I love to cook. I love to cook for myself, my boyfriend, my friends and family, and for strangers. I love talking about food. I love learning about food. If it has to do with food, you name it, I love it! So this post will be about just that, FOOD!
Everything in Australia is more expensive than in the States. The most appallingly expensive thing is the lime. In the States they cost about three or four for a dollar. In Australia, if you can find them, they will set you back $2 per lime. CRAZY! But a bottle of lime juice, which I've had to settle for, costs $1.50.
In the U.S. there is an herb called cilantro, and a spice called coriander. The difference in an herb and a spice is which part of the plant it comes from. So an herb is the leafy stuff: parsley, thyme, basil, etc. A spice, on the other hand, comes from different parts of the plant, like the seed, bark, stalk, and so on. Cilantro is the leafy part, coriander is the seed of cilantro. In Australia its all called coriander. In the grocery store i saw it and was confused but I understood it. My shopping mate wasn't as convinced so we rubbed, smelled and tasted it to confirm. Silly Aussies we thought. But we explained to an Aussie and of course they thought the same of us.
In the States, store bought eggs are white and the yolk is pale yellow. You pay extra for brown eggs and extra for cage free and free range eggs and those sections are much smaller. And you always find eggs in the refrigerated section nears the milk. Just as side note, there is no nutritional difference between white and brown eggs, they come from different chickens. Maybe white eggs are more popular because they are easier to dye at Eater, but that's just my speculation. In Australia, all the eggs are brown, I haven't seen any white eggs. The bigger selections of eggs are free range and cage free, the caged eggs are a smaller section and it says "CAGED EGGS" on the packages, they are still cheapest. Second, they are in the middle of an isle, not near a fridge! And lastly, the yolk is orange! It threw us for a loop for weeks. And the not refrigerating still bothers me a bit. I must research this more.
Lastly, what Americans call the bell pepper, Aussies call capsicum. Since capsaicin is give a chili its heat, I can see why its called capsicum. But we ordered a pizza a few days after we arrived that had capsicum on it. We thought we were trying something different. And English coworker told me they are called just peppers in England. Another side note, When Christoper Columbus landed in America and called the natives Indian and it stuck. The same happened with peppers. A pepper is a spice, a bell pepper is a chili. But Chris Columbus called the chili a pepper and it stuck as well. So maybe the Aussies are right on this one thing...
Here is a great Guacamole recipe that I brought with me and have gotten rave reviews. These are all estimations, add as you see fit, if you think its too much, than it is! If you want more of one thing and less of another, do it!! Most recipes are not rules, they are guidelines!
2 large ripe avocados, they shouldn't be rocks when you squeeze them gently, they should give a bit.
1 lime, juice of, or lime juice from a bottle, maybe 1 or 2 tablespoons
1/2 small onion, chopped small
1 jalapeno, 2 if you like the heat, leave seeds in for more heat
1/2 of a big bunch of cilantro (coriander if in Australia)
1 garlic clove, chopped fine
salt and pepper
Corn chips
Mash the avocados and lime juice to a slightly creams consistency, I like to leave a few chunks, then add and mix in other ingredients one at a time. add salt and pepper last, I add quite a bit of salt, so add a bit, combine, taste, then add more if necessary.
Serve with corn chips.
some variation: add sour cream if its not creamy; add diced tomatoes; add ground cumin.
Brown Butter Brownies
This is a recipe my friend found and we have made them multiple times at the hostel.
10 tablespoons of butter
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
pinch of cinnamon
2 eggs
flour, as needed, about a cup
First brown the butter. Heat it up, but don't burn it! Take off the heat when it turns a medium brown. It will have a nice nutty smell.
In a bowl, have your sugar, cocoa powder, salt and cinnamon.
Add the brown butter to the bowl. Add the vanilla, mix well.
Add one egg at a time, combine well after each egg.
Add flour slowly until you get the brownie consistency. It should be thick but not like cookie dough. If its too think, thin it out with milk.
I like to sprinkle brown sugar on top before baking to make it look pretty.
Grease a baking pan, or a muffin pan like I do since the hostel doesn't have a baking pan. Cook at 350 degrees F, or about 175 Celsius (rough estimation!) until almost done. You still want the center to be a bit gooey.
Some variations we have tried: replacing some of the sugar with brown sugar; we didn't have enough flour so we substituted the rest with oats; we added too much, but a pinch of chili powder will give it a nice little kick.
Have fun!
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