' BACKYARD SALAD #3 .'

Backyard winter harvested salad of Pea greens & Flowers, Watercress, Sorrel, Yellow Chard, Sweet potato greens, Nasturtium leaves & Petals, Watermelon Radish and Supremes of Blood Orange & Tangelo.

                  For this post I've done a quick little winter garden inspired salad to accompany some fresh citrus I had bought from the grocers. This tasty salad of winter greens with peppery and lemon notes has been dressed with a blood orange vinaigrette and makes perfect for an appetiser as it gets all those saliva glands going and taste buds zinging. The nasturtium leaves and petals along with the watercress and radish give off peppery and mustard flavour notes adding a little spice and warmth to the dish.        
                  To make this salad I started with preparing the citrus, slicing both the blood orange and tangelo into supremes and placing into the fridge to chill. In a bowl I whisked together some olive oil, blood orange juice, salt, pepper and panela until well combined, this was set aside. Next I went for a walk down the backyard to the vegetable garden and had a little forage for the winter greens, radishes and flowers. These were washed, the radish I sliced thinly and dressed the salad greens in the blood orange vinaigrette. The greens, radish slices, flower petals and prepared citrus fruit supremes were then arranged onto a plate and seasoned with some cracked black pepper.
                 When it was photo shoot time, I went outside to capture the days natural light like I usually do. But this time I had forgotten that I had let the chooks out to to free range earlier on. Well at the end of the shoot I was taking some variation plating shots and experimenting with a white back ground,  when the curiosity and patience had got the better of the White Sussex and she had to check out the backyard salad. Upon a closer look she dove in a started eating the salad, picking the tangelo supreme first followed by a frenzy of thrashing beak work annihilating my salad.

' BLOOD ORANGE SCALLOP CEVICHE .'

Scallops cured in blended citrus juice and arranged with Blood orange supremes, Brunoised vegetables, Preserved lemon, Micro herbs and nori seaweed tile, served in a Blood orange sauce spiked with chilli.

                   I love Scallops cooked his way and when the blood oranges hit the shelves, I had to try this ceviche recipe which uses a blend of juice from citrus fruits, blood orange, limes and lemon together with a splash of verjus, This looks like a lot of prep for 3 scallops but this is surprisingly easy to prepare and there is no cooking involved, in 45 minutes you've got a very tasty seafood entree that looks alright too. Each component has its place and involvement in the end finish of the experience. Have a go at this dish while the oranges are at their juiciest, below is how simple it really is.                                          
                   Here is a list of the preparations in order of method.                                                                    
SCALLOP CEVICHE- In a glass bowl I whisked together 1/4 cup of blood orange juice, 2 tbsp each of lime juice, lemon juice and verjus, pinch of sugar and salt, until the salt and sugar dissolved. I then washed and pat dried the scallops placing them in the bowl of blended juice and covering the bowl with clear film. The bowl was then placed in the fridge and the scallops were allowed to cure for 45 minutes.                                                    
BLOOD ORANGE SAUCE- In the time the scallops are curing I made the the sauce and prepared the finishing accompaniments. To make the sauce I simply whisk together in bowl 1/4 cup of blood orange juice, 1/2 tbsp of each lemon, lime and verjus and olive oil, this was then seasoned and given a splash of tabasco sauce before being placed in the fridge to chill.
FINISHING- To accompany the scallops and finish the dish I prepared a micro brunoise of red radish and celery. Then thinly sliced some watermelon radish, cut a nori sheet into little 1/4 inch square tiles and cut blood oranges into half supremes and preserved lemon rind into little pieces. The final garnishes did not require preparation and consisted of young yellow celery leaves, dill fronds and opal basil blossom.

' food plays' WALDORF SALAD .'

Contempory Waldorf salad of Crisp Granny Smith apple, Roaring Forties Blue cheese, Roasted walnuts, Tender Crisp celery, Watercress and Blue cheese dressing. 

