Daring Bakers November Challenge: Cannoli

I was both excited and nervous when I found out this month's challenge: cannoli. I love cannoli (especially the ones from Pasticceria Tamborrino in Five Dock with the ricotta and rum filling....) but I've never thought of making it myself and I'm very unaccustomed to deep frying. Anyway the month kind of got away on me and I only remembered today that it was posting day so as soon as the Monkey went down to sleep I got straight into it! One very good thing about the recipe is that the ingredients are typical storecupboard fare so you don't have to buy anything extra (depending on your filling) so I put the dough together in no time and didn't feel the need to even get out the food processor.

I was originally planning on just making the stacked version but when I found out that you could use cannelloni pasta in the cupboard I thought I'd give the tubes a go. The whole process was surprisingly easy although I think I should've rolled them a bit thinner to get more of the desirable "blistering" effect.

I did hit three small hurdles along the way:1: Not enough oil - as I left it so late (evening of 27th and Daring Bakers have to post on the 27th) I only had about an inch and a half so had to turn my cannoli as they cooked but that didn't seem to be a problem. 2: The ricotta I had in the fridge to fill them turned out to be past its sell by date and I was exhausted and nothing would convince Mr Jen to go to Bondi Westfield to buy some on a Friday night when Stargate or similar was on TV. When the cannoli had cooled I dipped the ends in some melted dark chocolate and began my improvised filling. I decided to just fill one tonight and get some ricotta tomorrow so I improvised with some greek yoghurt which I mixed with vanilla, rum and some icing sugar. 3: The heat of my kitchen eventually got the better of me and despite a spell in the freezer, my filling kept running out of my cannoli but its nearly 10pm so I grated a little chocolate on top and took a quick snap.

I will try to add a pic of some more elegant looking fillings tomorrow!

While I was initially daunted, I think I would definitely make these again, especially as the shallow frying was quite effective. What a way to end a dinner party!

The November 2009 Daring Bakers Challenge was chosen and hosted by Lisa Michele of Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. She chose the Italian Pastry, Cannolo (Cannoli is plural), using the cookbooks Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and The Sopranos Family Cookbook by Allen Rucker; recipes by Michelle Scicolone, as ingredient/direction guides. She added her own modifications/changes, so the recipe is not 100% verbatim from either book.

Equipment:

Cannoli forms/tubes - optional, but recommended if making traditional shaped cannoli. Dried cannelloni pasta tubes work just as well!

Deep, heavy saucepan, enough to hold at least 2-3-inches of oil or deep fryer

Deep fat frying thermometer. although the bread cube or bit of dough test will work fine.

Metal tongsBrass or wire skimmer OR large slotted spoon

Pastry bag with large star or plain tip, but a snipped ziplock bag, butter knife or teaspoon will work fine.

Cooling rack

Paper bags or paper towels

Pastry Brush

Cheesecloth

Sieve or fine wire mesh strainer

Electric Mixer, stand or hand, optional, as mixing the filling with a spoon is fine.Food Processor or Stand Mixer – also optional, since you can make the dough by hand, although it takes more time.

Rolling pin and/or Pasta roller/machinePastry or cutting board

Round cutters - The dough can also be cut into squares and rolled around the cannoli tube prior to frying. If making a stacked cannoli, any shaped cutter is fine, as well as a sharp knife.

Mixing bowl and wooden spoon if mixing filling by hand

Plastic Wrap/Clingfilm

Tea towels or just cloth towels

Required: Must make cannoli dough and shells. If you don’t have or do not want to purchase cannoli forms, which I would never ask of any of you, you could simply cut out circles, squares, or any shapes you want and stack them with the filling of your choice to make stacked cannoli's aka Cannolipoleons (directions below). If desired, you can channel MacGuyver and fashion something heat proof to get traditional shaped cannoli (6-8 inch sawed off lengths of a wooden broom stick or cane, sanded down and oiled, is THE authentic cannoli form!), or non-traditional shapes such as creating a form to make bowls, or even using cream horns if you happen to have them. Mini cannoli would be great too, and I've provided links to retailers of cannoli forms of all sizes.

