ArchiveAugust 15, 2015

You all know that I’m fans of Honey & Co., a teeny weeny but soon to be bigger restaurant in London. Sarit and Itamar have been over to us twice and we love their simple homesy Middle Eastern food.

Not sure how they do it but they’ve just come out with a new cookbook, their second in less than 12 months.

Their first, Honey & Co won the Sunday Times and the Fortnum & Mason cook book of the year awards.

This one is on Baking “our day is marked by what comes out of the pastry section, and there’s always something good on the way: sticky cherry and pistachio buns in the morning: loaf of rich dough rolled with chocolate, hazelnuts and cinnamon that comes out of the oven fresh for elevenses. Lunch is a crisp, crumbly shell of pastry filled with spiced lamb or burnt aubergine, and at teatime there are cookies, cheesecakes, fruit cakes – so many cakes that it’s hard to choose one. After dinner there might be poached peaches with roses or something more traditional – sweet and salty Knafe drenched in orange blossom syrup.  There’s something sweet, something in the oven for everyone, all day long – welcome to Honey & Co”.

So it’s not all cakes and sticky buns, there are good things for breakfast, elevenses, lunch, teatime and dinner and even some pretty irresistible suggestions for after dark.

At present the restaurant in Fitzrovia has just 10 tables it’s what you might call cosy, some of their customers come in several times a day. The downstairs kitchen is also tint, how five chefs and three pastry chefs, three kitchen porters and seven waiters and Louisa in the office, co-exist and run up and down the stairs is an astonishing feat in itself.

They are all united by a love for food, a zest for life “even though its only part of what we do the pastry section is the backbone of the operation the driving force and the powerhouse . What baking requires represents everything we want our staff to have and our customers to feel – consideration, concentration, experience, patience, of course, but also a lot of passion, greed, an eagerness to please on an industrial scale and a great big heart. Our days are governed now by the rhythm of the pastry: weighing, mixing, kneading, shaping, baking, chilling, glazing, serving.

Of course it’s not just sweet, there’s an excellent chapter at the beginning of the book on ingredients and particularly the quality of the ingredients for baking, the butter, the cream, the sugar and flour, the vanilla, the chocolate, the nuts, the gelatine. They quite rightly emphasize the  quality you choose has a major impact on the end result, a fact oft forgotten in our quest for the cheapest ingredients nowadays.

If we’re going to spend time in the kitchen, the end result might as well be as delicious as possible and of course on the quality of the ingredients and the recipe. There’s lots to tempt us in Honey & Co Baking Book by Sarit and Itamar published by Saltyard Book Company

 

Hot Tips

It’s Blueberry Time –

Irish blueberries are in season and in abundance this year so for goodness sake, check the label and don’t bring home blueberries that have travelled thousands of miles from Chile or Peru. My seven year old granddaughter Amelia made the most delicious blueberry pancakes for breakfast this morning from blueberries that she and her brother and sister had just picked in the blueberry patch. – They are made in minutes – here’s the recipe:

 

Amelia’s Blueberry Pancakes

Makes 12

 

110g (4ozs/1 cup) self-raising flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

25g (1oz/1/8 cup) caster sugar

pinch of salt

1 egg

110ml (4fl ozs/1/2 cup) milk

50 g (2 oz) blueberries

drop of sunflower oil, for greasing

 

Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl, add the sugar and salt and stir to mix.  Make a well in the centre, crack in the egg and whisk, gradually drawing in the flour from the edge.  Add the milk gradually, whisking all the time, to form a smooth batter. Fold in the blueberries gently.

Lightly grease a frying pan and warm it over a moderate heat.  Drop 3 tablespoons (3 American tablespoons + 3 teaspoons) of the batter into the pan, keeping well apart so they don’t stick together. Cook for about 2 minutes or until bubbles appear on the surface and begin to burst and the drop scones are golden underneath, then flip them over and cook on the other side for a minute or until golden on this side as well.

Remove from the pan and serve warm with butter and a sprinkling of caster sugar. (If you wish, wrap the drop scones in a clean tea towel to keep warm while you make the rest.)

