Happy New Year. I know it’s been a very
long time since I last updated my blog, apologies. However I will try to
keep on top of it starting now.
The main reason I haven’t up-dated my blog
is because sadly Sadiq can no longer take my pictures because of other
commitments, but I thank him for his skills, efforts and time.
I still get asked for the recipes of the dishes I create at Kaffeine, so I shell up-date redjarcooking without shinny
wonderful pictures for now. I still have a few remaining images which I will
use from time to time. I'm also looking into investing in a decent camera.
Plus my secret Santa bought me an amazing book on
food photography, which I'm currently reading.
In the meantime I will be re-editing some
of my recipes and work on more recipes cards, which are
still available at Kaffeine.
Here is my latest recipe, a savoury baked
ricotta tart. It looks very festive on a plate (you'll have to take my word)
and I've garnished this ricotta tart with a foraged item Golden Saxifrage. Crisp,
textural and ever so slightly bitter leafy green. Best eaten raw
and lightly dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. The refreshing
taste of golden saxifrage goes well with creamy citrus ricotta, sweet tomato
sauce and slightly spiced flaky pastry. You may find this recipe a tad
labour intensive to make, none the less the end result is
very therapeutic.
PASTRY:
300g plain flour
150g butter
50g grated cheddar
1 egg
3 tablespoons water
11/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of sea salt
TOMATO SAUCE:
3 plum tomatoes
1 white onion
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 basil leaves
Dash of dry sherry
Sea salt and ground white pepper
RICOTTA FILLING:
600g good quality full fat
ricotta
1 white onion
150g grated gruyere
3 eggs
25g butter
2 lemons
Sea salt and ground white pepper to season
GARNISH:
60g golden saxifrage
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
METHOD:
Start with making the pastry, place flour,
cheddar, ginger and salt in large mixing bowl. Cube the butter and add to dry
mixture, rub butter into flour until well blended together then add egg and
cold water. Lightly knead together until only just combined. Wrap pastry in
cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.
Grease a fluted flan tin
with removable base 30cm in diameter and 3cm deep. Once the pastry
has rested roll out on a floured surface until about 4-5mm thick and line
the tin with pastry, pinch and press down around the edges and
refrigerate for a further 30 minutes.
Once pastry has rested using a folk prick
the base of pastry 10 times and line with grease proof paper then fill with
uncooked rice or dried legumes, bake in oven set at 200ºC for 12 minutes.
When the pastry is baked remove parchment paper and legumes and bake the pastry
for further 8 minutes until golden brown.
To make the tomato sauce peel and finely
dice the onion, crush the garlic and roughly dice the tomatoes. Warm
a sauce pan over a medium heat and add olive oil followed by onions and
garlic, gently cook until onions have softened. Add the tomatoes, sherry
and season with salt and pepper, cook until tomatoes begin to break down. When
tomatoes become mushy remove from heat and pour into a food processor with
basil, blend into a smooth sauce.
For the ricotta filling peel and finely
dice the onion. Add butter into a fry pan and warm over a medium heat until the
butter has melted. Add onion to fry pan and cook until onions
become translucent then remove from heat. In a large mixing bowl add
ricotta, onion, gruyere, eggs, lemon juice and season with salt and pepper, mix
together until evenly combined.
Spread the tomato sauce over the base of
the pastry then evenly top with ricotta and smooth out, bake in oven on middle
shelf set at 180ºC. When the tart has finished baking leave to cool for 30
minutes before cutting into 8 pieces.
To garnish gently mix golden saxifrage,
lemon juice and olive oil together and top each slice of tart with the dressed
golden saxifrage and serve.
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