Mr Carsisi from 37c Piper Street

As a self-appointed ‘foodie’ I am quite surprised that it has taken me until now to eat at the infamous Piper Street in Kyneton, Victoria.

My visit to Piper Street was impromptu and therefore I had not chosen a place to dine prior to arriving.  I was overwhelmed to see the number of wonderful looking cafes, restaurants and pubs.  Eventually I decided on a restaurant with a Turkish influenced menu called ‘Mr Carsisi’.

Mr Carsisi is housed in a restored ice works and owned by Clare and Matt Fegan who have been in the hospitality industry for many years.  Their website tells me that Mr Carsisi is their long planned love child.

Matt Fegan gained critical acclaim at the renowned Royal George also in Kyneton.  After time in Europe, Matt travelled extensively and his love of the tastes throughout his travels, particularly Turkey, is the inspiration of the food at Mr Carsisi.

 

The inside decor was sleek, clean and classy – but not over the top.  Just really well done. We sat and dined on the lovely large verandah.  It was beautiful to overlook St Paul’s Park and a proportion of Piper Street. It was obvious that many of the diners had made the short trek from the city, which I feel is a real tribute to Mr Carsisi, Piper Street and the delightful township of Kyneton.

 
Mr Carsisi encourages mezze plates (share plates), so we ordered four dishes from the mezze section of the menu;

Zucchini and mint fritters, mint yoghurt ($7.50)

By far and away my favourite of the four – these were so light and delicate.  The flavors were perfect as was the balance in the texture.  Left me wanting more of these little ones!
 

Hommous, spiced lamb, pomegranate, pine nuts & tahini lemon sauce ($11)

 
If I could be an ‘ambassador’ for hommous and the variations you can make to it, I would be!  Bizarre I know, but I just love this stuff and Mr Carsisi did not disappoint me.  This was so delicious – and the pairing of the pomegranate was just so divine – who would have thought?!  My one request would be more pomegranates please!
 
Babaghanooj, zaatar bread ($7)
 
This was also well made and quite lovely.  Eggplant is not that easy to work with in my opinion and this dish was very well done.
 
Roasted almond & chickpea falafels, tahini yoghurt ($7.50)
 
I think I caught this dish on a bad day.  Maybe my expectations were too high, as I have already expressed my love for chickpeas!  I want this blog to be positive but constructive when required. So, I just felt this dish was a little dry and over cooked.  I got a strong sense that this was a one off though and would most likely not be the case next time.
 
Pleased to meet you Mr Carsisi!  I will come again.
 

Food – 6.5/10

Service – 6/10
Ambience – 8.5/10
 
www.mrcarsisi.com

Open Friday to Tuesday – Breakfast. Lunch. Dinner.

Red Velvet Cake - Magnolia Bakery

New York, New York!

Just over a year ago I was very blessed when my dear friend invited me to New York City to celebrate her birthday.  What an incredible experience and amazing place NYC is.  I am still not over it!  I may never be.  However – back to the blog…

The day before the birthday celebration I went on a hunt for a birthday cake.  I have to tell you that finding a bakery in midtown NYC is not that easy when you have only been in the city for one day and you are a little jetlagged.

As I wandered around the streets of New York gathering goodies for the birthday girl I finally stumbled upon a bakery and there was a line of people coming out the door.  To start with I was very confused as to why people were lining up to get into this bakery – were they all looking for a birthday cake too?!  Then I realized – I had found the famous Magnolia Bakery (remember from Sex and the City?).  Once inside (finally) I just couldn’t go past the Red Velvet Cupcakes.  I have seen Red Velvet Cake on many of my favorite American movies so I wanted to find out what they were all about.

Red Velvet - the Mae West of cupcakes!  Made red with cocoa, a little vanilla and a lot of Southern mystery with its own special whipped vanilla icing.  H E A V E N!  Even more so when eating one for breakfast with a glass of Louis Roederer Champagne in celebration of your dear friends birthday in NEW YORK CITY!

A few weeks ago once again I was blessed when invited to a work colleague/friends birthday celebration.  This was a low key gathering at home.  As soon as I arrived I noticed this simple but elegant birthday cake.  It was on a crisp white cake stand covered with a tall glass dome.  The whipped white icing looked familiar so eventually I had to ask about the cake – what was it?  Who made it?  How was it made? And can I please have the recipe?

I was beside myself with glee when I was told it was Red Velvet Cake and the recipe was from Magnolia Bakery.  A cake can change your life!

Hello Mae West!

 

Just for you here is the recipe to try.  If you do try it please let me know what you think - is it the Mae West?

