Two recipes from the Guardian’s resident recipe writers this week, both more apt for winter climates but (did I mention this?) it’s been cold in Miami and the only heating in this town is the kind that comes from rib-sticking calorie-loaded food within. Let me tell you, I’m still thawing out my feet from stand-up paddleboard the other day, and I’m meant to be a Tough Northern Girl. Granted, I’m somewhat tougher than Mr. R&R who sends me into the sea first, stands at about thigh height and winces every time a wave touches his stomach. Be a man, I say, rip that plaster off and dive in, but to no avail, he’s been spoilt by balmy Bahamian waters. Anyway, here are a couple of ideas for internal central heating.
The method for Dan Lepard’s black olive gougeres is a bit like the choux pastry used for profiteroles I suppose – you add the flour to boiling fat and water, then beat in eggs and cheese. I substituted the thyme in the recipe for chopped chives and parsley, which worked quite well. They didn’t puff up much for me, but I suspect that was due to using a glass dish rather than a baking sheet (I’m not cooking at home). After I’d prised them off said dish, they were bloody addictive though, perfect for Oscar-night snacking.
This celeriac and parnsip bake from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall was pretty nice too – difficult to go wrong with a combination of blue cheese, bacon and hazelnuts. I added potato slices too and even though I had to take out some of the liquid by hand at the end, it was none the worse for it. Served it with steamed brussel sprouts for a hearty but not too heavy main meal.
Doraku
1104 Lincoln Road, South Beach, Fl 33139
(305) 695 8383
www.dorakusushi.com
I just can’t get enough of this little place on the Lincoln Road in Miami Beach. I love it so much that I have the pdf of the menu saved in Evernote, and I’m systematically working my way through it, meal by meal.
The service is brilliant – good-looking without being intimidating, friendly without putting your teeth on edge, super-efficient and quick. The decor is what I’d call boho pan-asian diner – square paper lampshades, hippy fabric to divide seating areas, very low lighting. The sushi bar is hidden at the back, great for book-reading lone diners I’ve noticed. Whether you get a comfy booth (which they’re happy to give to couples on less hectic nights) or the smaller tables, the waiters are adept at jigsawing dishes together.
I love the fact that we can turn up in post-kiteboarding flipflops and mad salty hair and be sat next to a table done up to the Friday-night-nines, and all feel right at home. No reservations, but they’re happy to take your name and call you when the table is ready while you do a bit of shopping on the Road. The music is a bit louder at the weekends, but it’s my kind of drum and bass lounge and not at shouty volumes. I’ve tried the cocktails, and I remember the first half of the first one was lovely. After that it’s a bit of a blur, which I take as a good recommendation.
So – the food. It’s nearly all great, and I only say nearly because I can’t vouch for the relatively small bit of the menu that I haven’t tried yet. Everything else has been awesome to varying degrees (apart from the Peking Duck Roll, but seriously, what was I thinking?). The default is that each dish arrives when it’s ready, although you can ask for things in a specific order if you want. It comes quickly, even on slower nights when they clearly have less rolls ready to go. The portions are medium in size which is great for two people to taste a few dishes and not feel stuffed or (Nobu, I’m giving you a hard stare) ripped off. Mr. R&R and I normally get two starters, two mains and an order of rolls between us, plus pud and the bill is inevitably less than $100, generous tip, no alcohol.
Starters
Lots of the starters are variations of carpaccio with motley dressings, or rolls without rice wrapped in cucumber or nori. Favourites so far are the Hamachi carpaccio, the Double Happiness rolls and the Seared Tuna with Asian Salsa. The Ahi Poke is also excellent if you like spicy.
Hot dishes
Grilled Fish Cheeks are super, the best part of the fish, crispy and charred outside, tender inside. The Misoyaki Seabass is a less sweet version of the now ubiquitous black cod, and is much better for it. The Asian Steak is absolutely fantastic, tender and bloody. Of the fried stuff, the seabass Nanbanzuke is an asian version of fish and chips and is light and delicious. The Rock Shrimp Tempura are well done and the creamy sauce is dangerously addictive – these disappear in about 30 seconds flat.
Sashimi and rolls
Sashimi is very good, not quite at the extraordinary level of Toni’s where the fish seems to be have been just hacked in half and plated there and then, but very good. The rolls are literally to die for – there’s a serious danger of auto-gastronomic asphyxiation here. Rainbow, New Style Doraku, Coconut Shrimp, Emperor, Red Dragon and Kamikaze rolls are excellent. The Volcano, Caterpillar and Doraku rolls I would kill a puppy for.
Pudding
Green tea ice-cream with two spoons is our usual. The Chocolate Lava Cake is a surprisingly exceptional version of fondant.
Doraku – one girl’s obsession, soon to be continued one evening next week. And the next week, and the next week…
I don’t know about you, but I always have a couple of courgettes at the bottom of the fridge, hiding in plain sight like beached torpedoes. It’s my fault – as one of the few vegetables that arrive in Nassau, I’m bored of them even by the time I get to the checkout desk. But this idea for a pasta sauce actually made me buy them voluntarily the other day: it’s a gorgeous, summery combination of almonds and fresh herbs with softened zucchini and ricotta salata to unite all the flavours.
Instead of melting the zucchini together, as in this pasta sauce, here the idea is to cut long strips of zucchini so that they tangle and wind themselves around the fork with the pasta. The effect is even nicer if you use a “twisty” pasta like fusili, or the aforementioned strozzapreti. You can peel the zucchini if you like, but the skin actually helps the ribbons to hold together rather than collapsing in mushiness – both versions will be yummy (but I remember my Mum telling me that all the vitamins were in the skin…).
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The single most important commandment for domestic harmony in my house is this: Thou shalt not mess with the meatball.
Polpette, and to a lesser degree polpettone, are as close as Mr. R&R gets to religion so it is a brave, some might say foolhardy, woman who disrupts the regular provision of these meatballs, traditionally flavoured with parsley and parmesan and cooked in a white wine and onion sauce.
But, dear reader, mess I did. It’s all Nigel Slater’s fault – just reading his recipes gives me that irresistibly homey, content feeling of a steaming bowl of soup on a cold day, or a roast dinner, or a cake warm from the oven. (Plus you get the feeling he’s brilliantly bitchy in real life.) So his recipe for meatballs with horseradish was just too tempting to pass up yesterday. I’m so glad I risked life and limb and experimented. The earthy tones of dill and horseradish were surprisingly delicate and really set off by the sour cream – served with baked potatoes and sautéed leeks it made a perfect meal to ward off a chilly Miami. (No, really, it’s 9˚C outside and we don’t have heating…). So here’s my version which keeps some elements of the traditional Italian recipe as it’s made with veal, uses white bread soaked in milk rather than breadcrumbs, flour to thicken the sauce and isn’t as spicy as Nige suggests.
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