Sticky Date Pudding

Ingredients
180g Dried Dates, chopped rough
1 Tspn Bi-carb Soda
60g Butter
180g Castor Sugar
2 Large Eggs
180g Self Raising Flour
1 Tspn Vanilla Essence
300ml Boiling Water

Sauce
150g Brown Sugar
150ml Cream
50g Butter

Method
Pre-heat the oven to 190 dgrees Celcius. Pit and chop the dates. Then pour boiling water over the dates with Bi-card Soda and stand to cool.

Next, in a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Add the eggs one at a time and beat well. Add the vanilla essence and then add the date mixture and flour together while mixing well.

Meanwhile, line a cake tin with baking paper. Pour the mixture into the tin and place in the oven for approximately 45 minutes.

For the sauce, bring all of the ingredients to a gentle boil and then simmer until the brown sugar has dissolved. Pour over the cake and serve with ice cream.

Good Food & Wine Show 2011

Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre
1 - 3 July 2011
http://www.goodfoodshow.com.au/

It’s that time of year again! Sydney’s Good Food & Wine Show is on! Come and enjoy the celebration of our Modern Australian cuisine and fine wines this weekend. The show features hundreds of exhibitors including wineries, bakeries, breweries, confectionery stores, fine food distributors, kitchenware and appliances, butchers and organic food producers from across the country.

Want to get stuck into all of the action? Why not master the art of espresso making with the Sunbeam Academy; undertake a hands on butchery class with Victor Churchill or; learn how to pair food with coffee with celebrity chef Justine Schofield?

Or would you rather kick back and watch the chefs do the work? In that case, head to the Lifestyle food chef’s table and check out Justin North, Miguel Maestre and Adrian Richardson do their magic in the kitchen.

In addition to the show, you can check out your favourite celebrity chefs Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris, Manu Feidel, Matt Moran and Toby Puttock in the Celebrity Theatre. Tickets are free but you will need to go to the Celebrity Theatre Box Office and request a ticket early as seating is limited.

Here are some of our highlights and recommendations at the show:

 Gary Mehigan & George Calombaris performing in the Celebrity Theatre.

Wine tasting (purhcase a glass for $3 and begin your wine tastings). Take note that some wineries are offering free freight and discounted wines if you make a purchase at the show.

Check out the local breweries. Our favourite was the Balmain Brewing Company. Ask to try their Pale Ale - it's fantastic! 

 Dig into the local produce. For those who like chilli, try the bum burners.

Go out on a limb and try something new! Chicken in a Can!

Register for a Costco membership. The Sydney store is set to open in less than a month. Beat the queues and register early! 

Not in Sydney? The festival will also be held in Perth (15^th – 17^th July), Adelaide (7^th – 9^th October) and Brisbane (4^th – 6^th November).

Marsala Pasties

Ingredients

4 Large potatoes, peeled and quartered 

1 Brown onion, finely chopped
2 Tblsps of ghee  
1 Tspn cumin seeds  
1 Tspn mustard seeds  
1 Tspn turmeric 
1 Tblspn grated ginger  
3 Cooked chorizo sausages, cut into small bite size pieces (optional)
¼ Bunch of spinach  
6 Button mushrooms, diced  
1 Finely chopped green chili  
1/2 Tspn salt (adjust to taste)  
1 Tblspn lemon juice  
2 Tblspn chopped coriander  
4 Sheets of short crust pastry  
¼ Cup milk (for brushing)

Method 
Boil the potatoes until they are soft and set aside to cool. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 210 degrees Celsius.  

Roughly mash the potatoes. Heat the ghee in a frying pan on medium high until hot & smoking. Add the cumin and mustard seeds. As the seeds crack, add the chopped onion and turmeric. Fry on medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.  

Next, add the ginger and chopped chorizo, fry for a further 2 minutes on a medium heat. Add potatoes, spinach, mushrooms, green chili and salt. Stir-fry for 2 minutes.  

Add lemon juice and coriander while folding through mixture carefully. Take the mixture off the heat and set aside to cool. 

Meanwhile, Cut four 12cm (diameter) rounds from each shortcrust pastry sheet. Spoon 2 tablespoons of potato mixture onto the top half of each round. 

 Brush pastry edges with water to seal. Bring pastry edges together to form a semi-circle. Pinch edges to seal and form frills.

