A Very Special Lunch

Today I had the most amazing day.  I was lucky enough to spend the afternoon with Annabel enjoying a lunch that was so delicious and in a setting that was so intimate, I felt that I had to keep reminding myself that I was actually here, having lunch sitting opposite my food idol!

It all started a couple of weeks ago when I received an email from Jane Binsey asking if I was "the lovely Catherine who writes the My journey with Annabel blog".  After a couple of email exchanges and blessing from the best boss in the world to have the day off, I had an invitation to attend a lunch at Albert Street Food & Wine in Brunswick.  This event was part of the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival and was sponsored by a number of New Zealand producers and presented by Annabel and Philippa Sibley.

So apart from sitting opposite Annabel and chatting with her, I met some amazing people and enjoyed the most magnificent food.  I felt no shame in taking a few photos of the beautiful lunch I experienced because I wanted to share with anyone who is interested!

Our entrée we shared between two and had a sample of both the Beetroot, upland cress and goats cheese salad (Annabel's) and the Zucchini flower stuffed with prawns a' la Grecque (Philippa's). So delicious!  The goats cheese was so creamy and the addition of walnuts gave it a crunch that was just perfect.  The stuffed zucchini flowers were magnificent, incredibly creamy inside and crisp on the outside.

We then had a tough choice to make between three gorgeous sounding mains

• King Salmon, pesto, pomme Anna and braised lemon fennel (Annabel's)
• Brined and grilled free range chicken with ancient rice (Annabel's)
• Slow roasted lamb, melted tomatoes, olives on white polenta (Philippa's)

I chose the lamb and, oh my goodness, it was melt in the mouth!  I enjoyed every mouthful of this dish.  So much so that I didn't want it to end!

After the amazing main course, Annabel got up and spoke briefly to the group of people in the restaurant next to the private dining table where we were seated.  I don't think I could tire of hearing Annabel talk about her amazing life!  This is the third time I've been lucky enough to meet Annabel and what I take away every time is how genuine she is and how her love of cooking is such a constant in her life.  I love that she enjoys cooking to make people happy, this I can totally relate to and what is amazing to me is that when I started this blog it was all about the recipes.  Now I feel that it's all about the person.  Annabel is a true inspiration.

After Annabel had her chat and did some book signings she returned to our table in time for dessert.  Here we had a choice of three (tough decision to make!):

• Flourless chocolate cake with lemon ginger ice cream (Annabel's)
• Meyer lemon tart (Phillippa's)
• Rose geranium pannacotta with blackberries and figs (Phillippa's)

I went with the geranium pannacotta and it didn't disappoint!  So amazingly smooth and the blackberries and fig went with the pannacotta perfectly.  The menu didn't say but there was also a semi freddo/ice-cream with this dish which was absolutely gorgeous.




 The wine was supplied by Allan Scott Family Winemakers and complimented the food beautifully.
I had a glass of Allan Scott 2012 Sauvignon Blanc with entree, and a Alan Scott 2009 Pinot Noir with the main which I thoroughly enjoyed (if only I'd got a taxi there!).  After dessert we were bought a delicious spritzer made with Alan Scott Sparkling Sauvignon.  This is a recipe in Annabel's Simple Pleasures book.  The oranges are Vin d'orange.  The recipe has the orange slices bottled with a vanilla pod, caster sugar, rose' or riesling, vodka and left to mature for 6 weeks.  On a hot day like today I could have downed a couple of these easily but as I had to drive home I savored a few delicious sips and had to sadly leave the rest.

What a lucky girl I was.  I still am feeling like I'm on cloud nine!  I will relive this afternoon a million times over and know that it will get better and better each time I talk about it and will be a lasting memory always.

I can't thank Annabel enough for allowing a simple working mum like me, who just happens to like cooking, taking photos and sharing it on a blog to experience a day like today.  I am very grateful.

