Hello Miss Silvia & Mr Rocky

Miss Silvia

Yesterday i welcomed two new friends into the household. They were Miss Silvia and Rocky, both of the Rancilio family.

After a long time reading reviews and searching through websites for information about espresso machines, grinders, and all the assorted paraphenalia that goes along with using and maintaining them, i finally decided to jump in.

I found the Silvia and the Rocky both on ebay, via a private seller. The photo’s looked good, the price was reasonable compared to what i’ve seen and the dealer seemed reputable and so i went for it. I dropped my bids in with a week left to go, and lo and behold if a week later i had won both auctions !

So yesterday they arrived and after a quick check to ensure they were in good working order Sharon and I got them working.

The first few shots left a lot to be desired, and after some grind level changes on Rocky and a few back flushes on Silvia we
were back in business. I won’t say the espresso is great yet… but it’s definitely on its way.

Rocky

Update: Got some great info from Dan the seller, and done a lot more reading on how to get the Silvia setup right for consistently good shots. Sharon is kicking my butt so far… She made an awesome short macchiato for me last night, don’t think i’ve tasted one as good in recent memory.

Check out the photos if you want the real deal :)

Salmon with Fresh Herb Risotto

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This is a simple recipe i came across recently while eating at Lamonts. It was a lot smaller in portion size when i had it there… I seem to have an uncanny knack of making meals a lot bigger than they need to be, but then if it tastes good, i want plenty…

Ingredients:

Risotto

  • Arborio or Carnaroli Rice (roughly a cup per person)
  • Spanish Onion (diced finely)
  • Leek (diced finely)
  • Fresh Garlic (crushed)
  • 500 mL chicken stock
  • A handful each of basil, italian parsely, coriander, chives (basically any fresh green herbs you can get your hands on) roughly chopped
  • 1 – 2 cups dry white wine
  • salt and fresh cracked black pepper

Salmon

  • Fresh Salmon fillets (sliced into relatively thin strips)
  • Salt & Pepper and extra virgin olive oil to season
  • Fresh lemon juice

Directions

Risotto

  • Place your chicken stock into a large pan with an equal amount of water and bring it to the boil, then turn down the heat and let it simmer
  • Fry the onion, garlic, and leek in a pan with some olive oil until soft but not browned
  • Add the rice to the vegetables, stir the rice through the mixture, coating the rice
  • Add a cup or so of white wine to the mixture, letting it absorb into the mixture
  • Turn the heat to medium low on the pan and start adding the stock into the rice a little at a time
  • Continue adding stock (i use a ladle full each time) until the rice begins to absorb and the liquid and gets softer
  • Test the texture of the rice to see if it is soft enough. You want a little bite to it, or else it will turn into mush
  • As the rice is nearly ready throw all your herbs into the mixture, and stir them through.
  • Done !


Salmon

  • Season your salmon slices with olive oil, sea salt flakes and cracked black pepper
  • If you can, curl the salmon slices into a roll, it should look like a small cylinder at the end. Use a toothpick to fasten the ends if they won’t stay put
  • In a hot pan, add a splash of olive oil and sear the salmon on the top and bottom. A minute or so on each side should be plenty
  • Drizzle some lemon juice over the salmon as its cooking, lime juice would also add some nice flavour.
  • When the salmon is cooked to your liking, serve the risotto into a large plate and add the salmon on top.
  • Garnish with more fresh herbs and some crème fraîche if you like

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Enjoy with a nice glass of white wine (perhaps a Semillon).

Chilli Coriander Kangaroo

From the side
This is my first recipe post, so please be nice :)

Ingredients:

  • Kangaroo Fillets – If you’re in Australia, these should be available in most supermarkets or butchers, i have no idea how readily available Kangaroo steak is anywhere else in the world, but ask your local gourmet butcher
  • Fresh Coriander – As much as you like
  • Dried Chilli (or fresh if you prefer)
  • Fresh lime juice
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Kifler Potatoes
  • Sweet Potatoes
  • Baby Spinach

This isnt really a recipe, more a way of preparing Kangaroo that i think enhances the flavours of the meat. Kangaroo is quite a gamey meat, with strong flavours, and they tie in very nicely with the lime and coriander. The chilli is there just to give it a bit of a kick.

So firstly season your Kangaroo with good extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper… Then chop your coriander roughly, combine it with your chilli and as much lime juice as you… (Say 30ml if you like numbers), and rub the mixture all over the Kangaroo, massaging it into the meat. You can also use this mixture (along with a good dose of olive oil) as a marinade for more intense flavours.

Then once the meat is properly seasoned, drop it onto your hot place and cook to your desired level of completion… ( Which should always be medium rare :) )

While you’re doing all that, you will have cut your potato and sweet potato into thin slices and laid them on a roasting tray.
Cover them with olive oil (and optionally some crushed dried herbs like coriander seeds, fennel seeds) and salt and pepper, and roast them in the oven until nice and crispy.

Once the vegetables are cooked and the kangaroo done (and has been left to rest), serve the mixture up, placing your vegetables in a stack on top of a small bed of baby spinach (or roquette).

Slice the kangaroo fillets into elegant little portions and lay them on top. Pour the delicious limey/chilli pan juices over the meat.

Now sit down and enjoy with a nice glass of full bodied red wine. I’d suggest an Australian Shiraz.

Bon Appétit !

The time has come

Well i’ve procrastinated over starting this site for far too long. So now it’s the point where i’ve got to be happy with what is here, and start writing, because after all… how useful is a website with no content ??

In progress are a bunch of restuarant reviews and some recipes i have put together over recent months.

Look forward to hearing about great food, great wine, and the occaisonal overly opinionated rant about whatever comes to mind.

I must thank the creator of this wordpress theme, it looks lovely, and once again i have done my best at rorting someone elses work for my own gain :)

Cheerio,
Matt

Getting there

I am getting closer to having this be something i will use regularly. Setting up my theme and plugins now so that i have everything the way i like, including gallery plugins for showing photos nicely, and various other little bits and pieces.

My perfectionist streak is coming out in a somewhat disturbing way, which means i may not get anywhere for a while yet, until i’m really happy with how it’s all looking.

Time will tell.

Just testing

Putting this site up for me to play with, and to finally have a “home” on the web. I’m not what this site will be used for, but i’m thinking about turning it into a kind of food & wine review site. With links and reviews of restuarants and recipes that people have come up with etc.

Of course this all depends on whether i can be bothered putting in the effort to make it all worthwhile. I guess i have taken the big step of finally registering a domain name… So i guess we’ll see what happens.

Bye for now.

Matt