Anomnom

July 4, 2012
by laura
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Diving into the Deep Blue at Purple Poppadom

Last weekend my Dad came to visit as he was picking up my little brother from uni (for the final time. He’s now (nearly) a graduate, it’s slightly terrifying). Anyway, as part of the visit he kindly offered to take me and my best friend out for dinner, and we all fancied trying somewhere new. I tweeted asking for recommendations and immediately got a few responses, almost all of which featured Purple Poppadom. I’d already heard plenty of great things about it so it seemed like the perfect choice.

As we entered the restaurant we were all really impressed by the decor. It was pretty obvious from then on that this was not a standard curry house, but something all together more modern and luxurious. (The little creative part of my brain was equating purple to all its rich and royal connotations. Whether it was intentional or not, it was a great choice).

For the summer season, Purple Poppadom are serving a special Deep Blue menu which features a wide range of exciting fish dishes along with a few meat and vegetarian choices. The menu includes a tasting menu to showcase some of the best bits it has to offer, but we decided to go a la carte so we could choose exactly what we fancied.

Streets of Mumbai

To start I went with Streets of Mumbai, which was a play on traditional chaat dishes. It was served as a trio of mini dishes – a tangy herby puffed rice, a potato cake served with spiced chickpeas, and a small crisp pastry filled with yogurt. I was instructed by the waiter to pop the pastry in my mouth and eat it in one go, which resulted in a fantastic bursting sensation. All three components were delicious but my favourite by far was the aloo tikki potato cake which was wonderfully spiced. I could have easily eaten a whole plateful of them.

Scallops Side by Side

Both my dad and my best friend went for the Scallops Side by Side starter which, perhaps obviously, featured scallops cooked in two ways. The first was coated in a spice crust and pan-fried, whilst the second was served in a coconut curry sauce. Both were extremely delicate, with the sweet natural scallop flavour allowed to shine. We were all particularly impressed with the plating of the starters. Purple Poppadom obviously value presentation very highly and it really helps them to stand out even more over the competition.

Goan Pork Vindalu, Dal, Coconut Rice and Naan

Our mains were a mix of traditional and more modern dishes. I plumped for the Goan Pork Vindalu. I love pork in curries and it’s a rare treat to find it in restaurants. Plus I was intrigued by the idea of a vindaloo as it’s not something I’d ever order in a normal curry house for fear of my mouth exploding. It was a perfect choice; the meat was beautifully tender and it was full of chilli flavour with just enough heat to give it a pleasant tingle. My dad chose The Halibut Islands with Alleppey sauce, and my best friend picked the Tiffin Seabass, both of which went down exceedingly well.

Tiffin Seabass

To accompany our curries we had some dal, coconut and steamed rices, and a chilli and coriander naan which was recommended to us by the waiter. The rices were fluffy and smelled divine (they tasted divine too). The naan was also an extremely welcome addition. Rather than the thick, pillowy naan you normally get this was quite thin and covered with chopped chillies and coriander leaves. It may sound a little odd, but in the best possible way it reminded me of an Indian pizza!

Chocomosa Anand

Despite being quite full already, we couldn’t resist the call of the dessert menu, and we decided to share two between us. We ordered the Chocomosa Anand which is the chef’s speciality dish of rich chocolate-filled samosas served with vanilla ice cream and caramelized bananas, as well as Mango Three Ways which included a mango creme brulee, mango ice cream and mango salad. Everything was utterly delicious, but my favourite part may have been the mango salad. It was very simple but the flavour of the mango was so wonderfully sweet; nothing like most mango you tend to get.

Mango Three Ways

Overall we were all incredibly satisfied with the meal, and we would love to go back very soon. The brilliant food was only improved by excellent service. The manager was present in the restaurant throughout, asked us how we had enjoyed our meal, and gave us his own business card at the end. This was a lovely personal touch that really embodied what seems to be a great effort on their part to provide an excellent customer experience.I now understand why everyone constantly recommends Purple Poppadom; from now on I shall be doing the same!

June 1, 2012
by laura
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Friday Favourites: A Perfect Picnic

This weekend I’m heading to the Over the Air conference at Bletchley park for two days of talks and camping, and as soon as I get back we have a double bank holiday for the Queen’s Jubilee. I’m keeping fingers crossed the weather stays nice as it would seem like a huge waste to not have at least one picnic! These are my favourite recent summery treats that would be just perfect for eating al fresco.

