Category: recipe

Categories
recipe

Asparagus Tart with creme fraiche and comte

Asparagus tart with creme fraiche and comte

image of an asparagus tart topped with melted cheese, you can learn how to make this tart on the blog of Gourmandises Academie, Cambridge

Ingredients:

One block of puff pastry 

Two bunches of asparagus 

3 TBSP of creme fraiche

100 g of comte cheese (you can also use cheddar)

Black pepper to season

 

 

Method:

Start by cutting the end of your asparagus stems as they tend to be hard.

In a pan pour a litre of water with a tbsp of salt and bring to the boil and then throw your asparagus. Leave them to cook for 3 minutes, then drain them and let them cool.

Meanwhile, pre-heat your oven to 180° C and start preparing your puff pastry. I keep the pastry on the parchment paper it comes with. Then, with a knife I draw a rectangle close to the edges of my pastry, to create a border. Spread 3 tbsp of creme fraiche and add your asparagus, season with a bit of black pepper and add the cheese on top. (At this point, you could easily add pieces of prociutto or parma ham).

Et voilà, baked in a hot oven for a good 30 minutes. Serve with a gorgeous salad.

Corinne x

You may also like to try this other gorgeous summer recipe using puff pastry, click here

Categories
recipe

Gluten free chocolate cake

Gluten free chocolate cake

Image of a slice of chocolate cake sitting on a silver serving spoon

Ingredients:

40 g cocoa powder 

70 g dark chocolate (at least 70%) 

70 g unsalted butter 

6 eggs (2 whole, and 4 separated into whites and egg yolks) 

70 g ground almonds 

200 g of caster sugar 

A pinch of salt 

8″ cake tin lined with baking paper 

Pre-heat your oven at 180º C

Method:

Melt your chocolate and butter over a bain marie. Whisk your egg yolks and 2 whole eggs with 120 g of caster sugar to a thick white consistency, then mix in your ground almonds and cocoa powder. Add this mixture to your melted chocolate and butter. Whisk your egg whites and pinch of salt with the rest of the caster sugar (30 g) to snowy peaks. Slowly fold your whites to your chocolaty mix until completely incorporated. Then pour into your cake tin and cook for 25 minutes (if the end of your knife comes clear, your cake is cooked). Yes, it is as simple as that.

Tip: when your cake is completely cool, dust the top with cocoa powder 

Corrine x

Categories
recipe

Lobster tail in a rich tomato and turmeric sauce

Lobster tail in a rich tomato and turmeric sauce

picture with lobster tails in a tomato sauce, you can learn how to make this at cookery school Gourmandises Academie in Cottenham, Cambridge

Ingredients:

2 lobster tails ( one tail per person)

2 tomatoes roughly chopped

1 finely chopped onion

2 cloves of garlic crushed

Fresh thyme

Fresh parsley

Two chillies (mild or hot depending on your taste buds)roughly chopped

1/4 tsp of turmeric

Fresh grated ginger (about the size of half a tsp)

Method:

In a pan, add a tbsp of vegetable oil (not olive oil as you want the full flavour of the lobster). Start by adding your onions and thyme, stir until the onion becomes translucent. Then add your garlic, your ginger and your chilli and stir again for a minute then add your turmeric and your tomatoes. Stir and let this lovely sauce simmer for 30 minutes (if the sauce dries out a little bit, add a little bit of hot water), then add your lobster tails and simmer for another 10 minutes, stirring after 5. That’s it, add some chopped fresh parsley before serving. In Reunion, we tend to serve it with plain Basmati rice. Delicious! Et voilà!

You can find lobster tails at Waitrose, but also The Fin Boys, or Crystal Waters Ltd on Cambridge market.

Corrine x

Categories
Christmas baking recipe

Christmassy madeleines with orange and lemon zest

Christmassy madeleines with orange and lemon zest

picture of a bowl containing loads of madeleines dipped in dark chocolate, you can learn how to make this recipe on the blog of cooking school gourmandises academie in Cambridge

Ingredients:

125 g melted unsalted butter

125 g plain flour

3 medium eggs

4 g baking powder

125 g sugar

A pinch of salt

Zest of an orange and a lemon

A madeleines tray

Method:

Sift the flour, salt and baking powder. Whisk the eggs and sugar to a white consistency and add your zest. Slowly fold in your flour. Then add your melted butter in one go and mix again. Cover your bowl with cling film and put it in the fridge for at least an hour. This will allow the flavours to develop and the mixture to rise properly. This mixture can actually be kept for a week in the fridge, so you can actually bake fresh madeleines every day. Butter and flour your madeleines tray and fill it with a tsp of your mixture. Bake them for 10 minutes or until golden brown in a pre-heated 180° C oven. Get them out of the tray as soon as they come out of the oven. You can eat them warm. Otherwise let them cool down and dip them in dark chocolate for an extra bit of indulgence. Et voilà!