 

Taste of West Cork Festival events are now up on the web – what a line up. You’ll need to be pretty snappy to get a table for Andy McFadden of L’ Autre Pied and Luke Matthews dinner at the Mews in Baltimore on Friday 11^th September . Tel: 028 20572

But they’re just two of the star attractions. There are lots of other options Derry Clare, Carmel Somers, JP McMahon…..check out www.atasteofwestcork.com

 

Date for your diary: Slow Food Galway will visit Galway Goat Farm on Sunday August 23^rd at 12 noon. There is a tour of the farm and cheese and yoghurt making followed by a delicious lunch. For more information contact Kate O’ Malley kateomalleycat@yahoo.com or 087 931 2333

 

 

Burekas

 

This recipe makes twice the amount you need for a single batch of burekas, but it is a versatile dough that freezes well, so it is worth making the full amount and keeping some for another day. If you prefer, you can halve the quantities; the only problem

you face is halving an egg. The best way is to crack it into a little dish, whisk well and then use half. Use the remaining beaten egg to glaze the pastry before baking.

Waste not, want not. Made throughout the Balkans, burekas are savoury pastry parcels with different fillings, often potato, cheese or meat. The pastry varies as well, from short and crumbly to layered and crunchy, like filo or puff, or even doughy, more like bread

rolls. For home baking I have found none better than this, the pastry dough that will change your baking life – our famed ‘dough number 4’. It is easy to make, failsafe and extremely tasty. At Honey & Co we use this for a few of our breakfast

bakes, and it is great for canapés and pies. Alternatively, you could buy ready-made puff pastry and just make the fillings. It is cheating but the burekas will still be delicious, and no one need know. You can prepare your burekas in advance and

freeze them; just remember they need to be thawed before baking so that the filling is nice and hot by the time the pastry is cooked. The fillings here are a few tried-and tested suggestions. If you experiment with different fillings, be sure to over-season

slightly, to make up for the fact that they will be wrapped in pastry.

 

Makes about 1kg

500g plain flour

½ tsp caster sugar

1½ tsp table salt

1 tsp baking powder

250g cold unsalted butter, diced

125g full fat cream cheese

1 egg

125g/ml double cream

 

Place all the ingredients in a mixer bowl with a paddle attachment or in a food processor and work them together to form a nice smooth dough. (You could of course do this by hand, in which case you will need to rub the butter into the flour and other dry ingredients before mixing in the cream cheese, egg and double cream.) The idea is to keep everything cold and not to overwork the dough – you want some flecks of butter running through, as this will result in a lovely flaky texture once baked. Form the dough into a ball, press down to flatten it, wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour. You can prepare the dough up to 3 days in advance of baking – just keep it wrapped in cling film in the fridge until you need it.

If you are making a full batch but only need half for now, divide it in two, wrap both pieces in cling film, then put one in the fridge and the other in the freezer. It keeps well for up to a month; simply thaw before rolling and filling.

 

Lamb lahma with pine nuts & cherry tomatoes

2 tbsp olive oil

2 onions, peeled and diced

500g lamb mince

2 tbsp baharat spice mix

2 tbsp tomato purée

60g tahini paste

50g/ml water

a pinch of table salt

10 cherry tomatoes, quartered

50g pine nuts

 

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan on a high heat, then add the diced onions. Sauté until they are soft and starting to colour (this will take about 8–10 minutes), then add the minced meat. Keep the heat high and mix the meat around vigorously to break it into little pieces. Season with salt and pepper, stir in the spice mix and continue cooking until the meat has browned (this should take about 5–6 minutes). Stir in the tomato purée and cook for another 2–3 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary, then remove to a bowl to cool a little. Mix the tahini paste with the water and the salt, whisking it until it becomes smooth. Place a spoonful of tahini in the centre of each dough disc and spread it around a little. Cover with the cooked lamb, then top with the cherry tomatoes and pine nuts. Carefully lift each lahma onto the preheated tray and bake for 8–10 minutes. We like to serve this with extra tahini dip and a fresh tomato salad.

