Blowtorched apple, almond and grated nutmeg polenta cake

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3040126a-05a0-46b2-89e2-013070207804d6bea6ef-60cf-4f6d-a4dc-0cc60d915f43009bc0f8-205d-4cfe-99fa-78a507f43b14b5dcb070-45fc-4e50-aa5b-e9d5eab25c338bd0c584-ab6b-4f47-90ea-d8ee5f31a7bf4c78fe6a-4c4c-4e55-ad70-2a0d6be568fbc2dc841b-f1f0-4406-88ea-7982f0be4eb389337c77-d39b-4eef-9f98-d47420adc191c531748f-7776-4fe7-ad7a-98ec926f85ddIngredients:

  • 150 ml of cold pressed olive oil
  • 200 grams of golden caster sugar
  • 200 grams of ground almond
  • 100 grams of flaked almonds
  • 100 grams of fine polenta
  • the zest of two large untaxed lemons
  • 2 large apples grated on a box grated
  • 1 ½ teaspoons of Baking Powder
  • 8 grams of Picked lemon thyme
  • 3 free range large eggs

N.B. – To make this cake gluten free use gluten free baking powder and to make this
cake dairy free like the recipe which I have used in place of the butter use 150
grams of cold pressed olive oil.

1. Pre-heat your oven to 180 degree or gas mark 4.
2. Then grease and line a baking tin with dairy free butter and baking parchment.
3. To begin, beat together the sugar and olive in a large mixing bowl until it has gone light and fluffy (you can do this by hand or by electric mixer), then add in half a micro paned nutmeg
4. Now mix your dry ingredients together; ground almonds, fine polenta, zest of a lemon and your two large grated apples.
5. Add this to your olive oil and sugar mix, in a steady stream then add one of your eggs at time to form a batter.
6. Then at this point add the other half of your grated nutmeg and mix to incorporate throughout your cake batter.
7. Place your baking tin onto a level tray and fill the baking tin with the mixture, ensure that the mixture is evenly spread out.
8. Place into the oven and bake for 40 minutes or until the cake is risen and golden all over

N.B – As polenta cakes are quite moist, but especially with the addition of the grated apples, you may need to cover with tin foil and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes till you can pierce the cake with a knife and the knife comes out clean.

Garnishes:

1. Core one large apple and slice the apple in half, then using a sharp knife slice your apple lengthways.
2. Once your apple is sliced place onto a baking sheet, dust heavily with caster sugar and blowtorch till you have a golden crisp covering all over your apples, as this gives them a beautiful crunch.
3. Once your sugar has set hard, using a long spatula, place your torched apples on top of your cake, to finish grate over a little more nutmeg to remind your guests of the present spices.

Blowtorched Apple and Nutmeg Frangipane Torte

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IMG_9153IMG_2764IMG_5080IMG_6204IMG_5528For the sweet Pastry you will need:

• a pinch of golden caster sugar
• 8 oz. of diced cold butter
• 16 oz. of plain sieved flour
• 3 tbsp. of cold milk to bind
1. In a large bowl, sieve your flour and add your golden caster.
2. Now add in your diced butter to the flour and rub together to combine, this is a key step to making short pastry as you want the flour and butter to be blended evenly.
3. Once blended add your touch of milk to bind.
4. Once ready turn out of the bowl and clean wrap your sweet pastry in some cling film, allow it to relax. By allowing the dough to relax, the gluten in the flour relaxes which allows you to work them into your torte cases.
5. Lay out your pop bottom torte cases and line with butter as this helps to form a non-stick surface.
6. Allow your dough to room (come to room temperature), portion into four and roll on either a floured surface or between two sheets of non-stick greaseproof paper (if you don’t want to make a mess)
7. Roll your dough out to the thickness of a one-pound coin, for me I prefer to have a thin crisp base to my apple tortes.
8. Using a blunt knife cut your pastry and push into the torte cases, for even pushing use a little of the dough from the trim to ensure that you have all of the dough pushed into the edges of the torte case.
9. Blind bake with some grease proof paper and baking beans, as this helps to ensure for an even bake and makes your tortes watertight and able to hold the filling.
11. Blind bake from 15-20 minutes until lightly golden, allow to cool completely in the torte case before pushing out.


