Tales from my Table

Tales from my Table A porfolio by Saskia Sidey

Introduction These recipes are a collection of the dishes that I love

to eat. The dishes that bring me and (hopefully) those around me joy. There's nothing too fancy. Nothing too laborious. Nothing too intimidating. Nothing

that can't be knocked up with a glass of wine in hand, or a head full of a hangover.

Eat up.

Photography: Stephanie Howard Prop Styling: Lauren Law

Food Styling: Saskia Sidey

Food Assistant: Jessica Meyer 1

2

Contents Menus

Lists

Easy to Impress

p.4

Breakfast & Brunch

p.58

Taco Night

p.14

To Start

p.66

Silk Road

p.22

Salads

p.72

Para Picar

p.28

The Main Event

p.82

A Garden Gathering p.38

Pastas

p.92

Sunday Style

Extras & Sides

p.98

Sauces & Dressings

p.104

Puddings & Sweets

p.110

p.48

3

4

Easy to Impress

................................................................

Broad Bean & Pecorino Crostini ~ Garlic & Oregano Pork Tenderloin Charred Tomatoes with Urfa Chilli & Labneh Green Beans with Burnt Lemon ~ Blood Orange & White Chocolate Cheesecake 5

Broad Bean & Pecorino Crostini Serves 6 1 large French baguette 1-2 tbsp olive oil ½ garlic clove 200g broad beans, blanched and double podded 1 lemon, zest & juice 70g pecorino, shaved extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle salt + pepper

6

Preheat the oven to 180°C. To make the crostini, slice the baguette to approximately 1.5cm thick, discarding the ends. Toss the bread slices in the olive oil, and rub one side of each slice with the half garlic clove. Bake on a baking sheet in the oven for 10-15 minutes until lightly golden and crisp.

Toss the broad beans with the lemon zest and juice, and season to taste. Once the crostini are cool, top with a few teaspoons of broad beans, some pecorino shavings and a drizzle of the extra virgin olive oil.

Garlic & Oregano Pork Tenderloin Serves 4

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

1 pork tenderloin fillet (approx. 500g) 2 tbsps olive oil 3 garlic cloves, crushed a few sprigs fresh oregano, leaves picked and chopped salt + pepper

Take the pork tenderloin out of the fridge around 30 minutes before you plan to cook it, to allow it to come to room temperature. Once at room temp, season the tenderloin generously with salt and pepper, and rub a tablespoon of oil over it.

Heat a large frying pan with a further tablespoon of oil, and add the tenderloin – you are aiming to get a nice golden caramelisation on all sides of the fillet. This should take around 10 minutes. Once you are satisfied with the caramelisation, transfer the fillet to a baking tray and rub on the garlic cloves and chopped oregano.

Cook the fillet for 10-15 minutes until cooked through, or until your meat thermometer reaches 70°C when inserted into the thickest part of the tenderloin. Remove the fillet from the oven and leave to rest, covered with some greaseproof paper, for 10-15 minutes while you prepare the accompaniments.

7

8

Green Beans with Burnt Lemon Serves 4

Cut the lemons in half. In a frying pan or griddle plan over a high heat, place the lemons cut side down. Cook until blistered and ‘burnt’. Set aside.

300g green beans 3 lemons extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle salt & black pepper

Bring a large saucepan of salted water up to the boil, cook the beans until al dente. To serve, squeeze ½ - 1 of the lemons over the beans, season and drizzle with Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Toss to coat.

Serve the remainder of the burnt lemon wedges with the beans so your guests can adjust the seasoning for themselves accordingly.

9

10

11

Charred Tomatoes with Urfa Chilli & Labneh Serves 4

This menu is a favourite of mine when I have friends over and want to make it look like I tried a lot harder than I did. This flavour combination was inspired by a photograph by Ixta Belfrage, one of Ottolenghi's recipe developers. Creamy labneh, charred tomatoes and smoky chilli with the fresh vibrancy of oregano immediately screamed out to me. I couldn't wait to recreate my own version. If time is tight, a good quality thick yoghurt can easily replace the labneh.

For the labneh: 500g greek or natural yoghurt 1/2 tsp sea salt

To make the labneh, mix the yoghurt with the salt, wrap and tie in a muslin or j-cloth, and leave suspended over a sieve and bowl in the fridge overnight. The longer you leave the labneh, the thicker it will become. Discard the liquid that gathers in the bowl, and your labneh is ready to use.

400g cherry tomatoes, halved 300g labneh 1/2 lemon 1 tbsp urfa chilli 50g pine nuts, toasted fresh oregano leaves, to garnish salt & black pepper

12

Place the halved cherry tomatoes cut side down in a lightly oiled frying pan over a medium to high heat. Do not stir – you want one side of the tomato to become charred and sticky, this should take 5 minutes or so. Quickly flash the other side of the tomato so that they are cooked through, then set aside.

Season the labneh with lemon juice, salt and pepper, then spoon the labneh on to your serving platter, sprinkle with the urfa chilli, then top with the cherry tomatoes, and shed tonnes of extra virgin olive oil. Garnish with toasted pine nuts and fresh oregano leaves.

Blood Orange & White Chocolate Cheesecake Serves 6-8

If blood oranges are out of season, try any orange or other soft fruit. Strawberries, nectarines, blackberries and clementines would all work.

For the base: 200g malted milk biscuits 100g hazlenuts, toasted 100g unsalted butter, melted

For the filling: 150g white chocolate 150g unsalted butter, softened 110g caster sugar 1 egg 250g cream cheese 150g crème fraiche 2 blood oranges, segmented

Blitz the biscuits and hazlenuts to crumbs, then add the melted butter in a food processor until combined. Pack the base crumb mixture into a deep, rectangular baking dish (approx. 20x25cm) – smooth out the base, and place in the fridge until your filling is ready.

Break the chocolate in to pieces, then melt in a small bowl over a pan of just-boiled water. Set aside to cool slightly.

With a handheld whisk, beat the butter, sugar and egg together until pale and fluffy.

In a separate bowl, beat together the cream cheese, crème fraiche and melted white chocolate. Quickly fold together with the beaten butter mixture.

Spread the mixture over the base and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but overnight works.

When ready to serve, decorate the top of the cheesecake with blood orange segments. Slice, and serve.

13

Taco Night ................................................................

Corn, Lime Butter, Coriander ~ Cod al Pastor Tacos, Pineapple Chilli Salsa Pink Onions Smooth Guacamole ~ Churros Ice Cream Sandwiches with Dulce De Leche 14

15

16

Corn, Lime Butter, Chilli Flakes, Coriander Serves 4

This makes quite a lot of the lime butter. The leftovers are wonderful over a piece of grilled fish.

50g butter 2 limes, zest and juice 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 2 ears of corn, shucked 20g coriander, leaves picked 1 tbsp chilli flakes sea salt

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.

Cream together the butter with the cayenne powder and half the zest & lime juice. Reserve the rest of the lime for garnish later.

Cut the ears of corn in half, to make four manageable starter portions. Cook the cobs in boiling water until the kernels are tender – you should be able to easily pierce one with a cutlery knife. Drain the cobs, then quickly flash the corn on a barbecue or griddle pan to get some colour.

Toss the corn in the lime butter, coating well.

Transfer to a platter and sprinkle with the remaining lime zest & juice, sea salt, coriander and chilli flakes.

17

Cod al Pastor Tacos & Pineapple Chilli Salsa Serves 4

400g cod cheeks (or 4 cod fillets) 1 pineapple, peeled and cored ½ tbsp cayenne ½ tbsp chilli powder 1 small red onion, finely diced 1 red chilli, seeds removed, finely diced 1 lime, zest and juice 2 eggs plain flour, to coat panko, to coat sunflower oil, to fry sea salt 8 small soft corn tortillas

Cut the cod into strips, approximately 2cmx3cm. You want to be able to fit 1-2 in your tacos, so use your tortilla packet to judge the size.

