CHOCOLATE CHILLI PANCAKES WITH HOT CHOCOLATE SAUCE

Pancakes and chocolate sauce with a dusting of chilli, nearly heaven but not quite! The chilli is a good match with the chocolate but if not to your liking you can leave the chilli out. The chilli does add a new dimension to chocolate but a sprinking is all that is required.

THE RECIPE;
For the chocolate sauce;
100ml double cream
150g of dark chocolate 55% cocoa
1 tsp of caster sugar

For the Pancakes;
4 pancakes(made from the previous recipe which you can find on this site)
Hot chilli powder
Sugar optional

METHOD;
Heat the cream with the tsp of sugar, once hot but not boiling add the chocolate in little pieces, stir until the chocolate has melted, keep warm until required.

TO PLATE AND FINISH;
You will require 4 pancakes. Spread a little chocolate sauce on each of the pancakes and a sprinkle of sugar if using, then roll into tight cigars, cut each pancake into 4 or 2 if desired, add to a plate with a drizzle of chocolate sauce and a sprinkle of hot chilli powder.

PANCAKE FU YOUNG

A vegetarian version of a Fu Young dish. This recipe is using a pancake as a base rather than the traditional egg omelette. The beauty of this dish is that you can use any vegetables you have to hand. The Fu young is really a folded omelette with an assortment of Chinese ingredients.

THE RECIPE;

4 pancakes

2 cloves of garlic(finely chopped)

1 chilli- seeds removed and sliced

1" piece of fresh ginger(finely chopped)

8-10 chestnut mushrooms(sliced)

4 spring onions(sliced on the diagonal)

1 medium onion(roughly chopped)

1 red pepper- sliced and seeds removed

4-6 mangetout

4-6 baby corn

A handful of fresh beansprouts

1 tbsp plus 1 teaspoon of light soy sauce

Juice of half a lime

1 tsp sesame oil

sweet chilli sauce to taste

sea salt and black pepper to taste

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS;

1 tsp of 5 spice

1 tsp of sugar

METHOD;

Stir fry the garlic ,onion,ginger and chilli for 1 minute, add the mangetout and corn and cook for a further minute, then add the bell pepper and mushrooms cook for a further 2-3 minutes then add the soy sauce and lime. Continue to stir fry then check for seasoning, adjust as necessary. Finally add the beansprouts and spring onion and cook for a further minute, then add a tsp of sesame oil before serving.

TO SERVE;

Place a 1/4 of the stir fry on each pancake and roll into a cigar shape, cut in half and plate with a garnish of sweet chilli sauce and a drizzle of the pan juices.

PANCAKE WITH PANCETTA LEEK AND PARMESAN SERVED WITH LEMON VINAIGRETTE

A nice thick pancake served with Pancetta cooked with leeks and Parmesan cheese and finished with a drizzle of lemon vinaigrette. This recipe could serve 2 big portions but due to the richness of the dish and the dish itself being very filling, i would recommend a serving of four. Basically this is a tarted up version of a ham and cheese pancake, but all the better for it!

THE RECIPE;

4 pancakes

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp of unsalted butter

6 slices Pancetta

50g leek(white and light green part)

25g onion

20g freshly grated Parmesan cheese

3g flat leaf parsley

4 tbsp of double cream

1 clove garlic

A splash of dry vermouth/ noilly prat

1/4 tsp of lemon vinaigrette

GARNISH;

Leaf salad

Lemon vinaigrette

TO MAKE LEMON VINAIGRETTE;

Place 2 tbsp of fresh lemon juice into a shaker or squeeze bottle, add a small pinch of sea salt and shake to dissolve. Now add 5 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil, shake again and add a pinch of sugar.

Taste and if required adjust seasoning. A pinch of freshly ground black pepper can be added if desired.

METHOD;

Add the olive oil and butter to a pan once hot add the onion and leek cook for 1 minute add the garlic cook for a further 30 seconds, then add the Pancetta. As the Pancetta starts to cook add a splash of dry vermouth, once the pancetta has crisped a little add the cream and 1/4 of a tsp of lemon vinaigrette, cook for a further minute then add the Parmesan and chopped parsley. Cook for a further 2 minutes and take off the heat.

