Annual epic Easter Lunch. At dinner time.

Each year we host an Easter lunch for those of our friends who don't have better plans.  It is quite a flexible affair - the invitation goes out widely and the number of attendees varies.  One year we had four guests, last year every single person I invited attended (it was a tight fit).  This year we had a respectable turnout of fourteen guests. 

Last year we made 'chipoussil' (quail inside a poussin inside a chicken).  We were concerned that it would be difficult to top that but then a friend suggested a theme - Kiwiana/ old recipes.  She particularly wanted to try blancmange and flummery.  This seemed like a good idea and we then moved the lunch to dinner so that young children could nap and then come for an early dinner.  I actually forgot that we were doing that, and in my head everyone was coming for lunch.  So everything was prepared and ready for 11.30am!  I very sheepishly informed my husband of the delay!

It was a fun and joyful day.  Everyone rose to the occasion - some of the dishes are pictured below.  My favourite memories are:

• trying to explain to my Chinese New Zealander husband the purpose of devilled eggs;
• the children pulling about my daughter's bed to jump on the mattress, make it 'snow' by sprinkling stickers (and then toys) over the stair rail;
• working out that the terrine would taste nicer if it was hot, contained flavouring spices and had other ingredients (we followed a recipe from the seventies that was a little stodgy);
• making a turducken style terrine would be fun;
• whatever happened to the legs of the fifth chick sitting on top of the beautiful sponge cake
• and finally, having two sleepy cuddles with a very beautiful eight week old baby.

Dyed devilled eggs sprinkled with curry powder!

Chicken liver parfait, going into the oven.

Roast lamb, kumara salad, bean salad and the devilled eggs

Blancmange

Blancmange

'Fruit cake of a sham bride.'

Hedgehog biscuits

Pork and pheasant terrine.

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Guinness chocolate cake, Guinness Beer Braid and Beef and Guinness Pie

This is probably three blog posts but, as I've written them over a week they have been amalgamated.  I don't really drink alcohol so I'm often behind in discovering the impact of different alcoholic beverages on cooking/ baking.   I have a new favourite beer!  It is Guinness.  I've never actually drunk any, but it is a damn good cooking liquid.

My favorite blog Lovely Wee Days tests recipes and shares the results. It is the first place I search now when I want a good cake recipe. They have reviewed and baked quite a few, and it is a good location to find a special occasion cake.

I'm often disappointed by chocolate cakes - particular dry cakes that look chocolate-y but do not taste great.
For this reason I was intrigued by their post mentioning Guinness Chocolate Cake.  It is a Nigella Lawson recipe and quite possibly one of the simplest cake recipes that I have come across.  Yum Yum Yum.  The cake has a depth of taste that ordinary chocolate cake lacks.  It is not overly sweet, and it is very moist.

I didn't feel like properly lining a cake tin as I was rushing to get this cake in the oven before the creche pick up.  So I used two single use cake rings from my beloved Daiso store in Auckland.  It is the first time that a product from the store hasn't lived up to expectations!  Both rings burst and luckily the oven tray below caught most of it!  The slightly less depleted one will go to work with my husband tomorrow.  Health professionals of course advocate healthy, well balanced lifestyles.  But a decent chocolate cake left in the break room will be gone by lunchtime I'm sure!

Nigella suggests a cream cheese icing in her recipe - as an homage to a glass of Guinness with a foamy white head.  Lovely Wee Days went with a fudge icing.  What do you think?  I'm torn.

Also, I don't really drink so I'm curious as to why there appears to be a solid plastic ball in the can of Guinness.  Funky manufacturing defect, standard can of beer inclusion or unique to Guinness?  I'm sure a few seconds of internet research would clarify things, but I prefer to ponder over the options.








This rather blurry photo was taken late in the afternoon on my iPhone.  I'm quite intrigued by how it has come out.

I only needed 250ml of my 440ml can of Guinness so decided to use the last of my fresh yeast and beer to make beer bread.  You can use any basic bread recipe, substituting beer for water.  Lagers make a light bread, darker beers lead to darker breads. ETA: if you are using a bread maker to knead the dough as well as using fresh yeast then let the yeast froth up with the sugar/ honey and water first.  Then throw in the other ingrediants.  This way you will know if your fresh yeast has worked.

This was delicious.  The beer and fresh yeast were an amazing combination.  Sooooo good.

Now I only had three cans of Guinness left so decided to make Beef and Guinness Pie.  I added two teaspoons of tomato puree, and about a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar.  My husband went nuts for this meal.  Pies are quite the special treat and he was very happy to take a leftover pie to work the next day.  These pies can even be frozen with the uncooked pastry lids for later baking, but since I used store bought pastry we just microwaved the leftover pies then reheated them in the oven to crisp the pastry.  If only the girls liked casserole mix! 

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French cooking failures

I really do like to try cooking new things; this does not mean that we sit down to gourmet meals each night.  It is generally 'family friendly fare' to suit the tastes of the whole family.  Most often it is some kind of stir fry (like tonight - chicken kebabs, stir fried veges and rice).  Every now and then though I fall for the advertising in the glossy mags and try to come up with some kind of effortlessly glamorous meal.  Last week was French food.

It started with a new cookbook at the library - a Women's Weekly French Food cookbook.  Everything looked pretty good, and I've never had a problem with a Women's Weekly recipe before.   I decided on pate and rillette.  The supermarket had no chicken livers so it was pork belly rillette by default.  Pork belly, wine, and herbs were simmered slowly for a long time (I used a slow cooker).  Red onion and Italian parsley were finally diced and added at the end.  The pork belly was finely shredded and the mixture (including all the fatty liquid in the slow cooker) is mixed together and spread on fresh bread or toast and traditionally served with gherkin. It was disgusting.  I love pork belly, and so does my husband.  I think he called it horrible.  We served it up to some friends over for a Rugby World Cup viewing session.  Two declined to comment, one friend described it as tasting like cat food "but I like cat food" she said as she had another, and final taste.

It even looks beautiful, packaged in a glass preserving jar.   I can't bring myself to throw it out.  But out it is going.  I haven't achieved a glamorous dinner, but I'll just revel in the knowledge that the house is actually tidied (and I got as far as dusting/polishing).  I record this information because as soon as the girls get up in the morning it will be back to normal!