experiment recipe: chocolate & pear tart

For this experiment I leant on an old favourite flavour profile pear, orange & vanilla it's a blissful combo! My thinking was pear & chocolate go well, orange & chocolate . . . there are no clashes here . .  . full steam ahead! See the bottom for all the pear, orange & vanilla refs and experimental notes to self!!

chocolate & pear tart

tart of windfall pears poached in syrup, covered in chocolate

IngredientsMakes: 1632g (12)

350g		sweet short pastry	(recipe below)
540g		pears
500g		sugar
390g		OJ
10g		vanilla essence
400g		butter
400g		dark chocolate 70%
120g		espresso

Method

For a 29cm 11.5inch fluted tart tray (loose bottomed) Using up the last of the windfall pears poached in orange and vanilla syrup.

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Make the pastry, bake blind 180C / 15m + 5m w/o baking beans.

Macerate the pears in sugar, then add OJ & vanilla, BTB, the take off the heat.

Leave for 30mins to soften & absorb flavour. [after this they make your tastebuds melt w/ delight]

Make the chocolate top.

Put, butter, choc, espresso into a small bowl > uW 1m at at time until all liquid.

Mix into a smooth chocolate sauce.

Pour a 3mm layer onto the pastry base > FZ ~30m to set the chocolate.

Drain the pears, keep syrup for mousse cake. [ding - see notes]

Place the pears into the case & cover w/ chocolate goodness!

Leave to set in the fridge - or FZ ~30m

sweet short pastry

IngredientsMakes: 1400g

750g		plain flour
30g		caster sugar
450g		butter
110g	(2)	large eggs
60g		ice cold water

Method

Flour, sugar, butter > crumb texture.

Add water & eggs bring together into pastry. Experimental notes to self: OK so the chocolate obliterated the OJ & vanilla and there weren't enough pears. Boo! It felt like it was a bit mean in terms of choc coating! : / Better next time - improvement on the experiment: x2 pears, use same amount of sugar, and just enough OJ to cover the pears after macerating. x1.5 choc coat . . . To the butter choc mix, add the orange syrup plus the same weight of chocolate so it sets properly, lightens the chocolate & matches the flavour of the fruit . . .  fingers crossed! Abbreviations: BTTB / BTB - Bring to the Boil BTBS - Bring to the Boil & Simmer uW - microwave FZ - Freezer FR - Fridge If memory serves this flavour combo came up in a few places:

Champagne Poached Pears w/ Vanilla,  Cured Serrano Ham w/ Champagne Poached Pears,  Campaign - Fight Hunger: Eat In,  Picnic At Henley Royal Regatta With Ryvita

If you are in Hereford check out Growing Local on facebook/meta they currently have all sorts of seasonal veg available grown right here in Hereford using organic practices!
Sign up for veg box here / or for wholesale here.

visual recipe: preserved yellow cherry tomatoes (slow roasted tomatoes / blushed tomatoes)

start w/ fresh tomatoes

 two jars worth of tomatoes per jar

 on trays before slice

place on counter or board

place board on top & slice w scalloped blade

very quick - better than one at a time!

season & dress w a little oil optional

place in oven 50C or 122F - open door every hour let out steam

After 5hrs

pick 12g each rosemary sage thyme

place in oil and heat to . . 

heat to 90C or 194F to kill bacteria

place oil & herbs in jar followed by tomatoes

add gauze & top up w oil

preserved yellow cherry tomatoes . . . use as desired : )

recipe: preserved yellow cherry tomatoes (slow roasted tomatoes / blushed tomatoes)

preserved yellow cherry tomatoes

dried salted yellow cherry tomatoes preserved in olive oil w/ rosemary sage & thyme

IngredientsMakes: 940g

960g		yellow cherry tomatoes
10g		salt
40g		olive oil
300g		olive oil
12g		sage
12g		rosemary
12g		thyme
130g		olive oil

Method

Makes one 950ml kilner jar full.

Cut the tomatoes in half.

For this many small tomatoes I place half of them on the clean counter, place a cutting board on top and slice between the two using a knife w/ a scalloped edge, much faster than doing them one at a time!

To dehydrate the tomatoes place them on 2 full size oven tray sprinkle generously w/ salt.

Bake fan 50C / 5h - open the oven door every half hour for the 1st 2 hours to let out steam, then every hour after that.

I've used sprigs of herbs because it's more decorative & it keeps the herbs in position in the jar.

Heat the herbs together in the oil to 90C / 194F - this wil kill bacteria but not frazzle the herbs!

Place them and a third of the oil into a sterilised 950ml kilner jar, add the dehdrated tomatoes and top up w/ oil.

Place a sterilized gauze in to keep the tomatoes submerged.

Job done . . . dip in when you fancy!

On top of mashed potato, to top humous & baguette, w/ pasta etc. . . etc.

