Russell Crowe does it. Wendell Sailor does it. And what is it exactly? They succumb to the treasure trove of goodies at Sweet Infinity, a little bakery in an unlikely stretch of Riley Street in Woolloomooloo. Crowe goes for the lemon meringue tarts whilst Sailor loves the pies. We’re not in the same celebrity league by any stretch of the imagination but that doesn’t stop Teena and I from dropping by one morning for a coffee and to try some of these famous lemon meringue pies and brownies.
There’s a steady stream of customers inside the warmly lit bakery. A dozen or so wooden stools sit to the back between the counter and the busy kitchen where from 2am chef Leanne Beck (formerly of Infinity Sourdough in Darlinghurst) bakes and bakes and bakes.
Spinach roll $5
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July 22, 2009
by Not Quite Nigella
First of all, I promise that this will be the last Masterchef post…for a while at least. Tonight is the night-the night where we learn whether Julie or Poh is crowned the Masterchef Australia winner. Weeknights will now be empty – no rushing to prepare food before the 7pm deadline and Sunday nights will be cliff hanger free. I thought I had Saturday “off” from my addiction but this was not so – patissier Adriano Zumbo would be holding a Masterchef Cake Auction.
Up for auction were the cakes that he made for a photoshoot for the upcoming the Masterchef cookbook. Rather than have the cakes go to waste, they thought that they would auction them off with all proceeds going to the Children’s Hospital at Westmead. The Masterchef cookbook will come out in November this year (the winner’s cookbook will come out next year) and will feature recipes that contestants have contributed from Mystery Box challenges and Invention Tests with the contestants writing the introductions for their own dishes as well as commenting on others by telling us what they did right and what they did wrong and explaining what they would have done differently, given the chance. The celebrity chefs that have contributed recipes are Adriano Zumbo, Alex Herbert, Manu Fieldel, Pete Evans, Matt Moran, Guy Grossi and Ben O’Donoghue among others. And fans of the show, they want to hear from you as to which recipes you’d like to see so you can leave a comment here to let them know which recipe you want or twitter “Masterchefbook”.
Watching a photo shoot for a cookbook is interesting stuff indeed. For as much as a photographer like myself loves light and flocks to it, the background and lighting for the shoot were quite dark. The photographs however looked amazing on the preview screen so obviously they have a much greater knowledge (using a long exposure and a tripod) and much more expensive equipment than I could ever dream to possess.
Adriano Zumbo
Adriano’s mum, Mrs Zumbo and his nephew
While we’re waiting for the auction to start, I chat to another woman who confesses that she had a $40 a week Zumbo chocolate habit (which is about 30 chocolate’s a week) which culminated in a chocolate intolerance. We even have a chat to Adriano’s mum and nephew (who just happens to look quite like Zumbo at that age) . Mrs Zumbo says that she allowed Zumbo to leave school early as long as he had a job lined up but if he quit the job, he would go back to school. We also meet the self confessed “really, really good customers” Sebastien and baby Mathilde who loves visiting because she gets chocolate.
Zumbo and chocolate fan Mathilde
The crowd gathered for the auction
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July 19, 2009
by Not Quite Nigella
Zumbo’s Bedroom Bookshelf
So the story goes, I was in Adriano Zumbo’s bedroom so I took a snap of his bookshelf but more on that later. And what was I doing at his house? Getting a preview of his new collection: 40 Days and Nights in Paris (due out May 23rd) for my birthday! For a food blogger, this is as close to the best birthday gift you could ever get. “You’re the first to see the whole collection” he says “even the guys in the kitchen have only seen two of them” and I suppress an internal squeal. Oh yes, birthdays are a good thing indeed.
Kitchen bookshelf
Zumbo recently returned from two months in the City of Lights which included attending the Coupe du Monde de la Patisserie (World Pastry Cup) and working at Pierre Herme, hence the collection’s name, and he came home eager to get back into his own kitchen and get started on his new collection. Speaking of his kitchen, the minute I walk through the door, I know I’m in the home of a chef. It’s a huge, gorgeously spacious kitchen with a massive island and one of those heavy duty restaurant kitchen faucets. I spy a bookshelf full of cookbooks (including Nigella’s “How to be a Domestic Goddess”) and when I ask if I can take a photo of them, he says “Let me show you the real bookshelf”. This is the one he spoke about in his interview with me which is in his bedroom. It’s packed with some amazing cookbooks of the professional calibre from the Libarie Gourmande in Paris.
