Posts tagged rose

Chilled Iranian Pistachio and Cucumber Soup

March 29, 2016 Comments Off read Vegetables and Salads

ne of my favourite restaurants in London is Dock Kitchen by Stevie Parle. The style, flavours and creations resonate with my own using the best ingredients and sticking a finger up to the gadgets and modern methods that have infiltrated our restaurants recently. With no particular genre as such Stevie’s style seems to be a collaboration of inspiration from various adventures and culinary travels but with a lean towards middle Eastern in places. With a rather eclectic style myself I was delighted to know that it was the venue for our office Summer party last year. With a tempting menu of absolutely mouth watering courses that would sit wholeheartedly at my dinner table on cloud nine I was excited initially to try the much talked about ‘Lamb biryani with black cumin, coriander and almonds which was baked with love and warmth in an earthy clay pot and sealed protectively with a dough lid. With what could have been a miniature chisel, it gets delivered with elegance and flecked with gold leaf to the hungry guests and forcefully cracked open revealing succulent chunks of tender lab, rice and aromats. Shamefully amongst the starters of fattoush, labneh and chicken livers, this dreamy main and the simple sweets I didn’t even give this pistachio dish a second glance.

t was delivered to the now raucous and wine lubricated guesses as a humble ‘palate’ cleanser pre-main event. I’ll admit, it didn’t ever really stand a chance grabbing our attention as the scent of lamb trickled under our hungry noses but its vibrant colour oozing freshness, greenery and curiosity caught my attention on first sight and even more so on taste.

I’m not your biggest gazpacho eater or one for cucumber in anything but salads and Pimms but after just a vary mouthful of this chilled, textured and complex soup I was dying to know how it was made. It instantly placed itself royally on my to cook list and after searching for a mimic recipe I was delighted to find one and be enlightened into the ingredients. Again, shamefully over half a year later I finally gathered the short list of simple ingredients and concocteed this treat for lunch on a Spring sunny lunch.

Complex, intriguing and all so moreish it is one to try for a taste of Stevie’s culinary brain from your own home. I’m certainly due another visit not only for their chicken livers in seven spice and pomegranate molasses that is still on my ‘To cook’ list slightly below this Iranian soup but for their dynamically changing menu. It is an ideal location on a summers day when you can enjoy their gorgeous roof terrace with a glass of something chilled and ideally effervescent in your favourite sunglasses that have been in hibernation for far too long.

Serves 4

75g fresh green pistachios
75g blanched almonds
1 garlic clove
1 cucumber, roughly chopped
100g red grapes
Bunch mint, leaves picked
Sprig dill
1 tsp rosewater
Juice 1/2 lemon
Salt and pepper
Rose petals to serve

Place the nuts and garlic in a food processor and blend until a fine powder.
Add a splash of water and blend again
Next, add most of the grapes, saving some for garnish, the cucumber, the mint and the dill
Blend well.
Next add a drop of the rose water (its powerful for add a little to begin, taste and add more if needed. It should be a subtle flavour, not there to make this soup taste like soap)
Add the lemon juice and season to taste and blend again.
Now add enough water to dilute the consistency to that of a thick soup.
Serve with sliced grapes and rose petals and any chopped pistachios if you wish.

Matcha Latte Afagatto

February 27, 2016 Comments Off read Drinks, Sweet Treats

remember the first time I had a hand warming bowl of fresh matcha tea. I was on an energy high for the entire day! As someone who doesn’t drink caffeinated coffee its a great alternative energy kick full of caffeine and packed full of antioxidants. I realise that unlike me many won’t have the same apprecaitetion for the bitter flavours of green tea or my favourite 90% dark chocolate. However if you can appreciate the flavour, health benefits and vivid colour of matcha tea then forget your Starbucks ”skinny-soy-hold the cream- add the sweetener and cinnamon sprinkle grande latte (with – correctly written name)…breathe….and get to your local health food shop or teapigs supplier and go make your own! That said, more and more independent cafes are offering this healthy alternative so it is far more accessible for an easy take out than it used to be. It can be made using sweetened milk such as sweetened almond (my personal favourite) of hazelnut to just take off that bitter edge.

For those still curious, matcha tea is essentially organic green tea leaves that have been ground to a fine powder and concentrated into this vibrant ‘gold’ dust. As I say, I like to use a sweeter milk but after a recent lightbulb moment of inspiration I wondered if the after dinner coffee and chocolate pairing could be ‘matched’ (excuse the pun) with an alternative? So, I thought, why not pair super sweet white chocolate with this bitter green and warming tea topped with some camp rose petals?

Think of it as an alternative coffee-free afagatto for your more hipster dinner party guests.

