Scandelights

Dinner at Rex & Mariano, Soho

Published on March 20, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

It’s a few weeks ago now, that Daisy, Rowena and I had a lovely dinner at the fairly new addition to the Soho restaurant scene; Rex and Mariano.

This is a seafood restaurant with great produce but very reasonable prices. And they still have oysters, tartares, ceviche, prawns, mussels and plenty of fish.

The interior goes with the less is more price-setting. It’s simple and scaled back but still nice.

After being seated at our table, we’re told we order everything on the table’s iPad. The software is very easy to use and you can order one or a few things at the time. The waiters’ job is from here on in just to bring the food to the table and answer any questions from the diners. Very efficient!

Just like in many other restaurants, Rex & Mariano encourages sharing the dishes, which I also enjoy as it’s the best way to avoid food envy. Our first dish was burrata with tomatoes and balsamic vinegar. It was nice but not the creamiest burrata I’ve ever had.

We then had an oyster each, and they were really big and juicy. And delicious!

After that we shared this seabass ceviche with coriander, yuzu and red onions.

The grilled red prawns with lemon, olive oil and sea salt were amazing! So simple but great produce.

Also the tuna tartare with avocado, chilli and lime was very nice.

But my favourite that evening was the mussles. We had them as a main with fries and tenderstem broccoli, and what I liked about this dish apart from the mussels being top quality (they were big, sweet and juicy), I loved the sauce. It wasn’t the usually creamy Mariniere type sauce, instead it was a light buttery emulsion.

After all of this I was quite happily full, but the girls fancied a pudding and enjoyed a lovely chocolate mousse with pistachios. The pudding menu wasn’t large and they all seemed to be prepared ahead of time, but they were still very nice. But you can tell the focus here is on the fish and seafood.

Because of the efficient ordering process on the iPad the service charge is as little as five or six percent, which also contributes to the value for money track this restaurant is already on.

Rex & Mariano, 2 St Anne’s Court, London W1F 0AZ

Burger delivery with Chosen Bun, London

Published on March 19, 2015March 18, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

It was thanks to a flyer through the letterbox that I found about about a company that specialise in delivering burgers in London. So one day when I really wanted a burger but was too tired to make my own, I ordered one on my mobile on my way home from the tube. It was really easy, but I wish I could have paid with PayPal instead of putting in all my credit card details.

Approximately 20 minutes after ordering there was a knock on the door and my burger was delivered. Great stuff! Chosen Bun gets plus points for the very thought-out packaging (with air holes to let your burger breathe and not become soggy in transit) and for the imprint of their logo on the bun. I like the little touches.

I had The Patty burger with caramelised red onion chutney, lettuce, ketchup, mayo and pickle and my own addition of cheddar.

I thought the patty itself needed more seasoning, especially salt, and the chutney was too sweet and overpowering for my liking. The bun was great though and I liked the texture and how the patty was cooked and the pickles were delicious. The chunky chips with rosemary were enormous, crispy and very nice!

All in all a nice burger, but next time I will omit the, for me, too dominant chutney. The idea of getting a burger delivered in sensible packaging is genius though, keep up the good work!

Chosen Bun, 647 Fulham road, London, SW6 5PU

Creamy polenta with aubergine and chorizo in tomato sauce

Published on March 18, 2015 by Hanna1 Comment

The weekend before last I enjoyed an ice cream in the sun in Berlin (without a coat on) so there is hope that spring is on it’s way to London too, even though it is a little too cold for my liking at the moment.

But before it’s all barbecues and salads, let’s indulge in the comfort food of colder seasons, like this very creamy polenta with aubergine and chorizo in a rich tomato sauce. Yes, let’s!

Creamy polenta with aubergine and chorizo in tomato sauce, serves 2

Tomato sauce:

a little olive oil

1 garlic clove, pressed

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 can (400 g) chopped tomatoes

1/2 aubergine, peeled and cut into cubes

1/2 chorizo ring, peeled and sliced

oil for frying

Polenta:

600 ml chicken or vegetable stock

150 g polenta

50 g butter

150 ml finely grated parmesan

2 garlic cloves, pressed

salt, white pepper

Fry the pressed garlic in some oil in a non-stick saucepan on medium heat for a minute. Add the tomato paste and chopped tomatoes and a splash of water. Let the sauce cook for 15-20 minutes until it’s thickened nicely. Stir occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Fry the aubergine cubes in oil until golden. Remove from pan and fry the chorizo slices. Add to the tomato sauce when it’s done.

