Sunny side up

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1kg apricots

300g sugar

450ml water

5 tbsp. glucose

6g agar agar

2 leaves gelatine

 

Place all ingredients except gelatine in a pan, bring to the boil, simmer until apricot are full cooked and falling apart.

Pass every thing through and fine sieve.

Add soaked gelatine.

Set in fridge.

Blend in blender till completely smooth.

Set in moulds in freezer for dipping.

Dip

450ml orange juice

50g sugar

10g agar agar

 

Bring all to the boil in the pan and boil for 2 minutes.

 

Yogurt espuma

800g yogurt

150g honey

2g xantham gum

2 x leaves gelatine

 

Place all ingredients in the blend except gelatine.

Blend till mix is warming with the heat of the blender then add gelatine

 

 

Sweetened cottage cheese

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Sweetened cottage cheese

75g sugar

200g smooth cottage cheese 

Cream together and place in a plastic squeeze bottle and refrigerate till required.

Black pepper marshmallow

80g egg whites

120g sugar

50ml water

5 leaves gelatine, soaked 

Boil sugar and water to till 115oc

Add black pepper

Whisk whites till soft peaks

Slowly add sugar mixture

Whisk until mix is cool

Freeze till needed

Strawberry jelly  

300ml water

150g sugar

200g strawberries

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

2.5 leaves gelatine soaked 

Bring water and sugar to boil in a sauce pan.

Add strawberries, lemon zest and juice.

Simmer for 5 minutes.

Strain through a fine sieve.

Add gelatine and dissolve.

Set in a container in the fridge for at least 4 hrs ahead of cutting.

Shortbreads

125g butter

55g caster sugar

180g plain flour 

Heat the oven to 190c.Beat the butter and the sugar together until smooth.

Stir in the flour to get a smooth paste. Turn on to a work surface and gently roll out until the paste is 1cm/½in thick.

Cut into fingers and place onto a baking tray. Sprinkle with icing sugar and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until pale golden-brown. Set aside to cool on a wire rack.

Rhubarb and custard

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Rhubarb and custard

rhubarb foam, custard panacotta and warm doughnut

Doughnuts

280g Water

90g butter

½ tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. sugar

165g soft flour

185g eggs beaten

Pre-heat fryer to 180oc

Melt the butter in the water with salt and sugar and bring to a full boil

Immediately add the flour all at once and stir continuously with a wooden spoon

Cook for a couple of minutes until the mixture pulls away from the pan, forming a ball and remove from the heat

Place the dough in the bowl or a mixer, using a wooden spoon or the paddle attachment, mix the dough for a few minutes, allowing it to cool slightly

Add the beaten eggs gradually, in three or four additions, mixing the dough until it is smooth each time. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl until all of the eggs are incorporated

The paste should be of a pipeable consistency and not too runny

Place the mix into a piping bag, using scissors, over the fryer cut off small pieces directly over the fryer.

Cook until golden brown, drain and then toss in caster sugar.

Custard panacotta

300ml milk

300ml cream

100g sugar

100g egg yolks

½ tsp. Vanilla paste

3 leaves gelatine

For the panna cotta, soak the gelatine leaves in a little cold water until soft.

Place the milk, cream, vanilla into a pan and bring to a simmer.

In a bowl mix egg yolks and sugar.

Pour over hot liquid over eggs.

Cook over and medium till the mixture coats the back of the spoon.

Squeeze the water out of the gelatine leaves, then add to the pan and take off the heat. Stir until the gelatine has dissolved.

Divide the mixture among four ramekins and leave to cool. Place into the fridge for at least an hour, until set.

Rhubarb espuma

300g Rhubarb

300ml orange juice

300ml cranberry juice

200g sugar

200ml water

8 leaves gelatine

Soak the gelatine leaves in a little cold water until soft.

Roughly chop the rhubarb and place in a sauce pan along with both juices, sugar and water.

Bring to the boil and simmer for 15minutes until the rhubarb is soft.

Pass through a fine sieve.

Add gelatine to the warm liquid.

Place into a cream whip can with 2 charges.

Puttanesca sauce

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Puttanesca is a Naples favourite it’s easy, full of flavour, satisfying. I use this sauce with lamb ravioli, I find the anchovy, tomato and basil works brilliantly with the flavour of lamb, but this sauce is also excellent tossed through some freshly cooked spaghetti.   

6 tomatoes, skinned deseeded and roughly chopped

4 cloves of garlic, halved

4 or 5 anchovy fillets, chopped

3 T olive oil

10 – 12 black olives, stoned and coarsely chopped

2 TBSP capers, soaked and drained

2 TBSP Italian basil, chopped

1/2 to 1 small red chili, chopped

Salt

.
METHOD:

IN a deep pan lightly brown the garlic in hot oil. Add anchovies, crush to a paste with a fork.

ADD the tomatoes, olives, capers and the chili, cook over medium high heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finish with chopped basil.

