If music be the food ...(reprise)

 

A few years back, I compiled a list of food-related band and song names.  It was fun.  Since then I have amused myself by keeping a list of other music names that I have come across.  How could I have left out so many from my first list!  E says I am cheating if the songs aren't about food but he obviously has other criteria than I .

A few esoteric notes.  I have avoided collecting album names as well (you have to constrain an obsession) but I must mention a few quirky ones that E has passed to me: The Donut in Granny's Greenhouse by the Bonzo Dog Band and the unforgettable Feeding Pieces of Eggplant Sandwich to a Flock of Not too Bright Seagulls by Hugo.  If you like 1970s British chic or just want a laugh, do check out 'Toast' by Streetband on Youtube.  I have discovered that the Soup Dragons got their name from one of Sylvia's favourite DVDs: The Clangers.  Lastly I was so amused by the Tiny Tim song 'Yum Yum' that when I couldn't find the lyrics online I transcribed them for you - they are at the very end of the post for your entertainment!  Enjoy!

Bands
Black Eyed Peas
Blind Melon
The Bloody Beetroots
Bread
Bread Love and Dreams
Buckwheat Boyz
Dandelion Wine
The Electric Prunes
Laughing Apple
Nectarine Number Nine
Neutral Milk Hotel
Orange Juice
Peach
Red Hot Chilli Peppers
Silver Apples
Soup Dragons
Strawberry Switchblade
Wild Cherry
The Wild Strawberries

Songs
Banana Pancakes – Jack Johnson
Beetroot Stains – Mental as Anything
Bread and Butter – The Newbeats
Brown Sugar – The Rolling Stones
The Cabbage – Teenage Fanclub
Caramel - Blur
Carrot Cake and Wine – Stereophonics
Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk – Rufus Wainwright
Does your chewing gum lose its flavour on the bed post overnight – Lonnie Donegan
Don’t sit under the apple tree (with anyone else but me) – Glenn Miller
Eggs and Sausages – Tom Waits
Golden Apples of the Sun – Judy Collins
Homegrown Tomatoes – Guy Clark
The Honey Roll – AC/DC
I live in a Cake – NOFX
The Laughing Apple – Cat Stevens
Lemon Tree – Peter Paul and Mary
Liberty Cabbage – Rufus Wainwright
Malted Milk Blues – Lucinda Williams
Meat is Murder – The Smiths
Milk and Toast and Honey - Roxette
Milkshake – Village People
Mr Milk – You Am I
Peach, Plum, Pear – Joanna Newsome
Pomegranate – Current 93
Poor Rich and Strawberry Wine – John Steel Singers
String Bean Jean - Belle and Sebastian
Sugar Sugar - The Archies
Yum Yum (The Pizza Song) - Tiny Tim
The Wonderful Soup Stone – Dr Hook
There’s a Guy Works Down the Fish Shop – Kristy McColl
Three Peaches – Neutral Milk Hotel
Toast – Streetband
Vegetable – Radiohead
Vindaloo – Fat Les
Who invented Fish and Chips – Fat Les
Wobbly Jelly - Cud

 

Yum Yum (The Pizza Song) 
From God Bless Tiny Tim (The Complete Reprise Studio Masters and More)

Yum yum yum yum yum yum
Where's the pretty dish for me
Come come come come come come
I'm are happy as can be

Where's my plate
Where's my spoon
We'll be dining very soon
Where's my plate
Where's my spoon
We'll be dining soon

I like vitamins nutritious
I like wheatgerm, honey too
I like pumpkin seeds and apples 
They are all good for me and you

Yum yum yum Yum yum yum
Where's that pretty dish for me
Yum yum yum Yum yum yum
Where's that dish for me

I like ice cream, cake and candy
I like sugar, spice and cream
I like popcorns, I like pretzels
I like pies and jelly beans

Yum yum yum yum yum yum
Yum yum yum yum yum yum yum
Where's my plate
Where's my spoon
We'll be dining soon

Matthews delicious tofu - another familiar recipe

If you read my last post with garden pictures, did you notice among my pots of herbs that there was a pot with baby rainbow chard (or silverbeet) that looks denuded?  The rainbow chard has been growing very well but I harvested the leaves for Matthew's Delicious Tofu on Friday.  If that recipe seems very familiar to readers of Planet VegMel it is because I am now the fourth blog in the planet to post it.

I saw Mel of Veganise This make it last week, which reminded me how long it has been in my bookmarks.  Lately I have had a surplus of vegetables in my fridge.  Don't ask me how it got that way but every nook and cranny seemed filled.  (My mum's donation of some cauliflower and celeriac pushed it over the edge but they have been excellent in a soup with some pumpkin and cannellini beans.)  Mel used broccoli in her tofu dish and I really fancied that.