Corrine x

Categories
recipe

Chicken parcels cooked in vermouth with carrots, leek and fennel

Chicken parcels cooked in vermouth with carrots, leek and fennel

image of a terracotta pot on a wooden table containing four meat parcels in a tomato sauce. You can find the recipe on the blog of cookery school Gourmandises Academie in Cottenham, Cambridge

Ingredients:

4 chicken parcels ( I get mine from my local butcher)

One leek chopped

One carrot chopped

One fennel chopped

3 cloves of garlic

Fresh thyme

Fresh parsley

80 ml of vermouth

600 ml of boiling water

2 TBSP of tomato puree

Method:

In a pan, add 2 TBSP of olive oil and start by gently browning your parcels on both sides, once they are brown take them out of the pan and add your leek and the thyme, once the leek has softened add the garlic, the carrot and the fennel, stir for 2 minutes. Then add your vermouth, let the alcohol evaporate and then add 2 TBSP of tomato puree and 600 ml of boiling water, stir. Put your parcels back in the pan, reduce the heat and let it simmer for 2 hours on your stove. Add freshly chopped parsley before serving. I have mine with polenta, but mashed potatoes works just as well. Et voilà,

If you live in Cambridge, you can get your chicken parcels from Longhorn farmshop or Leech and Sons

Corrine x

Categories
recipe

Mum’s chicken chasseur

Mum's chicken chasseur

image with a dish containing pieces of chicken, mushrooms and a bit of parsley on top, you can find the recipe on the blog of Gourmandises Academie

Ingredients:

4 chicken legs

One onion (chopped)

2 cloves of garlic (crushed and chopped)

Thyme

Bay leaves (2 leaves is enough)

Parsley (chopped)

80 g of green pitted olives

150 g Lardons

A bottle of dry white wine

300 g closed cup mushrooms (sliced)

Turmeric

You will need a heavy based pan with a lid for this dish

Method:

Start by browning your chicken legs in two TBSP of vegetable oil. Once brown, take the chicken out of the pan and add your lardons and your mushrooms and stir them around constantly in your pan until all the water has gone. Then add your chopped onion and stir again until they’re soft, add the garlic, thyme and bay leaves and stir for a minute. Then put your chicken back in the pan, season with salt and pepper, but not too much salt as you already have some from your lardons. At that point add your olives and a bit of turmeric (less than a 1/4 of tsp) and stir, pour your wine. Bring it to the boil, then turn the heat right down, lid on and let your chicken cook for an hour. The sauce should have reduced and be velvety by then, if it’s still runny, live it to cook a little longer. Before serving add the fresh parsley on top. Et voilà!

Chef’s tip: this meal is actually best enjoyed the next day.

 Good quality farm shops to get your chicken from: Longhorn or Leech and Sons

Corrine x

Categories
recipe

Courgettes pancakes, topped with , roasted tomatoes, creme fraiche, and salmon

Courgettes pancakes, topped with roasted tomatoes, crème fraiche and salmon

image of a pancake topped with roasted tomatoes, crème fraiche and salmon you can learn how to make this at cookery school Gourmandises Academie in Cambridge UK

Ingredients (this quantity will serve 2 to 3 people)

For 100 g of courgettes (grated) you will need to add

One egg

One heaped tbsp of self raising flour

Salt and pepper to season

2 to 3 slices of salmon

Cherry tomatoes slowly roasted

A dollop of creme fraiche

A bit of grated cheddar

Olive oil or vegetable oil

You will need a small non stick pan for this

Method:

Mix your courgettes, flour and egg, and season with a bit of salt and pepper. In a pan, drizzle a little bit of olive oil and add a ladle of pancake mix, cook one side for a minute, turn it over and cook the over side, and that’s it really for the cooking. I tend to serve mine with with a bit of grated cheddar, then roasted tomatoes, then the creme fraiche and salmon on top of it all. Regarding my tomatoes, I roast them for a good 45 minutes in a 160° c oven with fresh thyme and oregano from my garden (dry herbs work too), rock salt and olive oil. You can also use freshly sliced cherry tomatoes for this recipe. Et voilà

I hope you enjoy it, if you do have a go, don’t forget to tag me on social media, either on IG or FB

Another great brunch recipe is courgettes muffins, find the recipe here

Corrine x

Categories
recipe

Gateau de courgettes au chocolat

Gateau de courgettes au chocolat

image of a cake loaf covered in a dark chocolate glaze and topped with fresh strawberries and cherries dipped in white chocolate, you can find the recipe on the blog og Gourmandises Academie

Ingredients

300 g of grated courgettes (this is when you have squeezed all the water out of them).

240 g self raising flour

180 g sugar (can be caster or granulated)

100 g melted butter (unsalted)

2 TBSP of ground almonds

3 eggs

100 g dark chocolate (melted)

I like to bake my cake in a bread tin but an 8″ round tin will do too.

