Andy Lynes

Bruce Poole's Salad of Soft Boiled Eggs, Leeks and Anchovies This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI. 4 soft boiled eggs 12 baby leeks or 4 medium young leeks sliced into rounds, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 1 250 gram tin of salted anchovies 2 baby gem lettuces, trimmed of outer leaves and cut into quarters 1 quantity of tarragon cream Cook the eggs according to the instructions in the Hard Cooked Eggs Course. Slice into quarters and arrange on 4 plates along with 2 lettuce quarters, 3 leeks and some of the anchovies. Spoon over the Tarragon Cream and serve as a starter. Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG911 )

Dressing a Green Salad This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI. Green salads are most often a mixture of a number of salad leaves, but here I'm just using two strongly contrasting types; the bitter flavored and structured frisee with the soft textured and blandly sweet tasting English round lettuce. In the UK, round lettuce may be combined with a thinly sliced cucumber and insipid hothouse tomatoes to create the world's most boring salad. With this recipe I wanted to demonstrate that in the right company, it can shrug off years of misuse and be employed to good effect. Here I'm using it as a foil to the stronger tasting frisee, which in turn adds some much needed textural interest and acts as a sort of skeleton to give the salad shape and height on the plate. But to a certain extent, the leaves most important job in this very simple salad is to provide a vehicle for some top quality single estate extra virgin olive oil which plays such a vital role in the dish by adding its own fruity, peppery notes. This recipe also demonstrates the very simple method of dressing salads in the mixing bowl. It's quick and easy and precludes the need for preparing a dressing separately and is also a very good way to build up your confidence in the kitchen when judging volumes and amounts by instinct. yellow leaves from the heart of one large head of frisee 1 round lettuce (butterhead), outer leaves removed best extra virgin olive oil juice of half a lemon salt and pepper Wash and dry the leaves well and place in a large mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle over enough of the oil to coat the salad. Squeeze over enough lemon juice to cut through he oil, but not so much that the salad tastes acidic. This is a matter of trial and error and is down to practice and developing your culinary instincts. (Alternatively, follow the instructions for vinaigrette in the Non Stock based Sauces class and pour over sufficient to coat the leaves). Toss the leaves to distribute the dressing evenly and then correct the seasoning if necessary. Allowing one good handful per portion, mound the salad onto a plate and serve as a simple starter or as a side dish. Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG910 )

Dressing a Green Salad This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI. Green salads are most often a mixture of a number of salad leaves, but here I'm just using two strongly contrasting types; the bitter flavored and structured frisee with the soft textured and blandly sweet tasting English round lettuce. In the UK, round lettuce may be combined with a thinly sliced cucumber and insipid hothouse tomatoes to create the world's most boring salad. With this recipe I wanted to demonstrate that in the right company, it can shrug off years of misuse and be employed to good effect. Here I'm using it as a foil to the stronger tasting frisee, which in turn adds some much needed textural interest and acts as a sort of skeleton to give the salad shape and height on the plate. But to a certain extent, the leaves most important job in this very simple salad is to provide a vehicle for some top quality single estate extra virgin olive oil which plays such a vital role in the dish by adding its own fruity, peppery notes. This recipe also demonstrates the very simple method of dressing salads in the mixing bowl. It's quick and easy and precludes the need for preparing a dressing separately and is also a very good way to build up your confidence in the kitchen when judging volumes and amounts by instinct. yellow leaves from the heart of one large head of frisee 1 round lettuce (butterhead), outer leaves removed best extra virgin olive oil juice of half a lemon salt and pepper Wash and dry the leaves well and place in a large mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle over enough of the oil to coat the salad. Squeeze over enough lemon juice to cut through he oil, but not so much that the salad tastes acidic. This is a matter of trial and error and is down to practice and developing your culinary instincts. (Alternatively, follow the instructions for vinaigrette in the Non Stock based Sauces class and pour over sufficient to coat the leaves). Toss the leaves to distribute the dressing evenly and then correct the seasoning if necessary. Allowing one good handful per portion, mound the salad onto a plate and serve as a simple starter or as a side dish. Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG910 )

