Dinner at Brasserie Zédel

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It was actually in December that I paid Brasserie Zédel, one of the new restaurants from the team behind The Wolseley, a visit. By then it had been open for a few months and so popular you wouldn’t be able to get a table without a reservation. Much like their other two restaurants, The Delaunay (The Aldwych) and Colbert (Sloane Square) that opened around the same time.

A big expansion it seems, but it also seems to work. Especially Brasserie Zédel, at the heart of buzzing Piccadilly and the Chelsea-based Colbert the prices are kept low but the food is just as excellent as the brilliant service.

The French onion soup we both enjoyed as a starter was very nice and came in a generous bowl. As a maincouse my dining companion had fillet of bream with and olive and onion compote and lentils and I thoroughly enjoyed my rare onglet with red wine jus and chips.

 

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I think The Wolseley will always have a special place in my heart having eaten there at several occadions, but Brasserie Zédel is close. The food is similar French dishes but at lower prices. The service is just as perfect as the original and the decor is of similar art deco style, but the ambiance is slightly different since it is in a basement.

All in all I see this as a more lighthearted and younger version of the original with the buzzing bar just next door. And it is about time Piccadilly Circus saw some glamour.

 

Brasserie Zédel

 

20 Sherwood Street

 

London W1F 7ED

 

Chocolate and fudge cake with salted toasted hazelnuts

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Even though December was _pretty_ hectic I still managed to bake cakes for the office, like I do every month. It was rather helpful, though that my colleagues whose birthday we celebrated chose cakes I had made before; Key Lime Pie and Victoria Sponge. So I only tried one new recipe, and a really good one actually, that I have been meaning to try the last ten years or so… It is from a recipe folder from Dansukker, a Danish sugar manufacturer that took over the Swedish market some time ago.

The cake (or pie even) consists of three yummy layers; chocolate cookie crumbs with butter and icing sugar as the base, a fudge layer and chocolate topping. Delicious!

As most Swedish cakes it was suggested to serve this with whipped cream, which I find completely unnecessary. Instead I opted for toasted salted hazelnuts as a contrast.

Chocolate and fudge cake with salted toasted hazelnuts, serves 8

Adapted from Dansukker’s recipe.

Base:

75 g butter

50 ml icing sugar

1 tbsp cocoa 

200 g crushed chocolate cookies (Maryland for example)

Fudge layer:

400 ml sweetened condensed milk

75 g butter

50 ml caster sugar

Chocolate topping :

200 g chopped dark chocolate

150 ml double cream

2 tbsp caster sugar

40 g butter

Decoration:

75 g hazelnuts

2 pinches sea salt

Melt butter, icing sugar and cocoa in a saucepan. Mix with the crushed cookies. Press onto a baking tray and put in the fridge. 

Mix the fudge ingredients in a saucepan and boil until it has thickened, about 6 minutes. Chill slightly before pouring into the tin. Put the tin back in the fridge to set.  

Mix the chocolate layer ingredients in a saucepan and melt on low heat. Leave to cool a bit before pouring into the tin as a top layer. Let it set in the fridge. 

Toast the nuts in a hot fry frying pan. Leave to cool and chop coarsely. Mix with the salt and scatter on top of the now set cake just before serving.

Tortilla pizza with salami and mozzarella

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The days you lack energy usually coincide with the days you need a little comfort food, don’t they?!

You know which days I am referring to. The days that feel longer than a week, when one is feeling unwell or hangover (or both!) and is incredibly tired. Those days when one can’t help to feel a little sorry for oneself.

Last time this happened to me, I rustled up these darlings from what I had at hand in my fridge and freezer. (I always store soft tortillas in the freezer, that way a quesadilla is only just a few minutes away).

These ‘pizzas’ are so simple I am almost ashamed to blog about them, but let’s be honest, these everyday things are probably more useful  for you than the time consuming and difficult recipes I post.

So, place some frozen flour tortillas on a baking sheet. Slather with creme fraiche and top with salami slices. Break a ball (or two – one can never have too much cheese) of buffalo mozzarella into pieces and scatter on the pizzas. Sprinkle with oregano. Bake in 200-220C until bubbly, crispy and golden (about 5-10 minutes). 

Almond butter chocolate chip cookies

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A lot of my cooking inspiration comes from cookbooks, blogs and TV programs, but a lot also comes from necessity.

I live with flatmates which means that I haven’t got a lot of kitchen cupboard space so I try to use things up before buying something else. And it is actually a fun exercise to come up with something tasty with the ingredients you have at hand.

This recipe is an altered version of peanut butter cookies. I changed the peanut butter for almond butter as I had some I wanted to use up and because I had some chocolate I hand I threw that in too.

This turned out to be a nice combination as the almond butter is less pungent and a more mature flavour than peanut butter so it needed the addition of chocolate to make it interesting.

