summer, oh summer + black sesame ice cream

27. August 2015
by troutandhawk
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Sweets

Großteich Moritzburgpink-peoniesoleanderswanoleander

 

black sesame ice cream

250ml milk
100g sugar
pinch of salt
250ml cream
2 sachets nanfang black sesame powder
6 egg yolks

Warm the milk, sugar and and salt in a sauce pan.Pour the cream into a large bowl and whisk in the black sesame powder. Set a mesh strainer on top.
In a separate bowl whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scape the warmed egg yolks back into the sauce pan.
Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatial, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and and stir it into the cream. Whisk until the the sesame powder is completely dissolved. Sir until cool over an ice bath.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator , than freeze it in your ice cream maker.

black-sesame-icecream

crostini topped with sauce gribiche, fava beans and goat cheese

20. August 2015
by troutandhawk
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Dinner / Lunch / Snacks

raspberry + goat cheese crostini

fresh goat cheese
raspberries
pink pepper (crushed), chives, oregano

fava beans crostini

fresh goat cheese
green fava beans, blanched
mint leaves
crushed black pepper
sea salt
lemon scented olive oil (I recommend  Carlo Guarini‘s L’Agrumato)

Spread the crostini with the fresh goat cheese and top with the remaining ingredients.

crostini with sauce gribiche

The original Sauce Gribiche is mayonnaise-like and very rich. It requests no less than 250ml of peanut oil. Absolutely delicious, though for a summery crostini topping I thought a lighter version would be nicer. Tastewise there’s no difference!

the yolks of 4 hard boiled eggs
1 teaspoon hot Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon peanut oil (olive oil is fine as well)
the egg-whites of 2 hard boiled eggs, coarsely chopped
30g small capers
30g pickled cucumbers (cornichons), chopped
1 tablespoon dill, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chives, finely chopped
salt and pepper

Combine the yolks with salt, pepper and the mustard in a mortar, stir in oil and vinegar until you get a creamy sauce. With a spoon fold in the remaining ingredients.

 

crostini-with-toppings

cherry jam and The Bloody Chamber

6. August 2015
by troutandhawk
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Jams + Preserves / Uncategorized

cherry-jam

 

These pictures of a little batch of cherry jam look like a massacre happened in my kitchen. I am not usually macabre, but the title “The Bloody Chamber” was too fitting to not use it (and it gives artistic purpose to the blotchy mess)! “The Bloody Chamber” also happens to be a brilliant book by Angela Carter, so I decided to post a list of summer book recommendations along with the recipe.

cherry-jam

Millenium Trilogy
Stieg Larsson

The Secret History
Donna Tartt

The Goldfinch
Donna Tartt

The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P.
Adelle Waldman

Marionetten
John le Carré

The Gluten Lie
Alan Levinovitz

Heißes Blut, kalte Nerven
Arto Paasilinna

cherry-jam

cherry jam  the recipe

sorbets of rose and apricot

30. July 2015
by troutandhawk
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Sweets

Already yesterday night at the very first tasting both sorbets reached a high score in our internal ranking: the apricot fresh and velvety, the rose boozy, sweet and intense.

Combine the two, for your climb of Olympus (where the gods live).

sorbet6 sorbet4 (1 von 1)

 

rose sorbet

250 ml rose syrup
250 ml Rosé

Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker.

apricot sorbet (by David Lebovitz, The Perfect Scoop)

1kg ripe fresh apricots
250 ml  water
200 g sugar
3 drops almond or vanilla syrup

Split the apricots in half, remove the pits and cut each apricot into small pieces. Cook the apricots with the water, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, about 10 minutes.
Stir in the sugar and let cool to room temperature.
Purée the mixture in a blender until smooth. Stir in the vanilla or almond extract. Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker.

minimalist gazpacho

23. July 2015
by troutandhawk
comment 1
Dinner / Lunch / Soups

It’s great eating outdoors. After all, everything tastes better outside.

At times I love to indulge in the Victorian fashion for packing everything from mint sauce to silver teaspoons and starched napkins into a picnic basket heading to my favourite place by the lakes. However, usually I choose the simple approach for outdoor lunches. A chilled gazpacho, bread and olive oil are quickly taken to a shady place in the garden or to a sun chair on the balcony.

minimalist gazpacho

serves 1

3 ripe tomatoes
1/2 cucumber (peeled, to keep the gazpacho’s signature colour)
1/4 onion
dash of tabasco sauce
dash of vinegar
salt and pepper
a few ice cubes

Cut the ingredients into chunks, put them into your blender and blend for a few seconds. Sprinkle with Sal de Ibiza Chili.

 

minimalist-gazpacho

garden rose syrup

8. July 2015
by troutandhawk
comments 2
Jams + Preserves / Sweets

My garden rose syrup is the start from every rose scented summer treat, from rose jam to rose petal ice cream.
Early in the morning I go out in the garden and gather a basketful of newly opened rose blossoms. They are best picked after the dew has dried, but before the oil has driven off by the sun at ten or eleven. The petals must be strained out before adding sugar and reducing the rose water to syrup. And a lot of sugar is needed or the result will be very bitter!

I love the aroma when it’s spicy, exotic and a little bit citrussy.

 

garden-rose-syrup1garden-rose-syrup2garden-rose-syrup3garden-rose-syrup4

 

garden rose syrup

about 20 organic rose blossoms
juice of a freshly squeezed lemon
500ml water
250g sugar
2 tablespoons rose water (as used in the Persian and Middle Eastern cuisine)

Heat the water in a sauce pan, add the rose petals and bring to a simmer. Let it simmer for a few minutes, then cover the lid and let the petals infuse the water for about 3 hours. Strain liquid  into another sauce pan and add the sugar and the lemon. Reduce the liquid simmering slowly for 15 minutes until it gets syrupy.
Store in the fridge.

The colour of the syrup changes depending on the roses you use, from earthy amber to deep red or pale pink.

 

garden-rose-syrup5

 

 

Grandma’s Classics: rhubarb cake

1. May 2015
by troutandhawk
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Cakes + Cookies

rhubarb9

 

Grandma’s recipe is by far the quickest and easiest way to turn these tart beauties into something truly enjoyable. All it takes are a few rhubarb stems, eggs, flour, butter, sugar and 30 minutes bake…

 

rhubarb11-1-von-1

Grandma’s rhubarb cake

15-20 rhubarb stems
250g butter
200g sugar
4 eggs
400g flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F).

All ingredients should have room temperature to combine well.

Butter the bottom of your baking mold and dust it with flour; remove any excess of flour.
Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla on highest speed until creamy, 4 to 5 minutes, in a bowl with the paddle attachment of the mixer.

Turn the mixer to medium-low speed and add one egg after another, beating for about a minute after each egg.

Turn the mixer to low speed and slowly add the flour together with the baking powder.  Don’t overbeat, to prevent the batter getting chewy.

 

Transfer the batter to the baking mold, smooth with a spatula and arrange the rhubarb stems on top. Until this point it’s the exact “Grandma” version. No extravaganzas as you already know, Grandma kept it honest and simple.

I experimented with precooking the rhubarb stems in a mixture of butter, sugar and lemon juice (one tablespoon each) for a few minutes. Don’t let the rhubarb turn soft, just let it adopt the caramel flavour.  Heaven!

Bake at 180°C (360°F) for about 30 minutes or until the rims turn golden brown.

Before serving sprinkle with icing sugar.

 

rhubarb4-3-von-4rhubarb12-1-von-2

Enjoy it wit a good cup of coffee!