Leave a Comment

Posted on August 15, 2016 by gorgefood

Tattu Manchester

Since this place opened I have been wanting to check it out but have never got round to it.. and I knew I would need quite a bit of cash for it! This weekend I finally made it but I think my expectations after 14 months of wanting to go were maybe a bit high!

The restaurant itself is great looking and service is impeccable and although we had a great night there were dishes we ordered that would have better at half the price in China town.  I think when expectations are high and prices are high you become very critical! If I’d had this meal somewhere else I would probably rate it a lot higher.

Unfortunatley I couldn’t take any photos; 1 – because I had 2 bottles of wine and forgot and 2 the lighting was very low anyway so they wouldn’t have come out very well.

You can see examples of the food on here though and the dishes did look exactly like the pictures – http://www.tattu.co.uk/galleries/

We love dumplings so ordered a lot of dim sum, then a round of “Small plates” and then 2 main courses, one being a noodle dish.

BEEF AND FOIE GRAS GYOZA £8.00 Teriyaki and soya bean

My husband ordered these and really enjoyed them, I found them a bit rich but that’s just my personal taste.

WAGYU DUMPLING £12.00 Kimchi and spring onion.

This is the dish that brought me here! After having a proper Wagyu steak in Japan I am always on the look out for it but didnt fancy paying the £70 price tag for one at Tattu! I do doubt the vailidity of wagyu products you see these days, expecially those in Aldi but I thought these should be the real deal. The dumplings were lovely and had a nice spicy kick to them but because the meat is steamed and cooked right through it could be any type of beef, so although these were delicious, I do not think they warrant the £12 price tag for 4 small dumplings.

CHICKEN XIAO LONG BAO £7.00 Red Thai curry, lemongrass and lime

This was the best thing we ordered, really light dumplings that tasted of ginger and lemongrass and moist chicken. I could order 2 portions of these next time and be happy!

MIXED DIM SUM BASKET £12.50 Prawn and chive, wagyu dumpling, wasabi scallop, chicken truffle, black cod and prawn.

I can’t really remember which was which if I am perfectly honest but just remember that neither of us liked the chicken truffle dumpling, we took a bite each and then left it as it tasted odd! I think it was just a bit too much though as it had been though a lot of truffle proccesses ( we asked the waitress afterwards what it was) the chicken was also pretty dry and a weird texture. The cod dumpling was lovely though and I would probably order a portion of these next time.

SALT AND PEPPER AUBERGINE (v) £7.00 Chilli, garlic and cherry hoisin

This was one of the most dissapointing for me, I love aubergine and one of my faveourite dishes in Manchester is “Sichuan Style Spicy Steamed Aubergine” from Red and Hot in China town. This dish came with the pices of aubergine covered in batter with the salt and pepper seasoning on top. The batter just provided a barrier to the spicy seasoning though and we ended up pulling the batter off so we could actually taste the aubergine and seasoning. This dish also came with a hoi sin sauce which really would not be needed if the aubergine actually tasted of ” salt and pepper” The sauce was pretty out of place on this dish to be honest and in my opinion shouldn’t be there.

CRISPY PORK BELLY £8.00 Black vinegar, sweet soy and ginger

This was lovely, we actually used the salt and pepper seasoning from the aubergine dish to put on the pork which really worked. Really crispy skin and soft pork – I would order this again.

SOY AND ORANGE BUTTER CHICKEN £15.00 Szechuan salt and lily bulb.

Dissapointing again, I didnt taste any szechian salt in this and the chicken was dry, tasted like breast to me, thigh would have made it so much better!! Would not order this again.

SHITAKE MUSHROOMS AND FRIED TOFU NOODLES (v) £12.00 Chilli bean and sweet oyster sauce.

3 MUSHROOMS in this dish!!!!!  considering it is named after an ingredient you would think there would actually be some in there. It was pleasant enough but as my husband said, I could have made it tastier at home.