12/8/2015 (CS) (18509) Home & Co The Baking Book

 

Poached Peaches with Rose Jelly & Crystallised Rose Petals

We make this dessert in summer when peaches and roses are in high season. Since finding a constant supply of good unsprayed roses can be tricky, all our staff are under clear instructions to loot whatever gardens they have access to, so everyone comes to their shift bearing gifts of roses for Giorgia.

 

For the poached peaches

200g caster sugar

200g/ml water

some strips of peel and the juice of 1 lemon

some strips of peel and the juice of 1 orange

1 cinnamon stick

1 tsp rose water

4 flat white peaches

50g/ml vodka

For the jelly

160g/ml peach cooking liquid

3 gelatine leaves (or the appropriate quantity for about 330g/ml liquid, according to the manufacturer’s instructions)

160g/ml cold water

1–2 tsp rose water

 

For the crystallised rose petals (if you like)

1 egg white

caster sugar

fresh garden roses

 

To elevate this dessert to something heavenly

a good splash of sparkling wine for each plate

 

To poach the peaches, place all the ingredients apart from the peaches and vodka in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Score the skin at the base of each peach with a little cross to just pierce the skin but not cut through the flesh. Once the liquid is boiling, place the peaches in it and cook for 1 minute. Take the pan off the heat and use a slotted spoon to remove the peaches to a bowl. Once they are cool enough to touch, peel off the skin; it should come away easily. Return the peeled peaches to the cooking liquid in the pan and bring to the boil again. Once it has come to the boil, turn the heat off (if the peaches you are using are very hard, you may want to cook them for 2–3 minutes before turning off the heat). Add the vodka, then leave the peaches and their poaching liquid in the pan to cool. While the peaches are cooling, strain 160g/ml of the poaching liquid into a small bowl (leave the peaches in the remainder). Soak the gelatine in cold water (follow the manufacturer’s instructions), then remove, squeeze out the excess water and add the gelatine to the hot poaching liquid to melt. Once it has melted, stir in the cold water and rose water. Pour into four individual moulds and place in the fridge to chill until the jelly sets. This will take at least 2 hours and anything up to 5 hours, depending on the gelatine used. If you are crystallising the rose petals, start by mixing the egg white with a pinch of sugar in a small bowl. Tip some caster sugar into a shallow saucer or dish. Dip a petal in the egg white mixture, then in the sugar, coating both sides. Lay the petals on a wire rack or a tray lined with baking parchment and leave to crisp and dry –this will take at least 6 hours, and up to 8 if the room is very cold. You can then keep

Makes 4 portions of the lightest, prettiest dessert them in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks, but make sure not to refrigerate as they will soften. When you come to serve, the best way to get the jelly out of the moulds is to find a bowl that the jelly mould can fit into easily and to fill it with boiling water. Dip the mould in the hot water for 2 seconds and remove, then use your finger to pull the jelly a little to the side. This will allow air to come between the jelly and the mould; if you then flip the mould onto a serving plate, the jelly will slide out. Repeat with the other jellies. Place a peach at the side of each jelly and pour over a little of the cooking liquor. Then just splash with some sparkling wine and garnish with the rose petals, if using.

12/8/2015 (CS) (18506) Honey & Co The Baking Book

 

Courgette, Golden Raisin & Pistachio Cake

At the end of our street is the head office of Caprice Holdings Ltd, the group that operates some of the best and glitziest restaurants in London. Alvin and Kate work there, and treat us as their canteen. We know Alvin’s weird coffee order, and that Kate will have hot chocolate in winter and sparkling lemonade in the warmer months. They are both great lovers of cake, and whenever there is a birthday in the office we get an order for one with some silly writing on it – ‘Cheers, all the best’ or ‘Shiiiiiiiit’ – often private jokes that only they understand. This cake is their absolute favourite (they have a horrible nickname for it – ‘the green goddess’ or ‘green velvet’), so this recipe is for them, in the hope that they will never bake it themselves, but instead keep on coming to us for it.