Catherine

Roasted Pepper Pesto

My poor blog has been neglected for too long!  Here I am looking at my post in October last year and wondering where the time has gone!
A busy family life and the craziness of the festive season meant that unfortunately there was not much spare time enjoying flicking through my Annabel books and cooking up some recipes I am yet to do.  It's not as though I haven't been cooking form Annabel's books, it's more that I am making things in a hurry with no time to take photos!  So with the wonderful Christmas present of a new camera from my family - there are no excuses!

Along with corn, red peppers would have to be one of my favourite vegetables.  I love them raw and roasted, they're equally as delicious.  As with all Annabel's recipes, this Roasted Pepper Pesto was quick and easy to make.  I tossed the pesto through some penne and with a shake of parmesan it made a very tasty meal.  Well worth a try.
My new years resolution - to blog more often with my new camera that even has a setting for photographing food!

Mediterranean Lamb Salad

 This one is a winner!  Yum, yum, yum!! I love salads that are a meal in themselves and this one is so delicious!  Made with both fresh and semi dried tomatoes, eggplant,  olives, capers and fresh basil, it really is so packed with flavour.
The marinade for the lamb is so simple, only lemon zest, olive oil, rosemary and garlic.  I used lamb steaks as I couldn't get lamb fillets (and because the steaks were cheaper!) but it really made very little difference.  It was so easy to throw all the ingredients together on the platter and then quickly fry the lamb for a few minutes either side, slice it up and toss it with the vegetables.  The vinaigrette is also quick and easy and I tend to use the same one on lots of my salads now.  Made of just lemon juice, olive oil, mustard, sugar, garlic and salt & pepper.  So yum and just so simple.  This is a must try - you'll love it! 

Orange Lightening Cake

I love cake!  It is the undoing
 of many of the diets that I start!  When we met Annabel last week, we were discussing some of her cake recipes and she said, if we liked those, we must try the Lightening Orange Cake.

 Oh my goodness, this cake is delicious!  I love the fact that the whole orange goes in, and it's all made in the food processor.  Annabel says in her notes that "whizzing the whole orange in the food processor keeps the cake wonderfully moist and tender" - and it does!  All the ingredients are things you already have in your pantry.  I love that.  Not having to make a special trip to the supermarket to get that one ingredient that you don't just have.

The cake took an hour to cook and the smell filled the house and as Annabel says, "makes a house feel like a home".  Definitely try this one, it certainly was lightening to make, no time at all to throw it all together and is just so YUM!

Meeting Annabel...again!

What a special night!  Yet another chance to meet and chat with Annabel.  It was the launch of her latest book, Simple Pleasures and we were lucky enough to have a lovely dinner and nice wine while we listened to Annabel speak.  We then had the opportunity to have her sign our books and talk with her.  I spoke to her again about my blog and she seemed genuinely honored to have her recipes blogged, very Julie and Julia!  She is so natural and it just feels like she could be one of your "besties" without even trying!  We talked about a few of our favourite recipes, and she suggested we have a go at the Orange Lightening Cake which I will post next.



As she did last time we met, Annabel wrote a lovely message in my copy of Simple Pleasures, it reads:
"Dear Catherine
With very best wishes for happy cooking!  I look forward to you blogging your way through this book in the next year or less!
Annabel Langbein"

Barbecued Lamb with Spicy Rub

Thanks to my wonderful friends who gently remind me "that it's been a while since we've had an addition to the Annabel Blog", here is the next recipe with my apologies that it's been so long! 
It has been an exciting week with the purchase of Annabel's latest book, Simple Pleasures which is such a pleasure to read!  I am thinking that with my collection now grown to three of Annabel's books, I am going to have to blog more and more of the latest recipes as I hate being confined to just one book!  So at this rate, to get every recipe, in all 3 books made, I'll still be blogging in the year 2102 (only 90 years away!) - what a wonderful thought!

Spicy Rub is easy to make and so full of flavour, my mouth was watering as I was making it.  I used long red chillies but if you wanted to add the smaller ones for extra heat that would be just as good - depends on what you like.

