Peach and Basil Risotto

The weather here in Melbourne this past week has been unbelievably disgusting. Hot, humid and so over bearing that I have delegated all kitchen responsibilities to my husband . It has been an interesting time between my temper tantrums and my partners “womens weekly” style dinners… But we have survived and here I am!

The following recipe was an idea I wanted to try, after reading of it on a River Café menu. It is a very lovely risotto, but you do need to pay attention to the ingredients, otherwise you will end up with a peachy rice sludge. It took a couple of attempts before I got it right. Here are some suggestions that I discovered by trial and error:

• Make sure to use carnaroli rice.It doesn’t work so well with vialone nano (I haven’t tried it with Arborio).


• Use a good homemade meat stock. The first time I made this, I used vegetable stock and the final dish lacked body The second time I used pigeon stock (that’s what I had) and the result was much, much better


• You need beautiful just ripe peaches to stir through the final dish


• And choose a nice dry sparkling wine to use in your risotto (sweet sparkling is overkill)

The success of this dish lies in the delicate and subtle blending of sweet and savoury. So be prepared to taste as you go along. Parmesan and butter will offset the sweetness of the peaches. The sparkling wine and basil will bring forth the fragrance of the peach
I know this sounds like a strange dish, but it is lovely and I think many people will be surprised at how good, it actually is. I enjoyed it immensely.

Ingredients
1 small brown onion, finely chopped
A splash olive oil
200g carnaroli rice
100ml dry sparkling wine
Meat stock., heated
Ground cinnamon
Fresh white pepper
Sea salt
Parmesan cheeses
Unsalted butter
200g white peach, peeled and chopped (1cm)
Basil leaves (I like to use the tiny leaves from the bunch)

Method
Over a low heat, heat the olive oil and sauté the onion for 10minutes. Do not allow the onion to colour. Add the rice and toss it about for a few minutes. Add the wine, turn the heat to medium and allow the wine to absorb and reduce. Now begin to add the hot stock, ladle by ladle. Allow each ladleful of stock to be absorbed before adding the next ladleful. Give the rice a stir with every ladleful of stock. Season with cinnamon, salt and white pepper. Once the rice is aldente , turn off the heat. This risotto works better on the more compact side, rather than overly fluid and moist. Add a generous knob of butter, parmesan and the peaches. Stir everything through and serve immediately, topped with the tiny basil leaves. See my previous post for more information on risotto technique. Serves two, on a romantic summer evening.

Tagliatelle with Mushroom and Ham

Sometime during December, I was presented with a brand new pasta machine. I’m not quite sure for which celebration that was though. Was it my birthday, or Hanukah, Christmas, my partners and I anniversary or New Years Eve? Yes, they all fall in December, and for this reason, that month will remain a fuzzy memory of debauched acts. My brain cells have only just recovered…
As a child, I was more acquainted with fresh, homemade pasta than I was with the dry packet version. That’s not to say, one is better than the other. They are just different. Dry commercial pasta is sturdy and bold and combines well with aggressive flavours, like extra virgin olive oil. “Pasta fatta in casa” is lighter and more delicate, elegant but rustic at the same time. It needs little to bring out these beautiful qualities and I prefer it with simple butter based sauces, like the following:



Ingredients
150g mushrooms (wild or cultivated, whatever you can get)
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced or finely chopped
50g ham, chopped
60g unsalted butter
A slash of extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper
Parsley, chopped
200g homemade tagliatelle
Fresh Parmesan

Method
Wipe the mushrooms clean and slice them 1cm thick.
Over a low heat, melt half the butter with the garlic and ham and a splash of olive oil. Cook gently for a couple of minutes. Do not allow the garlic to brown.
Throw in the mushrooms and cover the pan. Allow the mushrooms to braise gently in their own juices until cooked through. Mine took about 15 minutes, but that will depend on the type of mushroom you are using. Season well. Keep warm.
In the meantime, cook the tagliatelle in plenty of boiling, salted water until just al dente. Fresh, homemade pasta will take about 2 minutes.
Drain quickly and tip into the pan with the mushrooms.
Add the parsley and the rest of the butter and toss everything together.
Check for salt and pepper and serve immediately with Parmesan cheese.
A dish with honest flavours and exquisite textures. Serves 2.

