SWEET PASTRY
ingredients
100g Unsalted Butter, dice & leave to soften
60g Icing sugar, sieved
1 Hen Egg, cracked & whisked
220g Plain flour, sieved
A pinch of Sea Salt, grounded
Method
1. Combine flour, salt and sugar. Rub in butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add egg and knead to form a ball. Wrap them in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 180 C / Gas 4. Grease and flour a tart tin, up to 30cm in diameter.
3. Dust work surface and rolling pin with a little flour and roll out the pastry to about 5mm thick. Roll up on the rolling pin to transport to the prepared tin. Gently place the pastry into the tin, pressing down with your fingers to evenly cover the bottom and sides of the tin. Roll the pin over the edges of the tin and remove any excess pastry. Crimp the edges with your fingers.
4. Prick the bottom with a fork, cover with baking parchment and fill with dried beans or lentils. (This is called blind baking and is done so the pastry case does not swell or bubble up whilst baking.)
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or till lightly browned on the edges. Remove from oven, then remove the parchment and beans (you can cool the beans and reserve them for later use). Allow the pastry case to cool completely before filling.
LEMON FILLING
Ingredients
300ml Fresh Lemon Juice
400g Caster Sugar, sieved
5 Hen Eggs, cracked and whisked
5 Hen Egg Yolk, cracked and whisked
A pinch of Cooking Cream, sieved
METHOD
1. While the crust is baking prepare the filling. Whisk the eggs, sugar, lemon juice eggs, and yolk together until thoroughly incorporated.
2. Whisk in the cream and then strain the filling through a sieve into a large measuring cup. The filling will be quite liquid at this point.
3. Without removing the crust from the oven, pour the filling into the crust.
4. Bake the tart for 35-40 minutes until the centre is just set. Cool the tart on a rack and then refrigerate for at least an hour.
ITALIAN MERINGUE
Ingredients
100g Egg White, only the white
200g Caster sugar, sieved
50ml Water, cracked and whisked
1 stick Vanilla pod, de-seeded
A pinch of Sea Salt, grounded
METHOD
1. Place the egg whites into a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
2. Place the sugar and water into a medium heavy saucepan.
3. Put your candy thermometer on the pan and turn the heat to high.
4. When the sugar reaches 100 degrees, start whipping the egg whites by turning your mixer to high speed; you want the egg whites to be foamy and starting to thicken before you add the sugar syrup.
When the sugar reaches 115 degrees, remove the thermometer from the pan and turn the mixer speed down to medium.
5. Pour the sugar into the egg whites in a thin, steady stream avoiding the moving whisk. When all the sugar has been added, continue whipping until the meringue reaches the firm peak stage.
OTHERS
Ingredients
500g Fresh Strawberry, freeze whole
50g Local Honey, clear honey
300ml Water, cold
METHOD
1. Place fresh strawberries in a container and freeze overnight at -18 degrees.
2. Place frozen strawberries in a strong blender and blend.
3. While blending add slowly honey & water.
4. Pass the puree through a fine sieve & place in a container back in the freezer for minimum 2 hours.
Chef Danny Wilkinson is currently the Executive Chef of Alila al Jabal Akhdar where one of the most recent highlights of his career is preparing the food of visiting former US President George Bush and his wife Laura.
Born in Leicester, England, he has worked in gastro pubs and casual restaurants before moving his way up to 5-star hotels and Michelin star restaurants and working with Michelin trained chefs along the way.
He was 16 when he decided to join a catering college as a jump-off point to becoming a chef. He trained with Adam Wesley who also got his training from two Michelin star chef Simon Rogan in a fine dining restaurant at the early part of his career. He would later work under Chef Alain Roux and Chef Michelle Roux, a three Michelin star chef until his eventual move to Dubai and then just recently, to Oman.
Chef Danny’s goal is to always deliver the best of his ingenuity in making new innovated trends of menus and modern kitchen techniques and various cuisines.
When he is not in the kitchen, he is also known as a talented sports enthusiast having played basketball during his university days. He also plays snooker in the premier league along with world pros, golf with a plus 8 handicap, a sergeant in the army cadet forces & captain for 4 years in the England 7.62 sniper rifle team — target shooting with the best finish of coming 3rd overall out of 6,000 international shooters.
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