The Chocolate Fondant or Molten Lava Chocolate cake is one of the most loved dessert items out there. This is probably the most asked about dessert from people to me, asking if I can make this. The excitement and anticipation of wondering if it will be perfectly molten inside is what draws in the audience. You can see the faces light up when they crack open the  fondant cake with there spoon and they see that thick, rich and decadent chocolate "lava" flow out from the core. (thus also know as the lava cake) Its like your first kiss, you will always remember where you had your first chocolate fondant and how amazing every bite was. For those who had a bad first experience and never had it again, I strongly advice that you give this a go. 
With this recipe I decided to add something a little different to all my dear friends who absolutely love caramel. You simply make a batch of Butter Scotch sauce and allow it to set. Once it has set is mostly firm, use a parisian scoop to make small balls and place onto a baking tray with silicon paper on. Place into your freezer and allow to become completely frozen. You can use this for many different sauces or filling to make your chocolate fondant your own. 

Ingredients 

• 125 g Butter
  
• 125 g Dark Chocolate
  
• 60 g Castor sugar
  
• 2 Whole eggs
  
• 2 Egg yolks
  
• 2 tsp Cake Flour
  
• 2 tbls Melted butter
  

Method: 
180C/356F for 6-7 minutes

1. Start off by weighing out all of your ingredients and making sure your oven is pre-heated and ready to go. 
2. Next you should shift all your dry ingredients separately  to ensure there are no lumps or impurities.
3. Now prepare your ramekins by brushing with butter and then dust with coco powder, making sure you remove all the excess coco powder. Place in the fridge until mixture is ready.    
4. Place a medium sized pot on the stove and fill it about 1/4 of the way with water and bring to the boil. Once it is boiling, turn down the heat so you have a light disturbance on the surface of the water. 
5. Now place your butter and chocolate in a heat prove mixing bowl and place it on top of the pot with simmering water. ( the water should never make direct contact with the water as this will cause the mixture to seize) 
6. Stir every now and then to allow for even melting though out the mixture. Once it is completely melted place to the side on top of a dish towel to keep it form cooling down too much. 
7. Now combine your eggs, yolks and sugar and whisk over the bain-marie till you reach ribbon stage. ( will be a light yellow color and you will be able to form a figure 8 on the surface of the mixture)   
8. Now that your two mixtures are ready, pour the chocolate into the egg mixture and fold gently until 50% incorporated. 
9. Now add your cake flour and continue to fold gently until completely incorporated. 
10. Remove your ramekins and fill 3/4 of the way fill and place directly into your pre-heated oven for 6-7 minutes. 
11. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a minute and then gently remove from ramekin & wow your guest. 

Caramel Centered Chocolate Fondant

1. So for my caramel lovers out there, when you reach step 10, you will do the following.
2. Remove the frozen butter scotch ball from the freezer ( the balls should not be to big or heavy) 
3. Pour the ramekin 1/2 with the fondant mixture and then place you caramel ball in the middle and then pour till 3/4 filled.
4. You will have to immediately place your fondant in the oven to prevent the ball sinking completely to the bottom. 
5. Bake for the same amount of time and see the results once you break it open for the first time. 

This is one of the simplest prepared sauces which you can prepare in under 3 minutes. The word Meuniere translates literally to "miller's wife". Meuniere also refers to both a sauce and a cooking method used mostly for delicate fish. The cooking method is when you dredge the fillet of fish in seasoned flour. The reason for this it to protect the fish due to its delicate nature. Later on I will post a great fish Meuniere recipe with french style mint peas but today I'm going to show you how to make just the sauce. The reason I love this sauce is because it's sharp and refreshing due to the lemon juice, and is also silky smooth and velvety from the butter. The salty cured capers also add a lovely dimension to the sauce which would otherwise make the sauce flat if  not incorporated. 
This is going to be my last post from South Africa. My next post will be when I'm in Kuwait and starting my next culinary journey in the local cuisine as well as in Japanese cuisine! I'm very excited and eager to share it with all of you. 

