thepassionatecook

Tarte tatin of caramelised shallots and crispy pancetta

I've always been a fan of tarte tatin... so incredibly easy to make, yet so finger-lickingly good! I make this a lot for guests who turn up unannounced or without much notice - I keep a packet of puff pastry in the freezer, just in case, and I have apples at home most of the time, but have been seen to use other fruit as well, such as plums or pears.
This is my first attempt at a savoury tarte tatin, however. I found the idea in a very old issue of "Elle Bistro" food magazine the other day. The crispy pancetta, which I simply grilled in the oven, is added at the very last moment and if you are a vegetarian, just leave it out - if will taste just as delicious! The shallots are just like you'd find them on an Italian antipasti platter... they've lost all their bite in the cooking process and instead have soaked up the caramelised sugar and balsamic vinegar. Like in the traditional tarte tatin, the "caramel" sauce is thick and onctuous and will have you crying out for more!

Vietnamese chicken balls

It was during my recent move that I made a promise. I had been trying really hard to get rid of a lot of kitchen paraphernalia both before packing and after, and I did manage to make a few charity shops in the vicinity very happy. But there were some items that clearly did fit the rule that I would bin anything I hadn't used in the last year or so, but that I still decided to keep: the deep-fryer is one of them. So I came up with an additional clause: if you haven't used it in the last year, but cannot part with it for whatever reason, then you have to use it within the next two months, and at least twice a year thereafter, otherwise it's gotta go.
Who'd have thought that I would get emotionally attached to a deep-fryer, given that I am not that big on the frying front... I don't even appreciate fried food elsewhere that much, the occasional fries at a restaurant maybe, but I am not a regular at my local chippy either. I guess there's a bit of nostalgia involved. The deep-fryer was one of the first things I bought after moving in with my (now) husband (now, how romantic is that!), because we were in love with the "pimientos de padrón" we always ordered at Aioli, which was a great tapas bar cum deli in Vienna. Never mind that I discovered shortly after that these little green chillies taste much better just sprinkled with olive oil and grilled in the oven...
After a couple of weeks of settling into the new house, it was time to fulfill my promise and get frying! I had a few friends round for an evening of playing games and decided to make various plates of fingerfood so we would be able to nibble stuff without interrupting the game. These chicken balls were the perfect solution for my frying ambitions - but you don't necessarily need a deep-fryer to make them, a deep pan works just as well. They're incredibly easy to make and very tasty: copious amounts of garlic, coriander, lemongrass and chilli and served with a tangy fish sauce... very delicious. I also made them for Jeanne's birthday bash a few weeks ago and they went down a treat!
So, deep-frying has ticked one of many boxes... I have since made smoothies in the blender, pressed fresh orange juice with my kitchen aid, had a cosy evening around the raclette grill, made a gratin dauphinois using the mandoline, but I still have to get round to making a loaf with the bread maker, dust off the pasta machine and find a good recipe for espuma to use the ISI gourmet whip... don't worry, no spanking of cooks involved, this is 100% PG!

Roast allium soup with crispy onion croutons

Maybe not something you'd like to consider as a Valentine's treat - unless you're more hooked on garlic than on your Valentine! But it's a great, warming soup full of goodness...
Whole books have been written on the health benefits of the "stinking rose", as garlic is sometimes affectionately called, and other members of the Allium family (onions, chives, etc), primarily about its anti-viral qualities that should keep a threatening flu and any other germs off your doorstep (of course, since you'll find nobody will go anywhere near you after devouring them by the bucketload). But it's also said to be beneficial in preventing cancer and keeping radiation at bay - and, of course, vampires.
And while your beloved might be put off by the effect this soup has on your breath, it is a dish fit for the occasion nontheless, as it is known to prevent coronary disease and, ultimately, heart attacks... so even if your loved one might keep a distance on this occasion, at least you'll know that they'll stick around for many more Valentines to enjoy together!

Scallop carpaccio à la Robuchon

Oh yes, I do realise that I still owe you a review of L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon where we had a most fantastic lunch on our recent trip to Paris... maybe in the hope that, until I blog about it, the great aftertaste will keep on tickling my tastebuds, reminding me of what a fabulous meal we had that cold, sunny day in December.
There's nothing wrong with feeling inspired, though, and trying to recreate some of what we had there... the day after we got back, I happened to find these marvellous oblong dishes (irresistibly cheap at Tesco's). And I confess I sinned. Let me explain:
Since we're going to be moving in about a months' time, I made a promise not to buy any new things until then, rather throw away a plethora of kitchen utensils that I once thought indispensible, but haven't used since then - but I saw these beauties, inspected them longingly and before I knew it, they were in my shopping trolley already.
Given that I hadn't even managed to stick to my promise for much more than a week, the least I could do was prove that they were something I'd be using often... this is the second time I bring them out in two months, so at the moment, they score much better than the pasta machine, the breadmaker, the "lean mean grilling machine", the egg poacher and the selection of retired mugs collected on travels near and far, which I kept just in case we had more people round than proper mugs (we have 16 of those, though, so are unlikely to ever run out!)... so maybe, just maybe, those long plates will accompany us into our new abode.
The scallop carpaccio we had was marvellous - melt-in-the-mouth slivers of a whiter than white mollusc, drizzled with French olive oil (which, in my opinion, is the very best in the world) and  lemon juice, scattered with spring onion and poppyseeds. That's what I love about Robuchon's cooking - it's so simple, using the best ingredients you can get, not fussing about with them and letting the individual flavours all play up their strengths. Sigh! But if that was his only secret, we'd all be famous chefs by now...

Asparagus with poached egg, pecorino and truffle oil

Whenever I visit a new restaurant, I come home with a bagful of new ideas for recipes I could try at home - so it would be fair to say that eating out for me is more an investment than an expenditure... One of my favourite restaurants in London is Salt Yard. The present dish is inspired, well, blatantly copied, in all honesty, from there. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any wild asparagus, which is even thinner than the variety I found at the Borough Market when I went on a shopping spree with Jeanne recently, and I couldn't char-grill them either... but that's a sacrifice you have to make when you don't own a million-pound kitchen I guess.
Eating this dish (tapas-sized) at Salt Yard recently was another proof of how you can be completely bowled over by the simplest combinations - if only every single one of the ingredients is an absolute stunner. Wild asparagus tastes so much better than the supermarket varieties, grilling adds such a subtle, smokey flavour and when you use top-quality truffle oil and mature pecorino, well, nothing much can go wrong. Given that you can prepare this in a flash, it's a perfect weekday dinner... 10 minutes is all it takes and I much prefer it to the coldmeats, cheeses and salad we've found ourselves faced with far too often lately...

