Food and Drink

VALENTINE MEALS

Filet Mignon for Two with Sweet Potato Mash

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp butter, slightly softened ½ tsp minced garlic 1 tsp chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme, rosemary and/or chives 1 small, sweet potato (about 225gms), peeled and cut into 1cm pieces 60ml low-fat milk ¾ tsp ground pepper ½ tsp salt 1 bunch broccolini, trimmed and halved lengthwise 4 tsp extra-virgin olive oil (2 x 2 tsp) 2 x 120g filet mignon steaks, about 3cm thick

METHOD

Preheat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas7. Combine the butter with the garlic and herbs in a small bowl and set aside. Add sweet potato to boiling water and simmer for about 10 minutes until tender. Strain and transfer to a medium bowl. Add milk, 1 tsp of the herb butter, 1/4 tsp pepper and 1/8 tsp salt. Mash with a large fork or potato masher to desired consistency. Cover and keep warm. Toss broccolini with 2 tsp oil, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Place the broccolini on one half of a large, rimmed baking sheet and roast until beginning to soften (about 10 minutes). Pat steaks dry with paper towel and season both sides with ¼ tsp each salt and pepper. Heat the remaining 2 tsp oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the steaks, turning once, until browned on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Remove the broccolini from the oven and stir. Place the seared steaks on the empty half of the baking sheet. Return to the oven and roast until the broccolini has softened and the steaks are cooked to desired cuisson (3 to 5 minutes for medium-rare). Transfer each steak to a plate and top each one with 1 tsp of the herb butter. Serve with the broccolini and mashed sweet potato.

Healthy Prawn & Chilli linguine

INGREDIENTS

200g raw prawns peeled 300g spiralised courgette 100g linguine pasta 3 thinly sliced garlic cloves 1 individual chilli pepper deseeded and sliced 200g diced tomatoes 1 tbsp olive oil 2 pinches chilli flakes - adjust to taste Juice of 1 medium lemon

METHOD

Bring a large pan of water to a boil, add the linguine and cook to the stated pack instructions. Add the spiralised courgette to the pan for the final 1 minute of cooking time. Drain well. Meanwhile heat a large frying pan over a medium heat and add the garlic, oil, fresh chilli, chilli flakes, tomatoes and lemon juice. Keep stirring and cook for around 5 minutes until the tomatoes have softened. Add the prawns to the pan and cook for a further 3 minutes, until they’re pink and cooked through. Season to taste. Add the linguine and courgette to the pan and toss through the sauce to coat. Serve immediately.

Red Fruit Ice Cream Cake

INGREDIENTS

150g biscuits 40g desiccated coconut 100 g melted butter 200g frozen raspberries (or 250g strawberries) 250g sugar 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 egg whites at room temperature 2 drops lemon juice 1 handful cherries (or similar red fruit) for garnish

METHOD

Before commencing, defrost the raspberries and line the base of a 21cm springform cake tin with parchment paper. Crush the biscuits and place in a bowl with the coconut, cinnamon, and melted butter. Mix all the ingredients together and spread onto the bottom of the lined cake tin pressing down with the back of a spoon. Set aside in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes to chill. Place the egg whites, raspberries, sugar, vanilla, and lemon drops into a bowl or food mixer. Whisk until smooth and firm. Cover the biscuit base with raspberry mousse and level the surface. Place in the freezer for at least 4 hours until ready to serve. Decorate with cherries or other red fruits. Store in the freezer and treat as an ice cream.

Beef Stroganoff with Puff Pastry Crust

INGREDIENTS

300g fillet steak 125g ready made puff pastry 1 finely sliced onion 2 crushed garlic cloves 1tsp paprika 2tbsp brandy 2tbsp olive oil plus extra for brushing 100ml crème fraiche

METHOD

Preheat oven to 200C/190C fan/gas 6 and cut fillet steak into 5mm strips then set aside. Cut two pastry squares approx. 12cm by 12cm. Make a couple of heart shapes from pastry trimmings and place on centre of each square. Place on oiled baking sheet and bake for 15 mins until golden and puffed. Meanwhile heat 1tbsp of oil in a large pan and fry onions for 3-4 mins. Add garlic and cook for 1 further minute. Remove mixture to a plate and keep warm. Toss fillet strips in the paprika. Add the remainder of the oil to the pan and sear the beef for 2 minutes on high heat. Remove the pan from heat and add brandy. Allow to bubble for 1 minute then return pan to heat; add onions and stir in crème fraiche. Spoon stroganoff mixture into 2 warmed individual serving dishes or plates and top with pastry crust. Serve with vegetables of choice or crisp green salad.