Also, for those who don't like to cook or bake with alcohol - grape juice, cranberry juice, pomegranate juice, apple juice..any sweet juice of a fruit, especially ones used in or to make wine, can be substituted. Just add a little more vinegar to insure you get enough acid to relax the

dough

Variations: The filling is YOUR choice! Anything you want to fill them with is perfectly fine, sweet or savory, or you can use the filling recipe provided – making whatever changes you want to it. Cannoli would make a great addition to a Thanksgiving dessert table/spread. In many Italian households, during the holidays, cannoli is always part of the dessert offerings. You could also make a Thanksgiving themed cannoli, like pumpkin cannoli (I came up with a great pumpkin filling recipe below) or apples, pecans, walnuts, any dried fruits etc. An idea to gussy up your cannoli is; dipping the rims of the shell in melted chocolate and rolling in chopped nuts or sprinkles, then letting them set prior to filling. Dipping or pressing mini chocolate chips into the filled ends OR just stirring mini chocolate chips into the filling prior to stacking or filling whatever shaped shells you come up with, is another great idea and makes a nice presentation The sky is the limit here, be creative! Naturally, if you have any dietary restrictions, by all means, go with it. I’ve provided a link to a gluten-free cannoli recipe and a slightly savory vegan cannoli recipe to help get you started.
Bonus option: Make your own ricotta and/or mascarpone cheese! http://lisamichele.wordpress.com/2009/05/04/eating-my-curds-and-ditching-the-whey/http://www.bakingobsession.com/2009/05/02/homemade-mascarpone-cheese/
Technically, I know, this is not baking, and if you prefer to steer clear of the deep fry, you can bake the shell. You won’t get the snappy, blistery texture and appearance that make cannoli so special, but I’m sure it’ll taste good nonetheless. Here’s a link where the cook bakes some of his cannoli shells: http://www.ifood.tv/network/cannoli/recipes
Lidisano’s CannoliMakes 22-24 4-inch cannoliPrep time:Dough – 2 hours and 10-20 minutes, including resting time, and depending on whether you do it by hand or machine.Filling – 5-10 minutes plus chilling time (about 2 hours or more)Frying – 1-2 minutes per cannoliAssemble – 20–30 minutes
RECIPE NOTE: THE EQUIVALENTS FROM THIS RECIPE WERE PREPARED USING THIS CONVERSION SITE: http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/index.asp.

CANNOLI SHELLS

2 cups (250 grams/8.82 ounces) all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons(28 grams/1 ounce) sugar

1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.06 ounces) unsweetened baking powder

1/2 teaspoon (1.15 grams/0.04 ounces) ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon (approx. 3 grams/0.11 ounces) salt

3 tablespoons (42 grams/1.5 ounces) vegetable or olive oil

1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.18 ounces) white wine vinegar

Approximately 1/2 cup (approx. 59 grams/approx. 4 fluid ounces/approx. 125 ml) sweet Marsala or any white or red wine you have on hand

1 large egg, separated (you will need the egg white but not the yolk)

Vegetable or any neutral oil for frying – about 2 quarts (8 cups/approx. 2 litres)

1/2 cup (approx. 62 grams/2 ounces) toasted, chopped pistachio nuts, mini chocolate chips/grated chocolate and/or candied or plain zests, fruits etc.. for garnish

Confectioners' sugar
Note - If you want a chocolate cannoli dough, substitute a few tablespoons of the flour (about 25%) with a few tablespoons of dark, unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch process) and a little more wine until you have a workable dough (Thanks to Audax).

DIRECTIONS FOR SHELLS:

1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer or food processor, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the oil, vinegar, and enough of the wine to make a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and well blended, about 2 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge from 2 hours to overnight.

2 Cut the dough into two pieces. Keep the remaining dough covered while you work. Lightly flour a large cutting or pastry board and roll the dough until super thin, about 1/16 to 1/8” thick (An area of about 13 inches by 18 inches should give you that). Cut out 3 to 5-inch circles (3-inch – small/medium; 4-inch – medium/large; 5-inch;- large. Your choice). Roll the cut out circle into an oval, rolling it larger and thinner if it’s shrunk a little.

3 Oil the outside of the cannoli tubes (You only have to do this once, as the oil from the deep fry will keep them well, uhh, oiled..lol). Roll a dough oval from the long side (If square, position like a diamond, and place tube/form on the corner closest to you, then roll) around each tube/form and dab a little egg white on the dough where the edges overlap. (Avoid getting egg white on the tube, or the pastry will stick to it.) Press well to seal. Set aside to let the egg white seal dry a little.

4. In a deep heavy saucepan, pour enough oil to reach a depth of 3 inches, or if using an electric deep-fryer, follow the manufacturer's directions. Heat the oil to 375°F (190 °C) on a deep fry thermometer, or until a small piece of the dough or bread cube placed in the oil sizzles and browns in 1 minute. Have ready a tray or sheet pan lined with paper towels or paper bags.