She had bookmarked the recipe from In the Mood for Noodles where it is a midweek favourite of K and Toby.  They often serve it with whatever vegies and nuts they have around and add sauce ingredients to taste.  Cindy and Michael at Where's the Beef have also made it and served it with couscous and greens.

It is great seeing the dish made by a few different bloggers.  I took bits and pieces from each of them - used more sauce like Mel but less chilli paste like K and Toby, and used vegetable oil like Cindy and Michael.  As K says, it is a great dish that is adaptable to whatever you have about.  I did take about an hour to make it but I am sure I could do it quicker if there were less distractions in my kitchen.  The sauce is amazing with the sweet, salty, sour combination and so easy.   I loved how the broccoli held lots of sauce in the florets.  This will be on regular rotation at chez GGG.

This is my second recipe going to Steph for the that recipe seems very familiar... event being held to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of Planet VegMel.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: PPN Pea lasagne
This time two years ago: Fruit scones, yellow and uncertainty
This time three years ago: NCR: Spring Strawberry Soup

Matthew's Delicious Tofu
Adapted from the Garden of Vegan via K, Cindy and Mel
serves 3-4

1 tbsp oil*
350g firm tofu**
Few cups of chopped vegetables (I used carrots, broccoli, capsicum, baby silverbeet, mushrooms, cauliflower, cos lettuce)
3 tbsp maple syrup
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp chilli sauce
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp finely grated ginger
Cooked rice or noodles, to serve

Chop and lightly steam the vegies.***

Heat oil in a large heavy based frypan.   Fry tofu over a high heat until golden brown and crispy.  While the tofu fries, make the sauce by mixing the maple syrup, soy sauce, lemon juice and chilli sauce.

Once tofu is golden brown, remove from pan and fry the garlic and ginger for about 1 minute.****  Return tofu to the frypan and add about half the sauce.  Fry over high heat until tofu absorbs the sauce.  Add vegies and the rest of the sauce.  Stir for a minute or two to heat through.

Serve over rice or noodles.

NOTES:
*Any neutral oil that can be used at a high temperature is fine - eg canola, rice bran,
**Ideally the tofu should be pressed for about an hour but depending on the time available I would just pat with a towel or wrap in a teatowel and press while I prepare the vegies.   
***When I first made this recipe I prepared the vegies while I was frying the tofu but I think the tofu got a bit too cooked this way and didn't absorb the vegies ok.  
****I usually don't remove the tofu from the pan when I cook the garlic and ginger but have kept this in the recipe because others say this. 

On the stereo:
(Days in the Wake) Palace Brothers: Palace Brothers

Loss, spring garden, rice bake, soup, tacos

 

It has been a weekend of dumplings, cafes and friends.  Tonight though, the television is full of the 10th anniversary of 9/11.   So it is there that my thoughts turn.  To memories of New York, of where I was when it happened.  To those who lost loved ones in the Twin Tower Attacks.  So before I tell you about how a rice bake became tacos became a soup, I will share some of these thoughts.

I first visited New York in 1997 by myself and then in 1999 with E.  We didn't go to the Twin Towers.  Yet looking back they were present.  There they are in the photos we took from the Staten Island Ferry looking back over the skyline.  They towered over us as we walked through the financial district.  We saw them when we went up the Empire State Building.  Even fridge magnets we bought at the time include pictures of them in the background.  They were there.  They are no longer.

So much has changed in the last ten years in my life.  Ten years ago I was living in Edinburgh.  In Australia, the memories are most of those who were in America (early in the morning) or Australia (late at night) on the day.  I was at work in the afternoon when a colleague heard about the first plane hitting the Twin Towers - over the phone from her partner.  It seemed unreal.  Something out of the movies.  I remember trying to contact E.  At times like these, a natural impulse is to turn to those close to us.  The phones, the internet, the emails were down.  It was a relief to see him that evening after work.  We sat in our little flat with the view of Edinburgh Castle and the world felt odd, monstrous, changed.

Since 11 September 2001, I have moved country, lived in many houses, travelled, experienced loss, suffered death and grief, given birth to children, welcomed more children of family and friends into the world, attended weddings, been to many birthday parties, baked lots of cakes, changed employers a few times, bought a couple of cars, taken on a mortgage for my home.  I could go on and on.

I don't tell you this because you want to hear about my life.  I tell you because a lot happens in ten years. I feel for the families and friends of those who died in the Twin Towers attacks.  They have gone through a lot in 10 years without their loved ones.  Yet is there anyone of them that has not also had good things happen without their loved ones - laughter, meeting people, travel - that they would wish away.  Loss is complicated.