We only went out for a bottle of wine and came back owning a vineyard…. by Rob Brimfield and Steve McMahon

We are delighted to welcome Rob and Steve to The DSM family You may recognise them from the Channel 4 programme "A New Life In The Sun" (2016-2019)

We are Rob and Steve, “The Vineyard Guys” from Clos Vieux Rochers which is nestled in the rolling countryside on the outskirts of Puisseguin just 12km from Saint Emilion and Castillon La Bataille, in the heart of the Bordeaux wine region. Our wine is a Castillon Cotes de Bordeaux made with traditional values, an honest wine for the modern drinker, produced by artisans, made with passion with all the nuances you would expect from a quality wine. With four gites set in the vineyard for visitors to enjoy…. but how did we end up here?

Back in early 2015 we had sold our business in the UK and were very unsure what our next step would be. With years of experience in hospitality, bars, restaurants, hotels and retail, it was inevitable that those skills would draw us to something that involved looking after people but what? When asked by a dear friend “So what are you guys going to do now?” our answer was we didn’t know, so the suggestion came to explore this region of France. Now people that relocate to France have normally holidayed or spent time in France but we had only ever passed through, so we landed at the airport and our tour of the Gironde / Dordogne regions began.

So what do a couple of young guys look for? (OK not that young) well we were looking for what a lot of people do that move to France, nice house, gite or two and a slower pace of life. That was the plan, so the search began. We won’t bore you with the details of how many not quite right properties we viewed, the piles of stone, the bad renovations and the simply just No!

On one of our viewing days we were asked if we minded if the agent took us to a small vineyard that had recently been added to their list that he would like to see. So always willing to have a look around a property or two we said yes.

Expectations and imagination conjure up an image when someone says “vineyard” so as we turned down the drive and approached the property our jaws dropped…. “Curb appeal” is a phrase you may have heard or “dress your property for viewing” well that is not really how it is done in France and this property was no different. Once the initial shock had passed and we had been shown around the property, we took a stroll around the vines on our own. I don’t think either of us ever imagined we would be viewing a vineyard on our visit, let alone be stood amongst the vines actually contemplating whether this could be the property for us. Ok we had knowledge of wine and not just from drinking it, but could we make wine? The one house was just waiting to fall down and the other was not exactly ready to move into. The more we talked the more we saw the potential, renovate the old house, turn the other into four one bedroom gites and make wine, simple, who wouldn’t see this lifestyle property as fitting the bill of being perfect for the semi-retirement move to France? Well, naive we are not and the work involved we realised was going to be enormous, were we too old for this size of project or did we have one more big one in us? So we returned to the UK to contemplate the reality of buying such a property and what the project would entail. After deciding we were up for the challenge, we returned to

France for a second look and to make sure it wasn’t just a bright idea.

On the 28th of August 2015 we were handed the keys with the owners parting words…. “les toilettes de la maison ne fonctionnent pas” welcome to France.

With no working loo we checked back into the hotel for a few nights. Then the hard work began to turn the rundown vineyard into “Clos Vieux Rochers

Vineyard and Gites” that we now call home.

For more information on Rob & Steve, their wine, vineyard tours and accommodation ... www.closvieuxrochers.com

by Megan Like

MEGAN’S KITCHEN

Gluten Free Recipes

GLUTEN FREE DEATH BY CHOCOLATE

This self-indulgent chocolate dessert is gluten and dairy free but make sure you use real maple syrup.

Ingredients:

3 ripe bananas 30g cocoa powder 2 tbsp maple syrup 1 tbsp water pinch of salt 30g semi-sweet mini chocolate chips

Equipment:

Knife, food processor, loaf tin (suitable for freezing)

Method:

Slice bananas and place flat into a freezer bag and freeze until solid preferably overnight but at least 2-3 hours.

Place frozen banana slices, cocoa powder, maple syrup, water, and salt into a food processor and pulse until ingredients are pureed, making a smooth and creamy mixture. Add chocolate chips and pulse until just incorporated. Transfer mixture to a loaf pan. Lined with cling film and freeze for at least another hour until firm.