Red Velvet Cake:

3 1/3 cups cake flour (not self-raising)
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
2 ¼ cups sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
6 tablespoons of red food coloring
3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk
1 ½ teaspoons cider vinegar
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

Pre heat oven to 175 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit)

Grease and lightly flour three 9 x 2 inch round cake pans, then line the bottoms with waxed paper.

To make the cake: In a small bowl, sift the flour and set aside.  In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl, whisk together red food coloring, cocoa and vanilla.  Add to batter and beat well.

In a measuring cup, stir in salt and buttermilk.  Add to the batter in three parts, alternating with the flour.  With each edition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overbeat.

In a small bowl, stir together cider vinegar and baking soda.  Add to the batter and mix well.  Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.

Divide the batter among the prepared pans.  Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.  Let the layers cool in the pans for 1 hour.  Remove from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack.

When the cake has cooled, spread the frosting between the layers, then ice the top and sides of the cake with Creamy Vanilla Frosting.

Creamy Vanilla Frosting: be sure to follow the recipe directions exactly.

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 cups unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a medium size saucepan, whisk flour into the milk until smooth.  Place over medium heat and, stirring constantly, cook until the mixture becomes very thick and begins to bubble, 10-15 minutes.  Cover with waxed paper placed directly on the surface and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.

In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat the butter for 3 minutes, until smooth and creamy.  Gradually add the sugar, beating continuously for 3 minutes until fluffy.  Add the vanilla and beat well.

Add the cooled milk mixture, and continue to beat on the medium high speed for 5 minutes, until very smooth and noticeably whiter in color.  Cover and refrigerate fir 15 minutes (no less and no longer – use a timer!)  Use immediately.

- 'More from Magnolia' by Allysa Torey

www.magnoliabakery.com

ENJOY FRIENDS!

Masons of Bendigo

Last night I had an awesome gastronomical experience at a new restaurant in Bendigo, Victoria. "Masons of Bendigo" was opened in Queen Street a few weeks ago by Nick and Sonia.  On walking in I was pleased to see the restaurant almost to capacity with very happy looking and sounding diners.


From prior reading of the Masons website Nick and Sonia have had 20 years experience in the hospitality industry.  The food style is French and English with Asian influences from Nick's time at Ezards Restaurant and Executive Sous Chef at Ritz Carlton Millenia in Singapore.  Their focus with the menu is to use local produce from Central Victoria collaborating with farmers and primary producers to create a direct link from paddock to plate.  Share plate in fact!


The experience and passion of Nick and Sonia was very obvious though the food.  Deciding on what to order was a very difficult decision and one that took longer than usual for me as the appealing choices were endless.  I love the share plate concept, it is probably my most favourite way to eat, and this is how the menu at Masons is designed.


My dining companion and I eventually decided on the 'steamed pork and prawn Sui Mai dumplings with ginger and soy (3 pieces/$8) from the Savoury Bites section as a starter.  The flavours in this dish were divine - well balanced and the dumplings were perfectly steamed.  Truly leaving you wanting more.


Next we had two dishes - the 'Rockwood Cottage lamb cutlets, spiced lamb shoulder, sherry carrots with lamb jus gras' ($22.50). This dish was simply melt in your mouth amazing.  The moaning sounds of joy coming from my dining companion while eating the cutlets really summed this dish up (and was slightly embarrassing for me!).  The Mount Langi Shiraz was the perfect drop with this dish.


We also enjoyed the 'warm salad of charred salmon and prawns, Peppergreen Farm beetroot, farro, pink grapefruit and herb mayo ($18.50).  If I had to choose a favourite dish of the night this would have been it.  The combination of all of the ingredients was hard to beat - well thought out and portioned.  There was nothing overpowering and the salmon was perfectly charred.


To finish off we opted for the 'Lochelian Farmhouse triple brie with crackers, Masons pinot jelly and Masons wild figs in syrup' ($8).  The wild figs were spectacular!  Unfortunately there was no room left for dessert but I have been told that the desserts at Masons are pretty incredible.


All in all this meal was one of the best for flavour, freshness and price point.  The speed of the food from the kitchen to the table, considering how busy they were, was pleasantly surprising.  The staff and the service was all good but I particularly enjoyed conversing at the end of the night with Janelle - she was warm, friendly and provided a customer service style that can often be lacking these days.  More Janelle please!


Congratulations and thank you Masons of Bendigo - you are truly a winner.  I hope the people of Bendigo realise how fortunate they are to have you in their town and support you by dining with you over and over again, until they have worked their way through your gorgeous menu several times.

Steamed pork and prawn dumplings

Warm salad of charred salmon and prawns

http://www.masonsofbendigo.com.au


SCORE -
Food 9/10
Service 7/10
Ambience 6/10