there is a bar next door, alternatively try any of the other ones also located on the Marnixplatz square. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">On Sunday morning we brunched at <a href="http://www.lepainquotidien.be/#/nl_BE/locaties/belgi%C3%AB/antwerpen" target="_blank">Pain Quotidien</a> for some tartines and croissants. Try the white chocolate and speculoos spread. The rest of the day was spent walking around the old town and the port area, while watching people finishing the Antwerp Marathon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We also ate plenty of bitterballen (crumbed croquettes, completely addictive!) and tried frites & mayonnaise (which was OK, I don’t see what the fuss is all about). I am now pretty convinced that the rumour that all Belgians own deep fryers at their homes is true. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Brugge</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Brugge was very touristy, probably even more so after themovie. Pass by if you have a spare day. It has the same old Europe charm like other towns in France and Germany, but much bigger (the entire town actually looks like this). We bought the very more-ish speculoos biscuits and waffles at <a href="http://www.juliettes.be/" target="_blank">Juliette’s</a> (Wollestraat 31A), which we ate while walking around the town. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Speculoos and sweets in Brugge</td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Knokke<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">An upmarket coastal town, which was pretty quiet when we wentthere since it was still early spring. It’s sort of like Belgium’s answer to Cannes. The beach is lined with small beach shacks which you can rent and store all your summer toys. We saw a nice looking beachside bar which I guess wouldbe perfect in summer, called Siesta. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In and around Brugge</span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Brussels<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A big city and pretty developed. We only spent about half a day here. We lunched at a small bar at Place St Gery and walked around the Saint-Jacques quarter (home to the tiny peeing statue, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manneken_Pis" target="_blank">Manneken-Pis</a>, which I still have no idea why it is famous?). </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A quick stop in Brussels</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I thank my recent Belgian weekend for introducing me to the tastiness of speculoos. Speculoos is a Dutch/Belgian mix of spices containing cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, ginger, pepper and cardamom. I think the smell of it reminds of the spices I am familiar with in Indonesia. It is normally used as seasoning in biscuits, which is shaped in wooden cookie mould. You can also buy it as a spread (like nutella) and it’s also vegan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So in the spirit of my meatless Mondays attempt, I am making this banana and speculoos muffin a vegan recipe too. Plus, I also recently found that baking with sunflower oil instead of butter, makes baked goods very light and fluffy. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Banana and speculoos muffin recipe</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Makes 10<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Ingredients</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 ripe bananas, cut into pieces<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup speculoos spread<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tbsp of agave nectar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">190g all-purpose flour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tsp baking powder<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">125 g brown sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tbsp speculoos spice mix (mix together cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and white pepper together; see this <a href="http://www.kayotic.nl/blog/speculaas-spice" target="_blank">recipe</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">6 tbsp applesauce<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">125 ml sunflower oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">125 ml soy milk<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2-3 tbsp oats<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat the oven up to 180 degrees. Place bananas, speculoos spread and agave nectar on a sheet of aluminium foil. Mix well, close the foilto create a package. Place in the oven for about 15 minutes or until the bananas are soft. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Meanwhile, sift all the dry ingredients together (flour, baking powder, salt and sugar). In another bowl, whisk the wet ingredients together (applesauce, sunflower oil, soy milk). When the bananas are ready, mash them into the dry ingredients. Add your wet ingredients slowly into the dry ingredients and banana mix until well incorporated (no lumps!)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Line your muffin tray with 10 cupcake cases. Pour the batter into the cupcake cases about three-quarters full. Top each muffin with oats and a sprinkle of brown sugar. Bake in the oven on 180 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the muffin comes out clean. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-35289089084828751412012-06-06T22:25:00.003+02:002012-07-04T14:10:05.914+02:00Lapin à l'orange (rabbit with orange and ginger sauce): skiing in Chamonix<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As I just realized, the p</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">ast winter (despite my injuries) I managed to have squeezed in double digits of skiing days. This is a massive achievement for an ultra non-sporty person with minimal skiing experience! A lot of it was due to some impromptu skiing weekends in places close to Zurich (the benefits of being in Central Europe!)</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Over Australia Day back in January, we went for a weekend with some of our Europe-based Oz friends to Chamonix. My proudest achievement from that trip was definitely doing multiple red runs without too much screaming and scaring of other people on the piste. (PS: Two weeks later in St. Anton I even did a black run WOOO!!!). Mark and his friend was adventurous enough to do the Vallee Blanche in -20 degrees! Madness.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To me, Chamonix (or "Cham") felt a bit like Disneyland for skiers. You can literally book holiday packages that are so organised (down to your transport, even meals and snacks) from any major city in Europe. It's particularly popular with the Brits - there were so many groups arriving by the busloads every few hours, even some of the pubs we went to were English owned too. Anyway, it was definitely a lazy weekend language-wise, as we didn't even have to try speaking French or German... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Our highlights from the weekend:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Getting cheap day passes from <a href="http://www.buyclub.ch/geneva/deals/chamonix-2012/" target="_blank">buyclub </a>(30CHF for one-day), it was a one-off offer but we definitely milked it! Anyway if you buy a normal one-day Le Pass (about 38€) it already includes the massive region of Grand Montet, Brevent and Balme. But there is an option for an unlimited one which gets you to all the pistes all even to Verbier (Switzerland) and Courmayer (Italy).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Nice red pistes, which only freaked me out at a couple of occasions. Balme/Le Tour and Brevent were pretty nice to me and the areas are pretty well connected by cable cars. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Vallée Blanche (for the non-beginners) - I wouldn't dare but apparently it's very beautiful. Pretty easy to organise a guide (you need one!) through hotels or the tourist center. Expect to pay around €70 per person for a tour. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Our cute <a href="http://www.airbnb.com/rooms/233742" target="_blank">studio apartment</a> which we found on Airbnb and was super centrally located. The bathroom comes with the most awesome high tech shower which probably took about a third of the area of the apartment. One must get their priorities right when building a ski retreat...</span></li>
</ul>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUHYF7krxSxisBfkVOb2DJQP6-FYERomNtqUQGQO6J4agrgjFF0PjunEF-0LYMzRT8gunqM7EIj9mlfE0eNtNrURNSZHmg0EEu7f1B-Dnw59AOCmLivcvcr9sQB9GhVLlU2UKx4SNuzLp/s1600/Foto+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUHYF7krxSxisBfkVOb2DJQP6-FYERomNtqUQGQO6J4agrgjFF0PjunEF-0LYMzRT8gunqM7EIj9mlfE0eNtNrURNSZHmg0EEu7f1B-Dnw59AOCmLivcvcr9sQB9GhVLlU2UKx4SNuzLp/s640/Foto+1.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">How to make your own gaufres(best and cheapest apr</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;">è</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">s-ski / pre-dinner snack)</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The food... of course. Some highlights include Le Caveau (weird underground cave-like restaurant but good homely food, 13 Rue de Doct Paccard), <a href="http://www.midnight-express.fr/" target="_blank">Midnight Express</a> (a take-away shop open late just next to Le Caveau, offering humongous sandwiches). </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Après ski, après ski, après ski! Try anywhere along Rue des Moulins, a small back street near the river packed full of bars. </span></li>
</ul>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJ1Ek8dsTgGrmlR2D3w_VTwfo-JKhs8Z7Jiz4gtYpPwzneP00COdK1VStMOJa-vYr7ZpdjLeD5fqCkk9Cz3VFrtYSc-RG6q2lKyissxj2lCjY7NWrGowlYhVz8OpB2LBgxcWiNDV_IT5i/s1600/Foto+5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJ1Ek8dsTgGrmlR2D3w_VTwfo-JKhs8Z7Jiz4gtYpPwzneP00COdK1VStMOJa-vYr7ZpdjLeD5fqCkk9Cz3VFrtYSc-RG6q2lKyissxj2lCjY7NWrGowlYhVz8OpB2LBgxcWiNDV_IT5i/s640/Foto+5.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Top: A giant man driving a Clydesdale-drawn carriage (this man is seriously at least 2.5 metres tall)<br />Bottom (L): I was determined to eat this steak for lunch, since we can't normally afford steak in Switzerland. We had to eat outdoors because of the lunch rush hour. Bottom (R): apr</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">è</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">s ski goodness</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This recipe is actually inspired by this succulent duck dish with orangey sweet and sour sauce we had at Le Caveau. It was just simple, homely and just the right (huge) portion after a day of skiing. I chose rabbit because I just discovered it the other day at my local supermarket and it was dirt cheap. <a href="http://www.good.is/post/backyard-bunnies-are-the-new-urban-chickens/" target="_blank">Plus, it's pretty guilt-free since (like kangaroos) it is a very sustainable meat with a tiny carbon footprint</a>. You need to braise it for a while as the meat can be bit gamey. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Lapin à</b><b> l'Orange (et gingembre!)</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Serves 4 people or 2 hungry skiers</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ingredients: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">4 pieces of rabbit legs </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">3 cloves of garlic, crushed</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 large red onion, diced </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">2 cm ginger, grated</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Juice of 3 oranges</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">grated peel from 1 orange</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">3-4 tbs soy sauce</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">125 ml (half cup) chicken stock </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">125 ml (half cup) white wine</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">a sprig of rosemary </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">a sprig of thyme</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">1-2 tbs sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">1 stick of cinnamon</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">salt and pepper to taste</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Olive oil, for frying</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Method</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Rub salt and pepper generously on the rabbit. In a large frying pan, heat a good glug of olive oil. Fry the rabbit over medium-high heat. Add the soy sauce. Continue browning the rabbit, turning occasionally, for about 10 minutes. The skin may look a bit burnt, because of the soy sauce but don't worry. Keep basting the meat with oil and soy sauce during frying. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">While the rabbit is browning, prepare the orange sauce. Fry garlic, onion and ginger in a little bit of olive oil until fragrant. Add rosemary, thyme, cinnamon and continue frying. Pour in the orange juice, chicken stock and wine into the pan. Add in the orange zest and sugar, if desired. Bring to boil and then turn down to simmer to start reducing the sauce. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Place the browned rabbit legs into the pan with the sauce. Cover and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally to make sure the meats cook evenly, for about an hour or until the sauce is reduced and the meat is tender. Season with salt and pepper as required. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Serve immediately on a bed of polenta (I cook mine in chicken stock and add a bit of cheese at the end). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-74508401611379899822012-05-14T16:40:00.000+02:002012-07-04T14:10:30.643+02:00Meatless Mondays - Swiss Chard (Krautstiel) Pesto<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I just realised recently that I’ve been
pretty ignorant when it comes to vegetable shopping. When I first started cooking
(fresh out of college and finally got a real kitchen in a share house), my
champion dish was always the <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2011/10/makan-makan.html" target="_blank">Mie Goreng</a>. From all the vegetable choices out
there, for some reason I have always stuck to zucchinis, capsicum and
mushrooms which I always put in my Mie Goreng. This became a habit and for a long time these were the only three
veggies I would even think of buying! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Until I came to Switzerland and discovered
