Okere falls goodness….
Posted on April 20, 2008
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At Syrup we think that anyone travelling state highway 33 towards Rotorua should make Okere Falls Store - on the shores of Lake Rotoiti - a compulsory stop. This delightful gourmet haven serves beautiful fresh food, great coffee from Hamilton roasters Rocket and has an incredible range of delicatessen products and some pretty funky branded t-shirts too.
Like Syrup, Okere Falls Store is keen to support local producers and sell fabulous products drawn from all around New Zealand. Here are just a few of the goodies we spotted:
Schoc chocolate - Greytown, St Andrews Limes - Featherston, Kaimai Cheese - Waharoa, Croucher Beer - Rotorua, Village Press Olive Oil - Hawkes Bay, Little Boy Sausages – Te Aroha, Aromatics range of condiments - Hastings, T leaf tea - Petone.
So whether its a tasty ‘Better Quality’ pie (local Rotorua brand ), some wonderful gourmet cheeses or a top of the range olive oil, make Okere Falls Store your first port of call!
Okere Falls Store
State Highway 33 on the shores of Lake Rotoiti.
15 km from Rotorua, 60 km from Tauranga.
Open 7 days a week from 7am to 7pm
Syrup Autumn is here!
Posted on April 14, 2008
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We have just had our lovely Autumn issue printed and it will be in circulation this week (April 14th). It’s definitely our best one yet and has some great reading plus yummy autumn recipes and our Syrup Mother’s Day prize pack draw! You can order it here online or subscribe within NZ for only $20. We also have a large number of selected stockists throughout the Bay of Plenty.
Feijoa frenzy!
Posted on March 30, 2008
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Yes, it’s that time of year again - hooray! There is a tremendous amount of pleasure and a little nostalgia to be had from eating them fresh, simply scooped from a teaspoon. They also make fantastic wine, add aroma and bite to fruit salads and are crowd-pleasing baked into cakes, crumbles and stunning tarts. Here at Syrup we’re on the hunt for some outstanding Feijoa recipes to share with you so watch this space! We talk about Feijoa’s in the Autumn issue of Syrup which is due out very soon!
Syrup Autumn update
Posted on March 30, 2008
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We’ve almost completed Syrup autumn, its our best publication yet and promises to be a real show stopper! We go to print this week, its been alot of hard work but we’ve loved every moment - who wouldn’t when it involves luscious recipes, stunning imagery and meeting some reknown foodie folk. We’ll let you know as soon as it’s available.
We’ve recently enjoyed some great festivals in Tauranga - the food & wine, the ethnic food (this was really outstanding and jam packed with people) and the Jazz festival which was once again a great even.
NEW WEBSITE
Our resident Syrup chef - James Broad has launched his website (very cool) www.cuisineconcepts.co.nz. Be sure to check it out and keep and eye on it as there are lots of things to be added on a regular basis including video footage of his popular cooking classes.
Back to cooking school…
Posted on March 14, 2008
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I had the pleasure of attending a local cooking class the other night, held by chef - James Broad of Cuisine Concepts at Culinary Council. It was very timely as I’ve been feeling really uninspired lately when it comes to preparing the evening meal. The theme was ‘A taste of the Summer Garden’ featuring Roast chicken salad with soy ginger and savoy cabbage, Lebaneses couscous with green beans, feta and olives, Kumara (a NZ sweet potato) and orange with coconut and baby red chard and a lemon posset to finish. All three salads were outstanding in taste and colour as well as fun to prepare. So armed with a few necessary ingredients from the Culinary Council deli I approached the evening meal the following night with newfound confidence! And this is what transpired…
Lebanese couscous - with green beans, feta and olives (I also added chicken & snow pea shoots)
This is quite a large recipe so the measurments would also be useful for a dinner party dish.
500gm Lebanese couscous (Moghrabieh)
200gm blanched green beans
200gm diced feta cheese
150gm kalamata olives
150gm sun dried tomatoes
3 boneless chicken thighs
Snow pea shoots
Chives
Salt & Pepper
Vinaigrette
250ml salad oil
80ml vinegar
1 tsp grain mustard
Salt & Pepper
As you can see in the picture this salad uses the large size couscous which not only looks great but after trying it for the first time I wouldn’t go back to the small, fine couscous again.
