Category: Blog

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Blog

Still Standing!

This week I’ve been to see Elton John at the O2 Arena in London, on his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour.

If there is a world record for longest wait between buying a concert ticket and going to the gig, this is a definite contender. The World Tour started in 2018, and we bought our tickets in 2019. The concert was scheduled for late 2020, only to be postponed due to Covid. Rearranged to late 2021, it was then postponed a second time when Elton injured himself, to be rearranged again to April 2023.

Until this week, the longest wait I’d had for a Covid-rearranged gig was 2 years, in the case of Elbow. When the night did finally arrive, the band took the stage and Guy Garvey greeted the audience with the simple message Good evening – sorry we’re late.

Elton, as it transpired, was on top form. I have never been a huge fan of his, though his Top Tracks have been booming from the speakers in the ADK kitchen these last few days. I hadn’t seen him live before and was conscious that, it being his Farewell Tour, this would be the last chance of doing so.

He’s playing quite a few dates this month at the O2 and, being something of a local lad, the place has been transformed in his honour. The walkway to the arena from North Greenwich Tube Station is lined with billboards showcasing his various outrageous styles and outfits, in photos from across the last five decades. Even my pint of IPA from the O2 bar was Elton-themed (see below).

He played for two and a half hours, with an accomplished backing band and very clear sound. The vocals still hold up well, and his excellent rock piano is high up in the mix throughout, so can be fully appreciated.

Being Elton, he changed costume twice during the show – each time reappearing in a dapper sequinned evening suit with (naturally) a new colour-co-ordinated pair of diamond-studded spectacles.

The set list comprised one belter after another, varied up with a couple of tracks that I hadn’t heard before from his early albums. All the classics were here – Candle in the Wind, Rocket Man, Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me to name a few.

The show built towards a rockier climax, with I’m Still Standing, Crocodile Rock and Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting getting the O2 audience on their feet.

The encore consisted of his Cold Heart duet with Dua Lipa (who appeared via the big screen), Your Song and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Elton then waved farewell as he rode an escalator through the stage curtains. His image could then be seen on the big screen, walking into the sunset along said Yellow Brick Road.

All in all, well worth the wait!

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Blog

By Royal Appointment?

I must share with you, dear readers, an amazing letter I’ve received in the post this morning.

My excitement rose when I saw the postmark bearing the words Buckingham Palace. It turns out to be a handwritten letter from none other than the Queen Consort, probably still better known to most as Camilla (of Parker-Bowles fame). It goes like this:

Hi Kevin,

Hope you’re keeping well, mate. As you’re probably aware, we have a bit of a do coming up next month, with the Coronation. There’s lots still to organise, including the Afternoon Tea for all the family after the main service – I like to think of it as a bit of a knees-up.

Anyways, the Boss himself has put me in charge of sorting out the nosh. I love following A Different Kitchen, and wondered if I could ask you to bake us a few cakes?

A Dundee Fruit Cake would go down well with the Balmoral set, and you can’t go wrong with choco brownies as far as all the kids are concerned lol. Numbers aren’t final yet – we still don’t know if Harry and the missus will be attending.

Let me know what you can do for us. Keep up the good work, and why not post a few more tracks from the Arctic Monkeys – I’m a big fan.

Cheers,
Camilla

Goodness me! I need your help here, readers. This is my biggest gig since I started the blog, so do please let me have your thoughts by way of comments below, on what I should offer to bake.

In the meantime, here’s a classic track from The Who for the ADK Playlist – Won’t Get Fooled Again.

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Blog Music

Eat Sleep Blog Repeat

It’s been a hectic few days since my last post, getting away from the kitchen for a few great meals and trips out with friends and family. More about this in future posts!

However, the highlight, that I will focus on in this post, has been attending a great concert by Fatboy Slim (alias DJ Norman Cook) on the final night of his UK Tour.

I used to be wary of big arena shows by so-called superstar DJs, tending to think it isn’t live music, but just someone standing on a stage playing their records. My perception changed a few years ago, however, the first time I went to see Fatboy Slim live.

This weekend’s performance also did not disappoint. He puts on a great show – a true feast for both the eyes and the ears, with crazy and inventive big screen videos, sync-ed to an everchanging mash-up mix, comprising snippets from his own best tracks and samples taken from a whole range of musical genres. The result is quite unique, to be experienced to be believed.

