Dining in the sky with China Southern

This is not a sponsored post though I'd be more than happy to chat with China Southern about a deal from Melbourne to Amsterdam anytime!

The new year brings Eurovision 2016 ever closer, 130 days till the final but who is counting?

This starts the joy of planing a holiday all over again......tickets, money, passport! (renewal..someone remind me please)

While hotels are still being confirmed the flights have been locked in and paid so it's practically job done.

Working with the principle "if a meal isn't shared on social media it hasn't really been eaten" I thought I'd better share the meals from our China Southern flights between Melbourne and Amsterdam in May 2015.

AB and I flew China Southern Business for the second time and have booked again with them for this upcoming trip. I find the service to be excellent, attentive without being fussy and the price is a major attraction compared to other carriers.

Please take a menu I'll be back to take your order....

A selection of nuts and what I'll call a soy cocopop type item that was umamitastic! 

I assume accompanied by a G&T though it may be a water...

Cream of Mushroom soup

American Ginseng and Chicken Soup

Cajun Lamb Sliced With Prawn and Mango Salsa

Soya Chicken Breast with Grilled Prawn and Sesame Mushroom Salad

That mushroom salad was perfect with the chicken and prawns bringing an earthy flavour to the sky.

Char Grilled Lamb Cutlets with Mint Sauce, Broccolinni, Red Pepper and Roasted Herbed Chat Potatoes

Spring Pork Sliced with Worcestershire Pork Sauce, Braised Black Mushrooms and Carrot Stir Fried Ramen
I recommend an extra shirt in your hand luggage if you happen to have noodles on a plane....or anywhere for that matter! 

Vanilla Ice Cream and Fresh Fruit in Season.
Fruit and ice cream when simple done well is the best

Muffin of flavour I can not recall??

Blueberry Muffin

Fruit Plate

Croissant with Jam.

Supersized Coco Pops
30,000ft is exactly the place to eat things you wouldn't normally have at home

Cantonese Dim Sum with Plain Congee

I am always partial to dim sum and was happy that the congee wasn't very nice as it just confirmed that the times I'd made congee it had done it correctly. I just don't like congee. 

French Toast with Bacon, Tomato and Potato

Beef ball soup with romantic mood lighting

Salmon carparccio, clean, zesty and again with mood lighting. 

You can imagine how I was trying to position the reading lights to get a better shot, though sadly most from that potion of the flight have a touch of the Martha Stewart food photo about them.

Duo of Chocolate Mousse with Raspberries
AB and I have been trying to remember if the fruit came arranged like this, we are sure it did but then it's also something I would do as who wouldn't want a fruit face for dessert?

Would you like Smacks Sir?

Lights out snack of tuna sandwich which was a mystery selection as neither the flight attendant nor I spoke Dutch!

Onion Soup of Four Types of Onions

Cheese plate out of Amsterdam with the cumin flavoured Leyden and soft blue, there is not much I wouldn't do for a good cheese.

Terrine of Trout with Watercress and Gravellach (Gravlax) with Wasabi Mayonnaise

Six months on I can still taste this dish and it's silky smooth texture, a highlight! 

Grilled Chicken Fillet with Green Pepper Sauce, Haricot Verts, Capsicum and Potato

Oriental Style Fried Seafood with Tomato Chili Sauce, Rice and Chinese Seasonal Vegetables

One of my favourites of all the meals chicken noodle soup, deliciously comforting and I would have loved if a jar of that XO sauce had magical fallen into my carry on.

If I remember rightly this was called the China Southern signature beef soup or something similar and was equally as good as the chicken noodle soup. 

All the extra condiments were a bonus that created different taste adventures with each spoonful.

Prawns, pork, vegetable and rice no bells or whistles just good simple honest flavours which can be a relief in 24 hours of 3 course dining experiences.

Plate from the buffet in business lounge Guangzhou.

Snacks in China Southern Business Lounge Guangzhou

Individually wrapped sandwich triangles are very cute but I'm not sure it rates high in the sustainability stakes. 

Snacks in China Southern Business Lounge Guangzhou

While delayed for about 6 hours those beef jerky bullets got a workout, so addictive they should come with a warning!

Peanut butter on a cracker, what's not to love?

