Author: PK
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Himalayan Salt Block Dessert Platter
Cooking on pink Himalayan salt blocks is all the rage at the moment but do you know you can also use them chilled as a captivating serving platter?
I recently bought this salt block for its beautiful pink colouration.
It could not be easier to wow your guests after dinner. Simply pop the salt blocks into the fridge for an hour or two and it will stay cold for at least 30 minutes.
Arrange your treats. In this case I am using a predictable chocolate brownie, double heavy cream and a mint leaf. However I also have a taste surprise up my sleeve. Mandarin segments with a small slices of prosciutto and a mint leaf. The salt from the block hits them first, then sweet sweet mandarin and mint and then salty goodness from the prosciutto!
When you are done don’t forget to clean the salt block ready for next time. Scrape any leftovers off and then wipe the block clean with a damp cloth. Store the block in a nice dry place.
Enjoy,
PK
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DESSERTS
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Anna’s Rosemary And Lemon Chicken
I am always gobsmacked by how tasty Italian cuisine is given the simplicity of many dishes. Anna’s easy chicken marinade is no exception and you won’t believe how tasty it is!
Simply mix chicken pieces with some minced garlic, chopped parsley, a generous amount of rosemary leaves, lemon juice and a few slugs of olive oil.
Season with salt to taste and pop the whole lot into the fridge for a few hours.
Then cook the chicken pieces as you normally would.
I served this lot up with a simple green salad and some chips. I bet it would also go great with Anna’s Fennel Salad.
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ITALIAN CUISINE
MORE CHICKEN DISHES
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Edam Cheese
Edam is a charming and moreish cheese hailing from Holland. Do a quick internet search and you will be told it is an excellent table cheese but not one for melting/grilling. I think it is excellent for both and it goes with almost everything.
Milk
Cow and or goat.
Origin
Holland
Aged
2 months minimum.
Aroma
Milky and grassy and nutty.
Taste
Creamy, mildly grassy with a mild almondy finish. Not particularly salty.
Texture
Semi firm and elastic with no occlusions.
Look
Pale yellow interior with an inedible red wax coating.
Serving
I love it as everything from a table cheese to salads and grilled on bread to pastas and soup.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Like most firm cheeses, Edam is made using variations on common methods for forming such cheeses. It is then pressed and brine salted. The cheese wheels are then wrapped in paraffin wax prior to aging.
Wine
I am not a cheese and wine paring expert. I leave that to the folks at cheese.com and they recommend dry whites or a nice Shiraz.
Resources
Please visit https://cheese.com/ and https://www.littlegreencheese.com/
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SHOW ME MORE CHEESE VARIETIES
COOKING WITH CHEESE
THE FULL GICICI INGREDIENTS LIST
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Jarlsberg Cheese
Jarlsberg is a cows milk cheese hailing from Norway. It is exceptionally versatile and it is just as at home on cheese platters, sandwiches and salads etc as it is cooked, grilled and melted on bread, pasta, pizza, dips etc.
Milk
Cow
Origin
Norway
Aged
Yes, for the most part 3 months. Some varieties are aged longer.
Aroma
Slightly nutty and very mild.
Taste
I get a mild nutty flavour with a buttery finish that is slightly sweet rather than salty.
Texture
Semi firm and smooth. Squeaky on the teeth.
Look
Pale yellow and smooth with a wax rind. Large cavities are visible.
Serving
I like to include this on my tasting and cheese plates and will happily munch on it by itself.
I also like to add slices of it to green salads and it goes great in sandwiches and toasties.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Handmade or commercialised versions of traditional methods are used. The curds are pressed into wheels and then brine salted. The wheels are then wrapped in cheese wax prior to aging.
Wine
I am not a wine paring expert but the team at cheese.com say to try this with a nice Merlot.
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SHOW ME MORE CHEESE VARIETIES
COOKING WITH CHEESE
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Bombay Brasserie’s Chicken Shorba Soup
Making this spicy Indian chicken soup was a labour of love. It was however very worth the effort.
The recipe comes from an collection called The Bombay Brasserie Cookbook. It tastes and smells amazing with a hearty but flavoursome kick to it.
I love the colours of the ingredients and also that it uses chicken frames to get the base flavour. Talk about thrifty!
From this.
To this heavenly result.
Steps
- Boiling the chicken frames
- Frying the ingredients for half an hour
- Simmering for 1 hour
- Thickening and straining the soup
- Serving
Ingredients
Halved from original recipe.
