Le Manifique Astral

Astral, located on the 17th floor of the Star City Hotel Tower, it has one of the most magnificent harbour & city views that we Sydneysiders take for granted. Dining at Astral that evening I felt like a tourist, re-discovering the magical Sydney city through Astral's floor to ceiling glass wall. Its modern interior with a touch of elegance and dim lighting are the perfect setting for fine dining.

Unfortunately we were slightly disappointed with the level of service that evening. Even though we were immediately ushered to our table upon arriving and presented with the wine list, it wasn't until a good 15 minutes later when we finally had one of the waitresses attention. She came with her pen & notepad ready to take our order, but soon realised that no one has even shown us the menu! Thankfully her professionalism shined through & we had her full attention all night.

My first dish was the light and aromatic Smoked Salmon, one of Sean Connolly's signature dish. The dish arrived covered with a smoky glass and as soon as the cover was lifted, the smoked chamomile aroma fills up the room. The thinly sliced salmon was very fresh & soft, and it had that subtle smoky taste.

Marinated king salmon, Isigny crème fraîche, pea tendrils, chamomile pearls, chamomile smoke

My husband had the Mandagery Creek Venison two ways, tartare and carpaccio. Initially I was slightly afraid that the venison might have a strong smell, but the dish proved me wrong. Wonderfully lean and freshly cut tartare, it just melts in my mouth. The carpaccio was marinated long enough to soak the vinaigrette flavour, complimenting the raw venison taste.

 Tartare & Carpaccio with crisp potatoes, grebiche vinaigrette

We paid an extra $40 for one of the mains, the Australian Marron Tail. Such a delicate dish, we were definitely paying for the quality instead of quantity and it was worth every dollar. The marron had that crunchy fresh texture and mildly sweet taste. The bisque & parmesan froth was creamy yet light, I kept soaking the perfectly cooked ravioli into the froth and savour every moment of it.

Slow cooked marron tail, open ravioli, creamed leek, bisque, parmesan froth

The other main was the Beef Cheek with potato puree & sauteed mushrooms. A generous serving of beef cheek, cut thickly but cooked long enough to achieve a very tender result. This tender meat was paired with the soft & creamy potato puree that has soaked up some of the beef jus.

Potato purée & sautéed mushrooms

To end our meal we ordered one dessert each, but of course I had most of mine and some of my husband's. As a chocolate lover I ordered the Chocolate Dacquoise. An interesting layer of sweet & sour passionfruit and coconut cream flavour, covered in tempered chocolate and topped with champagne foam. The coconut sorbet was like a palate cleanser, very refreshing and not too overpowering with coconut flavour.

Passionfruit, coconut & champagne foam

Surprisingly, I enjoyed my husband's dessert more than mine. Having had 2 meat dishes for his entree & main (venison & beef cheek) he went for the light & refreshing Mandarin sorbet. The mandarin sorbet was served with fresh mandarin juice, jelly and the most interesting ingredient: pop rocks candy. Pop rocks candy creates a fizzy reaction when it dissolves in the mouth. So imagine eating the sweet mandarin sorbet & juice and suddenly you have this sparkling sensation.

Sorbet, compressed segments & soup; lemon balm & hibiscus jelly

Another spectacular dining experience that was full of flavour & creativity. Where to next?

Astral Restaurant
Level 17, 80 Pyrmont St
Pyrmont, Sydney

Pre-Theatre
2 course $70
3 course $85

My Successful Attempt on the Chocolate Fondant - from MasterChef Australia

After our lovely breakfast at Bird Cow Fish yesterday, my husband & I visited the NSW State Library to see the annual photography exhibition World Press Photo 2010. A collection of inspiring and breathtaking images taken by amazing photographers from all over the world.

We then head home, spending our lazy Saturday watching the prerecorded MasterChef show that I missed from the previous night. I became alert as soon as Gary said that he will be teaching the contestants on how to make chocolate fondant. After listening to him intently and concluded that this is a pretty easy dessert to make, I started with my very own MasterChallenge.

To be honest, it was very easy to make. The only thing that you have to be mindful of is the timing of the chocolate fondant in the oven. It took me 11-12 minutes for the chocolate fondant to bake perfectly in the oven and achieve a gooey chocolatey sauce inside. It is a very rich dessert and best eaten warm when the outer layer is still spongy and oozing in the middle. Be generous with the Amaretto if you like to have an intense alcohol flavour in your dessert. Also, I was unable to get hold of the Amaretto from the local liquor shop and used Kahlua instead. 

