Balcony Garden: Harvest Monday #17

I don't have children but I don't really need to as I've been attempting to grow tomatoes this summer.  In my humble opinion I think tomatoes are much more demanding and needy than any fussy toddler could be - my nerves are frayed after just one tomato growing season.

At least with a toddler they chuck a tantrum, they cry, they whinge - you know SOMETHING is wrong.  Tomatoes just pout...silently! One minute they seem to be going great guns - super lush + healthy looking - and  the next minute they've got caterpillars crawling out of their insides whilst the fruit rots from the bottom up!!!  What's wrong little tomato?  Too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry, too sunny, not sunny enough, you need a drink/food, you've got worms, what's that white stuff on your leaves, oooh lordy - what are those flying white things all over your leaves?  WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!

Yep, so growing tomatoes is NOT easy...not easy at all. I was feeling quite smug about my gardening prowess til now as most of my plants had done "OK". Growing tomatoes sure brought me back to earth and burst that big smug gardening-goddess view I was starting to have of myself.


Things were going quite "OK" with my tomatoes - they'd developed loads of beautiful yellow blossoms which turned into promising looking fruit. I'd be out there everyday watering, looking...watering some more.

One day I noticed that one of my tomatoes had a squishy bottom. And then I gradually noticed ALL of my tomatoes had squishy bottoms.  EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. It was horrifying and heartbreaking!

As if this wasn't bad enough I then saw masses of budworms (a fancy name for tomato loving caterpillars) in my tomatoes.

I'd been told by a tomato growing Facebook friend that I needed to remove all the blossoms, all the fruit and prune back my plants.  I'd let things get too "bushy" which was part of my problem. My friend didn't really give any advice on "how" to prune so I really went to town on those poor plants...as you can see!  That'll teach them for betraying me and getting worms AND blossom end rot. Hurmph.

Miraculously the plants actually grew back - a big "f-you" to me for my bad hair cutting skills! I was super vigilant this time making sure I watered consistently, not too much mind you - but enough to make sure the soil didn't dry out. Daily I peered at each and every tomato checking for budworms + caterpillars and blossom end rot. I've found a lot of caterpillar droppings, but no creepy crawlies anywhere on the plants - odd, but I'm willing to go with it.

It wasn't long before one (just ONE at this stage mind you) of my Tiny Tim tomatoes start to turn red, a slight blush at first and then a full-on bright red.  There was  plenty of fruit on the plant but at this stage they all stayed stubbornly green.

You cannot really do too much with just one little tomato, but it's enough to use in one of my favourite breakfasts - tomato on buttered toast with a pinch of rock salt + cracked pepper. Perfect. And that little tomato, that I ate within minutes of plucking off the vine, tasted like a "real" tomato - so much more flavour than the supermarket variety.

You can view more Harvest Monday posts on Daphne's Dandelions blog.

Jap's Table, Darlington

My ramen confusion continues with the opening of Jap's Table in Darlington last year.  I've been told by my colleague, Lady Ruth (who has traveled and lived in Japan for years) that the food at Jap's Table is pretty authentic.  Lady Ruth thinks this is as Japanese as you're going to get outside of Japan.

My Japan-o-phile friends from Street Food nod their heads in agreement when I share Lady Ruth's declaration to them.  And it's so close to my work that it would be criminal not to head there and try their  ramen...often.

Mr Jap's Table loves cooking his Yakitori on a charcoal grill out on the sidewalk (let's see how long the council let him get away with this).

The first ramen I try at Jap's Table is the Yokohama Ramen ($9.50), a pork based stock that is much less thick than the Tonkotsu Ramen (pork bone broth) that I've tried at other places. I like this a lot as it's flavoursome but not too rich.  I often find the flavour of Tonkotsu broth a bit too porky (yes, there is such a thing) and too thick with collagen from pork bones used to make the broths.  This ramen is quite "thin" and the addition of a perfect soft yolked egg and thick, fatty pieces of pork belly add a touch of decadence.  I also grab an Ocean Trout + Avocado Roll ($2.80) which is freshly made and absolutely perfect.

On my next visit I try the Su Udon ($9.50) made with Bonito Stock.  The menu says this is a vegetarian dish but just in case you don't know - Bonito is a fish, and a fish is not a vegetable...no matter the cuisine. My vego friend Tara was recently told that seafood eating "vegetarians" are "fish-o-crites". Take note Jap's Table! This is a wonderful soup either way - light, simple and it feels like a healthy dish to eat on a day when you want to eater on the lighter side. Not a dish for Meat Free Monday however.

I'm b-a-c-k! I'm starting to feel a bit like a Jap's Table stalker but when you're on to a good thing just go with it. This time try the raw salmon don ($9.50) and it is another fresh and healthy tasting dish.  There's not much to this really - just sushi rice topped with stripes of raw salmon, sesame seeds and sliced shallots. I add a bit of soy sauce to the bowl to give the rice a bit of moisture.

