Judith & Julia

As with most people I saw the movie Julie & Julia last year and decided that I too wanted to cook from Julia's cookbook. My lovely husband was kind enough to give me Mastering the Art of French Cooking for the holiday's this year. I think that it was 40% a gift for me, and 60% a gift for himself... I thought that I would try the Beef Bourguignon recipe on New Year's Day. A hearty dish that I could put on and have mid afternoon. As it turns out we were out and about on New Year's Day and I never got around to making it. I did make it sometime over the next week and it was scrum-diddly-umcious. One of the serving suggestions is over potatoes, which I hate, or buttered egg noodles, which is a bit to German for my taste. We had some good rustic bread which I toasted. I placed half of the slice in the bottom of the bowl to absorb broth, and the other half I just placed along side to enjoy whenever. We both really liked this serving option as the stew was really heavy enough on its own and did not need a full helping of anything else along with it.

On a side note, I have been taking a lot of pictures recently with my iphone. Mainly because that is what is always with me, and it is really quick and easy to upload them to my computer. I really like the images that are produced, and wanted to mention that all of the photos on the blog recently are iphone photos.

Quick Brunch

Last weekend we had a small dinner party and two of our guest were in from out of town. The next morning was Easter and we were all off to family functions in the early afternoon. I rose early and made a quick brunch, well breakfast, that was filling and exceptionally easy. The menu was simple, coffee, tea, orange juice, rosemary wrapped bacon, and three cheese frittata. Both recipes were from Donna Hay. If you are not familiar with her, you should be. She is a fantastic food editor and cookbook author from Australia. Her recipes are simple, easy to follow, and fresh. I absolutely adore her and these recipes are small reason why.

{Donna Hay, Three Cheese Frittata}

three cheese fritatta

• 8 eggs
• ¾ cup (185ml) milk
• sea salt and cracked black pepper
• 30g butter
• ¼ cup shredded basil leaves
• 1¼ cups (250g) ricotta, drained
• 1 cup (120g) grated aged chedder
• ½ cup (60g) grated Gruyère
• buttered toast, to serve

Heat a non-stick frying pan with an ovenproof handle over medium heat. Whisk together the eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Place the butter in the pan and melt. Pour in the egg mixture and sprinkle over the basil, ricotta, cheddar and Gruyère. Cook for 3–4 minutes or until the frittata is starting to set around the edges. Place the pan under a preheated hot grill (broiler) and cook for 8–10 minutes or until the frittata is set. Serve warm or cold, cut into wedges. Serves 4.


{Donna Hay, Crispy Bacon and Rosemary Ties}

crispy bacon and rosemary ties

• 8 rashers smoked bacon, rind removed
• 8 sprigs rosemary

Preheat oven to 180°C (355°F). Wrap each bacon rasher around a sprig of rosemary and place in a baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes or until the bacon is crisp. Serves 4.

Happy eating!