I’ve mentioned before that out my way (northern greater Melbourne), there isn’t really much in the way of snappy breakfast places, but discovered another place not too far from my end of town, right at the termination of the 112 tram’s route. The little eatery is called Jackson Dodds and it’s on Gilbert Rd. Again, actual suburb is contentious – I’ve seen some say it’s in Thornbury, some say it’s in ‘Rezzo’ (Bogania for Reservoir, I believe). I’m personally inclined to place it in West Preston because that’s where the tram route says it finishes.
Location aside, it has fantastic breakfast and brunch options. The first time I went there, I chose to have kedgeree. There was no room in my belly for the toast provided. The rice was topped with mango chutney, and had smoked rainbow trout as well as a quartered boiled egg. I would have liked the rice to be a little spicier. But goodness, it was so good. I have never seen kedgeree on a menu anywhere so was quite excited to see, and try. The chutney is a little sweeter than I’m used to (the chutney my father has is usually more sour rather than sweet) but it’s probably suited to a more Western palate. Mmm, just thinking about this dish has my mouth watering. You need to try this.
The next time I went, with someone in tow, I agonised over the gorgeous menu options, but decided upon the pea and haloumi fritters, with tomato chutney and beetroot leaves. This is probably one of the most exciting brunch dishes I’ve had in a very long time. I couldn’t actually taste the haloumi, but totally didn’t mind – the peas were just out of this world. Imagine sweet, fluffy fritters. The chutney was sweet and had a little bit of chilli for kick. Personally, I love beetroot leaves as I find them really flavoursome. And then a side of bacon! Truly, this dish could do no wrong. I couldn’t stop thinking about it all day. It looks gorgeous too.
Equally impressive I’m told, was the dukkah eggs. They smelt delicious and wonderfully fragrant with Middle Eastern spices. I love the way the poached eggs appear encrusted in sesame and various spices. Partner said they were similar to the ‘lean green’ eggs dish at nearby Pearl Oyster, but even better.
I also have a really soft spot for the crockery used for tea. It’s like they chose the best stuff of its kind available at the op-shop, or Savers.
This place is unbelievable value for money – nothing is over $15 and the food is just phenomenal for the price. There are so many other things on the menu that I’m dying to try. It’s sometimes a little hard to get the attention of the staff and it understandably gets very busy. Even if you live closer to the city, it’s so worth the trip! So, when are we going? I am itching for a reason to return, and show it off to friends.
My reason for asking Mike to do a post for Eat, Drink, Stagger was purely selfish. We’ve met briefly in person, but it was on Twitter that I learnt that he has a real love for cooking, but more impressively to me, he’d bought a blow torch specifically to finish bombe Alaska, the dessert of my dreams. I can picture it now my mother’s 70s cookbook and recipe cards – it looked impossible to make! I still haven’t tried the fabled dessert, but hope to one day. I was seduced by those meringue waves…
What also impressed me about Mike is that he really loves cooking and is a ‘nerd’, and thus living proof that the two attributes aren’t mutually exclusive. Bombe Alaska is clearly a dessert attempted by those who take their kitchen activities very seriously. I absolutely loved reading about Mike’s bombe endeavours, and hope you enjoy reading about them too. You can find him on Twitter at @unearthlymike, and he also has a website which details his professional life.
Why hello there! I didn’t see you come in! I’m Michael, your guest blogger for the evening. Come. Sit. Make yourself comfortable and I’ll tell you a tale. A tale of a man and his dessert.
It all started back in February of 1903, when I was a young lad growing up in the Bavarian Alps. No – it actually started one particularly unusual night in the September of 2009. Why was this night so unusual? Because I decided to rot my brain a little further with some so-called reality TV. Celebrity Masterchef to be precise.
Who were the celebrities appearing in that particular episode? I don’t remember. It’s not important. Please refrain from asking questions until I’m finished. It’s dangerous to interrupt a man as he rambles. You wanna get stabbed!?
Anyway, where was I? Ah yes, growing steadily bored as the episode progressed, my interest returned when it came to the final challenge. Bombe Alaska.