Of course we've all had a salmon + avocado roll ($2.80) before but Mackerel Sushi ($4 for 3 pieces) is something I've never seen on offer in Australia (or anywhere else for that matter). The fish is less oily and less "strong" in flavour than I had though, overall a nice mild flavoured fish. 

After so many visits it seems about time to try Mr Jap's Table yakatori skewers. I can never pass up chicken skin when I see it on a menu - this is a bit less crunchy (and also more fatty) than the chicken skin I've had at Japanese restaurants, but it's still delicious.  I also try the salmon yakatori and the beef skewer - both are tender and have that beautiful charred flavour of being cooked over charcoal. Lovely.

Jap's Table is a great little place. The food is delicious, simple and flavoursome (and reasonably priced too). I'm glad I have this so close to my work - a little bit of Jap's Table helps break up the dreary work week in the cubicle farm.

Jap's Table is at Shop 6/ 245-249 Abercrombie Street, Darlington.

Chow, Wellington (NZ)

As soon as I spotted Blue Cheese Wonton’s (drool) on Chow’s menu I immediately added the restaurant to my ever-growing NZ eating wish list. I mean what could be better than blue cheese?  Deep fried! Rhetorical question as we all know the answer is NOTHING people, NOTHING!  Thing is I ended up dismissing Chow from our Wellington scoffing-fest as it turned out that the location I’d pinpointed on their website was too far from our hotel.

 

And then foodie fate stepped in. The Boy and I were out for a walk one night after another BIG dinner and stumbled on a Chow right up the road from our hotel. Who knew, not me! D’oh! We only had one night left in Wellington and I’m so blue(vein) that I only had one opportunity to indulge in their blue vein wontons. 

I love the décor here, it feels like a dark and cozy den.

We kick things off with a serve of Asian Greens that are drizzled with sesame oil + oyster sauce (NZD$11.00) that we paired with udon noodles with sweet garlic soy (NZD$5.00). I love these two simple yet flavoursome dishes so much that I tried to replicate it a home for dinner recently. It was “kind of” the same, but not really. I didn’t get the sauce right on the vegies, and the sauce on the udon noodles just didn’t hit the mark. Sigh. If you have any tips please let me know!

Next up is the Pekin duck, sticky rice, shitake mushroom +  lemongrass lettuce cups (NZD$15.00). The duck is minced, rather than the shredded duck I was imagining (I think I had visions of Peking Duck Pancakes dancing around in my head). Again NZ thrills me to the core as all their meat is free range.  If it’s SO simple for nearly every café in NZ to offer us free range meat then why can’t we follow suite in Australia? Hmm?

The coconut prawn dumplings with galangal, bamboo + lemon grass (NZD$15.00) look more like Sui Mai but thankfully (for me) they taste more like a good old prawn dumpling.  And what about Castro’s blue cheese and peanut wontons with berry coulis I hear you ask?  I didn’t really understand the berry coulis, which was quite sweet, but the wontons were GREAT! The blue cheese was quite sharp and had a pungent flavour that gets right up in your nose – blue cheese lovers will know what I’m talking about. The soft cheese was the perfect marriage for the salty, crispy wonton wrapper. Quite literally, sublime!

Despite a few gristly bits we both really enjoyed the flavoursome and moreish rib of beef (NZD$17) that had been marinated in coconut cream, lemongrass, ginger, kaffir lime + chilli. It was literally finger licking good! The Boy’s choice will always be (free range) chicken satay (NZD$15.00) that came with cucumber sticks and a lovely thick, spicy peanut sauce.

There’s always room for dessert when your sharing but we were divided on our opinion about the dark chocolate brownie (NZD$13.00) that was spiced with lemon grass + fresh ginger and served with vanilla ice cream. The Boy loved the way the tangy Asian herbs offset the rich chocolate....I’m still mulling it over. I probably should’ve have another serve just to get my head around it!

Chow can be found at 11A Woodward Street, Wellington CBD or at Level 1, 45 Tory Street, Wellington, New Zealand.

Balcony Garden: Harvest Monday #16

We've had even more visitors to our balcony lately. These Rainbow Lorikeets are by far the most pretty guests we've had to date - though I have to say Scratchy the Cat was still my favourite balcony guest (as we could give him a big hug and cuddle and he'd not bite us {much}).

Naughtily we'd fed the Lorikeets some grainy bread to encourage them to hang around which is a big no no I later found out.  Apparently they are nectar eaters and feeding birds food that they don't naturally eat can lead to all sorts of problems such as stomach issues and obesity. No one likes a fat Lorikeet with an upset tummy so we won't be feeding them again.  Luckily the still pay us a visit every now and then (I saw the downstairs neighbor feeding them white bread yesterday which explains whey they're hanging around...tut tut)!.

Apart from feeding the birds forbidden fruit bread I've still got a tonne of herbs growing really well out on the balcony. I have two types of parsley that are going great guns and the thyme has grown like a thick blanket all over its little pot.  The problem with the thyme is that I don't really know what to do with it. Parsley is great as a garnish in a lot of dishes, but thyme...?

 

I've taken to adding to thyme to dishes wherever I can - I have no idea if it "goes" but what the heck. Use it or lose it, remember?

