Granger & Co London and Ricotta Hotcakes with Banana and Honeycomb Butter

Before eating at Granger & Co, I had experienced Bill Granger’s restaurants only one other time. At the time, the trek into Surry Hills for breakfast was far to daunting to do on an empty stomach, and I therefore had to eat something before I left. This unfortunately meant I wasn’t super hungry once I arrived in Surry Hills, and thus only ate coconut bread. I realised my mistake when my breakfast companion ordered the Ricotta Hotcakes with Banana and Honeycomb butter, and it looked amazing. My coconut bread, as nice as it was, seemed to pale in comparison. 

Coconut Bread at bills, Surry Hills. 

About a year after this first experience, I was lucky enough to find myself in London, where Bill Granger has opened a restaurant in Notting Hill. I was absolutely determined that we go there at least once. It might seem odd to go to a restaurant in another country that serves similar if not the same food to the one at home. But after my previous experience, I thought that the opportunity to go there was not to be missed. Not only because the food is excellent, but the distance to get to Notting Hill was a lot less than the distance to get to Surry Hills at home! Thus more achievable on an empty stomach! 

On our first full day in London (yes, I was THAT keen), Mum and I caught the tube to Bayswater Station and took the short walk along Queensway and Westbourne Grove to reach Granger & Co. We were seated immediately, despite the restaurant being very full. Which was lucky, as I was obviously starving at this point! I had already decided I was going to order the Ricotta Hotcakes, and Mum ordered the Sweetcorn Fritters. Both meals were great, and according to Mum, the coffee ended up being the best she had on our whole holiday. 

Ricotta Hotcakes with Honeycomb Butter at Granger & Co, London.

Once we were home I ended up finding the recipes for the Ricotta Hotcakes and the Sweetcorn Fritters. Both recipes work really well and are just as nice as eating them in one of Bill’s restaurants. The Ricotta Hotcakes are quite a decadent breakfast with the honeycomb butter, and would definitely be worth making for a special occasion.

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups ricotta 

3/4 cup milk

4 eggs, separated

1 cup plan flour

1 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

unsalted butter,  for cooking

bananas, to serve

Ingredients for the Honeycomb Butter 

250g unsalted butter, softened

100g honeycomb, crushed

2 tbsp honey 

Method: 

To make the honeycomb butter, place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until combined. Using plastic wrap, shape into a log and leave to chill in the fridge. 

For the hotcakes, mix the ricotta, milk and egg yolks in a small bowl. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a larger bowl. Mix the ricotta mixture with the flour until just combined. 

Using an electric mixer and a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Using a large metal spoon, fold the egg whites into the batter in two batches. Be gentle whilst doing this otherwise the egg whites will go flat. 

Using the butter, lightly grease a fry pan. On a medium to low heat place two tablespoons of the batter per hotcake, and cook for about two minutes on the first side. The first side will be cooked when it is golden in colour and the top side shows some small bubbles. Cook on the other side and continue until all the batter is cooked. Whilst cooking the hotcakes, you might want to preheat an oven to about 100 degrees Celsius and place cooked hotcakes on a tray, to keep them warm. 

Serve hotcakes with cut up banana and a slice (or two!) of honeycomb butter. 

Makes about 10. 

Original recipe can be found in ‘bills Syndey Food’ by Bill Granger (2000), p.22.

Granger & Co can be found at 175 Westbourne Grove, London. 

Granger & Co London.

bills in Sydney can be found at 359 Crown St Surry Hills and 433 Liverpool St Darlinghurst.

*Update 11/10/14 - new bills Sydney location at Bondi Beach (79 Hall St). 

bills, 359 Crown St Surry Hills, Sydney. 

Originally Posted May 25, 2014

Nigella Lawson's Brownies

As promised, order is restored after the first savoury post, with another lovely baking recipe! And you can't get much more sweet and decadent than a chocolate brownie! Definitely makes up for eating vegetables. Even if they were pureed in soup with bacon! Its a tough life, haha. 

Considering I don’t really eat chocolate, I have made a surprising amount of chocolate things this year. I guess when your baking for other people, chocolate is hard to go past. 

After making the brownies by Bill Granger back in March, I was interested to see what another recipe would turn out like. I of course, could not go past a Nigella Lawson recipe. 

When I first made these I think I cooked them a little longer than Nigella stipulated. The brownies were more cake-y, than fudgy, however it was commented that they tasted exactly like Sara Lee chocolate cake, which was considered a good thing!

