Cantonet Restaurant Pollenca

There are plenty of fabulous restaurants in and around the scenic main square in Pollenca Mallorca but step just a few paces beyond and into the old town and you will find many more.

Cantonet http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g319793-d1000780-Reviews-Cantonet-Pollenca_Majorca_Balearic_Islands.html was recommended to us by friends and exceeded expectations not least for the wonderful service.

Behind the attractive dining room is a small courtyard which was the place to be on a balmy September evening. Quiet when we arrived and buzzing with activity two hours later.

A complimentary glass of cava started the meal accompanied by that Mallorcan favourite of alioli  http://www.mallorcacuisine.com/en/spanish-recipes/alioli-garlic-mayonnaise/ olives and bread.

Starters of aubergine and tomato and a Mallorcan variation of ceasar salad with chicken came next and yes one to share would probably have been plenty.

Lovely main courses of fish with Mediterranean vegetables and pork tenderloin in a creamy cheese sauce.

Cantonet is an Italian so there are plenty of pasta choices too. It certainly deserves the Trip Advisor spot of number 2 of 69  restaurants in Pollenca.

Lobster Lunch

Sometimes you have far too good a time relaxing in the company of friends enjoying exquisite food and wines to think much about food writing. The hours slip by effortlessly in the afternoon sun and before you know it dusk merges into darkness with flickering candles lighting the marquee.

It was one of those rare english summer days 27 degrees and clear blue skies followed by a balmy evening. What better way to spend it than in a beautiful East Sussex garden at a Lobster Lunch party where the seafood was one of the stars.

There was delicious lobster, crab and kiln roast smoked salmon from rockanore.co.uk then an amazing treat of barbecued sweet corn fresh from the garden served with butter and lime.

Earlier fresh watermelon accompanied champagne, parmesan polenta with porcini mushrooms and a deep rich tomato sauce was our starter. Later cheeses, a wonderful selection of bread and fruit, then a stunning south african dessert with ice cream.

It was a perfect party with so much chat, fun and laughter that taking food photos slipped my mind. At least the lobster was captured on camera as a record of our happy day at Lobster Lunch.

Fishy Friday

As the raging thunderstorms of Thursday gave way to a glorious sunny Friday what better than a walk by the sea and lunch on the beach with my friend and her dog.

Griggs in Hythe has been a favourite fish shop of mine for many years. Tucked away on the aptly named Fishermans Landing Beach where fishing boats have delivered their catch since Roman times.

Griggs is a well established Kent landmark selling and smoking fish from Hythe Bay boats and the local Boulogne fish market which is only 20 miles away 'as the fish swims' griggsofhythe.com

More recently Griggs has expanded and opened a restaurant overlooking the sea introducing 'Brunch on the Beach'.

Picnic tables are arranged casually on the pebbles in a relaxed and welcoming setting. You order in the shop (perhaps adding a side order of cockles or prawns, just as a starter) from the bountiful fish counter. Dishes arrive at your table with delightfully friendly service which even included a personal bowl of water for the dog.

The tables were full with happy residents and holiday makers, Griggs is unlicensed but welcomes bring your own and we were envious of the table of eight cheerful friends with their Rose Cava.

The short but perfectly formed fishy menu challenged our decision making both opting for a delicious dressed crab salad, while eying generous portions of smoked fish platter and clam chowder piled high with clams.

I loved the casual beach atmosphere with great food and genial service with excellent use of the surrounding infrastructure for overflow seating superb on this sunny day, but also a great place at any time of year

Next time it will be the scallop and bacon roll for me and maybe some fizz to go with it.

Monkfish and Summer Vegetables

I didn't really plan to cook much last night. After a busy day the idea was to relax and catch up on my latest must see programme My Kitchen Rules Australia https://au.tv.yahoo.com/my-kitchen-rules/ a sunny, often outdoor more energetic version of Masterchef.

Then a visit to the shops found a beautiful fillet of monkfish, some local summer vegetables tender broad beans and succulent sugar snap peas and a dish was in the making.

For the fish a Delia recipe which coated disks of the fish in a mix of plenty of black pepper and lemon zest with a little salt and some flour was perfect and only needed 2 minutes cooking on each side. http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/main-ingredient/fish-and-seafood/monkfish/monkfish-with-a-lemon-pepper-crust-and-a-warm-lemon-anchovy-vinaigrette.html

Lightly fried diced bacon was joined by a little chopped garlic and the sugar snaps. I  brought the board beans to the boil and plunged them into cold water to stop them overcooking then popped them out of their sometimes rubbery skins and added them to the bacon and pea mix. A squeeze of lemon juice and some fresh mint completed the dish.