Place pasties on a lined baking tray. Brush with milk and bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden. 

Serve with a sweet chutney.

Georgiou's Confectionery

147 New Canterbury Road,

Petersham, NSW, 2049

Ph (02) 9560 5312

Hours: Mon - Sat 8.30am - 4.30pm; Sun 10am - 3pm (only Feb -April, Oct - Dec)

Website: www.georgious.com.au

Today we found it! Yes, the treasure trove of all confectionery stores and it’s located in Petersham. Having passed this warehouse on several occasions on our weekend travels to Yum Cha, we finally made the effort (a huge effort may I add after Yum Cha) to explore the treasure trove of confectionery which is Georgiou’s Confectionery store. 

Lollies and chocolates from our childhoods lined the aisles. We both certainly felt like kids, I mean adults, no kids, in a candy store. All of our old school favourites were here. Warheads, Nerds, Snap & Crackle bars, sour worms, gob stoppers....I’m getting excited again! Perhaps it's all the sugar!

The list didn’t stop there. American favourites such as Jujyfruits, Junior Mints, Baby Ruth, Reese’s Pieces, Butter Fingers, Pop Tarts, Hershey’s bars and Choo Choo Bars proved to be all too tempting.

Buy in bulk Fantales, freckles, milk bottles, frogs, chocolate éclairs, gummy bears, red skins… the list goes on.

For the more conservative confectionery lovers, you will be happy to know that you are also fully catered for with a wide selection of boxed chocolates such as Lindt, Ferrero Rocher, Raffaello, Baci Perugina and Guylian to name a few.

And for the chocoholics, well I think the yard of chocolate should certainly hit the spot.

What a store! 1000 square metres of sweet heaven. Move over Charlie, today I certainly felt that I had found the golden ticket. This place certainly is Petersham’s answer to Willy Wonker’s Chocolate Factory!

Cyril's Fine Foods

181 Hay Street,
Haymarket, Sydney, 2000
Ph. (02) 9211 0994
Hours: Mon - Fri 6.30am - 5.30pm, Sat 6am - 1pm

Cyril's would have to be one of Sydney's finest delicatessens and we should know, one of us two little piggies has been visiting his store for over the past 30 years!

As you enter the Cyrils you will be greeted by owner and operator, Cyril Vincenc who has been running the store since 1956. The shop is filled with an array of pickled, smoked, baked, preserved, salted, frozen, fresh, cultured, cured and refrigerated items that make the foundations of a fine Eastern European deli.

Expect to find delectable European cheeses, chocolates, biscuits, salamis, jams, breads, pate, game meats as well as traditional favourites, piroshki, pelmeny and pickled herrings.

Not sure what to buy? Cyril is always happy to assist you in creating your European feast. The store is well known amongst the local Russian, Polish, Ukrainian and Czech communities for its vast selection of good quality traditional products.

Cyril's has been our family's favourite delicatessen for three generations and will no doubt continue well into the future.

Roast Goose

Ingredients
1 Medium Sized Goose (between 2.4 - 3 kilograms), thawed completely
2 Tbspns Vietnamese Salt & Pepper Mix (Muo'i Tieu)
2 Granny Smith Apples, cored and cut into quarters
1 Bunch of Sage, washed & roughly torn
1-2 Litres of Water

Equipment
4 Bamboo Skewers
Kitchen Towel
Large Baking Tray, Rack & Lid (or foil lined with baking paper as foil will stick to the skin of the goose)

Method
Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, pat dry the skin of the goose using kitchen towel and place the goose breast side up on the wire rack in the baking tray.

Insert the quartered apples into the cavity of the goose. Before and after each piece of apple, add a small amount of the torn sage leaves. When the cavity is full, use the skewers to close the cavity and secure the legs into position.

Sprinkle the salt & pepper mixture over the goose, ensuring the skin has an even coverage of seasoning. Note, do not rub the salt & pepper mixture as it may clump together.

Pour the water carefully to the bottom of the baking tray until it reaches a depth of 1.5cm, be sure that no water comes in contact with the goose.

Cover the baking tray with the lid or with foil and baking paper. Place the goose carefully into the centre of the preheated oven and roast for 1 hour.