Time will fly (pun intended) till we being called to board again and I can't wait!

What's your most memorable airline meal?

Chow Down to Eurovision 2015 - Latvia

Labvakar Latvia,winner of Chow Down to Eurovision 2014!
This is Melbourne calling, Hello, it's me, I was wondering oh never mind...

If you follow the Chow Down to Eurovision (and really who wouldn't) you will know I have wanted to make Latvia liverwurst for the past three years.

This year the plan was going to happen but unfortunately I couldn't get the pork livers for the farmer so it was onto plan B.  

Latvia is dare I say the most inspirational country in the Chow Down to Eurovision. While it's true Belarus provided us with Cheesecake, Latvia gave us Cake to Bake and now Love Injected.  

How is Love Injected food related? It indicates a filling....natch.

So what would be the natural receptacle for a liverwurst filling? Doughnuts of course, I can't believe there was even a second of doubt.

A liverwurst filled doughnut is the delicious realisation of the term Love Injected!

Latvian Liverwurst Doughnuts (30 doughnuts)

• 500g strong flour
• 14g yeast
• 40g caster sugar
• 10g salt
• 2 eggs
• 50g softened unsalted butter
• 250ml milk
• 25 ml water
• Icing sugar to roll
• 100g Latvian liverwurst
• 80ml cream
• 2 pork belly rashers
• 1 tbsp. honey

Method

• Heat 100 ml of milk in the microwave for 1 minute
• Add it to the remaining milk and water
• Add to a stand mixer flour, yeast, caster sugar, salt, eggs and butter
• Knead adding most of the liquid but retaining about 25ml
• While kneading add the remaining liquid if it is required, the dough should be soft and moist
• When dough is elastic (about 5-7 minutes) place in a oiled bowl
• Let rise for about an hour covered in plastic wrap
• Divide the dough into 30 pieces
• Roll each piece into a ball and place on floured bake paper to rise again
• Let prove covered in plastic warp for about 30 minutes till they spring back when touched
• Heat a pot of canola or sunflower oil (or deep fryer) to about 180°C
• I adjust the heat throughout the cooking as you see if they brown too quicker or are taking too long.
• Gently place the donuts in the oil about 5 at a time
• Flip them over when you can see the bottom is golden about 1-1.5 minutes
• When golden all over, drain on kitchen paper
• Roll in icing sugar
• When cool fill with liverwurst cream and top with pork crumb

Liverwurst cream

• Lightly whip the cream before mixing through the liverwurst 

Pork Crumb

• Roast the pork rashers in 180°C oven for about 30 minutes till crisp
• Allow to cool and then blitz in a food processor with the honey

I had the pleasure of meeting Aminata in Vienna while assisting her and Molly from Ireland and their backing singers take selfies. 

Aminata was very polite as I told her how her song had inspired the liverwurst doughnut, though I'm sure she was thinking what on earth is this bloke raving on about! 

A liverwurst doughnut is best tasted rather than describe the sweet, salty, meaty experience....pass me some beer icecream.

...And I was amazed how some people fan for the Eurovision here, in Vienna😍!

A photo posted by Aminata (@aminata_savadogo) on May 13, 2015 at 4:44pm PDT

One should always get selfies from multiple angles

After not qualifying for the Eurovision finals since 2009 Aminata's powerful voice and song secured them 6th place in the final.

The quality of an artist is evident when they can deliver an amazing performance sitting on a sofa with just a guitar and a great ensemble of singers.

Past Latvia Chow Down to Eurovision:

2014 Latvian Honey and Walnut Cake Winner Chow Down to Eurovision 2014

2013 Latvian Cucumber Salad

Boxing Day, Birthdays and Leftovers...

Now if you believe social media and really who wouldn't believe such a credible source? Boxing Day is all about left overs!

Leftover cold meat on toast, leftover pavlova for breakfast, leftover wine when clearing the glasses from the table....too far?

Boxing Day isn't only about leftovers it's also about birthdays, well a birthday, mine!

People often comment that it must be awful to have a birthday so close to Christmas well in reality if it was the choice of that or not being born, I'm happy Jesus and I are neighbours.