Recipe taken from the MasterChef website

Serves 6

Ingredients

Melted butter, for greasing
Cocoa powder, for greasing
200g dark couverture chocolate
200g butter, chopped
4 eggs
4 egg yolks
100g caster sugar
150g plain flour. sifted
100g butter, extra
100 g cocoa powder

625ml milk
5 egg yolks
40g caster sugar
1 vanilla bean
2 tbs amaretto



Method

Step 1: For the fondant, preheat oven to 180C. Place a small square of paper in the bottom of 6 ramekins and grease with melted butter and cocoa powder. Place ramekin on a baking tray.

Step 2: Melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a small saucepan of boiling water, turn off heat. In an electric mixer, add the eggs, egg yolks and sugar and mix on high speed until fluffy and white. Tip chocolate mixture into a large bowl, pour egg mixture into chocolate mixture and fold together. Fold in flour and mix until smooth. Spoon or pour mixture into ramekins and place in fridge until ready to serve. When ready to serve, bake in over for 8-9 minutes.

Step 3: For the milkshake, place 500ml milk in a small saucepan over medium heat. Meanwhile, cream egg yolks and sugar together with a whisk. Split vanilla bean in half, scrape seeds out and add the bean along with the seeds to the milk. Once it comes to the boil, pour half onto the yolk mixture, and then pour the mixture back into the saucepan, whisking constantly. Place over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Continue cooking until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, then strain into a bowl and cool over ice. Pour anglaise into a jug and place in the fridge for about an hour.

Step 4: Add 250ml of the anglaise, remaining milk and amaretto to a large jug. Froth with coffee machine steamer or a hand blender until thick and frothy.

Step 5: To serve, gently run knife along outside of each ramekin and turn fondant out into serving bowls. Spoon amaretto milkshake around the fondant and serve.

Breakfast at Bird Cow Fish

Yesterday was one of those Saturdays that made me realised how grateful I am to be living in Sydney. I started the day by having an unusual yet deliciously unforgettable breakfast at Bird Cow Fish. It is located at Surry Hills, a vibrant suburb that offers unlimited dining experience.

Bird Cow Fish has been awarded One Hat Chef since 2007, it serves modern Australian cuisine and open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. A cozy restaurant with wooden floorboards and wooden tables & chairs.

Average service, with the two(2) wait staff mostly chatting to each other or joking around with the barista. They barely say anything to the customers, giving me the impression that they are only there to take orders and serve the food.

Brioche & crumb coated soft boiled egg with spanish onion, rocket, potato, bacon & chorizo $16.50

Service aside, I love the brioche & crumb coated soft boiled egg. The soft boiled egg was cut in half, with the egg yolk still slightly runny and the egg white soft & tender. The crunchy and light brioche crumb added a contrasting texture to the egg. The fresh spanish onion and spicy chorizo brought out the flavour of the whole dish without overpowering the egg.

Croque Madame; double smoked ham, Dijon mustard, Heidi Gruyere & a fried egg $10.50

 Croque Madame, similar to Croque Monsieur but with a fried egg inside or on top. After his lovely encounter with Croque Monsieur at Brasserie Bread beginning of this year, my husband has been on the hunt for it ever since. The Croque Madame didn't have enough gruyere to give it a melting chewy cheese texture and I can only taste a hint of the Dijon mustard. However it was toasted long enough for the bread to be very crunchy and without getting the ham & egg overcooked.

If you happen to visit Eveleigh Farmer's Market, you can get a good selection of Bird Cow Fish's breakfast which includes the Croque Madame. A must buy item is their Bircher Muesli(500gms) for $10.50 if you are a muesli lover like me.

Bird Cow Fish
Shops 4 & 5,
500 Crown Street
Surry Hills
T +61 2 9380 4090

Mini Cupcakes from Cupcakes on Pitt

A couple of weeks ago I decided to take a 'sweet' short walk during my lunch break. What is so dangerously appetizing about working in the city is that I am surrounded by different variety of cake shops. So that afternoon I set my heart on the mini cupcakes from Cupcakes on Pitt. 

 

Cupcakes are one of the most popular sweet treats in the world. They taste pretty ordinary, mostly made either from vanilla or chocolate sponge cake. However, it's the beautiful icing decoration on top that makes people go 'woww'. I am one of them! One who so easily fall for the pretty little cupcakes even though I know how ordinary they taste like. 

My favourites are the passionfruit and lemon meringue flavours. Both are vanilla base which is quite light and not overly sweet. I can taste a hint of passionfruit when I first bite into the passionfruit cupcake. Unfortunately the taste slowly disappears with every single bite.

