Cafe of Good Hope

So after managing to get myself a two day hangover. I woke this Sunday morning with a need for coffee! After very quickly realising I had none in the house, it was decided that I should go to another Cafe off my list.

The Cafe of Good Hope is on Hither Green Lane on the other side of the tracks. It was set up by the Jimmy Mizen Foundation. The foundation was set up by Jimmy's family in his memory, with all profits from the cafe feeding back into its work. Jimmy was killed in May 2008 in the Three Cooks Bakery in Lee, around the corner from the Mizen family home. It was a terrible story and I remember it being in the news at the time, as I only live around the corner. So sad.

The two people behind the counter were really lovely and friendly. The guy was very helpful and smiley after I agreed, that I wouldn't take his photo - you see everyone wants to know what you look like now ;)  My caffè latte really hit the spot and.....  the cakes looked so fresh and so tempting I couldn't resist! Ooo a slice of that homemade Coffee and walnut cake for me, Please!
Such a delicious slice of cake. Beautifully moist, light, tasty and not too sweet. Perfect!




All the food is produced fresh. They do breakfasts, lunches, they even have a garden out back.
Will be back to try more am very impressed! And it's all for a good cause too - even better!

They also sell chutneys, preserves, coffee and loaves of fresh bread that is delivered by the 'Paul Rhodes' bakery from Greenwich, who also supply the pastries as well. The cakes however are made by the cafe and I can't say this enough - "Go try for yourself!".

It's also the small details that make a place. For example, to help encourage you to relax, let the world pass by whilst sipping on your latte, they put out a selection of papers. But what I loved even more was a small book shelf full of novels that you could borrow whilst having your coffee.

 Whilst I was there, a guy was taking advantage of this luxury and was happily sitting in the corner with his coffee and one of the many books.
On departure he placed the book back on the shelf and left. He was there before me. Wonder if is his Sunday ritual? He nips, to Good Hope has a coffee and continues with his chosen book? Or had he been there really long and is an incredibly fast reader? hmmm .... Don't you just love people watching?! :)

Facebook Page Created

So I'm slowly trying to get the blog out there a bit more. I am sill contemplating twitter, but in the meantime I've set up a Facebook page. This'll show any updates and new posts as well as extra random short posts that wouldn't usually make the blog.

I have to get at least 25 people to like page to keep it going... so if you do like my blog, it would be great if you could 'like' the NEWJ Facebook page too! Click HERE

thanks in advance :)

Brioche Summer Pud Stack

First off I have to admit that the thought of summer fruit pudding has never filled me with excitement. I mention in passing to my German friend that I was thinking of giving it a go, and her response was quite funny. "Are you crazy!? Soggy bread and squishy fruit, don't do it. It sound revolting!" LOL. Anyway this in tern, made me decide to give it a go and try and find a recipe / approach that was not only delicious but also looked really appetizing.

So Sonja, here you go. I dare you to try it and dislike. I bet you a jar off nutella (she's obsessed with Nutella) that you will not only like it, but will LOVE it!

So after doing a lot of researching, I found that Gordon Ramsay had created such a recipe and it uses Brioche instead of standard bread. Brioche, not cake not bread something in between... and perfect for such a recipe.

The next task was to find a brioche loaf of bread, now I could've made it myself. But you know, sometimes it's ok not to do it all yourself. Saying that, at some point I'll probably give it a go. Anyway it turns out that most supermarkets sell them for around £1.70, so it doesn't even break the bank. Tip: Tesco's version is quite flat and you need one that you can cut into circles. I found Sainbury's & Waitrose sell such a loaf and also the small shops in London sell St Pierre Brioche sliced loaf - which is perfect.

INGREDIENTS
Stock syrup

• 
250 grams caster sugar

• 250 ml water
• 
Juice of half a lemon

Blackcurrant coulis

• 250g ripe blackcurrants
• 100ml stock syrup
• Sprig of mint

Berry Stacks

• 100ml crème fraîche
• zest of 1 lime
• 1-2 tbsp icing sugar or lemon curd
• 200g ripe strawberries
• 100g ripe blackberries or redcurrants
• 100g ripe blueberries
• 50g caster sugar
• 100g raspberries
• Frozen raspberry sorbet