CHILLI EGG FRIED RICE £4.50

Tiny bowl of rice that is dry without much egg in in – Waste of £4.50 really.

So in summary, its a lovely place, service is great and there are a lot of nice things on the menu but I just think they are missing the mark with a lot of the dishes.

The place is always busy and I was lucky to get a table as someone cancelled and you can see that there are a lot of chefs in the open kitchen. I wonder if its all being a bit too rushed? The main courses were served with plates too and therefore very difficult to eat with chopsticks.

I may return but would only order dim sum and small plates I think, we asked for the service charge that had be assumed ( I hate this!!) to be taken off our bill and then handed it in cash to the waitress as she was brilliant.

Total cost with 2 bottles of reasonably price wine and water £ 140.

Food – 7/10

Service – 10/10

Atmosphere – 8/10

Value – 7/10 – the reasonable wine price saved it..

 

Leave a Comment

Posted on June 14, 2016 by gorgefood

I needed something that was easy to transport for a pre gig meal in a campervan this week so decided to adapt something I saw in my food magazine.. I have not actually eaten it yet but I had a little taste and its yummy! Photo to follow after I serve it up tomorrow!

Ingredients

Serves 4.

1 tbsp olive oil
2 lamb leg steaks cut into chunks
2 onions – sliced
2 cloves of garlic – sliced
2 tsp – chilli flakes
1 aubergine cut into small chunks
1 tbsp cumin powder
4 cardamon pods 4
400 g Bulgar wheat ( you could also use rice or cous cous)
800 ml chicken stock
2 large handful’s Kale washed and chopped
1 magi seasoning cube
1 tbsp chopped Flat leaf parsley
1 tbsp chopped Mint
a handful of pomegranate seeds
Crème freche to serve

Put the aubergine chunks in a bowl with salt and olive oil and coat thoroughly, then put in the oven 180 degrees for around 15 -20 minutes until soft.

While the aubergine is cooking heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a pan, season the lamb and add to the pan to brown all over.

Add the sliced onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes until softened then stir in the cumin, seasoning cube and chilli flakes. Stir for a minute then add the bulgar wheat.

Pour the stock into the pan and bring to a simmer and cover. cook gently for about 10 – 15 mins until the stock has been absorbed. Stir through the kale for the last 5 minutes of cooking then add the roasted aubergine. Season with salt and pepper if needed.

Serve with freshly chopped mint and flat leaf parsley and a dollop of crème freche. You could even stuff in a pitta.

 

15977074_10154039398577890_8122950041025611864_n

Leave a Comment

Posted on May 11, 2016 by gorgefood

IMG_4145

Since starting my blog another benefit I have discovered is seeing other people’s food blogs too! There are a few I follow regulary and this recipe stuck out immediately and I have been wanting to try it for a while. I love spicy Szechuan food and I am a big fan of cauliflower and am trying to eat more veg at the moment, I thought this would be a nice healthy tea (although it isnt quite as healthy as I thought!!! but could be adapted to be if you leave out the frying.)

I added a few things and changed the process slightly from this recipe here –  Kung Po Cauliflower and the author kindly agreed for me to include it in my blog.

Some people will think “where is the meat” but this is a really filling dish and you will not be left hungry! One medium cauliflower will feed 2 people so it is also a very thrify recipe!

Ingredients

1 head of cauliflower, broken into florets,  1½-2 cm each
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 – 2 red chillies, seeds in, finely chopped – depending on how hot you like it!
2 cm piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
4 whole spring onions, sliced
50g unsalted peanuts
2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
50 g cornflour
1/2 teaspoon of szechuan peppercorns
1 green pepper diced very finely.

Cooking Oil

125 ml Groundnut oil
2 star anise
1 tsp Szechuan peppercorns
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Marinade

100 ml light soy sauce
50 ml Chinese rice wine (use sake or dry sherry if not available)
1 tbsp maple syrup ( I used Fruit Syrup Sweetner)

Make the cooking oil by placing a wok over a high heat and adding the oil. When it is hot add the star anise, Szechuan peppercorns and the chilli flakes and stir . cook for thirty seconds then remove from the heat. Sir in the sesame oil and leave to cool then strain over a fine sieve.