Method
Boil the couscous in salted water till al dente - approx 15 mins. drain and rinse with hot water. stir in a little olive oil and set aside. Pan fry the chicken thighs in oil untill golden brown then finish cooking in the oven. Ensure they are well cooked through then set aside to rest before slicing to add to the salad. Add all the other ingredients to the cooled couscous. Mix the vinaigrette, pour over and add the sliced chicken. Enjoy!
Recipe courtesy of James Boad - Cuisine Concepts.
And lastly I would just like to say when you are feeling uninspired in the kitchen then try a local cooking class!
A pocketful of poesy
Posted on February 25, 2008
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We don’t do alot of product endorsement but the beautiful packaging and the whimsical nature of this bread won me over when I discovered it at my local supermarket recently. I now always have some on hand. It makes the best pizza bases or just have it brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with herb infused rock salt as in the image above. It’s made in Havelock North, New Zealand and each package comes with a complimentary poem, hence the name - “Poesy”. Oh and if you have time while you’re munching on your poesy bread check out their beautiful website - www.poesy.co.nz.
Gourmet cheese with toffee chards
Posted on February 24, 2008
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The next time you have a gathering try this for your cheese platters - it not only looks fantastic but tastes great too.
Take the big size rounds of your favourite cheese, in this case it was Kapiti Kikorangi. Carefully cut the middle out of the cheese round and slice into wedges. Fill the now hollow cheese round with your favourite compote - see recipe below for Berry & Apple compote. Then decorate with chards of red toffee.
Berry & Apple compote
200g fresh or frozen berries eg. Raspberries, Boysenberries
1 apple, cored and chopped
2 tsp vanilla essence or split & scrape one vanilla pod
3 Tbsp sugar
juice and zest of 1 orange
Put all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over a low heat for 15 minutes or until soft, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool then place in an airtight jar. (it will keep for up to a week in the fridge).
Angela
Oracle of Rain
Posted on February 15, 2008
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I’m just sharing a great new video today from NZ group the Mamaku Project. Music is another passion of ours here at Syrup…
Tomato Jam!
Posted on February 11, 2008
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Here’s a great recipe for all those surplus tomatoes you might have right now. As you can see by the pic my garden is overflowing!
12 Vine ripened tomatoes or equivalent in cherry tomatoes
Extra virgin olive oil
1 small Onion (finely diced)
2 Cloves Garlic (finely chopped)
1⁄2 cup Caster sugar
1⁄2 cup Red wine vinegar
Drizzle the tomatoes with olive oil and season with salt.
Roast at 150°C for about 1 hour or until soft and well caramelised.
Pulse a few times in a blender.
Cook the onion and garlic slowly together until soft, about 8 minutes.
Add the pulped tomatoes, sugar and vinegar and simmer 1 hour, until well reduced and a jam like consistency.
Cool and refrigerate. Great on cheese platters or cold meats.
Angela
Turkish delight & Rose petal ice cream
Posted on February 10, 2008
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I couldn’t resist putting up this beautiful image for Turkish delight and Rose petal icecream with Persian fairy floss courtesy of Savour New Zealand. It’s created by Geoff Lindsay from Pearl in Melbourne. Read more about this on our events page here.
Syrup Autumn
Posted on February 8, 2008
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Yes! Its on the way!! - watch this space, we have some really exciting content full of Autumn goodness not to mention its chocolate season too! Ange and I are working hard getting it together. We’re also planning an oil tasting evening very soon - no not the sump kind, some divine olive oils and other yummy blends. Other news is that we’re adding a food events page here and I’m pretty certain Ange is going to post something sensational here very soon!
A bucketful of fresh tomatoes and a handful of basil!
Posted on February 8, 2008
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Since we’re blessed to have vine-ripe tomatoes and fresh basil in plentiful supply right now I thought I’d put them to some good use! This is nice and easy but delicious and very quickly prepared. Its a cross between a Quiche and a Bacon & Egg Pie. The first thing I did was turn the oven to 200°C, placed six vine-ripened tomatoes (green tops intact) in a roasting dish, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with rock salt then roast for approx. 20 mins.