Ingredients 

• Juice from 1 Lemon 
• 6-8 salted capers
• 3-4 cubes of butter
• 3-6 caper fruits
• 1 tsp fresh dill
• 6 lemon segments 

Method 

1. Place a pan on a medium to high heat and allow the pan to heat up (if you add your butter when the pan is not hot it will simply separate before it can cook). 
2. Once hot, place your butter into the pan, stirring it continuously. 
3. Once the butter has completely melted remove from the heat and add in your salted capers and lemon juice all the while constantly whisking. 
4. Once the sauce has emulsified add your caper fruit, lemon segments and fresh dill. Allow to infuse for a minute or two in a cool place (do not heat this sauce too much otherwise it will split. If it does not really emulsify when you add your lemon juice then add another cube of butter off the heat)

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

Potatoes and onions are two ingredients which don't always get the respect they deserve. These two ingredients are almost always the basis of most dishes. The potatoes are used as the starch component on the plate, which serves as the delivery and bulking component of the dish. The onion being the base of most sauces out there, forming the foundation of the sauce, and we all know if you don't have a good foundation, you're going to run into trouble later on. So I decided to make these two the working horse of the kitchen and the stars of the dish today. Using only a few herbs to add a bit of flare and a dash of wine and cream for a bit of body. This is a great hearty dish, perfect for a cold summers day. I've also paired the soup with the crunchy element of potato tuile's, to add a different texture and colour to the plate. For the garnishes I've used a sprig of Rosemary and some Oregano flowers just to bring a bit of green to the party.  Some chopped chives or even spring onions sprinkled over the top would also do wonders to the presentation of the dish. 

Ingredients 

• 6 Medium Sized Potatoes 
• 2 Large White Onions 
• 1 tsp Chopped Rosemary
• 1 tsp Chopped Thyme
• 1 tsp Oregano 
• 1 tsp Smoked Paprika 
• 1/2 Chilli Flakes
• 1/3 tsp Ground Black Pepper
• 125 ml White Wine
• 500ml Vegetable or Chicken Stock
• 50ml Cream (optional) 
• Salt to taste
• 4 tsp Butter
• Baking Paper/ Silicone Paper 
• Olive Oil
• 1 tsp Lemon Juice
• 3 Bay Leaves 

Method 

1. Place large pot on your stove on a high heat and preheat your oven to 180C/356F. Add 2 tsp butter and a good dash of olive oil in the pot (the base of the pot should be covered with oil and butter ).
2. Cut 5 of the 6 potatoes into small cubes, leaving the skins on. Then place into pot once hot, stir every minute ( don't worry if they stick to the pot, just let them caramelise and then they will come off the base). 
3. Slice your 2 onions and place into the pot with the potatoes after 10 minutes. 
4. Add your herbs and spices and constantly stir, you will notice that a layer of caramelised ingredients will form on the base of the pot. Add a 1/3 of the wine and scrape the layer off the base. This will continue and every time simply add the wine to remove before it becomes burnt. Do this about 6-8 times and this will give your soup a lovely amber colour at the end (if your run out of wine, simply use the stock).
5. After repeating the deglazing process 8 times add in the remainder of your stock (it should at least cover the potatoes, if not simply top off with water) and allow to simmer till the potatoes are soft and tender. 
6. Now take a hand blender and blend your soup until smooth, then continue to simmer for another 20 minutes ( if you do not have a hand blender, place small amounts at a time into your blender. If you don't have a blender either, simply use your hand mashers and roughly mush the potatoes.) 
7. Melt 2 tsp of butter, season with salt and pepper then add 2 tsp of oil. Place into a bowl and use for your potato slices you're about to cut. 
8. Take the remaining potato and cut into thin as possible slices and place the slices into the seasoned melted butter. 
9. Get a oven tray and line with one layer of silicon paper. Place your potato slices onto the paper taking three slices and laying them down so that they over lap each other slightly. 
10. Place another layer of silicon paper over the top and then another baking tray on top to press them down. Place into oven and bake until golden brown on the bottom. Remove and take off the paper to use as a garnish in the soup when serving. 
11. After your soup has been simmering for 20 minutes and you would like to add some cream, now is the time. Add the 50 ml of cream and stir, allow to simmer for 5 more minutes and then your soup is ready to serve. 
12. Garnish with some chive, spring onions or even some fresh herbs. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

This sauce can be made and used with many different proteins or stir-fry dishes. It's a very simple and easy recipe to follow, and can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 weeks (ensuring the container which is being used is properly sterilised).