Pre-heat your oven to 180° C fan.

For the garnish (this is me being extravagant, the cake is actually really nice without it)

100 ml double cream

100 g dark chocolate

I chose to add cherries dipped in white chocolate and strawberries but you can easily skip that bit (this is just for show, you know, when you have dinner party guests you want to impress!)

Method:

When I said it was easy, I meant it really. The hardest bit is to line your cake tin with baking paper. In a bowl, mix all your ingredients together in one go, the courgettes, sugar, eggs, melted butter, flour, ground almonds and chocolate. (remember to squeeze the water out of your courgettes). You will end-up with a very loose batter, don’t panic that is fine. Pour it into your tin and into your oven for a good hour, reduce the temperature to 170° c once in the oven. Make sure your cake is cooked by inserting a skewer or a knife in the middle, if it comes out clean it’s cooked, if not put it back in the oven a bit more.

Leave your cake to cool. Once cooled you can add a chocolate ganache on top, but you can also eat it as it is. If you decide to add the ganache, warm-up your double cream (don’t boil it otherwise your chocolate will split), add your chocolate and stir, and spread it over your cake. I decided to add some fruits to mine to make it more appealing. Et voilà, mon gateau de courgettes au chocolat!

P.S: don’t forget to tag me on my social media channels if you make the cake IG or FB

You might fancy trying a savoury recipe click here

Beautiful tableware courtesy of Roneford Catering

Corrine x

Categories
recipe

Malaysian inspired pickled courgettes

Malaysian inspired pickled courgettes

image of a jar of pickle, you can find the recipe on the blog of cookery school Gourmandises Academie, Cambridge

Ingredients:

1 kg of courgettes

50 g of salt

1 tsp of turmeric

1 tsp of chilli flakes

2 tsp of mustard seeds (you could also use coriander seeds)

3 cloves of garlic finely chopped

20 g of fresh ginger finely sliced

2 tbsp of sugar

500 ml of vinegar

Method:

Start by cutting your courgettes into little cubes, pop them into a bowl with your salt and mix well, cover and leave it overnight (this is the brining process, your courgettes will render a lot of water that way).

The next day, rinse your courgettes in cold water ( I do this seven times to get rid of the excess salt, you want your courgettes to reach that sweet but not too salty taste). Once that’s done, you also want to drain the excess water. I do this by transferring the courgettes to a colander with a plate over them and something heavy on top. Leave for 5 minutes at least or until no water comes out. Then heat a tbsp of vegetable oil in a pan, add your mustard seeds, when they start popping, add the ginger, the garlic, chilli flakes and the turmeric and stir for a minute constantly as you don’t want your garlic to burn, then pour the vinegar and add the sugar, bring to the boil and turn the heat off, let this cool completely.

Once cooled start adding your courgettes into sterilised jars one layer at a time, then add some of the spices on top, then a bit of the vinegar and repeat this process until the jar is full. This process allows you to have an even distribution of spices, vinegar and courgettes in the jar. If you don’t do that you end-up with all the spices at the top of your jar. That is it!

You can either leave these jars for 6 months or consume after a week with cold meat, sausage roll, ham or even a good old scotch egg. It’s truly delicious!

Last year I went for courgettes fritters you can find the recipe here

Corrine x

Categories
recipe

Tarte provençale with tapenade, goat cheese, roasted tomatoes and peppers

Tarte provençale with tapenade, goat cheese, roasted tomatoes and peppers

image of a piece of pie with roasted tomatoes, pepper and cheese on top, you can learn how to make this at the baking school Gourmandises Academie

Ingredients:

400 g roasted cherry tomatoes

1 red pepper

280 g of tapenade

One roll of puff pastry (try to purchase puff pastry entirely made with butter and not palm oil).

100 g goat cheese

Method:

You will need to have roasted your pepper and tomatoes first, and let them cool down before you start. I roast my tomatoes separately from the pepper with a drizzle of olive oil (it usually takes 30 minutes), in a hot oven at 180 ° C fan.

Once that’s done, put a baking tray in a pre-heated 180 ° C oven. This process will prevent the “soggy bottom” scenario.

Then start assembling your tart.

Roll out your pastry. Tip: I leave my pastry on the baking parchment it comes with. Then, I spread the tapenade evenly on top (Tapenade is very easy to make yourself you can find the recipe here), add your tomatoes and pepper (I sliced it into strips) and finish by adding bits of goat cheese on top. It is as simple as that. Then I take out my tray that has nicely been warming up in the oven and lift my tart onto the tray. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until the edges are golden brown. Et voilà

P.S. If you are making your own tapenade, use good black olives, like kalamata. You can find these in the supermarket but also very good delis such as Burwash for example.

Corrine x