Tag Archives: Raspberry

Raspberry & Rose Focaccia

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Serves 18-20

Ingredients

For the jam filling

  • 1 cup fresh raspberries
  • 3 Tablespoons sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 4 teaspoons water

For the dough

  • 4 cups bread flour
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 3 Tablespoons sugar
  • 1/4 cup freeze dried raspberry powder
  • 2 cups warm tap water
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 cup fresh raspberries
  • 3 Tablespoons water

To glaze and finish

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 3 Tablespoons Heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon rose water
  • 2 Tablespoons food-grade rose petals

Method

Jam Filling

  1. Combine everything but the cornstarch and water in a medium saucepan. Heat over a medium-high heat until boiling and the berries break down to a pulp
  2. Combine the cornstarch and water, add to the raspberry mixture and cook until the mixture has thickened. Remove from the heat and allow to cool

Dough

  1. Combine the flour, salt, yeast, sugar and freeze-dried raspberry powder in a large bowl. Stir well with to combine.
  2. Add approximately half of the water (no need to measure). Stir well to incorporate the water. The mixture will be shaggy and dry at this point. Add most of the remaining water (reserve 2-3 tablespoons) and stir again until the water is well incorporated. If the mixture seems dry add the rest of the water and stir to combine. You’re looking for a thick, shaggy, fluffy wet dough. If the dough still seems dry, add a bit more water, a tablespoon at a time until the thick, shaggy consistency (and no pockets of dry flour) is reached.
  3. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and stir until most of the olive oil is incorporated
  4. Cover the bowl with with plastic wrap and set aside to proof for 30 minutes
  5. After 30 minutes, remove the cover and, using either a large spatula or slightly wet hands, pick up one side of the dough, stretch it, and then fold it over onto the rest. Turn the bowl one-quarter turn and repeat the stretch and fold. Repeat the stretch and fold 4-5 more times, turning the bowl one-quarter each time
  6. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for one hour. During the one-hour rise, use a piece of paper toweling and rub the 2 teaspoons butter over the interior of a 9×13-inch baking pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper then drizzle with 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and set aside
  7. After the one-hour rise, repeat the stretching and folding described in step 2 above, then turn the dough into the prepared pan. Flip the dough over to coat with oil and flatten it out with your hands in the pan. It won’t cover the entire pan at this point but flatten it out as much as you can. Then cover the pan tightly with the plastic wrap. Set aside to rise again for one hour
  8. When the one-hour rise in the pan is completed, oil your fingers and poke them into the dough, dimpling and stretching it in the pan as you go. You’re trying to evenly fill the pan to the edge and into the corners
  9. Once you’ve completed the dimpling, set the pan aside to rest while you preheat the oven. With one rack in the center position, preheat the oven to 425˚F
  10. Once the oven reaches 425˚, stud the surface of the dough with the fresh raspberries, filling some of the dimples, then drizzle the dimpled dough with 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, then 2 tablespoons of room temperature tap water
  11. Bake on the center rack in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until nicely browned
  12. Remove the focaccia with a metal spatula to a wire rack and allow to cool for 20 minutes. While the focaccia is cooling make the glaze

To glaze and finish

  1. Fit a piping bag with a Bizmarck tip and fil with the raspberry jam
  2. Using the tip, pierce and fill the focaccia at random locations with the jam, taking care to keep the filling within the loaf
  3. In a bowl combine the glaze ingredients, except the rose petals, and stir until fully smooth
  4. Drizzle over the warm focaccia loaf to your liking, then sprinkle with the rose petals
  5. Slice, serve and enjoy!

Raspberry, Pistachio & Rose Semifreddo

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Ingredients

  • 2 eggs
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1/3 cup caster sugar
  • 1 3/4 cups whipping cream, whipped to semi-soft peaks
  • 2/3 cup pistachio nuts, toasted and chopped
  • 1 tbsp rosewater
  • 2 ¼ cups fresh raspberries
  • Additional fresh raspberries, to decorate
  • Sicilian pistachios, chopped (optional)

Method

  1. Grease a 9″ x 5″ x 2 1/2″ loaf pan. Line with baking paper, or cling wrap, allowing 2” overhang on both long ends. If you use baking parchment, you’ll get a smoother finish to the final result; using cling wrap will result in an interesting cracked/ wrinkled appearance
  2. Place eggs, egg yolks and sugar in a heatproof bowl. Place bowl over a saucepan of simmering water over low heat
  3. Whisk for 4 to 5 minutes or until thick and creamy. Remove from heat. Whisk the custard for a further 5 minutes or until cooled to room temperature
  4. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Gently fold in the whipped cream, toasted pistachios, rosewater and two-thirds of the raspberries
  5. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Cover and freeze overnight or until firm
  6. To serve, remove from the freezer and ley stand at room temperature for 5 minutes before turning out onto a plate. Top with remaining raspberries
  7. Slice using a gently warmed knife into slices, plate and garnish with raspberries, and Sicilian pistachio slivers

#Recipe Brownie Fries w/ Raspberry Ketchup & Yuzu Mayo

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So this recipe originally started as an idea to create smaller “bite-size” brownies with a difference. Sadly after a quick Googling (!) I found someone else had beat me in creating the concept. Oh well, imitation is the best form of flattery as they say. Brownie Fries or “Fruffles” (a portmanteau of Fries + Truffles) as they appear to be called in some places Stateside have been around for a while. Usually they’re served with a berry compote “ketchup” and yogurt “mayo” but not one to let a chance for experimentation go by I decided to mix up the flavours a bit.

