White sourdough loaf

White sourdough loaf. 

Everyones at it these days, sourdough this, farmhouse that. What every you want to call it, its still a belter of a loaf. Below is a very basic recipe shown to me by a fellow chef a while ago. His mother dough was a lot more mature than mine but it still has the flavour.  

Recipe:

1kg strong flour

300g mother dough

600ml water

10g salt

60g yeast

Mix altogether and tip out onto the bench and cover with a damp cloth. Leave to prove until it doubles in size. Knock back and cut into 8 balls and spread between 4 loaf tins. I'm using terrine moulds but thats only because I have no loaf tins kicking about. Prove until it reaches the top and dust with a little flour. Bake at 230*c for 25 minutes. Spray a little water into the oven a few times within the first 5 minutes to create a crust. Tip the bread out the tin and give another 5 minutes in the oven the leave to cool on a wire rack. 

Herb Ravioli Step by Step.

Herb ravioli step by step. 

Every Time I mention ravioli, everyone always thinks of that garbage in a tin they used to eat as a child. Well here's a lovely alternative to that's also a great vegetarian dish.   

Pasta dough:

4 eggs

6 yolks

550g tipo "00" flour

15ml saffron water

15ml olive oil

Filling: 

500g ricotta

250g parmesan

1 lemon zest

20g chives

20g chervil

20g parsley 

Salt

Pepper 

Watercress velouté:

6 shallots

1/2 bulb garlic

50g butter

30ml olive oil

Salt

200ml white wine

500ml nage

200ml cream

200g watercress

This recipe is more about the actual ravioli than the dish its self, i'll do a little walk through on how to make the ravioli, the filling and the method of shaping it. 

Start of by making your pasta dough by either hand or in a mixer, clingfilm and leave to rest for an hour or so in the fridge. To make the filling, chop the herbs and add them to everything else and leave to chill in the fridge. The mix will firm up a little and will make it easier to shape the ravioli. 

Roll out your pasta into large sheets, sprinkle a little polenta on the bench and lay the sheet down. Give it a little brush with some cold water, only a little tho. In the middle of the sheet, place a spoonful of filling every 2 inches until you get to the end. Fold over the sheet in one whole go. Starting from one end using the side your hand, shape it like a "C" and press down on the pasta, you want to try and remove all the air from the ravioli the repeat the "C" shape with the other hand to seal it. Repeat the process until you have sealed all the pasta. 

Using a small round cutter roughly 1 inch in diameter, turn it upside down and press down  on the ravioli, only enough to make a stronger seal, then using a fluted cutter, cut your pasta to the desired size.

 This one is quite small but I prefer these as they based around presentation rather that rustic pasta shapes. If you want to use the all your pasta and have no wastage then you can simple just cut the pasta with a knife making a straight line, producing a really rustic style of ravioli. 

I've served this with a few sauté mushrooms and some watercress velouté and some fresh watercress. The filling can literally be anything from ricotta to ragu or squash to tomato.  

Lemon & pine nut iced parfait, meringue & sorrel granita.

Lemon & pine nut iced parfait, meringue & sorrel granita. 

This is a failsafe dish that I've used for a few years on my set lunch menu's, it's a simple dish thats easily produced and flys out the door at anytime of the year. It's a perfect dish to teach basic pastry skills also. 

Lemon & pine nut iced parfait:

12 lemons juiced

6 lemon zest 

10 egg yolks

200g sugar

60ml water

200g pine nuts

800ml cream

Juice the lemons and reduce to 150ml. Bring the sugar & water to 119*c while you whisk the egg yolks until they are thick and glossy. Once ready, add the sugar mix to the egg yolk and whisk until cold. Toast the pine nuts, add them with the reduced liquid & the zest to the yolk mix. Semi whip the cream and fold it into the yolk mix. Pour into desired mould and freeze. Best stored at -12*c. 

Sorrel granita:

50g sorrel

500ml water

75g sugar

25ml vodka

Bring the water & sugar to the boil, add the vodka and chill over ice. Add the sorrel when cold and blend. Pass and freeze. Scrape with a fork when needed. 

Meringue tuille:

100g egg whites

100g caster sugar

100g icing sugar

Whisk the egg whites until peaked, add the caster sugar and whisk for another few moments until it becomes thick and glossy. Add the icing sugar and fold it in. Spread onto a silmat and bake at 90*c for 30 minutes. Once ready, leave to cool and break into desired size. 

White Chocolate, pistachio & orange

White chocolate, pistachio & orange. 

White chocolate mousse:

400g egg yolks

250g sugar

125ml water

6 gelatine

300g white chocolate 

1600ml cream

Heat the sugar & water to 121*c and whisk the egg yolks in a mixer at full speed. Once white and thick, add the hot syrup to the yolk and keep on full. Add the bloomed gelatine to the hot pan to melt it and then pour that into the yolk also. Melt the chocolate, add that to the yolk mix. Semi whip the cream by hand and once the yolk mix is cold, fold the two together. Set in a tray or rings, this may take a couple of hours. This mix also holds well in the freezer. 

Pistachio anglaise:

500ml cream

500ml milk

200g egg yolks

150g sugar

25g pistachio paste

Bring cream & milk up to simmering point. Mix sugar & egg yolk together then temper with hot liquid. Pour back into the pot and bring to 82*c stirring all the time. Add the pistachio paste and infuse for 40 minutes. Pass and chill. Place into a squeeze bottle. 

Orange gel:

800g orange puree

200ml 22% stock syrup

14g Agar

Bring all to the boil and whisk for 2 minutes. Chill and set. Blend again at 80*c then chill and set. Blend again at fridge temp and place into a piping bag. Pipe as needed. 

