FoodieChat

A gift from my boss from Harrods – this posh round golden edged pink (my favourite!) box contained 8 perfectly rounded dreamy powdered strawberry and vodka flavoured white chocolate truffles…mmmmm

Some not so fresh strawberries in my fridge were begging to be given a second chance – a chance which manifest in Bill Granger’s strawberry souffle found in last week’s good living.  I halved the recipe with no trouble at all, and filled the ramekins to the brim – and then some.  Seventeen minutes later – woah!! These pink mushroom looking souffles emerged from the oven – so high I’m surprised they didn’t fall over!  It was a great recipe – easy peasy – but I realised I don’t like souffle! Oh well.  It’s like pavlova but without the crust – but the strawberry flavour was wonderful.

Oh well, onto the second dessert – an apple and rhubarb crumble.  I’ve made crumble before, but never cooked with rhubarb due to all those warnings of the leaves being poisonous – I sure didn’t want to kill someone or myself with a dessert! So, mustering my guts, I bought some leaf-less rhubarb, and crossed my fingers and chopped. Hmm. I realised that it wasn’t really necessary to cook the filling on the stove AND the oven because the rhubarb kinda dissolved into the apple.  Nevertheless – not bad. I’ll know for next time!

Bills’ souffle recipe can be found on the Sydney Morning Herald website here:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/recipes/ask-bill/2007/07/16/1184438207235.html

This petite bakery – in size but definitely not clientele – is as well known by the locals lucky enough to live nearby as the foodies and other followers who have heard of this secret (including Kylie Kwong apparently).  Be prepared – there will be a queue.  But it moves extremely fast as people generally know what they want.  Happily, no one wanted to sit at one of the three tiny tables indoors just inside the window; and we grabbed those and watched the beautiful people pour in.  We tried the pizza ($8) – vegetarian, or proscuitto, which the staff offer to heat up for you.  It gave a glimpse of the bread that it is very well known for; and wasn’t heavy at all.  Of the many gourmet pies and sausage rolls, we tried the chicken pie ($4.50), filled with tender braised chicken and vegetables with a slighty touch of spice.

But as we horsed down our savouries what we really had our eye on was the patisserie treats, which today were two varieties of creme brulee tart ($3.80 each)- ginger creme brulee, or strawberry and vanilla.  The ginger tart was dotted with pistachios and the top crispy and wafer thin, enclosing the creamy smooth filling which was delicately infused with ginger.  The vanilla and strawberry one was slightly less set in the middle but had a lovely strawberry surprise in the bottom.

And finally, the rhubarb and almond tart; or the quince tart beckoned in the window begging to be taken home to be enjoyed later.  The bakery has a set schedule of which breads are available when.  There is plenty of surrounding street parking.

Recipe from an amazing cookbook where every recipe I’ve tried works.  The tang of fresh lemon combined with the fluffy cakey top and smooth custard-like bottom is a terrificly light but satisfying post dinner treat. (more…)