- 2 chicken frames
- a good slug of olive oil
- 1 brown onion, sliced
- 2 large tomatoes, diced
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 6 garlic cloves, diced
- 3 small green chilies
- 2 sprigs coriander
- 1 sprig fresh mint
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1/2 Tbsp Garam masala
- 1/2 Tbsp ground turmeric
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
- table salt, to taste
- 2.5L water
- 1/2 Tbsp gram flour
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
Equipment
- 1 chef’s knife
- 1 chopping board
- 1 wooden spoon
- 1 saucepan
- 1 stockpot
- 1 sieve or fine strainer
Boiling the chicken frames
- Bring a sauce pan of water to the boil.
- Add your chopped up chicken frames.
- After a few minutes drain the water.
Frying the ingredients for half an hour
- Put a good slug of olive oil into your stockpot on medium heat.
- Add the 1 brown onion and fry until golden and soft.
- Add the:
- 1 brown onion
- 2 large tomatoes
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 5 of the garlic cloves
- 3 small green chilies
- 2 sprigs coriander
- 1 sprig fresh mint
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1/2 Tbsp Garam masala
- 1/2 Tbsp ground turmeric
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
- Fry for another 15 minutes.
- Add the chicken bones and fry for another 15 minutes breaking the bones up as you go.
This is the consistency you want.
Simmering for 1 hour
- Add the 2.5L of water and bring everything to the boil.
- Simmer for about 1 hour.
Thickening and straining the soup
- We don’t want add room temperature flour to a hot stock so heat some more olive oil (about 1 Tbsp) in your saucepan.
- Add the:
- 1/2 Tbsp gram flour
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- and 1 sliced garlic clove
- Fry until the flour is golden brown.
- Very carefully slowly add this to the soup, stirring as you go.
- Strain the soup back into the stockpot and briefly return to the boil.
- Season with salt to taste.
Serving
No spoon required, just lots of naan, coriander leaves and lots of slurping. 🙂
Enjoy,
PK
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INDIAN CUISINE
CHICKEN DISHES
SOUP
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Montasio Cheese
Montasio is an ancient firm Italian cheese. It instantly became one of my favourites. Here is why.
Milk
Cow
Origin
Italy
Aged
Yes, up to a year but often 3 months.
Aroma
Milky and grassy and nutty.
Taste
Fruity, nutty and grassy. Not particularly salty.
Texture
Young it is elastic and creamy. Aged to a year it is semi firm.
Look
Yellow interior with an edible white rind. Visible openness.
Serving
I love it as a table cheese but its high fat content makes it an excellent cooking cheese. Indeed, one of it’s historical recipes was fried by itself or combined with seasonal vegetables and potatoes.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Handmade/traditional cheese making methods are used. The curds are pressed into molds and brine salted prior to a short aging process.
Wine
Your favourite red or white will go well. I like to pair it with a New Zealand or South Australian Sauvignon Blanc.
Here are some more cheese posts.
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Corn Cob Stock
Recently I have become obsessed with using whole corn cobs in my vegetable and meat stocks. They give the stock a nice savoury depth.
I love how you can take an old cob languishing in the back of the fridge and give it a new lease on life.
I freeze them if I have too many though.
Then I just chuck them in my slow cooker when I need to make stock.
Enjoy,
PK
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MAKING AND USING STOCK
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How To Easily Dice Celery
I love learning new ways to slice and dice. Here is a fun and quick way to both fine and rough dice celery stalks.
Lay the stalk like this.
Slice 3 slices along the stalk for rough chop and 5 for finely diced. Note how I stopped slicing before I hit the base of the stalk.
Then slice across the stalk to get the desired end result. Make the slices closer together for finer dicing.
Enjoy,PK
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Pink Rock Salt
Pink rock salt is mined in Pakistan. Despite its amazing colour, caused by the natural inclusion of trace elements, it taste like (you guessed it) any other rock salt.
It purportedly has health benefits and who knows if this is true. It does seem to provide employment for the local miners and it is relatively unprocessed. Both wins in my book.
As large crystals it is about twice the price of sea salt and the flakes are going to cost you about 15 times what the same weight of table salt will. #worthit
Enjoy,
PK
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OTHER SALT PRODUCTS
THE FULL GICICI INGREDIENTS LIST
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Thousand Island Dressing
Sweet, spicy and tangy, Thousand Island Dressing is mayo with a twist. There are lots of different blends out there but most contain tomato paste, sugar, paprika and gherkins.
It is very popular in Australia, especially my house, and we use it almost everywhere 🙂
Prime examples are as a dipping sauce for prawns, mixed into salads and of course with cheeses and meats in sandwiches.
Enjoy,
PK
Here are some more ingredients you might like:
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