I entered a travel writing competition in The Telegraph and to my great surprise I won!
Read my tea inspired article here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travel-writing-competition/8406054/Just-Back-tea-time-in-the-desert.html
Monday 28 March 2011
Tuesday 8 March 2011
It is Semlor time!
Today (8th March) is Shrove Tuesday and in Sweden we celebrate this by eating Semlor. A semla has many names in Sweden, semla, hetvägg, fastlagsbulle and fetistasbulle. There might be many more.
Semlor are immensly popular this time of the year with cafes starting to sell them sometimes as early as just after New Years. Swedish newspapers run features of best semla of the year in the local towns.
A semla can best be described as a bun flavoured with cardamon, filled with a marzipan, topped with whipped cream and then dusted with icing sugar. It's eaten on "ShroveTuesday" (or rather appropriatly "Fat Tuesday") which falls on 8th March this year.
A traditional way to eat this bun is to put the 'semla' in a bowl with hot milk, also known as ‘hetvägg’ translated as ‘hot wall’, rather discusting if you ask me. My grandfather used to do this and it's not for me, the bun disolves into a soggy mess with warm melted cream floating like lava streams into steaming milk.
If you're in London you can find Semlor in the wonderful Scandinavian food store, Scandinavia Kitchen on 61 Great Titchfield Street near Baker Street and Marylebone. Rather dangerously this place is just around the corner of the VisitSweden office so it is hard to resist buying a semla or two on your way to work every morning!
Semlor are immensly popular this time of the year with cafes starting to sell them sometimes as early as just after New Years. Swedish newspapers run features of best semla of the year in the local towns.
A semla can best be described as a bun flavoured with cardamon, filled with a marzipan, topped with whipped cream and then dusted with icing sugar. It's eaten on "ShroveTuesday" (or rather appropriatly "Fat Tuesday") which falls on 8th March this year.
A traditional way to eat this bun is to put the 'semla' in a bowl with hot milk, also known as ‘hetvägg’ translated as ‘hot wall’, rather discusting if you ask me. My grandfather used to do this and it's not for me, the bun disolves into a soggy mess with warm melted cream floating like lava streams into steaming milk.
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| Swedish semla |
Vivel Patisserie and prinsesstårta! - Dubai
I once used to work for the London Underground. Most of the time I tend not to mention this as it's usually met by a barrage of abuse about anything from the closure at High Barnet station yesterday morning, the audacity of a penalty charge on the Oyster card for that uncompleted journey last weekend, to the train drivers threat to strike on Kate and Wills big day. However, I wasn't let anywhere near the trains nor the war mongering strikers. Instead I was contracting in the buzzy communications department as part of a brave and fearless team of intranet specialists who desperately tried to restore the LU intranet to its former glory. I don't really know how well we succeeded as the contract ran out before the project finished and the poor LU employees were left with a skeleton of an intranet and a lot of dull content no one ever read to re-write into something exciting.
One of my colleagues at LU was a slightly scatty but lovely girl from Iran. As a patisserie fanatic I frequently told her in detail of my cafe visits, baking disasters at home and how unique the Swedish 'konditori' and cakes are. I showed her a photo of my latest baking effort, a Swedish 'prinsesstårta' or princess cake that I made for my friend Dave's birthday.
Princess cake is one of the most famous Swedish cakes. Originally it had the rather dull name 'Grön tårta' - Green cake, doesn't sound that tempting really. It featured in a classic cook book from the 1930s called 'Prinsessornas kokbook' - The Princesses' Cookbook by a home economics teatcher called Jenny Åkerström. Ms. Åkerström taught the royal Swedish princesses Märtha, Astrid and Margaretha and it was thought that the girls were particularly fond of her Green Cake and it was from then on raised from obscurity and given a royal stamp of approval now as Princess Cake.
