Serves 8, easy, time 1 hour to make and overnight to set, you'll need an 8" springform cake tin

250g of Coconut Taralli
70g unsalted butter
500g cream cheese (full fat)
70g of icing sugar
300ml double cream whipped till firm ie slightly over whipped
Zest of 3 limes

Toast the tarallis till just taking on some colour, this intensifies the coconut flavour even more
Melt the butter
Whilst the butter is melting, blitz the tarallis till like bread crumbs
Stir the tarallis into the butter then put into the springform cake tin and press down, put into the fridge till cool.
Put the cream cheese into a bowl, sift the icing sugar over the top and mix together
Add the zest and mix
Fold in the whipped cream
Pour into the springform tin, cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for 12-24 hours

To decorate, grate a lime over the top




I've deliberately not used gelatine in this recipe to make it vegetarian - the over whipped cream is crucial otherwise it won't set.

Gnocchi with Black Truffle and Olives (Tartafuta)

Supper for 2 or light lunch for 2. 20 minutes, Easy

500g of Gnocchi
250g of Chestnut mushrooms, thinly sliced
90 ml of Tartafuta
80 ml Creme Fraiche (half fat will work just as well in the recipe)
Large handful of Parsley finely chopped
2 tb olive oil (not extra virgin, this doesn't like to be heated to high temperatures)

*Using a wok for ease of frying, cook the mushrooms until they are dry, a little colour is good but don't burn them.
*Boil a pan of salted water. Add the gnocchi and they are done when they float.
*Whilst the gnocchi is cooking, add the Tartafuta to the mushrooms and heat (you'll smell toast, don't be confused by this, it's the olives). Then add the creme fraiche and 2/3rds of the parsley.
*Mix and heat gently, if there's a lot of liquid (because the mushrooms weren't cooked dry) don't worry, just let the mixture bubble away gently till reduced.
*The gnocchi should be done by now, drain and add to the Tartafuta sauce, mix, taste, adjust seasoning, taste again and plate up, add the rest of the parsley as garnish then serve.

Mushrooms are an optional ingredient, they bulk out the dish and add protein but are not necessary if you're not a fan. Toasted pine nuts would be a nice addition too if you have any to hand.

Egg royal with truffle hollandaise

Serves 2 , 15 minutes , skill level medium


2 egg yolks
75g butter
25g Black Truffle Oil
Lemon juice 1/4 lemon
4 eggs to poach
Hot smoked salmon - we recommend Salar Smokehouse and as much or as little as you like
Hot, buttered toast, sourdough works so well with this.

Whisk two yolks in a bowl and place the bowl on a damp cloth
Heat the butter till almost boiling and then dribble, very slowly, from a height into the egg bowl whisking all the time (the damp cloth stops the bowl from moving too much and the height cools the butter so it doesn't over cook the egg)
Add the truffle oil, again very slowly, whisking all the time.
Taste, add some of the lemon juice, taste, add more if needed
Season, taste and adjust if required
Put to one side and keep warm

Poach the eggs, I prefer to use a frying pan for poaching. No "swirling" required just very fresh eggs and you can use the left over lemon juice to help set the eggs rather than vinegar.

This is the order that I prefer to build the plate but to be honest, it really doesn't matter. Do it to your taste and exactly how you like it.

Toast
Salmon
Eggs
Generous helpings of hollandaise