Hard Lemonade by My Fudo – Pimms tends to be my go to drink for picnics, but this hard lemonade sounds like a refreshing change, and like it will be a whole lot more delicious than the bottled stuff I drank all those years ago!

Tricolour Chipotle Bacon Potato Salad by Boulder Locavore – A picnic isn’t really complete without potato salad, and this one has both chipotle AND bacon. You literally could not go wrong.

Watermelon, Feta and Basil Quinoa by How Sweet It Is – I tend to develop a bit of a watermelon addiction every summer; I can never get enough of its juicy crunch. This salad sounds like a wonderful combination.

Sesame Ginger Chicken by The Endless Meal – This yummy, sticky-looking chicken sounds like it would be just as good hot or cold. Ideal for making dinner and keeping leftovers for a picnic the next day.

Raspberry Lemonade Bars by Food Doodles – You can’t have a picnic without a sweet treat, and these wholegrain bars sound like a great balance of healthiness and flavour. I can never resist something tart and lemony.

Pizza Hummus by Once Upon a Cutting Board – Natalie of Once Upon… has posted quite a few awesome-sounding hummus recipes and I think this one sounds like it might be the best yet.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

May 31, 2012
by laura
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A Food Blogger’s Defense of Chain Restaurants

Let me start off this post by saying that I love to read other food blogs. Following the adventures of my fellow food bloggers, whether they be review blogs or recipe blogs or baking blogs or anything inbetween, is one of my absolute favourite ways to spend my free time. I spend hours entrenched deep in my Google reader, soaking in blog posts that are inspiring and entertaining and that frequently make me hugely jealous that I’m not eating that exact meal at that exact moment.

BUT.

I tend to find that there is an unpleasant trend amongst a lot of food bloggers to be completely against chain restaurants of any kind. Not in a fair, considered way either, but in a really quite snobby way, as if chain restaurants are just beneath them. Now this just plain pisses me off.

Personally I fail to see what is supposed to be so bad about chains. The arguments that I tend to hear really don’t hold up all that well -

There’s one in every town? They all have the same menu? They all look the same?

Quite frankly, you could make the same arguments about a lot of independent restaurants. How many restaurants have you been to lately that feature cream walls, dark wood and a ‘modern take on classic British’ menu? Yeah, I thought so.

Now I’m not saying here that every chain restaurant is good. Of course chains vary, just as independent restaurants do. Some chains are just plain terrible. But equally there are chains that are perfectly decent, and there are chains that are honestly great. The sheer fact that a restaurant has other branches that share the same look and menu essentially has zero sway over whether that restaurant is going to be any good or not (you could make the argument that in order to become successful enough to have a chain they would at least have to be good when they first started).

Chains can offer a level of comfort and security that a lot of people enjoy. There’s a lot to be said about being able to pop into Pizza Express and ordering your favourite Fiorentina and dough balls. Yes, trying new places can be amazing, but trying new places can also end horribly, and when you just want to have a nice relaxing evening with friends, it is priceless to know that you can choose a restaurant where you can pretty much guarantee an enjoyable meal.

On top of that, meals at chain restaurants can be legitimately fantastic. In the past few months I’ve been privileged to experience some wonderful meals in chains. My dad took me out to Cafe Rouge to celebrate me getting my new job and every mouthful of the bread batons with garlic butter, boeuf bourguignon and tarte tatin was utterly delicious. We also enjoyed lovely wine and excellent service.

Miller and Carter steakhouse recently had our custom twice in just over a week because the food was so damn good. Incredible steak, excellent sides and huge portions all added up to a superb value meal.

Hell, even Hooters really impressed me. For their audience and environment their food is perfect. The wings are succulent, crisp and spicy, and the fries are as hot and crunchy as you could want. I wouldn’t hesitate for a second to go back to any of these restaurants again.

Now I would never want food bloggers to start heading to chains all the time and leaving the local restaurants neglected. I’m absolutely for supporting local businesses, for trying out new places, for eating regional dishes and ingredients. I love to hear about different places and get inspiration about where to eat out soon. I would just like to see chain restaurants considered fairly, rather than being totally maligned before someone has even tried them out. This anti-chains stance isn’t big or clever, it’s just a bit arrogant, and frankly you’re only missing out by not giving some of them a try.

