Camembert and Walnut Bites – accentuate the positive...

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I want to love Camembert. It looks very charming on a cheeseboard, instantly adding ze strrrrong Frrrrrrench accent. And it is always up for a picnic – just add a fresh baguette and a bottle of vin - et voila! What’s not to love? Well...

Camembert is often described as buttery and nutty – I like that bit. But to me, there is a cabbage-y tang lurking in its depths. I’m not the greatest fan of cabbage at the best of times, so why would I want it in cheese... given I’m not even the greatest fan of cheese at the best of times and will easily find an excuse to skip straight to dessert.

However... as the song says, you’ve got to ac-cen-tu-ate the positive (add buttery pastry, a touch of honey, and some walnuts) ... e-li-min-ate the negative (heat and a smidgen of rosemary seems to minimise the cabbage-y note), et voila! This I can love.

For approximately 25 party-sized bites you will need...
... a 7cm empanada press (widely and generally quite cheaply available from most kitchen stores), or a little patience.

50g walnuts

125g Camembert, cut into rough chunks

½ teaspoon very finely chopped fresh rosemary

25g runny honey

500g good quality all-butter puff pastry 

a little cold water to seal the pastries 

a little beaten egg to glaze the pastries 

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C 

First, blitz the walnuts in a food processor until reduced to large crumbs. Add the camembert and rosemary and process until reduced to a moist crumbly mixture. Add the honey and blitz to combine with the other ingredients.

If you haven't got a food processor, you will need about 5 minutes and a good chopping action

Roll out the puff pastry (or buy ready-rolled) to a thickness of about 3mm. Using the cutter side of the empanada press, stamp out circles until you have used up all the pastry. (If you don’t have an empanada press, use a 7cm round scone cutter instead.)  

Using lightly floured hands, take approximately half a teaspoon of the mixture and roll it into a ball. (This might seem a stingy amount but - trust me - any more will leak from the pastries as they cook.) Repeat until you have the same amount of cheese balls as pastry circles.

Be stingy with the filling unless you want accidental camembert and walnut crisps 

Place a pastry circle on the empanada press and place a cheese ball in the centre. Dampen the edges of the pastry with a little cold water and close the empanada press, gently sealing the cheese inside a half moon. (If you are doing this without an empanada maker, fold the pastry over the cheese ball, pressing the dampened edges together, pinching them together between thumb and index finger.) Repeat until you have approximately 25 half moons made. Kids love helping with this bit.

(I often make them to this point then freeze in a single layer to cook at a later date, straight from the freezer. If cooking from frozen, you’ll need to give them an extra minute or two in the oven.) 

Place on a baking tray, approximately 3cm apart to allow them to puff up. Bake in the pre-heated oven until risen and golden – about 10 minutes. Allow to cool slightly on a wire rack before handing round with drinks. Best served warm.

Variation: swap the honey for the same amount of apricot jam, or cranberry jelly. Both go terrifically well with Camembert. 

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Spanish Omelette – all it’s cracked up to be!

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Almost all you'll need for Spanish Omelette 

Even when it seems that tumbleweed is the sole occupant of the kitchen, there’s bound to be a few potatoes and an onion or two lurking in the vegetable basket, and a clutch of eggs in the door of the fridge. That is all you really need to make a sublime and filling dish that wouldn’t be ashamed to grace the trendiest of tapas bars. Spanish Omelette is a wonderful dish to magic from a seemingly empty kitchen to the delight of unexpected and hungry guests. Cut it into slices and serve hot, warm or cold with a green salad or cut into cubes to serve with drinks. A mandoline cutter is useful for slicing the potatoes into uniformly thin slices though sometimes I prefer the chunkier texture of diced potatoes in this dish – whatever you’re having yourself!

For 1 omelette serving 3 – 4 people for lunch/supper you will need:

4 tablespoons olive oil

600g potatoes, sliced or diced

1 onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

6 large eggs, preferably free-range

½ teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan about 22cm in diameter. Meanwhile dry the potatoes in a clean tea-towel. Add to the hot oil along with the chopped onion and crushed garlic. Stir until the vegetables are glistening with hot oil then turn down the heat, cover and cook gently without allowing them to brown for about 20 minutes or until the potato is easily pierced with a fork.

2. Break the eggs into a large bowl, and stir with a fork until the whites and yolks are just combined. Add the salt and a little black pepper. Add in the contents of the frying pan and stir until the potatoes are completely covered with egg. Pour the mixture back into the frying pan and continue to cook gently until the surface of the omelette is beginning to set. This will take about 10-15 minutes.

3. Using a spatula or an egg slice, loosen the omelette around the edges. Cover the frying pan with a large plate, then carefully invert. Slide the inverted omelette back into the pan and continue cooking gently for a further 5 minutes or so.

That’s it – Alchemy performed!

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