The Corkless Mind

Category: Food

  • Roasted Vine Tomato and Goat’s Cheese Tart.

    Roasted Vine Tomato and Goat’s Cheese Tart.


    I love tomatoes! I can easily eat a whole raw one with a pinch of salt and a sprinkle of white pepper. If my esophagus didn’t loathe me for it I would consume copious amounts! I saw the most stunning vine tomatoes in store yesterday and knew that I had to play around with them in the kitchen. I roasted the tomatoes in Balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and a good pinch of sea salt for about 20 mins to macerate and caramelize. As a new found friend recently said, “life’s too short to be making your own pastry” I purchased store bought pastry. I love this particular variation of butter puff pastry, the results are light, buttery and a bit flakey too. I oiled the tart tin with a tiny amount of oil and lined with parchment paper and placed the pastry inside,that I cut to size for the round tin. Brush with eggwash and assemble with the tomatoes and goat’s cheese and drizzle with the left over balsamic vinegar, olive oil and a pinch or two of sea salt flakes. 

    Place in a pre-heated oven on 180 degrees C for 10 minutes and leave to cool on a wire rack. 


    This past Sunday I attended a food photography workshop hosted by professional and renowned food photographer, Hein van Tonder from The Heinstirred blog, Francois Pistorius also a professional photographer and Isabella Niehaus a renowned stylist. I picked up so many nifty tricks and tools of the trade, I can’t wait to experiment and hopefully showcase everything I have learnt! To give you a little behind the scenes sneak peak I will be doing a full post on the workshop later in the week. So keep your eyes glued to Off Beet Blog 🙂 

    I took the above photos just before 12:00 today. I love the warmth of the red vine tomatoes against the crisp green micro herbs. I love a good colour contrast! 

    This week I’m on a prop and background sourcing mission, and with no such luck! I think I need to venture out to Cape Town soon! 

  • Lobster roll with a Sriracha and Lobster mayonnaise.

    Lobster roll with a Sriracha and Lobster mayonnaise.

    Lobster roll with a Sriracha and Lobster mayonnaise.

    As you might have noticed with recent posts I tend to lean more towards food that is associated with summer and festivity and what a more fitting day than with such gorgeous weather while on the brink of Spring in South Africa. 
    Here in South Africa, we have rock lobster called Crayfish. For some time now the Crayfish population have been under immense pressure and extreme danger of extinction with many overfishing and exploiting the rock lobster. I love crayfish, my mom makes a mean crayfish curry and if had my way I would indulge frequently but I would much rather be responsible and try to save the population by not doing so. I see it as our duty to protect a species that is so loved and vulnerable.

    The partially cooked crayfish was purchased at Woolworths fish counter and was imported. 


    I poached the crayfish in an emulsion of butter, garlic and a squeeze of lime juice for 5 minutes on a medium heat. Keeping in mind the crayfish was already parboiled. I heated the buns in the oven and for the Sriracha lobster mayonnaise I prepared the mayonnaise, which is store bought normal mayonnaise mixed with Sriracha, lime juice, and the juice of the carcass of the rock lobster roasted in the oven to caramelize with olive oil to make a lobster oil, stir until combined. To assemble, cut the buns down the middle, slather with the flavoured mayonnaise, then place pieces of the avocado on each side along with the butter lettuce and top with the crayfish and mayonnaise and a squeeze of lime juice. Serve with a good icy cold craft beer. 



    Lobster roll with Sriracha and Lobster mayonnaise.
    The photos were taken around 13:00 on a perfect sunny Cape Town day. 

    I used the newspaper in the background to create a little ambience for a pub crub seafood meal. I love how the cobalt blue of my board creates a perfect colour juxtaposition in my photos, especially for this shoot. 

    This post was collated whilst listening to the soundtrack of Whiplash. My favourite song on the upbeat jazzy soundtrack is you guessed it, Whiplash. 

  • Nigella’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Pots.

    Nigella’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Pots.

    Naturally I love cooking and baking things that I love to eat, I think that is one of very few secrets of good cooking, that and simplicity. I love Nigella Lawson’s style of cooking it’s quick and no fuss, humbling yet soulful. I don’t think anyone could resist a ‘straight out of the oven’ freshly baked Chocolate chip cookie, never mind eating the raw cookie dough out of the mixing bowl. 

    This recipe is from Nigella’s latest cookbook titled ‘Simply Nigella’ there are so many recipes I simply must try when I gift myself this aesthetically inviting book! I’ve read that the book is something of a celebration of life. 


    Lying in bed dreamily yearning for summer and listening to Nigella’s latest series of podcasts(Summer Sound Bites) all I can think of is entertaining this summer. The thought of laughter together with cocktails and good food shared with family and friends, definitely excites me and makes my heart smile. 


    As always, I added a little something extra, a touch of Nutella in the middle to make the cookie that more gooey and indulgent. The recipe for the Chocolate chip cookie pots is up on Nigella’s website.