Catering Melbourne Blog

Hi Lauren,

I’d like to say a big thank you for the catering services provided for the birthday party at 9 Osborne St, Brunswick on Saturday.

The whole process was seamless, from the inital quote and confirmation through to the service on the day.

I’d like to particularly highlight our fantastic chef/waiter. He turned on-time, worked solidly throughout the day and left our house spotless. He was also professional and friendly and all our guests commented on how pleasant he was. He also has the patience of a saint as our cat was determined to steal all the food

Speaking of which, the food was cooked to perfection and was plentiful.

Thank you again for all your efforts. It certainly helped make the day a success (and my life much easier). I will certainly use your services again and will recommend you to my friends.

Cheers
James Mcildowie

All too often newly married couples heave a sigh of relief when the reception is over. The feeling of being on display and the pressure of keeping to a rigid schedule of photographs, toasts, menu courses and speeches can be a stressful and unpleasant experience.
This generation of newlyweds is much less concerned with the “show”. They want to be able to mingle with family and friends, spend time with each other and above all, enjoy their party. As a result, many are opting for alternative and even unconventional ways to celebrate their nuptials.

In keeping with this trend, cocktail wedding receptions are gaining in popularity. The cocktail reception offers many advantages. The atmosphere is more relaxed and provides greater opportunity to circulate and mingle with guests. While the cost of food can be comparable to a dinner reception, rental and staff charges for cocktail parties are considerably less than for a sit-down dinner. There is also greater flexibility and more selection when choosing a venue. Heritage Inns, private homes and flower gardens are popular choices among those preferring the charm and intimacy of these venues to the formal elegance of halls and hotel ballrooms. A cocktail menu also leaves much more room for creativity. Food can set the tone for the entire event and a selection of interesting and unusual bite-sized morsels and artfully presented platters is always sure to delight. The menu can treat guests to a culinary tour by starting in one corner of the world and ending in another. Or a themed menu can be carried right through to the drinks and decorations. Port glasses filled with fresh oysters, red wine vinegar and shallots, mini crepes stuffed with Thai chicken curry and fresh basil, warm squash dumplings with cranberry syrup - the options are endless and every guest is sure to enjoy something on the menu.

Tiny cupcakes decorated with pastel frosting are another popular item at weddings. Arranged on tiered silver tea trays with white lace doilies, they are a perfect cocktail alternative to a traditional wedding cake. Other ideas could include small chocolate cups filled with mousse and fresh raspberries, mini French pastries or profiteroles stuffed with caramelized bananas.

Clearly the advantages of a cocktail reception are abundant. But overwhelmingly couples report that what they appreciate most is being able to relax and enjoy the party . . . and each other.

Cooking with wine can be a very good way to add a twist of extra flavor to any recipe. Wine can be a great addition to sauces, dips, soups, and various other types of food. If you’re just beginning your venture into the world of cooking with wine, figuring out what wines to use and when may be a little confusing. Read on for some great tips on finding your way around the kitchen with wine.

Would you drink it? In most cases, cooking with a cheaper wine is an excellent idea. It’s far better to save your money for the wine you plan to be drinking. However, there is a point when an extremely cheap wine can take away flavor from your meal instead of add it. Ask yourself if you would drink the wine you would be using. I’m not suggesting that you add an expensive vintage wine to your grandmother’s spaghetti sauce, but I am recommending that you use caution when looking for cheap wine.
What taste do you want to achieve? You are adding wine to a dish to improve the flavor; therefore, when choosing a wine, it would be best to pick one that will assimilate with the flavors of your meal. If you are searching for a dryer accent for a dish, then choose a dry red wine. Likewise, if you’re cooking something that may contain an acidic characteristic, a white wine would be your best bet.
How much alcohol will burn off? The amount of alcohol that is burned off is directly related to the amount of time you allow the dish to cook. While it’s unreasonable to assume all alcohol will evaporate, a large majority of it will. It’s also important to know that the longer you allow your food to cook or simmer, the smoother the flavor of the wine will be (A smoother flavor is generally preferred.) If your meal is not cooked long enough the flavor of the wine may be strong and have a negative impact on your meal.

