Autumn scented chocolate swirl cheesecake

Hello everyone. I'm truly sorry for holding My posts for such a long time. I'll try to redeem Myself from now on. Over a while I decided to make something sweet and indulgent. Got the idea from a recipe, again from a celebrity chef G. Ramsay. http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/11296/gordons-cheesecake
So with a swirl of Mine and touch of Estonia in there, I came up with a new one. Here's how...

Serves 12 (25 cm cake form)

For the base:

3 tbsp Chinese red sugar (also referred as palm sugar apparently)
1 apple (peeled and very finely diced)
4 slice of black Estonian bread (must leib, crumbled)
6 discs of Digestive biscuits (crushed)
100 g of butter
3 tbsp of Zante currant or other raisins
pinch of powdered cloves (nelk)
pinch of salt

Melt the sugar in a pan, until starts to form a caramel. Add the diced apple, raisins and butter. Cook for quick 20 seconds and stir in the spice, salt and biscuit-bread crumbs. Take off the heat and cool.
On this point I recommend to fix Your cake form with cooking paper. Layer the base mix evenly on the bottom of the form, pressing it down to firm up and let to cool down completely.

For the Ganache:

100 g dark chocolate (chopped)
40 ml cream
40 ml milk
20 ml dark rum (optional)

Melt everything except the rum on a medium low heat. When smooth and all chocolate is melted, take off the heat and stir in the rum. Cool the mix down.

For the filling:

4 leaf of gelatin (softened in cold water)
400 g cream cheese
250 ml cream
4+2 tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp of vanilla powder, or seeds from 1 vanilla pod
1 lemon (juice and half the rind grated)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of salt

Mix together cream cheese, vanilla powder, cinnamon, 4 tsp of the sugar, lemon rind. Squeeze the excess water from the gelatin and dissolve in the lemon juice over a low heat. Add to the cheese mix threw a sieve. Mix until smooth. Whip the cream with the rest of the sugar. Whisk together half of the whipped cream to the cheese. Fold in the rest with a spatula to keep it light and fluffy. Don't over work.

To assemble:

Divide the filling to about 3 batches. Spread out the first layer on the base crumble. Drizzle over some of the chocolate ganache. Repeat the same 2 times. Then take a chopstick and run threw the cake, making swirls. Don't smooth the surface, it will go soggy. Allow to set in the fridge for 3 hours. Serve with clove - pumkin jam* or fresh raspberries.

Enjoy! ;)

Oysters with chilly salsa shot

I took the liberty to order a few fresh oysters and serving them with a spicy touch of mine. I thought that would be a challenge not just for me, but also for the customers. I served them uncooked. I salute the people who took the courage and tried for the first time, finding  themselves enjoying it.

 The biggest tricks are to get them fresh and to open without hurting Yourself. Here is a little hint of how it's done. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Spg6XZSJE0s

For the chilly shot You'll need:

1/2 red chilly (finely diced)

1/2 red onion of better yet a medium shallot (finely diced)

juice of half lemon

dash of Tabasco sauce

dash of Worcestershire sauce

dash of soy sauce

salt and sugar to balance the seasoning

small bunch of coriander (or parsley) finely chopped

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Open a oyster and serve the shot in the shell with the oyster or in a shot glass (add a bit of the oyster juice).

 

Braised leg of lamb with peas'n'mix

This was one of the rare times I managed to get some fresh lamb to the canteen. Bought the whole leg and the result was well worth the effort. To properly bone a leg of lamb this is a quick course : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poWt5juxdAw&feature=fvw  and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poWt5juxdAw&feature=fvw

Serves 10

1 leg of lamb (boned and butterflied)

300 g of sausage mix (processed ham, bread, garlic, rosemary and green olives)

600 g  green peas

200 g chickpeas

70 g sun dried tomatoes

For the gravy:

meat juice or stock

flour

oil or butter

cream or milk

salt, pepper and sugar for seasoning

First You need to do, is to prepare the meat. Bone the leg and butterfly. Then make the sausage mix and place it in the center of the meat. Roll the meat back together and string, to keep the shape together. Bring a pot of stock (You can make Your own using the bones from the leg) or salted water to the simmer (slow boil). Turn the heat to low and braise the meat uncovered for a hour. The inner temperature should reach 64 °C. Remove the meat from the stock and brown on a hot pan with some butter.

In a pot melt the butter and sauté the peas, chickpeas and sun dried tomatoes. Add a little chopped rosemary and season.

To make the gravy:

heat the pan and dry roast some flour. Add the butter and combine in a roux. Slowly start adding hot stock until the thickness is to Your likening. Finish with bit of milk or cream. Season.

Plate and enjoy!

