It’s difficult to see any signs of a recession in London, every restaurant seems to be full, and many now have a ‘no-booking’ policy so a convivial queue forms round the corner for a table in the hottest spots. On a recent fleeting visit, I ate in a little place called Duck Soup in Dean Street in Soho. Little plates that can be shared or polished off greedily alone. I love this way of eating, it’s an opportunity to taste a wide variety of dishes from the menu. The cod’s roe with scallions and marjoram was simple and moreish and I also loved the roast onions with Labne and my interpretation is below.
We crossed the road to Quo Vadis and ordered an indecent number of mouth-watering desserts all in the way of research. I’m sort of over sticky toffee pudding but I have to say Jeremy Lee’s version is the best I’ve tasted, the sauce was dark and treacly, I suspect lots of muscavado sugar, it came with brown bread ice-cream, shortbread with marmalade and lemon curd was also ridiculously good as was a chocolate and coffee tart. The blood orange and Campari sorbet was so welcome after all that. I love both Jeremy and his food and if you are in London I suggest you try to get in, not easy because Quo Vadis has had so many great reviews but it’ll be worth the wait. Pissarro on Corney Road in Chiswick is also getting rave reviews and I also had a delicious lunch at Rochelle Canteen in Arnold Circus, Shoreditch. Breast of lamb with anchoïade and mussels with monks beard or agretti were delicious; the latter is the hottest vegetable in London – I’m going to try to grow it this year because I can’t seem to source it over here.
Round the corner in Shoreditch is Leila’s Café and Grocery Shop which continues to be one of my favourite haunts –simple, real and so chic.
This time I went in search of Press Coffee Roasters in Redchurch Street in Shoreditch. Just like Brooklyn, Shoreditch and Hackney are all about galvanise and graffiti and recycled furniture but there is so much happening. This little café roasts its own beans and has a short black board menu – sandwiches, a couple of cakes, date and pistachio biscuits and few other good things.
The coffee is fantastically good, worth the search alone – a few doors down the road is a shop called Labor and Wait which stocks all the classic kitchen equipment you thought had disappeared, plus traditional Guernsey jerseys, antique French flour sacks, enamel pie dishes…
Look out for Food Lovers Guide to London by Jenny Linford.
Campari and Blood Orange Sorbet
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Serves 10 approx
1 1/4 pints (700 mls) of blood orange juice
2 fl oz (50ml) Campari
12 ozs (350g) castor sugar
Garnish
mint leaves
1-2 blood oranges
Mix the orange juice and Campari with the sugar, and Campari stir to dissolve.
Taste add more sugar if necessary
Make the sorbet in one of the following ways:
Pour into the drum of an ice-cream maker or sorbetiere and freeze for 20-25 minutes. Scoop out and serve immediately or store in a covered bowl in the freezer until needed.
Pour the juice into a stainless steel or plastic container and put into the freezer or the freezing compartment of a refrigerator. After about 4 or 5 hours when the sorbet is semi-frozen, remove from the freezer and whisk until smooth; then return to the freezer. Whisk again when almost frozen and fold in one stiffly- beaten egg white. Keep in the freezer until needed.
If you have a food processor simply freeze the sorbet completely in a stainless steel or plastic bowl, then break into large pieces and whizz up in the food processor for a few seconds. Add one slightly-beaten egg white, whizz again for another few seconds, then return to the bowl and freeze again until needed. Chill the serving plates or bowls.
To Serve
Segment the oranges for garnish. Scoop out the sorbet and serve in chilled bowls or plates.  Garnish with blood orange segments and fresh mint leaves.
Roast Onions or Banana Shallots with Labne Cheese and Herbs
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Serves 6 as a starter
8 onions or banana shallots
Labne (see recipe)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 tablespoons fresh coriander leaves
some thyme leaves and thyme flowers
sea salt
freshly cracked black pepper
rocket or watercress leaves sourdough
6 slices of grilled bread
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas mark 6. Roast the unpeeled onions or shallots until soft. This can take anything from 30 to 45 minutes depending on size.
To serve, split each soft onion lengthwise and arrange two halves on each plate, skins still attached. Put a blob of Labne on top of each. Scatter with coarsely chopped herbs and thyme flowers. Serve with grilled bread.
Soft Yoghurt Cheese – Labne
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This is so easy and wonderfully impressive, use whole-milk yoghurt to make a creamier cheese.
Line a strainer with a double thickness of cheesecloth. Place it over a bowl. Pour in the yoghurt. Tie the four corners of the cheese cloth to make a loose bundle.
Suspend the bag of yogurt over a bowl to allow it to drip for 8 hours. Remove the cheesecloth. Refrigerate until needed in a covered plastic container.  There are lots of ways both sweet and savoury to use Labne, it’s great with Summer berries or a compote of fruit or add some fresh herbs to make your very own homemade cheese.