the wonders of good old-fashioned produce markets, with all the weird and
wonderful veggies that I’ve never seen before (or failed to see). Things like
kales, fresh artichokes, endives and swiss chards! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ZmzjnOtRIOahmCmVYXROsvcKMKhy2Cr_uwzhq7PgLQoLEl4Dq_G8T_y7BAKooEnw-2MsEZJxAjB0iCPMuAbUdXa3IZT8_IQXEAyFZjyLO49k-ok6pSmS8BEwBkKeFe1rl92Rnz2TLd1d/s1600/DSC00203.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="433" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ZmzjnOtRIOahmCmVYXROsvcKMKhy2Cr_uwzhq7PgLQoLEl4Dq_G8T_y7BAKooEnw-2MsEZJxAjB0iCPMuAbUdXa3IZT8_IQXEAyFZjyLO49k-ok6pSmS8BEwBkKeFe1rl92Rnz2TLd1d/s640/DSC00203.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This week I’m attempting my first Swiss
chard recipe (Krautstiel auf Deutsch). To me, it kinda looks like a weird love
child of beetroot, spinach and rhubarb. When I was trying to explain this
vegetable to my Swiss colleague, I felt a bit better when he didn’t know what
it was either. He was like “Krautstiel? What is that? Doesn’t every <i>kraut</i> (cabbage-like veggies) have a <i>stiel</i> (stem) anyway?”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Swiss Chard / krautstiel has a slightly
bitter taste. I tried using it in salad but wasn’t a big fan of it. So I
decided to make it into a very green version of pesto. The addition of herbs
and cheese successfully dampened down the bitterness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here are some ideas to use the Swiss chard
pesto:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pesto pasta: the most obvious answer. Mix in
2 tablespoons of pesto into a bowl of cooked pasta</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Marinade: spread 1-2 tablespoons of pesto on
the surface of food to grill (e.g. tofu, fish, chicken). Leave to marinade for
1 hour. Grill or bake until cooked</span></li>
</ul>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here is my experimental Swiss chard pesto recipe!</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Swiss chard, approx. 4 stems with leaves<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Breadcrumbs, from 1 slice of bread<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 clove of garlic<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/3 cup olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon oregano<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon basil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup pine nuts<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Generous sprinkle of salt and pepper to
taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Place all ingredients in a food processor
and whizz into a paste. If the paste is too clumpy, add a bit more oil to
loosen up the mixture. </span><o:p></o:p></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-56696112367213416532012-04-20T14:35:00.000+02:002012-06-14T11:43:54.844+02:00Cooking up a feast at Paon Bali in Ubud, Indonesia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1KCoTHf7oL-x5235hUJrehNtO9VOtcnP5kZ6N2YGyDqqEIHi9MxQ0t_4RvLxImOmoeE4gDeIxmBsSyCu1MpTa3k9aMuVhEmwcnubNurWzYSWe9PbLg-Y6Q0HukP706oAHVkKkVeUrwMU-/s1600/Foto+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1KCoTHf7oL-x5235hUJrehNtO9VOtcnP5kZ6N2YGyDqqEIHi9MxQ0t_4RvLxImOmoeE4gDeIxmBsSyCu1MpTa3k9aMuVhEmwcnubNurWzYSWe9PbLg-Y6Q0HukP706oAHVkKkVeUrwMU-/s640/Foto+1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've been going to Bali pretty much every year since I was 4 years old. When we go, we normally keep our holiday plans to pretty much a minimum so that we can spend as much time as possible between our place and the beach. OK, except one time when M and I decided to get married in Bali. The only time I actually set foot on the beach during that trip was seriously only during our wedding ceremony! But that's another story ;)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Anyway, every so often we venture out and try to discover new touristy things. Last December, we found the Paon Bali and absolutely loved it. It's a cooking class located in serene Ubud in the north of Bali, run by a husband and wife team, the funny Ibu Puspa and Pak Wayan.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZwQAjgJurQTqs2Px_4EK80U9DjtnfDerA4X_FT9FQsws_ppkAnFOzRFQield7H_dl9BWWl3D5qxEkq21XQKmJdKm87QnUrbwi_gyIxI9LrxoUQcGTAcJLQivYxkW29A3ONx-7HWVxibT/s1600/Foto+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZwQAjgJurQTqs2Px_4EK80U9DjtnfDerA4X_FT9FQsws_ppkAnFOzRFQield7H_dl9BWWl3D5qxEkq21XQKmJdKm87QnUrbwi_gyIxI9LrxoUQcGTAcJLQivYxkW29A3ONx-7HWVxibT/s640/Foto+2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The class costs Rp350,000 per person and it includes a trip to a traditional market (<i>Pasar</i>) in Ubud, a visit to the rice paddy and see how the rice co-operation works in the village, and finally a 4-hour cooking class followed by a feasting session. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When I first suggested it to my parents and my sisters, I was met with a choir of groans. Traditional markets in Indonesia are normally only open during the morning, so by 11am all the sellers would have gone home. So this meant leaving home at 6am so we get to Ubud in time for the market visit! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Anyway, after dragging everyone out of bed we finally made it to Ubud. We were greeted by Ibu Puspa's assistant before being whisked away inside the markets, trudging between a maze of fruit, vegetables and meat sellers proudly displaying their products (no refrigerators here!). We were taken to different stalls to see the spices, tropical fruit and veggies that are common to Balinese cooking. At one point I was almost sobbing when I saw a massive bag of saffron being sold for Rp40,000 (that's about A$4, in Switzerland a pinch of saffron costs A$8). How I miss Indonesia!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The tour was clearly created for amateur foodies in mind. Everyone in our group came equipped with massive SLRs and at every stall following every explanation our tour guide would say "OK, now take a picture?". I had to be content with my iPhone :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">On the way back from the market we made a quick stop at the rice paddies, where Pak Wayan greeted us and showed us how the rice co-operation works in the villages. Who determines the prices, how much is produced each year, etc. One thing I only found out is that when the farmers plant their seeds, they only know what type of rice (brown, white, red) will be produced at the time of harvest. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We finally arrived at Ibu Puspa and Pak Wayan's house at mid-morning for the cooking class. The plan for the day is to cook about 8 dishes in about 4 hours! This morning it was a massive class of 12 people and we quickly got cracking. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">First we made the Balinese spice paste (<i><b>Base Gede</b></i>) which is so versatile and used in many dishes. This involved mashing about a half a kilo of spices in a giant mortar and pestle (about 1 metre tall), which truly took ages! Traditionally the spice paste is made in large portions and used every day bit by bit for different dishes. Using this spice paste we then made a coconut curry (<b><i>kare ayam</i></b>), minced fish satays (<b><i>sate lilit</i></b>), and </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">steamed fish in banana leaves</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> (</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><b>pepes ikan</b></i></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">). We also used the spice paste as a dressing for a coconut and long beans salad (<i><b>jukut urab</b></i>). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">While waiting for the curries to cook and satays to be grilled we also made a simple mushroom soup (<i><b>kuah wong</b></i>) for our appetizers. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The last dish we cooked was a simple banana and coconut cream dessert (</span><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>kolak biu</i></b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">), which was made from the fresh coconut milk that has been cooking for a few hours. This was definitely my favourite of the day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Of course like any Balinese tourist places, a fridge full of Bintang beers is available so you don't need to worry about missing your hourly dose of booze while hard working in the kitchen ;) </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEharTzj6z1lpTu5Pz1cJZXIN8FXuBp4HYbXkfTuhRpOgG3JuqmTdy7dETTUZr6zYWdNyBYdLXGNIkvz0LdVLiRwy6cpGRGNsgNO3d1C_9nIfPvU1_Oi5AREFnUDjVZdlfI9F0ZLklyyzY8C/s1600/Foto+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEharTzj6z1lpTu5Pz1cJZXIN8FXuBp4HYbXkfTuhRpOgG3JuqmTdy7dETTUZr6zYWdNyBYdLXGNIkvz0LdVLiRwy6cpGRGNsgNO3d1C_9nIfPvU1_Oi5AREFnUDjVZdlfI9F0ZLklyyzY8C/s640/Foto+4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So all in all, this has to be one of the funnest family-friendly touristy experience I've had in Bali. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking to do something different in Ubud (there's only so much yoga and arts you can see before you finally cave in for some indulgence!) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Paon Bali Cooking Class</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.paon-bali.com/">www.paon-bali.com</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">+62 81 337 939 095 or +62 81 337 000 303</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here is a recipe for Kolak Biu. Don't worry if you live somewhere where these ingredients may not be locally available. I've listed some possible substitutes you can use, but would welcome any other suggestions :) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Selamat Makan! (Bon appetit!)</i></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kolak Biu</td></tr>
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<b style="color: #0c343d; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Kolak Biu (Banana in Coconut Cream and Palm Sugar Syrup)</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Adapted from Paon Bali Cooking Class cookbook</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 ripe bananas</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoons palm sugar or brown sugar. For a more subtle taste try raw sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">5 pieces of jackfruit, you can use canned jackfruit. Papayas or other soft fruits with mild flavours also work</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 pandan leaf or half teaspoon pandan extract, alternatively use vanilla extract</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon corn flour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 cups of water </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoon of palm sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cut up the bananas and jackfruit into thin slices. If you're using palm sugar, grate it finely. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Boil water in a medium sized pan. Add pandan leaf (or extract), bananas, jackfruits, grated palm sugar (or brown sugar) and coconut cream. Leave to simmer for a couple minutes</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a separate bowl, mix the corn flour with a couple tablespoons of water. Add the cornflour mix into the banana mixture and continue stirring for another minute. Take off heat and plate in individual bowls. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the topping, heat up the palm sugar with 1-2 tablespoon of water in a small pan, over low heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves and you get a gooey syrup. Pour over the banana mixture and serve.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-80504115634807596492012-04-18T13:28:00.004+02:002012-06-14T11:44:25.933+02:00Welcoming the Saka New Year in Silence (Nyepi in Bali)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYkargRU-bAhGx0wotNX6V6BrW2FvWzPR5VjVroiUhE4Z8CaBuOC0CuECM_fbcvH_7diN0M3JW1jbHGy6YxjctOf87iTNM-SMho2zEYD2i0LIbzIYw67_T7I8nu7dR05M8w_aiAGCAUWMB/s1600/photo+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYkargRU-bAhGx0wotNX6V6BrW2FvWzPR5VjVroiUhE4Z8CaBuOC0CuECM_fbcvH_7diN0M3JW1jbHGy6YxjctOf87iTNM-SMho2zEYD2i0LIbzIYw67_T7I8nu7dR05M8w_aiAGCAUWMB/s640/photo+1.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The Balinese celebrate the end of the Hindi Saka calendar with the epic Ogoh-Ogoh parade.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Last month I managed to squeeze in a 3 day vacation amid the hecticness that is my research roject in Indonesia. Escaping the craziness of Jakarta, I went away to stay at my parent's little piece of heaven for the long weekend of Nyepi in Bali. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Nyepi Day (Silence Day) commemorates the New Year in the Saka (Hindu) calendar.</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> This was actually my first time being in Bali for Nyepi and it was such a treat! </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: small;">Similar to <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2011/11/peanut-free-sweet-chicken-satay-sate.html" target="_blank">Javanese traditions</a>, the Balinese life is also full of rituals. With the largest Hindu population in Indonesia, the celebrations for Nyepi start with a number of religious events from three days before the actual Nyepi Day, to purify the souls before welcoming the new year. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The celebrations culminate with the traditional Ogoh-Ogoh parade on the New Year's Eve. Throngs of giant wooden figures (Ogoh-Ogoh) are carried and paraded along the streets of Bali by groups of dancing young men and women. Each village (Banjar) in Bali must build an Ogoh-Ogoh and must be represented in the parade. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-align: center;">The figures traditionally represent evil characters in Balinese folklore, which will be ceremoniously burned at the end of the night, ridding of all the bad luck of the past year. However, this has taken a modern twist in recent days with some villages opting to build cheeky figures of controversial politicians and movie stars. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ogoh-Ogoh in Bali</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">On Nyepi day, everyone must stay indoors to meditate and reflect on the coming new year. Traditionally, not even lights and electricity can be used during this day. Everyone (including tourists and non-Hindus) are expected to respect this sacred day by staying in their houses or hotels. The airport shuts down, TV stations stop broadcasting (even cable TV!) and no vehicles are allowed on the road except for emergencies. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It is quite an eery feeling, especially at night.</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">However, these days tourists are allowed to switch on a number of small lights in their rooms and hotels organise in-house activities to keep them occupied. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">During the 24 hour period, g</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">roups of traditional police called "Pecalang" are the only ones allowed in the streets. Their job is to keep a look out for non-abiding citizens and curious tourists who try to sneak outdoors. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So those caught outside of their homes are punished and are put on cleaning up duty in front of the whole village! </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRZzCI1x555FLAA0UA7iVNskMJa4cGm75ghNThuK-0uBP9rftmwkDMGrEmXojz0TezV2N3BIX3UC0UIidDuOlUqTLgnVO9jXSjZsXuE4ByqyyjZHgh5dG9idc_1trLa9GMefFuDLD6MO3/s1600/photo+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRZzCI1x555FLAA0UA7iVNskMJa4cGm75ghNThuK-0uBP9rftmwkDMGrEmXojz0TezV2N3BIX3UC0UIidDuOlUqTLgnVO9jXSjZsXuE4ByqyyjZHgh5dG9idc_1trLa9GMefFuDLD6MO3/s640/photo+3.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A group of Pecalang walking the streets during Nyepi making sure everyone observe the "Silence Day"</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-49011668708279559912012-04-16T16:32:00.000+02:002012-06-14T11:45:07.198+02:00Meatless Mondays - Three Bean Shepherd's Pie with Baked Celeriac Mash<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Celeriac: possibly the ugliest vegetable around but so much goodness and a guilt-free substitute for potatoes.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I just
