The Sugar Bar

This past week’s been great – I’m very food-involved and there’s much talk about cupcakes which couldn’t make me any happier. There’s even been a cupcakery feature in the latest British VOGUE. Surely there are too many signs?

And then the bestie was in London all week on an audit job so she popped in on Friday night for my homecooked meal before we went out to catch up and unwind over a couple of drinks (we managed to fit in some awesome boogying as well).

After graduating from uni, our crew of friends were like a a bunch of seeds that went dispersing in the air. Some went back to the their hometowns, some went further out to look for jobs, some wandered south-wards (like moi) to continue with their studies, or not. Some stayed put and welcomed the next stage in life with somewhat hesitant and nervously open arms. It may seem like we’ve split ways and gone forward, hopefully a positive step towards our goals in life. The latter I reckon is true but the former, I hope will never happen. Partings can be sad and goodbyes are such bittersweet moments. But again, they are also a chance to say ‘hello’ again. So it’s good. Think positive.

We’re doing the best we can to stay in touch and sometimes, being such a laidback/chilled out bunch can mean there are long periods of time when the only contact we’ve had is the odd text or 2 minute phonecall. But even those moments are great. And whatever chance we get to see each other, we make sure that we have a great time in such a way that we might be said to re-define the phrase ‘quality time’. In the past few weeks, it’s been superb as most of us have done our best, booked our train tickets early, etc. to get down to wherever for a birthday bash, a dinner, a wicked nightout, a quick weekend meet-up. It’ll definitely get harder as everyone’s getting busier with work and it’s very tricky to try and sort something out between everyone’s schedules. Because of that, I’m over the moon when someone comes to visit even for a short while. These moments become all the more precious since they’re so hard to come by.

Since bestie and moi had gone for that ridiculously divine meal at Murano the last time she was down in London (and flippin’ gave myself indigestion because of it, not that I’m complaining – I’d do it all over again even if you added something more injurious to my body to the mix!), it was time for a homecooked meal, with a slight touch of sophistication I say. I’m fortunate to know girls who have hearty appetites and enjoy sitting in front of the telly with a plate of good food, scoff it down unabashedly whilst sipping daintily on a glass of whine. A bit of an oxymoron appearing in that sentence but that’s sorta like what we are. Chilled out, reaal chilled out the two of us, sophisticated (I hope!) with brains to boot, do I dare say with a touch of class and yet always eager to eat food like it should be eaten in real time. Here I am proud to announce two real women in real time! The others I’m sure you’ve either heard of on this blog or I shall, in good time, schedule in their grand entrance.

Yes, real women eat real burgers. Unless pardon me, you’ve special dietary requirements, no offense anyone!

I love sandwiches. I love good bread – especially when baked fresh so it’s crusty warm outside and almost melting buttery soft on the inside. Some good extra virgin olive oil that almost tastes grassy as a dip and some butter on the side, it’s a heavenly combination. And because good bread’s such a luxury, I like homemade burgers in anything but the cheap burger buns you can get in the shops. It jazzes things up a little, makes it look and taste better and surely makes the whole eating experience a lot more exciting?

I chose a seeded bun for this as I’m like a bird, or a squirrel, whichever. I eat loads of seeds and nuts a day. I’m addicted to them things. They make me happy. And looking at the generous sprinkling of seeds on the bun tops, I was well chuffed. I was hoping to get sourdough bread, which is what the Handmade Burger Co. we often visit serves their burgers in and I do love the texture of good sourdough. Unfortunately, my (eeks) last minute trip to the shop came back with nothing and I had to settle with the leftover stuff in the bakery section.

These burgers have a special ingredient. What’s that? Chutney! What kind of chutney? A totally spanking Mr. Vikki’s Tomato & Nigella Chutney I got from the BBC Good Food Show. It flavoured, along with the added spices and fresh coriander, the lamb very nicely and I was a little shocked how good it tasted with just a couple of simple things like that. The lamb burger also retained all it’s moistness so when I squished my bun together with the burger fillings, it oozed out all that juice and caramelized liquer which the bottom bun bread was very eager to absorb. Yum yum. Will definitely make this again and again.

For 2 servings
Spicy Lamb Burgers
Ingredients

250g lamb mince
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2 small cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbs tomato & chutney chutney
1 tsp ground coriander
pinch of smoked paprika
fresh coriander, chopped
slices of mature cheddar, for filling
2-3 large leaves of lettuce, for filling

Put all the ingredients, except the cheese and lettuce, together in a large bowl. Mix well and then split the mince mixture into two. Form into balls, gently pat down and form the round sides in a burger pattie.

Add some oil to a hot frying pan and cook each side about 4 minutes on medium heat. Serve in a bap, burger bun, ciabatta roll, seeded bun, etc. Top with fillings, onion marmalade and eat!

