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For the choux pastry

  • Choux Pastry
  • 85 ml / 3 fl. oz water
  • 85 ml / 3 fl. oz milk
  • 65g / 2½ oz butter
  • 100g / 3½ oz plain flour or gluten free plain flour
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon finely grated Parmesan

Method

  1. Dissolve the butter in the water and milk and bring to the boil. Tip in the flour and stir over the heat until the mixture comes away from the side of the pan. Leave to cool a little.
  2. Beat in the eggs one at a time.
  3. Heat the oven to 200°C, ESSE dial reading middle of HOT. Line baking sheets with baking paper, then pipe small 4cm high blobs of pastry onto the sheets, spaced a little apart. Sprinkle lightly with Parmesan then bake for 20 minutes until puffed and golden.

For the filling

  • 300g strong cheese, grated
  • 1½ tsp English mustard
  • Large splash Worcestershire sauce
  • 4 medium egg yolks
  • 120ml good quality local beer

Method

  1. Boil the beer and reduce it down to a tablespoon in volume.
  2. Whizz all the filling ingredients to a thick paste using a food processor.
  3. Put the mixture in a piping bag fitted with a very narrow nozzle.
  4. When the gougères are golden, remove from the oven. As soon as you can handle them, poke a hole in the base of each one with a metal skewer, then pipe no more than 1 tsp filling into each one.
  5. Set the gougères upright again and return to the oven for 5-8 minutes until deep golden.
  6. Remove from the oven, leave to stand for 2-3 minutes, then serve, warning people to watch out for the hot filling.

Recipe provided by Philippa Vine, Bluebell Farmhouse Kitchen.

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This recipe highlights the gentle method of melting of the butter and chocolate on an ESSE induction hob, no water bath required.

Ingredients

  • 150g flaked almonds
  • 50g butter, melted
  • 40g plain flour
  • 90g caster sugar
  • 120ml double cream
  • 30ml honey
  • 115g dried fruit
  • 50g dark chocolate

Method

  1. Cooking them in the ESSE oven at 170C / ESSE dial reading to be in the middle of MODERATE.
  2. Mix all the ingredients together.
  3. Spoon into round non stick tins, flatten down with the back of the spoon.
  4. Bake for about 15 to 20 mins until golden.
  5. Remove from oven, allow to cool.
  6. Remove from the tin and place on a cooling rack.
  7. Melt chocolate and coat the flat side of the florentine. Chill to set the chocolate.

Recipe provided by Philippa Vine, Bluebell Farmhouse Kitchen.

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A simple, red lentil dhal is such a great complement to so many vegetable dishes – not just curries or biryanis, pakoras or bhajis, but even simple fare such as shredded, stir-fried greens and a scoop of rice. It’s a delicious way to add protein to a veg-based meal too. This easy but authentic example is based on a recipe from the wonderful Indian chef Udit Sarkhel.

Serves

Four people

Ingredients

  • 250g red lentils
  • 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 onion, halved and thinly sliced

TO FINISH (Optional):
A small bunch of parsley or coriander, or a couple of sprigs of mint, roughly chopped.

Method

  1. Put the lentils in a pan with 800ml cold water and bring to the boil. Skim off any scum then stir in the turmeric and salt. Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes, stirring or whisking vigorously every now and then, until the lentils have broken down completely and you have a purée – the consistency of a thick soup or thin porridge. You can whisk in a little hot water from a just-boiled kettle if you need to thin it a bit. Keep warm in the pan.
  2. When the Dhal is just about done, heat the sunflower oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and fry for a couple of minutes until browned and fragrant. Add the onion and fry fairly briskly for 5–10 minutes until golden brown, even just a smidge burnt.
  3. Tip the mixture on to the hot lentils in the pan, cover and leave for 5 minutes then stir in the onions and cumin. Taste and adjust the seasoning. This is very good with coriander, parsley or mint sprinkled on top – but that’s not essential.