I watched as the celebrities struggled to follow the recipe they had each been supplied with. I think this is what originally appealed to me – the apparent difficulty of the dish. If I could master this, I could cook anything. But more importantly, it seemed like a dessert that under the right circumstances could lead to a little boob groping.
So I gave it a shot and was promptly charged with indecent assault. Then I realised I had things in the wrong order and needed to make the dessert first. To cut a long story short, it was an average result. Thai dictionary . The first bombe turned out the best. As I continued, there was a steady decline in quality, as illustrated in the graph below.
For a long time after, I was haunted by the unforgiving face of Matt Preston, scoffing at my less than perfect bombes. I saw him everywhere (but mostly in advertisements, hawking products vaguely related to cooking). This just fuelled my urge to get this recipe right.
Now, many months later, I’m going to attempt the tricky dessert a second time. Yes, this is Bombe Alaska 2: Electric Boogaloo. Documented in Technicolour for your viewing pleasure.
Grab a stone tablet and a chisel, because the ingredients are coming up riiiiiiight…… n…. right nnn…………. NOW!!!:
The first step is to make the ice cream. I know, I’m excited too! Half fill a pot with water and bring it to the boil. Reduce to simmer and place a bowl over it.
Bust open the eggs and separate the yolks from the whites. Make sure not to get any yolk mixed in with the whites. If you do, you fail at life and your meringue won’t work. Store the whites in a refrigerated time-capsule for future generations. Combine the egg yolks, caster sugar, and vanilla bean innards in the water-heated bowl.
Using an old-school vintage hand beater (a whisk would also work) whisk the mixture off its feet with romantic gestures. Or just until it becomes thick and pale, like a chubby albino.
Once your mixture is ready, remove the bowl from the pot. Use oven mitts so you don’t drop it like it’s hot. Because it will be. Congratulations, you just made custard. If that’s what you were hoping to achieve, STOP NOW!!! Otherwise, mix in your crème de cacao and thickened cream. PROTIP: The alcohol in the crème de cacao will stop your ice-cream from setting too hard.
This is where the cocoa (sifted) should be added too. I didn’t put any in when I originally made this, and the crème de cacao didn’t give a rich enough chocolate flavour for my tastes. Or any chocolate flavour at all…
Pour this mixture into a plastic container. Old ice cream containers are great for this. Seal it with the lid (if you have one) or some foil and put it into the freezer until firm. A few hours should be fine. Go and watch Avatar or something.
After the credits roll, it’s time to churn the ice cream. Using a knife, slice it up whilst muttering, “Stabbity, stabbity, stab, stab.” This will not only help you release years of suppressed rage, but will also make the ice cream easier to mix. Fire up an electric beater and churn that mother like your life depends on it! Return to the freezer and watch Avatar again.
You can repeat the process as many times as you want. More churning will produce creamier ice cream and give you a better grasp of the Na’vi language.
Alternatively, if you are impatient (what, you don’t like Avatar?) and have an ice cream maker, use that.
For the purée, put your orange, sugar and juice in a saucepan and heat on medium. I actually used two oranges when making this recipe, but found the end result to be a little overpowering so I cut it back to one in the ingredients. Stir occasionally until the liquid is evaporated.
You can use this time to prepare your moulds. But don’t let your purée burn! Or so help me, I will come to your house and give you such a telling off!
I used disposable cups lined with Glad Wrap, but a hollowed out human skull would do the same job.
Once your orange is ready it’s time to ask yourself, “Will it blend?” You’ll be pleasantly surprised to find out that [spoiler alert] it does!
Remove your ice cream from the freezer or ice cream machine. You may need to let it soften a little, or churn it one last time before folding in the blended purée. Don’t over-mix it though, I know how excitable you can get. We just want a ripple of orange running through the ice cream.
Transfer the mix to your moulds and return to the freezer. I ended up with enough for three bombes. So that’s one each for you, your date, and the camera guy.
Meanwhile… start preparing the optional presentation part of the dish. Or don’t. I’m not going to tell you how to live your life.
