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Category: 20 Years Ago Today

27
Dec
2023

Dec 03 – Make Mine A Double

categories: 20 Years Ago Today, Champagne, Delicious, Desserts, Drinks, Icecream, Potato, Rice, Salad, Salmon, Sorbet

Hello, retro food lovers and Season’s Greetings from 2003! This month I am using Delicious Magazine from December 2003 to prepare a menu where…well let’s see if you can guess…Hint..there’s a big clue in the title.

The whole time I was cooking this month I also kept thinking back to my early twenties when we used to play a drinking game called “I’m going to the moon”. The person who starts says “I’m going to the moon and I’m taking (for example) an apple”. Then the next person says “I’m going to the moon and I’m taking a pear”. The first person who is the game controller tells them if they can come to the moon or not. If they can’t go, they need to stay on earth and have a drink. There are many variations on this game but my personal favourite was based on the same theme as this month. Let’s move away from my sozzled past to see what was happening in December 2003. Although come to think about it, that was probably the same time as I was playing the game!

The Lord of The Rings: Return of the King was the big movie of December 2003. The Last Samurai was the next biggest. And, quelle surprise, The Da Vinci Code was still the best-selling book. Which all kind of explains why I was playing drinking games instead of partaking in pop culture. Although the soundtrack to those drinking games would have been good with Here Without You and Hey Ya! being the number one songs that month!

The Menu – December 2003

Moorish Champagne Cocktail

I am always very happy to be able to start these menus with a cocktail. The Moorish Champagne Cocktail was both easy to make and also very more-ish!

Moorish Champagne Tart Recipe

Salad of Dried Pears, Proscuitto, Blue Cheese and Walnuts

AKA a salad of a few of my favourite things! If this hadn’t fit the theme, it would have surely been my Nigella item for this month! And it was divine!

Salad of Dried Pears, Proscuitto, Blue Cheese and Walnuts Recipe

Grilled Salmon with Thai Green Risotto

I apologise for the photo of this which is not great. Having said this, the photo from the mag (which follows the recipe) is also not great. Neither photo does this dish, which was amazing any justice! But, trust me, it is worth taking a punt on as it was delicious!

Grilled Salmon with Thai Green Risotto Recipe

Mulled Wine Sorbet With Clove Biscuits

This was so nice and refreshing. It is summer in Australia so this is a nice nod to wintry flavours but adapted for summer. The sorbet mixture was very soft, for me it was more like a slushie than a sorbet so my recommendation is either not to serve it on a very hot day or to eat it quickly as it melts in moments. Speaking of melting, the clove biscuits just melt in your mouth! I am usually a bit wary of cloves – I’ve bit into them accidentally when eating things like curries and find the flavour a bit too much! So, for the first few biscuits, I ate, I picked the cloves off. Since then, I have eaten them with the clove in and the flavour of them seems to be less powerful in the biscuits than in say a curry. So, even if you don’t love cloves, give these a try with them!

Mulled Wine Sorbet with Clove Biscuits Recipe

My Nigella Moment – Crispy Herbed Potatoes

For first-time readers, this refers to the moment at the end of Nigella Lawson’s cooking shows when she sneaks back to the fridge to have another bite of something delicious. In these Twenty Years Ago posts, it is something contained in the magazine that does not fit with the overall menu theme but I’m sneaking it in because it is too good not to share.

You had me at crispy potatoes! And then when I saw how pretty these were, I knew they would be my Nigella item for this month. If I hadn’t already bought what I needed to make Katrina Meynink’s Roasted Taters with Horseradish and Tapenade for Christmas Day, the Crispy Herbed Potatoes would have been on the menu. (As an aside, I have just bought the aforementioned book From Salt to Jam and am absolutely loving it).

Crispy Seared Potatoes Recipe

Overall a great month from Delicious December 2003. If you have not yet guessed the theme, no going to the moon for you! But in the interest of your liver, it was to find recipes with double letters. Until I did this, I had never really thought about how many food items had these. I was absolutely spoiled for choice with options:

(Update 6/1/24 – I had originally included links to items below that are still on the Delicious.com.au website. Those links have been blocked but anything I have asterisked is available should you want to check them out.)

