Gratin Dauphinoise...

You don't need to say much regarding this dish, it's simplicity and flavour speak for themselves. Thinly sliced potato, baked in cream with onions and garlic... it's probably my favourite way for potatoes.

• Finely slice the onion and crush the garlic.
• Slowly sweat down in a pan with a little butter/oil. Do not burn.
• Meanwhile, finely slice the potatoes and begin to arrange in a dish.
• Every so often add some of the onion/garlic mixture and seasoning before continuing to layer potatoes.
• Thin the creme fraiche with some milk to a consistency like double cream and combine with the double cream.
• Pour the creams over the potatoes and cover with foil.
• Bake in a preheated oven (170°C) for around 2 hours.
• The last 20 minutes should be uncovered to crisp the top up.

Notes:
• You can top with grated cheese (Gruyere/Cheddar) for a lovely cheesy top (see picture).
• My recipe roughly follows that of Leith's Cookery Bible.

Read more

Pavlova...

Great summery dish, with a bit of a ‘wow’ factor too. It’s something of a family favourite, with my mum’s having a very good reputation! I can remember more than a few rows over who’d had the biggest piece or got to finish the extra slice…
That said, I’ve never quite succeeded in replicating the mallow fluffiness of my mum’s, but the results are still pretty good and taste amazing.

• Preheat oven to 150°C and line a large baking sheet

Meringue
• Whisk the egg whites until they are really stiff, then whisk in half the sugar until shiny and stiff
• Fold in the remaining sugar with cornflour, a teaspoon of lemon juice and few drops of vanilla essence
• Spread thickly onto the baking sheet and place in oven for 1¼-1½hours
• Allow to cool for a good hour before topping

Topping
• Whip the cream and fold in a couple of table spoons of crème fraiche.
• Spread over the meringue and top with fruit.

Notes:
• Serves 8-10.
• To whip egg white successfully, you need a totally clean bowl with no drops of water in it and no egg yolk contaminating the whites.
• The addition of crème fraiche tones down the richness of the cream, but it’s optional.
• All summer fruits are excellent additions. You’ll notice I added some kiwi in the final picture.
• As a variation to the usual theme, I've been wondering about trying a kind of banoffee pie/pavlova blend, topping the pavlova with bananas, toffee sauce, crushed biscuit and flaked chocolate. Will let you know if I do.

Read more