Van de Elzen - Great Small Plates

1. Goats & ricotta cheeses wrapped in vine leaves
   w red pepper salad & olives
2. Char-grilled cauliflower w grated ginger,
   parsley & Parmesan
3. Black fig tarte tatin w Parma ham,
   wild rocket & a balsamic reduction

Slowly add oil until combined. Season to taste. Store in a jar in refrigerator. To make the arancini, heat a little oil in a saucepan and saut onions and garlic but do not allow to colour. Add rice and cook for 5 minutes while stirring constantly. Add combined wine and stock, 100 ml at a time, bringing back to the boil between additions.

Once rice is cooked, add butter, Parmesan and mushrooms (patted dry to remove any excess water). Season and cool in a saucepan overnight. Roll the rice mixture into golf-ball-sized balls and push a small cube of mozzarella into the middle of each. To crumb and cook the arancini, mix the flour and pepper together in a large dish. Beat egg and milk together to make an egg wash. Place breadcrumbs in a large bowl.

Place the arancini balls in the flour mixture and roll to coat all sides. Next, pass through the egg wash and finally roll in the breadcrumbs. Place on a tray and refrigerate until ready to cook. When ready to cook the arancini, heat a little oil in a heavy-based saucepan and pan-fry until golden on all sides. Serve with smoked chilli aioli.

Vine leaves are a great way of baking goats cheese think of the leaves as encasing the cheese while infusing flavour.

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

CHEESES

200 g ricotta 200 g goats cheese cup raisins 3 tbsp roasted pinenuts 1 tbsp torn flat-leaved parsley salt and pepper

PICKLED FENNEL SLICES

Makes about 2 cups

1 bulb fennel 2 cups white wine vinegar 1 cup sugar 1 star anise

RED PEPPER SALAD & OLIVES

4 red peppers oil to rub peppers salt 2 tbsp Kalamata olives 6 cloves garlic, roasted zest of 1 lemon 1 tbsp chopped parsley 1 tsp capers 2 tbsp olive oil preserved vine leaves

METHOD

Wearing gloves, mix together the cheeses, raisins, pine nuts and parsley.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 40 minutes then roll into golf-ball sized balls. To prepare the pickled fennel, finely slice the fennel on a mandolin. Bring vinegar, sugar and star anise to the boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat. Add fennel and allow to cool in liquid.

Store in refrigerator. To prepare the salad, rub the peppers with oil and salt and char-grill over an open flame. Place in bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave to steam and cool. Peel off skin, remove seeds and slice into thin strips. Add remaining ingredients and mix together. To serve, arrange 46 vine leaves in a circle in the middle of each dinner plate.

Place 2 slices of pickled fennel in the centre of each circle. Place a cheese ball on top and wrap leaves around the cheese. Bake at 180C for 7 minutes. Serve with toasted ciabatta and red pepper salad and olives.

Served in a bubbling cast-iron dish, this is a sexy starter for a dinner party. Youll need to start this recipe the day before.

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

CHICKEN BALLS

1 kg chicken mince 1 onion, finely chopped 2 tbsp harissa paste 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 tsp paprika 1 tsp chicken stock powder tsp salt tsp black pepper 1 tsp Dijon mustard tsp chilli powder

TOMATO SAUCE

Makes 3 cups

1 large onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, diced oil for frying cup chopped herbs parsley, rosemary, thyme 1 cup red wine 2 500 g cans tomatoes, crushed 2 tsp sugar salt and pepper oil for frying 4 tbsp grated pecorino cheese

METHOD

To make the chicken balls, mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.

Roll into golf-ball sized balls, place on a tray and rest in refrigerator overnight. To make the tomato sauce, saut onions and garlic in a little oil in a large, deep, heavy-based saucepan. Add herbs and cook for a further 12 minutes. Deglaze the saucepan with red wine. Add tomatoes and their juice. Reduce over a low heat until three-quarters of the liquid has gone.

Add sugar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Preheat oven to 220C. Heat a little oil in a heavy-based frying pan to a medium-high heat and seal and colour chicken balls. Bake in oven for 2025 minutes until the juices run clear when the chicken balls are pierced. Add cooked chicken balls to hot tomato sauce and simmer for 30 minutes.

This recipe may seem very laborious, but if you make a big batch of krokets you can freeze them.

This recipe may seem very laborious, but if you make a big batch of krokets you can freeze them.

If you want to save time, you can serve the krokets with a dollop of hot English mustard instead of the Dijonnaise. They are a family treat in my parents house, served with fresh white bread.

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

DIJONNAISE

Makes about 2 cups

2 egg yolks 2 tbsp Dijon mustard 4 tbsp white wine vinegar 350 ml canola oil salt and pepper

KROKETS

1 kg beef blade steak 1 tbsp chicken stock powder 1 tbsp salt 100 g butter 100 g flour 1 litre stock (reserved from cooking beef) 3 tsp gelatine 1 tbsp water