Instead of heading out to get something to eat, there was a decision to create a 3 course meal, prepared as a team, one lazy Saturday night.
For the entree : scallops, black pudding and parsnip mash with horseradish
The mash was made with 1 parsnip, pan fried in butter until tender. Then it was mashed with cream, more butter, milk and grated horseradish. It was seasoned to taste and left covered to keep warm.
Meanwhile, the black pudding was pan fried in the same pan. Roughly 4 minutes before the black pudding was done, the scallops (seasoned with salt and pepper) were fried on one side of the same pan, just about 2 minutes each side. The mash was spooned onto the serving plate into 3 mini piles, the black pudding placed on top, and the scallops last. A parsley leaf on top of the tower, a little sprinkle of chili flakes to echo the heat from the horseradish... And it's a gourmet treat.
The main : baked barramundi parcels with lemon, ginger, soy and mirin
2 round slices of lemon on baking paper
Add barramundi on top
Pile 2 thinly sliced ginger
Salt and pepper
a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and
1 wombok leaf, the top part (the part of the leaf around 2 inches from the top) sliced and shredded and placed alongside the fillet
The rest of the wombok served as a cover over the fillet
A flavorful sauce made with a dash of black sesame oil, a dash of soy sauce, a dash of mirin and about 2 tablespoons water will serve as the tasty steaming liquid
... then parcel was wrapped and tied up, and placed into a 180C hot oven for 20 minutes
Ad that's done! This fish was served with par boiled potatoes finished by panfrying in duck fat, and steamed asparagus. What I would change is to serve it with plain rice, or noodles. Nevertheless, it was very, very tasty.
Dessert was a lemon souffle. The recipe was originally called 'hot lemon curd souffle' due to the lemon curd base.
The lemon curd is a quick version made of 1 egg whisked with some sugar, lemon zest and the juice of 1 lemon, and a teaspoon of cornflour. This was whisked over low heat until it thickened to the consistency of curd. This was spooned over buttered ramekins, and set aside on room temperature. Then, 2 eggs were separated, the yolks whisked with a bit more sugar and the zest and juice of 1 lemon. The whites were whisked to stiff peaks, facilitated with a teaspoon of white sugar. A spoonful of the whites were mixed with the yolks to slacken the mix, then the whites were folded in. This mixture was dolloped over the curd, and baked for 15 minutes on 180C or until the tops were golden.
A couple of minutes was worth the wait to cool the curd down a bit. The souffle would have deflated during this time, which may take some wow factor away during serving... But the taste should be able to compensate!
Served with a sliver of lemon peel just for additional color.
Every bite has to be spooned from the bottom for maximum impact,
Two bottles of shiraz later, the after glow of a fabulous dinner remains.
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