I don't have answers.  All I can think is compassion and hope.   For me, my garden is a symbol of hope.  Life goes on in my garden.  I brutally cut back my lemon and lime trees last summer and they grew back strong and producing lots of fruit.  Some plants die.  Others take their place.  I choose a lemon or lime from the tree or cut a handful of herbs to nourish me with good food.

I have recently told you about the old magazine recipe clippings that I have kept from my childhood.  That will tell you that I am not good at letting go.  I don't like loss.  Sometimes that is a good thing.  We can't hold onto everything.  Yet we mustn't forget those who have gone before us.  Memories are important.  One recent dish that I made was a rice bake from a foodie magazine I bought a few years ago.  It seems right for this post that it had rosemary from my own garden.  Rosemary for remembrance.  The rice bake wasn't brilliant but it was good honest food if a little lacking in flavour.  It improved with a few more seasonings that I have added in my below version of the recipe.

I intended to have the rice a second night as a one pot dinner like on the first night.  I had some tortillas.  I decided to make some Taco Bean Nut Meat based on the one made by Angela on Oh She Glows.  It was a simple matter of mashing some beans and nuts and then adding spices.  I also made some salsa with corn, avocado and apple.  It was a wee bit sweet.  Perhaps some extra spring onions would help (I have added them to my recipe below) or even a chilli pepper.  I think I would have preferred it with tomato or capsicum instead of the apple.  Only, the apple needed to be used.

It was an easy way to get a taco feast together.  The rice that was a little bland by itself, was great paired with lots of other textures and flavours. E and I enjoyed mixing the side dishes in tortillas.  Sylvia loved the tortillas and grated cheese.  None of us were that keen on the apple salsa.  We ate the tacos over two nights.
 

The next night I decided to turn a cauliflower into soup.  I wanted to add walnuts but most recipes I found online seemed to add lots of cream and dairy.  I decided to add some silken tofu that needed using.  The tofu had a surprisingly strong taste.  I also used some dark homemade vegetable stock.  I worried it would make the soup too dark.  It didn't but it was quite bitter in this soup.  (Usually the sweetness of the vegetables balance the my stock if the batch is bitter.)  I added lots of seasoning and it was surprisingly tasty, especially with some crunchy toast croutons scattered on it - I couldn't be bothered making proper croutons so I just cut some toast into cubes.

When Lisa announced that the theme was Your Garden for the No Croutons Required event that she and Jacqueline hold each month, I knew this was the soup for it.  My garden doesn't produce oodles of vegetables that can be used for a soup.  It does, however, produce some flavours.  Herbs from my garden went into the stock and lemon juice from my tree went into the soup.

Finally, I wish to return to the beginning of my post which focused on 9/11.  I wrote a lot of this post watching a documentary called Rebirth.  It follows five people who lost loved ones in 9/11 over 10 years.  It is an excellent insight into loss and grief and a beautiful documentary.  I also wish my oven was working so I could bake a cake for Marla of Family Fresh Cooking who is holding an event to remember 9/11 with cake called We Bake to Remember (thanks Cakelaw for alerting me to it).  But at least I can visit the cakes in the round up to share others experiences and cakes!  We shall not forget!

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: MLLA Holiday Pasties
This time two years ago: Fontina onion and potato tart
This time three years ago: A bloody tale of burritos and beans

Rice and vegie bake
adapted from BBC Australian Good Food, July 2009
serve about 4

1 cup uncooked basmati rice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 tsp chopped rosemary
250g button mushrooms, chopped
2 red capsicums, chopped (I used one red, one yellow)
400g tin of diced tomatoes
400g tin of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 1/4 cups vegetable stock
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp seeded mustard
1/4 cup chopped parsley
seasoning

Preheat oven to 190 C.  Rinse rise under water and drain.

Heat oil in a flameproof casserole dish and cook onions over medium high until softened.  Stir in rosemary and mushrooms for about 2 minutes or until mushroom is softening.  Add rice and stir to coat grains.  Add capsicums, tomatoes, chickpeas, stock, paprika, mustard and seasoning.  Bring to the boil, stir and cover tightly with a lid (NB my rice was a little crunchy on top so maybe some foil across the top and then the lid might help next time).

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until rice is tender (I think I did a bit extra).  Check and adjust seasoning, scatter parsley over the rice and serve hot.

Taco bean nut meat
adapted from Oh She Glows 
serves 4

1 cup kidney beans, mashed with a fork
2 heaped tbsp walnuts, crushed with a fork
1/2 carrot, finely grated
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion granules
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp olive oil

Mix everything except the oil.  Heat the oil in a frypan and lightly fry the mixture for a few minutes.  Serve warm.  We reheated some of it the following night.

