Cod & Clams in a White Wine, Shallot and Bay reduction sauce with wilted wild garlic

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To begin this dish weigh out all of the ingredients as stated below.

Sauce:

125 ml White Wine

1 Bay leaf bruised

1 shallot peeled and finely sliced

60 ml of double cream

60 g of butter diced

  1. In a medium sauce pan add your shallot, bay leaf and a little olive oil, place onto a medium heat. Sweat the shallot and bay leaf with no colour until the shallot has gone sweet and tender.
  2. Add your white wine, reduce until there is no wine left, at this point add your double cream, bring to a light boil.
  3. Remove from the heat, whisk in one cube of butter at a time ensure you keep this on a light heat as the butter will take the heat out of the pan.
  4. To finish the sauce, add a chiffonade of wild garlic.

Pan seared Cod:

  1. Place a large pan onto a medium heat, add a little olive oil to the pan, allowing the pan to smoke a little.
  2. Since I have chosen to use cod that has been skinned for this recipe, you have to cook the fish differently. Lay the fish skin side down away from you; allow the cod to colour a little around the outside.
  3. Add a knob of softened butter, allow the butter to foam, now using a tablespoon blast the cod with the golden melted butter.
  4. Pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees, line a large baking tray with two butter papers (as this is a chefs blanket) ensuring the fish remains moist during the cooking process.
  5. Transfer your fish to the tray and cook for 4 minutes until the cod is beautifully flaky and tender.

Wild Garlic:

  1. Wash and rip in half, remove the stalks, add to the sauce just to wilt before service.

Clams:

Before cooking the clams ensure that you wash them under cold water to remove the dirt and grit.

Cook:

To cook the clams place a large saucepan onto a medium heat add a dash of water, white wine, lemon juice add the clams steam until open.

Shortbread with vanilla Chantilly cream, rhubarb and lemon compote

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My Citrus shortbread with Vanilla Chantilly cream , accompanied by candied julienne, half moons of Devonshire Rhubarb finished with rhubarb and lemon compote – The Devonshire Rhubarb was kindly given to me from our friends allotment, so here is a recipe to celebrate it!

The Shortbread:

  • Zest of one lemon
  • Zest of one large orange
  • 12 ounces of sieved plain flour
  • 4 ounces of caster sugar
  • 8 ounces of softened butter

Firstly weigh up all of the ingredients as outlined above:

  1. Into a large mixing bowl add your softened butter and flour using the rubbing technique incorporate the flour and butter together until you have to consistency of breadcrumbs.
  2. Next add your sugar along with the freshly zested orange and lemon, using a large wooden spoon stir to incorporate, to finish the dough of knead with your hands until it comes together and the leaves the bowl clean.
  3. Onto a floured surface, roll out your dough until it has reached the thickness of a pound coin, for my GG citrus shortbread I used the rim of a drinking glass as this gave me the perfect diameter for my shortbread, you can use any cutter of your preference.
  4. Place the cut shortbread discs onto a pre-lined large tray with baking parchment, ensure when you place your shortbread onto the tray leaving a little space between each .
  5. Bake in the oven for half an hour at 150 degrees, until lightly golden brown and crisp.

T.T. when you are cutting your shortbread discs, with some of the off cuts place these onto the tray as this gives you a good indicator as to when shortbread is cooked

Rhubarb compote:

  • 100 ml of cold tap water
  • 1 lemon juiced
  • 4 sticks of Devonshire rhubarb – washed and sliced into half moons
  • 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar.
  1. Into a large saucepan place of your ingredients, place over a medium heat and allow to gently cook you want your compote to have texture and body so don’t boil the liquid just allow them to simmer lightly until the rhubarb has broken down slightly.
  2. Remove from the heat and decant into pre-washed jam jars.

Candied Rhubarb:

  • 100 ml of water
  • 2 teaspoons of sugar
  • 1 bay leave
  • five half moons of rhubarb
  • five juliennes of rhubarb
  1. Into a medium sauce pan add your sugar and water, you want to take this to the boiled sugar range, once at this point add your bay leave along with your rhubarb pieces using a wooden spoon coat the pieces evenly and then remove from the pan and place onto a lined tray.

