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Chester Food & Drink Festival 2006

Simon Rimmer's Recipes

Recipe 1: Duck with Potato Rosti
Recipe 2: Blackstick and Black Pudding Roulade
Recipe 3: Vodka, Sultana and Poppy Seed Cheesecake
Recipe 4: Gooey, Chocolate, Fudgey Pudding

Recipe 1: Duck with Potato Rosti

Ingredients
2 large baking potatoes
3 finely sliced spring onions, finely sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
Salt and pepper

2 duck breasts
Salt and pepper

Sauce
2 finely sliced shallots
Good glug of sweet Madiera
Good glug of fresh chicken stock
25g cold butter

Method

Boil the potatoes in their jackets for exactly 7 minutes, cool a little, then peel. Grate coarsley, add the onion, garlic and lots of seasoning

Mould into ‘rostis’, chill for 20 minutes, then fry for 4 minutes on each side until crisp and golden. Drain on kitchen paper

Place the scored duck, skin side down into a cold pan. Turn on the heat and cook for about 6 mins on medium heat, tipping away the fat that comes out (save this for roast potatoes, or chips)

Flip over, then back onto the skin side and cook in an ovenproof dish at 200c for 8 minutes, allow to rest

Sauce

Fry the shallots gently in the duck fat until soft. Add the Madeira and reduce by half, do the same with the stock. Season and whisk in the butter

To serve

Slice the duck into 3, sit on top of the rosti and spoon around the sauce

Recipe 2: Blackstick and Black Pudding Roulade

Serves 4

Roulade
7 eggs – separated
65g butter
90g flour
Salt and pepper
Big handful of roughly chopped basil
400ml milk – warmed
100g Parmesan – grated

Filling
400g tub ricotta
225g crumbled Blacksticks blue cheese
Sprinkle of sun-blush tomatoes
Salt and pepper

Other bits
12 pieces of vegetarian black pudding
Oil to fry
Handful of baby spinach
30g butter

Jam
3 finely sliced red onions
30g butter to fry
1 clove garlic
125g sugar
100ml red wine vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil to let down

Method

Roulade

Melt the butter and add the flour, cook for 3 minutes. Add the milk a little at a time to make a roux. Season well, then mix in the yolks

Beat the whites until they’re stiff, fold in gently and carefully, so you keep as much air as possible, then mix in the basil

Spread onto a greased lined trays (450mm x 300mm) top with grated Parmesan and cook for 15 minutes at 200c/400f/Gas No 6 until springy and risen

Turn out and cool

Filling

Spread the seasoned ricotta on each base and add the Blacksticks blue cheese and tomatoes. (leave a gap at top and bottom). Roll up and wrap in greaseproof and foil – chill

To serve, cut into 8 pieces and cook at 200c for 10 minutes to heat through, then finish under a grill

Black Pudding

Simply fry in med/hot oil until crisp, drain on kitchen paper.

Jam

Gently fry the onion and garlic in the butter until golden and caramelised. Add the sugar and vinegar and bring to the boil, then simmer for 40 minutes until nice and thick. Season and thin with a little olive oil

Spinach

Simply wilt the spinach in a little butter and season well.

To serve – sit some wilted spinach on a plate, then top with the roulade. Place 3 pieces of black pudding around and spoon some dressing between

Recipe 3: Vodka, Sultana and Poppy Seed Cheesecake

Serves at least 12

Base

225g charcoal wafers
150g melted butter
30g icing sugar

Topping

100g sultanas, soaked overnight in 100ml lemon vodka
800g ricotta cheese
400g cream cheese
150g sugar
6 eggs
1 vanilla pod
About 30g poppy seeds

Method

Crush the crackers and combine with the butter and sugar, then press into the base of a 23cm spring sided tin

Blend together the cheeses, eggs, sugar and vanilla until smooth, transfer to a bowl and fold in the drained sultanas. Spoon this onto the base. Finally sprinkle over the poppy seeds to completely cover the top, then bake at 180c for about 1 hour. The top should still be a little wobbly in the very middle when it’s done, but it will firm up as it cools.

Once it’s cooled, serve with whipped cream and another shot of vodka

Recipe 4: Gooey, Chocolate, Fudgey Pudding

Serves 6

Ingredients

225g melted butter
2 beaten eggs
30ml strong espresso coffee
550ml milk
350g soft dark brown sugar
175g sifted self raising flour
50g cocoa powder
100g pecans
75g raisins, soaked in 75ml dark rum
30g golden syrup

Sauce

300ml double cream
1 scraped vanilla pod
50g sugar
100g pink marshmallows

Method

Mix the butter, eggs, coffee and 125ml of milk. Add 225g sugar, flour, cocoa, boozy raisins and nuts – stir well. Spoon into a 1.5ltr ovenproof dish (a big soufflé dish is ideal).

Bring the rest of milk to scalding point. Add syrup and stir to dissolve. Sprinkle the rest of the sugar over the pudding, then pour over the milk mix.

Cook at 160c for 50 minutes to 1 hour (it should be springy on top, but will be gooey underneath.

For the sauce

Bring the cream, sugar and vanilla slowly to boil, then simmer for about 5 minutes to thicken.

Take off the heat and add the marshmallows, stir to start them melting and serve a big dollop of the pudding with the yummy sauce over it.

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