Food Diary - Saturday Night Dinner at Home

There are few things I enjoy more than catching up with friends at home over a good meal and a glass of wine. We were long overdue in catching up with our friend Kim (who actually only lives close by - isn't that always the way!) so last night we did something about that and invited him over for a moochy Saturday night dinner at home.

To start, I came up with a dish that is basically posh eggs on toast - a crunchy base of toasted rustic garlic rubbed bread, piled with Prosciutto, fresh greens, a soft poached free range egg - and finished off with luxurious black truffle butter sauce. The combination of the crunchy bread, velvety eggs, salty Prosciutto and fresh greens created a gorgeous contrast of textures - and that decadent black truffle butter sauce created an entree that was wickedly good.

 Soft Poached Egg on Garlic Toast

With Prosciutto, Greens and Truffle Butter Sauce

I recently purchased a small bottle of Tetsuya's Black Truffle Salsa - which is designed to be used to create the famous truffle butter that he serves in his restaurant. I've been lucky enough to dine at Tetsuya's quite a few times now (in fact we are heading there in a couple of weeks for our wedding anniversary dinner) and the truffle butter is something we always look forward to. Lots of other people clearly think so too, so he now sells the base of it so that people can create their own. I decided to make up a batch of the butter and just warm it through, to create a luxurious sauce. The result was an eye rollingly delicious entree.

If you want to get your hands on some of Tetsuya's Black Truffle Salsa for yourself, you can find it in good gourmet stores, or online. If you are searching for it, it comes in a tiny jar that looks like this -

For the basis of main course, I chose something that I haven't cooked at home for ages - venison. Regular readers of Gourmet Goddess would know that I'm a big fan of game meat, and in the last week or so had been thinking that I wanted to get my hands on some venison to create a dish using Autumn produce. I used a beautiful piece of venison loin, which I marinated in olive oil, some garlic, a splash of raspberry vinegar, crushed juniper berries, pepper and allspice.

I then seared the meat in a very hot pan and transferred it to a 200C oven to cook for 10 minutes. After resting the meat, I carved it and served it with a rich, velvety puree of cauliflower and potato (I used the Dutch Cream variety), roasted beetroot ( which I cut into uniform circles with a cookie cutter, to improve the presentation), toasted hazelnuts, beetroot leaves and a jus that I made from beef stock and Pinot Noir jelly (similar to redcurrant jelly, but made with Pinot grapes) and flavoured with bay leaves from my garden. Yum.

Loin of Venison with Cauliflower & Potato Puree, 

Roasted Beetroot, Hazelnut and Pinot Noir Jus

Venison is a fantastic flavoursome and super lean meat that is not hard to cook with, as long as you choose the right cut for the kind of dish you are making. I chose the loin of the venison, which is cooked for a short time and served medium rare, to rare. The only real thing that you really need to watch for is overcooking. It isn't a meat that is really suited for people who like their meat well done, so if you are making it at home, know your diner's preference. Cooking venison to a well done order will just result in a grey, tough piece of meat. A waste of really excellent produce.

I decided not to make a dessert and to serve a selection of cheeses, fresh pear and some quince paste - but after what was a rich entree and main, we decided that we were all satisfied, and that a cheese plate would just be overkill. The cheese platter might end up being Sunday lunch.

If you like game but have never had a go at cooking venison at home, I really encourage you to give it a try. It isn't hard and makes a great key ingredient for a special meal, whether you are sharing it with guests or not.

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Autumnal Inspiration

I just love this time of the year when you feel everything changing, as we  transition into winter. I am a cold weather person and I thrive in Autumn and Winter. The colder weather seems to spark my creativity a lot more and it is always a very productive time for me. This is particularly true of what I choose to cook and eat. With all of the summer produce disappearing and the cold weather ingredients beginning to be available, I am inspired with new possibilities when I visit the greengrocer.

This week I decided to roast some beef for our Saturday night dinner, but thought I would forget about the basic roasted vegetables and look at some seasonal flavours and accompaniments for it. To start with, I flavoured the beef with celery, paprika and juniper, giving the beef a lovely aroma and a delicious flavour and warmth. As always, I cooked the meat on the Weber, over the coals, but you can of course use a conventional oven if you want to.

We received a bunch of beetroot, organic carrots and some gorgeous kipfler potatoes in our fruit and vegetable box this week, so I used those as side dishes, along with some baked seasonal witlof. Witlof is also known as Belgian endive or chicory. Admittedly it is not going to be to everyone's taste, with it's bitter character, but I found that it worked really well with the sweetness of the beetroot that I baked with plenty of red onions, garlic, honey and balsamic.

