Cooking with ZWILLING

Last week, Howard and I had the pleasure of attending a event highlighting ZWILLING J.A. HENCKEL's cookware. We are long-time users of the ZWILLING knives and were excited to go and learn a bit more. There, we found out that ZWILLING J.A. HENCKEL is celebrating 110 years in Canada and also consists of Staub, Miyabi, and Demeyere - we did not realize that these brands were all part of their family!

Upon entrance, we were greeted by the friendly team at NKPR and offered beverage choices.

I must say, I'm a fan of any event that offers something for non-wine drinkers! I tried the pomegranate and elderflower sparkling pressé.

Beside the kitchen, there was a table set with a ZWILLING salt and pepper shaker.

The ZWILLING cutlery was showcased since we weren't using those utensils for the dishes.

NKPR had set up the event to revolve around the Kitchen Personality. There were four stations, each catering to the individual's needs.

David Hale, VP Sales & Marketing at ZWILLING J.A. HENCKELS, became our trusty guide as he took us to our first stop. Featuring the Staub Ceramics, this station was for "The Busy Bee." This collection is ideal for quick and easy meals that could be made ahead of time.

First, there was macaroni and cheese that you can garnish with sautéed mushrooms, caramelized onions, and bacon bits. We ate it (no photo) while David explained that the Staub products were made in France and included the cocotte pots, fry pans, grills, pans, woks, fondue pots, and presentation pieces.

They actually made two dishes here for us to try for when we circled back, there was pasta!

We couldn't help scooping up some bacon bits and Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Now isn't that one way of decorating your hot tub?

As we stepped out to the backyard, we were introduced to "The Grill Master" station. Did you know you could use a cast iron coccotte on the barbecue? Another tip learnt.

During the hot summer weathers, David explained that instead of heating up your hard-earned air conditioned kitchen, you could take it outside. The barbecue acts as an oven and the cast iron coccottes self-bastes thanks to the spikes on the inside of the flat lid.

Over the weekend, Howard and I stopped by a cooking store and took a look at another brand's French oven and did notice that they didn't have the spikes on the lid. Just something to think about if you're considering getting one.

Oh the food here was delicious! They beautifully plated a sake-marinated flat iron beef with grilled asparagus.

Look! Even the lids on the presentation pieces have the tiny spikes.

The displays of knives was what Howard came to see. He was absolutely happy to see and hold these beautiful Miyabi knives. David informed us that these were authentic Japanese blades crafted from premium steel that were layered with the damask pattern. Just learnt that the hammered finish is called "Tsuchime."

From left to right: Miyabi 6000 Artisan, Miyabi 5000 Birchwood, Miyabi 5000 Kaizen, and Miyabi 600 Morimoto Edition (yes of Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto!). Howard has decided that we need the 5000 series for our collection.

Naturally, they also had the ZWILLING cutlery on display! David explained that the blades are all the same, the only thing they change is the handle so that cook's can choose the one that works best for them. Whatever feels comfortable in your hands.

The knives are designed for the pinch grip (where you place your thumb on the curved bolster and the index finger on the other side. This allows for the circular rocking/chopping motion as Howard is so kindly demonstrating.

The pièce de résistance some might say were these KRAMER Stainless Damascus Collection and Carbon Collection knives. You've heard of Bob Kramer, right? If I could do a long whistle, I would here.
David was right, these knives surprised me. They may look heavy, but if you pick them up, it's light and easy to handle.

Back in the kitchen, we got to see all of the prepped ingredients and the cookware in action! This station was labelled "Le Gourmand."

Steaming dumplings!

Salmon!

Chef Matthew Sullivan was busy cooking and plating for us.

Honey soy and ginger glazed salmon crusted in wasabi served with baby bak choy, wilted greens with garlic and lemon zest, and a steamed vegetable wonton.

Can we say delicious again?

The chefs were using the new ZWILLING Sensation Cookware. These are made in Belgium and have this amazing textured handles for grip. Oh boy do we want a set to cook with! Howard has promptly placed this on the top of our wishlist. They're not even available in Canada yet - coming this fall!

Finally, the last station was "The Sweet Tooth" - that's me! Here they showcased Demeyere cookware series that are also manufactured in Belgium. They boast efficient boiling and an even frying.

I don't know what is making my heart flutter more - the butterscotch or the lovely cookware.

A perfect way to end the evening, crêpes with flambéeds pineapples drizzled with butterscotch.

Thank you to Leah from NKPR for inviting us and to Natasha Koifman for hosting us at her lovely home. Many thanks to David from ZWILLING J.A. HENCKEL for showing us around and for the informative evening. Lastly, thank you to the chefs from Daniel et Daniel for the delicious food.

Disclaimer: We were invited by NKPR to attend this event to learn about ZWILLING J.A. HENCKEL products and cookware. No monetary exchange took place. All opinions are our own.