Cut the pineapple in half. Reserve one half for the salsa. Place the other half in a food processor and blitz until you have a smoothie-like consistency. Sprinkle the cod strips with the cayenne & chilli powder and marinate in the pineapple puree.

Leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes, and up to 2 hours.

Finely dice the remaining half of the pineapple and combine with the red onion, chilli, lime and coriander. Season to taste and set aside.

When the cod has been marinated, set out three shallow bowls [one with flour, one with egg, one with panko breadcrumbs] in a breadcrumb-ing station. Pour sunflower oil into a deep saucepan or wok until it's about one third full. Turn on a low heat to come up to temperature slowly - you want it to reach 170 C. Season the flour and the breadcrumbs. Break up the eggs with a fork. Shake the excess marinade off the cod and roll in flour, go then egg, then breadcrumbs.

Warm your tacos as per the instructions on the packet – typically either flash fried in a pan, or in the microwave.

18

When all of the cod has been coated in breadcrumbs, begin the frying process in batches. The pieces should sizzle as soon as they hit the oil and get a lovely golden brown in 1-2 minutes.

Have a platter with some kitchen paper nearby to drain the finished pieces. Sprinkle the fried cod with sea salt as they come out of the oil. Leave everyone to assemble their own tacos with all the trimmings.

19

Smooth Guacamole Serves 4 3 avocados 1 garlic clove 2 limes sea salt

Cut the avocados, discard the pits and remove the flesh from the skins. Put the avocados, garlic clove, and juice from one of the limes in a food processor. Whizz until creamy and smooth.

Taste, and season accordingly with additional lime juice and salt.

Pink Onions Makes 1 jar 2-3 red onions, depending on size 1 scotch bonnet chilli 100ml white wine vinegar 50ml lime juice 1 tbsp sugar 1 tbsp salt 5 black peppercorns

20

Slice the onion using a mandoline, or very thinly by hand.

Quickly blanch the onion slices for 15-30 seconds, drain in a sieve.

Mix the acids with the flavourings and pour over the warm red onions in a clean jar. The scotch bonnet chilli should go in whole.

The onions need a minimum of one hour to pickle and become pink, but can be stored in the fridge for weeks.

Churros Ice Cream Sandwiches with Dulce de Leche Serves 4-6

Preheat the oven to 100°C. Combine the granulated sugar, cinnamon and flaky sea salt in a shallow dish, which will be used for coating the churros when finished. Set aside.

For the coating: 100g granulated sugar 1 ½ tsp cinnamon 1 ½ tsp flaky sea salt

For the churros: 125g plain flour pinch of salt 250ml milk 1 tbsp granulated sugar 100g butter 3 eggs neutral oil, for frying

For the filling: vanilla ice cream dulce de leche

Sieve the flour and salt together in a small bowl. Set aside. Heat the milk, sugar and butter over a low heat in a medium sized saucepan – you do not want it to boil before the butter has melted. Once the butter has melted, bring the mixture up to a very brief rolling boil, then immediately fling in all of the sifted flour. With a wooden spoon or spatula, beat the mixture aggressively until it comes together in one cohesive mass.

While the mass cools to blood temperature, in a separate bowl, beat the eggs with a fork. Once cool enough (to not cook the eggs) add the egg mixture slowly, one tablespoon at a time, beating vigorously between each addition. The mixture should be very smooth. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle.

Heat the neutral oil in a deep saucepan or wok to approximately 160°C. Onto a piece of non-stick parchment paper, pipe the mixture into swirled circles, starting at the centre and going around like a snail shell. You want the finished swirl to be approximately the size of a coaster. Use a palette knife or spatula to place the churro dough circles into the hot oil. They should take 5-6 minutes to become golden brown. Once fried, put the hot churros into the sugar and cinnamon mixture to coat evenly.

To assemble, scoop the ice cream between two sheets of nonstick baking parchment and using your hands, shape into a flat puck the same size as the churro. Stack one churro, then the ice cream round, a drizzle of dulce de leche, then another churro.

21

22

Silk Road

................................................................

Smacked Cucumber Salad Home Style Cabbage Home Style Aubergine Xinjiang Lamb Kebabs Steamed Jasmine Rice 23

Smacked Cucumber & Radish Salad Serves 4

If you live in South London, chances are you're obsessed with Silk Road. A small, unasuming Xinjiang Chinese restaurant where every dish smacks you in the face with flavour. It's always packed, it's always on point, and your bill can never come to more than £30 no matter how hard you try. They don't have a cookbook, they don't even have a website, so blindly recreating at home has been my only option to bring these tastes home.

I first made the radish variation on this popular salad when we'd run out of cucumbers. It works. The peppery radish stands up to the chilli, while the cucumber cools everything down. This makes too much dressing, so serve it on the side as an extra dipping sauce.

1 cucumber 10 radishes 4 tsp salt 2 tbsp chilli oil "with bits" 1 tbsp garlic, crushed 4 tsp chiankiang vinegar 2 tsp soya sauce 2 tbsp neutral oil 4 tsp sugar a handful peanuts, roasted and finely chopped

24

Bash the cucumber with a rolling pin 4 or 5 times. Cut into big chunks or batons and sprinkle with the salt – set in a sieve over a bowl/sink to drain some of the moisture from the cucumber. Bash each of the radishes once and add to the sieve.

Combine the chilli oil, garlic, vinegar, soya sauce, neutral oil and sugar. Taste and adjust seasoning – it should be sweet, sharp and spicy.

Dress the cucumber and radishes 5-10 minutes before serving, then sprinkle with peanuts.

Home Style Cabbage Serves 4

Who knows what 'home style' actually is, my google searches have been futile, but what you need to know is when my friend Beth took her mum to Silk Road for the first time, she cried when she ate the cabbage. She said she'd never tasted anything like it. Please, don't cry, but do enjoy.

vegetable oil, to fry 2-3 garlic cloves, minced 1 spring onion, chopped 3-4 dried chillies, sliced and majority of seeds removed ½ hispi cabbage, cut into fat strips across the stalk 2 tsp soya sauce 1 tsp sugar 1-2 tbsp water

Start with the oil in a frying pan or wok, add the garlic and dried chillies. Fry for 30 seconds until fragrant.

Add the cabbage, spring onions, water, soy and sugar. Cook on a high heat until the cabbage is cooked but retains bite along the stalk. This should only take 1-2 minutes. Season and serve.

25

Home Style Aubergine

26

Serves 4

Again, while 'home style' means nothing to me, this aubergine means everything to me. The peeled aubergine is a sponge for this sweet, mild sauce and leaves a warm heat on the finish. I'd happily eat a bowl of this alone with rice (and a cold beer).

3 aubergines, peeled 2 tbsp neutral oil 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 2 large tomatoes, blanched, peeled and quartered 3 spring onions, chopped 2 large green chillies, sliced diagonally 2 tsp soy sauce 2 tsp sugar 2 tsp Shaoxing wine 1-2 tbsp water

Cut the peeled aubergines into 3 rounds, then each round into 6-8 wedges, depending on the size of your aubergine . Heat a wok with 2 tablespoons of neutral oil, add the aubergines and garlic and a splash of water. Put a lid or baking tray over the top of the wok, and leave the aubergine to steam until tender.

Once almost fully cooked and tender, add the tomatoes, half the spring onions, soy, sugar and Shaoxing wine, and crank up the heat while letting all the flavours develop.

Taste, and add more water if you would like more of a 'sauce'.

Add the remaining spring onions and green chillies in the last minute to retain some bite.

Xinjiang Lamb Kebabs Serves 4

If you're not as keen on spicy food as I am (read: I don't leave the house without my Sriracha key chain) then go easy on the chilli flakes. Cumin is the stand out flavour here, and these kebabs will tingle and slightly numb your lips. Interlacing the kebabs with fat keeps the meat moist and tender and they get crisp and caramelised. I would eat a whole fat kebab if no one would judge me.

