Tasty Bits of 2010

For a year that started with so much promise I find it sad to admit that it wasn't a particularly good year. Through the course of the year it seemed I was perpetually ill but thankfully, things are looking up. I learnt that the peripherals don't really matter as long as you feel healthy.

When it comes to cooking, these are the dishes, in no particular order, that made me happiest in 2010.

Hidden Orange Christmas Pudding

When I first read about Heston's Hidden Orange Christmas Pudding, three things immediately struck me - one, it was a brilliant idea, two, since I'm not in England I'd never have a chance to taste it and three, If I wanted to experience it I'd have to make it myself.

This post is the story of how I made my own Hidden Orange Christmas Pudding.

Mistletoe Tea

Mistletoe is synonymous with Christmas but there is a way of utlising it all year round in the form of Mistletoe tea.

Cheese: Limited Release Double Brie

New Years is just around the corner - why not celebrate with a luscious limited release Double Brie from King Island?

Read More

Baked Camembert

Usually my cheese posts are concerned with the cheese as its own entity but this post is a little bit different. I'm going to take a rather commercial cheese, in this case the South Cape Mini Camembert



and turn it into a molten case of cheesy goodness!

Weekend Herb Blogging #264 - Recap

It's hard to believe that we've almost come to the end of 2010 but we can see it off with the last Weekend Herb Blogging for the year.

Naturally there's a festive feel to this week's recap and I'm sure you'll find something to suit your tastes - be it sweet, savoury or something to sip.

As usual I've presented the entries in order of their main ingredient. 

Hibiscus Tea Poached Pears

I'm hosting the last Weekend Herb Blogging for the year - it will be taking a short break before resuming on January 3rd. This week for WHB I have Packham Pears.

Whisky Ginger Cake

The last ginger cake I made left me with an unintended consequence - it left with a taste for ginger cakes that had me searching high and low for other ginger cake recipes to try. I finally settled on a recipe by Dan Lepard that uses glacé ginger and whisky.

Cheese: Udder Delights Triple Cream Brie

We all know and love Jindi Triple Cream but how does this South Australian stack up?

Read More...

Weekend Herb Blogging #264 Hosting

It's the last edition of Weekend Herb Blogging for the year and this week I will be hosting.

The rules are simple - you have the week to post about any herb, fruit, vegetable, flower, seed, nut, grain or plant. The post can be informative, spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Your entry should be submitted by the following time:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 9am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) DS Time (as this is busy time of the year I'll be accepting entries until midday melbourne time)

Send your posts to whb AT cookalmostanything DOT com
with WHB#264 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your name
• Your Blog/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Attach a photo: 300px wide

You can also head over to Brii's blog and check out the Italian version of Weekend Herb Blogging.

Black Lentil and Speck Crostini

Huan from Eat.Read.Live is back to host this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I've found Black Lentils.

Cheese: Hindmarsh Valley Chevrotin

South Australia gains another cheese maker....Read More.

Weekend Herb Blogging #263 Hosting

This week Huan from Eat.Read.Live returns to be our host.

To participate:

Post about any herb, plant, fruit, nut, seed, spice, vegetable or flower - Your post can be informative, spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Post should include the phrase Weekend Herb Blogging and a link to the rules and to your host.

You can post anytime during the week but remember to email your host by the deadline.

Send your email to toolietallie AT gmail DOT com
with WHB#263 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your Name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• A photo: 400px wide

Entries must be received by:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 9am Monday - Melbourne (Aus)Time

Don't forget you can also take part or catch up on the offerings found on the Italian version of WHB organised by Brii. This week the host is Kristina from Tutto a Occhio.

Stem Ginger Cake

Rachel from The Crispy Cook is hosting this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I'm getting into the holiday spirit with Stem Ginger in Syrup.

Linguine with Spring Vegetables

Presto Pasta Creator, Ruth from Once Upon a Feast is hosting this weeks celebration of all things pasta and while it has been a little time since I last joined in, I knew I just had to do something with these gorgeously fine examples of artisan Linguine.