5. Carefully lower a few of the cannoli tubes into the hot oil. Do not crowd the pan. Fry the shells until golden, about 2 minutes, turning them so that they brown evenly.

8. Lift a cannoli tube with a wire skimmer or large slotted spoon, out of the oil. Using tongs, grasp the cannoli tube at one end. Very carefully remove the cannoli tube with the open sides straight up and down so that the oil flows back into the pan. Place the tube on paper towels or bags to drain. Repeat with the remaining tubes. While they are still hot, grasp the tubes with a potholder and pull the cannoli shells off the tubes with a pair of tongs, or with your hand protected by an oven mitt or towel. Let the shells cool completely on the paper towels. Place shells on cooling rack until ready to fill.

9. Repeat making and frying the shells with the remaining dough. If you are reusing the cannoli tubes, let them cool before wrapping them in the dough.

Stacked cannoli:

1. Heat 2-inches of oil in a saucepan or deep sauté pan, to 350-375°F (176 - 190 °C).

2. Cut out desired shapes with cutters or a sharp knife. Deep fry until golden brown and blistered on each side, about 1 – 2 minutes. Remove from oil with wire skimmer or large slotted spoon, then place on paper towels or bags until dry and grease free. If they balloon up in the hot oil, dock them lightly prior to frying. Place on cooling rack until ready to stack with filling.

ASSEMBLE THE CANNOLI:

1. When ready to serve..fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain or star tip, or a ziplock bag, with the ricotta cream. If using a ziplock bag, cut about 1/2 inch off one corner. Insert the tip in the cannoli shell and squeeze gently until the shell is half filled. Turn the shell and fill the other side. You can also use a teaspoon to do this, although it’s messier and will take longer.

2. Press or dip cannoli in chopped pistachios, grated chocolate/mini chocolate chips, candied fruit or zest into the cream at each end. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and/or drizzles of melted chocolate if desired.

TIPS AND NOTES:

- Dough must be stiff and well kneaded

- Rolling the dough to paper thinness, using either a rolling pin or pasta machine, is very important. If the dough is not rolled thin enough, it will not blister, and good cannoli should have a blistered surface.

- Initially, this dough is VERY stubborn, but keep rolling, it eventually gives in. Before cutting the shapes, let the dough rest a bit, covered, as it tends to spring back into a smaller shapes once cut. Then again, you can also roll circles larger after they’re cut, and/or into ovals, which gives you more space for filling.

- Your basic set of round cutters usually doesn’t contain a 5-inch cutter. Try a plastic container top, bowl etc, or just roll each circle to 5 inches. There will always be something in your kitchen that’s round and 5-inches if you want large cannoli.

- Oil should be at least 3 inches deep and hot – 360°F-375°F, or you’ll end up with greasy shells. I prefer 350°F - 360°F because I felt the shells darkened too quickly at 375°F.

- If using the cannoli forms, when you drop the dough on the form into the oil, they tend to sink to the bottom, resulting in one side darkening more. Use a slotted spoon or skimmer to gently lift and roll them while frying.

- DO NOT crowd the pan. Cannoli should be fried 2-4 at a time, depending on the width of your saucepan or deep fryer. Turn them once, and lift them out gently with a slotted spoon/wire skimmer and tongs. Just use a wire strainer or slotted spoon for flat cannoli shapes.

- When the cannoli turns light brown - uniform in color, watch it closely or remove it. If it’s already a deep brown when you remove it, you might end up with a really dark or slightly burnt shell.

- Depending on how much scrap you have left after cutting out all of your cannoli shapes, you can either fry them up and sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar for a crispy treat, or let the scraps rest under plastic wrap and a towel, then re-roll and cut more cannoli shapes.

- Push forms out of cannoli very gently, being careful not to break the shells as they are very delicate. DO NOT let the cannoli cool on the form, or you may never get it off without it breaking. Try to take it off while still hot. Hold it with a cloth in the center, and push the form out with a butter knife or the back of a spoon.

- Fill cannoli right before serving! If you fill them an hour or so prior, you’ll end up with soggy cannoli shells.

- If you want to prepare the shells ahead of time, store them in an airtight container, then re-crisp in a 350°F (176 °C) oven for a few minutes, before filling.