The result was a delicious succulent roast with a real Autumn flavour. I made a jug of gravy with the resting juices from the beef and served this along with some horseradish on the side.

A note about the beef - as with all meat, you need to give it sufficient resting time to ensure maximum flavour and tenderness. I have found this to be particularly true of topside beef, which was what I used for this recipe. Don't be tempted to rush this step. There are two different schools of thought when it comes to whether or not you cover the meat with foil while it is resting. I have been reading a very funny Twitter exchange online recently between Anthony Bourdain and others about this subject - I strongly stand in Bourdain's camp and believe in not covering the meat. It continues to cook after you remove it from the heat anyway, so covering it with foil will just keep more heat in and therefore extend the cooking process even further. This means that meat that was cooked to perfection when you pulled it out of the oven can end up badly overcooked and as tough as old boots when you come to serve it. Those worried about the meat getting cold as it is resting need not be - as long as you put it somewhere relatively warm, it will be fine.

So everyone, check out your greengrocer or farmer's market, see what is coming in to season and give your cooking a transitional seasonal makeover. Also check out my continuously updated list of what is in season on the right hand side of this web page. Our Saturday night roast certainly took on an Autumnal twist as a result of some seasonal inspiration - what seasonal ingredients will you explore this week?

Juniper Roasted Beef

with Autumn vegetables

and caramelised balsamic beetroot

You will need: 1kg piece roasting beef (I used topside), 10 juniper berries, 2 teaspoons celery salt, 2 teaspoons sweet paprika, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 large carrots, 2 whole witlof, 6-8 kipfler potatoes, 4 whole beetroot, 1 large red onion, 3 cloves garlic, salt and pepper, 1 tablespoon grated mozzarella cheese, 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, a little extra olive oil.

Method: Preheat the oven to 220C. Place the whole beetroot in boiling water and allow to simmer for about 10 minutes. Drain and run them under cold water. Now remove the skins - they should come right off easily with your hands. Cut the beetroot into quarters. Slice the red onion into thick pieces and place in a small ovenproof dish with the beetroot. Roughly chop the garlic and add to the dish, along with the honey, balsamic, 1 tablespoon olive oil and plenty of salt and pepper. Bake the beetroot, turning a few times for around 30 minutes.

While the beetroot is cooking, prepare the meat. Crush the juniper berries and combine with the celery salt, paprika, pepper and a tablespoon of olive oil. Mix well and rub into the meat. Allow to infuse for at least 15 minutes. Bring the meat to room temperature before cooking it. Taking it right out of the fridge and straight into the oven/BBQ will result in tough, dry meat.

Place the meat into the preheated oven (or use the Weber like I did) and bake with the potatoes for 20-25 minutes (rare) 30 mins (medium) 40 minutes (Well done) Allow the meat to rest uncovered for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.

While the meat is cooking, cut the witlof into quarters and the carrots into long thick batons. Place in a shallow baking dish with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, sprinkle the cheese over the witlof and return to the oven until the cheese is just melted.

Slice the beef into thick slices, assemble the dish and top with a little fresh parsley to serve.

Serves 2-4

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Good things...Small packages

Out grabbing a few pre weekend groceries on Friday, I noticed a tray of gorgeous red figs at the greengrocer and thought it would be nice to use them in a dish this week. When I bought them I wasn't 100% sure what I was going to do with them, but then I was unpacking the shopping and I noticed I had some boned quail breasts in the freezer that I should probably think about using. Figs go beautifully with game, so it seemed logical to pair them up in a dish.

Quail is a game bird renowned for the delicacy of its taste. It may be very small, but it has delicious flavour in abundance. It is a particularly versatile game meat, suiting a wide variety of cuisines. It is simple to cook, which is great if you like the idea of game, but are daunted by cooking a duck or a turkey. There are many different breeds of quail - the variety I have used in this recipe was sourced from Game Farm, who breeds and supplies Japanese Quail grown the lush pastures of the Upper Hunter Valley in northern NSW. I've always been happy with the quality of their products (I have used their duck and turkey on many occasions) and they are quite easy to find these days. The Game Farm website will tell you where your nearest stockist can be found if you have no luck finding their quail.

