Fusion

My food buddy and I spent the past weekend in sunny and humid Durban. We were lucky enough to have spent our nights at a really posh hotel out in Ballito. We arrived there quite late and got the shock of our lives, while trying to check in. There was an extra zero added to the price tag. Shock. Horror. That would've made our stay 10 times more expensive than what we had budgeted. After a few sweaty palms and near-asthma attacks, the hotel staff soon realised that they made the mistake and World War III was soon averted.

Anyway, I made dinner reservations for us at an interesting restaurant in Musgrave called Fusion. The menu has Heston Blumenthal [and all his crazy scientific culinary wizardry] written all over it which got me really excited.

My buddy had the Thai Style Seared "Dishwasher" Beef Fillet that was slow-cooked for 4 hours at 48ºC in a dishwasher, served sliced on crushed potato and seasonal greens with a red wine sauce.

He claimed it was average and had nothing pleasant to say about it besides the well prepared veggies - what a shame.

I had the Fragrant Asian Duck which was a duck breast served on some really amazing red cabbage cooked in red wine vinegar and a duo of 4 hour slow-cooked thigh and leg on a crushed potato, with a plum reduction and a star anise, ginger, honey, orange, soy and sechwan jus - mouthful huh?
The jus, crushed potato, leg and thigh were heavenly. I really really enjoyed them. The breast was a little chunky and too chewy for my liking but edible nonetheless.

Dessert was just as interesting [sadly, I couldn't have any and had to rely on the buddy]. I made him order the Afrox liquid Nitrogen boiled ice cream. :-) What an interesting experience. They brought a metal base filled with liquid Nitrogen and covered it with a glass cup which they filled with liquid ice cream. The ice cream solidified as it hit the cup and bubbled with steam at the table. Fascinating stuff. My buddy says it was sweet tasting but too hard which made it difficult to consume. Perhaps best as an idea rather than an item on the menu. I was impressed regardless of this minor detail.

All in all, our experience was positive, The setting is beautiful, the restaurant was cosy and the staff really friendly. I think I'd go back there again if I was in the neighbourhood...

A novel idea

Source: People of Walmart

I do apologise for the picture quality (not my pic and not my idea). And if you can't figure out what's going on in the pic, some genius is trying to bake chocolate chip cookies in his car.

Best idea ever. It would also work very well in the scorching South African heat. Definitely must try it out. NOT! :-)

Happy's

I was asked to bake for my cousin's baby shower and decided to make vanilla cupcakes with a creamed cottage cheese topping. They really spread a lot of happiness so from here on, they shall be called Happy's :-)


Ingredients

• 2 cups self raising flour
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 cup milk (I used fat free milk)
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup creamed cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon of red food colouring

Method

• Sift the flour in a bowl. Add to this the sugar and salt
• Add the canola and milk and mix (an electric beater makes life easy)
• Break the eggs into a cup, add vanilla essence to them, mix them and add to the above mix and beat for approximately minutes until batter is smooth
• Fill cupcake cases with the mix and bake for approximately 25 minutes in a preheated oven at 180C (this should yield about 24 cupcakes)
• Once baked, allow to cool for approximately 30 minutes
• In a separate bowl, mix the cottage cheese, icing sugar and cream until smooth (don't beat too hard as the mixture should be slightly runny)
• Add the food colouring and mix until blended and a light pink colour
• Pour a tablespoon of the cream mix onto the top of each cupcake. The mixture may run down the cupcake which is ok
• Top with garnish of your choice

Dinner with Mpho

I caught up with a friend I hadn't spoken to in a while today. We had a long chat about work,  love and everything else in between. While we were chatting I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude. Good friends are hard to come by and I know I don't appreciate them nearly enough as I should. [note to self]
I also came to the realisation that the plethora of social media we're exposed to gives us a false sense of friendship and makes us believe that we're connecting with people when we really aren't. Sad but true...

Anyway, I cooked a hearty meal and even baked for my dear friend. We both enjoyed it thoroughly :-)Dessert, as always, was my highlight and was really easy to prepare


Ingredients

• chocolate cake [see recipe from Chocolate sandwich 7 Feb 2012]
• 1 cup of raspberries
• 1 cup creamed cottage cheese
• 1 cup of cream
• 1 cup icing sugar

Method

• In a martini glass, place a layer of chocolate cake
• Mix the cottage cheese, cream and icing sugar in a bowl - pour a small portion[approximately 3 tablespoons] over the first layer of chocolate cake
• Place a few raspberries on top of the cream mix
• Add another layer of cake, cream mix and top with raspberries

There'll be plenty left over for seconds, thirds...[certainly not for weight watchers] :-)

For ninjas only

My uncle got married yesterday so I spent most of my weekend in Mpumalanga and didn't cook at all. I did, however, rediscover an old childhood favourite - Mayo.
It's name is deceiving and is nothing like mayonnaise. [in fact, ninjas pronouce it Maaah-yo] It's a drinking yoghurt and comes in 3 flavours. I really had forgotten how much I love the stuff and I wanted to buy it in bulk but got reprimanded by my food buddy. He gave a death stare and painfully pointed out its potential effects on my physique. [party pooper]

I've never seen this at my favourite chain food store and also don't know any non-ninjas who know about this delicacy. That leaves me to one conclusion - it's for ninjas only... :-)