Corn avocado and apple salsa - work in progress
serves about 4-6

1 tin corn
1 apple (or capsicum)
1 avocado
1-2 tbsp chopped parsley
1 medium lemon juice
dash of cayenne pepper
pinch of salt
1-2 spring onions, finely chopped

Mix everything together and serve at room temparature.

Creamy cauliflower and walnut soup
serves 6-8

1 tsp olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
few small stalks of celery from centre of the bunch, chopped
1/2 huge carrot, chopped
1 head cauliflower, broken into florets
1.25 litre stock
250g silken tofu
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 cup walnuts
juice of 1/4 of a medium lemon
1 tbsp miso
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
1/2 quantity of above salsa or 1 apple or other sweetener
Optional: toast, golden syrup, black pepper and smoked paprika, to serve

Heat olive oil in a stockpot and fry red onion, celery and carrot until softened - I think I did this for 10-15 minutes.  Add cauli and stock.  Bring to the boil and simmer for about 20 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients.  Check and adjust seasoning (my homemade stock was quite bitter so I needed quite a lot of seasoning).  Bring to the boil and turn off heat.  Blend.  Serve with toast cut into croutons, golden syrup (or other sweetener), freshly ground black pepper and smoked paprika, as desired.

On the stereo:
Best of Miles Davis

CC Bookshops, pretzel buns, burgers and corn salad

It's been a week of good food but nothing much else is working.  And the pretzel buns I made only just passed muster.  They were touch and go.  Better than my car which bears the marks of another car driving into the back of it (because I had to stop for that pedestrian)!  Or my oven which will not light and satisfy my baking urges.  Then there is E's computer that has threatened to give up the ghost and his guitar tuner battery has ceased to work.  In the end the pretzel buns worked and they were so good with bean burgers and a corn salad that I was much happier.

I am glad that I managed to make the pretzel buns before the oven stopped cooperating.  Kneading a gorgeous soft dough is such pleasure.  And Sylvia is developing such a great kneading action.  But the story starts long before the dough.  It started with a trip to the city in my lunch break. 

I had decided to buy Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Appetite for Reduction.  However I am still not really into online book shopping.  I wanted to touch a book, flick through the pages, look at the pictures (or lack of) and browse the contents before I buy.  Despite being impressed with some recipes I have seen on the blogosphere I just didn't like the feel of the book.  Instead I came away with Vegan Yum Yum and Veggie Burgers Every Which Way.  Two glossy cookbooks full of photos and tempting recipes. (More details at My Cookbooks)

I tell this story of buying new cookbooks partly because I passed four bookshops that have recently closed on the way to Dymocks bookshop.  It is odd to realise the city no longer offers the shelves of books I used to browse at Readers Feast, Borders, Angus and Robertson and McGills.  Nay, it is disturbing.  There is no greater pleasure than sitting in a comfy chair or even on the floor with a stack of cookbooks to browse.  I wonder how it will change the books that we buy if we can only buy books sight unseen online.  I love the internet, but one of its benefits is that it increases our options.  I want a life offline too.

Speaking of offline, back to dinner!  The theme for the Cookbook Challenge a few weeks back was Baked.  As I love baking, this was hard to narrow down.  Cakes?  Muffins?  Slices?  Biscuits?  Gratins?  Bread?  I decided to use my new Veggie Burgers cookbook.  I chose the pretzel buns which intrigued me.  I have always wanted to make pretzels.  They were perfect dark brown orbs with a little cross and sprinkle of rock salt in the photo in the book.  You can see mine weren't anything like that.  Mine demanded a slotted egg flip (see above photo) at so many stages of the process.

The dough was glorious and soft.  It rose beautifully.  However when the buns rose and needed to be dropped in boiling water, they stuck to both my silicone mat and baking paper.  Above is the first one that I did.  I reshaped this one and didn't boil it very long.  It was the best of the bunch.  Though so much smaller than I expected from the photo in the book.  I scraped the rest off the paper, trying to keep their shape and time them in the boiling water.

My pretzel buns came out of the oven and refused to come off the silicone mat/baking paper.  Some very aggressive action with my egg flip was required.  They were the oddest shapes and some had soft bits where I think they had got too soggy.  Soggy pretzel buns do bad things to your stomach.  But all was not lost.  Most of them were as pretzels should be.  Not skinny but they were chewy on the outside, rather salty and soft inside.  They were interestingly different from other yeasted baking I have done.  I want to make them again because they are so intriguing.  I am sure I could do better next time.

