Levanter, Ramsbottom

I gave a huge cheer as Ramsbottom's Levanter won 'Casual Restaurant of the Year' at the Manchester Food and Drink Awards. I don't mind telling you that they got my vote after our visit a few weeks ago. Hidden behind the main flurry of shops and restaurants, Levanter and sister restaurant Baratxuri are nestled on Square Street, which feels like a peaceful little place to spend an afternoon eating tapas. 

First rule of tapas - staring blankly at the menu, fully aware of the fact that I will be unable to choose an adequate amount of dishes, owing to the fact 'they all sound so nice'. Cue a meat platter! Happy days. Lots of carnivorous 'bits' to keep me happy. Look at this meat!

I will always over-order carbs. Every time. However, Levanter's sourdough comes with these nice salsa and oil/vinegar dipping pots, which made me feel continental rather than greedy. 

Garbanzos - chickpeas, spinach and egg with cumin seeds, garlic and breadcrumbs: A festival of textures awaits in this dish. Not only is it packed with flavour, but the breadcrumbs and slightly toasted edges on the chickpeas gave a nice crunch too. Pop open that yolk!

Rabo de Toro - ox tail braised in Rioja, served with tomatoes, celery, carrots, butter beans and garlic: Star of the show. Beef in red wine will always be a hearty little number, but add in those smooth butter beans, which seem to have been steeped in the flavour of the dish, and it's sent to another stratosphere.

Merluza Y Salsa de Tomate - Hake fillet seared on the plancha, with sun-dried tomato and anchovy salsa: I'm not a fan of seafood but Phil is, so we always get at least one fish dish. He loved this one, which came served on a generous bed of salsa. This was a little too fishy for me, but even I loved the meaty hake.

It's always nice to have a ride out to Ramsbottom at the weekend, especially when wonderful food like this awaits. All the staff were warm and friendly, spoke about the dishes with some vigour, and seemed genuinely pleased to serve their guests. We got chatting to a nice couple who were sat next to us too, who were already planning their next trip, which would involve staying over and lots of wine! 

Go here for a relaxed dining experience when you have lots of time. Do not rush this one. Your food comes when it's ready, so you could happily spend all afternoon here without even noticing the time. We're also plotting an evening trip, and a visit to sister restaurant Baratxuri. 

Mama Kelly, Amsterdam

Before we begin, channel your inner Pink Lady. You're a Mean Girl, and it is Wednesday. 

When I researched where to go in Amsterdam, all the same places kept popping up, so much so that I felt like we were old friends by the time we left. Then I stumbled upon Mama Kelly, in a fluke that shall be from this moment forth, known as the biggest fluke of all time. Flukesville. Imagine my face when I came across the pictures below on Mama Kelly's Instagram. There shone a shiny pink demon. We were going.

Pictures nicked from Mama Kelly's Insta

Powder pink booths, art deco style gold metalwork, golden pineapples and lobsters dotted around the gaff, and sumptuous cushions at every table. Walking through the door was definitely no disappointment. The whole restaurant shines pink. It felt very much like a homecoming.

Getting there was a bit odd. It absolutely lashed it down. Our plan of getting the tram to the other end of the city was utterly kiboshed, so we spent about 45 minutes stuck in traffic with a grumpy taxi driver. We pulled up at the Olympic Stadium, which was like a 1920s ghost town. It has a bit of an odd feeling about the place, mainly because it feels quite remote. Then there he was, a pink chap ready to welcome us in from the deluge. This pink palace welcomed us with open arms.

Three floors of pure glamour await, which when juxtaposed with this odd building, makes you feel like you've just entered another universe.

There's this weird thing about Amsterdam. They don't do cocktails. If they do, you have a choice of three; dark and stormy, Aperol spritz or a Moscow mule. They were all rubbish. I can't even remember what we ordered at Mama Kelly, I just know they were pink and perfect in every way. First decent cocktail in weeks due to doom antibiotics. Worth the wait.

Burrata with avocado cream and country bread: Ellie doesn't like cheese, except goat's cheese and halloumi. Hates cheese. Ordered burrata. Crisis averted! Even she agreed this was incredible. Soft cheese on a bed of whipped avocado cream, served with crunchy bread. Textures!

Halloumi served with roasted vegetables, peppers and green herbs: An absolute delight. Thick chunks of halloumi with sweet vegetables. Not too heavy, whilst still being very satisfying indeed.