Onion Marmalade with a Kick
Ingredients

1 red onion, sliced into half moons
1 yellow onion, sliced into half moons
2 tbs virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tbs white wine
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1 small yellow chili, finely chopped
sea salt & ground black pepper, for seasoning
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 tsp honey

Add oil to a hot pan. Sauté the onions until they are soft and slightly translucent. Add white wine, thyme, chopped chili, salt and pepper. Lower heat and let it cook gently and caramelize for about 45 minutes. You may want to let it caramelize to a stage where it’s a lot wetter and gooey but I like to have the onion pieces still fairly whole and visible.

When cooked to your preference, stir in the balsamic vinegar and honey to taste. Serve on top of your burger.

My mum has ears like a bat. And I, whenever I’m shopping for clothes, cosmetics, or simply groceries, am always found making verbal wishes: Really want some mussels; Fancy some really good warm bread now with just a little bit of butter; I could do with some king prawns for a paella this weekend; Oh wow, the lamb rack is going pretty cheap now!…I think it’s an annoying habit since I sorta do it unconsciously. But sometimes, it’s a good thing since I’ll in some weird spur of the moment remember the things I lusted after, jot them down in a list and stick it up on a 3M sticky note as my new List of Definite ‘To Buys’. Shit. I’m a materialistic, greedy fatty betty. Cursed for life with this horrible disposition.

It so happened that mum remembered my wish for lamb rack and since I coveted it so much, she bought an Australian rack and another from New Zealand. Both were fresh, looked gorgeously red and juicy. The only difference between the two was the colour of the meat. When cooked, both were to die for. Equally succulent and tender. When mum came home with the beautiful cuts of lamb in her grocery bags, I was overcome with a mix of anticipation and absolute fear. I’m just not good with cooking red meat. It simply isn’t my forte. I don’t eat a lot of red meat but when I do, I love it medium to medium-rare if possible. And to others, it may seem like I’m not cooking it for long enough and that may be likely since I am rather clueless as well with red meats. But they always turn out fairly edible and delicious. Thus far, I’ve never given myself food-poisoning either. So I suppose that’s a good thing, huh. Nevertheless, this time’s different. The pressure is on. Cooking for the family is a stressful affair as my parents are quite picky eaters and mum will not be afraid to point out the areas found totally lacking and unsatisfying. Yep, tough love runs in the family. 

I was pretty nervous all day, worrying about how the rack would turn out. I just didn’t want to mess it up and throw about 70 bucks worth of rack into the bin. That would just be awful. I was glad that I had some support from friends on Twitter. Sitting on the stairs (I don’t get no internet connection in the kitchen), nervously documenting the cooking process to friends was simply one of my darker kitchen moments. But thankfully, it all worked out fine. I was little upset that we didn’t have proper carving knives (or at least, the one we had was nowhere to be found) and so most of the crust ended up falling off the lamb as we literally manhandled the rack to split it into individual ribs. Shame. But still delicious. Surprisingly, the honey mustard I used as a marinade and glue to hold the crust gave the lamb a lot of flavour, even if I chose not to marinade it for an hour or so. The meat was extremely tender and succulent. I didn’t think it needed some kind of sauce as I wanted to taste the lamb as it was, thus keeping the dish simple and true to itself.

The crust was seriously, and I really mean like seriously, good. Garlic and cranberry is honestly one of the best combinations of flavours ever. Totally loved the crust. I could eat that shit all day. Munch on it 24/7, giving myself water breaks to wash it down probably. And then carry on. Somehow I’m thinking the crust and sour cream in a jacket potato could be a new heaven for me. 

Dinner wasn’t impressive or restaurant quality, but it felt a little bit like Sunday Roast. Just homely and chilled out. And hey, it’s just me cooking, what do you expect? But I was very happy with my success and I think I got the thumbs-up from almost everyone. Definitely a keeper of a recipe. I have a feeling the dogs felt the same. Every time I opened the oven, the dogs went wild. Dashing about in the garden, barking like the apocalypse was near. Absolute pandemonium. My dogs love lamb, which is supposed to be really good for their bones and fur coat, or something like that. We used to feed them mutton bones (for some strange reason) but it got a little bit of a costly expense so obviously, scrapped that habit pretty quickly. Anyhow, the dogs got all the lamb rib bones and some leftover potato skins. They couldn’t have been happier. I think the rest of the family was pretty happy too. 

Cranberry & Herb-Crusted Rack of Lamb
Ingredients

2 racks of lamb, 8 ribs each
a heaped 1/2 cup full of breadcrumbs
4 tbs dried whole cranberries
a sprig of fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tsp dried thyme
3 tbs honey mustard marinade
3 garlic cloves, skin removed
1 large shallot, skin removed
freshly ground black pepper, for seasoning
crushed sea salt, for seasoning
olive oil
serve with your choice of vegetables

Preheat oven to 220d Celsius.

Combine cranberries, fresh rosemary, thyme, garlic, and shallot in a food processor; Pulse. Remove from processor then add breadcrumbs and season well to taste.

To prepare the rack, wrap the rib bones with aluminium foil to prevent charring. Spread honey mustard over lamb and massage in. When it comes to red meat, be prepared to get down and dirty so make sure hands are clean and nails trimmed. Next, pat breadcrumb mixture into mustard marinade on the lamb. Press on any bits that fall off and it should stay on. Drizzle on some olive oil before placing lamb on a broiler pan, meat side up, in the oven to cook.