 

But I didn't stop at the burger buns.  No.  I made bean burgers to go inside them and some roasted corn salad to have on the side.  I chose both recipes for their simplicity.  A wise decision given that the pretzel buns were even more challenging then I expected.  (And just in case you think I had all day to do this, I made it after taking Sylvia to play with her neighbour, swimming lessons, getting a quote on the car and shopping at the supermarket!)

The corn salad was simple.   My main problem with it was my inability to read a recipe.  In this case, it was due to the confusion I find with some American terms (despite enough years of blogging to understand them).  I read that the corn was cooked on a skillet.  I think of a skillet as a frypan.  I got as far and starting to fry the corn on the frypan when I checked the recipe for how high the heat should be.  When I read 180 C the penny dropped.  I put it in a roasting dish and the rest was straightforward.

I was delighted to discover the salad was roasted.  I suspected it might have been a case of mind over matter.  The next  Cookbook Challenge after Baked was Roast.  (For those who are confused, baking uses no oil and can involve an increase in volume, whereas roasting involves oil and often involves some shinkage.)  It seemed just so convenient, if a tad cheeky, to tick off two challenges in one meal.  But I was convinced that it was to be fried.  Sigh!  It might have helped if the pretzel buns hadn't addled my brain so much that I didn't notice that the salad was actually called Roasted Corn Salad.

The salad was delicious.  Spicy, salty, sweet and refreshing.  A great accompaniment.  The burgers were nice.  A little stodgy.  I wondered if it was because I had added too many extra breadcrumbs.  When I had a little bit of leftover cold burger in my lunch the next day I could appreciate the flavours far better.  Having said that, these burgers were never meant to be the star of the show.  They were great for a hunk of protein to accompany some buns and salad.

We ate the burgers in the pretzel buns with cos lettuce, tomato, corn salad and tomato sauce.  The buns were so small we had to cut the burgers in half.  I also enjoyed wrapped the rest of the burger and some of the salad in cos lettuce leaves.  Even better was the second night when we reheated the burgers on the grill and used leftover baked beans rather than tomato sauce.  Heaven in a bun!  I am looking forward to trying more of the interesting burgers from the book.

To see what else my Cookbook Challenge colleauges made for Baked and Roast go here.  I am also submitting these pretzel buns to Yeastspotting.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: PPN Tofu-Ricotta, Zucchini and Pumpkin Lasagne
This time two years ago: Chocolate cookies and pizza
This time three years ago: PPN: Soy bombs with two tomato sauces
 
Roasted Corn Salad
Adapted from Veggie Burgers Every Which Way
Serves 4 as a side dish

1-2 tbsp olive oil
kernels of 3 cobs of corn
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 green chilli, finely chopped
juice of 1/4 lime
seasoning

Toss corn, onion and green chilli with olive oil and a pinch of salt.  Roast for 30-40 minutes at about 200 C.  They should be shrunken and maybe a little charred (but not necessarily).  Toss with lime juice.  Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Easy Bean Burger
Slightly adapted from Veggie Burgers Every Which Way
Serve 4

400g tin of beans, rinsed and drained (I used borlotti but you could also use chickpeas, kidney beans or cannelini beans)
2 eggs
1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped (about half a bunch)
1/4 finely grated parmesan
2 tsp seeded mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
squeeze of lemon juice
3/4 cup dried breadcrumbs (or a bit more - I used 1 cup)
1-2 tbsp olive oi

Mash beans in a medium mixing bowl.  Stir in eggs, parsley, parmesan, mustard, salt, pepper and lemon juice to make a nice gloopy mixture.  Add in the breadcrumbs and leave for a few minutes so they absorb the liquid.  If the mixture is still too moist add some more breadcrumbs so it comes together into a ball easily.

Divide into four and shape into flat patties (about 10cm in diameters).  Heat some oil in a heavy bottomed non stick frypan and fry for 6-10 minutes on either side until well browned.  Bake in oven at 200 C for 12-15 minutes.  Serve hot or warm.  (Also delicious cold for lunch the next day.)  I reheated mine under a hot grill (or broiler) the next day.

Pretzel buns
From Veggie Burgers Every Which Way

3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup water
2 tsp dried yeast
3 tbsp olive oil
3 - 4 cups flour
1 tsp plus 1 tbsp salt
1/4 cup bicarbonate of soda
rock salt or salt flakes to sprinkle

Warm milk and water to lukewarm (I put mine in a large mixing bowl and gently heated them in the microwave).  Place warm milk, water and yeast in large bowl and leave for about 5 minutes.  Add olive oil and about 3 cups of flour.  Mix to a soft dough.  Knead for about 10 minutes, gradually incorporating more flour - I didn't measure this as Sylvia was busy sprinkling flour every which way!  Scrape out the mixing bowl.  When dough is smooth and not sticky, place in bowl and cover with a damp tea towel.