Bring the stock to the boil in a large saucepan. Add the polenta bit by bit, stir with a wooden spoon while it thickens (this happens pretty quickly). Remove from heat and add butter, parmesan, garlic, salt and pepper. Serve with the tomato sauce.

Sweet potato fritters with coriander yoghurt and chorizo

Published on March 17, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

I really like this kind of lighter dishes for my supper. It’s still cooked food so feels like a proper dinner, just not as heavy. The coriander yoghurt is a nice, fresh contrast to the sweeter and earthier flavours of the fritters. Get in!

Sweet potato fritters with coriander yoghurt and chorizo, serves 2

1 large sweet potato, peeled and grated

70 g plain flour

1 egg

60 ml milk

1 tskp cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper or chilli flakes

salt, black pepper

10 cm chorizo, chopped

Sauce:

250 ml thick Greek yoghurt

1 decent bunch coriander

1/2 lime, the juice

1 tbsp olive oil

salt, white pepper

Mix yoghurt and coriander with a blender. Add olive oil. Season to taste with lime juice, salt and pepper.

Mix eggs and flour in a bowl. Add the milk and whisk until no lumps. Add the grated sweet potatp, spices, salt and pepper. Fry in butter and oil on medium heat until golden brown and cooked through. Remove and fry the chorizo pieces until crisp. Plate up and serve with the coriander yoghurt and chopped coriander.

Dinner and cocktails at Solar, Berlin

Published on March 16, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

On the plane from London to Berlin I asked the woman in the seat next to recommend a nice bar in to me, and thanks to her Emma and I ended up in this fabulous restaurant and sky lounge in Kreuzberg.

The restaurant was really nice and although we had booked a late table (that was all that s available) they could fit us in around 7.30pm, which was great as we were already starving.

After ordering prosecco we received this lovely bread basket with thick still warm slices of dark and white bread, a grassy olive oil and a sweet potato crème.

Emma loved her cod with chickpeas, leek, pickled lemons and smoked fish broth and a side of creamed spinach.

I had fregola pasta, which I’ve never had before. It’s little pearls of pasta from Sicily that looks very much like giant couscous but is a little chewier. It was prepared like a risotto and was served with coppa ham, salted almond’s, olives, lamb’s lettuce and soft goat’s cheese. Delicious!

After dinner we walked up to the sky bar with great views over the city and had cocktails and prosecco.

Solar, Stresemanstrasse 76, 109 63 Berlin, Germany

Crab tarlets with chives, red chilli and lime

Published on March 12, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

These wonderful tartlets came about when a colleague was asking me for a recipe for a crab tartlet. I didn’t know a nice one so she used a recipe by Mary Berry that she raved about afterwards. So of course I had to try it. But for some reason I wasn’t in the mood for full on Thai flavours in the filling like the recipe suggests so I made my own filling with chives, red chilli and lime instead.

It turned out really well. Less full on flavours, but it complemented the crab perfectly and the crab taste came through more. It’s perfect as a light lunch or a starter.

I only made two tartlets but made one full batch of the dough (for eight) as I like having pastry in the freezer. It’s just fiddly to make a small batch anyway.

Crab tarlets with chives, red chilli and lime, makes 2 small tartlets

I made the dough using Mary Berry’s recioe while the filling is my own

Pastry (freeze what you don’t use):

175 g plain flour

1 tsp Coleman’s mustard powder

75 g butter, cut into cubes

50 g parmesan, finely grated

1 egg, beaten

Filling:

100 g crab meat

1/2 röd chilli, finely chopped

1/2 lime, zest only

3 tbsp chopped chives

1 beaten egg

100 ml cream

salt, white pepper

Preheat the oven and a baking tray to 200C.

Start with the dough; mix flour, butter and mustard powder in a food processor until you have crumbs. Add the egg and the parmesan and run the food processor until the dough comes together.

Press out (or roll if you prefer) the dough into two small dishes with a fluted edge. Freeze the remaining dough.

Mix crab meat, lime zest, chilli and chives in a bowl. Divide between the tartlets. Beat eggs and cream, season well and fill up the tartlets.

Place the tartlets on the now hot baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the filling is set. Leave to cool a little and serve with a salad.

Lunch at Lutter & Wegner, Berlin, Germany

Published on March 11, 2015 by Hanna2 Comments

After a long walk through a sunny Berlin on Saturday, Emma and I were ravenous by the time we saw some restaurants near Gendarmenmarkt. Most other cities have restaurants and cafés scattered everywhere but in Berlin they were a little harder to find if you wanted to avoid the real tourist traps. But around Gendarmenmarkt and off of Kurfürstendamm here are a few clusters of restaurants, so we’re glad we found them.

