Pea Tortilla with Mint and Yogurt

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Tortilla or frittata? You can go on for hours debating over the correct name for this dish… still, my strong recommendation would be to eat it straight away from the over with a bit of toasted bread and a dollop of yogurt.

Pea Tortilla with Mint and Yogurt (adapted from a recipe by Francis Mallmann found in Food and Wine magazine)

Ingredients

  •  4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 250g of  frozen baby peas—thawed, drained and patted dry
  • 1 1/2 cups (=350 mL)  plain Greek-style yogurt
  • 8 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped mint
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Method

Preheat the griller.

In a large, ovenproof, nonstick skillet, melt the butter. Add the peas and cook over moderate heat until warm, about 3 minutes.

In a large bowl, beat the yogurt with the eggs, mint, salt and pepper until smooth.

Pour the eggs over the peas and cook over moderately high heat until set on the bottom and around the edges, about 4 minutes.

Transfer the skillet to the oven and broil 20cm  from the heat for about 3 minutes, until the top of the tortilla is set and lightly golden in spots. Slide the tortilla onto a plate, cut into wedges and serve with the remaining  yogurt.


Polenta cake with mascarpone and rosemary

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The name reads  really well – the sort of high maintenance dish that requires hours of dedicated work in the kitchen. The truth is that it is a lot easier to bake than it sounds… After all, it is a slightly modified pound cake, with 2 very easy elements on the side.  The cake itself has a pleasantly crumbly and grainy texture, ideal to combine with the rosemary infused honey. The creamy mascarpone sauce just makes everything come together. Try it with a double expresso for even better results…

Polenta cake with mascarpone and rosemary (adapted from a Eddie Russel recipe found in Food and Wine Magazine)

Ingredients

Cake

  • 1 3/4  cup (=220g)  flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1/2 cup (=65g)  polenta
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 sticks (=220g) of unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup (110g) of  sugar
  • 6 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice 

Rosemary syrup

  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 2 rosemary sprigs

Mascarpone sauce 

  • 1 cup (=225g) mascarpone, at room temperature
  • 1/2 cup (200mL)  heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped

Method

Preheat the oven to 325°F (= 190°C). Butter and flour a metal loaf pan. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the polenta and salt.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the softened butter with the sugar at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between additions. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon juice.

Gradually add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, beating the batter at low speed until just incorporated. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for about 1 hour, until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.

Turn the cake onto a rack and let it cool until warm.

In a small saucepan, combine the honey with the water and rosemary sprigs and simmer over moderate heat for 2 minutes. Let the syrup cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes. Discard the rosemary sprigs. While the cake is still warm, lightly brush the top of the cake with the rosemary syrup.

In a medium bowl, whisk the mascarpone with the cream, sugar and vanilla-bean seeds.

Using a serrated knife, cut the  cake into thick slices and transfer to plates. Top each slice with a large dollop of mascarpone, drizzle with the rosemary syrup and serve.