- Practice makes perfect. My first batch of shells came out less than spectacular, and that’s an understatement. As you go along, you’ll see what will make them more aesthetically pleasing, and adjust accordingly when rolling. My next several batches turned out great. Don’t give up!!

Sugar Free Banana and Mango Muffins

As the Monkey is just as fond of cakes as her mother, (I actually found her leafing though "How to be a Domestic Goddess" by Nigella Lawson today - pointing at the photos and saying "Yum Yum") I'm always looking for ways to make recipes healthier without sacrificing too much taste. I generally just cut the sugar amount in half and I never miss that extra sweetness. Today I found myself with a load of overripe bananas and an overripe mango so after the Monkey went to bed I set to some quick baking. I decided to turn them into muffins and try leaving out the sugar altogether in my usual recipe. The results were a huge success - you wouldn't satisfy a sweet tooth with them but they were sweet enough for my taste and the fruit kept them very moist which tends to bode well for freezing - their final destination. My concern was that they might not rise very well with all the fruit but it didn't seem to be a problem.

Just so you know these are what I call "proper" muffins less sweet and cake like than the so-called muffins they sell in the supermarket.

This recipe started out life as the Banana and Butterscotch Muffins in Nigella Express http://www.nigella.com/recipe/recipe_detail.aspx?rid=155 - the most fabulously easy muffin recipe although I've never found the butterscotch morsels so substitute with chocolate chips or raisins.

Ingredients

Very Ripe Bananas (3 large, 4 medium or 5 small - I used 5 little organic ones)

1 Very Ripe Medium Sized Mango - finely chopped but leaving a few larger chunks - I scrape off the skin so you end up with a bit of puree in there too.

2 Eggs

125ml vegetable or other light oil - I used rice bran oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

280g Plain Flour

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda

1: Preheat oven to 200 degrees and line a 12 bun muffin tin with muffin cases (I used my little silicon cases as I find better to freeze cakes without paper cases as they go soggy in the defrosting process)

2: Mix the eggs, oil and vanilla in a bowl

3: Mix the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda in another bowl

4: Tip the egg mix into the dry ingredients and mix through

5: I then re-use the egg bowl to mash up the bananas (to save on washing up!) and add to the muffin mixture and mix through

6: Lastly mix in the mango

7: Spoon into your muffin cases and bake for about 20 mins

Cooking Club - The Inaugural Meeting

My friend Emma had the great idea to start a cooking club for all her foodie friends. She was inspired by her parents who live somewhere that where there are no decent restaurants so they and their friends started a dinner club where they take turns in cooking a fancy three course meal for the others. Emma did some research and pared down some other ideas for cooking clubs and went for the following format; We take turns hosting the club with a few wildcard restaurant dinners in between. The host picks the theme which could be anything from an ingredient to a national cuisine. The host cooks a dinner on that theme and everyone else brings a recipe on the same theme.

The theme of the first one was “Curries”. I contributed my Pakistani Haleem King of Curries recipe. (ADD LINK) Emma went down the South East Asian route and served beef satay skewers for entree followed by Indonesian Grilled Chicken for mains. For dessert lime and white chocolate cheesecake which was fabulous. The big hit for me was the chicken - the delicious taste combined with the quick and easy recipe had me already cooking it for Mr Jen and the Monkey three days later.

I came away from a lovely evening with a folder full of nice new recipes – perfect – bring on the next one!

Emma's Indonesian Chicken

8 chicken thighs (on the bone)

8 drumsticks (on the bone)

Marinade:

4 lemongrass stalks, outer leaves discarded and roots trimmed

a large handful of fresh coriander leaves

6 French shallots peeled and cut in half

8 large garlic cloves, peeled

2 thumb size pieces of fresh root ginger, shopped

4 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp curry powder

2 tsp pepper

½ tsp salt

4 tbsp Thai fish sauce

400ml coconut milk

Place all the marinade ingredients in a food processor and pulse until it becomes a rough puree.

Place the chicken in a suitable container and pour the marinade over the chicken covering well. Chill overnight or for at least 4 hours. Remember to turn once or twice.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Cook chicken (covered) in oven for 40 minutes and then remove foil. Cook for 30 – 45 minutes until tender and golden.

Serves 8

Daring Bakers October Challenge: Macaroons

The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe. My results this month can only really be described as pretty disasterous! My macaroons did not turn out particularly well - in fact they may be the ugliest in history! They were all chewy but very little crunch. However they did taste fantastic!