Orange tuile: 

100g sugar

50ml egg white

80g plain flour

50g butter 

10g poppy seed

5g orange zest 

40ml orange juice. 

Blend all in a mixer and spread onto a non stick sheet, bake at 180*c for 8 minutes. 

Garnish:

Burnt orange segments

crushes pistachio nuts

Sorrel 

A fairly simple recipe. 

Cannelloni of Strawberry & White chocolate, creme fraiche, lemon & hazelnut

Cannelloni of Strawberry & White chocolate, creme fraiche, lemon & hazelnut. 

So christmas has been a busy one, first time I've had a chance to do anything at all. It's also a time of year where we have a few odds and ends laying about so I thought I'd try and work on a little dish for this summer with my left overs. Yes, yes, the seasonalists (not a real word) will have a pop at me for using strawberries at Christmas but I've got them so I'll use them. Anyway, here's the recipe to what is actually a very simple dessert. If I wasn't shown this before then I probably wouldn't have tried it but it's surprisingly easy. The guys who showed me this know who they are, cheers. 

White chocolate parfait:

150g egg yolk

100g sugar

50ml water

150g white chocolate

500g double cream. 

Heat the sugar & water to 121*c and whisk the egg yolks until pale. Add the liquid to the yolks and whisk hard and fast until it starts to cool. This is best done in a mixer, not by hand. Melt the white chocolate and add to the egg mix. Once its cold, whisk the cream to soft peaks and fold into the egg mix. Pipe into pre rolled acetate tubes and freeze. Once frozen, cut to desired size and roll in jelly then place in the fridge to defrost. 

Strawberry jelly:

700g strawberry puree

200ml water

100ml stock syrup

8g Agar

3 gelatine leaves

Heat the liquid to the boil, add the agar and whisk on the boil for 2 minutes. Add the bloomed gelatine and strain quickly. Set on a tray lined with acetate, and chill. Once set then wrap around the white chocolate parfait and place in the fridge to defrost. It will keep its shape.  

Creme faiche sorbet:

400g creme fraiche

300ml water

150g sugar

50g glucose

10g peppercorns

Bring the water, sugar, glucose & peppercorn to the boil and leave to cool naturally. Whisk the creme fraiche in and strain, churn and freeze. 

Lemon curd:

250g lemon juice

500g butter

500g sugar

11 eggs

3 1/2 gelatine leaves

Heat the butter and the lemon juice in a bain marie. Whisk the egg & sugar together and add to the lemon/butter mix. Heat slowly, stirring every few moments until it thickens up. Add the gelatine and strain into a container and chill. Once set, whisk together and place into a piping bag or a squeeze bottle.  

Hazelnut crunch: 

100g butter

50g sugar

50g flour

100g chopped hazelnuts

Cream the sugar & butter until pale, add the nuts & flour. Back in the over at 160*c for 12 minutes. Once cool, smash up or pulse in the blender. 

Garnish with a few strawberries and a little red vein sorrel. 

Simple! 

Cail Bruich & Odfjell wines.

Cail Bruich & Odfjell wines tasting menu. 

I've previously written about Cail Bruich and their Madklubben food evening and how well they put on a good night with great food, this time it was all about the wine and matching the food to the Chilean wine. Our hosts were Dan Odfjell from Odfjell wines and of course, the ever friendly Cail Bruich team. I'm a massive wine fan but I have to confess that if its not french then it rarely gets a look in but for a cheap £50 you can't complain. We got a 5 course tasting menu with matching wines, some chit chat from Dan about the grapes and the usual wine talk. To be honest, I learnt a few things about chile and its good climate for grapes and that its always raining. The food & drink menu is here for you to have a look over. 

We forgot to take pictures of the first few dishes as we were having such a good time but heres what we managed to get.   

Venison tartare. 

Octopus. 

Ox cheek. 

If you've not been before then I'd recommend it, good food, good wine and its has friendly great service thats relaxed yet professional. Plus, it's where the chefs like to eat so you know your onto a winner. 

Wood pigeon, pomme dauphine, roasted beets, chicory & pigeon jus.

Wood pigeon, pomme dauphine, roasted beets, chicory & pigeon jus. 

Pigeon: 

1 pigeon crown

3g thyme

Salt

Olive oil

Stuff the crown with thyme and seal off all sides and roast in the oven at 180*c for 3 minutes and leave to rest and carve once ready. 

Pomme dauphine:

125g water

50g butter

Pinch of salt

100g flour

1 egg

1 egg yolk

600g pomme puree

Boil the water and butter, add the salt and sieve the flour in. Cook out the flour for 2 minutes then place dough into mixer with the paddle, add the egg one at a time then add the pomme puree, place into the fridge. Shape into desired shape when really cold then deep fry at 180*c until golden brown. 

6 beetroot

Salt

Cut the top & bottom off the beet, season slightly and wrap in foil. Place onto a try covered in salt and bake at 165*c for one hour. Leave to cool naturally and peel once cold. Reheat by roasting in a pan with a little oil. Butter is optional but its not needed unless your looking for that nutty butter flavour.  

1 chicory

20g butter

1/2 orange juiced

Pinch sugar

Pinch salt

Slighty cook the chicory in everything for 20 seconds just to wilt a little. 

Pigeon jus:

Pigeon bones

1 carrot

3 shallots

1 stick celery

5g thyme

1/4 garlic bulb

1 tbl tomato puree

Dash sherry vinegar

1 litre chicken jus

Dash Madeira 

Roast the veg and bones in a pan, add the garlic & thyme and cook for another few moments. Add the puree and cook out. Deglaze with a little sherry vinegar and add the chicken jus. Reduce by half and finish with a little dash of Madeira, check the seasoning and add the left over juice from the roasted crown. 

To garnish

Red amaranth

Celery hearts