Spend a quiet moment reminiscing about your custard-making past. Use that same ‘bowl over simmering water’ technique to melt the chocolate. Dip orange wedges into the chocolate but only coat half of each slice. Place them on a plate covered in Glad Wrap and shove it into the fridge. Eat any remaining chocolate as you wait for the ice cream to set again. You know you want to.
When the ice cream is solid, start preparing the meringue. Dig up your time-capsule and put the egg whites in a bowl. Using an electric beater, beat them like a misbehaving child. Staying with the same metaphor, gradually add sugar to keep them from telling anyone. Your meringue should be ready when it forms soft, white peaks.
Remove one bombe from a mould and place it on the ugliest plate you can find. Doing this one at a time (and leaving the others in the freezer) will keep them from melting.
Grab a knife and spread a thin layer of meringue (about a half centimetre thick) onto the bombe.
Brown this using a blow torch whilst singing Pat Benatar’s ‘Fire and Ice’. I picked my torch up from House, who sells kitchen products when he’s not solving medical puzzles.
Any leftover meringue can be baked in mounds on a tray at 90 degrees Celsius for 90 minutes, so as not to waste it.
Arrange three of your choc-coated orange wedges on the side of the plate. Repeat the spreading, browning and wedging for the remaining bombes.
If you followed these directions exactly, you should have gained at least 10,000 EXP. More than enough to level up and face the end boss.
Finally, grab some lube and contraceptives because you are going to get laid!* Even I want to have sex with me for making this!
*Actual results may vary.
As an afterthought, this would also be great with strawberries instead of oranges. Next time Gadget, next time…
It seemed like a lovely idea to try and get breakfast or brunch not too far from where I lived after getting a blood test done. I hate the blasted things, and figured treats were in order. Thornbury or West Preston (there is division as to where this place is situated. Being pseudo-local to the area, I’d say Thornbury) is a few suburbs away from where I live and in the last few years is looking significantly…gentrified. Upon the recommendation of Eating Melbourne, I hit up Pearl Oyster which you can get to on the 112 tram (the one that goes up Collins and Brunswick Streets).
When I first walked it, it was a little intimidating – attractive hip looking young folks both as customers and as staff. It has a really warm, friendly vibe and staff chat to each other like old friends. There’s lots of yummy choices, and they cater for vegetarians, vegans and gluten intolerant folks. I agonised over the French toast, and the field mushrooms on toast with goats’ cheese as I waited for a fresh pot of Lapsang Souchong tea. I went with the savoury choice.
The tea service is a little mismatched, but I love the tray and the reused teensy old-school milk bottle. My lactose-intolerant body feels guilty at not finishing all the milk! Sometimes, I forget to ask for soy milk.
I got stuck into my mushies and cheese pretty quickly – look how big they are! The sourdough was divine – one slice was plain, the other had olives in the loaf.
While eating, the grocer arrived to deliver fresh produce and chat to the staff. It was all so idyllic.
I returned a few days later with a partner. Service was erratic, but still friendly. We had coffee and eggs. In a classic manoeuvre of self-deception (no meat being healthier…don’t question my flawed logic!), I chose the lean green eggs – dukkah poached eggs with spinach and a side of creamy labnah and hommus. I scoffed it down pretty quickly. Gosh, I do love homemade hommus.
The SLR-wielding freak had the ‘bada bing’ eggs – poached eggs, prosciutto, spicy napoli and rocket. Rocking my street cred by taking good photos, harumph.
Like a food magpie, I was lured by their adorable cakes and goodies at the front counter and left on both occasions with a chocolate muffin with silver cachous (which tasted every bit as delicious as it looked), and some other plummy unnameable thing as a treat for the bestie.
The cafe is deceptively large – both indoor and out. There is a lovely, spacious garden outside and a few tables on the pavement. If you’re in the area, you should definitely visit. It’s a very sleepy looking part of town that is either Thornbury or West Preston, as discussed at the beginning. Next time I’m too lazy to go into the city and its environs for decent brunch action, I shall remember Pearl Oyster is not too far a drive, and if game, I might try pushbiking out to it. Do take note that they only accept cash which may pose an inconvenience to some.
