Eggs Benedict with Smoked Salmon
Serves 2
2 English muffins
4 pieces ‘Aoraki’ smoked salmon
4 poached eggs (see below)
4 tablespoons ‘Quick Blender Hollandaise’ sauce (see below)
Method
Split each muffin, toast and butter. Cover each half with smoked salmon. Top with a poached egg and a good dollop of hollandaise sauce.
Perfect Poached Eggs
Serves 1
2 very fresh, free-range eggs
Plenty of boiling water
Method
Fill a large pan with water and bring to just below boiling. Use a spoon to get the water moving in a gentle circle and break the eggs in. Keep swirling the water gently while cooking the eggs – it may take up to 10 minutes. Do not rush the process; otherwise the white will separate from the egg.
To check if the egg is cooked, lift gently with a slotted spoon and check that none of the white is still transparent; it should be fairly solid and plump around the yolk.
Quick Blender Hollandaise
Makes 600ml
175g butter
2 tablespoons wine vinegar
4 tablespoons lemon juice
6 large egg yolks
A large pinch of salt
6 rounded tablespoons fresh chives, snipped
Method
Melt butter slowly in a small saucepan. Place wine vinegar and lemon juice in another pan and bring to the boil. Meanwhile blend egg yolks in a food processor or liquidiser, then – with the motor still running – gradually add the hot lemon and vinegar. When the butter reaches the boil, trickle this in very slowly, with motor still running until it is all added and the sauce is thickened. Stir in snipped chives. Serve immediately with barbequed salmon or vegetables, e.g. asparagus. Will also keep for up to 2 days if covered with glad wrap and refrigerated.
ROASTED PORK TENDERLOIN WITH BOK CHOY, PICKLED TOMATOES AND AVOCADO
Author: Chef Hugh Acheson
Pork tenderloin is such a wonderfully easy protein to cook. Healthy and low in fat, this flexible dish really is a family pleaser. The added bounce of the bok choy is a great addition of greenery that will make every bite that much healthier. The tomatoes and avocado marry in a classic manner that we love every day!
Ingredients
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 3 Tbsp. avocado oil
- 2 shallots, minced
- 2 jalapeños, sliced thinly
- ½ tsp. cumin seed, toasted and ground
- 1 tsp. mustard seeds, toasted and ground to a paste
- 4 Tbsp. lime juice, freshly squeezed
- 3 Tbsp. cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
- ¼ cup chopped mint
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- 1 tsp. plus a pinch r salt
- 3 ripe, Fresh Avocados
- 1 tsp. vegetable oil
- 2 lbs. trimmed pork tenderloin, trimmed of all silverskin and connective tissue
- 3 cups cleaned and thinly chopped bok choy
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. make the curried tomatoes. Place the tomatoes in a glass or ceramic bowl that can withstand a little heat. Season the tomatoes with the salt.
In a large fry pan bring olive oil to a simmer over medium high heat, just below smoke point. Add shallot and then jalapeños. Fry off until tender, about two minutes and then add the cumin and the mustard seeds. Toast for about a minute and remove from heat.
Let cool slightly and then carefully add half of the lime juice and vinegar and then pour this over seasoned tomatoes. Add mint, parsley and about ½. of the kosher salt. Let the tomatoes sit at room temperature for the flavors to mature while you roast the pork.
Slice the avocados in half lengthwise. Slice each half lengthwise again, gently removing seeds. Peel and discard the avocado skins and slice avocado into ¼-inch slices. In a medium bowl toss the avocado with the remaining lime juice and season with a pinch of salt. Add them to the curried tomatoes and toss gently.
Place a large frying pan over medium high heat and add the vegetable oil. Season the pork tenderloin with the remaining salt and then carefully add the pork to the pan, searing on all sides for a total time of 5 minutes on the stovetop. Place the pork in the oven and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, Remove the pork from the pan and let it rest on a cutting board for three minutes. While the pan is still hot add the bok choy and let it wilt in the pan, adding a pinch of salt to season.When the pork has rested slice it into thin rounds, about ¼-inch thick. Add the pork to the bok choy, toss lightly and then place the pork and bok choy on a platter, topping with the pickled tomatoes and avocados.
Coconut-Avocado Ice Cream
Yummy soft ice cream but with no eggs.
- 500ml milk
- 300ml coconut cream
- 150g white sugar
- 3 avocados, peeled and pitted
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Method
Blitz all of the above in a blender until very smooth, cover and refrigerate until cold . Freeze in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s directions, then freeze overnight.
- Allow ice cream to soften in refrigerator for 10 minutes before serving.
Grilled Squid and Caramelised Gold Kiwi Fruit Salad
Ingredients: 8 squid tubes
1/4 cup soy sauce
6 to 8 cups assorted salad greens
12 Roasted Garlic Cloves
Juice of 1 large lemon
3 Gold Kiwifruit , skinned and neatly chopped
2 Green Kiwifruit skinned and crushed
1 1/2 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Method:
Marinade the squid in the crushed green Kiwifruit for 1/2 hour, then add the Soy Sauce. Dress the greens with the lemon juice, roasted garlic cloves and olive oil, Panfry Green Kiwifruit to caramelize then cut up the squid and panfry very quickly at a high heat. Scatter Squid and caramelized Kiwifruit on top of the salad. Sprinkle with the sesame oil, season, and serve. 4 servings.
