December 2010 - Page 2 of 2

Merchant Gourmet threw down the gauntlet again: use their chestnut products in a really festive way. I’m a fan of chestnuts at any time, not just Christmas, whether it’s fried with bacon and sprouts, stuffed into a chicken, giving body to a soup, or dressing a hearty pasta dish.

But how to give them a real Christmassy twist? I racked my brains and brought in as many festive foods as I could: that boozy treat Brandy butter, juicy sharp cranberries and just a whiff of clementine. The result is a rich, dark torte, with a fudgy centre and citrussy base. The real kicker is the cranberry, providing a sharp tang against all the sweetness.

Give it a try this Christmas. I think you’ll like it.

Chestnut and brandy torte (about 10 slices):

For the base:

200g digestive biscuits, crushed to dust

50g butter, melted

50g dried cranberries

Pinch of cinnamon

Zest and juice of 1 clementine

For the filling:

200g Merchant Gourmet whole chestnuts

50g icing sugar

200g brandy butter

For the chocolate frosting:

200g dark chocolate, chopped

100g butter, cubed

Mix the crushed biscuits with the cranberries, cinnamon and clementine and stir in the butter. Pack the biscuit mix into a 15cm springform tin and pop in the fridge to firm up while you get on with the filling.

Whizz the chestnuts in a food processor and gradually add the sugar. If the mixture looks a little rubbly at this point add a tablespoon of water to form a paste. Add the brandy butter and blend until smooth. Pour this on top of the biscuit and chill for another hour. (If you have some handy, you could use chestnut puree blended with sugar and brandy butter instead).

For the chocolate topping, put the butter and chocolate in a bowl over a gently simmering pan of water. Allow to melt together very slowly until smooth, then add a tiny sprinkle of sea salt. Pour this on top of the torte filling and chill for another hour until the top has set hard. When ready slice with a damp, warmed bread knife to get a clean cut (unlike the one in my picture!).

Sometimes I really can’t believe what writing about last night’s tea does for you. Imagine my delight at receiving a clutch of Jamie Oliver’s new Kitchen Kit. It’s a stunning set of utensils developed by DKB Household. It’s no slap-a-name-on-it-and-collect-the-royalty-cheque, there’s real craft in them.

First up is the 3-in-1 Peeler. I’ve used a vertical swivel peeler for years, and never used a Y-shaped one. But I found it much faster using this gadget. It also comes with a pair of julienne blades, for peeling things into a fine and wiggly mess. Great fun but not something I’ll use a great deal. For peeling though, it does just the job.

Next is the Garlic Press-come-Slicer. This was a twist of fate. I’d disregarded garlic presses years back, seeing loads of waste and poking at the teeth afterwards. Yet seeing Jamie use this same model on 30 Minute Meals had convinced me to try it again. This model has a real weight to it, and the brushed steel looks lovely. And what a joy it is to use one again. No peeling, and practically all the useful stuff passes through the mesh. It also doubles as a slicer, although I found this to have mixed results, so it’ll be staying as a press for me. No more stinky garlic fingers for me.

The Apple Corer is a neat gadget. I’ve never owned one but this one has neat gimmick: after coring you twist the handle and it pops the core out. Cool. I’m also thinking about using it for Michelin-esque potato fondant thingies. Not something I’ll use every day but good fun.

There’s also a set of hanging utensils – on the surface there’s not a lot to say but it has some twists. There’s a curve in the handle which makes a lot of sense to dangle it out of a pot, and the brushed steel finish is really functional.

Ah yes, the coarse grater. Not impressed with this at all. The angle doesn’t feel right – I can’t hold it in a place that is comfortable for both hands. The handle is curved away from the grater, so it’s a bit clumsy. Also both Mrs. RP and I have cut ourselves quite nastily on this, and I can’t recall ever drawing blood whilst grating before. On the positive side, it does produce the prettiest curls, perfect Fibonacci rolls.

Top of the heap is the knife set. These five knives are Japanese MoV steel with lovely weighting and superb balance. They come wicked sharp and make light work of all chopping jobs – I’m ashamed to say I haven’t used my Henckels since I started using these.

With many of these things, it’s not their function that strikes you, nor their form (which is all brushed steel and elegant lines). It’s the small details that elevate them above Matalan’s “2 for £3” range. Take the knives – each is emblazoned with it’s purpose on the hilt. Or the peeler – it snaps together with it’s spare heads to make a convenient stand. Or the hanging tools – bent in just the right place with a rubber end to stop them slipping into your casserole. It’s these little sparks of genius that show they’re designed by people who really care about the end result, and that’s what I like about them.

All in all a great set, and a wonderful Christmas gift for the Jamie fan in your life.

Thanks to Aaron Huckett of Publicasity.