May 4, 2012
by laura
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Friday Favourites: Fabulous Fruits

The weather here has been just atrocious lately, and whilst it’s made me want to eat comfort foods like pies and stews, it’s also given me lots of cravings for delicious fresh fruits. I think perhaps my body knows that the weather should be nice by now and is rebelling against the rain! These are my favourite fruit-filled recipes from the past few weeks:

Fizzy Mango Mint Popsicles by Plateful – These tropical lollies sound like the perfect way to pretend that it’s summer. I love the twist of adding soda although I’d swap the sprite for sparkling water.

Mandarin Chicken Salad by Once Upon a Cutting Board – My favourite dinner salads always involve chicken and fruits, so this Asian-inspired salad sounds ideal.

Blood Orange Sangria by Epicurean Mom – I’ve always loved blood oranges, so this delicious-looking version of sangria would make an awesome punch to enjoy on my balcony if it ever gets dry enough!

Blueberry Maple Refrigerator Oatmeal by Baltic Maid – I’ve been trying out a few different ways of making oatmeal lately, and this refrigerated version looks like it would be just great for a summer weekend breakfast.

Pineapple and Black Bean Salad by Spontaneous Housefrau – I’m not sure when I’ll get the chance to make this yummy looking salad as my flatmate hates pineapple, but I can imagine how good it would taste!

March 23, 2012
by laura
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Friday Favourites: Pies and Puffs

Everyone knows how much I love pastry. It tastes delicious, is ever so comforting and makes just about every single meal I can think of better. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve come across lots of awesome recipes for yummy pies and puffs so these are my picks for Friday Favourites this week.

Almond Choux Puffs with Caramel Ice Cream by Kokken 69 – This dessert features crisp choux pastry puffs filled with sweet caramel ice cream and looks like a deliciously different take on your average choux bun.

Egg and Potato Pie by Sweet Paul Magazine – I adore eggs in a pie (I use them in my absolute favourite pie that I make at home) and this pie combines eggs with potato and prosciutto. It sounds perfect for brunch, lunch, dinner, an afternoon snack, 3am…

Chocolate Coconut Cream Puffs by Evil Shenanigans – I have recently developed this sudden obsession with coconut. I had this coconut beer, and a coconut milkshake, and now I am desperately craving these little chocolatey coconut puffs.

Sa Panada by Manu’s Menu – These little lamb and potato stuffed pies are a traditional Sardinian dish and look utterly scrumptious. I just want to dive into one right away.

Apple Pie Moonshine by A Zesty Bite – Ok so this isn’t technically a pie, but it is supposed to taste just like one. I’m a sucker for a spiced cocktail and this is definitely one to try soon.

March 12, 2012
by laura
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Breakfast + Burger = Awesome

One of our favourite things is Brinner. There is something about having breakfast foods at dinner time that makes them taste infinitely better than if you eat them in the morning. I’m a little fussy though and always insist that the meal has to be at least partly savoury. I love sweet foods, I do, I cannot get enough of them, but there is something about having an entirely sweet dinner that doesn’t sit right with me. This means I’m always on the hunt for delicious (savoury) breakfast and brunch dishes that I can make in the evening.

I also love to make burgers. Homemade burgers are just a revelation compared to storebought. They are full of flavour, and so much juicier, and they really take barely any time to make, and best of all you can add whatever the hell you like to them to vary the taste. So when meal planning the other day it suddenly occurred to me… Why not make breakfast into a burger? The thought was so immediately right that I wondered how I had never thought of this before.

To make the burger really taste properly breakfasty I made the patties out of sausage and added chopped bacon and onion for extra morning goodness. I wanted to make sure that I got all of the breakfast elements in there so I used an English muffin instead of a bun, and then topped the burgers off with fried eggs and roasted tomatoes. Basically it was like a whole plate of breakfast combined into one, delicious, hand-held meal. I served mine with chips to play up the burger side of the meal, but it would also be totally amazing with hash browns or homefried potatoes if you wanted to go for the full breakfast experience.

The end result was awesome. My flatmate even said it was the best burger he had ever eaten. You can’t really ask for better feedback than that!

Breakfast Burgers (Serves 4)

6 sausages (I used Cumberland)
3 rashers streaky bacon
1 small onion
1/2 tsp butter
2 tomatoes
4 eggs
4 English muffins (I used cheddar cheese muffins for extra flavour)

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F)

Take the skins off of the sausages and put the meat into a large bowl. Mash the sausagemeat with a fork.

