A call to arms was recently issued from the pages of Sevenstreets recently [http://www.sevenstreets.com/23743/peninsula-dining-rooms/], calling for some attention to be given to the venture headed by chef Ross Gray and partner Mandy, having experienced a tough period in very tight economic times. The article by David Lloyd was a timely call to arms, as our experience of the Peninsula Dining Rooms was an ultimately satisfying and pleasing end to what started out as a rather sour excursion over to Hoylake. Having received an invitation to a menu launch at Coda Maine on Market Street in Hoylake, a group of friends and I arrived to an absence of any food at the bar and upon the kitchen sending out slates of chicken wings and salad found locals (we suspect) effectively monopolising the wares of the menu launch. Not great publicity for other visitors, especially when staff were also tucking into the food at the expense of other guests. Thankfully, the invite was a free event but the organisation was exceptionally poor, making our visit a rather hollow one. The bar itself was nothing exceptional; a small venue which had a live act following the food which was meant to be given out to customers, there is a pretty average selection of drinks and beers set to compliment the menu, which also looked fairly standard. The establishment is set to make up numbers on Market Street currently, with its previous incarnation ‘La Bodega’ closing to make way. Suffice to say we left rather hungry; serendipitously two of our party had read the Sevenstreets article and placed a reservation for Peninsula, who accommodated us at short notice with little fuss. A warm greeting and smiles were a balm for what had been a disappointing and wet evening in Wirral, thankfully this was a indication of happier experiences ahead. The Peninsula Dining Rooms is a cosy and unpretentious dining environment, comfortable and well maintained with an uninterrupted view of the toil in the kitchen from most of the tables. The atmosphere was palpably calm; the clientele soothed by food, service and surroundings. The offering of 2 or 3 courses on a reduced rate certainly encouraged people to be a bit more adventurous, especially in view of a fairly diverse menu for an establishment of a modest size. The restaurant has an emphasis on supporting not just local produce, of which Wirral and Merseyside has an understated quality which is pushed to the fore by Gray, but supporting local charities with a small donation taken for bottled water at each table. They have commendably raised handsome sums for previous charities, with small nuances such as the sale of breadcrumbs and the water donation adding only warmth to the place. Sadly, for somewhere championing local produce, the choice of beers was sadly very lacking, whilst Liverpool and the wider Merseyside area has undergone something of a renaissance with small craft and real ale brewing, none of that was on display at Peninsula, only Peroni and Heineken beers of note... not exactly local I am sure you'd agree. The English Rosé wine might also need some further consideration, as my companion remarked it wasn't as pleasant as she had hoped, even less impressed following the price tag. An area of potential improvement for sure. Starters ranged from the unusual (for example, chickpea chips with garlic mayonnaise or the occasional soup of the day such as the eyebrow raising ‘herb lollipop’) to the slightly more conventional such as mackerel, fishcakes and cheese pepper tarts. Each of these is given the attention it surely deserves, the chickpea chips unusual but pleasantly conceived and perfectly seasoned with a crisp coating and tofu-like interior. The fishcakes were wonderfully sweet flavoured with a satisfying level of integrity, so often laden with too much potato in an effort to bulk the dish out. The mackerel, although presented well and generally cooked perfectly, suffered from being a little too salty. Main courses were treated with as much care and respect as the starters, them being well thought out and competently executed dishes filling the menu. The burgers were presented to be succulent and stacked generously with toppings; the flavours matched the appearance in an age when the region is experiencing a veritable love-in with meat patties. The sea bass was a superb combination with two crisp skinned fillets riding atop spinach and pak choi in chilli garlic sauce, encircled by the outer crunch and soft centred -globes of deep fried pea risotto which also provided a backbone to the dish and vehicle for the sauces. The menu provides vegetarian options, not as an afterthought, but pleasingly considerate in the form of a sumptuous butternut squash gnocchi with peppers and goats cheese or a sweet and filling red onion tart tatin with mascarpone and garlic fries. The ham hock provided some excitement through the soft textured hock itself, smear of warming piccalilli and the prospective decadence of deep fried black pudding bon-bons, which more than lived up to the literal sense of their moniker. Desserts ranged from the warm, comforting and familiar to the playful and exploratory. Gray has possibly been influenced in the conception of ‘Seaside Fun’ by the Great British Menu; a playful nod to confectionery associated with British resorts through a combination of popcorn, candy floss, jellies amusingly presented on pebbles, flanked by shortbread and honeycomb. While apparently disparate, it provides the perfect foil to the bedrock of the other courses and should be commended for injecting some fun into proceedings. The other desserts such as cinnamon and brioche French toast, cheeses, affogato and fruit tartlets provide more conventional sweets to end a meal, which sadly does have to end somewhere. The amalgamation of passion, skill and care provide an excellent foundation for the Peninsula Dining Rooms which can only be built on. A visit is thoroughly recommended to ensure that they do. Pedro. ------------------------- The Peninsula Dining Rooms can be found at: 3 Grosvenor Road, New Brighton, Wirral, CH45 2LW. Website: http://www.peninsula-dining-room.co.uk/ Telephone:+44 (0) 151 639 8338 Twitter: http://twitter.com/peninsuladining