TO FINISH;

Fold a pancake in half and spoon a 1/4 of the Pancetta filling into the middle, now fold again so that it looks like a little horn, place onto a plate. Dress the salad leaf with lemon vinaigrette and place alongside the pancake and drizzle some vinaigrette around the plate.

PANCAKES - SHROVE TUESDAY

For century's throughout the world, Christian community's have been celebrating the Tuesday before lent. In the Catholic communities of the Americas Mardi Gras is one such festival, closer to home it is called shrove Tuesday but more commonly known to us as pancake day. Traditionally pancakes were served with a meat based stew on the day before lent, now days you are more likely to find the sweet and sour combination of lemon juice and sugar. Possibilities for fillings are endless as pancakes can brace the worlds of sweet and savoury. Here is my Pancake recipe, which incidentally is a good time to get tossing, that is pancakes of course!

THE RECIPE;

Makes 4 thick or 6 thin pancakes.

150g plain flour(sieved)

350ml whole milk

1 large egg(preferably free range)

pinch of salt

1 tsp of oil

METHOD;

Sieve the flour and add the milk. whisk to combine and break in the egg, whisk again until all ingredients are nice and smooth and the consistency of thick cream. Season with a pinch of salt.Heat a non stick pan/skillet with the teaspoon of oil, swirl this around the pan. Once hot pour a quarter of the batter into the pan and make sure that it covers the whole of the base, after a minute loosen the edges with a spatula, give the pan a shake. If you are a tosser it makes life a little easier at this point as a good flick of the wrist will turn the pancake. If you are not a tosser, you will have to find away of turning the pancake over, if this fails you could place the pan under a hot grill till slightly coloured. Once the pancake is slightly brown it is cooked.Turn each pancake onto a plate, if desired serve with lemon wedges and a sprinkling of sugar, or alternatively serve with a nice fruit jam.

NOTES;
If you desire less oil, place 1 tsp of oil , once hot give the pan a very light wipe with a kitchen towel, but please be careful of your fingers.

MOORISH CUSTARD TART

Who doesn't like the odd tart. Well i am sure I'm not alone in the pursuit of happiness, a well made tart certainly delivers in the happiness stakes. But unfortunately only temporary happiness can be achieved with this comforting Moorish custard tart, reason being it will not stay in the fridge for long, it will be gone before you finish the oohs and ahhs of moorish delight.

THE RECIPE;

1 quantity of pine nut pastry- this recipe makes three batches!

2 cups/10oz pine nuts
1/3 cup of sugar(approx 75g)
3 cups of plain flour
8oz/250g unsalted butter(room temp)
1 large egg
1 tsp of vanilla extract/essence
Extra butter and flour for greasing the tin.
METHOD;
Pulse the pine nuts in a food processor, add the sugar and flour then pulse again until the nuts are finely ground and the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Place this mixture into a mixing bowl, add the softened butter,egg and vanilla extract/essence. Mix to combine(a ball of dough should form at this point), and divide into three equal parts. Wrap each dough mixture in cling film. Place one quantity of dough into the fridge and freeze the other two if not using within 24 hours. You will require a 9" tart tin/sandwich tin with a removable bottom. Grease the tin with butter and give a light dusting of flour, now place into the fridge for ten minutes. Pre heat an oven to 180 c, take out the tart tin after the 10 minutes and mould the pastry into the tin with your fingers, making sure that a uniform thickness is achieved throughout. Place in the centre of the pre-heated oven and bake for 20 minutes. Turn the tin 180 degrees after the first ten minutes to allow for even cooking. Remove from the oven after 20 minutes, and proceed with the rest of the recipe.