I've never had a problem with the timing, I managed to avoid all bar 2 birthday parties as a kid (I've always been very social)

The biggest being a surprise party for my 18th and I'll try not to sound ungrateful but surprise parties are what you do to people you hate!

No good can come from a surprise party, the guest of honour has no input into venue, timing, guest list, food, or theme. 

Let's us travel back a few years....OK a few more...

I liked the idea of getting paid to walk so at 17 I'd deliver the junk mail around the neighborhood, crap money but at least I got some air. 

My 18th began as I arrived home from a delivery, sweaty, smelling and in a hideous yet appropriate walking outfit to be greeted by about 30 of my year 12 school "friends".

Sometimes wishing for death is not enough....

I learnt two important lessons that night 

1. Alcohol can be a saviour to get you through such situations 
2. Having West Coast Cooler as the only alcohol available is like throwing an ice cube on a fire

I thought this was going to be a lighthearted YAY birthdays post but I may have some issues I still need to work through......OK onto the food!

I've written about my ultimate birthday cake but this year I wanted to be totally on trend and challenged myself to do a leftovers cake!

While it is more a tart than a cake, it did have a candle, someone sang and I blow it out so it counts!

My Boxing Day Favourites Leftover Tart was a fly by the seat of your pants experimental tart so there isn't a recipe, but I'll talk you through what I did. 

Christmas is my Favourites time of the year and wouldn't be complete without chocolate money.

I'm sure you have one or 2 boxes in your house right now?

Leftover pastry from making mince tarts

Blind baked at 200°C for about 15 minutes 

The filled chocolates I chopped up and left the solid ones whole. 

I left the cherry ripe in even though I can't said it, I should have left it out...ewwww.

I added about 200ml of cream to the chocolate which would have been about 600g in total

I bake at 180°C for about 15-20 mins and then stirred to combine cream.

I had some leftover almonds and cashews from making the incredibly moreish spicy nuts from Annabel Crabb's Special Delivery that I was given for Christmas. 

They of course become praline.....salted naturally

Leftover cream, slices of a chocolate coin, wrapping paper, old streamers, candle and plaque and we are ready to get this party started.  

This is the an absolute die hard sweet tooth's dream, I get the feeling the diabetes won't be leftover but brand spanking new!

It's too sweet for me so next year i'm already planing to make my cake out of left over chicken nuggets....

Apart from the cherry ripe all the flavours and textures come together to create a tart that will have you bouncing till next Boxing day, you might even be on enough of a sugar high to enjoy a surprise party!*

*you won't because no good can ever come from a surprise party

Chow Down to Eurovision 2015 - Israel

Shalom, the Chow Down to Eurovision 2015 now takes us to beautiful Israel.

Following on from the 2013 success of a Yotam Ottolengi inspired dish, Israel has again turned to Yotam for inspiration. I received a copy of Jerusalem one Christmas and it quickly joined the ranks of cookbooks that live on my bedside table along with those of Shane Delia and Dan Lepard, the type of food you want to be inspired by before you head to sleep....for hopefully tasty dreams!

While many will see an inviting array of farmers market vegetables most will hardly notice the poor kohlrabi in the corner. 

A vegetable that often gets purchased because it's purple and interesting but then without the courage or knowledge of how to use it, ends up being given to the chickens...or was that just me?

Kohlrabi also comes in green if purple isn't your colour.

Picking a new vegetable and then learning how to cook it is a great game, some would say sport and in a seamless segue that brings us to today's Eurovision hit from the past. 

In 1992 Dafna (accompanied by half the wiggles with microphones stuck down their tops) represented Israel with Ze Rak Sport (It's Just Sport). Dafna came 6th and then went on to host the Eurovision Song Contest when it came to Jerusalem in 1999. 

I really like the Kohlrabi salad featured in Jerusalem but not having all the ingredients on hand I went about with my own variation. 

Kohlrabi Salad

Ingredients

• 1 small red onion
• 1 small lemon
• 1-2 kohlrabi
• 50g dried currant 
• 100ml sour cream
• 2 sprigs fresh mint leaves + garnish
• Salt

Method

• Peel onion, cut in half vertically and finely slice
• Add onions to a bowl and squeeze over the juice of a lemon, let sit for 30 minutes
• Peel Kohlrabi, cut in half and slice thinly
• Drain the juice from the onions and reserve
• In a mixing bowl add kohlrabi, onions, currants, mints and sour cream
• Combine and add pinch of salt and a splash of lemon juice
• Serve with extra mint garnish

Kohlrabi is crisp, almost an apple of the vegetable world and is great sliced really fine into chips, grated into fritters and raw in a crunchy salad.