While I was cooking I was thinking about the great combination of beans, peas and bacon and remembered a childhood dish called "blanks and prizes" interested to test my memory a search showed that sure enough http://www.foodsofengland.co.uk/blanksandprizes.htm it was a traditional Shropshire dish although I think I prefer my version.

A quick meal that left plenty of time for 3 episodes of MKR Australia

Summer Saturday Night

Just loving the recent sunshine and there is something particularly continental about those rare sultry evenings in our capital city.

Visiting to watch Passenger www.passengermusic.com/ in the exceptional outdoor venue of Somerset House was the perfect excuse to add on some extra activities.

We started with late afternoon drinks at Rotunda Kings Place. I have written about Rotunda before http://annsfooddiary.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/rotunda-at-kings-place.html but this time we lounged on deck chairs alongside the canal drinking wine and watching the boats passing by.

With a holiday in Spain booked for later in the summer talk of tapas led us to dinner at Camino www.camino.co.uk an authentic Spainish bar and restaurant tucked away in a cool plaza just steps from the dusty heat of the Euston Road.

We chose a selection of appetising dishes including anchovies, cured beef with picos blue cheese (an excellent combination) and gambas which are all pictured

plus pardon peppers, and the intriguing and delicious Presa Iberica "succulent shoulder of rare iberico pig, creamy idiazbal (a smoked basque ewe cheese) and jamon iberico rice"

Great service and a outdoor courtyard table made for a complete Spainish experience.

Later the eagerly anticipated concert surpassed expectations.

Spring Tide Food Festival

A sunny Saturday at Burton Bradstock beach in West Dorset. This is a stunning stretch of National Trust coastline with coastal walks great at any time of year.

This weekend was the Spring Tide Food Festival www.spring-tide.org.uk now in its 6th year and a real celebration of Dorset food and drink. Burton Bradstock is also home to the ever popular Hive Beach Cafe www.hivebeachcafe.co.uk where on my last visit I was treated to a delicious bowl of plump juicy mussels.

The Cafe was buzzing with activity as usual and people of all ages enjoyed the beach, the live music, the sunshine and of course the food sampling and local ales.

One of my favourite Spring Tide Festival stalls is Hamwood Crafts based near Montacute Somerset www.hamwoodcrafts.co.uk This family run business sell a wide range of beautifully crafted timber creations. I simply had to add to my collection, take a look at the "Events" section of their web site for a picture of the irresistible display

Another Hamwood board (pictured below) featured in my blog "Antipasto on Wood" in August last year http://annsfooddiary.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/antipasto-on-wood.html 

Rotunda at Kings Place

It was a happy coincidence that precisely three years after completing a food writing masterclass at the Guardian near Kings Cross and then starting this food diary that I was invited to dinner in the same spot.

Rotunda www.rotundabarandrestaurant.co.uk is a British restaurant and bar nestled at the back of the impressive Kings Place (underneath the Guardian Offices) with waterside views of the canal and perfect for a sunny spring evening with the hint of outdoor dining to come.

Great company and conversation were matched by the food and wine with meat all sourced from Rotunda's farm in Matfen Northumberland.

So it just had to be meat, Venison rack with steamed venison pudding, Rib eye and Hanger Steaks.

The Hanger was the "Butchers Cut" medium rare was recommended and perfect meltingly tender. It is interesting that Hanger is apparently "sometimes known as butchers steak because butchers would often keep it for themselves rather than offering it for sale" I can see why too.

The steaks were simply served with a salad of roast english beetroot, radish and watercress and a peppercorn sauce. Triple cooked chips were a must.

Rotunda has a real buzz about it, the staff are attentive and know their stuff. Kings Place is also an impressive meeting place with excellent public space www.kingsplaceevents.co.uk

This whole area has been pretty much transformed since my Food Masterclass of April 2012 "Eating Your Words with Matthew Fort" three years on I have just reached 10,000 blog viewings and this is Ann's Food Diary entry number 85.

Mascapone Macarons

Baking and desserts isn't really my thing I often have great intentions but fail to follow the recipe closely enough and the results just don't live up to expectations. However that all changed yesterday with a very successful batch of melt in your mouth macarons filled with raspberry and chocolate ganache mascarpone cheese.

At the start of the weekend I had purchased the ingredients for a sugar rush sensation called "very chocolatey hazelnut pavlova" a recipe from the April edition of Sainsbury's magazine.