Cheese: Jindi Vintage Cheddar

A cheese with universal appeal - Vintage Cheddar.

Read More...

Weekend Herb Blogging #262 Hosting

This week we welcome back Rachel from The Crispy Cook as our host of Weekend Herb Blogging.

The rules are simple - post about any herb, fruit, nut, seed, vegetable, flower or plant. Your post can be informative, spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Entries must be submitted by:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 9am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) DS Time

Send your posts to oldsaratogabooks AT gmail DOT com
with WHB#262 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your name
• Your Blog/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Attach a Photo: 250px wide

Remember you can also take part or catch up on the offerings found on the Italian version of WHB hosted by Brii.

Chamomile Tea Poached Cherries

Weekend Herb Blogging remains in Melbourne where the always lovely Anh from A Food Lover's Journey is hosting. This week I finally get to enjoy the start of Cherry season.

Weekend Herb Blogging #260 - Recap

Thanks again for joining in to celebrate the 5th birthday of Weekend Herb Blogging. Through the week dishes have been arriving from all corners of the globe to take their place on our celebratory table.

As usual, I have presented the dishes in order of main ingredient.

Weekend Herb Blogging #261 Hosting

The 5th birthday recap is almost ready to be posted but before I do that, time to mention our next host. This week we welcome back Anh from A Food Lover's Journey.

As always entries should be submitted by the following times:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 9am Monday - Melbourne (AUS) DS Time

If you would like to join in, these are the simple rules:

You have the week to post about any herb, vegetable, fruit, flower, nut, grain, seed in fact, if it is plant based then it's eligible. Your post can be informative - spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Send your posts to anhnguyen118 AT gmail DOT com
with WHB#261 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your location
• A photo: 300px wide

This week also marks the start of the Italian version of Weekend Herb Blogging which is being run and co-ordinated by WHB regular, the wonderful Bri. You'll be able to find the details at Briggis recept och ideer.

Mulberry and Blood Orange Cocktail

This week I'm hosting the 5th Anniversary edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and for the occasion I'm celebrating with the arrival of Mulberries.

Polenta and Almond Cake

I seem to have a fascination with using polenta in cakes - there's been little Blueberry polenta cakes, a Polenta Poundcake, one with Polenta and Ricotta and even a serving of lemon polenta cookies. It's not all that surprising that when I spied a recipe for a polenta and almond cake in La Cucina Italian that I'd soon be making it.

Woodside Cheese Wrights Salt Bush Chevre

A South Australian Goat cheese coated in salt bush flakes...Read More

Weekend Herb Blogging turns 5

It may have started as Kalyn said, by accident but we have now reached edition 260 which marks Weekend Herb Blogging's fifth anniversary!

Firstly, I'd like to thank our wonderful hosts who volunteer their time to support WHB:
Anh, Anna, Astrid, Chriesi, Chris, Cinzia, Dhaggit, Graziana, Huan, Janet, Katie, Laurie, Lynne, Maninas, Marija, Marillyn, Prof. Kitty, Rachel, Simona, Susan, Winnie and Yasmeen

but the most important thanks go to you - those that join in to share their knowledge and their recipes - without your participation there wouldn't be a WHB.

Each week through Weekend Herb Blogging we get to travel the world, experiencing ingredients that we may not know, or learn new ways of treating old favourites. It is very much a global event.

So I am very pleased to announce that Weekend Herb Blogging will be expanding - from WHB#261 an Italian version will be running alongside the current version. Regular contributor Brii from Briiblog will be organising the event so not only will we able to enjoy the english version you'll be able to explore the world of Italian blogs and Italian ingredients.

As part of this 5th birthday celebration, everyone that enters this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging will go into the running to receive one of my favourite cookbooks from this year. As I couldn't split the two, whoever gets drawn out of the hat will be able to choose from

Yotam Ottolenghi's Ottolenghi: The Cookbook or Plenty

If you want to join in these are the simple rules:

You have the week to post about any herb, vegetable, fruit, flower, nut, grain, seed in fact, if it is plant based then it's eligible. Your post can be informative - spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Entries need to be submitted by the following times:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 9am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) DS Time

You can find the corresponding time in your area here.

