Spicy Steak Tacos

I love chilli. I love it so much that I'm leading a one man battle campaigning to sneak chilli into every dinner (shh, don't tell).

Luckily, Mexican food and chilli are best friends. So join my campaign and grab a few friends, a few margaritas, your sombrero (compulsory) and cook up my Spicy Steak Tacos- Ole!

There are quite a few processes here so as with any recipe feel free to chop and change it where you like. If you're short of time or just plain can't be bothered you don't have to pickle your onions, or on the other hand if you want to be a hero you could make your own soft tacos. Up to you!

Pickled Pink Onions

• 1 red onion sliced finely
• ¼ cup white vinegar
• 1 Tbsp water
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds

Put all of the above ingredients into a small saucepan and cook for a few minutes until the onion softens. Cool, and put the onions with the liquid into a jar. First step complete!

Salsa Verde

Don't be scared off by the tomatillos in this, they're just green tomatoes! You can buy the tins from specialty Mexican food stores or places like Farro- and it's worth the effort.

• 1 tin of tomatillos (approx 380 grams)
• 3 green chillies
• 3 pickled chillies
• 1 Garlic clove
• Handful of coriander (leave some over to garnish your tacos though)
• Juice of 1 lime

Also don't be scared off by the amount of chilli, I would recommend starting with less and adding them as you go depending on how hot you like it and also how hot the chillies are. 

Put all of the above ingredients into a food processor and give it a good whiz. Taste it, add more chilli if needed and a sprinkle of sea salt to taste. Step 2 done! (You can have a sip of your margarita now, you've earned it).

Lime Crema

• 1 tub of creme fraiche (approx 250 grams)
• 2 Limes
• 1 Garlic clove, crushed
• sea salt

Using a fork, whip together the creme fraiche with the zest and juice of one of the limes. Add in the garlic and sea salt to taste. Put the creme fraiche into your serving bowl and grate the zest of the second lime over the top to garnish.  Well ain't that pretty.

The Rest

• Rump steak
• Cajun seasoning
• Ground cumin
• Veges to serve
• Lime wedges
• Small soft tacos

Rub the beef in an even quantity of cajun and cumin. If you have a griddle pan or a BBQ handy that would be perfect but any pan will do. Either way, get it smoking hot and cook the steaks rare to medium rare. Let them rest for 5 minutes.

While your beef is resting get your veges sorted. I chose red cabbage, carrot, and coriander with  lime wedges to serve and it was deeeelish, but this bit is totally up to you. Whatever you choose, slice it, dice it and chuck 'em on a big plate with your warm tortillas so everyone can help themselves.

Sadly we didn't have margaritas, but aside from that the meal was pretty damn good. You can prep the condiments well in advance, and because of that it's perfect for feeding a hungry crowd without having to resort to sausages in white bread.

Load up your taco with a bit of everything, and with a tip of your sombrero and a twirl of your Mexican moustache take a huge bite and let the Mexi deliciousness sink in.

Kermadec

The other day Allie, Alice and I were looking for some way to spend our afternoon. We wanted to do something cultural so we looked up what was happening at the museum and started driving that way (bear with me here). On the way I was reading the description of the 'Moana- My Ocean' exhibition:

Moana – My Ocean takes you on a journey that starts with the flight of the godwits on the east coast, then dives into the waters of the Leigh Marine Reserve and into the middle of a Hauraki Gulf boil-up. You then go deeper, into the midwater, a world dominated by the language of light, before finally going down 10km to the largely unknown waters of the Kermadec Trench before emerging at the Kermadec Islands.

You can probably guess what happened next. All culture was thrown out the window as we made a swift turn in the opposite direction towards Kermadec...Kermadec the restaurant that is.

Kermadec has been an institution on the viaduct since the America's Cup heyday of the 90s, and it's still every bit as fresh and fabulous as it was back in the day. Actually I have no idea what it was like back in the day (I was 4), but Mum reckons it was pretty good.

The restaurant was quite empty, but that was probably because we went at 3pm at that awkward in between lunch and dinner stage. We had already had lunch so weren't super hungry but Alice and I were craving oysters so we ordered some along with bread and whipped goats cheese and a bottle of wine. It's about time The Oyster Weekend lived up to it's name!

Allie's not a huge fan of oysters but Alice and I are obsessed. They are full of vitamins so we think they're the best hangover cure too, although slimy seafood might not be your thing when you're feeling a bit peaky. But hangover or no hangover we order them at every opportunity (to the detriment of our bank accounts).

After finishing up we walked back to Alice's house and started getting ready for the night ahead, and with all those vitamin filled oysters in our belly what could go wrong?

We'll save that story for another day...

Standing Beef Rib Roast

For some reason I had an overwhelming urge to cook roast beef the other day. Not just any roast beef, a majestic fantastic standing statement of a roast. Why I didn't just crave a steak I don't know, it would've been a hell of a lot easier.

My recipe has been inspired by a bit of Jamie Oliver, a bit of Heston Blumenthal and a bit of the people at work who I was talking about roasts with. Thanks guys. It doesn't require a huge amount of skill but it does require a lot of patience- it's a lazy Sunday kind of dish.

