Lazy fish tacos

11-01-2018 Local Black Bookeasy, fish, recipe, tacos2 Comments

When they find out how obsessed I am with all things food, some people assume I spend the vast majority of my time in my kitchen, cooking up a strom and making everything from scratch.

People who do know me know that’s not quite the case and I’m actually the laziest of cooks.

The kind that finds cheat’s tricks to whip up something delicious in no time and with minimal effort so she can maximise her Netflix marathon session time.

And these lazy fish tacos fit the lazy bill just right.

Rich, zingy, fresh, ‘Mehicoooo’ flavours, ready to be wrapped into soft, warm corn taco wraps in next-to-no time.

What makes them so easy, you ask?

Two words: Fish. Fingers.

The perfect recipe for when it feels like a long week but it’s only Monday afternoon.

Or Netflix finally releases Friends and you have great weekend plans to re-re-re-binge it all…

Taco’bout a winner dinner recipe!

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Classic Tuna Tartare

04-07-2017 Local Black Bookeasy, fish, healthy, party food, recipe, starter, tartare, tuna2 Comments

Very few people make tartare -tuna or otherwise- at home, intimidated by the idea of it.

What exactly is intimidating, I’m not entirely sure, as tuna tartare is one of the easiest recipes ever to make at home!

It’s actually one of those super high effort-to-reward recipes. It looks fancy (perfect as a snack for any dinner party or date night) and yet, it’s absolutely foolproof.

It requires almost no cooking skills or equipment.

The real key to an amazing tuna tartare: use super fresh fish!

So skip the supermarket, ask your fishmonger for ‘sushi grade’ tuna for optimum results and you’re all set. Then it’s all down to a bit of manual labour.

But it needn’t be a chore – think of it as a new, improved version of your usual Nexflix-and-chill. One where you get dinner at the end of it!

Addictive shows + delicious, super easy tuna tartare? You’ll be hooked in no time!

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Miso ramen with prawns and scallops

20-01-2017 Local Black Bookfish, Japanese, miso, miso ramen, noodle soup, prawn, ramen, ramen noodle soup, ramen noodles, recipe, scallop2 Comments

I’ve been on a bit of an Asian food roll lately. Sushi roll, of course, but not only.

On Monday, it was sushi, on Tuesday, miso salmon, on Wednesday, Korean pork stir fry (somewhat inspired by this recipe).

Then on Thursday, I somehow made it to the fishmonger before it closed and picked up prawns & scallops to try out this winner of a stri fry.

The scallops were so fresh and beautiful that I got a few extra to make myself an extra-indulgent lunch on Friday.

And extra-indulgent these miso ramen with prawns and scallops were indeed!

A treat that’s good for you, mind. Warm, comforting, filling, it’s packed full of protein, vitamins, minerals and all sorts of good stuff to boost your metabolism. And absolutely none of the nasties (no gluten, no dairy, no nothing!).

This easy miso ramen soup keeps for a few days, so you could easily make a batch for the week ahead and be ready to scoop, spoon ‘n’ slurp to your hearts content with a smug smile on your face come lunchtime!

Warm, comforting and utterly delicious… it really is souper!

Miso ramen with prawns and scallops (for 2 servings)

Ingredients:

1 bundle of ramen rice noodles (I used funky black rice ones from Clearspring)
2 small pak choi, leaves removed and heart cut in quarters
4 uncooked prawns, peeled
6 scallops, each sliced in half to make 12 discs
1 tbsp sesame oil
a small pinch chilli flakes
1 clove garlic, finely sliced
about 10g fresh ginger, cut into matchsticks
light soy sauce to taste (I used about 1 tbsp)
salt, pepper
1 large egg
a couple of pinches of black sesame seeds
1 small spring onion, finely sliced
2 sheets of nori seaweed, finely shredded (I used those and if you haven’t tried them yet you MUST!!)
2 single packs of instant miso soup (I like this one)

1. Cook your noodles according to the package. When they’re done, share in two equal portions and pop into the bottom of your bowls/lunchboxes and leave to cool.