My colleague took one look at the cake and exclaimed,
- That's not a Swedish cake, that cake is from Iran! Well, needless to say I argued that it couldn't possibly be from Iran, as far as I know Sweden didn't have any links with Iran in the 30s, well we might have done but I didn't have a clue and I was not going to let this scatty girl claim OUR national cake! Besides I very much doubt our cake recipe writing home economics teacher Jenny from Stockholm had ever visited good old Persia.
We went through the ingredients one by one, sponge base - tick, whipped cream - tick, vanilla cream -tick and green marzipan tick. It's worth noting here that a proper Princess Cake doesn't include jam, despite a lot of patisseries insisting on adding this. Eventually we had to come to the conclusion that there are Princess Cakes being eaten in the patisseries of Tehran as well as in Stockholm. I was still not convinced. Maybe they had a similar cake, I guess green cakes tend to sort of look the same after a while.
So imagine my slight annoyance when I stumbled across Vivel Patisserie on Jumeirah Beach Road, an Iranian chain of cafes, and there behind the counter was one lonely looking slice of Princess Cake!
Vivel itself was a hidden gem behind some boarded up shops. Jumeirah is the Chelsea of Dubai, and what they call Jumerirah Janes (wealthy expat women with very little to do) popping in and out of the cafes and art galleries that line this long stretch of road. After the financial problems a couple of years ago a lot of shops have closed though and you have to know where to look to find the great cafes.
The Iranian princess cake did look a little hot, dry and unloved so I have to confess that I gave it a miss. Instead I tried a collection of tiny, tiny little mini cakes that were just delicious. My favourite was the Chocolate Nocochi, a melt in the mouth sensation made of cocoa powder and ground chic peas with some cardamom, sounds odd but it was delicious. Other amazing mini cakes were the Vanilla Kipfriel, a vanilla flavoured hazelnut biscuit and the lovely little pistachio log.
Now I love macaroons and I am reluctant to report that the vanilla and lavender versions I tried at Vivel weren't as nice as I had hoped. The filling was far too buttery and tasted a bit like a slab of Lurpak had been spread between the fragile meringue. I think I have been very spoilt at Laduree around the corner though. Vivel, like Laduree, serves specialty teas and a good tip is to order tea rather than coffee here. I tried a Chai latte coffee which was watery but had a very nice chai flavour. I am sure they do an amazing Chai tea though. Vivel has very pretty gift baskets, artistically decorated with the cakes creating patterns and colours, so it's a brilliant place to pick up a last minute gift for someone special!
One of my colleagues at LU was a slightly scatty but lovely girl from Iran. As a patisserie fanatic I frequently told her in detail of my cafe visits, baking disasters at home and how unique the Swedish 'konditori' and cakes are. I showed her a photo of my latest baking effort, a Swedish 'prinsesstårta' or princess cake that I made for my friend Dave's birthday.
Princess cake is one of the most famous Swedish cakes. Originally it had the rather dull name 'Grön tårta' - Green cake, doesn't sound that tempting really. It featured in a classic cook book from the 1930s called 'Prinsessornas kokbook' - The Princesses' Cookbook by a home economics teatcher called Jenny Åkerström. Ms. Åkerström taught the royal Swedish princesses Märtha, Astrid and Margaretha and it was thought that the girls were particularly fond of her Green Cake and it was from then on raised from obscurity and given a royal stamp of approval now as Princess Cake.
My colleague took one look at the cake and exclaimed,
- That's not a Swedish cake, that cake is from Iran! Well, needless to say I argued that it couldn't possibly be from Iran, as far as I know Sweden didn't have any links with Iran in the 30s, well we might have done but I didn't have a clue and I was not going to let this scatty girl claim OUR national cake! Besides I very much doubt our cake recipe writing home economics teacher Jenny from Stockholm had ever visited good old Persia.
We went through the ingredients one by one, sponge base - tick, whipped cream - tick, vanilla cream -tick and green marzipan tick. It's worth noting here that a proper Princess Cake doesn't include jam, despite a lot of patisseries insisting on adding this. Eventually we had to come to the conclusion that there are Princess Cakes being eaten in the patisseries of Tehran as well as in Stockholm. I was still not convinced. Maybe they had a similar cake, I guess green cakes tend to sort of look the same after a while.
