Tag: Delicious

Breakfast In The Sun – Review Crinitis Italian The Roof Top Kotara

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Since last Sunday the need to have a time out and a decent breakfast in the sun has been huge. We haven’t had much time out lately and the last time we went to breakfast it was the middle of winter – freezing cold and I was only about 3 weeks out of surgery. Wasn’t fun. At that stage we needed to do groceries after a particularly gruelling physio/torture session so we chose Crinitis on the Rooftop at Kotara.

At this time I was struggling – still taking mighty pain killers and I couldn’t sit on those chairs – NO I COULD NOT. The breakfast menu was amazing and of biblical proportion as is the norm with Crinitis menu ( so much choice so little time) but the service was crap – the coffee was cold and the waitress tripped over me even though I chose to sit as far out of the way as I could. It wasn’t fun.. ( and the meals were so huge and served on planks of wood and I couldn’t get through mine).

BUT – we decided to give it another go the other day. Again we needed to grab a few groceries and do a little retail therapy and TRUST me .. Breakfast in the Sun at Crinitis mid week was a JOY!

Firstly – the menu has changed – FOR THE GREATER GOOD. Its still of biblical proportions but there is an all day breakfast choice on there as well as divine twists on the usual suspects.

Now I love an Eggs Benne – and will go out of my way to enjoy this particular meal – and I love nothing more than a twist on the original. Crinitis serves this up with perfection. You have a choice of your two poached eggs with hollandaise served with lashings of gently wilted baby spinach on toasted Italian bread – you can have bacon, prosciutto, porchetta or smoked salmon. I chose porchetta.

eggs-bennedetto

Melt in the mouth and gorgeously flavoured this rich rolled slow cooked pork is perfect for a delightful twist on my all time favourite breakfast. Next time I go Im going to ask for a side of the crumbed eggplant that came with my husbands Italiano Breakfast. As I could have stolen the lot of that from him!

Again – perfectly cooked and melt in your mouth – the only thing missing from this was the chilli on the side he forgot to order! The Italiano Plate  has house made Salame, Mortadella, Lashings of Crispy Crispy Bacon, Provolone , Italian Sausage and the Crumbed Eggplant plus two eggs done your way… AND MORE. Its like the Italian equivalent of a mixed grill but with cured meats. My hubby loved it. The only complaint that we had was that the eggs were overcooked for our usual liking. We both love a good runny yolk – but poached eggs can be tricky ( they were not busy – maybe chef got momentarily distracted? – maybe we should have specified runny yolks?)

italian-breakfast-plate

We had our coffees and pineapple juice and water was served to the table – so well hydrated and fed and at just under $60 this breakfast wasn’t an everyday treat – but it certainly was a delightful one that we will be back for again and again and again.

If you’re going on the weekend I would suggest booking a table as this restaurant really has to be the best choice to date on The Rooftop and they get excruciatingly busy and NOISY! Breakfast through the week is lovely and relaxing and with the weather changing – this will prove to be one of the places that the Husband and I frequent.

If you want to look at the menu before you go ( the choice can be overwhelming) you can find it here , the online menu seems to have little differences I’ve noticed – but the coffee was great and it was HOT this time! So Buon Appetito!

 

 

Sugar Reduced Passionfruit Curd

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passionfruit curd.jpg

This is not Keto friendly but its certainly sugar reduced and you know what has gone into it.  Its hard to not eat it by the spoonful from the jar, but I savour it and love it on my Greek Yoghurt with a few flaked almonds for crunch.  I don’t even think the humble passionfruit is on the lists with Keto, but in all honesty when you are given fruits that yield 60-100 grams of pulp per fruit you have to do something with them. Especially when they cost an absolute bomb to buy.

The Passionfruit window this year has been narrow, and the free supply has dried up ( with a little help from the possums) and now Im faced with bags of the juiciest mandarins and oranges you’ve ever eaten. I really need to make something with those mandys… I just haven’t worked out what yet.

