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EAT DRINK TALK NEWSLETTER: YUM - September 14, 2006 Highlights: Special Offer: 2 for 1 Yum - Bring a Friend for Free! Featured Ingredient: Cobnuts Recipe: Fresh Grape Chutney with Ginger and Black Onion Seeds Recipe: Turkish-Style Strawberries with Black Pepper Shortbread Recipe: Saffron and Melon Bellini Restaurant Pick: Champor-Champor
Special Offer: 2 for 1 Yum! Book any of our classes and bring along a friend for free! To take advantage of this offer, simply book the class you are interested in online and send an email to offers@eatdrinktalk.co.uk with the name of your friend that you would like to bring along to class. Offer expires September 30th, 2006. This offer applies to new bookings only and does not extend to gift vouchers or tailor-made classes. Featured Ingredient: Cobnuts 
Cobnuts are an English variety of hazelnut, grown primarily in orchards in Kent. At the turn of the century there were more than 7,000 acres of cobnut orchards, now there are only 300. Unlike most other nuts, cobnuts are sold fresh and therefore are only available during their harvesting season which runs from mid-August through to October. At the beginning of the season cobnuts will be quite green and wet whereas cobnuts harvested later in the season will be brown and have tougher shells but a better flavour. To use cobnuts in cooking, they must first be shelled and husked and then roasted in the oven at 150 C for between 20 - 60 minutes depending on how green they are. The greener they are, the longer they will take to roast. The easiest way to shell a cobnut is to place it in a mortar and pestle and give it a sharp whack with the pestle to break the shell. Then peel off the shell and any bits of husk that cling to the nut. Try using them in the following ways: -Toast in a dry frying pan with sea salt and a pinch of smoked paprika. This is great with a glass of Fino sherry. -Grind coarsely in a food processor with breadcrumbs, olive oil, garlic, orange zest and parsley and serve on top of scrambled eggs with sourdough toast. -Use in a salad. Try it with figs, mozzarella and rocket with a simple dressing of balsamic vinegar and olive oil. -Serve with a baked ricotta. Mix the ricotta with eggs, sugar and the scraped seeds from a vanilla bean and bake in individual molds until firm. Drizzle the baked ricotta with eucalyptus honey and top with roasted cobnuts. Cobnuts are available from most greengrocers, fruit and vegatable stalls and also at Waitrose. To learn more about cooking with cobnuts and other British ingredients, sign up for our Cooking with Wild and Foraged Foods class that we are doing as part of the British Food Fortnight! Recipe: Fresh Grape Chutney with Ginger and Black Onion Seeds This is a really fresh and unusual chutney that pairs well with a creamy chicken curry. I also like it with sweet potato cakes fried in a bit of butter. Makes around 2 cups of chutney that will keep in the fridge for a few days. Ingredients: Toast the black onion seeds in a dry frying pan over medium heat for 3-5 minutes until they begin to pop. Grind the seeds in a mortar and pestle. Mix the ground seeds with the remaining ingredients and toss well to combine. Add sea salt and pepper to taste. Allow to sit for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavours to develop. Recipe: Turkish-Style Strawberries with Black Pepper Shortbread This recipe was such a hit at our recent 'Market Inspired Salads' class that we decided to include it in our newsletter. The combination of the strawberries, lavender honey and the black pepper shortbread is just amazing!
Ingredients Instructions Place the black peppercorns in a mortar and pestle and smash until coarsely ground. Place the softened butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl. Using a wooden spoon, stir vigorously, crushing the lumps against the side of the bowl until the butter is well worked through the sugar and the two are combined. Use your fingers to crumble any lumps if necessary. In a separate bowl, sift the flour and then add the semolina and black pepper. Toss to mix well. Add the flour mixture into the butter-sugar mixture and stir again to combine. On a work surface, roll the dough into large log approximately the same width as a typical biscuit or a hobnob. Wrap in cling film and chill in the refrigerator for an hour. Preheat the oven to 175 C. Slice the shortbread log into rounds approximately 1/4 inch thick and place on a baking tray covered with a sheet of parchment paper. Prick the surfaces a few times with a fork, and bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden. Set aside to cool. Half each strawberry and using your hands or a sharp knife, remove the hull and green leaves and place in a salad bowl. It is important that the strawberries be at room temperature as this will encourage them to release some of their juices which will mingle with the honey. Drizzle the lavender honey over the strawberries, add the shredded mint and toss gently to mix. Toast the pistachio nuts in a dry frying pan over medium heat for a few minutes or until warmed and toasty smelling. Be careful not to overdo it or they will taste bitter. To serve, toss the strawberry salad with the pistachio nuts. Place a mound of strawberry salad on each plate, and serve with a warm shortbread biscuit. Goes very well with dessert wine! Recipe: Saffron and Melon Bellinis 
I recently bought a bottle of saffron syrup from La Fromagerie and came up with this recipe during the taxi journey home. Its quite unusual but really delicious and perfect to enjoy in the fantastic September weather we've been having. Makes approximately 4-6 cocktails Ingredients
Saffron syrup Instructions In a champagne flute, pour just enough saffron syrup to line the bottom of the glass. Place a heaped teaspoon of the melon in the glass and top up with the prosecco or sparkling wine. Give a quick stir with a cocktail spoon and serve. Restaurant Pick: Champor-Champor 
Tucked down a quiet street behind the London Dungeons in SE1, the moment you walk into Champor-Champor and smell the incense and see the intricately carved wooden doors and tables, you sense that you are in for something special. Their menu changes seasonally and has some of the most amazing flavour combinations imaginable. We loved the Jasmine tea, Herbal date and Quail's breast tonic, the Green Apple and Lemongrass Granita, and the Hainanese Steamed Poussin. Having dessert here is essential - if you see anything with 'smoked banana' on the menu order it. Otherwise, the 'Avocado and Pandan Tiramisu' is incredible and arrives on a little wooden pedestal which is worthy of its deliciousness.
Champor-Champor Contact Me Questions or comments about anything in this newsletter? Email me at: jennifer@eatdrinktalk.co.uk with any suggestions, thoughts or insider tips. Deliciously, Jennifer Klinec |
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