THE CUSTARD;
1 pint double cream
8 lge egg yolks
80g vanilla sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
Nutmeg to taste(grated)

METHOD;
Seperate the eggs and place the yolks into a bowl with the vanilla sugar. Warm the cream in a pan, once warmed through but before boiling pour onto the whisked eggs and sugar and whisk again to combine. Add the custard to the tart shell and bake for 45 minutes at 120 c/ 250 f/ gas 1/2. After the 45 minutes baking remove from the oven and allow to cool, once cool place in the fridge and allow to chill for 2 hours or until set.

CHOCOLATE TART WITH PINE NUT PASTRY

Ahh chocolate, Ohh chocolate or just chocolate, you decide! For a long time now I've been contemplating making a tart! A chocolate tart! You see the thing being, i just love to cook with chocolate, i like the mess- i like messy things, not just any old mess but gooey, sticky high calorie mess, the kind of mess that only chocolate can provide! But the problem being, i don't really like eating chocolate i don't know why but I'm more of a savoury kind of guy. All is not lost though as i seem to be surrounded by an ever increasing supply of chocolate testers, always at the ready with spoons and open mouths.

Admittedly my chocolate making skills are put to good use around valentines day. When brownie points are needed for the coming year to secure the much coveted Beer tokens for the coming months- but beer tokens aside this is really a special tart! With Febuary around the corner i might be making this again! After my small slice i was tempted to pilfer the rest and stash it somewhere safe, somewhere only i knew! Now that is unusal for a savoury toothed guy.

Now the good part i am going to tell you how to make this! But first a little on the pastry, the pastry recipe is from The french laundry cook book, a recipe i have used on several occasions when the need to impress arises. The dessert that this wonderful pastry hails from is a Lemon Sabayon tart with pine nut crust, another of Thomas Keller's delightful treats. Having cooked the lemon tart last week, and with two batches of excess pastry in need of use, a chocolate tart seemed the right choice! An excellent marriage between nutty pastry and dark chocolate, rich with a biscuit base that softens and cuts through the richness - kind of like eating a giant chocolate digestive.

THE RECIPE;

Pine nut pastry;

2 cups 10 oz pine nuts

1/3 cup of sugar(approx 75g)

3 cups of plain flour

8 oz/250g of unsalted butter at room temperature

1 large egg

1 tsp of vanilla extract

Butter and flour for greasing the tin

Pulse the pine nuts in a food processor, then add the sugar and flour, Pulse again until the nuts are finely ground. Place this mixture into a mixing bowl, add the softened butter, egg and vanilla extract and mix to incorporate all ingredients. Divide the pastry into three parts and wrap in cling film. Place one quantity of pastry into the refrigerator and freeze the other two for future use, if not using within the next 24 hours. Using a 9" tart tin with a removable bottom, grease with butter and a light dusting of plain flour then place in the fridge until needed(approximately 10 minutes). Pre-heat the oven to 180c, when the oven is ready remove the pastry and the tin from the fridge. Mould the pastry into the tart tin with your fingers making a uniform thickness throughout, trim the pastry from the edges with a knife and place into the oven for 20 minutes. After 10 minutes turn the tart tin 180 degrees to allow for uniform cooking. Remove after allotted cooking time and allow to cool while you make the chocolate filling. Turn the oven down to 100c.

THE CHOCOLATE;

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

55g vanilla sugar(caster sugar is fine to use)

250g dark chocolate(55% cocoa solids is used in my recipe)

200g unsalted butter

Melt the chocolate and butter in a large bowl over a saucepan of boiling water(take care not let the bowl touch the water), once melted reserve. Starting again with cold water, place a large heatproof bowl over the saucepan and add the eggs, egg yolks and vanilla sugar and whisk till light and fluffy(approx 10 minutes). Remove from the heat and pour the egg mixture into the melted chocolate and butter. Fold this mixture in from the edges to return to a deep brown colour. Once the mixture is completely folded into itself, pour into the reserved tart tin and return to the oven for ten minutes. Remove and allow to cool, once cool place into the refrigerator until fully set. Eat and Enjoy, without trying to think about the coronary inducing amounts of butter!

