RECIPE de jour
monday, august 7, 2023
ROASTED STRAWBERRY, PEACH + ELDERFLOWER BUTTERMILK CREPES
As a teenager, I had a bizarre fascination with making crepes when I came home from school – bog standard 'pancakes', as we called them in Dublin – served up 'Delia Smith style' with a load of lemon juice and way too much caster sugar.
In the early 1990s Dublin, these food delights were not known as fancy 'French crepes' but just flour, egg and milk pancakes. Through my years in the past 15 OF WORKING IN FOOD, I've come to accept that 'pancakes' really are more the American style ones - aka thick and fluffy and made with buttermilk.
I'll always BE AN advocate for the flour, egg and milk-style ones. But i have put in some buttermilk to there ones to combine 2 classics.
all pancakes start out with the first one will be an utter disaster and chucked in the bin as you work through your (hopefully, natural expertise flipping skills), and try to deliver about 12 perfectly cooked and evenly browned thin-as-paper offerings.
I created this recipe alongside an Irish cordial company – Sadie's Cordial. Their peach/strawberry cordial really is a winner. You wont be able to get it in AUS but you can substitute with another elderflower one such as BELVOIR FARM.
You can use my compote I WROTE FOR THIS RECIPE, as a preserve on toast or pair it with natural yoghurt and granola. You can even serve it with ice cream.
Feel free to substitute white flour for wholemeal and add other berries/fruit, too.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
FEBRUARY 2023, WEEK 1
SAN CHOY BAU
I discovered this dish when I lived in Aus. SO I THOUGHT IT FITTING TO PUT UP MY OWN VERSION OF IT NOW I AM BACK. PREVIOUSLY I USED TO BUY SHOP-BOX PRE-MADE SEASONS AND SAUCE ETC., BUT NOW AND FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS I MAKE IT ALL FROM SCRATCH.
I think it’s probably one of my most loved dinners. I adore the combination of strong flavours and the varying textures offered by the crisp lettuce, spicy beef, crunchy peanuts etc. Once you start making this, it will become a staple weeknight dinner and always goes down a massive treat with THOSE who love chilli.
I often crunch up a packet of uncooked ramen noodles and scatter them over the beef for extra crunch.
I serve this always with chilli garlic sauce and use lee kum kee brand
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
FEBRUARY 2023, WEEK 1
roasted cauliflower, chickpea + goat cheese salad
I used Irish cheese in this recipe. 'An knoc dubh' produced by the Galway Goat Farm is an aged ashed rinded goats' cheese pyramid made from single estate pasteurised goats' milk.
Light and fresh when young (2 to 3 weeks) and breaking down into a creamy deeper flavoured goats' cheese, with peppery after tones when older (3 to 6 weeks). All hand made in small batches using traditional lactic methods. Ashed in vegetable ash. It works very well in this salad. If you need help getting your hands on the exact product (they ship nationally in Ireland, but sadly not to Aus), you can substitute it with an alternative ashen soft goat's cheese, many of which are available nationally here in mainstream supermarkets and gourmet food shops.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
FEBRUARY 2023, WEEK 1
ricotta flatbreads with jalapeños, avocado + lime
This recipe is excellent. While shooting it, I found it almost impossible not to keep devouring some of the toasts as I plated them. I'm generally not one to blow my own trumpet about my work, but this recipe is a total 'all killer, no filler' as people say regarding music albums which are just cracking from start to finish. No duds.
The crunchy sourdough, zesty lime, peppery rocket and creamy ricotta work brilliantly with the salty anchovies. It's like a margarita in food form..