Author: Sophie Berzins

Dates with mascarpone, orange flower water & walnuts

Serves 6

12 plump mesh oil dates

75 g mascarpone

25 g icing sugar

A few drops of orange flower water

12 x walnuts

Using a small sharp knife, cut down through the dates horizontally and remove the stone. Place the mascarpone into a bowl and sift over the icing sugar, add the orange flower water and stir really well to incorporate. Place the sweetened mascarpone into a piping bag and pipe into the incision you have made in the date. Repeat this until all the dates are full. Arrange the walnuts on top. Place in the fridge to set for a couple of hours before serving.

 

Buttermilk dressing

1 organic free-range egg yolk

1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 1/2 tsp honey

1 tbsp good quality cider vinegar

180ml mild tasting extra-virgin olive oil

2 tbsp buttermilk

Put the egg yolk, mustard, honey and vinegar into a small bowl. Season with a little salt and pepper and stir vigorously to combine. Now whisk in the olive oil slowly, almost drop by drip to begin with, increasing the flow slightly once the dressing begins to homogenise. Continue until all the oil is incorporated. Stir in the buttermilk, then taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary.

Salad of beetroot, tomatoes, goat’s curd and radicchio

Serves 4

12 small beetroot (ideally a mix of ruby, yellow and Chioggia varieties)
2tbs red wine vinegar
About 50ml extra virgin olive oil
200g baby broad beans, freshly podded
About 8 large radicchio leaves
About 8 little gem lettuce leaves
Juice of ½ lemon
4-6 ripe tomatoes, depending on size (ideally a heritage variety)
200g goats’ curd or young goats’ cheese
2tbs good quality black olives, pitted (optional)
Small handful of basil leaves
Sea salt and ground black pepper

For the basil oil
A bunch of basil, leaves only
100ml extra virgin olive oil

Scrub the beetroot well under cool running water, then place in a saucepan and pour on enough water to cover. Add a good pinch of salt and bring to the boil over a medium heat. Lower the heat slightly and cook for about 35 minutes until just tender when pierced with a sharp knife.

Once cooked, drain the beetroot and place in a bowl. Add the wine vinegar and about two tablespoons of the olive oil, season with salt and pepper and toss gently to coat the beetroot in the dressing. Set aside to macerate and cool.

Blanch the broad beans in boiling water for one minute, then drain and refresh in cold water; drain well.

Put the radicchio and lettuce leaves in another bowl. Dress with the lemon juice, remaining olive oil and salt and pepper and toss lightly using your hands. Slice the tomatoes or halve them if small.

To assemble, arrange the salad leaves on serving plates with the beetroot and tomatoes. Add the goats’ curd and scatter over the broad beans and the olives, if using. Spoon on the basil oil and finish with the basil leaves. Serve at once.

Wild Garlic and Walnut Sauce

70g wild garlic
2 garlic cloved
70g spinach
50g walnuts
25g parmesan
50g olive oil
5g butter
Pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 180C and heat the walnuts for around 7 minutes until lightly toasted. Pound in a pestle and mortar until the texture of rough breadcrumbs.

Blitz wild garlic, spinach, garlic with olive oil and butter.

Stir through finely grated parmesan and the pounded walnuts.

Loosen with more oil if necessary.

Blood orange jelly and set cream with honey and rosemary

Serves 6

For the jelly-

300ml blood orange juice, strained
50g sugar
1 3/4 leaf gelatine sheets

For the set cream-

125ml double cream
100ml whole milk
25g sugar
1/2 lemon, zested
1 leaf gelatine sheet

Begin by making the jelly. Measure half of the blood orange juice along with the sugar in a saucepan. Place on very low heat.

Meanwhile, soak the gelatine sheets in cold water, to soften. Once the liquid begins to steam, immediately take off the heat. Squeeze the water from the soft gelatine, add to the saucepan and stir to dissolve. Finally, add the remaining blood orange juice. Taste the mixture, it may need a sprinkle of sugar.

Divide the jelly mixture amongst six small moulds, ramekins or teacups. Carefully place in the fridge for at least two hours to set.

When the jelly has set, begin to make the set cream. Place the cream, milk, sugar, zest and a pinch of salt in a saucepan on low heat. Soften the remaining sheet of gelatine. Once the cream mixture is hot, remove from the heat and add the gelatine. Leave to cool over a bowl of ice water, stirring often. When the cream begins to thicken, pour over the chilled jelly. Place back in the fridge until fully set.

To infuse honey with fresh rosemary sprigs, gently heat the two together in a small pan until warm, then leave to cool.

To serve, slice a couple of blood oranges, removing any skin and pith. Dip each mould in a bowl of hot water for five seconds, just to release the edges. Then place a serving bowl over the top and, with conviction, turn over to release the layered dessert. Serve with a few slices of blood orange and a drizzle of rosemary honey.

Chicken-liver pâté

Serves 2

500g/1lb chicken livers
200ml/7fl oz milk
200g/7oz unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, very finely chopped
A small bunch of thyme, leaves only
2 fresh bay leaves
100ml/3 fl oz Cognac
A generous grinding of black pepper

It is important to use the freshest chicken livers. Look for those pale in colour, as their flavour is mellower and sweeter.

Soak the chicken livers in milk for two hours, then discard the milk.

Add four tablespoons of butter to a pan and place over a medium heat. Once the butter has melted and just begun to foam, add the onion and cook until soft and transparent – about 5 minutes. Now add the garlic, thyme and bay, and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add the chicken livers and cook for 2-3 minutes: the livers should be brown on the inside and still pink in the middle. Add the Cognac, turn up the heat a little and cook until just slightly reduced. Remove from the heat and discard the bay leaves. Allow to cool slightly then place in a food processor. Adding the rest of the butter in small pieces, purée until smooth.