Christmas Avocado loaf
Lightly toasted with a spot of butter is the perfect light Christmas snack
- 500g good quality Christmas mince
- 150g chopped walnuts
- 100g old-fashioned oats
- 275g all purpose flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 2tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 3 ripe, Fresh Avocado, seeded and skinned
- 130ml avocado oil
- 300g (packed) brown sugar
- 4 eggs
- 120ml buttermilk
Method
Line two 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf tins with nonstick baking paper and lightly grease the bottom only.
Preheat oven to 180˚C.
Combine dry ingredients: oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside.
Scoop the avocado into a large bowl and mash lightly.
Add avocado oil and brown sugar to the avocado. Cream together using an electric mixer, until light and creamy.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Stir in Christmas mince, then walnuts and dry ingredients.
Stir in buttermilk and beat just until buttermilk is incorporated.
Pour into prepared loaf tins and bake in preheated oven for 1 hour and 10 minutes. This Christmas tea bread is quite moist and may not pass the “toothpick” test at this point. If you prefer a drier bread, bake a little longer.
Rump Steak with Polenta and Kiwifruit Salsa
Kiwifruit can be used to marinate meat or octopus, as it contains the enzyme ‘actinidin’ which is a natural and very effective tenderiser. Spread a ‘mash’ of kiwifruit over the meat and leave for 30 minutes, before scraping off and grilling. The same enzyme also prevents gelatine from setting so that, like pineapple, kiwifruit in a dessert will not ‘set’ unless poached first.
Serves 2
2 x 140g Rump Steak
110gg instant polenta
60g parmesan cheese
60g unsalted butter
75ml beef stock
21/2 tbsp dry sherry or madeira
salt and pepper
avocado oil for frying and greasing
Kiwifruit Salsa
Allow steaks to come to room temperature, marinading in ‘St Andrew’s Limes’ Spicy Glaze. Meanwhile, make the polenta, stir in the grated parmesan cheese and half the butter and season liberally. Pour out 1cm thick onto an oiled baking tray. Refrigerate until set firm and then, using a pastry cutter slightly larger than the tournedos, cut 4 rounds from the sheet of polenta.
To make the salsa verde, finely chop the garlic and then put into a food processor with all the other ingredients except the olive oil and spicy glaze. Process until evenly chopped and then add the oil and spicy glaze, continuing to process until smooth; taste and adjust seasoning.
Preheat oven to 220°C. Melt half the remaining butter in a frying pan with 1 tablespoon oil. Lightly season polenta rounds and fry for 1 minute each side and transfer to a lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, remove from oven, carefully turn over using a spatula and bake for a further 5 minutes until crisp.
Heat a clean frying pan dry until very hot. Flatten tournedos slightly with heel of hand and season. Cook over a high heat for 3 minutes on each side for rare and 4 minutes for medium. Transfer to a warm plate, cover and keep warm.
Pour beef stock and sherry or Madeira into pan to deglaze, quickly reducing liquid to a syrupy consistency. Add remaining butter, a small piece at a time, swirling pan until incorporated to finish the texture of the sauce and give a beautiful gloss.
To serve, put a crisp polenta croûte on each warmed plate and top with tournedos. Stir into the sauce any juices that have exuded from tournedos while resting and then spoon this over each steak before spreading the salsa verde on top
Roast Chicken with Avocado
Everyone has their own roast chicken recipe and so they should as it is one of the most under-rated and yet finest family meals that you can do. The avocado in this recipe was adapted as a healthier and tastier variation of butter when we found we had a glut of avocados going soft. After all, there’s only so much guacamole a family can eat!
Buy a free range, corn-fed, chill-fresh bird. To test if the bird is cooked, pierce the thickest part of the thigh with a skewer – the juices running out should be golden and clear. Also, you should feel the leg ‘give’ when tugged gently away from the body. To carve a chicken easily and neatly, allow at least 15–20 minutes resting time, preferably longer. This lets the juices which have welled up to the surface during cooking seep back into the flesh to keep it succulent.
Serves 6–8
2.5 kg chicken
1 carrot
1 onion
1 stick celery
1 tablespoon standard flour
75g buttered Avocado
6 rashers fat streaky bacon
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons verjuice or white wine
- Preheat the oven to 190°C.
- Prepare a ‘mire poix’ of vegetables and place in bottom of roasting tin. Sprinkle over flour.
- Smear the butter generously over the bird and tuck an extra lump of butter at the points where the thighs join the body. Season with salt and pepper, then place the bacon strips in a row, slightly overlapping each other, all along the breast.
- Lay the chicken on its back in a roasting tin on a high shelf in the oven. Cook for 20 minutes per 450g and sometimes 20 minutes over. (This has to be flexible because of the size of the bird and the type of oven.)
- After 1 hour, set aside the crispy bacon for serving later. When chicken is cooked, check the core temperature of the bird has reached 72˚C and rest, covered loosely with foil, for at least 10–15 minutes before carving.
- Meanwhile, add verjuice or white wine to cooked ‘mire poix’ and deglaze the roasting tin, stirring with a wooden spoon. Strain through a sieve and serve with chicken and crispy bacon.
Kiwifruit Mess
This dish is inspired by the great English classic, Eton Mess, a wonderful combination of crushed meringue, strawberries and cream.
Serves 2
4 kiwifruit, peeled
100g crème fraîche
3–4 tsp syrup from preserved ginger
1 tablespoon finely chopped preserved ginger
2 meringues, crushed into bite-size chunks
4 gingernut biscuits, crushed
- Cut kiwifruit into small chunks.
- Mix crème fraîche with ginger syrup.
Mix all ingredients lightly in a bowl and pile loosely into two glasses to serve
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