Donna Hay Lemon Yoghurt Cake

I was idly surfing the Web when Donna's Lemon Yoghurt Cake popped out at me.  It looked so enticing that I immediately printed off the recipe (elevating its chances of getting made) and placed it into my pile of recipes wedged between the tins in my kitchen.

This is the kind of cake which is a pleasure to make because it is easy (no mixer required) and the ingredients are of the type that many  people have on hand.  If guests are coming unexpectedly, you can pop this little beauty into the oven in a cinch, and voila - dessert.

Of course, my cake is not the same as the stylist's version - with the icing recipe provided, I am not sure how you'd get it to look like it does in the photo accompanying the recipe.  However, it matters not in the end, and the cake tastes great: 

I like the thyme leaves, which make the cake look pretty and give an unexpected burst of flavour in each mouthful of cake, counteracting the sweetness.

This one's a definite keeper.

FFWD - Curried Chicken, Peppers and Peas en Papillote

For French Fridays with Dorie this week, we have a cook in the bag recipe for curried chicken and vegetables - or Curried Chicken, Peppers and Peas en Papillote.

There's not much to say about this.  It is the ultimate in convenience cooking, the kind of thing I like - easy, quick and tasty.

To see what the other Doristas thought of this week's recipe, visit the LYL section of the website.  

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WWDH - Onion, Anchovy and Olive Tart

For our first September Wednesday with Donna Hay recipe, Margaret chose Onion, Anchovy and Olive Tart from p170 of Modern Classics Book 1.  You can also find the recipe online here.  The photo of the recipe online is much more accurate than the one in the book, which to my eye bears little resemblance to the finished product.

I only had one scruffy piece of puff pastry in the freezer, and I cut off the worst of the scruffiness to make a half recipe.  I think this tart looked pretty good, and the flavours (balsamic vinegar, onion, olives, anchovies, cheese) would have been good together.  Unfortunately, I didn't get to taste the tart to confirm this, as I was on a special diet for a medical test and the ingredients of this tart were forbidden.  However, it did get eaten at work, even in competition with a cake, so I am assuming it was OK.

To see what Margaret, Chaya and Sarah thought of this tart, visit their websites.

Tea Cake - Allyson Gofton's Mum's recipe

I was recently on a special diet which allowed plain cake, so I sought a plain cake recipe that enabled me to indulge in my baking habit.  I found "Mum's Tea Cake" by Allyson Gofton in her book, Bake.  This recipe can also be found online here.

The recipe calls for slathering the top of the hot cake with butter and sugar - I skipped that part and ate it plain.  It was really quite nice as is, and was especially good heated and served with a scoop of icecream.

I also believe that it would be lovely with cream and fruit or berries in place of a sponge cake.  I also think that Allyson's suggestion of baking it with fruit on top would be good.

Last day in LA - Union Station, The Cheesecake Factory, LA Public Library and Border Grill

On our last day in Los Angeles, we went to a nearby Starbucks for breakfast - I ordered their blueberry porridge, which I alas discovered way too late, as it is not on the menu board.  As we were leaving Starbucks, we were witness to the chopper at the top of this post, flying very close to the buildings as part of a movie being filmed nearby.  Many of the streets in the area were cordoned off to facilitate filming.

After breakfast, I took Tim to Union Station.  We didn't want to catch the train - rather, I wanted Tim to see the Union Station building, which is striking both inside and out:

Our next stop was to visit the Farmers Market and The Grove in West Hollywood.  We made the mistake of choosing to go there by bus instead of train, and ended up on a Saturday morning bus so crowded that we couldn't see where we were going for most of the way. 