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Ingredients

  • 2 mackerel fillets
  • Half a baby gem lettuce
  • 4 spears asparagus
  • 50g butter
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 tbls capers
  • 2 anchovy fillets
  • 1 lemon
  • sprig chives
  • sprig flat leaf parsley
  • sprig dill
  • sprig mint
  • 100ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 2tbls labneh

Method

  1. In a searing hot pan, place a little cooking oil followed by the mackerel fillets skin side down, place a small amount of pressure with a spatula on top of the fillets to ensure the skin is flat to the pan. Turn the heat down slightly, add the baby gem lettuce and asparagus to the pan flat side down and leave to caramelize.
  2. In a bowl, chop all the herbs, one garlic glove, 1 tablespoon of capers, and half a juiced lemon, mix together and put to one side to dress the mackerel once cooked.
  3. You will notice as the fish is cooking the sides of the flesh will start to turn white, once this has reached around half way up the fish add the butter, capers, garlic and anchovy to the pan. Break the anchovy up in the hot butter with the back of a fork until it dissolves. Take the pan off the heat, add the other half of lemon juice. Turn the fish and the baby gem over and baste in the hot butter.
  4. To serve, spread the labneh on the bottom of a warm plate, with the baby gem, asparagus and mackerel on top. Finish off with a little bit of the salsa verde and some sea salt.

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Ingredients

  • 500g minced pork shoulder (roughly 20% fat), could also use lamb
  • 5g salt (about 1 teaspoon)
  • Black pepper
  • Nutmeg/mace
  • Fennel seeds

Method

  1. Simply mix the ingredients together. This mixture when made with pork is a classic Italian sausage mix. Be generous with the black pepper and fennel seeds and not so much with the nutmeg/fennel.
  2. Cook in a flat pan or direct to hotplate on all sides.

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Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons rapeseed or olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, finely sliced
  • 2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes (or 1 tin plus a jar of passata)
  • A pinch of sugar
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

  1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a gentle heat. Add the garlic and let it sizzle very gently for a minute or so. As soon as it starts to turn golden, add the tomatoes.
  2. Let them bubble gently, stirring often, for 10–15 minutes, until you have a thick sauce. Transfer to a jug and purée with a stick blender (if you do it in the pan, the sauce will go everywhere), or just crush the chunks of tomato in the pan with a fork until you have a reasonably smooth sauce. Season to taste with salt, pepper and the sugar.

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Ingredients

  • 500g floury potatoes, such as King Edward or Desiree
  • 50g plain flour, plus extra for rolling out
  • 50g butter
  • 1/4 tsp baking powder
  • Chives

Method

  1. Peel the potatoes cut into large pieces, boil until tender, drain and mash. Once mashed stir in the butter and allow to cool.
  2. Add the flour and baking powder and chopped chives along with a good pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.
  3. The dough should come together and away from the sides of the pan. You can add more flour if the mixture is too wet and a little milk if it is too dry.
  4. Divide the dough into two halves. Form one piece into a ball, then roll it out on a floured surface and into a rough circle with a diameter of about 15cm and a thickness of 5mm to 1cm.
  5. Cook directly on the hotplate with the lid down, flipping halfway through.
  6. Repeat the process with the other half of the dough mix.
  7. Cut into pieces and serve hot.

Wilted Greens

  1. Pre heat a heavy roasting tray in the hot oven.
  2. Remove the tray and add 2 or 3 tablespoons of olive oil and a clove or two of thinly sliced garlic.
  3. Allow the garlic to brown in the oil very lightly.
  4. Place a big handful of washed still damp greens into the tray, season and return to the oven for a couple of minutes. Stir and possibly return to the oven for a minute if not completely tender.
  5. Test again and serve.

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Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 50 minutes
Serves: 10

Ingredients

  • 175g butter at room temperature 200g
  • soft brown sugar, plus 2 tbsp
  • 600g plums halved and stones removed
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 3 eggs, separated
  • 125g self-raising flour
  • 100g ground almonds
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • A pinch of salt
  • 125ml milk