Starters

Baked eggs
Bruschetta with grilled artichokes and roasted garlic
B’stilla*
Cheese Crock
Chilled pea soup with lobster and risoni salad*
Goat’s curd in grappa*
Prawn and fattoush salad
Schiacciata*
Spanner crab chowder
Peppered Beef Salad
Smoked Salmon with clementines and cress
Terrine with microwave cranberry chutney

Mains and Sides

Beef fillet with spicy potatoes and horseradish
Butternut pumpkin with tasty stuffing
Cheeky Christmas turkey with braised leeks and the best wine gravy
Chicken noodle salad
Chicken with pepperoncini
Cinnamon and sultana couscous
Cold turkey salad with mango and honey dressing
Country chicken and mushroom pies
Chicken coconut curry pie
Crispy skin coral trout with roasted pineapple, coconut salad and rosti potato
Fillets of John Dory with olives, capers and rosemary
Flame grilled tuna with wasbi cake, bok choy and lime ponzu
Fricassee of chicken with mustard and grapes
Grilled coral trout with asparagus, red capsicum and sugar snap peas
Rice paper rolls with turkey
Seared barramundi with garlic skordalia, asparagus and creole salsa
Traditional Barossa ham in verjuice jelly
Turkey with saffron butter and preserved lemon and olive stuffing
Baked zucchini tarts with stuffed vegetables
Frisee, watercress and witlof salad
Goat’s cheese tarts with roast peaches and vincotto
Moroccan carrot salad
Open lasagne of asparagus with rocket tortellini
Roasted eggplant and tomato salad
Savoury Summer puddings
Sweet potato briks
Truffled potato mash

Sweets

Baked lime cheesecake
Boozy puddings with cheat’s custard*
Cherry clafoutis*
Choc-mint raspberry sundae
Chocolate and strawberry tartines*
Chocolate and brandied prune terrine*
Christmas morning muffins*
Christmas pudding ice cream with sweet cranberry sauce
Cinnamon ice cream with red wine poached figs*
Chocolate cake with plum pudding vodka*
Coconut and passionfruit slice
Eggnog custards*
Flourless Hazelnut roulade
Free-form berry trifles
Middle Eastern fruit cake*
Pannettone with berries and brandy sauce
Passionfruit panna cotta*
Raspberry ice cream sundae
Snowballs*
Starry night tarts*
Star-topped mince pies
Strawberry sundae*
Tutti Frutti ice cream*
Vanilla sponge with raspberries
White Chocolate and chilli ice cream with tropical fruit

Other

Hettie Potter’s suet-free mince meat
Easy cranberry sauce
Peanut Butter sauce
Raspberry sauce
Strawberry sauce
Irish coffee with orange rind and vanilla

Sorry for the massive laundry list but I really wanted to show how many items had double letters! I was honestly astounded!

So, my question to you lovely readers is – if you were making your own double-letter dinner, what would you choose? Either from the extensive list above or things that have not been mentioned – baguettes, beetroot, jelly, waffles, green beans, toffee, frittata, dill, mayonnaise, cabbage, spaghetti, mozzarella…the list goes on!

Couscous which is in the list above is the only thing I could think of with the same series of letters twice. Can you think of any others?

And one last thing. Thank you all for reading and commenting through the year! Best wishes for an amazing 2024!

26
Nov
2023

Nov 03 – Gimme Some Oven

categories: 20 Years Ago Today, Baking, Bread, Cake, Crab, Delicious, Fish, Sandwiches, Seafood

Hello retro food lovers and welcome (back) to November 2003! This month I am using Delicious Magazine to prepare a menu where we use the oven for each component. I know a heap of people who never use their oven so I was hoping this might inspire some people to do so. Unfortunately, this didn’t quite turn out as I was a bit disappointed with a few items on the menu. There were many items to choose from, so maybe I just chose badly. But before we get there, let’s take a little look at what was happening in the world in November 2003.

The War on Terror, the occupation of Iraq, and Paris Hilton’s sex tape were big news in November 2003. There were also some cracking movies out. Matrix Revolutions was number 1 at the box office, followed by Elf at #2 and Love Actually at #7.