1 tbsp chilli flakes 2 tbsp cumin seeds 2 tsp fennel seeds 1 tsp ground coriander 1 tsp salt 2 garlic cloves juice of 1 lemon 1 tbsp vegetable oil 2 tsp Shaoxing wine 200g lamb loin or leg, keep the fat coriander, to serve

Grind the spices in a pestle and mortar or small bowl of a magimix. Marinate the 2.5cm chunk lamb pieces for at least 30 minutes, and up to 2 hours. Lace the lamb on skewers, alternating every few pieces with a chunk of fat,.

Griddle or BBQ the skewers over a high heat until you have some caramelisation and charring on the outside, but the meat is not overcooked inside.

Serve with coriander sprinkled on top.

27

Para Picar ................................................................

Garlic Prawns Saffron Veal Albondigas Patatas Bravas Blood Orange Gordal Olives Padron Peppers & Jamon Iberico ~

Seville Orange Tart 28

29

Saffron Veal Albondigas Serves 6

This recipe comes from my mother's late best friend Lynne Polak. She was a completely magnetic person, and I like to think that these meatballs are just as attractive. To make these albondigas into more of a main meal, add some boiled potato chunks to the sauce.

For the albondigas:

In a food processor, whizz the meat, to tenderise. Add the garlic, egg, bread and seasoning and pulse to combine - transfer to a bowl and use your hands to make sure that everything is fully incorporated.

500g veal mince 2-3 garlic cloves 1 egg 2 slices of stale white bread, made into breadcrumbs salt & pepper 1 tsp grated nutmeg 1 tsp ground cumin plain flour (for dusting) olive oil, to fry For the sauce: 1 tbsp olive oil 3 onions, sliced 2 tbsp plain flour a pinch saffron salt & pepper 1 tsp grated nutmeg 1 tsp ground cumin 1 tbsp smoked paprika 2 tsp cayenne pepper 1 glug sherry 200ml chicken stock parsley, chopped 30

With a small bowl of water to one side (wet hands make it easier to roll) form the mince into small balls. Dust some plain flour over the meatballs and shake the tray or plate you've got them on to evenly coat. Drizzle with oil and fry in a wide pan to get colour on all sides, but not to cook through.

Remove the meatballs from the pan and set to one side. Sweat the onions in the tablespoon of oil until soft and translucent.

Add the flour and spices and cook for 1 minute. Add the stock and sherry, bring to the boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Add the meatballs and cook until the sauce has concentrated in flavour and thickened and the meatballs are cooked through.

Patatas Bravas Serves 6

I also like to serve these with Aioli - a double dip potato, to make something which I rather awfully like calling 'patatas bravioli'.

5-6 potatoes, peeled and cut into small 2.5cm chunks 1 onion 1 garlic clove 1 tin chopped tomatoes 2 tsp sweet paprika 1 tsp tobasco salt & pepper olive oil, to fry

Place the potato chunks in a large pot of cold salted water, and bring to the boil. Cook until tender. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, prepare the sauce by sweating the onion in some oil until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for one minute. Add the tomato and seasonings and cook until the tomato is no longer watery and has reduced and thickened slightly. I like to blend my sauce in the food processor to get a uniform sauce, but this stage is optional. Set the sauce aside.

In a frying pan, heat 1-2 tbsp oil and quickly fry the potato pieces, getting nice colour on all sides.

Cover the potatoes with the sauce and serve.

31

32

Garlic Prawns Serves 6

Over a low heat, warm the oil through with the garlic cloves – you want the garlic to infuse the oil, but not to catch too much colour before the prawns are added.

10-12 shell on prawns 50ml mild olive oil 10-12 garlic cloves, thinly sliced a few sprigs of parsley salt

Once the garlic smells fragrant and is just starting to change colour from milky white to light brown, generously season the prawns, add to the pan, crank up the heat to high and cook until the prawns are cooked through, you will see that they turn completely pink - do not cook past this point or they will become tough.

Serve piping hot with a scattering of chopped parsley.

33

34

35

Blood Orange Gordal Olives I used to work directly above Brindisa, and their orange & oregano olives were constantly on my mind. These olives are inspired by their masterpiece, but taking advantage of the seasons blood oranges.

1 tin gordal olives 1-2 blood oranges, segmented 1 tsp dried wild oregano 1 tsp flaky sea salt 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Drain the olives from their brine, and squeeze one segment of blood orange into the pitted olive. Toss with the wild oregano, any remaining blood orange juice from the segments and sea salt. Drizzle with oil and serve.

Padron Peppers 200g padron peppers 1 tsp flaky sea salt 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

36

Toss the peppers in some olive oil and stick under the grill on its highest setting for 5-10 minutes until blistered and wilted.

Sprinkle with sea salt and serve.

37

38

A Garden Gathering ................................................................

Caramelized Heritage Carrots with Feta & Zhoug ~ Sumac Side of Salmon with Pistachio & Pomegranate Za'atar Griddled Courgettes Jewelled Cous Cous Salad ~ Chocolate-Tahini Tart with Crunchy Salt

39

40

41

Serves 6 For the feta dressing: 100g labneh (see p.12) 100g feta juice of ½ lemon

For the zhoug: 1 bunch of coriander 1/2 bunch of flat leaf parsley 1-2 green chillies 1 garlic clove 2 tsp chilli flakes 1/2 tsp ground cumin 1/2 tsp ground coriander ½ tsp ground cardamom 1-2 tsp sea salt 1 tsp sugar juice and zest of 1/2 lemon 100ml rapeseed oil

For the carrots: 1 bunch heritage carrots 30g butter 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp brown sugar sea salt + black pepper 30g walnuts, chopped 42

Caramelized Heritage Carrots with Feta Dressing & Zhoug

While I say that this recipe is for 6, you may be tempted to make double. I have been caught out serving these as a predinner snack for guests and them disappearing before half the guests arrive. Zhoug is a spicy middle eastern pesto that has an unimitable freshness, cutting through the sweet carrots and tangy feta dressing. Start small on the green chillies and add more once you've tasted it. Try swapping the carrots for butternut squash or sweet potato.

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Whisk together the labneh, feta and lemon juice until smooth. Taste, season, and set aside.

In a food processor, add the herbs (stalks and all), chillies, garlic, spices and seasonings and blend to combine. Add the rapeseed oil in a slow drizzle while the processor is on to create a thick but pourable pesto. Let down with some water if necessary.

Peel and halve the carrots if they're large, toss with the butter oil, sugar and salt & pepper and bake for 30-40 minutes until caramelised and tender.

I prefer to serve this dish at room temperature, so once the carrots have cooled slightly, drizzle with both sauces and scatter with the chopped walnuts.

Za'atar Griddled Courgettes Serves 6 2-3 courgettes olive oil salt + black pepper 2 tsp za’atar

Using a vegetable peeler, make long strips from the courgettes.

Toss with some olive oil and seasoning.

Heat a frying or griddle pan with a little bit and fry the courgettes for 1-2 minutes on each side until they have a lovely golden colour.

Sprinkle with za’atar and serve.

43

44

Sumac Side of Salmon with Pistachio & Pomegranate Serves 6

This works just as well with smaller salmon fillets if you want to scale down the recipe for a weeknight dinner. I serve this salmon at room temperature so it lends itself very well to an easy outdoor spread.

1 boneless, skin on side of salmon olive oil 1 lemon, zest & juice 3 tsp sumac 1 pomegranate ½ red onion, finely chopped ½ bunch of coriander ½ bunch of mint ½ bunch of parsley 40g pistachios, roasted and roughly chopped Pistachio Yoghurt (p.113)

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Rub the salmon with some olive oil and 1/2 the lemon juice.

Season with salt and pepper. Bake uncovered in the oven for 10-12 minutes until starting to flake but still coral pink inside.

Leave to cool.

Halve and bash the pomegranate with a wooden spoon to release the seeds. Combine 2 tsp sumac with the red onion and pomegranate seeds and remaining lemon juice. Set aside.

