Not Quite Nigella

Mamma’s got a pretty, new Kitchenaid cover!

Its no secret that I’m newly obsessed with my Kitchenaid Artisan mixer. It commands prime place in my kitchen and I clean it lovingly after each use. What did concern me was that as a benchtop mixer, it would be hard to keep clean and succumb to the light film of kitchen greasiness that inevitably envelops everything in a kitchen. I saw that Kitchenaid made covers but knew that they weren’t stocked here so I did what any good shopper does. I went to ebay.

I spied a seller making custom embroideries which just tickled my fancy and appealed the vanity in me. Her character limit was 15 characters which equalled “Not Quite Nigella” so after figuring out which font and colour combination I wanted I quickly placed an order and sat back and waited. Impatiently.

About a week later my package arrived and I was ever so pleased. It was more gorgeous than I thought it would be. If anyone is interested in them her details are:

email: stitch@neo.rr.com

ebay auctions: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsassZcompupapa

Linda will also give 15% off (excluding shipping) if you mention Not Quite Nigella and if you buy from her directly. There are a lot of covers and fonts to choose from.

She’s not affiliated with me in any way, I just loved her covers and the service she gave me and I get nothing from recommending her except joy that I know that you will love them too!

And Everyone needs their name up in lights.

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March 7th, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

Hibiscus Flower cupcakes

The lovely people at All Things Cupcakes featured this pineapple hibiscus cupcake on their Weekly Roundup of Cupcakes. Woohoo! How exciting is that?

I don’t know if its something to be proud of but I can eat a whole baby Bethonga by myself. Bethonga Pineapples are in season now which means that I have squirreled three Baby Bethongas away in my fridge which I will then attempt to eat by my greedy self. I refuse to eat the normal acidic, tongue burning pineapple, it gives me the same react as sour lollies, that of gagging and wanting to rip my tongue out. By the time that my husband reads this post, the Bethongas will be long gone. I can be ruthless this way.

I did put half an pineapple aside for the decorations which are an interesting way of making these gorgeous yellow “flowers”. The cake itself is easiness personified, no beaters or creaming, just stirring in one bowl. The fussy bit are the hibiscus flowers although this requires exacting knifework (being able to very thinly slice thin pieces of pineapple) and patience (waiting for it to dry in a low oven for over an hour). Neither of which I possess.

I made these pineapple hibiscus cakes for Tropfest, the outdoor film festival at the Domain in Sydney. I confess that I was too lazy to make a batch of the lemon cream cheese frosting, instead using some sour cream icing that I had leftover. The consequence of my laziness was that the sour cream icing was too runny to sufficiently hold the flowers properly. I just hate it when laziness isn’t rewarded…

Hibiscus Flower cupcakes

For the cupcake

½ cup mildly flavoured vegetable oil
3 eggs at room temperature
1 self-raising flour
½ cup cornflour
¾ cup caster sugar
2 cups grated carrot
¾ cup crushed pineapple (make sure to drain this well)

Pineapple flowers

3 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of water
36-45 slices fresh pineapple as thin as you can slice it while keeping the slice whole (I used 3 slices per cupcakes for the effect that you see pictured). I have stipulated extra as some burn when you bake them. I used Baby Bethongas but if you use regular large pineapples you may be able to do 1 or 2 slices of pineapple per cupcake

C ream cheese frosting

30g butter softened
80g cream cheese
1 1/2 cups icing sugar sifted
1 tablespoon of lemon juice

1. First make the Pineapple flowers, they are time consuming and fiddly.

2. Preheat oven to 150c fan forced or 170c non fan forced.

3. Add all ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix on low speed until combined and then a higher speed until batter becomes pale. Spoon into patty tins.

4. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool in tin.

5. Make cream cheese frosting. When cupcake has cooled (it must be cool) spread with cream cheese frosting and then add fold three pineapple flowers into a flower shape and using the traction from the frosting secure them onto the cake.