Line an eight-inch terrine mould with butter and spoon in the pâté. Allow to cool completely before covering with a thin layer of butter and placing in the fridge to chill and firm – a minimum of 6 hours. We like to drop a whole bay leaf on top of the butter as it cools, so it looks beautiful when you serve it at the table. Eat alongside toast, and a few cornichons if you like.

Skye Gyngell’s Kimchi

Hot, sour and gloriously crunchy, kimchi is the most delicious and more-ish of condiments. I started making it in much the same way as sauerkraut – salting the vegetables and adding a little chilli and ginger. My recipe has evolved since then, but it is the most authentic and nicest I have come across. I can eat kimchi straight from the jar or simply with nothing more than a little bowl of sticky steamed rice. Most of the ingredients are readily available at a good Asian supermarket.

Ingredients

Makes 1 large or 2 smaller jars
1 Chinese cabbage
55g coarse salt
2 litres water
2 tbsp dried shrimps
4 dried anchovies
½ cup cooked white rice (50g uncooked weight)
½ yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1 apple, peeled, cored and finely sliced
4cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
5 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
2 tbsp caster sugar
3 tbsp fish sauce
3 tbsp dried chilli flakes
1 bunch of spring onions, trimmed

Method

To prepare the salted cabbage, put the salt into a stainless steel or glass bowl large enough to hold the cabbage. Pour over 1.5 litres water and stir well to dissolve the salt.
Slice the cabbage in half lengthways and then cut into 5cm pieces. Immerse the cabbage in the salted water and leave for 1 hour. Stir well, then let sit for another 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, put the dried shrimps and anchovies into a small saucepan and pour on the remaining 500ml water. Bring to the boil over a high heat, then turn down the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and strain the broth into a bowl, discarding the fish.
Put the cooked rice, onion, apple, ginger and garlic into a blender and pour over the broth. Blend thoroughly. Spoon into a bowl and add the sugar, fish sauce and chilli flakes. Stir well and let stand for 10 minutes.
Drain the cabbage. Slice the spring onion finely and add to the cabbage. Now add the sauce and mix together, loosely but very thoroughly, using very clean hands. Ladle into a large (or 2 smaller) sterilised jar(s).
Finally pour a little water into the bowl in which you have mixed the kimchi. Swish this around to gather any residue and then pour over the kimchi in the jar(s). Seal.
The kimchi will be ready to use almost straight away (I love it newly made, as it is so vibrant and crunchy) but it will keep well for up to 2 months in the fridge.

Extracted from Spring The Cookbook, by Skye Gyngell (published by Quadrilled)

Vegetable Crisps

• 2 large beetroots (we used red and yellow)
• 1 cup beetroot leaves (reserved from the bunch)
• 1 small (190g) carrot
• 125g Jerusalem artichokes
• 1 bunch kale
• 1 medium celeriac
• Olive oil, to brush
• Honeycomb, to serve
• Salt flakes, to serve

1. Preheat oven to 120°C. Slice vegetables thinly on a mandoline. It doesn’t matter if you cut them lengthwise or crosswise, as long as they are evenly sliced and crisp thin. Pat dry between two paper towels.

2. Spread vegetables evenly on baking trays, making sure no vegetables overlap (if they overlap they will not dry properly and will not get crispy). Each vegetable has a different cooking time, so it’s best to place them on separate baking trays.

3. Sprinkle with salt flakes and brush with a little olive oil. Place trays in the oven and bake; they usually take between 1-2 hours depending on how strong your oven is, apart from the kale and beetroot leaves which take 30 minutes.

4. Remove from oven when dried and crisp. For ultimate crunch, let them cool for a couple of minutes. Serve with a spoonful of honeycomb and a sprinkle of salt flakes.

Vanilla Custard Pot with Roasted Plums

For the custard (makes 8 pots):

• 500ml/17fl oz double cream
• 200ml/7fl oz whole milk
• 160g/5 oz caster sugar
• 1 vanilla pod, split in half lengthwise
• 6 large eggs, yolks only

For the roasted plums:

• 8 to 12 small and ripe red plums such as Victoria, Quetsche or Czar
• caster sugar

1. To make the custard, combine the cream and milk and five tablespoons of the sugar in a large saucepan. Scrape the beans from the vanilla pod and add along with the pod. Simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat, cover and let sit to infuse for an hour, then reheat the cream mixture until just warm. Whisk the yolks with the remaining sugar in a large bowl until just combined, then pour over the warm milk and strain. Pour into a jug and allow to cool to room temperature.

2. To cook, pour the custard into eight little pots or ramekins and place in a deep-sided baking tray that has been lined with parchment paper, leaving space between each pot. Place the baking tray on a baking sheet – this will provide double insulation and help the custards set evenly. Cover each pot with clingfilm. Add enough water to the tray to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Place on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 45 minutes. To test whether they are ready, remove a ramekin from the oven and shake it gently – the custard should be slightly wobbly. Remove the ramekins from the bain-marie and set on a cooling rack. Allow to cool, then place in the refrigerator for at least four hours before serving. They will keep well in the fridge for a couple of days.

3. Next, halve the plums and arrange, cut side up, in a roasting tin. Wrap a couple of the plum stones in a tea towel and pound with a rolling pin to reveal the fragrant kernels. Place the kernels in the base of the roasting tin and sprinkle the fruit with a thin layer of caster sugar.

4. Cover tightly with aluminium foil and roast in an oven preheated at 180C for 20-25 minutes, until the plums are beginning to fall apart and the syrup has turned a deep pink colour. Discard the plum kernels and leave to cool completely.

5. When ready to serve, place each custard pot onto a small plate lined with a napkin. Cover each custard with 2 roasted plum halves and a spoonful of syrup.