Stuffed courgette flowers drizzled with honey

Courgette flowers are really a rare gem to find - here in the UK at least. Back in my childhood days when my parents owned a vegetable garden, I used to see plenty of them. I say vegetable garden, but it was really much more than that - an old derelict farmhouse dating back to 1769, no kidding, it was built 20 years before the French Revolution! A tiny farm it was, barely enough room for 2 cows, and it had never really been renovated either, I don't think, at least not to the extent to bring in running water or electricity. The doorframes were so low that I had to play limbo dancing from an early age, probably 12 years or so, and it was a very rustic affair altogether. Back then I didn't really appreciate this sort of thing, more than anything it was annoying to have to go there every weekend instead of hanging out with my friends, and although I enjoyed food, my interest didn't go as far as straining my back tending to the carrots, onions, lettuce, beans and tomatoes and whetever else my parents were growing there. But at least it gave me some idea of where our vegetables come from and how they grow, unlike some kids at school who were convinced peas were part of the berry family and were surprised to hear that cucumber doesn't grow on trees.
It was in said garden that I watched numerous zucchine grow to enormous sizes (suffice to say that I was 15 at the time of the Chernobyl "incident") and was always intrigued with their beautiful orange flowers. But when my Mum baked them in a beer batter, I was less amused - how could I possibly eat a flower? In beer? The occasional daisy in a salad or dandelion leaves, maybe, but this? Since then, I've only had courgette flowers on rare occasions, in very expensive restaurants mainly, until I found some at the Borough Market this summer... the most delicate of vegetables, individually placed in tiny zip-lock bags, just waiting for me to pick them up. And so I did.
I gently snapped off the stigma inside the flowers, careful not to tear the flower itself, stuffed them with a creamy goats cheese and some thyme, fried them in a beer batter and drizzled them with honey, similar to what I had eaten at Salt Yard not too long ago. It almost broke my heart to destroy these beautiful flowers, but the resulting taste experience was enough reward to want to do it again and again and again...

Pancetta-wrapped scallops on rocket salad with parmesan sauce

Please keep this schtumm - this is a secret I know I can't keep from you, as it will soon become so blatantly obvious, so here goes: I am having an affair. Now, I don't know whether three encounters already make an affair, and I swear it's nothing serious - it's not for life, just for the weekend. But it has been quite intense.
For the longest time, I have been a faithful follower of Eric Treuille - his stylish mouthfuls have made me very happy and excited on numerous occasions and he's never let me down. Not once. I admit that I have had the occasional fling with Gordon Ramsay and his "Secrets" as well, but only when it came to an area where Eric just couldn't satisfy me and his canapés just wouldn't do. I'm talking about top-notch cuisine here. The stuff for dinner parties, stylish and sleek. Whenever I had an entire weekend to devote to just one meal, Gordon would be there for me and Eric would have to move to the back benches for the day.
And it was on this bank holiday weekend just passed that I broke with him. For no particular reason, other than that I had laid eyes on someone else. Johanna Maier's book had been sitting on my shelf ever since our last visit to her restaurant, and although I had earmarked quite a lot of pages, I haven't really cooked from it all that much. But last weekend it literally jumped out at me and I devoted the whole weekend almost entirely to her. The reason might be that I was very disappointed with the restaurant I had chosen for my husband's birthday dinner last week (I will post about that underwhelming evening at Le Cercle in a short while), and I somehow wanted to make it up to him - and succeeded.
As a starter, I chose these pancetta-wrapped scallops, with a most delightfully refreshing parmesan sauce (if you're planning to try this at home, make sure the soured cream is quite a thick consistency, like crème fraîche, but much less fat - in the UK, Waitrose is the place to go). For mains, we had pan-seared venison fillets on a lasagna of apple, asparagus and mash with a great wine & orange sauce and since it was already very late at night, the white chocolate & passion fruit tarte had to wait until the next day... of course all recipes are to follow very soon!
We had a wonderful time together. However, Eric will remain the constant in my life and I will cook with Gordon again, if he'll ever take me back, that is!

Mini crab cakes with sweet chilli sauce

Last weekend, we invited some friends to come along to a picnic concert at Marble Hill Park. Picnic concerts are a very English thing, I guess, and I really wonder why. With weather as unpredictable as the British and the probability of rain that high even at the height of summer, it is surprising that these events enjoy such popularity and are actually completely sold out well in advance. But it's hard to resist the charm of spreading out your blanket in the gardens of a period home or palace, listening to music and watching the stars while you enjoy food and wine - and a firework finale to top it all up!
On Saturday, for the first time, we didn't actually enjoy the music that much (first year of contemporary music, rather than classical), but our spread was definitely worth the trip - rather than bringing crisps and dips and the occasional cucumber or egg-cress sandwich like so many around us, I decided to match what our friends were proposing on the drinks side (champagne only, to celebrate a new job) and prepared a range of canapés. Now, canapés can be tricky when you can't assemble them just before serving and the added difficulty of having to carry them from our house to the venue in a basket or cooling bag limited my choices somewhat. But here's what we took:

• bruschette with aubergine, tomato, pine nut and parmesan
• salmon roly-polies
• blue cheese, mascarpone and onion confit mini quiches
• prosciutto and honey mustard palmiers
• spiced mini crab cakes with sweet chilli sauce
• individual blueberry and mint cheesecakes

For some of these beauties I only managed to take a picture "sur place", which means it'll take a while for me to somehow get them onto my laptop and blog about them, but for those where I had done all the legwork before we left the house, I will share the recipes with you one after the other.
First up are the crab cakes, which I wasn't sure about when I started making them, too often had a tried to make similar things only to see them fall apart in the pan or fryer. These here, though, held their shape beautifully and they weren't soaking in fat either. White crabmeat, fresh (!) breadcrumbs, mayo and a range of condiments combined to form tasty balls are then rolled in more crumbs (until then I'd never chopped fresh bread in the multimix) and baked in the oven until golden brown. Instead of assembling them beforehand, I served them out of the (superb square lock&lock container with four individual compartments) bowl with toothpicks to dip into a (bought, forgive me) sweet chilli sauce. By the time we reached the picnic ground, they were but luke-warm, which was no cause for concern, they'd even have been delicious served cold.

Wild garlic leaf gnocci (handmade, of course!)