WHAT BETTER TIME TO INDULGE IN AN IRRESISTIBLY CHOCOLATY TARTY ! JUST SAY NO, " OH GO ON JUST ONE SLICE" NO NO NO! I SHALL NOT SUCCUMB TO TEMPTATION, OH JUST ONE SMALL SLICE THEN"

BASIC BREAD RECIPE

To make 1 loaf;



500g strong white flour plus extra for dusting

300ml water

25g unsalted butter plus a little for greasing

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar or 2 tsp for a crusty loaf

1.5 tsp dried yeast



A standard bread recipe that will make 1 loaf or 6 rolls.



Method;



Bring together flour,butter,salt,sugar and yeast in a mixing bowl, incorporate 300ml of warm water(use a 3rd boiling to 2/3 rds cold water), now form a dough. Once the dough is pliable, lightly flour a work surface and knead for approximately 10 minutes, you will need to put some effort into this part. Using the heels of your hands press down and stretch then fold and repeat.

After kneading the bread will have to prove. Grease a loaf tin with butter, of if making bread rolls form into the desired shape. Place in a warm place for 1 1/2 t0 2 hours until doubled in size. 15 minutes before baking pre-heat an oven with a small bowl of boiling water placed in the bottom. Oven temperature to reach 225c. Place the bread into the middle of the oven and bake for approx 35 minutes for a loaf and 15 minutes for rolls. Turn down the oven to 200c after 10 minutes of baking. Turn out onto a wire rack.

To test the bread, to see if it is cooked through, tap the bottom of the loaf, if hollow leave to rest on the rack, if not cooked through return to the oven with out the tin and cook for a further 5 minutes. Alternatively you can remove the bread from the tin for the last 5 minutes of cooking and return to the oven with a light dusting of flour.

Notes;

The bread is cooked at a higher temperature to start with to compensate for loss of heat once bread is placed in the oven. A bowl of water is placed in the bottom of the oven to create steam which gives the bread a thicker crust.

REAL YORKSHIRES

The key to excellent yorkshire puddings, is heat. You need a very hot oven.

Eggs are an essiential ingredient, but a lot of recipes call for only one egg. I have used up to six eggs with this recipe , with really good results, i now find three large eggs to be more than sufficent. This recipe will see your yorkshire puddings rise to new heights.

Suitable for vegetarians if using vegatable oil.

Note; Measuring in cups, from your cupboard, use the same size(standard mug is good) for liquid and flour.

1 cup of plain flour

1 cup of milk

3 large eggs(preferably organic)

Beef dripping or vegatable oil

A pinch of salt

You will need to make your batter at least an hour in advance, i often leave the batter for longer so that a good whisk from time to time , will allow the incorporation of air.

You will need a mixing bowl of sufficent size to allow all of the ingredients to be mixed without spillage. Place a sieve over the top of your bowl, and pass the flour through the sieve and add your pinch of salt.

Slowly incorporate your milk until you achieve a batter with a smooth consistency, add the eggs one at a time, until you achieve a lump free batter. The batter should be the consistency of double cream, if your batter is to thick add tepid water until you have the correct consistency.

Allow to rest for 1 hour minimum.

Heat is the key to good puddings, so pre-heat the oven on maximum. Once a good heat has built up, you will be ready to place your yorkshire tray into the oven, when the oil is smoking hot and only when smoking hot, you are ready to pour your batter.

This is the tricky part, you need to maintain the tempature of the oven, so pour the batter into a jug, that is easy to pour from, and keep at the ready.

Take out yout tray, only when the oil is smoking, shut the oven door to maintain oven tempature, and quickly pour your batter into each hollow so that it is level with the top of the tray. Open the door and place on an oven shelf above halfway. Only keep the door open for the shortest possible time.

These will take 20-25 minutes depending on your oven. For the first 5 minutes leave the oven tempature as it is, then turn down to 200c/400f/gas 6, for the remaining cooking time.

Note; Opening and shutting of the of the oven door during cooking, will cause the loss of heat, resulting in the puddings losing height and volume.