For the wine I used a good quality Merlot, it has a lower tannin count than other more full bodied red wines such as Cabernet or Sauvignon. The tannin in wines are what give the wine the bitter and woody puckering sensation. With less tannin in the Merlot, it allows for the fruity essence of the wine to be more present, making it perfect for the sauce. 

Ingredients 

• 12 Ripe Plums (skin and seeds removed)
• 2 Granny Smith Apples or any dessert apple (peeled and cored)
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• Juice of one Orange
• 1-3 tbs Sugar (Depending on the sweetness of the plums and apples add sugar accordingly)
  
• 200 ml Water 
  
• 20 ml Red Wine (fruity wine works best - optional)  

Method 

1. Place a medium to large sauce pan on a high heat and allow to heat up, once hot add in your wine if you chose to add the wine (this just burns off some of the alcohol).
2. Add your peeled and cored apples as well as your peeled and pitted plums which you have cut into medium size pieces. 
3. Allow to cook in the wine till it becomes some what sticky.
4. Add your sugar, lemon juice, orange juice and salt, and allow to reduce once more to a stick consistency. 
5. Next add your 200 ml of water and turn the heat down to a simmer. Once the apples are soft place mixture into blender (or simply use a hand blender) and blend until smooth. 
6. To ensure there are no impurities, pass through a sieve once and place back into the pot and onto a medium heat ( unless you are happy with the consistency).
7. Allow to reduce down till it coats the back of a spoon and is at a correct sauce consistency.  
8. Allow to cool before placing into storing containers and then place into fridge until needed. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

So many people I know go crazy for a good Eggs Benedict. I've chosen to post a recipe today for the eggs Benedict, starting from the base to the topping! There are three different Benedict's, well at least three different traditional variations. Firstly there is the Eggs Benedict, which includes Gypsy Ham  with a two poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. Secondly there is the Eggs Royale, this is a more dressed up Benedict, it has smoked salmon in the place of the Gypsy Ham and also has the poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce. Then last but not least, we have the eggs Florentine, this Benedict is served with a spinach  base.
All of these different Benedict's are all traditionally served on a English muffin which is split in half and then place onto a pan or flat top with butter to crisp up.  But now days we get a lot more variations of this morning delight, some of the others I've heard of is using bacon or parma ham. One thing which I have noticed when I go to restaurants in South Africa is that the Chefs name there Benedict's incorrectly, I don't know if they do this for the people so that they know that its still a Benedict that they ordering or just out of ignorance. 

Ingredients for English Muffin

• 680g plain flour
• 360g water (40C/104F)
• 30g yeast (fresh)
• 50g egg
• 55g sugar
• 10g salt 
• 85g butter (soft)
• polenta and butter for pan frying 

Method

1. Mix 2/3 of the flour and all the other ingredients except for the butter together and allow to rise for 2 hours. (this mixture is known as a Barm: liquid mixture, which the English used.) 
2. Once time has pasted, add in the rest of the flour  and knead till smooth dough is formed.
3. Now you place in the butter and work it into the dough (this is a very messy procedure but do not add any extra flour, just keep working the dough till it is fully incorporated)
4. Now set aside and allow to proof for another hour
5. Once proofing is done, portion your dough into 60-80g portions and then roll into tight little balls. 
6. Now that you have finished rolling out all of the balls, take a ring mould(you can also place the ring mould straight into the pan while hot and skip a step) and sprinkle a little but of polenta on the base and then place the ball into the mould and flatten into the ring mould. (sprinkle some more polenta on top as well, do this with the rest of the balls.) 
7.  Place a pan onto a medium heat with a bit of butter and then place the shaped dough into the pan and cook for about 2-3 minutes( the bottom should be golden brown) on each side. 
8. Then there you have it, now just allow to cool down. 