For the Frangipane you will need:

• 8 oz butter
• 1 vanilla pod
• 8 oz sugar
• 3 free range eggs
• 225 grams of ground almonds

1. To begin weigh out the ingredients as stated above. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the sugar and butter, add your vanilla paste (or pod seeds), then add one egg at a time, followed by your ground almonds.
2. If this is not for immediate use, you can leave this frangipane mixture in the fridge for at least 3 days.
3. To cook, place into your pre-cooked torte cases, cook until slightly risen and golden brown.
4. To finish add your fruit slices and for the GG signature you can blowtorch each of the fruit segments (see below)


Blow torched apples:

1. To begin core your apple and slice your apples to 4cm thickness using a sharp knife and lay out onto a baking sheet, then dust with caster sugar and blow torch till golden and bubbling.
2. Be careful as both the sugar and blow torch will be incredibly hot.

Finally…
To assemble lay your cooled blowtorched apples onto the top of your frangipane tarts and to finish using a micro pane grate over a little whole nutmeg.

Veggie Lasagne

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Béchamel:

• 200 grams of plain flour
• 200 grams of softened butter
• 1 litre of infused milk

 

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. To begin your roux in a medium saucepan melt your butter once the butter has melted add in your plain flour and allow to cook out a little begin to whisk with a balloon whisk and ensure that you cook out the flour otherwise the béchamel will just taste of flour.
5. Once the roux looks like dry sand add in your milk in a steady stream and allow to create your béchamel.
6. Carry on adding your milk till you have a thick a beautiful béchamel, season with a pinch of sea salt and white pepper and to test that the béchamel is ready, using a teaspoon draw a line using your finger if the line holds then your béchamel is ready.
7. Allow to cool in the pan till the béchamel is required later on in the process.

 

Fresh Pasta:

• 300 grams of 00 pasta flour
• 3 medium whole eggs
• A pinch of Maldon sea salt
1. To start the pasta dough place the OO flour and Maldon sea salt into a large mixing bowl.
2. Create a volcano shape in the middle of the flour, as this is where you will crack your eggs into.
3. One by one crack your eggs into the centre of the flour, discarding of the shells using a metal fork whisk the eggs (you can do this before in a Pyrex jug) using a clean wooden spoon begin to drag the 00 flour in from the edges and begin to incorporate the eggs and flour.
4. Once the dough has reached a beautiful crumbly consistence start using your hands to pull the dough together, using your palms. Once the dough is ready and all of the flour and eggs incorporated tip out onto a floured service.
5. Begin to knead the dough as this builds the glutens up, after 10 minutes of kneading your dough it should be smooth and silky.
6. Once at this stage wrap your dough in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes as this allows the dough to relax.
7. Having rested the pasta dough it is now time to shape your dough you can either do this by using a rolling pin or using a pasta machine, as this will ensure that all of the pasta is even once it has reached your desired thickness. (On a pasta machine you have three settings as these enables you to work the dough down to the desired thickness)
8. After rolling the dough to fit to the machine, run the dough through the thickest setting, fold in half and then drop the thickness as this helps to ensure the dough is silky and glossy. The thickness you want to achieve is that of a pound coin (Run two)


Veggie Mince:

1. Sauté your mince off in a frying pan till they go golden and crispy as this allows them to carry the sauce better, as they want to absorb the flavours from the sauce and béchamel.