From left to right: Passionfruit Cupcake, Lemon Meringue Cupcake

I love how the lemon meringue sits nicely on top of the base and melts softly when I put it in my mouth. Not as sour as I was hoping it to be, but overall I still thoroughly enjoy the lemon meringue cupcake. 

Blueberries are always great for making desserts and I had that expectation when I chose the blueberry cupcake. Regrettably, it does not taste like blueberry at all. The only thing that I can taste in the blueberry base and icing is sugar, lots of sugar.

From left to right: Blueberry Cupcake, Passionfruit Cupcake

Lucky last is the cherry ripe cupcake. Rich chocolate base, slightly heavier than the vanilla base, topped with sweet pink icing. Another one of the ordinary taste but pretty looking cupcake that uses cherry ripe chocolate as the finishing touch.

From bottom left to bottom right: Cherry Ripe Cupcake, Blueberry Cupcake, Lemon Meringue Cupcake, Passionfruit Cupcake

These mini cupcakes from Cupcakes on Pitt are great for parties, office hour tea time or whenever you fancy a sugar hit. They cost $2.50 each and are always delicately packed in a secure box. 

Check out their website for flavours, store location and opening hours.

Strawberry Shortcake

Winter has finally kick in and it's this time of the year when I always have the constant craving for dessert. The hardest challenge for me is to resist this temptation after dinner as I always feel the need to complete my meal with something sweet. Tonight, I am torturing myself by (1)not having any dessert, (2)watching & salivating over the MasterChef Australia Celebrity Chef Challenge - Egg and Soldiers by Martin Blunos, and (3)writing this long-overdue dessert entry. Why am I doing this to myself? I am so hungry (greedy to be exact) that I can easily have half of the strawberry shortcake to myself!

Enough with the complains, I have only myself to blame for. This strawberry shortcake recipe is from the Delicious Sweet Magazine that I bought a couple of months ago. So far I have only tried and tested this and the Raspberry Swirl Cheesecakes, plenty more for me to indulge in!

This dessert is fairly easy to make, the biggest hurdle for me is getting the right texture/consistency of the sponge. The texture is still too hard for a sponge cake, but I absolutely love the aroma of lemon zest in it.

Serves 8

125g unsalted butter, softened

125g caster sugar

2 eggs

2/3 cup (100g) self-raising flour, sifted

2 tbs fine polenta

Grated zest of 1/2 lemon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup (60ml) milk

Filling

400g strawberries

200ml thickened cream

1-2 tbs icing sugar, plus extra to dust

Preheat oven to 180C. Grease and line the base of two 20cm sandwich pans. 

Using electric beaters, beat butter and sugar until thick and pale. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then gently fold in remaining ingredients. Divide between pans and smooth the tops. Bake for 18-20 minutes until a skewer inserted into centre comes out clean. Cool before turning out of pans.

For filling, hull and quarter berries, reserving 2 to decorate. Whip cream and icing sugar to firm peaks, then gently fold in berries. Spread over 1 cake, then top with remaining cake. Dust with icing sugar. Top with halved reserved berries.

Treat yourself to an afternoon tea (or anytime of the day) with this light and refreshing cake!

Alexanders Restaurant, Hobart

On our last night at the sleepy Hobart town, we decided to dine in at Alexanders restaurant. Alexanders is nestled within the colonial mansion Lenna, which is located at Hobart's historic and trendy area Salamanca Place. I was captivated by the beauty of the mansion that was mostly lit on one side, creating a mysterious image.

As we entered the hotel lobby, we were welcomed by a very relax and elegant old-charm interior. Its colonial style carries through with the decor, from the chandeliers hanging on the ceiling to the furniture. The restaurant itself is dimly lit, perfect for a quiet/romantic dinner.

A quiet Sunday night, we were attended by the only wait staff working that night. She immediately serves us warm bread rolls with butter after taking our order. I have to say the bread roll is one of the best we've had so far; almost crunchy on the outside, soft and warm inside. Then came our entrees: chickpea & vegetable broth and coconut crusted prawns.

Chickpea & Vegetable Broth $11

Tomato based, minestrone like soup that is rich in texture and flavour. A warm and hearty vegetable soup that is perfect for a cold winter night.

Coconut Crusted Prawns $22

The prawns are fresh and the coconut crumbs added a crunchy texture without overpowering the prawns flavour. The refreshing ginger noodles and the crispy beetroot rosti are the perfect pair for completing the dish.

For mains, I choose the Marrawah Eye Fillet and my husband decided to have the Doo Town Venison.