Alfajores

This South American cookie is from heaven, with its gorgeous buttery, melt in the mouth texture. I love them and I cannot just eat one- ten cookies later, I am still munching!
My mother made these often for family celebrations and she did them well. In fact most South American housewives have these biscuits in their baking repetoire.
The secret to making them is in the handling of the dough, or the lack of handling, I should say. To keep them soft, only handle the dough to just combine the ingredients. The more you touch this dough, the tougher it will become. To make the entire preparation stress free, have your Dulce de Leche prepared well in advance (or buy from a South American shop, if you must). See December 2006 for my recipe.
Usually these shortbreads are coated with dessicated coconut (how tacky, I detest things that get caught in teeth) I have broken tradition and gone for a slightly more glamorous version, by icing them instead.



Ingredients
150g unsalted cultured butter, at room temperature
100g caster sugar
4 egg yolks (free range, of course)
a few drops of lemon essence
250g cornflour
100g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarb soda
300g icing sugar, sifted
60ml boiling water
Dulce de Leche (see December 2006)

Method
With a wooden spoon, beat together the butter and sugar until creamy.
Add each egg yolk, one by one, beating between each addition.
Follow with the lemon essence.
Mix together the dry ingredients and work them into the dough with a minimum of handling until just combined.
Allow the dough to rest for 20 minutes.
Roll out the dough to a thickness of 5mm and cut it circles 5cm in diameter. I use a small drinking glass to stamp out the circles just because that is how my mother did it.
Bake them on oiled and floured trays in a180c oven. They should not brown at all and are perfect when they are pale but cooked through.
Allow them to cool and then sandwich two halves (to create one) with Dulce de Leche.
Place the sandwiched cookies on a wire rack.
Mix together the icing sugar and boiling water, to create a fluid icing. You may need more or less water. Adjust accordingly.
Use this icing to glaze the gorgeous little cookies. You will need to work quickly, as icing thickens on standing.
I forgot to take note of how many biscuits this quantity makes- I think it is somewhere around the twenty something mark.
Variations- for a less fussy version, you could just dust these with icing sugar. Or if you have the skill, you could use a fine layer of Italian meringue in place of the icing. I like these biscuits for breakfast with a cafe, that’s very South American.

Potato, Borlotti Bean and Red Pepper Salad

Here is another wonderful salad for the summer time. This one though is more substantial than yesterdays, and it contains two carbohydrates that I love- the waxy potato and the ever convenient borlotti bean (tinned of course), The red pepper gives this dish crunch and fragrance, while adding colour to an otherwise boring beige palette.
Serve this with a bloody steak (wagyu please).

Ingredients
400g tin Italian borlotti beans
200g waxy potato
1 red pepper, chopped
60ml extra virgin olive oil
15ml red wine vinegar (I infuse mine with rosemary and thyme)
1 tbsp very finely chopped onion
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper
Freshly chopped parsley

Method
Drain the beans in a colander and rinse under fresh water. Lay them out on a tea towel to dry.
Chop the potato into bite sized pieces. Steam them until cooked to your liking - I like mine a bit firm.
Allow the potato to cool a little.
Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, onion and seasoning. Pour over the still warm potato, beans and red pepper. I like to use my hands to gently combine, so the potato does not break.
Leave to marinate in the dressing until you are ready to eat.
At the last minute, add the parsley and check again for salt and pepper. Give everything a light mix to evenly distribute the dressing. This salad is best at room temperature. Serves 2-4 people

Harleygate

Oh my god! It was so hot last week, that I could barely think about food. Five days in a row of over 35c of suffocating heat, is getting a bit much for me. My solution to this food dilemma is to prepare salads for dinner. I am not really one to crave grilled vegetables and salads but in summer, the weather gets the better of me.
I am dedicating this salad to my “friend” Harley, thus naming it “Harleygate” Though, feel free to call it by what it really is-

White Zucchini, Walnut and Parmesan Salad.

Ingredients
4 white zucchini (use normal green zucchini, if unavailable)
50g roasted walnuts
About 6 handfuls of mixed salad leaves (rocket, baby spinach etc)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for grilling
2 tsp tarragon vinegar
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper
Parmesan cheese shavings (please use genuine Parmagiano-Reggiano)

Method
Slice your zucchini into 5mm lengths. You should get four from each zucchini. Place them in a large bowl and toss them with olive oil and salt.

Lay them onto a baking sheet and grill them under a high heat, until golden brown on both sides. Depending on the heat of the grill, they should take 5 to 10 minutes each side. Allow them to cool completely.
Whisk together the extra virgin oil, tarragon vinegar, salt and pepper.

Toss the leaves, zucchini, walnut pieces and tarragon dressing very gently but thoroughly in a large bowl. Check for salt and pepper.