Chop the bacon into small pieces and add to the bowl.

Finely chop the onion and put it into a microwaveable bowl with the butter. Tightly cover the bowl with clingfilm and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Then add the onions to the bowl.

Mix the sausage, bacon and onions together well. Divide the mixture into 4 and make each piece into a patty.

Thickly slice the tomatoes, put them on a baking sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put in the oven.

Heat a large frying pan and add the patties once it is hot. There is no need to add any oil or butter to the pan. Fry the patties for 4-5 minutes on each side until browned. Take the patties out of the pan and put on a baking sheet. Cover with foil and put the tray in the oven for 10 minutes to finish cooking.

Whilst the burgers are finishing off, fry the eggs (I used the same pan as the burgers but make sure to scrape out any little pieces of meat or onion as otherwise these will burn), and toast the muffins.

Remove the burgers and tomatoes from the oven. Add condiments of your choice to the muffins (I used mayonnaise and yellow mustard), then add the burger and top with the tomatoes and the egg. If it floats your boat you can also add a slice of cheese to the burger too. Serve and enjoy!

March 9, 2012
by laura
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Friday Favourites: Fancy New Breakfasts

One of my favourite things about the weekend is having the time to make a proper breakfast rather than just cracking out the same old toast or cereal. I love pretty much any kinds of breakfast foods, be it sweet or savoury. Basically if it involves any kinds of eggs, bacon, sausage, syrup or baked goods I’m there with bells on. These recipes are all exciting breakfast ideas I’ve come across over the past couple of weeks and that I can’t wait to try out soon.

Hash brown omelette skillets by Lana’s Cooking – These cute individual skillets are a complete breakfast in one. Shredded potatoes are topped with ham, tomato, cheese and eggs and baked.

Caramel latte pancakes by Once Upon a Cutting Board – My favourite drink at a coffee house has to be a caramel latte, and this turns it into a stack of delicious pancakes. Coffee pancakes are topped with whipped cream and caramel sauce for a totally indulgent treat.

Creamed honey by Honest Cooking – Who knew that you could cream honey? This tells you how – just whip honey in your mixer and over time it turns into a sublime looking cream which would be perfect for topping toast or pastries.

Bacon apple cheese bread by Sweet Twist of Fate – Any of these four foods would already be a winning start to a breakfast, so combining bacon, apple, cheese and bread together can only be a brilliant idea.

Kringel cinnamon swirl bread by Just Love Cookin – Not only does this sweet cinnamon bread sound yummy, it also looks utterly beautiful because of a great trick of rolling, cutting and twisting the dough. Definitely one to try as an alternative to cinnamon buns.

March 6, 2012
by laura
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Breakfast Bakes: Raspberry Banana Oat Muffins

As an avid baker, it even came as a surprise to myself when I realised recently that I had never made my own muffins. This had to be put right immediately, so I donned my apron and headed to the kitchen.

Not only are muffins extremely easy, they can also be made pretty healthy compared to most other baked goods. These are full of fruit and heart-healthy oats, as well as being low in fat and sugar, which makes them perfect for a breakfast treat. The banana keeps the muffins super moist, even a day or two after you bake them.

This muffin recipe is really flexible, so you could easily change it up and add other ingredients that you fancy. You could swap out the raspberries for blueberries or chopped strawberries, you could add a quarter cup of chocolate chips or chopped pecans, or you could change the vanilla for almond or coconut essence for a little change of flavour.

Raspberry Banana Oat Muffins (Makes 12 large or 18 small muffins)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup rolled (porridge) oats
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup mashed bananas
1 cup frozen (or fresh) raspberries
1 tbsp flaked almonds
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp demerara sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and prepare a muffin tray with paper liners (or you can use silicon baking cups like I did).

Sift the flour into a bowl and mix in the oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In another large bowl, mix the banana, egg, oil, milk and vanilla extract.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir gently until just combined. Add the raspberries and stir a couple more times.

Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle the top of each muffin with a few flaked almonds and a pinch each of cinnamon and demerara sugar.

Bake for 15-20 minutes (until a knife or skewer comes out clean) and enjoy!

February 28, 2012
by laura
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Cutting Edge Knives

Recently I had the pleasure of trying out some fantastic knives courtesy of Cutting Edge Knives. Cutting Edge Knives is an online store dedicated to hand-picking the best Japanese and European knives around. I got to test out three of their favourites – the Masakage Kumo Santoku, the Masakage Yuki Gyuto 8in, and the Stelton Pure Black Large Chef’s Knive. They have also kindly given all my readers a fantastic 10% off when they buy anything in store – just enter the code 1796FOODS at the checkout to get your discount!

