GUEST CHEF Dinner 

SATURDAY 19^TH MAY, 2012

$145.00 per person

Guest Chef Ashton Hall has vast experience at chic and luxurious dining venues. He previously worked with legendary celebrity chef Jean-George Vongerichten at his flagship restaurant in New York and headed up Jean-George’s Ocean Club in the Bahamas.

Ashton move to Hong Kong in 2007 as Executive Chef at Felix Restaurant, the renowned contemporary fine dining restaurant of the Peninsula Hotel and is now the culinary force at the exclusive Alila Villa Soori in West Bali.

Ashton’s food influences are extremely varied crafting menus which combine the highest quality of fresh ingredients in innovative ways. Ashton and our very own Tony Howell will join forces to design an amazing 6 course menu matched with the sensational wines of Howard Park.

Please note this is the only dinner the Cape Lodge restaurant will be offering on that evening. Please advise if you wish to make a booking for the special dinner or alternatively please advise if you do not wish to participate and if we can assist you with making other dinner reservations in the region.

$145.00 per person includes :

Pre Dinner Drinks & Canapes
Six Course Degustation Menu
Premium Howard Park Wines

For further enquiries or to make a reservation, please do not hesitate to contact reservations on 08 9755 6311

Margaret River Chef Tony Howell Promotes Australia

Cape Lodge Chef extraordinaire- Mr Tony Howell, has been invited to join an elite number of high profile Australians selected to help promote tourism, gourmet traveling and food and in Australia.

The Friends of Australia Advocacy is a Tourism Australia initiative consisting of a group of influential high-achievers and opinion leaders who share a passion for traveling in Australia and are committed to furthering Australia’s tourism reputation.

From sports stars, leading chefs and fashion designers to entrepreneurs and actors – the Friend’s of Australia list includes Olympian swimmer Kieren Perkins, TV personalities George Negus and Catriona Rowntree, Celebrity Chefs Luke Nguyen, Matt Moran and Rick Stein as well as Australian film industry identities Baz Luhrmann and actor Michael Caton.

The Friends of Australia campaign is about promoting Australia to the rest of the world on what makes Australia unlike anywhere else.

About eighty of the “Friends” came together in at the new Park Hyatt in Sydney last week and shared why there is nothing like Australian through their personal favourite travel experiences, secret holiday spots and greatest Australian adventures.

Cape Lodge Chef Tony Howell said: “I’m so proud to have been invited as an Ambassador for such a fantastic program to promote tourism in Australia and in particular to WA.”

“There is no other wine region like Margaret River with our pristine white sand beaches, perfect waves and still only minutes to amazing vineyards and winery restaurants which use some of the best and freshest of local produce found anywhere in Australia!”

Tony will be promoting Australian produce and enticing food and wine lovers to visit Margaret River with a number of Guest Chef appearances in Australia and overseas throughout the year as well as hosting a series of Cooking Classes in the multi award winning restaurant at Cape Lodge.

For information about Tony and Cape Lodge visit www.capelodge.com.au or contact Drew Bernhardt at drew@capelodge.com.au

For the pasta
700g/1½lb bakers flour, plus extra for dusting
4 eggs
Olive Oil & Salt

For the Marron 2 raw marron Salt, pepper & dill Egg whites Drizzle of cream

Preparation method
Whisk the eggs.
Pour the flour into a bowl and make a well in the centre.
Add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of salt.
Pour the whisked eggs into the well and gradually mix with either a blunt knife or your hands. When the dough has become a thick paste use your hands to incorporate more of the flour.
You can sieve any remaining flour and use the sifted flour while you knead the dough to stop it sticking to the surface and to your hands, but be careful not to make the dough too dry. Knead until well blended and the dough is soft and flexible. Don’t worry if you haven’t used up all the flour.
Leave the pasta to rest for about an hour with a bowl inverted over it or leave it covered in cling film. You can sieve any leftover flour again and save this flour for rolling out the pasta.

Meanwhile, for the filling,

Place marron into a large saucepan of boiling salted water for 1 ½ minutes, then using tongs transfer marron to a large bowl of iced water. Once chilled, remove the claws and head. Carefully crack the marron tail open and remove the meat. Using a nut cracker, carefully crack the claw shells and remove the meat.
Mince the flesh from the Marron.
Add a pinch of salt, pepper and a sprinkling of dill.
For binding add a couple of egg whites and a drizzle of cream for the binding
Blend this altogether.

Roll out the pasta into a long, wide strip about 2 mm in thickness, either by hand or using a machine. When you can see your hand through it, it is ready for stuffing.
Now take a small wine glass or round cutter measuring about 7cm/3in across and cut out 4 circles of pasta around each mound of filling.
Place teaspoons of the filling in a line down the centre of one of the strips
Fold the pasta as instructed in the video
To cook, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and gently lower in the tortellini. Cook for about four minutes or until the pasta is soft but not floppy.
When the pasta is done, drain it & serve immediately.

See below why they have selected Cape Lodge.

This charming boutique hotel is set in its own vineyard in Western Australia’s Margaret River wine region. It has 22 bedrooms and suites decorated in a contemporary style and showcasing original works by top Australian artists, as well as a two-bedroom cottage and five-bedroom villa in the grounds. There are tennis courts and a pool. Wine and gourmet tours, cookery classes, horse-riding, fishing and eco-tours into the bush are all available.