Leave dough to rise for 1-2 hours until doubled in size.  (Mine was done after 1 hour.)  Punch down and cut into 12 pieces.  Briefly knead/shape each piece into a small ball and place on a lined tray about 10 cm apart.  As discussed above, I found it hard to get my buns off the tray to boil and once baked so maybe the tray needed greasing too?

Cover buns with a dry tea towel.  Leave to rise for another 1-2 hours until doubled in size.  (Mine took an hour.)  Towards the end of the buns rising, fill a large saucepan about 10-12 cm with boiling water (I did a bit more than this because I didn't read the instructions).  Gradually add the truckload of bicarbonate soda (1/4 cup isn't a typo), which will make it fizz like a witches cauldron, and salt.

Now here is where I had trouble.  The recipe said to just take them off and drop them in the water.  I tried but mine stuck to the tray so persistently that they went from smooth fluffy orbs to wrinkled deflated balloons as I gently scrapped them off the tray with my eggflip.  The one that I reshaped into a ball once it came off the tray was the most successful so I would do this in future.

The recipe says to boil for a minute either side but gauging by some soggy bits in buns at the end, I think I would go easy on boiling them and do only about 30 seconds each side.  Watching them in the boiling water was quite a lot of fun.  Getting them in and flipping them over and removing them was a puzzle.  I found the slotted eggflip most helpful.

Now the recipe says to make a cross at the top of each bun.  I tried but you can see it wasn't easy.  Top right corner is my favourite bun.  Sprinkle with rock salt (I used flaked salt).  Bake at 200 C for about 20-25 minutes.  The buns should get a deep golden brown.  Cool on a wire tray (NB Mine stuck to the tray and needed my slotted eggflip to get them off the baking tray).  Leave at least 10 minutes after they come out of the oven before eating.

These pretzel buns are wonderful warm out of the oven.  I froze a few and grilled (broiled) the ones that were still hanging about the next day. 

On the Stereo:
The Count Meets the Duke - Duke Ellington and Count Basie

Quik wok - fast and friendly in the city

A few weeks back we were in the city, looking for rye flour, trying on clothes, and buying sprinkles for Dolly's cakes.  As always, before we knew it, it was time for lunch and the queues at the Hopetoun Tea Rooms were snaking out the door.  I spied some chips in the Centre Way Arcade which upon closer inspection were actually tofu fish sticks.  By the time I realised my mistake we were committed.  It turned out to be a very good choice.

Having a child with very plain tastes in food is tricky when eating out.  Chefs and cafes just want to wow you with their combinations of flavours.  Sylvia decided she wanted yellow noodles.  I asked the young woman behind the counter.  She was very accommodating and even made some suggestions.  Sylvia turned up her nose at fried rice and spring rolls.  I checked if they had any plain tofu.  They didn't.  Sylvia got a plate of boiled hokkien noodles and fried tofu.  She ate quite a few noodles.  Some days just having any food in her belly (that isn't chips or sugar) is an achievement.

As well as being child friendly, the place was very vegetarian friendly.  Many of the dishes were available with a vegetarian version.  I liked the above message on the wall, extolling the virtues of hawker food.  These meals were indeed quick and cheap.  I chose a vegetarian pad thai.  The serving was huge, filled with vegetables, tofu and noodles - and delicious.  It was exactly what I wanted.  E was very happy with his lemon chicken too.  Free tea was available and the smiles also came easily.

At the end of the meal, Sylvia was fascinated to look at this lucky cat (Maneki Neko) and the food in the bain marie.  We really enjoyed our meal.  It was just right for a quick meal on the run.  I was pleased to discover another lunch place for our infrequent trips to the city.  We will be back!

Quik Wok Asian Kitchen
Shop 12, 259 Centre Way
Collins Street
Melbourne City
03 9650 1095
Facebook Page

Baked beans - that recipe seems very familiar

 

In our house we love a fry up but it has been a long time since I have summoned my energy in the morning.  When I found out that Fathers Day was the same day we were going to have lunch with my family, I promised E that I would make him a fry up before we left.  I have made baked beans a few times before but have bookmarked a few recipes to try.  Fathers Day brunch was the ideal opportunity.

The recipe for Smoky Baked Beans was one from Veganomicon that I had seen on both Where's the Beef and Veganise This.  Cindy had used tinned beans and Mel had used dried.  I had good intentions to follow Mel's lead but Saturday was so busy with Fran and John's party and making cherry ripe cake pops that I ended up using tinned beans.  As it was, I found myself making these in the evening around dipping cake pops in chocolate and watching the excellent new hospital drama, Monroe.

