food

Ahh the Candyman Store. I could spend hours (and money) in this charming little lolly shop. Here you will find the most unique local and foreign confectionery from America, France, Germany, Italy, the UK and beyond.

My favourites would have to be Bassets pear drops and Parma Violets because they bring back so many memories of my childhood. They've opened a little coffee shop upstairs too, so if you haven't yet been, you're missing out!

428 Mt Eden Road. www.thecandyman.co.nz


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I have a list of about 10 food blogs that I visit on a daily basis and I just added this one to it - Cupcakes and Cashmere ( www.cupcakesandcashmere.com ). It's not strictly about food, which I quite like. It combines fashion, beauty and travel as well as having some really great recipes to look at.


           I think these popovers with strawberry butter look particularly interesting.

                                    As does this toasted marshmallow shake!

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Amy Moss of Eat Drink Chic, was approached by Sydney based The Cool Hunter to style some photos to McD's for an upmarket pop-up restaurant for Australian Fashion Week. Transforming the fast food giant into a 5 star restaurant.

Introducing McFancy...

source: eatdrinkchic.com

On the topic of high tea and scones, here's an amazing recipe for scones with a twist - whole wheat and raspberry ricotta scones. I'm yet to try it out, but definitely think these babies would be worth a go. 


                                   Whole Wheat Raspberry Ricotta Scones

The trickiest thing about these is the dampness of the dough. Yet that same trickiness is they bake into something that seems impossibly moist for a scone, and especially a whole wheat one. Keep your counter and your hands well floured and you won’t have any trouble getting them from bowl to counter to oven to belly, which, after all, is the whole point.

1 cup (120 grams) whole wheat flour
1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder, preferably aluminum-free
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
1 cup (136 grams or 4 3/4 ounces) fresh raspberries
3/4 cup (189 grams) whole milk ricotta
1/3 cup (79 ml) heavy cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In the bottom of a large, wide-ish bowl, whisk flours, baking powder, sugar and salt together.
 
With a pastry blender: Add the butter (no need to chop it first) and use the blender to both cut the butter into the flour mixture until the biggest pieces are the size of small peas. Toss in raspberries and use the blender again to break them into halves and quarter berry sized chunks.

Without a pastry blender: Cut the butter into small pieces with a knife and work the butter into the flour mixture with your fingertips until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Roughly chop the raspberries on a cutting board and stir them into the butter-flour mixture.

Both methods: Add the ricotta and heavy cream together and stir them in to form a dough with a flexible spatula.Using your hands, gently knead dough into an even mass, right in the bottom of the bowl. Don’t fret if the raspberries get muddled and smudge up the dough. This is a pretty thing.

With as few movements as possible, transfer the dough to a well-floured counter, flour the top of the dough and pat it into a 7-inch square about 1-inch tall. With a large knife, divide the dough into 9 even squares. Transfer the scones to prepared baking sheet with a spatula. Bake the scones for about 15 minutes, until lightly golden at the edges. Cool in pan for a minute, then transfer to a cooling rack. It’s best to cool them about halfway before eating them, so they can set a bit more. I know, way to be a big meanie, right?

Do ahead: Scones are always best the day they are baked. However, if you wish to get a lead on them, you can make them, arrange them on your parchment-lined sheet and freeze them. If you’re prepping just one day in advance, cover the tray with plastic wrap and bake them the day you need them. If you’re preparing them more than one day in advance, once they are frozen, transfer them to a freezer bag or container. Bring them back to a parchment-lined sheet when you’re ready to bake them. No need to defrost the froze, unbaked scones, just add 2 to 3 minutes to your baking time. 


                                                source: Smitten Kitchen

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