                    The waldorf salad is a classic salad that has endless possibilities of a reconstructed contempory twist to its presentation. The salad is traditionally made of apple, celery, walnuts and mayo on a bed of lettuce and was first created in the 1890's by Oscar Tschirky at the Waldorf Hotel in NYC. The are many variations using chicken, dates, grapes, sultanas etc. and the recipe I've chosen to recreate comes from a english restauranteur and owner of The British Larder. This variation uses the addition of the blue cheese through the mayo and as a crumbled accompaniment, which really stands up against the tang of the apple and the pepperiness of the watercress. This waldorf version delivers a diversity of textures and flavours that pack punch and harmonise collectively.
                   To make the salad I simply cored an apple slicing thinly into 2-3mm slices, these were lightly dressed in olive oil and lemon juice before being reassembled into an apple shape and chilled. Next I sliced the celery into 2-3mm matchsticks and reserved some young yellow leaves also dressing these in the oil and lemon juice before chilling. In a 180C oven I placed some walnuts on a flat tray and roasted them for about 10 minutes until nicely toasted and starting to release nut oils which intensify the flavour of the nut, these were then cooled, chopped roughly and set aside ready for plating. To make the dressing I creamed 1 egg yolk, 1/2 teaspoon of Dijon mustard, 50g of Blue cheese, 1 tbsp of lemon juice, a pinch of sugar and salt, until smooth. Slowly I then added 50ml of olive oil and 100ml of sunflower oil while slowly whisking the mayo to form an emulsion, adding a tbsp of warm water if the mayo became to thick. The mayo was then chilled for half an hour before serving.                                    
                   To plate I placed the reassembled sliced apple in the centre of the plate, topping with young celery leaf, celery matchstick, sprig of watercress and a small thin tile of blue cheese. Around the apple I placed dollops of the blue cheese dressing at 12, 3, 6 and 9 0'clock, topping each with a different accompaniment. Next I arranged the matchsticks of celery, young celery leaves, watercress and crumbled blue cheese around the apple, scattering the roasted walnuts and seasoning the dish with a little cracked black pepper.                                      

 

' TWO LOCAL PRAWNS IN A BARK BOAT .'

 Local bay prawns in a Native lime berry, Chilli & Ginger sauce, aboard a Paperbark boat, served with Barley couscous and Captain Cooks spinach. 

                    This dish showcases some of the great indigenous foods we have been blessed with in our great country. Most of these indigenous bush-foods can only be found here too, making them a rare and cherished experience for me. In this little appetiser I use some fresh local bay prawns and marinate them in a marinade made of home grown native lime berries with chilli and ginger. These are cooked on the barbecue and served on a bed of barley couscous, which has been cooked in the liquor from steamed pipi's. And accompanied by some homegrown native spinach. The canoe was crafted from a trimmed sheet of bark from the paperbark tree in the front yard and made in similar fashion to the bark boats our indigenous people use for transport and to fish from. The boat was folded, pinned at both ends then soaked in water, before being moulded to shape and cured on a hotplate grill and set aside to harden.                                                  
                    I made the marinade by simmering Native lime berries, lime juice, caster sugar, salt pepper, red chilli paste, ginger paste and crushed garlic until reduced and slightly thickened. I then used a little of the sauce to form a paste with some corn starch and returned the paste to the sauce, stirring until the marinade thickens. I then removed the marinade placing in the fridge to chill before coating the green local peeled and deveined prawns and allowing to marinate in the fridge for an hour with half of the marinade and the remaining was set aside to be used as a plating sauce. The prawns were then cooked quickly on a hotplate basting with the sauce, once cooked they were placed two in a boat to be served. In a saucepan I placed a handful of pipis, some fresh thyme and chopped onions and steamed the pipis in a dry white wine. Once the shells were open I strained the cooking liquor and used the stock to cook the couscous. To finish I blanched the captain cooks spinach in pot of salted boiling water for 2-3 minutes before removing and steeping into an ice bath to retard the cooking process, the blanching removes most of the unwanted oxalic acid which gives native spinach a hairy mouthfeel if eaten raw, similar to the unripe bananas.                                                                                                                          

' BAKED WINTER SQUASH .'

Baked mini Pumpkin filled with Pearl couscous, Red Quinoa, Puffed wild rice, Black truffles & truffle oil, Roasted chestnuts, Porcini mushrooms, Sage sprig and Viola flower. 

