Vierge Dressing

Vierge is one of those classic flavours that accompanies mainly fish dishes - the most prominent of which being more sweetly palatable fish such as seabass and seam bream. It does however go well alongside a multitude of fishes and even white meats where applicable. Its easy to make, it just takes a while. When you taste it you'll see why.

You will need:

550ml of olive oil

50g 0f Coriander seeds

1 Bunch of tarragon, stripped and chopped

12 black peppercorns, crushed

4 shallots finely chopped

3 cloves of garlic crushed

Sea salt

Warm the oil with the coriander seeds

Pour over the other ingredients

Marinade for a week

Double baked cheese souffle

Cheese souffle is porbably one the most notorius dishes that people acclaim to easily go wrong/ in all honesty theyre not that much of a nightmare, just be sure not to open the oven whilst cooking, and if you must, do not slam the door when closing. Other than this its pretty much plain sailing.


You will need (makes 8)


500ML OF MILK

100G OF SPINACH COOKED, CHOPPED AND SQUEEZED

30G OF BUTTER

PLAIN FLOUR TO BLEND INTO A PASTE WITH THE BUTTER

100G OF GRATED CHEDDAR CHEESE

PINCH OF FRESH NUTMEG

TEA SPOON OF ENGLISH MUSTARD

4 EGGS

Double butter ramekins, this is done by buttering then freezing or chilling the ramekins then buttering again

Sauté off the spinach with seasoning of salt, pepper and nutmeg

Chop up the spinach then squeeze to remove water

Blend heated butter with flour to make a paste

Put the spinach into milk pan and bring to the boil once simmering

Beat the flour paste into the spinach milk until a smooth sauce is created

Add the cheese, nutmeg and mustard stir in to form a smooth sauce

Allow the cheese sauce to cool, while the sauce is cooling separate the eggs and beat the egg white into stiff foam

Mix in the egg yolks into the cheese sauce

Fold in the egg whites

Pour the mix into each of the ramekins leaving a 1 cm from the top

Bake for 8 minutes then cool and fridge

Parmesan Crisps

Image provided courtesy of wordsfromwillow.blogpost.co.uk

These are usually served as an accompaniment to either a main meal or a starter type dish or even with soups. They provide an interesting texture, definite depth of flavour and can provide means of being a vehicle for accompanying flavours also. Ill also warn you they're incredibly moreish.

You will need: (makes one large crisp)

50g grated parmesan cheese
one tiane / serving ring (heat ristsant) - egg rings will do perfectly.
Silicon mat

The doing bit:

Pretty simple. Just add the grated parmesan to the ring on a silicone mat and flatten so that the cheese is evenly spread. Grill for about 3 mins until the cheese begins to bubble / colour. Remove from heat, then allow to cool.

feel free to add a variety of seasoning, such as chilli, herbs, pepper, paprika etc depending on what you're going to serve it with. Finely chopped rosemary work brilliantly.

Slow roast tomato salsa

image courtesy of  26fruits.co.uk

This salsa is a great accompaniment to many dishes, and as a dipping sauce for the more lesuirely occasions, such as when using with nachos and similar "dipping" type dishes. Its very easy to make, and uses a sweet and spicy element to please a number of palates.


You will need:

300g cherry vine tomatoes, vine tomatoes, or plum vine tomatoes.
2 teaspoons jalapeno chillies chopped
1 clove garlic, sliced very thinly.
2 spring onions, chopped finely.
tbsp fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper to taste

The doing bit:

First cut the tomatoes in half and place on a baking tray. On each tomato half add 1 slice of garlic and a blade of rosemary, and a few drops of the red wine vinegar and a sprinlking of salt. Place the tomatoes in a warm oven 9/about 170C) for about 40 mins until they begin to shrink and caramelise slightly. remove fromt he oven and allow to cool.

IN a mixing bowl combine remaining ingredients, allowing the tomatoes to break up (dont be shy). Taste the mixture ans season accordingly. For extra sweetness add a tablespoon of honey of maple syrup.

Enjoy.

Butternut squash & cashew nut roast

Image courtesy of all recipes.co.uk

The nut roast is probably one of the more popular vegetarian dishes, comprising mainly a loaf type of arrangement of roasted vegetables, nuts, herbs and several other ingredients. This recipe makes no exception, although the utilisation of butternut squash and cashew nuts provides a wonderful sweet element to the dish, with the mellow aromatics of garlic and sage providing a hearty warm flavour.

You will need (makes a loaf):

1 onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic choppid very finely
Olive oil to hand for saute work
2 large deseeded butternut squash, cut into 1cm cubes
225g raw cashew nuts (optionally half anf half pistachio nuts) roughly chopped
pinch nutmeg
6 leaves sage chopped finely
salt and pepper

The doing bit:

Preheat oven to 220 C and roast for about half an hour until it begins to caramelise. While this is cooking in a pan saute the onion until it begins to colour / soften, add the garlic and cook on a low - moderate heat until the garlic begins to soften. Set to one side.

Take the finished squash and all other ingredients and mix well. Add a generous pinch of salt and pepper, then press into a lined loaf tin. Bake for 60 minutes at roughly 200C, cover with foil for the fist 40 minutes then remove for the last 20.

Allow to cool a bit then cut into slices. Serve and devour.

Chilli Butter (as an accompaniment

image courtesy of devonfresh.com

Much like our other larder items, chilli butter is one of those wonderful flavour additions that can be used in a multitude of ways.It goes phenmoenally well with fish, white meats and vegetables where neccesary for both cooking and for finishing, giving a spicy and enjoyable edge.

You will need (makes a batch of about 8-10 portions)

1 and a half red chillies, chopped very finely, seeds removed.
salt and pepper
tbsp lemon juice
1 shallot chopped very finely
tbsp finely chopped parsley
1 clove garlic, crushed
250g butter.

The doing bit:

Melt the butter until soft. Mix all ingredients together until they form a uniform paste. Wrap the butter in clingfilm into a sausage shape and chill until required.

Plum Sauce

Plum sauce is one of those wonderful luxurious sauces that provides brilliant mellow tones, deep flavour that complements a variety of herbs and meats and other vegetables, and works well to balance alot of strong and salty flavours. In particular as a sauce plum goes phenomenally well with duck and game. The use of our own larder items here also makes for easy assembly and construction.

You will need (per serving):

2 tbsp plum relish
200 ml chicken or game stock
sprig of rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

The doing bit:

in a saucepan heat up the plum relish gently. Add the stock and rosemary, bring the mix to the boil stirring occasionally, then simmer until reduced to required thickness. Season where appropriately.