Cafe Adventures; Queenies Lunchroom

It always seems that no matter how much you prepare, the new year and all of the school/work/extra curricular's that pile up seem to fill up your time like never before, and before you know it we are almost 4 months through the year!

So feeling slightly guilty about how long it had been since last posting, but still not seeming to have much spare time for baking I realized how much easier it is to take photos and write about eating it, than it is actually making the food myself. 

 Queenies Lunchroom is a quaint little cafe that is nestled into the corner at 24 Spring Street off Runnell Road in Freemans Bay and the small ivory covered building offers a beautiful little spot for a brunch or morning tea if you're in the area.

There is available seating inside and outside of the cafe and while we were lucky enough to go on a day where there weren't many people it would pay to book a table next time as it is quite cozy seating.

The coffee served is "Coffee Supreme" which according to my coffee snob father was good, and the menus consist of basic brunch staples (which can be viewed on their website) such as eggs on toast, granola muesli and fruit compote, and pancakes with an impressive number of sides to choose from. Although if you’re looking to be a little more adventurous there was a range of more interesting selections like Musabaha, summer huevos or cassoulette. 

I stuck to the my usual scrambled eggs on multi-grain bread with bacon and avocado, while mum ordered the Queenies Granola with berries, honey and Greek Yoghurt.

The Café has a great atmosphere, with the mismatched tea cups and leafy ivory giving off quite a kitchy and natural feel that s very out of place on the surrounding concrete and buildings. Overall a really lovely cafe set up and location, although could be seen as a little pricy for the amount of food that we received, but the meals were good quality and definitely filling!

Dio Brownie

Ah brownies. Bound to be present at any shared lunch or large party, this small baked square of cakey goodness is usually underrated and cast aside when in competition against gooey chocolate chip cookies or perfectly frosted cupcakes.

While the versatility of a brownie can be one of the best things about it, as you have a fudgy, cakey, chewy, or crumbly brownie all by slightly altering the mixture, this makes for a very unreliable baked good.

As a person who definitely prefers a thick fudgy brownie, I really can’t count the number of times I have been disappointed as I bite into a drier, cakey brownie, mumbling “mmmmm”, while strategically planning how to get rid of the rest without anyone seeing.

But there was always one place I could rely on to have the most unforgettable, smooth and rich brownie served everyday.  The Diocesan School Cafeteria. If you are a dio girl you will definitely know what I am talking about, and looking back it’s a wonder that I didn’t end up obese or broke at the amount of tuck shop brownie I ate.

Unfortunately this was no recipe that any old ‘volunteer parent’ could have a glance at while working their once a year shift, no, no, it was a well kept secret between few, which kept a large number of girls queuing up daily. So you can imagine how thrilled I was when my school released their cookbook “Essence of Dio” including the coveted brownie recipe.

So as I said before this is the basic recipe so if you want to change the texture or taste to your personal preference then go ahead!

Dio Brownies

Ingredients

•             250 grams butter

•             1 1/2 cups cocoa

•             2 1/4 cups caster sugar

•             1.5 teaspoons vanilla essence

•             5 eggs, beaten

•             1 cup standard flour

•             1 tsp baking powder

•             1 block of dark chocolate (approx 250 grams), chopped up

•             Icing sugar to sprinkle (optional)

Method

Line a 12 by 10 inch baking tray, and heat your oven to 180C bake.

Melt the butter, and mix with the cocoa in a large bowl. Add the eggs, vanilla, and caster sugar to the bowl and stir well. 

Sieve the flour and baking powder into the mixture. Finally, add the chocolate and mix everything together. Pour into the lined tin, and bake for about 40 minutes until firm to touch on the edges, but still soft in the middle. Now all ovens are slightly different so it helps to check after 25 minutes just in case your oven is a bit hotter/faster.

Now if you are impatient like me this is especially important, for the best results leave the brownie in the tin for 10-15 minutes so you allow time for it to cool down and set a little. I even put mine in the fridge after it had initially cooled down. And simply using a cookie cutter you can make beautiful brownie hearts that make cute little christmas gifts when wrapped in cellophane. 

*Enjoy a generous sized piece with a large glass of milk*