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You are here: Home / Roundup / 2013 in review – my top 7 culinary experiences

2013 in review – my top 7 culinary experiences

by Jeanne Horak on December 31, 2013 6 Comments in Roundup

2013CulinaryExperiences © J Horak-Druiff 2013

“People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas.”

– Anonymous

So here we are, on the final  day of 2013.  If 2012 was the year we Londoners basked in the glow of the Olympics then  2013  was the hangover that followed the party – a long and trying year for so many people.  Sometimes it’s easy to become fixated on the negatives and the hardships of the past year while forgetting to appreciate the good bits.  So in the spirit of positivity I have taken the unusual step of planning a series of “2013 in review posts” focusing on the year’s food and travel highlights.  Today we’re kicking off with my top 7 culinary experiences of 2013 – dishes eaten between New Year and Christmas 2013 that I did not make myself but that have lived on in my memory ever since they passed my lips. Here they are, in no particular order:  

 

Duck&WaffleCremeBrulee © J Horak-Druiff 2013

 

 1.  Foie gras creme brulée with butter-roasted lobster at Duck and Waffle in London. It’s hard to describe this without drowning in a sea of superlatives.  Imagine silken foie gras purée the consistency of a normal creme brulée, topped with a sliver of a caramelised crust and a few juicy chunks of lobster.  It was as if all my Christmases came at once.

 

2013Tortellini

 

 

2.  Tortellini filled with cheese fonduta in chestnut purée with shaved black truffles at Club Moritzino in the Dolomites (La Villa, South Tyrol).  Ski past at 4pm and Club Moritzino at the top of the La Villa telecabine seems like any other mountain hut, with dance music playing and punters drinking Aperol spritz in their ski boots on the terrace. But come back for dinner and you will find some very fine dining indeed at 2,100 metres above sea level. These tortellini were an Autumnal dream – rich, earthy, creamy, decadent and satisfying.

 

2013LatlantideFoir

 

 

3.  Foie gras poached in Muscadet wine at L’Atlantide, Nantes. Why does everybody not cook foie gras like this?  The flavours of the wine had infused every morsel of the liver, adding a slight sweetness and an acidity to balance the fattiness. Heaven.

 

RoquefortMacarons © J Horak-Druiff 2013

 

4.  Roquefort macarons with rancio jelly a reduction made with pickled walnuts and Lagavulin whiskey at Club Gascon in London. Yes, it sounds like an unlikely combination. But trust me – it works; oh baby it works! Fluffy and light Roquefort cream filling makes a surprisingly perfect foil for the sweet macarons; and the sticky, smoky undertones of that sauce had me wanting to lick the plate when nobody was looking.

 

KuehPieTee © J Horak-Druiff 2013

 

5.  Kueh pie tee at hawker centres around Singapore.  Everyone tells you about the chill crab in Singapore.  Nobody tells you about these babies:  thin and crispy pastry shells filled with a spicy, sweet mixture of thinly sliced vegetables and prawns which you can top with a spicy chilli sauce.  Sweet, sour, salty, crispy and adorable to boot. It was love at first bite.

 

2013LemonMeringue

 

6.  Lemon Meringue 2.0 at The Restaurant at Waterkloof, Somerset West (Cape Town, South Africa).  Take the basic elements of a lemon meringue and get playful – which is exactly what chef Gregory Czarnecki does here.  Vanilla ice cream and tuille; a creamy lemon jelly strip; lemon sorbet and macaron; and Italian meringue.  Pretty as a picture and delightfully fresh.

 

2013Seabass101

 

7.  Sea bass with cauliflower, croutons and hazelnuts at Restaurant 101 at One & Only The Palm, Dubai.  What’s not to like about this dish? Buttery, flaky fish; creamy cauliflower purée; textural interest from the crispy croutons and toasted hazelnuts; and flashes of colour from the purple cauliflower florets, all served on a deck overlooking the aquamarine water.

So that’s my list – what were the best things YOU ate in 2013?  Let me know in the comments!  Stay tuned for my reviews of my own recipes of 2013 and my 2013 travel tales – but for now, I want to thank each and every reader of this site for their continued enthusiasm, comments and support throughout 2013.  Without you, there could be no Cooksister.  I wish each and every one of you a healthy, happy, peaceful and prosperous 2014.

 

HAVE A DELICIOUS NEW YEAR! 

 

 

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  1. Marie says

    December 31, 2013 at 3:50 pm

    Looks divine. The goose people are going to come for you 🙂

    Reply
  2. Rosa says

    January 1, 2014 at 12:16 pm

    A wonderful year.

    Wishing you all the very best for 2014!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

    Reply
  3. Sally - My Custard Pie says

    January 2, 2014 at 1:00 pm

    Happy New Year Jeanne. One of my culinary highlights was our lunch at Vinoteca. Looking over the waves at 101 on the Palm was pretty cool too. Hope to meet up again in 2014 – wishing you a happy blogging year.

    Reply
  4. Urvashi Roe says

    January 4, 2014 at 12:30 pm

    Oh my god! I want to eat ALL of those (except meat things of course but even they look good!) Happy New Year!

    Reply
  5. Mairi @ Toast says

    January 4, 2014 at 7:15 pm

    Oh my I am now so hungry…I want to eat them all! My favourite bite this year would be the saffron gnocchi filled with goats curd, drizzled with brown butter & toasted almonds at Baduzzi, Auckland NZ…the most delicious little morsels….could eat bucket of them!

    Reply
  6. Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours says

    January 14, 2014 at 6:40 pm

    A lovely round up Jeanne,

    I had some Roquefort macarons too, and was surprised at how good they were.

    I think one of the bowls of moules frites I had in Brittany was one of the best of the year – simple and enhanced by the location!

    Reply
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Jeanne Horak is a freelance food and travel writer; recipe developer and photographer. South African by birth and Londoner by choice, Jeanne has been writing about food and travel on Cooksister since 2004. She is a popular speaker on food photography and writing has also contributed articles, recipes and photos to a number of online and print publications. Jeanne has also worked with a number of destination marketers to promote their city or region. Please get in touch to work with her Read More…

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