The Tropical Treat

Archives for November 2019

Ginger chocolate salted caramel tart

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A ginger infused dark chocolate salted caramel tart – rich, indulgent and a little spicy. This is definitely one to make for a dinner party or supper club for a deliciously good finish. The ginger gives it a nice fiery kick!

Not a traditionally tropical dessert but with ginger and chocolate in the mix it evokes sunny, hot climates where these ingredients grow in abundance. 

I adapted a lovely salted caramel tart recipe by Brit British Diana Henry and infused the chocolate with a ginger cream.

This tart is really good. Serve with some creme fraiche on the side and a dusting of salted peanuts. Enjoy!

Serves 8
Prep 15 mins
Cook 30 mins + 1 hour chilling time
Total 125 mins

Ingredients

For the chocolate pastry
300g plain flour, sifted
3 tbsp cocoa powder
150g butter, cold and cubed
3 tbsp caster sugar 
1 egg yolk 
4 tbsp ice cold water 

For the salted caramel 
250g white caster sugar
2 – 3 tbsp water 
100ml double cream 
125g butter, melted 
1/2 tsp sea salt flakes 

For the chocolate filling 
125g dark chocolate (at least 70%)
85g butter
1 egg and 1 yolk 
3 tbsp caster sugar
100ml double cream
5 balls of stem ginger, pureed or finely chopped

Method

First make the pastry, sift flour and cocoa powder in a large bowl and mix in the sugar. Add butter and rub together with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs (alternatively put in a food processor). Add the egg yolk and cold water. Mix together until the mixture comes together in a ball (add more water if it is dry).

Pat down to make a rounded disc shape. Wrap the dough in clingfilm and put in the fridge for 1 hour to chill. 

Preheat the oven to 200C / gas mark 6 /400F. Bring the dough out and roll on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a 1 pound coin. 

Put the pastry over your tart tin (23cm tart tin with a loose base) and gently push down making sure to get the pastry into the corners of the tin. Cut any excess pastry off the top of the tart tin with a sharp knife. 

Using a fork prick the base of the pastry. Line with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans or uncooked rice. Blind bake for 12 minutes, remove the beans and paper and then set aside to cool. Turn the oven down to 180C / gas mark 4 / 350F.

For the caramel, put the caster sugar in a large frying pan over a medium heat with water. Swirl the pan round to ensure the water covers all the dry bits of sugar (do not stir the sugar). 

The sugar should start to deepen in colour fairly quickly (keep a very close eye so it doesn’t burn).

Once it’s a light amber colour take it off the heat and stir in the butter until it’s melted, followed by the double cream and salt. Once the caramel is smooth and glossy leave it aside to cool then pour the caramel into the pastry case. 

For the filling, break up the chocolate into pieces and melt with the butter in a bowl above  simmering water. Leave to one side once completely melted.

Whisk the sugar and eggs until pale and fluffy and then stir into the melted chocolate.

In a small pan over a medium heat, bring the double cream and stem ginger to a boil. Pour the ginger cream over the melted chocolate and mix together well. 

Pour over the caramel and put in the oven for a further 12 minutes to bake. Once cooled push out of the tart tin, slice, sprinkle over crushed salted peanuts and serve with creme fraiche.

Cuban tomato, pepper and beef stew (Ropa Vieja)

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My take on one of Cuba’s most loved dishes – Ropa Vieja which in Spanish translates to old clothes (the dish is said to resemble a pile of old colourful old rags). Here I use pre-diced braising steak but traditionally cuts such as flank, skirt or chuck are slowly cooked for hours with tomatoes and vegetables. The beef is then shredded and the stew served with rice, plantain and black beans on the side.

It’s a rich, warming and tropical stew perfect for cold weather! London is very grey so I decided to make a comforting dish with a hint of something bright and tropical of course. Cuban food is a blend of Spanish, African and Carribbean food which means lots of spices, bold and exotic flavours.

Although I’m not a huge red meat eater this stew is definitely worth it. Only a little bit of oil is used to initially brown the meat so it’s fairly low fat and packed with lots of veggies. It take a couple of hours in the oven (low heat for a long time) but the beef comes super tender in a deliciously rich tomato sauce. If you don’t want the rice, plantains and black beans it could also be served with some cornbread or piled inside warm tortillas and topped with a little sour cream. There are lots of options with this one, it’s surprisingly good! 

