Re-run Rutherglen: Part 1

It was only a few posts ago that I alluded to my love of chocolate.  And it was more than a few ago that I told you that we had traveled to Rutherglen and loved it.  It was in that same post that I promised to share some highlights in the coming weeks and months.  So, it's been months, what are you going to do about it?


Renaissance chocolates is a jewel. Located several kilometres off the Murray Valley Highway, down Booraham East Road, you'll come across a dilapidated tin shed.  Surrounded by eucalypts and bordered by a wood and wire fence you'd almost be forgiven for not stopping and not giving a second though to it.  However, if you knew what this place was home to, you'd regret, and not be forgiven, for not stopping, especially if you didn't give it a second thought.

Inside this unassuming shed is a treasure for all chocolate lovers.  The love that the owners Robyn and Neil Funston have for chocolate and the region is palpable.  They infuse their chocolates with the best that the region has to offer - from Beechworth honey hidden inside a milk chocolate beehive to a Rutherglen muscat flavoured ganache truffle.

From back: Rich caramel log, velvet vanilla, chilli block, ruby orange, beehive, cinnamon square

Recipe road-test: Biscuity business

Yesterday was Anzac Day.  It's probably one of the most solemn and reverent days in Australia - a day to remember those that have represented Australia in military operations.  But it is not all sombre, lightened with rounds of two-up with mates, and the eponymous Anzac biscuit.

We probably all know the history of the Anzac biscuit, so I won't bother rehashing, except for the fact that they must have been pretty terrible to start with as the diggers used to refer to them as Anzac tiles!

I had initially thought that I would 'road-test' a recipe, detailed with standard highs, lows, success or failure.  However, in the initial stages of research I came across an amazing phenomenon.  What? The proliferation of fancy Anzacs biscuit recipes, with additions of spices, nuts, fruit and chocolate.  A seemingly endless variety of Anzacs.  That's all it took for one mission to be buried and another to born.

The new challenge? Three types of biscuits.  So, dear reader, just for you, I ventured in to my kitchen and made not one, not two, but three batches of Anzac biscuits.

Clockwise from left: White chocolate and macadamia, ginger and chocolate, traditional.

High wattage

Exotic South East Asia: when I think about it my mind conjures up a languid, gilded image, smudged by the humidity, blurred by traffic, twinkling beneath a blanket of fairy lights and steaming from the spice of chilli.

It is a region comprised of disparate countries, distinct cultures and diverse people and customs.  Yet all are inextricably linked through a shared history which has defined their modern selves.  Evidence of these linkages is dotted through each of the countries, a geographical game of connect the dots: a Khmer temple in Thailand, a Buddhist temple in Indonesia.

These are incongruous images when held up against these now uber-modern metropolises.  But they also provide a door way to the past, providing a brief glimpse to ancient disputes, the spread of customs, the expansion of religions, changing borders and the dispersion of people.  The consequences of some of these events are still evident today, the tensions along the Thai/Cambodia border is one example.

It is nearly impossible to go to South East Asia and not been drawn the through the gateway of at least one temple or shrines.  It’s easy to finish a day of sight seeing in Thailand weary eyed, sore footed, lethargic and literally watted (temple-d) out.  But that ice cold Chang (or Bintang) beer is totally well deserved.

Quality over quantity

I know, I know, Easter was over a week ago, and I'm probably a little bit late inviting you all to be jealous of my chocolate-goodness, but never late than never.

It’s true what they say: less is more, particularly when it comes to good quality chocolate.

We spent this Easter in Melbourne this year, and were lucky enough to uncover this gem while wandering through South Yarra and Chapel Street:  Ganache Chocolate.

M and I decided to spoil each other, by buying each other a chocolate bunny.  As a lover of rich, dark chocolate M bought me the 75 per cent dark chocolate Swiss Bunny and how could I resist getting him the milk and white chocolate Bunny in an egg? (By the way: I do realise that bunnies do not emerge from eggs, but it was still super cute!)

To me, good chocolate is about striking that perfect balance between flavour and texture.  I love dark chocolate for its stronger, less sweet flavour, and the ganache dark chocolate bunny epitomises these qualities.

I highly recommend that the next time you’re in Melbourne you visit Ganache, you will not be able to resist the temptation of buying beautiful handmade pralines or some textural and eye catching chocolate bars – we didn’t, and I suggest everyone try the fig and almond milk chocolate bar. Yum!

A Second New Year

Imagine it: mid April in Thailand.  It's hot, humid with temperatures pushing an average of 31°C, the hottest month in Thailand.

But back to the picture I'm trying to draw you: the streets are teeming with people, water is being flung from buses by the bucket load, people are spraying each other with water guns, people are drenching passers by.  You wonder, what is going on? Well, it's Songkran or Thai New Year.

There is obvious symbolism associated with the use of so much water.  In particular, to cleanse the the bad away and start the year afresh (but it's probably also a reprieve from the heat!).

Being in Australia you don't have to miss the fun.  While we might not have the usual three day celebration (Songkran is celebrated from 13 to 15 April) we do get a one day special: Wat Dhammadaro the Thai Buddhist temple in Canberra holds celebrations each year.  It includes cultural shows and a food fair.  All are welcome and entry is free.

When:   Sunday 15 April 2012, 10:00am to 3:00pm

Where:  Wat Dhammadaro, 80 Archibald Street, Lyneham, ACT

Given the weather in Canberra, water fights are not guaranteed!

Summer reading: The Year of Living Dangerously

I think I might have failed my Summer reading list challenge.  In fact I know I have. 

You be the judge: of the five books mentioned I have only finished reading four of them, one outside of the allotted summer time frame, and only ploughing through the final one as we speak.  I did, however, read a fifth book that was not included on the list (Jennifer Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad, maybe more on that some other time, or check out the ABC’s First Tuesday Book Club review).

Now to the task at hand: reviewing The Year of Living Dangerously.

I’ve been told that the novel is based on, or inspired by, the experiences of CJ Koch’s brother, Philip Koch, who was an ABC foreign correspondent based in Jakarta during the 1960s.

Recipe road test: Hot cross buns from Matthew Evans' The Real Food Companion

This entry is inspired by the spirit of all the things that are good about Easter – chocolate eggs, fish on Good Friday and, of course, hot cross buns.

To bring to fruition this Easter inspiration I delved into my collection of cook books trying to find a suitable recipe.  That’s when I came across this gem, in Matthew Evans’ The Real Food Companion.

The Real Food Companion by Matthew Evans

A SEA of love for South East Asia

I have been putting off writing this post for some time.  It’s as if it symbolises the end of the adventure.  Truthfully, it has more to do with the fact that I don’t know where to start.   Logically, the beginning would seem like a good place, but after ruminating on this issue for some time, I’ve decided that I don’t want this to be a blow-by-blow travelogue-esque type blog.  No.  So in the end it’s not quite that simple.

We’ve travelled to South East Asia a few times over the years.  There is something about the place that keeps drawing us back in.  It goes beyond the mere fact that I have Thai heritage, because I have a love for more than just Thailand.  In all of our adventures to the place I have always been impressed by one thing.  No, it’s not the culture or the food.  Nor is it the history or the pristine natural environments.  Yes, all of these things are amazing.  But it’s the memory of the people that has always struck a chord with me.

Village boy at the warung near Sunda Kelapa

An impromptu village sing-a-long