Mansoura

Mansoura David, 31 Mar  One of the appeals of Brooklyn is the rich ethnic mix of cultures, cuisines, and traditions, that is somewhat of a microcosm of America. Many of our grandparents, including mine, arrived on Ellis Island and assimilated to life in America in New York City. And it still remains a lively, if sometimes uncomfortable, mix of upscale, downscale, rich, poor, happy, angry, frustrated, and content. But everybody’s gotta eat. During the last few years, it’s no secret that the borough of Brooklyn has exploded and become something so internationally recognizable that La Grande Épicerie in Paris redecorated their iconic Parisian food store in the style of Brook-leen, as they say. But it’s not just a bunch of people walking around in knit caps and plaid shirts, or spinning wool in a waiting room. There’s all sorts of foods – from artisan to Armenian, Sicilian to Soviet, and American to Yemeni –  all just a subway ride away. If you go deeper into the enormous borough – its size alone, if it was its own city, would be the third largest in America – you’ll find streets and neighborhoods the reflect the diverse multiculturalism of the borough, with neighborhoods of food shops, restaurants, bakeries, and pizzerias, representing the rich blend of immigrants who’ve settled here over the years. One culture that interests me is Syria since some of my family was from there, who came to America during the wave of immigration which turned part of New York into Little Syria. We hear a lot about Syria in the news these days, often (unfortunately) due to the turmoil in the country. And for many of us, the things we see on television are the impressions we have of these countries. I had not been to Syria, which was a shame, but friends who have been said it was incredible. Mansoura was established in Brooklyn in 1961 and food writer Gabriella Gershenson suggested that I go to the Syrian bakery on my last visit to New York, since she knew I loved Middle Eastern food. I wasn’t able to make it then, but it was right at the top of my list for this visit. So I was happy when she offered to meet me there. Gabriella was an editor at Saveur, and is now at Rachael Ray magazine (how do I get on her show?), and we met up in the Gravesend neighborhood in Brooklyn. And let me tell you, this place was worth the trip – and the wait. Continue Reading Mansoura...

FRIDAY BAKING Fresh Fig and Orange Pound Cake

31 March 2016

RECIPES DRINKS PEOPLE & PLACES

Friday Baking   Fresh Fig and Orange Pound Cake   Figs are a perfect match with orange zest and warm spices. This lovely moist cake uses both dried and fresh figs for a delicious autumn treat. Get the recipe     FROM THE KITCHEN   Sarah Tuck's Brown Rice Bowl   Feel free to change up the toppings for this recipe – broccoli, cauliflower, baby beets, olives, sundried tomatoes and feta will all work well. Get the recipe

Hello Graham Our Food Editor Claire Aldous brought in this week's Friday Baking recipe for us today (yes, we get to try most of them!) and I think it was the highlight of my whole week. The sight of those beautiful fresh figs piled high could sweeten even the greyest of mornings. You'll find the recipe for her Fresh Fig and Orange Pound Cake above, but if it's seasonal vegetables you're after, Sarah Tuck and Kelly Gibney make the most of these in their latest columns.  Below you'll find ideas for comforting desserts from two of our favourite new cookbooks as well as our thoughts on Saan – a beautiful Thai restaurant that acts as a calm wee escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. Online Editor,

LATEST RECIPES | Our favourites from this week

Sticky Chicken in Chinese Steamed Buns Feijoa, Ginger and Cashew Nut Cakes (gf) Roasted Autumn Vegetables with Raw Walnut Curry Cream

pipi at home - book launch invitation

  Penguin Random House New Zealand and Unity Books Wellington 

warmly welcome you to the launch of
pipi at home
recipes by Alexandra TyleePhotography by Richard Brimer

Monday 18^th April 5.30pm – 7.00pm

Prefab Café

14 Jessie Street, Wellington

Heart-warming home-cooked food from the owner of iconic Hawkes Bay restaurant, Pipi.

In her second cookbook, Pipi owner and chef Alexandra Tylee shares the recipes she cooks at home for her family. These are the meals and special treats Alex makes at her Hawkes Bay farmhouse when she's not working in her busy Havelock North restaurant. In addition to lunches and dinners, recipes for breakfast, puddings and baking feature alongside dishes suited to slightly more elaborate occasions.

As a busy working mother, Alexandra knows what it’s like to be tight on time or running low on ingredients and how the daily dinner rush can become a cooking a challenge. With the recipes in this book she wants to make cooking interesting, satisfying and, most importantly, fun. With readily available seasonal ingredients and her trademark rustic style of cooking, Alexandra transforms even the most humble dish into something a little bit special. As she says, 'as long as the food is healthy and tasty, it doesn't matter if it might not win a prize in a tricky cooking competition.' In Pipi At Home it's all about sitting down to share honest home-cooked meals with the people you love.

Please RSVP by Friday 15 April to jwheeler@penguinrandomhouse.co.nz or 09 4427400

All welcome.

www.unitybooksonline.co.nz57 Willis Street, Well

Julie Biuso says - Would you look at that snitzel ...

Would you look at that snitzel ...There is an art to making good snitzel, though it's not difficult. The result should be tender meat, not boot leather, with a gorgeous appetising crunchy crust. Here's how to do it with all the bizzo on crusts and crumbs, and a mighty fine super-easy caper and tomato salsa to go with it. If you've been thinking about coming to a cooking class, the April classes may suit you: The recipes are all vegetarian – I just love showing off great ways to use vegetables – and they will pretty much suit vegans and those going gluten-free. And I've got a couple of great prizes for all April attendees. More here. Last weekend on Waiheke was an absolute pleasure with so many amazing Jazz musicians performing at venues around the island. I absolutely fell in love with the very talented Hopetoun Brown guys, and I couldn't take my eyes off Sex On Toast (true name!) and enjoyed the smooth groove of Tahuna Breaks to name a few of the great acts. Roll on Easter 2017! This weekend there's another big event on Waiheke, the Waiheke Wine & Food Festival. It's being held in one location, Te Motu vineyard, and offers the chance to taste some exceptional wines and artisan foods while enjoying the likes of Nathan Haines and other talented musicians. I'll be there on the Rangihoua Olive Estate serving up platters of tasty tie-bits, so come on over and say hi. There are heaps of other events running from March 31st to 3rd April including: a farmer's market, the chance to learn how to make mozzarella as well as an opera dinner with the 3 Tennors, all at Poderi Crisci; a wine maker dinner with Luc Desbonnets at the Oyster Inn; a cheese tasting class with Julia Harbutt at Batch Winery; dinners and lunches and tango at Casita Miro; and the chance to get down and dirty foot stomping grapes at Passage Rock Winery. http://festival.waihekewine.co.nz/events/ Have a great week! And, if you're looking for a little light reading, check out the feature about yours truly in the local Waiheke newspaper The Weekender  http://waihekeweekender.realviewdigital.com/#folio=1

Pork Snitzels with Parmesan Crust Golden, crunchy, crusty snitzels do it for me every time Here’s the lowdown on making golden crunchy snitzel Getting a golden crunchy crust on snitzels is easy when you know how

Cherry Poppy Seed Cake

Cherry Poppy Seed CakeDavid, 28 Mar  With spring around the corner, all thoughts are turning to fruit, while we wait for stone fruits to arrive. Nectarines, peaches, plums and apricots will soon be at the markets, usually led by cherries, which are often the first to make an appearance. I was leafing through Sweeter Off the Vine, by Yossy Arefi, a book dedicated to using fruit year-round, from squash, pumpkin and apples in the fall, to blackberries and figs, which – depending on where you live – signify that summer is coming to a close. I saw a galley (a preview) of the book before it was published and thought, “Wow – this is gorgeous!” (And wrote an enthusiastic quote for the book jacket.) Plus it was full of the kinds of desserts I like a lot, fruit-forward, bursting with berries, cherries, citrus, and more. I got so excited when I got an actual copy of the book that I couldn’t wait for cherry season, and used some frozen ones to bake up a sneak preview. I’d originally bookmarked a whole wheat cobbler with blueberries and had a stash of blueberries in my freezer from last summer. Blueberries are very hard to come by in Paris, so I decided to save those. (Still not sure for what…) But cherries, once the season starts, become widely available. And decided to bake up the Cherry Poppy Seed Cake. Continue Reading Cherry Poppy Seed Cake...

EAT YOUR BOOKS

Recipes | Books | Blog      Weekly Round-Up, March 26, 2016

Dear BookmanBeattie, Finding the best recipes amongst the millions online is not easy – but you don’t have to! The team here at Eat Your Books, searches for excerpts from indexed books and magazines and every week we bring you our latest finds. Every day recipes are added from the best blogs and websites. As a member, you can also add your own favorite online recipes using the Bookmarklet. With EYB, you can have a searchable index of all your recipes in one place! Happy cooking and baking everyone! The team at EatYourBooks From blogs: One-Bowl Oat Muffins with Figs and Hazelnuts from indexed blog The Kitchn   From UK books: 4 recipes from Amazing Malaysian: Recipes for Vibrant Malaysian Home-Cooking by Norman Musa   From AUS/NZ books: 14 recipes from Spice Temple by Neil Perry

The New Spain cocktail

The New Spain cocktail David, 23 Mar  I fell in love with sherry the first time I went to Spain, but it’s something that slips my mind when I’m looking for something in the drink department. And Sherry, by Talia Baiocchi hoped to change that for me, and for lots of other people with her book, which has the best subtitle ever: “The wine world’s best-kept secret.” At that sums up a lot about how people see sherry. People know about sherry, but tend to think of it as something you cook with, from a jug-like bottle, from California or elsewhere. And while there are sweet and dry sherries, in general, as Talia notes, “Sherries are some of the driest wines in the world.” Sherry is not only the wine world’s best-kept secret, but it’s one of the world’s best wines. It’s hard to understand the appeal of sherry until you go to Spain, where it’s consumed with tapas at bars. I love sherry and it’s not something that’s common to find in France nor have I ever seen it served. Interestingly, the French drink port. But as a before-dinner drink, rather than after. Sherry vinegar is popular and widely available (and great for salads), although finding sherry isn’t easy. So I’d like to raise a glass (or two) to making sherry more popular worldwide. Continue Reading The New Spain cocktail...

RECIPES THIS WEEK & Melbourne's best new wine bars

restaurant galleries Australia's hottest chocolate desserts Whether played off cherries, berries and citrus on the one hand, or wattleseed, soy flour, and sesame on the other, chocolate still rocks dessert. Introducing 14 of Australia’s best.

French Bistro Classics Recipes for afternoon delight A-Class Cookies Skewers for the barbecue

Latest Features

drinks Melbourne's best new wine bars An array of trendy new wine bars has cropped up in Melbourne that are as notable for their food as they are for their cellars. recipes Easter Baking Recipes drinks Cocktails by the batch travel Our first-ever Cruising Special is out now

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