Posts Tagged ‘maple syrup’

Iceberg Wedges With Humbolt Fog Dressing & Maple Bacon

Saturday, September 10th, 2011

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ICEBERG DEAD AHEAD!!

The poor old Iceberg lettuce is a pretty unfashionable leaf these days, but the Americans still have a lot of love for it, particularly when it’s served in big old wedges and drenched in blue cheese dressing. This twist on the American Classic uses a local Californian goat cheese called Humbolt Fog, which is lovely and creamy, and has a blue-ish tang to it. Paired with some applewood smoked bacon candied in maple syrup, and a few thinly sliced red onions, it’s pretty much the perfect starter. It’s pretty easy to throw together too. Lets begin.

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 large iceberg lettuce

200g Humbolt Fog, or your favourite mild blue cheese

300g Buttermilk, or sour cream

Juice of 1/4 – 1/2 of lemon, to taste

1 teaspoon Tabasco

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Nectrarine & Blackberry Smoothie

Saturday, September 4th, 2010

The missus and I have been on a bit of a detox for the past couple of weeks, in part due to our impending nuptials, and to be honest, it’s been a bit miserable. No booze, no bread, no dairy, no sugar, no caffeine, no red meat…no fun.

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But necessity being the mother of invention and all that, I’ve been having to find new ways to entertain my taste buds. This refreshing smoothie is a result of this experimentation, and proof that every cloud has a silver lining.

The grapefruit juice gives a slightly bitter but pleasant aftertaste, and the mint keeps it fresh. I like it cold too, so I’ll put the fruit in the fridge for a few hours / overnight before I make it.

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Ingredients

2 ripe nectarines, stoned and quartered

100g blackberries, washed

10 mint leaves

150ml fresh grapefruit juice

1/2 tablespoon maple syrup

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Happy Pancake Day

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
Photo by Cafe Darclee

Photo by Cafe Darclee

It’s Shrove Tuesday aka Pancake day. Traditionally a time to get rid of sugar, fat and eggs before fasting for Lent, it’s now a bit of a treat in the culinary calendar.

Pancakes are ridiculously easy and quick to prepare, and once you’ve got them made, you can stick pretty much anything you fancy in them.

This recipe employs the five 1s formula.

Ingredients

1 egg, preferably free-range or organic

1 cup of self-raising flour

1 cup of milk

1 pinch of salt

1 nob of butter (melted, around 20g)

Method

Whisk together the egg, flour and milk in a bowl, melt the butter in a pan and then beat into the mix removing any lumps.

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How Do You Like Your Eggs In The Morning?

Saturday, September 26th, 2009

Me and the missus just got back from a road trip in the good ol’ US of A driving down the Pacific coast from San Fran to LA, and then on to Chicago for a wedding. We had an amazing time, and a we ate like kings. I think the thing I like about the majority of food in the States is the lack of bullshit. It’s not delicate in any way, and it’s all the better for it. For the most part you can forget about foams, jus and micro herbs. But that’s not to say the food isn’t good, it’s as tasty as hell. It’s all about big, bold, brash flavours, ss you might expect from the Yanks.

Anyway, breakfast fast became our favourite meal of the day, and right here are out top four breakfasts from the trip.

Huevos Rancheros – literally ‘eggs ranch style’. Mexican style eggs (in this case scrambled with ham) served up on flour tortillas smothered in spicy tomato sauce, topped with black beans and avocado, with a side of home fries. Ay carrumba

Huevos Rancheros at The Crepevine, San Francisco

Huevos Rancheros at The Crepevine, San Francisco

Hash & Eggs – despite the name, probably the poshest breakfast of the trip, but totally amazing. Spring onion, bacon and potato hash topped with a couple of poached eggs. The breakfast of champions. (more…)