If you are a bit squeamish about the idea of preparing quail, today's recipe is great, as it uses quail breast that is already off the bone. The flavour is not too strong and it is easy to eat - no small fiddly bones to deal with. This would be a good dish to try if you have never eaten quail before. All very managable. I actually love quail cooked in the Asian style - on the bone and super crispy, so you can actually eat the caramelised crunchy smaller bones - but I know that isn't everyone's cup of tea. I promise today's recipe is a much more straightforward affair. It would make a beautiful dinner party entree or a light lunch or dinner. If you absolutely can't face the idea of quail, you could perhaps substitute the quail for sliced chicken thigh. Sure, it isn't exactly the same dish, but the flavours would still work.

I have used beautiful fresh sorrel from my garden as one of the salad components of this dish. Sorrel is used commonly in French cuisine - particularly in sauces and soups - but it is delicious as a salad green. It has a fresh, almost grassy character that works beautifully with the sweetness of the figs. Sorrel is very easy to grow and a great addition to your herb garden. Always use the very young leaves if you are eating it as salad, as the mature leaves are strong and more suited to soups or other dishes.

Aromatic quail breast salad

with sorrel and figs

You will need: 350g quail breasts (skin on, off the bone),10 juniper berries, 1 teaspoon fennel seed, 1 mignonette lettuce, 1 cup sorrel leaves, 4 fresh ripe figs (each one sliced into 6 peices), 1/2 red onion sliced very finely, 1 lebanese cucumber deseeded and sliced.

For the dressing: 1 clove minced garlic,2 tablespoons walnut or hazelnut oil, 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar, 2 tablespoons maple syrup, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, pinch of cayenne pepper, 2 teaspoons warm water, salt and pepper.

Method: Crush the juniper berries and fennel seed (or chop them roughly) and place in a bowl with the olive oil and the quail breasts. Season generously with salt and pepper and combine well. Cover and put in the fridge to infuse for at least an hour - overnight is even better if you have time.

To make the dressing, whisk together the garlic, sherry vinegar, maple syrup, lemon juice, cayenne and warm water. Season with salt and pepper to taste - adjust amounts to your taste if required. You may want more lemon, or a touch more maple syrup. Just taste and adjust as you go.

Assemble the salad ingredients on your serving plates/platter.

Wipe the quail breasts with a paper towel to remove any large peices of juniper of fennel. Heat an oiled grill or frypan and cook the quail skin side down until crisp and browned. Turn over and allow to cook for another minute. The quail will cook quickly, so watch that you do not overcook it - don't forget that it will continue to cook when you are resting it.

Remove the quail from the pan and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Arrange the quail over your slad ingredients and drizzle over some of the dressing. Serve right away. Serves 4.

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Soak it and see.

Lately my food nerd tendencies have been running hot and I’ve had salt on my mind - specifically the effect of salt on particular foods. In his TV series “Search for Perfection” Heston Blumenthal explored the effect of salt on meat, doing his own culinary “Mythbuster” style experiments and proving among other things that the old cook’s myth of – “don’t salt meat before cooking it or it will draw all the moisture out” was utter bollocks. In fact, the opposite was true.

Brining - the practice of soaking food in salted water - is an age old technique that was originally done in order to preserve meat. In ye olde brining times, the mixture would have been very salty – and the resulting effect was very salty meat. In more recent times, brining is used less for preservation purposes and more for the effect that it has on the texture and taste of the meat. Modern brining liquids are not as salty, allowing the natural flavour of the meat to shine through.

Ok, I’m not a food scientist, but from my research here is what I’ve discovered - by soaking meat before cooking in a brine mixture of salt, sugar and water, the cells of the meat are hydrated via osmosis. During the cooking process, the brine causes the protein in the meat to coagulate, which in turn traps water molecules within the cells. This stops the meat from dehydrating – the cause of dry, stringly meat. After brining, the result is moist, tender, juicy flesh. Sounds awesome.

In the interests of my own culinary education, I decided to experiment with brining a whole duck on the weekend. The process I used was to brine it prior to cooking and then roast it over coals on the BBQ. A lot of the material I read about brining mentioned that one of the effects of the process is to make it harder to achieve a crisp skin on meat such as chicken, turkey or duck. It was suggested that after the brining is completed, the poultry should be placed in the fridge uncovered for a few hours, to allow the outer skin to dry a little so that it will crisp up properly later. That seemed to make sense to me, so I followed this advice. A big part of the joy of well cooked poultry is a crispy skin and I wasn’t going to forego that.

