Dear All,

Sorry for my lack of entries....I have enjoying a last minute holiday for the last two weeks in Majorcia with my daughter Felicia.

I will be back on Tuesday and straight into a busy schedule which includes another cooking demonstration at Royal Show at Stoneleigh on July 2nd.

I’ve been meaning to write a brulee recipe for sometime now but I have waited until butane gas guns are readily available at hardware stores & reasonably priced at around a tenner. Trying to create the “burnt” caramel crust without a blow torch/gas gun is nigh impossible because most domestic grills don’t get hot enough. Mastering Brulee can take a little practise; to learn how set it should be, before removing from the oven...but unlike a woodwork project you can eat your mistakes!

9 egg yolks
250 ml double cream
250 ml milk
1 vanilla pod
90 grams castor sugar
250 grams Fresh Raspberries
few drops of natural vanilla extract
6 ramekin dishes

1. Preheat oven to 120 C gas mark 1/2
2. Place about 4-5 raspberries into each of your ramekins. and lay the ramekins into a roasting tray.
3. Split the vanilla pod and scrap out the vanilla seeds,then put the seeds and the pod into a non-stick saucepan. Add the cream, milk, a few drops vanilla extract and bring to a simmer then turn off heat.
4. In a bowl combine the egg yolks and sugar and whisk well until they turn a pale straw colour.
5. Pour the cream mix into the egg yolks and whisk well. Transfer the mix into a clean non-stick saucepan and return to the stove on a medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon making sure your spoon is touching the bottom of the saucepan.
6. Cook gently until the brulee mix starts to coat the back of your spoon, remove from the heat immediately and strain through a fine mesh sieve.
7 Ladle the Brulee mix into each ramekin covering the raspberries.
8. Boil a kettle and pour enough water around the ramekins to cover 3/4 of there height
9. Cook the brullee’s on a lower shelf for 40 minutes until set.
10. Carefully remove the ramekins from the roasting tray and allow to cool down at room temperature.
11. Move to the fridge and allow to cool for at least 2 hours.
12. Sprinkle the brulees with castor sugar and melt with the gas gun, moving the flame around to melt the sugar evenly and quickly.

Chef’s Tips
Caramelising the tops of the brulee can be done in advance, so that the caramel crust is set and hard. Ramakins vary in size so you might find you have too much mix.

Earlier this year I spent the day giving cooking demonstrations to children at Granville Community School in Derbyshire. This came about because months earlier I organized a competition via The Sunday Mercury to encourage kids to cook. Over 100 Midlands schools took part and Granville was judged the winner.

The day was a great success and everyone enjoyed it. One of the dishes I threw together at the end of the day was this Boston cream pie. The finish on the cake wasn't quite my best effort because I was racing against the clock, but the cleaning ladies sure loved it.

If you have ever heard of Boston cream pie you might be surprised to find that it is neither filled with cream or a pie. To answer the question of why "pie" instead of "cake", it is probably because in the past colonists baked their cakes in pie tins, as they did not own cake pans.
If you can imagine a vanilla egg sponge filled with a custard style pastry cream and topped with a thick coating of chocolate ganache. This recipe I adapted from Stephanie Jaworski.

Sponge Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in centre of oven.
Butter and line the bottom of an 8 inch (23 cm) cake pan with parchment paper.
3 large eggs
75 grams (3oz) granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon real vanilla extract with seeds
85 grams (3.5oz) self-raising flour
28 grams (1oz) unsalted butter, melted

1. Use an electric mixer to beat the eggs and sugar on high speed for about five minutes, or until they are thick, fluffy and light colored (when you slowly raise the beaters the batter will fall back into the bowl in a slow ribbon).
2. Now beat in the vanilla extract then sift 1/2 of the flour over the batter and gently fold through with a rubber spatula or whisk. Sift the remaining flour over the batter and fold in. Whisk about 1/2 cup of the batter into the melted butter (to lighten it) and then gently fold the butter mixture back into the rest of the batter. Pour immediately into the prepared pan and bake for about 25 minutes or until springy to the touch. (A toothpick inserted in the middle will come out clean.)
3. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
4. Run a spatula or sharp knife around the inside of the pan and then invert the cake onto a wire rack. Remove the parchment paper.

