Thursday 27 March 2014

Florentines

Florentines, coated with chocolate on the bottom
 
From the Whare Kea lodge in New Zealand.  We were lucky to stay at this fabulous resort in New Zealand.  The chef prepared the most delicious degustation menus each night.  Every day at 4:00 pm, there would be Florentines and coffee & tea, prepared by Sarah.
She was kind enough to give us the recipe.

Ingredients
 
50 g coconut oil
50 ml water
100 g caster sugar
Pinch of salt
150 g sliced almonds
50 g coconut chips
20 g desiccated coconut
50 g coconut cream 
1 egg white
150 g dark chocolate

Method
 
Place oil, sugar, water and salt over med / high heat. Whisk
Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes till it turns golden
Mix in almonds, desiccated coconut, coconut chips and coconut cream 
Whip egg white in a small bowl till firm peaks form. Fold into coconut mixture
Place on a lined paper sheet and bake for 15 minutes at 180 C
Cool
Melt chocolate and paint onto bottom
Chill until hard
Store in a cool place or in the fridge. 
 
The coconut cream is weighed - double checked this with the chef 

Halibut with Herbes de Provence


 
 
Ingredients

Serves 6

  • 6 portions of skinless Halibut (about 5 ounces each)
  • 1 teaspoon of herbes de Provence
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 425F.
  2. Whisk the oil, herbes de Provence, salt and pepper in a bowl to combine. 
  3. Arrange the halibut pieces in a lightly oiled baking dish.
  4. Drizzle with the oil/herb mixture and spread with a spoon over the halibut.  Leave a little space between each piece of fish.
  5. Bake for 10-15 minutes in the middle of the oven, uncovered,  till it is white and flakes easily with a fork.  Be careful not to overcook the fish or it will be dry.  The fish will continue to cook a bit when you remove it from the oven.

Tips

  • Serve with colorful vegetables such as red, yellow and orange peppers.  Broccoli, asparagus or green beans also go well with a white fish.  Baby Broccoli is a nice change and is milder, sweeter and more tender than broccoli.  It's sometimes call broccolini. 
  • Herbes de Provence is available in the herb section of the grocery store; different brands will have slightly different mixtures.  It usually contains thyme, marjoram, rosemary, basil, fennel, sage, lavender - and sometimes tarragon.

Salmon with Hemp Seeds



This is a great recipe to incorporate healthy hemp seeds into your diet.  Look for the raw, shelled hemp seeds to add a nutty flavor and Omega 3 to your dish.

Ingredients

2 salmon filets

4 tbsp shelled hemp seeds

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup sliced fennel

1/2 cup chopped watercress

1 cup fresh radish sprouts, well rinsed

Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400°F. Rinse and pat dry salmon filets. Rub lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Place hemp seeds in a shallow dish and dip salmon filets in on the flesh side.

Heat an ovenproof cast iron skillet over high heat for 3 minutes. Reduce to medium and place filets, seasoning side down, into the pan and allow them to cook for 2 minutes without moving them. Turn the filets over and place in the oven for 5-7 minutes, until the salmon is just cooked. Time may vary depending on thickness of the salmon.

While salmon is in oven, in a small bowl whisk the mustard, juice, vinegar and salt. Add fennel, watercress and sprouts and lightly toss until combined.

Put each filet on a dinner plate. Place a heaping handful of the salad on top of each of the salmon filets.