heard about this thing called </span><a href="http://www.meatlessmonday.com/" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">Meatless Mondays</a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">. It’s a great American initiative
that started in 2003 to get people to give up meat one day a week. As we know (and
often ignore!), animal products in our food chain contributes to a third of the
world’s greenhouse gas emissions. That’s because the meat industry uses masses
of energy to raise the livestock and poultry. Additionally, grazing livestock also
add to the problem of land degradation. </span><span id="goog_257467405" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">According to the good guys at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, simply turning your meal into a </span><a href="http://www.weact.ethz.ch/?q=node/32" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">vegetarian one already reduces the carbon footprint of your meal by 70%.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">S</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">o feeling
slightly guilty after my Easter roast the other day, I’m starting the Meatless
Monday movement from today. First one up is a guilt-free version of an English
shepherd’s pie, the vegetarian version of course. Just replace the beef mince with
goodness of three types of beans (red beans, chick peas and lentils – or any
types of beans you fancy). And instead of a potato mash, I chose celeriac (celery
root) which is currently in season. It is most definitely the butt-ugliest
vegetable around. But don’t be scared to experiment with it! As I just found
out it has less than half the calories and a third of carbohydrate content than potatoes. Even
more guilt-free!</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3pKAiYP8Y6WFcE7wDmVOSQUt_bRX4ZBRKlgIBJqxVxKfujno8BuC73LIwaUdirQy0NtNWnOjhaT3QKvrP-K5agJHJ9UWNOxcCRyOmbc4XEkstWPIaZY6HwyPPHhHvKRv6bb2IwhmZD5rM/s1600/Foto+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3pKAiYP8Y6WFcE7wDmVOSQUt_bRX4ZBRKlgIBJqxVxKfujno8BuC73LIwaUdirQy0NtNWnOjhaT3QKvrP-K5agJHJ9UWNOxcCRyOmbc4XEkstWPIaZY6HwyPPHhHvKRv6bb2IwhmZD5rM/s640/Foto+3.JPG" width="428" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Three-bean Shepherd’s Pie with Baked Celeriac
Mash</span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Serves 4-6 people, with plenty of leftovers</i></span><br />
<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Ingredients</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Filling:</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">(the main ingredients – feel free to change or
omit ingredients)<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 can red beans<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 can chick peas <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cup dry lentils<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large bowl of water<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 carrot, cubed into
small pieces<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 zucchini, cubed into
small pieces<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 garlic cloves,
crushed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 onions, chopped<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoons tomato
paste<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon balsamic
vinegar<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon thyme<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon oregano<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">500mL (2 cups) vegetable
stock<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Olive oil for frying<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Celeriac mash</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 large celeriac,
trimmed, peeled and chopped into large chunks</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon (about
50-60 g) butter, chopped<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">125mL (1/2 cup) milk<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cup grated
Parmigiano Reggiano (Parmesan cheese) <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Salt and pepper to
taste<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon garlic
powder, optional<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Method</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Filling</span></i><span lang="EN-GB">. Soak the lentils in a large bowl of water,
leave soaking for about 30 minutes while you cut up all the vegetables.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Mash</span></i><span lang="EN-GB">. Place chopped and peeled celeriac in a
large pot of water. Bring water to boil and leave cooking for 20 minutes. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Filling</span></i><span lang="EN-GB">. Drain lentils. In a large pan heat up a glug
of olive oil. Over medium heat, brown onions and garlic for a few minutes. Add
in carrot, zucchini, lentils, red beans, chickpeas, thyme, oregano, balsamic
vinegar and tomato paste. Continue frying for a few minutes. Mix in the flour,
this will thicken the sauce a bit. Pour in the vegetable stock, bring to boil
while continuing stirring, then bring the heat down to simmer. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Mash</span></i><span lang="EN-GB">. After 20 minutes the celeriac will become softer. Drain and put back in the pot. Add butter, milk, cheese and
garlic powder if using. Season with salt and pepper. Mash the celeriac using a hand masher. Don't overmash because you want the top of the pie to be firm. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In baking tray or pyrex glass tray start assembling the pie. Place the
filling on the bottom (about half of the tray’s depth). Top with celeriac mash.
Use a fork to fluff up the mash layer. Bake in the oven on 200 degrees C, for 20
minutes or until the celeriac layer turns golden and crispy. Serve immediately. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-2781098624899478962012-04-15T18:40:00.002+02:002012-06-14T11:47:40.543+02:00Greek-Inspired Olive Crusted Roast Beef with Potatoes and Homemade Tzakiki<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6SraxA4bjG4Bsj6Emol58JZPBvOlT1jUzyEkR4ADl2PqEdli_L96p70lmc6aUlQU4i_YpHXjXLeCDMxJTH0LP7hkOqR0vQtqTTI5Mbw5sB4HIydTnzZRQZk63dAWK91W5GO3CGBmLAYQO/s1600/Foto+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6SraxA4bjG4Bsj6Emol58JZPBvOlT1jUzyEkR4ADl2PqEdli_L96p70lmc6aUlQU4i_YpHXjXLeCDMxJTH0LP7hkOqR0vQtqTTI5Mbw5sB4HIydTnzZRQZk63dAWK91W5GO3CGBmLAYQO/s640/Foto+2.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Tzakiki dip made from homemade yogurt (top) with olive-crusted roast beef (bottom)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This year Easter came
twice. One weekend after the Anglo Easter weekend, it’s now the Greek’s turn to
celebrate Orthodox Easter.</span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now,</span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> if</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> I didn’t have my little accident and
</span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">hadn’t</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> hurt my ankle, we </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">were</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> supposed to be watching the madness
of Orthodox Easter festivities in a small island in Chios, Greece. We </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">would</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> have seen this insane festival
called </span><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><a href="http://www.rocketwar.gr/" target="_blank">Rouketopolemos</a></i></b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">. The festival goes between Easter eve until Easter day, this year it is held between April 15 - 16. It involves the congregation of two
(traditionally) neighbouring rival churches of St Mark’s and Panaghia
Ereithiani, shooting makeshift firecrackers made out of wooden sticks stuck to
a whole heap of gun powder. Hence the term “Rocket War”! The goal of the game is
to hit the bell tower of the rival church using these rockets. Coming from Australia, where the sale of firecrackers are strictly prohibited in most states, the idea of Rouketopolemos is totally amusing!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLHOhyk8k7iGhkVV4pmZJWrxssTRWkkDim1fmMUZTOoZzt2i0Ho-eC3c4RKJywN0JIBdcKg4x9I4X0XY5ZZFvAkorMaoj4GA5wK39HXXM5DmQAKK5WOVRhFKybbva7EBx__trIKTWil9Qv/s1600/Chios_rouketopolemos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLHOhyk8k7iGhkVV4pmZJWrxssTRWkkDim1fmMUZTOoZzt2i0Ho-eC3c4RKJywN0JIBdcKg4x9I4X0XY5ZZFvAkorMaoj4GA5wK39HXXM5DmQAKK5WOVRhFKybbva7EBx__trIKTWil9Qv/s640/Chios_rouketopolemos.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Rouketopolemos: a "rocket war" to celebrate Easter in Chios, Greece [Photo from www.visitgreece.gr]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Unfortunately, my little
injury has prevented this whole trip from even happening. Anyway… <i>shoulda, coulda, woulda…</i> But in the
spirit of celebrating Orthodox Easter, I cooked a little Greek-inspired feast
of roast beef and potatoes. I served it with a tasty tzakiki, with the recipe <i>and</i> homemade yogurt courtesy of my super talented engineer-slash-chef friend Diego, who swears by the versatility of this dip for breakfast, lunch or
dinner (and rightly so!). Danke, Diego!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1wmVvh0pmEJgw4i88E4M83kwEvysPqkOLl9PxDepMKNDvuOnRMfzGUTXWATED5dimad5IdFjcEUMNMzhY76vES3x4KUL1CgwG4bXbsQc6MvR4z9SGViNBW-D09D3nb86WFNr3lwoUrbOR/s1600/Foto+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1wmVvh0pmEJgw4i88E4M83kwEvysPqkOLl9PxDepMKNDvuOnRMfzGUTXWATED5dimad5IdFjcEUMNMzhY76vES3x4KUL1CgwG4bXbsQc6MvR4z9SGViNBW-D09D3nb86WFNr3lwoUrbOR/s640/Foto+1.JPG" width="428" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Greek-Inspired Olive Crusted Roast Beef with Potatoes and Homemade Tzakiki </b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Serves 4 hungry people</i></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The beef<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 kg of beef rump<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 clove of garlic,
crushed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 cloves of garlic,
chopped into quarters<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon dried rosemary<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon dried oregano<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon dried thyme<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Plenty of salt and
pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cup of marinated
olives, chopped finely <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The potatoes<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 large potatoes. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 clove of garlic,
crushed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon dried
oregano<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Plenty of salt and pepper
to taste<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Juice of half a lemon<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Tzakiki<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 cups of natural
yogurt<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup of olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 clove of garlic,
crushed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoons of
vinegar<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon rosemary<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon oregano<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Juice of half a lemon<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large cucumber<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Method</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the beef
marinade. Combine olive oil, crushed garlic, rosemary, oregano, thyme, salt and
pepper together. Place the meat on a roasting tray. Using a sharp knife stab
the meat to create small incisions in a few places. Insert the quartered garlic
cloves into the incisions, burying it into the meat. Pour the marinade over the
meat, rubbing thoroughly. Press firmly the chopped olives onto the top and the bottom of the meat, to create the 'crust'. Leave to marinade for a 6 hours or overnight. If you’re
short of time just complete this first and leave the meat to marinade in the
fridge while preparing the other dishes.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare the potatoes. Peel
and cut the potatoes into quarters. Combine the olive oile, garlic, oregano,
salt, pepper and lemon juice together. Pour the marinade over the cut potatoes
and mix well. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To make the tzakiki,
first peel and deseed the cucumber. Grate the cucumber finely into a bowl using
a cheese grater. Strain the grated cucumber well to get most of the water out.
Mix together the grated cucumber with the other ingredients. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Preheat oven to 230
degrees C. Place potatoes into the roasting tray with the meat. Roast for 20
minutes. Turn the heat down to 180 degrees C. For a medium-rare roast, continue
roasting for another 45 minutes, remembering to baste every 10 minutes or so. </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>[Meat origin: Switzerland]</i></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-75145050180913704002012-04-09T18:53:00.007+02:002012-06-14T11:48:21.398+02:00Hot Cross Buns - Happy White Easter!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmaIGkQK2sOk8A0ts0LGaJ-gqXVl9Ta6a_k7IyaC-N5J-17ig5paa93IxezvP79s9iCpCGXAgk_lYO7GjcQkbd73J-T2WvdlXjmyHUQ2iHhXLiGXfD_j-lnCG-Ly3SONIaNex8OYlCWR4/s1600/Photo+0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmaIGkQK2sOk8A0ts0LGaJ-gqXVl9Ta6a_k7IyaC-N5J-17ig5paa93IxezvP79s9iCpCGXAgk_lYO7GjcQkbd73J-T2WvdlXjmyHUQ2iHhXLiGXfD_j-lnCG-Ly3SONIaNex8OYlCWR4/s640/Photo+0.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The universe is telling me to slow down. After the busy whirlwind trip to Indonesia, I was so ready to come back for a mini Easter weekend a way to Turkey with M. But unfortunately, not even 24 hours after my return to Switzerland I managed to sprain my ankle walking down the stairs. A 4 hour emergency room wait, followed by my first German-speaking hospital encounter, I was finally told it was a damaged ligament. So it’s crutches for a week, cast for a month, no flying for a while (what is this DVT business…) which means… no Turkey for the Easter break and no skiing until next season! Boo hoo.. whinge whinge whinge… Who knew not watching where you’re going has such dire consequences.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So this Easter weekend I’m sitting tightly at home in Zurich. And it was a white Easter, can you believe it snowed in April? We ended up having a nice Easter lunch with a group of friends in Zurich, and stuffed ourselves silly with too much food. </span></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For dessert I served my favourite Easter treat, fresh out-of-the-oven hot cross buns. These little treats are sold everywhere in England and Australia during Easter. It’s traditionally eaten on Good Friday, with the cross symbolizing Christ’s crucifixion.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This is a recipe I adapted from <a href="http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/18766/hot+cross+buns" target="_blank">www.taste.com.au</a>, my best source of Australian food recipes. Best served hot (freshly baked or toasted) with a dollop of butter and strawberry jam. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Easter Hot Cross Buns</b></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the buns:<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 packets (2 x 7g) of dried yeast<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 ½ - 1 ¾ cups milk, warmed (not boiling)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup of caster sugar<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 cups of plain flour<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A pinch of salt<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 tsp of cinnamon powder, or mixed spice <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 eggs, lightly whisked<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">60g butter, melted<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 ½ - 2 cups sultanas or dried fruits<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the crosses:<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup plain flour<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup water, give or take<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the glaze:<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup icing sugar<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup milk<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat milk in a saucepan until it’s warm to touch, but not boiling. Take off heat. Whisk the yeast and sugar into the warm milk. Stand for 10 minutes.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sift the plain flour, salt, cinnamon powder (or mixed spice), and sultanas together into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre of the bowl. Pour in the yeast mixture, eggs, butter into the well. Mix the ingredients together with a wooden spoon, until you have a sticky dough.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare a floured working surface. Turn out the dough onto the surface and start kneading for 6 – 8 minutes. If the dough is too crumbly add a bit more milk. Do a poke test to see if the dough is ready: shape the dough into a disk then give it a firm poke with your finger. If the indent bounces up quickly then it’s ready. If the indentation stays too long, continue kneading for a while longer.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prepare a lightly oiled large bowl to prevent the dough from sticking. Shape the dough into a ball, put inside the bowl and cover with a wet kitchen cloth. Leave in a warm place (not hot) for about 1 hour.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After 1 hour the dough should now double in size. Punch down the dough until it ‘deflates’. Shape into 12 balls. Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Using a sharp knife, cut a shallow two intersecting lines (the cross) on the top of the buns (not too deep, this is just a guide for when you are piping the crosses). </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Mix the flour and water for the glaze until you get a gooey honey-like consistency (not too runny). Pipe along the crosses. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Leave buns to prove again for a further 30 minutes in a warm place.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Bake the buns for about 15-20 minutes. While the buns are cooking, prepare the icing sugar and milk glaze.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Place buns on a cooling rack. Brush the glaze on the buns while still hot. Wait for glaze to dry for a few minutes. Serve warm with butter, jam, nutella, or any spread you wish. </span></li>
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</span>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-27526482921690444512012-03-25T05:24:00.006+02:002012-06-18T11:35:05.361+02:00Siomay Bandung Dumplings – a fleeting visit to Paris van Java<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisJklez_53GGWG6rzYSbZLQTDlhy5LEHFeKtV7gyzsNdgQj8Rpi5S5eXPy6bdxE1jzNY7NGV3JHAjfNZd84uPOLpm6rPWCinmU0V9V5FkE0_h2Yt9t4DwzWYounmC9v9JqSHMybqO_hY1Z/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisJklez_53GGWG6rzYSbZLQTDlhy5LEHFeKtV7gyzsNdgQj8Rpi5S5eXPy6bdxE1jzNY7NGV3JHAjfNZd84uPOLpm6rPWCinmU0V9V5FkE0_h2Yt9t4DwzWYounmC9v9JqSHMybqO_hY1Z/s640/photo.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mt. Tangkuban Perahu, Bandung</td></tr>
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<a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/03/siomay-bandung-dumplings-fleeting-visit.html#siomayrecipe">Jump to recipe</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I’m spending the next three weeks in Indonesia to do some work for my research project. This is possibly the longest time I have spent in my home country in my entire adult life. In the next 3 weeks, I’ll be doing some island hopping and am looking forward to adding at least another three Indonesian cities to my travel list.</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The first stop is a fleeting day trip to Bandung, about 3 hours south east of Jakarta, which is also the capital of West Java province. Leaving the craziness of Jakarta at the crack of dawn, I finally reached Bandung at 9am. As soon as I arrived, I was instantly reminded of the Jakarta I grew up in… the fresher air, the cooler climate, the (slightly) slower pace of life, the becaks (cycle rickshaw), and generally nicer people.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The 19<sup>th</sup> century colonial romantic feel of Bandung (the Dutch used to call it Paris van Java) is long gone. Now, the small streets of Bandung are starting to struggle with the amount of increasing traffic of Jakartans on their weekend pilgrimages. But come on a weekday and you’ll avoid all the hecticness. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bandung is known for many things: cheap shopping outlets, the place where Indonesia’s bright minds and technocrats are bred (Bandung has numerous technological institutes and is the breeding ground for many successful tech start-ups). But most importantly it is a food haven. I only had about 6 hours to explore Bandung, so I made sure I tried to do as much as I could.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">First stop after my morning meeting was the quick trip to Tangkuban Perahu, a semi-active volcano located 20km north of Bandung. Indonesians are obsessed with legends, myths and mystical stories. So of course Tangkuban Perahu is no exception. Legend has it that a local boy who was banished from his village as a child, Sangkuriang, came back to his village and then fell in love unknowingly with his mother, Dayang Sumbi. When Dayang Sumbi found out who he really was, she made ridiculous demands and excuses to avoid their impending marriage. Finally, she demanded him to build a boat and a dam in one night as a condition for their marriage, which she thought would be impossible. Apparently Sangkuriang is a pretty efficient labourer and almost succeeded in doing so. In panic, just before sunrise she sabotaged his construction. When he found out the truth, he became mighty annoyed, kicked the boat which turned upside down and became the Mountain Tangkuban Perahu. I know that folklores are meant to be imbued with morals and deeper meanings, but I have yet to understand the moral of this story. As in.. what life lessons do secret incest love story and giant boats teach??<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The main attraction in Tangkuban Perahu is the easily accessible crater of Kawah Ratu. You can drive up to the lookout point just about the crater. It gets very cold here (like 15C), so bring a jacket. You also have the option to go down closer towards the craters (with a guide) to reach the Ciater hot springs. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh19PCbuAhOX5xBI0VAKTYirBvS0gS7mWGf6_YBmIyzGwowtvNstvLr3J8caRtViTvZTR7glB21bWq1FXobIw6FtuRTiR495MHog0AKnjJZQlwZcC7CBzndpHA1BGpiTsXZdKcvFhwbcbWE/s1600/IMG_3037.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh19PCbuAhOX5xBI0VAKTYirBvS0gS7mWGf6_YBmIyzGwowtvNstvLr3J8caRtViTvZTR7glB21bWq1FXobIw6FtuRTiR495MHog0AKnjJZQlwZcC7CBzndpHA1BGpiTsXZdKcvFhwbcbWE/s640/IMG_3037.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Sundanese (West Javan) lunch at Restaurant Sangkuriang, Bandung<br />
This whole thing cost me $3. I had to doggy bag so much leftover since I was lunching alone that day! </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Next stop was to sample the food and shopping. Inspired by the weird love story of Tangkuban Perahu, I stopped by for a late lunch at </span><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Restaurant Sangkuriang</b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">(Jalan Karang Sari 5, Setiabudhi, Bandung)</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> for a traditional Sundanese (West Java) meal. The restaurant had a very village (kampung) feel with small bamboo huts (“lesehan”) you can dine in. A lesehan restaurant means you sit on a mat with your fellow diners around a small table and eat with your hands. Expect very cheap, simple yet tasty food (traditionally eaten for lunch during breaks from working in the rice paddies).</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">On the way home, I made a quick stop at some of the factory outlets at <b><i>Jalan Dago</i></b> which sells very good quality export excess clothing. The prices are unbelievably cheap. But unfortunately (fortunately for Mark), I wasn’t too inspired and didn’t end up buying anything. There is also another upmarket version of the factory outlet, <b>Rumah Mode</b> (<i>Jalan Dr. Setiabudi, Bandung</i>), which is slightly more expensive than those in Jalan Dago. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">One of the most famous culinary exports out of Bandung is probably the steamed dumpling dish, Siomay Bandung. Typically served with chilli sauce or peanut sauce, it’s the perfect bite-sized shopping-break snack!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Homemade Siomay Bandung dumplings</td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8214907200593101124" name="siomayrecipe"></a><br />
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Siomay Bandung steamed dumplings </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Makes about 30 dumplings<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">200g chicken breast<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">200g white fish fillet<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">100g prawns, without tails<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">6 tablespoons corn flour<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 cloves of garlic<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 shallots<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoons fish sauce or soy sauce<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon sesame oil<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Wonton wrappers, 30<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup of carrot, shaved, for topping<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 hard-boiled eggs, cut into quarters, to serve<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 boiled potatoes, cut into quarters, to serve<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Steamer pan or large pot with bamboo steamers, to cook<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Filling.</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> In a food processor, grind the chicken, fish and shrimp together into a pulpy consistency. Add corn flour, garlic, shallots, fish sauce, sesame oil, salt and pepper into the mixture. Continue grinding all the ingredients together until mixed evenly. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Build a little production line. Grab a wonton wrapper. Take a tablespoon of the filling, place in the middle of the wonton wrapper. Using wetted finger tips, scrunch up the edges of the wonton wrapper around the filling to form the open-top dumpling. Make sure the filling fit snuggly inside the wonton wrapper. Take ¼ teaspoon of shaved carrot and place on top of the filling. Using the back of the teaspoon, pack the carrot into the top layer of the filling. Continue until all the filling is used up.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Boil water in a large pot. Line the steamer tray or bamboo tray with baking paper. Place the dumplings on the trays, leaving enough space in between. Place tray on top of the pot, ensuring the water level doesn’t touch the tray. Steam covered for about 7 minutes or until well cooked.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serve with hard-boiled eggs, potatoes and <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/03/peanut-sauce-sambal-kacang.html" target="_blank">sambal kacang</a>. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0Jakarta Capital Region, Indonesia-6.211544 106.845172-6.464111 106.52931500000001 -5.958977 107.161029tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-63495733614054472482012-03-06T09:43:00.002+01:002012-06-14T11:50:18.738+02:00Peanut Sauce (Sambal Kacang)<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Peanut sauce (Sambal Kacang) is a star condiment of Indonesian cooking. OK, so every country in South East Asia always tries to claim it as one of theirs. But who wouldn’t? There’s nothing not to love about peanut sauce. It’s so yummy, easy to make, and so versatile. </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We eat it with pretty much everything, from satay (sate), dumplings (siomay), salad (gado-gado or ketroprak), to rice and any meat dishes.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Every region has their own version. My Javanese tastebud however, is always seeking for that sweet tinge of kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) in my sambal kacang. This is my personal take for sambal kacang. Some purists may baulk at the suggestion of using peanut butter rather than roasted ground peanuts, but I actually love the added sweetness it gives to the sauce!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Some ideas on how to use your peanut sauce:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<li><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As satay sauce</b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> on grilled chicken, beef or vegetables on skewers (satay). This is a <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2011/11/peanut-free-sweet-chicken-satay-sate.html" target="_blank">recipe for chicken satay</a>. For those with peanut allergies opt for the <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2011/11/peanut-free-sweet-chicken-satay-sate.html" target="_blank">sambal kecap</a> (sweet soy sauce with chopped chilies) instead of sambal kacang.</span></li>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As condiment on your main meal (like chutney).</b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> For a super simple supper, put a dollop of peanut sauce on a bowl of steaming white rice. Serve with steamed vegetables like bok choy or green beans.</span></li>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As dipping sauce</b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> for Asian dumplings or raw vegetable sticks (carrots, cucumbers).</span></li>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As salad dressing. </b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To make gado-gado (Indonesian salad) blanch spinach, tofu and bean sprouts for a few minutes. Drain. Pour a few tablespoons of peanut sauce over the salad.</span></li>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As noodle sauce</b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">. Cook egg noodles as per packet instructions. Drain. Add in chopped coriander and deseeded chopped chilies. Pour in 3-4 tablespoons of peanut sauce. Toss to coat.</span></li>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">8 garlic cloves<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 shallots<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 red chilli, deseeded<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">5 macademia nuts<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 cm piece of galangal or 1 cm piece of ginger (I think ginger has stronger taste)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 tablespoons coconut milk<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 tablespoons soy sauce<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 tablespoon sweet soy sauce <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon vinegar<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1-2 cups of hot water or vegetable stock <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">350g jar peanut butter <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil, for frying<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a food processor, blend in garlic, onion, chili, macademia nuts and ginger/galangal into a paste. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the mixed spice paste until fragrant. Mix in the peanut butter. Continue stirring until the peanut butter has all melted in. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add coconut milk, sweet soy sauce (kecap manis), and water or stock. Keep stirring until the mixture reaches boiling point, then turn right down to simmer. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Taste after about 5 minutes of simmer. Adjust the flavours by adding salt, pepper or kecap manis to your liking. If you want the sauce to be thicker, continue simmering until all the water has evaporated.</span><br clear="all" style="mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" /> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-35377118898689917742012-03-04T18:49:00.003+01:002012-06-14T11:51:53.663+02:00Huevos Rancheros - Brunching in Sydney's Northern Beaches<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Checking the surf</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Last Christmas we went back to Sydney for a summer wedding of two of our close friends. We stayed for two amazing weeks of beaches, surfing, brunching and grazing over long coffees. Sometimes I really wondered why I left for Europe in the first place…</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In Sydney, we used to live up in the Northern Beaches, in a beautiful small suburb called Fairlight just up the road from the famous Manly beach. Our place was about 5 minute walk down to the local Fairlight beach. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cooks Terrace</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Saturday mornings normally revolve around surfing (for Mark) and lazing on the beach (me). It starts with a drive up the northern beaches to find the best waves, starting from Manly, and heading up towards Mona Vale. This means that between lazing in my bed and lazing on the beach can take up to an hour. Tough life ;)</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Barrenjoey Headlands</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Palm Beach</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">On the way home, we’d stop for brunch in a little café called</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><a href="http://www.cafesplat.com.au/home.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">Splat</a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">, perched on Queenscliff with views of Manly beach. It’s nothing fancy, just good Australian coffees and solid breakfast feed. Our breakfast orders have never changed over the years: BLAT (bacon, lettuce, avocado, tomato) sandwich with flat white for him, and huevos rancheros with latte for me.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Splat</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Anyway, this is my attempt of Splat’s huevos rancheros. Except this time around I’ll have to swap the 30 degree weather and beach views with Lake Zurich!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiU2EL9zXH3Byea-YuwUXpvqJNPRcTC360YkY0MOOmumeOvJ1l_aycQVTFZA-Vls48gCtojTM04olrqHJ5cachusEU98fBprBDRC5QQznfK9Inn7axiqCVInAdvPxpHm3sibdmDFq8h0nH/s1600/DSC08394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiU2EL9zXH3Byea-YuwUXpvqJNPRcTC360YkY0MOOmumeOvJ1l_aycQVTFZA-Vls48gCtojTM04olrqHJ5cachusEU98fBprBDRC5QQznfK9Inn7axiqCVInAdvPxpHm3sibdmDFq8h0nH/s640/DSC08394.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-size: large;">Huevos Rancheros </span></span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Serves 4 for light brunch</i></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 can red beans, drained<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">6-8 tomatoes, diced (or 1 can diced tomatoes)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 small zucchini, diced<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 celery stalk, diced<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 garlic cloves, crushed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large onion, sliced <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 teaspoons paprika<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon chili flakes or a few dashes of Tabasco sauce<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 teaspoons cumin<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup coriander leaves, chopped finely<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoons olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 large eggs<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Method</b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Mix the diced garlic, onions, paprika, chilli flakes, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in the frying pan. Fry the garlic and onion mix in hot oil for a couple of minutes. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add tomatoes, zucchini, celeries or other vegetables. Continue frying until all vegetables are cooked, then turn the heat down to simmer. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Fill each ramekin with vegetable mixture until halfway full. Crack one egg in the middle of each ramekin. Bake in the oven for about 10-15 minutes, or until the eggs are cooked to your liking. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serve with slices of sourdough bread. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-4810905711760271882012-03-04T03:25:00.002+01:002012-07-04T14:11:24.878+02:00Carciofi alla Romana (Roman Stuffed Artichokes) - Seasonal Eating<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzu_ay1tho41I5FiFWIEF8QY34AjuiqFKJi76SuB2S7Rzy3Gq0-klk0SofIr2Mq3cPF1vMK_XYBiYfIz2PdsqGJg7AHers0aUR4tUh4fS67t6z1IWNH1cZ9-5dv-yWyYT-_SCaMZL8iMxi/s1600/DSC08296.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzu_ay1tho41I5FiFWIEF8QY34AjuiqFKJi76SuB2S7Rzy3Gq0-klk0SofIr2Mq3cPF1vMK_XYBiYfIz2PdsqGJg7AHers0aUR4tUh4fS67t6z1IWNH1cZ9-5dv-yWyYT-_SCaMZL8iMxi/s640/DSC08296.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Artichokes from <a href="http://www.zuercher-maerkte.ch/index.php?Oerlikon" target="_blank">Oerlikon Markt</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cooking with in-season vegetables is a pretty easy and cheap way to practice sustainable eating. It minimises the emissions generated from transporting these vegetables from far away farms. Plus, you keep your local farmers happy and it’s a good opportunity to put on your experimental masterchef hat.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Unlike in Australia where we could generally get vegetables at any time of the year for pretty cheap, eating seasonally is anyway something that Europeans have already been doing for a very long time. I guess when the climate is harsher you’re left with no choice but to be resourceful!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I recently came across this nice website for a cooking school in Zurich (<a href="http://www.laughinglemon.ch/en/season.htm" target="_blank">Laughing Lemon</a>), with a very comprehensive list of European vegetables by season. So I decided to experiment with artichokes, a pretty foreign vegetable for me! Before coming to live in Europe, I’ve only ever eaten marinated artichokes that come in a jar, already prepared and infused in olive oils. Yep, I was a sucker for those gourmet marinated artichoke hearts that came in pretty little jars at the local Italian deli with an exotic-sounding Italian region on the label.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The first time I’ve ever seen fresh artichokes was in Rome during a work trip last year. It was the middle of autumn, one of the two times a year when artichokes are harvested. Every restaurant I went to always had trays lined with prettily arranged artichokes at their serving counters. I absolutely love the mix of flavours in artichokes: savoury, acidic, and sweet at the same time.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREUyr1Y2PY1SvE232xYxDo3XBPIgic1C5zlLKoJLfXwlGHzAnt323kjag-LWMFt2HkCmaojJjyOZ2W7xi_O7yuRkvbyRL1LA1HzIEcMOFEcirTLuJ7nJ896VmjH_k6kgsE_PVHMpND06a/s1600/rome2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREUyr1Y2PY1SvE232xYxDo3XBPIgic1C5zlLKoJLfXwlGHzAnt323kjag-LWMFt2HkCmaojJjyOZ2W7xi_O7yuRkvbyRL1LA1HzIEcMOFEcirTLuJ7nJ896VmjH_k6kgsE_PVHMpND06a/s640/rome2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Eating out in Rome</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYY7L0yixw-5HGWlTC6PF2_wjnc4Vdg3O58G3CA2ES8vtRQRgZJvPC_BdPESo4TOfYCPcmlsoU2UV7b4s-zQxE7f3V3ylkDBir2JiFKwjNiO3fw-s9kA3-0yn4yaeLAUmbWW2G6nXFoaNo/s1600/rome+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYY7L0yixw-5HGWlTC6PF2_wjnc4Vdg3O58G3CA2ES8vtRQRgZJvPC_BdPESo4TOfYCPcmlsoU2UV7b4s-zQxE7f3V3ylkDBir2JiFKwjNiO3fw-s9kA3-0yn4yaeLAUmbWW2G6nXFoaNo/s640/rome+1.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A quick stop at the Vatican</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Roman cuisine has always been about being resourceful, cooking with whatever cheap local ingredients are available. From olives, pecorino cheese, pasta, beautiful fresh seafood, and all cuts of meats down to offal. Artichokes are quite a star in Roman dishes which also feature Jewish influences. The creative Roman-Jewish mums have found so many delicious and creative ways to cook artichokes, from steamed, stuffed, marinated to deep-fried.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So here is my first experimental in-season vegetable recipe for Carciofi alla Romana. I bought the artichokes and all other ingredients at the <a href="http://www.zuercher-maerkte.ch/index.php?Oerlikon" target="_blank">farmers market at Oerlikon</a> which is held twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Carciofi alla Romana (Roman stuffed artichokes)</span></span></b></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serves 4 people<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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4 fresh artichokes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 bowl of water mixed with the juice of half a lemon<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Stuffing:<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">80 g mix of Pecorino and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses or other sharp tasting cheese<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Breadcrumbs from 2 slices of brown bread<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon chili flakes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 handful of parsley<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon oregano<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 garlic clove<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2-3 pieces of anchovies</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To steam:<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cup of water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup of white wine<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Prepare the artichokes</i>. Slice the stem of the artichokes leaving about 3cm of the stem at the bottom of the flower. Peel about 3 layers of the leaves. Trim the top of the flower, about 3cm from the top. Cut the trimmed artichokes in half and scoop out the middle part using a spoon (near the base of the flower). Place all trimmed and cleaned artichokes in the water and lemon mixture to prevent from browning. Leave them in the acidic water until you are ready to prep them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsC-XkgdAH3Y5jEZ-wjTVX2iCIRF9IBhGHi4oT0u1wSSpsspSc-dFyLakLlq8hUdrFK_hxIr-u5Fl7rSOECrAQ7aokVcT3byINriWupSW0oqU-UtNo23-hmTpanXCK9WKikIGrFEuEngzY/s1600/DSC08298.