Salmon with parsley rice and green salad

I have to admit, that this did not turn out exactly as I wanted it to be, but turned out to be quite  edible. The plan was to slow cook it in the oil with only 60 °C that the fish would keep its pink appearance, but yet be cooked threw. As My equipment and technologies are limited, it was a long shot to achieve anyway. Obviously I "overcooked" the fish due to too high temperature on the stove.

The ingredients You can detect already on the picture. To lay it out You'll need:

Salmon fillet without the skin

vegetable oil

salt, white pepper

rice 

puree of parsley and oil

handful of grated Parmesan cheese

little cream

fresh salad leaves

Spiced meatballs with asian style noodles and sweet and sour sauce

This dish came to me as a escape from Monday stress. Turned out to be quite a success. The meatballs secret was the lager and marinating time that allowed the meat inhale the flavours of the east.

Serves 6

For the meatballs:

1 kg minced meat

1 red chilly

1 red onion

100 g canned pineapple

400 g bread (crust cut off)

5 tbsp Thai sweet and sour sauce

3 tbsp soy sauce

1 Chinese garlic

small bunch parsley

For the sauce:

little flour

little cream

little sweet and sour sauce

To make the meatballs, blend all the ingredients in a food processor  (except the mince) until smooth paste forms. Work the mixture inside the mince until very well combined (knead 3-4 minutes). Season with salt, sugar and pepper. Cover, set aside and marinate the mix at least 24 hours in the fridge.

To finish, form the meatballs, approximately 30 g each. Heat a bit of butter on the pan and fry the meatballs shaking the pan to brown all sides . When browned, add a dash of warm water and cook the meatballs about a minute. Drain the liquid and save it for the sauce. Clean the pan and finish the rest of the meatballs with the same method. Keep the meatballs warm.

To make the sauce, bring the meat juices back to the boil. Mix the cream and flour and pour into the pan, stirring the sauce at the same time. Add a few tablespoons of sweet and sour sauce and check the seasoning. Add bit sugar if too sour. 

Serve with boiled Asian noodles.

Bouillabaisse a'la Marseille

Bouillabaisse is considered to be the ultimate fish soup of all times. The origin is from France, city of Marseille. More info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouillabaisse#Marseille_Bouillabaisse

As usual, this is My version of the classic.

Serves 10

2 onions (peeled and coarsely cut)

400 g carrots peeled and cut to rounds

3 stick of celery

3 Chinese garlic

1 red chilly

3 tbsp tomato paste

1,5 kg canned tomatoes

1 l dark fish stock (from salmon or trout trimmings)

1 kg potatoes (peeled and cut to cubes)

1/2 kg fresh blue mussels

200 g salmon of trout (2 x 2 cm cubes)

200 g cod (2 x 2 cm cubes)

200 g Pollock (2 x 2 cm cubes)

100 g peeled shrimps

So what I did, was first to make the base of the soup or as I called it "the body". In a pot, color the vegetables in little oil (except potatoes and half the carrots). Season!  Then add the tomato paste and fry that for a minute. Add the canned tomatoes and the fish stock and boil the vegetables, until soft. Skim the foam on top. Then blast the the whole mix in a blender until creamy and smooth. Check the seasoning (salt, sugar,pepper). 

Then bring "the base" to the boil and add the remaining carrot rounds and potatoes. Cook them until almost ready. Then add the fishes and cook for about 3-4 minutes. Kill the heat and add shrimps and blue mussels. Also You can use some fresh herbs of You're choice. 

Serve hot with bread, butter on top!

;)

Our daily burger

The burger is something I normally find quite repulsive to to call food, but this time I tried to make it as "edible" as I possibly could. The fuzz and culture around fast food ("junk" food) is growing rapidly and our kids are raised up on Coca Cola and pizzas! Children will not have a chance to develop their taste palette and have misleaded conception, of what a meal should be. For all parents, I put to Your heart to keep this from happening.

Serves 4

4 burger buns (see recipe here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Burger-or-Hot-Dog-Buns/Detail.aspx)

4 slice of cheese (best are semi soft cheeses as Cheddar, Jarlsberg or Emmental)

2 ripe tomatoes

100 g pickled cucumber

Fresh salad leaves as Lollo Rosso, Rucola, etc

For the meat patties:

600 g minced meat

50 ml water

1 egg yolk

fresh rosemary or thyme

salt, black pepper and little sugar

Basic burger sauce:

1/3 mayonnaise

1/3 sour cream (rømme or Crème fraiche)

1/3 tomato ketchup

little boiled and cooled water

salt, pepper and sugar to season

Make the buns and let to cool 10 minutes, then cut them half. Grill beef patties about 2 minutes each side on hot grill or pan. Cut the tomatoes and pickles. Wash the salad leaves. To assemble paste both parts of the buns with the sauce. Start from the bottom with salad, tomatoes and pickles. Add a little sauce on top. Then add the hot patties and place the cheese slice on top that it melts. Complete with the top bun and serve... with Coke :P