Spinach and Cilantro Soup with Tahini & Lemon – makes 8L
240ml tahini
240ml lemon juice
1 garlic clove
5 ml kosher salt
2.5 ml ground cumin
2.5 ml red pepper flakes
1.75L chicken stock
360g baby spinach
2 bunches cilantro
60ml tahini
10ml kosher salt
10ml lemon juice
First, make the sauce: Combine first amount of tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt, cumin and red-pepper flakes with 2 tablespoons water in a medium bowl. Whisk until smooth, adding more water as needed to achieve a drizzle-able consistency, and set aside.
Next, make the soup: Add stock to a Dutch oven or heavy pot, and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in spinach, cilantro, tahini and salt, and return to a boil. Turn off heat, and stir in lemon juice.
Use an immersion blender to purée soup. Taste, and adjust seasoning with more salt and lemon, if desired.
Serve soup immediately, and drizzle with tahini sauce. Cover and refrigerate remaining soup and sauce for up to 1 week, or freeze soup for up to 1 month.
Roasted Carrot Tart with Ricotta & Feta – 5 tarts
Flour, for rolling out dough
5 packages frozen puff pastry, thawed
2kg multicolored carrots, scrubbed and sliced lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick pieces
75ml extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
Kosher salt and black pepper
1L ricotta
600ml feta, crumbled
5 garlic cloves, grated
Chopped fresh parsley, chervil or chives, for garnish
Heat oven to 425 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll puff pastry into a 10-by-14-inch rectangle. Using a paring knife, lightly score a border around the perimeter of the puff pastry about a 1/4-inch away from the edges. Place puff pastry on a parchment-lined baking sheet and prick the pastry inside the border using a fork to prevent puffing in the center. Bake on top rack until puff pastry is lightly golden, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
Meanwhile, toss carrots with 1 tablespoon oil, season generously with salt and pepper and spread into a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast carrots on the bottom rack (underneath the puff pastry) until the edges are golden brown and carrots are still crisp-tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
While puff pastry and carrots are in the oven, blend ricotta, feta and garlic in a food processor until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
Spread the cheese mixture onto the puff pastry up to the border and arrange the carrots in a single layer on top. Bake until the carrots are tender and the edges of the cheese mixture are golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with herbs before serving.
Crispy Lamb Meatballs with Chickpeas & Eggplant – 34 portions
4kg ground lamb (or “regular” ground beef)
30ml teaspoons fennel seeds
8 garlic cloves, finely grated
20ml red-pepper flakes, plus more as needed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
480ml olive oil, plus more as needed
4 medium eggplants, sliced 1/4-inch thick
8 (300mL) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1L full-fat Greek yogurt, labneh or sour cream
500g arugula (or baby kale)
2 bunches cilantro cilantro, leaves and ender stems
4 lemons, halved
Combine lamb, fennel seeds, garlic and 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Season with 60ml kosher salt, and black pepper to taste, and mix until everything is well combined and the spices are evenly distributed.
Using your hands, roll lamb mixture into balls about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter, placing them on a parchment-lined baking sheet or plate. You should have about 50 meatballs.
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add meatballs — work in batches if your skillet can’t comfortably fit them all without crowding — and cook, gently rotating them occasionally so they more or less brown on all sides while keeping a vaguely round shape, 8 to 10 minutes. (Do not stress about this part; they will be delicious no matter what shape they are.) After they are evenly browned and cooked through, transfer them to a plate, leaving the fat and any browned bits behind.
Add 4 tablespoons oil to the skillet and, working in batches, if needed, add eggplant slices in an even layer, seasoning with salt and pepper. Cook the slices, flipping them once, until they are browned on both sides, about 6 to 8 minutes. Add more oil as needed. After eggplant slices are cooked and browned, transfer them to the plate with the meatballs.
Add remaining 3 tablespoons oil to the skillet, along with chickpeas. Season with salt and pepper, and cook, shaking the skillet and stirring occasionally, until chickpeas are nicely browned, 3 to 5 minutes. (They won’t exactly crisp; you’re just looking to take the edge off and get them nicely seasoned.)
Season yogurt with salt and pepper and smear onto the bottom of a large plate or serving platter. Top with meatballs, eggplant and chickpeas. Scatter with greens and cilantro, and then squeeze lemon halves over everything before serving.
Brussels Sprouts with Walnut & Pomegranate – 36 servings
2.4kg brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
1180ml olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper
240ml roughly chopped walnuts
120ml pomegranate seeds, plus more to taste (or dried cranberries)
Pomegranate molasses, for drizzling (optional)
Flaky salt, to serve
Heat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, toss brussels sprouts with the olive oil. Season well with the salt and black pepper and toss again. Spread everything evenly on a sheet pan cut-side-down and roast until crisp and deeply golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes, flipping the sprouts halfway through to ensure even browning.
Meanwhile, toast the walnuts in a skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently to ensure they don’t burn, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
When the brussels sprouts are done roasting, toss them with the toasted walnuts and the pomegranate seeds. Drizzle with the pomegranate molasses (about 60ml or so), if using. Season with flaky salt
Roasted Mushrooms with Braised Black Lentils – 36 portions
3.6kg mixed mushrooms, such as cremini, shiitake or other wild mushrooms.
Kosher salt
Black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
4 medium white onion, minced
2 large bulb fennel, diced, stalk and fronds reserved
60ml slivered garlic
2L black lentils, rinsed
8 bay leaves
450g unsalted butter
2L diced dense country bread (remove crusts before cutting)
240ml finely chopped parsley
Zest of 8 lemons
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
For mushrooms, trim any woody stems, and clean with a damp kitchen towel as needed. Place face down on a sheet tray lined with parchment. Season assertively with salt and pepper. Generously drizzle with olive oil, and roast until tender, about 20 minutes. Set aside.
