Ultimate Favourites

Gordon Ramsay’s Pear and Crunchy Granola Muffins

I’m going to put it out there and say my last breakfast on this earth would be a delicious hot out of the oven muffin (plus a cappuccino with extra chocolate on top). Muffin ingredient combinations are endless, but my all time favourite combo would have to be blueberry and ricotta. A couple of my muffin mantras: adding chocolate isn’t always best and muffins you see sporting the typical processed shiny glaze are rarely worth the calorie intake! I’m always in the market for great muffin recipes, and this effort by Gordon Ramsay that my Mum recently found and made certainly hits the mark. So get baking and you won’t be disappointed!

Ingredients: 300g self-raising flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, pinch of salt, 125g muscovado sugar, 250ml full cream milk, 2 eggs beaten, 100g butter, 2 small ripe pears (cut into small pieces) & 100g crunchy granola of your choice.

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and line 16 muffin trays.
2. Sift four, baking powder, cinnamon and salt into a large bowl and then stir in the sugar.
3. Whisk the milk, eggs and butter together in a large jug and then pour into the dry ingredients and mix well. Stir in the pears and half the granola.
4. Spoon the batter into the muffin cases and sprinkle the top of each one with the remaining granola.
5. Bake for 25-30 mins. Leave to cool for 5 minutes before tucking in!

Spaghetti Marinara

Another last meal in my books. If you love seafood, adding it to pasta is the ultimate combination. Make sure you use lovely fresh seafood (we opted for a mix from our local fish shop over the supermarket variety). The dish is super simple; in the time the spaghetti takes to cook you can have the seafood mix ready, combine and voilá. We served it with a lovely Provencal Rosé and it was fresh, yet comforting and moreish. It makes me want for the seaside towns of France and Italy. Or just to be on holidays really!

Ingredients: EVOO, 2 cloves garlic crushed, ½ chilli finely chopped, 400g mixed seafood, 250g spaghetti, 1 cup of peas, ½ punnet cherry tomatoes, lemon (zest and juice), flat leaf parsley and dill. (Serves 2)

Method:

1. Bring a large pan of salted boiling water to the boil and cook the spaghetti until al dente.
2. Heat a glug of olive oil in a pan; add garlic and chilli; once aromatic add the seafood mix and zest of half a lemon.
3. When you think the seafood is about halfway there, add the cherry tomatoes, peas and half the parsley and dill.
4. When the pasta is ready, drain and add to the seafood mix.
5. Add the extra herbs, a big squeeze of lemon, salt and pepper and serve!  

Enjoy! Bri x

Bris Breakfasts

Breakfast in Brisbane is a big thing, with a new “it” location opening up seemingly every week. With a little help from The Urban List to point me in the right direction over the last couple of weeks, I’ve taken myself and my trusty sidekicks to sample a few of the breakfast offerings we had yet to try.

Scout Café (Petrie Terrace)

We arrived at a respectable 9am to find the café busy and people milling around outside, patiently waiting to be seated. We were told it would be around 20 minutes for a table but were pleasantly surprised when our 3 person contingent were seated in closer to 5. The menu reads well with some deviations from the typical breakfast menu staples. My two sisters opted for the porridge with poached pears, crushed nuts and generous drizzle of cream; both saying it was lovely and creamy (literally) with a good bit of crunch from the nuts and just the right portion size. I too was looking for something a little sweet and opted for the carrot and date loaf served with a healthy dollop of mascarpone. My only little quibble was that the baristas and the chefs didn’t seem to be in unison. Our second round of coffees didn’t make it to the table by the time we were ready to leave. Despite this, the quality of the food was good and the café had a nice ambience. Next time I’ll make sure someone samples the breaky bagel and I might give the breaky salad topped with a fried egg and salsa verde a go.

Jak + Hill (Spring Hill)

After an energetic morning of hill walking around Ascot with my BFF Sarah, we headed to Jak + Hill to re-fuel. I somewhat predictably couldn’t go past the poached eggs on sourdough with a side of avocado and feta ‘smash’, with Sarah opting for the corn fritters with a poached egg, avocado and rocket. Both were well presented and the eggs were perfectly poached, soft and oozy without being too runny which is just the way I like them.

Again the café has a nice feel; it’s open plan and well fit out without being over the top, making it a great spot for an easy, breezy weekend breakfast.

Sol Breads (West End)

After running the City2South with my sister, Morgan, the obvious next port of call for our morning was a smug, hearty breakfast. We thought we’d stick to the south side of the river and give Sol Breads a go; I follow them on Instagram and their breakfast and lunch Insta snaps always make my tuna and cottage cheese on crackers seem rather mundane. Again I went for poached eggs, this time with butter beans and roast tomatoes. Robbie opted for an omelette and Morgan went for the superfood option of poached eggs, smoked salmon and asparagus with salsa verde.

  

This breakfast outing was characterised by generously sized and flavoursome meals with efficient service and friendly staff. When next I’m across the river I’d readily head back for round two.

Any other breakfast recommendations?? Let me know!

Bri xx