So imagine my slight annoyance when I stumbled across Vivel Patisserie on Jumeirah Beach Road, an Iranian chain of cafes, and there behind the counter was one lonely looking slice of Princess Cake!
Vivel itself was a hidden gem behind some boarded up shops. Jumeirah is the Chelsea of Dubai, and what they call Jumerirah Janes (wealthy expat women with very little to do) popping in and out of the cafes and art galleries that line this long stretch of road. After the financial problems a couple of years ago a lot of shops have closed though and you have to know where to look to find the great cafes.
The Iranian princess cake did look a little hot, dry and unloved so I have to confess that I gave it a miss. Instead I tried a collection of tiny, tiny little mini cakes that were just delicious. My favourite was the Chocolate Nocochi, a melt in the mouth sensation made of cocoa powder and ground chic peas with some cardamom, sounds odd but it was delicious. Other amazing mini cakes were the Vanilla Kipfriel, a vanilla flavoured hazelnut biscuit and the lovely little pistachio log.
 |
| Vivel Patisserie |
Now I love macaroons and I am reluctant to report that the vanilla and lavender versions I tried at Vivel weren't as nice as I had hoped. The filling was far too buttery and tasted a bit like a slab of Lurpak had been spread between the fragile meringue. I think I have been very spoilt at Laduree around the corner though. Vivel, like Laduree, serves specialty teas and a good tip is to order tea rather than coffee here. I tried a Chai latte coffee which was watery but had a very nice chai flavour. I am sure they do an amazing Chai tea though. Vivel has very pretty gift baskets, artistically decorated with the cakes creating patterns and colours, so it's a brilliant place to pick up a last minute gift for someone special!
Saturday 5 March 2011
Gary Rhodes' Lemon meringue at 'Taste of Dubai' - Dubai
Last night was spent at the Taste of Dubai festival. This annual food festival gives you a great chance to sample dishes from some of the top restaurants here in Dubai and to try to grab a few of their discount vouchers at the same time. The festival was held in the park in Dubai Media City over looking the lake and the CNN and Thomson Reuter's buildings. With empty stomachs we hopped on the Metro to Nakheel to taste what Dubai has on offer and for me, of course, to sample some cakes and puddings.
Wafts of wonderful Eastern smells met us at the entrance and wherever we turned crispy duck meat crisped up in a hot oven, meat sizzled in its juices, and fragrant rice dishes steamed in pots. We had come to the Chinese and Thai food section. Reluctantly walking past, we were quickly immersed in the wonderful smells from the Italian stalls, followed by the heat from the grill at Rivington Grill and Ruth's Chris Steak House.
Further down was a separate area hosting the Grosvenor House's restaurants and without much hesitation we headed straight to the Indego stall and minutes later were enjoying a wonderfully smooth and aromatic chicken tikka masala by Vineet Vahatia of Indego. I was particularly impressed by finding strands of saffron in my dish, always a sign of a good curry in my view.
This was followed by a scotch egg from Rivington Grill, the brilliant English restaurant in Souk Al Bahar near Dubai Mall. Unfortunately, not as crispy as I would have liked it but a perfectly cooked egg and great seasoning of the sausage meat made this a very enjoyable snack.
I had my eyes on the macaroon stall all evening, but on closer inspection I found these macaroons far too colourful and artificial looking and instead headed for Gary Rhodes' Mezzanine and Twenty10 stalls for some pudding. The man himself was there this Thursday night and spent most of the evening happily chatting to and posing for photographs with slightly star struck expats who congregated around his stalls.Rhodes was on Dubai One, the local TV channel last week and was quoted saying that he thinks 'Dubai will become the culinary centre of the world eventually', sounds very promising.
After deliberating over whether to have sticky toffee pudding or iced lemon meringue with strawberries I decided on the latter. It was sensational. Frozen, almost chewy lemon mousse on the thinnest of bases, a perfectly shaped mini meringue on top and finished off with strawberries marinated in a velvety strawberry sauce.