Ingredients: 

150g unsalted butter 

300g light muscovado sugar

75g cocoa powder

150g plain flour

1 tsp bicarb soda

4 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

150g milk chocolate, roughly chopped into chunks 

Method: 

Preheat oven to 190 degrees Celsius. Line a baking tin/tray measuring approx. 25cm/5cm.  

Melt butter over a low heat in a medium saucepan. Once melted, add sugar and stir to combine. 

Sift the cocoa powder, flour and bicarb and stir into the pan. Once it is mixed in, remove from heat. The mixture will be quite dry at this point. 

In a jug, whisk the eggs with the vanilla extract and then add to the brownie mixture. 

Stir in the chopped chocolate and immediately pour mixture into prepared pan. Cook for 20-25 minutes. The idea is to have the brownies still a bit wobbly when they come out of the oven, and a skewer inserted into the centre of the brownies would not come out clean. 

Place the tin on a cooling rack, and allow to cool a little before cutting the brownies. 

Original Recipe from ‘Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home’ by Nigella Lawson, p.217 (2010). 

Originally Posted May 19, 2014.

Tomato & Bacon Soup

This is the first savoury recipe I have posted so far. By now, some of you may be questioning whether I eat or cook anything savoury at all! Do not despair, here is proof that, at least sometimes, I cook something that is actually viable to eat as a proper meal! However, to ‘make up’ for this savoury post (and after not having posted any recipes in a couple of weeks), I will also be posting a sweet recipe this evening. Just to keep things in balance, because in my mind no meal is complete without a little sugar afterwards!

This is my go-to Winter soup. It is very easy to make and only gets a bit messy when you use the blender to whiz it up! Though if you don’t have a blender or food processor, a stick blender or something similar would do. The tomato flavour is rich and goes well with parmesan and crusty bread. The bacon element adds bulk and substance to the soup, which is great if you want it to be more than just an entree. This recipe makes about 2.5 litres of soup, but can be easily halved to make less. 

Ingredients: 

2 tbsp olive oil 

2 large onions, chopped

6 cloves garlic, crushed

6 bacon rashers, chopped

x2 800g tins diced tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 chicken stock cubes, crumbled/crushed

2 cups water

Method:

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions, garlic and bacon and stir over a medium heat for about 3 minutes or until the bacon is cooked and the onions are softened. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, stock cubes and water. 

Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes (uncovered). Allow the soup to cool down, then process in a food processor. This may have to be done in batches depending on the size of your processor. Then transfer back to the saucepan and heat to serve. 

Original Recipe from The Australian Women’s Weekly Starters and Soups, p.115 (1989).

Originally Posted May 19, 2014.

Harrods Tea Room London and Homemade Crumpets with Raspberry Butter

I have always been a fan of crumpets. However, it wasn’t until Mum and I ordered some at the Harrods Tea Room that I considered that they weren’t just available from a packet. Mum and I had been from Regent Street to Westminster to Covent Garden that day, and after a big lunch at Jamie Oliver’s Union Jacks restaurant in Covent Garden, we were seeking something light and comforting by the evening. Whilst waiting in the line to get a table at the Tea Room, I considered just getting a pot of tea and something small to eat. I couldn’t go past another pot of tea, especially when the selection of teas at Harrods are so good. Once we were seated, Mum looked over at a table near us and noticed that someone was eating crumpets. Despite it being about 7pm, she exclaimed, ‘That’s it, thats what I am having!’. I quickly looked at the menu and saw they served breakfast all day. I couldn’t believe our luck, this was exactly what we felt like eating! 

When our order arrived, the crumpets were under a silver dome to keep them warm. The effect was good, as it made me feel not only very British, but like I had ordered something rather special! Coupled with butter, jam and very nice tea, the crumpets were the best thing ever. It sounds silly that something so simple could be so good, but they tasted so much better than the crumpets from a packet we have at home. This naturally got me thinking. Was it possible to make crumpets from scratch? 

Silver Service in the Harrods Tea Room

Crumpets & Tea at the Harrods Tea Room. 

The answer is, yes. 

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 tsp sugar 

7 g sachet dried yeast

375 g plain flour

pinch of salt 

1/2 tsp bicarb soda

200ml water

unsalted butter, for cooking

Ingredients for the Raspberry Butter: 

1 cup raspberries 

1 1/2 tbsp sugar 

1 tbsp lemon juice

100g unsalted butter, softened

Method:

Heat the milk in a saucepan until it is just warm then remove from the heat. Transfer to a bowl and add the yeast and sugar and stir a little. Leave to stand for about ten minutes, or until the mixture starts to bubble and is a little frothy. 

