Ice cream – at least as far as I knew – was about making custards, then combining with more creams and flavours.
So could this one work?
When I was a kid, I would put milk and Strawberry Nesquik into my parents’ ice cream maker and sure it was yummy, though frozen (icy) milk does not make ice cream.
Anyway, short of time and having promised ice cream for a lunch, I chose this Thomas Straker recipe: and hot damn: it’s awesome.
And so so easy.
Dulce de Leche (caramel) can be found at most supermarkets. So now there is no excuse.
Ingredients
500ml whole milk 400gm dulce de leche 124ml double cream
Method
Put the milk and dulce de leche in a saucepan and set over a medium heat. Stir constantly until the dulce de leche has totally melted. Set aside to cool.
Once cooled, whisk in the double cream., then transfer to an ice cream machine and churn according to the manufacturers’s instructions. Store in the freezer.
He takes a theme and dials it up to 11: excessive use of butter; the demand that you make your own stock; pure comfort. Effort that delivers real culinary return.
Foams and tweezers Thomas Straker does not do. Think ragu or burnt butter instead.
And this roast chicken from his book ‘Food You Want to Eat’ is just wonderful: a brilliantly warming and absolutely smile-earning dish perfect for a late summer lunch.
Nat and I have been on a roast chicken tear of late. It’s become a go-to Sunday lunch favourite: open a Champagne, set the kids up for the afternoon; enjoy a few hours together, with a guarantee of great chicken sandwiches for the next few days at work.
This recipe dials it up a whole new level: it looks the part, tastes the part and is the part. The salsa verde just tops it off: flavour sensation and completes the part.
Add a salad of leaves and a bottle of cold white or a chilled Pinot and this is what I am talking about.
Ingredients
For the butter beans
250gm dried butter beans (or use 500gm of canned beans) 50ml extra virgin olive oil, plus more to finish 2 shallots, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, crushed 1 tbsp tomato purée Chilli flakes Fine sea salt
For the chicken
1 large, whole (free range) chicken – 1.8kg 1/2 shallot 1/2 unwaxed lemon 1/2 small bunch of thyme 3 garlic cloves, unpeeled and bashed with the side of a blade 100ml olive oil 400gm cherry tomatoes
Salsa Verde
60gm parsley leaves 30gm mint leaves 30gm basil leaves 1 garlic clove, finely grated 1 tbsp capers, drained 1 tbsp Dijon mustard Finely grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lemon 120ml extra virgin olive oil, plus more to seal Sea salt flakes
Method
Salsa Verde
Start with the salsa verde: put the picked herbs in a food processor with the garlic and capers and pulse-blend until roughly chopped. Add the mustard, lemon zest and juice, olive oil and a pinch of salt, then blend again until combined but still slightly coarse in texture.
Season with more salt if needed: will store for a week in the fridge covered with a little more olive oil to seal.
Chicken
If using dried beans, soak in a large bowl of water overnight. The next day, drain them and tip into a saucepan with fresh water.Place over a high heat and bring to the boil., reduce the heat, simmer gently until soft, then drain. Whether using dried or ready-cooked beans, season with salt and add the olive oil.
Take the chicken out of the fridge at least 1 hour before you cook it. Remove the wishbone: lift the skin at the front of the breast and insert a thin, sharp knife around both sides of the wishbone to help pull it out. Replace the flap of skin and tuck it into the cavity. Put the shallot, lemon, thyme and garlic cloves in the cavity.
Preheat the oven to 250c/230c fan or its highest setting. Rub the chicken with olive oil and sprinkle generously all over the skin with fine salt. Place in a large roasting tin in the middle of the oven and roast for 20 – 25 minutes until well coloured, basting after 10 minutes.
Reduce the oven to 120c/100c fan, add the cherry tomatoes to the tin and return to the oven for a further 20 – 25 minutes, until the juices run clear when the bird is pierced at the thickest part of the thigh with a sharp knife. If you have a temperature probe, the breast should reach about 60c. Remove from the oven and rest for 20 minutes.
To finish the beans, place a large saucepan over a medium heat with a glug of olive oil. Add the shallots and a generous pinch of salt and cook for 3 -4 minutes until soft, then add the garlic for a further minute. Add the tomato purée an cook out for 2 minutes then add a good pinch of chilli flakes. Pour in the cherry tomatoes, beans and the resting juices from the chicken with salt to taste.