While that was doing its thing I lined a large pie dish with pastry sheets (yes, I cheated and brought these) then spread over about 4 rashers of chopped bacon, some greens - in my case it was chopped silverbeet but you could use whatever you have on hand, eg. courgette, spinach, broccoli. I whisked 10 eggs (yes its a family sized pie) and half a bottle of fresh cream together. By now the roast tomatoes were ready so I let them cool for 5 mins then placed them in the pie, poured the egg/cream mix around them, added a small handful of torn basil leaves, some fresh thyme, 2 chopped spring onions, some slices of blue brie cheese then a good grinding of rock salt and black pepper.
Bake in the oven at 180°C till golden brown - approx 40 mins.
The purple-licious Urenika
Posted on February 1, 2008
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Or otherwise known as Maori potato. Not only are they visually incredible but also delicious when boiled and eaten with rock salt and butter. I had some fresh beans from the garden to add to the colour and flavour. The skins easily come off (if you prefer without) once cooked. These have been grown in NZ for around 200 years. Here’s an excerpt about them from the Koanga Institute ‘Urenika or, as it is often called, Tutai Kuri, is widespread over the whole of NZ and Chatham Islands. Produces huge crops and requires a long growing season. These are good keepers. This is the potato that scientists discovered had many many times the antioxidant levels of modern white potatoes’. Will definitely try growing them in future.
Cool me down!
Posted on January 20, 2008
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We’re all a little over heated right now here in NZ with one of the hottest summers I can remember! This prompted me to experiment with a sorbet - a first time for me. It certainly won’t be the last time either as it was so easy and so delish, I’m looking forward to making more! You can leave the cream out if you wish but I’m a fan of the creamy gelato flavours and that’s what the end result reminded me of.
Creamy Lemon and Mint Sorbet
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice
150 mls cream
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint leaves
zest of 1 lemon
Combine sugar and water in a saucepan and stir over a gentle heat untill all of the sugar has dissolved.
Bring to the boil and simmer uncovered without stirring for 5 mins and then remove from heat and cool. You can do this quickly by placing the saucepan in a sink of cold water.
Stir in lemon juice and cream and pour into a shallow container and freeze untill firm. You could also use lime juice.
Remove mix from container and blend untill smooth. Add the chopped mint and lemon zest, return to container and freeze again untill firm.
Serve garnished with fresh mint.
Now sit back, relax and enjoy your sorbet while listening to the Black Seeds - Cool me down!
Cookie heaven
Posted on January 4, 2008
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Cranberry & Pistachio nut cookies
I’ve made these many times and everyone always loves them. Nice and easy recipe, makes about 25 big cookies! For the pistachio nuts I just buy a 70g packet from the supermarket which I use and a scoop full of cranberries from the bulk bins.
350 gms Butter
2 cups Icing sugar
5 cups plain Flour
2 tsp Vanilla extract
grated zest of 1 Lemon
1/4 cup of Milk
1 Egg yolk
1 cup dried Cranberries
1 cup Pistachio nuts
Beat butter and icing sugar until pale and creamy. Add the flour, vanilla, lemon zest, milk and egg yolk. Mix well. Add the cranberries and pistachio nuts and mix. Turn mixture out on to floured surface. Shape into a long log. Wrap in glad wrap or baking paper and refrigerate 1 hour. When the cookie mix is firm, slice into rounds 1 cm wide and place on baking tray. Bake at 180°C untill golden (approx 10 mins).
Date and dark chocolate caramel tarts
Posted on December 31, 2007
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Couldn’t resist having this divine recipe on the blog! This one is courtesy of Ella from Brownsugar catering.
Pastry
155g plain flour
2 tsp cocoa powder
2 table spoons brown sugar
100g butter chilled and cubed
2 tablespoons iced water
Filling
8 large dates
100g dark chocolate chopped
100g dark chocolate (reserve for the top)
90g soft brown sugar
170 ml golden syrup
3 eggs lightly beaten
2 tsp vanilla essence
100ml pouring cream
Grease 4 small fluted tart tins.
Sift the flour, cocoa and sugar into a bowl and rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture reembles fine breadcrumbs. Make a well, add almost all the water and mix with your hands forming a dough. Press the pastry into each tin, use a knife to cut the excess pastry from the edges of the tin to form a clean edge, also prick the base with a folk. Cut 4 rounds of baking paper large enough to cover all surfaces of pastry. Grab some beans or rice which are cheap and place them onto the baking paper to make a weight. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Cool.
