Lunch is just around the corner..

Cake display in the Teahouse

My flatmate wanted me to do the Oxfam 100km Trailwalkers walk with her. Teams of four have 30 hours to walk 100km across the South Downs. It sounded like a challenge, slightly intriguing, would be a great accomplishment but also tedious. Walking through the night with the unpredictably of weather that is the UK put a dampener on the walk for me. None the less, we thought we would do a trial walk..not 100km but a more reasonable distance we could manage on a Saturday morning. Where could we walk to?

I believe in reward for effort. Whilst I do love walking, I am more akin to strolls, walks in the park on sunny days, through quaint cafe-lined streets and in and out of shops. If I am going to do a long walk and these do not fit the bill, at the least I would expect a nice lunch at the end.

Petersham Nurseries is a place I had been wanting to try for awhile and served as a perfect destination for our walk. Walk-It mapped it as approximately 19km which sounded long enough to test us a little but not too long that we would collapse in exhaustion and not be able to enjoy lunch. The nursery has a cafe, which is the fancier restaurant, which was awarded a michelin star (Head Chef is Australian Skye Gyngell) alongside a shop selling shabby chic like dining and gardening accessories. The nursery also is home to a cute little teahouse, dirt floors, plants, rustic garden furniture in a conservatory. Just my cup of tea. So, destination sorted.

The walk took us three hours through the beautiful streets of West and South London, fresh pollution and roaring traffic of the Great West Road with wild winds and the light pitter patter of rain on our non water or wind-proof clothing. Are we there yet? However, we hit Chiswick and the scenery changed - runners everywhere enjoying the scenery and the waterfront properties along Chiswick Mall which reminded me of going down the coast from Sydney for a weekend. This wasn't so bad. We were doing good time too, but we hastened our pace for fear the rain would change to more than a pitter or a patter.

Walking down Star and Garter Hill and finally seeing the sign for the nursery was welcoming. It wasn't that we were tired or didn't enjoy the walk - I must admit overall it was a very enjoyable way to start the morning. It was more the fact that with lack of interesting scenery coupled with looming grey clouds, it was good to know that the end was near and attainable. 

The teahouse and nursery itself? We picked up our trays and got our beef stew, vegetable lasagne, chicken salad, cake and coffee from the little rustic teahouse and rested our cold bodies and enjoyed. It was just what we needed...simple, hearty and warming.

As for the 100km walk...let's save that for another rainy day..

Petersham Nurseries
Church Lane
Off Petersham Road
Richmond
Surrey
TW10 7AG

Vegetable Lasagne

Chicken Salad - tasty!

Beef Stew

The Teahouse - no bookings

Carrot and Coconut Cake - a little dry

The 'Cafe' - more formal dining, must book

The shop with beautiful plates

Wish it was Sunday cos that's my fun day...

Pork Belly Roast

Sundays are my lazy day. I like sleeping in and having no plans. Well, at least no plans that require anything too strenuous. Eating is an exception. Dim sum and Sunday roasts. Two things that are synonymous with Sunday's. The meeting of friends over a late and leisurely lunch. Winter calls for roasts, well, the holing up in a cosy space and the consumption of the obvious necessary calories to fuel myself through the cold and harsh wilderness that is London winter. Suddenly I seem to have found a million and one pubs I want to try and suddenly more of them appear to have cracking fireplaces. What seemed so elusive for London has appeared in my past two Sunday pub visits. London never ceases to surprise me.

I finally made it to Highgate Village. It was ever so quaint and as the name suggests, had a villagey feel. The Red Lion & Sun had won some award for one of the best Sunday roasts. Quaint place with fireplace and great beer garden for the summer months. The pork belly roast was nicely cooked with good quality pork and crispy crackling. One of the better ones. The starter dishes of chicken liver parfait and pork cheeks with chorizo, whilst nice, probably wouldn't warrant a second taste. Booking pretty essential.

The Red Lion & Sun
25 North Road
Highgate N6 4BE
0208 340 1780

The Red Lion and Sun - Highgate

Fireplaces - I love

Daily Menu

Chicken Liver Parfait with Cherry and Cranberry Chutney

Braised Pork Cheeks with potato sticks and chorizo

Czech-Mates

Beef Tartar Czech style

Freshly cut beef, pickles, onions, paprika and a quail egg yolk, seasoned, mixed together and slathered on deep fried bread rubbed with fresh garlic. Yum. Something so more-ish about this combination that had me craving it since I first had it in November. It reminds me of a cheeseburger only better - I am sure that is not the most appealing description but I like and crave cheeseburgers! Had a chance to satisfy my craving this weekend along with all the other hearty Czech dishes that are perfect in this frosty weather when visiting some friends who have moved there. Goulash, schnitzel, dumplings, pork and sauerkraut dishes. Food obviously fit for the sub-zero climate that we experienced. Throw in some authentic Vietnamese bun, foie gras, wine, homemade banana muffins, steamboat and a day of freezing and snowbaording on the picturesque Czech mountains makes for a perfect weekend getaway. I think I am also developing a taste for dark beer.