Carve the chicken first removing the whole breasts and then the legs, splitting them into thigh and drumstick portions. Serve on a large warmed platter, with the butter beans and salsa verde.
The first Thomas Straker recipe I typed up a few weeks ago was extraordinary.
And no kidding, my traffic grew by a third almost overnight and the recipe became my second most viewed.
All of Thomas Straker’s recipes are contained in short-burst TikTok videos without the recipe. Totally viral and social content, though not very helpful regarding cooking.
For the second time, however, Nat was still determined.
Introducing this totally nuts, baked gnocchi with beef and pork ragù!
On account of going up to Newcastle – two hours north of Sydney – for a 40th Saturday night, Nat started the ragù Friday. Gnocchi and béchamel on our return.
A triumphant, late Sunday winter lunch?
You absolutely bet!
What absolute luxury. Total, last meal decadence.
A dish that you’d drive across town for. Honestly, a dish you just can’t stop smiling about.
In a world of food complexity and pretence (and I am plenty guilty of that), this is a swinging boulder from the other direction to smash it all to pieces.
The beginning of homemade gnocchi.Taking shape.Plunged in an ice bath, reserved and tossed with olive oil.The incredible ragù.Béchamel with mozzarella and parmesan. OMG. Combine the béchamel and ragù and two very good things have come together.More parmesan and we are ready to bake.
Ironically, as we were leaving Newcastle this morning, Nat spotted an institution – Don Beppino’s House of Lasagne – a restaurant we had a late-night meal at 12 years ago. Already with a few drinks under our belt, we had the best night: the sort of food I am typing up here with too much Chianti and too many laughs.
About as old-school as it gets.
This is what life is all about.
Ingredients
Ragù
Extra olive oil 1 carrot, unpeeled, chopped finely 1 onion, finely diced 1 stick celery, finely diced 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 sprig rosemary 1 tsp Italian herbs 1/2 tsp dry oregano 500gm beef and pork mince 1 tbsp tomato paste Salt 1 tbsp sherry vinegar 3/4 c red wine 1 can cherry tomatoes 500ml chicken stock
Béchamel
2 tbsp butter 2 tbsp flour 1/4 c milk 1/2 mozzarella ball (175gm), chopped 1/4 c parmesan, grated Salt
Gnocchi
6 baking potatoes 1 1/2 c plain flour (plus more as you need it) 2 egg yolks 1 tsp salt Extra virgin olive oil
Pepper and extra parmesan to sprinkle before baking
Method
Start by making a sofrito: heat some oil in a heavy pan and softly sauté the carrot, onion, celery and garlic until very soft though not golden.
In a separate heavy pan, heat more oil over medium-high heat and fry the mince until browned. Add the tomato paste, salt and sherry vinegar and combine. Add the red wine, canned tomatoes and stock and bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to a simmer adding the herbs. Cook for 30 minutes. Add the sofrito and combine, reducing the heat to low and cook for as long as you can. Taste and season and remove the rosemary sprig.
For the béchamel, in a saucepan, heat the butter over medium-low heat until bubbling. Whisk in the flour until well combined and then add the milk, whisking until combined. Increase the heat and add the mozzarella and then Parmesan, whisking until well combined and fully melted.
Slowly introduce the béchamel sauce to the ragù and stir to combine.
To make the gnocchi, bake the potatoes at 180c until cooked through. Remove the flesh when cool and rice/mash. Combine with the flour, egg and salt and knead until combined. Set aside for 5 minutes.
Heat a large pot of boiling water and separately, set up an ice water bowl to reserve the cooked gnocchi. Using a piping bag with no attachment, pipe long tubes of the combined potato mixture and then cut into 3cm gnocchi with a sharp knife.
Cook the gnocchi rapidly for a few minutes until they float. Immediately transfer to the ice water bowl and allow to cool completely. When cooled, quickly drain and toss with oil.
Heat an oven to 200c. Carefully combine the gnocchi with béchamel ragù mixture ensuring the gnocchi does not break up. Pour the gnocchi mixture into a baking pan; or several pans. Pepper, very liberally sprinkle over parmesan and bake until bubbling.
Nat found this recipe on Instagram and whilst we have been plenty burnt by Instagram and TikTok recipes in the past, just watch the video below and tell me we should/could have moved on?!
Like our signature Snapper Pie from The Boathouse, this pie is a labour of love. Time is your friend here. From roasting the chicken the night before. The gravy reducing for hours. The baked potato mash (will I ever do a mash that isn’t baked potato again?).