Par boil the cauliflower for 10 minutes in salted water and then leave to cool and pat dry.

To make the marinade mix together the soy sauce, rice wine and syrup. Add the dry cauliflower to the marinade and set aside for at least 30 minutes.

Put another half a teaspoon of sezchuan pepercorns in a dry pan and toast for around 30 minutes until fragrant and then cook and bash in a pestle and mortar but leave quite coarse. Set aside for later.

Re-heat the wok over a high heat and pour in half of the prepared oil. When it is hot, lift out the cauliflower florets from the marinade and roll them one by one in cornflour until they are fully coated. Make sure you keep the leftover marinade to one side as this will make your sauce.

Fry the florets in the oil , stirring and turning  until they are evenly browned and crispy, about 2-3 minutes. Do this in batches or the florets will all stick together and go soggy instead of crisp as the oil temeprature will go too low. Add a little more oil between batches if required, but make sure you save 2 tablespoons. Place the cauliflower florets on kitchen towel to soak up the excess oil.

Clean the wok and then add the rest of the oil. Add the chilli, garlic, ginger and green peppers and stir fry for 30 seconds over a high heat then add the chopped spring onion and the toasted and bashed szechuan peppercorns.

Fry for a few minutes and then add the crispy cauliflower pices, peanuts and most of the coriander, fry for 30 seconds then add the left over marinade. Cook for one minute tossing the wok to make sure that the cauliflower is coated with sauce.

Serve with boiled rice and garnsh with the rest of the corriander.

Dont be alarmed if your tongue feels a bit numb! This is the Szechuan peppercorns!

Be carefull not to over season with salt (as I did) as the soy sauce in the marinade is salty enough!

IMG_4141

 

Leave a Comment

Posted on March 2, 2016 by gorgefood

IMG_3670

I told you this blog wouldn’t be just for swanky food – here is another comfort food for you!

If you get this kind of thing from KFC you get a whole piece with the skin on and a bone in the middle, I used bonless and skinless thighs for this – just because that is what was in the freezer.. but it did work in my favour when I had some leftover and I made a chicken burger on a brioche bun the following day! So it is up to you what you use really the recipe is still the same but boneless can be more versatile.

Something I have not tried yet that I had in Texas is “Chicken fried steak!” that really is a thing.. Same principle but with a steak!! watch this space..

Make sure you start this recipe in advance as your meat needs time in the marinade.

Ingredients

1 packet of chicken thighs or drumsticks or a mix of the 2.
Vegetable oil for deep frying.

Marinade

500ml buttermilk
1 tablespoon dijon or French mustard
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp smoked paprika

Coating

200g plain flour
1tbsp salt
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp onion powder
1 magi cube or veg seasoning cube.
1/2 tbsp smoked paprika

Mix together the marinade ingredients and coat the chiken, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, overnight if possible.

Add all the coating ingredients to a bowl and mix well.

Take the chicken pieces out of the marinade and shake off any excess back into the bowl. Dip the chicken pieces one by one into the flour mixture – then back into the buttermilk marinade and then back into the flour again to build up a thick layer of the coating.

Heat vegetable oil in a large frying pan on a medium high heat and when the oil is hot deep fry the chicken in batches – do not overcrowd the pan or the coating will get soggy and don’t have the oil too hot or it will burn on the outside and be raw in the middle.

Fry until golden all over and until the juices run clear. Check the biggest piece by cutting it in half to check it is white all the way  through. I finished mine off in the oven as I was worried about it being cooked through without burning the outside but the bottom went soggy as it was sat in the juice, so be careful. I cant give an exact time as it depends on the size of chicken pieces you use.