At the end of the first hour, remove the goose from the oven and carefully uncover the lid or foil. Return the goose back to the oven for a further 45 minutes to an hour uncovered. Be sure to check that the bird is browning evenly and is not over cooked.

Remove the goose from the oven and rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving. This sized bird should feed 4 people as a main or 6 as an entree.

Charcoal Bamboo Roll

Charcoal Bamboo Roll from Breadtop. Absolutely delicious and no charcoal taste. It is flavoured with butter and garlic. A must try with your eyes closed!

Hung Cheung Chinese Seafood Restaurant

338 Marrickville Road,
Marrickville, NSW, 2204
Ph. (02) 9560 4681
Hours: Open 7 days, 9am - 11pm

Hung Cheung certainly does do one of the best Yum Cha's in Sydney and it's no secret. Pop in on a weekend and expect lots of hustle and bustle. Grab a ticket inside and join the queue, the short wait is certainly worth it!

Hung Cheung is a seafood restaurant so the Yum Cha is more seafood orientated, however there is a great variety of other meals on offer.

Some of our favourites include:

Chicken's Feet

Chilli Tripe

Pork Ribs

Snow Pea & Prawn Dumplings

Ginger Tripe

Egg Custard Tart



Some of the other dishes on offer include:

- Dumplings: Spinach / Garlic Chive /  Seafood Combination / Prawn

- Salt & Pepper White Bait

- Salt & Pepper Calamari

- Salt & Pepper Lobster

- Singapore Noodles

- Prawn Noodles

- Blood Jelly

- Sticky Rice

- Pork Buns

- Mango Pancakes

What sets this Yum Cha restaurant from the rest is its use of fresh ingredients. The dumplings are made fresh on site and there certainly is a large turnover of food.

Don't expect the decor of a hatted restaurant. The restaurant has recently undergone some modest renovations but could certainly do with some more loving attention.

Each of the dishes are priced based on their size. Small $4.20, Medium $4.80 and Large $5.80. Other dishes, such as their 'Specials' are around $7 - $9. Expect to pay around $15 - $20/head.

The service here is quite friendly. Should you not see the Yum Cha dish you are after or should you wish to order from the menu, don't be shy, grab a waiter and they will happily see to your request. They also have alcoholic beverages on the menu and the option to B.Y.O.

This place is great for weekend family lunches, noisy kids and those recovering from the night before. Expect nothing less than fast, tasty and great food. The dinner option of a la carte is also definitely worth a try.

Honey Harvesting

Our honey harvest this year was quite successful with our pleasant non-aggressive honey bees producing 80 kilograms of honey, that's a whopping 40 litres. We made an early start on an ideal hot dry day to gather, extract, filter and jar the honey. The process took us around 5 hours in total.

We began by preparing our replacement frames and foundation. Preparation and having everything in order is key to a successful honey harvest. Next, we prepared the extraction area, fired up the smoker and kitted ourselves up in our protective clothing.

The Smoker using dry Heshen

When approaching the hive, we checked for activity at the front door of the hive. Since it was the morning, most of the worker bees had left or were leaving the hive.

Worker Bees at the entrance of the hive

Inside the hive

From the side, we then removed the weather proofed lid and carefully removed the internal cover to expose the hive. Gently, smoke was blown across the tops of the honey filled frames whilst we made sure not to directly blow smoke into the hive.

Blowing smoke across the honey filled frames

Carefully, we removed frame by frame using the hook end of the hive tool. Next, we gently brushed the bees off with a feather and placed the frames into a covered storage box.

Honey filled frames and the hive tool

Brushing the bees off

Storing the loot

Once all of the frames had been removed from the hive and replaced with new frames, it was time to extract the honey. In a pot of very hot water we immersed the de-capping knife. This is the tool which removes the caps of the cells that have been filled with honey. Running the blade horizontally we de-capped the cells to release the honey.

Capped honey cells

De-capping

Two de-capped frames were then placed into the extractor and spun gently at one handle revolution per second. Honey began to splatter on to the walls of the extractor and gather at the base of the drum. Next, the frames were rotated and spun on the other side to release as much honey as possible from the frames.

Extracting the honey

After all of the honey was extracted, we sieved the wax from the honey and ladled the honey into sterilised jars.

Passing the honey through the sieve

Jarring

The final result, golden honey on hot freshly baked bread. Heavenly and definitely worth all of the effort.

The final product