Posts by Jess

Pea and Taleggio Fritters and a Pompous Charcuterie

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Pea and Taleggio Fritters and a Pompous Charcuterie

So……I’ve been having withdrawals from cooking and you may have noticed the lack of recipes these past few weeks? I’ve been in London doing a time consuming internship at delicious.magazine! Its been fantastic, and between sampling over 50 Christmas pudding varieties, 30 mince pies, 15 panettones and still with a crate full of mincemeat and cake left to devour (all for the sake of the Christmas issue’s ‘taste test’ of course) it has left me with little time, stomach capacity and/or motivation for anything edible. However, these withdrawals have been kicking in so it was back in the kitchen this bank holiday weekend.

These fritters are essentially savoury pancakes I guess? I make these all the time as a delicious lunch as they are so open to using different ingredients! With an abundance of cooperative peas from the garden and a fridge maliciously hiding a legendary hunk of taleggio cheese I decided upon these tasty ingredients for lunch. I usually use feta but its absence has converted me to this pungent and obsequious cheese which melts so nicely in this recipe!

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You can pretty much use any ingredients in this batter, tweaking the amount of flour and liquid. You can add different spices and herbs and different cheeses! For example, I love to make these with fennel seeds, feta, peas and mint or sweetcorn, curry and chilli! Go mad!

  • 125ml milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 30g cornflour
  • 100g flour
  • 250g peas
  • 100g taleggio cheese, cubed (approx, or a handful)
  • salt and pepper
  • basil, chopped
  • cumin seed
  1. Boil the peas for a few minutes then run under cold water. Place half the peas in a food processor and puree.
  2. Sieve the flours into a large bowl and add some salt, pepper, cumin seed and basil. Whisk in the beaten eggs and milk until smooth.
  3. Fold in the whole peas, pureed peas, and cheese and mix well. It should be fairly thick, enough to hold its shape in a pan
  4. Heat a frying pan to a medium heat and warm some sunflower oil
  5. Fry spoonfuls of the mixture in the hot oil for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown and set.

These are lovely with a salsa, salad, chutney or anything you fancy depending on the flavours! However, we had some fancy lamb prosciutto and boar ham and some deeply decadent and artery clogging cheeses in the fridge to use up so these went down well too…..

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Peach and Amaretto Mini Meringue Pie

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Peach and Amaretto Mini Meringue Pie

A simple beautiful dessert!  This I actually made the other day with some leftovers- a mini tart case, a lonely peach and an abandoned egg white…….I stewed the peach with some sugar and amaretto and popped it in the tart case before suffocating it in a glossy, sweet and airy meringue mix. Quick blast in the oven and it was ready to devour!

A perfect summer party….

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So…..this weekend I helped cater a beautiful, stylish and spirited birthday party on a gorgeous English summer day with a catwalk of the most beautiful guests! With party styling under the professional and wise control of ‘Inspired Party Designs’ (www.inspiredpartydesign.com) a stunning company run by my mother and friends and food from myself and team, it was a memorable day which undoubtedly deserves this extended post…

A feast of delicious food; cumin and chilli roasted carrots, fig, goats cheese and hazelnut salad, pea, asparagus, mint and feta salad, seasonal tomatoes with basil and edible flowers, boiled new potatoes with oozing butter and a stunning slow roasted rolled shoulder of lamb with a pomegranate and orange dressing. It was devine!

(Fig hazelnut, goats cheese and balsamic salad on watercress and rocket)

And of course the practiced dessert which was just as good the second time round. Coconut and lime pannacotta, a coconut shortbread and lime melt and a mini mango ice lolly on sugar, salt and citrus crumbs.

And of course……no party is complete without cake……..

And of course the charismatic Birthday girl in her vintage glam attire who made this day so delightful, Happy 30th (‘Np’ I hear you scream…..I know you wouldn’t believe it) Birthday Beth Daniel!!!

Breakfast Granola

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There is ALWAYS a jar of this in our cupboard, except this morning when we ran out…… a small tantrum was thrown before butter, oats and honey were scavenged from the pantry and a batch was in and baking before you could say ‘granola!’. This sweet jar of toasty crumbs is perfect for topping yoghurt, fruit salad, compote or just simply with milk. Its delicious and is free for adaptation depending on what your shelves depict and what your taste buds request…

  • 250g oats
  • 50g sunflower seeds
  • 50g pumpkin seeds
  • 50g flaked almonds
  • Handful of mixed nuts (I use chopped walnuts/hazelnuts)
  • Zest of 1 orange
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • Pinch of salt
  • Handful of dried fruit i.e.cranberries, blueberries, raisins, apricots etc
  • 5 tbsp runny honey
  • 50g unsalted butter
  1. Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl except the dried fruit, butter and honey
  2. Melt the butter and honey in a saucepan until liquid
  3. Pour over the dry ingredients and mix
  4. Place on a lined baking tray and spread out thinly
  5. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes at 180°C turning every 5 minutes to get an even bake
  6. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Don’t worry, once it cools, it will crisp up.
  7. Once cool, mix in the dried fruit and store in an air-tight container where it will keep for weeks!