Pick the leaves from the herbs, which will be used to garnish.

Serve the salmon with a generous helping of pistachio yoghurt, the pomegranate salsa, chopped pistachios and herb salad.

Sprinkle with the lemon zest and remaining teaspoon of sumac.

45

46

Jewelled Couscous Salad Serves 6

This is a bit of a fridge-forage salad. Keep the core couscous recipe and consider the rest of the ingredients optional. You could also substitute the cous cous for quinoa, bulgur wheat or pearl barley.

Core Couscous: 300g couscous 300ml chicken stock 1 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 lemon, juice & zest salt + pepper 1 garlic clove, minced 1/2 red onion, finely chopped glug of olive oil 100g pomegranate seeds

Place the couscous in a large mixing bowl. Bring the chicken stock to the boil and pour over the cous cous. Cover with a tea towel or cling film and leave for 5-10 minutes.

Fluff up the couscous with a fork and add the remaining ingredients and whatever takes your fancy from the 'optional' list.

Optional: a good handful of basil, coriander, parsley or mint (2-3 of the following) 1 red chilli, finely chopped a handful of toasted pine nuts, walnuts or pistachios cucumber red peppers cherry tomatoes feta cheese 47

48

Sunday Style ................................................................

Quails Eggs, Celery Salt ~ Roast Duck, Duck Fat Potatoes Hilde Salad with Romaine, Watercress & Radishes ~ Brown Butter Apple Crumble with Vanilla Ice Cream

49

Quails Eggs, Celery Salt I know it may seem redundant to have a recipe for quails eggs and celery salt, but I need to pass on my peeling wisdom. This trick means that you can soft boil the quails eggs and still get a clean peel.

Serves 4 12 quails eggs 1 tsp celery seeds 1 tbsp flaky sea salt

50

Toast and grind the celery seeds and combine with the sea salt.

Boil the quails eggs for 1 1/2 minutes for soft boiled. Drain. To peel, lightly crack the shells by rolling the eggs on your counter, then submerge in cold water for 5-10 minutes – this helps the shells to become easier to remove.

After 5 minutes has passed, peel the eggs (I find doing this under cold running water helps). Serve with a pot of celery salt.

51

Roast Duck, Duck Fat Potatoes Serves 4

1 large duck (I prefer Gressingham) ½ onion a few thyme sprigs fine sea salt 1kg floury potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks (Maris Piper or King Edward) 100g duck fat salt & white pepper 1 tbsp plain flour 200ml chicken stock

A Sunday Roast is sacred in my family. We never miss it. We politely fight over the last crunchy potato scraps. My brother drinks the gravy. We pick at the carcass with our fingers. It's glorious.

Pierce the skin of the duck all over with a skewer or small knife. Rub fine sea salt into the skin. Refrigerate uncovered on a wire rack over a baking tray for at least one hour, overnight is preferable (this helps to get crispy skin).

If there are any large knobs of fat tucked into the cavity, remove these and render them separately in a small baking tray in a low oven (approx. 100°C). Once the pieces have shriveled you should be left with liquid duck fat (liquid gold) – decant this into a jar for use later with the potatoes.

On the day you would like to cook the duck, heat the oven to 220°C. Let the duck come out the fridge 1 hour before roasting. Cook @ 220°C for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 180°C for a further 40 minutes.

Meanwhile bring the potatoes up to the boil starting with cold salted water, and cook until easily pierced with a knife. Place the duck fat in a large roasting tin and heat in the oven. Drain the potatoes and shake in the colander to fluff up the edges. Add to the hot fat, coat and season with salt and white pepper. Cook for 30-40 minutes. When the duck is cooked, allow it to rest for 15 minutes before carving.

Skim the excess fat from the duck roasting tin, and add 1 tbsp flour to the pan, using a wooden spoon to loosen all the meaty bits and cook for one minute. Pour the chicken stock in slowly, and whisk to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the gravy has thickened and has a good concentration of flavour.

52

Serve with some steamed green veg.

53

54

55

Serves 4

1 head romaine lettuce 100g watercress 1 bunch breakfast radishes, halved lengthways For the dressing: 1 tbsp mayonnaise 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 tsp Dijon mustard 2 tsp white wine vinegar mild olive oil worcestershire sauce, to season maggi, to season salt + pepper

56

Hilde Salad

If I could bottle my mother, this salad dressing would be her. Sharp, adaptable, universally loveable. It's derived from a Swiss 'Huldi' dressing, but my mum's middle name is Hilde which seems far more appropriate. Every family holiday that I can remember, this dressing generously coats some form of romaine lettuce to accompany absolutely everything that we eat. I strongly recommend making double the recipe and leaving the dressing out on the table as a dip with some warm French baguettes. Sorry for telling everyone your middle name is Hilde, mum.

Wash and dry the salad leaves. Set aside.

Combine the mayonnaise, garlic, Dijon & vinegar, then add olive oil, drop by drop, stirring continuously, as if making mayonnaise – forming a stable, thick emulsion. When thick, taste, and either dilute with a splash of water, or add more vinegar for a sharp acidic finish (my favourite). Season with a few drops of Worcestershire sauce, maggi and salt and pepper.

Dress the salad and serve.

Brown Butter Apple Crumble Serves 4

In a saucepan, melt the butter over a medium heat and continue to cook once melted until the butter smells nutty and the milk solids turn brown.

200g butter 300g plain flour 200g demerara sugar 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp flaky sea salt 4-5 apples (approx.

500g), peeled, cored and diced 1 lemon 60g light brown sugar vanilla ice cream, to serve

Pour over the flour, cinnamon and demerara sugar and mix together using a cutlery knife – you want to get big clumps of crumble mix (those are everyone’s favourite bits). Sprinkle over the flaky sea salt and set aside.

Toss the apple dice in the juice of the lemon and the light brown sugar, then cook the apples briefly in the same saucepan you melted the butter in – just to encourage them to break down more easily in the oven.

Butter a baking dish and pop in the apples, and cover with the crumble topping. Bake @ 180°C for 45 minutes until golden brown and a skewer easily pierces the apple filling.

Serve with vanilla ice cream.

57

BREAKFAST & BRUNCH For mornings, late brunch, and for breakfast-for-dinner, these are my go-to recipes. Nothing that you can't make without a stonking great hangover.

58

Avocado Pancakes, Grilled Vine Tomatoes Poffertjes Sharp Tomatoes, Bacon, Sourdough Mash Patties with Feta & Fried Eggs Tahini-Chocolate Chunk Overnight Oats Hangover Pizza Sweetcorn Blinis with Coriander and Smoked Salmon Marmalade Hot Cross Buns Challah Waffles Huevos Rancheros Drop Scones with Banana and Whipped Maple Butter Smoked Salmon Croquettes with Hollandaise Chocolate Chip Brioche Pretzels Scrambled Tofu with Spinach & Cherry Tomatoes Village Breakfast with Tomato, Lardo & Chilli 59

60

Avocado Pancakes, Grilled Vine Tomatoes Serves 3

Preheat the grill to 220 C.

250g vine tomatoes 2 eggs 2 avocado zest & juice of 1 lime 125g self raising flour salt + pepper olive oil, to fry fried eggs, to serve

Drizzle the tomatoes in olive oil, sprinkle with salt and grill for 10-15 minutes.

Remove the flesh from the avocado and mash well with a fork.

Add the lime zest and juice and eggs and stir well to combine.

Season and adjust. Add the self raising flour and mix.

Preheat a wide frying pan with a tablespoon of olive oil. Fry the pancakes in batches for 1-2 minutes on each side.

Serve with tomatoes and fried eggs.

61

62

Poffertjes Serves 4

Do not let your enjoyment of poffertjes, tiny dutch pancakes, be limited to breakfast. These are sold in cones and devoured all day long in Holland. These come out best in a poffertje pan, but if the investment doesn't seem justified, simply pour the batter into a wide frying pan in little circles.

