Food Wine Sleep

The crisp asparagus is sure to please the lovers of all things green. The salty prosciutto will definitely make the meat lovers smile. The reduced balsamic will satisfy the sweet teeth amongst your guests and the ease of preparation is most definitely going to please you; the host, (that's really all that matters isn't it?) Enjoy your party.

Ox cheek, I can see you scrunching up your nose in disgust as you read that, but trust me once you've tried it you'll be wondering why you haven't been eating it all along and why you can't get it everywhere. Or maybe you are already familiar with ox cheeks and are here to get another recipe for this fabulous ingredient. This recipe, as most great classic dishes, was probably created out of sheer economic necessity. Necessity of peasants who could not afford to be wasteful with any part of the animal and had to ensure that everything went to some sort of use. With these humble beginnings, I find it rather interesting to note that dishes like this are now only found on...

This is a dish that I serve even to my friends that don't like liver. I threaten them with no main course if they don't at least try it. They usually reply, "But I don't like liver!" I tell them "Try it and if you don't like it, no problem." Nine times out of ten, to their surprise they enjoy it and clean their plate. You see, most people have a memory of liver served to us as children, it was usually overcooked and usually served with nothing more than some spuds and veg. Liver is like butter, it's very complimentary but not a dish on its own. In this dish you'll see that I have: tender liver, slightly bitter radicchio, juicy eschalots and sweet b...

Artichokes are native to the Mediterranean countries and are widely used in the cuisines of southern Europe. They make a great addition to any salad or appetizer buffet. The edible flesh is hidden within the base of the leaves and in the artichoke bottom itself. The tender inner lower part of the leaves is of very subtle in flavor and great with a dip of either aioli, roast pepper salsa or simply drizzled with vinaigrette. Often on hot summer days, artichokes are served as a 'snack' or appetizer in bistros and street-side cafes with a nicely chilled medium to dry white wine. Young baby artichokes are of the same species and are great for grilling and roasting with roasted...

This recipe is a staple in many kitchens and really an old way of preserving the freshly caught fish. It is all based on the marriage of salt and sugar, which will cure the salmon or any other fish for that matter, and therefore preserve it. In general you can not go wrong when applying a 2:1 ratio salt over sugar when curing any fish. The time of the curing process although is quite essential and depends very much on the thickness of the fish fillet to be cured. Smoked salmon, especially from farmed salmon, is often quite fatty, but curing the salmon fillet removes a lot of the fatty structures in the meat and the resulting cured salmon is leaner, easier to cut and a del...

Paella (pa-yay-aa) is a traditional Spanish dish that actually takes its name from the pot in which it is cooked, a paellera. Paella originated from the Valencia region but now virtually every part of Spain offers their own version. There is much debate as to what ingredients belong in a Paella, but there is no debate that at the core there should be rice and saffron. This is the recipe I cook when entertaining, but if I'm cooking only for my girlfriend and I, it might be a very simple Paella with a couple of ingredients or an incredibly involved dish teeming with everything under the sun. This usually depends on my mood and the state of my wallet. As always and especiall...

Polenta is one of those things I despised as a child and only really got to appreciate when I became a chef. Polenta is a great alternative to pasta, rice and potatoes and goes well with chicken, rabbit and grilled sausages. Polenta traditionally is cooked in saltwater only, but different chefs prefer to use beef bouillon, milk or a mixture of it. It really depends on each individual's preference. For different taste and textures, replace the Parmesan cheese with Mascarpone, Ricotta or soft goat cheese. Grilled mushrooms, vegetables or crisp Parma ham also make a great addition to polenta.

The recipe for this dip has been with me for a few years now. It combines the best of both worlds, the 'Asiatic' spices of ginger, chili and lemongrass with Mediterranean ingredients like the virgin olive oil and the lime juice. If you prepare the dip ahead of time, you must ensure that the cilantro is chopped and added last minute to the dressing in order to achieve the freshness desired for this dish.

This is a recipe that I created a few years back while I was on a quick hiatus on my motorcycle. I was running a very high stress level in the restaurant and decided a quick jaunt down the south coast was in order to stay sane. I spent a day in the saddle with no particular destination and pulled into Hyams Beach on Jervis Bay and decided to call it home for a couple of days. That was as soon as I could find a place that would have me. I asked the lady at the town conveience shop/restaurant where I could find some reasonable accomodation. She directed me to a guest house down the road and told me to tell the owner that she had sent me. I liked this place already, I'd been...

Personally, papaya or pawpaw is one of my favorite fruits. I like it for breakfast with cottage cheese and few drops of lime or like here in this recipe as a mildly spiced salsa with prawns or other seafood for that matter. Papaya is a fruit which needs to be eaten at the peak of it's ripeness. If the fruit is just a little under-ripe they are quite tasteless and lack sweetness and flavor and if they are just a bit over-ripe the flesh is getting mushy and has a sort of "tired" aftertaste. This recipe of the salsa combines ginger, honey and lime, which I feel is a perfect accompaniment to ripe fully flavored papaya meat and goes well with any freshly grille...