I was rushing around to get the beans cooking before I sat down to dinner in front of Munroe and misread the time that the beans needed to simmer on the stovetop.  Hence my beans were a little more stodgy than Cindy and Mel's looked.  I was grateful for their advice regarding the sweetener.  Cindy advised that the recipe was very sweet, as American recipes are wont to be.  Mel halved the golden syrup.  I did too but I still had to add extra salt and found it too sweet.  It may also be that I think the original recipe may have used molasses which is quite bitter as well as sweet.

Our brunch was very very good.  E had requested a fried egg.  This is a bit outside my area of expertise but I did my best.  The potato scones and veggie sausages (just from a packet) were nicely done.  We ate later that I had intended but it was just as well.  We ate lunch at 2.30 because other family members were juggling in-law commitments.  Though the beans were quite sweet, I still found them delicious on toast for dinner on Sunday night and with bangers and mash on Monday night.

I am sending this post to Steph of Vegan about Town for That Recipe Seems Very Familiar..., an event that she is holding to celebrate the 2 year anniversary of Planet VegMel.  For those who are not familiar with it, Planet VegMel is an aggregator blog.  It collects posts from Melbourne vegan blogs (and vegan-friendly blogs like my own).  This is an amazingly welcoming group of bloggers who make great food.  It is a fantastic place to see what others are eating - have met many great bloggers both virtually and at potlucks.  There is even an upcoming potluck to celebrate the anniversary.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: Isabella's Cafe - lighthouse gourmet
This time two years ago: Superhero Cake – Kapow!
This time three years ago: In Search of the Green Smoothie
 
Smoky baked beans
Adapted from Veganomicon via Where's the Beef and Veganise This

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, diced finely
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 x tin of cannelini beans (I used 1 cannelini and 1 lima beans)
1 x 400g tin diced tomatoes
2 - 4 tbsp golden syrup
2 teaspoons mustard powder
1 - 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup water (optional but necessary if you misread the timing)

Preheat the oven to 180C. Heat the olive oil in a oven proof casserole dish, add the onions and fry for about 10 minutes or until slightly browned. Add the garlic and stir through for a minute. Mix in the tomatoes, golden syrup, mustard powder, salt, allspice, and smoked paprika - only add a little golden syrup and salt and taste to check if you need more.  Simmer for about 10 minutes until the tomatoes are softening (oops I did 30 minutes and added the beans at this point). 

Add beans to the tomato mixture. Cook in the oven for an hour, stirring once about half way through (I didn't stir). Remove bay leaf and serve warm.

On the Stereo:
With my little ukelele in my hand: oh how she could play the ukelele (disc 2): Cliff Ukelele Ike Edwards

Cherry Ripes for We Should Cocoa

Fathers Day weekend was a big one for the family.  On Saturday we had Fran and John's wedding party and on Sunday we had a big family lunch to celebrate birthdays and my mum heading overseas, as well as Fran and John being in town.  I had planned to make Dan Lepard's Cherry Ripe Slice for ages.  When it came to making it, I wanted a gluten free option.  I decided on a Cherry Ripe version of cake pops.  They went down a treat! 

Firstly let me mention the cafe the Fran and John chose for their party.  The Famous Blue Raincoat was hidden away in a little suburban shopping strip in the inner West of Melbourne.  I loved the funky decor indoors and the cute courtyard with fragrant jasmine and painted walls.  The menu seemed to be vegetarian-friendly.  With lots of people to catch up with and Sylvia keeping me on the my toes, I didn't eat that much.  The trays of finger food looked lovely.

I had planned to start on the Cherry Ripe Slice before the party.  My usual disorganisation found me starting on them while Sylvia ate her dinner.  Once I had decided against the slice, I thought I would just make Dan Lepard's cherry-coconut filling and roll it in chocolate.  However he called for 600g of glace cherries.  I am not such a fan of these super-sweet cherries and baulked at buying 6 x 100g packets of cherries.  So I only ended up buying 300g.

Even so, 300g cherries made the mixture very pink.  I misread the recipe and used more condensed milk than I should.  This made for very sticky mixture.  I had to have a tub of water beside me to keep my hands damp to make it easier to roll the balls.  Using the advice of Helen, I pushed icy pole sticks into each ball before they went into the freezer.

One of the biggest challenges was to fit the balls with sticks in the freezer.  Mine just seems choc-a-bloc lately.  It didn't help that the space I made was so stingy that I knocked some of the sticks as I put them in.  With the soft filling, the sticks were already a little wobbly.  Maybe thinner sticks would work better but the only ones I have found are so expensive.

