White Chocolate, Date and Cardamom Cookies

I have been waiting for a couple of weeks to post this.  2 Sundays ago I felt like baking.  I had 2 spare eggs and some butter, so looked for some cookie recipes.  I very nearly did my usual batch, but I decided to give Jamie's recipe another whirl.  With a slight twist.

I kept the basic cookie dough the same:

125g butter
100g (1/2 cup) unrefined golden caster sugar
1 large egg, preferably free-range or organic
100g plain flour
25g porridge oats
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt (well, that's what Jamie says - I can't bring myself to put that much salt in anything, so just sprinkled a bit in the mix)

Take your butter out of the fridge 15 minutes before you start so it has time to soften a bit first (or, use Dairy Soft and the microwave...).  Put the butter in a mixing bowl with the sugar and mix with a wooden spoon until you get a thick, creamy consistency.  Crack your egg into another bowl and beat it with a fork, then add it to the butter and sugar and mix well.  Sieve your flour into the bowl to remove any lumps, add the oats, baking powder and salt, and mix until lovely and smooth.  (Or you can just put everything into a food processor and whiz until smooth).

Then I had to get creative with the flavours.  He suggests citrus cookies - requiring an orange and a lemon (I had orange but no lemon); or double chocolate cookies (I had white chocolate but no dark).  In the little blurb at the top of the recipe, he says you can flavour with dried fruit and nuts as well, just keep the quantities the same as for the chocolate cookies (50g of each).  I contemplated white chocolate and orange biscuits.  Thinking of my pantry contents, I remembered I had dates from making raw brownies (about to happen again tonight).  And I'd just made a cardamom curry so that spice was on my mind.  Cardamom is associated in my brain with Morocco; Morocco equals dates.  Cardamom is also associated for me with white chocolate thanks to a truffle recipe.  I decided to combine all these elements. 

I had thought far enough ahead that I had included a 1/2 teaspoon of cardamom with the flour and baking powder in the basic mix.  I really like cardamom, and I know that jar of spice is nearing the end of its potency.  If you're not such a huge cardamom fan, consider a smaller quantity... 

Chop 50g of white chocolate (I have a new chocolate-block-chopping-for-biscuits technique, almost like shaving it - and then I put the rest back in the pantry).  Chop 50g dates (I chopped them into about 12 pieces each, so they were about 1/2cm square).  Add the chocolate and dates to the mix, spoon onto a piece of clingfilm and roll into a sausage shape with a roughly 7cm diameter.  Pop the dough into the freezer for 30 minutes.  Or 40.  Or 50...  That last step I remember being awkward from last time (the sausage bit, not the resting in the freezer).  It was still a bit awkward.

Preheat oven to 190C/375F/gas 5.  Get your chilled dough out of the freezer and cut it into 1cm thick slices (not my best skill - next time I'm just going to do the tablespoons of dough, flattened, thing).  Place these on 2 non-stick baking trays, leaving a good bit of space between the slices because they really spread during cooking.  Bake for 8 - 10 minutes, until the edges of the cookies are golden brown.  Let them cool down slightly before placing on a wire rack to cool completely and crisp up.

This combination is (for me, anyway) a winner.  Besides, I prefer my cookies soft on the inside and these deliver.  Best baked when other eaters are around.

Saturday's photo:

Post-run, we had Mexican.  The light-fitting was comprised of Corona bottles.

Sunday's photo:

There is a grevillea by the road, with a new flower in the process of unfurling.

A Whole Day of New

Well, not the whole day... But it's after midnight when I start this, and most of it was a First Time.

After my morning students, I went to the Brisbane Art Expo at the Convention Centre.  It was so inspiring!  I now have so many ideas, as well as the Nike slogan, in my head.  One thing I know stops me from starting something is when I have so many possible ideas and none of them is coming forward as The One.  So I think I just need to start with one, doesn't matter if it's necessarily the Right One, and Just Do It. 

Next to the art expo was a vintage exhibition, and once you were in one you could go to the other.  It was very much like stepping into holiday houses from my childhood, stocked with the 'old' stuff of their owners.  Some of the dresses and hats were just beautiful, some had such awful scratchy or synthetic material, and when we saw the undergarments I was very glad I'm living in this age!  There was a Marilyn corner, with copies of dresses from some of her films.  One of them I adore and would love to have... if only I had the figure...

Although today (as in, July 14 - as I said, it's after midnight) is Bastille Day, we celebrated Columbia's National Day today (it's actually July 19).  A whole lot of people, not all of them from Central and South America, were partying in a park in Yeronga.  This was, of course, my mariachi debut.  The stage plan put the singer and violins at the front so I felt a little out there, but the sound was done quite well so it wasn't a huge issue.  Playing to an audience is always going to change things, and we weren't perfect, but we did a pretty good job.  There were lots of people dancing, especially little kids, most of whom were really dressed up and had Columbia's national colours painted on their faces.

There was only one 'green room' area, so as soon as we were off stage, we walked into a sea of dresses.  National dancers with the most massive skirts, and flower garlands, and suits - quite overwhelming.  I watched a bit of the fandango before heading off to dinner.

