Prosciutto Wrapped Lamb Fillet with Pomegranate Reduction on Potato & Asparagus

Whenever i watch Iron Chef Sukai on SBS i am fascinated by his use of caul, a fatty membrane surrounding the organs of some animals, to encase pieces of meat. The fat of the caul keeps the mean juicy and succulent as it is being fried, or more generally, roasted.

With the same concept in mind, i have seen, and on occasion tried, wrapping lean cuts of meat in thin shaved slices of fatty prosciutto. In addition to retaining the juices of the lean meat, the prosciutto adds its own seasoning, flavor and personality to the dish.

When i was making this dish i felt like it belonged in the annals of an old Women's Weekly 'entertaining' cookbook. With the asparagus and mashed potato, the dish harks back to what was considered haute cuisine when i was younger. The retro style of the plating reflects that. However in using prosciutto rather than say, bacon, and with the addition of balance through the sweet-sour pomegranate reduction, i think i've been successful in achieving a bit of 'retro-chic' with this dish.

A note on both asparagus and the pomegranate reduction. Firstly, asapargus is best in season in Spring, when the spears shoot up from the ground and are at their sweetest and most succulent. The worst thing you can do to these delicious vegetables is overcook them! Blanch in salted water for 30 seconds at most! And to the pomegranate reduction: you can buy ready reduced pomegranate juice in the form of pomegranate molasses. But why pay $20 plus for a bottle of the stuff when pomegranate juice is easily available and ready for reduction at any local supermarket. Look for Pom, it's normally located in the fresh produce aisle of your supermarket.

Potage Parmentier with Truffle Oil

For the second installment of my weekly soup recipe, i stuck to basics: after a long weekend spent packing, moving, and socializing, i didn't leave too much time to go reinventing the wheel for my week of lunches. As such, i have gone with a nice, wholesome potage parmentier: better known as leek and potato soup.The creamy thickness of the pureed potatoes assists the rich sauteed leeks to cling to your ribs and the hint of cream leaves you feeling warm and fuzzy inside. The starch in this soup makes it ideal without bread.

Pepper Eye Fillet with Red Wine & Anchovy Reduction and Pommes Puree

The first time i can remember feeling like i was actually cooking and taking a joy in it for the process itself, was when i made what quickly became my specialty: kangaroo with red wine jus and 'smashed' potatoes.

Well slowly my tastes have changed, and my signature dish has changed with it. So many things in this dish today i would have thought were completely wrong when i first started out cooking. Like

• how could you ever use beef instead of kangaroo! Kangaroo is like paying $5 for a prime rib! Well, i still love my kangaroo, but the marbled fat in a good beef steak is a luxury unmatched by kangaroo.
• Anchovy in my sauce? Disgusting! I've become a complete convert to the little anchovy- but only when i can't see the damn things. Anchovies i consider to be a seasoning agent; use sparingly to add a bit of depth to the dish
• How can you not boil down a bottle of wine to one 30ml shot glass worth! Ok this one took me a while to learn. For so long i would reduce my jus until it was a as thick as possible, and i would flesh it out with beef stocks and pepper. Now, i  follow the credos Keep It Simple Stupid. I want to taste the wine. 

Anyway! This is a dish to impress. Especially if you can find those fancy vine tomatoes (hint: if you can't find those, then use dutch carrots for looks)

Don't knock the Gnocchi

Gnocchi... most of us have tried to make it, most of us have failed. Most of us will try again, and this time we shall succeed!! And once we do, then we can mix things up a bit with sweet potatoes and flavourings. But for now, the basics.

The 3 Cardinal Rules of Gnocchi:
1. No water!!! Gnocchi is so often ruined because there is too high a water content in the dough; the main cause of this is waterlogging the potatoes when boiling. Put the potatoes in the oven people!

2. Do you like the taste of raw flour? No? Then use as little as possible!!

3. Don't give me that saucy look. Choose your sauce wisely. Gnocchi goes better with sauces with a high oil count, and the heaviness of the potatoes does not lend them to 'summery' sauces like oil and chili. Go for gold with carbonaras, sage and burnt butter, or if you must go tomato, go a ragout.

This recipe will make 3-4 serve of gnocchi.

Ingredients:
1kg of starchy potatoes like desirees
2 cups of flour MAXIMUM
Salt
1 egg Method:
Put the potatoes into the oven at 180 degrees for an hour or so until they're easily pierced with a fork. Remove and leave to cool enough to handle (these are hot potatoes after all).

Peel the potatoes (you should be able to do this with your fingers) and either push through a ricer or grate using a block grater so that a fine consistency is achieved. Mix through one lightly beaten egg. Gradually add flour to the mix until you can handle the dough without it sticking everywhere (don't add any extra as more will be incorporated as you knead). Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes or so.
Split the dough into 4 balls.
Roll the first ball out on a board until it's a log around 3cm thick.
Then cut the log into pieces around 3cm each. You should end up with... a 3cm cubed cube. Get it?
Roll the first piece into a ball, and then press lightly onto the prongs of a fork to create a ridge.
Roll the ball along the ridge so that it goes around able half of the ball. This is not just for presentation; the ridges will grab your chosen sauce better.
You may have noticed, you no longer have a ball. You have an oval, or a log. That's okay, just lightly press the gnocchi into the shape below. Set the finished gnocchi piece onto a floured surface or a sheet of baking paper.
Repeat for the remaining pieces, and then for the remaining balls of dough.

You can then freeze the gnocchi on a baking tray; when solid you can throw them in a freezer bag to save room. Else you can boil them up straight away!
To cook, bring a pot of salted water to the boil. Drop in the gnocchi and as they float up to the top, scoop them out with a slotted spoon. Tomorrow i'll put up a sauce to have with the gnocchi.

Night night