On our rainy Australia Day public holiday Monday I decided to make some lentil "sausage rolls" for Meatless Monday. The recipe called for parsley so I just chucked some thyme in as well.  I wish I could say the carrots were home grown too, but alas I had to buy them as I've not yet replanted any carrots.

One the filling is all good to go you roll it up in some puff pastry, give it a "wash" in some egg and then sprinkle with sesame seeds.

In our house we use only ever "free range eggs".  Often we have to buy these  from the supermarket as we don't live close to a regular farmers market.  Free range is not the same as "cage free" or "barn raised" where chickens are still house indoors often in very intensive factory farming systems that I think are cruel.  If you want to make sure you eggs are coming from a kinder system look for "free range".  We usually get Manning Valley Free Range Eggs as this company don't have any other type of egg production on their farms and they allow their chickens to roam outdoors (for example PACE farms offer "free range eggs" but they also have caged eggs - why would I want my money going to those hypocrites)?

So after the egg wash and lesson on the ethics of buying eggs the sausage rolls are ready to go into the oven for 30 minutes (give or take).  Rather than sitting around twiddling my thumbs I head on out to the balcony to see what I can rummage up for a little side salad...

...I'm so thrilled that despite my earlier tomato growing set back of budworms, blossom end rot and my over zealous pruning I actually have a healthy little crop of tomatoes coming along. I'm growing Roma Tomatoes (that are only very small) and Tiny Toms (that are rather...large).

 

Along with a few tomatoes I grab some rocket, lettuce and chives that make a tasty little salad once dressed with a glug of balsamic dressing and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese for good luck.

The lentil rolls come out of the oven smelling wonderful and they taste amazing.  I think both vegetarians and dedicated omnivores alike would be happy to sink their teeth into these little babies. I think the trick is the addition of the magic ingredient - BBQ sauce that gives the rolls a nice "tang"! Genius!

 

A perfect lunch - fairly quick to make and super simple for a disaster cook like myself.  I think these were a lot more simple than the delicious Pork + Fennel Sausage Rolls I posted last week...this recipe just seemed less labour intensive to me.

You can view more Harvest Monday posts on Daphne's Dandelions blog.

Air Coffee, Castle Hill

One of my New Year's resolutions is to visit more cafes and restaurants in my local area.  One of my other resolutions to to eat less (ergo loose weight) as you can see the two don't really go hand in hand so we'll see how 2013 pans out dress size wise. So far not so good!

In the meantime I donned my stretchy "eating-dress" and headed over to Castle Hill to check out Air Coffee - a coffee roasters come cafe that has been churning out coffee and food to locals for about two years.  I'm not sure why it's taken my so long to visit as it's a great cafe and I've always heard great things about it.

I kick my first visit off with my current obsession - an iced coffee.  Long gone are the days of cafes serving iced coffees that come loaded with ice-cream and cream-from-a-can, but every now and then you do come across an iced coffee served over ice-cream rather than ice. It was delicious and indulgent...and didn't bode well for my grand 2013 weight loss plans.  On my next visit I ask for my coffee sans ice-cream which was no problem at all...and it was just as delicious.

I've been told by some friends that Air Coffee recently changed ownership and that their coffee has changed - it just tastes "different".  This being my first visit I can't comment on whether the coffee has changed or not, but I know it was good enough for me.

The menu at Air Cafe is simple - their kitchen being just a few hot plates + grills behind the counter - but everything on the menu is so tempting.

After dillydallying for ages over what to order I finally settle on the Corn Fritters with Salad ($15.00). These usually come with ham but I opted out of the ham option (Meatless Monday). The fritters were really flavoursome with lovely pieces of sweet corn throughout. That said, I probably would've liked a piece of bread with this dish to help "pad" it out.

I was still feeling a tad peckish after my corn fritters. Lucky for me Air Coffee has a tempting selecting of sweets to help fill that last 10% of available stomach room that I had rattling around. This salted caramel tart ($4.00) was petite but AMAZING!!! The pasty was lovely and crumbly and the filling sinfully rich, chocolaty with a slightly salty caramel filling. Oh my!

I'm back a few days later for brunch with VegeTARAian.  I was aiming to have something "brunch-like" like eggs on toast, but could not pass up the special of the day - Pork Sandwich with Cornichons ($10.00).  The pulled pork was tender + smokey and the sandwich had a thin spread of what I think was Marmalade which was a nice sweet counterbalance to the smokey meat. To be honest I mostly ordered this sandwich as I wanted the crunchy little cornichons. Yes, really.

Tara is not a coffee fan, so opted for a Soy Hot Chocolate which she said was pretty nice...

Not quite brunch, not quite dessert, the Banana Bread ($10.00 from memory) falls somewhere nicely in the middle. Served with a dollop of ice-cream, freshly cut strawberries and a drizzle of honey it's a sinfully delicious way to kick off the weekend.

Air Coffee is at unit 1/10 Salisbury Road, Castle Hill. They are open 7 days a week for breakfast + lunch.  They are in the light industrial area and so far I've had no trouble finding a park.