Change and Pizza East

I don’t really like change..even though I believe I am an impulsive, adaptable person..oh who am I kidding..I am also lazy..so, change is difficult :).
I don’t like changing managers too often...don’t like changing the bedding (yeah I know I have to).. I don’t like wearing something else, if I can wear the latest top I bought every single day..

Pizza East menu

I don’t like this kind of change.

Recently I had to change my desk for a new one..yes it’s bigger, less cramped and I don’t smash my knees in the table’s leg every day..I still reluctantly moved..as I don’t like change..
Things do change in my life, don’t get me wrong..I was single, then married, I lived in Bucharest, then moved to London..but hey, these were necessary things!!
I am sure you already know that I love Franco Manca’s pizza, I can almost say I am addicted to it..
However from time to time a change is needed..If only because I am too lazy to go to Chiswick. When this happens we like to go to Pizza East*.
This time we went to the one on Portobello Market. It was newly opened (yeah...this was ages ago..) and we had to try it and see if it was as nice as the one in Shoreditch. And it doesn’t disappoint let me tell you.

Pizza East new and old

The interior is nice and cosy and I really like the perfect balance of old and new, the hanging hams and cheeses upstairs and the lively bar.

Pizza East interior

We weren’t that hungry when we finally got a table so we just started with some green olives and almonds. They were nice, especially loved the freshness of the olives with the saltiness and crunch of the almonds, worked nice with a cold beer.

Olives and almonds to start with

I ordered the San Daniele and rocket pizza and Mr.M got his favourite salami one.
I liked mine very much. It was fresh and light with a perfect balance between the salty and porky San Daniele and the fresh rocket salad on top while the base is fluffy with a nice crunch from the cornmeal.

San Daniele and rocket pizza

Mr.M loved the abundance of cheese and salami on his, it felt manly :).

Salami pizza

Pizza East doesn’t disappoint. The food is always nice and the service is usually good, apart from some nights in Shoreditch when it can be a bit slow.
I think Pizza East is the best contender so far for the best pizza in London.
So if you feel like changing your regular pizza place for a new one, from time to time, I would recommend you go to Pizza East even though it’s not the cheapest one in town.

*Pizza East – 310 Portobello Road, W10 5TA, London
http://www.pizzaeast.com/pizza-east-portobello
I can’t remember for sure how much we paid but I think usually it’s around: £30 for both of us.

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Happy New Year and a portfolio

Happy New year everyone!
I am still here, still eating (mostly tomatoes and pickles) and trying to capture some pictures now and then.
I'll come back with new recipes and reviews soon, but until then I thought you might want to take a look at my newly created portfolio



Check it out here: Raluca Micu Portfolio

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Lazy summer and a refreshing gazpacho

I love being lazy..what I love even more is to be lazy on a beach somewhere..
If it so happens that I have a mojito in one hand, well lucky me :).

Do I drink mojitos all day, every day? Well no. When I am not drinking mojito, I love to have a nice cold gazpacho followed by grilled sardines yum!

Gazpacho

Oh never mind me, I am dreaming at our latest holiday in Spain..lazy days, tasty tomatoes, the best oranges I had, gazpacho and mojito...
Not to mention all the jamon, manchengo..Look at me getting carried away..this is a story for some other time..

I just had to think of sunny, lazy days as autumn is properly here now..grey and dark and cold..but laziness is still welcome :)

I know it's a bit late to talk about a cold soup, but I'll tell you anyway, maybe you've got some late season (ok, ok, very late season) tomatoes that you
don't know how to use..

Cold Spanish soup

Ingredients

1 slice of white crusty bread soaked in water
1kg very ripe tomatoes
2 peppers - one red and one green
1 medium cucumber
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 small onion or 1 small shallot
150ml extra virgin olive oil
2tbsp sherry vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Gazpacho and warm soda bread

Method

Dice the tomatoes, pepper, cucumber and onion
Mince the garlic and squeeze the water out of the bread.
Add all ingredients above (apart from the vinegar and seasoning) to a food processor and blend until smooth.
Pass the mixture through a sieve, add the vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate before serving.

To serve garnish the gazpacho with extra virgin olive oil.
I've served mine with hot from the oven soda bread, it's been lovely and very much reminded me of holidays and sun :).

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Cool vs uncool and a soda bread

This dark thing is totally uncool right? It's dark when I wake up and dark when I leave the office..uncool!..

Want to know other uncool things? My bathroom fan..it keeps going for at least 15 mins after the lights are off..what's that all about??