Stock Syrup Method (makes more than you need, but it'll keep in the fridge & will be useful for other recipes)
Place sugar, water and lemon juice in a pot and bring to a simmer. Remove and once cool store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Now, on the actual Berry Stacks Method:
1. First, make the blackcurrant coulis. Place the blackcurrants into a pan with the stock syrup and mint and simmer for a few minutes until the fruit has softened and starts to bleed. Remove the mint, whiz the mixture in a food processor or blender, then rub through a fine sieve. Leave to cool completely, then chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours or overnight.
2. In a bowl, mix the crème fraîche with the lime zest and a little icing sugar to taste, I used lemon curd :). Cover the bowl with cling film and chill until ready to use.
3. Cut off all the crusts from the brioche loaf then cut the loaf into eight long thin slices. (You can chill the loaf overnight to make it easier to slice). Using a 5-6cm deep round cutter, cut out 12-18 rounds from the brioche.
4. Hull and slice the strawberries crossways into rounds. Halve the blackberries and blueberries (this will enable them to lie flat between the brioche layers). Taste the fruit and dust with a little icing sugar if they are too tart.
5. Lay a small square of baking parchment on a board and place the pastry cutter on top. Quickly dip a brioche round into the blackcurrant coulis to coat all over, then place in the base of the cutter or even better, a rosti ring. Arrange a layer of strawberry slices in the cutter, then cover with another coulis-dipped brioche round. Make a layer of blueberries and blackberries on top, followed by a final piece of dipped brioche. Press down lightly to set the shape of the pudding stacks.
6. Using a palette knife, slide the stack onto a serving plate, discarding the paper. Remove the cutter and use to make the other stacks. Top each stack with a quenelle of the crème fraîche and a final drizzle of blackcurrant coulis. Garnish the plates with a few raspberries and if you're feeling extra naughty a small scoop of raspberry sorbet ;)

Now how good does this look!?! Can't tell you how excited I was about the results, to the point it could be classed as one of my fav puds!!

Adventures of a wobbly blogger!

So the new Hoxton is indeed Deptford, considering I actually work in Hoxton I can definitely see the growing similarities. A gem of south London with its cool flea market, numerous art galleries, trendy pubs and great transport links, train, overground line (old east London line) and DLR. It is situated in walking distance to Greenwich and Blackheath.

New Cross and Deptford are right next to each other and between them they have a growing number of independent shops/cafe's and restaurant's popping up. It wasn't till recently that the now, New Cross House, pub was housing the meat-wagon pop up restaurant, which had rave reviews! I was fortunate enough to sample it myself - Trust me when I say "you need to go!". Anyway I managed to locate some of the places on my list which I tell you about now and will return to try out the others another day (There's only so much coffee and
Food you can consume in one day!)

Saturday morning I woke up to sunshine beaming through the window, onto the heaps of washing that I needed to do. I thought to myself, what a perfect day to start looking the local area for the blog! So off I went, out the front door, half way to Deptford, when it actually dawned on me - "I'm on my own". Heck, I've never gone out for breakfast on my own before and have to say that I usually find it hard to chill out. But today was different I was doing it for NEWJ, there was focus to the adventure.....

My first stop was going to be the Deptford Deli, but unfortunately it was still closed. On the plus side I found two little bric-a-brac / vintage / second hand furniture shops and what looked like a really good butchers call "WellBeloved" (what a great name!) Since doing a bit off research, it turns out to be highly recommended!

As the Deptford Deli was shut and I was now rather ravenous, I continued walking (with the help of the handy iphone maps!) to The London Particular. Which as it turns out was pretty much round the corner. Very handy considering it was now 11am and I hadn't eaten! :s (The walk from Hither Green, had taken around 40mins..)

So as I walk up I see a few tables outside, that are already fully occupied by people who are delving into what looked like delicious brekkies. I pop my head in the door and am welcomed by the smell of fresh coffee, sausages and mushrooms. A girl turns round to see my face of confusion, and with giant smile asks if I'm alright ;) 'Are you still serving breakfast?' I ask. 'Yes, till 12 noon. Here's a menu'. There was four people working behind the counter, running around at lightening speed and yet all smiling - I do like people who smile :)
So me thinking I should be 'heathly', orders a bowl of granola, yogurt and fruit with a cuppa tea.
I go and pop myself up on a high stool out of the way, but with a great view of both the street and the cooks at work.

As I sat there I saw breakfast plate after breakfast bowl of beautifully looking dark mushrooms, roast tomatoes, artisan breads and sausages go past..... and started to think I'd made the wrong decision. soon after one of the guys popped over and poured me a glass of water. Then very apologetically re-asked what I had ordered. Ha!! I'd never been so happy!! :D "I had ordered a cuppa tea and the granola. But after seeing, smelling and generally drooling over the breakfasts can I change it to the 'The Particular Brunch Bowl and a Late?!" He gave me such a grin and then proceeded to go into the details of the breakfast and said there were 3 three types of sausage I could choose from (now this is where it gets a bit fuzzy, can't remember exactly what they were, but they were all spicy. one was made by the Greenwich Butcher and another by a butcher in Borough Market.) I went for the Greenwich Sausage.
My brekkie consisted off homemade baked beans, roast tomatoes, roast mushrooms (seriously these were to die for!), 2 sausages, bit of spinach and some artisan bread.

