Author: Karen Claassen

When I was at chef school, one of my favourite chefs and lecturers used to say that you cannot make risotto while you are angry at someone! If you’re making risotto the traditional way you have to stir, pour stock and stir some more for about 40 minutes. I am very inpatient but I love cooking risotto. There is something calming and soothing about tending to a pan of risotto and of course, if you’ve tasted a good risotto once, you have the sublime end-product to look forward to.

Because the risotto relies on the mushroom for its dominant flavour I would recommend sourcing dried Porcini mushrooms. They are fragrant and earthy and brings an other-worldly fabulousness to this dish. Try Delheim Wine Estate for Porcini mushrooms that have been foraged and dried on their estate and while you’re at it, get a few bottles of their Sauvignon Blanc as well! (See the COOK & BOOK section for more detail on Delheim).

±80g risotto rice per person (I use 100g per person so that I have enough risotto left over to make Arancini the next day)

100g butter and some good olive oil

100g dried Porcini mushrooms or mixed mushrooms

250ml white wine, the Delheim Sauvignon Blanc is utterly delicious!

1 onion, very finely chopped

5 cloves of garlic, minced

2 litres of stock

salt

parmesan or pecorino cheese

Soak the dried mushrooms by placing them in a bowl and adding warm tap water to it. Allow to stand and soak for at least 1 hour.

Put a sieve over a stock pot and drain the mushrooms into the pot so that you have the mushrooms in the sieve and the soaking liquid in the pot. Put the mushrooms to the side and add the 2 litres stock to the mushroom liquid. Turn on the heat to warm the stock. Once warm you may turn the heat to low, so that the stock keeps warm.

Now, pour yourself a glass of the Sauvignon and put a heavy-based, deep pan onto medium to high heat. Add the butter to the pan and allow to melt.

Add more or less the same amount of olive oil to the melted butter and stir in the onion.

Add the garlic and stir the mixture for 1 minute before adding the risotto rice.

Stir the rice around so that every granule gets coated with the butter and oil mixture and the grains start to appear almost translucent.

Add the white wine and allow it to bubble for about 2 minutes.

Now add about two ladles full of stock to the rice and stir around slowly, waiting for the rice to absorb the liquid. Add another two ladles full of stock and stir again. Keep adding and stirring until the rice isn’t absorbing any more stock.

The risotto should now be creamy and not dry and the rice must retain its “bite”/be al dente.

Add the soaked mushrooms that you have kept to the side and allow it some time to integrate and release its flavour into the dish.

Season the risotto with salt and by grating a generous amount of parmesan into it and taste whether it is to your liking.

Serve with extra parmesan, a crusty loaf of bread and a good wine.

What do Portofino, Venice and Rome have in common, apart from all being in Italy? The most exquisite, all-ricotta cheesecake!

This recipe relies on ricotta only and doesn’t have a crust. It is light, fresh and authentic Italian. I like to serve it with an orange syrup but it is delicious served as is…..simplicity in all its glory!

100ml almond meal

15ml soft butter

800g fresh ricotta, well drained (See my Ricotta recipe to make your own)

6 eggs, separated

62ml cake flour

125ml + 125ml sugar

1,2ml salt

grated rind of one orange

Preheat your oven to 180℃.

Grease a 23cm loose-bottomed cake tin with the butter, making sure you coat the base and sides.

Now sprinkle the almond meal onto the base and then tilt the tin so that the almond meal sticks to the sides as well. You want a thorough coating of the base and sides. Shake out and discard any extra almond meal.

Add the ricotta to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until light.

Add the egg yolks, flour, 125ml sugar, salt and orange rind and mix until the ingredients are well combined.

Add the egg whites to a large mixing bowl and whisk until soft peak stage.

Add one spoonful of sugar and whisk the mixture for at least 30 seconds before adding the next spoonful. Keep adding and beating until you have a stiff, glossy mixture into which all of the sugar has been incorporated.

Fold a third of this meringue mixture into the ricotta mixture.