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When I was told I was expected to provide a course for a hybrid Christmas dinner (Anglo-Italian… since you ask), I was struggling initially to come up with something, as I was musing over some game meat that I had in the freezer… possibly making a small game pie. I resisted the temptation for this on finding out that a game terrine was already on the menu alongside some polenta and blue cheese, the main event of goose and puddings/cheeses. Something a little different was needed and I came up with this, drawing inspiration from two sources; my friend Jo who made a simpler variation of this dish using whiskey and what is regarded by some as a 70s classic that our family used to wheel out in the form of prawn cocktail at Christmas dinner. Needless to say, it went down rather well, as even my Brother (who is famously ‘against the crustaceans’ as my Sister-in-law puts it) was almost licking the bowl clean. You’ll need some fancy dishes that should hold enough greenery to supply some contrast to the delicate pink and creamy texture to this dish, as this will only serve to impress guests that little bit more. It should only take around 30 minutes to complete this dish, including prep and cooking time. Ingredients (Makes enough for 5-6 people):
175-200g Shelled King Prawns (responsibly sourced of course); 175-200ml of Single Cream; 1tblsp Olive oil or ~10g Butter for the intial frying of the Prawns; 6 tblsp of good Spanish/French Brandy; 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped; 3-4 tsp Pimentón; 4 tsp freshly finely chopped chives; Salt and Black Pepper to season; and Fresh Rocket and Chives to garnish. What to do: 1. Butterfly the King Prawns by slitting them along the back by approx 2mm to allow them to fold when cooking through – make sure to remove any of the black bits from the back too. Heat the oil or butter in a frying pan and then add the prawns and garlic to the pan on a medium heat. 2. Add a teaspoon of the pimentón and stir around making sure that the garlic and prawns do not brown too much. Now add the brandy and burn off the alcohol by way of a theatrical flambée; immediately after the flames have died down, add the cream and stir the prawns to ensure they are completely coated. Now add 3 tsp chopped chives, salt and pepper seasoning and remaining pimentón. 3. Cook for another couple of minutes to ensure the flavours are even in the sauce around the King Prawns. 4. Arrange a bed of rocket on the base of each bowl and serve the prawns on top, now add stems of chives and any remaining chopped chives as garnish (you should have another teaspoon worth remaining). You may also choose to add an extra sprinkle of pimentón over the King Prawns too. Serve the warm salad to your hungry guests. Enjoy… any additional ideas to this dish, feel free to fire over or share! Pedro. x It’s quite easy to get bitten by the bug to make your own bread, albeit a rather time consuming and at times initially frustrating bug. Once you’ve gotten the technique nailed, then there’s a bit of play in what you can do to flavour a loaf of bread, changing the types of flour you use, the amounts of salt and adding fruit, nuts or herbs can also provide an interesting twist. I have even ventured into the realms of making ‘Twiglet Bread’. Having read a number of blogs on the subject and already being a firm believer in making my own naan bread from scratch and using a rather handy bread making machine, the transition to hand made bread was relatively smooth. The biggest alteration made though, was to make my own sourdough bread rather than using vacuum packed dried yeast – although that said, you can use both in tandem to some very satisfying results. The premise of using a sourdough starter for your bread is quite simple; it uses ‘wild’ yeast that is present in the flour or in the environment of wherever you leave your initial starter to ‘catch’. There are a number of blogs that have been written on how to make a starter, I will leave people to their own devices to do an internet search for this material and decide which author they want to follow. I forget now which method I used as my starter (to date) is approximately a year old (which is nothing, as an aside, there is a famous bakery in New York which uses a starter that was conceived when the establishment was set up for its bagels/beigels, supposedly over 200 years old now). The key is to use organic flour in a clean jar say, 50-100g with enough water to make it to a paste consistency. Leave it with the jar on the lid, but not screwed on, to allow the flour/water mix to breathe and ferment. It will take a few days to get going and it won’t smell too pleasant to most people, half gets thrown away and the other half goes on to be fed with more flour and water, taking off what you need to start making a loaf, buns or bagels etc. Exact protocols for making this are widely available on the internet as I said! Once you have a controlled culture of sourdough, you can start making delicious bread that has an incredible amount of taste compared to the mass-produced loaves you buy in supermarkets and even most chain bakeries. I’ll list two of my attempts at flavoured bread which have both gone down quite well. First is the infamous ‘Twiglet Bread’, which is flavoured with the love/hate agent – yeast extract (yes, yes… okay Marmite is the one that’s synonymous): Ingredients 250g of Sourdough Starter (using organic strong white bread flour) 3.5g Dried Yeast upward of 20ml Water (depending on how thick the starter is!) 2 tblsp Olive Oil 1 medium Egg 1 ½ tsp Sugar 2 tsp Salt 1 tblsp Yeast Extract 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder 1 ½ tsp Bicarbonate of Soda 100g of Rye Flour 100g of Wholemeal Flour 140g of Strong White Bread Flour (this amount can be increased if needed to get the right consistency of dough) plus extra for dusting Topping 1 tsp Honey (optional) 2 tsp Sesame Oil 3 tsp Yeast Extract 1 tblsp Hot Water What to do 1. Combine the ingredients for the dough, dry ingredients first – make sure the white flour is sifted into the mixture (sieve or dredger is fine!), into a large mixing bowl and use a wooden spoon to stir them together, adding water as you go until the dough is to the right consistency. The wet sourdough starter and egg should provide the bulk of the moisture for the dough as it is. Once the dough is to a manageable consistency, flour a flat surface to manipulate your dough and knead it until it is thoroughly mixed and the colour is completely uniform through the dough which should be a slightly silky and elastic finish (you want to ensure even spread of the yeast and marmite etc in the dough to ensure an even rise and no concentrated pockets of flavour!!). 2. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place, put in the bowl and cover with a damp cloth or some cling film. Allow at least 2 hours or until the dough doubles in size. At this stage, you can either manipulate the dough further (and allow a second rise by bashing the air out of the dough and then shaping the loaf into your desired shape and leaving it to prove for 30mins to an hour) or you can gently shape it and then apply a ‘baste’ and get straight on with the baking! To shape the loaf, generally it works well to fold the edges back into the centre gently but repeatedly, then place the folded side on the bottom and use the heels of your palms to rotate the bread to make it to a smooth 3. Once the loaf is in the desired shape, lightly oil the baking tray or tin to ensure the bread won’t stick to the surface. You’ll now need to slash diagonally across the top of the loaf and then prepare the topping/baste to finish your twiglet bread. Stir the yeast extract into the hot water, add the sesame oil and honey once it has dissolved into the water and become thinner in viscosity, stir vigorously to ensure the oil and honey are also into the topping. Now use a pastry brush to spread the topping over the loaf before you place it in the oven to bake. 4. All ovens are different, but most will take at least 35 mins at gas mark 7 or 8, the key is to ensure the bread rises a little more and you can tell if it is done by tapping the bottom of the loaf – a hollow thud should tell you that it is done! You’re on your own for this bit I’m afraid! Uncle Pedro’s Orange Loaf Ingredients 250g of Sourdough Starter 340g of Strong White Bread Flour (this amount can be increased if needed to get the right consistency of dough) plus extra for dusting 3.5g Dried Yeast 1 medium Egg 25g Light Muscovado sugar 75g of Raisins or Sultanas ½ tsp Caraway seeds 1 Whole Orange (Zest and Juice) 1 ½ tsp Bicarbonate of Soda 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder 2 tblsp Olive Oil – or – 15g of Butter (unsalted) Glaze 1 tblsp Marmalade (whichever takes your fancy) 1 tsp Honey 10ml Boiling Water ½ tsp Light Muscovado sugar What to do The way to make this loaf is essentially the same as the other twiglet loaf, aside from the different ingredients. 1. Combine the ingredients for the dough as with the twiglet bread, ensure that your sultanas or raisins are in the mix and bound well into the dough, you can combine the dry ingredients first – make sure the white flour is sifted into the mixture (again, a sieve or dredger is fine!), into a large mixing bowl and use a wooden spoon to stir them together, adding water as you go until the dough is to the right consistency. The wet sourdough starter and egg should provide the bulk of the moisture for the dough as it is. Once the dough is to a manageable consistency, flour a flat surface to manipulate your dough and knead it until it is thoroughly mixed and the colour is completely uniform through the dough; which should be a slightly silky and elastic finish. 2. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place, put in the bowl and cover with a damp cloth or some cling film. Allow at least an hour or until the dough roughly doubles in size. At this stage, you can either manipulate the dough further (and allow a second rise by bashing the air out of the dough and then shaping the loaf into your desired shape and leaving it to prove for 30mins to an hour) or you can gently shape it and then apply a marmalade glaze and get straight on with the baking! 3. Once the loaf is in the desired shape, lightly oil the baking tray or tin with olive oil or preferably butter, to ensure the bread won’t stick to the surface. You’ll now need to prepare the orangey glaze to finish your loaf. Stir the marmalade into the sugar and hot water, add the honey, then once it has dissolved into the water and become thinner in viscosity, stir vigorously to ensure an even consistency with the glaze. Now use a pastry brush to spread the glaze over the loaf before you place it in the oven to bake. 4. All ovens are different, but most will take at least 35 mins at gas mark 7 or 8, the key is to ensure the bread rises a little more and you can tell if it is done by tapping the bottom of the loaf – a hollow thud should tell you that it is done! You’re on your own for this bit I’m afraid due to the difference in ovens! 5. Leave this loaf for at least a couple of hours to rest - as it will still be fairly sticky. You can always lightly dust the glaze with some icing/confectionary sugar for ease of storage if you do not have an airtight box large enough. The shelf life of these loaves is actually relatively lower than mass-produced sliced loaves, so it is best to store these loaves in a refrigerator if possible and get them eaten within a week to ten days. The sourdough mix may taste much better, but it does mean the bread becomes quite tasty for those microbes that will spoil your creations! Good luck, if anyone wants any advice or is nearby and wants some sourdough starter from me, please give me a shout, it’s very easy to cultivate and look after if you’re on the ball! See you again soon! Pedro. x |
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