Sift the flour and salt into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Gradually add the milk and beat using an electric mixer until the batter is smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place for 1 - 1.5 hours or until doubled in size and has lots of air bubbles. I used my oven to prove this batter. Turn the oven on to 100 degrees and once it has reached the temperature, turn the oven off. Place batter inside oven, with the door propped open, until the temperature has lessened (maybe after 30 mins), then close the door for the remaining proving time. Make sure the bowl you use is heat proof (e.g. glass) and the plastic wrap doesn’t touch the oven, only the top part of the bowl. 

Whilst the batter is proving, place the raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan over high heat and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture is syrupy. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Place the butter in a bowl and whip with a wooden spoon until it is light. Once the raspberry syrup is completely cool, fold it through the butter creating a ripple effect. Transfer to ramekin or butter dish and store in the fridge until needed. 

Once the crumpet batter has doubled in size, mix the bicarb soda with the water and then add to the batter using an electric mixer. Heat a fry pan and grease with butter, and greasean 7-8cm egg ring with butter. The cooking process is quite slow, so if you have multiple eggs rings and a larger pan cook multiple crumpets at once. Place the egg ring/s into the pan and place about 2-3 tablespoons of the mixture in to each ring. Don’t overfill them as the mixture will rise and spill over the edges. Cook over a low heat for about 5 minutes, or until the top surface is full of bubbles and the crumpet has formed a skin. I found this process took longer than 5 minutes, but it will probably depend on how even your stovetop distributes heat, and how consistent it is. 

Once bubbles and a skin have formed, loosen the egg rings on each crumpet and turn over to cook the other side. Place cooked crumpets on a wire rack with a tea towel covering them whilst cooking the remainder of the batter. Remove the raspberry butter from the fridge, and if crumpets have remained warm serve immediately with the butter. If they have cooled down, or you are serving them at another time, briefly warm them under a grill or in a toaster. 

Raspberry butter is best served slightly softened. 

Makes around 14-16. 

Harrods Tea Room can be found on the second floor, Harrods 87-135 Brompton Road Knightsbridge, London.

Harrods, London. 

Original recipe from ‘bills Sydney Food’ by Bill Granger (2000), page 57.

Originally Posted May 1, 2014.

Vanilla Cupcakes with Passionfruit Icing

These cupcakes are ridiculously easy to make and are a crowd pleaser every time. They are probably one of my favourite things to make and to eat! The cake itself is a recipe I grew up with. My Mum would use this trusty Women’s Weekly recipe to make our birthday cakes and cupcakes. My brother and I would always fight over who got to lick the beaters when Mum made these cupcakes! Mum would ice these cupcakes with a coloured icing made with a little margarine, milk and icing sugar, I of course always wanted pink! 

The original recipe uses butter, however Mum has always used margarine. Margarine gives the cakes a nice light texture. She also says using a low fat milk is great for creating a nice light cake. I find this recipe makes between 12 and 15 cakes. I think it depends on the size of the eggs used, or how much batter I fill the cupcake cases with. Either way, I always line a 12 hole cupcake tray with cases, and have another tray ready in case I need it. 

Ingredients:

125g margarine

1tsp vanilla essence

3/4 cup caster sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups self raising flour 

1/2 cup milk 

Ingredients for the Icing:

2 cups icing (confectioners) sugar (approx.)

pulp of 3-4 passionfruit (approx.) 

Method: 

Pre-heat oven to 160 degrees Celsius and place cupcake cases into a cupcake tray. 

Cream the margarine, vanilla essence and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer. The mixture should become light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then sift half the flour into the mixture and add half the milk. Mix until combined, then add the remaining flour (sifted) and milk. 

Divide mixture between the cupcake cases. Fill them about 1/2 to 3/4 full. They will rise, and if you fill them too much they will spill over the sides. 

Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cakes are slightly golden in colour and spring back when touched. Cool on wire racks.

Once the cakes have cooled, sift the icing sugar into a microwave safe bowl, and gradually add the pulp of two passionfruit. Mix to form a thick paste. If the mixture is too wet, sift in some more icing sugar. If it is too dry add more passionfruit pulp. Place the bowl into the microwave and heat the icing in 10 second intervals until a smoother consistency is achieved. The icing should spread nicely, but not be so runny that it will run down the sides of the cupcakes. 