200g self raising flour 1 ½ tbsp caster sugar large pinch salt 2 eggs 300ml whole milk

unsalted butter & icing sugar to serve

Sift flour, make a well, add eggs, then gradually add milk – judge the consistency you may need more milk, it should be like double cream.

Melt butter in your pofertje pan and then underfill with batter, you want them to start to be showing holes on top before you flip them over (to avoid spillage!) then just a brief cook on the other side

Smother in butter and icing sugar to serve.

63

Sharp Tomatoes, Bacon, Sourdough

64

Serves 2

My grandmother Gammy would make this vinegary tomato sauce when we went to visit her in Angmering on Sea. It's brilliant with a glass of beer for breakfast, if you're having one of those kind of mornings.

1 tin chopped tomatoes 1 tbsp malt vinegar 2 tsp caster sugar 6 smoked bacon rashers 4 slices sourdough toast unsalted butter, for the toast

Add the tomatoes, vinegar and sugar to a frying pan and cook for 5-10 minutes, adding a pinch of salt.

Fry or grill the bacon and serve with buttery sourdough toast.

Mash Patties with Feta & Sriracha Eggs Serves 2

200g leftover mash 75g frozen peas 50g feta, crumbled 3 spring onions, finely sliced a handful coriander, chopped olive oil, to fry 2 eggs sriracha, to serve salt + pepper

I feel a compulsion to make these everytime I have leftover mash.

Sometimes if I'm feeling particularly fancy, I'll breadcrumb the patties in panko.

Put the peas in a small bowl of warm water to defrost. Drain, and add to the mash with the crumbled feta, spring onions and most of the coriander. Season and adjust.

With wet hands, form the mash into small pucks, placing them on non stick baking paper. Refrigerate for as long as you your hunger will allow - this will help them to retain their shape when you fry them.

Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and cook the patties for 1-2 minutes on each side until golden brown.

Meanwhile, fry your eggs. Serve the patties topped with a fried egg, a drizzle of sriracha and some more coriander.

65

SOMETHING TO START Most of these recipes work as canapes, starters or as a little something on the side of your main meal. I usually order multiple starters rather than mains when I'm out - I think that people put more effort into making something small taste good.

66

Puri Pops Chicken Katsu Dippers Roast Grape & Blue Gorgonzola Crostini Broad Bean & Pecorino Crostini Quails Eggs, Celery Salt Blood Orange Gordal Olives Garlic Prawns Bitterballen (Dutch Croquettes) Potato Bombolini with Whipped Marscapone Deep Fried Courgette Flowers with Ricotta, Honey & Mint Potato & Pea Samosas Spiced Cod Falafel with Harissa Mayonnaise Beef Fillet Tataki Wild Mushroom & Taleggio Pizzetta Silky Sweet Corn Soup 67

68

Puri Pops Makes 20

For the puri: 50g plain flour 50g semolina ½ tsp salt 1 tsp baking soda neutral oil, to fry Coriander chutney: 1 bunch coriander 1 inch piece of ginger 1 garlic clove juice of 1 lemon water salt For the filling: 150ml yoghurt 2 tsp sugar 1 tsp cumin 1/2 cucumber 1 small red onion pomegranate seeds 200g tin chickpeas crispy sev 1 tbsp chaat masala 50ml tamarind chutney coriander, chopped

These little chaat pop and explode in your mouth - bear this in mind when rolling out your dough, it needs to be quite titchy. The puri can be a bit of a bugger to get right - it takes practice and you must have your oil hot enough to encourage them to puff up, but they keep for weeks stored in an airtight container so make lots and fill them up whenever you get a craving. If you can't find the chaat masala spice blend, use garam masala.

In a mixing bowl, mix all the dry ingredients for the puri. Add enough cold water to make a stiff, but not dry dough. For me, this is typically between 4-6 tbsp water. Cover in cling film and set aside to rest for 15-20 minutes.

Once the dough has rested, break off small hazelnut sized pieces and roll into small round discs. Fry the puri in hot oil, basting the tops with more oil to encourage a puffed up rise.

They should take only a minute to cook. Drain the puri on kitchen paper, and leave uncovered to crisp up for an hour or so before filling.

When you are ready to assemble the puri, blend together the ingredients for the coriander chutney with enough water to make a loose pourable sauce. Combine the yoghurt, sugar and cumin and set aside. Finely chop the cucumber and red onion.

Very carefully poke a small hole in the top of each puri, and fill with 4-5 chickpeas, a pinch of cucumber, pinch of red onion, pinch of pomegranate seeds and then add yoghurt, chutney and tamarind chutney. I find it best to use small squeezy bottles or pipettes to get all the sauces in through the small opening.

To serve, sprinkle with crispy sev, chaat masala, pomegranate seeds and more yoghurt.

69

Chicken Katsu Dippers Serves 6 1-2 carrots 1-2 onions 5-6 garlic cloves 2 tbsp ginger 2 tbsp plain flour 500ml chicken stock 2 tbsp garam masala 1 tbsp curry powder 1 tbsp honey 1 tbsp soy sauce 1 tsp MSG 1 bay leaf 4 chicken breasts plain flour, to coat 2 eggs, to coat panko breadcrumbs, to coat

70

Finely dice the carrots and onions, and grate the garlic and ginger (or whizz everything together in a magimix to save time). Sautee the carrots, onion, garlic, ginger and carrots until soft, but without gaining colour. Increase the heat and lightly caramelise the onions and carrots.

Add the flour and curry powders, cook out for 1 minute.

Add the stock slowly, then honey, soy & bay leaf. Reduce and simmer for approximately 20 minutes. When you're happy with the seasoning, pass the sauce through a sieve or blend in a powerful food processor.

Cut the chicken breast into goujon sized strips and coat in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs.

Bring a large pan of oil (no more than 1/3 full) up to 180 C and fry the chicken in batches, leaving the cooked pieces to drain on some kitchen paper.

Serve with a ramekin of the chicken katsu sauce and some japanese pickles.

Roast Grape & Gorgonzola Crostini Serves 6 1 bunch red grapes 1 large French baguette 1 tbsp olive oil 100g gorgonzola 100g cream cheese 50g walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped runny honey, to drizzle salt + pepper

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Lay the grapes on a baking sheet and put in the oven until soft and slightly shrivelled, approximately 15 minutes.

To make the crostini, slice the baguette to approximately 1.5cm thick, discarding the ends. Toss the bread slices in the olive oil, and rub one side of each slice with the half garlic clove. Bake on a baking sheet in the oven for 10-15 minutes until lightly golden and crisp.

Cream together the cheeses and season with black pepper.

Top each crostini with a spread of the creamed gorgonzola, 2-3 roasted grapes, some honey and walnuts.

71

SALADS After working on Happy Salads with my lovely friend Jane Baxter, my world was opened up to the possibility that salads didn't have to be sad. They should make the most of seasonal ingredients and preferably have knockyour-socks-off dressings.

72

Tomato Salad, Spring Onion, Ginger, Coriander Blood Orange, Beetroot, Yoghurt, Hazelnuts & Tarragon Grilled Asparagus, Peaches, Goats Curd, Crispy Crumbs Fig, Labneh, Chilli Mint Cucumber, Strawberry, Basil Blue Wedge Salad with Crispy Shallots & Chives Roast Beef, Barkham Blue, Walnut Dressing Spicy Raw Kale, Spring Greens & Peanut Salad Smacked Cucumber & Radish Salad Hilde Salad Jewelled Cous Cous Salad Falafel Fattoush Butternut Squash, Mint, Rosemary, Almond Spiced Lamb with Date, Walnut and Yoghurt Salad Rabbit and Dandelion Salad with Elderberries and Pea Shoots

73

Tomato Salad with Roasted Ginger Dressing Serves 4

This makes too much dressing, but you'll want to keep it and put it on everything. Trust me.

1 big knobbly piece of ginger (approx.