 

After a brief turn around the Farmers Market and picking up a couple of bargains at Sur La Table, we went for lunch at The Cheesecake Factory, our homage to The Big Bang Theory:

We were not familiar with the system for getting a table at The Cheesecake Factory, so went upstairs and sat down. We were promptly shepherded back downstairs, as you have to register at the counter first, then wait in a teeny tiny reception area with a lot of other people until your beeper goes off to let you know that it is your turn to ascend the stairway to heaven:

On being seated, we were presented with a menu with a dizzying array of choices:

We were also presented with a bread basket with some very nice bread:

I made the serious mistake of trying to save my calories for cheesecake, and ordered the SkinnyLicious Hamburger:

It comes deconstructed and you put it together yourself with as much ketchup as takes your fancy:

Unfortunately, it was not very tasty - it rated up there with the Denny's  Fit Fare meal in lack-lustreness.  There wasn't even any salad dressing.  Yeah, I know that it was meant to be "skinny licious", but low calorie doesn't have to mean rabbit food.  I was wistfully eyeing off Tim's normal burger and fries for the whole meal.

I was having some serious food envy in the dessert department too.  I ordered the Mango Key Lime Cheesecake, which I expected to be fresh and zesty:

Instead, it was way too sweet and cloying for my tastes.  On the other hand, Tim's White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake was just devine:

Luckily he did give me a taste.

We travelled back to downtown LA by train, being a quicker and easier option than the bus.

I then took Tim to the LA Central Library:

That might sound weird, but again, it is a fabulous building and well worth a look.  For example, they have an amazing art installation, visible from the atrium at all levels of the library:

And lovely wall murals:

And crazy book-themed statues:

If you are tired and need somewhere to chill for a while, the library is a great place to do it, as it is cool and quiet with chairs to sit on and books to read.

Before departing for the airport, we had dinner at the LA Downtown branch of Border Grill, a Mexican establishment:

Our friendly waitress loved our Aussie accents, and brought us out the ubiquitous corn chips and chilli to start:

I ordered the Tortilla Soup ($10) - roasted tomato chipotle broth with chicken, corn tortillas and panella cheese:

and the Carne Asada Tortillas ($17) - grilled steak, caramelized onions, salsa fresca and guacamole served with rice and black beans:

I also ordered a final margarita (the prices were too good to refuse).  We enjoyed the Border Grill - it was a great place to have our beloved Mexican/South Western cuisine before heading back to Australia, our Route 66/US odyssey complete.

Union Station

800 N Alameda St

Los Angeles, CA 90012

United States

The Grove

189 The Grove Dr

Los Angeles, CA 90036

United States

The Cheesecake Factory

189 The Grove Dr

Los Angeles, CA 90036

United States

Ph: +1 323 634 0511

 

Los Angeles Central Library

630 W 5th St

Los Angeles, CA 90071

United States

Ph: +1 213 228 7000

 

Border Grill

Downtown LA

445 S Figueroa St

Los Angeles, CA 90071

United States
Ph: +1 213 486 5171

FFWD - Chanterelles with Napa and Nuts - Sort of

For our final August French Friday with Dorie recipe, we were to make Chanterelles with Napa and Nuts.  Luckily Dorie said any mushrooms were OK, as Chanterelles are not common in this part of the world.  I used white cap mushrooms instead.

However, in the spirit of Cher, I didn't stop there.  I swapped Napa for drumhead cabbage (because it was a quarter of the price), and I swapped hazelnuts for walnuts (because that is what I had).

This was such a delicious, interesting way to serve mushrooms.  It was so easy, and so much more tasty than just frying mushrooms in butter.

To see what the other Doristas thought of this dish, visit the LYL section of the website.

WWDH - Apple Date and Cinnamon Muffins with Maple Oats

My pick for this week's Wednesday with Donna Hay is Apple Date and Cinnamon Muffins with Maple Oats.  Donna's muffin recipes are always winners in my house, so I was happy to make another of her  great muffin recipes.

As with most muffin recipes, this one was easy peasy to make - no stand mixer required.  The hardest part was chopping the dates and peeling and grating the apples.

I didn't have quite enough maple syrup left, so I used some golden syrup to make up the balance.

The resulting muffins were delicious:

 

The Medjool dates added a lovely moist squidginess that contrasted with the coarser texture of the oats.  The grated apple also provided some welcome moisture to these muffins.

 

Verdict - I'd make them again.

 

To see what Margaret, Chaya and Sarah thought, visit their websites.