The DaVinci Code was still the best-selling book and Baby Boy by Beyonce was #1 on the charts. Personally, Outkast’s Hey Ya (#3) is a much better song but each to their own!

The Menu – November 2003

Crab and Gruyere Tart

I was very surprised to find that the Crab and Gruyere Tart (I made one large tart instead of a few small tartlets) was largely tasteless. This was a Rick Stein recipe and I normally find him very reliable. This is not what I expect from a Rick recipe. I feel this needed a herb or something to liven it up a bit! Neither crab nor gruyere is a cheap item so this also did not rate on value for money.

Interestingly, Nathan Outlaw who, apart from having an amazing name, has worked with Rick Stein and, like Stein has a restaurant in Cornwall, has a recipe for a Crab and Cheddar Tart. His recipe also contains spring onions and leeks. I wonder if this would provide the flavour boost I felt was lacking in the Rick one.

Crab and Gruyere Tart Recipe

Fish in a Herb Crust with Lemon Oil

In total contrast to the above, this is a Jill Dupleix recipe which I loved. Personally, I don’t rate Jill Dupleix. She hosted a night in conversation with Nigella Lawson I went to once and she came across as a bit obnoxious. I really liked this recipe though! It was quick and easy to make and was packed with flavour! It was a lovely weeknight dinner.

Fish In a Herb Crust with Lemon Oil Recipe

Madeleines

I love a Madeleine. So, as soon as I saw that there was a recipe for them in Delicious for November 2003 I knew I would have them as part of my menu. In retrospect, maybe I should have chosen something else as this was not a good Madeleine recipe. I have read many recipes for Madeleines and all, except for this one, call for the cake batter to be refrigerated for about an hour before baking. This one didn’t. It also only said to grease the Madeleine pan, not grease and flour it, again something that is in all the other recipes I have seen.

These were a nightmare to get out of the pan. They also lacked the nice crust that you usually get on the outside. I think that was mostly stuck to the pan. So another disappointment from this magazine.

Madeleines Recipe

My Nigella Moment – Turkish Pizza

My Nigella moment this month came in the shape of a Turkish Pizza, which is not a pizza in the traditional sense but a totally yummy combination of spinach, feta, and mozzarella in Turkish bread. I loved this! So easy to make and so tasty! I will defintely be cooking the Turkish Pizza again!

Turkish Pizza Recipe

So, it was very much a mixed bag from Delicious Magazine from November 2003. The oven did not deliver the loving I was hoping for with two of the four recipes not worthy of keeping. The fish was quick and easy and I will make it again. That Turkish pizza though? Perfection! I have already made it twice more and it continues to delight me!

Have a great week!

28
Oct
2023

October 2003 – The White Menu

categories: 20 Years Ago Today, Cheese, Cheesecake, Delicious, Desserts, Fish, Meat, Mozzarella

Hello retro food lovers and welcome to October 2003 where today I am using Delicious magazine to create a white menu. White food has the double reputation of being 1) boring and 2) overly processed so my aim with this menu was to try to combat both of those. But first, let’s take a look at what was happening in pop-culture in October 2003.

School of Rock was #1 at the box office and The Five People You Meet In Heaven was the best-selling book. Number 1 on the pop charts was Where Is The Love by The Black Eyed Peas. Two weeks earlier it was White Flag by Dido which would have fit in perfectly with this menu! Let’s hope I won’t have to wave a white flag with my menu!

Now I also realise that this view of my cheesecake is not white, however it just looked so good, I couldn’t resist sharing it!

The Menu – October 2003

I found this menu template on Etsy. Isn’t it gorgeous? We’ll be seeing it a lot more from now on!

Mozzarella and Grilled Chilli Salad

This was AMAZING! So tasty and the perfect way to kick off a meal! I loved the simplicity/minimalism of this Jamie Oliver recipe. It also not only looked beautiful on the plate but tasted divine! Another recipe from this same article, a squid and cannellini bean salad nearly made the cut for the main dish in the menu and is something I am still very keen to try!

