Breakfast at Pieno, Surry Hills

Hello, dear readers! I hope your Easter long weekend is off to a wonderful start. Yesterday in Sydney we enjoyed absolutely glorious weather, and it looks set to continue by the looks of things this morning! Beautiful blue skies and plenty of sunshine. To mark Easter I wanted to share something Easter themed with you all and so set about making Hot Cross Cookies - a Donna Hay recipe featured in last weekend's edition of the Daily Telegraph.. well, I'm sad to say they were an epic fail (sorry Donna, I've got to be honest here) and I saw little point sharing a recipe with you all that I myself will certainly not be repeating. Yes, hot cross cookies is a cute concept, but the aftertaste of the baking powder was very unpleasant. If I get time in the next few days I might attempt tweaking the recipe and will share with you all if I have any success.

Anyway, instead of Hot Cross Cookies here is a quick post on a place we went to breakfast yesterday. It's called Pieno, and is located on Crown Street in Surry Hills. If there's one thing this funky cafe has bucketloads of, it's atmosphere. It's cool, it's modern, and for a cafe in Surry Hills, there's certainly more than your average amount of seating. I love the splashes of red in the decor too with the chairs and the water bottles - a great vibrant touch.

We started off with coffees ($3.50 each) and they are delicioussss -seriously the best coffee I have had in a long time!

For breakfast, Mr L had the Vegie Breakfast ($16.50) with poached eggs, roast tomatoes, rosti, mushrooms and spinach with toast. The eggs were poached to perfection, but unfortunately the rosti were more or less deep-fried balls of mash.

And for me, I ordered the Breakfast bruschetta with mushrooms and garlic oil ($11). I can usually find something positive to say about a dish, even if I'm not that keen on it, but this was a very disappointing dish. The mushrooms were watery and rubbery.. so I end up eating the toast with a little rocket. In such situations, I am always a little embarrassed to complain about my dish... what do you do when faced with culinary disappointment while eating out..?

Such a shame Pieno, such a shame! I so very much wanted to rave about this place .. especially in light of all the positive reviews online on sites like Eatability. Perhaps I just got very unlucky (?) I love the atmosphere, the service is fantastic, and the coffee ***amazeballs***, but the food really fell short of the mark. A bit of a pity, but I would definitely return if I was looking for somewhere for a good coffee in the area.

Pieno
285A Crown St
Surry Hills, NSW
(02) 8354 1303

Easy Vegetable Soup

The title says it all! This is my new favourite vegetable soup recipe from none other than the queen of quick and easy - Donna Hay. This post is a quick one too as I am about to bring little Roman to the doctor for his 6 month checkup and vaccinations... Oh bless, he's always so happy and chatty at the doctor's, and then the jabs come out.. poor lil' nugget! Sometimes I feel like crying too when I see him suffer like that!

Oh, and please excuse the rather hideous accompanying photos taken on my phone last night...

Nowadays recipes such as this one are a favourite of mine because time is of the essence! As soon as baby goes to sleep in the evening at 7pm, there is a flurry of activity in the kitchen. If I can manage to prepare the dinner in time to watch My Kitchen Rules (MKR) at 7:30pm, I'm a happy girl.

Easy Vegetable Soup
Adapted recipe from Donna Hay - Fast, Fresh, Simple

Ingredients

• 3 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 teaspoons lemon thyme leaves
• 2 cups (500ml) tomato purée (passata)
• 2 cups (500ml) vegetable stock
• 1 carrot, grated
• 1 zucchini (courgette), grated
• 1 parsnip, peeled and grated
• raw sugar, sea salt and cracked black pepper
• finely grated parmesan, to serve

Method


1. Heat a saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Add the oil, onion, garlic and thyme and cook for 3 minutes or until soft.

3. Add the tomato, stock, carrot, zucchini and parsnip.
4. Cover and bring to the boil.

5. Season to taste with a salt, pepper, and about half a teaspoon raw sugar or to taste (to take the edge off the tomato). Allow to simmer rapidly for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender (Tip - the coarser the vegetables, the longer the cooking time and chunkier the consistency of end result).


6. To serve, ladle into bowls and top with parmesan. Serve with some crusty bread, or even better, some homemade garlic bread! Mmmm...


So tell me, is anyone else enjoying MKR this season? Can't wait to watch the final tonight - Go Nic and Rocco!!!


