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F is for...............

4/24/2016

Fennel. To some of you, this may come as a surprise. However, I like the idea of Fennel over such ingredients as ‘fish’ or ‘figs’ due to the versatility that the others don’t have. Over the course of my career, fennel has found its way onto every course of my menus in one form or another. I’m referring to the Fennel Bulb over Fennel seeds or the flower
During my time working as a commis chef in the pastry section at a 4* hotel, I was surprised to discover that fennel can go very well with coffee! After some investigation, the result was a coffee and fennel sponge with candied fennel, served with a rich coffee ice cream. It literally blew my mind! Up until this point, I’d only ever known fennel to be used with a range of savoury dishes. It is moments like this that pique my interest in cooking and fuel my desire to be a chef. As my career has progressed, this happens less and less. However, nothing beats the feeling of just going “Wow” and fennel did that.

By Susan Slater - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=46478646

Fennel is one of those unique ingredients that can be eaten raw or cooked and is equally tasting in both forms. For example, one of my favourite salads is a simple Fennel and Red Onion salad. It is a great accompaniment to a nice oily piece of fish, like mackerel. Simply thinly slice a fennel bulb and a red onion on a mandolin. Place the slices into a bowl and squeeze in the juice of 1 lemon. Add a splash of olive oil, sprinkle a large pinch of sugar and then season with salt and pepper. Mix everything well and leave it to stand for 10 minutes. You want to be sure to eat it within a day or two before it becomes a bit too limp.

Another simple use of fennel is in a stir fry. It can also be braised and used as a base for salmon or trout. You can chargrill it and serve alongside other vegetables such as peppers and aubergine. Or one of my favourite uses of fennel is to turn it into a sorbet. Yes, you read that right. A sorbet! There is just the right amount of sweetness already in the fennel and sugar really brings out the aniseed flavor. It never ceases to amuse me when I watch people taste fennel sorbet and they struggle to determine where the flavour is from. If you have time to experiment with ice cream and sorbet then I would highly recommend it!

The good news is that Fennel is available year round in every supermarket, so there’s no excuse to not go and buy one to try if you haven't already. When you shop for fennel, you need to make sure that you select nice firm bulbs that show no signs of bruising. You may be able to find baby fennel which are much sweeter cooked than fennel but I don’t find as tasty eaten raw.

Thank you for taking the time again to read my musings. I have already written the next few letters, but am currently stuck on the letter 'I' . Any suggestions for that would be greatly received

E is for....... (finally)

4/18/2016

Egg. (specifically the Chicken Egg). It is the obvious choice. There are very few ingredients as useful and versatile as the Egg. It holds a cake together, is the fundamental ingredient used to create a soufflé, it can be used to add colour to pastry when baking as well as being the main ingredient in emulsifications such as mayonnaise and hollandaise. On its own, it can be poached, fried, boiled, scrambled, coddled - the list is endless and its usefulness knows no bounds. I could probably write a thousand words about the egg without even going into detail!

So, where to start? I could talk about how to poach or fry the perfect egg, but I truly believe that how people like their eggs is subjective, and it is not for me to tell you what is right and what is. There is the ongoing debate into the healthiness of eggs. I could delve into the rights and wrongs of egg farming. On the other hand, I could entertain you with my hilarious stories about eggs that are no yolk?! Or we could find the answer to the $64,000 question - what really did come first, the chicken or the egg? If I am not careful, this blog could turn into a PhD essay. In fact, in hindsight perhaps I should have opted for the Edamame bean!

Therefore, this week I will keep it short and sweet and give you a simple, easy to make at home recipe. This one is inspired by my time spent living in the USA - The Devilled Egg. Near where we were living, there was a great restaurant we would frequent. They served devilled eggs in either 3s or 6s as a starter course. It is my belief that the plate of 6 was meant to be a shared dish enjoyed by multiple diners. However, I would often find myself filling up on these before getting the rest of our meal!

All you need is the following:

6 Medium Eggs
2 Tbsp Full fat mayonnaise
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
½ Shallot finely diced
1 tsp Paprika
Chopped Chives

Bring a pan of water to the boil and carefully place the eggs into the water (make sure they are completely covered)
Bring the water back to the boil and set the timer for 9 minutes. As long as the water is boiling this time is sufficient.
When the timer goes off, remove the eggs and place them on a tray/plate in the fridge for an hour.
After they have cooled, peel the eggs then cut in half. Remove the yolks and grate into a bowl.
Add the mayonnaise, diced shallot, Dijon mustard, ½ of the paprika and salt and pepper to taste and mix well.
Spoon the mix back into the egg halves – splitting it evenly between each egg ½
Sprinkle with the chives and rest of the paprika.

These are great for lunch with a salad or, as suggested earlier, solely on their own enjoyed with a couple of glasses of beer. They are also great as a precursor to dishes like slow cooked pork or beef.
Have a go and let me know what you think. And if you find another way you like to serve them, then let me know. I’m always up for new ideas

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog again. It wont be as long between this one and the next. Our gourmet dinner went off really well. Thank you to everyone who came and ate. We are looking at the possibility of doing it again in the near future.

F is for...............

E is for....... (finally)

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