The sticking point was my offer to Mr Jen to bake whatever flavour he fancied. He immediately picked raspberry. The recipe advised to avoid adding any additional moisture to the mix so I went in search of freeze dried raspberries or powder thereof. The only ones I was able to find were lyophilised raspberries from the Ferran Adria Range at Simon Johnson. Unfortunately these cost over $50 a tin which I thought was pretty steep (although I was tempted.....). Then I had a brainwave. When we were over in Ireland last year, Mr Jen decided he liked Special K Red Berries cereal. On returning to Sydney we couldn't find them until I saw an own-brand version whilst on a chocolate and baby wipes run to Aldi (its the best place to buy chocolate for baking!!). I stocked up on three boxes only for Mr Jen to do his usual cereal behaviour i.e eat a few bowls then go off it entirely....... With two boxes sitting on the shelf I decided to pick out all the raspberries - it didn't take long and I was quite impressed with my haul which I blitzed with the almond flour and icing sugar in the recipe.

My salvaged freeze-dried raspberries

While the raspberries were fairly dry they were a bit sticky so I'm definitely putting them down as the reason for my failure........ I made a dark chocolate ganache to fill them with (melt 200g chocolate with 150ml cream and 1 tsp of vanilla extract and then whisk until smooth and thick). The combination worked really well flavour-wise as the raspberries gave a tart edge to the macaroons and the ganache was pure chocolate with very little sweetness which I loved.

Anyway, here's the Claudia Fleming recipe if you'd like to give it a go. The methodology is pretty simple but next time I think I'll try aging my egg whites for a few days in the fridge and drying the macaroons for 30 mins-1 hour after piping and skipping the first oven stage in the recipe as that does seem to help according to other people. I decided not to add food colour due to the risk of additional moisture and I was happy for them to look a bit rustic (not quite this rustic though!)

Ingredients

Confectioners’ (Icing) sugar: 2 ¼ cups (225 g, 8 oz.)Almond flour: 2 cups (190 g, 6.7 oz.)Granulated sugar: 2 tablespoons (25 g , .88 oz.)Egg whites: 5 (Have at room temperature)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Combine the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until nuts are very fine and powdery.

2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.

3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour in two batches. Be gentle! Don’t overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.

4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip (Ateco #806). You can also use a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off. It’s easiest to fill your bag if you stand it up in a tall glass and fold the top down before spooning in the batter.

5. Pipe one-inch-sized (2.5 cm) mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with nonstick liners (or parchment paper).

6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the temperature to 375°F (190°C). Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or lightly colored.

7. Cool on a rack before filling.

Yield: 10 dozen. Ami's note: My yield was much smaller than this. I produced about two dozen filled macaroons.

Cafe Next, Rozelle

While I love experimenting with new restaurants for lunch and dinner, I am always a little more cautious when it comes to breakfast venues. If I have a disappointing breakfast I feel like I've started my day on the wrong note. As we were picking up an overseas friend who was staying in Leichhardt I decided to go outside my comfort zone and try somewhere new. My first step was to call our Leichhardt dwelling friends who I would trust implicitly for restaurant recommendations. Without pausing for breath they recommended Cafe Next in Rozelle. I looked on Eatability and the reviews and rating seemed to confirm their enthusiasm so the venue was decided.

We ordered coffees immediately, closely followed by the food. I went for the Mediterranean Eggs - scrambled with pesto, tomato and feta. The food all arrived at about the same time but I wish the same could be said for the coffees which arrived in three separate deliveries - you'd think they needed to re-use the cups as we'd finished the first batch before any others arrived! We also ordered a babycino to entertain the monkey (yes - she's so Eastern Suburbs....) but we had to ask three times before we received it.

Mediterranean Eggs $13

My meal was slightly disappointing - the portion was ample but not massive and the eggs were pretty bland considering all the components -the feta was pretty rubbery when I expected a more crumbly cheese. Our overseas friend ordered the buttermilk pancakes with banana which were fantastic and all other food ordered was good.

Buttermilk Pancakes with Banana

While the food was pretty good the service really let this place down for us. The coffee situation was pretty average plus on arrival we asked if they had a high chair for the monkey, the slightly sullen waitress said she would go and see. As a frequent cafe diner, the monkey knows the score when she's in a high chair - she sits quite happily for as long as there is food to be eaten. Without a high chair she is more like a caged animal as she's too small for an adult seat and being on our laps isn't ideal for anyone. As we never heard back we assumed there was no high chair so were disgusted to see one being brought out as we were leaving. As the waitress would have seen the struggling monkey throughout the meal, I can't belive she'd forgotten our request. Despite the decent food I don't think we'll be returning....

