Poached Eggs with Sauteed Mushrooms on Turkish Toast
Summer in the southern hemisphere has well and truly arrived.
People are firing up their barbecues and breakfast at beach side cafes is a favorite weekend activity. And there's nothing like a hearty breakfast to start the weekend.
While for some the word 'hearty' may conjure up images of bacon and sausages, I'm offering up something less meaty but just as fulfilling -- poached eggs with sautéed garlic mushrooms on toasted Turkish bread with ricotta cheese. Accompanying this dish are Roma tomatoes slow-roasted with fresh thyme. This is a delightful breakfast I enjoy regularly at one of my favorite beach side haunts.
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
White asparagus, orange and arugula salad
I have been a willing convert to the gospel of fruit in salads.
I have found exquisite partnerships and unlikely complements with fruits too numerous to list in this short blog post.
This white asparagus, orange and arugula (roquette) salad is one of the most elegant I have discovered.
The contrast in color and flavor is so stark; so inviting; so perfectly balanced that it takes all my restraint not to make loud, appreciative noises while I eat it.
More salads with fruit
- Thai Mango Salad
- Watermelon and Feta Salad
- Peach, Corn and Buffalo Mozzarella Salad
- Strawberry Salad with apple and toasted pine nuts
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
These versatile shortbread cookies can be coated with melted chocolate, icing sugar, infused with lemon zest or enjoyed unadorned for their buttery goodness.
They are just as shortbread should be - crumbly, buttery and just sweet enough. I often use this shortbread recipe as a base for tarts.
Shortbread is so named because of its crumbly texture -- a result of working with the dough very gently and allowing it to rest. This allows the butter to inhibit the formation of gluten. For the best tasting results it's also important to use good quality, unsalted butter and pure vanilla extract.
More Cookie Recipes
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
VictorsFood Tour: Hungry for the South Coast
I am a very particular traveler. I love travel and I plan meticulously. I want to explore the local food scene thoroughly and in my own time. So I have never been one for group tours... that is, until very recently.
I left Sydney for a weekend away which I couldn't have planned better myself. And I made ten new friends in the process.
VictorsFood offers a variety of food-centric activities including cooking classes, corporate team-building and regional and international food tours.
I went for the 'Hungry for the South Coast' tour. Just south of Sydney is magical. The beaches are stunning and often deserted, the escarpments are dramatic and the emerald hills undulate under cows and tall palm trees.
For two days I was dazzled by the quality of the produce and the skill of the artisans who manipulated it. We visited bakeries, vegetable farms, confectioners, vineyards, oyster farms and tree-top restaurants.
Even for someone who knows the south coast quite well, it was a journey of discovery.
Many tourists come to Sydney to enjoy its world-class food. Few realize that there are culinary wonders waiting to be discovered on Sydney's doorstep.
Read more about my south coast food adventure.
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
Vanilla Rice Pudding
Rice pudding is a much-loved, old-fashioned dessert. Served warm, it's comforting on a cold night, or served chilled, it's just as soothing in warmer weather.
The world's soft spot for rice pudding is evident in the hundreds of recipes for the timeless dish. In Greece there's the creamy cinnamon infused "rizgalo"; in Lebanon aromatic "meghli", a ground rice pudding, is served on special occasions. In Thailand sweet sticky rice is served with succulent mango and coconut milk. The English love slowly-baked rice puddings while the Spanish love "arroz con leche" cooked on the stove-top with hints of citrus.
This vanilla rice pudding recipe is a simple one that takes under 15 minutes to prepare. It's infused with lemon zest and cinnamon and makes a gorgeous, quick and creamy dessert.
More Rice Pudding Recipes
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
Mushroom & Arugula Quiches
Last week I introduced you to individual smoked salmon quiches. I had been inspired by the fabulous quiches I'd seen while wandering around the Sydney Harbour Bridge which had been laid with green grass and turned into a picnicker's paradise.
I have not yet finished with my quiche phase and this week I made delicious little mushroom and arugula quiches. Arugula, in New Zealand and Australia, is known as "roquette" - which is the French equivalent.
Roquette has a lovely pepperiness which contrasts nicely with the soft mushroom flavors.