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsC-XkgdAH3Y5jEZ-wjTVX2iCIRF9IBhGHi4oT0u1wSSpsspSc-dFyLakLlq8hUdrFK_hxIr-u5Fl7rSOECrAQ7aokVcT3byINriWupSW0oqU-UtNo23-hmTpanXCK9WKikIGrFEuEngzY/s640/DSC08298.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Prepare the stuffing</i>. In a food processor blitz all the stuffing ingredients until you get a fine mix. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhryKlP7Mz1Ikwn77Y-lZrUu79qLwFCK4QXldAp5Mp1HvujODB-iiqEYzGDkHV5Cg0-DWbgYBf7j52KqaCpiPeI_BD4iNqtdBmTJ-A58jq4nbzNx2Z9HpT0xJE52S5HvoAGQVIyWESklfKk/s1600/DSC08285.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhryKlP7Mz1Ikwn77Y-lZrUu79qLwFCK4QXldAp5Mp1HvujODB-iiqEYzGDkHV5Cg0-DWbgYBf7j52KqaCpiPeI_BD4iNqtdBmTJ-A58jq4nbzNx2Z9HpT0xJE52S5HvoAGQVIyWESklfKk/s640/DSC08285.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Working with one artichoke half at a time, gently put the stuffing into the middle of the artichoke (where the artichoke heart was) and in between the leaves.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnfx83S46_7YZmfycD9jt3msAWC0r0vJga_DgOSvyuPKwaqgGfapF4a1sopCpfLtKcPd-JuRpz8f-oQlKWaAHe9nbjxVF99djbORMv9Rsfz7ynR84glXz8TkVQzctVwhye5irE-cqpHOwc/s1600/DSC08314.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnfx83S46_7YZmfycD9jt3msAWC0r0vJga_DgOSvyuPKwaqgGfapF4a1sopCpfLtKcPd-JuRpz8f-oQlKWaAHe9nbjxVF99djbORMv9Rsfz7ynR84glXz8TkVQzctVwhye5irE-cqpHOwc/s640/DSC08314.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Find a small/medium saucepan which can fit all artichoke halves upright snuggly, without spilling over. Pour in the water, white wine and olive oil into the saucepan. Bring to boil.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Once boiled, turn the heat down to simmer. Place the stuffed artichokes in one layer. Continue to simmer covered for 45 – 60 minutes or until the artichokes have softened. Serve immediately. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I caved in and decided to do Valentine's baking after a boring day of doing admin work for my thesis. I was initially going to do macarons but that failed miserably so ended up with a red velvet cupcake instead. For a first try I thought it was ok, nothing like <a href="http://magnoliabakery.com/bakedgoods_cupcakes.php" target="_blank">Magnolia Bakery's version</a> of course (I don't have enough butter in the fridge to do that).... As for the Bailey's, well any excuse for booze on Valentine's right? </span><br />
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Red velvet cupcake with Bailey's cream cheese frosting</b> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Makes 12 cupcakes</i></span><br />
<b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> </b><br />
<b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>Ingredients</u></b> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>For the cupcakes </b></span><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </b><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">adapted from <a href="http://www.joyofbaking.com/RedVelvetCupcakes.html" target="_blank">here</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><u>Dry ingredients to mix first</u></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 1/4 cup of cake flour (or substitute with 4/5 cup all-purpose flour plus 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch), sifted</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon cocoa powder</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/4 teaspoon salt</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/4 teaspoon baking powder</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>To get the redness</u></i><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">red and blue food colouring </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 cup buttermilk, or substitute with 1/2 cup plain yogurt</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>The real stuff that makes the cupcakes sweet and addictive, and you'd rather not know</u></i><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3/4 cup granulated sugar</span> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">60 g butter</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large egg</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon vanilla extract </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon white vinegar, or substitute with 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon baking soda / bicarbonate soda</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bailey's cream cheese frosting</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tubs (2 x 175g) cream cheese</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 - 1 1/2 cups of icing sugar, sifted (give or take, depending on how sweet you want the icing to be) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">5-6 tablespoons of Bailey's</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><u>Method</u></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Cupcakes</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Preheat oven to 170 degrees C. Line a 12-hole muffin tray with cupcake liners. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Mix all the dry ingredients together in one bowl, use a whisk or fork to ensure they are mixed in properly. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Mix the buttermilk and food colouring in another bowl. To get the right redness use this <a href="http://www.sugarcraft.com/catalog/coloring/colormixingchart.htm" target="_blank">food colouring chart</a> (you might need to mix blue/red) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Beat the butter until it is soft using an electric stand mixer or hand mixer on medium speed, about 1-2 minutes. Gradually beat in the sugar into the butter, a third of the amount at a time, keep mixing for another couple of minutes. Beat in the vanilla extract and eggs until completely mixed in. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Get your two other bowls ready (the dry ingredients and the buttermilk mixes). With ninja like precision, alternately add in a third of dry ingredients mix and buttermilk mix, into the butter/sugar/egg mix. Continue to beat the mixture, making sure all the ingredients are mixed into the butter mix before adding in the next batch. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a small cup mix in the vinegar or lemon juice with the baking soda. Wait until it starts fizzing then fold into the cupcake batter. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take the muffin tray and start spooning one ladle of batter per cupcake liner (about 3/4 way to the top of the liner). Bake in the oven for about 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcake comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool in the tray for 10-15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack for final cooling. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> <br />
<b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bailey's cream cheese frosting </b><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until it is soft. Gradually beat in the sifted icing sugar into the cream cheese, for about 1-2 minutes. Fold in the Bailey's into the frosting mixture until well incorporated. Spoon cream cheese frosting into piping bags to decorate the cupcakes (or you can just swirl on top of the cupcakes using the back of a teaspoon). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Devour. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Store </b>unfrosted cupcakes in air tight container in room temperature. Store unused frosting in a covered bowl in the fridge. If you can, try to frost just before serving. </span><br />
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</span>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-73627368926290325582012-02-10T01:01:00.010+01:002012-06-14T11:53:57.275+02:00Yankee crab cakes with tartare sauce: a week of loving New York, New York (part 1)<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Clockwise from top left): Ballet at the Lincoln Centre; Waiting for the show; Runners at Central Park (very Juno); Manhattan skyline from Brooklyn</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">NYC came calling the week after my <a href="http://nomadicfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/02/galettes-cheap-eats-in-paris.html" target="_blank">Paris winter school</a>, which came as a nice break. M’s brother and his beautiful family (which includes the most beautiful blonde baby boy in the world) have recently relocated to New York for a couple of years. As this was the first time we were finally in the same hemisphere for a while, of course we couldn’t pass an opportunity to visit!<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This was our second NYC trip this year and I thought our autumn visit was much nicer. The only hordes of tourists that we saw were the runners who were in town for the <a href="http://www.nycmarathon.org/" target="_blank">NYC marathon</a>. It’s a mega-sell out event and people come from all over the world… to run 42km across NYC. Clearly, I have yet to discover the joys of long distance running... Anyway, all NYC marathon finishers get this really big medal and it was quite cute to see people still wearing them even in the days after the race.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">NYC is definitely expensive. But your biggest spend by far will definitely be accommodation. In my experience, they are always overpriced (at both ends of the budget!). Even dirty hostel rooms can cost up to $50 for a dorm, compete with a naked man roaming the corridors at night and be wary of hostels that still take bookings even though they don’t exist anymore (yes, all true stories from previous visits). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You can try more interesting options like <a href="http://www.couchsurfing.org/" target="_blank">Couchsurfing </a>or <a href="http://www.airbnb.com/" target="_blank">Airbnb</a>, where people sub-let their apartments (NYC is one of their biggest network). The website has a review system for the apartment owners so you can filter out the weird crazy Craigslist types, and only releases the money to the owners 24 hours after your arrival. That way you can still back out or make complaints during that time without being charged if anything goes wrong. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Of course there are a million things to do in NYC and never enough time to do them all. But what I love about NYC is that you can have fun regardless of whether you want to splurge or do it on a budget (as opposed to Zurich where everything is just expensive full stop). Here is a list of save/splurge things to do which I think bring a pretty even level of fun-ness. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #3d85c6;"><b>Splurge</b></span></i><span lang="EN-GB">. Go all out and get all the luxury shopping out of your system. Take your pick between the iconic department stores (hello Barney’s, Bergdorf Goodman or Saks Fifth) or <a href="http://www.nycgo.com/articles/luxury-flagship-shopping" target="_blank">the luxury flagship stores lining East 57th Street</a>. You know you want to. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Save</span></b>. </span></i><span lang="EN-GB">NYC has an <a href="http://newyork.timeout.com/things-to-do/this-week-in-new-york/43069/best-flea-markets" target="_blank">amazing market scene</a></span>. My day at the markets pretty much goes like this: buy a snack of choice from a food truck, browse/try/bargain/buy at the stalls, then repeat until you reach the end of the street. <span lang="EN-GB">But my favourite is the <a href="http://hellskitchenfleamarket.com/home/" target="_blank">Hell’s Kitchen Markets</a> (125 W18 St) where I found Kate Middleton-esque ring (despite the fact I hate it when people say that) and a pretty rattle-snakey silver necklace (much prettier than description) for under $40. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chick Corea and Bobby McFerrin at the Blue Note</td></tr>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="color: #073763;">Live gigs</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #3d85c6;"><b>Splurge</b></span></i><span lang="EN-GB">. You must go to the <a href="http://www.bluenotejazz.com/newyork/index.shtml" target="_blank">Blue Note</a> (131 W 3rd Street). I don’t care if you don’t like jazz. Blue Note is cool and if you have any respect for music in general you must go here. This place is legendary and embodies the whole cozy-and-smoky jazz bar-ness (ok you can’t smoke anymore) that you can’t find anywhere else. We saw Chick Corea and Bobby McFerrin – acoustic – and it was totally amazing. During the show they invited random people in the audience to sing-along with them and I swear to god they have to be at least semi-professional singers. So if you’re even slightly tone deaf, please don’t volunteer to sing along and embarrass yourself. Book a ticket for the tables, which will cost between $35-65. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Save</span></b>. </span></i><span lang="EN-GB">See up and coming performers at <a href="http://events.juilliard.edu/" target="_blank">The Juilliard School</a> (60 Lincoln Centre Plaza). Remember <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0206275/" target="_blank">Save the Last Dance</a>? Only the best artists get into Juilliard… They hold hundreds of performances (music, theatre and dance) each season across six venues on their campus, almost all are free. </span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="color: #073763;">Stay fit (i.e. burn away the $2 hot dogs)</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Splurge</span></b>.</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> Train at David Kirsch’s <a href="http://davidkirschwellness.com/madisonsquareclub/membership.html" target="_blank">Madison Square Club</a> (210 5th Ave). A training session will cost you from US$120, which is expected given the club membership is US$25,000 per year. It’s pricey but he does count all the Victoria’s Secret girls as his clients, so his methods must work! Right? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Save</span></b>.</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> Go running, rollerblading, biking in Central Park. There are plenty of bike renters that will swarm you with their offers as you come into the park, especially from the Columbus Circle side. Honestly, just take which ever. Even the dodgiest looking guys will offer you a pretty decent bike, plus the park is pretty flat all around. Alternatively, check out free events like <a href="http://bryantpark.org/plan-your-visit/yoga.html" target="_blank">free yoga at Bryant Park</a> (5th Ave and W 42nd St). </span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="color: #073763;">See Broadway musicals *spirit fingers and double jazz hands*</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Splurge</span></b>. </span></i><span lang="EN-GB">OK, Broadway shows are expensive and this needs to be accepted. If you want to go all out, check out <a href="http://www.broadway.com/">www.broadway.com</a> for full ticket/hotel packages. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Save</span></b>. </span></i><span lang="EN-GB">Alternatively you can try to get cheaper tickets by planning ahead and buying online. Try <a href="http://www.broadwaybox.com/">www.broadwaybox.com</a> or go to the TKTS Discount Booth at Times Square on the day of the show for reduced last minute tickets. New shows like Wicked or How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (starring Daniel Radcliffe, Darren Criss and Nick Jonas) will always sell out, and the cheapest tickets you can get is typically around US$80. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>The Bronx's Little Italy. </b><br />