Harley Birthday Cupcakes

Logos. Probably the enemy of most decorators. Especially if you don't have a handy printer that shoots out edible sheets that you can apply on top of fondant.

I was given the challenge of doing a Harley-Davidson theme for a birthday party yesterday. Nuh-huh. Not doing it. The logo is way too intricate for small cupcake toppers. But I found a way to simplify it and wanted to share this neat trick with you.

For most things that people request to top their cupcakes and cakes with, there aren't cookie-cutters available for sale. Or if you are able to purchase the shapes you need, is it worth investing in that one specific shape? What do you do then? You improvise with the cutters you already have!

For the Harley-Davidson logos, I used a medium heart-shaped cutter, a small T-shaped cutter, a modeling stick, and tiny letters for impressions.

First, roll your fondant out and neatly cut out the heart shape.

Here's the important trick. If you don't have a cutter for what you need, look to the outside edges of the cutters you already have. As you can see, step two is to trim off the top of the heart with the outer edge of the cutter.

Do the same for the other side for the third step. See how it's starting to look like a shield?

Steps four and five, use the round outer edge of the letter T. Cut out two small dips at the top of the logo.

Time to go sideways. We need another little dip underneath.

Normally I might use more cutters to help, but I found that I was able to trim the fondant with just the T.

Last dip in the logo! When you're done, you can always use a straight edge or modeling stick to clean up the sides.

Finally, impress the letters into the surface! Couldn't use all three colours on one topper? Break it out into three!

And now for some heavenly chocolate photos. The birthday girl is very fond of chocolate.

I glazed the chocolate cupcakes with chocolate ganache.

Then topped it off with a chocolate butter cream swirl. Could have taken it even further with chocolate sprinkles or a drizzle of chocolate. But the fondant toppers would be sitting on top.

Unwrapping the cupcake liner . . .

Thought I would cut it in half to see the three chocolate layers. Yummy!

Happy birthday Donna! Ride on!

Korean Steak Tacos and Guacamole

We're trying to switch from Where should we eat lunch? to What are we making for lunch? these weekends. We found that we ate out for almost every meal starting on Friday night to Sunday evening. And it's not like we were eating lots of unhealthy fried foods, but it was getting expensive! So we're trying to limit our weekend meal allowance, starting to think ahead during the weekdays, shopping for minimal ingredients, and stay cooking at home. At least for lunch, because we do like trying new restaurants with our friends for dinner.

Last Monday, I flagged a recipe in Curtis Stone's new cookbook, What's for Dinner? (I know how this looks as I'm using his recipes for lunch). Korean Steak Tacos. Perfect as we've been trying different Mexican restaurants in the city and still haven't gotten enough of tacos.

Around midnight, I started making the marinade by whisking 1/2 cup of chopped cilantro; 1/4 cup of dark brown sugar; 3 tablespoons of canola oil; 3 tablespoons of soy sauce (I had dark and light soy sauce at home and opted for the light one); 1 tablespoon of sesame oil; 2 garlic cloves, chopped; 1 jalapeño pepper, chopped; 1 teaspoon of freshly grounded black pepper; and 1 teaspoon of coriander powder. Pour out 1/4 of the marinade, cover and refrigerate. Then place the steak in the dish, cover and refrigerate overnight.

Woke up and gave the steak (about 2 pounds and 1.5 inches thick) a flip to the other side. Mmm this marinate smells so good!

While the other side of the steak is soaking, you can prep the veggies for the taco. It's pretty easy, shred some napa cabbage, cut 1 large carrot into matchstick-size strips, and clean some fresh cilantro sprigs.

Don't forget to make guacamole! We used 3 ripe avocados; 1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped; 1 garlic clove, finely chopped; cilantro; juice from 1 lemon (oops, forgot to pick up lime); and a pinch of sea salt. Mix well!

Remove the steak from the marinade (discard the marinade) and grill for a total of about 5 minutes on each side (for a total of 10 minutes). Transfer the steak to a cutting board and let it sit for 5 minutes.

While the steak is resting, pop your tortillas into the oven for a light toast. Take out the marinade you saved.

Cut the steak into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Pour the reserved marinade over. Assemble the tacos by spreading guacamole on the tortilla, throwing on some cabbages, carrots, and steak. Garnish with cilantro. Or you can fill the tacos with everything and have the guacamole on the side. Up to you!

Enjoy! How do you go about planning weekend meals? Do you plan for the whole week? Play it by ear?

Disclaimer: An ambassador and account manager for Avocados from Mexico contacted us about featuring their products. A #LuvMexAvocado Blogger Pack was sent to us for the campaign. We received recipes featuring avocados from Mexico, a $25 gift card for the purchase of recipe ingredients, and fact sheets about Mexico and avocados from Mexico. We were not required to use the recipes provided or produce a positive feature. All opinions are our own.