If you are in Hereford check out Growing Local on facebook/meta they currently have all sorts of seasonal veg available grown right here in Hereford using organic practices!
Sign up for veg box here / or for wholesale here.

recipe: roast pork shoulder w crackling

roast pork shoulder w crackling

roast pork shoulder low cooked until it's 55C in the middle then cranked up to finish the centre and crisp the crackling . . . OMG melty sticky fatty goodness coated in crispy crunchy salty bliss!

IngredientsMakes: 1160g (4)

1600g		pork shoulder joint
10g		salt

Method

Take pork out of fridge first thing the morning.

If the skin isn't already scored, score it - think carving lines!

Cover the skin w/ salt - or lay it in a bed of salt if it unrolls.

Leave it to come up to room temp for at least 2 hours.

Rinse the salt from the skin and place the joint in a baking tray,

^ this baking tray will be the final resting place for the roast potatoes which will go in to soak in th pork fat & stock after transfering the pork to a tray w/ water & trivet.

Put a temp probe into the deepest part of the pork & place in the oven.

Bake 150C / until probe reads 55C safe side, about 1hour 15mins.

Boil the potatoes, get veg & the sauce on in the meantime.

Prepare a roasting tray w/ a trivet w/ just under a cm of water in the bottom of it.

The smoke point of pork fat / lard is aroun 188-190C, and the water will stop dripping fat smoking the whole kitchen out when you open the oven door! (and keep your oven clean!)

Once the probe gets to the right temp take the meat out & and tranfer it to the tray w/ the trivet.

Turn the oven up to 230C and return the joint back to the oven bottom shelf.

Put the potatoes into the 1st tray which will have loads of pork fat and concentrated pork stock - coat them in it and place them in the top shelf. #bestpotatoesever

Cook until probe hits at least 65C, and the crackling is crisp ~10-15mins.

Take the meat out and let it rest in a warm place.

If you leave the probe in place you will see the temp keep rising as the heat & juices distribute from the outside to the inside of the joint. It should be 70C or above before you carve & serve it.

Turn the oven down to 180C to finish the potatoes.

Serve w/ white onion sauce, apple sauce, roasties & your favourite veg! (coming up! . . . )

If you are in Hereford check out Growing Local on facebook/meta they currently have all sorts of seasonal veg available grown right here in Hereford using organic practices!
Sign up for veg box here / or for wholesale here.

recipe: guinea fowl chinese leaf wrap

guinea fowl chinese leaf wrap

guinea fowl tagine w/ salad topped w/ couscous - in asia you find all manner of things wrapped in leaves - psychologically its a kebab! ; )

IngredientsMakes: 332g (2)

66g	(2)	chinese leaf
81g		green leaf & orange beet	(recipe below)
132g		guinea fowl tagine	(recipe below)
53g		couscous chermoula	(recipe below)

Method

Sometimes leftovers make te best recipes! This is a great example of one of those recipes!

Made from bits and pieces of yesterdays guinea fowl tagine & couscous

It's simplicity itself. Take a large chinese leaf and load it w/ salad and guinea fowl tagine including sweet potato & chermoula then top w/ couscous, make sure to get some flaked almond in there!

Fastest dinner ever!

green leaf & orange beet

green leaf w/ courgette ribbons & mange tout dressed w/ orange beetroot & lemon vinaigrette

IngredientsMakes: 419g (1)

100g		orange & fennel poached beetroot	(recipe below)
82g		chinese lettuce
20g		mange tout
120g		courgette
50g		mixed green leaf
40g		lemon vinaigrette	(recipe below)
6g		olive oil
1g		salt flakes

Method

Make the orange & fennel poached beetroot first - this take about 1 hour.

The rest is pretty fast . . .

Shred the chinese leaf coarsely & fine shred the mange tout.

Top & tail & peel the courgette, then lay it on the counter and pull the peeler along it's length to make ribbons.

Once you get to the seed core turn it 90 degrees and repeat until all four sides have been done and only the seed core remains. Dice the seed core into small cubes.

Dice the beetroot to the desired size and add some of the liquor.

Mix all the ingredient in a salad bowl and toss to coat evenly.

orange & fennel poached beetroot

beetroot poached in orange & apple juice w/ a little ginger & fennel - great cocktail beet, for salads and sides

IngredientsMakes: 360g

180g		beetroot
120g		orange juice
120g		apple juice
20g		ginger
2g		fennel seeds
40g		sugar
20g		cocktail onions
6g		sherry vinegar

Method

Peel the beetroot and cut into 1 inch pieces.

Put everything in a boiling pot with a lid on and bring to the boil.

Then turn down to a simmer, and cook for 45mins.

Check it occasionally and remove an scum.

Keep it topped up with water so that it covers the beetroot.

Once cooked let it cool and decant into an airtight container.

If using steamed (already cooked) beetroot let it simmer for 5mins, then leave it for an hour to infuse.

find Couscous Chermoula here! : )

If you are in Hereford check out Growing Local on facebook/meta they currently have all sorts of seasonal veg available grown right here in Hereford using organic practices!
Sign up for veg box here / or for wholesale here.