Puppy love

The loaf of the Irish

I fell in love with sourdough bread when I worked in Dublin a few years ago, so the leprechauns in my happy gland did a dance of joy when I found Collette Comins’ super easy recipe while paging through her cookbook, The Farm Kitchen. The book is full of wonderful dishes like French Potato Pie, Home-made Pork Sausages and Fig Tarte Tatin, and the photographs are droolicious.

Back to the bread. Normally, sourdough bread requires nurturing a starter of flour and water and letting natural yeasts develop and mature over a week or so, but this is the instant gratification version. No freaky living organism in the fridge is needed for this loaf and after making it a few times with a dodgy oven, I can pronounce the recipe robust and rewarding.

I’m greedy and love hot bread, so usually whip off a bit of crust as it comes out the oven and have it with butter and honey. If you can manage to resist quaffing the whole loaf in a day, it lasts quite well – it’s good for at least 3 days. When not pilfering from the loaf, I store it in my wooden bread bin wrapped in a clean cotton kitchen towel.

500g cake flour
5ml salt
5ml bicarbonate of soda
400ml buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 230 degrees Celsius (450 degrees Fahrenheit, Gas Mark 8).
Sift the dry ingredients and make a well in the centre.
Pour in the liquid and using one hand, mix in the flour from the sides of the bowl to form a ball.
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for a second to tidy it up.
Place on a floured baking sheet and cut a cross in the top.
Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees C (400 degrees F, Gas Mark 6) and bake for further 30 minutes until golden brown and hollow when tapped.

Bread, wine and a meal fit for angels

This week I attended a bread and wine tasting at Stellenzicht, a farm known more for the quality of its wines than its swish hospitality offering. There’s no art gallery, deli or signature restaurant to distract from the core business of this farm - producing good wine – but when winemaker Guy Webber wants to share his wines with guests, no effort is spared.

Although the farm is more about production than gloss and glamour, the tasting room is warm and friendly. An old chemical store off the production area has been converted for small functions and wooden staves suspended from the ceiling ensure that wine is the décor focus. For our tasting, this cosy space was filled by two large circular tables laden with bread, wine glasses and an abundance of dipping goodies.

Guy is an avid breadmaker and thought the idea of pairing his wines with bread from trendy Cape Town bakery, Knead, a novel way of showcasing their nuanced flavours and aromas. Evan Faull from Knead devised the pairing combinations and all considerations of low carb diets fell by the wayside as wine flowed freely and loaves were torn, sliced and dipped.

The wine was mainly from the farm’s accessible Golden Triangle range, but we were also treated to the rather lovely Semillon Reserve 2004, paired with brioche. The Semillon’s heady, intensely fragrant nose follows through with red apple on the palate and having spent 9 months in oak, has all the good wood characteristics and none of the bad. The buttery brioche, more cake than bread, was a perfect partner for this Audrey Hepburn of a wine.

The Golden Triangle Shiraz 2004 with buttermilk rye was also yummy, the Golden Triangle Pinotage 2006 charming and dignified the Golden Triangle Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 the type of wine you want to save for a wintery day when you’re curled up on the couch in front of the fire and can really give it the attention it deserves. Come to think of it, for that kind of fireside brooding, I’d also like a bottle of the farm’s award winning Syrah.

The sacramental theme of “bread and wine” spilled over into a lunch of authentic Middle Eastern dishes. Tabbouleh in poppadoms with mozzarella fingers and bulgar wheat mixed with aromatic herbs was followed by Laban Immu, an ancient Lebanese lamb dish served with cous cous, vegetable moussaka and greens. Made from lamb, yoghurt, thyme, lemon juice, garlic and mint, Laban Immu is rumoured to have been the dish Abraham offered his angelic visitors in Genesis 18:1-8. It certainly tasted divine and if that’s not enough reason to ferret out a recipe on the internet, the dish has medicinal properties. Researchers reckon soured milk as a dietary staple protected ancient nomadic tribes from bovine tuberculosis.

Clattering over the dirt road back onto the R44, I left Stellenzicht hooped up on wine related anti-oxidants and shielded from cow TB, daydreaming about yoghurty meat dishes and Semillon packed with waxy apples.

Bon Appetit

Today, Pat and I have been married for 16 months and we decided to mark this landmark occasion with a spate of culinary indulgence. Our feasting spot had been singled out a while ago, while walking along the main drag in Simonstown. On the way to favourite breakfast spot, The Meeting Place, I had spotted Bon Appetit and been lured to investigate further by a curtain of twinkling lights and a menu promising Petit Choux of Rabbit and Le Café, a plethora of coffee themed deserts including tiramisu ice cream and mocha panna cotta.

Internet research had promised that husband and wife team Judith (front of house) and Emmanuel Guillet (chef) made a potent combo, delivering the finest French cuisine. The internet proved reliable. Breton, Emmanuel, a Michelin trained chef with 15 years of star studded experience and Judith, also a trained chef, did not disappoint. Our taste buds tingled and our nerves were soothed by the faultless service provided by Judith and the lovely Christelle.

While some of the décor could do with a revamp, when the food is this good, you can overlook the odd visual faux paux. Twinkling fairy lights lining the bay windows, mellow uplighting and duck grey walls go a long way to create an intimate and unpretentious dining environment.

The wine list is reasonably varied, offering a good selection of value for money single varietals and blends and venturing international with some French champagne. We opted for the reliable, Merlot-driven, Groote Post Old Man’s Blend, with its juicy berries and whiffs of white pepper.

Before we could say, “look at those manfully striding naval officers”, our table was graced by a miniature loaf of freshly baked bread and a trio of herb butter, moist dukka and sun dried tomato, merlot and onion jam. We made short work of the bread and the onion jam was so good, I resorted to enjoying it with a teaspoon.

An amuse bouche of goats cheese and potato flan plumped on top of perfectly diced marinated vegetables (compliments of the chef) was followed by a starter of camembert served on puff pasty with beetroot and balsamic ice-cream. The cheesy pasty and subtle savoury tang of the ice cream was ridiculously delicious. It was difficult not to lick the plate.

For mains, Pat had Lamb Knuckles en Croute, a wonder of shredded lamb baked in puff pastry served with black mushroom, roasted garlic pyramids and a rosemary sauce, while I opted for the Fillet of Beef Stuffed with Portabellini Mushrooms served with a Compote of Red Onions and a Cabernet Sauvignon Sauce.

Every mouthful was a treat. After my last morsel diappeared, an errant finger whipped over the saucy remnants towards my lips. Such precious stuff shouldn’t be wasted.

Our culinary foray into the world of proudly fussy French food drew to a poetic close with the Le Cafe. An Aladdin’s cave of coffee themed mini desserts, the Le Café arrived with little bowls and glasses laden with panna cotta, crème brule, ice cream and espresso, edible pasty spoons and sugar spun twirls. It said only good things about coffee.

We left Bon Appetit to the strains of Cape Verde diva, Cesaria Evora, our minds wandering the culinary landscape of Brittany and our tummies infinitely satisfied. We’ll definitely be back for more sorties into the realm of fancy food with honest flavours and mood lighting that works.

Bon Appetit Restaurant, 20 St Georges St, Simonstown, +27 21 786 2412