Mozzarella and Grilled Chilli Salad Recipe

Fish Stew With Lemongrass and Lime

This is an Ainsley Harriott recipe and was also divine! It was light and refreshing and, as he says in his intro, very different from the usual tomato-based fish stews. Like the mozzarella starter, this would be a perfect summer meal.

Lemongrass and Lime Fish Stew Recipe

Low Fat Cheesecake

I felt bad that I could not deliver a cheesecake for the Birthday Party, Cheesecake, Jelly Bean, Boom! menu. Because I LOVE cheesecake! So I was delighted to find one in this issue of Delicious. And this was a beauty too. It’s a pretty classic baked cheesecake. Even though it is low fat, it feels rich, The rest of this menu is light though so this seemingly decadent dessert won’t weigh you down too much!

Low Fat Cheesecake Recipe

My Nigella Moment – Beef with Lavender Mustard

For first-time readers, this refers to the moment at the end of Nigella Lawson’s cooking shows when she sneaks back to the fridge to have another bite of something delicious. In the context of these Twenty Years Ago posts, it is something contained in the magazine that does not fit with the overall menu theme but I’m sneaking it in either because I made it and it was really good, or I just didn’t have time to make it but it was one of the most appetising things in the mag!

OMG, this beef just melted in my mouth! And if you’re thinking you don’t have any Lavender Mustard, come back next week. I’ll have a little treat for you. I added a spoonful of honey to my Lavender Mustard to give the required sweetness to this. Also, I misread the ingredients and I bought a rump roast and not rump steak for my version. I seared the meat as per the recipe and then roasted it until it reached 72C / 165F on my meat thermometer.

Well, Delicious Magazine from October 2003 really came through with a delicious white-themed menu for me! Certainly no Didoesque white flag moments for me!

30
Sep
2023

September 2003 – Birthday Party, Cheesecake, Jelly Bean, Boom!

categories: 20 Years Ago Today, Almond, Cake, Cocktail, Drinks, Pizza, Savoury Pies and Tarts, Super Food Ideas, Tequila

“That’s great, it starts with an earthquake, birds and snakes, an aeroplane”…so begins the fabulous REM song, “It’s The End of The World As We Know It”. And for me, this year actually began with a 7.6 magnitude earthquake when we were holidaying in Darwin. Last month we celebrated my birthday in absolute chaos (more on that later) whilst on holiday in Port Douglas. And when I say chaos, I mean a total f*cking nightmare. So when the random number generator chose “Birthday Party, Cheesecake, Jelly Bean, Boom! I thought it might be a good chance to reset and have a little party to make up for the day that was ruined! The vehicle of choice for this month is Super Food Ideas, from September 2003 and I went in search of party food.

But first, let’s take a little wander down the memory lane to the heady days of September 2003. R Kelly’s Ignition (Remix) was #1. Less said about that the better I think. Finding Nemo was top of the box office and The Da Vinci Code was still the most popular book!

The Menu – September 2003

Margarita

Now, I can’t think of a much better way to kick of any birthday celebration than with a classic Margarita! And this one was perfection!!!!! I

The cocktail napkin you see in the above photo was one of a set of napkins I bought in Port Douglas. They are all super cute and also an inspiration to make the rest of the cocktails featured on them!

And as with the margarita, the first four days of our holiday were wonderful. Port Douglas is such an amazing place. Rainforest, reef and beach – great restaurants, perfect weather….the only downside is the crocodiles…and the murder birds!

Margarita Recipe

Seafood Pizza

As you may have noticed, I love my seafood! This nicely leads me to where our holiday turned paradise into a nightmare. Day 5 of our holiday, which was my actual birthday we had planned to move from our PD central apartment to a house around 10km out of Port Douglas. It was also the night of The Matildas v England final of the Women’s World Cup. We had been out for a lovely dinner the night before so the plan for my birthday was to grab a seafood platter from Port Douglas when we left and then enjoy the evening in our house. Dip in our private pool, , bit of football on the telly, champagne on ice, and our gourmet seafood platter…could life get any better?

Better? No. What we hadn’t figured was that it was about to get a whole lot worse!