Send your posts to whb AT cookalmostanything DOT com
with WHB#260 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Please include a photo sized: 300px wide

Cherry Chocolate and Stout Loaf

The lovely Susan from The Well-Seasoned Cook is hosting this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging. Here in Victoria, we're just about to start the all too brief cherry season and while I haven't got fresh cherries I have found something that's almost as good - dried Royal cherries.

Cheese - Main Ridge Cilia - Take 2

It's a cheese do-over - what's the verdict?

Read More...

Weekend Herb Blogging #259 Hosting

As we near the end of out another year of Weekend Herb Blogging, it's great to welcome back Susan from The Well-Seasoned Cook as our host.


To participate:

The rules are simple - post about any herb, fruit, seed, nut, vegetable, flower or plant. Your post can be informative, spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Entries must be submitted by:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 9am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) Time

You can find the corresponding time in your area at this link.

Send your email to thewellseasonedcook AT yahoo DOT com with WHB#259 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your Name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Attach a photo: 400px wide

Garlic and Rosemary Mushrooms

Weekend Herb Blogging heads off to Italy where Cinzia from Cindystar is hosting. This week I'm celebrating new-season garlic.

Weekend Herb Blogging #258 Hosting

Weekend Herb Blogging heads off to Italy where Cinzia from Cindystar will be our host.

While you can post anytime during the week, you must email your host by the following deadline:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 9pm Sunday - London Time
• 10pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 8am Monday - Melbourne

To participate:

Post about any herb, fruit, vegetable, flower, seed, nut, grain or plant. Your post can be informative - spotlight a particular ingredients and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Send your posts to cmc AT cindystar DOT it with WHB#258 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• A photo: 300px wide

Cauliflower Cake

It's great to welcome back Chriesi from Almond Corner as our host of Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I've had cravings for cauliflower.

Turkey Meatball Baguette

When it comes to my cooking ability, I can safely say that my mother takes most of the credit for providing that solid foundation of knowledge but she also taught me to appreciate the power of leftovers.

With time seemingly at a premium these days, it makes sense to actually plan to have leftovers - the cost to produce a larger meal, both in physical labour and monetary value is negligible.

In my household, when it comes to meals, I always have one eye on tomorrow. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the curry leftovers and today I have another use for those turkey meatballs I made.

There's two obvious ways to extend their life - make more to begin with or alter your meatball to pasta ratio. What I make with those extra meatballs and their wonderfully rich sauce is an utterly satisfying lunchtime offering - warm silverbeet and turkey meatball baguette.

Weekend Herb Blogging #257 Hosting

Chriesi from Almond Corner returns to host this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging.

To participate:

The rules are simple - post about any herb, fruit, seed, nut, vegetable, flower or plant. Your post can be informative, spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Entries must be submitted by:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 9pm Sunday - London Time
• 10pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 8am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) Time

You can find the corresponding time in your area at this site.

Send your email to almondcorner AT gmail DOT com with WHB#257 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your Name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Attach a photo: 300px wide

Pearl Barley Pudding

The always lovely Chris from Mele Cotte is hosting this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I've turned my eye to pearl barley.

Bucatini with Turkey Meatballs

Claire from Chez Cayenne is hosting this edition of Presto Pasta Night, the long-running weekly event dedicated to all things pasta started by Ruth from Once upon a Feast.

It's been a while between pasta dishes but I'm back with the rather distinctive Bucatini.

Cheese: Bruny Island 1792

A deliciously creamy washed rind from Tasmania.

Read More>>

Weekend Herb Blogging #256 Hosting

It's a real pleasure to have Chris from Mele Cotte hosting this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging.

Entries must be received by

* 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
* 10pm Sunday - London Time
* 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
* 8am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) Daylight Saving Time

If you haven't taken part or it's been a while since you last joined in, here's a quick summary of the rules.

You have the week to post about any herb, fruit, vegetable, nut, seed, flower or plant. Your post can be informative - spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Complete information can be found here.

