KEEP IT SIMPLE

MALTED PIKELETS WITH WARM POTTED SHRIMPS

Brown shrimps can stand up to anything; they’re delicious with Indian spices, or tossed with buttery pasta.

FOR THE PIKELETS 360g whole milk 1 teaspoon malt extract 1 teaspoon caster sugar 8g fresh yeast, or 4g dried yeast 150g strong white bread flour 100g plain wholemeal flour 6g fine sea salt 1 tablespoon virgin rapeseed oil sunflower oil, to fry julienned spring onions (optional) FOR THE SHRIMPS 200g salted butter 150g peeled brown shrimps pinch of ground mace pinch of cayenne pepper ¼ garlic clove, crushed juice of ¼ lemon ¼ cucumber, peeled, deseeded and finely chopped 1 teaspoon Chardonnay vinegar 2 tablespoons chopped parsley leaves 2 tablespoons samphire, picked and blanched for 10 seconds in boiling water pinch of fine sea salt

PIKELETS

Warm the milk to 40ºC (just above body temperature), then remove from the heat and whisk in the malt extract, sugar and yeast to dissolve. Mix both flours and the salt in a bowl, then whisk in the warm milk, followed by the rapeseed oil. Cover and leave to prove at room temperature until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Place a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat with a small amount of sunflower oil. Take a small ladle of the mixture for each pikelet and fry, in batches, for 2–3 minutes on each side, until light golden and cooked within. Transfer to a warm plate while you cook the rest.

SHRIMPS

Warm the butter until melted but not foaming and pour it over the shrimps, spices, garlic and lemon juice in a bowl. Stir to allow the flavours to combine. Mix the cucumber, salt and vinegar in a bowl and leave for 15 minutes. Stir the cucumber, parsley and samphire into the potted shrimps.

TO SERVE

Place a warm pikelet on each plate and spoon over the shrimps, adding julienned spring onions, if you like.

GRILLED BREAM WITH PINK GRAPEFRUIT, HONEY & FENNEL

Gilthead bream is one of the best-quality farmed fish you can buy. It is always consistent in quality and very good value; not as meaty as sea bass, but with lovely oily flesh and crisp skin. It is great cooked over the barbecue or under a hot grill. This dressing is as delicious as it is simple. Feel free to chop and change as you wish: lemon and mint would work brilliantly, as would blood orange and sage.

FOR THE DRESSING 2 pink grapefruits, segmented with 6 tablespoons of their juice 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon Chardonnay vinegar 1 tablespoon clear honey 1 tablespoon thyme leaves 1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted and crushed FOR THE BREAM & FENNEL 2 fennel bulbs 1 teaspoon fennel seeds 100ml white vermouth 2 gilthead bream, scaled, filleted and pin-boned by your fishmonger 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil fine sea salt

DRESSING

Mix everything together and warm through in a pan. Do not heat it too much, or the grapefruit segments will cook and collapse.

BREAM & FENNEL

Preheat the grill to its highest setting. Slice the fennel lengthways as finely as possible on a mandolin or with a sharp knife, then mix in a roasting tray with the fennel seeds and vermouth. Season lightly with salt. Lightly season the fish on both sides with fine salt, spoon 1 tablespoon of the oil over each fish fillet, then place skin-side up on top of the fennel, to cover the bulk of it. Grill under the preheated grill for about 8 minutes, until the fennel has wilted but the fish is cooked through and has a crispy skin.

TO SERVE

Divide the fennel and fish between 4 warmed bowls and spoon over the warm grapefruit dressing.

WARM GINGERBREAD & EARL GREY PUDDING

Tea and cake, but not as you know it. This combination of bergamot from the tea with the ginger is delicious, while serving it warm and soft, just out the oven, adds a level of indulgence and comfort. It is definitely best served when it’s cold outside. Only seven ingredients needed here! The egg yolks go into the custard, the whites into the meringue.

FOR THE GINGERBREAD CUSTARD 250g whole milk 250g whipping cream 6 egg yolks 65g caster sugar 140g Jamaican ginger cake, or gingerbread, chopped FOR THE EARL GREY MERINGUE 1 Earl Grey teabag 120g caster sugar 3 egg whites finely grated zest of pink grapefruit

GINGERBREAD CUSTARD

Preheat the oven to 140°C/fan 120°C/gas 1. Bring the milk and cream to the boil in a pan. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl, then whisk in the hot milk. Pour into a blender and blend in the cake.

Place a clean tea towel in a roasting tray and sit 4 teacups within. Pour the custard into these to come three-quarters of the way up and individually cover with cling film. Fill the tray to halfway up the cups with just-boiled water from a kettle. Bake for 30 minutes until just set. Remove from the oven and from the water bath, then remove the cling film. As soon as the custard comes out of the oven, start on the meringue.

EARL GREY MERINGUE

Make a cup of tea with 100g water and the teabag, infusing it for 3 minutes. Pour this into a saucepan, removing the teabag. Add the sugar and cook over a medium-high heat until it reaches 121ºC on a thermometer. Separately whisk the egg whites to soft peaks in a food mixer, then slowly beat in the sugar syrup, trying to avoid the beater, until shiny and stiff. Add the zest and mix well. Transfer to a piping bag, then pipe the meringue on to the custard, or just spoon it on in a swirly shape. Blowtorch to colour the meringue all over, or place under a hot grill, then serve while still warm.

Recipes taken from Essential by Ollie Dabbous, photography by Joakim Blockström. Published by Bloomsbury, priced £30.