Děkuji T&D!

Deep fried cheese with tartare sauce

A kind of slow cooked pork belly with sauerkraut 

Traditional Goulash with bread dumplings

Pork Neck with potato gratin

Chicken Schnitzel with Pickled Cucumber and potato salad

Bun Mang with Grilled duck

SAPA (Vietnamese area) - Bun Ca - Vermicelli with deep fried carp slices and Cha Ca - Yum!

Pretty Czech mountains

A Perfect Match

Chicken Liver Parfait with Saffron Apple Chutney

Pate, parfait, foie gras - anything laden with fat and cholesterol, and spreadable on baguette, brioche and anything else that is carbohydrate laden and equally as bad for you must taste good. I really believe there is an additive in liver products that make it so addictive. I am sure I am not the only one either. I believe I can exist on a diet of liver products - maybe not for long, but throw in some cured meats, cheeses, bread, pickles and a glass or two of red wine and I am one happy girl. My ideal type of meal is lots of small bites. Preferably served on a wooden board with a slab of something that is artery clogging.

This was my second attempt at chicken liver parfait and it was a better attempt. I added more brandy, perhaps more butter and more herbs and seasoning. I also made a saffron apple chutney to accompany it and the sweet and tangy chutney helped to cut through the richness of the liver. I love that it is Christmas and there are gatherings of people who I can use as guinea pigs.

Packaged up

Chicken Liver Parfait (adapted from Jamie Oliver)

Ingredients (makes about 450g, 4 small jars)
1. 250g block of butter and then some
2. 1 red onion, chopped
3. Olive oil
4. 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
5. 1 small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked
6. 400g chicken liver, preferably organic or free range, trimmed of sinew or any green bits
7. Sea salt and black pepper
8. 1 medium glass of brandy

Method
1. Make the clarified butter, using about half the block of butter. Put the butter on low heat and let it melt away for about 20 minutes. The clear oil will separate from the white part (whey). Skim the clear stuff off the top and put in a separate saucepan.
2. Meanwhile, heat a lug of oil in a large pan and when hot, add the onion, garlic and thyme leaves. Fry fast for about 4 minutes, tossing occasionally, until soft and starting to colour. Add a splash more oil, your chicken livers and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook on a high heat for 4-5 minutes. (Some recipes say don't overcook and keep the livers pink in the middle but I am abit paranoid so I cooked it through and it was still pretty smooth).
3. Add your brandy to the pan of livers, and let it cook off. You can flame it if you want – this way you can see the alcohol cooking off. I tasted it at this point and I could still taste the brandy but as soon as I blitzed it, this taste was gone so don't worry if you think you have put too much brandy!
4. Tip everything into a food processor with all the juices, and blitz until smooth. The smell changes straight away. Have a taste, and season to a degree where you’re happy, then add a little more as the seasoning goes down when it gets cold, which is how you’ll serve it. 
5. Dice up your remaining pack of butter, and add it piece by piece, with the food processor still running. Wait for each piece to be combined before adding more. Keep whizzing when it’s all in, and you’ll see it start to shine. Taste again and season if necessary, then whiz for 2 or 3 minutes. 
6. You can serve in ramekins or whatever you like. Push the parfait through a fine sieve and then into your serving dishes.
7. Put a piece of greaseproof paper over the parfait and put it into the fridge until set. 8. Once set, if not eating straight away, pour over a layer of clarified butter which acts as a seal. Keeps in the fridge for a week or so.

Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled, with fresh crusty bread, some chutney and dessert wine if so desired.

The apples simmering away

Apple, Saffron and Ginger Chutney

Quick Apple and Saffron Chutney (adapted from Gordon Ramsay)

Ingredients (makes about 350g)

1. Olive oil

2. Thumb size piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped

3. Large pinch of saffron strands

4. 3 shallots, finely chopped

5. 150g caster sugar (then add more to taste)

6. 7.5 tbsp cider vinegar or white balsamic vinegar (I used cider vinegar)

7. 3 eating apples, peeled, cored and chopped

Method

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the shallots, ginger and a good pinch of sea salt, then fry for 3 mins. Crumble in the saffron, sprinkle in the sugar and carry on cooking for few mins until the sugar melts and starts to caramelise, stirring all the time.

2. Tip in the vinegar and apples, the recipe says cook for 5 minutes until the apples are just softened and coated in a syrupy sauce. I found I cooked it for quite abit longer, as the mixture was still quite liquid. I added more sugar at this point also to help it thicken and caramelise. You don't want the apples to become mush so keep an eye on them. Cool and serve. It tastes quite gingery when I tasted the chutney warm, but the flavour was not as strong once chilled.

Can be spooned into an airtight container and kept in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.