Bruce Poole's Salad of Young English Vegetables with Tarragon Cream This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI. Chef Bruce Poole introduces the recipe: "This is totally delicious with romaine lettuce hearts or any good crunchy leaves. The spring vegetables are simply blanched and refreshed then dressed to order. Good vegetables to use are carrots, radishes, tomato concasse, turnips, broad beans, green beans, peas, leeks and beets (dressed separately)." 1 head of romaine lettuce, trimmed of outer leaves and separated 20 baby carrots, peeled, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 20 radishes trimmed 2 tomatoes, skinned, deseeded and cut into concasse 20 baby or 4 small young turnips quartered, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 250 g broad beans, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 250 g peas, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 8 baby leeks (or 2 medium young leeks sliced into rounds), blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water extra virgin olive oil white wine vinegar salt and pepper Tarragon Cream yolks from 2 hard boiled eggs, sieved 1 tsp of Dijon mustard 1 T of white wine vinegar 150 ml double (heavy) cream 1 small bunch of tarragon, finely chopped Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and dress as per Green Salad recipe . Divide the salad equally amongst four plates and arrange attractively. Spoon over the tarragon cream dressing Tarragon Cream Mix the yolks, mustard and vinegar in a bowl, whisk in the cream then stir in the chopped tarragon. Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG909 )

Bruce Poole's Salad of Young English Vegetables with Tarragon Cream This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI. Chef Bruce Poole introduces the recipe: "This is totally delicious with romaine lettuce hearts or any good crunchy leaves. The spring vegetables are simply blanched and refreshed then dressed to order. Good vegetables to use are carrots, radishes, tomato concasse, turnips, broad beans, green beans, peas, leeks and beets (dressed separately)." 1 head of romaine lettuce, trimmed of outer leaves and separated 20 baby carrots, peeled, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 20 radishes trimmed 2 tomatoes, skinned, deseeded and cut into concasse 20 baby or 4 small young turnips quartered, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 250 g broad beans, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 250 g peas, blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water 8 baby leeks (or 2 medium young leeks sliced into rounds), blanched until tender then refreshed in ice cold water extra virgin olive oil white wine vinegar salt and pepper Tarragon Cream yolks from 2 hard boiled eggs, sieved 1 tsp of Dijon mustard 1 T of white wine vinegar 150 ml double (heavy) cream 1 small bunch of tarragon, finely chopped Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and dress as per Green Salad recipe . Divide the salad equally amongst four plates and arrange attractively. Spoon over the tarragon cream dressing Tarragon Cream Mix the yolks, mustard and vinegar in a bowl, whisk in the cream then stir in the chopped tarragon. Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG909 )

Chicory, Caramelized Apple, Salted Pecan and Beenleigh Blue Salad with Mustard and Honey dressing This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI This recipe demonstrates the principle of substitution as a method for creating salads. The inspiration for this dish came from the classic combination of pear, blue cheese (normally Stilton) and walnut, and in particular chef Alfred Portale's recipe "Autumn Salad of pears, Gorgonzola and Walnut Vinaigrette" as published in the Gotham Bar and Grill Cook Book. 4 heads of chicory 2 dessert apples 25 g butter 25 g dark brown sugar 30 pecan halves, salted 200 g Beenliegh or other blue cheese 1 handful of chopped chives for the dressing 1 tsp of Dijon mustard 1 tsp of honey 1 dessert spoon of red wine vinegar salt and pepper 2 floz extra virgin olive oil 2 floz sunflower oil Salad Trim the end of the chicory with a small pairing or turning knife. Seperate the leaves. Peel, core and slice the apples into 16 segments. Place into a bowl of acidulated water if you're not using them straight away. Melt the butter and brown sugar in a thick bottomed pan. Caramelise the apple over a medium heat then allow to cool completely. Dressing Put the mustard honey, vinegar and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to an emulsion. Whisk in the oils slowly. If the resultant dressing is too think, let it down with a little water. Chop the chives as finely as you can manage. Roughly chop 10 of the pecans and 12 of the apple slices and place in a bowl with the chicory. Crumble in half the cheese (dice the rest and reserve), then spoon in enough of the dressing just to coat the salad. Arrange 5 apple slices, 5 pecan halves and 5 cubes of cheese on each plate, then divide the salad mixture evenly and pile it into the centre. Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG908 )