Making the Pineapple Flowers
1. Heat oven to 100°c fan forced. Dissolve sugar in water together in a small saucepan on low heat and then boil for 1-2 minutes (do not allow to caramelise). Using a pastry brush, brush each sides of pineapple slices with this sugar syrup. Place these candied slices in a single layer on a wire racks over a baking sheet. Leave to dry in low oven for one hour (approximately, do watch these as they can catch and burn). As soon as your time is up remove slices from rack, and shape into flowers inverting them over the bottom of small cups until they set that way.

Making the Cream cheese icing

Beat butter and cream cheese in a small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy, gradually beat in sifted icing sugar and lemon juice.

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March 6th, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

Zowa Cafe at World Square

Its hard to miss Zowa cafe if you’ve been to World Square’s lower ground floor. For starters it a mixture of bright yellows representing the eggs in the Japanese Omurice that they specialise in. For those unfamiliar with an Omurice, its an omelet stuffed with fried rice. However Zowa cafe is most definitely Korean in origin given the Korean Hangul script under all items on the menu and walls. The plastic display models of the dishes outside reassuringly remind me of a trip we took to Tokyo when I was 12 and we used to seek out the restaurants with the plastic food displays.

Stepping inside, we are greeted with the sight of some enormous chairs. Its all a little Alice in Wonderland but the chairs, although arrestingly tall, are very comfortable to relax and sit back in. There are Christmas baubles dangling on the bottom of the lighting fixtures and curiously, there is clingfilm over the plastic models of ice cream in the front fridge.

We’re tempted by the lunch specials, which features a tasty looking Pork Cutlet Omurice in chili sauce (usually $13.80, $11.80 for lunch) and also by the regular menu where we order the Mixed mushroom omurice in cream sauce $10.80 which comes with a soup of the day (all main meals come with the soup except for the lunch specials).

There are a huge variety of Omurices with beef stroganoff, chicken and ham roll, smoked chicken, hamburg, grilled prawn in a variety of sauces from cream, brown, chili and oriental or a mixture of two. There’s even a Meatball Omurice for two called “Meat ball Couple Omurice in Brown sauce” featuring twin Omurices with meatballs scattered around it sitting in the ominous “brown sauce”. I hold back on ordering this as I want to try more flavours but I know I will be back for this one. There are also inexpensive little entrees from garlic bread for $1.90 or buffalo wings for $3.80 as well as varities of Ramen.

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March 5th, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

Mouclade (Belgian Mussels)

This has got the be one of the easiest but most gratifying dishes from Nigella Express. With a sum cooking time of 3 minutes (ok you could add on 2-3 minutes for getting the mixture to a boil) it will make a seafood chef out of the most reluctant cook.

I don’t want to mislead though, there is some time necessary for preparing the mussels. Firstly I rinsed them several times in clean cold water and debearding them and removing the barnacles was something that I found oddly therapeutic. I didn’t “knock them off” as Nigella said with the back of a short sharp knife as the barnacles were more flat than raised, rather I scraped the shells with a short sharp knife which seemed to do the job.

As I used spanish onions, I started off by sauteeing them lightly in butter and oil along with the garlic and then added the curry powder before adding in the white wine and bringing that to a boil. After that I added the mussels and it was 3 minutes with a bit of pot shaking (also therapeutic, simply imagine you were throttling or shaking about an annoying colleague) and it was done. And if you’re more organised than me, have some gorgeously crunchy Sourdough at the ready to mop up the briney, fragrant soup.

I leave you with a photograph of a kookaburra on our balcony, taken by my husband. Perhaps it was lured by the sweet smell of the Mouclade!

Mouclade from Nigella Express

2kg mussels
4 baby leeks (or spring onions) finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled nad finely sliced
500ml white wine (or 250ml Noilly Pratt and 250ml water)
2 teaspoons Madras curry powder
125ml double cream

1. Soak the mussels in some clean, cold water and -if they haven’t been dealt with in the shop-sort through them, debearding and knocking off any barnacles with the back of a small knife

2. Take a large pan with a lid. Add the sliced baby leeks, sliced garlic, white wine and curry powder, bring to the boil.