Roasted Courgettes:

1. To begin wash your courgettes under cold running water, once you have washed them top and tall your courgettes.

2. Next using a very sharp knife slice your courgettes very finely and place onto a baking tray and drizzle with a little olive oil
3. Roast in the oven at 180 or gas mark 6 until your courgettes are al dente and cooked through, by cooking your courgettes before they go into your lasagne you can ensure that they don’t loose their shape or go loose and sloppy.
4. Once they are cooked hit your roasted courgettes with a little sea salt and black pepper before you place them into the your lasagne as this forms a base of seasoning.
5. By salting your courgettes after they are cooked, this helps to ensure that they don’t steam or go wet in the oven as salt has a natural drawing elements which helps to remove moisture from the items let it be vegetables or meat.


Tomato Sauce:

• 1 large shallot peeled and finely sliced
• 4 garlic cloves peeled crushed and finely sliced
• 2 large red chillies finely sliced
• 1 Pasatta container
• Touch of water to wash out your container.
• Cold press olive oil
1. To begin add your finely sliced base into the your medium saucepan along with a pinch of sea salt and black pepper, a drizzle of olive oil.
2. As this helps to form a base seasoning for your pasta sauce base, allow your base to season and perfume the oil, ensuring that you don’t colour the base as this will make the oil taste bitter and you cant hide burnt garlic.
3. Next add your pasatta along with your touch of water, a twist of black pepper and black pepper and a little olive oil.
4. Allow to cook on a low heat for around as this enables the sauce to sit and marinate a little.

To assemble…

1. Add in your veggie mince to the base of fired earth dish, top with a couple of spoonfulS of your béchamel, then marble with your tomato sauce and top with your lasagne sheets.

2. Next top with your roasted courgette slices and season with a pinch of sea salt and black pepper.

3. Then add more béchamel and tomato sauce, ensure you leave some béchamel to go on top as this forms the best part of lasagne, the crispy top.

4. Pace into a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees and bake till golden and bubbly, as each of the elements are cooked and the fresh pasta will take seconds to cook.

Courgette, pistachio, almond and lemon cake topped with thick lemon and bay icing

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IMG_3414IMG_8331IMG_6717IMG_4243IMG_3588IMG_1019IMG_3976IMG_5782IMG_1784IMG_1015Thick set lemon and bay icing:

• 500 grams of sieved icing sugar
• 3 lemon juice passed through a sieve
• 3 lemon zests
• 2 bruised bay leaves which have been lightly washed
• Touch of cold water

1. To begin in a large Mason and cash sieve your icing sugar, then add your lemon juice and long with your bruised bay leaves as this gives the icing a beautiful earthy note which helps to cut through the sweetness of the icing sugar.
2. Using a whisk bring your icing together don’t worry about the bay leaves as you can remove these once the icing is made and infused.
3. Once your icing has began to come together add in your lemon zest along with a touch of cold water if it is required, then place a teaspoon into the icing, you want your icing to have the dropping consistency.

 

The Gourmet Gent Courgette, pistachio, almond and lemon cake:

• 2 large washed courgettes (coarsely grated)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla paste
• 150 ml of cold pressed olive oil
• 250 grams of self rising flour
• 50 grams of roughly chopped pistachio nuts
• 50 grams of flaked almonds
• 3 large free range eggs
• 150 grams of golden caster sugar
• ½ teaspoon of Bicarb
1. To begin pre-heat your oven to gas mark 4 or 180 degrees, then grease and line two loaf baking tins, to make the baking parchment stick use a little olive oil or dairy free butter as this cake is diary free.
2. Next grate your large courgettes on the course side of your box grater, to begin the cake in a large mason and cash mixing bowl add your olive oil, sugar and whisk till light and fluffy as this helps to impart air to the cake batter.
3. Once the sugar has melted away into the olive oil add one large egg at a time and whisk the eggs in, then add your vanilla paste.
4. Then using a fine sieve in your self raising flour and bicarb by sieving your bicarb in with your flour this ensures that the bicarb is equally mixed through the flour and cake mix.
5. Using a spatula fold in your flour as this is where the air is incorporated into the cake,
6. To finish add your flaked almonds, pistachio nuts and lastly your grated courgettes do this in three stages as this helps to ensure that your courgette is properly mixed through the cake mixture.
7. Decant your cake mix into the lined moulds and then place in the oven and bake for one hour till the cake is golden brown and baked through to check that the cake is perfectly cooked through use either a sharp paring knife or cake spike to check that the cake is baked equally thoroughly if you find the cake baking uneven or taking to much colour.
8. Cover with tin foil half way through.