There was also a selection of things on toast like:
Roast tomatoes, smoked ham & greens organic cheddar.
Or garlic roast mushrooms, spinach & goats cheese with streaky bacon.
Or grilled mackerel fillets with a roast cherry Tom salsa.

They were also making up the salads for lunch which pretty darn good too! So not only will i be back to try some more of those mushrooms, perhaps on toast with the goats cheese :) hmmm yum! I'll also have to go back to sample one of the lunches too! No rest for the wicked!?!?!


After writing this post I am now starving!! So will have to continue about the other places I visited another day... I'm off to get myself some food!

To be continued.....
The Deptford Project/ OxJam
Art Hub Studios & Gallery
APT studios & Gallery

Some of the few places yet to visit:
The Big Red
Deptford Deli
Manze's Pie & Mash
Chaconia

Birthday Pasty

 So as you've probably gathered I like baking and making cakes. It also turns out that eating sweet stuff is a past-time loved by mainly females. So as it was a male colleagues birthday at work I decided to take the initiative ;) and make a savoury Birthday thing to put candles in.....

I chose Mini Pasties!! (I say mini, but still the size of your hand)
I found the recipe from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, River Cottage Every Day. The pastry is really delicious and so quick and easy to make. I use the same recipe for my sausage rolls.

For the rough puff pastry
250g unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small cubes
550g plain flour
A good pinch of salt
240-300ml iced water

METHOD (2 variations..)

How to make leftover stew pasties (use my Spiced Beef Stew Recipe here)

1. For the filling, drain off any excess juices from the stew so that the meat and veg are just lightly coated in gravy. Take any large chunks of meat or veg and chop them up roughly before stirring back together. Taste the stew and make sure it's seasoned to your liking. Leave to cool completely.
2. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured work surface to about 3mm thick. Using a plate or a cake tin as a template, cut out four 20cm circles; you may have to gather up the trimmings and re-roll them to get your fourth circle.
3. Spoon the stew on to one half of each circle. Brush the pastry edges with water, fold the other half of the pastry over the filling to form a half-moon shape and crimp well to seal.
4. Place the pasties on a lightly oiled baking sheet and brush the tops with beaten egg. Bake in an oven preheated to 190°C/Gas Mark 5 for about 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. Eat warm or cold.

Squash and Lentil Pasties

Main Ingredients:

• Brown lentils
• Butternut squash
• Shortcrust pastry
• Onions, carrots and celery
• Mustard, white wine and balsamic vinegar

First one onion, one carrot and one celery stick were fried in olive oil, then simmered in white wine. Then the (rather unappetizing-looking) brown tinned lentils were added along with bay, thyme and half a pint of vegetable stock and simmered for 10 mins. I then hacked away at the squash until we had some nice cube-shaped chunks, which were chucked in and cooked for a further 20 minutes.

The resulting mixture was rather watery, so I set about it with a potato masher to help the vegetables soak up some of the juices. Finally, two teaspoons of English mustard and the same of Balsamic vinegar were added to give it a kick.

Anyway they flew off the plate, the meat ones especially!!

Edamame Avocado Dip with Spicy Wasabe

Dip 2 - Delicious, healthy and bright green!

Well it always good to add some extra colour to the table ;). This dip is amazing and what with the added kick from the wasabe it gives it that extra punch. Some may say it's the extra 'fifth' taste. Have you heard about this? I can't remember if wasabe is part of the group that has the Umami the fifth taste after bitter, salty, sour and sweet. Seriously this isn't one of my random stories, they're now selling tubes of this magic stuff in the supermarket. They say that it makes anything you putt it in taste better and tastier and generally amazing! However I have heard that there is one draw back...it's supposedly bright red, thus will make any food you put it in varying shades of pink/red.
Here have a read if you don't believe me: Telegraph has an article on it.

Anyway, that was a bit of a tangent back to the dip....

Ingredients
1 cup fresh or frozen shelled edamame beans
2 avocados, peeled and pitted
1 teaspoon wasabe
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger (I cheated & used puree ginger)
1 clove minced fresh garlic (I cheated & used puree garlic)
1/4 cup water
juice of 2 fresh limes (about 3 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
cracked black pepper
2 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

1. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Do a seasoning check, and add more salt, pepper, lime juice, or wasabe as needed (I like to kick it up to a tablespoon to really bring on the heat).

I have to say this is a really REALLY tasty dip. It's not guacamole, it's similar but not guacamole. Should really think of a shorter name for it.... How about WAE dip?? It's not very catchy though is it...
any ideas let me know!

Pureed ginger and garlic in the fridge is a GENIUS move! ;)

Also I have a new obsession with Warburtons Square(ish) wraps they're so versatile and work great with my dips. You chop them up into triangle and heat them up under the grill with a bit of oil and chopped herbs or spread some of tasty green dip on top with some tomato salsa and roll it up. Yum!

 Right think that's enough babbling for this post.... 

Hope you enjoy your dip as much as I did!