This should roast for 35-40 minutes for medium-rare to medium. After removing from the oven, leave lamb covered for 10 minutes. Slice rack into chops to serve.

Baked Potatoes or Student-style Jackets
Ingredients

5 medium-sized baking potatoes or US Russetts, which makes 5 servings
square of salted butter for each potato
dollop of sour cream for each potato (optional)
your choice of filling (optional)

Wash and scrub potatoes, then pat dry with a kitchen towel. WIth a fork, pierce the potatoes all over.

Preheat the oven to 200d Celsius, or you can simply use the already heated oven you’ve got for the lamb rack.

Place in microwave, and on high power, microwave for 4 minutes. Turn the potatoes over and repeat the process for another 4 minutes. You should be able to pierce through the potatoes with a fork with relative ease. If there is a little resistance, microwave for another 2 minutes. Now whack it in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, or till the skin has gone nice and crisp and the insides are soft and fluffy when cut through.

Split open down the middle, throw in some butter, sour cream and whatever garnishes you like. Or if you’re going for a student-style jacket, cheese and beans it is!

mixed-coloured maggots for bait

3 days ago, we went fishing in Maidenhead, Cookham. A fishing rod, 2 reels of fishing line, hooks, a box of wriggling mixed-coloured maggots, a variety of snacks and a lovely packed (choice of) smoked salmon or chorizo sandwich lunch (provided by Alex’s mum); Thus was 4 fresh-faced youths all set to trek through tall grass down a meandering stream Ray Mears-style in search of the perfect fishing spot. What spurred us on, always in the back of our minds, was the tantalizing thought of fish and chips, of really good fish.

Personally, I was thinking of beer batter too.

Despite the preparations and that anticipation of a grand epic moment, we caught ZILCH.

NADA.

We stopped off first at a fishing gear and materials shop near Odney to pick up some bait. Both Alexes were really into it. Anna was on the phone and I merely hung around, feeling slightly inadequate and touristy with my camera since I was obviously intent on documenting this whole day. Thereafter, we jumped back into the car towards our main destination.

We had a little trouble finding the perfect spot. Alex found it odd that there weren’t any fishes to be seen either (when there usually were loads which you could easily spot in the past). We could hardly coax a shadow of a fish from the waters with our can of Green Giant Sweet Corn. Finally, we settled midway between a group of noisy sunbathing kids and a fellow bloke who was — surprise surprise — also out for a little fishing action.

In summary, we had a great time getting hooks caught on hoodies (that was Mrs Alex) and my new white linen shirt (that was yours truly), catching weed, slurping up a quick-melting 99flake, shouting obscenities at fishes, watching a professional (I say professional because he had all the right gear, a burger, a lit cigarette and a fold-up chair which he was comfortably sat on the whole while) reel in fish after fish — including a large, gorgeous pike. After bringing in that pike, he got awfully chatty with us lot and offered us advice on how to gently remove the hook from the fish and also how to treat the fish with respect before letting it back into the water. He was a good chap and let me take pictures of it all too.

What a beauty don’t you think? It was quite an experience to watch him pull this fierce beauty out of the water and lay it out on the black cushion. Scales glistening, the gills rising up and down with so much force, the eyes glowing under the scorching sun. What a sight! I was blown away by this pike. As it struggled and bucked against the restraining human hands, this pike had so much energy and life, I almost was inspired by it to go do something with myself.

I think I was quite child-like in my excitement but hey, it was my first time going fishing really since I never bothered to go with my dad in the past. One day, I will go proper fishing — on a boat hopefully. Maybe even with real fishermen. Attempt at crabs??? I suppose my closest I ever got to fishing was staying on a oyster farm and watching the man-in-charge bring in the freshly caught oysters. Also, did visit a lobster fishing place in Aus. And hmmm…also did use a net to fish out my goldfish,etc. out of the tank when I cleaned it.

We moved off to a different spot onto a bridge later in the afternoon after spotting quite a lot of fishes in the river below. But no matter what we did, (I resorted to marinating maggots in some sort of fish bait pellets) we pulled back only empty hooks. Good try though. And yea, great smelling hands too. I even got maggot juice squirted onto my face whilst baiting Alex.

Back at Alex’s, Alex’s mum had prepared a dinner of roast vine tomatoes, garlic, red onions, baked potato wedges and harissa lamb. The lamb was so tender and tasty. Alex’s mum — what a woman! She sure knows her food and she fed us well. Despite coming back empty handed, it couldn’t have been any more wonderful and rewarding a day! Fishing. Lamb. Häagen Dazs to end the meal, followed by Gordon Ramsay’s The F Word on telly and a cup of tea.

Sorted.

Talk about getting a Surf ‘n’ Turf, a looking after by a mother figure, a slight tan (and a burn for Mrs Alex) and some extra loving by the ever hankered-after Mr Ramsay.