Back to Basics with Bread…
I finished on my last full time boat back in October last year and have been working freelance on a few larger yachts ever since, with a month or so at home for Christmas. After a long break from writing this blog, I suddenly feel inspired again!
I am currently based in Genoa, Italy working as a crew chef on a 60m motor yacht. I am loving this job as I have had plenty of time to experiment in the galley and try out a few new recipes and ideas. Something I have really been having fun with is bread making. I think being in Italy, with its delicious breads such as Ciabatta and Focaccia, might have something to do with it!
There are endless possibilities and recipes when it comes to making bread but I thought I would start off with this fail-safe basic loaf and go on from there…
BASIC WHITE LOAF
- Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Stir in the yeast. Make a well in the centre and gradually mix in 300ml warm water and the oil until the dough comes together – add a dash more water if it seems dry.
- Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead the dough for 5 minutes, until smooth. Shape like a rugby ball and put onto an oiled, large baking sheet. Set aside in a warm place for 40 minutes or until doubled in size. This is known as proving or rising.
- Preheat oven to 220°C/fan200°C/gas 7. Make deep slashes with a sharp knife in the top of the dough and dust with flour. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until risen, golden and cooked. To test if it’s ready, tap the base of the loaf – it should sound hollow. Cool on a wire rack and slice to serve.
Sea Bass in St Tropez
We are on charter this week, cruising the along the coast of France from Toulon to Monaco and today we arrive in St Tropez. It is a trip we have done a hundred times before but I always love coming to this beautiful town and so do the guests. It’s the place to be with glamorous celebrities, fast cars, designer boutiques, great night life, awesome restaurants and of course the beach clubs at Pampelone. It has its own special vibe.
Sadly we are working so unfortunately we don’t get to enjoy all St Tropez has to offer this time but for me there is still one treat for the day – the fish market, one of the best for yacht provisioning along this stretch of coast. Just around the corner from the tourism office is the Porte de la Poissonerie, a small covered fish market, that is open every morning. One side sells fish directly from the local fisherman and the other sells from retail sellers and importers. The vendors know the yacht chefs well and, if you get there early, can help with just about anything you need, giving advice and recommendations on the freshest and best fish that day.
Today the sea bass came highly recommended, so I think that might be tonight’s dinner !
SEA BASS WITH WILD MUSHROOMS
Serves 4
100g butter, softened 2 garlic cloves, minced 500g mixed wild mushrooms, shiitake, oyster or similar Sea bass fillets, skin on 3 tbsp soy sauce 3 tbsp sake fresh chives salt and pepper- Preheat the oven to 250C. Mix the garlic and butter in a small bowl and then place half the mixture in a large frying pan.
- On a high heat cook the mushrooms until tender and just starting to brown. Season with salt and pepper.
- Cut 4 squares of foil and spoon the mushroom mixture in to the center of each square. Place the sea bass fillets, skin side down, on top of each pile of mushrooms.
- Spread the remaining garlic butter over the fish and drizzle over the soy sauce and sake.
- Fold the foil into parcels, sealing the edges, and place them on a baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes until the fish is just cooked. Transfer the fish to plates and spoon over the mushrooms. Sprinkle over chopped fresh chives.
Serve with rice and a nice glass of French Burgandy such as Joseph Drouhin Laforet Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2008
Enjoy xx
Adapted from a recipe by Nobuo Fukuda, Food & Wine Magazine
ACTIVATE Vitamin B
Seeing as the lovely people at Activate have been kind enough to sponsor my blog, I thought it was about time I put some healthy, nutritious, vitamin packed recipes on here!
It’s not always easy to eat healthily. Even with the best intentions, after a long day at work, the last thing you want to do is come home and cook some complicated, time-consuming dish just so you get a balanced meal. When your tired getting a pizza delivered or eating junk food just seems so much easier. Even I feel that way sometimes and I cook for a living!
With that in mind, I thought I’d post a recipe that is simple and easy to prepare and only takes 10 minutes. Plus its full of good stuff like vitamin B12 and B6 which are important for growth and your metabolism, vitamin C which aids your immune system, as well as ginger which contains antioxidants.
STEAMED PRAWNS WITH SUGAR SNAP PEAS
Serves 4
500g large prawns, peeled 3 tbsp soy sauce Grated zest and juice on 1 lime 1 tsp dried chilli flakes 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tbsp minced ginger 400g sugar snap peas 2 spring onions (green onions) bunch of fresh coriander leaves (cilantro) 1 tbsp vegetable oil 2 tsp sesame oil 1 tbsp sesame seeds- Marinate the prawns in soy, lime zest and juice, chilli flakes, garlic, ginger and a splash of water for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile bring a large pan of water to a simmer. Line a bamboo steamer with baking paper and place over the pan. Add the prawns and cook for 5 minutes.
- Blanch the peas in boiling water for 2 minutes then drain.
- Put the prawns in a bowl along with the peas, spring onion and coriander.
- Heat both oils in a small pan for 1 minute and then pour over the prawns and sprinkle with sesame seeds
Serve with boiled rice.
Enjoy xx
P.S. Try ACTIVATE Berry (Vitamin) its delicious and contains 5 essential vitamins!