We went Mexican for dinner, naturally - to Villa Maria in Norman Park.  I'm pleased to report, my Spanish is improving in the comprehension department - I could listen to whole conversations and pick up what was being said.  Yay!  Of course, I also listened to whole conversations without understanding much apart from the charades so there's still a bit to go...  This place has nearly an entire staff of native Spanish speakers, as well as authentic Mexican and Latin American dishes.  There were 2 I definitely can't get at my 2 local Mexican places, so we ordered both and split them in half (just let me consult my notes here - I'm glad I wrote down what they were because I'd be very vague otherwise!): Tostadas a la huitlacoche; and Pollo con mole. 

Pollo con mole

I can't work out which would be my favourite, they were both delicious.  The tostadas were like crispy tortilla shells with chicken inside, and something to do with mushrooms there too.  The mole - how could I not like this?! - was chicken with a chocolate (but savoury) sauce.... yum... 

Tostadas a la huitlacoche - photo not by me!

We even shared dessert, a Mexican Flan - a cross between a creme brulee and a cheesecake, it really reminded me of creme caramels.  Does anyone else remember them?  Custardy gelatinous stuff with caramel sauce, came in the pot, easy happiness.

It's a good thing there was a strawberry on top to turn it into something healthy :)

Today's photo:

I actually had a moment of questioning this morning.  When I went into my room after breakfast, there was an odd phenomenon happening, and it took me a moment to realise it was sunlight.  It's been ages!  This was taken from the bus, crossing the Victoria Bridge after the art expo.  I like seeing blue skies, and I really like the effect of the bending light pole.

Mariachi and French Twist

Yesterday, Viola Man asked if I'd be interested in being one of two violins for a mariachi gig coming up soon.  Well, why not?  Rehearsal this morning (thankfully!) was a great start to my holidays. 

Obviously, this was my first time.  It turned out to be the singer's first time also, and things weren't going superbly well until the bass and lead guitarists turned up.  Then, all these charts started to work properly.  Some of the music I found familiar(ish), some was totally new - but after playing the few songs we rehearsed several times, they are now on repeat in my head.  It was also like a Spanish immersion experience, about half the language spoken was Spanish and then it would switch suddenly to English.  I was surprised how much I could understand, although by the end my brain was a little slow.  Note: in a music rehearsal, numbers are important.

Having a morning rehearsal (what self-respecting muso does that, really?!) meant I was desperately in need of a coffee by about halfway through, and amazingly hungry by the end.  We went to the sushi place at the Barracks for lunch, then French Twist for a (much-needed!) coffee.  I've often walked past French Twist heading towards Libertini's, or back to the Palace Cinemas or fab, but never walked in.  I really like the French vibe - dark wood floors, display cases (with many yummy goodies), shelves with bottles and tea sets and things.  We had to go to 2 registers before we got to the one that would take our order, but once we'd ordered there wasn't a huge wait.  Having coffee in a gold-rimmed cup is lovely!  Coffee itself was average but (as you might have realised) the chocolate topping is important, and as that was good, it passes the test.

Mexican Baked Fish

This coming Thursday (May 3), Viola Man and I are performing in the cathedral.  We are playing some duets for violin and viola, and he's also playing some duets with a double bass player.  We had a play-through last week, and thought another rehearsal would probably be a good idea.  I also owed him dinner, so last night he came to my place, I cooked him dinner and we practiced our duets.

A few weeks ago I was flipping through some recipe books for inspiration and came across this dish - as yet uncooked by me.  As Viola Man is originally from Mexico, this dish seemed an obvious choice for dinner last night.  I halved the quantities so I wouldn't be eating this for a week, but the quantities below are the original, which serves 4, from Jill Dupleix's Good Cooking: the New Essentials.

Recipe:
Heat the oven to 200C.  Rub 4 thick, firm white fish fillets (180g each, skinned), with 1 tablespoon lime juice and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, and set aside.

Finely slice an onion into rings.  Cut a sweet red pepper into strips, discarding the core and seeds.  heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a frying pan and cook the onion for about 10 minutes until soft and pale.  Add 1 garlic clove, finely sliced and cook for a minute.

Add a 400g tin of chopped tomatoes, the red pepper, and 150mL water, stirring.  Add 10 pitted green olives, 1 tablespoon salted capers (rinsed), 1 tablespoon pickled jalapeno chillies, a pinch of cayenne pepper, and 1 bay leaf.  Cook gently for 10 - 15 minutes until the sweet red pepper is tender.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a frying pan and sear the fish fillets for a minute on each side, then transfer to an oiled baking pan.  Spoon the sauce on top and bake for 15 - 20 minutes until the fish is cooked through, depending on thickness.  Scatter with coriander leaves and serve with rice.

I forgot the coriander leaves for garnish and don't usually eat rice... and I forgot to turn off the oven (youch! expecting a massive power bill now).  But the flavour was good (although not as much kick as I expected), it's really easy, and we didn't need to resort to calling the local pizza place.  Phew.

For those Brisbane readers: free concert, Thursday May 3, 11:30 am, St John's Cathedral.  Duets by Halvorsen, Beethoven, Piazzola and more.