As with most of Annabel's gorgeous recipes, they are so versatile! Once made, this rub can be used as the base for a salad dressing or added to yoghurt to make a spicy dipping sauce - Yum!






My butcher de-boned a nice big leg of lamb for me and I added the spicy rub and left it in the fridge for a couple of hours.  Unlike in Annabel's book, I didn't have a perfectly shaped stone to weigh my meat down on the barbecue so as suggested by Annabel, I wrapped a brick in foil and it did the job!

Fifteen minutes on each side the the meat was cooked to perfection!  Lovely and pink in the middle with the taste of lemon, cumin and ginger seeping through.  Delicious!

Catherine

Cypriot Shepherd's Pie

To be completely honest, this wasn't one of the better recipes I've made.  It might have something to do with the fact that I'm not a huge Shepherd's pie fan anyway.  I remember my Gran used to make it with the leftover meat from the roast.  The cold meat would be put in the old fashioed cast iron mincer that was screwed on to the side of the kitchen table, I used to love having a go of churning out the mince. Back  then I remember smothering the finished pie it in tomato sauce to get it down!  

I was thinking that maybe the carrot and parsnip mash might be the deal breaker to this being a scrumptious variation to the old fashioned Shepherd's pie but I'm afraid not.  I think the thought of the Shepherd's pie I had growing up was just too much for me to overcome!  Well at least I gave it a try!

The family of course ate it all up but weren't over complimentary either - sorry Annabel, can't win 'em all, this is the first recipe that hasn't won over the whole family!
Catherine

Bacon & Egg Pie

Fresh Eggs straight from the chooks has made this beautiful bacon and egg pie.  Such an easy recipe and took no time to make.  My Gran used to make an egg and bacon pie and we'd have it on a Sunday if we went for tea or even have it cold for lunch, conjures up really lovely memories for me.
How lucky I am to get eggs bought down from Fish Creek by Mum and Dad when they come to visit.  When I got this last lot (complete with dates penciled on them by Dad) I knew I wanted to make this pie of Annabel's.  It is the very first recipe she makes on her Free Range Cook DVD set!
I used chives and parsley as my herbs, Annabel suggests using any soft herb.  The potato is boiled and then roughly chopped.  I loved the big pieces of potato, but my family suggested maybe grating the potato next time (don't think I will - I like the rustic feel of the big chunks!)

The taste was beautiful!  I actually made it a couple of days ahead and it reheated really well.  I also had some left over for lunch the next day with some homemade tomato chutney (thanks Mum!) and a little salad of baby spinach and fresh tomato.  Really YUM! 


A great tip from Annabel - put an oven tray in the oven first, oven at 200 degrees heats the tray so that when you put the pie in, the base crisps up well as it sits on the hot tray.  Gotta love that!  Enjoy this one, Catherine

Chicken, Eggplant and Green Bean Korma

 The South East Asian curry base that I made for this curry was so easy and it produced this delicious chicken and veggie curry that we enjoyed as an entree to a family gathering recently.  The curry was so flavoursome without being too spicy.  You could use any vegetable you liked but the simplicity of eggplant, tomato and green beans was a perfect combination with the chicken.  Beautiful Thai flavours in the base including ginger, lime and coriander made it really tasty. Originally I thought I might use the other half of the curry base to make something different but I loved this dish so much that I think I'll just make this one again.  My kids aren't huge fans of curries but they all really enjoyed this as they tasted it straight from the pot!  Annabel says in the book not to be daunted by the list of ingredients in the base, as once you have got them all together the food processor does all the work!  Cooking the base for a short time then adding the chicken and veggies just couldn't be easier.  Give this one a go, you won't be disappointed! Catherine

South East Asian Curry Base

I was so looking forward to making this curry base and of course it didn't disappoint.  Really easy to throw loads of beautiful fresh ingredients into the food processor and end up with an amazing flavour to use in either a vegetable or meat based curry.  I made the Chicken, Eggplant and Green Bean Korma which I am blogging next.  I used half the base in the chicken dish and froze the other half.  Another winner Annabel!