I served with homemade coleslaw, homemade garlic mayonaise and sweet potato fries and made a chicken burger the next day! Then decided I needed to go for a run to undo the damage!

IMG_3682

 

 

Leave a Comment

Posted on March 2, 2016 by gorgefood

A dish I always order at Wagamama although I think theirs is with chicken. You could add chicken instead of prawn to this though or both if you are feeling generous! This is an easy 15 minute tea and not too bad for you (just don’t use loads of oil)

I doubted the sauce in this recipe when I saw the ingredients and even after I made it I doubted it but once it is mixed into the noodles you will be surprised that you cannot really taste the HP sauce!

You could just buy some Yakisoba sauce from the asian supermarket though to make it easier if you like.

Ingredients
Serves 4

10 mushrooms – washed and sliced
8 – 10 raw king prawns per person
Olive oil
2 onions thinly sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1 red pepper sliced into thin strips
3 large garlic cloves – sliced
2 inches of fresh ginger – grated
1/2 white cabbage sliced into similar sized pieces as the carrot
2 packs of soft noodles – straight to wok.
2 spring onions sliced
1 tbsp sesame oil
Optional – Pickled ginger, chilli oil, toasted sesame seeds and nanami togarashi to garnish

Sauce

2 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp HP sauce or worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp Oyster sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
1 tbsp soft brown sugar.

 

Season the prawns with salt.

Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a jug and set aside.

Heat the oil in a wok and put on a medium to high heat and stir fry the carrot, red pepper,oonions, garlic ginger and cabbage for 2  minutes then add the mushrooms and fry for a further 2 minutes.

In a seperate frying pan add a little oil and fry the prawns until pink.

Add the noodles to the vegetable mix and add a tablespoon of sesame oil and fry until soft.

Add the prawns back in and add the sauce a tablespoon at a time, checking as you go to see if it is enough and cook until everything is hot. You dont want to overpower the noodles with the sauce.

Serve in a bowl topped with the spring onions, sesame seeds and pickled ginger.

I added a drizzle of chilli oil and some nanami togarashi to my bowl for a bit of spice! just like at wagamama!

IMG_3695

12321592_10153256644012890_8967116076108990446_n

 

3 Comments

Posted on February 23, 2016 by gorgefood

 

I decided to set myself a challenge last week, I was cooking for 2 friends on Saturday evening so decided to try something a bit more sophisticated as it is much easier to do good quality food for a smaller amount of people. My dinner parties are usually for 6 – 8 people so getting these dishes timed right would have been very difficult and VERY expensive too!

I had a lot of recipes from the “Nopi” cookbook that I had been wanting to try so I put a few of these together to make a bit of a taster menu. I started with the chicken meatballs that I wrote about on my last post washed down with a few prosecco cocktails 😉  Then served the Beef brisket fritters. I loved these fritters but a lot of work is involved and I only made a couple each, I would suggest making a much bigger batch of these if you try it at home. I started the preparation on Wednesday where I made the  Master Stock that the beef cooks in. Then on Friday evening I cooked the beef in the stock for around 3 hours, then let it cool in the stock for a further hour and then reduced the remaining liquid into a thick sauce to dip the fritters in. By the time it was done it was bedtime.

Saturday afternoon involved ( as well as many other things) pulling the beef apart and mixing with some fried celery, carrot and shallot and coating in panko breadcrumbs and chilling before shallow frying just before serving. A lot of effort for 2 little balls… but well worth it.

12779049_10153239958597890_8816347408672932569_o

My next course was the “Spiced Buttermilk Cod with Urid Dhal“ I did a trial run of the lentil element of this dish on the Tuesday before but I didn’t have the right type of lentils – I used yellow lentils and although tasty they were a bit too crunchy so I remade it with the correct lentils on Saturday morning. The first version is now in my freezer awaiting another piece of cod!