Ladybird x

Roasted tomato and thyme soup

There's nothing like a nice tomato soup in winter, and this recipe from the latest issue of Donna Hay is definitely a keeper - fast, simple and healthy, not to mention absolutely delicious!

Roasted tomato and thyme soup
Adapted recipe from Donna Hay magazine, June/July 2011

Ingredients
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed under a knife
2 red onions, sliced
10 tomatoes, halved and deseeded (I used roma tomatoes)
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon tomato paste
3 cups vegetable stock
olive oil
salt and pepper

Method
1. Place tomatoes, garlic, onions and thyme on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in a preheated oven at 180 degrees celcius for 30 minutes.

2. Heat stock and tomato paste in a pot. Add the roasted tomatoes mixture and bring to the boil. Remove from heat, and blend until smooth. Top with a little extra pepper.

3. Serve with toast spread with goat's cheese and topped with a few thyme leaves and a little olive oil.

Bon appetit!

Ladybird x

Best Ever Blueberry Muffins

There are blueberry muffins, and then there are blueberry muffins. I have tried so many blueberry muffin recipes where the result has never quite hit the mark.. and then I gave up for a while. Then I saw Donna Hay making these on Tuesday night's episode of Fast, Fresh, Simple that airs on Lifestyle Food on Tuesday nights at 8:30pm. I tried them yesterday evening and they most certainly did not disappoint - perfectly fluffy on the inside and deliciously crunchy on top.

Apart from the taste factor, these are so quick and easy to make. What's best of all is that this is a great basic recipe that you can get creative with. Enjoy the recipe as it is, or mix it up however you please! Here are just a few ideas of additions that could be made to the recipe:

• chopped almonds on top for extra flavour and crunch
• lemon zest - I love love love blueberries paired with lemon
• chopped apple in the mixture - apple and blueberry are lovely together
• pieces of mango or peach along with a little coconut on top during summer months

With punnets of blueberries fetching $12 a punnet at the moment in most supermarkets these days, I opted for frozen rather than fresh. By the way, is that what they mean on those supermarket commercials when they say prices are firm..? i.e. that they are exorbitantly expensive? At any rate, not only are frozen ones cheaper but you can keep a stash of them in the freezer and whip up muffins like these whenever you want, making availablity in your home firm - that's this week's kitchen update!

Blueberry Muffins
Recipe by Donna Hay
(makes 12)

Ingredients

2½ cups (375g) self-raising flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (220g) caster sugar

½ cup (125ml) vegetable oil

1 egg

½ cup (125ml) milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

300g fresh or frozen blueberries

granulated sugar, for sprinkling

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
2. Place the flour, baking powder and sugar in a bowl. Place the oil, egg, milk and vanilla in a separate bowl and whisk to combine.
3. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the blueberries and mix to combine.

4. Spoon mixture into a 12-hole ½-cup capacity (125ml) muffin tin lined with paper patty cases. Sprinkle the tops with sugar and bake for 30–35 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Remove from tin and cool on a wire rack.

Tell me, my dear readers, how would you would put your own stamp on this recipe?

Ladybird x

Classic Apple Pie and Custard

With cooler weather setting in, there is such delight in tucking into classic winter dishes like homemade apple pie and custard... classic comfort food! It feels good and there's nothing pretencious about it...just like a big warm hug :)

I made this pie and custard to bring to our friends' place for a dinner party over the weekend. The two components are surprising easy to make at home - it makes me wonder why I ever bought apple pie from the freezer section. As for homemade custard, there really is no comparison to the gelatinous yellow goop out of the carton from supermarkets - where's the comfort in that?!

Apple Pie
Recipe adapted from Donna Hay

1 quantity sweet shortcut pastry (see recipe below)
1 egg, lightly beaten
sugar for sprinkling (optional)
8 green apples (1.2kg/2lb 7oz), peeled and chopped
1 tbsp water
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp almond meal

1. Preheat the oven to 190 deg C (375 deg F). To make the filling, place the apples and water in a deep frying pan over medium heat. Cover and simmer, stirring the apples occasionally, for 5 minutes or until just tender. Drain and cool completely.

2. Stir in the sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon.

3. Divide the pastry into two-thirds and one-third. Roll out the two-thirds portion on a lightly floured surface until 3mm (1/8 in) thick and place in a shallow 24cm (9 1/2 in) pie tin. Sprinkle over the almond meal and pack the apples tightly into the pastry shell.