The body is a temple. But only once a month….

NOTE: To get the aerated effect, the best thing to use here if you don’t have a green tea whisk is a milk frother (see here). You can also use a hand blender.

hilst I always use unsweetened versions of dairy free milks such as almond and soy, I find the sweetened ones work better here as an alternative to adding maple syrup or honey. However feel free to use the unsweetened versions, especially for the afagatto where the bitterness is a lovely contrast to the sweet ice cream.

Matcha latte for 1

1/2 tsp match tea powder
200ml milk of choice (almond, coconut, dairy, rice milk, hazelnut etc)

Sieve the powder into a mug so its doesn’t end up lumpy
Warm the milk in a pan until just coming to the simmer and then remove from the heat
Using a whisk or frother add a few tablespoons of the hot milk to the powder and whisk well to combine.
Once combined add the rest of the milk and use the whisk or frother to aerate.

Matcha Afagatto for 4

400ml (sweetened) almond milk (or soya, dairy, coconut, hazelnut….)
2 tsp matcha tea powder
4 scoops white chocolate ice cream
Optional – 2 tsp rose petals

Make the matcha latte as above.
Spoon the ice cream into small deep bowls
Pour over the hot tea and top with rose petals

Spiced Bass, Bulgur Wheat Salad, Lime

December 17, 2015 Comments Off read Seafood

What started out as a loss of inspiration the other evening turned into a pretty delicious quick and tasty meal for my adoring sister and I for a casual and relaxing Friday night a few weeks ago. A breeze to knock up which was appreciated as we barely kept our eyes open after a long week and hard work. Tasty and nutritious with a beautiful girly scattering of rose petals. Sorry chaps, girls night in. After a few glasses of something crisp and aromatic (I recommend maybe a Gewürztraminer) I highly recommend topping this off with a helping of trashy Reeses peanut butter cups for pudding…A bit of an oxymoron to the meal but moderation in moderation.

Serves 2

80g bulghur wheat
Handful raisins
Juice 1/2 lemon
1 large bunch coriander, chopped
1 large onion, cut into half moons
1 tsp ground cumin
1 lime, zest and juice
200g yoghurt
2 seabass fillets
1 tbsp Ras El Hanout
Pinch rose petals (optional)

Start by cutting the fish fillets in half and season. Mix with a tablespoon of olive oil and the Ras El Hanout and massage this in. Set aside.
Slowly cook the onions now. Heat a splash of light oil in a frying pan and gently soften and fry the onion slices for about 10 minutes until just beginning to turn golden brown and crisp. Once soft and gold stir in the cumin and remove from the heat.
Meanwhile, cook the bulgur wheat by simmering in boiling water until just tender (about 5-8 minutes). Drain well and leave to dry a little. Season.
Stir the onions, raisins, the chopped coriander (save a handful for garnish) and mix to combine. Check the seasoning then add the juice of the lemon. Fork through to combine the flavours and set aside.
Mix the yoghurt with the juice of the lime and the majority of the zest (save a pinch for garnish). Season and set aside.
Now you’re ready to cook your fish. Heat a frying pan with a little oil until hot. Fry the fish, skin side down for about 2-3 minutes until crisp. Flip onto the flesh side for the final 30 seconds then remove from the heat.
To serve, spoon half the yoghurt mixture into the centre of a plate. Top with some of the bulgur wheat salad. Finally top with fish and garnish with some chopped coriander, lime zest and rose petals.

Amaretto Pannacotta, Rose Rhubarb, Pistachio Shortbread

March 16, 2015 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

A beautiful, delicious, creamy, soothing, sweet and flavoursome dessert to top off a wonderful Mother’s Day supper. My mother personified in a pleasing dessert. Elegant, beautiful and who doesn’t love a creamy vanilla speckled pannacotta? Obviously with a splash of booze as it was only fitting and with the simplest quirky touch of rose for added originality. And as one of my mums favourite puddings it was always on the menu. With shortbread of course. I think I’d have been hung and gutted if I hadn’t made any if I’m honest. Even if we were having pancakes! You can totally adapt this recipe too adding different liquors and roasting different fruits. Adding different nuts and flavours to your biscuits too. Try frangelico pannacotta, hazelnut shortbread and cinnamon honey roasted figs.