I marinated the cod in buttermilk with some ground spices for about 5 hours before cooking ( any longer and the fish will fall apart) and then cooked in the oven for around 10 minutes. This was honestly the best cooked cod I have ever served, I usually over cook it as I am scared to under cook fish as I am not very experienced with it.I followed the instructions to the minute though and it flaked away nicely as it should and really took on the spices without them overpowering the fish.

12716193_10153239958802890_5079809180371882349_o

 

12079869_10153239958882890_3458904021723963056_o

The next course was one of the favourite things I have ever cooked, although I can’t take the credit as I didn’t invent it , I just executed it. Preparation for this dish started a few days before with roasting aubergines stuffed with garlic slices then mixing with lemon and tahini. Making a pickling liquid to pickle some kholrabi, that I searched high and low for but with no joy – apparently it is in season next week. I ended up using turnip instead as it seemed to be the closest thing. A Jalapeño sauce consisting of Jalapeño chilli’s and capers was also prepared about 5 days in advance!

I ordered a rack of lamb from my butcher but was quite surprised how small it was, so if I made this again I would order 3 pieces per person. I was happy to see that they had trimmed it nicely for me though as my knives are not too sharp at the moment.

The lamb was cooked at the last minute on a griddle pan for about 3 minutes which left it perfectly pink and was served on top of the warm aubergine pureé, jalepeno sauce and pickle. Even as I was plating up this dish I really did not know how on earth these flavours were going to work together – but they did.. they REALLY did!

12768361_10153239958947890_1911296949930848244_o

12764593_10153239958992890_1697703865588221959_o

The recipe did actually have a method for smoking the lamb first but I am afraid I cheated and skipped this stage as I did not have the equipment.

Dessert was not from the book but a previous recipe of mine that had been requested – Salted caramel pannacotta.

After dessert one of my guests made us some Espresso Martini’s and we were up til 5am… maybe we should have had these at the beginning of the night!!

I don’t feel like I can write out all these recipes on my blog as they are not actually mine and that would be cheating – but I really do recommend  checking the book out if you can.

I have learnt a lot of new flavour combinations and techniques from this little challenge so will be incorporating some of the ideas into my own recipes in the near future!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

2 Comments

Posted on February 18, 2016 by gorgefood

10658974_10153232831447890_1473032322155652222_o

 

I saw 10 minutes of a cooking programme last week as I was flicking through a sea of rubbish channels and saw this little beauty being made.. 3 days later it was in my belly! This is not my recipe at all and I have not tweaked it apart from cheating a bit with the corn as I didn’t have corn on the cob, but I think its worth sharing.

The soggy bread tip is a great one for making meatballs too and I have already applied this to another dish.

I got Yotam Ottolenghi’s latest book for Christmas and will be cooking 3 more dishes from it this weekend so watch this space. The flavour combinations are very interesting and he uses the kind of ingredients I love.

This recipe comes from here – Source

Ingredients 

Serves 2 as a main or 4 as a starter

1 whole corn cob,  ( I didn’t have any so cheated with a tin of Green Giant ;))
35g crustless white bread, roughly torn, soaked in water for a few minutes, then drained and squeezed
500g minced chicken. ( I just minced up a packet of chicken thighs.)
1 small onion, grated 
1 clove of garlic, crushed
15g coriander, chopped
7g parsley, finely chopped
1½ tsp ground cumin
1 small red chilli, finely diced
1 medium egg, lightly beaten
Salt and black pepper

Lemon and harissa relish
2 preserved lemons, flesh and skin sliced into thin strips
1 tsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp Harissa paste

12733359_10153232831507890_3646911542231626063_n

 

Heat your oven to 180c

If using corn on the cob, heat a griddle pan until very hot and then brush the corn with oil and char grill it for up to 10 minutes until the skin has lots of dark charred specks. If not fry some sweetcorn in a pan until getting slightly charred.

When the cob is cool slice off the kernels and put in a mixing bowl then add all the meatball ingredients, combine well and shape into medium sized balls.

