Archive for March, 2012

Global Knives

Thursday, March 29th, 2012

Masterchef SA has been a topic of discussion for a few weeks now. First with the anticipation of its debut show and now with the usual commentary that goes along with any sort-after reality TV series. With the prizes valued at 8 million big ones and televised exposure for the winner, this show has been well supported by all the aspiring chefs.

This particular series started in the UK in 1990 under various brand names with the current and most iconic one being Masterchef. The public seem to revel in the trials that the participants go through and the show has been a hit worldwide. So much so, that Vietnam, Croatia, Finland, India, Greece, Germany and many others have all followed suit and created their very own series.

Global knives have become synonymous with Masterchef and it really does not take much convincing to prove that these are state-of-the-art utensils. Chefs Warehouse stocks 13 knives in the collection as well as the cooking tongs, tweezers and chop sticks. So either visit the online store or pop by the shop so that you can feel the weight of the blade in your palm before you waltz off into the sunset.

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Feast Bazaar

Tuesday, March 27th, 2012

With all the changes and side steps of Tim Noakes, some health sceptics have had to re-look at their lifestyle and diet regimes. Bottom line is that even though Noakes has made changes to his original theory (after selling umpteen copies of his last book), it really is up to you to decide whether to skip all risotto’s, spaghetti Bolognese’s and warm farm house loaves or to simply live with consciousness and moderation.

Whilst paging through Feast Bazaar by Barry Vera, I came across a recipe for hummus with fried lamb and sumac, which seemed like a good way to start looking into this carb-conscious ideaology. The recipe is simple and doesn’t include any of the banned substances and the book utilises flavours of the east, some of the favourites here at Chefs Warehouse.  Think of the fragrant wiles of cumin, the earthy goodness of cardamom, soul-awakening chilli and those delicate bastmati pearls prepared with sticks of cinnamon… *sigh* …the list is endless and utterly dreamy.

And in case you needed any more convincing, Jan and Liam’s pooch, Bailey, a discerning diner, has decided that she too might give this carb-consciousness a try.

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Hot Cross Bun Pain Perdu

Tuesday, March 20th, 2012

Stale baked goods have little place at Chefs Warehouse. Bread is supposed to be eaten the day it was made (moments after it’s made, if possible). This recipe from Bertus Basson from Overture restaurant in the winelands makes use of hot cross buns that are more than a day old. “This is one of my all-time favourite recipes: so nice and easy!  It takes minimal time to pull together- perfect for that next morning babbelas!” .

You will need:

1 tray of hot cross buns, with the individual buns sliced into 1 cm pieces. (You could even make them yourself with Peter Tempelhoff’s recipe)

For the custard mixture:

6 yolks

300 ml cream

80 gr sugar

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of salt

1 Vanilla pod, scraped

To go with the toast:

Bacon, fried up nice and crispy

Fynbos Honey to go over the toast.

Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl to make the custard mix

Slice the hot cross buns into 1 cm pieces.

Fry off some crispy bacon and set aside.

Soak the sliced hot cross buns in the custard

Fry off the egg soaked bread In a medium-heat pan with some melted butter- careful not to overheat the pan.

This dish is best served with crispy bacon and with a drizzle of fynbos honey.

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Peter Tempelhoff’s Hot Cross Buns

Monday, March 19th, 2012

With Easter just 2 weeks away and Lent promises at their most weight bearing, it is good to be reminded that the goodness of tradition is just out of reach. Peter Tempelhoff, executive chef of The Collection, a restaurant collective of only the best in the food industry has shared his Hot Cross Bun recipe with us.

