dark chocolate ice cream

It’s a month away from Easter and I’m getting excited because all the stores are filling up with chocolate eggs and goodies.

It’s no big secret that I’m a huge Lindt chocolate fan, and I was lucky enough to be invited down to the flagship Martin Place Café to try out their new Easter-edition delice (macaron): Hot Cross Delice!

Can you believe it? A hot cross bun macaron, and they taste just as perfect as you imagine.

The shell is a light and crisp almond macaron flavoured with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. The white chocolate ganache inside has a rich buttery flavour.

The concept behind it was to recreate the flavours of a spicy hot cross bun smothered in butter, and they did it well. It’s the best macaron I’ve had in a long time.

Lindt Australia is running their Gold Bunny Hunt again this year, starting today (March 22nd) and closing on April 7th. Players get points by answering daily clues and playing games, and the 10 highest scoring Bunny Hunters travel to Sydney for the final event: a chance to win $20,000!

If I wasn’t a Lindt ambassador, I’d be joining up in a heartbeat.

And as a special Easter treat, I’m sharing this gorgeous dark chocolate ice cream with you.

Jonas begged me to make this ice cream. He accused me of making “weird” flavours and demanded that I finally make him something “normal”.

What’s wrong with lavender-honey ice cream, crème fraiche parfait, mastic ice cream or mulled wine granita?

OK. So chocolate ice cream it is.

But oh what an ice cream this turned out to be. My best yet and intense with dark chocolate flavour.

Even though this is my recipe, if you love ice cream and don’t have David Lebovitz’s The Perfect Scoop, then drop everything and hit Amazon right now. It costs a mere USD$16 and is worth every little cent. Best ice cream cookbook EVER.

Wouldn’t this ice cream go wonderfully with the Hot Cross Delice?

Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

Anna’s recipe. Makes 500ml.

Ingredients:
1 cup (250ml) milk
1 cup (250ml) cream
3 egg yolks (freeze the whites for another use)
50g caster sugar
150g dark chocolate, very finely chopped (I used Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa)

Method:
1. Bring milk and cream almost to the boil.

2. In another bowl, whisk egg and sugar until thick and pale.

3. Gradually add milk to egg mixture, whisking continually until combined.

4. Return to saucepan and stir continuously over low heat until mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Do not boil!

5. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate until mixture is smooth.

6. Cool to room temperature then freeze according to ice cream machine manufacturer’s instructions.

try this! summer thirst quenchers

I know I'm sticking to the drink theme but Sydney has been steaming hot over the past few weeks, just when our air conditioner called it quits and started coughing up water in a steady stream. Not happy.

I have wilted and Jonas has positively melted into the Emperor of Grumpiness.

Naturally, this has made me very, very thirsty and I’ve found myself pondering cool, tall drinks much more than I normally would.

I’ve decided to share some of my drinks-of-choice with you, and hope that you too find thirst quenching joy from these refreshing beverages.

Bickford Ice Tea Mixers
These are delicious. With chilled soda water, these mixer scan turn any frown up-side-down. They come in lemon, mango and (my pick) peach.

Kopparberg Pear Cider
Whenever I taste this cider, images of Swedish summer flood my mind. The flavour is light and sweet and definitively pear, but not sickly like Rekorderlig cider (another Swedish brand on the market). My favourite Swedish cider is actually Kiviks Fläderblomscider (halvtorr) which is a semi-dry elderflower cider. But until they sell that here in Australia, I'm sticking to the Kopparberg pear.

Maggie Beer's Sparkling Ruby Cabernet
A glorious drink with all the adult pleasures of wine and none of the hangover. Read more here.

Cusumano Insolia
Made from the little-known insolia grape, this Sicilian wine will electrify you with its utter awesomeness, considering its incredibly cheap price (approx $11). Like all good Sicilian white wines, you can taste the sunshine, making it perfect for a summer afternoon.