Ingredients for Hollandaise

• 2 egg yolks 
• 250g butter 
• 5ml reduction ( 175ml white wine vinegar, 6 peppercorns, 1 bay leaf, 20g chopped onions) 
• pitch of cayenne pepper
• pitch of salt
  
• 2 tsp water 

Method 

1. Place butter into a pot and then place onto medium heat and allow to melt and for milk solids to drop down to the bottom. (when your butter stops to make noise and there is little to no foam, your butter is ready) Take off the heat and gently pour the clear liquid into another container, being careful not to get the milk solids from the bottom. 
2. Now place another pot onto the heat with the reduction ingredients and reduce down to 5ml.
3. You are going to need a bain marie as well as a mixing bowl which you can use over heat. ( to make a bain marie place a large pot with water 1/3 full and place onto heat, once starting to boil turn down to lowest heat. Your mixing bowl should be able to fit on top of pot.) 
4. Place egg yolks into mixing bowl with water and whisk well, then add in the reduction and place over bain marie (making sure that the bain marie is just producing stream and not at a rumbling boil, and having all of your ingredients within arms length) now you need to whisk the whole time till your egg yolks reach a pail white foamy texture (also known as a sabayon) 
5. Once your yolks are a sabayon, slowly start to add in your clarified butter at a steady stream whisking continuously (if your mixture becomes runny, take off the heat and place onto counter and continue to whisk till thickens again and then back onto heat) till all the butter has been added in. ( If you are struggling with the whisking, you can use a hand blender or electrical whisk) 
6. You can now add in your cayenne pepper and salt. For a different flavour profile add a bit of lemon to break through the fatty sauce and you can also add some mustard. Also make sure you place the finished sauce away from heat otherwise you have the risk of the sauce splitting. 

Now that you have all your required ingredients ready, you are now able to construct your very own home made Eggs Benedict and enjoy it in the comfort of your own home.   

Tonight I'm going to give you a great recipe to make your very own Thai Green Curry paste. So no more excuses to go and buy the bottled Thai paste, this recipe will give you a much more flavourful taste to your Thai green curry! 






Ingredients 

• 12g green chillies 
• 130g onions 
• 30g ginger 
• 15g garlic cloves 
• 40g fresh coriander 
• 30g lemon grass 
• 30g zest and juice 
• 8 fresh Kaffir lime leafs  
• 7g coriander seeds 
• 5g cumin seeds 
• 5g peppercorns 
• 10ml Thai fish sauce 
• 45ml olive oil 
• 5ml soya sauce 
• 5g palm sugar 
• 40g fresh basil 

Method 

1. Place coriander and cumin seeds into a pan and allow to heat up, once at you can start to smell the spices, remove from heat! (this will release the essential oils from the spices) 
2. Place all ingredients into a food processor or blender and blend all ingredients till you have a good paste consistency 
3. Place into sterilised container and cover with a layer of oil to create a seal! 

Demi-glace is one of the most popular sauces used in restaurants to go along with roast meats. In the food industry, this sauce is made in very large batches as it's easily stored in the freezer and can last for prolonged periods of time. When they make the sauce it can take up to 18-24 hours to finish. The reason for the prolonged preparations time is due to the huge size pot used to make it. They have to reduce the sauce by at least half, some reduce it even further to create a more intense flavour. ( you can imagine how long it will take to reduce 50L down to 25L)   The sauce consist of two different parts, first part being a clear beef stock and the second part being espagnole sauce. (espagnole sauce is essentially a thickened brown beef stock with tomato paste added as well as a brown roux). So today I'm going to give you a quick and easy recipe for the espagnole sauce which you will then turn into a Demi-glace sauce. (Sauce making is a true skill and art form, in hotel kitchens and some restaurant there are chefs which only make sauces and nothing else, they are called Saucier Chef.) 