Ingredients

1300g flour ( Cake)

150g sugar

75g yeast

15g salt

6 eggs

400ml water

165g butter

105g chopped candied peel

105g raisins

105g sultanas

15g mix spice

15g cinnamon

2,5ml lemon essence

2.5 ml orange essence

2.5 rum essence

2.5 ml almond essemce

5ml vanilla essence

Piping paste

100g cake flour

40g butter

100ml oil

Method

Mix all ingredients except fruit on speed 1 until

Add fruit

Prove until double in size

Scale 60g rounds, preshape add piping mixture just before putting in the oven

Bake at 180 degrees 15 min

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in vino veritas…

Wednesday, March 14th, 2012

Some new wine drinkers can be recognised by their hesitant swirls and apprehensive sips, while others are noticed for their gusto and Saturday-night-fever-dance-moves on raised platforms. Both archetypes come from a place of uncertainty and fear of potential social suicide.

Cathy Marston is the Food24 wine guru and a knowledgeable educator. She’s has quaffed and quibbled about almost every varietal under the sun. Her recommendation for choosing good wine to drink now (the statistic is that South Africans consume their wine within the 1st hour of purchasing it) is to use price as an indicator. Any white wine under R50 or red at R70 is ready to be shared as we speak.

Once you start tucking into your bottle be sure to take note of the colour of the wine. Hold the glass up to the light or against a white background and describe what you see. Once the decision about whether it’s a strawberry, garnet, straw or cloudy apple, swirl the glass and stick your nose into it. Allow the flavours to form pictures in the mind – berries, spice, asparagus, grass and stone fruit – take the time to create these “sense files”. And finally, take a sip of the wine. Allow the liquid to coat the entire surface of the tongue so that all the taste buds are activated.

Enjoy with good people and great food.

Thanks to @thelazyfoxes for loaning us Cathy’s logo design.

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Scandinavian design at its best

Wednesday, March 7th, 2012

“Scandinavian Design Originals. 3 little words. But they express everything for which we live and breathe: A never-ending search for beautiful Scandinavia design with true originality.”

That is what Menu say about themselves and we would dare anyone to say anything different. Clean lines and immaculate design make these state-of-the-art utensils both practical to use and a pleasure to have in the home.

Our stock of Menu items arrived this week and have taken pole position in our display area. So pop passed the shop and feast your senses on some of the exquisite items we’ve seen in a while.

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A Brisket from Frankie Fenner

Thursday, March 1st, 2012

The food world seems to be gravitating toward the centre of Cape Town and one of the newest additions is Frankie Fenner Meat Merchants on Metal Lane – when you see number 8 Kloof Street you’re in the right place.

These conscious foodies, Andy and Nicole Fenner (@JamieWhoSA and @TheLazyFoxes) and Shaun and Daniella Bond (@shaunfrancbond), have brought free range and organically produced meat to your door, well almost.

The order process really is simple: visit their web site www.ffmm.co.za, peruse their stock list, (wipe saliva off keyboard), email your selection and pop passed the shop for a coffee while you pick up your order. And if you’re a whimsical sort, feel free to give them a visit and see what’s on offer. Cured meats, artisan sausages, biltong; and farm fresh eggs and butter can all be found in the leather-clad fridge.

Part of the Frankie Fenner ethos is to inspire people to start using lesser known cuts of meat and get back to basics with what they eat. Short rib, brisket and beef shin are just a few of the cuts that have gone out of favour but that are still packed with flavour and character. Andy is often at the shop and is happy to give you some ideas on how to cook your new found cut.  The following recipe is one of his that we tried out and we’ve all been converted.

Ingredients:

1,4 kg free range boneless brisket, preferably from FFMM

4-5 stems of rosemary, chopped into 2,5cm pieces

8-10 Anchovies

1 bulb of garlic

salt and pepper to taste

olive oil

500ml beef stock

Method:

Heat oven to 180 ° C

Pierce holes into the brisket and push a clove of garlic with a rosemary stem wrapped in an anchovy into each incision.

Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with anchovy oil and some olive oil until the brisket is glossy.

Place in oven for 20minutes.

Reduce heat of oven to 150° C

Pour the beef stock into the dish and seal tightly with foil before placing back into the oven for a minimum of 2½  hours or until the meat starts to fall apart. We would recommend a total of 4 hours cooking time for the best result.

Enjoy on a slice of fresh Ciabatta or a side salad.

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