Serves 6

Amaretto Pannacotta

500ml double cream
125ml milk
40g caster sugar
1 cinnamon stick
1 vanilla pod
2 tbsp amaretto liqueur (or another if preferred, e.g. Frangelico?)
3 leaves/sheets gelatine

Find yourself either 6 pannacotta moulds (This is if you want to turn these out onto a plate to eat. It is up to you. I prefer the less hassle and neater presentation approach to serving these in glasses) or 6 glasses of choice to serve you pannacotta in and place on tray.
Heat the double cream, milk, sugar and cinnamon stick in a saucepan over a medium heat to dissolve the sugar and infuse the cinnamon.
Scrape the vanilla seeds from the pod and whisk into the heating cream. Add the pod too and bring to just under a simmer.
Remove from the what and leave to infuse for 20 minutes or so.
Soak the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water meanwhile.
Sieve or pick out the cinnamon stick and the vanilla pod and discard. Bring the pan back onto the heat and warm through.
Squeeze out the gelatine leaves and then whisk into the warm cream.
Transfer the mixture to a good reliable pouring jug and divide the mixture between the glasses. (TIP: Measure the mixture first and then divide this by 6 so that you end up with 6 even glasses. It is also worth whisking the mixture between pouring so you don’t end up with all the tasty black and precious vanilla seeds at the bottom of the jug!)
Carefully place the tray in the fridge and leave to set. Ideally make these in the morning for use for dinner.
Bring to room temperature for about 5 minutes before serving. Turn out any that are in pannacotta moulds. Serve with the warm rhubarb compote on top.

Rose Roasted Rhubarb

500g pink forced Spring Rhubarb
1 tbsp runny honey
¾ tsp rosewater
1 tbsp rose petals
Handful pistachio nuts, crushed

Preheat the oven to about 160°C.
Cut your rhubarb into 2inch chunks on the diagonal.
Place in a baking dish and drizzle with the honey. Add the rosewater and mix.
Cover with foil and roast for about 30 minutes until its soft. remove the foil and return to the oven for about 10 more minutes or so.
Serve warm on top of the chilled pannacotta, scattered with a few rose petals and some crushed pistachio nuts.

Pistachio Shortbread

125g cold, cubed butter
175g plain flour
60g caster sugar
40g pistachios

Preheat the oven to 180 and line a baking tray with parchment
In a food processor, combine the butter, flour and 50g of sugar and blend until it begins to clump and form a dough
Next in a pestle and mortar pound the nuts coarsely until you form small pieces.
Add half to the dough and pulse again briefly in the processor to diffuse.
Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and use your hands to bring to a ball of dough.
Halve the dough to make it easier to work with as you can now deal with it in two batches. Roll to the thickness of a pound coin and then use a cutter of choice to make your shortbread before placing on the baking tray.
Combine the remaining pounded nuts with the 10g of sugar and scatter liberally over the biscuits.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until just beginning to turn a light golden brown.
Leave to cool before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

To serve: Serve the pannacotta slightly chilled (remove from the fridge for about 5 minute before serving) topped with the warm rhubarb and a side order of buttery shortbread

Caramelised White Chocolate and Rose Cupcakes

July 15, 2013 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

I imagine when you arrive at the Pearly Gates of heaven, St.Peter’s hunky Leonardo look-a-like assistant will be standing beside him with a tray of these welcoming you in. That would be nice.

So, this is not another generic chocolate cupcake…..oh no, that’s not my style. I had to play with my Green & Blacks stash somehow. Caramelised white chocolate is courtesy of David Lebovitz who has an ice cream recipe for this I’ve been meaning to try…I usually find white chocolate too sweet and the idea of the ice cream was enough to make my poor teeth ache so I thought I’d try (ok still sugary) but a less intense cupcake by sticking it into a cake mixture. The results were engulfed on a sunny early evening within the hour…success.

Cupcakes

150g plain flour
1tsp baking powder
110g butter, melted
100g sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
160g caramelised white chocolate (or simply use melted white chocolate 30% solids minimum- I used Green & Blacks)
60ml milk

White Chocolate and Rose Buttercream

250g icing sugar
110g unsalted butter
150g Green & Blacks white chocolate, melted
Drop of rosewater (Or to taste- its powerful stuff)
Drop of pink/red food colouring

1. Preheat the oven to 125°C. Start by making the caramelised white chocolate. Break the chocolate up into pieces and place on a lined baking tray. Place int he oven for 10 minutes and then spread out using a spatula. Place back in the oven for another ten minutes and repeat this process of smoothing it out every 10 minutes for up to 60 minutes but this will depend on the chocolate you use (DON’T use cheap stuff). It will look really weird and chalky but don’t panic….it should smooth out as you go. Tips can be found here from the man himself. If it doesn’t (like mine did) then after the hour, place in a food processor and whiz briefly and it will form a devine golden brown caramel ready to use in your cupcake mixture.