Thick and juicy eye fillet, cooked perfectly on a medium rare as requested. It is layered with crusted black pepper seeds and nuts, adding an intense 'pepperish' flavour and crunchy texture to the meaty dish. To go with this heavy/winter dish, the chef made a wild mushroom and brie pudding. Mild and delicate cheesy flavour, however towards the end it was too creamy for me. $39.5

A towering dish of venison, apple, asparagus and goat cheese lasagne stack on top of another. Rich and tender venison loin, roasted medium rare and seared on the outer layer. The fresh asparagus cooked perfectly, however the green apple was a bit of a distraction; having cooked not long enough to bring out any flavour. $35

Unfortunately, the dessert was a let down. We ordered the Wild Trifle to share and were expecting something that is wild or bursting with flavours. We can barely taste the mango and lychees, and the chocolate cake at the bottom has a really bland flavour. Even the orange liqueur anglaise taste like a normal cream with only a hint of alcohol.

Wild trifle: chocolate cake, mango, lychees, chocolate and chilli jelly, orange liqueur anglaise. $12

Alexanders Restaurant
Cnr Salamanca Place & Runnymede Street
Battery Point 7004
Tasmania
Tel: (03) 6232 3900

The Source Restaurant - Hobart, Tasmania

Recently my husband and I went to Hobart, Tasmania for a mini holiday. On our first night in Hobart city, we escaped the winter chill by taking on an unforgettable culinary journey at The Source restaurant.

The Source restaurant is located at Moorilla Estate Winery, 15 minutes drive from Hobart CBD. Sitting atop the Ether Building, glass-walled, the views (from the restaurant) over the Derwent river and vineyard are magnificent. Unfortunately for us, we arrived after the sun has long set and had a slight difficulty in locating the restaurant as there was barely any visible signs/directions.

However, once inside the building and making our way up the stairs (to the restaurant) I cannot help but to admire the stunning 6m long painting on the ceiling. Apparently the restaurant is named after this painting by John Olsen.

The setting of the restaurant is very simple and contemporary, with an open kitchen near the entrance. This open kitchen concept allows us to take pleasure in watching the chef and his team work effortlessly and harmoniously together. The staff are very friendly and helpful, with one of them voluntarily baby-sitting a crying baby while the parents were having their meals.

We start by having the fresh oysters as an appetizer. These succulent oysters are served in two ways, natural and with wine & ginger. I much prefer the natural oyster as I can really taste the freshness of it. However, having the oyster infused with wine and ginger certainly enhances the oyster flavour.

Moving on to the entrees: (i) Crab, crab jelly, corn custard, almond, sauce verte and (ii) Lobster, herb and zest cous cous, almond milk, perfumed tomato.

The crab dish is served in a martini glass, with only the crab meat visible from the top and the smooth corn custard at the bottom. The dish is rich in sweet crab jus with cotton-soft crab meat and creamy corn custard.

The herb and zest (probably orange zest) cous cous beautifully partnered the fresh lobster. However, I have to admit it is the perfumed tomato that brings the dish to a whole new level of dining experience. As I bite through the tomato, it is bursting with sweet cherry tomato and mild perfume flavours.

For the main course, I ordered the Turbot fish, truffled macaroni, foie gras emulsion, jus. The turbot fish was flown from Spain for the Hobart Winter Festival which was to be held the next night at The Source. Turbot is highly prized for its delicate flavour, it has a firm and lean texture. To complement the mild fish flavour, the Chef introduces the intense flavour of truffle and foie gras. For someone who prefers truffle over fish, this dish is a delightful treat for me.

My husband ordered the Roasted duck, Belgian endive, salted caramelised apple, coffee sauce. The duck is very tender and the salted caramelised apple has a texture similar to creamy mash potato. The only thing that my husband struggled to finish from the dish was the Belgian endive; it got bitter with every single bite.

To end our lovely night at The Source, we order two(2) desserts to share.

Chocolate, olive oil, salt

Dark smooth chocolate ganache, drizzle with light olive oil and sprinkle of salt. What you get out of this unique dessert is a dark bitter chocolate, a nutty olive oil flavour and a salty taste towards the end. My kind of dessert!

Brioche pain perdu, perfumed egg nog, milk ice cream

Rich and tender brioche, sitting on a cream of perfumed egg nog and topped with milk ice cream. A stark contrast to the chocolate dessert, it is very rich, sweet and creamy.

The Source Restaurant
655  Main Road Berriedale
Tasmania Australia 7011
Tel: 03 6277 9900