Chicory, Caramelized Apple, Salted Pecan and Beenleigh Blue Salad with Mustard and Honey dressing This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI This recipe demonstrates the principle of substitution as a method for creating salads. The inspiration for this dish came from the classic combination of pear, blue cheese (normally Stilton) and walnut, and in particular chef Alfred Portale's recipe "Autumn Salad of pears, Gorgonzola and Walnut Vinaigrette" as published in the Gotham Bar and Grill Cook Book. 4 heads of chicory 2 dessert apples 25 g butter 25 g dark brown sugar 30 pecan halves, salted 200 g Beenliegh or other blue cheese 1 handful of chopped chives for the dressing 1 tsp of Dijon mustard 1 tsp of honey 1 dessert spoon of red wine vinegar salt and pepper 2 floz extra virgin olive oil 2 floz sunflower oil Salad Trim the end of the chicory with a small pairing or turning knife. Seperate the leaves. Peel, core and slice the apples into 16 segments. Place into a bowl of acidulated water if you're not using them straight away. Melt the butter and brown sugar in a thick bottomed pan. Caramelise the apple over a medium heat then allow to cool completely. Dressing Put the mustard honey, vinegar and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to an emulsion. Whisk in the oils slowly. If the resultant dressing is too think, let it down with a little water. Chop the chives as finely as you can manage. Roughly chop 10 of the pecans and 12 of the apple slices and place in a bowl with the chicory. Crumble in half the cheese (dice the rest and reserve), then spoon in enough of the dressing just to coat the salad. Arrange 5 apple slices, 5 pecan halves and 5 cubes of cheese on each plate, then divide the salad mixture evenly and pile it into the centre. Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG908 )

Herb Salad This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI This salad is designed as a garnish for starters or main courses. Treated like a vegetable, it should be integrated into the dish itself in order to provide a little explosion of herby flavor. It can be served on a risotto for example or to provide freshness to rich roasted or braised dishes. Most versions of this I have encountered includes frisee for body, but here I am just using soft herbs. You can pretty much use anything you like, but avoid the more woody varieties of herb like rosemary and thyme which will not work. Coriander should only be used in the context of Asian cuisine as its citrus, perfumed flavor can be overpowering. 1 bunch tarragon 1 bunch flat leaf (continental) parsley 1 bunch chives, chopped into 1 inch sticks 1 bunch basil good quality extra virgin Olive Oil white wine vinegar salt and pepper Pick the leaves from the stalks and combine in a bowl. Dress as per recipe for Green Salad Recipe . Using your hands, form very gently into small balls use to garnish the dish of your choice Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG907 )

Herb Salad This recipe is from the Leaf Salads course in the eCGI This salad is designed as a garnish for starters or main courses. Treated like a vegetable, it should be integrated into the dish itself in order to provide a little explosion of herby flavor. It can be served on a risotto for example or to provide freshness to rich roasted or braised dishes. Most versions of this I have encountered includes frisee for body, but here I am just using soft herbs. You can pretty much use anything you like, but avoid the more woody varieties of herb like rosemary and thyme which will not work. Coriander should only be used in the context of Asian cuisine as its citrus, perfumed flavor can be overpowering. 1 bunch tarragon 1 bunch flat leaf (continental) parsley 1 bunch chives, chopped into 1 inch sticks 1 bunch basil good quality extra virgin Olive Oil white wine vinegar salt and pepper Pick the leaves from the stalks and combine in a bowl. Dress as per recipe for Green Salad Recipe . Using your hands, form very gently into small balls use to garnish the dish of your choice Keywords: Salad, eGCI ( RG907 )

So I'm all set for one meal this week at Robuchon and I doing a little research to identify some affordable venues for the remaining nights. I definately want to try Aux Lyonnaise, but as the big names (Savoy, Gagnaire et al) are beyond my budget I would appreciate a steer on whats else is good right now. I'm staying in La Defence for business reasons so looking at the map, the most accessable arrondissment are 8, 16 & 17 although I'd probably travel anywhere for a decent meal! The sort of names I'm toying with are the likes of Casa Olympe, La Regelade and Chez Jean in rue St-Lazare where I had an exceptional and reasonably priced meal 4 or so years ago. I have very little time now to trawl the France forums, so if anyone would be so good as to throw a few ideas my way I would really appreciate it. I'll try and do a bit more homework when I get back next weekend!