How advanced are you? Having a strong background in cooking will help when deciding to add wine to your recipes; however, it’s not necessary. If you’re just beginning, and are a little uncertain, make sure you start out simple. When you begin to cook with wine, it may be best to start out by adding it to recipes you are already familiar and successful with; for example, if you make and excellent tomato or cream sauce, try adding wine to that first.
If this is your first time cooking with wine it would definitely be beneficial to look-over recipes and get a feeling for the procedures you would follow. If you are planning on cooking for a large group of people or a party, it would be best to try the recipes out a couple times until you get the hang of it. There is a wide selection of cookbooks and websites that can help you find beginner recipes to try out.

People all around the world suffer from the diseases of digestive system and extra weight and are desperate to deal with them. Most of them do not know that solution to all these problems lie in the totally natural fibrous foods. High fiber foods hold many advantages. Many diseases just start from the irregularity with the digestive system of a person. Usage of high fiber foods makes the functionality of the digestive system very smooth. High fiber foods have the natural ability to dissolve water in them on their way in the digestive tract, this helps in the smooth excretion process with softer and bulkier stools. The second main advantage of using the high fiber food is that it helps a person to loose his weight. Many people take numerous supplements and take any possible measures to loose their weight but that goes in vain. A person can naturally loose weight without any side effects by adding fiber foods into their daily diet. It is also believed that high fiber foods help in control of the diabetes. A person who takes fiber food in his diet feels more active and efficient in his daily life as fiber food, unlike sugar gives more energy to body.
Types of High Fiber Foods for Different Lifestyles:

Most people do not know about the advantages that high fiber foods offer, the ones who do, certainly add them in their daily eating. There are different types of high fiber foods available in the market according to the different lifestyles. For example, a person with a table job who has to sit all day long needs a low fiber meal while a person with a busy schedule and a tough and tiring job will need a high fiber food. People who are always on the go also has the choice because there are fibrous drinks, vitamins and gums available to fulfill their daily need of fiber.

High Fiber Foods: The Bottom Line

High fiber foods are an essential part of one’s daily food. With its numerous advantages, it keeps a person healthy and active. It also keeps the stomach active and working. All that needs to be done is to chose the right fiber diet and make sure it doesn’t conflict with the other food items you take like alcohol and sugar. Therefore, when next time you go to buy food for you, read its ingredients carefully and make sure it has fiber. After using high fiber food for a while you yourself will notice yourself to be much fitter and healthier than ever before and you will definitely wonder why you didn’t start using fibrous food earlier.

A candy recipe is ‘intermediate’ if it has more ingredients and steps, and requires more patience and perseverance. In the first recipe, constant stirring is required at one point, and waiting until the ingredients are cool at other points. In the second recipe, there are four separate steps, with waiting in between. Making candy using these recipes may not be appropriate for sharing with small children for these reasons.
Peppermint-Chocolate Pebbles

1 pound sweet grated chocolate 1/2 ounce melted cocoa-butter 1/2 teaspoonful peppermint extract

5 ounces. sweet chocolate 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate 1 cup thick cream 2 tablespoonfuls corn syrup 1 teaspoonful vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoonful almond extract

Melt the grated chocolate over hot water to a smooth paste. Remove it from the hot water, beat for a few minutes, adding gradually the peppermint extract and the melted cocoa-butter. Stir occasionally until quite cold; then rub through a wire grate onto white paper underneath.

Put the sweet chocolate and the unsweetened chocolate into a saucepan, and carefully melt the mixture to a smooth paste; then add the cream, syrup, and remaining extracts, and stir over the heat until well blended. Remove from the stove and beat constantly until the mixture becomes cold and a lighter color. Mold it into small round centers, then roll them in the sieved chocolate. Let set, then store in a cool, dry place.

