This is a simple stew that can be made within an hour or for best results, made the night before. You can either make your own stock using bones from the lamb neck or just buy a neck fillet and a separate stock. What I love about this dish is that it’s a one pot recipe, so it’s minimal fuss. It also uses a cheap cut of meat (for lamb anyway) and all of the[…]
Gin & Yang
Hollandaise Sauce
Hollandaise sauce has a reputation for being a difficult sauce to make and it’s probably justified. Creating an emulsion with eggs is always tough to do, it is very heat sensitive and can split for no apparent reason. But there are a few tricks you can use to keep the temperature under control and to stabilise the emulsion. There are a number of ways to make hollandaise sauce and each has its own merits. For[…]
Poached Smoked Haddock & Eggs with Purple Asparagus and Hollandaise Sauce
I warn you now – this one will have you running around the kitchen like a headless chicken. I wanted to do something quick but technically challenging and tasty. It turns out it was all those things, all at once. Two types of steamed veg, 3-6 mins. Poached Eggs, 3-4mins. Poached Haddock, 5-10mins. Hollandaise sauce 4-5mins. Dinner in 20mins I thought… wow was I wrong. Firstly preparing all this stuff is easy, there isn’t even[…]
Menu of the Week – 30/10/2011
I’m publishing this earlier this week as I will be out on a trip tomorrow. I had intended to try a Beef Cheek Confit but sadly my local butcher was only able to get it on special order, so that one will have to wait. Instead I’m doing a Beef Brisket Confit, Pappardelle Bolognese and tonight I will be doing a Rack of Lamb with Polenta. Menu of the week 30/10/2011 – 05/11/2011 Sunday[…]
Menu of the Week – 23/10/2011
I wasn’t feeling hugely creative this week but I tried something new today so at least I did something! I’m keeping it nice and simple with an Irish Stew and Chorizo Pasta through the week. I might finally get to do my Pappardelle Bolognese this weekend if my local supermarket has any beef shin. Menu of the Week (23/10/2011 – 29/10/2011) Sunday Poached Smoked Haddock & Eggs with Purple Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce Monday[…]
Mushroom & Artichoke Risotto
I’m probably not the best person to ask when it comes to making vegetarian meals. I generally feel duped when I find a meal doesn’t involve meat. Most chefs who aren’t vegetarians themselves don’t enjoy having to serve up meals for vegans. I recently watched an old episode of Top Chef: Masters where the four chefs had to cook lunch for Zooey Deschanel – the catch? She is a vegan, who is also gluten intolerant. […]
Brunch at Harvey Nichols
I had a great day out at this weekend. My wife had her heart set on Balenciaga bag that she has been saving up for, she had been eyeing it for a month or two. Anyway, it required a trip into Harvey Nichols in Bristol, next to the Temple Meads Shopping center. After some um-ing and ah-ing Phoebe was about £1k lighter in the wallet. If it was my money I would have gone crazy,[…]
Spaghetti alla Carbonara
Carbonara has to be one of my favourite Italian dishes. It’s so simple but incredibly tasty. Sadly a lot of restaurants get it horribly wrong. It must be a British thing but there does seem to be a propensity to add cream to a Carbonara or stranger yet mushrooms? Carbonara is not meant to be a white sauce otherwise it would be “Spaghetti with a Bacon, White Wine and Mushroom sauce”. And if that was[…]
Thai Green Curry Chicken with Sticky Rice
I have to admit, I’ve not had much Thai food. It’s one of those cuisines that I’ve just never gotten around to properly exploring. I should make a bigger effort because most Thai dishes that I’ve tried have been really good. Pineapple rice (served in half a pineapple) has got to be one of the best ways to do fried rice! At some point I’m going to have to come up with my own recipe[…]
Menu of the Week – 16/10/2011
It’s my wife’s birthday night this week (her actual birthday isn’t until next week) and we will be heading to the Chef’s Table at “The Muset by Ronnie” in Clifton, Bristol. I think I’m looking forward to it more than her! It will be a 6 course meal and the head chef will be deciding the menu for us. All I need to do is bring the wine and he will cook something to go[…]