(Clockwise from top left). Italian groceries; Canolis galore; Dolci; Freshly rolled cigars (the newspaper article says the Sopranos cast have been here)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Splurge</span></b>.</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> New York has a massive Italian influence and you can pretty much buy any Italian produce here. Head to <a href="http://www.eatalyny.com/" target="_blank">Eataly</a> (200 5th Ave) and prepared to be mesmerised by a labyrinth of strategically placed gourmet home-made pastas, cheeses, meats, chocolates, coffees and fresh produce. They also have eat-in restaurants and wine bars inside the shop. I actually saw David Kirsch shopping here! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #3d85c6;"><b>Save</b>.</span></span> </span></i><span lang="EN-GB">Head to the Bronx’s Little Italy around Arthur Avenue, to shop for some traditional Nonna’s Italian groceries and other goodies. Start with the <a href="http://www.arthuravenue.com/" target="_blank">Arthur Avenue Retail Market</a> for an old-fashioned marketplace full of pasta, sausages, cured meats, gelato, dolci, cheese and even freshly rolled cigars. Wash your palate and head to Madonia Brothers Bakery (2348 Arthur Ave) for out-of-this-world canollis.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My favourite restaurant that we got taken to is <a href="http://www.freemansrestaurant.com/" target="_blank">Freemans </a>which does amazing old world American dishes. The restaurant is just SO New York. It’s located at the end of an alleyway, no bookings for small groups, and you need to have your whole party there before you can be seated. My favourite dish here was the crabcake served with a pita bread and tartare sauce. It was just so simple and homey!</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So here is my tribute to the all-Yank (American) crab cake. Now crab (krabbefleisch) is pretty hard to come by here in Zurich and I haven’t had time to venture to the specialty stores or fish mongers. The only decent batch of seafood I normally get access to is the seafood truck that comes to my local Kreuzplatz Markets. Hence, why this is actually only ‘kinda’ crab cake as I had to substitute it with white fish. But it was still very tasty! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>My Yankee crab cake - fish cake</b> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #073763; font-size: large;">Kinda crab (ok, fish) cakes with tartare sauce</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Makes 6 large pieces<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">250 g of crab or white fish (try to get responsibly fished ones like tilapia, bream, blue swimmer crab or European spider crab; avoid canned crab meats)*<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">1 cup of breadcrumbs, I made mine from 1.5 slices of bread<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB"><i>Kinda tartare sauce</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">Half a lemon, juiced, slice the other half into wedges and use for serving<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-GB">Method<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">If you’re using fish, first, put the fish fillet on your chopping board. Get two knives (one in each hand), and start chopping the fillet with both knives (sort of like back massage chopping action) until you get a rough pulpy, stringy mash of white fish. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">Fold in the breadcrumbs, crushed garlic, spring onions, paprika, egg, Worcestershire/soy sauce and mayonnaise. Season with salt and pepper. Mix evenly. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">Heat a tablespoon of oil on a frying pan. Use a paper towel to spread the oil evenly across the pan. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">Pinch about two tablespoons of crab / fish cake mixture, roll into a small ball, and press between the palms of your hands into little patties. </span>Fry the patties for about 3 minutes each side until both sides are evenly browned.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">For the tartare sauce, mix in the mayonnaise, lemon juice and gherkins.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">Serve the crab cake / fish cake with a dollop of (kinda) tartare sauce on top. Garnish with lemon wedges. Devour. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #38761d;">* Where does your fish come from? Has it been fished responsibly? Check out <a href="http://www.fishonline.org/" target="_blank">Fish Online</a> or <a href="http://www.amcs.org.au/" target="_blank">Australian Sustainable Seafood Guide</a> (also has an <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/sustainable-seafood-guide/id461656264?mt=8" target="_blank">iPhone app</a> you can consult while you do your shopping</span>).</span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-9220549751905220502012-02-05T15:09:00.024+01:002012-06-18T19:55:09.776+02:00Galettes: cheap eats in Paris!<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><b>Montmartre at dusk.</b></i><br />
Sacre Coeur (L), throngs of tourist trying to take arty photos of that pointy tower at sunset (M), an artist hard at work (R)</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The past couple of months have been full of hectic travelling for both work and fun, going from super-hot to super-freezing weather! But this also meant lots of feasting in between, which has unfortunately resulted in coming home to Switzerland with an extra 3 kilos of food baby… (detox starts next week). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So it all started in November with another Paris trip – my first ever non-leisure one! I was fortunate enough to be invited to a week-long winter school on photovoltaics hosted by the Ecole de Mines de Paris. This was an annual event held at one of the <a href="http://www.paristech.fr/index.php/eng/content/view/full/4487" target="_blank">IDEA League universities</a> (the top technical universities of Europe). The week was a massive blur of super-intensive lectures, project work, lab visits, feasting, bar hopping, and (mild) hangovers. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As part of the course, we also visited some PV research centres. Because these companies are located in the suburbs of Paris, they have their own subsidised cafeterias. And my god, these are the Willy Wonkas of office cafeterias. Firstly, I knew that the French are pretty passionate about eating. But seriously, 3-course meal lunches that can include options of duck, steak tartare, or salmon; a chocolate fountain (first time I’ve seen it outside of a wedding reception); and wines, all for under 10€? Of</span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> course</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">, after lunch then everyone retires to the sunny coffee room for 50cents espressos before heading back to work.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I can only imagine the shock horror that a Frenchie must experience upon seeing the ‘lunching at desk’ culture in Australia… Honestly, I would TOTALLY work in French engineering companies just for the food alone (in my head I assume they all have these kind of amazingly cheap cafeterias). <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wednesday night post-dinner Louvre-ing (L), pint-sized wine bar at Le Marais (M, R)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Unfortunately, the hostel restaurant we stayed at wasn’t as great as I hoped. But being on a grad student budget I couldn’t really afford too many repeat performances of the 3-course lunches inside of Paris. So, I ventured out and was pleasantly surprised to find some delicious cheapo foods in Paris (Zurich, take note!). They’re not exactly 3-course fanciness but are very filling! Here are some of my favourite Paris cheap eats for under 15€:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Hearty ramens</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> at <b>Higuma, 32 Rue St Anne (Metro: Opera).</b> I was sooooo happy to find a full blown Japanese town in the middle of Paris, being so deprived of good Asian food in Zurich. It’s located near the Opera metro station just on Rue St Anne. Higuma is an awesome no-frills good Japanese restaurant well known for their ramen menu. They serve humongous bowls of ramen noodle soups in their own home-made broth. Ramens cost between €8-11. And unless you haven’t eaten all day or you have Hagrid-like appetite you’d want to share a bowl with a friend. It’s not uncommon to see people lining up for tables around the corner at dinner time and weekends. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Takoyakis</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> at <b>Happa Tei, 64 Rue St Anne (Metro: Opera)</b>. Just down the road from Higuma. Takoyakis are Japanese potato and squid balls cooked in a special rounded pan. It’s kind of like un-crumbed croquettes, topped with Japanese mayonnaise and bulldog sauce. One of the most scrumptious bites of food I’ve ever had. There is an upstairs area if you want to eat-in. A box of 6 balls costs 13€.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Galettes</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> at <b>Au P’tit Grec</b>, <b>66 Rue Mouffetard (Metro: Place Monge)</b>. Not really hard to spot. It’s the shop that is always packed with both famished students and peckish late night patrons. They have an impressive spread of sweet and savoury galettes (thick crepes made with buckwheat flour), which will set you back a whopping 3-4€ each. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Felafels</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> at <b>Chez Marianne,</b></span><b><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB">2, rue des Hospitalieres-Saint-Gervais. </span></b><span lang="EN-GB">Le Marais area being the Jewish quarter is always packed on Sundays as it’s almost the only place where shops and restaurants do Sunday trading in Paris. Everyone always seems to make the beeline at L’as Felafels, but I prefer Chez Marianne. The marinated pepper is always the highlight of their gargantuan falafels for me (it’s almost like the size of 2 meals). <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQlMZThsz8wpcqNct3s_FUVukTHj5JpGSZARGDHsMH4lQCVvFs7WGLg8RlKGE4rueq-dE9pWS13e-OYmDdmRv8shSsOLlDdlI3O22qZarMvXNJb-HYf4eKqjfn3RZ6bkbXeo5v0EqOAXS_/s1600/paris3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQlMZThsz8wpcqNct3s_FUVukTHj5JpGSZARGDHsMH4lQCVvFs7WGLg8RlKGE4rueq-dE9pWS13e-OYmDdmRv8shSsOLlDdlI3O22qZarMvXNJb-HYf4eKqjfn3RZ6bkbXeo5v0EqOAXS_/s640/paris3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Appreciating art at the Louvre</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here is a recipe of my version of galettes with various fillings. Buckwheat flour is quite low in gluten, so really I can argue that my low-carb diet starts today ;)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">The first is my version of Galette Compl</span><span lang="EN-GB">è</span><span lang="EN-GB">te, which is typically served with ham, egg, and emmental cheese. But since our fridge is looking tragically bare as a result of a long skiing week, I’ve had to make do with what we have (i.e. a very Aussie bacon and egg version). I also made a Galette Saucisse (with grilled sausage inside), but I only had a bratwurst and that worked! And last but not least, of course my favourite… Nutella!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span lang="EN-GB">Bacon & egg Galette Compl</span></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span lang="EN-GB">è</span></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span lang="EN-GB">te</span></span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-GB">Galettes (Bacon & Egg</span></b></span><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #073763; font-size: large;">, Saucisse, Nutella)</span></span></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the galettes<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 cups of buckwheat flour<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1.5-2 cups of water<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pinch of salt <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large egg<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the fillings <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-GB">Bacon & egg Galette Compl</span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB">è</span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB">te<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2-3 strips of turkey bacon or bacon, cooked<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 medium sized egg<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 handful of grated cheese (I used Gruyere, but feel free to use any melting cheese)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Galette Saucisse<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large sausage, grilled <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Galette Nutella<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A healthy dollop of Nutella at room temperature</span></span></div>
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<ol>
<li><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Galette batter</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">: sift the buckwheat flour and salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the middle of the bowl, and drop in the egg and oil. Whisk vigourously while continuously adding water until you achieve a very liquid consistency (like, pouring). Cover the bowl and chuck it in the fridge for an hour or two. Alternatively, if you are currently experiencing the mad European winter weather, like our -15 degrees in Zurich, leave it in the balcony for about half hour.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">While you wait for the batter to chill, cook the fillings if needed.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heat up a large frying pan over medium heat. If you’re not a master pancake flipper the medium heat stops the galettes from cooking too quickly, so you have more time to flip it without destroying the galette.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Drop a teaspoon of olive oil and with kitchen towel spread the oil around the pan evenly.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pour in half a cup of the batter in the pan, and quickly swirl it around the pan making sure it covers the entire base.</span></li>
