A christmas shopping expedition in the CDB

Well here's the last of the pre-Christmas jaunts and then we can get stuck into 2011. What better way to break a day's serious shopping than propped up at the bar of a great foodie joint watching a couple of simple yet delicious lunches being constructed, a cold glass of ale/wine in hand.
 
Hardware Lane is chokers full of places to eat but keep walking (heading north) until you get to Hardware Societe - it's  much further along than I expected but definitely worth seeking out. My lunch, consisting of beautifully pan fried scallops plump and succulent  accompanied by potato roesti; a beetroot salsa; prosciutto and fresh leaves, was just what I desired. My partners slow braised lamb with yoghurt and roasted capsicums also tasty and just what he was looking forward to keep him going for afternoon of more retail trekking! Much has been written about their wonderful breakfasts too but I'll leave that for those that get up earlier than moi!
Hardware Societe
120 Hardware Lane, Melbourne
ph 9078 5992

A little of everything please....

..... a tasting menu, such a great way to share food with friends, colleagues or family, before or after Christmas, no decisions to make just sit back and enjoy. It is no doubt easier when the diners are not too limited in their food choices, but even then establishments like Huxtable take dietary restrictions in their stride and there is something to please everyone here. A must is the jalapeno & cheddar croquettes and of course being a duck lover the roasted duck breast, soy braised daikon and sour plum was a wonderful combination of flavours and so beautifully cooked.

Despite having little capacity for dessert after so many excellent courses the young coconut marshmallow was fabulous, small, light and ever so tangy! Excellent service and helpful suggestions with interesting wines to match the plates. Talking about plates ..... I'm not convinced that dark coloured plates show food off as well as good old fashioned white but heavy pottery, stone slabs and wooden platters are certainly in vogue at the moment. (Perhaps it's a silent revolt to annoy bloggers and their incessant photo taking! lol) But whilst aesthetics is important the flavours and textures will always be my priority so I will be heading back soon to try a few more dishes and a second round of croquettes. 

I really don't want to be like the many blogs that have pic's of every dish but I had trouble deciding from all the gorgeous choices. So in case you're curious about the other dishes here, olives obviously, a kataffi pastry wrapped lamb and delightful dukkah flavoured cauliflower with harissa yoghurt - yum.

Huxtable 131 Smith St, Fitzroy 03 9419 5101

 

So about that christmas pudding....

The family Christmas pudding is made as family tradition dictates, in Spring, before the days heat up - I mean who could cope with a pudding boiling away for 5 hours in the heat of summer. Lucky Melbourne’s early summer this year was kind to me even if wasn't the warm weather most were hoping for.

It seems that this ancestral culinary tradition skips a generation, from my grandmother the task became mine. And unfortunately I was only 12 when my gastronomic mentor went to the ‘big kitchen’! However I do have her original recipe and can still remember my Grandmother's puddings hanging in the cool of the covered back veranda.

Chopping and marinating kilo's of sticky dense dried fruits, grating fresh suet (the fat that surrounds beef kidney's) and remembering to buy loaves of bread in time for them to dry a little to allow for making white breadcrumbs all requires a degree of organisation so would be much better at a less hectic time but ‘that’s life’. Regardless the pudding took its rightful place, after the traditional roasted turkey, served with a Drambuie custard and a dollop of double cream.

And as you can see, a trip to buy the fruit, gave me a chance to stock up on some fabulous spices at NSM, 405 Victoria Street, Brunswick, an absolute Aladdin’s cave of bulk dried fruits, nuts and spices.

Happy new year with a little jingle bells to boot!

Its a brand new year and for many that means making resolutions for a new start but I'm going to attempt to deal with December 2010 first before I move on. That's because December is always full of food featured festivities and just because I didn't have the time or inclination to sit down at the keyboard doesn't mean I don't want to share, after all 'tis the season to be jolly! Yeah, that’s because everyone wants to catch up for lunch, dinner, a drink or two! So December included:

• Yumcha
• Single estate wines with prawns, cheese, cherries and chocolate
• A Malaysian feast
• Japanese delicacies - with a little too much Saki
• An 11 course tasting menu @ Huxtable
• A picnic at the Zoo - to be honest that was a birthday celebration (happy 1st birthday Thomas!)
• A candlelit supper
• Lunch in the city - in between present shopping
• And a curried Xmas banquet (my friend refused to have a trad christmas party and insisted we all bring curry - what an amazing array we had and from many parts of the world)

all in the name of the good Saint Nick. And don't tell the family I didn't make the christmas pudding until the 20th December.