The next challenge was how to dry the chocolate.  When I previously made cake pops, I put them in little cupcake papers without sticks.  It seemed that if I just dried them upside down they would look odd shaped (and the few I did dry upside down had a flat head that I wasn't so keen on).  I had no styrofoam to stick them in but I did have a blob of green playdough that my mum had made for Sylvia.  It meant that the sticks could dry upright for a few minutes before I put them upside down in the tub.  I still had a few falling off the stick, but I think these were the ones that had been out of the fridge too long and lost their firm shape.  Melted chocolate is brilliant for keeping them on the stick - once it dries.

We took them down to my parents place - an hour in the car.  I worried how they would travel without being in the fridge but they were fine.  I think these can be served at either fridge or room temperature - and would keep quite a while in the fridge (based on my observations of how long condensed milk keeps in the fridge).

My mum served them upside down on a plate.  They were served alongside regular family favourites - pavlova, sponge cake and caramel slice.  I love the idea of serving these "cake pops" with the balls at the top - maybe even stuck into a cake or brownie - but it probably would make them harder to pick up.  The plateful went quickly.  Everyone was so intrigued by them and kids loved the sticks. 

This is Sylvia's stick.  She loved them.  The pink inside made them fun but I knew that my family would just love the combination of condensed milk, coconut and chocolate - how could you go wrong.  I mentioned that I thought next time some chopped glace cherries would add a little more texture.  My brother Andy told me not to bother.  The other variation I think might be possible, is to make these vegan by using frosting instead of condensed milk.

We had a lovely time in Geelong.  Sylvia loves playing with her cousins.  They played hide and seek around the house and then went to the park at the local school where the kids played football, pirates and spies.  Sylvia was happy with the slide.  I loved this mural on the playground wall.  If I was still at school, this is where I would like to eat lunch every day - with cherry ripe cake pops in my lunchbox!

I am sending these cherry ripe cake pops to Chele of Chocolate Teapot for this month's We Should Cocoa.  This event is celebrating the end of its first year of chocolate challenge by Chele and her partner-in-cocoa - Choclette of Choclogblog.  The theme is a virtual birthday party.  I am sure these little cherry ripes would be great at a party, and Chele being an ex-pat Aussie, will appreciate that they are inspired by one of Australia's favourite chocolate bars.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: Port Fairy - a welcome break
This time two years ago: Spring Beans
This time three years ago: A not-so-nasty pasty

Cherry ripe cake pops
inspired by Dan Lepard
Makes about 40

250g coconut
200g condensed milk (next time about half)
300g glace cherries (next time more)
500g x 70% dark chocolate (next time a bit less)

Place coconut, condensed milk and glace cherries in the food processor and blend.  (Next time I might put 300g in the food processor and finely chop 100g to stir in for a bit more texture.)

Find a board or plate that will fit in your freezer with space for the lollypop or icy pole sticks (see my pictures above).  Cover board or plate with baking paper.  If you can have a few small plates, or even a few strips of baking paper, that would be useful because it is easier to handle them if you can take out a few balls at a time.

Roll mixture into balls about the size of a walnut and place on covered board or plate.  Keep your hands damp with a bowl of water at your side to stop the mixture sticking from your hands as you roll the balls.  Stick a lollypop or icy pole stick in each ball.  (If you don't have any sticks, you can just makes them as truffles rather than cake pops - they will still taste excellent.)  Place board or plate of balls with sticks in the freezer to firm up.  I left mine for 3 hours but read that you could do this in about 1 1/2 hour!

Once you are ready to dip the balls, melt the chocolate in the microwave until liquid.  If possible, have somewhere to have them sit upright and dry once the chocolate is on them.  Styrofoam is ideal but I found playdough worked for me.  I did wonder about using a glass they could sit in.  Also have any sprinkles read, if you want to decorate them - I used red sparkles.

Now take out the balls, preferably in small batches.  (NB I took all mine out at once and found that I needed to put the undipped ones back in the freezer about halfway through to firm and cool again.)  Use stick to dip them in the chocolate - mine wasn't very deep so I had a spoon to help cover them.  Let chocolate drip and then quickly (because they will set quickly) scatter some sprinkles on top.  Place cake pops upright to dry for a minute or two if possible (I used playdough) and then transfer to a tub where they can be stored upside down.  Keep washing your hands if they get chocolate on them or they will smudge the sticks.

If you have any melted chocolate leftover (I melted 500g and had a bit leftover) you can spread it on a sheet of baking paper and firm up in the fridge.  Feel free to decorate as you wish with sparkles, nuts, coconut etc to make chocolate bark.

Keep cake pops in the fridge - ours didn't last long but I think they would last well in the fridge.  They can be served cold or at room temperature.

Update: I have made these a few times - see my cherry ripe pops in 2015.

On the Stereo:
Gulag Orkestar: Beirut