Ingredients:

• Rib of beef (I used a 3 rib roast and it served 5 people easily)
• 1 Bulb garlic
• Handful fresh rosemary 
• Handful fresh thyme sprigs
• 6 Anchovy fillets (don't worry, you can't taste the fishyness)
• Zest of two lemons
• Juice of 1 lemon
• About 1/3 cup olive oil
• 3 Brown onions, cut in half with the skin on
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 2 Cups of beef stock 

Peel six of the garlic cloves and throw them in a mortar and pestle with the anchovies, half the rosemary, a few sprigs of thyme, the lemon zest and some salt and pepper. Give it a good bash and make lots of noise (this is where my flatmate Paddy started giving me the evils).

Once the mixture is all crushed up add the lemon juice and olive oil until it turns into a nice oily paste.

Rub the beef with the marinade and let it rest at room temperature for at least 2 hours. Uhh I probably should mention that you'll want to start this in the morning.

When it's ready, heat your oven to 100C. Yes you heard right, 100C. We're going to slow cook it until the meat is like velvet.

Now sear the meat in a hot pan until it's nicely brown and crispy and add it to the roasting dish with the onions, the rest of the herbs and the remaining garlic cloves (skin on).

Unless you have beef telepathy you're going to need a meat thermometer, they aren't expensive and you'll thank me later. Shove the thermometer right in and cook for 4-5 hours until it reaches 60C. If what I've done looks too rare for your liking then keep it in until about 65/70C (keeping in mind chefs around the world will be shaking their heads in disappointment).

If you've made it this far well done, I promise it's worth the wait. Now take the meat out, chuck it on a plate, cover in tin foil and let it rest for 45 minutes.

Now you have a bit of time up your sleeve you can sort out whatever you're serving with it. I did a parsnip horseradish mash and some roast beetroot, and it was pretty damn good.

When you're about 5 minutes away from serving it's gravy time (Woohoo! You're on the home straight). Put the pan with the garlic, onion and herbs on the stovetop over a low heat and stir in the two tablespoons of flour to soak up the juices. Now add the stock, give it a good whisk and let it simmer for a few minutes until thickened. Have a sneaky taste now and add some salt and pepper to the gravy.

Dont worry I'm not going to let you serve up lumpy gravy with bits of garlic skin, because once the gravy is thick enough just pour it through a sieve into a bowl. Push as much as you can through the sieve to get all the garlicy herby goodness out.

If everything's ready to go then uncover your beef and get everyone to come and admire it. Not bad eh?

Enough waiting, before you pass out from hunger and boredom load up your plate and dig in! 

Late Night Diner

The other night I used my negotiating skills (the promise of beer and fries) to drag James out for dinner at Ponsonby's Late Night Diner.

As the name suggests they've embraced American diner style food, calories and all. This isn't the kind of place that will fit into your Paleo/raw/lemon/blah blah blah diet so you may as well throw the rule book out the window before settling into your booth (although you probably threw the rule book out four cocktails ago anyway).

The best thing about this place is that you can practically fall into it from Ponsonby Social Club right next door. Although the worst thing about this place is that everyone right next door can see you shoving burgers and fries into your gob... I don't know about you but my table manners aren't at their best at 3am.

Luckily the staff don't bat an eyelid at your manners and the service is great at any hour of the night.

On this visit I ordered the Fried Chicken with Buffalo sauce which was incredible, and dare I say it the best fried chicken this blog has seen yet. Fried chicken AGAIN? I know. I would have called this 'The Fried Chicken Weekend' but it didn't quite have the same ring to it.

James had the Cheese and Bacon Burger with fries which I took as my duty to test, and after 5 test bites I can conclude that it was also delicious.

Food aside, Late Night Diner also have an amazing drinks list including everything from your craft beers to Pumpkin Pie Martinis. My favourite so far is the Hard Chocolate Shake with cigar infused bourbon, I felt like I should have been drinking it in Don Draper's office.

Ashamedly I was too full for dessert this time but I've tried the pumpkin pie before and it's the best I've ever had (only just though Sarah!).

Whether it's the end to a big night out or a mid week pie craving Late Night Diner have got you covered. So next time you find yourself heading to the nearest golden arches, stay away from the fluorescent lighting and give Late Night Diner a try instead.

Terrariums 101

I've been eyeing up terrariums for the last year or so but it was only when Allie made one last week that my terrarium envy reached breaking point. It was about time I did it seeing as we've had an empty terrarium floating around the house for the last six months, so here we go.

A terrarium is basically a glorified pot plant in a glass bowl or vase. They've become really popular recently and you can even buy ready made ones (I know there is a shop in Ponsonby that sells them for about $300 a pop!)

Here are a few of my favourite terrariums I found on Pinterest. Get inspired! Some clever cookie has even used a lightbulb.

For those of us who don't have a spare $300 for a plant, here is my recipe for terrariums:

• 1 vessel (you can buy special terrariums or a just use a fish bowl or vase)
• 3 cups of pebbles
• 1 cup of activated filter carbon (from the fish section in a pet store)
• 4 cups of potting mix
• A selection of baby potting plants

Obviously the amount you need will differ depending on how big you're going, my terrarium is about 20/25 cm in diameter, 10cm deep and these quantities worked for me. I used one with a removable top which was great as I don't have the patience for arranging plants with tweasers.

Cover the base of your terrarium with a layer of pebbles, these will act as a natural drain for your little plants. Next cover the pebbles with a layer of activated filter carbon.

Now add in your soil, arrange your plants, and voila! It's almost disappointingly easy.

You could stop here and it would be a thing of beauty, but for anyone who has a weakness for kitsch like me the next step is where the fun really begins.

Bring out your inner 5 year old and see what happens. I won't judge you if you don't judge me!