Pan fried Calamari

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Chef Henri Vigar’s pan fried Calamari food24 Chef video

Jerusalem Artichoke soup

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Jerusalem Artichoke soup
 
750g peeled potatoes
250g peeled Jerusalem artichokes
150g butter
1 onion sliced
6 cloves garlic crushed
2 litres vegetable stock
cream
salt

Sweat off onion in butter with a little salt till clear and it takes on sweetness.
Add garlic and cook out for another 2 minutes.
Add the artichoke, potato and more salt and sweat for 5 minutes.
Add vegetable stock.
Simmer till cooked (about 40 minutes).
Blend and pass.
Check seasoning and cream lightly.

Bearnaise relish

6 shallots finely chopped
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp balsamic reduction
4 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup white wine
1 bunch tarragon
150g butter

Pick the tarragon leaves from the stalks and reserve the leaves.
Place chopped shallots and tarragon stalks in a pan with both vinegars and white wine and reduce over a medium heat.
Meanwhile place the 150g butter in a sauce pan.  Cook over a medium heat until the butter starts to brown and become a golden brown colour.  Remove from the heat and place on ice to stop cooking.
Once the shallots have reduced to a glaze, remove tarragon stalk and whisk in the brown butter bit by bit so it thickens up
Finish with the chopped tarragon leaves and serve on top of soup.

Chocolate macaroons with dark chocolate ganache

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 For the filling

The ganache filling needs to be made a day before hand.

100ml milk

10g gluose

5g gelatine leaves 

460ml cream

480g dark chocolate

Method

Melt chocolate with glucose

Bring up milk boil and add the soaked gelatine

Whisk this into chocolate bit by bit.

Then whisk in cream.

Leave to set in the fridge overnight.

For the macaroons

180g sifted icing sugar

180g sifted almond powder

75g egg white (first)

180g caster sugar                      

50ml (second)                

15g cocoa powder

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180oc

Combine second egg whit with coco powder in a small bowl and whisk till smooth, and set aside.

Then mix together the caster sugar and water in a small sauce pan cook over a high heat, using a sugar thermometer cook to 121 degrees then carefully remove from the heat.

In a large clean bowl whisk the first egg whites with an electric beater until they reach soft peaks. Add the hot sugar solution continue to whisk until the meringue becomes completely cold.

Fold in coco powder mixture fallowed by icing sugar and ground almonds.

Line 2 baking sheets with baking paper. Pipe small rounds of the macaroon mixture, about 3cm across, onto the baking sheets. Give the baking sheets a sharp tap on the work surface to ensure a good ‘foot’. Leave to stand at room temperature for 10-15 minutes to form a slight skin. This is important – you should be able to touch them lightly without any mixture sticking to your finger. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.

Fill the macaroons with the chocolate ganache using a piping and enjoy……..

Caramelized onion soup

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Caramelized onion soup

Garlic croutons and emmenthal cheese

This recipe is a basically a French onion soup which is my favorite soup of all time which I have refined a little. The classic French onion soup is often a messy affair fighting with an oversized sodden crouton, not to say that the French are unrefined in any way. In this case the caramelized soup is blended and finished with small crisp, garlicky croutons and nutty emmenthal cheese.

Ingredients

1.5kgonions peeled and sliced

115g unsalted butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 bay leaves

2tsp thyme leaves

25g flour

300ml port

100ml sherry vinegar

2 litre fresh beef stock

1 small French baguette, cut into small croutons

2 large clove garlic, peeled and finally minced

170g Emmenthal cheese, grated

Preparation method

Melt the butter with the olive oil in a large heavy based saucepan. Add the onions, salt and pepper, bay leaves and thyme leaves, stir gently, reduce the heat, cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring every five minutes. Do not brown the onions.

Remove the lid and cook uncovered for a further 20-30 minutes, stirring frequently until the onions have caramelised.

Stir in the flour and cook over a low heat for a further 3-4 minutes stirring vigorously to remove any lumps.

Stir in the port, sherry vinegar and stock. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

To prepare the croutons, cut the baguette into small dices and fry in a small frying pan with a little olive oil until crisp, add minced garlic and drain on a kitchen towel.

Place the soup in the blender and blend for 2-3 minutes until smooth and pass through a fine sieve.

To serve, place in warmed soup bowls and finish with croutons and grated cheese.

Truffle and cheese croquettes

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250g flour

50g corn flour

300g butter

1 Litre milk

100g grated emmenthal cheese

1 teaspoon white truffle oil

Salt and pepper

Flour for dusting

6 eggs beaten

Bread crumbs

Place milk in a large sauce pan and heat gently to warm.

In a separate pan melt butter and both flours and cook for 2 minutes whisking constantly.

Pour the warmed milk over this mixture.

Whisk on the heat, as it begins to boil you will see the mixture thicken up drastically, carry on cooking until you and feel the mixture come away from the sides of the pan.

Transfer mixture to an electrical mixer machine. Add the cheese, truffle oil, salt and pepper. Mix on a medium setting until it is smooth and silky.

Transfer onto a large flat tray, cool and place in the fridge for 4-6 hours for the mixture to set.

Roll into small balls, about ½ the size of a golf ball.

Dust the balls with flour, dip into egg and then bread crumb. Repeat this process a second time.

 Deep fry at 180oc until golden brown.