X-factor The gorgeous Cape Lodge Margaret River Restaurant, where chef Tony Howell cooks contemporary Australian cuisine with a Mediterranean twist, has a 14,000-bottle cellar. ‘There may be hipper places to eat among the vineyards,’ says Gold List contributor Mike Dolan. ‘But nowhere else showcases Australian cuisine with such finesse and flavour.

Read the Full Article: Conde Nast Traveller Gold List 2012 – Best for Food

Click to enlarge the snapshot below.

Tony & Jay

Jay was pegged by the other contestants as the one to beat winning the challenge at Clairault Winery and was judged only 1 point behind Tony in the cook off at the end of Busselton Jetty. Judge for yourself as Jay, Jake and Tony present a superb 6 course menu matched with a selection of Margaret River wines.

Friday 23 September, 2011
Six Course Menu matched with Clairault Wines: $165.00pp
Book a Table of 10: $150.00pp
Please note that a Restaurant will be set as tables of 10

Cape Lodge Chef Tony Howell is heading to Bali to present two very special Guest Chef Dinners.

Bali Asli Restaurant with Penelope Williams

The first dinner will be at the newly opened Bali Asli Restaurant and Cooking School in East Bali with Chef and owner Penelope Williams.

Penelope is previously from Dank Street Cafe and Bathers Pavillion in Sydney has been working in Bali for 4 years at Alila Manggis Resort and Cooking School and has now opened her own very special venue.

Penelope has been a Guest Chef at Cape Lodge and  has now invited Tony to join her for Bali Asli’s opening debut event.

The evening will commence at 5pm with the ribbon cutting ceremony for Bali Asli followed by cocktails as the sun sets behind Mount Agung. Dinner will then be served using locally grown produce and cooked entirely on a traditional Balinese wood fired stove and open fires.
This premier event is strictly limited to 40 guests only.

Rp.500,000 per person, including tax and service.
Approximately $60.00pp

To make a reservation and pre-payment please contact Penelope: penelope@baliasli.com.au

Book early to avoid disappointment

Bali Asli Restaurant is situated in East Bali in the village of Gelumpang, Amlapura, Karangasem, Bali, 30 minutes drive from Candidasa and 2 hours drive from the airport

Alila Villa Soori Dinner with Ashton Hall

Western Australia meets West Bali as Howell n’ Hall Hurl to the Heights at Alila Villas Soori’s Cotta Restaurant

Alila Villas Soori will be hosting Chef Tony Howell as Guest Chef for a superb dinner at their magnificent beachside restaurant Cotta. Tony will be collaborating with Alila Villas Soori’s home chef Ashton Hall in creating superb delicacies which will be matched with the great Margaret River wines from Howard Park.

Chef Howell’s freshest fare will meet Chef Hall’s ingredient-driven cuisine, where both will compose an exceptional concerto of flavours for guests to savour in this rare West Bali dining occasion.

SPECIAL CAPE LODGE PRIVILEGE RATES AT ALILA VILLAS SOORI
One Bedroom Beach View Villa: USD 400 nett
One Bedroom Ocean view Villa: USD 500 nett
Includes daily breakfast in the Villa or Cotta Restaurant, Private return airport transfer.

Bookings must be made directly with Alila Villas Soori Quote “The Cape Lodge Privilege.” Valid until 21 December 2011

For further information and reservations, please contact:

Devina Hindom
Marketing Communications Manager
Alila Villas Soori
Tel: +6281 3387 18051
Email: dhindom@alilahotels.com
Website: www.alilahotels.com

Why not reserve a table at the Cape Lodge Restaurant and discover the distinct flavors of this amazing dish.

Call us now and mention *Luxury* at 08 97556311 and make a booking for a very special rate of $299 per night including Breakfast.

This offer is only available for bookings in July. (Terms & Conditions apply)

Spend a couple of hours in the Cape Lodge Cooking School while I show you how to produce a meal or two that you can easily replicate in your kitchen at home.

I’ll give you a demonstration and then you’ll have the chance to get busy and produce the meal yourself – all while sharing a glass of wine and cheese plate.

For me this is a time to answer your questions about food and techniques, and it’s a time for having a laugh and doing what we love.

Join me for our next class on 8th & 15th of June.  Read more about our offers on cooking classes and accommodation here.

How to find the dish that’s got the right level of challenge; showcases the region’s local produce; works with the specific filming locale; and demonstrates techniques essential for kitchen mastery?

Bouillabaisse, affectionately known around the Jetty as Busselton Stew, brought all those factors together beautifully.

This substantial seafood soup had humble beginnings at the hands of Mediterranean fishermen.  Yet after all these years Bouillabaisse is still a dish favoured around the globe as fresh and flavoursome, though deceptively simple in presentation.

A meal like this takes a love of seafood and lucky for my challenger, Jay – he is a keen fisherman and a keen seafood cook.

Success with this dish rests on preparing and cooking the seafood, but also on getting the stock just right.

Competence in filleting the fish, shucking the oysters and skinning the scallops is a foundation.  Then cooking all that rich seafood in a stock that has been prepared with just the right temperature and timing brings it together.

Caramelising the scallops, and plating the dish with the seafood just undercooked ready to finish the cooking at the table, is all part of the challenge.

Why don’t you give it a go for yourself! If you would like the recipe just send us an email at stay@capelodge.com.au