Spring Vegetable Risotto

Ingredients

• Onion
• Baby Carrots
• Asparagus
• Risotto Rice
• White Wine
• Vegetable Stock
• Cornichon
• Mozzarella
• Parsley

Method

1. Fry diced Onion in oil (5 mins)
2. Add Risotto Rice, Carrots and Asparagus (reserve tips for later) continue to fry (5 mins)
3. Add White Wine and boil off the alcohol
4. Add the Vegetable stock a little at a time and stir to release the starch in the rice
5. When the Rice is almost done add the Asparagus tips
6. When the tips are cooked, stir in sliced Cornichon, Mozzarella and season
7. Serve with chopped Parsley leaves

Aloo Gobi

Ingredients

• Potato
• Onion
• Cumin Seeds
• Cauliflower
• Chilli
• Garlic
• Turmeric Powder
• Coriander Powder
• Mixed Nuts (walnut, cashew nut etc.)
• Sugar
• Water

Method

1. Boil potatoes (10 mins)
2. Fry Onion in oil with Cumin Seeds (5 mins)
3. Add Cauliflower, Chilli and Garlic and continue to fry (5 mins)
4. Add Turmeric and Coriander and Nuts
5. Add a little Sugar to sweeten and Season
6. Top up with water and simmer (20 mins)
7. Serve with Rice or Chapatis

Pistachio Brandy Snaps

Ingredients

• 50g Butter
• 50g Demerara  Sugar
• 50g Golden Syrup
• 50g Plain Flour
• 1/2 teaspoon Ginger Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Lemon Juice
• Whipped Cream

Topping:

• Plain Chocolate
• Pistachio Nuts

Method

1. On a low heat dissolve Butter, Sugar and Syrup – careful this mixture will get very hot (15 mins)
2. Remove and allow to cool a little
3. Add Flour, Ginger and Lemon Juice and stir well
4. Put a 4 teaspoons of the Mixture on a Baking Sheet, well separated (the mixture will spread out into a disk)
5. Bake @180C until bubbling and deeper brown (10 mins)
6. Remove from oven and allow to cool a little – don’t let them cool completely or they will be too brittle to roll
7. When cool but still flexible roll around a wooden spoon handle and leave to cool completely
8. Repeat with another batch of 4
9. To finish, melt Chocolate in a bowl over simmering water
10. Dip the Brandy Snap into Chocolate then chopped Pistachio Nuts
11. Allow Chocolate to set then  pipe Whipped Cream into each end

Seafood Pizza

Ingredients

Pizza Dough:

• 250g Strong Bread Flour
• 20g Butter
• 7g Yeast
• Pinch of Sugar
• Pinch of Salt
• A little Water

Tomato Sauce:

• Olive Oil
• 3 Garlic Cloves
• Red Wine
• Can of Plum Tomatoes

Topping:

• Seafood (Prawns, Mussels, Squid, Scallops)
• Mozzarella

Method

1. For sauce, on a low heat fry finely chopped Garlic in Olive Oil (5 mins)
2. Turn up heat and add wine, reduce by half (5 mins)
3. Add Tomatoes, reduce heat and simmer until thick (up to 1 hour)
4. For the dough, in food processor combine Flour and Butter
5. Activate Yeast in warm water and Sugar (1 mins)
6. Add Yeast and more Water until dough comes together
7. Knead dough until smooth
8. Cover in cling film and leave in warm place (1 hour)
9. Knock back dough and leave to rise again (1 hour)
10. Roll out dough into circle
11. Place on floured baking try
12. Cover in Tomato Sauce
13. Sprinkle over Seafood and Mozzarella
14. Bake @220C (15 mins)

Spiced Polenta with Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

Tomato Sauce:

• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 3 Garlic Cloves
• 1 Glass of Red Wine
• 1 Can of Plum Tomatoes

Polenta:

• 800ml Water
• 150g Polenta
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Garlic Clove
• 1 Chilli
• 1 Sprig Rosemary

Method

1. For sauce, on a low heat fry finely chopped Garlic in Olive Oil (5 mins)
2. Turn up heat and add wine, reduce by half (5 mins)
3. Add Tomatoes, reduce heat and simmer until thick (up to 1 hour)
4. For Polenta, bring water to boil
5. Stir in Polenta and simmer (10 mins)
6. Meanwhile fry finely chopped Garlic ,Chilli and Rosemary in Olive Oil (5 mins)
7. Pour Polenta into Garlic, Chilli and Rosemary
8. Season well then tip out into shallow rectangular dish and allow to cool completely
9. Slice Polenta into strips and fry in oil until crispy on outside
10. Serve with Tomato Sauce

Red Wine Pears

Ingredients

• Pears
• Red Wine
• 50g Caster Sugar
• 2 Cloves
• 1 Star Anise
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon Powder

Method

1. On a low heat, poach pealed Pears in Wine, Sugar, Cloves, Star Anise and Cinnamon (30 mins)
2. Keep turning the pears
3. Drizzle wine reduction over pears to serve

Smoked Fish Patties

Ingredients

• 300ml Milk
• Smoked Haddock
• 50g Butter
• Onion
• Garlic
• Chilli
• 50g Plain Flour
• Ground All Spice
• Lime Juice & Zest
• Carrots

Pastry:

• 200g Plain Flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Turmeric
• Salt
• 100g Butter

Method

1. For Pastry, blend flour turmeric and salt in food processor
2. Add cubes of butter
3. With processors on, drizzle in cold water until mixture comes together
4. Wrap in cling film and chill (20 mins)
5. For filling, poach Fish in Milk (5 mins) then set aside to infuse
6. On low heat fry Onion, Garlic and Chilli in Butter (10 mins)
7. Add Flour and All Spice, fry (2 mins)
8. Remove fish from Milk
9. Gradually pour Milk into Onion mixture until smooth
10. Add Lime Juice and Zest
11. Carefully chop fish into large chunks and fold into mixture
12. Leave mixture to cool
13. Roll out pastry into 4 disks, spoon mixture into middle
14. Fold over and crimp
15. Bake @200c (20 mins)
16. Serve with Carrots

The Needles

A photo of the Isle of Wight Needles – we took a boat ride around the lighthouse.

Chickpea & Spinach Curry

Ingredients

• Onion
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Madras Curry Powder (Turmeric, Coriander, Cumin, Chilli, Fenugreek)
• Chopped Tomatoes
• Chickpeas
• Spinach
• Coriander Leaves
• Chapati

Method

1. Blend Onion, Garlic and Ginger in food process into a paste
2. Fry in a little oil (10 mins)
3. Add Curry Powder and continue to fry (2 mins)
4. Add Tomatoes, season and simmer (5 mins)
5. Add Chickpeas and continue to simmer (5 mins)
6. Add Spinach and cook until wilted
7. Serve with chopped Coriander Leaves and Chapati

Mushroom Stroganoff

Ingredients

• Onion
• Mushrooms
• Garlic
• Paprika
• Brandy
• Crème Fraiche
• Cornichons
• Parsley
• White Rice

Method

1. Fry Onion in oil (10 mins)
2. Add thickly sliced Mushrooms (7 mins)
3. Add Garlic and Paprika (3 mins)
4. Add Brandy and flame to burn off alcohol
5. Meanwhile, boil rice
6. Reduce heat and stir in Crème Fraiche
7. Stir in sliced Cornichons and Parsley
8. Serve