Snickers Fudge

Bottom Layer 1 cup milk or semi sweet chocolate chips 1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Filling 1/4 cup butter 1 cup sugar 1/4 cup evaporated milk 1 1/2 cups marshmallow cream 1/4 cup peanut butter 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 1/2 cups chopped salted peanuts

Caramel Layer 14 oz package caramels 1/4 cup whipping cream

Icing 1 cup milk or semi sweet chocolate chips 1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Bottom layer:

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a small saucepan or double boiler; stir over low heat until melted and smooth. Spread onto the bottom of a lightly greased 13 x 9 x 2 in. pan. Cool until set.

Filling:

Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan or double boiler over medium-high heat. Add sugar and milk. Bring to a boil; maintain the boil and stir for 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in the marshmallow creme, peanut butter and vanilla. Add peanuts. Spread over first layer. Cool until set.

Carmel Layer:

Combine caramels and cream in a saucepan or double boiler; stir constantly over low heat until melted and smooth. Spread over the filling and cool until set.

Icing:

In another saucepan, combine chips and peanut butter; stir over low heat until melted and smooth. Pour over the caramel layer. Cool until thoroughly hardened, cut into 1 in. squares, and store in a cool, dry place.

Yield 8 dozen.

Risotto, a classic of Italian cuisine, is a very versatile and delicious dish. Risotto is really a versatile recipe, there exists several risotto variations that are prepared with different ingredients. Unless you don´t like rice at all, I am sure you will find a risotto recipe that you like.
Since I also like very much seafood, the risotto with shrimps variation is the one that I appreciate very much. Below, there are two recipes that I always make and my family loves them too.

The first one, Shrimp Risotto with Orange Zest, is truly a wonderful dish. Orange zest and juice not only reinforce the risotto flavor but also it gives the dish a wonderful appearance.

Then, we have Risotto with Shrimps, Green Asparagus and Champagne. Asparagus and shrimps are combined in this risotto, making a delightful dish. Not to forget the champagne, which adds a special touch to the risotto.

Shrimp Risotto with Orange Zest

Ingredients:
16 medium shrimps peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups fish stock (or chicken broth)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cups risotto rice (Arborio,Carnaroli)
1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
juice of 1 orange
salt to taste

Directions:

Place the fish stock into a saucepan, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, keeping it warm.

Heat the butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, iron saucepan or in large non-stick saucepan. Add the shrimps and fry them for 3 minutes or until they are cooked (do not cook them for too long otherwise they will be tough. A good sign they are cooked is when they get red). Remove with a slotted spoon and put them in a bowl with the orange juice and set aside.

In the same sauce pan, add the remaining olive oil and onion. Stir occasionally for 2 minutes or until onions are transparent. Add rice, grated orange peel and salt. Cook, stirring constantly for 3 minutes.

Add 1/2 cup of boiling stock, stirring constantly until the stock is almost all evaporated. Continue cooking, pouring stock 1/2 cup at a time and stirring until the liquid has evaporated until the rice is almost al dente.

When the inside of the rice is slightly more firm than you desire in the final dish, stir in shrimps and the orange juice. Stir until the liquid evaporates. Season with salt and pepper.

Risotto with Shrimps, Green Asparagus and Champagne

Ingredients:
1 cup risotto rice (Arborio, Carnaroli)
2 cups fish stock
12 large shrimps, peeled and deveined
12 green asparagus
1 cup whipping cream
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 cup champagne
3 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoons olive oil
salt, white pepper to taste
chopped fresh chives

Directions:

Cook the asparagus until tender, cut the heads off (set aside) and saute the stalks with the garlic and some part of the chopped onion. Add the whipping cream, bring to boil, then blend the asparagus mixture in a blender.

In another saucepan, melt the butter and saute the remaining onion. Add the rice and deglaze with the champagne.

Gradually pour in fish stock, stirring constantly. Cook until the rice is tender.