<li><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For bacon and egg galette compl</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">è</span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>te</i>: when the edges of the galette are starting to crisp up (after about 30 seconds in the pan), throw in a handful of grated cheese and spread evenly on top of the batter. Break an egg in the centre of the galette. Spread the egg white around, leaving the yolk in the centre. Throw in the bacon around the egg yolk. Cook for about 2-3 minutes, then start folding the edges of the galette towards the middle, making a small parcel. The yolk will still be a bit runny. If you want a firmer yolk, cover the pan while you cook.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>For the galette saucisse</i>: when the edges of the galette are starting to crisp up, flip the galette and cook the other side. Put the cooked sausage in the centre of the galette and start folding the edges to wrap the entire sausage (like a buritto)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>For the galette nutella</i>: when the edges of the galette are starting to crisp up, flip the galette and cook the other side. Spread nutella evenly across the top. Fold however you like. Eat immediately.</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span></li>
</ol>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-38106771604840594852011-11-05T14:28:00.010+01:002012-06-14T11:56:46.548+02:00Peanut Free Sweet Chicken Satay (Sate Ayam Manis)<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jajanan Solo (Solo 'snack' foods)</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I blame my sweet tooth on the wonderful Solonese food that I grew up on. Solo is located in Central Java with a magnificent regal culture. It's so obsessed with royals that they decide to upkeep four kingdoms in the area the size of Adelaide, each with its own batik print and imperial outfits. (Kate Middleton eat your heart out). And of course, the amazing, sometimes verging on ridiculously unhealthy obsession with eating (sweets containing half a kilo of sugar AND condensed milk, tripe soup, fried intestine crackers, anyone?).</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When I was growing up, even though mum’s side of the family have all moved to Jakarta, my granddad was always so persistent about carrying out almost all the regal ceremonies of Solo. That includes for example the </span><a href="http://tjokrosuharto.com/catalog/adat_haid.php?Tjok=859d426595b4964f8e136891c22ec322" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">Tarapan</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">, a coming of age ceremony (let’s announce to everyone she’s just got her first period and shower her with rose water); Wiyosan, the celebration of my grandad’s birthday at the 14</span><sup style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">th</sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> of every month (also awesome to hang out with my cousins!); </span><a href="http://discover-indonesia.com/jogjakarta/ruwatan-to-banish-the-bad-luck/" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">Ruwatan</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">, the you-were-born-on-a-day-that-brings-bad-luck-so-let’s-ceremoniously-cut-your-hair-and-offer-it-to-the-Queen-of-the-South-Seas ceremony.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Of course, I hated every single one of them (what kid likes to do family events?). I dreaded the combination of having to wear corseted kebaya and keeping up the Javanese manners (keep your head level below the elders, no touching of other people’s heads, point with your thumb not index finger, speak and walk slowly!). The funny thing is it was only after I moved away from Indonesia that I started appreciating them. These are traditions that are slowly dying away with my grandparents’ generation. I’m actually pretty grateful that I got to do a full-blown 3-day Javanese wedding with 200 family members and 1500 guests. Because not only was it an awesome experience, but my kids may never get to experience it. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Food coma in Pecel Solo</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span></o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Solo, being located smack bang on the fertile volcanic soil of the island of Java, has an absolute abundance of food. I promise you even if you stay there for a month, I doubt you would have experienced all that Solo culinary world has to offer. The Solonese food that I grew up with features a lot of kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) and gula jawa (similar to palm sugar), creating that sweet tinge in most dishes. I’m sure this is how I got my sweet tooth, sometimes to the point where I obsessively have to find a sweet sauce in new countries when sweet soy sauce isn’t available (thank you, chutneys and Bavarian sweet mustard).</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here are a few of our favourite places:</span></span></div>
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<li><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-indent: -24px;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1630651646"> </a></span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-indent: -24px;"><a href="http://waroengpecelsolo.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><b>Pecel Solo</b>.</a> A smorgasbord of Javanese food, eaten on a plate lined with banana leaves. The side dishes are available on your table. You pick and choose what you want. But remember what you order because the waiters will bill you on what you say you ate. They’re very trusting people! Come for breakfast or lunch. <i>Jalan Dr. Soepomo No.55, Mangkubumen Solo. Tel. +62-271-737379.</i></span></li>
<li><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-indent: -24px;"><b>Soto Gading.</b> The legendary chicken soup with airy rice noodles, potatoes and fried shallots. The perfect comfort food! They claim throngs of celebrities and politicians always make the stop here when in Solo. They also serve a number of side dishes.Totally unmissable, especially for the very low price of Rp9.000 (that's less than a buck). <i>Jalan Brigjen Sudiarta no. 75, Gading, Solo. Open for breakfast and lunch.</i></span></li>
<li><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-indent: -24px;"><b>Serabi Notosuman. </b>Fluffy and sweet Solonese pancake, with a sweet coconut milk filling and crispy edges. If you take it away they roll it up in a banana leave (kinda like sushi rolls) so they are easier to eat. Best eaten hot with a cup of tea for breakfast for your early morning sugar rush. At Rp2000 a pop (20cents) you can't miss these little gems. <i>Jalan Mohammad Yamin 28, Solo. Come very early in the morning (like 7am), during holiday season expect very long queues.</i></span></li>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Here is a recipe for a sweet chicken satay. I made this for a dinner party recently, where one of my friends has pretty severe peanut allergy… as in he might die if he eats peanut. As most people know, satay is almost always served with bucketloads of peanut sauce. There are some recipes out there which recommend substituting peanuts for sunflower seed paste. But since they weren’t available in shops around me, I decided to serve it with sweet soy sauce, shallot and chilli mix (I think in Indo they call this sambal kecap). I also added sesame oil, as it gives the marinade a bit of a nutty flavour, and contains no traces of peanuts. Well at least mine was ok. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">I definitely sighed a breath of relief when the night ended without my friend’s epi-pen (the shot you have to give in case of a severe allergy) or industrial-strength-antihistamine making an appearance. Phew!</span></span></div>
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=8214907200593101124&postID=3810677160484059485" name="Sate-recipe"> </a><br />
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<b><span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Peanut-free sweet chicken satay (Sate Ayam Manis)</span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ingredients:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">500g of chicken, breast or thigh, cubed</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Marinade:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4-5 tablespoon of sweet soy sauce<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 tablespoon of regular soy sauce<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tablespoon of sesame oil<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4 shallots, sliced<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 cloves of garlic, crushed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 handful of coriander leaves, chopped finely<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cm ginger, grated <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bamboo or metal skewers <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Dipping sauce:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">5 tablespoon of kecap manis<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 shallots, sliced<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 birds eye chilli, sliced finely, discard the seeds if you don’t want it too spicy. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Method:</span></span><br />
<ol>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Combine the ingredients together.<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;">Obviously you can blitz the marinade ingredients into a paste (we use mortar and pestle back home). But I like to see colours the bits and pieces of the different ingredient colours so I just chop them up finely together.</span></span></li>
<li><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Marinade the chicken in the sauce for a few hours, or better yet overnight.</span></span></span></li>
<li><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When you take the meat out of the fridge, they should be very brown because of the kecap manis. Thread them into the skewers. If using bamboo skewers, make sure you soak them in hot water first for about half hour to avoid any splinters (or 10 minutes if you don’t have time).</span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Barbecue or grill the skewers until cooked. I didn’t have a barbecue so just used a grilling pan on a stove top cooking . Keep brushing the marinade on the skewers while you grill them.</span></span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Serve hot with the dipping sauce.</span></span></span></span></span></span></li>
</ol>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cooking tip: while grilling on the stove top, we put a pan lid over the meat. Since the heat loss is minimised, the skewers cooked a lot faster and more even (leaves more time for you to hang out with your guests). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8214907200593101124.post-84216886484069680122011-11-03T11:58:00.002+01:002012-06-14T11:57:45.395+02:00Sustainable Eating<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigB7DvQoAJassD1XhsZccqnGVzujylC2N5OAQWTwvjSE_nJTmDvGO6UE1TzOwVPaWgWdNZppIIHAtZM-fEZpbf6uU6969wEOZ03cTZiV9_ccmBYphZZtY1J_nKzXaZDKJQsVKiYSPnS5IX/s1600/emissions_by_utility.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="355" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigB7DvQoAJassD1XhsZccqnGVzujylC2N5OAQWTwvjSE_nJTmDvGO6UE1TzOwVPaWgWdNZppIIHAtZM-fEZpbf6uU6969wEOZ03cTZiV9_ccmBYphZZtY1J_nKzXaZDKJQsVKiYSPnS5IX/s640/emissions_by_utility.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Who knew that food has a pretty bad environmental impact! (From <a href="http://www.weact.ethz.ch/">www.weact.ethz.ch</a>)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Last week, with a group of friends I signed up to do this one month of <a href="http://www.weact.ethz.ch/">living, eating, and travelling sustainably</a>. Admittedly, it's pretty embarrassing that I've only started this now, considering now that every day I write, research and learn about the economics of renewable energy, reducing carbon emissions, and putting the brakes on excessive consumption. It's probably time to walk the talk a bit :) </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It's pretty common knowledge biggest energy-intensive/carbon-emitter culprits are the electricity generation and transport sectors. But since demand of products/services in these sectors is derived from the final output, it turns out that the food industry has been pretty naughty contributing to 31% of total anthropogenic (a fancy word for human-driven) emissions. If you think of how much energy is used to convert that happy little cow in the paddock to into the chunk of steak in your gob, it all adds up: the farming, land use, transporting, cooling, lots and lots of wrapping and packaging, more cooling at the supermarket, and finally cooking. </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So I figured I'd give sustainable eating a go and see how I can reduce the negative impact of cooking, without entirely giving up my dream of one day being a Nigella! </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Going fully organic, especially in Switzerland where labour cost is exorbitant, can be pre-ttttty expensive and would definitely make a massive dent on our student budget. So here's just a few simple things that I want to commit to:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Eating from locally sourced, seasonal produce, and start shopping at my local farmers markets. Hopefully this will improve my grocery shopping German conversation from "No I don't have a discount card, I don't want free scratchies or the receipt!" to actually having a proper conversation with the sellers and be at least conversant...</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Eat less read meats and more fish and poultry</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Eat less meats in general and more veggies (my mum would be so happy...)</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Try to subsitute exotic spices which have to be flown from the fields of West Java, with locally available spices in Europe, and not alter the taste too much. Surely, this is how an east-west fusion food can be born! </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Reduce cooking time when possible to reduce the kitchen electricity consumption.</span></li>
</ul>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sIW9Es9hXne_qC23BQfAEjscpAsMPCJjA0LfD-8tKqggSiY3g-prH6_vQesY6jQ3Hg2Ve0tVRlyYWSVbM6wK3Ot1pCKTXYnLBEN2XT-5OYTInONDYKZTHRACP3ThH9zPvss6uQXWWCI6/s1600/farmers_market.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sIW9Es9hXne_qC23BQfAEjscpAsMPCJjA0LfD-8tKqggSiY3g-prH6_vQesY6jQ3Hg2Ve0tVRlyYWSVbM6wK3Ot1pCKTXYnLBEN2XT-5OYTInONDYKZTHRACP3ThH9zPvss6uQXWWCI6/s320/farmers_market.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">At the markets... like a kid in a candy store</span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">There are heaps of blogs and websites online that talk about sustainable eating, so will be definitely checking them out. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This should be interesting! </span></div>
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</span></div>Nomadic Feast Kitchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08972377859762880869noreply@blogger.com0