The Darina Allen Column

This month Darina talks about one of the most anticipated restaurant openings in London for several years, a place where “beautifully fresh ingredients shine through with the minimum of interference”. How good is that.

Skye Gyngell, whose super fresh food at Petersham Nurseries in Richmond thrilled and excited real food lovers from all over the world, had not been actively involved in the restaurant scene for over two years before opening her new restaurant, Spring.

In that time she and her team were actively seeking out exciting premises in central London. After much toing and froing they eventually chose part of the New Wing at Somerset House, where the Inland Revenue had its office for 158 years.

The new space could not be much further in style from the original charming greenhouse at Petersham Nurseries where mismatched tables, crockery and cutlery on the clay floor created a sophisticated up-cycled bo-ho chic look.

Here in Spring, Skye shows her elegant ultra-chic side by transforming what by all accounts was a dull and dreary room into a haven of sophistication with a Zen like feel. The walls are pastel with tiny handmade porcelain flowers by Valeria Nascimento fluttering across the walls. There’s a marble counter at one end from which drinks and house cordials are dispensed. The cutlery is by English cutler David Mellor and the leather chairs are by Mario Bellini

The chandeliers, which resemble bunches of frosted balloons, cast a soft flattering glow. Not everyone loves the atmosphere or the eccentric staff uniform designed by Trager Delaney of Egg. I personally found them playful and quirky and why not.

The food was totally delicious, quintessentially Skye even though she wasn’t in the kitchen herself that night. Beautifully fresh ingredients shine through with the minimum of interference.
The delicious desserts at Spring are the creations of Sarah Johnson and her team. Sarah interned here at the Ballymaloe Cookery School for a while and honed her considerable skills at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, as well as Pizzaiolo in Oakland.

The wine list would also blow you out of the water impressing even the most seasoned wine buffs. Deeply knowledgeable sommelier Frank Embleton has been given both the brief and budget to create one of the most fascinating and well-chosen lists in London to complement Skye’s food.

Put www.springrestaurant.co.uk on your London list. Open seven days for lunch and dinner.

Here are some of the dishes that are creating the WOW factor at Spring.

Scallops, Agretti and Chilli Oil from Spring

[Agretti is an Italian succulent; it is related to samphire, which would be easier to source, and can typically be eaten raw or sauteed. stir fried or steamed. GC]

Serves 4

20 scallops, shucked and cleaned
1 large red chilli
5 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 bunch of Agretti
The juice of half a lemon
Sea-salt and freshly ground black pepper

Slice the chilli in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Using a sharp knife, slice into long fine strips. Bunch the strips together and chop finely across them so you end up with neat little squares. Place in a bowl, pour over all but 1tbsp of the olive oil, stir to combine, and set aside.

Clean, cook and drain the Agretti. While still warm, dress with a tablespoon of the chilli oil and a squeeze or two of lemon juice.

Place two non-stick (if you have them) frying pans on top of a high heat. Divide the final tablespoon of olive oil (without chilli), between them. Season the scallops quite generously with salt and pepper. Then when the pans are very hot, add the scallops, diving them equally (don’t over crowd them or they will stew instead of cook)

Cook for a minute on one side, then 30 seconds on the other. Remove from the heat and squeeze over what is left of the lemon juice. Divide the Agretti among 4 plates, place 5 scallops on top of each and spoon over the chilli oil.

Serve straight away while the scallops are still piping hot.

Pumpkin and white bean curry from Spring

Serves 4

1 fresh coconut (or 1 tin coconut milk)
1tbsp ghee or clarified butter
1tsp black mustard seeds
1 onion squash (if you can’t get hold of this, Crown Prince or butternut squash will be fine)
1 inch fresh turmeric, peeled and grated
1 dried chilli
10 fresh curry leaves
150 g/5 oz dried white beans, soaked overnight and cooked according to packet instructions
A little sea-salt
1 inch thumb of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
4-5 sweet little tomatoes

I prefer to use fresh coconut, it’s a little extra work but its flavour is far more delicate. If you do it this way, look for small, sweet, young coconuts, not the more typical older harder ones. Remove the outside husk by holding in your hand, rotating it slowly and tapping it gently on the top with a rolling pin until the outer flesh splits and you can gently remove the flesh with your hands.

Cut in half down the middle with a sharp knife, catching the water in a bowl as it escapes. Roughly chop the flesh into chunks and place in a blender with cup or two of warm water. Blend until smooth and strain it into the bowl in which you have poured the coconut milk.

