A great healthy soup that is quick to make with little effort and works well as a warm hearty winter soup or cold summer alternative.

Oil for frying
2 carrots peeled and roughly sliced
2 celery stalks sliced
2 medium onions chopped
2 cloves garlic sliced
2L vegetable stock
800g frozen peas
1 cup fresh mint leaves
Sea salt and pepper

1 ciabatta for serving (optional)
125ml crème fraîche (optional)

1. Heat 2T oil in a large pot and add the carrots, celery, onions and garlic and fry until carrots are soft and onion is golden brown ±10 minutes.
2. Pour in the stock and mix in well soaking up any flavours that have stuck to the bottom of the pot.
3. Add the peas, stir well and bring up to a boil and then allow to simmer for until peas are soft.
4. Take off the heat and add mint leaves and liquidize until smooth.
5. To serve
6. Divide into bowls and serve with fresh or toasted bread and crème fraîche.

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking school runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studios. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Muffins are easy to make. Remember the secret of making great muffins is in the mixing, – they should be mixed as little as possible. Do not worry if the mixture is lumpy.

150g (2 small) soft bananas, mashed,
1/4 cup poppy seeds,
12 paper muffin cups,
125g soft butter,
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups self-raising flour, sifted
Pinch salt
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 cup (250ml) buttermilk or 3/4 cup (185ml) milk

12 paper muffin cups

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease the paper muffin cups and place into a 12-cup standard muffin pan.
2. Place the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs.
3. Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Fold in the coconut and buttermilk.
4. Fold in the mashed banana and poppy seeds (or apricots and bran).
5. Fold in the butter/sugar/egg mixture until just mixed (see introduction).
6. Spoon the mixture into the muffin pan 3/4 full, and bake for 30 minutes or until cooked when tested.

Makes ±12 of each

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking school runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studios. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Q: Do you by any chance have a recipe for mint jelly that you put with lamb

A: Yes we do – mint jelly is not really green? It’s golden coloured in its natural state. That green stuff you see in the stores is just food coloring. Here’s a straightforward recipe for making your own, using the pectin (is a structural heteropolysaccharide contained in the primary cell walls of terrestrial plants ) from fresh tart apples as a jelling base, The tarter the apples, the more pectin they will usually have, smaller apples will have proportionally more pectin as well.

1.8kg of tart apples (e.g. Granny Smith), unpeeled, chopped into big pieces, including the cores – this is where most of the natural pectin is.
1 1/2 cups of fresh mint, chopped
2 cups water
2 cups white vinegar
3 1/2 cups sugar (±14T for each cup of juice)

1. Combine apple pieces with water and mint in a large pan. Bring water to a boil then reduce heat and cook 20 minutes, until the apples are soft.
2. Add the vinegar, return to boil and Simmer covered for 5 minutes.
3. Use a potato masher to mash up the apple pieces to the consistency of thin apple sauce.
4. Spoon the apple pulp into a muslin cloth (or a couple layers of cheesecloth) or a large, fine mesh sieve, suspended over a large bowl. Leave to strain for several hours. Do not squeeze – if your mash is too thick, you can add 1/2 a cup to a cup more of water to it. You should have 4 to 5 cups of resulting juice.
5. Measure the juice, then pour into a large pot. Add the sugar (±12T for each cup of juice). Heat gently, stirring to make sure the sugar gets dissolved and doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
6. Bring to a boil. Cook for 10-15 minutes, using a metal spoon to skim off the surface scum. Continue to boil until a candy thermometer shows that the temperature has reached ±106°C, depending on the amount of water, sugar, and apple pectin in the mix.
7. Candy thermometers aren’t always the most reliable indicators of whether or not a jelly is done. Another way to test is put a half teaspoonful of the jelly on a chilled (in the freezer) plate. Allow the jelly to cool a few seconds, then push it with your fingertip. If it wrinkles up, it’s ready.
8. Pour into sterilized jars to within 2cm from the top and seal.

Makes approximately 4-250g jars

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking school runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studios. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

A range of foods, usually seafood and vegetables in a light batter deep-fried and served piping hot with a light flavoured soy dipping sauce. The secret is really cold water, the oil at the right temperature and a batter that is freshly made, just before cooking and serving. This batter can also be used for seafood such as shrimp, calamari and fish fillets.