Now, when I went to the Borough Market just before Easter, I couldn't believe my luck. Not only was the whole place deserted (usual opening days are Friday and Saturday, but due to the Good Friday closure, they were open on Thursday - which, seemingly, only I was aware of) which meant that it was completely painless to push Max's pram around (ever tried to negotiate a pushchair, incl. shopping bags hung onto it on either side, through a busy market?) and the shopkeepers really had time to chat and talk about their produce. At Neal's Yard Dairy, we tried about 15 different English cheeses (which the little one adored) and at a newly discovered veggie stall, I found something I hadn't eaten in ages!
Wild garlic (aka garlic leaf and Baerlauch in German) is a herb seldom found - in fact, I remember my parents picking it on walks through the woods, I've never seen it displayed in a shop. It is only available in spring and is often mistaken for meadow saffron, which causes at least 5 deaths a year in Austria alone.
Most of the time, since the yield of a Sunday afternoon stroll is not that great, so my Mum would just slice it thinly and serve it on bread and butter... fresh crusty rye bread, butter, salt and a load of that herb that tastes a bit like chives, only much punchier. Divine.
I could have gone for the easy option and done just that. Instead, I wanted to make some gnocci I had seen in Alastair Hendy's "Cooking for friends". He uses spinach, though, but that shouldn't be the reason for the recipe just being completely impossible. 400 g ricotta and only 1 tbsp of flour and 2 tbsp of semolina? I knew right from the start that that wouldn't work. So I added. Plenty. Until I could actually form a roll as requested without the ricotta going off in all directions. So far so good. Unfortunately, the gnocci were still quite firm inside after cooking them, so I wasn't really that impressed. The taste was great, I really enjoyed the garlic leaves. But in terms of the dough, I'll go for the good old-fashioned potato version next time... that works perfectly every time!

Caramelised aubergine tartare with curried nuts and almonds

So I said a few days ago that I am not really that versed in the art of cooking aubergines, but they've sort of become a personal favourite already - and that's after just two close encounters! I still haven't had the time to take Hande's advice (check Salmon on aubergines with slow-roast almond tomatoes) to chargrill them, but I am sure this will add a distinctly smokey flavour which will create an unforgettable taste experience. Last weekend, though, I selected a recipe out of a recent cookbook acquisition "Hemmungslos Kochen" (translates roughly as uninhibited cooking) by the Obauer brothers. Aubergines tartare-style, combined with nuts, almonds, curry and lemon thyme - a wonderfully stylish entrée which vegetarians and carnivores will enjoy alike.
I can't wait  to explore more out of this recipe book - apart from the fact that it is beautifully laid out, I like the fact that it is not at all prescriptive, but aims to encourage you to experiment with a variety of flavour combinations - nuts & vegetables, seafood & fruit, apple & liver, bitter & sweet etc. For each flavour pair you get an explanation of why it works so well and a multitude of quick ideas for recipes, then a few carefully selected, stunningly presented dishes. It's one of those books where you start putting post-it notes on memorable pages only to realise that this is an utterly futile endeavour, as you're bookmarking nine pages out of ten! And for those of you who don't speak any German: I will be drawing a lot of inspiration from this book, so you will get your own special annotated English rendition of this masterpiece!

Rocket, caramelised fennel & hazelnut salad with "camempear" bruschetta

With a long day of work behind you, it is always difficult to resist the temptation to just eat crap food in the evening - at least that's what happens to me. With an hour's commute and work hours far beyond the nine-to-five, my inner self often cries out for a ready meal dished up while I read a book (or, indeed, post recipes for more engaging and mouth-watering food).
At the same time, I want to eat healthy and maybe shed a few superfluous pounds I have gained in my last pregnancy - and to satisfying these two desires is easily achieved. Not planning ahead is an added difficulty, since gone eight o'clock in the evening it is not easy to locate certain ingredients like prime-quality fish - or even count on finding any particular ingredients at all, because the reality is that the food you've set your mind on will not be available anymore.
Last night, I actually made the effort of playing through different meal scenarios on the train and came up with a satisfactory, though not particularly calory-conscious food plan - fortunately, all ingredients were waiting for me on the supermarket shelves and I whipped up a relatively quick and healthy salad... even my husband, who isn't too fond of fennel, was happily tucking in!

Goat's cheese in a spicy tomato sauce with garlic crostini

When I was growing up and wasn't yet able to rule in my own kitchen, there weren't really many things that I didn't like. My brother was definitely pickier than I was, some things I wasn't too fond of, but would still eat (like sweet things as a main course, various strudels, fruit dumplings etc - I was more of a savoury person), but the things I just couldn't stomach at all were very few. Actually, the only thing I would outright refuse to eat was beetroot. The other foods were things I could avoid - for example I could just eat my cake without the hated whipped cream or on a cheese plate, I could steer clear of any cheese made of sheep's or goat's milk. I must have had a bad experience with it or maybe have overloaded on feta on a holiday in Greece. But as with other things, I see no reason for me not liking it, so I keep trying it every once in a while (beetroot being the only exception). So when we have a cheese plate, I always select a nice chèvre to go with and I try out different types - washed with ash, wrapped in chestnut leaves, marinated in olive oil and garlic... and although I might not eat loads, I tend to enjoy it.
When we had some left-over goat's cheese from our Christmas cheese platter, I decided to try another recipe out of "Diva cooking". It's baked in a sweet, but sneakingly spicy sauce of roasted tomatoes which really stands up to the strong flavour of the cheese - plus melted cheese is always a winner with me!
I find this recipe even works well for people who are hesitant to try goat's cheese - the sauce is interesting and delicious in itself, but not completely overwhelming the taste of the cheese. The only pre-requisite, I guess, is that you like sweet & spicy tomato sauces!
As for the wine, we really weren't sure what to drink with it, but we had a bottle of a late harvest riesling open and decided to try it. It seems an unlikely match, but it worked quite well, in the same way that a Gewuerztraminer will complement spicy Thai dishes. The palette of flavours in this dish is quite rich and varied, so I can think of many wines to try with it now. If you find a better match than ours (and there's bound to be one), by all means, let me know!