You can post any time during the week but remember to send your email by the cut-off time.

Send your entries to:
melecotte AT gmail DOT com
with WHB#256 in the subject line and the following:

• Your Name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• A photo: 250px wide

Wartime Chocolate Pudding

Prof Kitty from The Cabinet of Prof. Kitty returns to host this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I'm looking at carrots.

Chicken Curry Pies

I don't know why it is but Sunday nights just seem the perfect time for a comforting curry. Whether it's chicken or beef, the flavour experience far outweighs the physical effort of making it. Best of all it's the type of dish you can easily arrange to make more than you need because leftover curry is even tastier.

But this post isn't about making the curry - it's about what you do with your leftover curry and rice.

Weekend Herb Blogging #255 Hosting

This week, Prof Kitty from The Cabinet of Prof Kitty returns to host Weekend Herb Blogging.

Entries must be received by:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 8am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) DS Time

You can find the corresponding time in your area here.

To participate:

Post about any herb, plant, fruit, seed, nut, vegetable or flower - your post can be informative and/or include a recipe where your featured ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe. The complete rules can be found here.

Posts can be written anytime during the week but you must email your host by the deadline.

Send your emails to profkitty AT gmail DOT com
with WHB#255 in the subject line and the following:

• Your name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• a photo: 300px wide

Remember, there's only 5 more weeks until WHB turns 5!

Jannson's Temptation

Yasmeen from Health Nut is back to host Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I continue my potato adventure and uncover a new variety.

Rhubarb Crumble Slice

My last bunch of rhubarb was quite enormous and while some of it went to make the Rhubarb and Apple Chutney, more than half of it lay unused.

Now it would have been very simple to make some sort of rhubarb crumble but there's a recipe I've been meaning to try out - this jammy oaty biscuit. I've played around with it a little - made my own rhubarb jam using the same technique found in the chutney and upped the crumble nature of the dish to create this Rhubarb Crumble Slice - consider it as a crumble you can hold in your hand!

Weekend Herb Blogging #254 Hosting

This week we welcome back Yasmeen from Heath Nut as our host of Weekend Herb Blogging.

The rules are simple - post about any herb, fruit, vegetable, flower or plant.
Your post can be informative, spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Entries must be submitted by:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 8am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) DS Time

You can find the equivalent time in your area here.

Send your posts to YasmeenHealthnut AT gmail DOT com
with WHB#254 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your Name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Attach a photo: 350px wide

Mushroom Soldiers

Simona from Briciole is hosting this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I have that regal sounding "fun-guy", King Oyster Mushroom.

Hamburgers with a Twist

When my mother decided to make hamburgers I knew that they wouldn't necessarily bear any resemblance to the mass produced variety we'd seen on television. The one thing I did know is that they would be delicious and they did indeed fulfil that criteria.

In fact, they were so good I still make them now. What impressed me at the time was the inventiveness of my mother and that they came with a hidden surprise - a deliciously gooey core of cheese.

Cheese - Main Ridge Cilia

Main Ridge Cilia is a Camembert-style goat cheese that might not appeal to all tastes.

Read More...

Weekend Herb Blogging #253 Hosting

This week we welcome back Simona from Briciole as our host of Weekend Herb Blogging.

The rules are simple - post about any herb, fruit, seed, nut, vegetable, flower or plant. Your post can be informative, spotlight a particular ingredient and/or include a recipe where your chosen ingredient is one of the primary ingredients in the recipe.

Entries must be submitted by:

• 3pm Sunday - Utah Time
• 10pm Sunday - London Time
• 11pm Sunday - Rome Time
• 8am Monday - Melbourne (Aus) Time

You can find the corresponding time in your area at this site.

Send your posts to simosite AT mac DOT com
with WHB#253 in the subject line and the following details:

• Your name
• Your Blog/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Attach a Photo: 400px wide

Rhubarb and Apple Chutney

Winnie from Healthy Green Kitchen is hosting this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and this week there's still time to enjoy Rhubarb.

Cheese - Jensens Red

The colour should be a dead give-away that this is a washed rind cheese.

Read More...