Chilli and Lime Pepitas - Ole!

I first tried this delicious snack at Elk and Pea in Braddon - served warm in a bowl as an entree/appetiser, they went perfectly with drinks and were very moreish!

I got quite excited at the idea of making my own and kept thinking of what an excellent accompaniment they were to a cold beer or chilled glass of wine - great for serving at a party or gathering.  So of course I went on a mission to find a recipe and experiment!

Searching the internet, I found many different versions.  They seem to have Spanish origins, though how authentic the recipes were that I found, I can't be sure.  My first attempt was just 'okay' - I followed fairly carefully a recipe that sounded pretty good, but just didn't deliver quite enough tangy, punchy flavour.

For my next try, I played around with amounts of ingredients and added a small amount of smoked paprika and sugar which really added an extra element that the seeds needed.

Easy, tasty and healthy - what more could you want from a snack?

Ingredients:

300g raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp chilli powder (or more if you like it HOT!)
1 tbsp light oil (I used light olive, but any light flavoured seed oil would also work)
Juice of 1 lime

Method:

Preheat an oven to 190 degrees celsius (175 for fan forced).

Place pepitas in a medium bowl.  Combine salt, sugar and spices in a separate small bowl.

Add spiced salt mix to pepitas along with oil and lime juice and stir well so that seeds are evenly coated with flavourings.  At this point, the seeds will seem a little wet with the juice but don't worry, moisture will evaporate during cooking.

Pour pepitas into a large metal oven tray (I used a rectangular slice tin but any tray or tin that allows for an even and not too thick layer of seeds will do)

Place in oven and bake for approximately 30 minutes, or until moisture has evaporated and seeds are browned and crispy.  Give the seeds a stir about halfway through cooking to allow even browning.  It's also good to check them pretty regularly after the 20 minute mark as they can quickly turn from nicely browned to burnt at this stage!

After cooking, they should look something like this:

And will smell amazing and taste even better :)

Allow to cool completely and store in an airtight container if making ahead.  They really taste best while still warm though!

The Cats That Got the Cream

For a growing city, Canberra's centre has surprisingly few decent weekend-opening cafes, it seems.  I was on the search after arranging with my friend Bec to meet up for lunch on the weekend.  Keen to be amongst the slightly more buzzy atmosphere of the city, and close to some good shops, I searched the internet fairly thoroughly for a place for us to relax and enjoy a quality meal.

I was also keen to find a place that offered a good selection of gluten free and vegetarian options, given both of us eat gluten-free and Bec is also vego.  My search turned up some of the old standards such as Gus' cafe, but nothing that really appealed, until I came across the link for Cream, in the 'North Quarter' section of Canberra Centre.  I know that Cream has been around for a few years now, but I had actually never ventured in for anything besides dessert or a quick coffee (or in my case, soy hot chocolate or tea!).  I was quite impressed with the variety and number of options on the menu once I checked it out online.

A booking was made for 1pm on a Saturday, and we were set.  As usual I was running a few minutes late on the day, but once seated, we didn't have to wait long for a waitress to come and take our drinks order.  The service here is quite efficient without being particularly friendly, but I was happy enough to just be able to catch a waiter/waitress when needed!  We started with a mocha (made with real chocolate - yum!) for Bec and a berry frappe for me:

The berry frappe was very refreshing, just the right amount of sweetness, and being made with raspberry sorbet and cranberry juice, also very FODMAP-friendly.  This is often difficult to find in frappes and smoothies made at cafes due to the prolific use of apple juice, so I was super happy!  On the subject of food intolerances, Cream are very accommodating of food intolerances - their website states that they 'aim to create a benchmark in this area' and that they have actually created a training booklet to educate their staff.  I noticed that when we ordered items without gluten or in my case, onion, they asked if it was just a preference or if we required items to be completely free of the product due to allergy or intolerance.  I really appreciated the awareness and extra care taken - it's so nice to be able to be specific in ordering requests without feeling like a difficult or picky customer!

Following on with the prompt service, we didn't have to wait too long before our food orders were taken.  I couldn't go past the Roast Vegetable Salad, which was packed full of beautiful colours, flavours and textures and combined sweet roasted root veggies with quinoa, walnuts, and best of all, crumbed goats cheese balls:

Really, it was those balls of melting crumbed cheesiness that did it for me - taking this dish from pretty good to blissful.  Here's the food porn shot of them:

Meanwhile, Bec enjoyed her dish of potato and feta rosti, sans the smoked salmon listed on the menu:

Served with rocket, slivers of cucumber and dill yoghurt, this was simply but beautifully cooked and presented.  The rosti were deliciously crispy, and paired well with the peppery rocket and tangy, creamy yoghurt.

We also visited the following weekend, for some pre-shopping spree sustenance, and were similarly satisfied with our choices - opting for items from the brunch/breakfast menu, which runs until 2.30pm on weekends, I had a vegetarian omelette with a filling of baby spinach, feta and olives on gluten free toast and Bec chose the corn fritters with spinach, peppers, avocado and egg.  Apologies that there is no photo of the fritters - I messed it up with my finger partially over the lens, and didn't notice until afterwards (I must have been too excited about the food!)

And to finish off...hot chocolates and mochas again made with real chocolate...so good!  It made me laugh to see that in addition to dark, milk, white and top deck varieties they also offer a 'chocolate overdose' hot chocolate.  I wasn't game to even ask what that involved!