French comfort food!
Its cold and windy in the south of France today and there is definitely a storm building, I am glad we are in port!
Whenever the weather is like this I get the urge to bake. There is something reassuring about being in the warmth of the kitchen with the tempting smells of freshly baked bread or a delicious cake coming from the oven.
Cherry clafoutis is, to the French, what bread and butter pudding is to the English – a real comfort food. Clafoutis originated in the Limousin region of France in the 19th century and traditionally the recipe calls for black cherries. Other fruit can be substituted easily but the dish is then called flaugnarde. If fresh cherries are not available you could use bottled cherries marinated in kirsch.
CHERRY CLAFOUTIS
Serves 6
butter for greasing 250g fresh cherries, pitted 50g ground almonds 15g plain flour pinch of sea salt 110g caster (superfine) sugar 4 large eggs 220 ml double cream 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract icing sugar to dust creme fraiche- Preheat the oven to 190C/350F and generously butter a 1.5 liter flan dish, dust with caster sugar.
- Put the ground almonds, flour, salt and sugar in a food processor and pulse to combine. Then add the eggs, cream and vanilla extract and whiz until smooth.
- Scatter the cherries into the base of the flan dish and then pour over the batter.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown and risen. Check that the clafoutis is set in the middle before removing from the oven.
- Let the clafoutis stand for 5 minutes before serving and then dust with icing sugar. Serve warm with creme fraiche.
Enjoy xx
Pesto Pronto…
I always keep a jar of pesto in the fridge. It has a million uses and is a great fall back when you are in hurry. The most common use is as a quick sauce for pasta but have you tried these ideas?
Spread on fish then wrap in prosciutto and bake in the oven… As a marinade for grilled chicken… Added to sour cream and used as a tasty dip for fresh veggies… Used as a dressing for tomato and mozzarella… Stirred through potato salad… Added to mash potato… Spread on to crostini and served with drinks… The list goes on and on!
Home-made pesto is so much better that the store brought kind and so easy to do. There are so many variations too. I have written out the basic recipe but also given you a few ideas for alternatives…
PESTO
Makes 200ml
1 garlic glove pinch of sea salt 25g pine nuts, lightly toasted 50g fresh basil leaves 25g grated parmesan cheese 1 tablespoon lemon juice 125 ml extra virgin olive oil- Put the garlic and sea salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse quickly.
- Then add the pine nuts and pulse again until roughly chopped. Be careful not to over do it.
- Add the basil and pulse until well mixed but not too smooth.
- Stir in the parmesan and lemon juice and then add the olive oil.
It’s as simple as that! Now try these…
ROCKET (ARUGULA) PESTO
Swap the basil for 50g wild rocket (arugula)RED PESTO
Swap the basil for 260g semi-dried tomatoes and a handful of flat leaf parsleyWALNUT PESTO
Swap the basil for 50g of Parsley and the 25g pine nuts for 50g walnuts. If stirring this pesto through pasta add a splash of double cream and extra parmesan for a delicious sauce.
Enjoy xx
ACTIVATE Drinks
Being a chef you think it would be easy to eat healthily, especially as I always try to prepare light and nutritious meals for the guests and crew, but there always seems to be those left over pastries or delicious desserts to tempt me. Being surrounded by food all day means that when it comes to meal times I often don’t feel like eating and its all to easy just to snack instead.
Someone once told me that as a child we know the difference between thirst and hunger but as we get older it becomes less clear. Often when we think we are hungry and start to snack we should really be drinking water instead. I work long hours when we have guests onboard and often in hot climates so its important to stay hydrated, that’s why I wanted to write about ACTIVATE.
I first discovered this amazing water when we were based in Los Angeles in 2009 and now I can’t live with out it. The clever people at ACTIVATE discovered that vitamins lose their potency sitting in water so they came up with a brilliant way to keep them fresh by hiding them in the lid. There are no preservatives or sugar,as they are sweetened with Stevia, so they are low in calories too. My favourites are ACTIVATE Immunity (Orange) and ACTIVATE Workout (Grape) but there are lots of other flavours each with different benefits so check them all out and see which one you like best.
Enjoy xx
Cocktail hour
Cocktail hour is a big deal on our boat! After a long days sailing, swimming, sunbathing and relaxing onboard, there is nothing better than watching the sun go down with a nice glass of something cool and refreshing. It’s fun to try out different recipes and to sample some of the local concoctions.
After my successful shopping trip in Capri I still had an abundance of fresh mint in my fridge and what better way to use it up than to make my famous Mojitos.
Mojitos were first created in the early 1900’s in Cuba and were a favourite of Ernest Hemingway. I have been told that the traditional ones are made with the juice from sugar cane and taste very different but seeing as I don’t have any sugar cane lying around we will just have to make do with these…
MOJITO
Makes 2
3 fresh limes a handful of fresh mint leaves 2 shots of white rum 2 spoons brown sugar 1 shot lime juice soda water crushed ice- Cut the limes in to quarters and place in a cocktail shaker
- Add the mint, rum, sugar and lime juice and crush with a bar spoon or other blunt object to release the flavor of the mint.