Artichoke fillo rolls with lemon mayonnaise

Back home in Austria (funny how I keep calling it "back home" although nowadays, I feel much more at home here or wherever it is that I live at the time) we enjoy a strong Turkish influence, due to many immigrants (now in second and third generations) - so many, in fact, that you couldn't really call them a minority anymore. They dominate the stalls at whichever market you go to and have introduced a lot of new food, especially fruit, bread and spices, to enrich our daily menus (not to speak of doner kebabs, which I personally am not very fond of). In Turkish restaurants, you often find a starter translating as "cigarette borek" - completely nicotine-free, I hope. You could call it the empanada of the Levantine region, waferthin fillo pastry, filled with anything and everything: meat, cheese, vegetables. The shapes vary as much as the fillings, in this particular instance it's long and thin, ressembling a cigarette.
In his fabulous book Canapés, Eric Treuille proposes such fillo rolls stuffed with an artichoke and herb mix, a lemon mayonnaise served alongside to dip them in. As pretty much everthing I've tried out of what I now call his "bible" so far, it is real easy to do, great to prepare ahead (apparently you could prepare quite a while in advance and bake from frozen) and, as is to be expected, a real different addition to your drinks party. When you take even more shortcuts (like me, for example, using top-quality mayonnaise instead of making my own) then you can work a little less hard from now on, without missing out on the wow-factor.

Caramelised fennel salad & celeriac purée amuse-bouche

I'm being very cruel, I know, but with this recipe, I just can't help remembering the great things I had planned for my parents' leaving dinner: a meal consisting entirely of amuses-bouches, almost all of them adapted from Rick Tramonto. Savoury carrot and orange crème brulées, mini lobster club sandwiches with vanilla aioli, foie gras with pineapple relish, grilled figs with mascarpone foam wrapped in prosciutto, pork medallions with an apple-rosemary chutney... I am doing my best to use up all the ingredients I bought for this feast, for on the day it was planned for, I was unable to leave my sick-bed.
One of the amuses that I did try out of Tramonto's book is the following salad of caramelised fennel, presented on a spoon of celeriac mash. I love the two vegetables for its distinct earthiness and nutty flavour, they are some of the best things you can buy in winter and would deserve being more broadly used. Apart from having a very distinct taste which might need getting used to, people just don't know how to prepare them in a tantalising way - roasting and caramelising works really well for the fennel, as does the presentation in a salad format, where the aged sherry vinegar enhances the sweetness and the oil underlines the nuttiness.
So this is it for starters. I will find an occasion soon to cook myself through the above list - I can't wait to try the recipes, my mouth is watering as we speak. Let me just make a few phone calls to find people interested in sharing this with us... it's always more fun when you've got an appreciative crowd round the table!

Aubergine, pine-nut & goat's cheese puffs

I know all you dishes to the left there have been forming an orderly queue for some time now, but I just have to jump it today - out of pure excitement. The story of this discovery is a long one, but I'll keep it short. My friend Martina is a professional caterer (A table in London) and she happens to know Eric Treuille, who co-owns "Books for Cooks" in Notting Hill and has written one of the best cook books I have ever come across. She might not be invited to his private soirées (yet), but they know each other well enough for him to recognise her when she visits his shop to browse his fascinating collection of cookbooks. (There you go, that's MY tenuous link to the successful and famous cookbook writers and shop owners!). His "Canapés" (more on this over the holidays) were co-written by Victoria Blashford-Snell and on a recent browsing adventure on amazon, I discovered and ordered another book coming out of her pen (or computer, for that matter): "Diva Cooking".
Forget "The Domestic Goddess" (I am talking about Lawson here, not our very talented "Queen of Cakes" Jennifer of The Domestic Goddess) - no seriously, chuck her out. I've never understood the attraction anyway. "Diva Cooking" is the new Bible, I have only made three of the recipes so far (I wouldn't mind cooking night and day, but I certainly cannot eat that much), but they were all stunning, incredible, fantastic - I'm at a loss for words here.
The recipe below is for a crunchy puff pastry base topped with a creamy aubergine, pine-nut and goats cheese mix - as usual, I have taken the liberty to amend, but the essence remains very VBS. Gorgeous food. Simply perfect.
This dish is perfectly representing what her recipes are about: easy-to-prepare, down-to-earth, perfect to make ahead, glorious partyfood using ingredients which a) don't cost the earth, b) are easy to find and c) have a good chance of being liked by everybody. What else could you ask for. While you read through the recipe, I am going to spring-clean my cookbook shelf and get rid of all the unnecessary clutter. Three books to remain: "Diva Cooking", "Canapés" and Gordon Ramsay's "Secrets"!

Roast red onion and fennel tartlets

So there was me thinking I was finally back on the scene when I get hit by this nasty tummy bug - not necessarily something I want to go into detail about, this is a foodblog, after all ... but it should explain my short absence. My finger has finally seen the light of day again, by the way, thanks to all of you for your get-well comments and emails. It is sore, very sore, but it looks much better than I had expected. It's still useless at typing, so my left middle finger is growing muscles which would leave Arnie Schwarzenegger looking pale in comparison... but we're on our way!
Last week, we had our friend Lyn for dinner. I thought I had had the cleverest idea when for the umphteenth time she refused to take any money for babysitting - "why don't I cook up a nice dinner for you some time!" And she agreed. She must have been laughing up her sleeve that night already, because when it came to setting a date, she casually remarked: "Oh, and by the way, I'm on this diet at the moment!" Pause. "I can't eat any animal products." A vegan dinner? How was I supposed to manage that?
I did find an (almost) vegan starter fairly easily, cheating a bit by using puff pastry made with butter. But I am sure there are vegan alternatives for this, and pâte à brick (aka warka in North African cuisines, which uses sunflower oil only) should work fine as well.
The recipe is for a delicious tatin (or turnover)-style tarte, which I converted into individual tartlets, and I also left out the savoury caramel sauce supposed to be poured over the tarte, as I felt the roast vegetables would work just fine on their own and I wanted to keep the entrée quite light.
So this was the starter sorted. Fortunately, Lyn called a day later, saying she had just found out (from her Greek friend Jo who talked her into doing this diet with her in the first place) that she is allowed fish, only not on Wednesdays and Fridays. Interesting commandments, don't you think? Anyway, it made my life a whole lot easier, so I should not complain. But I'd bet anything that this diet wins hands down for the most curious eating restrictions!