Most of the light lunch and breakfast/brunch options at Cream range between the $15-$20 price bracket, which is actually quite good value considering the quality - these dishes are substantial and satisfying and made with great care and top ingredients.  The interior of the cafe is lovely too, with ample natural light from walls of windows, and fittings and tables that are both stylish and comfortable.  Cream also offer dinner and bar options from Monday to Saturday.

Highly recommended as an ideal destination for weekend eats, Cream gets the thumbs up from me!

Cream Cafe and Bar
Shop FG10, Canberra Centre (entrance from outside, street level)
Bunda Street, Canberra City
(02) 6162 1448

Smoque Restaurant, Canberra

Despite quite a few new restaurants having opened up in the last year in Canberra, some of which have gotten good reviews, I hadn't actually eaten out much in my home town for a good while - some takeaways were had from the local 'standards' - but not any proper restaurant meals that I could think of apart from a meal for a family member's birthday in November, which turned out to be a little disappointing (the meal, not the birthday!)

In the meantime a little group of family and friends had formed that shared a common love of good quality food and relatively adventurous palates.  I decided it was time to break out and come together for a meal out somewhere new!

Landing on a review of Smoque, an American-style BBQ restaurant located in the city area (where Antigo's used to be, a favourite in my post-high school years), I conferred with the others and made a booking for this place which promised hearty, tasty, casual eating of a different sort to that previously offered in Canberra.

Thankfully we had the minimum of six people required to secure a table - Smoque don't allow bookings for group numbers less than six - though they claim this doesn't cause too many problems for smaller groups, due to short sitting times (we booked for 6-7.30pm) and quick food service.  And there's always the bar for some relaxed drinks while waiting...

Turning up at 6pm on the dot, it was a little frustrating to find that our table wasn't quite ready - after the waitress wandered round for a few minutes figuring out which table would be ours, a group of blokes looking to be still fairly settled into their substantial meal were told that they would need to finish up in the next few minutes.  And so they did in a good-natured way, vacating quickly for us.

The decor was fun and casual, with a reminder of some of the critters that might be had in an alternative sort of BBQ (no beasts with these sorts of horns offered on the restaurant menu though!):

It didn't take us all very long to decide what we wanted, with 3 of us deciding to share the BBQ Trifecta platter (pulled pork, pork ribs, brisket) plus some extra sides of corn, chips and a serve of buffalo wings.

The other 3 ordered separate dishes and had tastes of each, with various combinations of meats, buffalo wings, chips, coleslaw and corn ordered, plus an Original 'sandwich' (actually more like a burger) with pulled pork.

As food is pre-prepared before each sitting, it comes out very quickly - usually within 10 minutes of ordering.  Just enough time to order drinks:

Mmmm...refreshing Pimm's jug!

And to check out the assortment of sauces on the table:

You may notice the roll of paper towel next to the sauce bottle - this came in very handy when the food arrived:

Yep, that's a whole lotta meat there!  I started with a piece of brisket (long strips shown in photograph) which was okay - tasty but on the dry side.  The pulled pork was shreds of slow cooked pork marinated with a tasty BBQ sauce - again, a little dry.  The real stars of the show were the succulent ribs - meat falling off the bone with enough fat to keep things moist, and slathered with a moreish sweet marinade - and the buffalo wings - chicken coated in Southern style batter then fried until crispy.  They had a delicious tang which may have come from buttermilk (common in southern fried chicken) and the meat was super tender and moist.  There was a ranch dressing on the side which wasn't necessary to add flavour, but came in handy for dipping one of the few concessions to healthy eating - carrot and celery sticks.  The sides were perfect and moreish - including corn with a mayo and cheese dressing, and crunchy seasoned potato chips.  As you can tell, any expectations of calorie-counting should be left at the door here!

We ordered the mildest heat 'setting' for the buffalo wings, but apparently they go to 'suicidal' strength, which by all reports of those who have eaten here before, are just that!

I didn't try any of the sandwich, but was informed that it was tasty if a little difficult to eat, being filled to overflowing.

Vegetarians reading this post may be losing interest by now if they have stuck with the review this long...but never fear, Smoque actually do quite a decent representation of vego dishes on the menu, surprisingly.  With a BBQ vegetable plate including haloumi, and several gourmet salads with premium ingredients such as gorgonzola, quinoa and edamame included, the non-meat side of things is definitely not neglected.

This is definitely not a place to linger, as we were promptly (but politely) asked to finish things up right on the dot of 7.30pm.  That was okay - it's not really the sort of place you go to dawdle over conversation, wine and cheese platters - more a fun, quick and cheerful place for a bite to eat before moving on to one of the city cafes to continue the evening (or afternoon if it's not a workday lunch!)

The prices seemed fairly reasonable, given the quality of the ingredients.  My share of the food (including a shared jug of Pimm's) came to around $30 - and I left feeling quite satisfied.  If you wanted a cheapish lunch or lighter (light being a relative term) dinner, you could order a few sides such as mac and cheese, a serve of corn and coleslaw, and still come away with change from $15 if you order the smaller sizes.

Will be back for sure to Smoque - if only for some more of those ribs and buffalo wings!

Smoque Restaurant

Shop 2, Bailey's Arcade (entrance from outside the arcade)

131 London Circuit

Canberra City

(02) 6162 3350

info@smoque.com.au