Berry ketchup and yogurt mayo? Oh no, no- not for me! So all aboard the “Flavour train” for a raspberry dipping sauce with fresh and spicy notes thanks to basil and black pepper, paired with rich, creamy and zingy mascarpone dip. Here’s my take on Brownie “Fries” and they’re deep-dipping, lip-smacking good!

 

Brownie Fries (2)

Brownie “Fries”

185g unsalted butter, cubed

185g 70% cocoa dark chocolate, broken into pieces

eggs 3

275g caster sugar

85g plain flour

1 tbsp Espresso powder

50g dark chocolate chips

50g milk chocolate chips

100g pecans, lightly roasted and roughly chopped

To decorate

125g 70% cocoa dark chocolate, broken into pieces

125g milk chocolate, broken into pieces

Coarse sea salt to sprinkle

Freshly ground vanilla (Dr. Oetker do a wonderful grater/grinder)

Raspberry “Ketchup”

75g fresh raspberries

Handful fresh basil leaves, torn

½ tsp black peppercorns

Yuzu “Mayo”

250g Mascarpone cheese

100ml single cream

1 tsp agave syrup

2 tbsp Yuzu juice

  •  Set your oven to 180C/gas mark 4 and line a deep 12″x9″ baking tray with baking parchment, or 9” x9” brownie tray (with short dividers removed).
  • Melt the butter and chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (or bain-marie), stirring occasionally. Once melted, remove from the heat and allow to cool.
  • Beat the eggs and sugar until the mixture is thickened and fluffy, then, in a separate bowl, combine the flour and Espresso powder. Fold the cooled chocolate mixture into the egg mixture. Sieve in the dry ingredients, and fold together until just uniform in color.
  • Fold in the chocolate chips and chopped pecans until fully incorporated.
  • Pour your mixture into the lined tray, or brownie pan, and gently spread to level the surface. Place in the oven for 20-25 minutes, then leave to cool completely in the tin before removing.
  • Start by cutting the brownie slab in to 3” wide strips. If you’re using a brownie pan the long dividers will already have done this for you. Next, rotate the strips 90 degrees and cut strips approximately ¾ inch wide. Arrange on a sheet of baking paper with about 1 inch space between.
  • To finish, melt the dark and milk chocolates in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (or bain-marie), stirring occasionally. Once melted, remove from the heat and allow to cool. When cool enough to handle, pour the melted chocolate into a piping bag and snip a small piece from the end to make a fine nozzle.
  • Pipe the melted chocolate over your brownie fries so that it drips down over the sides, forming the “batter coating” to your “fries”.
  • Leave to cool for about 15 mins then sprinkle lightly with seas salt and grind over fresh vanilla.
  • Leave to finally set.

To make the Raspberry “Ketchup”

  • In a bowl combine the fresh raspberries, basil leaves, and black peppercorns.
  • Using a hand blender, blitz until a fine pulp.
  • Pass through a sieve to a bowl below.
  • Set aside until serving.

To make the Yuzu “Mayo”

  • In a bowl combine the mascarpone cheese, cream, agave syrup and yuzu juice.
  • Beat until fully combined.
  • Spoon in to a bowl for serving.

To serve

  • Arrange the brownie fries alongside the ketchup and yuzu mayo.
  • Now dip away to your heart’s content!

Brownie Fries (5)

#Recipe Chilli Chocolate Panna Cotta with Sriracha Cinder Toffee, Fenugreek Clusters & Raspberries

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Panna Cotta 3

This is pretty much my most ambitious recipe yet with a number of components to make and finally assemble into the completed dish. It came about as a result of a number of hankerings of mine:

The use of fruit vinegar in a dessert. I’d tasted Wormersley fruit vinegars at a food show and was utterly blown away by them. Fruity, tart and utterly delicious these vinegars are well deserved of their awards and of a place in anyone’s pantry. I’d always envisioned using them in some kind of brownie dish with the cheek-puckeringly beauty of the vinegar serving to foil the richness of the brownie. But on developing this recipe I knew the panna cotta would provide a great canvas on which to highlight the vinegar’s pudding pimping properties.

The use of a smoking gun. My latest kitchen toy that I was itching to be use and this was more than a convenient excuse. I had never used one before and was intrigued as to how well actual smoke would work with a sweet dish. Suffice to say I was not disappointed.  Whilst it’s not necessary to the overall dish it does lend an extra “Wow factor” and an interesting talking point. A word to the wise though. It only needs a short space of time for smoking (2-3 mins) and if you do decide to use it make sure you turn your smoke alarm off! I learned this the hard way – #RookieFail. As small as the amount of smoking chips used are, they still produce a heck of a LOT of smoke from the gun. Use it sparingly and near an open window is my advice.

The use of Sriracha hot sauce. Yes the very same condiment that seems to set Buzzfeed alight had been my carving for a long time. I’d just about used it in every savory application from dim sum to fries, to cold cuts and bacon- the one thing that had alluded me had been a sweet use. To be perfectly I can’t explain why but in my head the pairing of sweet cinder toffee (otherwise known as honeycomb or hokey pokey) and tongue-tingling heat of the sauce made sense. By now you probably know there’s nothing I like better than taking two extreme, opposite flavours and “smashing” them together to see what results from the gustatory debris. Here is another perfect example.

Whilst it may take some time to make and finally assemble, the completed dish is definitely a show-stopper and one that I’m indeed very proud of. There’s a wonderful array of textures and flavours at play in this dish- sweet, sharp, smooth and crispy. It’s wonderful example of just how much I like flavour experimenation in the kitchen and for me takes my “Falvour Maths” to the next level.

Makes 5

Panna Cotta

Sunflower or Corn oil for greasing

200g Green and Blacks dark chocolate

2 leaves of gelatine

190ml fl oz whole milk

250ml oz double cream

100g caster sugar

1 tablespoon Nielsen Massey vanilla extract

1 large dried Ancho chilli 

Sriracha Cinder Toffee

200g caster sugar

4 tablespoon golden syrup

1 tablespoon sriracha sauce

2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Fenugreek Oat Clusters

200g Jumbo rolled oats

250g quick oats

375g chopped roasted nuts

3 tablespoon fenugreek seeds

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

175g dark brown sugar

8 tablespoon honey

125g butter

8 tablespoon maple syrup

100ml water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To finish

Fresh Raspberries

Womersely Raspberry Vinegar

5 teaspoons bee pollen

Smoking gun with wood-chips (optional)

Equipment of Note

5 ramekin dishes (150ml apx capacity)

20cm square Silicone baking tray

Lipped baking tray

Food Smoking Gun (optional)

To make the panna cotta

  • Lightly oil five ramekin dishes (appx 150ml capacity) with the sunflower or corn oil.
  • Roughly chop the chocolate, and place in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, don’t let the base of the bowel touch the water.
  • Once the chocolate has melted, remove from the heat and set aside until needed.
  • Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for about 5 minutes.
  • Place the milk, cream, sugar, vanilla extract and Ancho chilli in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and leave to infuse.
  • After 5 minutes pass the liquid through a sieve and squeeze the soaked chilli on to the melted chocolate. Stir well to combine.
  • Squeeze the gelatine to remove the excess water and add to the mixture, stirring as you do so. Make sure all the gelatin has been dissolved.
  • Pour into the oiled ramekins and allow to cool completely. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

To make the cinder toffee

  • Mix the caster sugar, syrup and sriracha sauce deep saucepan and stir over a gentle heat until the sugar has melted. Don’t let the mixture bubble until the sugar grains have disappeared.
  • Once the sugar has dissolved, turn up the heat a little and simmer until you have a deep amber coloured caramel.
  • Turn of the hat and tip in the bicarbonate and beat in with a wooden spoon until it has all disappeared and the mixture is foaming.
  • Scrape into the silicone immediately but be careful as the mixture will be very hot and may still be bubbling.
  • Leave the mixture in a safe place to rest about 1 hr- 1 hr 30mins, by which time the cinder toffee will be hard and ready to break into pieces.
  • (This recipe makes more than need for this dish but the finished cinder toffee can be kept in an airtight container and used for dessert/ cake decoration or even as a treat!

To make the fenugreek clusters

  • Preheat your oven to 180 degrees.
  • In a large bowl, combine the jumbo oats, quick oats, nuts, cinnamon and fenugreek seeds.
  • In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the brown sugar, honey, butter, maple syrup and water and heat until the mixture starts to bubble. Stir in the salt and vanilla extract.
  • Leave to stand for 15 minutes.
  • Spread the mixture onto a baking sheet oiled with sunflower oil and press it down.
  • Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven, let cool, then using a spoon or spatula break up the oat mixture into clumps. Return to the oven for another 15 minutes.
  • Remove from the oven and let it cool completely on the tray then break it up into clusters.
  • (Again this recipe  makes more than needed for this recipe but the finished clusters can be stored in an airtight container and used as a granola substitute.)

To assemble and complete the dish

  • To serve, place the ramekins into warm water )just up to the top) for 1 minute then quickly remove and invert out on to chilled plates. If the panna cotta doesn’t come out return to the warm water for a few seconds and repeat.
  • Top the each panna cotta with fresh raspberries and sprinkle a teaspoon of bee pollen over each.
  • Drizzle around each panna cotta with raspberry vinegar, and sprinkle around with a mixture of cinder toffee pieces and fenugreek clusters.
  • Serve and enjoy!
  • Optional: For a final touch before just before serving, place the complete dish underneath a bell cloche and insert the hose of a smoke gun. Ignite the smoke gun and inject flavoured smoke to fill the chamber, leave for 2-3 mins, remove dish and serve. (PLEASE NOTE: DO NOT USE IN AREAS WITH A SMOKE ALARM!)

Panna Cotta 1