Dukka

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Dukka

I’ve never been to Egypt but this is how I imagine it tastes…….Dukka is a ground blend of spices and nuts and is eaten in Egypt as a pre-dinner nibble with bread and oil. The idea is to dip chunks of bread into some good quality peppery extra virgin olive oil then dunk greedily into the dry spice mix and gobble in one! However, I also add it to salads and roasted vegetables such as carrots and beets. It can also be used as a dry rub for lamb or to top fresh bread dough before baking.

I first saw this recipe in Hugh’s River Cottage Everyday book and immediately loved it! Hugh we love you but I have adapted the recipe and added some extra flavours of my own which I think go nicely. As we found out this sunny summer weekend, this nibble goes down a bit too well with a chilled glass of pinot and some jovial company….

  • A handful of hazelnuts OR a large handful of chopped roasted hazelnuts
  • 1 tbsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tbsp coriander seeds
  • 1 tbsp fennel seeds
  • 1 tbsp fenugreek seeds
  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds
  • ½ tsp dried chilli flakes
  • ½ tsp sea salt
  • Small handful shredded mint leaves
  1. Toast the hazelnuts in a hot oven for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and roll them in between a tea towel to remove the skins. Add to a pestle and mortar and crush coarsely or chop into small pieces
  2. Toast the seeds spices in a dry frying pan until fragrant and they just begin to crackle. Add the to the nuts in the pestle and mortar along with the chilli flakes and salt. Grind coarsely
  3. Shred some fresh mint and stir into the spices.
  4. Enjoy with oil and bread for dipping

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Its always nice to use seasonal ingredients that grow at the correct time of year and are perfectly ripe, colourful and full of their maximum flavour. If you’ve ever had a tomato from the supermarket in the middle of winter you’ll have noticed its stubborn insistence on tasting bland as it pokes its anaemic jet-lagged head from the shelf after a long flight from overseas. It will soon make you appreciate the juicy flavour of a scarlet ripe one in the summer months so we usually grow our own! These are looking good but just need a little more sunshine.

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Tip of the day…..a friend once told me, if you see a bee that looks tired, it often needs some energy so squeeze a drop of honey next to him and he will greedily slurp it up!

Lime and Coconut Pannacotta with Lime Melts

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Lime and Coconut Pannacotta with Lime Melts

Next weekend I’m helping cater a sit down Birthday lunch and this is the dessert……so……..naturally I had to greedily sample the recipe for myself before inflicting the sweet, creamy and fresh mouth watering dessert on the poor awaiting guests. The sampling was hard. I may have to do it again tomorrow too.

If you’re fed up with the rainy English weather, this will help you melt away into the tropical Caribbean…

  • 250ml double cream
  • 250ml coconut cream/milk
  • 2 ½ gelatine leaves
  • 55g caster sugar
  • 1 lime, zest and juice of ½
  1. Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water
  2. On a low heat, warm the double cream, sugar and lime zest and juice in a saucepan until the sugar dissolves, and the mixture is thin and smooth and bring up to near boiling point
  3. Just before the boil, remove from the heat and stir in the coconut milk/cream. Squeeze the excess water from the gelatine and whisk into the hot cream until dissolved.
  4. I served mine in ramekins to remove the hassle of having to turn them out but if you want to do this then fill into a greased mould (makes about 4 large or 5 small ones)
  5. Once the mixture has cooled, chill in the fridge to set for at least 3 hours but preferably overnight!

Lime Melts

  • 6 oz unsalted butter
  • 110g Icing sugar
  • Grated zest of 3 limes
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 200g flour
  • 2 tbsp cornflour
  • ¼ tsp salt
(I have converted this from American cups to grams so hopefully it works out, although use your instinct to get the right consistency of the dough which should be like shortbread)
  1. In a food processor, cream the butter and 40g of the icing sugar until fluffy. Add the lime zest, juice and vanilla and cream again
  2. Sieve the flour, cornflour and salt into the bowl and process until combined
  3. Split the dough in half and roll into logs of the size biscuit you want and wrap in parchment
  4. Chill for 1 hour
  5. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line two baking trays with parchment. Slice the dough into rounds and place on the baking tray
  6. Bake for about 12minutes until barely golden and then leave to cool for a couple of minutes.
  7. While still warm, sieve the remaining icing sugar into a sealable bag and place the cookies inside. Toss in the sugar-filled bag until coated.
(The logs also freeze well!)
 