When I opened my package, a little envelope fell out containing a note and some plasters, explaining that they send them out with all orders because it’s hard not to cut yourself on your first use. I thought this was a lovely little extra which made me laugh and absolutely made for a great opening experience. (As it turns out I actually didn’t cut myself using any of these knives, though I did manage to nick myself twice with a bread knife that week so the plasters came in handy anyway!).

On first glance I was immediately drawn to the two Japanese Masakage knives. They come in elegant blue boxes, and the knives inside are protected with Japanese newsprint sleeves. That really added to the excitement of the unboxing, and gave them even more of an authentic feel.

The Kumo knife is stunningly beautiful – I would happily just hang that on my wall and look at it all day. The blade is covered in tiny ripples caused by the layering of the stainless steel cladding, and it’s topped off with an unusual octagonal handle made from rich, dark rosewood. The Yuki knife is gorgeous as well. Here the blade is covered in tiny little flecks from the hand working and the edge develops a patina, which looks a little like rust. That might put people off but it’s completely natural, and I found it totally endearing and just made me want to take even better care of it. For my own personal taste, the Stelton did not have the same instant ‘wow’ appeal, but then again I would pick something old and Japanese looking over something modern and minimalist in just about any aspect of life. If you are a fan of chic, streamlined design then this knife would fit the bill perfectly as the matt black finish is very striking, and the blade blends effortlessly into the handle.

To give the knives a decent trial, I decided to test them on some fruits and vegetables that I regularly chop, but that other knives often make a huge drama of – apples, onions, and the most messy of them all, tomatoes. Using the Japanese knives on the tomatoes were a revelation. Even with my other ‘good’ knives I find that tomatoes often end up a big pile of mush on the chopping board, and these just sliced straight through with ease, leaving not a single drop of spilled seeds. Their combination of super sharp blades and lightweight handles also made them ideal for finely chopping the onion.

The Stelton on the other hand is much heavier and wasn’t as well suited to the more delicate tasks. However it really came into its own with the apple and chopped it in half with practically no effort from me at all. For more heavy-duty jobs this knife would work great, and I feel like it might finally solve my lifelong struggle to easily cut a butternut squash!

In conclusion, I certainly preferred the Kumo and Yuki knives and I would happily buy either of these any day. Their combination of beauty and performance made them ideal additions to my kitchen and they would make a perfect present to anyone who loves to cook (or just to yourself). The Stelton was not so much for me, but for a fan of minimalist design it would work fantastically in a really modern kitchen.

To buy any of these knives, or to see the rest of Cutting Edge Knives’ fabulous range just visit their website, or you can follow their updates on Twitter. Remember to use the voucher code 1796FOODS for 10% off all of your purchases.

January 13, 2012
by laura
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Friday Favourites: Diet-Busting Treats

In the first of my Friday Favourites, I’m rounding up some recipes for treats so delicious-sounding they make me want to throw my New Year diet out the window and just eat ALL OF THE CANDIES.

Nutella Truffles by Cooking on the Weekends – These truffles not only look super scrumptious but sound really really easy to make. If it’s actually possible to make Nutella any better, this is probably it.

Rosemary Cheese Straws by The Ginger Snap Girl – I always get tempted by savoury treats too and these yummy looking cheese straws are made with the love of my life: puff pastry.

Churros by Food Glorious Foods – Churros are probably my favourite carnival snack but I’ve never tried making them at home. You can’t really beat fried dough + cinnamon + chocolate sauce so I’m definitely going to give them a go.

Praline Ice Cream by Local and Great – I got an ice cream maker for Christmas and so far I’ve been making healthy frozen yogurt but this sounds perfectly sweet, creamy and nutty and an ideal treat to test out on my machine.

Ritz Cracker Peanut Butter Cups by Love Veggies and Yoga – Sweet and salty is just the best combination, and these homemade Reeses-like cups take the saltiness to the next level by adding Ritz crackers which is just about the greatest idea ever.

Toblerone Cheesecake Bars by Once Upon a Cutting Board – This recipe would have been ideal when I was younger and used to get a large toblerone every Christmas. Now I’ll just have to buy one to test out this awesome-sounding dessert.