We turned up at the house, for which we had a confirmed booking from one of the largest, if not the largest booking agencies in the world. The Fussiest Eater sends a text to the owner asking for the keypad number as the gate is locked. We are there for about 5 minutes when a woman comes out of the house. “Can I help you?” she asks. “Oh, yes, you probably just got our text. We’re here for our holiday”

Apparently we weren’t.

In the time that we had made our booking and our actual holiday, the house had been sold. It was no longer holiday accommodation.

It was now 3:00pm on a Saturday, we had no place to stay for the next four nights and we had a rapidly warming seafood platter on the back seat of the hire car.

Seafood Pizza Recipe

Party Pies

You know this is an Aussie Meat Pie because the secret ingredient is a spoonful of Vegemite! I made mini versions of this pie – in Australian we call these Party Pies so they were perfect for my Birthday Party Menu!

Now back to Port Douglas. The Fussiest Eater began calling the owner of the house. He confirmed that he had sold the house and had told the booking agency to cancel all future bookings. I started trying to find us accommodation. The first place I found wanted $15,000 for the four nights. The second $6000. Finally, we were able to find a studio room back in Port Douglas for the four nights for a price that we could actually afford. And that had a fridge in which we could put the seafood platter! From there we called the booking agency who offered to not only refund the cost of the house but also to pay for the emergency accommodation.

The following day we were also able to move into a one-bedroom apartment in the same complex which was a lot better than the studio but still how we had wanted to spend the last few days of our holiday.

As of today though, the booking company have yet to refund us the money for the second Port Douglas Apartment. We are idiots who did not get their OG offer in writing and they are now saying that as the second apartment was cheaper than the house technically we are not out of pocket.

Technically they ruined my birthday and did not deliver on the holiday we paid for and expected.

Technically I could have chosen the house that cost $15000 instead of that studio apartment as our alternative accommodation and technically they would have had to refund us the difference.

I didn’t want to be an arsehole.

I’ll leave that up to them.

Meat Pie Recipe

Chewy Almond Crescents

We now turn to the sweet part of our birthday party menu. These were great! Really tasty and not overly sweet. You couldn’t really taste the apricot jam which was a shame. When I make these again, I will maybe add some chopped-up dried apricots into the mix. Or maybe add a glaze with the jam. They were delicious regardless. These would be great with a cup of tea or coffee or equally with a little glass of Baileys! This was probably my favourite thing on the menu. I also loved the butterfly cakes but they were similar to cakes I had made before. These were all new and I was so happy to discover them!

Accomodation saga continued….As of today though, the booking company have yet to refund us the money for the second Port Douglas Apartment. We are idiots who did not get their OG offer in writing and they are now saying that as the second apartment was cheaper than the house technically we are not out of pocket.

Technically they ruined my birthday and did not deliver on the holiday we paid for and expected.

Technically I could have chosen the house that cost $15000 instead of that studio apartment as our alternative accommodation and technically they would have had to refund us the difference.

I didn’t want to be an arsehole.

I’ll leave that up to them.

Chewy Almond Crescents Recipe

Lemon Curd Butterfly Cakes

These were so pretty and also delish. I loved the tanginess of the lemon curd with the sweetness of the cupcake!

The one-bedroom apartment was great. However, on the first night, I was woken at around 2 a.m. by the sound of what sounded like a woman screaming. Channelling my inner Nancy Drew, I got out of bed and looked out the window but the side street the room looked out on was deserted. I was just getting back into bed when I heard it again. This time I went to the main room to look out of the front windows but the main street which we overlooked was also quiet. I went back to bed. I heard the same noise once again at around 5 a.m. This time I wondered if maybe someone in the neighbouring rooms was having an argument as again there was no movement on either street.

There was no mention of any attack on the news the following day so I went about my business. As we were walking back to the apartment from dinner I heard the same noise. This time though I was able to see that it was coming from a bird that we had just walked past. A quick Google Search identified these murder birds as Bush Stone Curlews. Thankfully no Nancy Drewing needed for me on the second night. Or thereafter.