Sweet potato & coconut velouté with sweet potato crisps

One of my recent cookbook purchases is "Kim Kocht" (ie "Kim cooks"). Sohyi Kim is of Japanese-South Korean origin and unfortunately, I moved to London before she opened her restaurant "Kim Kocht" in Vienna. For years now I have been reading raving reviews of her cooking, which seems to be fusing various Asian cuisines with traditional Austrian flavours - one of the signature dishes being tuna with pork scratchings. She makes a point of keeping her restaurant tiny to allow for maximum exposure to her customers, with whom she often engages in conversation, giving her inspiration for new taste combinations. Apart from the restaurant she also runs a shop with show kitchen, where people can stop by for a quick bite for lunch and watch her cook, even take classes there.
I've been waiting for her book for quite a while now, my brother brought it when he came over last week. I've browsed through it and seen many dishes I'd like to try out, and the first one I made was a big success.
For Saturday's parade of amuse-bouches I prepared (with the skilful help of my obedient brother who was chopping away happily, helping my a great deal and even keeping the kitchen around me tidy - what better help could I ask for?) a velouté made of sweet potato and coconut milk, seasoned with vanilla (I forgot to add the cinnamon, but I didn't miss it) - at first I wasn't too convinced, but it turned out to be a great start to a great dinner. The only thing I wasn't too happy with were the sweet potato crisps which I had fried in oil, but I guess they'd been sitting there for too long while I was busy preparing other things and weren't as crisp as I would have liked them to be. They also didn't look nearly as spectacular as in Kim's book.
Great first try, will definitely be cooking more of her dishes and next time I go to Vienna, I will have to stop by and cook under her auspices, that's for sure!

Belgo's... and some home-made Flamenco mussels

One of the best memories of the summer months and our vacation in Britanny is eating fresh seafood every day - it's really not something I could ever grow tired of, I don't think, especially not with the variety at hand. Langoustines, lobster, mussels, sea spiders, or just plain fish... when it's well prepared (and simple is often best) there's nothing better!
When it comes to the different ways of cooking mussels, I have tried lots of flavours and have always come back to the traditional two: moules marinières (in a variety of interpretations, but essentially involving wine, onion and cream) or moules provençales (in a chunky sauce of onion and tomatoes). In London I have often had mussels at Belgo's, a chain mentioned in every Rough Guide et al. for the discerning traveller. Once you've made it to the front of the enormous queue - no reservations taken - you're led to a vault-type basement restaurant with long communal tables and waiters clad in monks' costumes. They have fabulous deals of a kilo of mussels (you have to search high and low in London to find molluscs of this quality) with accompaniments at roughly £10, fantastic value for a eatery bang on in the middle of London. With more than 15 different flavours to choose from, you're spoilt for choice, and I have tried most of them - Thai, curry, mustard, mushrooms and bacon... the classics always being best. They also boast the largest selection of Belgian beers and you'll find anything from Gueuze in different flavours, to Trappist, white, fruit beer, pilseners and ales. Not that this makes any difference to me, I don't drink there, as their selection of wines by the glass leaves to be desired. (I have been talked into trying their spirits, though, which are being served by the metre, rather than the glass...)
I am not shy to admit that I do enjoy some fries with my mussels at times (standard fare at Belgo's, for obvious reasons), but often a plain baguette will do, especially lovely when mopping up the sauce.
This summer, one of the restaurants we went to (I believe it was somewhere on the South coast, not far from Pont-Aven) the chef did a Spanish-inspired version of moules provençales, by adding some chorizo - a very succeeded variation!

Belgo Centraal
50 Earlham Street
London WC2 9HP
Tel: 0871 2238059
Nearest tube: Covent Garden

Amuse of roast garlic soup with crispy pancetta

I'd like to introduce you to the newest addition to my bookshelf - Rick Tramonto's "Amuse-bouche - little bites of delight before the meal begins". The concept is easy: tempt your taste-buds with an explosion of flavours in the mouth and get you really excited about what lies ahead. The great thing being that you can really be creative here, daring even, as the portions are tiny - great for using flavours that would become over-powering (or too expensive) as main course. Think caviar, think truffles, think chilli, think anything tantalising which is best limited to a few bites. You should really have a look at the book - it's just the way I like it: great ideas, every recipe makes my mouth water and the photography - so stunning that the pictures alone make me salivate! I can even overlook the fact that he doesn't use metric measurements - so his will be the first "imperial" cookbook which I will actually use for more than just browsing.
I wonder why there aren't more restaurants which have made the concept of amusing your mouth and tickling your palate their main theme - you'll find small portions in every tapas place (not to talk of an aera of "nouvelle cuisine" which is best forgotten), but this is very different... we're talking gourmet cuisine here, with top-notch ingredients cooked to perfection, little pieces of heaven on a spoon, in a shot-glass, on a stick etc. We do have Thyme here in London (a personal favourite of mine which will hopefully re-open in its new location, the Hospital in Covent Garden, very soon) and there's Club Gascon near Smithfield Market and its newest offspring in Kightsbridge, but other than that, nobody seems to be hopping onto that band-wagon...
The first recipe I tried was one for roast garlic soup - it was the creamiest, frothiest I'd ever made, packed with flavour and every bite a real joy. This amuse was a perfect start to a perfect evening. I will be cooking a great many of these little delights, especially because I often end up making either a starter or a dessert, when now I can make both. I served the soup in tiny soup bowls I bought only recently - they looked really cute, although they made me feel a bit like Snow-white at table with the seven dwarves...

Orange-scented pumpkin soup with toasted pain Poîlane

What else could I post on Halloween but a pumpkin recipe. After my carving adventure yesterday, I just had to use up all the orange-coloured flesh I had left over. I will admit here and now that my main reason for making the soup was that I felt it to be such a waste, not because I am a great fan of pumpkin soup - I don't mind it, but decades of eating the same old quite watery pumpkin puree with lots of cream and thickened with a butter/flour mix (so 70s, isn't it?) compelled me to look for pastures new...
For this year, I wanted something different. I would not use any of the above (except the pumpkin, maybe ;-)) So I took some onions, celery and carrots, some stock - but I kept the quantity of the liquid ingredients really low, after all, any soup should be all about its main protagonist - in this case the pumpkin. And when you're not greedy with your vegetables, then your soup automatically turns out quite thick and filling, there's really no need for any cream, butter or flour!
Since I just used a regular carving pumpkin I found the flavour quite non-descript, so I added a tiny amount of smoked salt for a lightly smokey undertone and some orange juice for a delicate, fruity taste. The more I ate of it, the more I liked it. It is really quite a departure for me, but in a good way. Not sure I'll finish the whole pot, but I feel like I've achieved what I wanted: a thick and comforting soup, despite being healthy and wholesome at the same time, and definitely a pleasure to eat out of its kabocha-squash bowl.*

*Although I tried to part with old habits here, I could not resist adding the traditional pumpkin seed oil. It's a dark green oil with a distinctly nutty taste - the Austrians have a love-hate relationship with it: it is treasured almost as much as truffles, everybody I know swears by their own personal supplier of it and it is used very scarcely. The hate comes in when you spill it on a light-coloured garment, as no detergent on earth will be able to cope with this kind of stain. Years of eating it have taught me that you can only get rid of them by exposing them to strong sunlight for however long it takes - the sun will eventually bleach it.

