Friday 14 June 2013

leek and mushrooms on toast


3 tablespoons butter
1 leek, finely sliced
2 cloves garlic
300g mushrooms, sliced
¼ cup Restdown verjus
2 tablespoons chives, snipped
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
¾ cup sour cream
salt and cracked black pepper
wilted spinach to serve (optional)
4 slices toasted sourdough bread

Melt butter in a frying pan, add leek and cook over medium heat 4-5 mins or until soft.
Add garlic and mushrooms and cook about 5 mins or until mushrooms are almost cooked.
Add verjus and bring to the boil. Stir in chives, flat leaf parsley and sour cream, season with salt and pepper and cook until warmed through.

Serve on a bed of wilted spinach with sourdough toast.

Serves 4.

Wednesday 12 June 2013

verjus and orange crepes


Crepes:

1½ cups full cream milk
4 Good Eggs
¼ cup vegetable oil
1¼ cups plain flour
Icing sugar for dusting


Whisk the eggs and milk together in a bowl.
Measure ¼ cup of oil and use 2 tablespoons of it to add to the milk mixture. Save the rest of the oil till later.
Whisk well. Measure and sift the flour and add it to the batter. Whisk till well combined and then strain the batter into a pouring jug or bowl, to take out any small lumps that are left. Allow the batter to rest for up to an hour in the fridge.

Syrup:

1 cup Restdown Verjus
½ a Kurrnung Citrus orange
3 tablespoons sugar

Squeeze the orange juice into the saucepan then place the segment in as well. Add all the other ingredients to the saucepan and heat and stir the syrup until it starts bubbling. Keep the syrup simmering gently until all the sugar has dissolved and the syrup has reduced slightly. It is now ready to use.

Cooking and assembling the crepes:

Heat the frypan over a medium heat. Wipe the pan with some of the leftover oil, using a brush or paper towel. Pour batter into the pan to make a 20cm crepe and cook about 2 minutes on each side. When golden brown on both sides lift onto a plate. Continue cooking crepes until all the batter is used. You’ll need to wipe the pan with oil in between each crepe.

To assemble your crepes, brush each one well with verjus and orange syrup then roll each one up and place on a serving plate, brush again with syrup. Dust with icing sugar and serve.

Bon appetit!

Monday 10 June 2013

mulled wine

                                           




750mL Restdown Cabernet Sauvignon or "The Quaffer"
1 teaspoon of tea leaves
350mL boiling water
2 whole cloves
2-3 slices of lemon or orange peel
honey or sugar to taste (try about 2-3 teaspoons)
1 whole cinnamon stick
10cm square piece of muslin
rubber band or kitchen string for tying

Peel 2-3 slices of skin from the orange or lemon very thinly, being sure not to use any of the white pith.
Put the tea leaves and boiling water in a teapot and allow it to brew for 5 mins or so. 
Break the cinnamon stick and put it with the orange or lemon peel and cloves in a muslin bag and tie shut with the string or rubber band.
Heat the wine and muslin bag of spices in a saucepan to no more than 90 degrees celsius. Strain the tea (being sure to leave the tea leaves behind) and add it to the warm wine.
Allow it to rest for 20 mins.
Remove the linen bag and serve. You may like to add extra honey or sugar to taste.