Lemon Curd Butterfly Cakes Recipe

My Nigella Moment – Passionfruit Glazed Shortbread

For first-time readers, this refers to the moment at the end of Nigella Lawson’s cooking shows when she sneaks back to the fridge to have another bite of something delicious. In the context of these Twenty Years Ago posts, it is something contained in the magazine that does not fit with the overall menu theme but I’m sneaking it in either because I made it and it was really good, or I just didn’t have time to make it but it was one of the most appetising things in the mag!

I love shortbread and passionfruit so these were high on my list of things to make. They would have also fit in nicely with my birthday party theme but I ran out of time and had to choose between the Almond Crescents and these. In the end, I have eaten Passionfruit Shortbreads before whilst the Almond Crescents were something new to me so I chose them. These though? High on my list of things to make! And believe me, when I do…I will definitely be popping back to the biscuit tin, Nigella Style, for just one more!

Super Food Ideas really came through for my birthday-themed menu! As did Port Douglas for my birthday holiday. Despite the…ahem…hiccup with the accomodation, PD remains one of my favourite holiday destinations!!!!

09
Sep
2023

August 2003 – Summer

categories: 20 Years Ago Today, Chicken, Prawns, Vodka, Watermelon

Summer Lovin’ had me a blast! Hello, retro food lovers! Today as you may have guessed from the header and my musical intro we are taking a tour back to August 2003 via Australian Table. The aim is to see if that magazine can provide us with a super summer feast!

Now I know that some of you might be thinking…what’s hard about that? Surely all mags, twenty years ago would be showing seasonal recipes.. Well, don’t forget readers that in Australia is it winter! Now it may surprise some of you but in the south of Australia, where I live it gets cold! Not Canada cold or Northern European cold, but definitely cold enough for this season to be recognisably winter. The magazine cover promises Shepherd’s Pie, Bangers and Mash, Beef Stroganoff and Roast Chicken. Will we be able to find some summery food in the midst of this hearty winter fare?

First, to put us in the mood let’s see what was on the pop culture in August 2003! The Da Vinci Code was still topping the book charts, S.W.A.T was killing it at the box office and Breathe by Sean Paul featuring Blu Cantrell was the number 1 song.

The Menu – August 2003

Chargrilled Prawns with Coriander and Lime

For me, the best summer food is eaten outdoors so these prawns, which would be amazing cooked on the BBQ were my choice of a starter.

The marinated prawns were super delicious! I did not like the dressing and, come summer when I make these on the barbie I will leave the dressing out completely. Whilst I don’t mind sherry as a drink I felt it gave the dressing on what was a very fresh and lively dish a kind of fusty taste which I found unpleasant. If you want to try it with the dressing, I would suggest serving it on the side!

Chargrilled Prawns Recipe

Satay Chicken Skewers

Another dish which would be ideal cooked on the BBQ. I love a chicken satay and this one is super easy because it uses a bought satay sauce!

I served this with a cucumber and red onion salad, which is, my Malaysian friends tell me, a traditional accompaniment to Chicken satay. You could also, of course serve rice or noodles with the chicken satay skewers as well.

Perfectly grilled chicken, dipped in a satay sauce with some salad! Heaven on a stick!

Satay Chicken Recipe

Ice Cream with Rocky Road Sauce

I didn’t have time to make this due to holidays, Pieathalon, work, cooking for our Foodies Cookbook club, a date with my mum to see A Haunting In Venice all of which amounts to life in general. However, it’s a really simple recipe which I am sure tastes absolutely delicious! Please let me know if you give it a try!

Watermelon and Vodka Cocktail

This cocktail was pretty much identical to this one that I made back in February.

My Nigella Moment – Thai Beef Noodles

For first-time readers, this refers to the moment at the end of Nigella Lawson’s cooking shows when she sneaks back to the fridge to have another bite of something delicious. In the context of these Twenty Years Ago posts, it is something contained in the magazine that does not fit with the overall menu theme but I’m sneaking it in either because I made it and it was really good, or I just didn’t have time to make it but it was one of the most appetising things in the mag!

This time round it was some Thai beef noodles. I’m hoping that sherry will redeem itself in this recipe as it sure didn’t work in the prawns! These look delicious and fun!

Australian Table was able to dish up a lovely summery meal despite being an issue from the middle of winter! The prawns and satay were also nice in winter and were lovely reminders that summer is on it’s way!