Makes 1kg (2lb) loaf

60g pistachios

175g self-raising flour

a pinch of table salt

1 tsp ground ginger

½ tsp ground star anise

200g light brown soft sugar

50g caster sugar

175g/185ml olive oil

2 eggs

60g golden raisins

3 courgettes, unpeeled but trimmed,

grated (200g)

zest of 1 lemon

 

Preheat the oven to 190°C/170°C fan/gas mark 5. Butter a 1kg (2lb) loaf tin and line the base and long sides with a sheet of baking parchment, allowing a little overhang at the sides. Once the oven is hot, roast the pistachios for 8 minutes. Keep them whole and leave to cool a little. Mix the flour, salt, ginger and star anise together and add the pistachios. Place the sugars and oil in a large mixing bowl (or you could use a machine with a whisk attachment if you are super-lazy) and whisk together until combined. Whisk the eggs in one at a time and keep whisking until you have a lovely emulsified texture, a little like mayonnaise. Now add the rest of the ingredients, get rid of the whisk and use a large spoon or spatula to fold and combine to an even mixture. Transfer the cake batter to your lined loaf tin and bake for 35 minutes. Turn the tin around so that it bakes evenly and leave for a further 15–20 minutes. The end result should have a lovely springy feel. Allow to cool in the tin before removing. This will keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days and for up to a week if you store it in the fridge.

12/8/2015 (CS) (18507) Honey & Co The Baking Book

 

We had our annual Long Table Dinner in the glasshouses a couple of weeks ago. It was completely sold out with a waiting list of people eager to come if there was a cancellation, even at the last minute. Six nationalities travelled here for it: English, South African, American, French, Swiss… as well, of course, as a large Irish contingent.

It was heaven sitting at a long table in the midst of the tomatoes and runner beans.

This is always a wonderful time of the year here in the Cookery School gardens, with everything looking lush and luxuriant. But I love the excuse of an event to polish everything up an extra notch.

Preparation starts several months ahead. After the early potato crop has been harvested, we plant grass seed in a couple of bays of the greenhouses. This lush lawn creates a beautiful green carpet for the Long Table Dinner. The field kitchen in the neighbouring bay was beautifully screened off with fresh beech branches and willow lattice.

For the past couple of weeks there has been a frenzy of activity – with Rory O’ Connell testing and tasting dishes made with the seasonal summer produce. A few students from the summer Twelve Week Course had asked to stay on to help at the dinner. They loved the experience, and being able to see the behind the scenes preparation, cooking and serving of a summer feast for a hundred people.

The weather forecast was pretty grim, so we all held our breath but despite our apprehension, we were fortunate with the weather. About an hour before the guests arrived there was the sort of sudden downpour that we’ve become accustomed to this “summer”. But after that it was blue skies all the way.

Guests started to arrive at 4pm and Sommelier Colm McCann and his team had some cava with elderflower or rhubarb cordial and fresh mint lemonade ready for the guests. Emer and Pat grilled sourdough bread and topped it with heirloom tomatoes and basil, or scrambled organic eggs dotted with Ballycotton lobster.

We welcomed the guests and thanked them for supporting the East Cork Slow Food Educational Project – and explained we are saving up to convert a disused shipping container into a prototype teaching kitchen for local schools to teach their pupils how to cook the produce they grow in their school gardens.

After the aperitif and nibbles, the guests walked through the organic farm and gardens. We explained that the Cookery School and farm are completely integrated: the School is our indoor classroom, we use the farm and gardens as an outdoor classroom. We showed them the photovoltaic system that generate electricity for the School, even on dull days, and the student beds where local children learn how to sow seeds and grow vegetables and herbs. Many were also fascinated by the dairy, where our Jersey cows are milked and the butter, buttermilk and yoghurt are made.

We wandered down through the herb garden, the wild flower meadow, and the vegetable and fruit gardens, arriving at the glasshouse just minutes after 6pm.

At this time of the year it looks like the Garden of Eden with kiwi and passionfruit overhead, and a wonderful variety of aubergines, sweetcorn, chilis, salad leaves, peppers, beans, heirloom tomatoes, beets, zucchini … as well as peach, fig, nectarine, pomegranate and grapevines around the edges – so beautiful.

The Gardeners were playing trad music as we arrived to add to the magic.

