1 kg small potatoes 90g butter, melted 30ml minced garlic 30ml finely chopped rosemary 125ml grated parmesan cheese salt and pepper
Preheat your oven to 190℃. Clean the potatoes and slice each in half. Now cut a diamond pattern into each half without cutting through. Set aside. Pour the melted butter, garlic and rosemary into a roasting pan. Brush the cut side of each halved potato with the mixture and then dip it into the parmesan. Place the potato halves cut-side down in the roasting tin and repeat with the rest. Roast the potato for 45 minutes. Serve immediately.
8 pork rib-eye steaks a small handful of sage leaves, chopped 8-10 small onions, peeled and halved 50g butter 500g seedless grapes, half kept whole and the other half sliced in two 125ml balsamic vinegar 60ml brown sugar
Season the pork steaks with salt and pepper, sprinkle with the chopped sage and press the herbs onto the meat. Place a saucepan on medium-high heat, add a splash of vegetable oil and brown the meat, about 4 minutes per side. Take the steaks from the pan and keep on the side. Add the butter to the pan and wait for it to melt. Now add the onions, cut side down and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the grapes, balsamic vinegar and brown sugar and simmer for 2 minutes. Place the pork steaks on top of the grapes and onions and place a lid on the saucepan. Simmer on low heat for 20 minutes. Serve warm with mashed potato and a fresh salad.
These roll-ups are the kind of food we graze on in summer. Pack a huge platter full of them, mix an exotic cocktail and sit back and relax.
4 tortilla wraps 250g cream cheese 190ml pickled sweet peppers, chopped 500ml grated cheddar cheese 625ml finely shredded chicken meat (leftovers are perfect!) a small bunch of chives, chopped salt and pepper
Add the cream cheese, pickled peppers, cheddar, chicken and chives to a mixing bowl and mix together. Divide the mixture between the four wraps and evenly spread it right to the ends so that it is completely and evenly covered. Roll the wrap as tight and evenly as you can and slice into discs. Arrange on a platter to serve.
Baked Camembert: 1 roll puff pastry 1 Camembert cheese egg wash: an egg yolk + 30ml water whisked together 125ml fruit jam of your choice (I used strawberry) 45ml water
Preheat your oven to 190℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper. Place the puff pastry on the prepared baking sheet and sit the camembert on top. Cut a circle around the cheese with a border of about 1 cm. Lay the rest of the pastry on a work surface and cut into 1cm wide strips, about 15cm long. Now lay the strips over the cheese so that it forms a latticed pattern. (See video). The pastry should cover the cheese without any gaps. Trim off the excess pastry and brush the covered cheese with the egg wash. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Add the jam and water to a small saucepan over a low heat. Stir the jam and allow to melt so that it easily runs off a spoon. Pour/drizzle the sauce over the baked cheese and serve with crackers or a crusty bread.
Brûleé Camembert: 1 camembert cheese 30ml – 45ml brown sugar fresh grapes, halved 125ml fruit jam of your choice 45ml water
Cut away the top rind of the cheese so that it lifts off like a lid. Remove this rind and discard. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the cheese and brûleé with a blow torch until it bubbles. Place the camembert on a serving plate and pile the grapes on top. Melt the jam and water together and drizzle over the grapes and cheese. Serve with crackers or a crusty bread.
Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a baking sheet with aluminium foil. Stand a metal cooling rack in the baking sheet. Spread the rashers on the metal rack in the baking sheet and salt them on both sides. Set aside. Mix together the brown sugar, paprika and chilli flakes and spread it evenly onto each rasher. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes, remove and flip the rashers. Spread this side with the rest of the sugar mixture and immediately place it back in the oven for another 8 minutes. Flip the rashers once more and bake for another 5 minutes per side, until beautifully browned and crisp. Serve warm.
1 store bought puff pastry 125g cream cheese, I use chive flavoured 250g smoked bacon, cubed/chopped 200g mushrooms, sliced a handful of thyme leaves 5 courgettes, cut into 3-4cm long sticks egg wash: 1 egg yolk + 30ml water whisked together
Preheat your oven to 190℃. Roll out the pastry and cut as large a circle from it as the diameter allows. Spread the cream cheese on the pastry, leaving a 3cm border on the outside. Place a pan on medium-high heat and fry the bacon pieces until cooked. Spoon into a bowl. Add the mushrooms and thyme leaves to the pan and fry until golden. Add the courgette sticks to the mushrooms and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Spoon into the bowl with the bacon and mix through. Now spoon this mixture onto the cream cheese. Fold the 3cm border of pastry over the filling and brush with the egg wash. Bake the galette for 40 minutes. Serve warm.