Serve on a huge platter with the Parmesan shavings, sprinkled over the top.

Eat immediately. With bread only, this salad will serve 2.

If you wish to serve this as a first course, there is enough to serve 4

Beet Leaf & Cheese Ravioli

I made this particular filling for ravioli, the other day and my partner described them as divine. I think they are more on the robust side than the divine side. But I have to admit - they were very tasty and definitely have their place, here on this blog.
Just a note on quantities: I never plan how much of an ingredient is going to go into my ravioli fillings. I just ask for a piece of ricotta and then work with whatever amount the shop assistant gives me. And the same goes for the other ingredients. If I could only salvage 100g of leaves from the beetroot bunch, then so be it. It isn’t the end of the world. Just adjust as you go along. Taste, taste, taste and make sure the filling is well flavoured. Remember - pasta is bland.
I am only providing the recipe for the filling here because I have written about ravioli twice before. Check the recipe archive for assembly, cooking techniques and the sage butter recipe (I would leave out the anchovy for this dish though).
The following recipe will make enough filling for about 50 ravioli. Enough to feed four.



Ingredients
The leaves from a bunch of golf ball size beetroots
300g freshest ricotta
1 tsp of dried greek oregano
30g Parmesan cheese, grated
30g Pecorino cheese, grated
1 garlic clove, very finely chopped
A splash of extra virgin olive oil
Fresh black pepper
Sea salt

Method
Sort through the beetroot leaves. Keep only those leaves that are healthy looking and tender (there is no point cooking with rubbish) I managed to get about 100g.
Cut of the stalks where they meet the base of the leaf. Discard the stalks.
Soak the leaves in a sinkful of water, to dislodge any dirt.
Remove the leaves from their bath and chop them roughly.
In a saucepan large enough to fit the leaves, wilt them over a high with a few drops of water, then remove them to a sieve and allow them to drain and cool.
Chop the leaves finely by hand and combine with all the remaining ingredients in a bowl. The red juices from the leaves will stain the ricotta a delicate pink colour. Taste to make sure it is well seasoned.
Refridgerate until you are ready to assemble your ravioli.

Wagyu and Whipped Horseradish Cream

I was curious to try the famous wagyu beef (literally “Japanese cattle”). My butcher has been offering this prime breed of beef and I must say I was impressed with the clean flavour and melt in the mouth texture of this divine Asian cow. For someone who does not really like beef (I find the taste of beef dirty), that is saying a lot. Actually, it was the best beef I have ever tasted and I think we will probably be eating more beef in my household as a result (we eat more kangaroo than any other red meat)
My butcher suggested that two minutes cooking each side was sufficient- I do not like being told what to do, so I cooked for one minute each side. And it was perfect.

Ingredients
2 wagyu porterhouse steaks
2 slices of premium smoked bacon
1 garlic clove, peeled
Olive oil
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper
A handful of rocket leaves

For the cream
100ml crème fraiche
1 tsp horseradish (from a jar, I will get around to trying the fresh stuff one day)
1 tsp of very finely chopped onion
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper

Method
Bring the steaks to room temperature and rub them with a touch of olive oil. Have ready two sheets of foil to wrap your steaks once you have seared them.
Heat a few drops of olive oil in a pan and cook the bacon slices until lightly browned on both sides. Remove them to the pieces of foil.
Add the garlic clove to the rendered bacon fat in the pan and cook until lightly golden.
Discard the garlic- it has done its job by lightly flavouring the fat in the pan.
Now you are ready to sear your “wagyu”.
The pan needs to be hot. Add the steaks and cook for one minute each side. They should brown nicely in this time. Be careful of overcooking this expensive meat-you will only end up with a pan of rendered beef fat and a dry piece of meat. It only needs to cook just long enough for all the gorgeous fat to just melt and seep through the flesh.
Place the steaks on top of the bacon slices, double wrap in the foil and place on a wooden board. Leave for 20 minutes. During this time the bacon will infuse its deep flavour throughout the beef.
In the meantime, prepare the horseradish cream. Mix together all the ingredients for the cream. Using a baby whisk, lightly whisk the cream. This will only take about 30 seconds. Refridgerate and set aside
Toss the rocket leaves with a touch of olive oil. (I hate it in restaurants when you are presented with a garnish of plain lettuce).
Scatter them other two plates and serve the steaks with the bacon underneath.
Season with a touch of salt and black pepper.
The horseradish cream is served as an accompaniment. Serves 2.