2. Blanch the pak choi for about a minute in a pot of boiling water. Transfer into your bowls.

3. Season your scallops with salt and pepper. Heat the sesame oil in a frying pan or a wok until it starts smoking, then throw in the garlic and ginger and cook for one minute or until soft.

4. Add in the prawns and scallops and fry for another minute or until your start getting colour on the edges of the scallops, then turn the seafood over.

5. Add about 1 tbsp of light soy sauce and allow to cook for a minute, then remove from the heat and pile into your bowls.

6. Boil a small pan of water, then cook your egg until soft-boiled (about 6 minutes, less if you’re using smaller eggs). Remove from the heat, allow to cool in some cold water before peeling, slicing lengthwise and popping half on top of each of your bowls.

7. Sprinkle each bowl with a generous pinch of sliced spring onion, then top with some shredded nori seaweed and a little bit of black sesame seeds.

8. If you’re making this ahead of time, seal your boxes up and store in the fridge.

9. When you’re ready to chow, boil the kettle and prep your instant miso soup according to package instructions. Pop your boxes open, pour the miso on top and leave things to re-heat for a minute. Mix it up and tuck in!

Ahi Poke, Fitzrovia

12-01-2017 Local Black BookAhi Poke, Charlotte Street, fish, London, lunch, poke, poke bowl, recommendations, Restaurant2 Comments

With both of my siblings visiting back-to-back, this week is o-fish-ally the busiest ones this year.

Admittedly, it’s only the beginning of January, but I doubt it’s going to get worse than that any time soon.

The good thing about my brother & sister though is that when I offer to go here or there for lunch/dinner/drinks, they always say ‘poke-doke’!

Which is how we ended up at Ahi Poke the other day.

Located at the heart of bustling Fitzrovia, with colourful exteriors, bright planted filled with equally bright flowers and walls enhanced with surfboards, Ahi Poke is about as close as you’ll get to a visit to Hawaii at lunchtime.

Ahi Poke, London

The small but perfectly formed restaurant surfs on the one-item-menu trend and dishes up the most delicious bowls of poke a.k.a. the ultimate Hawaiian staple.

A tumble of sticky sushi rice, raw fish, crunchy vegetables, punchy sauces… It’s sort of like a burrito bowl, but with a sushi twist, which makes it both a comfort food and a healthy meal.

Part of the fun is to mix and match ingredients to make your perfect DIY poke bowl. Which is just what we did.

Half-and-half (rice & kale salad) with leche de tigre salmon with carrot, radish, red onion and crispy shallots.

If you’re lacking the time/energy to DIY, you can pick from a handful of the team’s fave pairings.

Including the Heat Wave poke bowl (quinoa, salmon, avocado, kimchi cucumber, red onion, coriander, chipotle mayo).

Very Venice Beach and very, very good indeed!

If you’re hungry in Fitzrovia, Ahi Poke is soy the place to go!

Delicious, healthy & cheap as (kale) chips, it’s the kind of lunch that’ll for sure be maki‘ng you very happy!

Ahi Poke, 3 Percy St, Fitzrovia, London W1T 1DF

Fiskebaren, Copenhagen

14-09-2016 Local Black Bookcopenhagen, Denmark, fish, fiskebaren, Kødbyens Fiskebar, recommendation, Restaurant, review, travel, visit copenhagen, where to eat in CopenhagenLeave a comment

Much like New York’s, Copenhagen’s Meatpacking District (in Vesterbro) is one of the city’s hip-est areas and very much the place to be from dinner time onwards…

The area used to be home to Copenhagen’s meat industry businesses and still consists of three separate areas, referred to as the White, Grey and Brown “Meat City” for the dominant colour of their buildings.

In recent years, it has changed into a new creative cluster with a trendy nightlife and a broad range of high quality restaurants.

Amongst them, Fiskebaren, an casual fish-focused restaurant nestled within the market building itself.

With an informal atmosphere and quite rough interior with loads of second-hand décor elements, Fiskebaren is a modern-day ode to the meat halls of the past, but with much more refined food, the restaurant having a Bib Gourmand in Guide Michelin Nordic Cities 2015.