I did wonder if I should pluck up courage and ask Mr. Rhodes if he might be interested in coming along to VisitSweden's food event in London in September but he disappeared into the kitchen before I had a chance.
Very full and extremely happy we went back to the Metro, excited about soon using our vouchers at all the restaurants and vowing to go back to Mezzanine for the proper full sized portion of iced lemon meringue.
Wafts of wonderful Eastern smells met us at the entrance and wherever we turned crispy duck meat crisped up in a hot oven, meat sizzled in its juices, and fragrant rice dishes steamed in pots. We had come to the Chinese and Thai food section. Reluctantly walking past, we were quickly immersed in the wonderful smells from the Italian stalls, followed by the heat from the grill at Rivington Grill and Ruth's Chris Steak House.
Further down was a separate area hosting the Grosvenor House's restaurants and without much hesitation we headed straight to the Indego stall and minutes later were enjoying a wonderfully smooth and aromatic chicken tikka masala by Vineet Vahatia of Indego. I was particularly impressed by finding strands of saffron in my dish, always a sign of a good curry in my view.
This was followed by a scotch egg from Rivington Grill, the brilliant English restaurant in Souk Al Bahar near Dubai Mall. Unfortunately, not as crispy as I would have liked it but a perfectly cooked egg and great seasoning of the sausage meat made this a very enjoyable snack.
I had my eyes on the macaroon stall all evening, but on closer inspection I found these macaroons far too colourful and artificial looking and instead headed for Gary Rhodes' Mezzanine and Twenty10 stalls for some pudding. The man himself was there this Thursday night and spent most of the evening happily chatting to and posing for photographs with slightly star struck expats who congregated around his stalls.Rhodes was on Dubai One, the local TV channel last week and was quoted saying that he thinks 'Dubai will become the culinary centre of the world eventually', sounds very promising.
After deliberating over whether to have sticky toffee pudding or iced lemon meringue with strawberries I decided on the latter. It was sensational. Frozen, almost chewy lemon mousse on the thinnest of bases, a perfectly shaped mini meringue on top and finished off with strawberries marinated in a velvety strawberry sauce.
 |
| Iced lemon meringue and strawberries |
I did wonder if I should pluck up courage and ask Mr. Rhodes if he might be interested in coming along to VisitSweden's food event in London in September but he disappeared into the kitchen before I had a chance.
Very full and extremely happy we went back to the Metro, excited about soon using our vouchers at all the restaurants and vowing to go back to Mezzanine for the proper full sized portion of iced lemon meringue.
Tuesday 1 March 2011
Ladurée - macaroons, macaroons and more macaroons - Dubai
There was one place in London I always wanted to go to but never ended up in - Ladurée. This tiny little café in Burlington Arcade just off Piccadilly looks like my perfect place.
Three tables, hundreds of perfectly formed, colourful macaroons, served by one grumpy looking Frenchman or woman, perfect. However, having been a tiny bit scared of the grumpy looking French waiter and hordes of tourists that stop and admire the cakes I never made it in and thought macaroons would have to wait until the next trip to London. Imagine my surprise when on one of my early morning strolls on the first floor of Dubai Mall I come across a HUGE Ladurée, Dubai style.
Being situated in a mall it is tricky to beat the quaint location in Burlington Arcade. However, Ladurée has managed to re-create a tiny corner of Paris next to the glitzy 'Fashion Catwalk'. Suitably placed at the end of the Catwalk, Ladurée is the perfect place to rest your feet after a long day in those Jimmy Choos before tackling the Joseph shop across the road. You can either sit 'outside' at the tables on the green lawn or inside where the perfect old fashioned French decor could have you fooled into thinking you were somewhere in the 8th arrondissement sipping a Café crème while smoking your Gauloises.