Vegetables (At least 4 of the following)
8 fresh crisp green beans, topped and tailed
2 medium onions, peeled and quartered (or cut into rings)
4 spring onions, topped and trimmed
4 large brown mushrooms, cut in half
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into thin strips ±1cmx1cm
1 aubergine, cut into strips ±2cmx2cm, salted and patted dry
4 small courgettes, quartered lengthways, salted and patted dry
1 small butternut, peeled and julienned into ±1cmx1cm strips

Dipping sauce

1 cup boiling water
1/4t instant dashi
2T mirin
1/3 cup light soy sauce
±6cm fresh ginger, finely shredded
±10cm daikon, peeled and finely grated
2t sugar

Batter

2 eggs
360ml ice water
21/2 cups flour
2t baking powder

Flour for dusting vegetables
Oil for deep-frying

• Prepare all the vegetables. Have everything ready ie paper for draining, flour for dusting the vegetables and oil heated before making the batter.

Dipping sauce

• Combine the boiling water and dashi, stir to dissolve. Add the remaining ingredients, in order and stir well.

Batter

• Break the egg into a bowl and whisk with a fork.
• Add the ice water, flour and baking powder all at once, stir 2 or 3 times – traditionally the flour is not fully incorporated into the liquid, and a few lumps are traditional this also gives a lighter batter (add some ice).
• Dust the vegetables with flour, then dip a few at a time in the batter. Slide the vegetables carefully into the oil (if you drop them, the batter tends to slide off). Fry for ±3 minutes or until the pieces rise to the surface and the batter is crisp (not necessarily golden). Continue until all vegetables are cooked.
• Serve immediately with the dipping sauce in a bowl on the side. Delicious with grilled meats.

Serves 4-6

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built cooking studios. Classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our classes are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

A popular Florentine dish as a lasagne substitute. Crêpes are much lighter than pasta and have a delicate flavour. They work just as well with a cream or a meat sauce filling.

Crêpes

2 eggs
±1/2-1 cup milk
2T olive oil, plus extra for frying
Pinch salt
1 cup flour, sifted

Filling

600g (2 packets) spinach, trimmed
150g ricotta
2T grated parmesan/pecorino cheese
1 egg, lightly beaten
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Salt

Sauce

2T butter
1/2 cup flour
4-5 cups milk
3T grated parmesan/pecorino cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Crêpes

1. Whisk the eggs in a bowl until well blended. Add the milk, the olive oil and salt. Gradually mix in the flour. The batter should be smooth and have the consistency of cream (add extra milk if necessary).
2. Brush a ±15cm nonstick frying pan with oil and place over moderate heat. Pour in just enough batter to create a very thin sheet when the pan is tilted. Cook for ±1 minute until the edges lift easily. Turn the crêpe and cook the other side for ±30 seconds. Transfer to a flat surface (plate) to cool. Continue until the batter is finished. There should be ±12 crêpes in all. (They can also be made ahead and frozen.)

Filling

1. Preheat an oven to 180°C. Cook the spinach in a little salted boiling water until tender, ±2 minutes. Drain well, pressing out any excess liquid, and finely chop.
2. Mix the spinach, ricotta, cheese, egg and nutmeg in a bowl. Season to taste with salt.
3. Spoon ±1T filling in a line down the centre of each crêpe and roll up. Place them seam side down, on a plate.

Sauce

1. In a small saucepan over moderate heat, melt the butter. Add the flour, and blend well, stirring consistently for ±3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the milk, gradually so as not to form lumps. Once all the milk is incorporated, return to the heat and continue to stir until the sauce has thickened.
2. Remove from the heat and add the parmesan. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Pour enough sauce into a shallow baking dish to form a thin layer on the base. Arrange the crêpes side by side, seam side down on top of the sauce. Spoon the remaining sauce over the crêpes (at this stage, the dish can be covered with clingfilm and kept in the fridge).
4. Bake until the sauce bubbles slightly and the crêpes are heated through, ±20 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood cooking school runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studios. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.