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Breast of Lamb with Anchoïade
A simple way to turn a very cheap piece of meat into something delicious.
Makes 12–16
900g (2lb) lap of lamb or trimmings from the streaky end of a rack of lamb
plain flour, seasoned with salt and freshly ground pepper
organic egg, well whisked
fresh white breadcrumbs
Anchoïade
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180g (4 3/4oz) of tinned anchovies drained of any excess oil
3 good sized cloves of garlic
50ml (2 fl oz) good quality red wine vinegar
750ml (1 pint 7floz) of vegetable oil
water for thinning
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/ gas mark 4.
Cut the lamb into pieces about 7.5cm (3 inch) wide and 10cm (4 inch) long (size isn’t crucial here, but they shrink as they cook so don’t cut them too small). Dip each piece in well-seasoned flour, then in beaten egg and finally into breadcrumbs. Transfer to a roasting tin and cook in a single layer for 30–45 minutes, depending on size. They should be crisp and golden. Turn once or twice during cooking so they crisp up evenly on each side.
Meanwhile make the anchoïade.
Put the anchovies, garlic and vinegar into a food processor, puree to a smooth paste.
Very slowly start to add the vegetable oil in a slow stream as though you were making a mayonnaise. (The anchovies act as an emulsifier in the same way as egg yolks in mayonnaise and as a protein, will emulsify the oil). Be careful and keep a close eye as the anchoïade starts to thicken. If you feel it becomes too thick, add a little water. This will do two things; it will thin the anchoïade, and will also stabilise the emulsion too which will stop it from splitting.
Serve the lamb on hot plates with a few rocket leaves and a bowl of anchoïade.
Shortbread with Lemon Curd and Seville Orange Marmalade
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Makes 40 biscuits approx.
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This is my interpretation of Jeremy Lee’s delicious pudding.
8 ozs (225g) soft butter
4 ozs (110g) castor sugar
10 ozs (275g) self-raising flour
grated rind of one lemon or orange
1 pot Seville orange marmalade
1 pot homemade lemon curd
8oz mascarpone
4fl oz whipped cream
1 tablespoon caster sugar or more to taste
First make the biscuits, cream the butter, add in the castor sugar, sifted flour and grated lemon or orange rind and mix just until it all comes together. Alternatively, place all four ingredients in the bowl of a food mixer and mix slowly until all the ingredients come together. At this stage the dough can either be used right away or put in the deep freeze or kept in the fridge for up to a week.
When required, bring up to room temperature and form into balls the size of a large walnut. Flatten them out onto a baking sheet using the back of a fork dipped in cold water. Allow plenty of room for expansion.
Bake in a preheated oven – 180°C/350°F/regulo 4 for 10 minutes approx. Sprinkle with vanilla sugar. Cool on a wire rack.
To assemble
Mix the mascarpone with the cream and a little sugar to taste. Put the biscuits on a dessert plate, top with a blob of mascarpone and a generous spoonful of Seville orange marmalade, sandwich with another biscuit. Top that with a blob of mascarpone then drizzle with homemade lemon curd and add another biscuit to complete the double decker. Repeat with the others. Jeremy doesn’t go in for lots of folderdolls, but you could garnish them with a few sprigs of sweet cicely if you like – either way it’s a delicious combination.
Hottips
If you have been bitten by the GIY (Grow it Yourself) bug, there’s no time to waste. I’ve been leafing through the Brown Envelope Seed Catalogue of organic seeds, it’s unbearably tempting. Madeline McKeever and her team deservedly won the prestigious Belling West Cork Artisan Food Awards Newcomer Award last year for her contribution. The seeds are organic – lots of heirloom too. www.brownenvelopeseeds.com
Afternoon Tea and Cakes course at Ballymaloe Cookery School – Learn how to bake several irresistible cakes, Auntie Florence’s crumpets and the secret of the Ballymaloe sandwich chest. Wednesday 23rd May 1:00pm to 5:00pm – lunch included. 021 4646785 to book.
Don’t miss the South African Braai at the Grain Store on Sunday 27th May, 5.00pm. – Ted Berner of Wildside catering will cook many good things on the barbeque while Niels Verburg, of Luddite Wines, Bot River and Walker Bay, South Africa will give a tutored tasting of his award winning wines, and olive oil. There will be a glass of South African sparkling wine on arrival and local musicians will entertain us as we taste and sip. Ballymaloe House, Shanagarry, Co. Cork, Ireland Tel: 021 4652531 res@ballymaloe.ie www.ballymaloe.ie
Sheridan’s Cheesemongers are hosting the third ‘Irish Food Festival’ at Virginia Road Station in North County Meath on Sunday 27th May at 10am to 6pm. Over sixty of the best food producers in Ireland will take part. There will also be workshops for kids and adults, fair-games, kid’s entertainment and live music. This year there will also be a Slow Food youth area; focusing on school and third level students. Contact Kevin or Frank 0469245110.