                 The mini pumpkin season finished months ago for us here in the southern hemisphere, but I happened to find them at the markets and couldn't resist. Actually a squash and referred to many as a winter squash and not a pumpkin, they make a perfect serving portion when stuffed with the filling of your choice and makes a great wholesome vegetarian meal. We had a go at growing a variety of these called 'golden nugget' last summer in our pumpkin and melon patch with some great success. We grew them trellised up and companioned with nasturtium, which encouraged the bees in for pollination and great for the kids to grow.                                                                                                                            
                I began making this dish with preparing the three grains in the filling, firstly I rinsed 1 cup of organic red quinoa, draining and then soaked the grains in 1 1/4 cups of water for 15 minutes. I then brought this to the boil, reducing the heat and covering, simmering for about 15 minutes until all the water was absorbed. I then removed the quinoa from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes before forking to loosen the grains. I then prepared the pearl couscous by simmering 1 part couscous to 2 parts water for 8-10 minutes until all the water had absorbed. For the puffed wild rice I simply placed a handful of wild rice into a hot skillet and toasted until they puffed, while tossing them around to avoid burning. These were then removed from the skillet and set aside. Next I prepared the pumpkin by slicing the top off and scooping the seeds out with a dessert spoon, the pumpkin and its top were then placed skin side up on a flat baking tray and roasted in a 170C oven for about 20 minutes, turning when needed. The pumpkin was the removed and set aside when ready and I then peeled and chopped some chestnuts to be roasted. In a pan I melted a little butter and sweat down some chopped onions and to this I added some sliced porcini mushrooms. When the mushrooms were ready, I added in the three prepared grains, roasted chestnuts, a little truffle oil, some shaved black truffles and a little rubbed sage. This was mixed together and then removed from the stove before filling the roasted pumpkin. The dish was then garnished with a sprig of baby sage leaves and a yellow viola flower.                                            

      

'GUAVA CHEESECAKE with JABOTICABA GELEE.'

Guava Cotten-soft Cheesecake with Jaboticaba gelee, served with a Tamarillo, red wine & honey sauce, Passionfruit tuile, Lemon balm and Edible violet pansy.