Cut the shrimps into bite size chunks (reserve 4 for decoration), season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil and saute shrimps for 1-2 minutes or until they turn red.

Add to the risotto the blended asparagus, shrimps and Parmesan cheese. Mix well all together and taste with salt and pepper.

Serve decorated with 1 shrimp, 3 asparagus heads and chopped fresh chives.

Are you looking for different twist for your ho-hum get together with your usual finger food menu? Want to get everyone together for casual dining but don’t want to be tied down to the table? A fondue party may be the perfect party for you. Fondue parties are offer a fun and unique way to dine, and are suburb for mingling and conversation. Here are some tips to help you throw your own fondue party

Decide how many people you will be inviting. The amount of people you invite will be the key in figuring out how much food to purchase. It’s a good idea to keep your list a little smaller at first since fondue is not conducive to larger parties.

Since you will be using a fondue pot for each of your courses, it’s a good idea to set up separate stations using at least three different pots. The first station should consist of a cheese based dip with bread cubes and a variety of dip-able veggies such as broccoli, peppers, and baby carrots.

The next pot would be used for your main course which will comprise of a savory sauce of your choice and cubed beef, chicken, scallops or shrimp. (Be sure to keep all raw meat away from other foods and inform your guest that they are required to cook the meat or fish in the fondue pot before eating it.)

The final station will be your dessert station. While using a chocolate sauce is recommended you can also you sweet cream based sauces. Use angel food cake, pretzels, marshmallows, and fruits like strawberries and bananas for dipping.

It may be helpful to prepare your dips over the stove and then transfer them into the fondue pots to keep them warm. This will keep dips that will be used later in the meal from becoming over cooked and possibly boiling in the pot.

When serving food for the fondue party, make sure it is cut into bite size cubes for easy dipping and eating. It’s also important to choose foods that don’t fall apart or crumble easy to avoid stray food particles in the dips.

There are a number of different fondue recipes, so before your first party make sure to experiment with a couple.

If your find that your fondue is too thick it’s not a good idea to add water; instead add something that is full of flavor such as chicken or beef broth. Depending on the purpose of the dip, wine and beer can also be added to thin a dip and give it more flavor.

If your are having a lot of people or serving raw foods it may be a good idea to use disposable fondue forks such as ones made with bamboo. Using disposable forks will help to avoid contamination from raw foods and are easier to clean up.

Create an atmosphere conducive to conversation. Fondue is casual dining and your guests should mingle and enjoy themselves.

Deciding on the food and drink to serve at your wedding event can be a huge decision, considering it often costs more than half of your entire wedding budget. There are a number of details that must be addressed in order for your special day to turn out exactly as you want.

You should plan to start meeting with potential caterers once you have chosen and booked the reception site. Make a mental assessment of what you want the reception to be like, in terms of the theme and subsequent food, beverages, deserts, and any other food necessities. Make a list of caterers that can fulfill your vision. You may also want to ask the reception center for catering recommendations; often, many places will even have a list of preferred caters they like to work with. A huge plus to that is the caterers will be familiar with your reception venue, making the whole process that much easier.

Try also gathering recommendations from trusted friends and family or if you have recently been to an event where you were impressed with the catering that was provided, find out the name of the caterer.

Once you have gotten a few recommendations, you should set up interviews to meet with the caterer in person. You should also request a tasting session as part of the interview so you know their culinary capabilities. Your ultimate decision should ideally be based on the taste and presentation of the food, the creativity of the caterer, the cost, and their enthusiasm and compliance to meet your needs.