I opt for the indoor cafe and as I step in smooth jazz plays gently in the background. This sadly serves to remind me that we're still in a mall and I wish they'd gone for a more French soundtrack. The dark blue velvet chairs with their gold tassels and the dark wood furniture agains grey blue walls with more velvet makes it almost a regal looking place. It could look cheesy but here it just sort of reminds me of an old grandmother's tea parlour, in a nice way! Outside is the more summer-y looking garden cafe with a light green fence and light wooden tables and chairs on a fake lawn with some manicured bushes.
I sit down in the corner and three lovely waiters are quickly at hand. At the table next to me are a couple of a local Emirate women and men, nibbling on their macaroons. I take as a good sign, the locals seem to love Shakespeare and Co which is another favourite so this place must be just as good. I order tea and two macaroons, liquorish and pistachio, that arrive on lovely pink and blue china. The subtle liquorish goes incredibly well with my cup of Thé Oolong la violette, violet tea. Unbeatable flavour combination if you ask me! Pistachio is a classic and doesn't disappoint. Very nutty tasting with tiny, tiny bits of pistachio nuts agains the velvety green pistachio cream, heaven.
Now I love macaroons in any flavour, colour or shape but my lasting taste from today is my amazing violet tea, not everyone's cup of tea (no pun intended!) but if you used to love those odd little parma violet sweets as a child you'll love this. As I leave I linger near the counter admiring all the pretty macaroons and gift boxes while trying very hard not to buy all of it. Why is it that anything pink or mint green with gold embossed writing makes me want it!?
http://www.laduree.fr/
Three tables, hundreds of perfectly formed, colourful macaroons, served by one grumpy looking Frenchman or woman, perfect. However, having been a tiny bit scared of the grumpy looking French waiter and hordes of tourists that stop and admire the cakes I never made it in and thought macaroons would have to wait until the next trip to London. Imagine my surprise when on one of my early morning strolls on the first floor of Dubai Mall I come across a HUGE Ladurée, Dubai style.
 |
| Ladurée in Dubai Mall |
Being situated in a mall it is tricky to beat the quaint location in Burlington Arcade. However, Ladurée has managed to re-create a tiny corner of Paris next to the glitzy 'Fashion Catwalk'. Suitably placed at the end of the Catwalk, Ladurée is the perfect place to rest your feet after a long day in those Jimmy Choos before tackling the Joseph shop across the road. You can either sit 'outside' at the tables on the green lawn or inside where the perfect old fashioned French decor could have you fooled into thinking you were somewhere in the 8th arrondissement sipping a Café crème while smoking your Gauloises.
I opt for the indoor cafe and as I step in smooth jazz plays gently in the background. This sadly serves to remind me that we're still in a mall and I wish they'd gone for a more French soundtrack. The dark blue velvet chairs with their gold tassels and the dark wood furniture agains grey blue walls with more velvet makes it almost a regal looking place. It could look cheesy but here it just sort of reminds me of an old grandmother's tea parlour, in a nice way! Outside is the more summer-y looking garden cafe with a light green fence and light wooden tables and chairs on a fake lawn with some manicured bushes.
 |
| Macaroons and tea at Ladurée |
I sit down in the corner and three lovely waiters are quickly at hand. At the table next to me are a couple of a local Emirate women and men, nibbling on their macaroons. I take as a good sign, the locals seem to love Shakespeare and Co which is another favourite so this place must be just as good. I order tea and two macaroons, liquorish and pistachio, that arrive on lovely pink and blue china. The subtle liquorish goes incredibly well with my cup of Thé Oolong la violette, violet tea. Unbeatable flavour combination if you ask me! Pistachio is a classic and doesn't disappoint. Very nutty tasting with tiny, tiny bits of pistachio nuts agains the velvety green pistachio cream, heaven.
Now I love macaroons in any flavour, colour or shape but my lasting taste from today is my amazing violet tea, not everyone's cup of tea (no pun intended!) but if you used to love those odd little parma violet sweets as a child you'll love this. As I leave I linger near the counter admiring all the pretty macaroons and gift boxes while trying very hard not to buy all of it. Why is it that anything pink or mint green with gold embossed writing makes me want it!?
http://www.laduree.fr/
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