Chef has advised me that the grain in the John Dory dish was Quinoa (pronounced keenwa), a herb seed loosely related to spinach and part of the broad leafed Goosefoot family, Chenopodiaceae. Qunioa is a cereal supergrain from Peru and was apparently the main staple food for the Incas. It was a source of both carbohydrate and protein until the conquistadors arrived and, as Jenni Muir puts it in her "A Cooks Guide to Grains", "actively phased out quinoa (and the Incas) in favour of maize, barley and potatos".

The Mrs and I left the unparalleled luxury of our hotel (the Cheltenham Travelodge, £5.00 for the night) and took a romantic stroll through the underpass for a pre-dinner drink at a hotel on the opposite side of the A40 that actually had a bar. It was then but a short mini cab ride to Le Champignon Sauvage and thankfully the real start of the evening. Four hours of relentless shopping had left me with a ravenous appetite and I fell on the delicious cheesey puffs and mini pizzas that accompanied the champagne. Although the dirt cheap du jour (£23.00 3 courses) was very tempting, the dinner was part of the first couple of days my wife and I had had to ourselves in 2 years so the a la carte was really the only option. A stunning amuse of medicinal looking green parsley couli with parsley root froth served in a tall shot glass and a foie gras royal with egg yolk and brioche cream was an early highlight. Seared scallops and baby squid, pumpkin puree, squid ink sauce is something of a signature dish and was made for an impressive start to my wifes meal. I had the much lighter option of roasted fillet of cod, pear and turnip, light veloute of chestnuts which demonstrated the flip side of the chefs cooking. Then came a couple of extra courses sent out as gifts from the kitchen that again demonstrated the lighter and richer sides of David's cooking : a fillet of john dory with oats and groats and thinly sliced kohlrabi stuffed with wild garlic and some sort of grain or seed or pulse with a difficult to pronounce name (which I will need to check again with the resturant to identify) then a sweetbread with a cocoa nib crust, parsnip puree and liquorice jus which was simply outstanding. At this point, my wife Gill's appetite completely failed her and she was unable to eat more than a mouthful of her red-legged partridge, homemade black pudding, soured cabbage which caused her no little distress as she said it was delicious. Oddly, I had no such difficulty with my braised breast of veal stuffed with snails and nettles. Pre-dessert was the now infamous space-dust encrusted creme brulee which we followed with a shared frozen prune and burdock root mousse with a wonderful toasted almond ice cream which if there was any justice would be available in tubs from your local supermarket. Believe it or not, wines starts at £11.00 a bottle with the majority of the list priced at £30.00 or less. Yes you can splash out, but I'd be very surprised if there is a 2 Michelin star restaurant anywhere with fairer priced wines. We enjoyed a mouthwateringly good Coudoulet de Beaucastel Côtes-du-Rhône '99 (white) for a frankly piddling £22.00 and the bill was around the £125.00 mark plus service for 2 menus (£44.00), champagne, wine, dessert wine and coffees.

Gary, you are too selfless: two meals in a week, just to check the consistancy of the restaurant on our behalf, you deserve a golden gully for that. (How do you make a consomme of potato for heaven's sake? Or are we talking consomme with some potato in it?)

My wife and I stopped off in Chipping Campden this week to say hi to Simon and for a very light lunch in Hicks' brasserie after a full on dinner the previous night at Le Champignon Sauvage. The truffled macaroni cheese with smoked haddock and spinach (sounds great doesn't it?) had unfortunately sold out, so I went for a salad of chorizo and Gill had a Ceaser's salad served with warm smoked salmon both served with a precisely cooked poached egg and both beautifully presented and equally delicious (we swapped plates half way through). I regretted not having more of an appetite when I spotted the likes of a cassoulet of duck or an impressive looking burger being delivered to the next table, but we did find room for an apple and cinnamon clafoutis with vanilla ice cream, albeit only to share. Simon gave us a whistle stop tour of the hotel, including the very impressive new Grammer School suite, which is across the road and down a bit from the main hotel. The Hotel have also just purchased the property next door which will house 10 bedrooms plus an extention to the brasserie and possibly a function room if planning can be obtained. There are also plans to convert the old coach house ( currently home to owners Christa and Ian Taylor) into a spa. The restaurant will be refurbished late March/early April in purple and mahogany with the intention of bringing a bit of London swank to the Cotswolds. Simon's a la carte will be extended to 9 choices at each stage from the current 5/5/6 formation and individualy proced rather than the current set price of £40.00 for 3 courses. Reading the current menu, highlights appear to include a dish of squab with butterbeans and squid shavings (which begs the question how do you shave a squid), inspired by Simon's recent Spanish stage; foie gras with sauternes poached pear and liquorice cream and whiltshire pork loin marinated in spices and tea leaves with butternut puree and braised pork belly faggot. I'm hoping to get back in the summer, but in the meantime I believe we may get a report soon from a UK forum regular.