And of course, homemade shortcrust which is absolutely essential.
The sum of the parts is extraordinary. This is a signature pie. We almost feel embarrassed to have cooked a chicken pie prior to this one.
The gravy was probably the finest gravy I have ever had. Together with the pie and that incredible crust; and that mash. I am not overstating it. This is 2-hat cooking, a recipe they would never manage to take off the menu. We both agreed, a chicken pie could surely not go further. We’d well and truly found the outer limits of what a chicken pie could be.
It was a rainy Sunday in Autumn in Sydney when we (Nat) cooked this. A decanted 2019 Barolo. And it frankly doesn’t get better.
Ingredients
For the chicken 1 large free-range chicken 1/3 c extra virgin olive oil Salt and freshly cracked pepper 1 large eschalot, peeled 1 lemon, halved 4 garlic, peeled Two sprigs of rosemary
For the chicken filling 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 250gm streaky bacon, chopped 1 white onion, finely chopped 1 leek, white and green parts thinly sliced 2 garlic, thinly sliced and rubbed well through salt 1/2 bunch of flat-leaf parsley finely chopped 2 tbsp Dijon mustard Salt and freshly cracked pepper 2 1/2 tsp softened, unsalted butter 1 tbsp plain flour 1/2 c hot chicken stock 1 egg, lightly beaten for egg wash
For the gravy 1/4 c extra virgin olive oil 1 white onion, chopped 2 carrots, coarsely chopped 1 stick of celery, coarsely chopped Half a bunch of flat-leaf parsley including the stalks 7 peppercorns A good splash of Madeira (or sherry)
For the shortcrust pastry 1 c plain flour 1/2 tsp salt 115gm cold, unsalted butter cut into cubes 3 tbsp ice water
For the mashed potatoes 5 large, unwashed potatoes 1/2 c cream 80gm unsalted butter Salt
Method
Heat the oven to 200c. Rinse the chicken and stuff the cavity with the eschalot, lemon, garlic and rosemary. Drizzle over the olive oil and season well. Roast in a roasting pan for 1 1/4 hours or until cooked through, basting occasionally with the oil and juices.
Set aside and allow to cool slightly Remove and discard the skin. Remove all the flesh, chop coarsely and place in a large mixing bowl. Discard the ribs. Combine the bones and remaining chicken and juices and set aside to make the gravy.
In a fresh pan, cook off the bacon until slightly browned and set aside.
In a separate pan, heat the oil over a medium heat and sauté the onion until soft. Add the leeks and continue cooking until softened. Turn down the heat and add the garlic, cooking for a few minutes and finally add the cooked bacon. Take off the heat and stir through the cooked chicken flesh, parsley and mustard. Season with pepper.
In a pan, heat the butter until bubbling. Add the flour, whisking constantly. Slowly pour in the chicken stock, continuing to whisk until you have a thickened mixture. Add to the chicken mixture, stir through and set aside.
For the gravy, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and add the chicken bones and juices, sautéing for a few minutes. Add the the vegetables and the peppercorns, cook until softened and then cover with boiling water and add a few splashes of the Madeira. Reduce the heat, cover and cook down until you’re close to a gravy consistency. Check the seasoning, strain and set aside.
For the shortcrust pastry, put the flour and salt in a food processor. Add the butter and process, cutting the butter into the flour until you have a coarse meal. Add the cold water and process for 30 seconds until you have a soft dough. Remove the dough, shape it into a thick dough, wrap tightly in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Bring to room temperature prior to rolling.
For the mashed potatoes, heat the oven to 180c. Wash the potatoes well and spike all over with a fork. Bake on a baking tray for 1 1/2 hours or until cooked through. Set aside to slightly cool. Peel by hand, removing and setting aside the flesh. Heat the butter in a saucepan and using a ricer, rice the potato flesh, adding it to the butter. Add the cream and season with salt, adding more butter or cream as need-be.
Heat the oven to 220c. Lightly oil your pie tin. Roll out your shortcrust pastry and line the tin. Fill with the chicken mixture. Cover the pie with more shortcrust pastry, sealing well with a fork. Trim the edges and brush all over with the egg wash. Create a small hole in pie to let the steam escape and bake for 30 minutes or until golden.
Send the kids to their rooms. Have a bottle of good red decanted. Serve the pie with the mash and plenty of gravy and goddam, enjoy.
Robby Dog Cooks 