Manu's French Kitchen- Whiting en papillote at legumes parfumes a lesteagon

Whiting en papillote at legumes parfumes a lesteagon

Papillote of Whiting and tarragon- Scented Vegetables

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

2 carrots, cut into julienne

2 leeks, cut into julienne

1/4 cup tarragon, thinly sliced

sea salt and ground pepper

8 king George whiting fillets, Skin on and pin-boned

100g unsalted butter, chopped

1 lemon, thinly sliced

125ml dry white wine

1.  Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the carrot and leek and stir for 6-8 minutes or until just soft. Stir in most of the tarragon and season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

2.  Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

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3. Place four 50cm long pieces of heavy-duty foil, shiny side down, on a work surface and cover each with a piece of baking paper. Drizzle a little olive oil on one side of each piece of the baking paper-lined foil, then top with carrot and leek mixture. Place 2 fish fillets, skin side down, over the carrot and leek mixture and to each fillet with 25g of butter and a few slices of lemon. Season to to taste with salt and pepper and scatter with the remaining tarragon. Fold over the other side of the foil to cover, then fold in two of the sides to seal the parcel well- as if you are making an envelope. Pour one- quarter of the wine onto each parcel, then fold the remaining side to fully enclose the fish and vegetables.

4. Transfer the parcels to a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes of until the bags have inflated and the fish is cooked through, Serve

Serves 4 as a main

Manu's French Kitchen- Gratin dauphinois

Gratin dauphinois

Potato Gratin

500ml pouring cream
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped thyme
1kg brushed potato's or desiree potato's, peeled and cut into 3mm thick rounds
sea salt and pepper
20g unsalted butter

1. Combine the cream, garlic, thyme and potato in a large heavey based saucepan, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring gently to prevent the potato from sticking to the base of the pan

2.  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Grease a 1.5 litre capacity baking dish with the butter.

3. Transfer the potato and cream mixture to the baking dish, spreading it into and even layer . Cover with foil, then bake for another 10 minutes or until golden brown and all the cream in absorbed.

Serves 4

Manu's French Kitchen- Soupe vinchyssoise

Soupe vinchyssoise

Leek and Potato Soup

50g unsalted butter

300g desiree potato's, peeled, halved, and thinly sliced

2 leeks, white part only, halved and thinly sliced

1 litre water

1 spring thyme

1 bay leaf

100g creme fraiche, plus extra to serve

sea salt and freshly ground white pepper

finely chopped chives and crusty bread to serve

1.  Melt the butter in a heavey based saucepan over low heat. When the butter starts to foam, add the potato and cook for 5 minutes - you don't want it to take any colour. Add the leek and stir for another 3 minutes or until just wilted. Add the water, then increase the heat to high and bring to the boil. Add the thyme and bay leaf. Simmer for 20 minutes or until the potato is tender when pierced with a knife. remove thyme and bay leaf.

2. Puree the soup in a blender until smooth. Leave the soup in the blender and leave to stand until just warm. Add the creme fraiche and blend again until well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper, serve or refrigerate until cool

3.  To serve, divide among bowls, then scatter with chives. serve with crusty bread alongside, topped with a spoonful of creme fraiche

serves 4

Manu's French Kitchen - Creme Brulee

Creme Brulee

Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee

500ml pouring cream

1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped

5 egg yolks

90g caster sugar

1.  Place the cream,  vanilla seeds and the pod in a saucepan and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to stand for 1 hour to infuse. strain the cream through fine-mesh sieve into a jug and discard vanilla pod.

2.  Place the egg yolks and 50g of sugar in large bowl and whisk until just well combined. slowly stir in warm cream until just combine; do not stir vigorously as you do not want to create bubbles in the custard. (at this stage, you can cover the custard closely with plastic film and refrigerate overnight to enhance the flavour and then remove any bubbles which may have formed on the surface of the custard before cooking).

3.  Preheat oven to 120 degrees C

4.  Place four 150ml capacity brulee dishes or ramekins in a a deep roasting pan, carefully divide he custard among the dishes, then place the pan in the oven. Pour enough boiling water in the pan to come halfway up the side of the dishes. Bake the custards for 30-40 minutes or until just set. The cooking time will depend on the depth of the dishes - the custards should still be a little wobbly in the centre.

5.  Carefully remove the roasting pan from the oven, then remove the dishes from the water bath and set aside to cool. Cover the brulees with plastic film, then refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.

6.  Just before serving, sprinkle the surface of each brulee with 2 teaspoons of the remaining sugar, using the back of the teaspoon to spread evenly. Using a kitchen blowtorch, melt and caramelise the sugar. The sugar should be dark golden but not burnt. Serve immediately.

Serves 4

Manu's French Kitchen - Kingfish a la grenobloise

50 ml olive oil
4 x 200 g kingfish fillets, skin on
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
100g unsalted butter, chopped
1 lemon, cut into segments
40g salted baby capers, rinsed well
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
mixed leaf salad, to serve

Croutons
2 tablespoons olive oil
20g unsalted butter
4 slices good-quality white bread, crusts removed, cut into 5mm cubes




1     Preheat the oven to 180C

2     To make the croutons, heat the olive oil and butter in a large ovenproof frying pan over medium heat. Add the bread and shake the pan for 5-6 minutes or until golden and crisp. Drain on paper towel and wipe the pan clean.

3     Add the olive oil to the pan and place over medium heat. Season the fish with the salt and pepper, then cook, skin-side down, for 4-5 minutes or until golden. Turn the fish over, then transfer the pan and place on serving plates.

4     Pour off any fat from the pan and return to low heat. Add the butter, and as soon as it starts to foam, add the lemon segments, capers, croutons and parsley and toss to combine well.

5     Pour the sauce over the fish fillets and serve immediately with a mixed leaf salad.


Serves 4 as a main