Does service make or break cafes/restaurants for you?

Mercredi Passion – Orient & Epices , Anse Vata, New Caledonia

Giant tagine

The first Wednesday of each month, the tourist board here organises a street fair down by the beach in Anse Vata. This month the theme was “Orient & Epices” roughly translated as “The East and Spices”. It was a lovely evening so we went for a walk along the promenade to build up an appetite first.

There were a variety of stalls selling local and “eastern” items including some big bags of vanilla pods at a bargain price l but I don’t think I’d get them through Aussie customs. Now onto the fabulous food stalls. We first hit a French Caribbean themed stall (not sure how that relates to the Orient?) – they were selling a wide range of sweet and savoury pasties. We went for a couple of meat ones (250 francs/approx $3.50 each) – they were tasty with slightly spiced ground meat inside but they would have been better if they were hotter.

We then homed in on the Indian stall which apart from anything else was the most crowded and I’m all for following the crowd in this type of situation. They had a huge range of little appetizer sized items all for only 50 francs each (about 70c). We made a start on the savoury side with chicken and fish mini samosas and little patties made from semolina and mild chillis – we went back for more as soon as we’d finished our trial batch. We held ourselves back a little as there were also plenty of sweet options. My favourite of these were little banana dumplings which were somewhere between banana bread and a doughnut – very banany without being too sweet.
We’d made the schoolboy error of eating too much too soon but managed to squeeze in a bag of Achas de Poisson (fish fritters - I've never seen the word Achas anywhere before?) from another Indian stall (500 francs ($A7) for a dozen although I got the last portion of the batch so I ended up with about 18! Again these were excellent but it would’ve been nice to have some sort of dipping sauce. I had grand plans to head back to the apartment and mix some onion into some yoghurt for a quick dip but needless to say our little bag of Achas didn’t last that long.....

Achas de Poisson

Lastly we couldn’t resist a portion of Moroccan tagine and couscous to takeaway (900 francs ($A12.50). There was plenty for the two of us when heated it for lunch the next day and while we’d thought it was just chicken and vegetable, Mr Jen in particular was glad to find a couple of spicy merguez style sausages in there too.

The monkey was fading fast so we had to head home before the entertainment began but there was a troop of Indian dancers all ready to go as we were leaving so I think the party was only just starting....

New Caledonia and French Supermarkets

We were long overdue a relaxing holiday as Mr Jen and I figured out that we’ve never actually managed to take a holiday together that didn’t end up involving visiting friends/family and a hectic schedule. I wanted to head east so that the time difference would work in our favour in terms of the Monkey’s wake up time. I did my dissertation at uni on the French Pacific so I’d always been interested in visiting New Caledonia. I had heard that it was pretty expensive but when I realised I could get the flights on frequent flyers I couldn't resist.

New Caledonia is a “territorial collective with special status” of France – I won’t go into details but I suppose its kind of like a colony. As confirmed Francophiles, Mr Jen and I were excited about it being a little piece of France without a 24 hour flight! The native people in New Caledonia are Melanesian plus there has been a significant influence from Polynesian, Indonesian, Vietnamese and of course French migrants which have all got to lead to some exciting food options.

I must start by admitting that I have what can only be described as a fetish for foreign supermarkets so the prospect of French supermarkets was potentially one of the things I was most looking forward to on this holiday. Eating out is expensive here (although but no means as expensive as I had been expecting), but this gave me the excuse to head straight to the supermarket on the morning after we arrived to stock up our apartment.

I was pleased to find that most prices were either the same or slightly more that my local supermarket in Sydney. The best thing was to stick to local produce and French imports – if you wanted Australian imports you’d be paying a significant premium but that certainly wasn’t what I was here for. We stocked up on a variety of cheese, saucisson sec (salami type thing), salad veggies and some kitchen staples - including French butter of course which I would eat by the spoonful if I could! Despite all the fabulous French imports, Mr Jen was most excited by the big jars of Dry Roasted Peanuts which he can never get hold of in Australia.....

I don’t know what it is about French supermarkets in particular, the quality of the in store butchers and cheese counter is always great but I’m also a sucker for a bit of exotic packaging – I think I’ll be bringing the table salt back to Sydney purely for that!

We’ll no doubt be making another supermarket trip and I can’t wait – is it wrong to look forward to that more than the beach?