I decided to make Nigella's traditional cheesecake so that there was a little something sweet in the house (the alternative was Annabel Karmel's magimix yoghurt cake that I made for my boy). I was slightly apprehensive about this after the banoffee cheeseake I made from Kitchen last year which I overbaked, so kept a close eye on it during the baking process. The base for this dessert was pastry rather than your usual biscuit base. A pleasant change. The filling comprised of curd cheese, double cream, seperated eggs, lemon juice and sugar. I made the mistake of using a tin the right size in width/length, but too shallow by a couple of centimetres resulting in me throwing half of the filling away (what a waste)! I got the consistency of the filling just right, but due to the tin mix-up, the balance was wrong and there was too much base to topping. I liked the flavours, but as I have a sweet-tooth, I think I am more of a biscuit-base kind of gal. If you want to read some amusing lyrics about a love of cheesecake, look no further than King Missile's 'Cheesecake Truck'.
For an accompaniment to lunch time quiche (shop-bought) I made tabbouleh. I had been meaning to make this for a while after sampling some of my sister-in-law's delicious Morrocan version. The dish was made with cold cooked bulgar wheat; oodles of parsley, mint and dill; olive oil; garlic oil; pomegranate seeds; tomatoes; lemon zest and juice. A lovely fresh dish, and beautiful too.
I have had a rising urge to cook something spicy lately, so a trip to our local continental supermarket was called for to pick up some seeds: fennel, black cumin, green cumin and black mustard. My mum bought us a fab new authentic indian spice container which I joyously filled with my new purchases and other colourful powders. The seeds, some hot chilli powder and turmeric were sprinkled over diced potatoes, olive oil and unpeeled garlic cloves to produce some fabulous roasties to be eaten with a lemony roast chicken. The final touch was some lime-doused raw red onion for added crunch. The perfect end to a brilliant weekend with family and friends to celebrate Little M's birthday.
Goddess Mx
