Meringue

Ingredients

3 large, organic egg whites
175g white caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 140°C/fan120°C/gas 1. In a large, grease-free mixing bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. While continuously whisking, slowly add the caster sugar – 1 tablespoon at a time – until you have a stiff, glossy meringue mixture. Whisk in the vanilla extract until combined.

2. Line a baking tray with baking paper, fixing it in place with a tiny blob of meringue in each corner. Using a metal spoon, place 6 craggy dollops of meringue on the baking paper, well spaced apart.

3. Bake for 1 1/4 hours for mallowy centres, or 1 1/2 hours if you prefer crisper meringues. Peel off the baking paper, then transfer the mallowy meringues to a wire rack to cool, or leave the crisp ones in the turned-off oven for at least 4 hours to cool slowly, then transfer to a wire rack.

Peanut butter ice cream sandwich

125g butter
150g smooth peanut butter
225g sugar
3 free-range eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
245g plain flour
35g cocoa powder
½tsp baking powder
2 tbsp strawberry jam
300g good-quality strawberry ice cream, softened

Preparation method

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease and line a 33x25cm/13x9½in baking tray.
Melt the butter and peanut butter together in a bowl suspended over a pan of simmering water. Remove the bowl from the heat.
Meanwhile, whisk the sugar, eggs and vanilla together in a bowl. Fold the egg mixture into the peanut butter mixture.
Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder together in a bowl, then fold it into the peanut butter mixture. Pour the mixture into the tray and bake in the oven for 6-8 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Once cool, cut the biscuits into six equal-sized biscuits.
Spread the jam onto three of the biscuits and place a scoop of ice cream onto the remaining three biscuits. Sandwich the biscuits together to form three ice cream sandwiches and transfer to the freezer for at least two hours.

To serve, cut the sandwiches in half diagonally

Cheesecake

Ingredienti:

Per il fondo

250 gr biscotti digestive

150 gr burro

2 cucchiai di zucchero di canna

1 cucchiaio di miele fluido (quello di acacia è perfetto)

Per la crema

20 gr di farina bianca (meglio amido di mais)

il succo di mezzo limone

100 ml di panna fresca

600 gr Philadelphia

2 uova intere + un tuorlo

1 bustina di vanillina

100 gr di zucchero

1 pizzico di sale

Preparazione

Fondo

Mettete i biscotti nel mixer (in alternativa io uso il batticarne!) e sbriciolateli finemente, aggiungete lo zucchero di canna, nel frattempo sciogliete il burro e aggiungetelo ai biscotti mescolando, infine il miele, amalgamate bene il tutto. Imburrate una tortiera (22-24 cm) e foderatela con la carta forno (ritagliate un cerchio di carta per la base e due strisce per il bordo), versate i biscotti sul fondo e sui lati, livellando bene il composto aiutandovi con un cucchiaio. Mettete la teglia in frigo per un'ora o nel freezer per mezz'ora (per fare prima).

Preriscaldate il forno a 180°..

Crema

Mettete in una scodella ampia le uova, la vanillina e lo zucchero e sbattete il composto finchè non diventa omogeneo. Aggiungete il formaggio (se volete una cheesecake più alta e più delicata aggiungete 150 gr di philadelphia in più), amalgamandolo bene fino a che diventi cremoso e senza grumi. aggiungete alla crema, sempre mescolando, la farina setacciata, il succo di limone, il pizzico di sale e infine , senza montarla, la panna, continuando ad amalgamare tutto insieme.

Togliete la tortiera dal frigo e versatevi la crema ottenuta, livellandola con una spatola. Infornate a 180 ° per 30 minuti, poi abbassate la temperatura a 160° per altri 30-40 minuti. Se dopo i primi minuti vi accorgete che la superficie della torta comincia a scurirsi troppo, potete metterci sopra un foglio di alluminio. a cottura avvenuta lasciate il dolce per 30 minuti a riposare nel forno spento e leggermente aperto, dopo riponetela in frigo per almeno un paio d'ore(la cheesecake si può consumare anche tiepida, ma io consiglio di lasciarla riposare, il giorno dopo è anche più buona). Potete consumarla senza alcuna aggiunta, oppure ricoprirla di salse di frutta, marmellate, cioccolato fuso (o sciroppo di cioccolato), toffie, caramello...