Love 'em or hate 'em......

It appears some ingredients and dishes are an acquired taste - taste often steeped in cultural upbringing. No amount of family meetups over yumcha will ever be enough to convince my 'Aussie' dad that gelatinous chicken feet might be worth trying.

Oysters with Tetsuya's Rice Wine Vinaigrette

There seems to be no middle ground on some foods, no take it or leave philosphy, when mentioned they illicit one of two simple responses, love it  - hate it! Here's a few of the love/hates I've found over the years and my own personnal feelings towards these polarising products:

• chicken feet - eat them but just don't think about them
• 'stinky bean curd' - the adjective says it all!
• pumperknickel - dry cardboard!
• eel - the Shira Nui way everytime!
• donuts- doughy for some but heaven for me
• brussel sprouts - really does depend on how they're cooked
• kidneys - mmm, an organ that filters urine - what more can I say
• vegemite - Aussie or not, its usually that simple, hot buttery vegemite toast - yes please
• blue and washed rind cheeses - unlike stinky bean curd, stinky but good
• anchovies - gorgeous hairy little salt punches
• chocolate - well I suppose I don't actually hate it but I'm not a chocolate lover 
• oysters - a taste of the sea

Tomatoes used to be on my list of hates now I love them. There was certainly the seasonal 'over' abundance issue which applied to the diet of my childhood - is it possible to overdose on tomatoes or pumpkin or field mushrooms? Followed by the sinful breading of vegetables and fruit that were great to transport but lacked flavour, dad still refers to most strawberries as 'appleberries' because of there firm texture and insipid taste. So it would seem there's always the possibility to shift from one camp to another.

A bit of crud, a plate of greens and fabulous duck!

Stir Fried Snow Pea Leaves

The Macquarie Dictionary defines crud as anything or anyone regarded as inferior. Despite an entire section on the menu featuring inferior items (all except the braised bean curd in chilli sauce!), there was nothing inferior about Glen Waverley BBQ Restaurant, in fact it was quite the opposite. Our selection of dishes were pleasingly flavoursome and the service efficient and professional, the later something which can be somewhat lacking when dinning at the 'local'. The stir fried snow pea leaves and steamed rice a fitting accompaniment to the aromatic & splendidly moist roasted duck. A dish of steamed eel in XO sauce divided the table but all agreed the sauce was a winner – poor old eel, it seems to be one of the commodities that diners have a love or hate relationship with.

Crab Claw

I noticed that there is no crud to be seen on the take away menu; perhaps a kindly printer has provided some editorial advice. I also observed that although this little treasure is listed in the The Age Cheap Eats Guide there is no signifying sticker on the door. On asking, our host said…’The Age didn’t send me one this year’. No matter the place was full.  

Glen Waverley BBQ Restaurant, 31 Railway Parade North, Glen Waverely

The Gado Gado Butty!

I awoke this morning with a desire for hot buttery toast with peanut butter. Given that this is not a completely foreign occurrence, I gave it little thought until it dawned on me that the yearn may well have been fostered by a foodie story from the previous day.

Once upon a time..... an eclectic cluster of dinners shared food stories over morsels of delectableness called YumCha. Despite my instinctive Anglo aversion to eating chicken feet I've learnt to push through the 'yuck' barrier and indulge anyway but I must say  it was enlightening to learn the process of preparing these little guys. First deep fried to remove the skin then slowly braised to all their gelatinous glory. They are a typical example of the fabulous result achieved by the technique of  'twice cooking' often applied in the Chinese kitchen.

But the tale of the day that typified not just the diversity of our dinning party but the rich tapestry of Melbourne cuisine was the anecdote of the humble sandwich or butty as our English companion would say. The request for a simple peanut butter sandwich, not at all unusual in a food court. The addition of lettuce was not too peculiar, however the subsequent fillings where a most curious combination. To the customers delight this sandwich maker, of Chinese birth, was no food slouch and instantly recognised the traditional ingredients of the Indonesian salad Gado Gado. Of course traditionally served with peanut sauce not butter and definitely not served between 2 slices of bread. But there you go.. a mixed marriage! A classic Indonesian salad in a sandwich, here in our culinary melting pot called Melbourne!

Just in case you were wondering where to have YumCha, we were at TaiPan Restaurant - one of my favourites in the east.  TaiPan Restaurant, 237-239 Blackburn Road, Doncaster East