Smoked fish and chicken

This is what boredom does to people. Very funny nonetheless :-)

Chocolate sandwich

I went jogging today after a very very VERY long break. So I decided to reward my body for all its hard work today by making the sweetest most decadent chocolate sandwich. Every corner, every crevice, every inch of my body clapped in appreciation :-)

Ingedients

• 1 cup self raising flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons cocoa
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3/4 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup creamed cottage cheese
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 1/4 cup butter (softened)
• 1 bar of white and dark chocolate

Method

• Preheat oven to 180C
• Sift the flour and cocoa in a bowl. Then add the sugar, canola oil, eggs and milk and mix well
• Pour mix into a greased baking tray and spread evenly. Bake for approximately 25 minutes
• In a separate bowl, mix the icing sugar, cottage cheese and butter
• Once the cake is baked, allow to cool, remove from baking tray and place onto a flat working surface 
• Cut cake in half, spoon filling onto the one half of the cake
• Top with the other half of the cake and cut into sandwich-sized triangles
• Place onto a plate and garnish with white and dark chocolate shavings
• Enjoy :-)

Sweetie pie

I wrote a love letter to my food buddy today. It was simple, sweet and short - and was made out of yummy flaky puff pastry. And it reads as follows...

:-)

Bite size yummies

These are super easy to make and you don't have to go out of your way to get the ingredients - just use whatever you have in your pantry from simple cheddar cheese and tomatoes to avo and balsamic vinegar.

Ingredients

• 1 cup minced beef
• 1 quarter finely chopped onion
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon chutney
• chili powder (as much as you can handle)
• half garlic clove (minced)
• chopped parsley
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil
• 1 egg
• roasted red peppers(roughly chopped)
• loaf of sliced bread (I used whole wheat)

Method

• Mix the minced meat, egg, onion, garlic, herbs and spices  together in a bowl
• Roll into little balls, place inside a cookie cutter and flatten into small patties
• Heat a pan on the stove with olive oil and fry the meat until brown on both sides
• Use the same cookie cutter to shape the bread
• Top the bread with the patties, red peppers and garnish with parsley

Pretty as a picture

I've been struggling with skin imperfections for most of my life and I haven't really found the perfect skin products. I've tried some these natural remedies and they really work. The best part is that I have most of these ingredients in my kitchen cabinets!

Get rid of blemishes


Blemishes are usually temporary and can be caused by anything from strong sun and wind to an excess of alcohol. A light dab of either sandalwood or turmeric powder mixed in a little water should clear the problem. Both of these have unique antiseptic properties. Carrots, known for their high vitamin A content, also make a wonderful treatment. Simply grate a carrot, squeeze out a teaspoonful of fresh saffron-coloured juice and then wipe over the blemished areas. Rinse off after half an hour.

Improve the appearance of enlarged pores

Enlarged pores are caused mainly by the over-stretching of pores that then fill with excess oil. Any part of the body that stretches beyond its capacity may refuse to return perfectly to its original shape and size and pores are no exception. The problems can be resolved by temporarily by closing the pores with astringents, so that the skin looks toned. Buttermilk or watered-down yoghurt, a popular drink all over India known as chaas or lassi, works wonders, closing the pores to create the illusion of finely textured, perfect skin. Use it as a daily face wash and splash with cold water afterwards.

Get perfect foundation

If you want your make-up to last, there are two things you can do. First splash ice-cold water on your face and neck after you have applied foundation to set the base. Gently pat dry and continue your routine. Second, seal your look with a fine dusting of loose face powder. Use a soft, fat brush and blow away any excess before you start on your face. Blend well to eliminate any powdery patches.

Treat dark circles with Malti's under-eye remedy

My aunt Malti swears by the juice of mint although she can't explain exactly how it helps. The almond oil has gentle lubricating properties, which help to dispel fine lines and dark patches due to dry skin. Honey is an ideal energising food and according to Ayurveda has a tremendous healing effect on the body.

5 fresh mint leaves

1 tsp almond oil

1/2 tsp honey

Crush the mint with a little water in a mortar. Strain the juice and add to the almond oil and honey. Stir till completely mixed and apply a tiny amount under the eyes before going to bed.

Use a traditional skin polisher

This is used by women all over India. The turmeric acts as a natural cleanser and disinfectant and will not turn your skin yellow. The chickpea flour sloughs off dead skin to give unimagined silkiness and the milk will firm up the entire body. Even the tiniest of babies are massaged with this body polisher, but do be careful if you have a history of allergy to wheat or lentil flour - use rice flour instead.

1 tablespoon chickpea flour

Pinch of turmeric

About 2 tsp of milk

Mix all the ingredients together and rub on to wet skin instead of soap.

Treat skin with masks

For dry skin - This mask conditions dry skin and leaves it supple and radiant.

1 egg white

1 tsp honey

1 tsp full-fat cream

Mix together all the ingredients and pat on to the face and neck. Rinse off after 20 minutes.

For normal skin - The protein in milk powder leaves skin petal-soft and the rosewater tones and refreshes.

2tbsp milk powder

Rosewater to mix

Combine the ingredients into a thick paste and apply to the face and neck.



Excerpted from India’s Beauty Secrets by Monisha Bharadwaj, Kyle Cathie