His most famous tracks feature in some shape or form. However, they are never performed straight as fans might recognise them from the records. Part of the fun is spotting a bassline, a beat, a lyric, a chorus etc from his impressive back catalogue, that is being interwoven with other samples, to produce something entirely new and fresh.

The words from Praise You featured twice, though never with the familar, catchy piano line from the record. The Rockafeller Skank is mixed over some Chubby Checker and the guitar riff from the Stones’ Satisfaction, yet still finds the crowd singing along with the Right About Now, Funk Soul Brother chorus. Macy Gray’s chorus is transmitted as giant subtitles during Demons.

Weapon of Choice is accompanied by a big screen excerpt from the famous video shot in a hotel elevator lobby. This time, however, Hollywood actor Christopher Walken is flanked by two skeletal avatars, dancing in co-ordination with his every step.

One track is founded on the isolated, thumping beat of Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s Relax, as the walls of the arena are being pounded by laser beams.

You never quite know who is going to turn up next on the big screen, often for their spoken words to be integrated into a track – examples here included Bill Murray and Barack Obama.

I have included a few of the photos I took, and hope I have conveyed what a fun, varied, high energy and inventive show this was.

I’ll settle on one track for the ADK Spotify Playlist. For this one, Norm mouthed the spoken word introduction up close to the camera, relayed on the big screen framed by the outline of an old-fashioned TV set.

A Wonderful Night!

If you get the chance to see Fatboy Slim live, I can’t recommend it enough.

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Blog

New Forest Afternoon Tea

Now here’s a real treat: a recent family celebration took us to the Montagu Arms in Beaulieu, at the heart of Hampshire’s New Forest, for an English Afternoon Tea.

The New Forest is a slice of traditional old England. Originally a hunting forest for royalty from the 11th Century, it has benefitted from environmental protections over the centuries, and is now a National Park. This means that the beautiful scenery and wildlife have changed little, and the region is rich in heritage. One of its most famous aspects is the New Forest Ponies, who freely roam the land.

History lesson over – on to the food. Afternoon Tea was served in the Dining Room, with china tea service and the elaborate three tiered cake stand shown in my main photo.

Starting with the bottom plate, we had a selection of finger sandwiches: thinly sliced Cucumber with Cream Cheese; Longman Cheddar and Chutney; Honey Roast Gammon with Dijon Mayonnaise; and Smoked Salmon with Creme Fraiche. There were also slices of Pork Sausage Roll and Mushroom Vol Au Vents.

Once you’ve polished off the sandwiches, you move to the middle plate, which has warm Fruit and Plain Scones, with Strawberry Jam and Clotted Cream.

The top layer has the cakes: Chocolate Brownie with Salted Caramel and Kirsch Cherry; Blood Orange Choux Balls; and Carrot Cake.

Situated alongside the Beaulieu (it is pronounced Bewley) River, the Montagu Arms is an enchanting old country house hotel. The current building dates from the 1880s, and oozes traditional English charm with its interiors of oak flooring, wall panelling, original brick fireplaces and grandfather clocks. You would not be surprised if you bumped into Basil Rathbone or Wilfrid Hyde-White on the stairs (note to younger readers: look them up on Google).

When the likes of Netflix are trying to create a location for an Agatha Christie movie or period drama, this is the look they are aiming for – except this is the real thing. Even the plush carpet is eccentrically unique, with a quirky design based on the famous New Forest Ponies.

The food was delicious, the service friendly and efficient, and the surroundings relaxed. It is almost impossible to finish all the food, so you are able to take home whatever you can’t eat, to enjoy later. I can wholeheartedly recommend it for a birthday, anniversary or special celebration.

Musical accompaniment for this post has to be something quintessentially English. To me, that means Kate Bush. I saw her live in 2014, at her Before the Dawn residency at London’s Hammersmith Apollo. She is a captivating presence, whether with a full band accompanying her, or alone on stage with just voice and piano. This is one of many great tracks she performed, from the Aerial album – Joanni.

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Blog

Celebration!

Today I am slipping in an additional post to share with you a milestone that I feel ought to be celebrated…

This week, A Different Kitchen has passed a total of 1,000 followers across my 3 interconnected platforms of WordPress, Twitter and Spotify. Woo hoo!