I had read about Lutter & Wegner while doing my research and it lived up to its expectations. The menu is German with some other influences. The service was great, the interior is cosy and the food really good.

Emma had a Caesar salad with large prawns which was nice and substantial and looked really fresh. I went a bit more local with a Wienerschnitzel serves with potato and cucumber salad. The schnitzel was huge but very flat and tender and the salad was delicious too. We both had a glass of wine each with our lunch, both matched with our food by our knowledgeable waiter and the recommendations were spot on. After having refuelled in such a nice way we were ready to continue our long walk in the sun.

Lutter & Wegner, Charlottenstraße 56, 10117 Berlin, Germany

Berlin in pictures

Published on March 10, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

Berlin was quite different to what I expected, but Emma and I had a fabulous time. We enjoyed good food (restaurant reviews in separate posts), laughed A LOT and walked lots taking in the sights.

On the Saturday we started the day at the Berlin Wall museum for some contemporary history. It was very educational and well worth a visit. After that we walked around for the rest of the day exploring Berlin. The city is a fun fix of old and new, pretty and ugly.

Emma at The Memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe.

An obligatory tourist picture by Brandenburger Tor.

Strasse des 17. Juni by Brandenburger Tor.

Reichstag (the Parliament).

Modern architecture.

The river Spree.

Brandenburger Tor.

Gendarmenmarkt (Cavalry square) with pretty old buildings.

Den iconic green man; a little chubbier than the regular one.

A typical Berlin view; old meets new.

Die Fernsehenturm (Television tower) which you can spot from anywhere in the city.

The River Spree.

Graffiti.

The Lipstick and the Powder Compact by Kurfürstendamm.

A walking talking sausage stand. I didn’t buy any but they looked and smelled great!

Tasting menu at Harwood Arms, Fulham

Published on March 9, 2015March 6, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

I celebrated Valentine’s day with my fellow foodie friend Caroline at Harwood Arms, amongst a few couples but we enjoyed the food too much to notice it much. I’ve only had their a ‘la carte before and was a little worried that the tasting menu portions would be huge as the portions here are very generous, but it was just the right amount.

Shortly after having received water, bread and wine at the table the first course arrived; beetroot poached salmon with yellow beets and smoked sourcream. It was a very fresh dis and the smoked sourcream was a fun twist.

Next we had a rabbit terrine with almond praline, turnip, endive and yoghurt. Also really nice!

Thereafter turbot with smoked bone marrow and parsley root. Another nice dish with a fun twist. It was the first time I’ve had bone marrow paired with fish!

The best dish was without a doubt the last savoury one; perfectly cooked fillet of veal with velvety garlic potato purée with jus and toasted garlic. A-ma-zing!

After that high, the puddings were quite a blur. I prefer savoury over sweet any day and was really content after the first four courses. It was nice to have something sweet to finish off the meal but I’m afraid, to me, the puddings weren’t that memorable.

But they were just the right size to round off the meal nicely, and especially the mousse-topped shortbread with ice cream was really nice, even though it didn’t top the veal.

Harwood Arms, Walham Grove, London SW6 1QP

Panforte di Siena

Published on March 8, 2015March 6, 2015 by HannaLeave a comment

This cake dates back to the 13th century in Siena, Italy and because the cake has been around for so long there are lots of different recipes around. I settled for Jamie Oliver’s as I thought it sounded nice with figs in it, and it was really nice. It’s a dense and quite hard cake consisting mainly of fruits and nuts (and sugar) so a small piece is enough. I totally forgot to buy rice paper for my cake but it worked well without.

Panforte di Siena, makes 20 pieces

Adapted from Jamie Oliver’s recipe.

(rice paper) spapper

300 g nuts, I used almonds, pistachios and hazelnuts

200 g mixed candied peel

75 g plain flour

175 g dried figs

1-2 tbsp sherry or vin santo

6 tbsp honey

150 g golden caster sugar

½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp cardamom

grated nutmeg

a pinch ground cloves

icing sugar

Cover a 22cm springform with rice paper. Toast the nuts in a dry pan and mix with the mixed peel and flour.

Pre-heat the oven to 150C. Mix the figs into a paste using a food processor. Transfer the paste to a saucepan and add 1 tbsp sherry/vin santo, honey, sugar and all the spices and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5-8 minutes and then add it to the nut mixture. Mix well and add another tbsp sherry/vin santo if the mixture is dry.

Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 30 minutes. Carefully press down a layer of rice paper on top of the cake and bake for another 10 minutes. Leave to cool in the tin.

Dust with plenty of icing sugar, cut into thin slices and serve.