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4 /ESSE dial guide MODERATE (Aim for the dial reading to be at the top end of MODERATE or very low end of HOT. In a small pan, melt 50g of the butter and mix with 2 tbsp of the soft brown sugar.
  2. Line a 22cm cake tin with baking parchment. Pour the butter mix into the base of the tin and make sure it is well-covered. (If you are using an oven-proof frying pan, the butter can be melted in it).
  3. Arrange the halved plums, skin-side down, in the bottom of the tin. Cream together the rest of the soft butter with the remaining sugar and vanilla essence until pale and fluffy. Separate the eggs, set the whites to one side and add the yolks one at a time to the creamed mix, beating well after each addition.
  4. In a bowl, sift the flour into the remaining dry ingredients. Add this to the wet mix a third at a time, folding through with a little milk at each addition. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites just until they are soft peaks. Add a third of the whites to the cake mix, stirring through, before tipping in the rest and folding in gently. The cake mix should fall off a spoon easily.
  5. Spoon the mix over the plums and bake for 50 minutes, or until the top is firm to the touch or an inserted knife comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave for about 10 minutes before turning out on to a plate.
  6. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe by Jane Baxter – demonstrator of ESSE electric range cookers at Humble by Nature.

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Makes

1 – 1.5ltrs

Ingredients

  • 1 cooked chicken carcass
  • the neck and giblets from the chicken, but not the liver
  • 1-2 onions, roughly chopped
  • 1-2 large carrots, roughly chopped
  • 2 bay leaves
  • a few black peppercorns
  • 3-4 celery sticks, roughly chopped
  • ½ a large leek, roughly chopped
  • a few chunks of peeled celeriac or parsnip (optional)
  • 1 sprig of thyme (optional)
  • a few parsley stalks (optional)

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This is one of my favourite recipes. The sharp-sweet quality of cider helps make this old-fashioned apple butter a sensational fruity spread to daub over hot buttered toast or crumpets making it a wonderful wintertime teatime treat.

Makes

5-6 x 225g jars

Ingredients

  • Makes 5-6 x 225g jars
  • 1.5kg cooking apples
  • 600ml dry or medium cider
  • Granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Method

There is no need to peel or core the apples. However, if you’re using windfalls (and this is a very good recipe in which to do so) cut away any damaged or bruised bits. Chop the apples into fairly big pieces (about 8 to each apple). Place in large pan with the cider and 600ml water. Cook gently until soft, then remove from the heat.

Push the apple mixture through a nylon sieve or use a mouli to reduce it to a puree. Weigh the fruit pulp and return to the cleaned-out pan, adding 340g sugar for every 600g fruit pulp.

Add the cloves and cinnamon. Slowly bring to boiling point, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Rapidly boil for 10-15 minutes until the mixture begins to splutter and is thick and creamy.

Remove from the heat and pour immediately into warm jars (it’s best to use small jars as this low-sugar preserve has a relatively short shelf life, once opened).

Seal immediately. Use within 12 months and store in the fridge once opened.

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This is not a smooth blended soup, but a broth packed full of little pieces of root veg. Their flavours remain more distinct this way, which is very pleasing. Enriched with plenty of smoky bacon and finished with grated cheese, this is a fabulous, sustaining, salt-of-the-earth sort of dish. Make sure you cut the vegetables small, and keep the pieces all the same size.

Serves

Four people

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 200g smoked streaky bacon or pancetta, cut into small dice
  • 1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
  • 150g carrots, peeled and cut into small dice
  • 150g swede, peeled and cut into small dice
  • 150g potatoes, peeled and cut into small dice
  • 150g parsnip, peeled and cut into small dice
  • 150g celeriac, peeled and cut into small dice
  • 1 litre light vegetable, ham or chicken stock
  • salt and freshly ground pepper
  • About 100g grated mature cheddar, to garnish

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the bacon and sweat gently until the fat runs and the bacon starts to turn golden. Add the chopped onion and sweat gently for another 10-15 minutes, or until soft and golden.

Add all the diced root vegetables, cover the pan and let the whole mixture sweat and soften for 10 minutes or so. Then add the stock, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until all the veg are tender. Taste the soup and season accordingly.

Ladle into warmed bowls, top each with a little pile of grated cheese and serve straight away, with some thick pieces of toast.

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This fantastic rather usual vegetable makes the delicious soup.

Serves

Four people

Ingredients

  • 50 g butter
  • 1kg Jerusalem artichokes – peeled
  • 350g washed leeks – sliced
  • 100g potato – peeled
  • 2 cloves of garlic – chopped
  • 1 medium onion – chopped
  • 750ml of good chicken stock/vegetable stock.
  • 100ml double cream
  • Salt and pepper

Method

In a large heavy based pan sweat the vegetables in the butter until soft.