Boylans Cane Sugar Sodas
How can anyone complain when sodas start coming in wonderful flavours like grape, black cherry and orange cream (truly exotic in Australia). These gourmet American soda pops are made from pressed cane sugar juice rather than corn syrup, and this hasn’t changed since they started way back in 1891. Stay tuned for their signature Red Birch Beer which will hopefully be released in Australia soon.

Happy Lemon
This Hong Kong bubble tea vendor is pumping out some pretty interesting drinks that put Easy Way to shame. My pick, Lemon Pineapple with Nata de Coco, is delicious but very tame given other options like grapefruit coffee, perilla juice, seaweed jelly, yakult mousse and rock salt cheese.

Kalimotxo
A Basque drink perfect for afternoons spent outdoors or on the beach. 50-50 red wine and cola sounds terrible, but it turns out to be a match made in summery heaven and, given that each ingredient masks the other, you can use the cheap stuff.

Lingonberry Cordial
While many late adopters are only just coming to terms with the heady-scents of elderflower cordial, another Nordic treat is already here and awaiting your homage. Also known as cowberries, lingon are similar to cranberries but with a slightly sweeter edge. They make a mean daiquiri too.

Dr Pepper
I can never quite understand why Dr Pepper isn’t a big hit in Australia. Aussies just hate the taste. Why? I don't understand! It’s friggin’ delicious! Jonas and I both love Dr Pepper and I think it tastes like a cross between a cherry soda and a vanilla cola.

Yuzu Slushie at Ms G's
If you’re in Sydney and living under a rock, Ms G’s is the latest star in the Merivale constellation and has been modelled on NYC’s über-cool Momofuku. I have been there so many times the waitstaff recognise me. Why? The absolutely divine slushies made from yuzu, a Japanese citrus fruit, as well as vodka, limoncello and orange bitters. I can’t even begin to explain how out-of-control delicious these slushies are, not to mention tres chic with their bubble tea wrappers. Get one for yourself and you’ll understand.

Happy drinking!

try this! pat & stick's ice cream sandwiches: part 2

This is the second time I’ve raved about Pat & Stick’s delectable ice cream sandwiches, but just try and stop me.

These guys make great ice cream. The flavours are real and intense and the cookies are moreish and chewy.

Yeah, the sandwiches are on the pricey side, retailing around $4.50 each, but if they’re good enough to get my husband to choose an ice cream over a packet of chips then they’re doing something right.

All the way back in 2006, I had fussed and fawned over their Double Chocolate and Amaretti Espresso sandwiches (now renamed Espresso Lace) and, after the guys (and Ben) generously offered me some free samples to try some other flavours, I am now ready to profess my love some more.

My sisters Shamu and Stinky accompanied me on this ice cream quest to Eveleigh markets, where we parked ourselves on a bench and happily shoved ice cream into our mouths (hoping Kylie Kwong didn’t notice our gluttony as she sat next to us in her car).

Caramel Pecan
Caramel ice cream with a nutty pecan cookie

I’ve recently discovered that pecans are my favourite nuts and that I actually like caramel. It came as a shock to me, as neither had particularly enticed me in the past, and yet these days I’m finding the burnt sugar flavour a warm, adult indulgence and the pecans just bloody great.

Not surprising that I loved this sandwich of light and elegant caramel ice cream sandwiched between a buttery cookie studded with toasted pecan pieces.

Strawberry Choc Chip
Yummy strawberry ice cream and choc-chip cookie

Next we sunk our teeth into a wholesome choc-chip cookie covering a slab of pastel pink strawberry ice cream. At first the faint colour of the ice cream had me concerned that there wouldn’t be much fruit flavour, but we were not disappointed. The ice cream had an intense and pure strawberry flavour and as the sandwich melted a little, the colour grew a rosier hue of pink.

I enjoyed the bursts of the dark choc-chips, and this was Shamu’s favourite flavour because it is so rare to find a good strawberry ice cream.

