‘Sfunny, on some weekends there’s barely a scratch of sugar from which to sculpt a sweet ending to The Menu. On others (such as this one), you can barely get away from the desserts. So take your pick of a variety of tempting cheesecakes, baked cakes and custards, sorbets, panna cottas and tarts. Then get yourself to the gym.
The Times and Sunday Times
In The Dish, Richard Turner opined on what makes the perfect burger: “It’s important to note that at no point has any form of seasoning, filling or flavouring been added. Burger patties should be 100% pure beef — anything else is a beef sausage or stuffing.” I particularly liked his green chilli burger, with no fewer than three layers of capsicum (chilli adobo sauce, fresh green chillis, pickled jalapeños).
And I liked all of Florence Knights’ ‘simple summer salads’, not least haricot beans with roast tomatoes, the dill and cucumber (and caper and mustard) salsa, and the tumble of fregola, courgette, pecorino and honey.
Rebecca Seal got on the Lisbon love-in train, with tempting recipes for Portuguese dishes and drinks: queijadas de leite (pastry-less baked custard), piri piri chicken and white port and tonic. There’s been a clamour for this ace city and its food for about eighteen months now. Don’t expect it to die down any time soon — Nuno Mendes releases a Lisbon-Themed book this Autumn.
Saturday’s Magazine included a set of recipes to suit al fresco eating from Michael Caines. I was sucked-in by his monkfish with mussels and a mustard tarragon sauce. Otherwise, roast chicken, slow roast lamb shoulder with ratatouille etc.
Other eats suitable for balmy evenings were set out in the Weekend section. Things like a garlic, orange and Pernod fish stew, tomato puff tart, wild rice with peaches and pine nuts, and harissa sardines.
And back to the Magazine, where Nadiya made a chocolate orange cake. Which looked fine. As an aside, I do feel that of the Bake Off winners, Edd Kimber, John Whaite and Frances Quinn ought to get more broadsheet exposure for their continued demonstration of craft and creativity.
The FT Weekend Magazine
Dunno whether I’m going blind, but I couldn’t see a recipe on the FT’s website this weekend. There was HOWEVER, a cracking little vignette of Sarit Packer making a Honey & Co cheesecake. Kadaif pastry base (that bird nest whispy one), multiple types of dairy, loads of sugar, honey and roasted almonds. Gorj. Pretty sure the video is free for all to view, so take a look.
The Telegraph
Looks like The Telegraph is staggering the upload of it’s recipe content atm. At the time of looking, Flora Shedden’s picnic ideas were online, including cute little asparagus and potato tartlets.
I also got massively keen on getting a pizza oven, thanks to Xanthe Clay’s run down of various options. Given lack of outdoor living space, though, I’m a bit worried my wife will think it doesn’t really look right in either the living room or bedroom.
From last week, Ravinder Bhogal shared a few recipes from her menu at Jikoni, including spring onion bhajis with lemon aioli and an orange blossom panna cotta.
When more of this weekend’s paper content goes live, I’ll add it here.
The Guardian and Observer
OMFG, if you’ve got a sweet tooth, look away now.
Rachel Roddy’s cherry and ricotta lattice tart looks utterly divine. As ever, she introduces it to Cook readers in ethereal fashion.
Keep some room for Jeremy Lee’s elderflower sorbet with pistachio biscuits.
Then go for a run to make more space for Nigel’s sesame seed powered puddings from the Observer Magazine: buttermilk panna cotta with sesame brittle, and an extraordinary looking sesame and mango cheesecake.
If you must plump for something savoury, then at least add some piquant pink pickled onions to it, a la Yotam. Buckwheat, basil and ricotta hotcakes, trout tartare with burnt butter, and roast sweet potatoes with goat’s cheese all benefited from a scattering of soused allium.
Alternatively, Yotam’s magazine partner Tommi Miers provided recipes for fish fingers and blueberry pancakes (not to be eaten at the same time. Online there’s also a veal meatball recipe followed by a lush sounding lemon meringue parfait and warm strawberry sauce — both dated 2 June 2017 too. Maybe some sort of glitch, but we’ll take it.
And Anna Tobias’ boiled beef with creamed spinach, potato rosti and apple sauce would’ve been my main course had her Cook recipes been online on Sunday when compiling this. See also her poached chicken with spring vegetables and aioli.
The Internet
A big shout out to Helen Graves whose blog Food Stories marked ten years in the game with a minced lamb kebab.
Helen has been so important to the proliferation of London’s food scene (particularly South-East London) and a leading light in all things internet. I doubt I would have started ‘blogging’ had I not been a fan of Food Stories (so it’s your fault I’m now poor). And at a time now when being an ‘influencer’ means taking a picture and putting it on instagram with little reflection of the quality or value of that freebie, a decade of promoting the good stuff and being honest about the rest, in more than 140 characters, should be commended. Tonnes of cracking recipes too.
Also, I like the look of Anna Jones’ rhubarb, strawberry and coconut (butter and sugar) bars.
#Supplemental Cooking
Dinner last night, and lunch today, was Florence Knight’s haricot beans with roast tomatoes and basil. I’m not convinced the timings are quite right, but it was ultimately an easy assembly and the poshest baked beans ever. Lovely – and to be repeated through the summer.
Weekend Menu, 3 and 4 June 2017
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Trout tartare with burnt butter, pickled onions and pistachios
Yotam Ottolenghi, The Guardian Magazine
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Green chilli burger
Richard Turner, The Sunday Times, The Dish
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Cherry and ricotta tart
Rachel Roddy, The Guardian Cook
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Thank you for that lovely mention, it made me a touch emosh!
Cheque’s in the post, yeah?