200g) rapeseed oil 1 garlic clove 1 tbsp water 1 tbsp soy sauce 1 tbsp honey 500g tomatoes, sliced (a mixture of cherry and larger vine tomatoes is ideal) 1 bunch of spring onions, sliced small bunch of coriander, roughly chopped and smaller leaves picked sea salt

Preheat the grill to its highest setting 200°C. Grill the piece of ginger on baking tray until browned (some charring is fine), turning halfway through cooking. This will depend on the power of your grill, but can take up to 30 minutes.

74

Once cool, peel half the ginger (we still want some of the charred skin in the dressing) and transfer to a magimix. Blend with 1 clove of garlic, soy, honey and water, salt & pepper and rapeseed oil until you get a thick but pourable dressing. Season and set aside.

Lay the tomatoes on a platter, cover generously with spring onions and drizzle over the grilled ginger dressing. Sprinkle coriander and serve.

75

Blood Orange, Beetroot, Yoghurt, Hazlenuts & Tarragon Serves 4 2 beetroot (preferably pink and yellow) 2 blood oranges extra virgin olive oil 120g greek yoghurt 40g hazlenuts, toasted and roughly chopped ½ bunch of tarragon, leaves picked salt + pepper

76

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Wrap the beetroots in a double layer of foil, and roast until tender, approximately 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, segment the blood orange by slicing the tip and the base of the orange to give yourself flat surfaces to work with, and then using a small serrated knife, follow the curve of the orange, ensuring no pith remains on it. Once the peel has been removed in this way, cut between the segments to have perfectly clean pieces of orange. Do not discard the pithy remains – squeeze the juice into a small bowl, as this will be the base of the dressing.

Whisk the blood orange juice and slowly add extra virgin olive oil, tasting as you go, until you have a sweet, balanced dressing.

Season and set aside.

Once the beetroot is tender, remove it from it’s foil package, remove the skin and slice. Toss the beetroot and blood orange segments in the dressing, and lay upon a bed of greek yoghurts.

Sprinkle with hazlenuts and tarragon and serve.

Grilled Asparagus, Peaches, Goats Curd, Crispy Crumbs Serves 2 1-2 slices stale sourdough bread olive oil 1 bunch of asparagus 2 peaches 200g goats curd or soft goats cheese salt + pepper

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Rip the bread into small pieces - smaller than croutons but not as fine as a bread crumb. Toss them in oil, salt and pepper and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Set aside to cool.

Preheat a griddle pan with a very light coating of oil. Trim the woody ends of the asparagus and halve the peaches, removing the stone. Place both the asparagus and the peaches, cut side down, onto the griddle pan until they have golden brown griddle marks.

Serve with generous dollops of goats curd and crispy crumbs scattered on top, with a drizzle of olive oil.

77

Cucumber, Strawberry, Basil

78

Serves 4

Place all the fruit & vegetables into a bowl with some crumbled feta.

1 cucumber, sliced 1 punnet of strawberries, hulled and quartered 2 spring onions, thinly sliced 1 small bunch of rocket ½ bunch of basil, shredded 100g feta 2 tbsp red wine vinegar 6 tbsp olive oil 1 tsp chilli flakes salt + pepper

In a small bowl, whisk up the olive oil, red wine vinegar and chilli flakes. Season with salt + pepper.

Dress the salad and serve.

Blue Wedge Salad with Crispy Shallots & Chives Serves 4 2 shallots corn flour, to dredge 1 head of iceberg lettuce 120g soft blue cheese, like Gorgonzola or saint agur 90g crème fraiche 3 tbsp mayonnaise 1/2 lemon, juiced salt + pepper 1 small bunch of chives, finely chopped

Preheat 4-5 tablespoons neutral oil in a frying pan. Peel and slice the shallots – you want to keep the circular shape. Separate the rings using your fingertips, and dredge in corn flour. Fry in the oil until golden brown and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper, season while still warm, then set aside.

Cut the iceberg lettuce into 8 wedges. Crumble the blue cheese into a bowl and mix with the crème fraiche and mayonnaise.

Season with lemon juice (sparingly) and salt and pepper.

Serve the wedges drizzled in the blue cheese dressing with chives and crispy shallots on top.

79

Roast Beef, Barkham Blue, Walnut Dressing Serves 2

Thinly slice the leftover roast beef, slice or crumble the barkham blue.

Leftover roast beef 2 little gem lettuces 100g barkham blue (or other strong, hard blue cheese) a few sprigs chervil a generous handful of crispy crumbs (see p.77)

Wash & pick the lettuce leaves. Mix together the dressing ingredients, and dress the salad lightly.

For the walnut dressing: ½ shallot, finely chopped 50g walnuts, roasted and finely chopped 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar 3-4 tablespoons olive oil salt & pepper

80

Spicy Raw Kale, Spring Greens & Peanut Salad Serves 2 Spicy Roast Garlic Dressing (See p.108) 100g curly kale 100g spring greens or savoy cabbage a few sprigs of mint a few sprigs of coriander 30g salted peanuts, roughly chopped

Remove the stalks from the kale and spring greens and finely shred the leaves. Dress generously. Leave the dressing to tenderise the leaves for 5-10 minutes.

Before serving, sprinkle with finely chopped coriander and mint and the crushed peanuts. Have some additional dressing on the side if it needs it.

81

THE MAIN EVENT 82

Green Rice with Monkfish Skewers Miso Glazed Sea Bream Persian Aubergine Flatbreads Sticky Umami Bomb Ribs Dirty Burgers Red Wine & Raddichio Risotto Beef Shin Tacos Garlic & Oregano Pork Tenderloin Saffron Veal Albondigas Sumac Side of Salmon with Pistachio & Pomegranate Cod al Pastor Tacos, Pineapple Chilli Salsa Roast Duck, Duck Fat Potatoes Xinjiang Lamb Kebabs Roast Citrus, Ginger & Honey Poussin Hake with Deep Fried Cauliflower

83

Green Rice with Monkfish Skewers Serves 4

This dish was inspired by one I had at Barrafina. For me, Spanish Paella rice wins over Risotto rice.

For the green sauce:

Put all the green sauce ingredients in a nutribullet or food processor.

50g extra virgin olive oil 20g parsley 10g basil 20g spinach 5g coriander 5g chervil 50g pine nuts, roasted 1 clove garlic, crushed 250ml water 10g sea salt

parsley & sliced red chillies to garnish 200g paella rice 250g monkfish olive oil sweet paprika

84

Cook your paella rice as per directions on packet, and when al dente, coat in the green sauce.

Serve with simply fried, baked or grilled monkfish, seasoned with sweet paprika. To garnish, some parsley and sliced red chilli is lovely.

Miso Glazed Sea Bream Serves 2

Season the sea bream fillets and set on a baking tray in a foil package (don’t close it yet!).

2 sea bream fillets 1 ½ tbsp white miso paste 1 tsp rice wine vinegar 2 tsp honey salt

Mix the miso paste, rice wine vinegar and honey and cover the bream fillets in the paste on both sides.

Roast in the oven @ 200°C for 8-12 minutes until just flaking and cooked through.

Serve with steamed green vegetables and brown rice.

85

Persian Aubergine Flatbreads Serves 4

This sweet, ever so slightly sour stew is rich and hearty. A great meat replacement for even the biggest naysayers. I like to leave all the toppings out on the table for guests to help themselves.

2 aubergines olive oil 1 onion 3-4 cloves garlic 2 tsp cinnamon 1 tbsp cardamom pods, ground 2 tsp cumin seeds, ground 1 tsp turmeric 2 tins of tomatoes (& 1 tins worth of water!)

1 tbsp pomegranate molasses 1 tbsp sugar 100g greek yoghurt ½ tbsp smoked paprika 1 tbsp chilli flakes 30g flaked almonds, toasted naan bread, to serve pickled leaves of parsley, dill, mint and coriander, to serve

Cut & salt aubergines for 30 mins.