People took their seats. It was all very convivial, as is the nature of Slow Food events. There was no seating plan, so people could mix and mingle and make new friends.

And then the feast began. Here’s the menu Rory eventually chose, illustrated by Lydia Hugh -Jones (www.lydiahughjones.com)

 

 

We started with a Garden Leaf and Herb Flower Bouquet with Almond and Marjoram, Grape and Elderflower Mist served in little glasses, which had been assembled minutes earlier from the freshly picked leaves.

There was lots of freshly baked Ballymaloe Brown Yeast Bread and Jersey butter from the farm. The flavour of homemade butter was a trip down memory lane for many guests.

The second course was served family-style, the guests helped themselves and each other to:

• Beef Carpaccio with Horseradish and Tarragon
• Sushi Rice with Smoked Ballycotton Pollock and Ruby Beetroot
• Hot Smoked Wild Blackwater Salmon in Oeufs Mimosa
• and Mustard Seed Pickled Cucumbers.

The main course was also sensational, in the words of the guests around me: Grilled Breast of Nora Ahern’s Duck with Stonewell Tawny Cider, Roast Nectarines and Mint.

Rory had also braised the duck legs and wings with Indian spices, Llewellyn’s balsamic vinegar and tomatoes. That dish too was enthusiastically received., here’s the recipe if you’d like to try it yourself.The Jersey butter and sea salt on the table embellished the floury new potatoes, a variety called Colleen, and the green beans which had been dug and picked not more than a half an hour before dinner.

Next the cheese course:  Labne made with dripped natural yoghurt, served with Radishes, Savoury, Highbank Orchard Apple Syrup and Homemade Cheese Biscuits.

Then pudding, which was quite simply irresistible:

• Compote of Cherries with Kirsch
• An Iced Sandwich of Peach, Raspberry and Buttermilk
• And Crème Brulee peppered with Mark Kingston’s Single Estate Coffee

Needless to say, everyone had to have a taste, or rather several, of everything.

The music played on, and then there were JR’s raspberry marshmallows, candied chocolate orange peel, biscotti, and madeleines, still warm from the oven. Served with coffee and fresh herb tisanes. A real celebration of the food from the farm and gardens and local area and the blessings of Mother Nature.

 

Hot Tips

Clever and delicious ways to preserve your glut……

Hans Wieland will teach a Home Preserving course at the Organic Centre in Co Leitrim on Saturday August 29th  He will cover a wide range of methods to store and preserve your surplus garden crop from drying, fermenting, storing and freezing….

www.theorganiccentre.ie for more information

 

Date for your Diary:

A Taste of  West Cork (4th-13th September).The 10 day festival will include an open air street food market, food demonstrations, tastings, interactive workshops, cookery competitions….

 

-SAVE OUR SMALL SHOPS, support them or loose them. The whole country seems to be gone discounter mad, seems like people can’t talk about anything else- BMW’s, Merc’s, Audi’s, Toyotas, MIni’s, all lined up outside filling the boot with the latest bargains, but remember as the ad says when there’re  gone there’re gone and when there all gone there all gone…. Is this the kind of Ireland we want ? Remember we can all make a difference to our local town and community by how we CHOOSE to spend our euro….

 

Slow Food is an international organisation with members like you and I in over 150 countries world wide. If you are interested in food and food issues it’s really worth being a member to link into the global network. There are 15 Convivia (chapters) in Ireland. For further details on how to become a member check out www.slowfoodireland.com

 

Carpaccio with Rocket and Parmesan

 

Carpaccio is the ultimate recipe to make a little beef go a very long way. This sophisticated dish was invented in Harry’s Bar in Venice and named for Carpaccio, the great 15th century Venetian painter. There are many variations and this one is inspired by a version served at the Cipriani Hotel.