SO Warning… NOT KETO… But yes Sugar Reduced. And depending on the amount of passionfruit pulp – the amount you make will differ. Be frugal with it. And enjoy.

THIS IS A THERMOMIX RECIPE.

Ingredients:

25 g of Raw Sugar

120 g Passionfruit Pulp ( Minimum)

120 g Devondale Cultured Unsalted Butter

6 Large eggs

 

METHOD:

Place your sugar into your TM Bowl. Blend Speed 9, 5 seconds, m/c on. Scrape down bowl.

Add the rest of your ingredients.

Cook 15 minutes, Speed 2, 80 Degrees. m/c on.

Pour immediately into sterilised glass jars and pop on the lids. Tip upside down to cool.

Lick the leftovers from the bowl without burning your tongue… This would be amazing swirled through my Refined Sugar Free Cheesecake which I haven’t published yet..

 

 

 

Blue Door Cafe – Review

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This week pre knee replacement ,  has been a week filled with appointments, car servicing and catching up. We’ve barley had time to breathe trying to complete renovations, chase children, work and stay on top of things lately so this week we have indulged a little and enjoyed each others company while we can ( and while Im still mobile) The Big Bad Pathfinder needed its service yesterday so off she went Big Blue and we walked back from down the street. Was good, but a little knee hurty later. Today it is Sophia the Little Red Alfas turn, apparently like her owner she’s worn out two of her shoes and they both need replacing.  So OUCH.

But a good thing is that we got to go have brunch after we made our way through the Newcastle morning traffic and we decided after seeing a couple of fairly positive reviews on Lets Talk Food that Blue Door in Newcastle was the go!

Being a fan of any cafe with an all day menu ( especially one that caters to food intolerances and the like) it was wonderful to discover this gem in the heart of town just down from the Courthouse and across from the Civic Theatre. Imagine my surprise on finding the infamous and ever smily Nitin in the drivers seat. Chatting charmingly and ensuring comfortable patrons as only Nitin can. It was like coming home.

The food was incredible, the choice was incredible the coffee – and I HATE TO PAY FOR A DUD COFFEE was simply incredible – no wonder the take away section had a line up out the door. But then again this is

something the owner has always done well ( ever since inception as Juicy Beans Cafe) .

I had the Pumpkin and Ricotta Fritters – and I chose to have it served with bacon as an extra. AND BOY HOW … the bacon was sky high and cooked to perfection. The spicy salsa on top was just the right amount of heat and the Tahini Yoghurt was perfection to meld this dish of deliciousness all together. We had started with a medium cappuccino which came out at just the right temperature to not have to wait for it to cool. A little too cool for my hubby – but perfect for me who is used to forgotten coffees consumed cool.

Hubby had the Breakfast plank. This one is not for the faint hearted. As plank of hearty carnivore’ism it is. Lashings of crispy bacon, chipolatas, mushrooms, poached eggs and a side dish of their own signature baked beans plus a potato rosti!  This one had my eyes aching and wishing my tummy was bigger. It also came with two hearty slices of multigrain sour dough. Which being deprived of bread at home hubby devoured with gusto. He washed his back with pineapple juice and me being the adventurous greedy guts I am – I had to have the Cocogato.. A concoction of a super strong espresso shot topped with Cocowhip, the vegan ice cream delight of choice. That I’ve coveted from afar for ages.

Oh if only I could have one of these every day my life would be complete.

I highly recommend this cafe – you couldn’t eat there every day – but you could certainly try. I do intend to go back and sample the deconstructed Sushi Bowl along with other menu delights and I look forward to the day they are open longer hours and provide a night time Theatre dining experience.

Its wonderful to see buildings in Newcastle being renovated to maintain integrity and pay homage to their humble beginnings and its fantastic to find such a cosy place to bunker down and enjoy simple real good food in a positive warm environment.

Bravo Team Blue Door. We will be back!