Barbecue Tales part 8 Surf n Turf

We're eating these steaks (and shrimp) quite a lot.  I am not sure what they are even called...they come in packs of 6 and are thin little guys - good everyday strip steaks I guess.  They are so thin, in fact they take literally 3 minutes to cook.  One could argue the little shrimp take almost longer than them!
But like I said, a good everyday steak. With the remnants of wine left over from the weekend and some broccoli, onions and tomatoes grilled in a little foil parcel, a lovely dinner they make!

Barbecue Tales Part 5 - Steak, shrimp & lobster

Psst.  Who wants a recipe for a pretty perfect Valentine's Day dinner at home?

Take a large plump lobster tail and a large plump filet mignon steak

Admire the beautiful colours the lobster shell turns as it cooks on the grill

Add some large plump shrimp to the barbecue, lightly seasoned with oil and garlic. 

Smather some Kerry gold butter over the lobster meat.

Plate those babies up!

Add some good company and wine.  Enjoy!

Dessert.  Take one tumbler of wine, a tin cup of vodka (yep, that's how I roll*) and one giant Reeses's heart

*Sometimes

Happy Valentine's day and much love to you all. wherever you are in the world, reading this right now.  Mwah!

Christmas with friends

 Last night I was in a friends house for dinner which was fabulous as always.

I made ciaproskas with some little Christmas embellishments - mini candy canes and green straws

Starter of crab and cod fish cakes with salsa and sweet chili sauce.  These were delightful delicately flavoured fish cakes which we all enjoyed very much.

How big are these steaks!!!!

If you are looking for a nice wine this here is your man.  My friend was telling us that a couple of years back he was talking to the shop guy in O'Briens wine and it was recommended to him then, and he buys a bottle whenever it is on special.  It was very nice - even nicer than Malbec which has been my favourite wine for the last few years.

After dinner we played some games of charades and eggheads.  God I am getting old! 

It is New Years Eve tonight and I am going to a neighbours house for food and drinks.  I am looking forward to it, and it is nice not having to think about taxis or travelling.

Marks & Spencer - new dessert menu?

Yesterday afternoon I took a trip to Marks & Spencers to get something nice for Saturday night dinner.  I tend to only shop in Marks & Spencers for weekend treats as it is a little bit outside of my budget for my day to day shopping.  Although, as much as I wish I could afford to shop in Marks everyday, it does make the weekend all the more of a treat when I have something particularly nice.

 

For dinner on Saturday I had rump steak which came with a portion of peppercream sauce and chips.  I cooked my steak rare.

 

Dessert!

 

Starting from the bottom:

Shortbread biscuit layer - crunchy & sugary

Caramel - smooth, creamy & flavourful

Cream - balances the caramel & chocolate

Chocolate - not too dark, not too light: a good strong chocolate hit.

 

So I was going to just get Millionaire's for dessert when I noticed they had a variation on the theme and had a (new?) dessert called Billionaire's dessert!  What sold it for me was the salted caramel.  I adore sweet and salty flavours (case in point - Reeces peanut butte cups!)

 

Below are my photo's of the dessert and what I thought of it. 

 

:-(

Jeez Louise they are not great photos.  I must remember NOT to use my ipad cover as a little photo booth ever again.  I am embarrassed how bad they are compared to the pic above from the M&S website. 

 

Starting from the bottom:

Chocolate crumb: this for me was the weak link of the dessert.  I like the crunch of SUGAR that is in the shortbread biscuit base on Millionaires.  This was the right texture but in my opinion needed a slight bit of sweetness.

Salted Caramel: yes Yes YES!!!! All it promised to be .  Sweet and salty, rich and caramely.

 

Okay so now this is where it gets confusing and I had difficulty (in a good way) separating flavours.

It is advertised as containing the following other layers: burnt caramel, black treacle mousse and chocolate ganache.

I definitely could TASTE these flavours. I just can't tell you which of the above is which!  But that doesn't really matter.  The taste is what counts.

 

So as to the taste:

The burnt caramel - this was an intense caramel flavour; it had an intensity a bit like the intense flavour of a charred well done steak.  It worked! 

Black treacle mousse: when combined with all the caramel and the chocolate it added a divine intensity to this dessert.

 

And finally what Marks call "the bling" on top of the dessert.  I like the way my flash caught the light and has made it even blingier!!!! :-)

 

All in all this dessert for me was a massive success.  I never thought Millionaire's could be beaten but as is the case a Billion really is a lot more than a Million!