Christmas Cookie
Soft gingerbread cookie paired with delicious cassata ice cream

Our last sandwich to taste test was the limited edition flavour to celebrate the festive season, and aptly named Christmas Cookie. The spicy, chewy gingerbread cookie encased a beautiful cassata ice cream flavoured with aromatic almond, glace fruit and spices that tasted like a perfect mince pie and luscious cream.

I really enjoyed this one because it’s perfect way to indulge in traditional Christmas flavours while still celebrating the southern hemisphere summer. I even took one home for Jonas, kept cool with dry ice (yay, dry ice! I dropped it into a full sink and watched the “smoke” like a kiddie).

There are plenty more ice cream sandwich flavours to try, and I’ve got my eye on the Peppermint Choc-Chip.

..... something to look forward to in 2011.

try this! sparkling ruby cabernet

With Christmas around the corner some of my pregnant friends are anxious about surviving the in-laws without copious amounts of alcohol.

Unfortunately, this product won’t dull out the sound of your nearest and dearest, but it will curb those cravings for an adult flavoured drink.

Maggie Beer is an Aussie icon and the woman is obsessed with verjuice. There’s no getting around it, she loves the stuff.

I have Maggie to thank when she suggested adding verjuice to soda water for a refreshing drink and thus I discovered my summer drink of choice for three years running.

In honour of her favourite wine by-product, Maggie has released this amazing sparkling cabernet, which is only fermented enough to create a perfect wine-like flavour without the alcohol.

It has a heady, sweet smell like red grape juice but the flavour is fairly light and the bead gentle.

It’s the end notes that really hit you in this drink. Quite sour and moreish in contrast to its delicate, sweet scent.

I adore it and highly recommend it to anyone unable (or unwilling) to drink alcohol throughout the silly season.

I’ve found it for sale in David Jones food halls, but good old Maggie sells it online for significantly less.

anna in chocolate wonderland

Happy Easter everyone!

In countries where Easter wins you some days off work, this is the time for gorging on chocolate and catching up with the family.

Well, I have stumbled upon a chocolate goldmine! Lindt asked me to join an exclusive group of food bloggers as part of the Lindt Lovers Program.

I do like Lindt chocolate.
OK, so I love it.

Intense Pear, Intense Orange and Intense Mint are my chocolate bars of choice and in most recipes I cook with Lindt 70%.

So when I was asked to be part of this group, I was thrilled and said that it won’t be hard to convince me to love Lindt chocolate!

To kick off the program, the Lindt Lover bloggers were gathered in Sydney for some chocolate tasting and a Gold Class viewing of Tim Burton’s new film, Alice in Wonderland.

It was a great chance to meet the other bloggers as well as Lindt’s Swiss-born Master Chocolatier, Thomas Schnetzler.

Thomas seems to have such a patient, gentle manner which is probably a good thing when you regularly need to temper chocolate. But he’s also very generous with his knowledge and enthusiasm for chocolate and desserts.

New on Lindt’s Australian menu (and the favourite for almost everyone) was the “Touch of Sea Salt”, a flat, shiny 100g block of dark chocolate flecked with crunchy crystals of mouth-watering salt. The combination between the bitter-sweet chocolate and salt is just amazing and should be illegal it’s so addictive.

One chocolate fiend was so enamoured she offered me three blocks of dark chocolate for my one salt block, but being equally won-over I declined the offer. Jonas was pleased with this decision when he popped a square of salty chocolate into his mouth and swooned.

The event was great. There was some hobnobbing, some chocolate tasting, sparkling wine drinking and then a cosy Gold Class cinema chair to watch the movie (which I loved – very dark and quirky). I was surprised when halfway through the film attendants delivered enough food to count as my dinner and dessert.

Then after the film the Lindt team gave us two Lindt gift bags with delicious chocolaty treats and Thomas had prepared an egg for every blogger with our names elegantly pipped in white chocolate.


