Flapping around like a fish out of... wine?

9^th March 2011 - Dad’s Fish in Foil

I am on fire at the moment, I’m cooking even when I don’t need to be! I cooked enchiladas one night and schnitzel and vegies and mushroom gravy (from scratch, even though I hate mushrooms and particularly the smell of mushrooms cooking) another night – just cos! Sian is getting spoiled rotten lately! The schnitzel episode was quite strange, I burnt myself in three different ways and on three different parts of my hand. Then I stopped concentrating and ruined the gravy (Sian still loved it sick even though it was kind of in a big lump) and I burnt the carrots... On second thoughts, maybe she’s not so spoiled.

Anyway, I decided to cook Dad’s Fish in Foil as I don’t think we eat enough fish, and we had some in the freezer. It went OK I think. I forgot to take the fish out of the freezer in the morning so accidentally cooked the ends in the defrosting process which wasn’t great. The herbs I used were coriander, basil and chives and I chucked in some onion and garlic (the best finely chopped garlic in the world! It was meant to be crushed, but we don’t have a garlic crusher... I blame Adam). The fish was Bassa and the wine was a Rosemont Sauvignon Blanc we had in the fridge.

It really was as easy as Dad said it would be! Sian told me I should oil spray the foil before I put the fish in, which I did, but that was the only real change I made. I cooked it in the oven for a bit less than 20 minutes and it was perfect.

We ate it with Sweet Potato Chips that I made (seasoned them with sweet paprika) and salad.

I think it looked and smelled better than it tasted. I don’t think I like Bassa because last time Sian cooked it I had the same issue. I think it’s one of my weird texture issues. I liked the combination of stuff on top though and it would have gone well with the chips and salad if it was a nicer fish. Sian seemed to love it though and hoovered it up (Conehead style).

Tips: I mixed all the herbs and stuff together in a bowl, so the garlic wouldn’t be on clumps on top of the fish. I thought it was a genius idea, but in reality I think most of the garlic ended up on the sides of the bowl, so it was perhaps slightly counter-productive.

Music: Dave Matthews Band

It's my party and I'll cook if I want to

15^th January 2011 – Showcase #1

- Jo and Carly's Portuguese Chicken
- Cam's Mediterranean Warm Veg Salad
- Sarah's Mum's Potato Salad (rehashed)

So, it was finally time for the very nerve-wracking experience of my first showcase. As Ash is going to Europe in a couple of weeks it was the last time we’d get to hang out. What better way to say goodbye than to force her to be my first reviewer, make her wear a silly hat as the judge and potentially give her food poisoning?

My sous chef (Carly) and I spent a rocking Friday night eating takeaway pizza and looking through recipe books. We eventually decided we'd have a BBQ. Since Sian and I loved Sarah’s Mum’s Potato Salad so much last time I thought I’d do that again. We found a recipe for Portuguese chicken and spent the afternoon making the marinade and getting everything prepared, we were feeling very cool! We forgot to buy oregano so used Italian herbs, used sweet paprika instead of hot paprika and chicken breast instead of thighs. Didn’t realise until the next day that we actually left the oil out of the mixture (quarter of a cup) - apparently we can’t even read a recipe!

My sous chef and I quite enjoyed all the cooking, even though she complained relentlessly about the heat. We discussed such fascinating topics as how many couples would have sex on their wedding night and if we’d prefer to be called Donka or Wee Ping Dong.

Had six people for the dinner and was feeling the pressure! Everything seemed to go down a treat. Sarah’s Mum’s Potato Salad was again amazing (was pretty much entirely sweet potato this time), Cam’s Mediterranean Veg Salad was good (perfectly charred by me and very well chopped by my sous chef) and the flavour of the chicken was really yum. Some of the pieces were perfectly cooked, some of them kinda overcooked, but no one mentioned it (Jen said “Oh, can you overcook chicken?”). The whole meal was pretty much a hit. Sian’s friends came over and polished the leftovers off – compliments all round!

Went out for a big night out with the girls which was cool. We complained about how old we are and ‘how can one vodka cost nine bucks, they used to only be three?!’ I fell down the stairs in a club, but you know, all in a day!

While dancing Ash accidentally elbowed a ‘little person’ in the head and then patted her on the head and said sorry. Brilliant.

Tips: Make sure you put all the ingredients in the chicken dish.

Music: The Wombats, Tales of Girls and Boys and Marsupials.

A few snags short of a BBQ

2^nd January 2011 – Sarah’s Mum’s Potato Salad.

First night back at The Fort after a long holiday at Sancroft. Spent the afternoon helping (watching) Sian and Dad set up her new BBQ. Sian’s very excited, she had good fun bbqing – pork, sausages, corn and onion.

I made Sarah’s Mum’s Potato Salad. Luckily Sian came to the shops with me as I had no idea what watercress was so had no idea where to look for it “Oh, it’s like a herb or something?”. Got to cook the prosciutto on the bbq – but was embarrassed trying to pronounce ‘prosciutto’ at the deli!

Ate while watching Grey’s Anatomy and Sian questioned her sexuality. McDreamy is just too much for her to cope with. She doesn’t usually eat potatoes but she had seconds of Sarah’s Mum’s Potato Salad. She made us leave the bowl on the table so she could get more – but pointed out how much Loser would hate us for such behaviour.

She then left the blinds open so she could watch her bbq out the window.

Loved my new recipe. Good start to the year. Good start to the challenge.

Tips: I used half potato and half sweet potato as I’m a sweet pot addict. Good decision. Check me out deviating from the recipe! Haha.

Music: CD I made – mainly triple J new music podcasts – Sang VERY loudly to Sad Rude Future Dude – Ballpark Music.

Sian: "Oh no, that looks like a dog's breakfast".