There's really only one organisation that can answer this question and that's Tesco's themselves. I for one would love to hear what they have to say on the matter of selling fresh and cooked fish and shell fish. To me, it's the one thing that the majority of supermarkets fail even to get close to getting right, Waitrose being an honourable exception some of the time. I can't believe that they want to sell a poor product, but equally I can't believe that they think they have it right either.

Gary, thanks for the report and all the background, you are now our unofficial Northern correspondant. The pay is terrible, but just think of the prestige (well, that's what Fat Guy always tells me to do when I raise the subject of money with him). I think Tony is going to have to do a fine balancing act between being interesting enough to stand out from the crowd and attract interested diners from afar and being accessible enough to develop the loyal local following that will pay his bills. Read in the context of eGullet, the menu sounds perfectly approachable, but I wonder what the good people of Leeds will make of it as they stop in Boar Lane to give it the once over.

Apologies if this is not following the thrust of the debate, but whilst I think about this, I believe there is an arguement that questions the value of the work of people like Henrietta Green with her "Food Lover's Fairs" and Rick Stein with his "Food Heros" TV series and books. Whilst it seems almost churlish to criticise what I'm sure are honourable motives, there is a real risk that they reinforce the idea of good food as hobby and minority interest. There is no question that both bring small, quality producers to the notice of a wider public, but I wonder what the effect of that actually is. Are they doing anything to actually drive up the quality of food available to all of us, or simply providing an outlet and publicity for small producers to provide premium priced goods to what in fact turns out to be a niche market of food enthusiasts?

Please note that, due to personal circumstances, Darren will be available to answer your questions on a date to be advised.

No, it wasn't, I'm not that clever.

Thanks for a definitive answer "the greek" (straight from the horses mouth as it were).

Apparently Matthew Fort had no idea what Tonka beans where: "Tonka bean ice cream (whatever that might be). ", despite being Heston Blumenthal's editor, who has used them for quite some time now.

Matthew Fort gives Le Champignon 18/20 in the Guardian this week. I'm returning this week, this time paying my own way, so will report back.

In terms of how availability of good ingredients in the UK has changed, there is no doubt that there is an immense variety of produce in the supermarkets and specialist shops that simply wasn't there 15-20 years ago. However, when I was growing up in the late 60's/early 70's I clearly remember accompanying my mother to the local butcher, fishmonger, and grocer and buying fresh ingredients for our meals. I still recall seeing the carcasses being delivered to the butcher and that he would often cut a joint to order. Now, meat is often delivered to butchers pre-portion and even pre-packed. My memory of food at home is that it was mostly cooked from scratch, despite my Mother hating the task. Of course we had fish fingers and burgers and the like, but more often than not it was freshly cooked fish or meat with veg, or a stew or salad and possibly a home made apple pie for dessert. Today, I have a very good butcher just around the corner from my house, but the nearest grocer's is the city centre open market, and the nearest usuable fishmonger is a 20 minute drive away. If I want to buy really good cheese and bread I have to find a deli whose prices are now aimed at those who can afford to treat food as a hobby rather than a necessity. So the situation today is that the good basic food that was available to me as a child on my doorstep at prices my family could afford is now only obtainable as part of a treasure hunt around a 10 mile radius of my home, and at premium prices. This is progress?

This thread, and in particular the quote above, is mentioned on page 13 of the current issue (25 Feb) of Restaurant Magazine in their "Cleaver" magazine. eGullet is described as a "food geek website" (don't worry, I've already explained to associate editor Joe Warwick in a language he understands of what I think of that description), and that Aikens has stridently denied the allegation. Well, he would wouldn't he? The Cleaver says they are willing to believe him, "even before we learnt that the story had started with a PR who represents a rival chef, whose first name rhymes with both an Arab state and a contestant on this years "I'm a celebrity, get me out of here." I do believe they are saying my sources are unreliable. Damn cheek!

Agreed, but some stunning kitchen skills on show as well though.