- When all the ingredients are nicely mashed together fill two glasses with crushed ice and divide the mixture between them.
- Top up with soda water and stir well. Serve immediately.
Enjoy xx
An Italian classic…
Think of an Italian dessert and you think of Tiramisu. Loved the world over and a favorite on nearly every Italian restaurant menu, this classic dessert, done well, is truly delicious, yet so often it seems to disappoint.
A few years ago I worked for a Captain that was somewhat of a Tiramisu connoisseur. Fueled by a childhood memory of the ‘best’ Tiramisu, he was on a quest to rediscover the taste he remembered. The many restaurant versions tried did not live up to expectations and even the dozen different recipes I made onboard were missing that special something….
That is until now. I think I might just have found the one. Gavin, this is for you…
TIRAMISU
Serves 6
550ml double cream 250g marscapone 1/3 cup Marsala 5 tablespoons of caster sugar 300ml espresso, cooled 175g pack of sponge fingers 25g dark chocolate 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder- Put the cream and marscapone in a bowl and whisk together until combined, with no lumps. Mix in the Marsala and sugar.
- Put the espresso in shallow dish and soak the sponge fingers. You want them to be moist but not soggy.
- Put a layer of biscuits in the base of your serving dish and then cover with a layer of the cream mixture. Grate over some chocolate.
- Repeat the layers until you have used up all your ingredients, finishing with a layer of cream mixture on top.
- Cover and chill in the fridge overnight.
- Sprinkle over the last of the chocolate, dust with cocoa powder and serve.
Enjoy xx
PRINT THIS RECIPEA taste of the Greek Islands
Back in 2008 we spent a few months in Greece, sailing from Corfu through the Corinth Canal to Athens and then on to Samos, stopping at many of the beautiful islands along the way.
The Greek islands have an amazing history. As the cross roads of the Mediterranean, and having been ruled by a number of different countries over the years, there have been many different influences but true island cooking still remains simple and flavourful, relying on local ingredients and seasonal vegetables.
Whilst at a restaurant in Santorini I discovered an amazing dish called Garides Saganaki and whilst it is not strictly a traditional recipe it can be found on may restaurant menus and is popular with both locals and tourists. Garides means prawns and Saganaki comes from the Turkish word sahan meaning “copper dish”. The meal is often served in a two-handled pan taken directly from the oven. It is very simple and easy to prepare and the flavors are delicious.
I hadn’t made this in ages but I suddenly had a craving for it. Here is my version of Garides Saganaki…
BAKED PRAWNS WITH FETA AND TOMATO SAUCE
Serves 4 (or 6 as a starter)
1/4 cup of olive oil 1/2 cup of finely chopped onion 1/2 teaspoon of red chili flakes 3 garlic cloves, minced 700g medium prawns, peeled and deveined 400g tin of chopped tomatoes 2/3 cup of feta, crumbled 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley- Preheat the oven to 400 F/200 C
- In a large pan, over a medium heat, cook the onion for 5 minutes or until soft
- Add the garlic and chili flakes and cook for 30 seconds. Then add the prawns and cook for a further 2 minutes until they start to get firm.
- Add the tomato and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes then transfer to a baking dish or individual gratin dishes.
- Put the dish/dishes into the oven and bake for 10 minutes until sauce has thickened. Sprinkle with the feta cheese and bake for 3 minutes more.
- Sprinkle with parsley and serve with thick crusty bread.
Enjoy xx
When life gives you lemons…
Where ever you go along the Amalfi Coast of Italy you can’t help but notice the lemons. Bright yellow, some the size of grapefruits, with thick skins and juicy flesh, they hang from the trees on the steep slopes leading down to the sea. The warm Mediterranean sun, ocean air and volcanic soil all combine to make these ‘Sorrento Lemons’ renowned throughout the world and for hundreds of years the local Italians have used them to produce the delicious liqueur known as Limoncello.
There are many different recipes for Limoncello, most are a closely guarded secret amongst families, passed down from generation to generation. You may need to experiment a little until you get yours just the way you like….
LIMONCELLO
Makes around 2 liters
10 organic lemons 1 liter of 95 % alcohol (Everclear is best but you could use vodka) 1 liter of water 1 kg sugar- Make sure you buy organic lemons for this limoncello. Regular lemons are often coated in wax and this will not be so good in your drink! Clean the fruit with a damp cloth and then zest the lemons with a vegetable peeler. Make sure to take only the yellow part of the peel; even the smallest bit of the white pith will make your limoncello taste bitter.
- In a clean dry jar, with a tight-fitting lid, combine the zest with the alcohol and leave to infuse in for about 20 days. Store in a cool dark place, giving the jar a shake every few days.
- After 20 days, filter the liquid using a kitchen sieve or clean muslin.
- Make the syrup by mixing the water and sugar in a pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 minutes, then cool.
- Once cooled, add to the strained alcohol and lemon infusion.
- Leave the mixture to stand for another 10 days and then pour into sterilized bottles.
Limoncello is best kept in the freezer and served icy cold. Also try pouring it over ice cream for a delicious dessert.
Enjoy xx
The Travelling Kitchen 