Osso Bucco Alla Milanese

Ingredients

8 pieces of veal osso bucco, about 4cm thick.
250ml white wine.
60g butter.
1 garlic clove, crushed.
1 garlic clove, finely chopped.
1 bay leaf.
3 tblsp parsley, finely chopped.
1 tblsp grated lemon rind.
½ tsp ground cinnamon.
½ tsp allspice.
Flour.
Lemon wedges.

Method

Truss each piece of osso bucco with twine.
Season flour with salt and pepper.
Toss osso bucco in flour to lightly coat.
In a large, heavy-based casserole, brown the osso bucco over moderate heat with butter and crushed garlic, in batches if necessary.
Return all oxxo bucco to casserole, add wine, bay leaf, cinnamon and allspice.
Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, then add 250ml water.
Cover, continue to simmer for 3 ½ hours, adding additional water as needed.
Lift osso bucco from casserole, discard bay leaf.
Increase heat and reduce liquids until thicl.
Reduce heat, stirring constantly.
Add lemon rind, chopped garlic and parsley.
Stir well, season and cook for further 1 min.
Return osso bucco to pan until warm.
Serve with lemon wedges and polenta or risotto on the side.

Rotolo

Ingredients

800g kipfler potatoes.
60ml olive oil.
1 cavolo nero, coarsely chopped.
150g salami, coarsely chopped.
1 egg, lightly beaten.
Sheet of fresh pasta, rolled to 2mm thick and about 35cm square.
Muslin.

Method

Steam potatoes for 20min over salted water and allow to cool.
Coarsely crush potatoes.
Arrange potatoes, salami, cavolo nero on pasta sheet, seasoning well and drizzling with olive oil.
Roll sheet to form long tube containing mixture, about 5cm in diameter.
Brush joining pasta with egg and press to seal.
Wrap rotolo tightly in muslin, securing ends with twine.
Truss rotolo at intervals to secure.
Simmer rotolo for 20min in salted water.
Rest for a further five minutes, remove muslin, and serve in thick slices.

Horseradish Mayonnaise

Ingredients

100ml grape-seed oil.
50ml olive oil.
30g fresh, horseradish, finely grated
1 tsp hot English mustard.
1 egg yolk.
Tarragon vinegar.
Worcestershire sauce.
Paprika.

Method

Whisk egg yolk and mustard in a large bowl.
Combine oils, then gradually add oil mixture to egg yolk, whisking constantly to emulsify.
Whisk through horseradish.
Season well with Worcestershire sauce, paprika, pepper and tarragon vinegar.

Crispy Salmon with leek sauce

Ingredients

Salmon fillets, skin on.
Lemon.
1 leek, finely chopped.
½ onion, finely chopped.
125ml white wine.
30ml white wine vinegar.
Additional vinegar.
30g butter.
30ml olive oil.
Paprika.

Method

Begin by making the sauce.
Sweat leeks and onion in a covered pan with butter over low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add wine and vinegar, sauté for a further 2 min.
Remove from heat.
Puree.
Force puree through fine sieve.
Season with salt, pepper, paprika and additional vinegar, if necessary.
Add water to correct consistency.
Place sauce aside.
Carefully bone salmon fillets.
Lightly score skin, season skin side of fillets with generous salt and a touch of pepper.
Prepare a wash of 1/3 lemon juice, 2/3 water, seasoned well.
In a heavy based pan over moderate heat, fry salmon fillets skin down with olive oil for 5 – 7 minutes, until skin in crispy.
Brush underside of fillets with wash on occasion.
Warm sauce.
Reduce heat, cook fillets a further 1 – 2 minutes (to taste) and serve with sauce.

Flounder with Normandaise Sauce

Ingredients

1 flounder, about 800g, cleaned, trimmed and head removed.
200ml dry cider.
150g Swiss brown mushrooms.
120g butter.
100g school prawns.
75g crème fraîche.
4 eschallots, finely sliced.
1 tblsp cider vinegar.

Method

Sauté eschallots with 20g butter over moderate head in a large saucepan for 5 min.
Add mushrooms, cook for a further 5 min.
Add cider and prawns, cook for a further 5 minutes.
Place aside, keep warm.
Season flounder, and cook in a large frypan with remaining butter for about 5 minutes each side.
Return saucepan to heat, stir through crème fraîche, cooking until warm.
Season sauce with salt, pepper and cider vinegar.
Serve sauce over fish.

Braised Witlof

Ingredients

2 witlof, trimmed and halved lengthways.
75ml chicken stock.
15g butter.
1 tsp demerara sugar.
Dash tarragon vinegar.
1 tbsp crème fraîche.
Nutmeg.

Method

Sauté witlof in a frypan with butter over moderate heat for 1 – 2 minutes.
Add sugar, vinegar and stock.
Bring to the boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 20 minutes.
Remove witlof and keep warm.
Increase heat and reduce liquid by ½, stir through crème fraîche, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
Pour sauce over witlof.
And serve…

Roast Poussin with Walnuts

Ingredients

1 poussin, about 500g.
2 rashers streaky bacon.
100g walnuts, finely chopped.
85g prunes, finely chopped.
4 eschallots, finely chopped.
1 garlic clove, finely chopped.
30g butter.
Additional butter.

Method

Preheat oven to 220°C.
Clean and trim poussin.
Combine walnuts, prunes, eschallot, garlic and butter well, season, and stuff poussin.
Lay bacon across poussin breast, truss poussin, season, smear with additional butter.
Roast on a rack.

Poussin cooking times:
20 minutes, plus an additional minute for every 50g above 500g.

Remove from rack and rest for five minutes.
Meanwhile, deglaze tray with 100ml water, reduce heat to a simmer, stir through 40g flour, bring to a boil for 1 – 2 min, season, and serve as gravy.