“He proudly shows us the branches of the coffee trees, bent under the weight of their crop. He touches them tenderly, as a father would his children . . . his eyes shining with happiness. ‘Do you know, doctor, why these branches curve so toward the earth? They are grateful to the farmer, and bow before God.’” José Corvetti, describing a visit to the farm of Italian immigrant T. Malavasi,Tres Ríos, 1935 Coffee and Costa Rica were meant for each other, and they have grown and prospered together, complementing each other in the pursuit of excellence. Costa Rica repealed the death penalty in 1870 and abolished the army in 1948, and coffee supported those reforms with its high productivity and environmentally friendly disposition. In a country which has enacted laws protecting 21% of its territory in order to preserve the 5% of the world’s biodiversity it shelters, Costa Ricans are encouraged by their environment to love what they do, and to do it well. In its desire to protect the environment, Costa Rica has carefully tended the soils and climate that are best suited to coffee production. As Costa Rica’s soils have been enriched by volcanic ash, they contain a slight degree of tropical acidity. They are also rich in organic matter, which makes for good distribution of the coffee plant’s root system, enabling them to retain humidity and facilitating oxygenation. This combination of factors invigorates the coffee plants and is one of many elements contributing to the quality of Costa Rican coffee. Over 70% of the country’s coffee is produced in the mountains, which vary in altitude from 3,280 to 5,580 feet above sea level. Mountain temperatures range from 63 to 73 degrees Fahrenheit. Sunlight is stable, and precipitation levels are ideal. All this makes for as dependable and high-quality a coffee crop as any produced in a greenhouse. Costa Rica is the only country in the world which has issued an executive order (N°19302-MAG, 4 December 1989) banning the production of any variety of coffee other than Arabica. This standard is made possible by the expertise, experience and favorable physical conditions which converge in this remarkable land. The story of Costa Rica’s coffee is the story of the nation that saw it come to life over two centuries ago. Throughout the years, it has been the yardstick by which the country’s life and economy have been measured. Our grandparents tell us… Coffee was first brought to Costa Rica during the last decade of the eighteenth century. So we are told in a letter sent by Panamanian trader Agustín de Gana to the Governor of Costa Rica, Don José Vásquez y Téllez, announcing that he was sending two pounds of coffee.
The history books tells us that Father Felix Velarde was the first Costa Rican coffee grower; his will, dated 1816, refers to a plot of land on which coffee had been planted. Tradition has it that he bequeathed the seeds to his neighbors, inviting them to plant them. His suggestion must have taken hold, because the first recorded export of Costa Rican coffee, a one-hundred pound shipment to Panama, took place in 1820. By 1832 coffee was also being exported to Chile by Jorge Stiepel, a German businessman living in Costa Rica. In Chile, the coffee was repackaged and sent to England, where it was sold as “Valparaíso Chilean Coffee”. Meanwhile, a group of forward-looking coffee producers, including Mariano Montealegre, who was the main promoter of the crop between 1830 and 1840, decided to take on the task of exporting it directly to England. The first shipment was made in 1843 thanks to the efforts of the captain of an English ship, The Monarch, which transported 5,505 one-hundred-pound sacks to Europe. The first two Heads of State of Costa Rica, Juan Mora Fernández and Braulio Carrillo, strongly supported the coffee trade, as they sensed that it could generate economic growth and enhance Costa Rica’s position on the international market. As coffee production developed further, the country’s economy, society, and culture flourished. But that is another story . . . The story of Costa Rica’s coffee is the story of the nation that saw it come to life over two centuries ago. Throughout the years, it has been the yardstick by which the country’s life and economy have been measured. Coffee bears fruit . . . What does coffee have to do with the theater? What does the tax year have to do with the coffee harvest? In Costa Rica such relationships are essential, and are part of the benefits obtained from the “Golden Grain”, as it is called in Costa Rica. Coffee exports to Europe during the mid-nineteenth century brought many opportunities for Costa Rica, opening a window to the Old World that would eventually bring in railroads, a postal service, printing presses, the country’s first university, and what is perhaps the region’s greatest architectural treasure: the National Theater. Designed as a miniature copy of the Paris Opera House, the National Theater, located in the center of the capital city of San José, became a symbol of coffee-driven prosperity because it was initially financed by coffee taxes. Coffee did not simply transform the Costa Rican economy and its landscape, it also changed consumer behavior and working patterns. The development of a taste for coffee was, perhaps, a reflection of the democratic society that was being forged. In the words of historians Peters and Samper, “Drinking coffee became a ritual of Costa Rican society, a society that was free of economic and social distinctions; everyone drank it, from the simplest farmer or laborer to the most prominent politician.” And, just as Costa Rica lives and breathes democracy and peace, it also lives and breathes coffee. It is no coincidence that per capita consumption of this drink is the highest of all coffee-producing countries in the world. The close relationship between coffee and daily life led Costa Ricans to plan their calendar around the harvesting, processing and sale of coffee, to such an extent that the Costa Rican tax year is based on the coffee trade: it begins in October and ends in September of the following year. For a long time, in fact, even the school year revolved around the coffee harvest. But that did not prevent education in Costa Rica from becoming in 1886, what it still is today: free and mandatory. Textbooks and teachers arriving from Chile during the early years of the coffee trade, and later on, from Europe, became part of a tradition which also included a unique land ownership structure, in which small and medium-sized properties have remained a part of the rural landscape to this day. That landscape has changed over the years. What has not changed is Costa Rica’s continuing love affair with coffee.