Flat iron steak from the charcoal grill with beurre Café de Paris: Wow. It looks like a decent steak, but was so much more. Served on a bed of sweet squash with onion seeds, its pink centre and sweet flavour were tantalising. Ate every single morsel.

Lobster risotto - fresh lobster prepared in bisque: Stand down, the claw is not in a shell. Turns out after an initial lack of clarity on the matter, Ellie very much enjoyed the lobster in this dish.

Broccoli with fresh chilli and roasted almonds: A rather lovely combination, which means I will want almonds with my little trees from this day forth.

Homemade fries: Look how crispy they are. Wonderfully golden and perfect with steak.

Blondie with caramel sauce and sea salt: We were in no shape to be waving around dessert menus, yet here we were. Very rich as expected, the vanilla ice cream helped.

Sticky toffee date cake: Looks very similar to sticky toffee pudding, but tasted and felt much more like parkin. Still great! I think it needed some ice cream to lighten it a little though.

What a wonderfully strange experience in this pink wonderland! Go here for an evening of glamour, and food that will knock your pink socks off. And yes, I did wear an Amsterdam dress. Extra...

Cinnamon Bun Bundt Cake

Bundt challenge... yesss...

Roast club vibes were strong, and my friends had been watching Masterchef. It's quite the combination. Someone made cinnamon buns, and the cravings were real. I was promptly challenged to a cinnamon roll bundt. Now, in the interest of never making the same cake twice (and full transparency), some of you may recall a similar cake a few Christmases ago. This was going to be different.

The NutriBullet was out, and full on bundt witchcraft commenced. This wasn't going to be a cinnamon flavoured cake. I wanted it to be a cake, but taste like the breaded variety. The only way to achieve this is by putting the yeasted items in the cake. It works. The icing is excellent too! This is the best version of about five American recipes I mashed together, then tinkered with as a I made it. The browned butter makes all the difference. This is a trick I got from a friend who's a chef. Trust us.

Give this one a go over the colder months for instantly warmer cockles!

Ingredients:

• 225g butter
• 450g golden caster sugar
• 4 medium eggs
• 350g plain flour
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 250ml vanilla yogurt 
• 3 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 5 tbsp demerara sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon mixed together
• 1 shop bought cinnamon bun (optional), whizzed to crumbs in a food processor.

Frosting:

• 50g unsalted butter
• 120g full fat soft cheese
• 300g icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Enough full fat milk to achieve a spreadable consistency

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to gas 3/160 C (150 C fan)
2. Grease and flour an average sized bundt tin of 10 cups/10 inch diameter or 2.4 litre capacity.
3. Cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
4. Add the eggs one at a time on a low setting. You'll see the mix get noticeably fluffier.
5. In a separate bowl, measure out the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and spices.
6. Sift in 1/3 of the dry ingredients, followed by 1/2 of the yoghurt. Repeat until all the flour and yoghurt is used up. 
7. Fold in the cinnamon bun crumbs.
8. Give it all a quick mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds, or until smooth.
9. Pour half the mix into a greased and floured tin, sprinkle over the demerara sugar mix, then top with the rest of the standard mix.
10. Bake in the centre of the oven for about 1 hour 15 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. 
11. Leave the cake to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the tin.
12. Leave to cool fully.
13. To make the cream cheese frosting, first melt the butter over a gentle heat until it starts to brown slightly.
14. Meanwhile, whip the cream cheese with the vanilla extract until smooth. 
15. Carefully pour in the melted butter, being extra careful as it is well hot!
16. Add the icing sugar a bit at a time, therefore avoiding a sugar style mushroom cloud. 
17. This is the variable bit. You want your icing to be spreadable, but not runny. Just add enough milk to achieve that consistency.
18. Spread over the cake. If you are using the cinnamon bun tin, I found swirling over the shape of the buns with a teaspoon revealed the pretty design underneath. It works just as well on a standard bundt though.
19. Sprinkle with a little cinnamon.

Writers/Bakers: Please respect the fact I am sharing my own ideas and basic recipe. Blood, sweat and many tears have gone into getting this right, so you may enjoy a perfect bundt. If you wish to re-blog a recipe from these variations, please credit my blog and link to this original post rather than pasting the recipe on your own page. Please see my Creative Commons Copyright information for more details. Thank you.