Efendy, Meze Bar and Taste of Sydney with Somer Sivrioglu

Recently I managed to win a free ticket to Taste of Sydney thanks to Efendy chef and owner, Somer Sivrioglu. At last year’s event, Efendy took out the inaugural Best in Taste award for their Ali Nazik, a traditionally-made kebab with veal backstrap, leg of lamb and lamb tail fat.

Green and red hot sauce

These are my basic green and red hot sauce recipes which I adapt every time to accommodate for seasonal availability.

I’ve been growing my own chillies since Christmas and I’ve already harvested about two kilos, the equivalent of four batches of hot sauce. I urge you to try growing your own; it’s ecological, economical and incredibly satisfying!

Some tips: Make sure you taste and adjust amounts of ingredients as necessary, as every batch will be different. You may sometimes need to add a little sugar, or more or less vinegar or garlic. And always, always, always use gloves! I’ve learnt the hard way that while your tongue may become desensitised to chilli, your eyes never do…

Incredibly easy classic chocolate mousse

This dessert is a real treat for any poor sods who are lactose intolerant, as it’s naturally dairy free (as long as you use proper dairy free dark chocolate). It’s also so easy I’ve been making it since I was a kid, way back in the eighties. Retro!

All you need is:

• 200g quality fair trade chocolate – you can use milk, dark or a combination
• 3 large free-range eggs

That’s it. No cream, no added sugar, no avocado, nothing! (You can add a drop of vanilla, orange essence or booze to the egg yolk and chocolate mixture if you wish.)

Chicken Adobo

This Filipino classic is one of Mr Black’s favourite dishes, and mine as well. I absolutely adore vinegar – as a child I would drink leftover dressing straight from my salad bowl. If you love vinegar, you’ll love adobo! Best of all it’s dead simple to make, perfect for either a midweek dinner or an easy party dish.

Crisp salt and chilli tofu

I find this dish so comforting. Perfect for a Valentines night dinner with yourself! <3

It’s usually made with spring onions too, which are a delicious addition. If using chuck them in towards the end along with the chilli and garlic.

Frittata of baby spinach, pumpkin, feta & jamon

I began this dish thinking I was going to make spanokopita. But having no filo pastry, I added a few eggs to turn it into a frittata. I also decided to throw in some thinly sliced pumpkin to bulk it up and a few slices of jamon because, well pork products make everything better. Obviously you could leave it out if you wanted to keep it vegetarian.

Riesling Olympics at Fix St James

I post far more often about scoffing than quaffing, for three main reasons:

1. I can’t make wine

2. I am not confident in my abilities to describe the flavours of wine

3. Quaffing makes me forget to take photos and/or causes me to take blurry photos, which are rubbish.

The Hub House Diner, Dulwich Hill

The Hub House Diner, next to Moon’s Fresh Sushi on New Canterbury Rd, has been eagerly awaited by Dulwich Hill locals since the signage went up just before Christmas. They were absolutely packed on their first – and second – day of opening. I suspect they weren’t quite prepared for how busy they’d be, which resulted in the longer than ideal wait time as mentioned by some on Urbanspoon. I did appreciate that the owner (or floor manager?) indicated to us before we sat down that there would be a bit of a wait. I’m not going to slag them off for it – I mean, it’s their first weekend open people, give them a break!

Sate babi bumbu kecap: Indonesian pork sate

This dish was inspired by a recipe from RasaMalaysia and adapted for the Thermomix, with which I am obsessed. Of course, you can make it using a blender and saucepan too. It reminds me of the sate sticks my dad used to cook for us when I was little, on a teeny tiny charcoal barbecue in our backyard. I adored smothering huge bowls of rice with the peanut sauce. Heavenly!

Jack and the Beanstalk Cafe, Dulwich Hill

This cute new cafe has just opened up on Marrickville Road where Fernandes Patisserie used to be, right near our other old favourite Minh Vietnamese Restaurant. (Fernandes is now round the corner on New Canterbury Rd.) We’ve been there twice and have been really impressed. The coffee is excellent, the staff are delightful, and – the food is good too! Trifecta!