The Corkless Mind

Author: Dominique Solomon

  • Slushy Piña Colada Cocktail

    Slushy Piña Colada Cocktail


    Piña colada, the scent of sunscreen, and sticky ice cream hands are just a few of the things that make us all think of summer and all the perks it brings along with it. I do love craft beer and wine as my go to choice of tipples, but the occasional refreshing cocktail is good for the soul and in the spirit of welcoming long hot summer days and nights. 
    My ice cream machine has been sitting in my freezer waiting for the opportunity to make something spur of the moment, hence I will have it ready when I do decide to make a batch of ice cream or sorbet. Never did I think I could make anything else with it, let alone a cocktail mix. So with much zeal to attempt this recipe I found on my second home Food52, I cracked open a bottle of rum and excitedly got out the ice cream machine. 
    The recipe is pretty simple, although patience(something that does not come naturally to me) is needed when churning the mixture. Garnish with mint and a pineapple ring on top of the glass. You can of course omit the rum and enjoy as a non-alcoholic drink. 
    The photos were taken in quite a hurry due to some pressing deadlines. Below is a clue as to the deadline, I can’t wait to share the finer details soon! 🙂 
    Here’s to many more moments we could lift a glass in a celebration! x

  • Deconstructed lime meringue.

    Deconstructed lime meringue.

    I took it upon myself to recreate a classic and also critically deconstruct it. This in essence is the very teaching and philosophy of Massimo Bottura, celebrating nostalgia but asking questions. I made a deconstructed lime meringue dessert with crushed ginger cookies as the base, and a lime meringue ginger cookie sandwich(think ice cream sandwich style, but way better). So with my fat pants on and guilty conscience happily abandoned at the door (this is a judgement free zone) so please feel free to recreate this dessert and even top it and take it to another level of indulgence! 
    I made the speediest and tastiest lime curd just over a week ago, and it’s been sitting on the shelf of my fridge in a sealed jar staring at me asking me to eat it. To be honest it had me at hello! The lime curd was made in the microwave recipe found on Food52. The rest of the recipe for the desserts I have developed. I simply crushed ginger biscuits and drizzled with a little ginger syrup(a sweet twist) I then filled the glass with the lime curd and topped off with the whipped meringue and blowtorched to get the desired toastyness. Any excuse to use my awesome little blowtorch! 

    For the cookie sandwich, assemble the curd between the biscuits, gently press together and smooth out edges if oozing out, then top with the meringue and toast with the blowtorch. I think I had way too much fun doing this! 


    The photos were taken just before noon again, I find I take less photos these days when shooting for one post, as I find that I don’t need to take hundreds of photos to get that good batch of photos like I used to do. This must mean I am improving slowly 🙂  I’m super excited to share next week’s posts and photos with you! It’s going to be super chilled 🙂 that’s about all I’m letting you know for now. 

    This post was collated whilst listening to the incomparable David Bowie. Specifically the song ‘Heroes’. 

    Happy Heritage day everyone! xo

  • Ricotta on crusty bread with pickled Courgette and Pear. 

    Ricotta on crusty bread with pickled Courgette and Pear. 

    My love of cheese knows no bounds! Feta, cream cheese, cottage cheese, Brie, Camembert, Goat’s cheese or 24 month matured Parmigiano Reggiano, name it and I’ll be there with a bottle of wine to pair it with! Ricotta is so very versatile, I mainly use it as a substitute for cream in my pasta sauces, it makes the texture that more luxurious and velvety smooth. But ricotta is more than just an addition to a great sauce. I usually make my own from scratch which is rather easy and foolproof. I have a healthy obsession (excuse the pun) of knowing exactly what goes into my food same can be said for what goes into my body. 
    Beside making a really creamy sauce, if there’s any leftover Ricotta, I make blueberry ricotta hotcakes/flapjacks that I smother in lemon curd and bacon, because why not? This time I wanted to do something a bit different and at the same time keep it simple. Simplicity in food sometimes is the key. 

    I bought a fresh plain rusticata loaf at my local Woolworths and this time purchased my ricotta, instead of making it, and also spotted some lush green courgettes. I made a quick pickle (I used 1 cup of white wine vinegar to equal amounts of castor sugar) and two cloves, a few cumin seeds and a few drops of this amazing white balsamic vinegar(Sonoma Harvest Passion fruit White Balsamic vinegar) the quick pickle is a tad unconventional, but it’s all in the spirit of experimenting and playing around with flavours. 

    I added thin slices of Courgette and Pear to the pickle, allow to simmer on a low-medium heat to let the flavours fully permeate and the speedy process of pickling take place. Take off the heat and assemble on thickly spread Ricotta on crusty bread sprinkled with a pinch of sumac and toasted cumin seeds and finish with a sprig or two of mint. I’m so enamoured with the lip puckering taste and crunch of the courgettes, I do like the pickled pear, the variety I used was really sweet, the pickling balanced the flavour of the pear beautifully. I made an extra one with blueberries for another tart flavour combination. There are so many flavour combinations one can experiment with Ricotta. 

    The photos were taken just after noon. Only once I have looked at them on my computer screen, did I realize how similar in some ways it is to my previous post, The ultimate toastie. I hope this post will inspire and fuel you with ideas for your next get together with friends and family. 