Using a knife or small spatula, ice the top of the cupcakes with the passionfruit icing. Allow the icing to set before storing in an airtight container. 

The original recipe for the cupcakes can be found in ‘The Australian Women’s Weekly Cakes and Slices Cookbook’ p. 89.

Originally Posted April 27, 2014.

'Rustic' Hot Cross Buns

I have never been much of a bread maker. It’s not really an area of baking I have explored much. This year however, I for some reason decided that I wanted to make hot cross buns.  

For my first attempt I used a recipe in Nigella Lawson’s book ‘Feast’. The flavour was nice but the texture wasn’t right. I now know I didn’t knead the dough long enough which was why my hot cross buns were more like hot cross scones. 

The recipe I have used here is from a recent edition of ‘Gourmet Traveller’ Magazine. The original recipe calls for the use of dried sour cherries, instead of mixed fruit. I think, if you happen to find dried sour cherries in a deli, they would be great. However, if like me, you didn't want to go searching for just one ingredient, just use mixed dried fruit. When I mentioned to someone that I had made these, they suggested using dried cranberries as a substitute. When you think about it, you can just use whatever you have around or whatever you prefer. Just keep it to the same quantities. 

I have named these ‘rustic’ hot cross buns because, the way they have turned out, they are a bit uneven and well, rustic and homemade looking! They do however, taste great. With more practice I’m sure they will turn out looking better and better each time. Despite the fact I haven’t 100 percent perfected this recipe, I thought it was best to post an Easter related recipe, well, before Easter. Then if you’re game, you can have a go too! 

So if you have a chance over the upcoming long weekend, have a go and make some hot cross buns! I promise it’s not as hard as it seems. 

Ingredients for the Buns and Cross:

200 g mixed dried fruit

65 g raw (golden) caster sugar

two sachets (7 g each) of dried yeast

1.5 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp mixed spice

rind of one lemon

rind of one orange

845 g plain flour

420 ml milk

1 egg

100 g butter, chopped

1/2 tsp sunflower oil (or vegetable oil)

60 ml cold water

Ingredients for the Glaze:

50 g caster sugar

1/2 tsp mixed spice

50 ml water 

Method: 

Using an electric mixer with the dough hook attachment, mix the dried fruit, sugar, yeast, spices, rinds and 770 g of the plain flour. Heat the milk and butter in a saucepan over low heat until the butter melts. Allow to cool slightly and lightly beat in the egg. Then whisk the egg into the butter and the milk. 

Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and knead for 8 to 10 minutes, using a electric mixer with the dough hook attachment on a medium speed. Knead until the dough is soft, elastic and smooth. It is a good idea to do the last couple of minutes of kneading by hand to gauge the texture of the dough. 

Lightly butter a large bowl, and place the dough inside. Leave covered in a warm place for 50 minutes to one hour, until the dough has doubled in size. I found turning the oven on to 100 degrees Celsius, allowing it to reach the temperature then turning the oven off worked well. Pre-heat the oven whilst you are kneading then, place a heat/oven bowl with the dough into the oven with the door propped open for the proving process. 

After the dough has doubled in size, push the dough back with your fist to knock the air out of it. Divide the dough in to eighteen to twenty equal pieces. Roll into balls and place on a lined baking tray 1 cm apart, either in a circular pattern or in rows. Cover with a tea towel and allow to prove again for thirty to forty minutes, until doubled in size. 

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius. Combine the left over flour, the sunflower oil and cold water in a bowl until it becomes a smooth paste. If the mixture is too runny the crosses will be difficult to pipe. Spoon into a piping bag, or a plastic zip lock bag (and cut a small hole in the corner), and pipe a cross across each bun. 

Bake for ten minutes, then reduce the oven to 200 degrees Celsius and bake for a further eight to ten minutes. The buns will be ready when they are golden in colour and make a hollow sound when tapped. 

Allow the buns to cool slightly, then stir the remaining sugar, spice and water into a saucepan on medium heat. Let the sugar dissolve, then allow the mixture to come to a simmer. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Brush the glaze over the buns. 

Hot Cross Buns are best eaten on the day of baking, however they freeze well. 

Makes 18-20.

Original recipe can be found in Australian Gourmet Traveller Magazine, April 2014, page 194. 

Originally Posted April 15, 2014.