A New (Financial) Year – may it bring some hope and joy? – 3 July 2020
A new (financial) year – may it
bring some hope and joy?
My beautiful daughter Lucy, lovely husband Toby, celebrating the first birthday of my adorable grandson Raffy. This is as close as I got as they live in Singapore
Welcome Another week gone and I wonder how yours was? Happy Birthday Rafferty Tom Milan Davis!
I haven’t seen my daughter and family in person since last November, due to COVID, but I see them every day on Facetime. It is so hard to be separated when babies grow up so quickly and Raffy is such a joyful, happy, smiley baby – and I am loving his blue eyes and blonde hair! We had an extended family Zoom birthday catch up for him on Sunday which was lots of fun with family joining from the UK, Singapore and Australia. So I am sharing this picture with you – they couldn’t get a good one with Isabel, now 3 1/2 in as well, so this is the birthday shot. Highlight of my week was a fun evening with friends participating in a virtual wine tasting. My partner’s best mate came over to sit with him, so I was able to go out, especially as my friends live nearby. The wine tasting was conducted by The Australian Club, with the wines and dinner delivered by the Club early in the day. It was all conducted via Zoom and we were guided through the tasting as we tried the six different wines. The focus was French and we enjoyed them all. After the hour’s tasting, my friend followed the extensive instructions for our dinner and we drank the rest of the wines with it. Not only was it great socially-distanced fun, the wines were great and the dinner truly delicious. It was a lovely break for me from my role as carer. It’s also great to see organisations converting to online activities for revenue.
TOP: our host, Ken, pours Langlois Chateua Cremant de Loire Blanc Brut NV as the Zoom wine tasting kicks off; L: Confit of smoked salmon with oyster and grapefruit emulsion, enjoyed with Domaine William Fevre chablis; R: Beef cheek, potato puree, Dutch carrots, fresh blackberries and blackberry jus with Francois Arnaud Grand Reserve Cotes-du-Rhone
YouTube video
My Rib-Eye of Beef with Irish Whiskey Sauce and Pea Medley
Now read on or scroll down, remember there’s something for everyone in this newsletter wherever you are in the world.
Recipe of the Week
Green Shakshuka Photography: John Paul Urizar
With the weekend coming up, why not try my Green Shakshuka for brunch? Shakshuka is a dish of baked eggs which is broadly Middle-Eastern and comes from several cuisines: Turkish, Tunisian, Israeli. Like so many egg dishes, it’s super versatile and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I posted my more traditional Shakshuka on social media last weekend and it had a good response, so perhaps try both. Green Shakshuka recipe here Shakshuka recipe here
Tangelos
Tangelos
Tangelos Tangelos are a cross between a grapefruit and a mandarin.Vibrant coloured tangelos are tangy yet sweet with a fragrant aroma, are easy to peel with large, juicy segments and have very few, if any seeds. Select plump fruit with a brilliant orange skin colour that feel heavy for their size. Use their juice and flesh in recipes as an alternative to oranges in winter. Team tangelos with baby spinach leaves and walnuts in a salad. A great way to kick start the day, juice tangelos for breakfast.They are also a good source of vitamin C. This vitamin contributes to collagen which plays a role in healthy gums, teeth, bones, cartilage and skin.
One large tangelo will provide the daily need for vitamin C.
Provide dietary fibre which is important for the normal function of the intestine.
A source of potassium, which may help balance the sodium from salt.
A source of xanthophyll, one of the carotenoid family of antioxidants
Vitamin C is an extremely important immune boosting nutrient. During stress, or after a particularly stressful time, our adrenal glands use up about 80% of the body’s Vitamin C supply which leaves little for the immune system to draw on to defend the system from an attack of a cold or flu virus. Vitamin C does not store for long in the body and it’s important to eat a good supply of vitamin C rich foods each day. Citrus fruits such as lemon, grapefruit, tangelo, and mandarins are all excellent sources of vitamin C.
Now things are a bit more settled at home, I am returning to Facebook Live. Please join me at 6:00pm (Sydney Time) as I share how to cook fish with perfect crisp skin! I will also be cooking veggies to go with the fish and suggesting a wine pairing. Simply visit my Facebook page at 6:00pm to watch the Facebook Live video.
If you are planning to cook with me on Sunday, here are the ingredients you will need (serves four):
4 fish fillets, skin on
1-2 tablespoons plain flour
50g butter
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 red capsicum, cut into strips
6 mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
Juice of 1 lemon
Boiled or steamed baby potatoes, to serve (optional)
You can use any fish you like – white fillets are lovely but so too is salmon. I’ll be making a wine style recommendation too. See you then!
Something to make us laugh
More Virtual Fun
Bennelong restaurateur John Fink plays guitar inside the empty shells of the Opera House restaurant. Photography: Nikki To
“Cake Boy” Eric Lanlard’s Salted Butter Caramel Cake on episode 4 “Baking Bad” of Lyndey Milan’s Baking Secrets
You can still catch up on my various TV shows wherever they are in the world. In Australia on SBS on demand thre are only two series left so catch up quickly Lyndey Milan’s Taste of Ireland Lyndey Milan’s Baking SecretsPrime video also has some of my shows – in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. Lyndey Milan’s Taste of Australia– all 16 episodes and many other of my TV series Wherever you are in the world, you can probably access some of my shows online if you google.
I hope you enjoy them.
Coming Up Next Week
On the incredible island of Inishturkbeg with Irish whiskey aging in barrels, when I was shooting my Taste of Ireland TV series.
This week is a celebration of all the good stuff; warming winter food and drink.
Sunday sees the return of my Facebook Live cooking shows as I mentioned above.
I will share my favourite chocolate recipe for World Chocolate Day, expect something decadent and delicious.
I’m also sharing my tips for cooking a great soup with some recipe suggestions. A discussion on winter drinks is also on the agenda so don’t miss out, join me on Facebook and Instagram this week!
Travel with me in 2021?
Learning traditional bread making – just one of the fun activities in my trip to Puglia
MY HOSTED TOURS RETURN IN 2021
While I sadly had to postpone my wonderful culinary tours this year, we now have dates for next year. Many more details to come, but I wanted to give you, my subscribers the first heads up, although it is too soon to be thinking about travelling overseas again. Here are the dates: Culinary Adventures in Puglia and Basilicata: 10-16 October 2021 Full details and prices here, Morocco culinary tour approx 13 – 24 May – some information here.
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