Now add the stock, bring the soup to the boil, turn down the heat and simmer for 20 – 30 mins.

Liquidise the soup until smooth and creamy.

Return the soup to the pan and place back over a medium heat. Season well and stir in the cream.

The soup is ready to eat.

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Fish Stock

Demonstrated by River Cottage Chef, Andy Tyrell, using an ESSE CAT Gas Cooking Range

This is our basic fish stock, a light, well-flavoured broth that we use as a base for all manner of soups, plus sauces and risottos. It’s particularly good in ‘green’ soups – watercress, nettle or parsley, for example – even if no fish is being added to the soup.

Get into the habit of freezing all your white fish trimmings and you can soon build up a good stash for making stock. You can use the entire fish frame: bones, skin, head and tail – anything that’s not guts or gills. Not only is this good, thrifty cooking but making your own stock also gives you control over its flavour. Indeed, this recipe is only a guide. The more fish bits you pack into the pot, for instance, the more intense your stock will be. You can vary the vegetables too: trimmings of fennel bulbs, celeriac and shallots are all good candidates for inclusion.

The golden rule: all the fish trimmings must be scrupulously fresh (or fresh when they were frozen). A fish that only just passes the sniff test might have fillets that are just about worthy of the frying pan, but its bones will not be worthy of the stockpot.

Ingredients
Makes about 1.5 litres

  • 2kg white fish trimmings, including at least 4 good heads
  • 4 celery sticks, roughly chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, bruised but not peeled
  • 2 onions, peeled and halved
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 5 thyme stalks
  • A handful of parsley stalks
  • 1/2 teaspoon black or white peppercorns

Method
Rinse the fish trimmings in cold water and put them in a large stockpot with all the other ingredients. Pack them in fairly well and add just enough cold water to cover everything. Bring up to a very gentle simmer. Skim off any scum that rises to the surface, then cover the pan and simmer for half an hour, taking care that the stock doesn’t boil fast at any point. A gentle, popping simmer is all that is necessary – overcooking or boiling can make the stock cloudy and chalky tasting.

Let the stock cool slightly before straining it into a container. You can use it straight away, or refrigerate it for up to 2 days, or freeze it.

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These lovely deserts are great cooked in a medium oven. The ESSE oven stays nice and moist when you cook these little custards in a bain-marie.

Serves

Six people

Ingredients

  • 1 kilo of Bramley apples
  • 400ml double cream
  • 100ml milk
  • 1 fresh vanilla pod
  • 100 g caster sugar plus extra for the topping.
  • 6 egg yolks

Method

Peel, core and slice about a a kilo of Bramley apples, then cook them over a gentle heat with a shake of caster sugar and just a dribble of water to prevent them burning. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the apple pieces have completely dissolved. Go on cooking gently and stirring until you have a thick, slightly translucent purée. Add more caster sugar to taste – enough to achieve a purée that is still tart but not unpleasantly so. Leave to cool.

Divide the purée between 6–8 ramekins or other small heatproof dishes, you want about a centimeter or so of purée in each ramekin, chill thoroughly in the fridge.

Scold the cream, milk and split vanilla pod in a pan set over a medium heat. Allow to stand for 5 mins to infuse.

Carefully scrape the seeds out of the vanilla pod into the cream mixture.

Combine the egg yolks and sugar together in a large mixing bowl, but don’t over mix.

Pour the hot cream over the eggs and whisk well.

Strain the vanilla custard through a sieve into a jug.

Pour the custard gently over the apple compote being careful not to break it up to much; I pour it over the back of a spoon set just above the ramekin. Bake the crème Brulee’s in a roasting tin half filled up with hot water (This is called a Bain Marie).

Cook gently for 25 to 35 mins or until just set. You want a hint of a wobble in the centre.

Remove the crème Brulee’s from the oven and chill until needed.

To serve scatter a teaspoon of caster sugar over the top of each ramekin. Flash them under a hot grill or caramelise the sugar with a blow torch until golden and bubbling.

This will set to give a crisp caramel coating.

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This recipe for my little hotplate pancakes is quick, easy and delicious. I use self raising flour which means they rise slightly on cooking, the result being lighter and more textured than traditional pancakes.