Ingredients 

• 300g beef bones(ask your butcher to cut them into small pieces) 
• 150g Mire Poix (refer to the Culinary Glossary) 
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 2 sprigs of parsley
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 sprig of rosemary 
• 6 pepper corns 
• 2 cloves of garlic 
• 1 tsp oregano 
• 2 tsp tomato paste 
• 1 tbs plain flour 
• 500ml clear beef stock (follow same steps as Chicken stock, just replace white wine with red) 
• 250 ml cold water 
• 150ml red wine

Method 

1. Pre-heat your oven to 200C/392f 
2. While your oven is pre-heating, place your bones onto a oven sheet pan so they are ready to go into the oven once heated.
3. Now you can start by preparing your mire poix (carrots, celery, leek and onions), you can cut them into medium sizes. 
4. Place your bones in the oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the are golden brown
5. Just before you remove your bones place a pot onto the stove on high heat, once hot place your mire poix and bouquet garni(herbs and aromatics) into the pot and stir while they caramelise.
6. Once your bones are ready, drain the fat from the sheet pan and then add them to the mire poix.
7. Take the sheet pan and place over hot stove hob and use the 15o ml of red wine to deglaze the pan, once deglazed add to the pot. 
8. Now add your tomato paste and cook till sticky. 
9. Add in your flour, and cook till it starts to caramelise on the bottom of the pot. 
10. Once your flour starts to caramelise on the bottom allow to cook for another minute or two and then add in your cold water and stir once or twice. 
11. You will need to skim your stock frequently to get the remaining impurities and fat of the top of the stock. 
12. Allow to simmer for 25 minutes and then strain espagnole, discarding the bones, mire poix and bouquet garni. 
13. Place back into the pot and add 1/3 of the clear beef stock and allow to reduce by half. ( you still need to skim the stock if there are still impurities on the top) 
14. Once reduced by half add in the remaining stock and reduce by half once more, once it has reduced and is at a good sauce consistency place the demi-glace through a fine sieve. 
15. If you want a clean sauce with little to now black spot, you can place it through a muslin cloth (cheese cloth), but you might need to reduce it some more to get the correct consistency.  
16. Just before using add a little bit of butter (about a tsp) and whisk it into the sauce to give it a wonderful glossy finish. 

There are so many self proclaimed foodies out there now a days, and each one claiming to be the best. But most of them forget the basics of cooking. Stock in a kitchen is like the foundation of a sky scraper! If you don't have a solid and sturdy foundation for your sky scraper, it will fall sometime during the construction of the building, or even worse, once the building is completed and then falls. What I'm trying to say is that if you  don't start with a good, flavourful stock in the beginning of your cooking process you will fall short in flavour somewhere down the line and will have to compensate for the lack of flavour later on, this is wasting time and ingredients. 
Like my Chef at the South African Chefs Academy told me: "Do it nice or do it twice!!!" 

So today I'm going to help you out and give you a step by step recipe for the perfect home made chicken stock! 

Ingredients 

• Bones of one deboned chicken(you can also use the chicken wings, giblets, necks and feet.) 
• 2 Celery stalks 
• 2 Leek (medium)
• 1 Large Onion 
• 2 Carrots (Large for sweeter stock medium for normal) 
• 6 Black pepper corns 
• 2 Bay leaves ( fresh is always better)
• 2 L of cold water
• 3 cloves of garlic (not traditionally in stocks but i like to add it for a little bit more flavour)
• 4 sprigs of thyme (fresh)
• 200 ml white wine (if you won't drink it don't use it, remember the foundation) 