Curry-scented velouté with exotic fruits and king prawns

Now this is one of those recipes which I was immediately intrigued by when I found it a while back in Elle Bistro, the German version of Elle à table. Intrigued, but slightly doubtful at the same time. I have always been a great lover of soups, nothing better than a heart-warming bowl to lift your spirits after a day out in dreadful weather. But this? I mean this is supposed to be a soup, even calling it velouté is not going to help you out here, and just read through the ingredients: curry (OK, not so unusual), apple, pineapple, coconut - even a banana features on the list! Had to try it, if only to prove that this just couldn't work. But it did, and I really liked it. Next time I make this I will leave the parsley out - it doesn't add to the taste and I preferred the colour before I added it...
This is a very concentrated soup, an explosion of flavours on your tongue, so you would not want to have this as your main meal. But it is an unusual starter or, better even, amuse-bouche, perfect for any know-it-all gourmets out there. If you must serve a wine with this, may I suggest a Gewürztraminer, as I know no other wine which would be able to stand up against this strong taste experience...

Parsnip, spinach & watercress soup with trout quenelles

When I was writing about the mousse of smoked trout, I remembered that I still had some of it in the fridge. Having leftovers is nothing unusual in our house, as I tend to go shopping and do most of my cooking on an empty stomach - so I usually forget that we're just 3 and a half at home and overestimate what we're able to eat. They never last very long though. Especially this lovely mousse which had me run down to the kitchen at various times during the day when I was feeling peckish, to quickly toast a piece of bread to spread it on. But somehow a little bit survived (and I can assure you it really keeps well in the fridge), so I decided to use it in the form of little dumplings in a delicious soup of watercress and spinach.
Spring and summer are really my favourite seasons, but autumn does have its appeal as well - I hate the days getting shorter and the temperatures dropping mercilessly, but the bonus is that I feel like soup more and more often - and this perfect comfort food is so quickly prepared that it has saved me from starvation many times!
This soup still tastes quite summery, although parsnips make an appearance (a perfect winter vegetable for me) - I guess it's the crisp taste of the watercress and the fact that there is virtually no starch involved which makes it a very fresh soup. The creamy trout mousse worked well as a taste combination and I loved how the dumplings slowly melted and became one with the soup they were bathing in. I always like it when there's a little drama in my plate to go with the taste!

Pan-seared scallops with truffle sliver on celeriac purée

Last Saturday I had the great opportunity to go shopping all by myself - my last trips to the Borough Market had been good, but I really enjoyed being on my own this time. Don't get me wrong, I love company, but with an 8-month-old baby you are a bit restricted in your movements I find. Not all shops are mother-friendly (space-wise) and you either find yourself constrained by a kangaroo pouch strapped to your tummy or you have to be on constant alert to make sure that all those heavy shopping bags you've hung onto your pram don't cause it to collapse or tumble over catapulting the baby onto the floor. I also find it easier to talk shop with knowledgable staff, well, Chris calls it flirting, but really, all I am trying to do here is to get them to open a fresh pack of fillet for me rather than giving me one that's been lying around for a few hours...
On the weekend I went to Harvey Nichol's Food Market for the first time in ages, with the intent to only buy some spices (the Australian promotion is still on and I wanted to buy some of the blends I got to know in the spice workshop with Herbie I attended recently). I went home with two enormous shopping bags full of produce, as I found many things which are not easy to get where I live (fresh truffles, fresh horseradish, jerusalem artichokes, etc) so I devised a whole Saturday dinner out of what caught my eye right there and then.
These scallops stuffed with a sliver of truffle are served on an intensely buttery celeriac purée - another recipe combining the sea and the soil beautifully, just how I like it. If you can't get any fresh truffles, don't go for preserves... rather spend your dosh on a nice lunch out and use some crispy pancetta instead - whichever version you choose, this is melt-in-the-mouth goodness like you wouldn't believe it!

Mousse of smoked trout

Last Sunday we invited a few friends over for what we thought would be the last picnic of the season. But as the weather god would have it, the clouds looked a bit too temperamental for us heading off to the park packed with goodies and lay out the blankets only to be drizzled upon half an hour later. So we decided to stay in - and I tell you the food tasted just as good indoors, even without the wind turning your fingers into ice sticks.
As usual I had prepared quite a feast and way too much for the six people we were - I mean, we do have a good appetite but with the amount of food at hand we could have fed a whole soccer team!
There's a few recipes that I feel are worth sharing with you and I'll make a start with this easy to prepare yet utterly delicous mousse of smoked trout.
Pascale had made my mouth water with her "Rillettes de maquereau fumé" so I played with this idea a bit - using smoked trout instead of the mackerel - I know it is more difficult to get (Waitrose have them though, and so does my local fishmonger) but worth your while, I believe. I also left out the butter and found the cream cheese and fromage frais to make for a very creamy mousse indeed, so no need for the extra calories! Go on, try it, it's delicious on toast even if you only prepare a fraction of my recipe below, for a nice amuse-bouche or why not put it in the fridge over night and cut some quenelles out of it to go into a nice spinach and watercress soup... oh well, I guess that's tonight's dinner sorted!

Tagliata di manzo

Back in Vienna, one of my favourite restaurants used to be Aioli. It is the little sister of Attila Dogudan's flagship Do&Co - maybe you've heard of him... it's not very common for an Austrian to build up an empire of businesses (in his case catering) around the world and Do has gone from strength to strength, catering for the rich and famous, creating menus for Austrian Airlines' and Lauda Air's first class travellers (with a chef on board to freshly prepare dishes to your liking) and feeding ravenous Formula I drivers.
What I liked about this restaurant cum delicatessen (a large buffet of antipasti and a selection of breads are for take-away) is its relaxed atmosphere and the stunning location just opposite of St. Stephen's cathedral in the very heart of the city of Vienna. Their tapas and antipasti concept pleased me, here is where I first tasted "pimientos al padrón" and "vittello tonnato" and their seafood was miles above the rest, being imported straight from Italy and Spain every day.
The following dish is one we used to order quite often and I love it because of its simplicity - best quality beef, thinly sliced and seared on one side, grilled quickly with tasty parmesan and topped with crunchy rocket leaves... with some fresh ciabatta and a glass of wine, this is my idea of a summer Sunday's lunch or a quick mid-week dinner like last night.

