Windy Point Cafe

- Alex Prichard Leave a comment

Untitled

disclaimer: I was a guest of Windy Point.
date of visit: Tuesday 28 May 2013

Much much earlier this year (I really am that far behind!) I received an invitation from Windy Point to visit both the café and restaurant as the venue’s guest.

I took my mum along to the café and Andy and I had a really lovely meal at the restaurant (which, incidentally, has just picked up Best Restaurant at the Restaurant and Catering SA Awards). I don’t really think that the restaurant is the kind of place where furiously snapping photos is appropriate (if you know me, you’ll know I’m not that hot on photographing my food anyway, but I see it as rather a necessary evil), so instead you get photos and a review of the café. I will say that the meal Andy and I enjoyed at the restaurant was the best we’ve had there in the past few years.

The café is nestled downstairs from the restaurant and enjoys the same amazing views, but in a much more casual setting. Mum and I had a lovely table next to a window. It also happened that we were seated next to a table of two where the woman did nothing but complain loudly and incessantly about the lack of yoghurt dressing on her dish. Full marks to the staff for placating her (or, at least, attempting to – I doubt she’d have been happy no matter what they did).

Untitled

Unexpected entertainment aside, mum and I opted for mains only, to ensure there was space for dessert. Mum chose the slow braised beef short loin rib with spinach and three sauces and I, rather predictably, opted for angel hair pasta with prawn, crab and chilli … you know the score. The food was really lovely. Mum enjoyed her beef and I loved the pasta. Even though I might not have been imaginative in my choice, it was great that Windy Point had put its own twist on this dish by having it deliver a healthy kick of anise, thanks to some tarragon.

We decided to share the poached rhubarb and strawberry dessert, which turned out to be a wise decision because it was quite heavy on the strawberry component (and I am really not bothered by strawberries at all). It was a very pretty dish, and all those beautiful almonds provided a lovely crunch. I would have been happy had it been rhubarb alone!

With main courses all hovering around the $30 mark Windy Point Café is not the cheapest café meal you’ll ever eat, but it probably is one of the classiest. If you’re after the same calibre of food as in the restaurant (the menus are similar but not identical) but a more relaxed environment (perhaps you are a large group or have some boisterous children or adults with you), then the café is definitely for you.

The café is open for dinner Tuesday to Saturday, and is open for breakfast/brunch/lunch on Sundays.

Windy Point Café
Windy Point Road
Belair SA 5052
phone: 8278 8255
Windy Point Cafe on Urbanspoon

Prawn and Pumpkin Curry

- Alex Prichard Leave a comment

Untitled
curry – always ugly in a photo!

This recipe comes from the usually very reliable Curry. I chose this based purely on the fact that we had both pumpkin and prawns to use up. I was a bit concerned about both the lack of chilli and the coconut milk, as I know this is not one of Andy’s favourite ingredients.

But you never know, if you never give it a go. By our standards, this is a very mild curry. This would suit people who aren’t big on spice (whether that be chilli spice or just lots of different spices) and could easily be served as a vegetarian dish (or side) by omitting the prawns.

Personally I found it lacking in the heat department (rectified by some generous spoonfuls of a fearsome Chinese chilli chutney I have!). Also, as pumpkin doesn’t hold its shape well, if you overcook (like we did – the whole point of curry is cook ahead!) you end up with kind of a pumpkin sludge, rather than pumpkin. Finally, I used coconut cream, rather than milk because that is what was available. However, both coconut and pumpkin are very sweet and, without a serious spice backbone, for both Andy and me, this curry came out a little too sweet for our liking.

This is definitely a dish which has appeal but serve as part of a meal, rather than as the meal, and watch the cooking of the pumpkin.

A final note: I really recommend growing your own curry leaves. They’re fearsomely expensive here in Adelaide (if you can find/buy them at a supermarket) and a curry leaf plant is a very easy patio plant to deal with. No excuses!