Now add the rest and gently fold it in until the two mixtures are well blended.

Spoon the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake it in the oven for one hour. The cake is done when it is an even golden colour with the centre still being slightly wobbly.

Once out of the oven, cool the cake in the baking tin for 30 minutes before running a sharp knife around the edge of the cake. Carefully remove the ring of the tin and allow the cake to cool completely.

This recipe deviates slightly from the traditional German Eisbein which has a crispy, fatty outside. I like to finish mine off by leaving on the skin and glazing it with honey and mustard. This dish is a winter winner, served with creamy mashed potatoes and a fresh coleslaw salad to cut through the richness of the pork.

ham hocks (I prepare one for two people to share, but it’s your choice)

1 onion, halved

2 carrots, roughly chopped

5 black peppercorns

2 bay leaves

Put the pork into a vessel that is large enough for you to cover all the meat with water.

Add the onion, carrots, pepper and bay leaves the pork and fill your cooking vessel with water.

Turn up the heat and allow it to come to a gentle simmer.

Let it simmer away for two to three hours.

Take the hocks out of the liquid and let it stand to dry.

In the meantime, preheat your oven to 220℃.

For the glaze:

50ml honey

50ml Dijon mustard

50ml melted butter

Add the ingredients to a small mixing bowl or cup and whisk to blend together.

Place the hocks into a roasting dish and brush the glaze all over it.

Roast in the oven, glazing once or twice more, until beautifully browned and crispy.

Serve with mashed potato and a fresh coleslaw salad.

This recipe was given to me by my friend Marinda Schouwstra. She is one of the gutsiest, honest and intelligent people I know but famously claims not to be able to cook even an egg! (Her children have confirmed this with various, hilarious stories over the years! Thanks for those Ciska-Marie!!)

These rusks are healthy, delicious and as easy as one, two, three. Simply mix up all the ingredients and bake….really!!

900g self raising flour

315ml brown sugar

300g All Bran flakes or any other bran cereal

190ml raisins

190ml peanuts

250ml coconut

5ml salt

10ml baking powder

4 large eggs, if you think they might be medium add another one

500ml buttermilk

500ml butter, melted

Preheat your oven to 180℃.

Grease a roasting tin of about 37cm X 27cm.

Mix the flour, sugar, cereal, raisins, peanuts, coconut, salt and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

Add the eggs to another mixing bowl and give them a whisk to break them up.

Add the buttermilk and the melted butter to the eggs and whisk together.

Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix through. At this stage it will look as though you might not have enough moisture but keep turning the ingredients until all the dry spots of flour are covered.

Spoon the rusk mixture into the prepared tin and press it down with the palm of your hand. This is important as the final rusk will be very brittle if not compressed at this stage.

Put the roasting tin into the oven and bake for one hour.

Remove the rusk mixture and allow it to cool completely in the tin.

Gently cut into finger sized portions with a serated knife and pack the rusks 1cm apart on a flat baking sheet.

Dry in an oven set at 50℃ for about 3 hours, leaving the oven door slightly ajar.

Let the rusks cool before storing in a glass container.

These spinach pancakes are quick and easy to make and delicious with a dollop of crème fraiche, sour cream or a scoop of fresh ricotta.

You will get between 6 and 9 pancakes from this recipe, depending on the size of the pan you use.

1 egg

250ml milk

250ml self raising flour

a pinch of salt

a 200g bag of baby spinach

Add all the ingredients into a blender or a suitable mixing jug for a hand blender.

Blend until all ingredients are incorporated and you are left with a beautiful green batter.

Heat a crépe or frying pan on medium heat and add a small amount of vegetable oil.

Now add enough batter to cover the base of the pan and wait.

For these pancakes to have that vibrant green colour, you want to cook them on one side only.

The pancakes are done once the entire surface is filled with little holes, as in the picture opposite.

Serve warm with:

salad

fresh or grated, mature cheese

smoked chicken

asparagus

poached eggs

crème fraiche, sour cream

pesto