Pastry Cream:300 ml (10floz) milk
4 large egg yolks
50 grams (20z) granulated white sugar
45 grams (2oz) self-raising flour
1 tsp real vanilla extract with seeds
100ml (3.5floz) Double Cream
5. In a medium-sized stainless steel bowl, mix the sugar, vanilla and egg yolks until well creamed and the sugar is no longer grainy.
6. Meanwhile in a saucepan bring the milk to boiling over medium heat.
7. Pour the milk into egg & sugar mix and whisk well.
8. Place the egg mixture back into a heavy bottomed stainless steel saucepan and cook over medium heat until boiling, whisking constantly. When it boils, continue to whisk constantly for another 30 - 60 seconds until it becomes thick.
9. Remove from heat and pour into a clean bowl and immediately cover the surface with cling wrap to prevent a crust from forming and allow the pastry cream to cool gradually.
10. In a separate clean bowl whisk the double cream until stiff peaks and fold into the pastry cream when it is cold.

Chocolate Glaze:
200 grams (8oz) dark (70%) chocolate
180ml (6.5floz) double cream
10. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Set aside. Bring the cream just to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for a 3-5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Set aside for a few minutes until it has thickened to pouring consistency.

To Assemble:
With a serrated knife slice the cake in half horizontally. Remove the top half and set it aside. Place the bottom half on your serving plate, cut side up. Pour or spoon the pastry cream onto the cake, spreading to make an even layer. Place the top half of the cake (cut side down) onto the filling. Pour the glaze onto the centre of the cake and carefully spread the glaze, with a spatula, to the edges of the cake and over the sides. Decorate with fresh berries if you wish.
Chef’s Tips
Refrigerate for 1.5 hours before serving so the glaze is well set and flavours mingle.
To taste this dessert at it’s best, don’t serve this cake straight from the fridge allow 10 minute before portioning. Cut the cake with a warm sharp knife to help give your portions nice clean edges.

Sunday I will again be firing up the Barbie and showing the audience how versatile outdoor cooking really can be once you master the basics. Last week I cooked a complete 3-course Sunday roast, starting with a hot smoked salmon served with a pineapple salsa. Followed by Roast Chicken and Roast Lamb with all the trimmings.
I rounded things off with an Apple and Custard Flan served with Toffee sauce.

June 3rd Barbecue demonstration will be more traditional BBQ foods, Smoked & Braised Brisket of Beef Sandwiches with homemade Barbecue sauce.
Cajun Belly of Pork with Bean Casserole. Lemon and Honey Roast Chicken. But then on the wilder side Vanilla Ice-cream with Balsamic Strawberries and even Pizza. So perhaps this might be your last chance for a while to see me unravel the mysteries of the art of Barbecuing.

In the last couple of weeks a lot of my time has been taken up with trying to get flooring laid in my new apartment. Hopefully by Monday this will be all done and I can have more time to blog.

Just wanted to say a big thank you to the great people that turned up to watch the my cooking demonstration last Sunday. The weather did not co-oporate but thankfully we were indoors. It was amazing how many of you stayed for 3.5 to 4 hours.

Did anyone get to hear me on the Radio last Friday?
Thanks to BBC Radio Shropshire.

If you unable to come and watch me perform a Barbecue Master Class at Barnett Hill,Worcestershire this Sunday, perhaps you might want to join the festivities at the Asparagus Festival..
The 2007 Asparagus Festival will take place from Sunday 27th May to Sunday 3rd June in the heart of Worcestershire’s Vale of Evesham – the traditional home of English asparagus.

Based at the historic Fleece Inn, in the tiny village of Bretforton, the Festival has grown out of the historic asparagus auctions, which have taken place in the area for generations.
A must for the asparagus lover, the Festival offers the opportunity to taste, buy and learn about one of the country’s most sought after delicacies.
While the asparagus auction officially opens the event on Sunday 27th May, the focal point of the festival is ‘Festival Day’ on Monday 28th May, which this year will include cookery demonstrations by Rachel Green – TV’s Flying Chef, a craft fair, farmers market, silver band and tutored asparagus tasting.

Local hotels and restaurants across the Vale will also be getting in on the act and offering a range of delicious asparagus menus to tempt the palates of visitors.

The week of festivities is brought to a close at Bretforton Church on Sunday 3rd June with the annual asparagus service.
For more info on the Asparagus Festival, contact Nigel Smith at the Fleece Inn tel: 01386 831173.

Asparagus Tips

Storing
If you plan to keep your Asparagus for a few days, keep it fresh by placing in a jug or vase with 1inch of the stems in water.

Trimming
Often thicker Asparagus spears need to be trimmed because they are too woody, but you can keep them for soup or sauces.

Cooking
Boil thin stalks for 2 minutes medium stalks for 3 minutes and thick stalks for 4 minutes in salted water.