Print
Prawn and Pumpkin Curry

Ingredients

  • vegetable oil
  • ½ tsp black mustard seeds
  • cumin seeds (pinch, or to taste!)
  • curry leaves (10, or more if you love them)
  • inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced finely
  • three dried Kashmiri chillis, broken in half
  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 150g pumpkin, cut into chunks
  • ½ tsp turmeric
  • ½ tin coconut cream
  • 8 large green prawns, peeled & deveined, leave the tail section on for glamour, if you wish

Instructions

  1. Heat the oil in a wok and add the mustard and cumin seeds. When they start popping, add the curry leaves, ginger, chillis and onion. Cook over a low - medium heat until the onions start turning golden.
  2. Add the pumpkin and turmeric, stir, and add the coconut cream and add water to cover the pumpkin. Stir and bring to the boil. Cook, covered, until the pumpkin begins to soften.
  3. When you're ready to eat, reduce the heat, add the prawns and cook until they are done.
  4. Serve immediately. We served over egg noodles for a change, but rice would work just as well.
https://eatingadelaide.com/prawn-pumpkin-curry/

Top Tips for Dinner Parties

- Alex Prichard 1 Comment

The Dinner Party
your dining room: probably not quite this big*

On Wednesday night I chatted to Peter Godfrey about cronuts, the Google burger and dinner parties. Here are my essential top tips for hosting a dinner party where EVERYONE will have fun.

  1. Be realistic – about every detail. How good a cook are you really? How familiar are you with the dishes you’re making? How many people can you seat comfortably? How much time will you have to prepare?If you’ve spent all day at work you’re unlikely to be able to throw together a gourmet meal of untried recipes for eight people and get everything cleaned up (if you have an open plan kitchen/dining area) by 7pm if you get home from work at 6pm.
  2. Be prepared. Yes, this is boring but being prepared is an essential part of ensuring things runs smoothly.I personally read through recipes fully three times before I consider going near the kitchen. Do this, make a shopping list and double check it. When you’re out shopping, double check you have everything you think you have before hitting the till. Write yourself at least a list of what you need to do, and, if a schedule won’t stress you out, create one of those too.By being prepared you avoid any last minute nasty surprises. A stressed host is not a fun person to be around.
  3. Balance your menu. You might love pastry but a pastry entrée, followed by a beef Wellington, followed by a sweet pithivier is probably going to leave everyone comatose by the end of the evening.Choose one star dish where you can show off your culinary prowess and use a variety of seasonal ingredients (which will also help you save money). If your entrée and main courses are particularly rich, consider a lighter, fruit based dessert. You really want to make a rich, pastry laden dessert? Then ensure your main course is not heavy with carbs and starch.
  4. Cook in advance. Avoid last minute preparations or finishing touches as much as possible.If you’re likely to have had a few red wines by the time dessert comes around, you don’t want to be in the kitchen spinning sugar! Desserts, in particular, lend themselves to being completed early in the day or even the day before. And many hearty winter mains can at least be started early. Remember: your guests want to see you so make sure you have time to play host as well as chef.
  5. Over cater. You can eat or freeze most leftovers. You can’t, however, magic up a second portion of something from thin air.This doesn’t mean you need to cater for an army when there will be four of you for dinner, but do ensure you have one or two portions spare for anyone who is particularly hungry – or loves your food that much.  This applies to drinks (don’t forget non alcoholic!) as much as food.  Yes, hopefully your guests will be good guests and bring a bottle (or two, or a few beers) but don’t rely on this.  An open bottle of wine will keep for a day or two (and unopened bottles keep well too!) so it’s better to have a surplus to hand than have guests go thirsty.

    Part of being a good host is being a generous host.

Hopefully these ideas will help your next dinner party be a stress free event.  How do you stay calm when cooking for others?

* this is a cc licensed photo by Eric Wilcox.  It is of an installation called The Dinner Party by American artist Judy Chicago.  This piece is now on permanent display in the Brooklyn Museum, in NY.