Chantilly cream:

  • 150 ml of double cream
  • 2 heaped tablespoons of sieved icing sugar
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean extract or a whole vanilla pod.
  1. Place all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl, whisk until the cream can hold light peaks serve along side the other elements of the dish.

Assemble as you please, and enjoy!

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Scottish Smoked Salmon, Chive and Devonshire Horseradish with artisan rye

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Ingredients:

  • 400 grams of naturally smoked salmon
  • 100 grams of finely sliced chives
  • 50 grams of peeled and grated horseradish (from our friends allotment in Devon)
  • Half lemon juice
  • Half lemon zested
  • 250 grams of soft low fat cream cheese
  • Freshly cracked white pepper
  • Artisan Rye

The inspiration for this dish came from my travels to Stockholm, where they paired beautifully fresh ingredients together in perfect harmony. Also it showed to me that the most simplest flavour combinations pack the biggest of punches.

To make this fresh horseradish cream, in a large bowl add all of the ingredients together, mix to incorporate, place into a smaller bowl in the fridge until it is required .The longer you leave the cream cheese mixture the more impactful it becomes.

To serve onto an artisan plate, lay ribbons of the smoked salmon; slice your artisan rye into whatever thickness you desire, to finish, quenelle a spoonful of your chives and Devonshire horseradish cream. Add half a lemon to garnish and enjoy.

Smoked Haddock Kedgeree

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28642543_2045373119039939_397575575_o28584963_2045373129039938_1944227049_oIngredients:

  • 1 small cup of basmati rice
  • 2 small cups of boiling water
  • 2 large white onions – (finely sliced)
  • 4 teaspoons of medium curry powder
  • ½ bag of washed spinach
  • 4 large free range eggs
  • 2 pints of milk
  • 1 bay leave
  • 1 shallot (halved)
  • 3 white pepper corns
  • a knob of softened butter
  • 2tablespoons of plain flour
  • 4 fillets of naturally smoked sustainable Haddock

Weigh all of the ingredients out as stated above. This recipe taken from the Gents first notebook!

The Wilted Spinach:

  1. Melt a knob of softened butter in a heavy based pan, add the washed spinach, season with a pinch of sea salt, black pepper and freshly grated nutmeg.
  2. Remove from the pan and allow to wilt by gently mixing with your hands,
  3. Add to a tray with a J cloth to drain.
  4. Allow to cool and reserve in the fridge for later on in this recipe.

The Caramelised white onion:

  1. Peel two large white onions and finely slice, add into a large heavy bottomed pan along with a dash of olive oil and a knob of softened butter.
  2. Allow to caramelise, you want your onions to be soft and golden brown, once at this stage add your curry powder and cook out gently over a low heat.

The Banging Bas Rice !!!!

  1. Place a heavy based range master pan onto a medium heat, for the perfect rice you want to do the absorption method, to achieve this add two small cups of boiling water to the pan along with one small cup of rice
  2. To infuse the rice add one bay leaf, three white pepper corns and season with a pinch of sea salt
  3. Allow to cook on a medium heat, until all of the water has been absorbed and the rice is beautiful and tender.

Béchamel: Infused milk

For the perfect béchamel…

  1. Place a heavy based pan onto the heat, add 2 pints of semi skimmed milk, one shallot peeled and sliced in half, one bay leaf and three white pepper corns
  2. To infuse the milk, bring to the boil, once boiled cover with cling film and allow to stand for at least half an hour.
  3. Strain the milk, add your smoked haddock fillets.
  4. Return to the heat and poach the fish until just cooked and flaky
  5. Remove from the pan and place onto a pre-warmed artisan plate.

For the roux…

  1. In a heavy based range master pan add a knob of softened butter, once melted add two tablespoons of plain flour and stir using a wooden spoon (you want your roux to resemble the texture of sand) – also ensure that you cook out your flour or otherwise your béchamel will just taste of just that.
  2. Gradually add the milk from a Pyrex jug, by adding the milk gradually you ensure that you work all of the lumps out of your roux, which will give you a beautifully silky glossy béchamel.