Options for Beef Noodle Recipes ———- One of the most flexible and yummy meals you can serve your loved ones on a regular basis is Beef Noodle Dishes. Beef noodles are absolutely yummy, quick to prepare and can be cooked in a variety of ways to keep every member of your family happy at dinner time. Here are some ideas.
Beef noodle dishes most often consist of pasta noodles and a beef sauce. Beef sauces can come in a variety of flavors. Some people create beef sauce using soups. A favorite of mine is to use canned Mushroom soup or if you prefer canned French onion soup mix. Feel free to also use dry beef soup mixes. While I do think the canned mixes generally deliver a better recipe, the difference in taste is generally not that noticeable.

For noodles, I generally use wide and flat pasta noodles. However, everybody has a noodle preference. Some like long thin noodles, others like them long and thick and then you have family members that like wide noodles or pasta shapes. In general they all taste similar, with a little variety due to texture. However, it is generally a useful idea to change the style of the noodles around to keep the entire recipe fresh.

Adding beef to your beef noodle recipe is appreciated, but actually not necessary. For who like chunky beef noodle recipes use hamburger meat. Others might prefer Swedish meatball type beef in their recipes and thirdly, feel free to use steak for yummy hot dishes and beef noodle stir fry’s.

Beef Noodles with Mushrooms -1.5 pounds of lean hamburger meat -1 can of mushroom soup mix -2 beefsteak tomatoes -1 onion chopped finely -4 to 6 ounces of sliced mushrooms -16 ounces of noodles -Salt and pepper- season to taste

Combine all ingredients in a casserole, cook for about 30 to 40 minutes Boil noodles, butter to taste. Once cooked, place over hot, buttered noodles. This recipe makes about 6 servings.

French Onion Beef Noodle -1.5 pounds of stewed beef -1 can of French onion soup mix -1 green onion chopped finely -2 onions chopped finely -16 ounces of noodles -Salt and pepper- season to taste Cook in a crock pot for about 8 to 10 hours on a low temperature. Boil noodles and place cooked contents over your noodles. This recipe makes about 6 servings.

Chinese Beef Noodle Stir Fry -1.5 pounds of sliced steak (skirt steak tastes great, sometimes listed as diaphragm) -1 red pepper -1 green pepper -1 can of Chinese vegetables -16 ounces of noodles — Chinese style -Soy sauce- season to taste -Olive oil

Boil the noodles separately. In a large frying pan or wok, add some oil and start cooking the steak first. Once mostly cooked, add vegetables, peppers and soy sauce to taste. This recipe makes about 6 servings. Besides soy sauce, you can use some of the many oriental sauces available, such as Hoisin sauce, plum sauce, Thai spicy sauce, etc.