Serves 4
Prep 15 mins
Cook 180 mins
Total 195 mins

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
400g good quality braising or casserole steak cut into 2cm cubes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
1 red pepper, deseeded and thinly sliced 
1 orange pepper, deseeded and thinly sliced
1 yellow pepper, deseeded and thinly sliced
1 large carrot, sliced into matchsticks
1 tsp dried oregano 
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp sugar
2 bay leaves
400g can of chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato puree 
200ml chicken stock
2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped – to serve 
White rice – to serve
Refried beans – to serve (see link to recipe below)
1 large yellow plantain, cut into 1cm diagonal slices and fried – to serve

Method

First pat the beef dry and season with salt and black pepper. Preheat the oven to 160C / gas 3 / 140F. 

Heat 1tbsp oil in a large ovenproof pan or casserole dish with a lid over a high heat. Add the steak and brown all sides until the beef has charred spots. Transfer to a plate and set aside (keep any juices).

In the same pan heat 1 tbsp oil over a medium heat and fry onion and garlic for a few minutes. Add the peppers, carrot and spices (oregano, cumin, paprika, sugar, bay leaves) and cook for 10 minutes or until the peppers are softened.

Add the chopped tomatoes, puree, chicken stock and white wine. Bring to the boil and then return the beef to the stew, simmer for 10 minutes.

Put the stew in oven for 2 1/2 – 3 hours or until the beef is tender (you may need to remove vegetables after an hour and add them back later) and remove the bay leaves.

Serve with white rice, fried plantain, refried beans and top with fresh coriander.

Scotch bonnet coriander cornbread with black beans and avocado

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Bright, flavoursome and vibrant cornbread. It’s not something you always find on a menu here in London but for me it’s a real treat.

I love classic buttery cornbread from the American South so here it is made with fiery scotch bonnet, fragrant coriander and juicy sweetcorn kernels. Topped with smoky black beans beans, creamy avocado and sweet baby plum tomatoes make this the most tropical twist on beans on toast!

This cornbread can be used as a side for chilli or any other salad, soup or casserole dish that may need something with carbs on the side. It is perfect on the table if you’re hosting a brunch and just want something a little different as an extra. 

If you aren’t feeling the refried beans and avocado combo try some red peppers and roasted cherry tomatoes.

Scotch bonnet chilli peppers are a staple in Caribbean and West Africa cooking (can be bought in Asian, African or Caribbean food stores). This was literally the only chilli used by my mum growing up. It’s one of the hottest chillies in the world used to fire up the best Jerk Chicken and West African groundnut stew but the heat is lovely and warming complementing all the flavours in the cornbread really well.

This cornbread has quite a few ingredients but most should be easily found. I’ve used polenta and natural yogurt instead of cornmeal and buttermilk (either combination should work beautifully). Separate all the dry ingredients and wet ingredients and mix together. It shouldn’t take more than half an hour to bake. I used a loaf tin but a round cake tin works just as well. Cut up, eat and serve when freshly baked, it’s the best way!

Serves 4 with leftover cornbread
Prep 20 mins
Cook 40 mins
Total 60 mins

Ingredients

For the cornbread

120g polenta
120g plain flour, sifted 
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp golden caster sugar
1 tsp salt
250g full fat natural yogurt
1 free range egg
90g unsalted butter, melted and extra for greasing
50g mild cheddar cheese, grated 
150g corn kernels, cut from 2 medium corn cobs
2 tbsp coriander, finely chopped (keep the leaves to scatter on top later)
1/2 scotch bonnet chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

For the refried beans

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
400g tin black beans, rinsed and drained and roughly mashed
1/4 tsp chipotle chilli flakes
125ml organic vegetable stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the avocado

1 avocado, peeled and cut into wedges
125g baby plum tomatoes, halved 
1/2 the juice of a lime
2 tbsp coriander leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method

Make the refried beans first. Heat oil over a medium heat and add the onion, garlic and sauté for 2-3 mins. Add the beans, chilli flakes and stock, stirring and mashing over a low heat until you have a chunky consistency. Season with salt and pepper and leave to one side.

Line the base and sides of a 2lb loaf tin with greaseproof paper. Preheat the oven 200C /400F / Gas 6.

In a medium sized bowl put polenta, flour, baking powder, caster sugar and salt. Mix the yogurt, egg, melted butter and cheese in a separate bowl and stir into the dry ingredients until well combined. Add the corn kernels, coriander and chilli.

Place the cornbread mixture into the lined loaf tin. Bake in the oven for 25 – 30 minutes. Cover with a little foil if it browns too quickly and insert a skewer into the middle of the loaf and if it comes out clean it’s ready. Let the cornbread cool in the tin and then turn out.

Cut the cornbread into thick slices ( a couple should be enough for each person) and arrange on a plate.

Slice the avocado into wedges, halve the tomatoes and squeeze over fresh lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve the black beans on top of the cornbread with avocado, baby plum tomatoes and coriander leaves to garnish.