3. Tip the mussels into a colander, discarding any that haven’t closed and tumble the rest into the pan, clamp on the lid and cook on a high heat for about 3 minutes. Shake the pan around as they are cooking.

4. When you lift the lid, the mussels should have fully opened. Discard any that haven’t. Add the double cream, and then turn into a bowl to serve, or take the pan straight to the table. Remember to put out a bowl for the shells.

Serves 4

Recipe by Nigella Lawson from Nigella Express

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March 4th, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

Lüneburger German Bakery, QVB

For those who know me, I’m not likely to sing the praises of bread very often. I’m not a huge bread eater although I do appreciate seeded bread and a really sour sourdough. And super fresh Turkish bread and naan always get a look in. I don’t often finish or eat a whole bread roll either.

So I’ve broken two personal rules after visiting the golden colour bathed Lüneburger German bakery in the QVB. It was started by Turkish born German expat Ahmet Yaltirakli who migrated here after living more than 30 years in the historical German town Lüneburg, spurred by a homesickness for German breads. I am initially drawn to the huge sweet pastries, strudels and scrolls on offer and I pick up a Redcurrant Buttercrumble, a whacking huge offering 13.5 cms in diameter ($3.50), a chocolate hazelnut croissant ($3) and for good measure, and because I do love a seeded roll, a Champion roll for the princely sum of 90c.

Redcurrant Buttercrumble $3.50

The Redcurrant Buttercrumble is huge. I had expected it to be more of a buttery danish but according to their website, its a wheat roll from an Italian recipe. The topping is oat based and every bite tastes of muesli studded with sweet fruit. It feels like a curious mix of healthy and unhealthy with its size tipping it in favour of the latter. Its not as sweet as it looks either, the tartness of the redcurrants and the plain bread balancing out the lashings of white icing.

Chocolate hazelnut croissant $3

The chocolate hazelnut croissant, sprinkled on top with tiny hazelnut pieces, is filled with a smooth glossy chocolate and hazelnut spread. Its in two words delicious and morerish, the half I give to my husband reluctantly proffered. It seems less layered and buttery than typical French croissant, if I could describe it its more a cross between bread and layered pastry.

Champion roll 90c (top view)

My last item, the seeded Champions roll. Its large enough for a lunch roll and on the top is a mix of oat flakes, sesame seed and poppyseed whilst the bottom features sunflower seed kernels. I know I will like it but in fact I love it. Its incredibly good value for 90c too given how many seeds are in this. Its perfect just plain with good butter but even better the next day slightly heated up and filled with sandwich toppings.

Champion roll 90c (underside view)

Despite my lack of interest in David Hasselhoff music, I can definitely see myself appreciating German taste!

Lüneburger German Bakery, QVB

Shop 72 Lower Ground, Queen Victoria Building
455 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000
Tel: +61 (02) 9264 2377
Fax: +61 (02) 9264 2399
e: qvb@luneburger.com.au
Website: http://www.luneburger.com.au
Monday – Wednesday and Friday 9am to 6:30pm
Thursday – 9am to 9pm
Saturday – 9am to 6pm
Sunday – 11am to 5pm

Also locations at:
Macquarie
Shop 401-Level 4- Macquarie Shopping Centre
197-223 Herring Road -North Ryde- NSW 2113

Tel :+61 (02) 9889 4774
Fax: +61 (02) 9987 2842
Email: Macquarie@luneburger.com.au

Parramatta
Tel : +61 (02) 9635 5242
Fax: +61 (02) 9635 5233
Email: Parramatta@luneburger.com.au

Wynyard
Tel : +61 (02) 9299 7977
Fax: +61 (02) 9299 7867
Email: wynyard@luneburger.com.au

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19 brilliant observations, to add a comment click here
March 3rd, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

Mamma’s got a pretty, new Kitchenaid cover!

Hibiscus Flower cupcakes

Hibiscus Flower cupcakes

Zowa Cafe at World Square

Mouclade (Belgian Mussels)

Mouclade from Nigella Express

Lüneburger German Bakery, QVB

Lüneburger German Bakery, QVB

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