2. Now start the cupcakes by whisking the eggs and the sugar for a few minutes until really pale and fluffy and airy. Add the vanilla and then the milk followed by the white chocolate caramel mixture and mix well (If using normal chocolate, melt it in advance by heating the milk and then whisking in the chocolate and combine this way).

3. Sieve over the baking powder and the flour and fold in gently.

4. Finally, fold in the melted butter (it will look nasty at first but persist).

5. Spoon into cases and bake at 180°C for about 20 minutes before leaving to cool.

6. For the icing, combine the softened butter, sieved icing sugar and rose water together in a processor or by hand until well combined. Combine with the melted white chocolate until smooth adding a drop of pink colouring if you like. Add a splash of milk for a looser consistency. Spoon into a piping bag.

7. When the cakes are cold, pipe the icing on top in a rose pattern and scatter with dried rose petals if you like!

8. Your final mission…..make a man eat one!

Elderflower Drizzle with Basil Icing

May 20, 2013 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

A little experiment with elderflower yesterday. Lemon drizzle cake is a classic favourite but I thought I’d try it with some elderflower and a subtle basil flecked icing. Fell free to leave out the basil or replace it with something more dessert-familiar like mint. I think this cake needs a bit more testing to get the exact measurements to balance the flavours (see note at the bottom) but this was what I started with and it tasted great anyway!

115g butter
165g sugar
165g self raising flour
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 lemon, zest
4 tbsp milk
150ml elderflower cordial (and a little more for the icing)
100g icing sugar
1 tbsp chopped basil (or mint if you prefer)

Cream the butter and sugar. Then add the eggs, milk and lemon zest and sieve in the flour and baking powder. Mix.
Spoon into a lined cake tin and bake for 35-40 minutes at 180 until cooked.
Once the cake is cooked and it comes out the oven, while still warm, prick the surface all over and pour over the cordial and allow it to sink in and absorb. Leave to cool.
To make the glaze, mix the sieved icing sugar, the mint/basil and enough cordial to get a runny but thick consistency (about 1-2 tbsp)
Pour over the cake!

NOTE: I scattered some rose petals for presentation but to be honest they are very pungent and can be overpowering (if using a weak cordial I suggest not using them). The amount of cordial can be increased but I was nervous about drowning the cake. The cordial I used was unfortunately quite weak so I would suggest increasing the volume if you find the taste too subtle. Use a homemade or good quality one such as ‘bottlegreen’ for a really big elderflower hit.

Rose and Raspberry Polenta Loaf

October 24, 2012 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

This moist little loaf is so pretty, I stood hovering with a knife for longer than is healthy before plunging in. Made with deliciously tasty almonds, a splash of rose (optional) and the last of this years frozen raspberry harvest, it succeeded in filling the cake tin…….temporarily. I never used to like rosewater’s soapy flavouring but I’ve grown to appreciate it if used subtly. Feel free to leave it out, or add only a few drops but it is lovely with the crunchy contrast of the lemon and pistachio sugar icing slavered obligingly on top like spilt paint.

200g butter
200g caster sugar
3 eggs
100g ground almonds
100g flaked almonds
100g polenta
1 tsp baking powder
10ml or less rosewater
150g frozen raspberries

Icing and Pistachio Sugar

Icing sugar
Lemon juice
Handful of pistachios
Granulated sugar

Preheat the oven to 170°C and line a loaf, cake or baking tin of choice, with baking parchment.
Begin by blitzing the flaked almonds in a food processor until ground. Alternatively you can just use 200g ground almonds to start with but this gives a bit more texture as you can leave them a bit chunkier than the ground packets.
Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
Add the beaten egg bit by bit, mixing in thoroughly after each addition. If it begins to curdle, add a handful of almonds but don’t worry too much.
Add the rest of the almonds, polenta and baking powder and mix well.
Add the rose water if using and the frozen raspberries (coated in a little flour to prevent them sinking)
Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 45-60 minutes, depending on the thickness of your mixture in the tin. Check it after 30 minutes. It should be golden and spring back to the touch.
Meanwhile sieve a handful of icing sugar into a clean bowl and add a teaspoon of lemon juice at a time until you get the desired consistency. I wanted a thick icing sugar but still with a good dripping texture.
To make the pistachio sugar, grind a handful of pistachio nuts in a pestle and mortar or crush in a bag with the back of a spoon until coarse.
Then add about 1 tbsp of granulated sugar and grind with the pistachios.
When the cake is ready, leave to cool before icing and scattering with the pistachio sugar. This can also be decorated with rose petals or pomegranate seeds too if you’re feeling very girly.

This cake is delicious served with clotted cream, creme fraiche, a glass of bubbly or alone with only a fresh peppermint tea for company.