A Fish called Panga

Missing our Spanish lunches I decided to celebrate food, yet again & prepare a platter for lunch with bits and pieces of mouthwatering delicacies that reminds me of Spain.

Walking down the isles of Pick & Pay I started to fill my basket with Parma Ham, olives, fresh bread, cheese, asparagus and then ... I saw this interesting little creature ... a pink fish with a white underbelly staring at me with his big vague eyes and sharp little teeth - a fish called Panga.  

Now that would be the perfect finish to our lunch.   I have never heard of this fish before & was pondering how to prepare and cook it.  Of course the intelligent way would be to google it and find a tested recipe, but that's just boring ;-)

I decided to prepare it easy and fresh, sticking with the usual fish ingredients I trust.  Chopped fresh garlic, basil,  yellow pepper, chopped ginger, olive oil, salt & pepper.

I stuffed the fish with the sliced yellow pepper, garlic, basil & ginger.  Coated it in Olive Oil and sprinkled salt & pepper over it before grilling it in the oven.

While Panga was happily frying in the oven, I prepared the rest of the lunch ...

The fish came out perfectly tender and soft and yummy taste ... oh Yeah ... must be all the butter in the middle oozing out in a dance of garlic & basil.

What a delicious lunch.  We had some Fat Bastard Chardonnay with this and it was a perfect soft & buttery combination with a smooth soft aftertaste.

Out of interest I decided to google this fish anyway and see if I can find some different recommended recipes.  I came upon a nice and simple one... You place the fish in a glass steam-able dish, cover the fish in soya sauce, sesame seed oil, slivers of ginger and chopped spring onion.  Steam for more or less 8 minutes & serve.

Now that also sounds delicious & a little more healthier than my butter infused one ...

NIGELLA LAWSON - Forever Summer/WHITE 1

Don't you just love her?!
She knows how to pull of Sexy voluptuous finesse in the kitchen . Her joy of cooking & the cinematography is so perfectly combined I just want to stay in the kitchen the whole day and "cook" with her.
Now here is a nice breakfast idea to spoil that someone special tomorrow morning.

How about this easy 10 minute recipe from Do it delicious. We all know her husband & I am loving her work - here is Jessica Seinfeld via Youtube ...
enjoy

Some of my favorites

As you know I am already a big fan of What Katie Ate ... her food pictures is enough to send you drooling to the kitchen ...

today I stumbled upon this little gem for those of you who can happily skip the main course and move straight towards the delectable yummies ...
Tartelette

she must have a real sweet tooth with all these mouth watering recipes! Can't wait to try some. 

Now a little food tip, I did not know:  How to get roast potato's in the oven lekker crispy?

Glad you asked :)

After boiling your desired potato's for a few minutes, drain all the excess water and keep in pot, close lid and shake it all around.  You basically just want to bruise the potato's.  Then empty the pot into the baking tray, drizzle with Olive Oil (Spanish Olive Oil preferably), ground black pepper & salt, sprinkle some rosemary & daarsy -roast until crispy. Extra crispy like your Mom used to make it.

Justin Bonello dinner - YUM!

Parked half on the street half on the curb I dragged Hubby hastily into The Local Grill to meet up with our friends &...  Oh My meet Justin Bonello.

What an amazing evening.

Meeting Justin was definitely the highlight for me. An interesting man.  Well traveled, very honest,  extremely funny and on top of that all - What a Chef! 

Already having respect for his unique cooking skills he blew me away by his very open life story of hitting rock bottom,  picking himself up, starting over and striving harder for what he loves and enjoy out of life - Family, traveling, food & good friends. The important things in life - ♥ Live Simply ♥ Laugh Often ♥ Love Deeply ♥

Our delicious menu for the evening:

Starter platters …
House salad and freshly baked Local bread
Chicken liver stack
Falkland’s calamari with sweet chilli jam and creamy lemon butter

Main course … a choice of
Grilled 250g Grain fed rump or sirloin, rubbed and butter basted and served with a trio of sauces
OR
Chicken breast grilled, served with red wine glaze and sweet chilli jam and basil pesto
OR
Grilled linefish with lemon butter cream
All the above are served with fries, mashed potato, pap and polenta stack and Local veggies

Dessert … a choice of
Chocolate brownies with malted chocolate sauce and home-style vanilla ice cream
OR
Home-style vanilla ice cream with Lindt chocolate and bar one sauce - YUMMY!

Lipsmacking Delicious. Our meals were complimented by Porcupine Ridge (one of Boekenhoutskloof's wine selections). Well chosen and well rounded.

Porcupine Ridge Sauvignon Blanc: Herbal with citrus notes. Refreshing and zesty but calm so it’s also a great aperitif. Not an overpowering acidic taste at all.

Porcupine Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon: This wine is complex & had a nice earthy rich aftertaste that lingered, very nice.

Thank you for an inspiring & calorie infused evening Justin. I for one can't wait to try some of your new recipes ... Well, maybe not the Waterblommetjie potjie ;-)

(left: tipsy, middle: Justin, right: Leaine)

Dinner with Justin Bonello

Under African skies you will find this very talented South African filmmaker, chef and television personality best known for starring in his own cooking and travel show, Cooked, since 2006.

