I’m staying at Robert and Miranda’s farm in New Zealand where this magnificent pizza oven is a feature. After the obligatory pizza, we were inspired by the cookbook The Kiwi Pizza Oven by Alan Brown and decided to try cooking some vegetables. Whole roasted cauliflower, pre-boiled for 10 minutes then drizzled with oil and seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper. When…… Continue reading wood-roasted vegetables
garlic steak + miso pumpkin
Japanese garlic steak. Need I say more? Make some shallow cuts into each side of the steak and marinate in 45ml (1½ oz) of soy sauce, 1½ tablespoons of mirin (sweet cooking sake) and 2 crushed cloves of garlic for at least 20 minutes. When you’re ready to cook, heat a heavy pan (preferably cast iron)…… Continue reading garlic steak + miso pumpkin
flan
The history of flan begins with the ancient Romans who spread their culinary traditions throughout Europe. Originally a savoury dish, it became popular as a sweet dish of slowly cooked custard with caramelised sugar. Christopher Columbus’ discovery of America brought flan with it and nearly all of Central and South America loves flan in one form or another. It has…… Continue reading flan
watermelon and feta salad
I waited far too long to try this salad. Sweet and salty, easy to make and perfect for a hot Summer’s day. Cut some watermelon into bite-sized chunks and add some finely sliced red onion. Crumble in a generous amount of a good feta cheese and some sliced fresh mint. Drizzle with olive oil, toss and serve.
octopus
From the northwestern Spanish region of Galicia, pulpo gallego is a dish of boiled octopus dressed with smoky paprika and olive oil. Traditionally, the octopus is dipped into boiling water three times before being immersed and boiled. I’m not sure whether this achieves anything but I gave it a go. You will need to boil some water first, enough…… Continue reading octopus
christmas 2016
Christmas day 2016 was a hot 37ºC day, so we opted for some cold dishes in our 5-course menu. We started with an amuse-bouche of naked cherry tomatoes from this recipe by Chef John. This method really brings out the flavour in tomatoes. The second course was a wonderfully fresh chilled green gazpacho soup with burrata…… Continue reading christmas 2016
hazelnut cake
Italian in style and dotted with pieces of dark chocolate this cake is glazed with an apricot jam. Perfect for afternoon tea! Preheat your oven to 180ºC (350ºF). Grease a spring-form cake tin and line the bottom with baking paper. In the mixer, cream 100g (3½ oz) of butter and ¾ of a cup of sugar until light and…… Continue reading hazelnut cake
stuffed zucchini and peppers
Thanks to Thomas for this delicious meal. Cut the red peppers in half (remove all the white membranes and seeds) and cut the zucchinis lengthwise. Scoop out the centre of the zucchinis with a melon baller, chop the centres finely and set aside. In a frypan heat some olive oil and fry a finely chopped small onion, a…… Continue reading stuffed zucchini and peppers
pork fillet with sage and garlic
Succulent, pink and juicy, these pork fillets were cooked by the sous vide method. Hassle free and perfect for Christmas lunch! Salt the pork fillets with approximately ½ a teaspoon per 450g (1lb). At this stage I sealed mine into a cryovac bag, however it’s possible to re-create this method using a very well sealed ziploc bag and…… Continue reading pork fillet with sage and garlic
aniseed and blackberry ice cream
The inspiration for this ice cream flavour comes from a favourite bonbon of mine – white liquorice surrounded by tart blackcurrant. Happily, I managed to create a very similar flavour, despite flavouring the ice cream with anise instead of liquorice and using a blackberry swirl instead of blackcurrant. For the ice cream measure 2 cups of milk. Remove 2…… Continue reading aniseed and blackberry ice cream
michelle picker cooks 