Next, peel and chop the pumpkin into 2cm (1in) wedges. Heat a tablespoon of ghee in a medium-sized pan. When hot, add the mustard seeds and let them pop for a bit. Turn the heat down slightly and add the ginger, turmeric, tomatoes and dried chilli. Add the pumpkin and stir a couple of times to coat.

Next, sprinkle over the curry leaves and pour in the coconut milk. Keeping the heat at medium to low, place a lid on the saucepan and cook gently until the pumpkin is tender. Season with salt. Add the cooked white beans and cook gently for a further 5-10 min.

It’s delicious eaten alone, but it also lovely served with some simple steamed white fish.

Braised Oxtail with Garlic and Sherry Vinegar from Spring

Serves 4-6

3kg/6lb Oxtail
1tbsp Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
5 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 yellow onions, peeled and finely chopped
1 dried chilli
5 fresh bay leaves
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
100ml/3½ fl oz Sherry vinegar
3 Jars of good quality tomatoes
500ml/ 17fl oz of water
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 whole cloves

Using a sharp knife, trim the oxtail of most of its fat. Place a large saucepan over a medium heat and add the olive oil. When warm, add the carrots, onion, chilli, bay leaves and garlic. Immediately turn the heat to very low and sweat for 20 mins, stirring every now and then.

In a separate pan, brown the oxtail well on both sides; this should take about four minutes per side. Remove the oxtail from the pan and deglaze with the vinegar, removing the bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the oxtail to the veg along with the sherry vinegar.

Add the tomatoes and water, a pinch of salt and a little freshly ground pepper, stir well and place lid on the pan. Turn the heat to its lowest setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring every now and then. Add the cloves 20 minutes from the end. The meat is ready when it falls of the bones. Turn off the heat and allow the dish to cool to room temperature. It will test better for this, twenty minutes before eating, reheat the dish over a low heat and serve piping hot.

SPRING ICE CREAM:

Home made ice creams are a speciality at Spring and the selection offered varies daily

Basic Anglaise:

450 ml Double Cream
350 ml whole milk
120 g caster sugar
6 organic free range egg yolks

Place the cream, milk and sugar into a heavy-based saucepan and cook over a gentle heat until warm to the touch. Remove from the heat In the meantime, place the yolks into a bowl and using a whisk, gently beat to break them up. Pour the warm milk over the yolks, whisking as you go.

Return the custard to the saucepan and place back onto a gentle heat. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, stir the custard continuously, taking care to scrape the bottom of the pot and ensure even cooking. Cook until the custard is thick and coats the back of a spoon. This may take some time, so be patient.

Remove from the heat and pour into a bowl. Place the bowl over an ice bath and stir until cool. Continue to chill and freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. See below for modifications.

Honey Walnut Ice cream

2 cups fresh walnuts
1 recipe for Basic Anglaise, except replace 80g of sugar with honey

Replace 80g of the sugar with your favourite honey.
Preheat oven to 160C
 

Toast walnuts until crisp, and lightly collared. Between 15 and 20 minutes. Cool, then roughly chop. Put aside.

Freeze honey Anglaise in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Once churned, fold in the toasted nuts.

LitFest 15-17 May 2015:

It has been a whirlwind time at LifFest HQ with ticket sales kicking off on Wednesday 7th Jan, the Ox Pop-up dinner was the first to book out but there are still many unmissable events to sign up for.

So if you haven’t already done so – get booking. The Kerrygold Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food and Wine 2015 weekend promises to be another ‘knock out! www.litfest.ie
 

'30 Years at Ballymaloe' - Bord Gáis Avonmore Cookbook of the Year 2013

Good Food Ireland Cookery School of the Year 2012/2013

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Once again, the Ballymaloe Cookery School in East Cork has a great programme of cookery courses for all interests and abilities running throughout 2015. Ranging from a relaxing visit to sit in on an afternoon cookery demonstration to a week long ‘Intensive Introductory Course’.

Sitting in the middle of a 100 acre organic farm the Ballymaloe Cookery School provides its students not only with a life skill learnt under the expert tutelage of their very capable teachers but also a place to relax and unwind from the stresses and strains of normal everyday life. The cottage accommodation available onsite for residential courses consists of a collection of delightful converted outbuildings which have been transformed over the years by the Allens, and other accommodation is available locally for the short courses.

www.cookingisfun.ie