Best burger outside NYC!!

Just been for dinner with Stef @ GBC - Gourmet burger company in Durban North.
Best burger outside of NYC, 100% endorsed by my own little burger gourmet Stef, so that makes it 110% authentic. Stef had the cheddar burger with fries.

I settled for the blue cheese burger with smoked bacon and fries. We shared a house side salad and home made mayo to dip the chips!

The bill was maybe a tad expensive for a couple of burgers (Paulie did join us last minute) but well worth it! Indulge yourself when you are in the area and go!

Sunday "FEAST" market

It was the launch of the FEAST market in Durban North. Pity it all but rained out, as it has all the makings of just the type of upmarket market we need. I sincerely hope Lynn and Co keep going, as the plan is to do it the first Sunday of every month.

My favourites were:

Organic veg from Earth Mother - I bought melanzane, fennel and a mix of course salt and herbs. Super fresh Proteas from Lynn, and the taster of the ribs (thanks Mairi) will have me getting some next time.

Great bakes from Debbie, who had the most scrumptious Greek sweets, which we managed to resist, but we crumbled (sic), for the huge muffins, both sweet and savoury, as well as the mini loaves.

We took home a spinach and feta loaf, which we had for dinner with home made fig jam, courtesy of Oumie. Now time for the sunday night movie and bed...

The Amalfi coast - instalment 1

Arriving in Italy

We are back from a great holiday in Italy, where we stayed with Soni's Dad in Cava di Terreni, a few kilometers from where the Amalfi coast starts at the picturesque town of Vietri sul Mare. Vietri is famous for it's beautifull hand painted ceramics, and I must confess, we buckled and bought a few awesome serving pieces, but that is another instalment...

I'll be blogging about the food on our trip as well as dropping in some pics, just to make you all very envious, of the awesome scenery, classic architecture, as well as some happy snaps.

Oumie and I arrived on Sun the 12th, to join Soni, Stef and Luca who had been at Pappa since the previous thursday. He lives in the hills above Cava, where there are deliciously cool winds in the heat of mid summer.

The view from the terrace is amazing, and just to the right against the hill is a ramshackle ruin than we dream of restoring...

While Soni and the rest of the house hold went for a siesta, I went for a walk with Oumie and the Boys, who were so happy to see us after their ten day adventure with Lu & Co in London. The terrain is very rustic and hilly, so we stopped often, which was another excuse every time for a photo opportunity.

As is custom in these parts in summer, dinner was casual and late for us (9pm). Pappa drove us down to the beach promenade area of Vietri, where we were told they made the best potato croquettes in the world. Crispy outside, soft inside with melting mozzarella centres at Bar . This set the stage for the first meal of many that we shared with Soni's aunts Nelli and Angela.

The angel with Pappa. is ANGELO, Soni's six year old brother, what a gentle, charming boy and what a treat to watch Angelo, Stef and Luce communicate with a mix of pidgin English, Italian and mainly hand signals was refreshingly funny.

The only alternative to the potato croquettes was pizza - either Bianco or Rosso, sold by the slice.

We all slept well after a hour or so of the kids playing at the Gypsy fun fair and the trek back up the hill, there was a week or so worth of adventure, excitement and great meals ahead.....

Bocca di Lupo - London

With the sad demise of our old Italian favourite, Gennaro Contaldo's Passione in Charlotte str, it was with delight that we dined at Bocca di Lupo!

It is tutta L'Italiano!

Chef Jacob Kennedy delights with a contemporary take on Cucina povera. We dined at the bar, and were all truly satisfied and thrilled with the dishes.

Rob had the Rustic pork & foie gras sausage with farro & porcini from Trentino, Nibs t
Trofie with green beans, potato & pesto from Liguriahe, Shirley the Veal scallopini with artichokes & lemon from Lazio and I had the Braised beef cheeks on berlotti beans with pesto.

The sides were equally inspiring, Berlotti beans, roasted potatoes with rosemary and chestnuts an crispy deep fried artichokes.

We rounded it off with espresso, Vin Santo and a deliciously sharp Gorgonzola.

When in London make the effort:

Bocca di Lupo
12 Archer street (Soho)
London W1D 77B

Sea-side Meals - Magic Mussels

Love mussels? Who doesn't. but most people feel too daunted by the thought of cooking them - don't, the biggest challenge is finding a stock pot big enough to cook them in! I had a bit of a problem on that account at the cottage, but in the end it was two pots (pasta and pressure) that did the job.

For the base sauce:

1 bunch of celery, tops and stalks chopped.

1 Spanish onion, sliced into thin half rings

A thumb size piece of stem ginger, finely sliced

A few cloves of crushed and minced garlic

2 Tins of whole Italian tomatoes

A bottle of fine white wine (and extra for the chef!)

Saute the onion, garlic and celery in olive oil and a generous knob of butter till soft but not coloured.

We had the kids with some of their mates with us, so I held back the chili, but if all diners can handle add the chili to the onion mix now.

Add the ginger and then the wine, cook off the alcohol for a minute or two and then add the tomatoes, chopping them roughly in the pot with a knife.

This sets the scene for the mussels!

The mussels need to be cleaned of all beard and soaked and rinsed to clear all sand and grit.

Tip into the pot (...or pots in this case), mix through ensuring there is enough cooking liquid and if not add some boiling water. Fit a tight lid and leave the mussels to steam for 6 to 8 minutes or until they have opened.

Heap onto a shallow, wide serving dish and serve with fresh crusty bread to mop up the sauce with.

The amazing cooking liquor left in pot, fragrant with all the mussels natural juices were being to be whipped into another dish! What to do? Freeze for future use or....

.... cook a pack of spaghetti in the sauce,(add a little water if needed), and serve with some of the de-shelled mussels and bread crumbs crisped in the oven for crunch.

Whilst the adults were diving elbow deep into the juicy, plump mussels, it was the quite rapture and slurp-sigh of the kids tucking into the pasta, that was most gratifying....check it out!

Old Years Eve '08 Feast - Roast Lamb, Pork Belly....

We, as always, escaped the New Years Eve's madness and spent it at the cottage. Paulie, Sabrina and Luigi joined us for a meaty feast and some lovely veggies from Son. All this with the ocean in the background and the Mtwalume night sky bursting with a riot of rainbow colour from the surrounding fireworks.

Luigi did an all too succulent Leg of Lamb, that according to urban legend took copious amounts of scotch to lubricate the chef and his helper during the four hours it took to cook.

Soni's Veggies took the form of roasted bean and potatoes with pine nuts and ricotta stuffed mushrooms.

...and I couldn't resist the temptation and my contribution was a juicy Pork Belly.

With all the attention on the meat going around, we all forgot dessert - Soni and Sabrina to the rescue! Marshmallow and Nutella SURPRISE!

Pinwheels

Sonia was quick to the rescue when the boys were looking for a sweet biscuit and we had none in the store cupboard. The variety of potential fillings are endless and the boys had loads of fun making, baking and eating these.

Roll out a pack of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface, divide evenly into three sections along the width and spread each with a filling of choice. We used peanut butter and honey on the first, cinnamon and brown sugar on the second and chocolate spread on the third.

Roll up on the short side into a tube and slice into 5mm sections. Lay these on their sides on a baking tray and bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 deg C for 15 minutes or until puffed and golden.

They are great with a coffee or as a topping to ice cream. Enjoy!