I went home overloaded with kilos of gorgeous chocolate and a goofy, chocolate-smeared smile on my face.

Too good to be true!!! Can’t wait for the next Lindt Lover event . . . . and another block of that sea salt chocolate.

taste of sydney festival

The Taste of Sydney took place in Centennial Park from 11-14 March this year and was designed as a showcase of Sydney restaurants and food/wine distributers.

I was lucky enough to get two tickets from the organisers for free entry (usually $30pp), so I dragged Jonas along and set out to see what new and exciting products are around.

Poor Jonas was a real trooper. Not only was it a hot day (which makes him grumpy at the best of times) but he was actually suffering from concussion after being hit on the head with a rolling pin on Friday night. No, this was not the result of a domestic dispute and nor was he taking part in a French slapstick comedy. The poor boy was at work when a huge metal rolling pin (that one of the chefs cleverly decided to store on the top shelf of the staff locker!) came crashing down on his skull.

My little sister, Stinky, also joined us which pepped up the mood from Mr Concussion (yes, I’m a harsh mistress on my poor injured Swede).

The stalls were full of interesting products and sample dishes. I was keen on the cocktails and spotted some interesting and tasty liqueurs.

Domaine de Canton was a popular colonial drink in French-ruled Vietnam and is made from cognac, ginger, vanilla beans, honey and ginseng. It had the strong fiery taste of ginger and would make a great thirst-quencher with soda and ice.

I tried it mixed with into a luscious and refreshing Indochine Caipirinha ($10) while Amy did a Pomegranate Caipirinha ($10) based on PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur, which was an alcohol with an unpleasant medicinal aroma but a good, tart and uniquely pomegranate flavour. The pomegranate caipirinha was sweet and definitely tasty too.

I tried another delicious beverage: Le Pere Jules Poire ($6), a French pear cider from Le Pays d'Auge in Normandy. It was moreish and sweet-dry, with a strong pear flavour. I wish I could get my hands on a case!

With his concussion, Jonas couldn’t drink anything so he bought a tasting pack from Otway Estate so when he recovers he can trial six of the microbrewery’s products including a stout, pilsner, wheat beer and a couple of ales.

It was also really great to see all the chefs at their restaurant’s stalls, talking happily to the hungry hoards. I spotted Matt Moran (Aria), Mark Best (Marque), Guillaume Brahimi (Guillaume at Bennelong), Armando Percuoco (Buon Ricordo)and Matthew Kemp (Balzac). And I hear Jamie Oliver was showing up later in the evening for an exclusive dinner event.

Each restaurant tent produced interesting dishes and I managed to try two:

Yellow-fin tuna with sweet pork crackling and ruby grapefruit from Flying Fish ($10)

Fagottini di Carne (home-made sausage) with parmesan and truffle egg from Buon Ricordo ($10)

Unfortunately there were a couple of other dishes I wanted to try but just didn’t have the $$:
- Alba White Truffle Popcorn from Jonah’s at Whale Beach ($8)
- Beef ribs smoked in watermelon with watermelon and avocado salsa from Danks Street Depot ($12)
- Sydney rock oysters with Vietnamese dressing, crispy shallot and baby coriander from Assiette ($10)
- Strawberry Jelly w Champagne Foam from Aria ($8)

My three most interesting discoveries of the day were:

Gorgeous retro Smeg dishwashers and fridges in vibrant kitsch colours. Now all I need is a home to renovate and install them into!

Sexy Cat, a lurid pink marshmallow liqueur. Unfortunately they weren’t giving out free samples so I didn’t try it, but it looked and sounded wonderful.

Diamond Salt which is supposedly fossil sea salt crystals from Himalayan Khewra, an area of the Pakistani Kashmir. These pretty pink crystals come with a grater to season your food.

It was a lovely day, with wonderful weather, and I forgot how pretty Centennial Park was.