For the lemon relish – which I LOVED as it reminds me of lime pickle, just mix all the ingredients and take out the pips.

Reheat your griddle pan and cook the meatballs for a minute or 2 on each side to get char marks and seal the meat, then put on a baking tray and put in the oven for 10 minutes until cooked through.
12748146_10153232831497890_906460160197728752_o I served with flat bread, sour cream and coriander dip and the lemon relish. You could even serve them as kofta’s in a light curry sauce.

Leave a Comment

Posted on February 11, 2016 by gorgefood

I am not usually squeamish about touching raw meat but I must admit this did feel a bit wrong, maybe just because its not a meat I have used before. I have always wanted to give this a go though as I love beef that has been cooked until it is falling apart I spotted cheeks for £1 each in Morrisons last week so bought a couple, looking back I should probably have bought 2 cheeks per person as they do get smaller during the cooking process.

Do not cook this on too high a heat or it will not work. Low and slow…. is the key

Ingredients

Serves 2/3

4 beef cheeks 
2 tbsp olive oil
8 mushrooms halved
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 large onions – 1 diced and one sliced
4 large cloves of garlic
2 sticks celery chopped
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
Black pepper
3 tbsp tomato purée
½ bottle red wine
1 litre beef stock
a few splashes of Worcestershire sauce
Salt

Cut the cheeks in half and season well with salt and pepper. Brown the cheeks on all sides in a frying pan with oil and set aside.

Add the vegetables and garlic into the pan and cook for about 5 minutes until going soft. Add the fresh thyme and a few grinds of black pepper and mix  together. Cook for a few minutes then add the tomato paste and cook for another 2 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the red wine and then cook until the liquid reduces to around a quarter.

Put the cheeks back into the pan and add the stock and a teaspoon of salt.

Bring to the boil, then cover and cook the in the oven at 150C/130C fan/gas 2 for 2 hours 30 minutes until the meat is falling apart.

If the sauce isn’t thick enough. remove the meat and cook the sauce in a pan over a high heat until it thickens then replace the meat.

When done, check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if necessary then add a splash of Worcestershire sauce and serve with creamy mashed potato and seasonal veg.

 

Beef Cheek (28)

.

1 Comment

Posted on February 4, 2016 by gorgefood

This is a pretty simple and effective curry that anyone could make! When I first started trying to make a curry I used to use way too many spices by just chucking them all in, then I found a really complicated recipe that took hours to prepare. With lots of trial and error I have discovered that it really is a simple dish to make if you know the basics and less is more with the spices!

Curry is always looked at as an unhealthy option as the takeaway curries come floating like an island in ghee but you can use as much or little oil as you need really as long as things are cooking. I do always add a knob of butter at the end though.

The veg (beans and peppers) in this is optional, I just wanted to add a bit more texture and had some green beans that needed using up so don’t feel like you have to add them. You could also use a different type of meat if you would prefer.

Make sure you start quite early as you need time to marinade.

Ingredients

Serves 2/3

1 packet of chicken thighs – skinless and boneless cut into chunks. ( or breast if you prefer)
3 cloves of garlic peeled
4cm ginger peeled
1 tsp turmeric
2 onions, one diced and one sliced
1 small red pepper cut into squares
1 small green pepper cut into squares
a handful of green beans trimmed and cut in half.
2 red chillis – de seeded and chopped
1 tbsp Tomato pureé
3 tbsp dessicated coconut
1 small cinnamon stick
300 ml chicken stock
Salt and black pepper
Fresh coriander to garnish
Knob of butter

Spices

1.5 tsp Fennel seeds
1.5 tsp Cumin seeds
1.5 tsp Corriander seeds
1 dried chilli
1/2 a star anise.

Toast the spices in a dry frying pan for a minute and then crush with a pestle and mortar or grind.

Add a splash of water and blend the garlic and ginger together into a past ( you could buy garlic and ginger paste if you wanted to make it easier.) Pu the chicken in a bowl and add the paste along with the turmeric and a good grind of black pepper and salt and leave to marinade for at least 1 hour if not overnight.

