Indulge Me.... I need these tonight. So I made them.

Okay.. so these beauties didn't turn out as well as last time. But they were delicious none the less. plus I needed the sweetness after what I've done tonight. They make me feel like I'm not such a bad person after all. Hope you can all share them with someone special.

Chocolate Souffle

Ingredients (For 6. I divided it in my head so I think thats where I messed up... I ended up with far too much chocolate sauce. Not that that's a bad thing.)
 
4 tablespoons caster sugar
70g unsalted butter
2 tablespoons plain flour
2/3 cup milk
250g good quality dark chocolate, chopped up
3 eggs1/2 cup cream
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla paste 


Get your ramekins ready, place them on a baking tray on a sheet of baking paper- makes it heaps easier to take off later- trust me. Melt half the butter in a small saucepan and with a pastry brush coat the inside of the ramekins with some of it- use upward strokes on the sides, for some reason it stops the souffle from sticking so much. Dust the butter coated ramekins with the castor sugar and put the whole tray of them in the fridge to chill.
Add the flour to your already melted butter and give it a stir with  wooden spoon until its bubbling away. Slowly pour in the milk and bring back to the boil, stirring constantly. It should look a bit like a bechemal sauce. Add half the chocolate and stir until melted. Pour the mix into a bowl and add the yolks of your eggs- leaving the whites to one side for the time being. give the chocolatey mix a good stir. Taste it... go on...I dare you.
Whisk the whites of the eggs until theyre as stiff as you can get them. Fold a spoon of the whites in with the yummy chocolate mix with a metal spoon then add the rest. You've got to do this gently or the souffle won't be light and silky.
Get your tray of ramekins out of the fridge and spoon the mixture into them. Resist temptation to fill them all the way or they will over flow, plus this mixture is pretty good to eat uncooked anyway. Put them in the oven for around 20 minutes at 180°C.
While they are cooking make the chocolate sauce. Heat the cream and vanilla in the saucepan until it simmers. Dissolve in the brown sugar and chocolate. To make the sauce really silky put in the rest of the butter. I swear butter make everything better. Pour into tiny little jugs for each person and finish with a drop of vanilla paste for an extra vanilla-y kick.
When the souffle's have risen nicely (i.e. not overflown like mine did) place them onto a serving plate. This is heaps easier if you've got a nice metal spatula and slide them from the baking paper onto it. Trickier than it seems. When you serve them , dig a little hole in the top of the soufflewith the back end of a spoon and pour in some of the rich velvety chocolate sauce.
Excuse me while I eat my second for the evening- they may have overflowed but god they still taste amazing. 

Late Night Dinner- Roast Duck Agnolotti with Beetroot Pickle. Micro-salad of Red Shiso and Purple Queen Beans

Hey again. Last night I got home and all I really wanted to do was crash on the couch, but then I realised I have a blog to write and Duck Agnolotti (from toscano's) that really needs eating. So I cleared out the near empty fridge (I swear there is only mustard and pomegranate left in there) and came up with this surprisingly good dish. Inspired by a beetroot pickle a friend taught me how to make and using some incredible olive oil he bought on a great night out- even though the food was not. Seriously, the quality of the ingredients can really make a meal. Thanks MAAAAAATE.

Duck Agnolotti with Beetroot Pickle

Ingredients
Roast Duck and Wild Mushroom Agnolotti
1 Beetroot, peeled
Apple cider vinegar
Brown Sugar
1 Garlic clove, crushed
Bunch of Thyme
Sea Salt
Some nice olive oil
Lemon Juice
Red Shiso sprouts
Purple Queen Beans (or any broad bean type thing)



Finely dice your beetroot into 3-5mm cubes. It really needs to be this small to cook through properly. Plus it looks real pretty. Lightly sauté the crushed garlic in a frying pan  with a good slosh of olive oil. Add in the beetroot and cook for 3-5 mins. Strip the leaves off the thyme and add it to the mix- the more the better. Pour in enough apple cider vinegar to moisten the sauce. Whilst that's simmering away, throw the Agnolotti into salted boiling water. This should take about 6 mins, you'll know it's cooked when the pasta rises to the surface. (I know it's not home made but this is really good quality store bought stuff. I'll post up the brand as soon as I remember it.)
While the pasta is cooking, quickly saute the broad beans and coat in a little olive oil, sea salt and lemon juice. Place on plate along with the red shiso. I <3 microherbs.
Add the brown sugar to the beetroot pickle mixture and stir until dissolved.
Drain the agnolotti and toss in another slosh of olive oil. Place the pasta on the plate beside the microsalad and top with with a good helping of the pickle. Tastes like Autumn.
(I swear I'll leave some for you next time.)

A Start to Swallowing Melbourne

As I am sure many of my friends are aware I am highly passionate about food, and as I have recently discovered, many of them are sick to death of me posting shots of my food to facebook. Hence the start of swallowing Melbourne.
I was hoping to start the blog with a post of an amazing meal I created last week, but the photo that I took of it somehow went missing, so that will have to wait until I remake it. Instead I'll show you all one of my all time favourite desserts... Wait for it.... Chocolate Souffle....

Okay... so i don't have pictures of that either, so you'll have to settle for Brulee French Toast with a Vodka Raspberry Syrup.

So this was something i whpped up a couple of weeks ago when I was home alone on a Monday and a little peckish.


Ingredients

The Toast
Some good quality White Bread
2 Eggs
1/3 cup Milk
Vanilla Paste or pods or essence
Butter
Sugar

The Syrup
1/4 cup Vodka
Handful frozen Raspberries
Star Anise Pod
1/2 Cup Sugar


Cut yourself a couple of slices of bread and let them sit whilst you make the egg mixture, they will dry slightly and take on the moisture more fully. Grab a big bowl and crack your eggs along with your milk and vanilla and whisk until it's combined. Dunk your bread in this and leave covered while you make the syrup.
Get a small saucepan and bring the vodka, star anise and the raspberries to a slow boil. Add the sugar and reduce until syrupy.
While thats bubbling away it's time to do your toast. First, melt the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat whack in your egg soaked bread and fry until nice and golden. Flip it over and do the other side then take it out to rest. There should be a little butter left in the pan, if not add a little more along with a bit of sugar. Heat up the butter/sugar mixture until its all gooey and chuck your toast back in to coat it in yumminess.
 Pile your bruleed toast on a plate and pour over some of that syrupy goodness.
Seriously Satisfying.

Hope you like it,  will do something more wanky soon.
xx