I was glad I got the tickets for free entry, since it would have been a very expensive day otherwise. Instead I had a lot of fun and we spent about $30 per person on food and drinks.

caipirinha: two ways

Here are two delicious cocktails Stinky and I enjoyed while visiting the Sagabita Cachaça tent at the Taste of Sydney festival.

Indochine Caipirinha

Recipe from ThinkSpirits.com flyer. Makes 1.

Ingredients:
45ml Domaine de Canton Ginger Liqueur
15ml Sagabita Pura Cachaça
10ml sugar syrup
3 lime wedges
3 kaffir lime leaves

Method:
1. Squeeze limes into a Boston shaker.
2. Add kaffir leaves and sugar then muddle.
3. Add Domaine de Canton Ginger Liqueur, Sagabita Pura Cachaça and ice.
4. Shake and pour into an Old Fashioned glass.

Domaine de Canton Ginger Liqueur was a popular colonial drink in French-ruled Vietnam and is made from cognac, ginger, vanilla beans, honey and ginseng. It has the strong fiery taste of ginger.

Pomegranate Caipirinha

Recipe from www.pamaliqueur.com.au. Makes 1.

Ingredients:
15ml PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur
15ml Sagabita Pura Cachaça
22.5ml Simple Syrup
4 lime wedges

Method:
1. Muddle limes and simple syrup thoroughly.
2. Add Sagtiba Pura Caçhaca, PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur and ice.
3. Shake vigorously. Pour entire contents, including ice, into a rocks glass.
4. Garnish with a lime wedge and pomegranate seeds.

PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur has a slightly unpleasant medicinal aroma but a lovely, tart and uniquely pomegranate taste.

a taste of peru

(photo from SMH.com.au)

Sometimes it’s wonderful being a blogger.

Like last night when I was shouted a great meal by Peruvian chef Alejandro Saravia whose only request in exchange was that I experience the special produce his country has to offer.

Even better I was able to bring my little sister, Stinky, who visited Peru a few years ago and remembers her time there fondly.

I was truly excited by this opportunity because I adore trying new tastes and ingredients and, having learnt so much about Andean cuisine when I made it one of my 2008 food challenges, I could finally taste some things I’d only read about.

So what did I taste for the very first time?
*ají – Peruvian yellow chilli pepper
*beef heart
*rocoto – Peruvian red pepper (capsicum)
*sea urchin
*huacatay – a herb also known as black mint or tagetes minuta
*alpaca meat
*purple corn

Croquetas de Yuca y Queso Manchego con Salsa Huancaina
cassava and Spanish cheese croquettes with Huancayo sauce
These crispy spheres were a salute to the Peruvian classic Papa a la Huancaína (or Huancayo style potatoes). Normally slices of boiled potato sit in a sauce of fresh cheese, ají, evaporated milk, salt and garlic. In this exciting version, mashed and chunky starchy yuca was complimented by an ever-so-slight spicy burn and beautiful, strong cheese that I would never have guessed was manchego. This canapé was absolutely lovely.


Causa de Trucha Orgánica del Titicaca
potato mortar terrine with organic trout from Lake Titicaca
Both the potato and trout gave these morsels a real earthiness. The fish was salty-sweet and the avocado added creaminess. It was doused liberally in rosemary and black pepper oil. Very enjoyable.


Anticuchos de Corazón y Salsa Criolla
beef heart skewers with ají sauce
This was the best taste of the night. The meat was very salty (in a good way), extremely tender and rich in iron flavour. The sauce so divine I wanted to lick it off the plate. The flavours were rich with olive oil, lemons and fresh onions and a mild spiciness lingered in the mouth moreishly. Too good.


Santiago Queirolo Pisco Sour
This cocktail made from lemon juice, syrup, egg white, bitters and pisco (Chilean/Peruvian grape spirit) was a well made Sour and similar to other tangy, lemon drinks. It was good, but I didn’t swoon even though the pisco tasted lovely and smooth.