Assembling the Kedgeree:

  1. In a large range master pan add a knob of softened butter, once melted add the caramelised white onion cook for about to 2-3 minutes to re-heat.
  2. Then add your cooked rice and wilted spinach, for that EXTRA CREAMY HIT you can add a little double cream along with your béchamel as this will make the dish more luxurious.
  3. Cook for a further 2 minutes and then flake the smoked haddock into the rice, GENTS TIP – instead of mixing the kedgeree, gently fold it, as this way you don’t break down those beautiful flakes of fish.

Traditionally a kedgeree would be served with hard boiled eggs BUT

GO FREESTYLE !!!!

For the perfect poached egg bring a pan of cold water to the boil, add a cap full of white wine vinegar. Before adding your eggs make a swirl in the water with a metal spoon allow the pan to come up to come up to temperature and add one egg at a time.

Cook for 2/3 mins

Remove with a spider spoon and drain on a J cloth

TIME TO PLATE !!

Pre-heat an artisan plate, place a bed of kedgeree onto the plate, top with your trimmed poached eggs and to garnish add a little parsley leaf. Serve with warm crushy bread.

The Gents Warm Wholegrain Salad

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  • 100 grams of green lentils
  • 100 grams of Buckwheat
  • 2/3 fresh washed Bay leaves
  • 500 ml of cold water
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 bunch of black Italian cabbage – washed
  • Beetroot leaves – washed
  • 1 Bunch of carrots – washed
  • 3 large Beetroots – washed
  • 1 bunch of breakfast radish – washed
  • Organic honey
  • Crumbled Goats cheese

This is the perfect salad for a cold afternoon in front of the fire or after an intense morning of exercise as it is packed full of important vitamins and minerals, as well as protein. Helping your body to repair quicker, with the addition of both green lentils and buckwheat, which are both super foods, and a source of slow releasing carbs.

To begin this warm wholegrain salad, weigh and prepare all of the ingredients as stated above.

  1. In a medium pan add 100 grams of buckwheat, cover with cold water. To transform these whole grains add a couple of freshly picked Bay leaves (use dry if needs be.) Place onto a high heat bring to the boil and simmer for 35/40 minutes until the buckwheat is just tender.
  2. To get the best out of your Goats cheese, leave the cheese out of the fridge, to be served at room temperature.
  3. Next quickly wash your beetroot and heritage carrots, leaving the carrots whole, depending on the size of the beetroot you can either half or quarter them so that they cook evenly. Lay them out onto a large baking tray, season with Maldon and freshly cracked black pepper, give them a little drizzle of olive oil.
  4. Place into a pre-warmed oven at 200 degrees, cook for half an hour. To check both the carrots and beetroot use a tooth pick, there should be a little resistance but cooked al dente. The beets will take a little longer than the carrots once the carrots are cooked remove and place onto an artisan dinner plate drizzle liberally with organic honey, just five minutes before service place them back into the oven to warm through.
  5. 15 / 20 minutes into the cooking process of the whole grains add your green lentils as they take a little less time to cook than the buckwheat.
  6. Whilst all of the elements are ticking over its time for some quick vegetable prep. Ensure that you save the leaves from your beetroot as just blanched they help to give a subtle beetroot flavour but most importantly they are packed full with iron and vitamins.
  7. When prepping the black cabbage, it all comes down to personal preference; for a little texture leave the stalk in or just remove it, place these to one side as they only take a matter of seconds to cook.
  8. Check both your beetroots and whole grains. Once the beets are ready add your carrots back to the pan along with a little more organic honey; drain the whole grains, removing the aromats.
  9. To plate pre-warm an artisan plate, lay a bed of the mixed wholegrain onto the base of the plate, then arrange four quarters of beetroot to the left of the wholegrain, leave the carrots whole as they are beautiful tender and sweet. Quickly blanch your greens, drain lay on top arranging it so that both the black cabbage and beet leaves are visible. To finish this vitamin packed winter warmer, crumble over the goats cheese and allow it to melt a little then place four / five wafer thin slices of breakfast radish on top as this again helps to offer both colour, texture and most importantly both vitamins and minerals.

Enjoy with friends and family,

The GG.