4. Roll out the remaining pastry to fit over the top of the pie. Brush the rim with water, press the edges together and trim. Cut several slits in the top of the pastry, brush with the egg and sprinkle with sugar (optional). Bake for 30 minutes or until the pastry is golden and crisp.

Sweet Shortcrust Pastry
2 cups plain (all-purpose) flour
3 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
150g (5 oz) cold butter, chopped
around 2-3 tbsp iced water

1. Process the flour, sugar and butter in a food processor until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
 

2. While the motor is running, add enough iced water to form a smooth dough and process until just combined.

 

 

3. Tip onto clean work surface and knead the dough together lightly.
4. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
 
Classic Custard
an original Diary of a Ladybird recipe
 
600ml pure cream
1 vanilla bean (or 1 tsp quality vanilla bean paste)
6 egg yolks
70g caster sugar
1 tbsp cornflour
 
1. Place the scraped vanilla bean and seeds in a medium size saucepan along with the cream. Heat until just before boiling point and remove from the heat.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour until thick and creamy.
 

 
3. Whisking continuously pour the cream into the egg and sugar mixture and then return the mixture to the suacepan.
4. Stir over low heat until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and transfer into a bowl though a sieve. Squeeze excess custard off the split bean and return to the custard to allow the vanilla to infuse further.
 

 
5. Serve immediately; or if not, cover with clingflim as pictured below and refrigerate until serving time. Refrigeration with prevent the custard from cooking further.
 

 
Put the two together and tuck in! I just love the combination of pie fresh out of the oven and cool custard - simply delicious!
 

 
So when you think winter comfort food, what's on the menu for you?
 
Till next time,
Ladybird x

Pavlova with cream & macerated berries

Until very recently, I was adamant I would *hate* pavlova for the rest of my life. I resigned to the fact that I'd be ridiculed by my fellow Australians and would probably be told how
"unaustralian" I am :P  I just couldn't stand the excessive sweetness and the claggy insides of purchased pavlovas whether they be from supermarkets or restaurants.

But what was I thinking?! That was before I experienced homemade pavlova. I was inspired to try making my own after watching the Donnay Hay challenge early on in Masterchef this season.

The great ballerina - Anna Pavlova.

Beautiful and delicate, just like the dessert named after her.

Ingredients

150 ml eggwhite (approximately 4 eggs)

1 c caster sugar, plus extra for the berries

2 tbsp cornflour (sifted)

2 tsp white vinegar

1 cup pure cream

200- 250 g mixed frozen berries (I used Creative Gourmet)

1 tsp icing sugar

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees celcuis and prepare a baking tray lined with baking paper. Place an 18cm round baking tin on the dull side of the baking paper and draw a circle around it. Then flip it over with the shiny side up, and sprinkle a very fine amount of extra cornflour over the paper.

2. Place the eggwhites in a bowl and whisk to stiff peaks using an electric mixer.

3. Gradually add the sugar, whisking well, until the mixture is stiff and glossy.

4. Add the cornflour and vinegar and whisk until just combined.

5. Turn the mixture out onto the prepared tray and shape into a round using the marked circle as a guide.

6. Reduce the oven to 120 degree celcius and bake the pavlova for 1 hour 20 minutes.

7. Switch the oven off and allow the pavlova to cool completely.

8. Whisk the cream with a teaspoon of icing sugar until soft peaks form.

9. To prepare the berry mixture, combined the frozen berries and 2 teaspoons caster sugar in a small saucepan over very low heat and allow to soften slightly. This only takes a few minutes and ensures the sugar dissolves, and that the berries are not too tart on the palate. This process should not cook the berries, in fact, they should still be cold. Berries vary in tartness, so do taste and add a little more sugar if desired.

10. Sliding a large knife under the pavlova to ensure it is separated from the baking sheet, carefully transfer to your serving plate. Dress the cooled pavolva with cream and berries. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Messy goodness

Tips

- Make sure your eggs are at room temperature before you start.

- Add the sugar gradually by sprinkling teaspoonfuls of the sugar into the meringue. This should take about 10 minutes, so be patient...

The scene of the crime

The thing I enjoy about making pavlova is that it is a labour of love. You need to take care and patience to ensure you achieve the crisp shell and marshmallow-like interior, but it doesn't have to look perfect. As you can see, mine became rather messy... but I can guarantee you, there were no complaints! It was delicious :)

So tell me, readers, was there ever a dish that you disliked until you made it yourself?

Ladybird x