How to make hedgehog

A couple of weekends ago MTV and I headed up to the snow for the weekend with a group of friends.  Yes, readers in the UK and Europe it does actually get cold in Australia and we even have snow in some mountains including at Mount Hotham which is where we went.  I think the steep price of eating out at ski resorts is a world wide phenomenon and so I decided to make up a batch of hedgehog for snacking on.  You've got to keep your energy up for skiing somehow and a chocolate treat is often the easiest way.

Chocolate hedgehog - ready to be taken to the snow

Middle Park Hotel

The Middle Park Hotel has really transformed itself from the days when I used to live just around the corner and it was a fairly standard pub with parmas on the menu.  These days the place has a polished wooden bar, sports memorabilia on the walls and a modern British menu from chef Paul Wilson.  There's also a strong focus on wine at the Middle Park Hotel with a proudly all Victorian wine list and the pub hosts a regular series of wine dinners, one of which I was invited along to.

Our first wines for the night at the Middle Park Hotel

Good Food Guide 2013 Winners

The annual gongs for The Age's Good Food Guide for 2013 were awarded tonight at a champagne fuelled ceremony that looked very glamorous from the vantage point of my Twitter stream.  Since the Michelin guide doesn't cover Australia a hat in the Good Food Guide is as close as a restaurant can get to the Michelin star system.  

Mandarin dessert at Provenance in Beechworth - Best Regional Restaurant and Best Chef at the Good Food Guide

Purple Peanuts

One of my regular city lunch spots is Purple Peanuts at the bottom end of Collins street.  The food is great plus it's cheap.  The cafe is a little bit quirky with the menus handwritten on pieces of brown paper hanging from the wall and a collection of Japanese toys and lollies.

Miso soup at Purple Peanuts

The Smith

I was not totally surprised to see the girls before me in the queue for the toilets at The Smith to head into the cubicle in a pair.  The Smith is that sort of restaurant.  It's buzzing with a big open kitchen and the place becomes more of a bar than a restaurant as the night gets later.  This makes it not ideal for a quiet romantic dinner and more the venue for a group dinner with friends when you want to continue with drinks in the bar area.

Oysters

Gourmet Chick in the Pyrenees

“I’m off to the Pyrenees for the weekend” I told my friend Madds.  “You’re going to France for the weekend!” he said.  Like Madds many people don’t know that Victoria has its own Pyrenees region about two and a half hours north of Melbourne.  Like the French mountains that it is named for the Pyrenees in Victoria is the home of good food and wine so I jumped at an invitation from the local tourist board to check the area out.

Momofuku Seiobo (Gourmet Chick in Sydney)

Let’s just say that I momofuking loved Momofuku Seiobo.  Australia is lucky enough to have the only Momofuku restaurant outside New York (there’s four in Manhattan - Momofuku Noodle, Ssam bar, Ko, Milk Bar and Ma Peche).  I still haven't made it to the New York Momofukus but became an instant fan of chef David Chang’s genius when I got my hands on the Momofuku cook book last year.

Potato with watercress and bottarga at Momofuku Seiobo

Shed 5

Shed 5 doesn’t sound like a very Greek name but then Shed 5 is a modern take on a Greek restaurant.  Chef Vas Donoudis has a background in Italian cuisine, with a stint at Church Street Enoteca, and initially envisaged Shed 5 in Melbourne’s new South Wharf area as a Mediterranean influenced restaurant.  In the end though Vas’ Greek background won out along with an ambition to provide something different to the traditional tavernas that dominate Melbourne’s Greek restaurant scene.

Fava to start at Shed 5

Mamasita

I've got a hot tip for you.  It's how to get a table at impossibly hard to get into restaurant of the moment, Mamasita.  You may have wandered past Melbourne's most popular Mexican restaurant and seen the queues snaking down the stairs and out the door on most nights of the week but don't be deterred.  The trick is to (a) eat there at lunch or (b) secure eight to ten of your nearest and dearest friends and book the banquet table.

The famous Mamasita corn - is this Melbourne's best Mexican? 

How to make Beef Wellington

I'm currently swept up in Olympic fever so a delivery of Tasmanian beef fillet from Cape Grim Beef made me think instantly of Beef Wellington.  It's a classic British dish after all and at the moment I am feeling inspired by all things British as I spend my early mornings and evenings glued to the television.

Beef Wellington

Two Birds One Stone

Two Birds One Stone got two thumbs up from MTV and me when we visited South Yarra's newest cafe for brunch on the weekend.  The cafe is from the same team behind Three Bags Full but it has much more of a slick and polished look to it in comparison to the industrial warehouse style of Three Bags Full and just about every other cafe in Melbourne.  Everything is white and shiny with tiled walls, plants hanging from macrame baskets and seating split between a big communal table and private booths.

The barista at work at Two Birds One Stone

Gourmet Chick's London Olympics Little Black Book

Isn't London looking lovely at the moment? I am suffering pangs of London-sickness watching the Olympics on television from the other side of the world.  Since London is very much on my mind and the city is flooded with visitors at the moment I thought it was the perfect time to reveal my little black book of London tips.  I've previously posted about my top ten restaurants in London and if money is tight there's my top ten cheap eats as well, but here is my ultimate guide to a "best of" London.

The London Eye - I lived in London for five years and never went on it - whoops. 

How to make passionfruit cake

I've had a few requests for the recipe for the fabulous passionfruit and coconut cake I featured on the Gourmet Chick fourth birthday post.  I actually made this cake for MTV's birthday as well and it's a perfect cake for a celebration but would also do equally as well just as an afternoon treat to have with a cup of tea.  Both the cake and the frosting are flavoured with the passionfruit which gives the cake a double whammy of flavour.  I love how the passionfruit gives a golden yellow hue to the cake and the back flecks of passionfruit seeds scattered throughout the cake and frosting.

Passionfruit cake

Gourmet Chick turns four: plus a Gourmet Giveaway

Today I'm celebrating Gourmet Chick's fourth birthday.  I think blog years are a bit like dog years and so while four years doesn't sound that long, it makes Gourmet Chick a bit of a veteran in blog terms.  Thanks so much to those people who have been reading Gourmet Chick right from the start but also thanks to all my new readers, especially all those who have recently discovered the blog in Australia.  I would like to thank you all for your support with your witty comments, tweets and emails and to those I’ve met through this blog, thank you for your friendship.

Gourmet Chick turns four - recipe coming up soon for this Passionfruit cake