In all honesty, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I decided to start this blog last July. The concept was to post about my twin loves of good food and great music: Twitter (@differentkitch) providing quick, bite-sized content akin to snacks and appetisers, with WordPress serving up the mains – recipes and longer pieces that take a little more time to chew over and digest. Spotify would host an ongoing, personally curated soundtrack of great background music to it all.

Broadly speaking, this is how it has all panned out. It’s been a lot of fun, and I’ve enjoyed making connections with bloggers and foodies from all over the world.

There isn’t much I’m planning to change, though I may now upgrade my WordPress plan to go ad-free (which will probably come as a relief) with a domain name. Other than that, expect more photos and stories about what’s cooking in my kitchen, and yet more tracks from the Arctic Monkeys.

So, to everyone who has read, followed, commented, liked, pingbacked (pinged back?), retweeted, baked, barbecued, slow-cooked, bopped or pogo-ed…….

Thank You!

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Bakes Blog

Bread Maker Pizza

Bread making machines have had something of a topsy turvy existence. Invented in the ’80s, they became widespread in homes in the ’90s and ’00s, as the smell and taste of freshly baked bread, at little more than the push of a button, became the next domestic ‘must have’ appliance.

Then, they rather fell out of favour. With growing awareness of the need to manage one’s carb intake, I know a few people who placed theirs in car boot sales, or simply gave them away.

There was then something of a resurgence in the pandemic. A combination of boredom in isolation, wish to avoid busy shops and some food shortages prompted people to dig their bread maker out from under the stairs, and bring it back into use.

While the pandemic is now well in decline, today’s cost of living crisis is once again reviving interest in home baking.

My experience is that it is very easy to slip into a rut with bread making – we find one of the pre-programmes that works for us reliably, and make the same loaf over and over again. It’s useful to remind ourselves that they are actually quite versatile and sophisticated machines. Mine is a Panasonic 2500, and the programmes enable dough preparation for ciabatta, focaccia and various fruited and seeded breads.

My photos show how I’ve used it recently to make a pizza base. I have had some mixed results in the past when making yeast dough by hand, as there are a number of variables, and things can easily go wrong. However, I find the bread maker version much more reliable.

Following the instructions in my manual, I tipped some fast action dried yeast powder, strong white bread flour, olive oil, salt and water into the tin. The machine then mixed, swirled and kneaded it all automatically for 45 minutes as per the set programme.

I left it covered in a warm place till ready to use. The soft and pliable dough came away easily from the tin, didn’t stick to my fingers, and was easy to stretch out with my hands on a floured surface.

I added some tomato and onion sauce I’d made, with fresh torn basil leaves, then topped it with soft fried chopped mushrooms, peppers, black olives and grated mozzarella cheese. Here it is ready to go in the oven at 180C.

12 minutes later, it looks like this and tasted delicious! The base had baked evenly from the edges all the way to the centre. It is also a fraction of the cost of a Domino’s. You can vary the ingredients if you wish, to incorporate your favourite toppings.

So if you have a bread maker somewhere gathering dust, why not look it out and try some new styles of bread? Never mind if you’ve lost the instruction manual, they are usually still available online. With fresh ingredients, and some fast action dried yeast you should, like this classy track from Gabrielle, be ready to Rise again.

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Blog

Katie’s Vinyl Bar & Kitchen

For a lover of good food and great music, it really doesn’t get much better than having lunch at Katie’s Vinyl Bar and Kitchen.

This independent cafe in Gosport High Street has an impressive selection of 12″ vinyl LPs, and there is always one booming out from the record player at the end of the bar. When my son and I arrived for lunch, the chosen album was Humbug by the Arctic Monkeys, see below.

This great taste in music is further confirmed by the art and photographs on the walls, covering the Smiths, Specials, Elvis, Johnny Cash and many more. There is an art wall featuring drawings of Debbie Harry, Johnny Rotten, Thin Lizzy and more.

Food wise, the owners have had a lot of fun with the menu, with items on it given a musical title. For example, the burger menu contains the James Blunt (plain, no frills burger), and the Morrissey (a vegetarian burger – hey, meat is murder, remember?)

If it’s a cooked breakfast you’re after, you can choose between the Dubliners (Irish style, with soda bread) or the Proclaimers (Scottish style, with tattie scone). Springsteen fans can choose a Born in the USA, with American pancakes and syrup.

Those with a big appetite can opt for the Hank Marvin (because you better be starvin’).