86

Preheat a large pan with some olive oil, and saute the onions until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and ground spices and cook for one minute.

Add the aubergine and cook for 10 minutes until the aubergine has softened slightly. You may need to add more oil to prevent catching.

Add the tomatoes, the tin's worth of water, sugar and pomegranate molasses and cook on a medium low heat until the sauce is no longer watery and the aubergine is extremely tender. This usually takes just over an hour.

To serve, warm the naan breads, combine the paprika and yoghurt and serve a flatbread topped with aubergine, yoghurt, chilli flakes, herbs and almonds.

87

Sticky Umami Bomb Ribs

88

Serves 4

Braise for 1.5 hours in water, covered in foil @ 140°C, then glaze with rub and whack up the heat to 220°C for 20-30 minutes, uncovered.

1 rack of spare ribs (approx. 10 -12 ribs) 1 shallot 20g butter 2 garlic cloves, crushed 60ml ketchup 2 tbsp soya sauce 2 tsp marmite 1 tsp fennel seeds 1 tsp chilli flakes 1 tbsp sugar salt + pepper

To make the glaze, finely dice the shallot and crush the garlic cloves. Sautee the shallot in the butter, with a splash of oil until soft with a golden caramelisation. Add the garlic and continue to cook for one minute. Add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a gentle simmer for 5 minutes and season to taste.

Dirty Burgers Serves 4

Burger Sauce: 3 1/2 tbsp mayonnaise 1 tbsp ketchup 1 tbsp french’s yellow mustard 1 1/2 tbsp gherkins, finely diced 1 tsp worcester sauce Burgers: 400g minced chuck beef with 30% fat French’s yellow mustard 4 processed cheese slices 2 large soft white buns, halved ½ iceburg lettuce, finely shredded 1/2 white onion, finely diced 2 pickles, thickly sliced salt + pepper

When I was a teenager, I had a food blog where I would recreate restaurant dishes at home. This burger recipe was inspired by the Dead Hippie Burger at MeatLiquor, and it was the most popular post by a meaty mile.

Preheat a griddle or frying pan until searingly hot. Toast your burger buns lightly on one side in a toaster or under the grill.

Form the chuck mince into patties, generously season and place directly onto the hot griddle – you do not need oil due to the higher fat content of the mince. Use a spatula and firmly press down on each of the patties – a perfect circle isn’t required here, you want them to be thin and smashed. After 1-2 minutes, generously coat the top (uncooked) side of the patty with mustard, then flip. After flipping, place a cheese slice on each of the patties and cover with a lid.

Assemble the double patties on buns with the burger sauce, diced onion, lettuce and pickles.

89

Red Wine & Raddichio Risotto Serves 4 1 onion 1 celery stick 200g Arborio rice a large glass red wine 1 litre vegetable stock 70g parmesan, grated 1 head of radicchio, finely shredded salt + pepper

90

Chop the onion and celery finely and sweat in butter until soft and translucent, but having taken on no colour. Increase the heat, add the rice and toast for 1-2 minutes.

Add the glass of wine and cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Gradually add the stock, a ladleful at a time, until the liquid has been absorbed each time. Stir regularly, but not continuously.

The risotto is ready when it has softened, but retains a bite – al dente. At this point, stir through ž of the shredded radicchio to wilt in the residual heat. Top with some of the raw, crunchy radicchio, a generous grating of parmesan and serve.

Beef Shin Tacos Serves 10

4 chipotle peppers & all the sauce from a can 1 head of garlic juice of 4 limes 50ml cider vinegar 1 bunch coriander, divided into stalks & leaves

This is one of the only recipes I bother to get my slow cooker out for, because it's so low effort to feed a huge crowd. If you don't have a slow cooker, just cook on a low heat for 5-6 hours in a dutch oven. This recipe feeds at least 10, making around 30 tacos, so if you have heaps of leftovers, try turning them into enchilladas or a beef ragu.

Blitz the chillies, garlic, lime juice, vinegar, coriander stalks, salt & spices in a food processor.

Brown & caramelise the beef shin – nestle the meat, red onion and bay leaves in a slow cooker & cook with the stock & other seasoning paste for 8-10 hours on LOW. Add coriander & more lime juice at the end. Skim off fat – remove meat, shred, and reduce sauce – recombine to serve.

½ tp ground cloves Serve with small corn tortillas, guacamole and pickled red 1 tbsp dried onions (p.14). oregano 1 ½ tbsp. cumin 1 tbsp salt 250ml beef stock 2 ½ kg beef shin 1 red onion, in chunks 4 bay leaves

91

PASTAS 92

Wild Garlic Tagliatelle, Egg Yolk Sunday Night Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce Brown Butter & Hispi Cabbage Gnocchi Orecchiette with Cime, Anchovy & Pangrattato Ravioli of Sweet Onion and Squash, Gorgonzola Fonduta Ricotta Dumplings with Yoghurt Sauce, Chilli Butter & Pine Nuts Orzo Pasta, Spicy Tomato Sauce & Feta Saffron & Goats Cheese Tagliatelle with Courgettes Pappardelle with fennel sausage ragu Ravioli of Salt Cod with Lobster Sauce Aubergine and Sweet Potato Lasagne with Walnuts Buttered Taglierini with Seared Scallops, White Wine, Chilli and Parsley Japchae, Korean Stir Fried Royal Noodles Pasta alle Vongole Beetroot Noodles with Goat's Cheese, Toasted Walnuts & Baby Kale 93

Wild Garlic Tagliatelle, Egg Yolk Serves 2 Wild Garlic Pesto: 1 bunch of wild garlic 1 bunch of basil 125g pine nuts, lightly toasted 60g parmesan or pecorino romano, grated ½ lemon, zest and juice good quality olive oil salt & black pepper tagliatelle 2 egg yolks pecorino romano, grated to serve

94

First, blitz together the wild garlic pesto in a food processor.

Make sure the pine nuts have cooled or they will cause the green herbs to brown. Drizzle enough olive oil (and a splash of water if needed) to make a thick pouring consistency pesto.

Season to taste and set aside.

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water until just al dente.

Meanwhile, warm through the pesto in a deep frying pan.

Using kitchen tongs, transfer the pasta straight from the water to the frying pan, and use an additional 50ml of the pasta cooking water. Toss furiously together, then serve with a generous blanket of cheese and an egg yolk on top.

Sunday Night Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce Serves 2 2 garlic cloves, crushed 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tin peeled plum tomatoes 1 tbsp sugar 20g salted butter salt + pepper

Over a low heat in a frying pan, fry the garlic until fragrant but not brown. Add the tin of tomatoes - I like to rinse the tin with water and pour the tomato water into the pan to help the slow cooking sauce.

Add the sugar and a big pinch of salt and cook over a low heat for 30-40 minutes. Once the sauce has reduced and is no longer watery, add the butter and season to taste.

Serve with spaghetti and a huge cheese blanket.

spaghetti, to serve

95

96

Serves 4 For the gnocchi: 500g floury potatoes 30g “00” flour 30g self raising flour 1 egg yolk pinch of salt

For the sauce: 50g unsalted butter 2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed but still in their skins a few sprigs of thyme ½ head of hispi cabbage a squeeze of lemon 30g hazlenuts, roasted and roughly chopped parmesan, grated to serve

Brown Butter & Hispi Cabbage Gnocchi

I'm obsessed with gnocchi. I'm obsessed with brown butter. So, you can see where this is going.

Microwave or bake the potatoes until soft. Sift the 00 flour on to your worktop, using a potato ricer, rice the hot potatoes over the flour (do not let them get cold) – discard the skins.

Add 30g sifted self raising flour, 1 egg yolk, and a large pinch of salt – chop & fold with a dough scraper or palette knife until combined – do not over handle.

Press the dough into a log, dust with flour, and then cut into quarters. Make each quarter into a long, thin stick, and cut to approximately 2.5 cm. Store on a baking tray dusted with semolina, or on non-stick baking parchment.