Zumbo’s home kitchen
As for the cakes, let me present a preview of them without any further ado. As the cakes remain unnamed at this stage, if you’d like to suggest some names for them, please leave a comment as Adriano will be checking this page. Who knows, he might get inspiration from your suggestions! He said that he loved reading the comments from all of you in his interview so get your thinking caps on and name away! 
Cake #1
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May 13, 2009
by Not Quite Nigella
I have a little black book. A little black Moleskine actually that I write down places that I’d like to eat. It’s full of recommendations and I often flip to it for inspiration and regularly consult with it. And one place that was on the top of the list and the very first entry was Brasserie Bread. It remained uncrossed off for ages, mainly as they are open during hours that I just don’t or can’t really get to Banksmeadow (near Botany) closing at 2pm on Saturdays. But this one Saturday morning, we had to be in the general area early at 9am and I immediately scheduled in a visit there for breakfast. And they’re now open on Sundays too.
Free kid’s cooking classes
It’s kind of in the middle of not very much and I don’t wish to offend residents of Banksmeadow but by that I mean there aren’t a lot of shops or a lot to do out there aside from visit. And visit they do. This Saturday morning the communal tables and separate tables are full. There’s a large gaggle of mums relaxing – and you might be wondering how a bunch of mums can relax. Easy, take the kids to Brasserie Bread where at 10am and 12pm, they can learn how to make bread for free and take home the goodies they make. Needless to say classes are booked months in advance and I can only imagine the mums relief at the day rolling round where they can offload their kinder if only for an hour to relax with a cup of Allpress and have a child learn the valuable skill of bread making at the same time. In the cafe area, the banquettes are said to be the right height for kids to stand on and peer into the kitchen windows and watch the bakers doing their thing. There are also adult classes for $130 per person.
The front display has their award winning pane croccante which we tried as part of the Easter Show deli bag which was fantastic. Although we tried a packet of the Nigella seed croccante, the Rosemary flavour is the award winner. Samples for these are generous and the rosemary is indeed the best out of the two.
There are also samples of their sourdough and lemon and garlic flavoured olive dips which are also delicious.
Having wanted to go here for so long and stalking the menu, I know what I want. Ordering and paying at the counter, we’re lucky to snag a table quickly. We order the sourdough pancakes which we can have with either raspberries and double cream or maple syrup and bacon. I choose the latter – nothing stands between me and bacon. We also order a Croque Monsieur and the Organic Sourdough toast with avocado, tomato & goat’s curd. All eggs are free range organic.
Allpress coffee
Organic sourdough toast with avocado, tomato & goat curd $10
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May 11, 2009
by Not Quite Nigella
Summer time is indeed a great time in Sydney. It’s when everyone has holidays and the city looks at its sparkling best. it’s also when many free events are on and the Festival of Sydney is on and to add to the freebies available, there is a “We Love Sydney” card where people can take a friend for free to attractions, places to eat and hotels. One of the places interested me, it was the House of Pies. It’s no secret that I love pies and will travel for a good pie. This place was in Matraville which is about 30 minutes from the CBD.
We see a sign displayed that House of pie is a Trans fat free zone with none being used in the pastries or fillings. The store is open 24 hours so should the urge to get a pie hit and you happen to be south of the CBD this may be where you might want to end up (although I can’t vouch for the crowd you may be sharing your bench with).
It always makes me a bit wary when people have signs that they were awarded this and that but they’re from a few years ago. Case in point is their award for “Best Pie in Sydney 2004” but a search on their website reveals some additional wins and nominations since then. We approach the store, with its wood panelled outer and the bench seating inside and out. It’s a hot Sydney day and the girl behind the counter looks as enthused as a hot lizard on a rock. With her chin resting on the counter waiting for an order she takes our order without a word and places them on the counter. Our change is worldessly handed back to us and she resumes her position leaning her chin against the counter.
Chunky chicken and mushroom $3.60
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February 15, 2009
by Not Quite Nigella
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