This tiramisu is made with thin layers of chocolate cake and the traditional mascarpone-cream filling and sprinkled with grated chocolate!! Serves 6.
Cake batter: 190ml flour 190ml sugar 2,5ml salt 120g butter 80ml cocoa powder, sifted 120ml hot water 2 egg yolks 50ml buttermilk 2,5ml baking powder 2,5ml vanilla
Preheat your oven to 180℃ and line a 27cm x 37cm baking tray with baking paper. Select 6 glasses or straight-sided bowls in which you are going to assemble and serve the tiramisu. Set aside. Add the flour, sugar and salt to a mixing bowl. Set aside. Add the butter, cocoa powder and hot water to a small saucepan set over medium-high heat. Stir the mixture until the butter melts. Bring to a boil, remove from the heat and pour over the dry ingredients. Stir to combine. Add the egg yolks, buttermilk, baking powder and vanilla and mix together. Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for 15 minutes. Cool completely. Remove the cake and cut 12 rounds using one of the serving glasses as a guide. Set aside until needed.
Add the mascarpone and cream to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add the espresso powder, vanilla and sugar and beat on medium-high speed until very thick – be mindful not to over whip!
Assembly: 80g coffee flavoured, dark chocolate, grated
Layer a spoonful of mascarpone-mixture, grated chocolate, a cake disc and repeat until you have used 2 cake discs and have three layers of mascarpone. Sprinkle with grated chocolate to finish off the tiramisu. Refrigerate for 2 hours. Either sprinkle with more chocolate or sift over some cocoa powder before serving.
Quarter the quince and then halve each quarter. Peel and cut out the core. Set aside. Add the sugar, water and vanilla to a saucepan set over medium-high heat and stir the mixture until the sugar has dissolved. Add the quince slices to the poaching liquid and bring the mixture to a simmer. Gently simmer the fruit until it can easily be pierced with a toothpick. Take the saucepan from the heat and allow the quince slices to cool in the liquid completely. Drain the quince and transfer the slices to a 18cm x 28cm ovenproof dish.
For the crumble: Preheat your oven to 180℃. Add the granola, almond meal, cinnamon, sugar and butter to a mixing bowl. Rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips. Keep going until the butter is well distributed throughout the mixture. Spread the crumb mixture evenly on the quince slices and bake for 30 minutes. Serve the quince crumble with a scoop of ice cream or yoghurt.
5 eggs, separated 135g sugar 4 Granny Smith Apples, peeled and grated 80g almond meal 80ml flaked almonds icing sugar to dust
Preheat your oven to 200℃ and spay a 22cm ovenproof dish with cooking spray. Add the egg yolks and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together until light in colour. Scoop the apple into a clean tea towel and squeeze the juice from it. Add the apple to the creamed mixture and mix through. Add the almond meal and mix on medium speed until incorporated into the batter. Set aside. Add the egg whites to a clean mixing bowl and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the batter. Scrape the mixture into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the flaked almonds over. Place the pudding in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Dust the apple pudding with icing sugar and serve warm or at room temperature.
This buttermilk pannacotta is delicious when served with the this tart passionfruit syrup but of course, the choice is yours and it may be served with any sauce of your choice.
Passionfruit syrup: 80ml canned passionfruit 60ml sugar 80ml water the grated zest of one lemon
Pour about 50ml of the buttermilk into a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatine over. Set aside for 5 minutes. Pour the remaining buttermilk, cream and sugar into a small saucepan set over low heat. Stir the mixture until the sugar has dissolved. Pour the gelatine mixture into this mixture and stir well. Pour the mixture into 6 moulds with a 125ml capacity each, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 hours until set.
For the passionfruit syrup: Add the water and sugar to a small saucepan and place it over a low heat. Stir the mixture until the sugar dissolves. Simmer the syrup for 1 minute without stirring and then take it off the heat. Add the lemon zest and passionfruit pulp. Stir through and set aside to cool completely.
Turn the individual pannacottas out on a serving dish and drizzle with the cold passionfruit syrup to serve.
My Whisk and I 