Add the gnocchi into gently boiling water, and remove the gnocchi as soon as they float. Set the cooked gnocchi aside while you assemble the sauce. Save one mugful of the gnocchi cooking water for use in the sauce.

In a wide frying pan over a medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon of oil, and add the gnocchi to get a nice golden colour on all sides.

Once you are almost satisfied with the colour, add the shredded cabbage with 1 tablespoon of the pasta water, cover with a lid and leave to steam for 1-2 minutes.

Gradually melt the 50g butter in the empty pasta pan (save on washing up!) and add 2 tablespoons of the pasta water. Whisk vigorously to emulsify. Add the bashed garlic cloves and thyme and season with a squeeze of lemon and salt and pepper. Add the sauce to the gnocchi & cabbage pan, then you’re ready to serve with some parmesan shavings and hazlenuts.

97

EXTRAS & SIDES 98

Salt & Vinegar Onion Rings Cacio e Pepe Baby Potatoes Tempura Greens, Ponzu Mayo Corn, Lime Butter, Coriander Pink Onions Green Beans with Burnt Lemon Caramelised Carrots with Feta Dressing & Zhoug Za'atar Griddled Courgettes Silk Road Home Style Cabbage Silk Road Home Style Aubergine Charred Tomatoes with Urfa Chilli & Labneh Patatas Bravas Garlic and Lemon Courgettes with Girolls and Creme Fraiche Grilled Tenderstem Broccoli with Umami Crumbs Cracked Wheat Pilaf with Spring Peas 99

Salt & Vinegar Onion Rings Serves 4 2 onions 500ml lager 1 tbsp malt vinegar 100g self raising flour 1 tsp cayenne pepper salt + pepper

100

Cut the onion into thick spheres, around the equator of the onion. Marinate the unseparated rings in 2/3 of the beer, malt vinegar and salt and pepper for 30 minutes.

Add cayenne, salt and black pepper to the flour, and gradually whisk in the remaining 1/3 of beer. Remove the onions from the marinade, dunk in batter, then deep or shallow fry. Season with salt as soon as the rings are cooked, making sure you drain them on kitchen roll.

Cacio e Pepe Baby Potatoes Serves 4 250g baby potatoes 40g butter 100g parmesan, finely grated 1-2 tbsp lemon juice a small handful of freshly cracked black pepper (approx. 2-3 tbsp)

Boil the potatoes in a large pot of salted water until tender.

Meanwhile, in a frying pan, melt the butter and add 1mugful of the boiling potato water – stir until the mixture becomes emulsified. Once the potatoes are cooked, and put straight into the pan of melted butter, and add the grated cheese. Leave for 1-2 minutes for the cheese to naturally start to melt, then add the lemon juice and black pepper and toss vigorously. Taste, season, and serve.

101

Tempura Greens, Ponzu Mayo Serves 4

I like to use this batter for any seasonal greens and pretend to myself that it's still healthy. The key I have found to getting the batter to cling to the vegetables is to dredge the leaves in flour before they are coated in the tempura.

100g kewpie mayo 1 tbsp ponzu sauce a pinch of red chilli flakes salt + pepper

First, mix together the ponzu mayo ingredients. Season, and set aside with a sprinkling of red chilli flakes.

25g cornflour 75g plain flour ½ tsp salt ½ tsp sugar Soda water

plain flour, to dredge neural oil, to fry

250g chard 150g tenderstem broccoli

102

Add all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl, then with a whisk, slowly add enough soda water to make a batter the consistency of double cream - don't worry too much about getting rid of all the lumps - little clumps in the batter turn extra crisp in the fryer.

Just before frying, dredge the greens in flour, then the batter.

Deep fry in a large wok or frying pan no more than 1/3 full for 1-2 minutes.

Season as they come out of the oil, and serve.

103

SAUCES & DRESSINGS Everything tastes better with a sauce. Fact.

104

Pistachio Yoghurt Spicy Roast Garlic Dressing Ketjap Marinade Hilde Swiss Dressing Roast Ginger Dressing Spicy Roast Garlic Dressing Green Sauce Ketjap Marinade Soy Tahini Sauce Katsu Sauce Walnut Dressing Zhoug Blue Cheese Dressing Wild Garlic Pesto Smooth Guacamole 105

106

Pistachio Yoghurt 100g pistachios 1 garlic clove, crushed zest and juice of 1/2 lemon 4 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp tahini 300ml greek yoghurt salt

Toast the pistachios in the oven or on the hob until fragrant and starting to become golden brown. This should take 8-10 minutes. Leave to cool.

Once cool, blend the pistachios, garlic clove, lemon, olive oil and tahini in a magimix. Marble this pistachio paste through the greek yoghurt, mixing by hand, season and serve.

107

Spicy Roast Garlic Dressing 1 head of garlic 250ml rapeseed oil 2 tsp sesame oil 4 tsp ginger, grated 2 tsp peanut butter 1 tsp Aleppo pepper flakes 1 tsp sambal oelek salt

108

Preheat the oven to 220°C .

Cut the pointed tip of the garlic head off, to slightly expose the tips of the cloves inside. Drizzle the head with 1 tablespoon of the oil, and wrap tightly in tin foil. Roast until tender, approximately 45 minutes.

Cool slightly, then squeeze out the cloves, discarding all skin.

In a blender, blitz the garlic and all seasoning, then gradually drizzle in the oils until fully combined.

Ketjap Marinade 6 tbsp ketjap manis ½ lemon, juiced 2 tbsp peanut oil 2 garlic cloves, crushed 2 tbsp brown sugar

I use this marinade for Indonesdian pork with peanut sauce, a quick traybake of sticky chicken thighs and for baked fish. I'm obsessed with this sweet Indonesian soy - it;s the easiest secret ingredient to have in your arsenal.

Mix all the ingredients together. This marinade will keep for weeks in the fridge.

109

Puddings & Sweets I don't have a massive sweet tooth. The common theme that runs through most of these desserts is some sort of savoury element - miso, tahini, salt, cheese - those little twists that make everything less sickly and cloying.

110

Labneh, Meringue, Fruit, Nuts The Brownies Blood Orange & White Chocolate Cheesecake Brown Butter Crumble with Vanilla Ice Cream Churros Ice Cream Sandwiches with Dulce de Leche Sea Salt & Miso Rice Krispy Treats Seville Orange Tart Beetroot & Goats Cheese Macarons Chocolate Tahini Tart with Crunchy Salt Pear, Lemon, Rose Sorbet Chocolate Nemesis Campari Granita Banoffee Split Blackberry & Star Anise Friands Cherry Clafoutis

111

112

113

Serves 4

150g Labneh (p.12) 1 punnet strawberries 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses 2 tsp caster sugar 4 meringues 4 tbsp flaked almonds, toasted

114

Labneh, Meringue, Fruit, Nuts This is more of a suggestion than a recipe. Use any number of combinations of fruit and nuts. Try peaches and hazlenuts, blood orange and pistachios or bananas and peanuts.

Hull and halve the strawberries. Toss with pomegranate molasses and casater sugar and leave to macerate for at least 30 minutes, and up to 2 hours.

Serve a dollop of labneh with the macerated fruit, meringue and almonds.

The Brownies Makes 12

These are the fudgey brownies that I've been making since I was 7.

They're a perfect low-effort rustle up bake for me - I always have eggs, butter and cocoa powder in my cupboard.

250g salted butter 8 heaped tbsp cocoa powder 4 eggs 450g granulated sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract a pinch of salt 110g plain flour

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease a rectangular baking tray with butter, then coat with flour and tip off the excess.

In a heavy based saucepan, melt the butter slowly. Add the cocoa powder and mix until fully incorporated.

In a food processor, blend together the eggs, sugar and vanilla.

Once the mixture is light and pale, slowly add the cocoa powder. Fold in the flour by hand then pour the mixture into the lined baking tray.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.

Leave to cool, if you can, before cutting and serving.

115

116