Sometimes you get in from work, it’s just late, it’s dark, it’s raining. The urge to pick up the phone (or app, these days) and order some food in. But you know there’s just enough stuff in the cupboards that can be coerced into something that doesn’t scream leftovers. And that’s where this gnocchi cheese bake was born.
It has a macaroni cheese at it’s heart but with pillowy gnocchi instead for a toothy bite. The broccoli is there to assuage a little guilt and have something green poking out of it, though the irony taste does help damp down the richness.
The sauce is also a lightning-fast one, made with Greek yoghurt instead of a traditional roux. It’s not quite the same but it’s a helluva lot faster. Pure comfort food.
I’m entering this into Speedy Suppers hosted by Maison Cupcake and Feeding Boys; the theme this month is cheese so what could be more apt?
Put a large pan of water on to boil. Put the gnocchi and broccoli in the water until al dente and drain.
While the gnoc 'n' broc cooks, measure the cornflour into a bowl. Blend in a little yoghurt, stir in the eggs and whisk until smooth. Mix in the remaining yoghurt, cheeses and the mustard.
Get an oven-safe dish over a low heat. If you're using the bacon, fry it quickly until crispy. Whizz up half the bacon and bread in a food processor and keep to one side for a moment.
Add the gnocchi, broccoli and the other half of the bacon to the cheese sauce, adding a little milk if required to let it down. Top with the bacony breadcrumbs and bake for 20 mins, or until puffy and golden.
I’ve been mucking about almost constantly with my Sous Vide Supreme since unpacking it the other week. Pretty much every day the old silver box has been silently ticking away, gently cooking dinner. I’m starting to get the hang of it.
Following on from steak and gammon, I read just about every post by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt on sous vide and attacked a battery of different recipes. First up were some lamb shanks, courtesy of Donald Russell. I cooked them at 60°C for 48 hours, then briefly browned in a searing hot pan. I have to say I didn’t particularly enjoy them. The texture was a chalky, with a strong offal flavour. However the sauce was dynamite, the cooking juices reduced down with a little port made for a spoon-licking jus.
On with pork chops. After a much briefer 1 hour bath followed by quick sear (you get used to this pattern) I tucked into them. They were perfect… But not substantially better than pan fried. And on the downside you don’t get crispy, wobbly fat to bite into, just hard rind. I was losing faith a bit.
Lamb leg steaks marinated with rosemary for 90 minutes @ 57°C, well now we’re getting somewhere. Plump and tender with a deep lamby flavour. Helped along by a sauce of white wine reduction and mushrooms this really hit the spot.
I’m starting to find a groove with sous vide. For me what works is thick, traditionally quick-cook meats. You get a fuller, deeper meat flavour and it’s really satisfying. I‘m trying chicken breast later this week and I think It’s going to be a winner. I’m also seeing a lot of flavour imparted from dried herbs – the humidity seems to favour those often dried grassy bits and engorge them with taste. But working the slower casserole-style cuts? I’m not yet convinced.
This recipe was my most successful long soak. Meaty pork osso buco, giving off plenty of luscious meat juices for gravy. Unlike it’s beefy cousin, the pork osso buco has a lighter, cleaner taste and a chicken-like texture. To offset this I added some crispy polenta spiked with chunks of cheese and tomato. Adding a veg-packed sauce to be mopped up meant clean plates all round.
I was given a Sous Vide Supreme to try, along with meat from Donald Russell. There’s a competition a-coming in a few days, more details here.
Sprinkle the oregano over the steaks, along with a little seasoning. Vacuum seal and cook at 60C for 48 hours.
An hour before the osso buco is ready, get 125ml water in a saucepan and get boiling. Whisk in the polenta, pouring in a smooth stream. Add a pinch of salt and cook for another minute until thick. Stir in the cheese and tomato, then pour into an oiled baking dish. Put aside for a moment.
Over a gentle heat in a little butter fry the mirepoix. Add the stock and bouquet garni and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the herbs and blitz with a hand blender, and keep warm whilst everything else finishes.
Get the grill on high and a pan on a high heat. Grill the polenta for around 10 minutes until crisp on top. Remove the osso buco and pour the cooking juices into the sauce. Pan fry the osso buco quickly on all sides until browned. Serve with slices of crisp polenta and some green beans.
Cheese scones remind me of my sister; back in my childhood it seems like she’d always rustled some up. Her best addition was to mix grated cheese in with butter as a filling! So bad, but so good. That recipe – I think from an ancient Marks and Spencer Seventies baking book – is a great place to start on my ultimate cheese scones.