Wine suggestion:
The wine we had was a 2003 "Casillero del Diablo" Cabernet Sauvignon from Concha y Toro in Chile, an absolute bargain at just over £5.

Mediterranean vegetable stacks

When summer tastes as good as this you want to pile it up high! I've never really warmed to aubergines, not that I don't like them, I just have not yet had the opportunity to play around with them much. Although as I write this I seem to remember a recipe for an amuse-bouche or cocktail bite involving aubergine caviar - must hunt down the recipe!
I don't even know how I stumbled across this, but in a moment of desperation I entered "aubergine" in google. And I was rewarded by finding the most bizarre website I have come across in a while - aubergine, a vegetarian dating service. So, if you're a vegetarian and not dating people for fear of ending up at the kebab stand after a night out on the town, then look no further, this is where you'll find like-minded individuals. I shouldn't be making fun of it, actually, as I used to live on a vegetarian diet for a couple of years and to tell you the truth I find it appalling how little choice for vegetarians we find on our menus these days. In Austria the standard answer to "are there any vegetarian options" is "try the spinach dumplings" and they invariably are served with a sauce that contains ham... no kidding. Or you're offered soup only to find out that it's made with beef or chicken stock! And the best vegetarian restaurant in Austria is now offering premier quality cuts of beef as well... a contradiction in terms for me, but apparently not for the owner.
Very often you find restaurants, and gourmet temples are no exception, where there are either no vegetarian alternatives at all or they don't even approximate, let alone match, the quality and perfection of their meaty counterparts. There are exceptions to the rule, however, and I find Ducasse in Monaco to be one of them - the "Jardins de Provence" menu is mouthwatering! Thyme is my favourite restaurant here in London, and they have a fantastic vegetarian selection as well. These are the two restaurants where I have a hard time deciding which way to go!
Right, back to the lovely vegetables stacked up in the picture, they go by the names of aubergine, asparagus, tomato, yellow pepper and are accompanied by mozzarella and basil. Apart from skinning the peppers this is very quick to prepare and lends itself to endless variations. Served with a spicy, garlic-infused tomato sauce this will let the sunshine in even on a rainy day!

Sesame-crusted tuna carpaccio with cucumber-mooli salad (IMBB 5)

IMBB is when a bunch of culinarily gifted people get together to cook. And they don't even have to live on the same continent, let alone the same country. "Is my blog burning" is an initiative to get owners of foodblogs to work on an assignment and post a contribution on their site on a given date. It was started by Alberto of "Il Forno" , with the first assignment being to cook up a soup. Tartines, cakes and bowls of rice followed suite. This month's IMBB event is hosted in Asia, by Wena of ::mum:mum:: and she asked to create anything involving fish. Having missed out on all the previous ones, this is my very first entry and as I couldn't decide what to make, we have just spent a week eating fish in various shapes and forms. Yum! So more recipes are to follow shortly, watch this spot!
The following recipe is a creation where I have been mixing and matching flavours quite a bit. I took prime-quality tuna loin, rolled it in sesame and nigella seeds, a flavour I have rediscovered lately (see my post "Skate in alu with rocket and fennel salad") then seared it in a pan for just 20 seconds on each side. I cut the fish up very thinly and topped it with a salad made of cucumber and mooli and dressed the lot with a marinade of wasabi, sesame oil and soy sauce. Eating this dish means discovering a new interesting flavour at every bite - for me, nigella seeds are intrinsically linked with Turkish bread, the mooli/white radish brings memories of beer-fests in Bavaria, Mexico is where I first discovered coriander and the Asian condiments wasabi and soy sauce make this dish a truly international affair, as befits this great IMBB initiative...

Carpaccio with asparagus and a drizzle of honey and lime

All you carnivores out there - this is one for you! I don't get this urge very often, but there are days when I feel like I HAVE to go out and hunt a cow! In case you were wondering, although I live 20 minutes from the very centre of London, there are actually cows grazing just across the River Thames, right next to where my daughter attends school. Very idyllic. Anyway, I usually end up just paying my butcher a visit, asking for top-notch beef, hung for 21 days at least, beautifully marbled and juicy, nothing to cut away at all. And after paying the equivalent of what I would probably get a whole cow for in, say, Argentina, I trod off home to get intimate with afore-mentioned cow.
This week, with temperatures reaching the 30 C mark, a carpaccio was the way to go - I adapted a recipe I found in a magazine I have been talking about, Wienerin Kochen Spezial... and so uncovered another little treasure. I am assuming the original uses white asparagus, which is the most common in Austria, but I used green. Fantastic combination of flavours here, rustic mountain cheese mingles with soy sauce and lime juice, the smoked garlic strengthens the earthy side, refreshing lime juice lifts the whole experience a notch and the honey drizzled over is... daring, but a lovely surprise to the palate. This is Fusion Kitchen made in Austria!

Creamy hazelnut soup

Ah, what an unusual suggestion! A soup made of nuts? You must be nuts! Just had to try this out and I must say it works astonishingly well. At first I thought that it's just a catchy name and it won't taste much of what proposed to be a main ingredient... like a truffle soup which more often than not is just any old soup sprinkled with a few drops of truffle oil. This, however, lives up to its name if you do it right, the secret lies in the degree to which you roast the hazelnuts themselves. An unusual, creamy soup served as a starter, or, if that seems too overpowering an experience, use just a few tablespoons full in a shotglass at a cocktail party or as an amuse-bouche - you could even have it accompany your cheese course, again dished up in a shotglass or an espresso cup.

Caprese sticks - mozzarella, basil & tomato

Nothing fancy, I know, everybody's had mozzarella and tomatoes at least once in their life. Yet, I wanted to share with you the way we eat caprese these days - I served this at a cocktail party once, for which they are obviously perfect, but my family now prefers this neat, non-messy way of eating this Italian dish above all others.
The principle is the same, little balls of mozzarella (bocconcini) on sticks (short bambo skewers or toothpicks) with rolled leaves of basil and cherry tomatoes. I marinate the cheese first, in some olive oil, black pepper and balsamico, it may not be authentic, but it sure tastes good!

