The Kiln, Ranelagh, Tasmania

The Kiln eatery offers a unique breakfast and lunch dining experience. Housed in a converted barn dating back to 1862, with the addition of the oast house or hop kiln tower that was built in 1911. The restaurant is super charming, great historic ambiance with a modern architectural twist. Located in Ranelagh, in Tasmania's stunning Huon Valley, and just a 3 minute drive from Huonville.  

Pistachio crust and oven roasted pumpkin, tahini custard 
and pomegranate. 

Great dish, after chatting with the chef the Jap pumpkin was roasted but not caramelised, the tahini was loosened with apple juice and then you can add some honey or maple syrup for sweetness to cut through the bitterness of the tahini.

They used honey and to me it was just a bit too sweet a style of honey or to much, so maybe try the maple syrup.

8 hour Cuban pork Mojo Marinade, Pulled Pork, Crackle Crumb

and pickled red onion. Never heard of Mojo so googled to find out - This signature marinade of Cuba, pronounced "MO HO", is just a mix of some citrus juice, fresh onion and garlic with some herbs and olive oil. This is one marinade that you will find in every Cuban household, though you will likely find each family has their own little variation. For example, some use olive oil, some don't depending on how fatty the meat is.

To finish we enjoyed the Apple Tarte Tatin

 

To go with desert we sipped a cheeky little Eau de Coing which is a French quince liqueur that was just like drinking quince paste! 

All great dishes at this eatery, the food outstanding! the ambiance welcoming yet stimulating and great staff all added to a really good dining experience.

Osteria @ Petty Sessions - Franklin - Tasmania

Such a peaceful spot overlooking the Huon River 

Salumi di Casa. (Cured meats from home)

The word Salumi in Italian is referring to all cured meats

Today it was served with pickled radish, pears and focaccia, the taste of the meats took me straight back to Italy.

Totani del Griglia -  ( Calamari Grilled ) 

Which read on the menu as -  Sitting on a Jerusalem artichokes and nduja veloute with a drizzle of olietto. On further investigation (Nduja is a spicy, spreadable pork sausage from the region of Calabria in Southern Italy.) ( Olietto was described to us as an oil infusion with garlic and herbs ) ( re the veloute, to me I just thought it was a puree ''a very good one" but not being a chef myself a did ask Mr Google!  so a sauce made from a roux of butter and flour with chicken, veal or pork stock.  So maybe its a case of a wrong name description on the menu or a mix of cooking styles, but at the end of the day would I order that dish again and that would be a very BIG yes.

I just loved this grilled calamari dish, the puree! was rich, earthy and had a great depth of flavour, truly delicious.

 

Salami Making

Great day was had making salami in Cygnet Tasmania

 

Cotolette - Hamburgers

Another of the scrummy dishes from the cooking class, these hamburger were from the leanest beef mince I have ever seen.

1 kg lean mince, garlic, 1 cup fresh bread crumbs (only good quality homemade bread, not commercial), 1 cup grated pecorino cheese,
     1 egg, 1/4 cup chopped parsley or mint, drizzle of olive oil 

with some salt and ground chilli.

Once all is mixed in a bowl you then make into hamburgers, for a leaner still mix add more bread crumbs.

Interesting Italian cooking method from our teacher was to put some onion, garlic, mushroom, herbs, salt and ground chilli with olive oil in a cold fry pan, cook from a cold start, put the hamburgers on top of the vegetable mix.

As the vegetable mix starts to cook, move the hamburgers under the mix, turning the hamburgers as cooked, by do it this way you don't overcook the garlic and onion, to finish add some marsala.

Peperoni Ripieni - Stuffed Capsicum

Using the same mince mix stuff vegies

Cook in the oven till the vegetables are soft and meat cooked.
Add some grated pecorino at the end of the cook and brown.

    The super productive vegetable patch at the cooking school.

Pollo Arrostito - Roast Chicken

Roast chicken Italian style with loads of vegies.

Chicken pieces, onion, garlic, celery & parsley leaves, carrots, pumpkin, potato, mushrooms, brussel spouts, can tomatoes with a bit of water, olive oil, sage or rosemary, salt & chilli.

Cook in a preheated 200 degrees oven for about 1 hour stirring a couple of times, sprinkle with pecorino cheese and serve.

Porchetta

Sandy and I attended our first cooking class since Covid started just over the hill from our beautiful Port Cygnet House, southern Tasmania. The menu was based around the Puglia region, southern Italy where we have been so lucky to have spent so many a day cooking and today we were transported back to southern Italy with the mouth watering aromas of roasting meats wafting in the air of this delightful country kitchen.

It was a great intense class full of information and Italian tips with several hearty winter dishes to make then sit in the elegant dining room and enjoy with a glass of wine and like minded cooks with great conversation.

Looking out the window as I tend to do at cooking classes taking in all that surrounds me was a real treat, 7 degrees this morning with a top of 10, so a wintery Tasmanian day for sure.

Our 1st dish is Porchetta, roasted pork belly roll, what moreish and scrummy Italian comfort food.

 Butterflied pork belly, score the rind and rub with chilli powder and coarse salt.

  Flip is over and coat the meat side with mustard, garlic, spring onions, grated pecorino cheese and herbs like thyme, sage, (soft leaves only). 

It is then tightly rolled, tied to secure and put in a lidded oven dish with white wine, olive oil, onion slices, and the stalks from the herbs and 2 dried bay leaves (bay leaves are too bitter if fresh!).

Into a preheated oven at 250 degs for 30 mins then reduce the heat to 160 degs and cook for a further 2 1/2 hours. Add some Dutch Cream potatoes (nice and buttery) to the sides of the dish approx. 1 hour before the end of the cook. 

Today's flavour was superb and it did transport us back to Italy! 

But, today we thought the Porchetta was too wet, our memories from Italy were a dry roasted pork roll with more cracking, today they also put mushrooms in the oven dish adding to the amount of liquid and as it all sat in the bottom of a low lidded oven dish it crackled on the top but stewed on the sides. 

Our solution would be to .... - the mushrooms put the pork roll on larger whole carrots and onions in a bigger taller lidded oven dish and uncover for the last bit of time to crackle and roast a bit more, (being carful not to dry out the meat) and cook for a couple more hours it was rushed today in a short cook and over crowded pan.

So it looks like we will need to have a practise at home.

The potatoes were just soooo buttery and yummy which I thought was just perfectly braised in the liquid and not brown roasted.

 So for a more roasted potato I think you could pull them out and finish them on a baking tray, personal choose.