Serving idea: Break into pieces and serve with three minute icecream and chocolate sauce.

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Almond butter chocolate chip cookies, makes 25

275 ml plain flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

100 ml caster sugar

100 ml soft light brown sugar

100 g softened butter

100 ml almond butter

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla 

70 g chopped chocolate of your choice

Mix sugars, butter, vanilla and almond butter. Whisk in the egg. Mix the flour with baking powder and salt and add it to the batter. Add the chopped chocolate and stir to combine. Roll the dough into small balls and place on a lined baking tray. Flatten the balls slightly with a fork. Bake in 190-200 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Homemade pasta!

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Monday last week was a historic day. It was the day when I finally made my own pasta.

I used a recipe from Simply Italian, a series that really inspired me to try it. Michaela in the show just make it seem so easy. And it was!

I will definitely make use of my handsome pasta maker on a regular basis. There are so many things I would like to try.

But for that first time last Monday, I stuck to what I knew; the amazing tagliatelle with browned butter, truffle oil and heaps of grated parmesan.

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Homemade pasta, basic recipe

This is just a basic recipe that you can double, quadruple etcetera depending on how much you want to make.

100 g 00 flour

1egg

polenta

Pour the flour into a bowl or place in a heap on a surface. Make a dent in the flour and crack the egg. Combine with your hands or a wooden fork and knead into an elastic dough. If it is too crumbly, add 1 tsp olive oil, if too sticky add some more flour. Shape into a ball, wrap with cling and leave to rest for 30 minutes. 

Divide the dough into three pieces and flatted. While working with one, make sure the other two are covered with cling as not to dry out. Run the dough piece through the pasta machine, 3 times on the widest setting, then 1-2 times per setting as working your way down to the thickness you prefer. Repeat with the other dough pieces and cut into tagliatelle using the machine. Place on a plate and sprinkle with polenta (to stop them sticking to each other) and leave to uncovered to dry for 5 minutes. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add salt. Add the pasta and let it cook for about a minute. When the strands surface they’re done. Drain and serve. 

Three minute icecream

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This is such a good recipe to have up your sleeve. When you want nice icecream but haven’t got time to wait for the custard to thicken, or when you realise the iceblock to the icecream maker is not frozen.

It probably actually takes less than three minutes to whip it up, all you need to do is lightly whip some cream and fold in a can of condensed milk and some vanilla or other flavouring.

I made it this week the day before I had a friend coming for dinner straight after work. Together with the amazing butterscotch sauce and salted peanuts this made a lovely sundae.

Three minute icecream, 1 batch

500 ml whipping or double cream

1 tin (ca 400g) sweetened condensed milk

Flavouring: 

1 tsp vanilla

Whip the cream until soft peaks. Fold in the condensed milk and vanilla. Pour into a freezable container and freeze over night. 

Buffalo chicken wings with blue cheese dip and avocado salsa

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At the moment there are barbecue restaurants wherever you look in London, but some dishes are just as easily prepared at home as in restaurants, like these scrummy buffalo chicken wings.

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As much as I like a certain twist on some classics, some things are just left alone. Like these wings. The combination of crispy skin, tender chicken meat, hot buttery sauce and cooling blue cheese dip is invincible. It is just the celery I am not that keen on, so I substituted it with something else green; an avocado salsa with red onion and coriander. It fits too, even though it is not a classic combination like cheese and celery.

The most important thing when cooking chicken wings is the crispy skin. And it is far easier achieved than you think. All you need is some boiling water and a colander. The hot water makes the skin cells contract and tighten resulting in crispy skin when cooked. Second most important thing when cooking wings is the sauce. It should be Frank’s Frank’s Red Hot Sauce, which I picked up in my local London supermarket. But failing finding it, the likes of Tabasco works too.

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Buffalo chicken wings, serves 1

With chicken wings I refer to the de-jointed pieces. Six is a small portion, so just double, quadruple and so on, but then fry the wings in batches.

6 chicken wings

500 ml neutral oil for deep-frying

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp hot sauce

Place the chicken wings in a colander and pour boiling water oven them. Leave to drain. Heat up the oil in a large saucepan. Once it is really hot (try with a piece a bread – if it turn golden it is hot enough) add the chicken wings and fry for about 7 minutes until cooked through and golden brown. Drain on kitchen towel.

While the chicken is frying, melt the butter in a saucepan. Once melted, add the hot sauce and keep warm.

Place the fried chicken wings and spicy butter in a large tupperware box with a secure lid. Toss to coat evenly. 

Serve with crusty french bread, avocado salsa and blue cheese dip. 

Blue cheese dip, serves 4

200 ml sourcream

2 tbsp mayonnaise, preferably Hellman’s

2 tbsp crumbled Stilton

salt, white pepper

Mix all ingredients until smooth. Season. 