Roulade of lettuce, asparagus and sundried tomatoes

On my recent visit to Austria I picked up a cooking magazine I had not seen before, "Wienerin Kochen Spezial", and there is a whole variety of interesting dishes which I am going to experiment with over the next few weeks. The recipes have been compiled with the help of some of Austria's most renowned chefs and a lot of new talent - it's very exciting to see how the restaurant scene is changing!
The following recipe for a roulade of lettuce is by Oliver Hoffinger, who co-owns a sitting-room-sized restaurant - Kochwerkstatt (or lit. "cooking workshop") - on Vienna's Spittelberg. Already earmarked for my next trip!

Heurigen delights - Liptauer and blue cheese spread

In Vienna, summer is synonymous with evenings spent at the Heurigen. You get hot summer months with excellent weather most of the time and there's nothing better for cooling off after a long day than to head off to the vineyards surrounding the capital. Every wine maker has the right to sell off their produce to the public, so they open up their gardens for you to sit on wooden benches and tables and serve their own wine, which you can enjoy on its own or mixed with soda or lemonade/Almdudler.
Traditionally, you were supposed to bring your own picnic, but nowadays the food served has become as, if not more important than the wine. The food on offer ranges from a variety of spreads which you enjoy with bread and breadsticks, salads and traditionally cooked meats and their accompaniments, as well as a number of mouth-watering desserts.
A Heuriger is really the perfect place to be on a hot summer's night or weekend, with a light breeze coming in over the hills it is a bit cooler than in the city. Should you ever plan to visit a Vienna, make sure you include a visit to the Heurigen in your programme - you're bound to love the relaxed atmosphere and food on offer, but if going at night make sure you bring some mosquito-repellent!
Liptauer is the most traditional spread around, and there are as many different recipes for it as there are Heurigen! Some contain well over 20 ingredients, but I am keeping my feet on the gound here. I had to substitute the original Brimsen with Quark, and I went easy on the anchovies by just using a tiny amount of paste. This spread is wonderfully refreshing, with the virtually fat-free quark and the chopped gherkins, capers and onion. A bit more substantial is the blue cheese spread for which I used a Bleu d'Auvergne. The bread I chose was a crusty rye loaf and some Flesserl - plaited poppyseed rolls sprinkled with salt... the best bun ever invented!
As the spreads are so easy to make they are ready in minutes. You can serve them as a starter or amuse-bouche, with some crusty bread or vegetable dip sticks, get out the wine and create some Heurigen atmosphere in your own garden!

Tomato tartare on halloumi

Had a really hard time finding something to cook last night. It's easy to decide what to have on a cold and rainy day. Give me stodge, give me cream, give me carbs. Then spoil me with chocolate. But after a few days of warmth and sunshine, I feel like I've run out of light and healthy summer recipes. There's only so much BBQ fare and salads you can have in a row!
Breakthrough last night though, I think. Imagine nice, vine-ripened tomatoes, so ripe that some have already cracked open. Think super-sweet basil, add caramelised, smokey shallots. Drizzle of olive oil, splash of balsamico. Arrange on a layer of halloumi cheese and serve with some nice bread - summer evening, here I come!

Thyme cappuccino with prawns and asparagus

To continue with our exploration of Saturday's dinner with friends, let me describe what we had, and offer you another recipe:
Thyme cappuccino with prawns and asparagus
Fillet of beef topped with mushroom gratin
Celeriac lasagne, roast potatoes and purple sprouting brokkoli
Mœlleux au chocolat

The thyme cappuccino is so called because it is served almost like a coffee. It is really a very rich and concentrated soup which I froth up and serve in espresso cups, and you go dipping the prawns and asparagus in the soup and sipping what is left over straight out of your cup.
I found the original recipe for this a long time ago in a tesco's magazine - it was actually a readers' cooking contest and this was the winning starter. I have made it many times since and have been adapting the recipe every time I made it, including substituting the original tarragon with thyme. It has become a firm favourite with the family and I can't think of any of our friends who have not tasted and liked it. The only thing you need to be careful of is to use a good quality wine - the one that made it into my pot on the weekend wasn't really up to scratch - I don't think anybody noticed, but I am a bit embarrassed about it... there just wasn't enough time to rescue it!
Again, this can be prepared in advance so leaves your hands free to greet your friends, offer them a glass of wine and only have to worry about the minimal finishing touches while you're chatting to them in the kitchen - so bear it in mind for your next dinner invitation!

Scallop carpaccio with mango and chilli-lime vinaigrette

We are really fortunate to have a fabulous fishmonger* where we live - I love going there on a Saturday, although I know I am going to be queuing for quite a while... but the length of the line really speaks for the quality of fish you get. What I enjoy most is that the staff are really knowledgable (and the owner quite a charmer, but that's another story) and I can go there with every odd request knowing they'll be able to help. The other day, for example, I was looking for zander, which is quite a common river fish in Austria, I looked up the translation and it said "pike-perch" - in the conversation it turns out that not only pike lives in the sea, but they have to be ordered in especially and be taken whole. No problem! They weigh around 12 pounds each... well, that IS a problem, as I needed only 300 g for my recipe! But then the guy says that there is a similar, smaller fish, which I might be able to use as a substitute: it's a river fish called zander! There you go! He'll order some in for me, so expect to read a post on this some day soon.
But back to today's recipe. Last weekend was gorgeous and summery, so I prepared a lovely carpaccio of buttery scallops, which I teamed up with some mango and a fiery chilli-lime dressing. I shouldn't really be calling it vinaigrette either, as there's no vinegar in sight. The lime juice adds enough crispy freshness to this fabulously simple starter!

*R.W Sandys, 56, King St., Twickenham, London, TW1 3SH, Tel: 020 8892 5788

Parmesan Soup with truffled breadsticks

The original recipe for this soup is out of Johanna Maier's book* - she is the first woman to have been awarded 19 Gault Millau points and her restaurant is definitely my favourite amongst Austria's finest.
This soup is quite rich, so you probably wouldn't make a whole meal of it, but it is great served as a starter or amuse-bouche. If using it as the latter, try frothing it up and serving it in a shot-glass.
I have amended the recipe slightly using more liquids (especially Noilly Prat) and less parmesan, as I find that it froths more easily. The breadsticks are dead-easy to make and the truffle oil gives them a luxurious touch as well as adding a nice visual effect.
For a more substantial starter, I serve the soup with prawns or crayfish, sautéd in a little butter, in which case I use fish rather than beef stock.