Fridge Raider

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IMG_3239IMG_4628IMG_5058IMG_7410IMG_6836Baked free range eggs and sautéed charlotte potatoes, served alongside Portobello mushrooms and leeks:

The baked free range eggs and sautéed charlotte potatoes:
Ingredients:
500 grams of Charlotte potatoes
6 eggs

1. Clean your Charlotte potatoes removing any mud or grit, once washed place into a large saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil along with a pinch of natural sea salt.
2. Once the water has reached a boil the potatoes should take around 8-12 minutes the way to test is using a paring knife once the knife can easily cut the potatoes they are ready for this recipe you want your potatoes part boiled.
3. Next drain your potatoes and place in a colander to steam a little, once they have steamed and cooled to touch, slice slices them up as you want to sautée them off in hot olive oil.
4. Place a large range master pan onto a medium heat once the pan has come up to temperature, add a drizzle of olive oil add in your sliced charlotte potatoes and cook until crispy and golden.
5. Once ready decant into a large roasting tray and season with a pinch of black pepper and sea salt.
6. Once all of your potatoes are cooked off add back into the oven as you want it screaming hot to welcome your eggs.
7. Once at this point using a small spoon make some wells and crack your eggs in, the hot tray will instantly cook your eggs and place back into the oven until cooked through.
8. For me I like me eggs semi hard with just a little runniness, if you like yours runny then only place back into the oven for just a matter of minutes.
9. To test that the eggs are perfectly cooked you should have a little wobble with the egg white cooked through.
10. Once cooked remove from the oven and allow to stand for 5 minutes.


Your side of sautéed Portobello mushrooms and leeks:
Ingredients:

  • 500 grams of large Portobello mushrooms (peeled back and brushed)
  • 2 large leeks
  • 1 large banana shallot
1. Slice your mushrooms and leeks into fine strips, as you want them cook quickly.
2. Slice your banana shallot, peel and crush two cloves of garlic, finely puree with the back of your knife and add a little course pink sea salt.
3. Now place a large range master pan onto a medium heat, add a drizzle of olive oil, once the pan has come up to temperature add in your garlic shallot and leeks along with a pinch of sea salt and black pepper as this helps to form a base layer of seasoning for your mushrooms and leeks.
4. Cook with no colour for 5-6 minutes until soft, then add in your leeks and mushrooms turn up the heat and begin to sauté your mushrooms and leeks when you cook Portobello mushrooms like this you get a great rich underlying rich dark chocolate note.
5. Once ready serve along side your baked eggs and potatoes and enjoy.

Fresh Pappardelle ft. yesterday’s green pesto

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Pappardelle:

  • 300 grams of 00 flour
  • 3 whole eggs
  • Sea salt
  1. To start the pasta dough place the OO flour and Maldon sea salt into a large mixing bowl.
  2. Create a volcano shape in the middle of the flour, as this is where you will crack your eggs into.
  3. One by one crack your eggs into the centre of the flour, discarding the shells. Use a metal fork to whisk the eggs (you can do this before in a Pyrex jug) Now using a clean wooden spoon begin to drag the OO flour in from the edges and incorporate the eggs and flour.
  4. Once the dough has reached a beautiful crumbly consistence start using your hands to pull the dough together, press with your palms. Once the dough is ready and all of the flour and eggs incorporated tip out onto a floured service.
  5. Begin to knead the dough as this builds the glutens up, after 10 minutes of kneading, your dough should be smooth and silky.
  6. Once at this stage wrap your dough in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes as this allows the dough to relax.
  7. Having rested the pasta dough it is now time to shape it. You can either do this by using a rolling pin or using a pasta machine, as this will ensure that all of the pasta is even once it has reached your desired thickness. (On a pasta machine you have three settings as these enables you to work the dough down to the desired thickness)
  8. After rolling the dough to fit to the machine, run the dough through the thickest setting 10 times, ensuring that you fold in half each time as this helps to ensure the dough is silky and glossy.
  9. Once you have achieved this, run the dough through the same setting two more times, but this time without folding. Then drop the machine down a stage and on each run the dough through two times.
  10. If the dough gets too tricky to handle section it off into more manageable lengths the aim is to be able to read a newspaper through the dough.
  11. IMPORTANT TIP – also ensure that you flour both the surface and the pasta machine itself or otherwise your dough will stick, be careful not to pull the dough, instead gently guide it out of the machine, this way you don’t reshape or stretch the dough.
  12. Once you have reached this stage, drape the pasta over your airer, and then you have two choices you can either use the tag attachment or roll the pasta and then slice it using a sharp knife. This way the result is more rustic, but it all depends on the look that you are going for.
  13. Once you are happy with your pasta drape over your airier until it is required later.

Time to cook your pasta:

  1. Place a heavy based pan of hot water onto the heat, add a good pinch of sea salt as this will season the pasta while it cooks.
  2. Once the water is boiling add your pappardelle, to tell when it is cooked the pasta will rise to the surface and of course feel free to taste to see if it has reached that beautiful al dente state, where the pasta has a little bite left within it.
  3. Cooking time should roughly be 5 minutes.
  4. Once the pasta is cooked drain off the water ensuring you keep some of the cooking water back.
  5. Stir in some healthy spoonfuls of your three cornered garlic pesto, portion off into pre-warmed artisan bowls, serve and enjoy with family and friends.

Three cornered garlic pesto

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89c125ad-42a2-4d01-8296-f146ea182c04

65c04f71-4293-4a25-81c7-fdda37e4697f

72643c07-a0df-4e60-8cc4-460d27f971ca

c54034ff-274b-41b9-a40c-bde4d94153fa

Ingredients
• 300 grams of wild three cornered garlic
• the zest of 1 lemon
• the juice of 1 lemon
• 100ml of good quality olive oil
• 200 grams of veggie parmesan cheese (finely grated)
• 60 grams of lightly toasted pine nuts
• Pinch of natural sea salt
• Pinch of black pepper
• 3 garlic cloves (crushed and finely sliced)

1. To begin pick out any stems of garlic that may have been eaten or gone yellow, wash under cold water and pat dry in between two clean tea towels.
2. Using a very sharp knife finely slice your three cornered garlic as this makes it easier for the pestle and mortar to break down the three cornered garlic when making the pesto.
3. Next toast off your pine nuts, till they go a beautiful golden brown, as this helps to release natural oils and aromas which will impart into your pesto.
4. Next grate your parmesan finely, as you want the cheese to melt into the pesto and really disappear as you use parmesan as the seasoning in this recipe.
5. Place a pinch of sea salt into the base of your pestle and mortar along with half the three cornered garlic and beat to make a fine paste, next add in half your cooled toasted pine nuts and beat to make a ruff pesto.
6. Dilute the pesto with a touch of olive oil and begin to muddle. Add another layer of seasoning along with your remaining three cornered garlic, and crush again before adding in the rest of your pine nuts.
7. Next, add in your grated cheese and muddle again to combine, to finish add in your lemon zest and juice and muddle again.
8. Prepare your jam jars with hot boiling water as this will help to kill any bacteria which can encourage mould spores and therefore making your pesto go bad.
9. Decant your pesto into the cooled jam jars and fill to the top of the jars, top your pesto with a little olive oil as this will help to form an air lock.
10. Once filled label and store in the fridge for up to three months, as this is a high risk food item containing dairy.