Category: Seasonal

Three Cornered Leek Cauliflower Cheese

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Three cornered leeks are a wild foraged food type which are found in season right now they get their name from the distinct three corners on the leaves. Luckily I have these located in my garden, if not you can get these from a local forager or if you cannot find this normal leek will give a more subtle undertone. 

Your Cauliflower Florets:

  1. To begin your cauliflower cheese first prepare your cauliflower for this recipe I used two large cauliflower’s. Wash and then peel back the outer leaves using a paring knife, cut your cauliflower into florets. For the core and outer leaves slice thinly and cook alongside the cauliflower as they are equally as delicious. 
  2. Blanch your cauliflower in boiling salted water till just al dente 5-6 minutes and then refresh in ice-cold water as this stops the cooking process.
  3. Place your cauliflower into a large oven-proof dish and reserve in the fridge till required later on in the process. 
  4. At this point top your cauliflower with the three cornered leeks a little goes a long way so if you love their flavour add more. Once you have a nice even covering ensuring that everyone will have taste. 

The Gourmet Gent Mornay:

Start with a Béchamel:

  • 200 grams of plain flour
  • 200 grams of softened butter 
  • 1 litre of milk 
  • 1 sliced shallot
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 bruised bay leaves
  • white peppercorns
  1. To begin place a medium saucepan onto the heat with your one litre of cold milk along with one sliced shallot, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 2 bruised bay leaves, white peppercorns toasted. 
  2. Allow your milk to come to a boil, allow to infuse for around 1 hour. 
  3. Once your milk has infused, pass through a sieve and a decant into a Pyrex jug.
  4. Begin your roux in a medium saucepan, melt your butter, then add in your plain flour and allow to cook out a little.
  5. Whisk with a balloon whisk and ensure that you cook out the flour otherwise the béchamel will just taste of flour. 
  6. Once the roux looks like dry sand, add in your milk in a steady stream and allow to create your béchamel. 
  7. Carry on adding your milk till you have a thick a beautiful béchamel, season with a pinch of sea salt and white pepper.
  8. To test that the béchamel is ready, use a teaspoon draw a line using your finger if the line holds then your béchamel is ready. 
  9. Allow to cool in the pan till the béchamel is required later on in the process. 

Now to transform this basic béchamel to a mornay sauce…

  1. Add two heaped teaspoons of whole grain mustard as this gives the sauce fire and a little heat and good handful of grated cheddar, ensure to use a rich and crumbly cheese for this. 
  2. Once your mornay sauce is ready spoon the sauce over the cauliflower and three cornered leeks, ensure to cover them all.
  3. I recommend removing your dish at least 30 minutes before as this allow the dish and the cauliflower to come to room temperature. 
  4. Place into a pre-heated oven at gas mark 6 to gently warm through for at least 30 minutes once the contents is piping hot add some more grated cheddar over the top of the cauliflower cheese and colour either under the grill or with your oven set to high. 
  5. Once bubbling and golden remove from the oven and enjoy with a hunk of artisan sourdough with salted butter. 

Beat the January blues with my Seville Orange & Artisan Honey Upside Down cake

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My latest recipe for Neptune Weybridge to beat the January blues and put a smile on your face: Seville Orange & Artisan Honey Upside Down cake.

This delicious cake celebrates the Seville orange, which is in season right now, with their beautiful perfume and sweet citrus aroma. A great little pick me up, which is so very important at the moment. Take the time to bake this gem of a cake, get the whole household to join in, and enjoy as a well-deserved mid-week treat.
Perfect with a cup of Earl Grey or enjoy with a little drizzle of double cream or a traditional rich egg custard. 

  1. To begin pre-heat your oven to gas mark 6, for this cake you want to use a small 7 inch cake tin, ensure that the tin is perfectly buttered with a piece of baking parchment cut into a circle to be placed on the bottom for your orange slices. 
  2. Next choose two large juicy Seville oranges one for the juice and the other for slices. Using a sharp knife slice length ways into thin slices. With the orange cut into slices place into a small saucepan. Cover with the juice of the other Seville orange along with 2 tablespoons of golden caster sugar, place over a high heat, you want to poach the oranges in the sugar syrup until soft. 
  3. Once at this point, being careful remove your oranges from the sugar syrup and arrange them in the bottom of the cake tin. You want to place one in the middle then have 4 slices overlapping to form your pattern as this will be the top of the cake. 

Victoria Sponge batter:

• 6 oz of room temperature softened butter 
• 6 oz of golden caster sugar 
• 3 large free-range eggs 
• 6 oz of self-raising flour 
• The zest of one large orange

1. To begin cream together your softened butter and caster sugar till soft and fluffy.
2. Next add one at a time, one large free range egg ensure that the eggs are properly worked into the mixture before adding the next.
3. To stop your mixture from splitting, add a tablespoon of your flour in a figure of eight incorporate this into the batter.
4. Then add the rest of your flour, fold this into the mixture as you don’t want to knock out any air from your sponge. 
5. Spoon your cake batter on top of the orange slices and gently tap the cake mould to ensure that there isn’t any cake batter loose or air bubbles have formed. 
6. Place into your preheated oven and bake for 1 hr – 1:30 minutes, if the cake begins to colour on top then cover with a piece of tin foil. You want your sponge to be light and golden, to test whether your cake is ready using a cake sewer or knife place this into the centre of the cake and this should come out clean. 
7. Once cooked remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire wrack in the cake tin, once cake is cool remove the tin and flip over onto you chosen Neptune plate. At this point drizzle over a little honey mead, this gives the cake a beautiful moist but sweet tone which complements the oranges perfectly, to reveal the beautiful Saville orange pattern. 

This cake is perfect with a cup of Earl Grey or enjoy with a little drizzle of double cream or a traditional rich egg custard.

The recipe is also on @neptuneweybridge Stories and Food & Drink Highlights.