Whether you come in for just a few nibbles and a glass of wine or want to treat yourself to the full experience, there’s something for everyone on the seasonal & ingredient-led menu, with a strong focus on fish & seafood.

We started with the Char tartare, rye emulsion, capers, dill and burnt onion.

With tender, blushing fish, fresh dill cream, toast-y rye emulsion, sweet roasted & tangy pickled onions, it was a subtle Nordic twist on the traditional salmon tartar.

Fiskebaren, Copenhagen | Cake + Whisky

And what a beauty!

Savoy cabbage, new Danish onions, potato foam, horseradish & chives.

An absolute textural masterpiece and my favourite dish, both that night and of our entire trip.

Mullet, baby corn, chanterelles and chicken skin.

Perfectly cooked, crispy-skin fish, creamy corn & crispy chicken skin, all brought together by a rich, meaty chicken sauce, will always be a winner in my book!

Blackberry, flaxseed macarons, fennel tops and white chocolate.

Another of those herbal-inspired creative desserts Danish restaurants excell at (even if this specific one wasn’t quite as good as Geist‘s…).

Last but not least, Chocolate, cherry, hazelnut, cep ice cream.

Quite a divisive one: I loved the ice cream, the Mr. hated it…

What about you? Do you think there’d be mushroom in your heart for it?

Only one way to find out… Book a table here!

Kødbyens Fiskebar, Flæsketorvet 100, 1711 København

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Copenhagen best Smørrebrød at Aamanns

10-09-2016 Local Black BookAamanns, café, copenhagen, Copenhagen best Smørrebrød, Denmark, fish, lunch, open sandwich, open-faced sandwich, recommendation, Restaurant, review, sandwich, Smørrebrød, travel, where to eat in CopenhagenLeave a comment

On our second day in Denmark, we had our hearts set on trying out the traditional Danish open-faced sandwiches, so we scouted the city in search of Copenhagen best Smørrebrød.

Word on the street is that they’re to be found at Aamanns, a modern Danish open sandwich deli and restaurant.

So off to the western-most part of Copenhagen we trotted… to discover one of the prettiest restaurants I’ve ever set foot in!

Miles away from your usual British ‘deli’, simply decorated yet refined and elegant, Aamanns is a textbook example of brilliant Nordic design.

The natural, no-nonsense decor mirrors the restaurant’s philosophy of good, simple Danish cuisine perfectly.

If at night, the menu is more elaborate, at lunchtime, Aamanns is all about Smørrebrød, the traditional open sandwich on rye bread.

Starting things off the traditional way with Fried herring with smoke, elderflower vinegar, smoked cheese, radishes and hay ash.

A modern take on the classic, this first taste of Smørrebrød highlighted Aamanns’ beautiful, malty sourdough rye bread perfectly.

Cold smoked salmon and summer salad with dill, pickled cucumber, chives and wheat croutons was a more usual combination for our non-Nordic palates.

A bit of a Nordic take on a lox & cream cheese bagel if you will, only far lighter and much more delicate than the New York original!

New potatoes with pepper mayonnaise, weeds, chives, leek ash and crisps.

With soft potatoes, crumbly rye bread, creamy mayo, crunchy pickled onion & crispy fried potato bits, the easy-to-overlook vegetarian option was an textural masterpiece, and also a very strong choice taste-wise (if you like celery, that is…).

Last but not least, a much less vegetarian-friendly option: Beef Tartare with blackberries, tarragon emulsion, shallots and rye crumb.

A little bit of a Franco-Nordic fusion, and a very successful one at that! And what a beauty!

The same could be sayed about dessert, a Strawberry eclair with vanilla cream and strawberry granita.

The chou itself was okay, but the vibrant granite and the light-as-air vanilla cream were what truly made the dish.

Copenhagen best Smørrebrød at Aamanns | Cake + Whisky

… and made me struggle not to lick the plate clean!

All finished off the Danish way with a few cups of excellent strong black coffee.

All in all, muck to loaf at Aamans, which explains its popularity with locals and visitors alike, so make sure you book ahead as it’d really be a shame for you to miss out on the best (Copenhagen) thing since sliced bread!