I often come back to making them as a comfort bake. Amidst the deluge of rain there was a rare sunny afternoon and it just felt right. So armed with cheese I set to making my ultimate version.
And here they are. There’s a blend of fats and cheeses, and getting height is so satisfying here. A little spike of spice really does make the difference; that heat pushes up the cheese flavour. It’s also important to work the mixture as little as possible to keep it loose and able to rise.
Slather them with butter, cream cheese or leave them plain – just try and devour them while they’re still warm. You can’t get a more satisfying snack.
Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, garlic powder and paprika then rub in the fats until you get breadcrumbs. Fold through the cheeses, then blend in the egg. Add enough milk to form a soft, sticky dough.
Turn out and loosely press into a 3cm thick patty. Cut out shapes with a cutter, but try not to twist - you need those vertical lines to encourage the scone to rise upwards. Transfer to a greased, lined baking tray, brush with milk and any spare grated cheese you have. Bake for 10 - 12 mins, until golden brown and a crust has formed on top. Allow to cool for as little as possible before devouring.
You possibly don’t want to hear about December again but let’s shoo the last knockings of it out of the door. There were a few posts to talk about this month but even more in the way of nibbles, goodies and gewgaws I sampled.
Potatoes: I started on an introspective note, discussing why I like potatoes so much as a way to pay tribute to my mum.
Speaking up for Sprouts: I also put forward the defence for the green December beacon, the humble Brussels Sprout, and gave it a little more life with potato and cream.
Best Cookbooks of 2013: I also carried on my annual tradition of running through the top cookbooks of the year. Slim pickings for me this year so I presented a crowdsourced list instead. Pitt Cue was top of the shop so it’s ended up on my shelf. I’ll let you know how I get on with it later in 2014.
Waitrose Christmas Desserts: Waitrose pulled out all the stops with their Heston festive treats: their mince pies with clementine sugar were by a million miles the best mince pies I’ve ever eaten. It’s worth saying that I’m not usually fussed about mince pies at all; and these things were completely different beasts, all cakey and sweet. Better than can be said for the “hidden chocolate” Christmas pudding, which was kinda boring and nothingy. To finish on a high, the infamous Heston box of chocs were intriguing and delicious, particularly the Earl Grey tea one which tasted different with every chew.
Aldi Christmas Pudding: On a related note, Aldi sent me their 12 month matured Christmas Pudding. It was super-average. Nothing is beating the hidden orange, it seems.
Image copyright Garner’s pickledonionlovers.com
Garner’s Pickles: Garner’s sent me a sample of their pickles. There’s an odd North-South thing in my house; Mrs. Spud originally from the North refers to pickled onions simply as ‘pickles’ and I always wonder if she means generic pickled things. As far as I’m concerned pickled onions are called just that. December always meant Grandad had a batch of his eye-watering onions ready to munch on Boxing Day with cold turkey. Garner’s Sweet Pickled Baby Onions (pictured) were particularly good, a perfect balance of crunch, sweet and sharp. I also received a few others in the range, notoriously the pickled eggs which I immediately dispatched to my brother’s so a true connoisseur could enjoy them. “Yummy” was his one-word review. What more can I say! Not a favourite of mine.
Sage Appliances Heston Fryer: Did you think I’d had enough of fryers? Nope, I’m currently trying out the Sage Appliances Heston deep fat fryer and early reports are good. A more detailed writeup on this in January.
Bill’s Restaurant Hamper: After last month’s disappointing John Lewis hamper I was anxious about opening another. The one supplied by Bill’s Restaurant brought a massive smile to my face. Bespoke produce all sourced and branded by the restaurant, and each one a joy. The fudge was packed with Christmassy flavours, the toffee cookies snappy and sweet, and the chutney was fruity and punchy. Not a duff job among them. I’ve not heard of the brand before but I’ll definitely pop along to one this year to find out more.
Castello Cheese: Castello sent me a range of cheeses, but they were the sideshow to their invite to test a “molecularly paired cheeseboard”. You had me at “molecule”. They had a flavour expert, Danny Hodrien, break down the flavour profile and pair them up with some unique partners. So I tried their creamy white (Brie-style cheese) with blitzed pistachio and fennel dust, and that was very interesting. The cheese and quite tangy yet smooth, and the nut-seed combo helps both flavours linger on in the mouth. Surprisingly good. I tried some of the cheese on their own and the Castello Blue is very tasty, not pungent but very savoury. There are a number of other combinations they’ve asked me to try, and I’ll be digging further into how they can influence my cooking.
And I must mention my favourite foodie Christmas present of this year: the Sgt. Peppermill. Thanks Mrs. Spud!