Roasted Carrot and Avocado Salad

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Roasted Carrot and Avocado Salad

Today the sun made a rare and facetious appearance in this so-called summer season we seem to be laden with this year. So naturally as Brits, we grabbed the opportunity to have a barbie. My most inspiring idol in the food industry, Jamie Oliver, has been the backbone of my passion for food and cooking ever since receiving a copy of Jamie at Home when I was a teenager. The titled spine of this book, after many years of use, is holding tightly (but dare I say unsuccessfully) to the binding of the splattered cover and greasy pages. This book is a staple in my assembly of cookbooks and always makes an appearance especially in the summer sunshine. This tasty and delicious little salad is therefore courtesy of my mate Jamie (I wish) which went down guilt free with our charred meat and roasted beets and goats cheese.

  • 500g small carrots (mixed varieties if available)
  • 2 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp crushed dried chillies
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 4 thyme sprigs, leave picked
  • Red wine vinegar
  • 1 orange, halved
  • 1 lemon, halved
  • 2 ripe avocados
  • 4 x 1cm thick ciabatta/sourdough slices, toasted
  • 2 handfuls of mixed salad leaves
  • 1 punnet cress
  • 4 tbsp mixed seeds
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Parboil the carrots whole, in salted water for about 10 minutes. Drain and place into a deep roasting tin
  2. While the carrots are boiling, grind the cumin seeds, chillies and salt and pepper in a pestle and mortar. Add the garlic and thyme and smash to a paste. Add a swig of oil and a splash of red wine vinegar.
  3. While the carrots are still warm in the tin, cover with the this paste. Place the halved orange and lemon cut side down in the tin and roast the carrots for 30 minutes.
  4. While the carrots are roasting, toast the bread slices. Tear into pieces and add to the sliced avocados on a serving plate. Add the salad leaves and cress and toss.
  5. When the carrots are ready, remove from the oven and, using tongs, squeeze the juice from the lemon and orange into a jug and add an equal amount of oil and a swig of red wine vinegar and season.
  6. Add the carrots (along with the spices and marinade left in the roasting pan) to the bread and salad mix. Drizzle with the lemony dressing and scatter with toasted seeds. Serve!image

Sweet Potato and Goats Cheese Tartlet

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Sweet Potato and Goats Cheese Tartlet

 

I’m not turning vegetarian- honest! Not that there’s anything wrong with being vegetarian…..I even know a few (wink wink) and meat does not rule my dinner table. However, life without meat is a little…..well….inconvenient as many of my staple bible recipes contain meat which provides that much needed flavour and protein. I know however, that many vegetarian dishes can be just as punchy, satisfying and tasty especially if you have ever read the Ottolenghi cookbook which is a must have for any passionate herbivore. This little tartlet is a tasty example of a vegetarian alternative for those days when you just fancy something simple. Its also great for those cheeky veges at your dinner parties……they’re probably fed up of quiche by now….

(Serves 4)

  • 250g puff pastry
  • 1 egg
  • 4tbsp cream cheese
  • 2 small sweet potatoes
  • 1 tbsp cumin seeds
  • 100g soft goats cheese
  • Caramelized balsamic red onions (see red onion recipe)
  • 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
  • Flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C . Peeled and chop the sweet potatoes into cubes about 2cm. Place in a roasting tin and season with salt and pepper and scatter with the cumin seeds. Drizzle generously with olive oil and roast for 30 minutes until soft.
  2. Roll the pastry out to about 3 mm thick and cut into 4 rectangles about 15cmx7cm and place on a lined baking tray. Using a sharp knife, score a border about 1cm in from the edge, making sure you don’t cut all the way through. Brush with beaten egg.
  3. Spread the base of each pastry rectangle with the cream cheese. Top with the sweet potato cubes, crumbled goats cheese and pumpkin seeds.
  4. Place in the oven for 15-18 minutes until golden.
  5. After this time, top with the red onions and return to the oven for a further 2 minutes until the pastry is golden and puffed.
  6. Remove from the oven and scatter with the chopped parsley and drizzle with olive oil.
  7. I served mine with a watercress, chive and sugar snap salad. Enjoy and think of the poor pig or cow you spared!image