My son ordered the Eye of the Tiger (tiger-striped grilled halloumi and avocado on toasted bagel). I chose the Florence and the Machine, shown in my main photo at the top of this post. It is Katie’s take on eggs florentine, with poached eggs, spinach and hollandaise sauce on toasted muffin.

The coffee is good and the prices reasonable. It does have a licence, and it’s great to see the bar supporting Gosport’s independent Powder Monkey Brewery, with two of their ales available on draught. There is also the ever popular Neck Oil from Beavertown.

Definitely worth a visit if you are down this way!

This post’s track for the ADK Spotify Playlist is one we listened to while waiting for our meal, and which I hadn’t heard in a while. This is the Arctic Monkeys from Humbug, with Crying Lightning.

Categories
Blog Drinks

Paint Me Down (Under)

I want to share with you some of the great art in public places I’ve come across in Australia.

For reasons I can’t quite explain, my experiencing of art is inextricably connected with the consumption of coffee and pastries. Visit to a gallery? Sooner or later my wristwatch will be telling me it’s time to visit the coffee shop. Walking on a public art trail? I guarantee at some point there will be a minor detour to take in that nice, funky looking cafe over there. More about Australia’s cafe culture in a moment – let’s first take a look at some of the art.

I’ll start with the art deco entrance to Luna Park, Sydney’s retro amusement park that dates back to 1935, shown in my main photo above. It is a joy to behold – the huge grinning face is visible all the way from the other side of Sydney Harbour, getting progressively larger as you approach it on the ferry. If you look closely you will see visitors walking through the mouth to enter the amusement park, giving a sense of its vast scale.

My next photo below was taken at the graffiti wall which lines the promenade at Sydney’s famous Bondi Beach – a place where chic boutiques and upmarket cafes co-exist with the bohemian grunge of the local surfing community. Our visit here soon led to a visit to one such cafe (see, what did I tell you), from which we enjoyed the free entertainment provided by the surfers. This was easily the best surfing I have ever seen – well-poised riders catching a wave for a good 10 – 15 seconds before diving neatly into the water, then doing it all again.

Back in Melbourne, Hosier Lane is known as Spraycan Alley, making it a popular tourist attraction – see below. It is positioned in the Lanes and Arcades quarter chock full of fiercely independent cafes. A visit to at least one of these is inevitable (for me, that is) when in this part of town.

Indigenous art influences are strong wherever we go. The tall three-legged, two headed Angel (by artist Deborah Halpern) is situated in Birrarung Marr, the public park that stretches out along the River Yarra from Federation Square to the home of the Tennis Open.

Again in Melbourne, the whole of the ground floor of the Ian Potter Centre (free to enter) is given over to indigenous people’s art. The paint used is generally derived from rocks, minerals and clay, giving it an earthy feel, and a colour palette based around an ochre spectrum. The abstract designs and patterns evoke the meditational nature of the aboriginal philosophy known as the Dreaming. My photo below is an example, by artist Willie Gudabi.

And so to the world of coffee and pastry that I associate with these images. Cafe culture is big in Australia. They are nearly all independents – you will only very occasionally see a Starbucks or other chain. Baristas take their work very seriously, and the making of a hot drink has itself been elevated to something of an art form. I can honestly say I have never had a bad cup of coffee since arriving in Australia.

At first the coffee menus were like a different language, but I now understand my way around them. There is no such thing as an americano – it is a long black and, if you want it white, you ask for a small jug of milk (specifying whether it should be hot or cold, and dairy, oat or other) on the side. A batch brew is a filter coffee, and a cold drip is an iced version – usually a latte served over ice cubes and, in some places, a scoop of ice cream.

Cappucino and flat whites are as you would find in the UK but, surprisingly, decaff is nowhere to be found on the menus. Seemingly this is because the serious coffee aficionados do not consider it to be a credible option. While there is no doubt that Australia makes great coffee, I do think this is one area where the approach is a little out of step with modern times.

So boil the kettle, or fire up your espresso machine, and fetch a nice coffee while enjoying these images. Which one is your favourite and why? Please feel free to leave a message in the comments section below, if you like.

The title of this post has probably given away the latest track I’ve chosen for the ADK Playlist. Paint Me Down is not one of Spandau Ballet’s biggest hits, but I have always really liked Martin Kemp’s bass line, which kicks in right at the start and stays prominent thoughout. Take it away, lads..

