Hi everyone another new recipe coming up and the first chocolate one!

This recipe was recently published on the Lovely Emma Forbes website

which is at http://www.forbesstyle.com

The recipe makes 4 portions (or two large ones) and is perfect for sharing it
is a beautiful dessert for parties as most of it can be prepared before hand.
Its homely but utterly decadent, I prefer to serve it with brownies and fruit I
find marshmallows a bit sweet but some people love them especially sweet
toothed pudding buffs!

Ok Here we go

Chocolate Fondue 4 Portions

300g Single Cream
3g Cardamom Pods (approximately 12 pods lightly crushed)
0.5 Cinnamon Stick (broken in 4)
0.5 Vanilla Pod (split)
1 Whole Star Anise (broken)
1g Dried Chilli (about 1/8th of a teaspoon)
15g Caster Sugar
6g Honey (1/8th of a teaspoon)
160g Very Good Quality Dark Chocolate 70-75% Cocoa Solids

Method

1.  Bring cream up to the boil.
2.  Add the spices, sugar and honey leave to infuse for 30 minutes.
3.  Push through a fine sieve to remove the spices, discard.
4.  Bring the infused cream back to the boil.
5.  Place the dark chocolate into a bowl broken into small pieces.
6.  When the cream boils remove from the heat.
7.  Pour onto the dark chocolate and leave to warm for one minute.
8.  Whisk vigorously until smooth and shiny.
9.  Taste, add more sugar if desired.

                                            Suggestions to dip

                                                  Brownies
                                             Cookies/flapjacks
                                                  Fresh Fruit
                                               Marshmallows

                        Accompaniments to dip in after the fondue

                                       Crushed Honeycomb
                                               Toasted Nuts
                                              Marshmallows

Note* depending on the type and strength of the chocolate you may wish to
adjust the consistency, flavours and sweetness which are down to personal taste.
This is my version which I think works really well.

Happy cooking

xxx

Coconut & Cardamom Rice Pudding with Mango & Lime

Hi Everyone welcome to the new recipe, this weeks dish is a personal favourite.
I like this dessert a lot, its a beautiful marriage of flavours and the mango and lime
is a perfect foil to the creamy fragrant rice pudding. I entered this into a competition
run by Tilda rice, the rules were simple enough make 2 portions of a dish using their
rice I was in the competition with 9 other chefs and interestingly enough I was the
only one to make a dessert which probably helped my dish stand out on the day.
I was lucky enough to win I got a gold award and £500 prize money which I spent
on another guitar as I recall, very nice indeed!



The recipe is very simple, it has some delicate flavours that perfume the milk which
really has to be the whole stuff don't try and cut down on the calories by using thinner
milk it won't be the same its a creamy perfumed dessert with a great depth of flavour.
If you want to write and complain to me about not using healthier milk feel free my
view is very simple "show me a semi-skimmed cow and I will use semi-skimmed milk"
Use the proper stuff its a pudding its supposed to be indulgent!
On the day I served it with a ball of coconut ice cream too, but thats an extra indulgence!

As per usual a few points before we start.
I only use digital scales, I weigh all my ingredients on scales thats why the recipe is
only in grams it also means it will always come out the same its very accurate.

Never add the sugar until the rice is cooked if you do the syrup formed from the sugar
will coat the grains of rice and prevent the starch from bursting and therefore cooking.

I strongly recommend that you make the lime syrup first and macerate the mango in it.
If you can find the time to place into the fridge at least 4 hours or the day before you
make the pudding and can resist eating this delicious accompanyment before serving
it will taste much better that way and of course it will be chilled which is the ideal way
to serve the fruit with the hot pudding. I warn you resisting eating this is difficult, mango
and lime is a marriage made in heaven, you may have to make extra for this eventuality.

Allow about an hour and a half to cook the dessert so if its for dinner you can have it
simmering away on the back of the stove do not rush it, rice pudding should be creamy
and unctuous, to undercook the rice is a major crime please be patient its so worth it!

Ok here is the recipe for 4 portions

Rice Pudding
400g Tin of Coconut Milk
400g Whole Milk
2 Cardamon Pods crushed
0.5 Finely Grated Zest of Orange
1 Vanilla Pod split lengthways
90g Short Grain (pudding rice)
30g Caster Sugar

Lime Syrup
1 Lime
30g Cold Water
40g Caster Sugar

Mango
1 very ripe Mango

Method
Grate the lime on the fine side of a grater.
Place into a pan (not alluminium).
Add the water and the sugar.
Bring up to the boil and simmer gently for 1 minute.
Pour carefully into a bowl, cool for 20 minutes.
Cut the lime in half squeeze the juice into the bowl and mix in.
Pass the syrup through a fine seive into a clean bowl.
Cut the skin off the mango.
Remove the flesh from the mango cutting as close to the stone as possible.
Cut the mango into chunks not too big and place into the syrup mix in well.
Cling film the bowl and place into the fridge ideally overnight.
Bring the coconut milk and whole milk up to the boil in a pan.
Crush the cardamom pods with a knife add to the pan.
Add the grated orange zest and vanilla pod.
Leave to infuse for 30 minutes.
Wash the rice in cold water to remove some of the starch.
Drain all the water off the rice.
Pass the cream through a fine sieve into a clean pan.
Reboil the milk and coconut milk.
Add the rice and stir back to the boil.
Cook gently for 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
Place the rice into a double boiler or carefully cook out on the stove.
When the rice is full cooked and very soft add the sugar.
Cook out until soft and the correct consistancy (adjust with milk if required)
Serve in heated bowls and spoon the mango and lime over the pudding.
I sometimes serve a ball of coconut ice cream on the top as well, but the
mango and lime is delicious on its own.

Enjoy a lovely different version of a rice pudding with a twist

Happy cooking
XXX