                      This dessert uses four fruits from the south american region that we have been harvesting since the start of last month. We have a guava cheesecake, a jaboticaba gelee, a tamarillo sauce and a passionfruit tuile. For a few months now I've been collecting the ripened fruit from these four varieties and freezing the pulp, as the fruit ripens at various times, sometimes it may mean picking the odd berry here and there to beat the birds and have enough at the end of season to use them for something, only while our fruit trees are still in their early years and not bearing much fruit. This dish I guess is one of those end of season uses I was talking about, this is the rewards of our south american fruit harvests. The odd passionfruit is still falling from their vine and people have ice on their car windows in the morning, I don't understand. The peach and fig tree have gone into winer dormancy but I've got a rogue bitter melon cucumber plant flowering in the veggie patch. My coffee plants are holding the worst season of cherries by yield in the 6 years they been fruiting and the local strawberry farmers here are bracing themselves for a record high season, so try and plan for that.                                                          
                     Below is a scaled recipe and detailed method for each prep, you can have fun with this one and change up the fruits, like have a strawberry cheesecake with a sour cherry gelee or something. This is a cotten-soft cheesecake meaning the texture is soft and melts in your mouth. The recipe uses a combination of the traditional cheesecake with the fluffy texture of the sponge chiffon cake, with the flavour coming from added fruit puree.                                                                                                          
COTTEN-SOFT GUAVA CHEESECAKE- To make this cake I first preheated a 160C oven and greased and lined a 6" square and 1" high cake tin. I then halved and scooped out the pulp of 6 guavas into a blender and blended to a puree, making 1 cup of strained puree. Over a saucepan of gently simmer water I placed a heat proof bowl, adding to the bowl 125g of chopped cream cheese, 25g of chopped butter and 50ml of milk. I then mixed with a whisk until melted and smooth, removing the bowl from the heat and allowing to cool. I then added 35g of plain flour, 20g of cornflour, 1/2 tbsp of lemon juice, 3 egg yolks and a pinch of salt, stirring to incorporate. Using an electric beater, in a separate bowl I whipped 3 egg whites and a 1/4 tsp of cream of tartar until foamy, continuing to whip I added 70g of caster sugar in 3 batches to form a soft peak stage. I then folded the guava puree through the cream cheese mixture and then folded in the egg whites, this was then poured into the lined tin and baked for 40 minutes. The oven was then switched off and the cheesecake was left to cool completely in the oven before being removed from the tin and sliced into portion sizes.                                                                                                        
JABOTICABA GELEE- To make the gelee which is the purplish jelly film you see on top of the cheesecake, I washed and deseeded 12-14 small jaboticaba, placing them into a small saucepan with enough water to cover ( about 1 1/2 cups ) and a 1/4 cup of caster sugar. This was brought to a simmer for about 20 minutes, reducing the liquid to 1 cup of purplish coloured thin syrup. The syrup was then strained and the fruit pulp and skins discarded, the liquid was returned to the the saucepan and brought back to a gentle simmer. I then added 1 tsp of agar agar to the syrup, while whisking to dissolve the agar agar. This was then removed from the stove and poured out over a flat oven tray and allowed to set on the bench top. When the gelee had cooled and set I cut out appropriate sized rectangles to fit on top of the cheesecake portions.                                                                                                                              
TAMARILLO, RED WINE & HONEY SAUCE- This sauce actually came from the poaching liquids in the baked tamarillo dish and was reserved to eat with custard or ice cream or something. The sauce was made by simply baking tamarillo fruit in 1 cup of red wine, star anise and 2tbsp of honey. The remaining poaching liquid was further reduced and reserved for later preparations.                                      
PASSIONFRUIT TUILE- To make the tuile I gently heated 50g of glucose in a saucepan on low, once the glucose was running freely I added 60g of passionfruit puree without seeds and mixed the two together to form a syrup. This was then removed from the heat and poured into a mixing bowl, to which I added 75g of icing sugar and 60g of flour, mixing together to form a stiff batter. I then added 30g of melted butter and mixed through completely, I then placed the mix in the fridge to firm up a little. To make the tuile shape I spread the tuile mixture 1mm thick, between two strips of masking tape 5mm apart on a flat baking tray. Once I was happy the mixture was spread evenly and thinly from end to end, I removed the strips of tape to reveal a perfect straight 20cm long, 5mm wide and 1 mm high strip of uncooked tuile batter. This was then baked in a 190C oven for about 4-5 minutes until the edges began to colour and working very quickly and carefully while the baked tuile is still warm I was able to manipulate it around a pole to form a spiral, within twenty seconds of being out of the oven the tuile is crisp and vulnerable to humidity and moisture.

 
   

' BAKED TAMARILLO in RED WINE & HONEY .'

Red wine & Honey baked Tamarillo served with Popcorn infused creamed rice and ground Native ginger seed.

                      So many people are reaping the rewards of their citrus harvests around this time, everyone except me. As there is something about the citrus tree and me and the countless times I've tried to grow any of the citrus varieties. The pest infestation, root rot, you name it I've experienced it, the frustrating thing is people have trees neglected dropping fruit in the corners of their backyards. So over the years of attempts now I've found the fruit trees from South America have been the best performers in our backyard that is located in a sub-tropical region but quite shaded. We now have several species growing and some having just finished their fruiting seasons and some that give off rogue fruits at any time of the year. We have tamarillo, guava, cherry guava, chilean guava, jaboticaba, brazilian cherry, vanilla vines, yam bean plants, soursop, custard apple, feijoa, pepino, abiu, passionfruit and coffee. Although coffee is not native to the region it is widely grown there for quite some time now. Tamarillo grow really well here and are a fast growing tree that can bear fruit at a year and a half old and mature on to become prolific bearers. This is a simple little dessert pairing the tang of the tamarillo with a creamed rice flavoured with butter popcorn. The seasoning used on top of the creamed rice is ground native ginger seeds imparting  flavours of pepper and ginger to add a little zing. The native ginger seed once chewed by our indigenous people and spat out along the paths to mark the trails that lead to food sources. The taste similar to the spice Grains of paradise of which also comes from the berry of another ginger plant.                                                                                                                          
                      To make the creamed rice I placed 2 cups of milk, 2 cups of prepared popcorn and 2 tbsp of melted butter in a saucepan and brought to the simmer before being removed and allowed to steep for 20 minutes or so. This was the strained and the popcorn infused milk was set aside. In a saucepan a 1/2 cup of rice and a 1/2 cup of water was brought to the boil. To this I gradually added the popcorn milk with another 2 cups of plain milk and a 1/4 cup of sugar, this was reduced to a simmer for around 30- 35 minutes until thick and creamy. For the baked tamarillo I simply preheated the oven to 160C, wit a sharp knife I made a small cross in the skin of the pointed end of the tamarillo. The fruit was then left to soak in boiling water for 2-3 minutes before being refreshed under cold water. I then cut the fruit in quarters starting from the pointed end cutting three quarters of the way through to the stem end. I then peeled back the skin of each section a placed the fruit in an oven proof dish with 1 cup of red wine, star anise and 2 tbsp of honey, covering loosely and baking in the oven for 15 minutes. I then removed the cover, basting the tamarillo 2-3 times while baking the fruit for a further 10 minutes uncovered until soft and tender but still holding structure. This was then cooled before being served with creamed rice.