Soda bread

The leaves that block our drainage outside..totally uncool to find your front door submersed in a pool of water.
What's cool these days?
All the colours in Hyde Park..the amazing autumn is here and I love it sooo muuuch!

It's cool to bake things that my grandma used to bake for me when I was a child and she still does it. I'll tell you more about that soon.

There's another thing I find extra cool: the smell of freshly baked bread..did I tell you this already?
Doesn't matter..I am now older so..I can afford to repeat myself from time to time :)

The latest bread I've baked.. (not really the last one..as the last one was baked using my new shiny ruby Kitchen Aid that Mr.M bought for me on my B-Day muuuaaah :)) is this so easy to make soda bread, using Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall recipe.

Easy to bake soda bread

Ingredients

500 gr plain flour
2tsp bicarbonate of soda
1tsp fine sea salt
400ml buttermilk
some milk if necessary

Method
Sift the flour and soda into a large mixing bowl and stir in the salt.
Make a well in the centre and pour your buttermilk mixing while you go. Don't over mix it, just try to incorporate all the flour as quickly as possible and gather the dough with your hands until you have a roundish shape. If it doesn't come together add a tablespoon or two of milk. Your dough will be just a tiny bit sticky.
Pre-heat your oven to 200C. Put your bread on a baking sheet sprinkled generously with flour. Make two deep cuts (in a cross) with a really sharp serrated knife on your bread (it will help it grow and breathe in the oven). Sprinkle the bread with flour and put it in the oven. Bake it for around 40-45mins or until it sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Serve it warm and with generous amounts of butter. Totally cool!
I've served mine with a fresh and fragrant gazpacho, that I'll tell you all about next time.

Go do cool things now!

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Grandma's baked potatoes and Spud

When I was a little girl my grandma used to serve these amazing potatoes that she baked inside the wooden stove.

I loved sitting in front of it waiting for them to be ready..She would take them out, steaming hot, add a dollop of butter on top, sprinkle some salt and go!
They were just to die for!

Spud Covent Garden

When I moved to London I was presented with a British staple: the jacket potato...Did I like it? No.
I just didn't understand the point of having a huge baked potato, cut in two and drowned in baked beans...In a way I still don't understand.

However I was intrigued by the invitation I received to visit a new place that opened its doors to the "jacket potato loving punters".
I had to go check it out and to be honest with you, I am glad I did as it did change my mind about the sad jacket potato.

Spud dining room

Spud* is located on one of the cute little streets close to Covent Garden. It looks inviting and people are nice and attentive. We were invited to visit on the day they opened up their downstairs dining room.

Spud interior

We were invited to try some of their toppings first and then to decide on our favourites to enjoy properly with potato and everything.
I decided to try the smoked mackerel and the lamb tagine one (as someone sitting next to me swear it was the best) and Mr.M went for the chicken and chorizo ragu and the braised barbeque pork.

Cosy corner at Spud

Which ones did we like?
Our favourite was the chicken one, definitely! It was flavoursome and we could taste the nice smoky chorizo that worked wonderfully with the sweetness of the corn and the refreshing crème fraiche.

Chicken and chorizo ragu spud

Our second favourite was the smoked mackerel one, as we like fish and this was exactly what we expected, lovely smoked oily fish lifted by a large dollop of crème fraiche.

Smoked mackerel and creme fraiche spud

What about the other ones?
Well I feel the lamb one could have been better as on this occasion the cous cous was just a bit undercooked, and I was expecting the barbequed pork to be more fragrant and to be able to distinguish a hint of apples.
However I must confess that Mr.M stole all the cheese, so I wasn't really able to taste the entire thing.
We had a go with the Sicilian aubergine one, but being meat lovers we weren't that keen on the veggie version :)

Chicken spud

So we went for the chicken and chorizo ragu and the smoked mackerel spuds.
Do these toppings work with your regular spud? Yes they do!

Smoked mackerel spud

I definitely think that I could have a spud with smoked mackerel and crème fraiche for lunch or event a speedy light dinner.

I think I've been converted to another spud dish!
I loved Spud and the entire experience and I can't tell you how happy I was to be offered a "Friends of Spud" membership card with my name on it, on my way out!
That just did the trick for me and I left feeling special as if I was part of a Spud lover secret society :).

I will have to try my grandma's baked potatoes myself...but I will try the modern version with lovely toppings ;).

*Spud – 26 New Row, Covent Garden, London, WC2N 4LA.
http://ilovespud.com/home
Mr.M and I were guests at Spud, but your average Spud will set you back around £4-£6 each.

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