Put a flat tray under the tarts. Put 2 dates in each tart and break up the first 100g of chocolate into pieces and spread between each tart.
Combine the sugar, golden syrup, eggs, vanilla and cream in a bowl and whisk together with a whisk. Pour into the pastry shell and bake 10 minutes. Cool before eating – these are the bomb!
Syrup summer is here!
Posted on December 26, 2007
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Issue 02 of Syrup is out now, the image above shows the stunning summer cover. Its very fresh and summery with a special 6 page feature on the wonderful Waihi Beach region. Look for Syrup at local stockists, order it here or even better have each issue delivered to your letterbox for only $17 per year (within NZ).
Seafood with zest
Posted on December 26, 2007
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These two great recipes are in our summer issue and are courtesy of James Broad from Cuisine Concepts. Look for the wine match to these in our ‘Wine time’ category.
CITRUS SCALLOPS
This is a great dish, especially with wonderful fresh bay of plenty scallops. Also works well with fish.
100 mls fresh Lime juice
100 mls fresh Lemon juice
Wasabi paste to taste
Generous handful of fresh Coriander roughly chopped
Fresh scallops
Mix marinade together and pour over scallops. Serve straight away or leave longer if you prefer a longer marinated cooking effect.
MARINATED FISH
500 gms Firm white fish
100 mls Balsamic vinegar
50 mls Lemon juice
1tbs Brown sugar
Slice fish into thin strips, marinate in above ingredients for at least 4 hours, longer if you want fish to be ‘cooked more’.
Drain off excess liquid, garnish and serve
Syrup summer wine match
Posted on December 26, 2007
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Citrus Scallops
Longbush Reserve Gewurtztraminer 2007
An outstanding year from Gisborne. Passionfruit, ginger, lychee and rose lead through to a luscious palate that continues to grow.
Marinated fish
Rabbit Ranch Pinot Gris 2006
Spicy and luscious. Classy and sophisticated … a must try central Otago pinot.
Green fingered – or greenhorn?
Posted on December 8, 2007
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In the last edition I let Angela be my muse, encouraged by her piece on the Potager style of kitchen garden, I decided to put all those years of “house plants only” behind me and put in an Herb garden.
I spent the first month of my journey, carefully raising seeds in a myriad of vessels found around the house and choosing my site, full sun, free draining, within reach of the garden hose… all important considerations. Actually my garden was a long time on the drawing board as I first had to decide what I wanted to grow. Considering my four year old son’s aversion to anything that isn’t peas and corn, and secondly how difficult it is to eat an entire cabbage or cauli on your own. I decided that an herb garden with the aforementioned peas and corn would be a good place to start. So over the course of a weekend I decided to DIY it and dig up the garden bed myself. It wasn’t long before I wished I had brought in the professionals and certainly I would suggest a quick call to GardenPod if you are considering a foray into kitchen gardening. However, by the end of the weekend I was ready to plant out my babies, dill and basil I had raised from seed, corn and sugarsnap seeds to plant in situ and a parsley plant which had long since out grown its pot. With so little above the ground I surveyed my effort and wondered why I bothered. However, here I am only a few weeks later and I tour my herb garden twice daily. Sure we have had our setbacks, the neighbours cat taking daily dust baths in the fresh dirt and killing all but three of my dill; the baby basil disappearing overnight with nothing but a silver snail trail to inform me of their demise. However with a visit to the plant shop under my belt and a couple of slightly bigger plants to impress my visitors, things are really starting to take shape. A nice straight row of corn is reaching for the sun, my first peas curled upwards yesterday and thanks to the smart thinking of my little man who planted cable ties all over the seed beds, the cat hasn’t bothered it for a couple of days. Things are coming along nicely. Maybe Ange will make a gardener of me yet.
Ed.
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Welcome to the Syrup blog. Feel free to comment on the posts and share any recipes or inspiration you may have. We look forward to developing a great culinary resource for our readers.
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This beautiful marie claire cookbook - seasonal kitchen is the Syrup autumn subscription offer. Subscribe before May 31st, 2008 to go in the draw to win it!
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April 11th - 13th, Katikati
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