Exploring & cooking his way through Southern Africa with a talented television crew by his side to capture his embrace to the wonders of life, spending time with good friends, delicious cooking skills & his travels through our beautiful Africa. 

Culinary genius? Definitely! 

Being a 4x4 & food fanatic I fell in love with Justin Bonello’s cooking adventures, how could I not?  He is doing exactly what I would love to do.

Paging through the Travel & Food section of the Sunday Times on Sunday I came upon this little treat:  An evening with Justin Bonello at The Local Grill in Parktown North, Wednesday evening.

First thing this morning I jumped onto the net to book a table for us, excited beyond words, only to get a Sold OUT reply...

The friendly lady on the other side then replied again saying that it was so popular that Justin decided to do it tonight as well.!  Yipee.

Knowing there is one other enthusiast that will kill for a seat I forwarded the invite to Leaine from Leaines Kitchen.

I have goosebumps!

Dinner with Little One

Tonight Little One is coming over for dinner. What to make?
I feel like a traditional Italian pasta, nom nom....

That's exactly what I am in the mood for - Spaghetti & Meatballs!

Smiling

This morning I woke up with a huge SMILE, happy beyond happy! Why? mmmm .... just happy, I suppose, or might it be the amazing evening I had with Hubby last night?!

We stood in the afternoon rain, ice cold beers in our hands & staring at this amazing sight:

Now isn't that something? Double Rainbow! When last did you see something this exquisite?

      
today I wish I could just climb into my car & drive ... listening to this ...
I am having a sad day & want to be swept away by beautiful music, ocean breeze, a glass of buttery Chardonnay & my soul mate....

Natalie MacLean's Wine Blog

One day, when I grow up, I will have a blog like this:  Nat Decants
She is an inspiration to me & covers all aspects of wine & food that I love.
There is even this amazing little food & wine pairing search on her website, just so awesome.

Enjoy!

Little One, my gorgeous sister & her fiance just came back from a trip to Morocco & she decided to cater our usual Sunday lunch with her newly acquired Moroccon cooking skills.
Lamb Tagine & Cous Cous with Steamed Vegetables was on the menu.
I have been day dreaming about that lunch ever since. DELICIOUS! She prepared Cous Cous in a way I have never seen before... her whole movement through the kitchen was like a perfected dance of love. Moving ever so gracious between the stove and her trusty co Chef who was awarded with kisses for his perfect chopping skills.

In silence we enjoyed each bite with sighs of happiness.
Haha, I even had to sneakingly unbutton my pants...

Well done Little One & when can we come over for dinner again?

(picture via homemade-recipes)

Wednesday, mmmm

So I am having one of my "productive" days ;-) Sigh.
All I can think about is what to make for dinner tonight & I think I will surprise Hubby with his favorite - Mac & Cheese!

The only difficult part about dinner is picking a wine perfect enough to suit Hubby's palate and amazing enough to compete with his favorite Mac & Cheese.

Cheers!

Liquidity

So the oh so talented De Toren family has an addition to their talents:  Liquidity

Now this is an amazing company and they specialize in the importation and distribution of premium and super-premium wines and spirits. These products are often rare or hard-to-find, yet they are essential in the quest to satisfy a growing local demand for specialized products and an ever increasing tourism industry where guests don't want to settle for less.

At WineX I sipped a glass of wine each night for the duration of my evening - a gorgeous Chenin Blanc and became quite fond of this, Jean Daniel Wine.  I am not a huge fan of Chenin Blanc, but this little number converted me. Delicious & beautifully rounded, easy drinking.

Do yourself a favor, try this AND another foreign number from Liquidity: Viña Cobos. Gorgeous red wine from Argentine - Felino. Delicious.

Both these wines will be added to my wine cellar. :-)

Have a great day.
Cheers!

WineX & De Toren

Last week I worked at WineX for my lovely wine family De Toren & it was Amazing!  I enjoyed selling wine more than I could have ever thought & the fact that I am good at it did not hurt ;-)

The only downside to WineX this year is that I was sober! Eeeek.

Fusion V is the crown of the De Toren Cellar's labour - a tasting sensation and ageing jewel! My favorite Red wine by far. a gorgeous well matured, well rounded Bordeaux.

Strange as it may sound at first, it is the uniqueness of a wine that gets the consumer's attention - not just sheer quality.  Wine taste is subjective and individualistic in nature.

A little interesting note:
The estate huddles closely to the ocean - that explains why the five classic cultivars of Bordeaux - Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot - thrive in these vineyards.
The wine is the result of painstaking attention in the vineyards and meticulous care in the cellar. Throughout, the emphasis is on the careful conservation of the differences between each block of vines, so that the final result is unique and showcases only the finest quality fruit. The symbol of this care reflected in the tower of De Toren - an innovative lift that ensures that no pump ever needs to be used in the cellar, it's all gentle gravity. Amazing right?

Cheers all.