Canete Plumgrapes Santiago Queirolo Pisco Martini
Although we ordered the Don Santiago Pisco Punch, we were served this martini in a tumbler and told it was punch. We were disappointed and then we tasted it. It was amazing! The drink was so fragrant and aromatic, with a sweet aroma, sweet entry flavour and then a sour ending that left you wanting more, more, more. It was made from plum pisco liqueur, grapefruit bitters, old fashioned aromatic bitters and a pink grapefruit twist. Simply delicious!


Kingfish Tiradito in Two Oils
The fish had a gentle flavour and toothsome texture, but I couldn’t detect the pisco it had been cured in. In fact it was slightly dry, but once you flipped it quickly in the rocoto and basil oil it bounced right back. The basil added a slight aniseed flavour which was pleasant, but at the time I thought coriander would have been a better choice. Later, finding coriander in a few other dishes, it occurred to me that the chef might have been avoid a repetition of flavours throughout the night. The Peruvian rocoto (red pepper) was delicious, adding a spiciness that many capsicum don’t contain.
Served with Brown Brothers Prosecco 2008


Passion at the Pacific
This was a ceviche using passionfruit and ají to cure generous portions of pink snapper, prawns and sea urchin. Tasting the thick fatty texture and mild salty-milk flavour of the sea urchin ticked off another 2009 food challenge. The snapper was deliciously tender and the prawns had the most perfect firm, inviting texture when so often they become slimy and soft when served raw. But best of all was the spicy and quite acidic curing sauce, flecked with coriander. I found this dish very impressive and perfectly balanced for my tastes.
Served with Brown Brothers Vermentino 2008


Pisco & Citron Granita
As a palate cleanser this granita fell a bit short since it arrived practically melted and tasted like an extreme mouthful of Pisco Sour. It was refreshing though.


Oxtail, Rocoto & Solterito Salad
I was dreading this dish because it’s premises was a stuff capsicum (pepper), a vegetable I detest. It came cold in soft shreds on a bed of lukewarm oxtail ragu which was unfortunately gristly and not very flavoursome. Interestingly it was the rocoto that lifted the flavours of the dish. This tiny round pepper was sweet and spicy all at once and tasted the way I’d always hoped other capsicums would taste. Good work rocoto! Alongside it was a truly wonderful salad of doughy, popcorn-like corn kernels called choclo (reminded me of hominy), feta cheese, broad beans and a huacatay dressing (black mint or tagetes minuta). I adored this salad, but does solterito mean bachelor?
Served with Brown Brothers Tempranillo 2006


Cured Alpaca with Quinoa Taboulé
I was really excited about trying alpaca meat, and it may have been the large amount of wine I’d consumed but it was one of the best meats I’d tasted in a long time. It seemed to be strong like beef or game, yet impart an incredible richness like pork. It certainly had the potential to be dry and chewy (Stinky’s slices were overcooked) but my pink strips were delectable. Unfortunately the quinoa’s earthiness tasted more like dirt and was overpowered by chunks of colourful capsicum.
Served with Brown Brothers Heathcote Shiraz 2006


Purple Corn Ice Cream
Our dessert seemed like a tribute to Chicha Morada, a Peruvian drink made by boiling purple corn with spices and pineapple. This was the ice cream version, slightly purple, lightly spiced with cinnamon and sitting on a bed of macerated pineapple and strawberry pieces. I just loved the flavour of the ice cream and think I could make my own version if I could get my hands on some Chicha Morada powder.
Served with Brown Brothers Moscato Rosa 2009 (delicious!)

~~~

Overall, it was wonderful to taste so many new and exciting ingredients from an area of the world so seldom featured in food media.

Thank you Chef Saravia for the amazing experience and, for those Sydney-based people who want to experience their own taste of the Andes, visit the Peru Concept website.

For impressions from other bloggers spotted on the night check out:
Not Quite Nigella
Grab Your Fork
ChocolateSuze
A Table for Two