To Make English Fish And Chips With Beer Batter

Ingredients:
* 2 fish fillets (cod, haddock, or any other white fish)
* 1 ½ ltr vegetable oil or ground nut oil
* 140 g flour
* 50 g corn starch ( amido di mais ;) )
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 1 egg
* 250 ml beer,strong lager!
* 1 tsp salt
* salt and pepper
* French fries to garnish

Preheat oil
Begin by pouring all the oil into a large pan. Turn to a medium high heat. Let it heat until it becomes hot enough to fry, but it must not be smoking hot!
Make the batter
Now into a bowl, add the flour, the corn starch, the salt and the baking powder. Mix them together, until evenly combined and set aside.

Mix the egg and beer
Next, place the beer into a bowl. Add the egg. Whisk it together well until the egg and beer are evenly combined.

Complete the batter
Place the beer mixture into the bowl containing the flour mixture. And whisk well for a couple of minutes, to ensure that it combines smoothly, and is lump free. Then set it aside. You can now prepare your fish.

Prepare fish
Take a fillet and pat it dry using a piece of paper towel. This will help it fry better. Any excess water will only make the fish less crispy. Next, run your fingers along its surface to ensure there are no small bones remaining. This is especially important if you are cooking for little children. Set it aside. And repeat with the other fillet.

Batter and fry
Before cooking the fish, it's wise to check that the oil is at the correct temperature to fry. Test it by dropping some of batter into the oil. If it fries immediately, without burning, it's at the correct temperature. Then with your large fork, dip one of the fillets into the bowl of batter and coat it completely. Carefully place the fillet into the hot oil, taking special care not to burn yourself in the process. Make sure not to overfill the pan with fish. This will cause the temperature of oil to drop, making the batter less crispy and it can also make the fillets stick together in a lump!

Turn the fish
Let the fillet fry for roughly 4-7 minutes, depending on its size. Flip it at least once during this time, to ensure that it's cooking evenly. When the batter becomes a light golden brown, remove it from the pan. Transfer it to the tray lined with paper. Repeat exactly the same frying process with the remaining fillet.

Serve
Your fish in beer batter is now ready to serve. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately. Traditionally, it goes well with chips or "French fries".

Grilled peach salad with bresaola and a creamy dressing

Ingredients:

• 4 just-ripe peaches
• a few fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped
• olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper optional
• some woody herb stalks or branches (such as rosemary or thyme)
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon natural yoghurt or crème fraîche
• 16 slices of bresaola or Parma ham
• a few sprigs of fresh tarragon, leaves picked
• 2 handfuls of rocket, washed and spun dry
• 100g goat’s cheese, crumbled

serves 4

Preheat a barbecue or griddle pan until hot. Cut the peaches in half, then twist them to remove the stones – don’t worry if they break up when you do this. Toss them in a bowl with the chopped rosemary, a splash of olive oil and a little salt and pepper. If you’re cooking on a barbecue, throw some herb branches on to the coals if you like – this will give the peaches a herby, smoky flavour. Grill the peaches for a couple of minutes on each side until nicely charred, but not burnt!

Pour the vinegar into a bowl or a Flavour Shaker and add three times as much extra virgin olive oil. Add the yoghurt or crème fraîche and a pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk or shake until mixed together well.

Drape the bresaola over four plates, pinching it up here and there so it’s not lying flat. Place the peaches over the bresaola. Toss the tarragon leaves and rocket in the creamy dressing and pile the salad on top of the peaches. Drizzle with a little more extra virgin olive oil, scatter with the crumbled goat’s cheese and tuck in!

Chocolate whoopies


Preparation time: less than 30 mins

Cooking time: 10 to 30 mins

Makes 12
Ingredients

125g/4½oz butter
150g/5½oz chocolate, minimum 70% cocoa solids, plus extra for melting (optional)
225g/8oz sugar
3 free-range eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g/8¾oz flour
30g/1¼oz cocoa powder
½ tsp baking powder
18 marshmallows

To serve

Cocoa powder
Icing sugar

Preparation method

1.

Preheat the oven to 180C/350G/Gas 3. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
2.

Melt the butter and chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. (Do not let the base of the bowl touch the water.)
3.

Whisk the sugar, eggs and vanilla together in a separate bowl then fold in the chocolate mixture.
4.

Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder together, then fold into the chocolate and egg mixture.
5.

Place tablespoonfuls of the mixture onto the baking tray (the mixture should make 36 biscuits) and bake in the oven for 6-8 minutes.
6.

Remove from the oven and set aside half of the biscuits on a cooling rack. Turn the remaining biscuits over and place a marshmallow on top of each. Return to the oven for 2-3 minutes, or until the marshmallows have softened.
7.

Remove from the oven and set aside on a cooling rack to cool slightly. Press the cooled biscuits on top.
8.

Optional: Melt 100g/3½oz extra chocolate and pour this over the cookies, then set aside to cool.