Method 

1. Start by cutting your chicken bones in small pieces using a meat cleaver and preheating your oven to 200C/392F
2. Once you've finished cutting the bones place them on a oven sheet pan and place them in the oven and allow to brown and caramelise. It will take about 20-25 minutes
3. In the mean time you can start chopping your vegetables into rough mire poix. 
4. 2 minutes before the bones are ready to be taken out of the oven place a large stock pot onto a high heat and allow to heat up. 
5. Once pot is hot place the mire poix vegetables into the pot and stir frequently to prevent burning (do not use any fat or oil) 
6. Remove the bones from the oven and drain the fat from the sheet pan and place the bones into the pot with the mire poix. 
7. Discard the fat from sheet pan, place sheet pan onto hot stove hob and then pour the 200 ml of red wine onto sheet pan, thus deglazing the sheet pan.
8. Pour the wine into the pot with bones and mire poix.
9. Allow to reduce till sticky, then add in 1 L of the cold water along with all the herbs and spices (that includes the thyme,bay leafs, garlic, pepper corns)Turn heat down to simmer. 
10. You will see that there will still be fat and scum  on top of the water after you have added water, use a serving spoon to remove this scum and fat. ( you will need to repeat the removing of scum several times, so keep a bowl handy to place scum in)
11.  Once the 1L of water has reduced to half add the rest of the water and allow to either reduce to 1L or to 500ml. (the more you reduce it, the more intense the flavour of the stock will be.) 
12. Once it has reduced to your preference, pour the stock through a fine strainer and discard the bones, mire poix and herbs.
13. To make it a very nice clear stock you can place muslin cloth(also known as cheese cloth) in the strainer and pour the stock into it to pass once more. (If you want to make veloute sauce with the stock I would advise this method, other wise passing it through the strainer is more than fine.) 

Storing the stock

1. You could make ice cubes from the stock
2. You could place it into jam jars which you have sterilised(if you not sure how to do this please feel free to pop me a comment below and I will be more than happy to assist)
3. If you recuse the stock to 200 ml it will become like jelly once cooled down, this is great to store in small plastic bag, and easy to use if you making dinner for 2-6 people. (20ml per packet.)  

Apples, Cinnamon and Ice cream: three thing that remind me of Christmas in South Africa. 



Apple and raisin crumble 

Ingredients 

• 50g flour 
• 40g granulated sugar 
• 30g butter 
• 10g brown sugar
• 1 can or 2 poached apples 
• 10g raisins 
• 2g cinnamon

Method 

• Mix the flour, butter and granulated sugar to get a bread crumb consistency 
• Place apple pieces into a ramekin along with the raisins
• Cover with bread crumb mixture and sprinkle with brown sugar
• Place into 180C oven for 20-25minutes 
• Serve with crème anglaist (see recipe page)

Amarula ice-cream 

Ingredients 

• 500ml cream
• 500ml milk
• 6 yolks
• 150g sugar 
• 5ml vanilla
• 25ml amarula (You can also use Baileys) 

Method 

• Bring milk, cream and vanilla to the boil then allow to cool for a hour
• Mix yolks and sugar
• Bring milk and cream back to boil, temper egg yolks and add to mixture off heat along with 
the amarula 
• Strain mixture and cool down
• Place into sorbetier and allow to set ( Or you can place the mixture into a large container with a big surface area and place the liquid in it. Place the container into the freezer and every 10 minutes remove and give a good whisk and return to freezer.) 
• Place into freezer for 90-120 minutes 
• Serve
P.S. Will be posting a home made Baileys recipe soon as well! 
Apple fritters 

Ingredients 

• 2 apples
• 200ml flour
• 10ml baking powder 
• 125ml corn flour
• 5ml salt
• 5ml cinnamon 
• 2ml nutmeg
• 2ml ginger
• 190ml cold water
• 50ml sugar

Method 

• Peel the apples and cut into 1/8 even wedges ( sprinkle with lemon juice)
• Mix in a bowl the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger powder, cold water 
and sugar
• Allow for the mixture to rest for 10 minutes
• Cover the apple wedges in corn flour and then cover with batter 
• Place into a 170C deep fryer and cook till golden brown (use a deep pot with a thermometer will also work perfectly!)