Jan 25, 2016
Photography by Darren Bester
(This sauce pairs beautifully with cold fish, such as Trout or Salmon. See my recipe for Cured Salmon here)
Yield: 500ml
Ingredients:
2 x quantities of homemade Mayonnaise ( Mayonnaise recipe here )
200g Baby Spinach, stalks removed
10g Chives
20g Parsley, stalks removed
A good pinch of freeze dried Tarragon (or 10g fresh Tarragon leaves)
10g Shallots, peeled and thinly chopped
Method:
Place the spinach, herbs, shallots and 350ml water into a blender and blend on a low speed for 2 minute before increasing the speed and blending for an additional 4 minutes. Place a piece of muslin cloth over a pot and secure it with an elastic band. Pour the mixture on top of the muslin cloth and let it drain through to the pot slowly. After about 10 minutes, pull up the sides of the cloth and squeeze to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the residue remaining on top of the cloth. Rinse the cloth and keep aside. Put the pot on a low heat, stirring occasionally. Once the liquid starts to simmer, remove from the heat. Over a bowl, again tie the muslin cloth in place and slowly empty the contents of the pot onto the cloth. Leave for 20 minutes to drain. The green puree that remains on top of the cloth at the end of this time, is chlorophyll. Use a spatula to scoop up the chlorophyll & place in a little dish. Using a teaspoon, incorporate a little of the chlorophyll into your mayonnaise until the desired flavour and shade of green is achieved. Season with salt & pepper.
Cooks Note: The Chloro Mayo will keep well for up to 3 days in the fridge.
Dec 2, 2015
Photography by Darren Bester
Beetroot Cured Salmon
Yield: 10 as a main dish accompanied by sides
Ingredients:
1.5kg side of Norwegian Salmon, boned & skin removed
4 Beetroots, grated
400g Caster Sugar
315g Coarse Sea Salt
2 Handfuls of fresh Dill, chopped
Zest of 3 Oranges
75g capers, chopped
Method:
Combine the beetroot, sugar, salt, dill, orange zest and capers in a bowl and stir to combine well. Line a baking dish or other dish suitable of holding your salmon comfortably, with cling wrap (but don’t tear off the cling wrap). Spread half of the beetroot mixture across the cling wrap, in the shape of the salmon, place the salmon on top of the mixture & cover with the remaining mixture, pressing it up against the sides to ensure all of the salmon is covered. Wrap tightly in the cling wrap a few times over to ensure its snug. Place a heavy pan or board on top of the salmon and place in the fridge for between 8 – 12 hours. Remove the cling wrap, rinse under cold running water, pat dry with carlton towel and either serve or refrigerate until required.
Cooks Notes: Don’t worry if your mixture becomes runny – just wrap up in the clingfilm as snug as possible. Be aware that over curing will result in a hard leathery exterior on your fish and it may become too salty so do not exceed the recommended curing hours.
Here’s the link to our Lunch Celebration Table, as featured on The Pretty Blog
Oct 5, 2015
Photography by Darren Bester
Maybe it’s because Easter is around the corner and I always associate Easter with seafood (after chocolate of course), or perhaps it’s the desire to indulge in one last al fresco lunch under the sun, before winter arrives in the Southern Hemisphere, or maybe it’s that case of ‘you want what you can’t have’, due to the baby boy currently growing in my belly and shellfish therefore being taboo… but for whatever reason, the desire to cook prawns, was one I finally gave into this past Sunday !
I made something quick and easy …toasted baguette with garlic & chili prawns and a fresh guacamole salsa for hubby and some friends (I ate mine minus the prawns). So quick and easy, yet so tasty and moreish. Something you could serve at a party as a canapé, as a starter or perhaps, like we did, as a lovely al fresco snack… Minimum effort for maximum results – just look how beautifully these pretty pink babies plate up … a quick and easy way to impress your guests. 
Recipe Yield: Makes 10
Ingredients:
Olive Oil
30 prawns (deveined & peeled) (you could get away with 20 – 2 per slice of baguette)
2 clove garlic
2 fresh red chilli’s
For the salsa:
1 red onion finely diced
2 salad tomatoes finely diced
4 tablespoons coriander chopped
Juice of 1 lime
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 Avocados
10 Baguette slices – slightly toasted
Method: For the salsa – combine the chopped tomato, red onion, coriander, lime juice and seasoning and set aside. Mash your avocado and add seasoning and a squirt of lime juice. Toast your baguette slices either in a pan, coating lightly with some oil or in the oven for 5 minutes. In a pan, heat olive oil, fry your prawns for a minute before adding the garlic and the chili, fry for another 3 minutes or until your prawns are pink and cooked through. Dollop a good amount of avocado onto each baguette slice, followed by a dollop of salsa and top with the prawns and there you have it… a fancy little treat in no time! 
Darren Bester of Darren Bester Photography and Ashton Van Graan of The Sweetest Things and I, had fun styling this & Darren took all the mouth watering photographs! The first of many joint food styled shoots to come …