I chose to add some extra flavours to my brine mixture - juniper and fennel seed. After the brining process, the duck was cooked over coals for just over an hour and a half. I filled the cavity of the bird with about 15 cloves of garlic and bay leaves before cooking. Here is how the duck looked as it was resting, waiting to be carved -

One brined and roasted duck

The result was really beautiful. The flesh was moist and had a lovely soft texture - duck can sometimes be a little stringy if not cooked well or allowed to dry out. I definitely think that the brining had the desired effect. The flesh was succulent and had great flavour. The fennel and juniper were very subtle, and the meat was not in the least salty. Lots of the formulas I researched for the salt/water ratio in the brining mixture were very different and I erred on the side of caution. Next time I will use slightly more salt to see if the effect is different. So here is the finished product, served as a Sunday night roast with baked potatoes, pumpkin and zucchini, peas and a cauliflower and fennel gratin. I made a gravy from the juices of the duck (poured off after resting). Gorgeous.

Sunday Roast - with brined duck

So, the great brining experiment was a great success. I will be trying it with chicken and red meat very soon. So, how did I do it? Here is my brining recipe for duck -


To brine a chicken or duck you will need: (For the basic brine) 1/4 cup Maldon Sea Salt, 1 tablespoon white sugar, 10 cups water.

To this, I also added 1 tablespoon roughly crushed juniper berries and 1 desssert spoon of fennel seeds (optional)

Method: First, dissolve the sugar and salt in 1 cup of warm water. Once dissolved, add the rest of the water and the juniper and fennel.

Place your meat in a bowl and then tip the mixture over the top. If it does not completely cover the meat, top up with a little more water.

Put the bowl in the fridge and allow the meat to soak for about 24hrs, or overnight.

Drain the meat and pat it dry before cooking it. After patting the inside and the outside of the bird dry, truss it ready for cooking (tuck the wings under and tie up the legs) and put it uncovered in the fridge for at least a couple of hours so that the skin can dry out further. This will ensure a nice crisp skin once it has cooked.

I cooked the duck for 1 1/2 hours, basting it from time to time. I rested the duck, covered in foil for about 25 minutes before carving.

The best way to carve a duck is to remove the breasts whole and then cut them into reasonably thick slices. Then cut the legs and the thighs of the bird from the carcass. Pick off any meat that is left from this process.

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Rugging up...Cosying down

Brew me a cup for a winter's night.

For the wind howls loud and the furies fight;

Spice it with love and stir it with care,

And I'll toast our bright eyes,

my sweetheart fair.

~Minna Thomas Antrim

The winter weather has brought us wild and wooly conditions here in the past week or so - not great for getting out into the garden, which I have been dying to do since we got back from overseas. I have a whole lot of winter plants to get in the ground that sadly remain sitting in pots at the back door, waiting for a break in the wind and the rain so I can go out and plant them. But where my attempts to get out in the garden have failed so far, the weather could not be more perfect for heading to the warm kitchen and creating some comfort food.

Combine the comfort food weather with a lazy long weekend and some new French cookware, and you have the inspiration for today's recipe, a slow roasted shoulder of pork, flavoured with the delicious warming aromatics of juniper berries and fennel seed. Add succulent caramelised eschallots with baby potatoes, carrots and delicious in season Buerre Bosc pears and you have a beautiful winter dish full of warmth and flavour. The pears make a lovely change from the classic pork and apple combo. As well as tasting amazing, they also look beautiful too.

Since returning from our honeymoon, I had been dying to try out our new Le Creuset French oven - a gorgeous wedding gift that I felt needed to be christened sooner rather than later. This comforting pork dish fitted the bill perfectly. You will notice that the cooking time for this recipe is long - 2hours 15mins to cook with 15 minutes resting time for the meat. Definitely not something you would attempt to whip up after rushing in from work one night! It is however, worth the time and in actual fact takes very little effort. A great weekend dish that you can pretty much set and forget, while you curl up on the couch with a glass of wine and a good book, as the house fills with the delectable aroma of the dish.

I have used pork shoulder (with the skin on) for this recipe - I love this cut of pork, which is full of flavour and is less likely to dry out than the much more expensive pork loin. I've noticed that pork loin seems to be favoured by cook books and magazines because it looks good when it is carved, but in my opinion, pork shoulder runs rings around it's admittedly prettier counterpart. It's all about flavour for me, so pork shoulder wins the day every time.

3/4 of the way through the cooking process

note my beautiful new red Le Creuset French oven!

