Food Glorious Food: Recipe Ideas From Signature 1815 Photoshoot

Method:

1. Fry the onion and pepper until browned.
2. Add the curry paste and cook for 1 minute.
3. Add the coconut milk and a tin of water.
4. Add the diced squash and cook until tender.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Garnish with chilli and coriander if desired, serving with rice and Naan bread.
   
    

Tom’s top tips for Squash and Vegetable Thai Red Curry:

• Freshly grated coconut sprinkled on top really makes a fab addition to this dish.
• Thai food should be sweet, sour, hot and salty. Mix and match ingredients such as palm sugar for sweetness, tamarind paste for sour, different chillies for a variety of heat and fish sauce or soy sauce for salty.
• Try using some coconut milk instead of stock or water for cooking your rice – it’s delicious!
  
   

Panko Fish Fingers with Minted Pea Puree and Shoestring Fries – Serves 2

Method:

1. Peel and cut the potatoes into the thinnest strips you can – you could use a julienne peeler or mandolin if you have them to hand.
2. Place in a large bowl of water to soak.
3. Preheat a deep fryer to 180°C.
4. Cut the fish into thick strips roughly 40g each, so you get about 10 pieces.
5. Place the flour in a shallow bowl, eggs beaten in a second bowl and the Panko breadcrumbs in a third bowl or tray.
6. Season the flour with salt and pepper and mix well. Coat the fish in the flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs, set aside on a tray.
7. Place the peas in a pan with 1 cm water in the bottom and cook until the peas are hot, and the water has evaporated. Add the chopped mint and butter and puree in a blender or mash with a masher, season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside and keep warm.
8. Drain the fries in a colander or sieve and leave to drain.
9. Place the fish into the fryer and cook until a light golden brown, 2-3 minutes maximum. Set aside on kitchen paper to drain.
10. Dry the shoestring fries quickly and add to the fryer. Cook until golden, they won’t take long at all.
11. Drain the fries onto kitchen paper.
12. Plate all together with a dollop of ketchup!   
    
     

Tom’s top tips for Panko Fish Fingers with Minted Pea Puree and Shoestring Fries:

• When bread-crumbing the fish fingers, use one hand to coat in flour and breadcrumbs, and the other to coat in egg – try not to mix up your hands or things will get very messy!
• Soak the chipped potatoes in water for an hour or so – this will remove excess starch and stop the chips from changing colour too much before they’re cooked.
• Save some of the peas to add whole after blending, to give texture to the pea purée.
  
   

Lemon Drizzle Cake with St Clements Icing

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C.
2. Line a loaf tin with baking paper.
3. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy – then add the eggs, zest and flour. 
4. Mix together gently until a smooth batter.
5. Pour the batter into the loaf tin and cook in the oven until well-risen and light brown. Testing with a skewer by making sure it comes out of the cake clean.
6. While the cake is cooking, mix the drizzle ingredients together and set aside.
7. Next, make the St Clements icing by creaming the butter with the icing sugar and zest of the citrus fruit.
8. When the cake comes out of the oven prick the top of the cake and pour over the lemon drizzle syrup. Allow to cool completely.
9. When the cake is completely cool, spoon or spread on the St Clements icing.
10. Dress with more citrus zest if desired.

Tom’s top tips for Lemon Drizzle Cake with St Clements Icing:

• Decorate your lemon drizzle cake with candied peel by boiling lemon zest in equal quantities of water and sugar for 15 mins, then drain and roll the zest in caster sugar.
• When greasing cake tins, after brushing with butter, dust the inside of the cake tin with flour then shake off the excess – this will ensure the cake never sticks to the tin.
  

Roast Plum Pavlova

Method:

1. Pre heat an oven to 180°C.
2. Split the plums in half and lie cut side upon a roasting tray, sprinkle the plums with the caster sugar.
3. Add the water to the roasting tray. Cook for 20-30 mins until the plums are soft but not collapsed. If the juices are catching on the tray, add more water and stir round. Set the plums and syrupy juice aside to cool completely. This can be done in advance and the plums put in the fridge.
4. Turn the oven down to 100°C.
5. Line a flat tray with non-stick baking paper.
6. In a very clean stand mixer bowl – add the egg whites and whisk until firm, gradually add the sugar and whisk for 10 minutes until there is no sugar grains left in the mixture.
7. Dollop out on to the baking tray and spoon out into a circle with an indent in the middle for the cream and plums.
8. Dry the meringue at 100°C for 1hr 30 mins then turn off the oven and leave to cool completely – don’t open the oven door until cool! Alternatively, you can dry the meringue overnight at 50°C – this will produce a very dry, crunchy meringue.
9. Place your meringue onto the serving plate, whip the cream and dollop on to the middle of the meringue. Dot the plum halves around on the cream and drizzle with the plum syrup. Garnish with mint leaves and tuck in!
   
    

Tom’s top tips for Roast Plum Pavlova:

• Fresh, room temperature egg whites whisk better and easier than fridge temperature eggs.
• Leave the meringue in the over to cool with the door shut to prevent the pavlova from cracking.