Whole Foods Risotto.

Just finished eating it.

In the current circumstances I have quite an appetite, lots of different cravings ( rib eye steak at 11pm, cauliflower this morning…), so when making a risotto I put on the plates some extras, plus that cauliflower topped with melted cheddar, that I craved. We popped out to Whole Foods this morning, mainly to buy some good bread for all the good stuff we had in the fridge. Bought some lovely parmesan too, some veggies and a bag of frozen peas, for which I paid £2.50. I was wondering if it would be any different at that price. Well, it was. I made the usual risotto, simple, good chicken stock, good white wine, chopped fresh tomato, basil and  the peas, that tasted as if frozen yesterday. On the side I served some antipasti, a drop of truffle oil, freshly grated parmesan and basil. It was thoroughly enjoyed.

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Back to Dinings.

My folks and I went to London today. Had a good time, the best however was the return home, to lovely, green Winchcombe.

I took them to Dinings, wanted them to taste the most awesome sushi and sashimi there was. I ordered all my favourites, but the yellowtail sushi with tosazu jelly and fresh truffles was heavenly.  Shame it all cost a kidney. 😉

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Fish & Chips on the coast of the Atlantic.

We spent a lovely day in Wales today. Not quite sure where we were, somewhere where the road ended, according to the GPS. Close to a stunning Rhossily Beach, close to a rock called Worm’s Head. We walked along the coast, breathing in all the goodness and acquired quite some appetite, so we went for lunch to one of the places directly on the cliff. Friendly Polish staff, excellent beer, tasty fish in a great batter, the chips not as awesome as in Broadway.  Stunning views, lovely company. What more to ask for.

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The best sausage & mash in Winchcombe.

After a nice long walk round Sudeley Castle, I took my guests today to The White Hart Inn for lunch. I took them, is perhaps a bit of an overstatement, Darek insisted on paying. I love their mash, gravy today  could have been a touch thicker maybe, the sausages, especially the local pork ones are excellent. Washed down with a pint of Otter.

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Plum tarte tatin?…;-/

Darek and Beata came over for a week.  I love having them here, have been thinking about what to cook for them for a while and this evening decided to make tarte tatin, but with plums. Taste – wise, yes. When it comes to texture, shit. The plums released so much juice that the puff pastry stood no chance. It baked, but it had nothing of the delicious crunchiness on the edges. We ate it with vanilla ice cream, regardless. Maybe different kind of plums next time, me thinks.

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Coriander pesto.

After a weekend of slaving in the kitchen, I wanted something super quick for dinner. I had a packet of green tagliatelle, so pesto was an obvious choice. I had no basil though, but what I had was lots of coriander, so I whizzed it  along with all the pesto ingredients, toasted pine nuts, grated parmesan, garlic, olive oil and seasoning, plus half a red chilli.

What I got was a nice pesto, but not as awesome, mouth smacking pesto, as the one made with basil.

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Scallops in excellent company.

Ewa and Jedrus came over this weekend. We spent quality time drinking cheap wine, eating rubbish, having nothing to talk about and we were sad most of the time. 🙂

To kick off our banquet I made some lovely scallops from Whole Foods, served them on celeriac puree, which tasted good, but the texture could have been smoother. Scallops got fried on butter, of course, topped with crispy pancetta and fresh thyme. I. Love. Scallops.

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Dinner at the lakes.

We went to South Cerney this evening to see Jimbo and Louise. They rented out a nice house right by the lake with a lovely kitchen, that I wouldn’t mind at all. With 2 little Blackhams now, Louise has rather little time to cook and entertain, so I made starters and a dessert and the boys cooked (!!!!) the steaks on a gas BBQ.  I’ve taken no photos of steaks, as they turned out to be super well done, but the meat was good quality, so we ate them all regardless, plus some nice sausages and lovely white bread.

For the starter I’ve made a classic roquefort, pear and walnut salad with my own addition of parma ham, to make it a bit more substantial. I used rocket salad, rather than poncy frissee, like Janet Street-Porter in Masterchef.  The walnuts, when slightly toasted have another flavour dimention and the dressing was Raymond Blanc’s, minus measuring stuff, haha.  Some roquefort mashed with olive oil, chardonnay vinegar and black pepper.  Parmesan shavings on top.Done. Liked it a lot, might make it for the upcoming Weekend Of The Year.

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For dessert I’ve made a wild cheesecake, again, with no scales or other equipment in sight. Made the base out of crushed biscuits, amaretti and butter and flash-baked it, then melted most of a white chocolate bar in some double cream with vanilla paste and 3 gelatine leaves, added that to a tub of ricotta cheese and blizted, sweetened to taste and threw lots of fresh raspberries in. All that went onto the base, fresh raspberries on top, a touch of raspberry coulis and into the fridge to set. Right before serving I sprinkled some toasted flaked almonds on top. Was enjoyed.

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Coffee custard tart.

The book “The Art of Pastry”, which Nikosia  gave me a few years ago has been used today. I forgot what a great book it was, the recipes from it just work!

This tart was supposed to wait until dessert time, but has been sliced and tasted and I am very pleased indeed.

So, the pastry base, with walnuts, lovely flavours and texture. Made of 175 g of flour, 2tbsp if icing sugar, 115 g of butter, 75 g of walnuts, 1 egg yolk and 2tbsp of cold water.  Kitchen Aid made it into a nice pastry, which I chilled for 30 minutes and then blind baked for 10 minutes in 200 degrees, then another 10 without the baking beans.

While it baked, I made the custard out of 2 eggs and 2 egg yolks, 50 g of sugar. 300 ml of single cream and 150 ml of milk got infused with vanilla paste and about 50 ml of strong coffee and added slowly to the egg and sugar mixture. I’ve done a decent job straining it, as it baked evenly and left no shitty foamy residue, like most of my creme brulees. It took about 45 minutes in 180 degrees ( I lowered it, as the pastry started to smell a bit too intense).  Finished off with icing sugar and a touch of nutmeg.

Clap, clap, clap. 🙂

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