When we were in Paris a few weeks ago, I noticed the French penchant for cooking peas with lettuce (sometimes they add a little lardons or cubes of speck/bacon too) Peas are amongst my favourite vegetables, and cooking them with lettuce and a little butter really brings out the sweetness of the peas. The crunch of the lettuce, the sweetness of the peas and the lushness that a touch of butter gives, makes this my new favourite accompaniment to any kind of cooked protein. - Beef, lamb, chicken, fish, all kinds of game and of course pork.

If you are thinking "Cooked lettuce?...Ewwwwww!" Trust me when I say that it is delicious. If you give this a try, I promise you will be a convert. My preferred lettuce to use is baby Cos, if you can get it. You need lettuce that has some structure and crunch - don't attempt this with soft lettuce varieties - you need something that will not totally wilt to nothing when you apply a little heat to it.

I chose to make a gravy out of the pan juices from today's dish (directions below) but if you really can't be bothered, then just drizzle the pan juices over the top. The flavours of the juniper and fennel combined with the pork, eschallots and pears are a knockout - aromatic and warm and delicious and the perfect comforting winter fare. Enjoy!

Slow cooked fennel and juniper baked pork

with caramelised eschallots, Buerre Bosc Pears

and French style peas

You will need:

For the pork: 1.5kg peice of pork shoulder with the skin on, 12 peeled whole eschallots, 12 baby potatoes (you could also use Kipfler potatoes or just cut larger potatoes into smallish peices - either way, leave the skins on), 3 Buerre Bosc pears, 12 dutch carrots (or use baby carrots of any variety), 1 teaspoon juniper berries, a couple of pinches of cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, 2 cloves finely chopped garlic, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 tablespoon blood plum vinegar (if you don't have this, raspberry or pomegranate vinegar would be a good substitute), salt and pepper.

**If you want to make a proper gravy like I did (instead of just drizzling the pan juices over the finished dish), you will also need: 1 heaped tablespoon plain flour and about 2 - 3 cups chicken stock.

For the French style peas

2 cups peas, 3/4 cup finely sliced cos lettuce (or any firm style lettuce), 1 tablespoon salted butter, salt and pepper to taste.

Method: First, pat the pork dry with paper towels and then score the skin quite deeply crossways. (You can also tie the meat up with kitchen string at this stage if you wish - it will help the meat hold it's shape)

Now, make the marinade - Place the juniper berries and fennel seeds in a mortar and pestle and pound until finely crushed. Combine this spice mixture with the olive oil, vinegar, cayenne pepper, garlic and a generous seasoning of salt and pepper. Rub generously over the pork and allow to marinate for at least an hour (overnight is even better if you have the time)

Wash and scrub the carrots and potatoes (you do not need to peel them - leave the skins on for more flavour) Preheat the oven to 180C. In a heavy pan (cast iron is ideal, but any heavy casserole dish will be fine) drizzle a little olive oil, then add the pork and eschallots. Cover with a lid and cook for 1 hour, basting the pork once or twice during this time.

After 1 hour, add the potatoes, baste the pork again with the pan juices and cook for another 30 minutes with the lid on. As the eschallots cook and caramelise, they will become very soft and delicate - take care when handling them so that they do not break up too much. Turning them with a large spoon is a good idea.

Remove the cores of the pears and cut them into quarters. Add the pears and the carrots to the pot and cook for another 45minutes, basting a few times during this last stage of cooking.

Remove the pork from the pan, cover with foil and allow it to rest for about 15 minutes before serving. Once rested, carve into slices and serve with the vegetables. Drizzle the pan juices over the top or serve with gravy.

If you are making gravy: Remove all of the vegetables from the pan, leaving all of the juices on the bottom. Put the pan on the top of the stove on a medium heat and sprinkle over the flour. Using a whisk, combine the flour well with the pan juices. The aim here is to ensure that the flour is cooked well before adding the stock - otherwise your gravy will just taste of raw flour. Gradually add the chicken stock, whisking all the time to ensure that there are no lumps. I always use a whisk for this task - never a wooden spoon - as I find using a whisk gives perfect velvety gravy every time. Simmer until thickened and serve with the pork and vegetables.

Method for French style peas: Cook the peas in water or stock until tender. Drain the peas. Melt the butter in a pan and toss the peas and lettuce together for a minute or so until the lettuce wilts slightly (you want the lettuce to retain some crunch, so don't overcook it) Season and serve.

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