Over a break dominated by chocolates of the eggy variety I began to realise that this would be a completely over the top pudding to complete our Easter dinner.  I did however need to use both the mascarpone and the (recently defrosted) incredibly useful product Two Chicks egg white.

Meringue was the obvious choice but after a bit of searching I came across this macaron recipe https://www.howtocookthat.net/public_html/easy-macaron-macaroon-recipe/  with a brilliant walk through video containing tips that made all the difference to the finished product. So very many thanks to food blogger www.howtocookthat.net for the inspiration to try something new.

I followed the instructions to the letter with no shortcuts this time getting perfect results. The fillings were marscapone flavoured with a chocolate ganache the chocolate (a lindt chicken) melted in a little hot double cream and raspberry jam made from that glut of last summer gently heated and strained to remove the seeds.

Happy Easter days!

Succulent Scottish Squid

It was a very sucessful starter, meltingly tender squid lightly dusted in seasoned flour and quickly fried in a little olive oil over an exceptionally high heat.

It started in Scotland with a generous birthday gift of a seasonal Coast and Glen Fishbox www.coastandglen.com  with all fish coming from sustainable sources in the Highlands and offering "ocean to plate in less than 24 hours". The pollack was devoured on arrival, the monkfish and mackerel are to be sampled soon, tonight was the squids turn.

Squid needs to be either cooked very rapidly or stewed long and slowly. These generously sized pieces were suitable for either method. Fried calamari is a favourite but deep fat fryers are banned so a quick search of alternative recipes found the perfect option from Rachel Allen www.bbc.co.uk/food/chefs/rachel_allen

Pan-Fried Squid with Chilli and Parsley Oil 

for the squid cut into pieces, dry thoroughly and toss in seasoned flour

for the chilli and parsley oil chop the parsley and put in into a bowl with a small amount of crushed garlic, a little chopped chilli, a squeeze of lemon juice, salt and pepper

Place a frying pan on a high heat. When it is hot add a dash of olive oil and add the squid, in a single layer. Cook until golden on one side, about 1-2 minutes then turn and cook again until golden on the other side.

Arrange some rocket leaves on a warm plate and place the hot squid on top. Drizzle with the chilli and parsley oil, and serve immediately.

The result was a delicious combination with the peppery rocket enhancing the flavours of the top quality squid and this very versatile dressing.

"Just Going to the Chinese"

"We're just going to the chinese" is a regular proclamation from one branch of our family immediately recognisable by the rest of us.

The House of Canton house-of-canton.co.uk at Compton Wolverhampton features often not only for the two living close by but also as the venue for family get togethers, celebrations and parties.

Always a warm welcome, impeccable service and plenty of freshly cooked delicious food from the restaurant team.

Last night I was the lucky one accompanying our two regulars (much to the envy of the Scottish branch and probably the others too)

Pleasingly the restaurant was busy when we arrived at just after 7pm and without an empty seat when we left which is excellent for a chilly February Saturday night.

So here is our meal in pictures

Prawn Crackers

Chicken Wings with Lemon

Pork Yuk Sung

Crispy Lettuce Wraps

King Prawn, Scallops & Asparagus

Sizzling White Fish in Black Bean Sauce

We will be back soon I am sure.

Fish Is The Dish Of The Day

Inspired by a mid week "gift" of shell on prawns and cockles from my favourite fish shop in Rye East Sussex I prepared a delicious yet healthy dinner which was remarkably good.

First a word about Rye Bay Fish which is renown and recommended by many friends, it has no web site as yet but can be found on twitter @RyeBayFish.  A vast array of seasonal fish served by the amiable pair Shane and Terry a "fishing family from Hastings dated back since the 1600s"

Don't go with a fixed view just see what the catch of the day is. In the morning I had requested fresh crab but the sea had been too rough for the crab fishermen to venture out.

Tonight I looked in the freezer and found some hake and in the fridge spring onions, celery, a minute amount of fennel and half a red chicory.

Place the hake on the vegetables, scatter over the cockles and peeled prawns embellish with a couple of slices of lemon and finally pepper and a splash of white wine. The pre cooked ingredients are already looking happily at me.

A foil parcel keep the dish moist and soft taking just 15 minutes in the oven at 190 degrees

To go with this fishy delight my recent find is kale. Wash it well then cook it briefly with a chicken stock pot and just a little water. Drain and place in an oven proof dish then sprinkle with a little (Marbella) pimenton, or paprika would be fine.

Cook alongside the fish again for 15 minutes this makes it slightly crispy which compliments the soft melting fish perfectly.




And here is the result a wonderful fragrant combination, my fish dish of the day