This year the Golden Boy from Israel was Nadav Guedj who managed to no only take Israel to the Eurovision finals after a 4 year absence, the king of fun placed 9th.

I caught up with Nadav in Vienna for a very quick unplanned interview about tattoos which didn't get awkward....OK it might have got a bit awkward discussing covering himself with tattoos?!?!

Previous Israel Chow Down to Eurovision:

2014 Apples in Pyjamas

2013 Hummus with the lot!

Chow Down to Eurovision 2015 - Czech Republic

Dobrý večer we have now (at last) arrived in the famously beautiful city of Prague in the Czech Republic and their exciting debut in the Chow Down to Eurovision.

This year as part of my Eurovision tour I was lucky enough to add Prague to the itinerary which of course was all in the name of research, such a tough gig! 


So many great recipe ideas and stories for next year's Chow Down to Eurovision. 

Prague lives up to the reputation of being an incredibly beautiful city but as the old and new town meet it becomes a mashup with jolts in to the present from billboards for Hooters, M&S and a veritable obstacle course of American tourists on segways coming at you in all directions. (though sadly not the direction the user was hoping they'll go)

Almost like being in a farmers market tracker beam I managed to stumble upon a mid week farmers market.....I think?  My Czech isn't what it could be if I'd actually learnt any Czech.

This inability to speak Czech proved hilarious if somewhat impractical when AB and I ran to make a river cruise just in time, only to find out we'd boarded the "Czech only" commentary boat. It really didn't matter we understood the view!

Any words I try to use to describe the aroma of this smoky ham blistering over the open fire won't even come close to how good it really was.

Not being a fan of huge chucks of hot ham I went for a massive sausage with a little bit of sauerkraut. So delicious, smoky and juicy and really who ever complains about a massive sausage??

So while I take a moment to get over the memory of that sausage we can all practice feeling like gypsies with the Aven Romale by Gipsy.cz. 

In 2009 they scored Nul points (zero) and did not participate again until this year. 

This recipe idea came from a picture I saw thanks to google of ham baked into bread called "Prague ham" and I thought of yeah I can play with that.....fun for an experiment but I might keep my bread and ham/bacon separate from now on. 

Experimental Prague Ham Loaf
Ingredients

• 500g strong flour
• 7g yeast
• 7g salt
• 300ml water
• 50ml olive oil
• 500g smoked belly
• 2 tbsp. seeded mustard
• 1tsp. brown sugar

Method

• Combine all dry and wet ingredients together and knead till elastic
• Kneading by hand will take about 10-15 mins or 5 mins using a dough hook
• Cover with plastic wrap in an oiled bowl and let prove for about 1 hour till double in size
• Combine mustard and brown sugar
• Coat the smoked belly with mustard and sugar
• When dough is risen turn out onto a floured bench
• Gently stretch the dough to a size that is able to wrap around the belly
• Encase the belly and put loaf seam side down into a lined roasting pan (with lid) 
• Score the loaf and bake lid on at 200°C for about 30 minutes 
• Serve warm or store any left overs in the fridge
• Served as toast it is an interesting variation to bacon and eggs

Bacon mmmmmmm

I really should have let it have a second prove but there was a food safety fear of leaving the meat out on the bench. 

Pass the pickles, just slice it thin!

2015 saw the return of the Czech republic and though they still did not qualify for the final they did manage to produce a score 33 points higher than their previous effort.

Marta Jandová and Václav Noid Bárta scored 33 points with Hope Never Dies. I would have loved to see them in the final as they both looked like they were having the time of their lives with this big sing. 

It is worth noting that no matter what the problem, it can be solved by throwing off your uncomfortable shoes and having a big sing....unless the problem is trying to get to the Eurovision finals....

I had a quick chat with Václav on the red carpet where he said they love Australia, sometimes being loved is all you need....

This is the debut of Czech Republic in the Chow Down to Eurovision