' CHESTNUT & MAPLE CREME BRULEE .'

Chestnut & Maple Creme brulee, Spiced Pumpkin tuile, Callebaut Chocolate decor and Roasted chestnuts.

                    When I think of chestnuts, for me its very much a winter thing. With fond memories of the big chestnut trees in Melbourne and the aroma of roasting chestnuts from the street vendors, wafting through the main streets and side alleys of the inner city hub or the sunday markets. Its a very comforting aroma that instantly makes you feel warm inside, despite the weather. For me the aroma from roasting chestnuts is such an association trigger for the city streets of Melbourne, as popcorn is for the movies. When I moved up to Queensland, where the sub-tropical climate and low chill in winter doesn't allow chestnuts to grow I noticed that the nut of choice for street vendors was the macadamia nut. The macadamia nut was virtually unaffordable for people of Melbourne and the thought of it being sold by street vendors, is that similar to Queenslanders and chestnuts, it just doesn't happen. So when I saw these chestnuts on the shelf I just had to purchase them for the nostalgia. This is a very simple recipe and you could be sitting down to eat your rewards in just over an hour, so below I've added A scaled recipe and detailed method for those that would fancy trying the recipe. Both the chestnuts and the maple syrup give the custard a real lift to an otherwise plain vanilla flavour.                                      
                    Into a blender I added 75g of chestnuts peeled and chopped together with 120g of milk, 15g vanilla extract, 15g of maple syrup an a pinch of salt. This was blended to a puree and set aside. In a bowl I whisked together 105g of egg yolks and 105g of caster sugar vigorously but without aerating the mix. To this I added 270g of heavy cream and the puree, these were mixed to incorporate and then poured into ramekins, this recipe makes 6 serves. I then placed the ramekins on a tray filled with water and baked them at 160 degree C. for about 55 minutes or until the brulee no longer trembles when gently shaken. The brulee's were then removed from the water bath and in a small saucepan I melted some sugar until syrupy and amber in colour. This was poured thinly over each creme brulee and allowed to set, giving the custard a thin caramel crust as apposed to the traditional technique to brulee sugar with a blow torch.                                                                                                                            
                    To accompany the dessert I made a spiced pumpkin tuile by melting 50g of glucose in a small saucepan over a low heat. To this I added 60g of pumpkin puree and this was then poured into a mixing bowl with 75g of icing sugar, 60g of flour, 1tsp of mixed spice. This was mixed to form a stiff batter and spread organically over a lined baking tray, these were then baked for 5-6 minutes in a 190 degree oven until the edges of the tuile's start to brown. While they were still warm I was able to shape them and then allow them to cool. To make the callebaut decors I simply melted the good quality Belgium couverture chocolate in a bowl in the microwave in 30 second stints, checking each time. This was then poured into a decorative mould and placed in the fridge to set before being sliced into decors. Below I've shown a few variations of plating up, using different shaped ramekins, tuile's and decors.