  • Corn flakes cereal milk ice cream

    Corn flakes cereal milk ice cream

    a melting Corn Flakes Cereal milk ice cream

    For the first 10 years of my life, being the youngest gave me that prized golden first choice of choosing the cereal for the month when we went grocery shopping. My favourites alternated between, Cocopops, Rice Crispies and Corn flakes, whatever I chose my sister had to suck it up and eat. This all changed when I became the ‘middle child’ and my preferences as the youngest fell away. So as an ode to my glory days when I used to antagonize my older sister and reign supreme as the youngest. So in that spirit I recreated a Christina Tosi dessert with cereal milk being front and centre! Christina Tosi is the chef and founder of Milk Bar, many of you will know her from Dave Chang’s Momofuku as the highly acclaimed and inventive pastry chef. 

    I saw this ice cream trending not too long ago, many travel to New York City solely to experience this unique and coveted dessert. For me, one of two highlights of eating a bowl of Corn Flakes was the sweet flavoured milk at the end when all of the crunchy flakes are quickly devoured so as to not get soggy. The second is of course the crunch. 


    I’m something of an ice cream addict. When I do, I love making from scratch, but hate the fickle tempering process with the egg yolks. So i’d much rather visit my favourite ice cream parlours in and around Cape Town for my frequent fix. I spotted the recipe on Food52 and made an exception to make this interesting recipe. With that last batch of ice cream and dignity down the drain from my previous failed attempt at ice cream and fierce bravery(fake or not) as I attempt this batch of ice cream. 

    I am happy to report that yes, it does indeed taste of ice cream, not exactly soft serve, but it will do. I love how the taste of the cereal milk really shines through although it’s not overpowering. I love the velvety smooth texture. The specks of vanilla from the vanilla paste really does it for me. 

    The photos were taken just before noon today, the weather is not exactly ideal for the natural light that I needed but again, with the use of reflector boards and white backgrounds I made it work somehow. 

    Do you have any favourite foolproof ice cream recipes? Share them in the comments section. Sharing is indeed caring 🙂 

    This post was collated whilst listening to the album X By Ed Sheeran.

  • Cranberry, Date and Macadamia granola bars.

    Cranberry, Date and Macadamia granola bars.

    Every week I mix up a batch of granola bars, every week a different recipe, each week a different taste and texture. I’ve never been happy with any recipe I’ve tried until I tried this one. Whilst looking for inspiration for my next post and researching recipes, I had the TV on the food network channel on a really soft yet audible tone. When I noticed Anna Olsen about to make her Granola bar recipe, I stopped searching and adjusted the volume with all eyes on the screen. Her recipe seems very easy and tasty and had me wondering what have I been doing all this time with all these disappointing granola bar recipes! Sunday, I schleped my partner along to a prop and background sourcing haul at the Milnerton Flea market. Feeling quite chuffed with all my treasures I couldn’t wait to play around and shoot something with them. I made the granola bars on less than a few hours sleep and much zeal after my haul. I couldn’t believe how easy and fuss free the recipe was, I toasted the oats and nuts along with a seed mix which consists of pumpkin, linseeds, sunflower and sesame seeds and added to all the ingredients along with the melted coconut oil and warmed honey pressed down firmly in a parchment fitted pan and baked for 15 minutes. Allow to cool completely in the pan before slicing. I cooled in the fridge to set further, to have a more firm and chewey texture you don’t have to do this(I just wanted to be sure that this time when I cut into the bars they won’t fall apart instantly). It was indeed love at first bite, I love the crunch and saltiness of the salted and roasted macadamia nuts and the tartness of the cranberries married with the sweetness of the dates.A match made in heaven. I love how I can control what goes into the bars, as opposed to the mysterious artificial ingredient packed store bought ones. I make these scrummy bars for my partner to take along to work as a midday ‘pick me up’ snack and the bars are great for kids to take along to school for a healthy energy boost. I decided to make a smoothie bowl as a great idea to use the granola bars as part of a full breakfast meal, the quick and easy on the go option might not be for all. I used my trusty NutriBullet to blitz up berries, frozen banana slices, coconut milk and water to thin it down. serve in a bowl or cup with the crushed granola bar pieces. 

    As I type this blog post, my iPad is covered in sticky finger marks from all the constant munching on these glorious granola bars.

    The photos were taken around noon and late afternoon as the sun decided to make a late appearance for the day. I love my new props and background and as you can tell I am still trying to find my own style of shooting and styling. This takes time and patience, I am not the most patient person but I am certainly learning to be…

  • Banana and Date loaf.


    I love bananas and always end up buying way more than I actually need. So if you, like me find yourself with too many slightly overripe bananas than this is the perfect solution for you. Of course you could do just about anything else with overripe bananas like, banana flapjacks as seen previously on Off Beet Blog, or separate the batter into a muffin tin to make smaller portions of the tasty loaf. I sometimes mash up one or two into a granola bar mix of which I make on a weekly basis. 
    Recreating classics is what excites me although mindfully keeping the said ‘classic’s’integrity in tact.The recipe is from Woolworths Taste by Clement Pedro, who is now on Afternoon Express as their resident Chef. As always, I tweaked the recipe and added two more bananas, chopped walnuts and dried Medjool dates. I love the added texture the dates and the walnuts lend to the banana loaf,that said it has a ‘cake like’ soft texture too. I added a few Pomegranate rubies for a pop of colour, why not?


    The photos were taken yesterday at noon once again. As you can tell by now this is one of my favourite times to shoot during the day. Natural light was rather moody with it being overcast out but with a few reflector boards perfectly positioned, a white sheet on the table to create texture and bounce the light I made it work. 

    Happy baking! 🙂