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Bakes Blog Snacks

Viva Vegemite!

My Lonely Planet guide book to Australia advised that one of the foods I must try when I was here was Vegemite. I have followed that advice and very much enjoyed this institution of an Aussie delicacy, in many forms. The most memorable is the Vegemite Knot pastry, shown above, more of which I shall explain in a moment.

My first encounter with the stuff was in a road side cafe on Phillip Island in Victoria. Having stopped for a coffee (a long black with milk on the side – they do not do americanos here), I noticed that the snacks menu included two thick slices of sourdough toast, with butter and Vegemite. Sounded too good to turn down, so in a few moments the plate shown below arrived.

I soon learned that serving on thick buttered toast is a really good way to enjoy it. The dark, rich spread combines with the butter to make a salty, malty, creaminess that sinks into the warm toast, and complements the crispy crust. The taste is similar to the Marmite that we have in the UK, but much more buttery and creamy, and easier to spread.

Shortly after this, I invested in my own jar at Coles, one of Australia’s major supermarket chains, and the above has become a regular form of breakfast!

Vegemite is made from yeast extract and is a good source of B vitamins. The culinary ingenuity of Australians has led to it being incorporated into more and more foods and dishes, including marinades, stocks, soups and stir fry sauces. Savoury bakes are also fair game, see my photo below – cheese and vegemite twists, anyone?

Or possibly even a flavouring for roast chicken? This was on sale, hot, in Coles:

And so to the photo that started this post – the Vegemite Knot. I found this in Rollers Bakehouse, a great cafe in Manly, by Sydney’s north beaches. Someone has made the inspired decision to combine Vegemite in a creamy, almost caramel-type sauce and drizzled it on choux pastry, topped with chopped scallions (spring onions) and what I think are chia seeds. It tasted unique and wonderful, managing to be both sweet and savoury at the same time.

Suitably inspired, I will be taking a jar of Vegemite home with me and plan to experiment with its use in baking. My current thoughts are to adapt my tried and tested recipe for National Trust scones, to include cheese, Vegemite and possibly some local water cress. Watch this space for a future post!

Choice of music for the ADK Playlist has to be the only track I know that famously references the Vegemite sandwich. Here’s Melbourne’s own Men at Work with Down Under.

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Blog Mains

Little Vietnam

Victoria Street, in Melbourne’s inner city east, is known locally as Little Vietnam. It has earned this name through the number of Vietnamese restaurants and food stores that stretch out along both sides – a reflection of the sizable Vietnamese community that has settled in the city over recent generations.

I haven’t eaten Vietnamese before, so took the opportunity to try it out. A little research identified Van Mai as a good place to visit, and I’m pleased to say I would recommend it.

As a starter, we shared a plate of Rice Paper Rolls. I had seen these in some Vietnamese street food stalls in the city, and fancied trying them. Visually, they resemble sausages (see photo below), the contents wrapped in edible, transparent rice paper. Unlike sausages, however, they are eaten cold. The fillings included shredded carrot, beansprouts and crispy chicken, with fresh coriander. They were served with a dipping sauce that had a satay flavour.

For mains we chose three dishes. My main photo at the top of the post shows Crispy Chicken with Steamed Rice, served with vegetables and a chilli and ginger dipping sauce. We also tried the Salt and Pepper Tofu, deep fried and presented on a bed of crispy vermicelli (see below).

Our third dish was Steamed Fine Rice Vermicelli with BBQ Pork Balls. This was served with fried onions and shallots, fresh mint and crushed peanuts (see below).

This dish was eaten by handrolling the food in large crispy lettuce leaves, and dipping the parcel in a bowl of fish sauce.

I liked the food very much, particularly the pairing of hot and spicy with fresh, uncooked ingredients like lettuce, hand-torn mint and coriander. I also had fun eating with my fingers, though my hands were very sticky by the end of the meal.

Another joy of visiting Victoria Street is the sight of the Skipping Girl – a much-loved Melbourne icon dating back to the 1930s. It was the city’s first neon sign, advertising the Skipping Girl Vinegar brand. Walk down the street after your meal to see her as dusk is falling – she will be illuminated and, magically, skipping.

For the next track on the ADK Spotify Playlist we take inspiration from the Skipping Girl. This is Malcolm McLaren with Double Dutch.