' EDIBLE FOREST FLOOR in WINTER .'

Deep fried Reindeer Moss, Pine oil powder, Truffle oil powder, Truffle infused Dark chocolate branches, Porcini creme fraiche, Morels and Semi-dried Parsley leaves.

                  When plating this taste sample dish theres one ingredient that sparked the whole dish when I thought about it. A couple of weeks back the family went for a drive to the rainforest nearby and after we had some lunch we drove to a popular water hole. The 100m walk to the water whole from the car park was littered with native bush food plants from a rejuvenation program many years ago. Along the walk I came across a piece of reindeer moss growing suspended in the branch of a tree lining the path. I brought the sample home and started the research on its gastronomical ability. After a bit of research and a positive identification I found that the moss used to be served at one the worlds most famous restaurants in Denmark called ' Noma '. The danish restaurant served the lichen deep fried, seasoned with porcini mushroom powder on a saucer of live moss with a side dish of creme fraiche. So I decided to take the idea and serve the lichen with a few other european forest inspired ingredients to accompany, creating a scene from the winter forest floors of europe.                                                          
                   The methods for all the preparations are listed below and are not in order of execution.            
DEEP FRIED REINDEER MOSS- This was simply as it says deep fried and very quickly before being left to drain on a paper towel. The fried light brown fibres of the lichen dissolves, crumbling away on your tongue leaving a delicate taste of earthy truffle, with sweet grassy and vanilla notes.        
PINE OIL POWDER- To make this powder which is the one with greener tint, I made some pine oil by blending together chopped pine needles and olive oil until the oil turns green and the pine oil has infused with the olive oil. This was then strained and mixed at a 40/60 ratio with N-Zorbit which is a Tapioca Maltodextrin, which is a modified starch like corn flour but made from cassava root. N-Zorbit has the ability to turn fats into fluffy powders that melt back to their oils on your tongue with next to no spoiling to the flavour. The pine oil and n-Zorbit were mixed together using a fork until fluffy and powdery. The downfall to the starch is when it becomes in contact with any other fluid other than oils or fats, N-Zorbit turns to an instant sludge and not a delicate fluffy powder.                                                  
TRUFFLE OIL POWDER- Same as above except substituting the pine oil for white truffle oil.

TRUFFLE INFUSED CHOCOLATE BRANCHES- This were made by roasting parsley stems in the oven until brown and hard, these were then coated in melted dark chocolate mixed with a little truffle oil and placed in the fridge to set.
SEMI-DRIED PARSLEY LEAVES- I simply placed the leaves on a flat tray and dried them out in an 80 degree C. oven until they just turn light brown, before removing and setting aside to plate.
PORCINI CREME FRAICHE- To make the final prep I placed dried porcini mushrooms in a spice blender, blending to form a powder, I then mixed the powder with some creme fraiche until it was all incorporated. This was then placed in the fridge to chill and firm back up before serving.

' ALPINE POTATOES .'

Fingerling Potatoes in a progression of textures & temperatures, - Baked Potato skin, Potato salad, Raclette potato, Juniper roasted potato, Potato soup and Crispy potato spoon & bowl.