Like last week's quiches, they're easy to make, quick to bake and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, snacks, appetizers or taken on picnics.
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
Toasted Brioche with Poached Berries & Ricotta
At my recent McIntosh & Bowman cheese-making class, one of the cheeses we made was ricotta.
The soft, white cheese is actually made from reheating whey - the liquid that is separated from the curds when cheese is made, thus the name "ricotta", which translates to "twice-cooked".
There are many wonderful things you can do with ricotta -- stuff ravioli, make a cheesecake, bake some cupcakes, or serve it with some poached fruit like I have in this breakfast brioche recipe. I call this dish my "cheat's" French toast. It's simply toasted brioche or challa bread topped with poached strawberries and blueberries and a large dollop of fresh ricotta.
It's divine, easy to prepare and will satisfy that French toast craving.
More Breakfast Recipes
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
Smoked Salmon Quiches
As you know, I attended the inaugural Breakfast on the Bridge last weekend. The Sydney Harbour Bridge is an icon. You can see it from many parts of the city, but up close, the bridge is most commonly viewed from the seat of a car or train.
On Sunday, 6000 Sydney-siders turned up at 6.30am to see their beloved bridge in a completely different light. As part of the Crave Sydney festival, the bridge had been turned into a park - covered with green grass.
I had the privilege of being there. As I moved amongst the crowd of happy picnickers, I was especially interested in what people had brought to eat. Quiche was one of the crowd favorites.
I love smoked salmon quiches. They are great any time of the day or night, so can be eaten for breakfast, snacked on at picnics or devoured as party food. These individual-sized quiches are elegant as well as being delicious.
Best of all, they're easy to prepare and quick to bake - it took me only 10 minutes of prep and less than 20 minutes of baking.
If I'm lucky enough to be invited to next years' Breakfast on the Bridge, these individual smoked salmon quiches are definitely going to be in my picnic hamper.
More baking recipes
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
Breakfast on the Bridge
Despite the forecast of rain thousands turned up with blankets and baskets in hand for Sydney's inaugural Breakfast on the Bridge event.
The gates opened at 6.30AM and air was electric with a mixture of curiosity and excitement as attendees took their first steps on Sydney's most famous landmark. The bridge deck, usually covered with bumper-to-bumper traffic, was carpeted with over 10,500 square meters of lush, green grass - a surreal sight to behold.
Picnickers enjoyed breakfasts of every kind. There were bagels, bacon & eggs, croissants, champagne, smoothies, granola, fruit salad, curries and quiches. Freshly baked breads, jams, apples and yogurt were also handed out.
At a cost of $1 million, the Breakfast on the Bridge event is part of the month-long Crave Sydney festival showcasing the city's entertainment, food and art scene.
Premier Nathan Rees said it was likely to become an annual event, following the success of Sunday's turnout, which he predicted was worth $10 million in tourism dollars.
"Among the picnickers were a four-week-old baby, a man who proposed to his girlfriend, and a young man celebrating his 19th birthday...people are having a ball" Rees said.
People did have a ball. Crave Sydney has been a real triumph -- especially for lovers of food. The Breakfast on the Bridge was a great event in a month of great events. The Sydney Harbour Bridge is an international icon. Using it in this unusual way was a great opportunity for the people of New South Wales, 6000 of whom were awarded tickets by lottery.
Breakfast on the Bridge Image Gallery
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc
Breakfast on the Bridge
On Sunday October 25, Australia's most famous icon will be turned into a grassy picnic spot for the first time in history. The Breakfast on the Bridge event is expected to draw 6000 picnickers.
Attendees are encouraged to go green for the event. Here are some tips for keeping your picnics green:
- Avoid using excessive plastic food packaging - use plastic storage containers instead.
- Reduce your food miles - buy produce and product locally produced in your area. Ask at your local Farmer's Market, supermarket or favorite deli. You will also be doing your bit to support our farmers and local suppliers.
- Go homemade! Take some time to prepare your picnic goodies in your own kitchen instead of buying them.
- Don't buy bottled water - fill up at home.
- Don't use plastic plates instead use a picnic set or light weight ones from home, they will look better too.
- Plan your picnic well so you don't waste food.
Photo: © S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc