Cibare Food and Drink Magazine for EveryoneChee- Bah- ReeTo Feed, To Eat, To EnjoyWritten by real people full of real food.
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Contents Healthy Summer 42 Summer Time Fun 46 Hawthorn 44
FOOD FOR THE SEASON
Cereal Killers Cafe 8 Olio 6
Theo’s Salad 38 The Edible Garden 56 Aesthetics To Dine For
52 Soil Degradation 64 Oli and Zoe’s Food Co 68
A Swiss Odyssey Part 2 78 Dinning Al Fresco 20
Top Tips For Your Allotment 62
BOOKS The Meringue Girls 61
Matcha 48 Coffee 10 The Alchemist 16 Walthamstow 12 Coyo 50
La Belle Assiette 58
Breakfast Ideas 4 BBQ’s 26 Burgers 28 Vegan 30 Salads 34
Tandoor 32 Thai 40 Raw 42 Snack Ideas 22
PRO ADVICE
C
i b
a r e
What a beautiful few months. The sun is shining (most of the
time) and we are eating as and when we can outdoors. Our food and
how we prepare it changes so much with the seasons and its nice to
enjoy all that it offers. Paddling pools and long evenings. Pimms
and BBQ’s, its just glorious. This issue is full of wonderful ideas
to in- spire you over the next few months and help you make
your own delicious food, take you to amazing places, and learn more
about what you eat and where it comes from.
Sit back and enjoy our Summer Issue 4.
OLIO
Remember when you were a child and told to clear your plate – there
are starving peo- ple in Africa, after all. Remember getting older
(and less obedient) and thinking this didn’t make much sense? It’s
not as if you could ship the food on your dinner plate to someone
halfway around the world…right?
As a consequence, most of us in the devel- oped world grew up
recognizing that wasting food when so many people go hungry every
day is wrong on a moral level, but not actu- ally feeling there was
something we could do about it directly.
As much as I hate food waste - throwing away unused food
physically pains me - it took me a long time to understand the com-
plexity of the international food system, and to realize that what
we waste here at home does have a direct impact on people on the
far side of the planet.
To put things in perspective, the land re- quired to grow all the
food that is ultimately wasted globally is the size of Mexico. This
land and all the physical labour, water and energy required to grow
this food could have been used for more productive pur- poses. It’s
not just the food that is wasted –
it’s the shipping, distribution and marketing resources that were
deployed to bring that food from farm to fork. The opportunity cost
is huge.
The direct cost is also enormous. All around the world natural
habitats are being de- stroyed to produce food that is never eaten.
Land that could be used to grow food to feed local populations is
being used to produce food that is shipped overseas and never eat-
en. The developed world’s insatiable appe- tite drives up the price
of food, making af- fordable food inaccessible for the world’s 795
million malnourished.
Here in the UK 50% of all food waste hap- pens in the home – the
equivalent of £12.5 billion per year. At the individual level, we
waste 20% of all food we purchase - it’s like going to Tesco,
buying five bags of food, and leaving one in the car park. Put that
way, it sounds crazy.
It wasn’t very long ago that this level of food waste would have
been unheard of. People knew where their food came from, and how to
cook with every part of every ingredient. Food was precious, so
nothing went to waste – leftovers were repurposed, and in the
rare
Meet Your Neighbours And Save The Planet With Olio, The Food
Sharing Revolution
SHOPPING LOCAL
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 7
event there was too much food, surplus was shared with neighbours.
Over the last few decades, in the developed world food has become
significantly cheaper, and most people have started to value it
less, taking its endless bounty for granted.
This is where OLIO comes into play. OLIO is a free app connecting
neighbours with each other and with local businesses so that food
can be shared, rather than thrown away. Imagine: rather than making
a bee- line for the supermarket at the end of the day to pick up
supplies for dinner, you take a look on OLIO to see what
free/steeply dis- counted food you can pick up on your way home
instead. Not only are you saving mon- ey, but you are also saving
food that would have gone to waste. Your local bakery really would
have thrown out that focaccia at the end of the day. Your local
shop really would have thrown out the cheese with a ‘best be-
fore’ date for today. Why not rescue them and make pizza?
Back to the big picture: whatever food is sourced via OLIO is less
food to be pur- chased in the first place. This reduces pres- sure
on the international food system as a whole. The planet will need
to feed 2 billion more people by the year 2050. This can be
achieved with our current agriculture ca- pacity – but only if we
can collectively re- duce our food waste sufficiently. OLIO is one
small step in the right direction.
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk8
Well after finding these guys on Twitter (my favourite place)
I see that they are now final- ly a little closer to home. From
their original Brick Lane home they have now opened a second café
in sunny Camden.
So I grab a buddy and we hot foot it into the grotto that is the
Stables Market. A sunbeam shines our way to its open doors where
all we can see is a rainbow of sugary delights. Cakes I hear you
ask? Sweets? Oh hell no!! CEREAL!!! With child like eyes and
stomach I stare for about ten minutes at the rainbow coloured boxes
and pictures, from all around the world that are before me. I’m
simply happy. I want three cereals mixed up in one bowl and I pick
the sweetest sugar coated E number filled with extra marshmallow
box- es I could find and mix them together. One is Apple
Jacks so I have one of my five a day in there too. I can have any
milk on the planet too, which just tops off my bliss rating as I do
like an unsweetened soya in my bowl as well as in my coffee
please!!! And thank you. I can have a topping of pretty much
anything I like from candy to fruit but I’m thinking my
sugar-o-metre is good.
We have made our decisions and go round the back of the shop.
Do we sit outside in the sunshine? Eerr NO. We go and sit in- side
on the beds! I get comfy on the bed to
eat my breakfast just like I did when I was a kid. I wasn’t usually
allowed Lucky Charms as a child but today it was happening. The
place is full of colours and 80s or 90s child- hood memorabilia and
I feel like I’m a child once again. All I can think is that I need
to bring my brothers and my husband here, they would Iove the He
Man and Back to the Future duvet covers as well as the food.
I go back for another coffee and see that they have Pop Tarts too.
I think my brain is going to explode!! One S’mores Pop Tart please!
The guys laugh at my excitement and tell me that it’s the best one.
They love it too and makes me feel warm inside to have this joint
appreciation for where we are.
There is a guy in the background on his lap- top and I recognise
him, he’s one of the twin brothers who own the shops. It’s nice to
see that he’s there working away like any other business owner. I
feel like he’s famous but it might be the sugar talking as I’ve had
quite a lot and I’m still going, but I feel honoured to have seen
one of the infamous Keery Twins.
REVIEW
Time for a coffee Jamaica Plantations in Cockfosters by
Dorothy Martinez
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk10
For this issue, I decided to review some cof- fee from a local
health food and coffee roast- er shop that I’ve recently discovered
– the Jamaica Plantations in Cockfosters. I picked five
coffees from well known coffee produc- ing locations – Colombia,
Java, Brazil, Cos- ta Rica and an Italian Mocha. Compared with the
other beans we’ve reviewed over the last few Issues, it’s fair to
say that these are perhaps less interesting, but that’s not to
suggest they’re not great quality. Once in a while it’s nice just
to have a damn fine cup of coffee, without being struck by how
little it tastes or smells like coffee and if that’s what
you’re after, then these could be for you. We tried all of
them as espresso and Americano.
Brazilian Santos Brazilian coffee is fast becoming a favour- ite of
mine. This is a well rounded and easy to drink coffee, though it’s
best drunk re- ally hot – as soon as it cools beyond a cer- tain
point it loses its richness. It has a love- ly, slightly acidic
chocolatey aroma. As an espresso, it smells creamy, with a balanced
bitter chocolate taste with a velvety mouth feel and a creamy
aftertaste. As a longer drink, it’s a smooth balance of creamy and
bitter flavours with a nice acidity - definitely a reliable,
everyday coffee.
Italian Mocha Not to be confused with that chocolate/milk/
deeply-mourned-coffee-bean concoction, Italian Mocha is an everyday
blend, gener- ally to be taken short. With a ground aroma of rain
on gravel and Irish cream, this makes a pleasant, bitter and
chocolatey espresso that leaves your mouth feeling smooth and
glossy.
Colombian – San Agustin One of the more exciting coffees this
month, when unground this has an aroma of liquorice. As an
espresso, it produces an acidic, gravelly flavour, with the bitter
li- quorice remerging and then giving way to a rich chocolate
flavour with almost a pineap- pley fruitiness to it. As Americano,
it’s more chocolatey and less acidic with more of the fruit tones –
less interesting, but still very drinkable.
REVIEW
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk12
Anyone passing a sign for Ravenswood In- dustrial Estate
might expect that it is some- where your car might end up for
repair after a crash, or a place you’d go to pick up a hand- made
light fitting. Whilst these two sugges- tions may well be true, the
gated enclosure on Shernhall Street - in what some circles have
renamed #awesomestow - is also home to a modern British brewer.
Walthamstow is the relatively new, fixed abode for Wild Card
Brewery.
Leaving their home – and birthplace of once the largest independent
brewer in the Unit- ed Kingdom – three friends embarked on a
journey to London; a journey which none of them expected
would see them grow, as brewers, to reinvent their home town’s
landmark brewery’s tagline of “Not much matches Mansfield”.
Using an emerging trend whereby a brewer pays to use spare capacity
at someone else’s brewery (known as cuckoo, or gypsy brew- ing) the
trio of Jaega Wise, Will Harris and Andrew Birkby developed
their recipes and reinvested whatever money they could gen- erate
from selling the beer they bottled.
Such is their success, Wild Card beer is in- stantly recognisable;
the different bottles are all labelled with a playing card – a
trick
they initially used to differentiate between batches, and is now an
idea which is very much the brewery theme throughout: Jack of
Clubs, Queen of Diamonds, King of Hearts and the Ace of
Spades.
“One should always play fairly when one has the winning cards” –
Oscar Wilde
Combining flavours of biscuit and caramel with cherry and a hint of
spicy fruit, the Jack of Clubs is a well balanced ruby ale. Its hue
is better appreciated in a fluted and footed glass; a poco grande,
perhaps or a goblet. The malty head of foam slowly subsides into a
crown of gold inviting you to take a sip. That first taste leaves
the palate coated with the velvety-smooth creamy taste of malt
gently persuading you to savour the moment on a quiet cold night -
there is absolutely no need for quaffing with this one!
“I have to be seen to be believed” - Queen Elizabeth II
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk14 P
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for a chilled beer, and protocol for what even Wild Card
describe as an “ostentatious IPA”: the Queen of Diamonds is a
portrait of a pic- ture card.
For beginners and novices, another inter- esting exercise is to
smell (as well as taste) the beer, and record those impressions.
Then, look at the tasting notes to compare. Sometimes the aroma is
obvious and often the piquancy is palatable, but if you’re still
learning – still training – a little nudge may be needed. With the
Queen of Diamonds the aroma of grapefruit may be obvious to most,
but lychee may leave some stroking their chin, searching; yet when
you do make that association it becomes immediately and pa- tently
obvious.
Queen of Diamonds is a ‘continuously hopped’ India Pale Ale which,
for something sounding so straight forward, does produce an
interestingly complex formation of fla- vours. Keeping within
the tropical theme, nectarine is another one for the discerning
palate. By the third sip you should be picking up a slight bitter –
or citrus - snap to what is quite an unmistakable caramel
finish.
“He played the king as if afraid someone else would play the ace.”
- John Mason Brown
When the sun is shining and the weather is sweet, move your
dancing feet towards the rainbow of apricot, gooseberry, lychee,
pa- paya and peach which crowns the King of Hearts. It’s a
bombshell of a blonde, and a real lager-like beer perfect for the
outdoors in the warmer weather. One place to enjoy the company of
The King for a fuller experi- ence would be in his own domain at
the Wild Card Brewery Taproom in the aforemen- tioned manor of
Walthamstow; a place not short of pleasant surprises: live music
and
WCB’s very own, resident Dough Bro Pizza providing wood-fired
Neapolitan pizza to accompany your birra. There are some in-
teresting neighbours too!
“Double up or quit, double stake or split, The Ace Of Spades”
-Motorhead lyrics
Fans of London Porter Ales will not be dis- appointed. At 4.7% ABV
it’s a richly smooth, mysteriously dark and utterly drinkable ale.
Entwined between notes of dark chocolate and roasted coffee beans
is a subtle twist of plum and vanilla. Relaxing in a warm room in
front of an open fire might be the per- fect setting to enjoy this
classic style of beer where you can fully appreciate the caramel,
cocoa and roasted malt aromas. It is tradi- tionally a seasonal
beer, but there is nothing stopping you from reaching for this
trump card of an ale when you fancy a glass of something darker and
richer.
“Hey there, I’m Cassie, what can I get ya?”
“Evenin’ Dave, the usual?”
“Norrrmmmm!” [cue “Cheers” TV intro]
The rapport you have with a regular, friend- ly bartender who knows
your tastes and ex- pands and experiments with your drinking
palette is somewhat of a niche nowadays.
Cocktails by their nature take longer to serve than your average
spirit mixer, bottled beer, or pint of cider. And since you’re
usually ordering them for both yourself and your friends, there’s a
need for brevity by the staff behind the bar in order to ensure
everyone else gets served without excessive waiting.
Hence, rapid pouring, violent shaking, inap- propriate quantities
of ice, and a haphazard squirt of Coke or tonic water from the
gun.
So meet Shane. He’s a Mancunian bartend- er who’s been brought down
to the recent- ly-opened Alchemist bar near London’s Liverpool
Street to teach the staff there the fine art of 1) brewing some of
the most sultry cocktails you’ll ever try, and 2) listen to their
customers and make them bespoke drinks that fit and expand their
tastes. Taking inspiration from the apothecaries of Victorian
England, The Alchemist Bar &
Restaurant located in Bevis Marks exudes a modern brasserie feel
with its brushed cop- per and slate aesthetic whilst also referenc-
ing its roots with symbology, inscriptions and diagrams befitting
of Dr Jekyll’s mur- derous notebook. It’s a pretty slick place ba-
sically with a kind of super-minimalist ste- ampunk vibe comprising
of a ground-floor bar area, mezzanine dining area, and funky
outside smokers’ quarter at the back.
Keeping with the Jack the Ripper era, we’re invited to a Mad
Hatter’s Tea Party where a made-on-the-premises cauldron of
cocktail base is then infused via Bunsen burner and vials
into a beautifully-scented and fasci- nating-to-watch showcase of
hocus pocus. For those who remember A-level Chemistry, we’re using
a form of fractional distillation here right there on the bar in
front of you as you watch the process unfold. To bystand- ers
near you, they’re watching Dynamo at work, eager to get one
themselves.
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk18
To say it was worth the wait is an under- statement. Presented in
tea cups, this warm (and smoking!) mixture of vodka (my favou- rite
- Ketel One), elderflower, fresh fruit and Cointreau along with
water (yes, water) as a mixer is completely unique (how many of
you have had a warm cocktail ever? Let alone one you drink
with your pinky standing to attention on the edge of a porcelain
cup!). It’s refreshing yet warming, clean yet heady, and draws the
attention of those around the bar. An experience you won’t
forget!
Having then spoken to Shane our bartend- er and conversed about my
predilection for whisky-based drinks he proceeded to make a Smokey
Old Fashioned. Why ‘smokey’? Because once again, fire was involved
in the making of it with woodchips being sparked up to further
infuse the traditional mixture of Woodford Reserve, maple syrup and
bit- ters into an absolutely perfect concoction. Served with an ice
ball (stones are impracti- cal for a public bar setting and ice is
- as you should know - terrible) it’s the more-ish, slow-trickling
outdoor-barbecue-scented answer to my dark spirit craving.
With the intention of broadening my light spirit horizons, a
Lady Marmalade was then cooked up. More boiling, more niche ingre-
dients (like Belsazar Red vermouth and ber- gamot flavour drops),
and this time a pouring of dry ice over the entire thing resulting
in a bona fide witch’s brew of marmalade-fla- voured vodka
(gorgeous in its own right) and lemon zing - fantastic and
certainly very akin to the Caipirinhas I tend to go for on the
light side.
Finally, after getting to know Shane some more, and after the
liquor and spectacle of it all started to go to our heads, we asked
him to make something of his own prefer- ence and he pointed us to
a Screwball - his own personal addition to the menu and the
best-seller at this London establishment, close behind the
party-favourite Strawberry Daiquiri. Designed to bring back
childhood memories, it’s a bubblegum/raspberry/vod- ka/lime blend
with white chocolate foam. Sweet, childish, kitsch and fun. The
perfect end to our introduction to this new hit loca- tion.
Except it wasn’t - because after all that drink, a spot of food was
sorely needed and I’m pleased to say The Alchemist excelled there
too with a fantastic blend of Greek (hou- mous, baby calamari),
American (corn dogs, chicken wings), British (pork crackling, fish
& chips), Thai (fish cakes, satay salmon), Mexican (nachos,
fajitas) and Japanese (bok choi, ramen) all presented timely,
well-pro- portioned and fresh.
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk20
How does the food taste if you’re surround- ed by the great
outdoors? The experience of dining outside is at the outset utterly
desir- able and maybe even overly romanticised depending on where
you are. The reality in London can often be quite different -
flying pests, unexpected gusts of wind, a wonky pub table, traffic,
chugs of black diesel as you open your mouth etc. But I don’t
doubt that all of us have some memory of a won- derful meal
consumed outdoors. Stripped back with almost no interior decoration
re- quired other than Mother Earth. For me, the ultimate al fresco
is Ibiza - sandy, salty with a long lunch that later turns into
sundown- ers then dinner. So if you find yourself away from the
stove and instead are transported to Europe’s hedonistic white isle
any time soon, don’t miss these five extraordinary eateries.
1 Amante Voted for the last three years by the influ-
ential people over at White Ibiza as the best beach restaurant,
Amante is a beach club and restaurant on the east coast of the is-
land. Perched up high on a cliff and housed within a nature
reserve, the views of the coast are as good as they get.
Contemporary Spanish and Italian dishes aplenty with sim- ple fresh
fish and meat cooked in the Josper oven grill.
www.amanteibiza.com
2 Cotton Beach Club Dressed in all-white cotton and housed dra-
matically on a steep cliff side with jaw-drop- ping views on
Ibiza’s southwest coast. Over- look your own private sand beach as
you sample fish so fresh it’s almost still moving alongside local
produce or try their ‘Oriental Fusion’ offering for delicacies such
as blue tuna. www.cottonbeachclub.com
3 El Chiringuito With white padded oversized beds where
you can stay ALL day and a beautiful white and wood interior
under traditional white washed stone, El Chiringuito is a true
beach oasis. Serving wonderful staples (fresh sea- food, burgers,
spaghettis) with the best san- gria in town it is very difficult to
leave this place. Watch out for the mobile oyster man to fill the
gaps in between courses and cock- tails.
www.elchiringuitoibiza.com
4 Experimental Beach club Watch the planes full of revellers
as they land from the comfort of this oversized deck perched on the
infamous Ibizan salt plains. A wonderful place for sundowners
and once the sun has dipped, a wide and versatile menu to suit most
tastes. Plus a beautiful boutique on site where you can devour the
best of the isle’s crafts and fashions. www. eccbeach.com
FEATURE
Dining Al Fresco? by Gemma Speakman
5 Bambuddha Revamped some years back this is one of Ibiza’s
stalwarts, founded back in the nine- ties. It’s Goa meets Ibiza
complete with a bamboo canopy for a wonderful sheltered al fresco
experience. The food is excellent and the cocktails and raucous
after party mean you won’t have to move until you are
literally kicked out at dawn. www.bambuddha.com
Gemma Speakman http://happyinyourownskin.co.uk
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk24
Woohoo, the warmer weather is here, and hopefully we’ll have
a summer full of sun- shine. But as long as it’s dry and not too
cold, I know quite a lot of us will be enjoying some yummie BBQs at
the weekends or even midweek.
Quite a few people seem to think that having a BBQ is unhealthy.
Although eating a lot of red meat is not advisable, eating grilled
meat or fish is super healthy. You might be mar- inating the meat
overnight, but once on the grill, most of the fat is burned off
anyway. Chicken and fish are obviously your first healthy choice,
with some steak and lamb chops in moderation. Grilled vegetables to
go with it, and some lovely salads will only complete the whole
meal nicely. Add to that some watermelon on a mixed berry fruit
salad as dessert and you have a fabulously healthy meal.
The problem comes generally when you are hungry at arrival and then
eat all the crisps, salted nuts, and other snacks to start with,
and end the meal with grilled marshmel- lows and ice cream. Oh, and
did I mention the wine, beer, pimms and bubbly? This is the
opportunity to prepare some lovely fla- voured water to drink
cold. Overnight, fill a few jugs of water, and in each jug add some
chopped up fresh fruit.
Some great combinations are:
Strawberries; strawberries and kiwi; fresh mint; lemon, orange and
lime; raspberry and lime; watermelon and rosemary; pine- apple and
mint; lemon, cucumber and mint. The choices and combinations are
endless. You can choose to just pop the fruit in the water,
or mash a little bit of the fruits, stir and then add some more for
extra flavour. (BTW, this is also a great tip for if you strug- gle
to drink enough water. It’s flavoured wa- ter without all the
calories of commercial flavoured water.)
But even if you do have some dessert or a glass of alcohol, a
little treat is important to have once in a while, it’s your
opportunity to burn it all off with some fun games suitable for
adults and children alike. Having a BBQ is a great way to be active
as a whole group whith some outdoors activities.
Here are some fun games you can play that will get that heart rate
up, and get your me- tabolism going. Play some before starting
your meal, and you will burn even more of the calories
ingested due to heightened me- tabolism.
Egg & Spoon Race: Set a start and finish line. Participants
must balance an egg upon a spoon and race with it from the start
line to the finishing line. The person finishing first is the
winner.
Sack Race: Set a start and finish line. Each participant will put
both feet into a large sack, or even an old duvet cover that
reaches their waist or higher and jump for- ward from the starting
point to the finish line. The first person to cross the finish line
is the winner.
3 Legged Race: Set a start and finish line. This race involves two
participants attempt- ing to complete a short sprint wiith the left
leg of one runner strapped to the right leg of another runner. The
pair has to run together without falling over and get first to the
finish line to win the race.
Frog Race: Set a start and finish line. Squat down and put your
hands between your feet. Bring your hands forward, and
jump up bringing your feet by your hands again, like a frog
jumps. The person finishing first is the winner.
If your garden is too small to have everyone racing at the same
time, you can time each person or pair. The one finishing in the
fast- est time will be declared winner.
BBQ’s
Our heritage, our right to make fire and cook, not burn our food.
When you do it right and let that fire die down and turn into
a glorious smoke to tenderly, smoke your burgers, bangers and
blessed kebabs and steaks it can make your food taste amazing. For
me it’s the only way to cook in the summer and we have been known
to do it in the rain in the garage and in the snow too. What the
hell, it’s just so good. For added aroma around the BBQ why not add
some of your favourite herbs to the flame. My fave is rosemary,
which smells particularly amazing when you’re cooking things like
lamb kebabs or steaks, but sage and thyme are wonderful too and
really add a great taste to your meat as well as mak- ing the whole
garden or terrace smell just amazing. Add a cocktail or a beer and
you have a party. Here are some of our ideas for your
BBQ.
Simple Greek Kebabs
Marinade Enough pieces meat to feed four people - either lamb or
pork is best Enough good quality olive oil to cover the meat
- this should be around 4 tablespoons 3 or 4 tablespoons of dried
oregano 2 tablespoons of dried parsley Half a teaspoon of garlic
salt Half a teaspoon of onion salt Salt and pepper to
season
Mix the olive oil, herbs and seasonings well
to make a marinade and leave to the meat to marinate for as long as
you can. Preferably a couple of hours.
Then thread the meat onto your skewers and BBQ till they’re cooked
through. Grab some pitta bread that you have also warmed up on the
BBQ and fill with your meat and anything else that you fancy
too.
Mediterranean Skewers
Marinade: 1kg of either diced chicken, pork or lamb 4 tablespoons
of natural Greek yoghurt 1 crushed clove of garlic
Juice of half a lemon Pinch of dried oregano Pinch of smoked
paprika Drop of olive oil 1 large red onion, peeled and cut into
chunks 1 pack of button mushrooms 1 aubergine, cut into chunks 1
red bell pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks 1 courgette,
sliced
FOOD
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk28
The humble beef burger is often seen as an American classic. We
expect the beef to be the star of the show, seasoned well and
sandwiched between two toasted buns, per- haps with the addition of
a slice of cheese and some bacon if you’re pushing the boat out.
But not all burgers have to be this way! As burgers get a
makeover in restaurants across London, I’m going to share with you
a burger recipe with a Spanish twist that can be chucked on your
BBQ at home and will absolutely blow your mind. Forget what you
thought you knew about burgers and come with me.
As much as I love beef burgers it’s always exciting when
someone brings something fun and original to add to the barbeque.
But for starters, this burger recipe doesn’t even involve beef.
That’s right. There’s not a cow in sight! Instead, this burger is
made from pork mince. For best results I recommend grabbing a
shoulder of pork from your lo- cal butchers and mincing it
yourself. If that sounds too much like hard work, the super- market
stuff will do.
To give this burger a real summery vibe it’s flavoured with the
herbs and spices found in a classic Spanish chorizo sausage.
There’s plenty of smoky paprika, garlic and cumin,
among others. While the meat rests you’ll see the mince begin to
take on that clas- sic red hue which we all associate with the
spicy sausage. When your friends and fami- ly smell this burger
cooking they’ll instantly be transported back to their holidays in
the sun.
Chorizo Burgers Makes 8
Ingredients; 1kg pork mince 1/2 cup cold white wine 3 tsp paprika
1.5 tsp salt 2 tsp garlic cloves (crushed) 1.5 tsp cayenne
0.5 tsp cumin 0.5 tsp dried oregano Pinch ground black pepper
Method In a large bowl, mix together the mince with the herbs,
spices and white wine. Using your hands, mix the ingredients
together
Te Vegan BBQ
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk30
If you love your BBQs and burgers but feel as though you are always
missing out when you go to a friend’s party because you’re a
Vegan? Here are a couple of recipes that you can make
to eat the food you love whilst making everyone else wish that they
were having what you’re having!
Creamy Dill Potato Salad
3 lbs large potatoes, peeled Sea salt and freshly ground black
pepper, to taste 2 celery stalks, finely diced 1 cup vegan
mayonnaise 1 small red onion, finely chopped 1/4 cup chopped fresh
dill 1-1/2 tbsp cider vinegar 1 tbsp lemon juice 1/2 tbsp Dijon
mustard
Cut potatoes into small 1-inch cubes before boiling until cooked.
While the potatoes are cooking, whisk together the remaining in-
gredients to create the dressing. Rinse and strain potatoes and
allow to cool before tossing in the dressing until evenly
coated.
Vegan Black-Bean Veggie Burgers
2 tbsp olive oil 1/2 cup diced red onion 1/2 cup diced bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced 1 jalapeño, minced 2 cups black beans 1/2
cup corn 1/2 cup breadcrumbs 1/2 tsp cumin 2 tbsp chopped coriander
1 tsp salt 1/2 cup flour
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk32
As far back as I can remember, Tandoori Chicken was – and
still remains - my fa- vourite spicy chicken dish.
I remember feeling the excitement of hear- ing the sizzle as the
oven door was almost ceremonially opened, and the fragrant aro- ma
wafted through the house as it filled every room. ‘Mum, is it
ready?’ the only words coming from my salivating mouth. Just
like both my parents, Tandoori Chick- en originated in Punjab, and
made its way to England. It has become a firm favourite in British
curry culture. The fame of Tan- doori Chicken led to many
derivatives, such as Chicken Tikka, and eventually the Indian dish
made popular by the British: Chicken Tikka Massala. The chicken was
traditional- ly cooked in a very hot cylindrical clay oven, heated
with either charcoal or wood, which gave it that unmistakable
smoky, char grilled taste.
I do not possess a clay oven at home howev- er, the good news is
Tandoori Chicken is just as delicious cooked in a modern day oven
or even better on a barbeque in the comfort of your back
garden.
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 33
30g of fresh coriander leaves finely chopped Red or orange food
colouring (optional) 2 tablespoons of melted butter
(optional)
Method 1. In a mixing bowl combine all of the ingre- dients (only
half of the fresh coriander) until you have a smooth thick
marinade. 2. Using a sharp knife make three slits in each piece of
chicken, against the grain of the meat. 3. Place the chicken in the
marinade and re- frigerate for 24 hours – the longer the better. 4.
If cooking in the oven preheat at the high- est temperature for ten
minutes and then reduce temperature to 200ºC before placing the
chicken inside. Cook for approximately 50 minutes, turning at
intervals. Spoon the juices in the oven tray and the melted
but-
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk34
Too hot for a hot meal? Here are some great salad ideas to eat
alone or with a BBQ.
Everything Salad, Greek Potato Salad and Mediterranean
Skewers
No Cook Goumet Italian-inspired Summer Salad By Dani Gavriel
Ingredients: 2 ripe avocados, sliced. 1 jar of sun-dried tomatoes.
1 jar of pitted green olives. 1 packet of rocket leaves. 1 sliced
cucumber. 3 balls of mozzarella cheese.
Layer the ingredients on top of the bed of rocket leaves and serve
drizzled with olive oil and a little freshly ground rock salt and
black pepper.
Rainbow Chopped Salad By Gillian Balcombe
Ingredients: 1 yellow or orange pepper, stalk removed and deseeded.
4 to 5 vine tomatoes. Half a large cucumber. Half a medium to large
red onion. The juice of one very juicy lime. A glug of good
quality extra virgin olive oil Salt and garlic pepper to taste
(Barts is a good brand to use). 1 small red chilli, stalk removed
and deseed- ed (optional). 1 tablespoon of frozen chopped coriander
(optional).
Method: Chop the pepper, tomatoes, cucumber and red onion into
small, neat dice and combine in a serving bowl. If using the red
chilli, chop it finely, add it to the mix and stir in well. If
using the coriander, add it to the mix and stir in well. Add
the olive oil and lime juice, season to taste. Don’t be tempted to
add more lime
juice, as the salad inevitably forms its own liquid.
Everything Salad
Half a red cabbage cut as best as you can. 1 Large Carrot, peeled
with a flat peeler and just keep on going till you can’t hold
it. (Gives it a flat Inspiralized effect.) 1 Fennel cut into
slices. A large handful of sliced radishes. 2 celery sticks
chopped. The juice of half a lemon. Good glug of oilve oil. Season
nicely with pink Himalayan salt and pepper.
Water Melon
Cut as best as you can, as much water melon as you want for your
bowl. Use half or a whole feta cheese packet. A good
sprinkling of fresh mint. Season with pepper (you don’t need salt
as the feta cheese is salty enough.)
Greek Potato Salad
No Cook Gourmet Italian-inspired Summer Salad
Everything Salad
Greek Rainbow Salad by Theo Michaels
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Ingredients The Salad Part: 3 ripe red tomatoes (sliced 1cm thick)
3 ripe yellow tomatoes (sliced 1cm thick) If you can get other
colours of tomatoes the more the merrier! ½ red onion (sliced as
thinly as possible) 1 tablespoon of dried oregano Juice of
half a lemon 2 tablespoons of Balsamic vinegar Few glugs of extra
virgin olive oil Seasoning
The Garnish: 2 or 3 slices of Halloumi cheese, rubbed with olive
oil, griddled for 1 minute each side and sliced 1 tablespoon of
pomegranate seeds 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh mint
Method: In a bowl carefully place all the salad ingre- dients
including the liquids and gently mix with your hands taking care
not to break up all the tomatoes. Lift out the salad letting any
excess liquid drain away, then place neatly on a plate. Layer the
grilled halloumi over the top and garnish with a scattering of
pomegranate seeds and the fresh mint. Goes well with sunshine,
laughter and a cold bottle of white wine!
www.theocooks.com
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk40
Ingredients 2 to 3 pork steaks 1 tablespoon of coriander seeds
Pinch of salt 1 teaspoon of black pepper 3 garlic cloves 2
tablespoons of Soy sauce 1 tablespoon of honey Small bunch of mint
Coriander 3 Shallots or 1 Onion 1-1/2 tablespoons of fish sauce 1
teaspoon of chilli powder 2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice 2
tablespoons of toasted rice powder
Start by making the rice powder. Put the pan on high heat, add half
a cup of raw rice to the pan and toast it until it turns light
brown in colour. Take the rice off the heat, leave it to cool down
for five minutes and when it’s cool blend it to a powder. You
should end up with around two to three tablespoons of the
powder.
To make the marinade for the pork, mix
the soy sauce and honey together well, then grind the coriander
seeds, salt, black pep- per and garlic in pestle and mortar. Add
the soy sauce and honey to the dry ingredients, combine them well
and marinate the pork steaks with the mixture for about 30 min-
utes.
While waiting for the pork to marinade, slice the shallot or
onion, coriander and mint to- gether and leave it to the
side.
Grill the pork until it’s cooked then cut it into thin slices and
put it into a mixing bowl. Follow with the herbs and onions that
you’ve prepared earlier, then add the chilli pow- der, rice powder,
fish sauce and lime juice. Mix everything together well and then
enjoy your meal.
This dish is very popular in Thailand. We usually eat it with
sticky rice and lots of fresh herbs and vegetables, such as
lettuce, cucumber, cabbage, coriander and mint leaf. But you can
eat with any type of rice or veg- etables that you choose.
FOOD
Moo Nam Tok (BBQ Pork Salad) by Ying Bower
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HEALTH AND NUTRITION
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Tasty Raw Food Super Summer Salads By Alison Matthews
Summer is, of course, the easiest time to eat raw. In the beautiful
sunshine, yes, we do sometimes have lovely sunshine in the UK, we
usually prefer to eat lighter bites and a lot less heavy food.
Salad doesn’t have to be boring – it’s not all about lettuce,
cucumber and tomato. Try mixing together salad, with veg and
fruit for some tasty combinations. I’ve added one ‘wild card’ which
may not ap- peal to everyone but I love it!
Here are some combinations you may not have thought of.
Mango, Grape and Avocado Salad • 1 mango • 1 avocado • Small bunch
of grapes • Spring onions • Handful of salad leaves – any kind •
Handful of spinach • Flaked almonds
Chop the mango, avocado, grapes and spring onions and toss with the
salad and spinach leaves. You may not need dressing on this as the
sweetness of the mango and grapes gives this a lovely flavour.
Alternatively you could
add a little olive oil and balsamic. Sprinkle with flaked
almonds.
Cauliflower, Olive and Sundried Tomato Salad • ½ cauliower • Half
cup of olives • Half cup of sundried tomatoes • ½ red onion
Separate the cauliflower into florets, halve the olives, chop the
sundried tomatoes and red onion. Mix together. I generally eat this
without dressing and combine with another salad.
Banana, Avocado and Spinach Salad • 1 banana • 1 avocado • 2
handfuls of spinach • Half cup of strawberries or
raspberries • Flaked almonds
over the salad. You might think this one is a bit unusual but give
it a try – it’s a real- ly simple mixture of flavours which you can
put together in minutes. Carrot and Celeriac Slaw • 1 large
carrot • Large piece of celeriac or white
cabbage
Grate the carrot and celeriac - you want half and half.
• 1 tablespoon of tahini • 1 tablespoon of lemon juice • 3
tablespoons of olive oil • ¼ teaspoon of mustard • 1 x teaspoon of
runny honey or agave • Salt to taste
Mix ingredients in a blender and add more olive oil if required, so
the liquid is thick, but runny.
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk44
During the Merry Month of May I watched in awe as these beautiful
plants bloomed. I became very aware of how many hawthorns exist in
the British countryside. These amazing plants are found pretty much
ev- erywhere when you start to look; they make incredible hedgerows
and majestic trees. There are several species of this plant: Cra-
taegus oxycanthoids, laevigata or monogy- na are the most common
and widely used.
These delicate, beautiful flowers are much more than they seem:
hawthorn flowers are a traditional herbal remedy for the heart and
we also use the fruit, which you’ll find on the branches towards
the end of the year. My favourite tincture is a combination of both
the flowers and the berries rather than us- ing one or the other,
as I find the slightly dif-
ferent properties of the individual extracts useful but ultimately
a combination of both gives the best of both worlds.
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 45
When I see a patient who has cardiovascu- lar symptoms,
hawthorn is one of the first herbs that I think of. Its versatility
for any condition means that it is a really integral part of my
dispensary because it helps the heart to work more efficiently and
improves the overall condition of the cardiovascular system.
Whether someone comes to me with high blood pressure, low blood
pressure or palpitations, hawthorn is always something that I
consider. Of course, there is more to my prescription and depending
on the in- dividual there will be other herbs involved which will
help them and their very specif- ic needs and symptoms as well as
getting to work on the underlying cause.
The beautiful thing about hawthorn is that it is so enormously
abundant in the UK and completely native; I am discovering more and
more the wonderfully effective plants that we have in our back
gardens and that are available for us to go out and pick, har-
vest, and make teas, tinctures and jams...
Now, you can go and harvest the haws and either eat as a berry or
make into a jam, but they are not the easiest thing in the world to
harvest! As the name suggests, there is a thorn involved in the
process, which makes it far more tricky. I would personally stick
to the blueberries and see a herbalist for your
cardiovascular needs... If you’re up for a challenge, then try
harvesting your haws and going for a jam. But we can see how you
feel about that later in the year.
http://www.jmherbalist.co.uk
Health Edition
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk46
In our everyday lives, we make decisions that either help or hinder
us in the future. Summer is upon us, and in all the heat and
sunshine it can be easier than ever to make decisions that hinder
rather than help. With all the great deals on patio happy hours,
weekend barbecues, and the ice cream truck circling the block, many
of you may be hav- ing trouble resisting temptation. If you’re
trying to keep it healthy this summer, with- out killing your
social life or happiness, here are some tips to help you stay on
track.
Keep Healthy Alternatives at Home You can still enjoy a
summery drink or a fro- zen treat in the summer time - but making
your own at home can seriously cut down on excess sugar and
calories. Mix some fro- zen fruit with sparkling water and a pinch
of Stevia for a healthy spritzer in the sun. If you’re after
a frozen drink, fresh fruit and crushed ice will do the trick. Stay
away from sugary coolers and ciders and reach for a gin and tonic
or a vodka and lemon water instead. When the ice cream truck comes
around, reach into the freezer for some fro- zen banana slices or
grapes. These healthier alternatives will take less time to make
than it would to order on a pub patio, so get cre- ative and enjoy
your homemade treats when you want to indulge.
Bring Snacks on the Go If you know you’re going to be out for the
day, pack some fresh fruit or a bag of nuts. You’re bound to
get hungry, and being pre- pared with healthy snacks will keep you
from stopping at a street food stand later on. If you’re
craving something, try eating one of your snacks first.
Chances are after you’ve finished off some nuts or an apple, you
actu- ally won’t be as hungry and you’ll be able to hold off until
you’re home. It’s also smart to bring a bottle of water with you on
the go, to keep you from indulging in a calorie-laden iced coffee
or similar concoction.
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 47
Indulge in Moderation It’s okay to live in the moment and enjoy the
summer break. If you’re feeling really strongly about indulging in
something un- healthy, portion control is key. Can you or- der the
kiddie-sized ice cream cone? How about having just one daiquiri and
sticking to water for the remainder of the night? Fill your
plate with veggies and salads at the bbq and top it with a wing or
two, rather than filling your plate with meat. Making small,
mindful changes to your portion size will help you stay
healthy and in control this summer. Studies have proven that a
healthy, positive mindset is fuelled by feeding your body with
healthy foods. So, keep those healthy alter- natives and snacks
available. Pay attention to how you’re feeling, and when you do
want to treat yourself, take a smaller portion to avoid over doing
it. Keeping these tips in mind will not only keep you on track with
your diet, but they’ll keep you feeling sun- nier throughout
the summer, even if you’re caught in the English rain!
http://www.supergene.co.uk/
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk48
So we seem to have gone completely crazy over green. Green tea,
green lattes, green ice creams, green cakes!! We are Matcha mad and
boy we love this stuff. We have discovered the health
benefits of green tea and taken it to its admitted next level. Its
Japanese heritage of sourcing it’s finest form of green tea, which
some how a chef or genius (or both) has realised that we just
don’t have enough things that taste like green tea and has added it
to everything, and the food industry has gone wild for it! But are
we are certainly paying for it too! A small tin of Matcha
cost me £26. What was I going to do with it? I just wanted a nice
cup of tea or a latte, but although I understand that I honestly
only need a tiny bit for every cup and it would last forever I
hesitated to buy any for this article for months as it is rather a
lot of money for your average per- son to fork out on tea.
With my tin of Matcha I bought a carton of Vivid, a
matcha tea drink for about £1.50 and I’ve got to say that it
revived my taste buds for the Green tea experience that I was about
to have. It’s light and although green tea is dry, it was thirst
quenchingly good.
So I opened my tin after reading my little booklet. I had no idea I
could or should have a shot of Matcha. It was amusing and I
im-
agined adding vodka, but that was beside the point. I added a tiny
bit of powder to my cup and some nice hot water. It was just as is
im- agined. Green tea but better.
It does say in the booklet that if there is pow- der left that I
should just add more water so as not to loose any goodness, and I
like that idea if not wasting it. So I did as I was told but where
do I go from here.
Where did this idea come from? The great Wikipedia
tells us that the method of mak- ing powdered teas goes as far back
as 960- 1279. These aren’t random numbers, these are years!! Yes,
that far back, but the way it’s prepared is exactly the same now as
it was then. Taking the powdered tea and hot wa- ter in a bowl and
whipping them together to create the drink. But both the
preparation and how you drink your tea is derived by Zen
Buddhists.
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 49
Coyo
If you aren’t eating or drinking green tea then you are
either having an avocado or drinking coconut water. And with that
the ultimate obsession. Anything and everything coco- nut. With
that we come to the vegan heaven of coconut yoghurt Coyo!
I’ve been looking for this in my area for a while now and when it
was finally announced by a friend on Facebook that they had it in
our local health food shop Gaia, I was down there straight away to
their fridge for a sam- ple. Although I bought a couple of differ-
ent flavours everyone goes on and on about the chocolate one, and
seeing as everyone thinks it’s amazing I figure I’d better buy two
of these! Just in case.
Now taking into consideration that I’m not vegan and not
exactly sugar free it’s taste is one to get used to. I don’t get
the chocolate obsession although I can really taste that co- conut
which is great. A friend told me to add some dark chocolate to it
and that will make it even better and I’ll admit that worked for me
but I think that might be cheating.
Next I figure if I should try the one with mixed berries as I’m
more of a fruity girl and that tastes to me much nicer. I even
prefer the yogurt alone just natural flavour, but I add some
fresh fruit to it too as I see everyone
doing this and I in heaven. To me this is guilt free joy! Coconut
creamy delights with fruit too #NOM!!! Now I understand the obses-
sion that everyone is losing their minds over. It’s the guiltless
eating. Even the Paleo pos- se is giving in to the Coyo because
it’s made of coconut and thats a great backing for me. The fact
that its simply sugar free and low in calories just tops up my fill
my face need.
Aesthetics To Dine For by Gemma Speakman
Ok, so Connie Viney might be an extreme example of edible art but
ask any chef about food placement as they serve up and they’ll tell
you it’s integral to the diner’s enjoyment of the dish and moreover
imperative to them as the creator that the dish leaves the kitch-
en looking good.
Let’s be honest, food slopped on a plate is an instant turn off.
Because it touches deeper than aesthetics - it’s a body language
thing attached to a mind thing and a whole lot of energy and vibe
to boot. If someone slops food on a plate (and the stereotype is
that it happens in jail or if you were a kid in the 80’s having
school dinners), it reeks of nothing other than the disher-upper
really not car- ing about the food or moreover, about you. They
don’t care that it looks shit, is served up shit and tastes like
shit. On the flip-side, the carefully manicured plate is virtual-
ly screaming, ‘I am proud of this dish and I want it to envelope
your every sense and be memorable.’
Scientists actually did a study on food place- ment and confirmed
that people are willing to pay more for food that looks good - a
culi- nary masterpiece has to look as well as taste the part.
There’s even a professor at Oxford
University who has dedicated his whole life to this subject - what
is technically referred to as ‘gastrophysics.’ Prof Charles Spencer
has spent years studying the science of the perfect meal and has
worked with a number of the world’s best chefs including Heston
Blumenthal, helping him to develop such exoticisms as lickable
wallpaper. He has even written a book about it - dissecting not
only the food but also the setting - down to the absolute minutiae
such as the shape and positioning of the salt and pepper mills on
the table. That’s deeper that we have time for here but suffice to
say, there is a whole lot more going on than just consumption of
food when you dine out. Aesthetics and placement matter, a
LOT.
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk54
So I put it to the test. How much does the interior of a restaurant
matter to your en- joyment of the experience? Can it and does
it make the food taste any better?
My heart began to sink slightly as I was try- ing to locate ‘The
Refinery,’ the most recent outing from Drake & Morgan. The
photos sent to me in advance looked almost edible - all very high
ceilinged Scandi-cool with pops of copper and well positioned
tumbling greenery. Instead I found myself surround- ed by
impersonal, high rise bank buildings awash with formulaic suits -
it felt like a set up - there was no way a place with originali- ty
could exist in amongst this greyness.
But once through the door it was an oasis of wonderful food and
really well thought out interior styling. The room is an unusual
shape - as though you were sitting in a shorn off star corner. I
was early so the buzz was low but during my meal they were turning
people away. It feels like quite a sanctu- ary here - details such
as the feature brick floor, the parquet ceiling, the salvaged wood
kitchen counter front and the oversized fo- liage housed inside big
white bags are a sign much attention has been put in to creating
this room. Though the backdrop could have been made ever more
impactful if the long bar was made much longer and used all of the
window space.
The toilets are decked out beautifully - with some of the best
tiles I’ve seen in a long while - geometric heaven in varying
shades of grey. And what of the food? The Scotch egg starter is
wonderful - all runny yolk with a pop of black pudding tucked neat-
ly inside the delectable sausage meat. For mains, a sumptuous piece
of salmon with a beautifully simple rocket, tomato and pesto
topping was perfect for lunch. Dessert was a rich but refreshing
lemon tart - a much needed mouth cleanse.
‘The Refinery’ is a great little food hub in amongst the greyness.
It’s just a shame it is where it is and that it’s flanked (sadly)
by dis- tinctly chain-y neighbours - Starbucks, Prêt and Pod. Now
if we could just get ‘The Re- finery’ up a mountain somewhere in
France for some après ski action it would be im- mense….Oh and a
really small detail - I loved the teeny, tiny branded paperclip
they use to attach the specials to the menu. Oh and just one more -
don’t sit by the large door - it’s huge and allows in major gusts!
Granny knee blankets just don’t cut it inside.
Next, to M in the City. This place is seriously well thought out -
a whopping 15,000 square foot space that envelopes you the minute
you walk in. All slick charcoal and black it’s the first solo
project from Martin Williams, after almost a decade at Gaucho. M
could be described as a kind of ‘interiors tapas.’ You can eat RAW,
at the grill, have a drink at its mezzanine bar and also ‘fine
dine’ and each area is decked out differently. Oh and did I mention
the wines on tap that you can sam- ple at your leisure - a
seriously bewitching try before you buy line up of some of the most
delectable wines on tap (Opus One and Petrus at between £25-£45 per
glass).
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 55
We opted for the RAW menu - ‘pure, natu- ral, naked, not
processed.’ First up a cleanse juice to enliven the taste
buds and then a se- ries of delectable small plates to start - yel-
low fin and jalapeño sashimi, smoked baby beets with goats cheese
and almonds and a very distinguished Argentine beef Tar- tare with
the various ingredients presented beautifully on slate for you to
mix à la ta- ble. To follow, a large sharing plate of ten- der tuna
yakitori (with HOT wasabi) that all melted in the mouth. To finish,
a chocolate parfait splattered with a rubescent cherry sorbet
studded with pistachios….it definite- ly was ‘art on a plate.’ M is
a real classy food gem in the heart of the city cutting through the
corporate blandness and the intelligent, sexy surroundings
definitely heighten the food experience. Oh and, if ever it’s
grilled crocodile you’re after, you can find it right here.
So how much do interiors matter? If I ate what I did in both
restaurants in a bland, un- exceptional setting, both dining
experiences would definitely have been less enjoyable. By contrast
and by extreme example, say I had consumed the same meals in a
stereotypical looking ‘greasy spoon caf,’ they would have been even
more exceptional because what was served up would have been
unexpect- ed and at odds with the setting - let’s call it the
‘Susan Boyle effect.’ By the restaurants’ set up, as I walked in,
both led me to fully believe that what I was about to consume would
be of a high standard - and I wasn’t disappointed. So setting and
interiors defi- nitely do matter and they certainly do en- hance
the experience but I don’t think you can say that the interiors
make the food taste better (if the food is really bad in a
beautiful restaurant nothing will make it taste bet- ter). However
it could be fairly said that in many cases the sum of the component
parts - if they are all good - enhance the taste of the food,
because your mind and energy are
carried away with everything else positive that is going on. Eating
out is not just about food, it’s about being cocooned in the entire
experience - the view of the outside, the in- side, the décor, the
ambience, the colours, the music, the service, the cleanliness, the
wine and of course the food which is para- mount, but not
exclusive.
Graham & Brown interior specialists agree, ‘If the interior is
beautiful as the guests walk in to a restaurant, they are
immediately greeted with a positive aura which should stay
throughout the whole dining experi- ence and leave a lasting
impression on those who visit. If the surroundings are half deco-
rated, run down and a bit shabby, this may be reflected in the way
diners think about their meal.’
The Edible Garden by Emma de Sousa
So spring has come and gone and your garden should be in full,
flowery swing by now, everything looking lush and green, and if you
are lucky enough to grow flowers then hopefully a sea of colour is
spreading through your borders! This year I have de- cided to try
my hand at growing edible flow- ers amongst my cut flower patch,
and upon researching what flowers are actually edible it is amazing
just how many you can use in your kitchen to decorate your
food and add new and interesting flavours to your recipes. I will
say before I start however that I would only ever use flowers that
I had grown my- self as I know they will be chemical free and safe
to eat, and also only ever use flowers that you are 110% sure are
the real deal…so don’t guess that something is an edible flow- er
only to make yourself sick because you have eaten something
poisonous.
Buy your seeds from a reputable company – I use
www.higgledygarden.com, www.sarahraven.com or www.suttons.co.uk and
all have information on how to grow them. Or go to your local
garden centre and pick up a few packets, most are super easy to
grow and can be grown in containers if you don’t have much
space. Some easy and beautiful edible flowers to grow are things
like Borage – a beautiful blue flower that looks great in summer
salads and also for making blue petal ice cubes for your sum- mer
pitchers of Pimms (very impressive at your BBQ parties). The
bees and butter- flies also love this nectar rich flower so
it’s
a win-win situation to grow it. Be warned though - it will self
seed and come up again next year (great, less work and you only
have to buy seeds once!) but keep it in check as it can spread and
will overtake your beds if you let it.
Another of my favourites which I am also growing this year is
Sweet Rocket. With flowers ranging from the palest of lilac to deep
purples it is a member of the Mustard family and adds a peppery
taste to salads, rice dishes or even sandwiches. Sweet Rock- et is
a hardy biennial flower which means that you sow the seeds in one
year and it will flower is the second year – it seems like a long
wait but it’s worth it and once you get into the swing of things
you can keep sowing each year for yearly flowers.
Perhaps not a flower you would normal- ly think of as edible are
Sunflowers. We all know we can use the seeds in our cooking but you
can also use the petals and flower buds too. Easy to grow and super
quick if you are an impatient gardener, you can also grow
dwarf varieties if space is an issue like ‘Big Smile’. The children
also love growing this bright, sunny flower and mine have a ‘who
can grow the tallest sunflower’ com- petition each year - it is a
great way to get them out into the garden and in touch with
nature.
ange. They can be eaten fresh or dried to create ‘Poor Man’s
Saffron’. They have a slightly peppery taste and can be used in
rice dishes, salads, oils and vinegars as well as for making floral
teas. They will produce flowers from May through to September.
Other edible flowers that are easy to grow in- clude Cornflowers,
Nasturtiums, Courgette flowers (and you get Courgettes thrown in
too – try the flowers coated in a light tem- pura batter and deep
fried – they are amaz- ing!) as well as Lavender, Dianthus and
Viola
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk58
I’ve been running around like a blue arsed fly all day and come
home to the house needing a tidy as we are having a dinner party.
When I would usually be going nuts preparing food and making sure
the wine is cooling, I just need to make sure that the kids have
put the toilet seat down and move the Lego from the dining table so
that there is space to eat.
6 of us will dine and I don’t know what to do with myself. Why?
Because a chef is coming to do everything for me!!!
We speak the day before to make sure that I have the pots and
pans that he needs and I do. He asks me if I have certainly plates
etc as we are having a four course meal and again, I do! More
excitement.
He comes to my home at 6pm with bags full of amazing food and takes
over my kitch- en, all I can do is watch the magic happen. Oh and
go and get dressed. I’ve actually got time to think about what to
wear, put on some makeup and relax. It was very strange and very
exciting!
As the guests arrive at about 8pm I’ve opened wine and we sit
and chat for a while with music playing - this is really lovely.
For once I’m not missing the conversation and not running in and
out a bit sweaty as I’m
stressing about something cooking. This is not my problem
tonight.
Food is ready and we all sit down, even me. The lovely chef Gio
comes over with our first course. Appetizer: Burrata cheese with
apri- cot, crispy brushcetta bread and hand sliced San Daniele ham
with fresh pesto. This was dreamy! I’ve not had burrata before and
it was so light and wonderful, the pesto was divine and the ham had
a story that Gio told us before we ate. Turns out that we are eat-
ing the left leg of our piggie as they sleep on their right side.
This means that the left leg tastes better so he personally chose
this for us to eat. I had no idea. The meal altogether was just
wonderful and an amazing start to our Italian adventure for the
night!
Next up was our Starter: Light and creamy polenta with slow cooked
pork stew (at least eight hours) with vegetables and rosemary. I’ve
got to be honest I wasn’t actually looking forward to eating
polenta as I’ve never liked it. But hold the phone OHMYGOD! This
dish was just beautiful. There are no words. I’ve never eaten
polenta that was so sweet and creamy and next to the pork that just
melt- ed in your mouth. It was the perfect dish. Again this
came with a story of traditions from home and how it’s usually a
dish that is spread through the centre of the table and
FEATURE
La Belle Assiette by The Editor
Cibare Food Magazine www.cibare.co.uk60
eaten from the ends. The one that gets to the middle of the dish
will find the prize of sausages! A lovely tale for our meal but I’m
honestly grateful to have my pork and sauce in my bowl as well as
my guests of course.
The Main Course: Hand made Tagliatelle served with ricotta and
asparagus cream sauce. Story has it that Gio’s grandmoth- er would
cook the pasta as his grandfather would pick the asparagus. More
wonderful food, the pasta cooked to perfection with a wonderful
creamy sauce. It was odd as I started to feel more at ease as the
night went along. The food was perfect and I was having a great
time. Everyone was, but as someone who usually hosts the party and
is usually running around it was so relaxing to have someone take
care of this all for me. And I was actually getting a bit tipsy
which was nice for once.
And finally Dessert: Hand made Millefoglie with fresh crema
pasticcerea, chocolate and blackberries. I’ve got to admit by this
point I was stuffed but this was blissful. A light pastry with a
deep yet light crema sat in a pool of blackberry sauce, which was
slowly devoured so that I wouldn’t waste a moment not tasting every
inch of it. Gio gave us a love- ly story that in fact Millefoglie
and Chantilly crema is actually Italian in origin as one of the
French kings married a very rich Italian woman who brought these
patisseries over from Italy for their wedding. It would seem that
the French liked the cakes as much as they loved their new Italian
queen.
The night was relaxed and the food was wonderful. You couldn’t get
better going to a restaurant as in fact you have a skilled chef in
your own home and you could have type of food that you like, as La
Belle Assiette has something for everyone. But it was
wonderful, I didn’t have to worry
about childcare, I didn’t have to worry about not entertaining my
guests or having a good time myself. Usually I miss everything and
it’s boring for me to be killing myself mak- ing this amazing
dinner when I don’t really get to enjoy it as I’m thinking about
the next course!
It may appear to be particularly decadent to hire a private chef to
cook for your guests in the comfort of your home but that moment of
madness is priceless in my opinion. Not only was the food
particularly delicious but the presentation was beautiful, and to
top it all off the chef left the kitchen cleaner than when he found
it. I just had to stagger up to bed at the end of the
evening.
So, would I hire a chef to cook for my guests at home? Well, it
would be rude not to…. www. labelleassiette.co.uk
P
BOOKS
by Rebecca Stratton
I was given this book as a gift, and having made my fair
share of meringues before I was interested to see if that book had
any new spins on the classic recipes. All I can say is
– ‘WOW!’. This book covers the basic principles of meringue making
if you’ve never made it before, and then moves on to the now
iconic Meringue Girl Kisses (proudly emblazoned on the front cover
of the book), which can be coloured and fla- voured with a
million different combina- tions. It’s exploding with ideas
such as Honeycomb, Chocolate and Salted Caramel Meringues, Frozen
Berries and Hot Custard Meringue Pudding, Pear and Walnut Tray
Cake, Me- ringue Profiteroles, Lemon Meringue Waf- fles, Raspberry
Ripple Gelato and Meringue Rainbow Cake. The list seems endless!
There’s also a handy chapter in the back about using up your
leftover egg yolks (though you can now by carton of egg whites
easily in the supermarket). Still, good for the ladies to address
the issue of potential wastage! Think custards and curds.
It’s rare that I want to make every single rec- ipe in a cookbook,
but with this one, I real- ly, truly do. The food styling is dreamy
and any of the creations would be perfect for en- tertaining. I
will definitely be making some of these this summer for a barbeque
finale. Most of these recipes are gluten free, which comes in handy
for a lot of my friends and family. This is a beautiful,
striking book with eye-catching photos and pops of colour on every
page, simply a joy to read. The MG’s second cookbook is to be
released shortly, and yes, I already have it on
pre-order! P
TOP TIPS FOR YOUR ALLOTMENT by Emma de Sousa
This month you should be harvesting lots of crops such as your root
crops including early main crop Potatoes, Onions, Beetroots, Rad-
ishes and Carrots, lots of lovely salad leaves, all Lettuces,
Chard, Peas and Beans, Cour- gettes, the first Cherry Tomatoes and
Cu- cumbers. Don’t forget that your Courgette and Runner Bean
flowers are edible too and if you are growing other edible flowers,
the first Nasturtiums should be appearing, as well as Marigolds and
Borage.
This month you should be making your last sowing of French Beans
and you can lift and divide your Rhubarb plants. If you discard the
centre and then divide and re-plant the outer growth you will get
healthy new plants next year.
If you have fruit trees and bushes at your plot then you may be
harvesting Strawber- ries, Cherries, Currants, Gooseberries and
Raspberries.
So what have I been up to at the plot? Well I have been busy sowing
and growing, test- ing slug deterrent methods and harvesting my
first flushes of salad leaves, Rocket and Spinach, watching all the
seedlings spring into life and grow into strong healthy plants.
I’ve also been keeping a close eye on my fellow allotmenteers and
it’s interesting to see what everyone is up to – everyone gives
you a different piece of advice, everyone’s
crops are at different stages and everyone of course knows how best
to do something. My advice to anyone embarking on a new allot- ment
is to take everyone’s advice on board, read lots of books and then
do what feels right for you. No one is right or wrong, they
just all have their own way of doing things. It’s all about
trial and error!
So reporting back on the slug situation. I have been trialling lots
of different slug de- terrent methods. My upturned coconut shell
filled with bran and propped up with a stone on one side catches a
fair few slugs of a night – apparently they love bran so sneak in
at night to munch on that (and not your Let- tuces), bed up for the
night and then in the morning are all sleeping soundly under the
coconut shell. You can discard the sleep- ing slugs the following
day (don’t tell any- one but I can’t bring myself to kill them so I
take them to a safe place and re-home them somewhere else! Yikes, I
can’t believe I just told you that and no it’s not on my neigh-
bour’s plot!). This method however isn’t going to change the lives
of you slug hating allotment goers – it may catch a few but you
will need to do something other than this to deter our slimy
friends.
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 63
And it seems to be working: so far no-one has pounced on my
Peas or landed on my Lettuce leaves which is great. My Chives are
looking a bit sorry for themselves at the moment and this was also
supposed to prevent attack from pests but as everything else seems
to be work- ing then that’s ok! Hopefully they will be in full
swing by the time this goes to print.
www.cibare.co.uk Cibare Food Magazine 69
that this should mean in any way eating less fruit, as fruit offers
a variety of important nutrients that popcorn does not.
According to the American Journal of Clin- ical Nutrition,
polyphenols possess numer- ous health benefits, including helping
to protect us against: • Heart diseases • Osteoporosis • Cancers •
Diabetes Other benefits • Low calories • Lower cholesterol levels •
Help you lose weight • Help prevent premature aging
A Foodie Tour of Switzerland
Next morning it was back on the Swiss train service, but this time
on the celebrated Gla- cier Express between Zermatt and Davos. This
service is billed as being the slowest express train in the world,
and it’s absolute- ly true, as it travels at no more than 28km per
hour the entire length of its route. We had seats in a panoramic
carriage which afforded the most wonderful views of the surrounding
countryside – and if the pre- vious journey had been
beautiful, this can only be described as magnificent. Just one
eye-popping view after another. We were served Heidi Kaffee (well
what else would you drink on the Glacier Express?) as we left
Zermatt, and as we headed up the mountain ranges we enjoyed a glass
of champagne on the uphill. Given that the food is prepared in a
tiny railway carriage kitchen, the standard was excellent. Piping
hot soup, followed by a
veal dish in a delicious sauce with pasta and
vegetables, and crème caramel to finish. We had ordered the
set lunch, but the choice on the à la carte menu was most
impressive.
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food was excellent, the spa provided lovely pampering treatments,
but the entire town was in a compete tizzy due to the imminent
start of the World Economic Forum, which was due to begin just
after we left. For a few days each January, this town of 11,000
souls swells to 24,000, with the arrival of around 5,000 economic
bigwigs and world leaders from around the globe and an addition- al
8,000 soldiers and police to ensure their safety. Tourists are most
definitely not wel- come during this prestigious event. Davos
itself is no longer a small skiing village – over the years it has
grown and expanded into the surrounding countryside, and whilst
there are still some charming streets and build- ings, there are
also some architectural eye- sores that don’t fit in with the
locality at all.
We decided to go ‘à la carte’ this time, as nei- ther of us
could face the prospect of a five course meal for four evenings one
after an- other! So the first evening we enjoyed the obligatory
green salad starters – obligatory because otherwise vegetables seem
to be very thin on the ground, or even the plate. I did eat a
main course with vegetables, a de- licious salmon fillet, cooked to
perfection, with Sauce Choron, a mixture of Hollandaise and tomato
sauces, on a bed of spinach. Lin- da chose the Beef Stroganov,
which was also cooked to an excellent standard, served with
buttered noodles. Having tried any number of local white wines
during the days leading up to our stay in Davos, this time we
picked one of Signor Trulli’s offerings, a truly deli- cious
Trebbiano from Abbruzzo which was refreshingly dry but which tasted
of flowers and citrus and fruit, all at once. A really ex- cellent
wine!
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ay into Davos the next day. Unlike Zermatt, Davos allows regular
petrol and diesel pow- ered transport, though we noticed that it
was trying to show off its green credentials during the Forum by
organising shuttles be- tween the various conference and seminar
venues, rather than individual transport. For tourists all
local transport, be it buses or trains, is included as a matter of
course with your hotel stay, and you register for a Davos Klosters
Guest Card on arrival. So we hopped on another bus back to our part
of town and walked up to Hotel Victoria, where for the princely sum
of 7.50 Swiss francs you can enjoy delicious hot chocolate and home
made apple cake in very comfortable sur- roundings.
With the promise of heavy snow, we dined in the hotel again,
a lighter meal this time. The Bundner Gersternsuppe is a very tasty
concoction of leeks, pearl barley, carrots, celery, made either
with ham hock or chick- en stock, cream and herbs. As with so many
traditional dishes, when we looked up reci- pes we found any number
of variations, so it’s going to be interesting trying to replicate
the hotel’s yummy version!
When we woke the following morning the world was completely
white – about 20cm of snow had fallen overnight and more of it was
gently floating down from the clouds above. Kids in a garden
opposite the hotel were finding all sorts of ways of using their
slide in the snow and one poor child seemed to be half buried in
the stuff by his ‘mates’. The branches of the pine trees were heavy
with the weight of the snow that had fallen, and every so often as
birds landed there would be what looked like an extra heavy, very
lo- calised fall of snow. We’d nicked some bread from the breakfast
buffet, which the birds were very happy to snaffle from our balcony
railing. Dog owners had kitted out their four legged friends in
their very own down fille