Meanwhile, in a heavy-bottomed wide sauté pan, heat 1/4 cup olive oil over gentle heat. Add in the onion, fennel and garlic. Season with salt and black pepper and cook until tender, stirring often, about 10 minutes, taking care not to brown the vegetables. Add the lentils, stirring to coat them with the olive oil and vegetable mix. (Add more olive oil if needed to get a glossy coating on the lentils.) Cover just barely with cold water, add the bay leaves and fennel stalk and reseason with salt and pepper. Simmer, partly covered, until the lentils are tender but not mushy, stirring occasionally and adding more water as needed, as you might for a risotto. (You want to end up with wet-juicy cooked seasoned lentils but not lentil soup.) Turn off heat, remove bay leaves and cooked-out fennel stems or fronds, and finish with a healthy drizzle of olive oil.
For croutons, over medium heat, melt the butter in a skillet large enough to hold the diced bread in a single layer. Add in the bread, stir to coat evenly with the butter and season with salt. Toast the croutons in the butter on the stovetop, stirring frequently, until golden brown and crispy. The butter will smell browned and toasted. Remove from the heat, season with salt and black pepper and allow to cool briefly before tossing with chopped parsley and lemon zest.
Combine lentils with the roasted mushrooms and any accrued roasted mushroom juices, scatter croutons over top and serve.
Sesame Chocolate Ruffled Milk Pie
60 sheets phyllo
675g butter
6 eggs
1.5L sweetened condensed milk
275ml white sugar
750ml milk
500ml cocoa powder
500ml sesame seeds
45ml cinnamon
60ml vanilla extract
120ml corn starch
150ml milk
12 whole tangerines or oranges, cut into segments
Pre-heat the oven to 350F (180C).
Cut the butter into 1-inch chunks and melt it over the stovetop Set the melted butter aside.
Use a 9-inch pan and butter it or line it with parchment paper. It’s important that you use a pan that is 9-inches or larger with a height of at least 2 inches so that the chocolate filling doesn’t overflow or get too high – which will reduce the amount of crispy phyllo exposed by half.
Get a large kitchen towel or some paper towel and wet it. Wring it out really well so that it is just damp. Remove the phyllo pastry from the packaging and cover it with the damp towel.
Take 1 sheet of phyllo pastry and brush it liberally with melted butter. Take another sheet of phyllo pastry and lay it on top of the buttered one and brush melted butter on it liberally as well.
Gently pinch the pastry into ruffled folds on the 2 ends and the middle.
Gently spiral it into a coil and tuck the end underneath the bottom so that the bundles sit higher (this is to expose more of the phyllo pastry during baking for more crispiness!) I like to also gently pull up the middle of the coil as well to make it sit slightly higher.
Set the bundle in the pan.
Continue steps 4-7 until you have your pan completely filled with a phyllo spiral. Repeat for all 6 pans.
Use the remainder of the butter and brush the tops of each phyllo bundle until there is a light layer of butter on it. You may need to heat up some more butter if there is not enough.
Put it in the oven and bake it for 25-30 minutes until it is slightly golden and crispy at the tops.
Remove it from the oven and let it slightly cool while you make the Black Sesame Chocolate Filling. (Leave the oven on, we will still need to use it.)
In a food processor, blitz the sesame seeds until it is fine like sand.
In a large bowl combine everything but the cornstarch and the second amount of milk
In a separate small bowl, combine the corn starch and milk and mix until it has dissolved into the milk and it is smooth.
Add the cornstarch slurry to the sesame chocolate mixture
Gently pour the chocolate filling into the pan with the phyllo. Try to keep the phyllo as dry as possible
Bake for an additional 25-30 minutes until the phyllo is golden brown and the chocolate filling doesn’t jiggle when you gently wiggle it.
Lightly drizzle with some condensed milk or dust with powdered sugar on top and serve warm, garnished with tangerine segments
Roasted Grape and Butternut Squash Bruschetta – 48 pieces
1L seedless red grapes
60ml grapeseed or other neutral oil
20ml kosher salt
20ml ground black pepper
1L diced butternut squash
60ml extra virgin olive oil
2.5ml ground allspice
2.5ml ground cinnamon
20ml smoked paprika
60ml fresh thyme leaves
750ml inexpensive balsamic vinegar
750ml pecans
2 baguettes
600g chévre or Camembert
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Remove grapes from stems, rinse under cold water, drain and pat dry. On one sheet pan, toss grapes with grapeseed or other oil, 2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper and roast for 10 minutes. On another sheet pan, toss butternut squash with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, the allspice, cinnamon, smoked paprika and thyme and roast for 15 minutes, or until just tender. Let cool to room temperature.
Meanwhile, heat the balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan over medium high heat until it is reduced to about 2 tablespoons of syrup. Cool to room temperature or just slightly warm. This may be done ahead and the syrup kept in the refrigerator. Bring back to room temperature or warm slightly before use.
Roast the pecans for about 8 minutes or until they become fragrant. Cool slightly and chop.
Slice 48 pieces from the baguette on the bias, sprinkle with remaining olive oil, salt and pepper. Grill or toast in the oven until golden brown. To assemble the bruschetta, spread each slice with about 1 tablespoon of chevre or a slice of a Camembert-style cheese and sprinkle with pecans. Then add a nice mix of squash and grapes. Using a small spoon, drizzle each piece with a thin ribbon of the balsamic syrup.