Smoked Tomato Sorbet on Toast

1kg tomatoes
350 mls glucose syrup, appx
3 tbspns olive oil
1 tbspn red wine vinegar
Salt to taste

Puree tomatoes with oil and vinegar, then strain.
Measure amount of tomato juice and add half the amount of corn syrup. This will taste too sweet, but when frozen the sweetness will diminish.
Add salt to taste, remembering that the flavour of the salt will diminish on freezing too.
Add extra red wine vinegar if desired. Tomatoes vary in flavour so the balance of  salty, sweet and tart varies with each batch.
Freeze for at least 4 hours.
Form into quenelles using 2 spoons. You can find instructions here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXcIZ4aRHBU
Place on toasted Italian bread, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with basil.

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts Poached modified from Cooks Illustrated recipe

Ingredients

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
(Optional brine - 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup salt, 2 tablespoon sugar, 6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled)

4 litres or quarts water

Method

Pound thick end of chicken breasts until about the same thickness as the rest of the breast.
(Optional) Place in pot with water and brine  Stand at room temperature 30 mins.
Heat over medium heat until 77 Celsius or 175 Farenheight, stirring occasionally to distribute heat evenly.

Remove from heat, cover and stand 17 - 22 minutes. Check thickest part for doneness.

Drain and use.

Tamarind Pork Belly

Tamarind Pork Belly
Serves 4-6
The beauty of this recipe is that the meat sits in a tamarind sauce and retains moisture while the skin stays high and dry and develops a delicious crackle. Use pork belly with the bone out for easier carving, or bone in for juicier meat. Ask the butcher to score it, or score it yourself. How long your pork will take for the crackling to develop depends on how wet the skin is, and how hot your individual oven is. Serve with rice and a salad.
Quantity	Ingredients	Method
		Preheat oven to 240. Use a baking pan that will hold the pork snugly. Line pan with alfoil or silicone paper.
2kg	Pork belly	Score skin along the lines where you want to eventually cut it. I often like thirds lengthwise, then thinner slices. Rub salt into meat and place in prepared pan.
1tspn	Salt
2 tbsp	Brown sugar	Mix all other ingredients together. Pour into pan, add pork and place in preheated oven.  Roast until skin is blistered and brown, but not burned, around 30-60 minutes. Rotate pan if one area is browning more than another. If it gets too brown place a piece of foil loosely over the top. Check the level of liquid and top up with water if it looks too dry.  Turn the oven down to 180°C and cook for 25 minutes. Once cooked, let the roast rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
2 tbsp	Tamarind puree from a jar
1 tsp	Masterfoods Diced Chilli
1 tbsp	Soy sauce
125 mls	Water

x

Best, crispiest, crunchiest pork crackling

This method reliably creates crunchy pork crackling. The aim is to first dry out the skin, and then blast it under high heat so it crackles. If the pork has been cryovacked the skin will be wetter than fresh pork and the result will never be as good. However, you can still get it to crackle. Sometimes I like to remove the skin and treat it separately from the meat. This way you can get rid of the fat that lies under the skin. The methods remain the same. This works for pork leg, shoulder or belly. There is no need to score the rind.

Mix together a paste a little thinner than toothpaste.

2 tablespoons bi carb soda

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon vinegar

Pat the pork skin dry and spread this paste all over. Leave for at least 10 minutes, and up to 30 mins.

Rinse the paste off and pat dry with paper towels. This is an easier job if you use boiling water to rinse, but it isn’t necessary.

Rub the pork skin with 1 teaspoon salt.

Roast the pork as the recipe indicates. Remove the pork from the oven and let it rest at room temperature for 10-30 minutes.

Meanwhile, turn the oven to 250 C (500 F). Replace pork and roast until skin crackles, around 10 mins. You may need to rotate the pork to prevent some areas burning before others have crackled. 

Asparagus Ham and Mascarpone Tart

2 puff pastry sheets

30g unsalted butter

2 tsp olive oil, plus extra to drizzle

1 onion, finely chopped

150g sliced ham

2 tsp Dijon mustard

250g mascarpone cheese

2 bunches asparagus, trimmed, halved

1 egg, lightly beaten

¼ cup shaved parmesan

Preheat the oven to 180°C and line 2 trays with baking paper. Cut each pastry sheet into 4 squares, then lightly score a 2.5cm border around the edges of each square with a knife, without cutting all the way through. Place the squares on the trays and chill while you prepare the filling.

Melt butter with oil in a frypan over medium heat and cook onion for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until softened but not coloured. Cool slightly. Finely chop ham in a food processor. Add onion, mustard and mascarpone, then pulse to just combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spread mixture within the border of each pastry square, then top with asparagus pieces, alternating tips and ends. Drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper. Brush pastry borders with egg, then bake tarts for 20-25 minutes until pastry is golden and asparagus is tender. Top with parmesan and serve with a rocket salad if desired.