Avocado salsa, serves 2

1 avocado

1/2 red onion, finely chopped

1/2 lime, the juice

1 handful coriander, chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

salt, black pepper

Dice the avocado and place in a bowl. Mix with red onion and coriander. Squeeze in the juice of the lime, add a glug of oil and season. Eat immediately or cover with cling film to keep the avocado from browning. 

Roasted Jerusalem artichokes with lemon and parmesan

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This might sounds like something out of a rom-com, but sometimes I think some things are just meant to be.

And no, I am not referring to meeting Mr. Right (Darcy of course) or anything like that.

Instead I am referring to one Sunday when I watched a BBC re-run of Nigel Slater’s Simple Suppers and came across this recipe when I at the same time was contemplating how to use up my last Jerusalem artichokes.

Since I made (well, asked) my mother grow them for me, I feel I need to make them into something really nice every time I cook with them so it is worth the effort of her growing them, and pruning as they grow like weed, and me transporting them home.

This is a fabulously frugal dish (as long as you already have Parmesan at hand) and so delicious. But because it is a typical ‘less is more’ dish you need a really nice oil. I used coldpressed rapeseed oil but Nigel prefers a nice olive oil.

Roasted winter roots with lemon and parmesan, serves 4

Adapted from Nigel Slaters receipe.

750 g Jerusalem artichokes

250 g potatoes

penty of rapeseed or olive oil 

2 lemons

salt and black pepper

2 handfuls parsley

Parmesan

Pre-heat the oven to 200C. Wash the root vegetables but leave the skin on. Cut the Jerusalem artichokes in half lenghtways and cut the potatoes in similar size pieces. Parboil for about 10 minutes (I skipped this step). Place in a roasting tin and toss with oil. Halve the lemons and squeeze the juice of one and a half lemon into the tray and place the empty lemons in it. Season well and roast for 30-35 minutes (about 45 minutes without parboiling). The root vegetables should be soft and sticky. 

Plate, toss with more oil and squeeze with fresh lemon. Add more seasoning, parsley and shavings of parmesan.

Chewy vanilla toffee

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Sweets play a big role in Sweden. We are addicted to our pick ‘n mix (which is actually far better and represented in every single supermarket), love our cars and other chewy sweets.

When I run out of Swedish sweets I resort only to chocolate, as British sweets usually disappoint in comparison. Also, the only chewy British sweet that I really like; Bassett’s wine gums, you hardly ever see here apart from at the airport..

But even though I don’t know how to make perfect wine gums at least I can vary the chocolate with this amazing chewy toffee.

The recipe is straight forward and pretty standard, but it still tastes amazing! The easiest way to make toffee is to use a sugar thermometer; the toffee is ready once the sugar is boiling, at 120C. Or you can pour a spoonful of toffee mixture in a glass of cold water. If it easily shapes into a ball it is ready.

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Chewy vanilla toffee, makes about 50 sweets

Translated from Johanna Westman’s recipe from the book Julgodis (Christmas sweets).

200 ml double cream

100 ml golden syrup

300 ml caster sugar

100 g butter

1/2 vanilla pod

Line a rectangular dish with parchment paper. Mix cream, syrup, sugar and butter in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds out of the vanilla pod, and add both seeds and pod to the pan. Bring to the boil and cook until 120C. Pour the mixture into the lined dish. Leave to cool. Cut into shapes and wrap in parchment paper or cellophane.

Easy chocolate mousse

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When making the parfait with lots of egg whites for New Year’s Eve, I had a lot of yolks left over. And as I really despise wasting food, we used  some in bearnaise sauce and my mother decided to make a chocolate mousse out to the remaining once.

There are several different ways of making chocolate mousse, and this is an easy version. You only need chocolate, egg yolks and whipped cream.

The most important thing when making chocolate mousse is to make sure the ingredients are similar in temperature. So after melting the chocolate, let it cool down a little before mixing it with the egg yolks, that need to be at room temperature, otherwise you end up with a scrambled chocolate and egg mixture, and frankly that’s a waste of a pudding!

The whipped cream doesn’t have to be at room temperature though, once the chocolate and eggs are combined the mixture is more stable. If the mixture would scramble slightly though, my best tip is to pour it through a sieve before letting it set in the fridge.

We served the chocolate mousse with honeycomb pieces, and it worked really well. I like to combine different textures and a fluffy and smooth mousse needs something crunchy and with more bite to make it interesting, I think.

Easy chocolate mousse, serves 4

200 ml whipping cream or double cream, I would actually prefer whipping cream as it gives the mousse a lighter texture, but double cream works too

2 egg yolks, at room temperature

150 g chocolate, we mixed some milk chocolate with a lot of dark 

Melt the chocolate in a bain marie. Leave to cool slightly. Whip the cream until soft peaks. Add one egg yolk at the time to the chocolate and stir to combine. Then fold in the whipped cream. Pour into glasses, cups or bowls and leave to set in the fridge.