                  First of all I must apologise to the followers of this blog for the lack of posts lately, as I have
just had surgery on my foot I haven't been able to make it into the kitchen or the backyard having said that, which is where my inspirations come from. Anyway here it is the first post for winter for this year and for a fitting kick off 'the humble potato'. This dish exposes the diner to the many ways the potato can be served. I've used the alpine theme with the likes of pine needles, conifer and juniper berries to act as the main component in flavouring the potatoes. The berries, like the needles, have a clean, bracing botanical flavour. This plate takes the diner on a progressional journey of textures, temperatures and techniques, making the boring old spud look a bit more enticing. Below I've highlighted each prep and its respective technique, these are not in any order of execution but for a tip letting the puree for the 'Raclette potato' hydrate over night does help with this technique.                                                                
BAKED POTATO SKIN- (hot, cold) Juniper, creme fraiche, caviar.                                                          
This is a taste of earth, sea, pasture and forest. To begin with I made a juniper oil by blending juniper berries with olive oil and straining the oil through a mesh sieve. I then baked the potato in a 170 deg. C. oven until tender. I then cut the potato into wedges, scooping out the pulp, the skin was then rubbed with the juniper oil and placed back in the oven to go crispy. Once removed, I placed a dollop of creme fraiche on to the skin and topped with black caviar, serve immediately.                                                        
POTATO SALAD- (cold) Pickled 83 deg. C. sous vide potato, mustard mayo, pine snow.                    
83 degrees is the optimum temperature for sous vide vegetables. Cooking the potatoes in vinegar and salt pickles them as they cook and the pine needle snow gives a refreshing jolt against the spice of mustard and the earthy potatoes. Thinly sliced potatoes, a dash of white wine vinegar and a pinch of salt were placed into a vacuum sealed bag and placed in to an 83 deg. C. sous vide bath for 90 mins. Once the potatoes were tender, the potatoes were removed from the bag and chilled in the fridge until cold. To make the pine snow I blended washed, finely chopped pine needles with water and a little glucose. This was then passed through a cloth lined sieve an poured into a plastic container and placed into the freezer. At the same time I placed a metal bowl in the freezer to chill. Once the the pine water was frozen solid I grated the ice into the metal bowl and placed the bowl of snow back into the freezer until I was ready to serve. For the mustard mayo I mixed two parts prepared mayo with one part wholegrain mustard and seasoned with a little honey and salt, this was also chilled to serve.                          
RACLETTE POTATO- (warm) Potato puree, Raclette cheese.                                                              
Raclette means both a type of cheese and also the name of a traditional Swiss winter meal where a round of cheese is placed by the fire and then the melted part of the cheese is scraped onto plates and accompanied with potatoes, gherkins and other fare. Raclette cheese has fantastic melting properties and is perfect for this technique. I used methocel for this preparation which forms a firm gel when heated and reverts back to its original state (in this case a puree) as it cools. But for best results it should be hydrated over night. I started this prep by boiling potatoes in salted water until tender. I then pureed the potato with a little melted butter, milk and a pinch of salt. I then added 5g methocel to 100g of water and blended with a immersion blender for about 2 minutes, this was then mixed into 160g of puree and placed covered in the fridge over night to hydrate. The next day I preheated the oven to 120 deg. C., I then filled a mould with the puree (in this case I used an eggshell for the mould), this was then baked for 8-10 minutes. Once firm the hardened potato puree was un-molded on to a lined baking tray, I then placed a thin slice of the raclette next to it and placed the tray back in the oven to melt the cheese. The cheese was then scraped from the tray lining and draped over the potato, smoothing the cheese to form a skin. With a strong brew of coffee paste and a small paint brush, I added some markings to resemble the potatoes imperfections and eyes. The potato was then lifted and plated to be served immediately.          
JUNIPER ROASTED POTATO- (hot) Coffee oil, juniper berries, sea salt.                                                  
With this I roasted the potato in juniper berries, the virgin coffee oil  rounds out the woody notes of the berries nicely. I simply roasted the potato in a 180 deg. C. oven with crushed juniper berries and a little olive oil, once tender the potato was served hot on a bed of conifer and the potato was topped with a drizzle of virgin coffee oil and a sprinkling of juniper berries and sea salt.                                        
POTATO SOUP- (hot) Smoked potato, blue cheese, gin.
Comforting, creamy earthy potatoes with the complexity of smoke, combined with the tang and bite of blue cheese with a kiss of gin. I first boiled potatoes in salted water until tender, once cooled I smoked the potato lightly before blending to a puree. In a saucepan I heated a little butter, milk and blue cheese until the cheese and butter had melted, to this I added the smoked puree and a splash of gin, seasoning with salt and pepper this was served hot.                                                                                
CRISPY SOUP BOWL & SPOON- Potato.                                                                                                
The final prep I carved a bowl and spoon from two larger potatoes, rubbing with a little olive oil and seasoned with sea salt I then roasted the potato spoon and bowl in a 180 deg. c. oven until crisp and crunchy. To ensure the soup bowl didn't leak soup everywhere, I prepared a water gel with a little gellan gum and lined the inside of the bowl. A great way to finish.