CRAIG'S MENU
Craig McAlpine's menu included the following dishes:
CHICKEN BALLOTINES WITH SAGE AND PANCETTA (served on a bed of sweet potato and potato olive oil mash and a melange of roasted seasonal vegetables)
Ingredients (for Chicken Ballotines):
Chicken legs
Chipolatas
Sage
Pancetta
Vine tomatoes
Chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped
Garlic, finely chopped
Method
Sautee the chestnut mushrooms in olive oil, garlic and pepper and a few dried mixed herbs. Trim the chicken leg by holding it like a gun and cutting through the excess skin and tendons at the top of the leg. Remove the inner bone by cutting around the bone to release and pull away from leg. Lay flat skin-side down and put some of the mushrooms into the cavity, then squeeze the sausage meat out of the casing into the cavity and wrap tightly. Repeat for the other legs.
Place a couple of sage leaves across the top of the leg. Lay the pancetta on to a piece of heavy-duty tin foil large enough to wrap around the leg. Place the leg in the centre of the pancetta and pull the end furthest away towards you, bringing the pancetta down over the leg. Do the same with the piece closest to you and roll tightly to form the cracker-shaped parcels. Allow to rest.
In the meantime, halve the tomatoes and remove the core from the top half. Sprinkle with pepper, finely chopped garlic and drizzle with olive oil. Roast slowly in a cool oven (150 C). Remove and allow to cool. These are best served at room temperature.
Turn the oven to 180 C and roast the ballotines for 30-40 minutes, turning regularly to ensure they cook evenly. Remove. These can be made the night before and stored in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before continuing.
Remove from the tin foil, catching the juices in a dish. Roll in the juice to give a nice shine, then brown in a pan with olive oil and a knob of butter. Allow to rest before serving.
To serve, cut each leg into 3 on the diagonal to reveal the contents. Serve on a bed of mash with the roasted tomatoes alongside.
Recipe idea courtesy of Gordon Ramsay, BBC Good Food Magazine, March 2004
Turn the oven to 180 C and roast the ballotines for 30-40 minutes, turning regularly to ensure they cook evenly. Remove. These can be made the night before and stored in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before continuing.
Remove from the tin foil, catching the juices in a dish. Roll in the juice to give a nice shine, then brown in a pan with olive oil and a knob of butter. Allow to rest before serving.
To serve, cut each leg into 3 on the diagonal to reveal the contents. Serve on a bed of mash with the roasted tomatoes alongside.
Recipe idea courtesy of Gordon Ramsay, BBC Good Food Magazine, March 2004
Ingredients (for sweet potato and potato mash):
Sweet potatoes, cubed
Potatoes, cubed
Olive oil
Butter
Nutmeg
Method
Boil the potatoes. Once soft, mash with a good knob of butter and a good drizzle of olive oil. Grate some fresh nutmeg in and add salt and pepper to taste.
Ingredients (for roasted seasonal vegetables):
Carrots
Celeriac
Parsnips
Pumpkin
Garlic
Butternut squash
Method
Chop all the vegetables, add to a roasting dish with a good drizzle of olive oil, garlic bulbs, pepper and thyme. Roast in a hot oven.
Sweet potatoes, cubed
Potatoes, cubed
Olive oil
Butter
Nutmeg
Method
Boil the potatoes. Once soft, mash with a good knob of butter and a good drizzle of olive oil. Grate some fresh nutmeg in and add salt and pepper to taste.
Ingredients (for roasted seasonal vegetables):
Carrots
Celeriac
Parsnips
Pumpkin
Garlic
Butternut squash
Method
Chop all the vegetables, add to a roasting dish with a good drizzle of olive oil, garlic bulbs, pepper and thyme. Roast in a hot oven.
GATEAU OF MERINGUE AND STRAWBERRIES ON A BED OF STRAWBERRY COULIS
Ingredients (for meringue):
6 egg whites
320g caster sugar
1 tablespoon cornflour
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Method
Line a shallow roasting tin with greaseproof paper. Whisk the whites to soft peaks and ass half the sugar, whisking slowly. Add the cornflour and lemon juice, then whisk in the remaining sugar. Spread thinly into the tin and bake at 130 C for 20 minutes. Remove and allow to cool. Invert on to a clean tea towel, pull off the paper and cut into circles (two per person).
Ingredients (for coulis):
250g strawberries
Lemon juice
40g caster sugar
40ml water
Method
Make a stock syrup with the sugar and water. Bring to the boil, simmer and cool. Puree the fruit, sieve, and combine with the syrup and lemon juice.
Ingredients (for the filling):
Double cream
Strawberries
Vanilla extract
Icing sugar
Alcohol (Amaretto, Pimm’s, crème de fraise)
Method
Add a drop of vanilla extract, a sprinkle of icing sugar and a splash of alcohol. Whisk to soft peaks. Halve the strawberries.
To plate: line the plate with some coulis, place a circle of meringue in the centre, cover with enough cream, layer with strawberries and top with another circle of meringue. To finish, drizzle coulis over one side of the gateau and sprinkle with icing sugar over the plate.
Ingredients (for meringue):
6 egg whites
320g caster sugar
1 tablespoon cornflour
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Method
Line a shallow roasting tin with greaseproof paper. Whisk the whites to soft peaks and ass half the sugar, whisking slowly. Add the cornflour and lemon juice, then whisk in the remaining sugar. Spread thinly into the tin and bake at 130 C for 20 minutes. Remove and allow to cool. Invert on to a clean tea towel, pull off the paper and cut into circles (two per person).
Ingredients (for coulis):
250g strawberries
Lemon juice
40g caster sugar
40ml water
Method
Make a stock syrup with the sugar and water. Bring to the boil, simmer and cool. Puree the fruit, sieve, and combine with the syrup and lemon juice.
Ingredients (for the filling):
Double cream
Strawberries
Vanilla extract
Icing sugar
Alcohol (Amaretto, Pimm’s, crème de fraise)
Method
Add a drop of vanilla extract, a sprinkle of icing sugar and a splash of alcohol. Whisk to soft peaks. Halve the strawberries.
To plate: line the plate with some coulis, place a circle of meringue in the centre, cover with enough cream, layer with strawberries and top with another circle of meringue. To finish, drizzle coulis over one side of the gateau and sprinkle with icing sugar over the plate.