Aamanns, Øster Farimagsgade 10, 2100 København

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Lima London

15-02-2016 Local Black Bookceviche, fish, Fitzrovia, Googe Street, Lima, Michelin, Peru, Peruvian, pisco, pisco sour, recommendation, Restaurant, review1 Comment

Peruvian food has been booming in London over the past couple of years, bringing vibrant flavours and creative dishes to the world’s top restaurant scene.

And at the head of that Andean revolution was Lima, a small smart-but-not-stuffy Fitzrovia restaurant, whose excellent work has since been rewarded with a Michelin star.

The restaurant itself, with its scandi-meets-South-America design and its very casual vibe is an absolute gem.

Lima London | Cake + Whisky

Industrial lamps, comfy olive green seats, beautiful pink orchids, wall-long art pieces and a stunning glass ceiling… Lima is basically a Pinterest-worthy masterpiece.

Lima London | Cake + Whisky

But then so are the cocktails (the proof is in the blogger! ?)…

Cuento del Diablo (Aji Chilli Infused Pisco. Triple Sec. Strawberry. Lime. Grenadine). A devil-ishly good little number!

The Maracuya and Rosa chilicanos.

All in all the perfect fuel for a much needed catch -up!

Together with this beautiful butterfish pre-appetizer.

So pretty we almost didn’t eat it (much like the rest of the menu to be honest)!

I’m never going to say no to free bread (hellooooo, I’m French, carbs are basically in my DNA!), and the chilli and mustard seed selection was just as colourful and flavourful as I’d hoped it would be.

The Seabass ceviche is a classic of Peruvian cuisine and an absolute must-order at Lima.

Delicate chunks of sea bass, with avocado, vibrant yellow tiger’s milk and crunchy cancha corn.

Stunning scallop causa (with yellow potato, achiote and aji limo).

And the most beautiful of them all: Artichoke Amazonia (red potato, avocado, passion fruit, achiote and pea shoots).

So pretty in fact that we weren’t sure whether to eat it or hang it on the walls (good things Binny was stronger than me on that one!)

Lima London | Cake + Whisky

One of my favourite was this simple, yet elegant dish of braised octopus.

Lima London | Cake + Whisky

Served with purple corn crisps and droplets of excellent olive oil.

Brought together by a few dollops of a really punchy, olive-based purple dressing.

Creative and comforting all at once, it’s one of Lima’s signature dishes and once I really recommend you try.

Duck magret cocona.

Served perfectly pink with roasted plums and soft, moist, more-ish corn cake.

Wafer thin Asparagus Peru (with tree tomato emulsion, sweet potato and heritage tomato).

And a some more of than Cusco corn cake. But I’m sure if I tell you this thing is pretty much like corn French toast, you’ll understand.

The good thing about Lima’s plates being rather on the lighter side is that we still had plenty of room for dessert!

Lima London | Cake + Whisky

Starting with the Chirimoya (custard apple) parfait (with chocolate crumb and blue potato crisps, plus some hidden dulche de leche caramel).

Lima London | Cake + Whisky

Following with Alfajores, and yet more dulche de leche (both in the form of ice cream and caramel cream).

Last but not least was the Avocado mousse, encased in a life-like chocolate casing.

Mind-bendingly good and the best proof of what a truly brilliant restaurant Lima is.

Its detractors might criticize the rather high price and small quantities. And I won’t say it’s not an expensive place. It is. But unlike many other places around the same price-point, the food you get for your money is delicious, but also healthy, creative and vibrant. Which I’m more than willing to pay the price for.

Lima, 31 Rathbone Pl, London W1T 1JH

Cake and Whisky

Life in London and other almost-grown-up tales

Menu

fish

Lazy fish tacos

More lazy easy dinner recipes

Classic Tuna Tartare

More easier-than-it-looks recipes

Miso ramen with prawns and scallops

Miso ramen with prawns and scallops (for 2 servings)

Ahi Poke, Fitzrovia

Fiskebaren, Copenhagen

Copenhagen best Smørrebrød at Aamanns

Lima London