This recipe can be customised in many ways. Adding different flavours and spices is part of the fun. For instance, grating a little blue cheese into the batter and serving them with thick slices of roast ham would make a beautiful Sunday night supper. Alternatively adding some cinnamon and a little chopped apple to the batter would make a perfect desert, served hot with vanilla ice cream.

Cooking these pancakes directly on the plate is immensely satisfying and not at all messy. You can make big ones or small, it’s up to you.

I keep a tea towel by my ESSE for cleaning up the plate. Giving it a good firm rub will polish it up perfectly for cooking on.

Serves

Makes around 15 hot cakes depending on size

Ingredients

  • Whole meal self raising flour – 250g
  • Baking powder – 1 teaspoon
  • Caster sugar – 25g
  • Free-range eggs – 2
  • Fresh milk – 275ml
  • Butter (melted) – 25g
  • A pinch of salt
  • ESSE range cooker – simmering plate

Method

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl and stir in the caster sugar. Make a well in the flour and break the eggs into the middle. Pour in about half the milk. Whisk, gently at first, and then as you start to get a thick paste, add the more milk and the melted butter. Beat until you get a good, thick creamy batter – you might not need all the milk.

Lift the lid on the right hand plate. Check the temperature, the dial should be reading in the middle of hot. Use a spoon to dollop the batter directly onto the clean plate. You should be able to fit 3 – 4 on at a time depending on the size. After about a minute, little bubbles will start to appear on the surface of the cakes. As soon as they cover the surface, flip them over with a spatula or thin palette knife.

Cook the other side for a further minute or so, then transfer them to a warm plate and cover them with a clean tea towel so they stay soft – or hand over to those waiting eagerly to get stuck in. Cook the remaining batter in the same way, adjusting the area on which you’re cooking over if they are getting too brown too quickly.

Note: For the savoury variation omit the sugar before adding your cheese or chopped bacon or sauté onion etc.

Serve with: Butter and caster sugar, strawberry jam, honey, lemon curd or anything you like.

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Pre-fire your ESSE to somewhere between hot and very hot

Serves

Makes around 15 pancakes

Ingredients

  • Plain flour – 250g
  • Free-range eggs – 2
  • Fresh milk – 500ml
  • A little Sunflower oil for frying
  • A pinch of salt

Method

Sift the flour and salt into the mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle of the flour and break in the eggs.

Pour in half the milk and start to mix the eggs and milk with the balloon whisk, whisking in the flour from the edges a little at a time. Add the rest of the milk and keep on whisking until there are no more lumps of flour. Pour the batter into the jug. It may still be quite thick at this stage so whisk in extra milk just a little at a time until you get the right consistency – not quite as thick as single cream, but certainly thicker than milk!

Put a non-stick frying pan on the hotter of the 2 plates. Add about a tablespoon of sunflower oil, swirl it round the pan and then pour the excess into the cup so that just a slick of oil stays in the pan.

When the oil is hot pour a little of the batter into the pan. How much to pour really depends on the size of your pan but you need to leave plenty of room for the pancake to spread out (use a ladle if it helps you to judge the right amount of liquid each time). Immediately tilt and rotate the pan so that the batter runs across the base and doesn’t sit in a big lump in the middle.
As the pancake sets, loosen the edge of it with the palette knife. Shake the pan gently so that you know the pancake hasn’t stuck (a bit of work with the knife if it has; don’t worry, the first one often does). Flip the pancake over and cook the other side for a few seconds – the second side is much quicker to cook. (Notice the intricate patterns left behind by the hot oil; each one different, like a fingerprint.)

Slide the pancake out of the pan and on to a warm plate. Cook the rest of the pancakes as before.

Note for ‘Flippers’: Flipping is the best bit so don’t be afraid to give it a go… give the pan a vigorous shake to make sure the pancake is not sticking, then use the side of the pan as a launch ramp and remember it takes less effort than you think. You want to ‘land it’ not attach it to the ceiling! Always use a non-stick pan and make sure it’s not too heavy otherwise you will find them hard to flip. Hopefully you’ll be up for giving the flip a go but if not, you can turn your pancakes with the palette knife or a wide spatula.

Serve with: Caster sugar, freshly squeezed lemon or orange juice, strawberry jam, honey, lemon curd or anything you like.

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