When you are ready to cook, heat some oil in a frying pan and gently fry the onion, peppers, green beans, and chilli until going soft. Season with salt and put aside.

add a splash more oil and then fry the chicken for a few minutes to seal then add all the vegetables back into the pan and add the cinnamon, spice mix, tomato pureé and coconut and fry for around 5 minutes making sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.

Add the stock and simmer for 30 minutes until the chicken is cooked and the sauce has thickened then stir through some butter and check the seasoning and add salt if required.

Sprinkle with fresh coriander and serve with rice and naan or chappati.

I was too hungry and my mouth was watering so there isn’t a very good photo this time just an iphone snap! I may update next time I make this which will probably be very soon!

 

ps – I ALWAYS use Tilda basmati rice..

 

12644799_10153205172172890_5992365313762871106_n

 

 

Leave a Comment

Posted on January 25, 2016 by gorgefood

Topped off my dinner party this weekend with this little beauty – It didn’t go exactly to plan as I was making it.. I burnt the first caramel so it tasted bitter, I followed the recipe from my Olive magazine for my 2nd batch that is for 6 people.. 6 not very hungry people maybe!!! So then had to make another bath to top up the very measly portions I was left with.

You should really turn out this pannacotta onto a plate but I knew I’d have had a few bottles of wine by the dessert so thought I would play it safe and serve in glass.

As I said this recipe is from Olive magazine but this is why I test them for you! serves 6?? no chance, the recipe needs another 3rd adding on if not doubling.

The ice cream was my own invention though and the trimmings so its half my dish and half pinched. There was not a scrap left in the glass…

Pannacotta

Ingredients

to serve 4.
Needs a long time to chill so best made the night before.

2 leaves of gelatine
100g Golden caster sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt flakes
300ml Double cream
100ml milk
1/4 vanilla pod seeds.

Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water.

Mix 25ml of water and the sugar in a plan and heat gently until the sugar melts. Then boil until it starts to go brown. If it goes too brown it will taste bitter and burnt so keep you eye on it. It can take about 5 minutes to start turning.

Take the pan off the heat and add the salt and slowly start to trickle in the cream whisking all the time. If it cools too quickly it will go solid so add the cream a little at a time – the cooler it gets the quicker you can add the cream. If it goes solid just reheat.

Add the milk and drained gelatine leaves and the vanilla pod seeds.

Strain the mixture through a sieve and then put into 4 ramekins or glasses and put in the fridge and chill for at least 5 hours.

 

Popcorn and salted caramel chocolate ice cream.

Serves 4 with some left over!

You could cheat with this if you wanted and just put the popcorn in bought ice cream but I had a go at making my own. I didn’t use an ice cream make for this because to be honest mine is temperamental and I don’t trust it! So this is a recipe for no churn ice cream.

Ingredients
2 large egg whites
100g icing sugar – sieved.
350ml double cream
1 small packet of caramel popcorn
1 bar of salted caramel chocolate.

Start by making a meringue. Whisk the whites until peaks start to form.

Then slowly add a few tablespoons of the sifted icing sugar and whisk until it starts to thicken. Gradually add the rest of the sugar and keep whisking until there are stiff peaks.

Fold the cream into the meringue but try not to lose all the air.

Chop half of the chocolate bar into small pieces and fold through the ice cream.

Put 3/4 of the popcorn into a food processor/chopper and blend up the popcorn to make a fine dust and then stir this through the cream leaving a bit to scatter over the top.

Then freeze for a least 6 hours.

To serve put a spoon full of ice cream on top of the pannacotta and then decorate with the reserved popcorn and chocolate.

Dig in!

IMG_3333

 

 

IMG_3327

 

Groups
Foodies100 Index of UK Food Blogs
Foodies100

Hits
  • 52,014 hits

Create a website or blog at WordPress.com