 

Serves 12

 

1 lb (450g) fillet of beef, preferably Aberdeen Angus (fresh not frozen)

fresh rocket or arugula leaves – about 5 per person depending on the size

6-7 very thin slivers Parmesan cheese per person (Parmigano Reggiano is best)

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Extra virgin olive oil or Mustard Sauce (see below)

 

Mustard sauce

2 egg yolks

2 tablespoons (2 American tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon (1 American tablespoon + 1 teaspoon) sugar

2 tablespoons (2 American tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) wine vinegar

1/4 pint (150ml/generous 1/2 cup) light olive oil or sunflower oil

1 tablespoon (1 American tablespoon + 1 teaspoon) grated fresh horseradish

1 generous teaspoon chopped parsley

1 generous teaspoon chopped tarragon

 

If you are using Mustard Sauce, make it first. Put the egg yolks into a bowl, add the mustard, sugar and wine vinegar and mix well.  Whisk in the oil gradually as though you were making Mayonnaise. Finally, add the grated horseradish, chopped parsley and tarragon. Taste and season if necessary.

Chill the meat. Slice the beef fillet with a very sharp knife, 1/3 of an inch thick. Place each slice on a piece of oiled cling film or parchment paper, cover with another piece of oiled cling film or parchment paper. Roll gently with a rolling pin until almost transparent and double in size. Peel the cling film or parchment paper off the top, invert the meat on to a plate, and gently peel away the other layer of clingfilm or parchment paper.

 

Arrange the rocket leaves on top of the beef and scatter with very thin slivers of Parmesan over the top. Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Drizzle with the Mustard Sauce or with very best extra virgin olive oil and serve immediately.

 

Note: Rocket and Parmesan Salad served without the carpaccio but drizzled with extra virgin olive oil is a very fashionable starter and very addictive it is too.

 

Wine Suggestion A full bodied red  eg. Sassicaia from Tuscany

 

24/06/2008 (JJ) 1876

 

 

Cherry Compote

 

450g (1lb) cherries

110g (4oz/1/2 cup) caster sugar

2 tablespoons (2 1/2 American tablespoons) kirsch

1 tablespoon (1 American tablespoon + 1 teaspoon) lemon juice

 

Place the cherries, sugar, kirsch and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Cover and place on the gentlest heat. The sugar needs to melt and the cherries need to cook and soften slightly. This takes about 20 minutes by which time you should have a lovely cherry compote with ruby coloured syrup.

 

Duck Legs Braised with Indian Spices and Llewellyn’s Balsamic Vinegar

Serves 4 – 6

½ teaspoon turmeric

1 tablespoon ground cumin seeds

1 tablespoon bright red paprika (not smoked)

1 tablespoon ground coriander

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 ½ teaspoons garam masala

2 teaspoons sunflower oil

6 duck Legs and 6 duck wings.The thighs cut in half, wing bones and drumsticks trimmed of knuckles). Dry the prepared duck legs thoroughly. Yields 21 pieces

1 level teaspoon brown mustard seeds

¼ teaspoon whole fenugreek seeds

15 curry leaves (optional)

2 medium onions thinly sliced

2 tablespoons finely grated ginger

6 cloves of garlic crushed to a paste

2 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped

80 – 100 ml cider vinegar (Irish Balsamic Vinegar)

1 teaspoon salt and more to taste

1 tablespoon sugar

Water

Mix the turmeric, cumin, paprika, coriander, cayenne pepper and garam masala in a small bowl and set aside.

Heat the oil in a heavy casserole. Add the dry duck pieces skin side down and cook until hazelnut brown. Turn and repeat on the other side .Remove from the casserole.

Add the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds and allow the mustard to pop, a matter of seconds. Now immediately add the curry leaves and sliced onions and cook until the edges of the onions are lightly browned. Add the ginger and garlic and fry for 1 minute. Add the spices and cook over a gentle heat all the while stirring for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and cook for 3 minutes to slightly soften. Scrape the bottom of the pan as you go. Add the browned duck pieces, vinegar, salt, sugar and enough water to barely cover the duck, sir all to gently mix. Bring the contents of the casserole to a simmer and cover. Cook at this gentle simmer for 45 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to cook at a simmer for a further 30 minutes occasionally stirring and scraping the casserole bottom.

By now the sauce should have reduced and thickened slightly.

Taste and correct seasoning.  Serve with boiled rice or new potatoes. French beans or spinach are also a perfect accompaniment.