Frikkadels – a lovely old-fashioned word – refers both to fishcakes and meatballs. Big, fat ones are fab for dinner, while smaller ones are good with pre-prandial drinks. Fish frikkadels may be flavoured in various ways; in the book Tortoises and Tumbleweeds they have an Indian spin. Any fish can be used, freshly-cooked for the occasion, left-over from a baked or braaied – even tinned salmon, tuna or pilchards if all else fails. Rougail – a salady garnish of Tamil origin that has made its home in the Indian Ocean islands – rounds things off gloriously. Alternatively serve with a homemade tomato sauce, as we do in Wickedfood cooking School in our fish cooking class.

500 g smoked or cooked fish fillets
300 g potatoes, peeled and diced
60 ml chopped coriander
2 eggs, lightly beaten
salt and milled black pepper
juice of 1 lemon or lime
250 ml toasted breadcrumbs
2 limes, to serve
vegetable oil

Rougail:

3 – 4 spring onions, finely chopped
3 roma or plum tomatoes, chopped
60 ml chopped coriander
salt and milled black pepper
olive oil
lime juice

1. Skin and flake the fish. Cook the potatoes in a saucepan of salted boiling water. Drain well and mash. Mix in the fish, coriander and egg, and flavour with salt and pepper and a good squeeze of lemon or lime juice. Shape into patties, flattening them between your palms. Coat with toasted crumbs.
2. Cut the limes in half, brush generously with oil and grill in a frying pan until lightly charred and smoky.
3. Rougail Mix the spring onions, tomatoes and coriander, and season with salt and pepper. Add a little olive oil and lime juice. Spoon into a bowl.
4. Heat oil in a medium frying pan for shallow-frying, and fry the frikkadels until crisp and golden; 2 or 3 minutes on each side should do it.
5. Serve hot or at room temperature – never chilled, as they lose all their flavour. Rougail and charred limes can be presented alongside or in separate bowls.

(Makes about 12; Serves 4 to 6)

More recipes from the book …click here.

Wickedfood Cooking School, Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking School 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.

Since the advent of Wickedfood Cooking School, Jamie Oliver has been writing cookery books. Though the past few years these have been location orientated. Cheap, short-haul flights and long weekend getaways have become increasingly popular and within a few short hours of the UK there are new and exciting worlds of food waiting to be discovered as Jamie finds out in his latest book Jamie Does… .

Each chapter focuses on a different city or region – Marrakesh, Athens, Venice, Andalusia, Stockholm and the Midi Pyrenees region of France. Classic recipes sit alongside new dishes that Jamie learns along the way. Alongside each recipe there is a beautiful photograph of the finished dish, as well as incredible reportage shots of Jamie’s experiences in each country.

Maybe not his most memorable book, but nonetheless offering a good selection of classic European dishes. Well worth the purchase, if this is the only book on European cuisine that you plan to own.

For a sample of recipes from the book …click here.

Interested in buying this book? visit - Red Pepper Books – The South African online bookshop, who will be able to offer you great prices on any book you are looking for.

Wickedfood Cooking School, Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking School 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.

In today’s fast world it is gratifying to know that more and more South Africans are returning to the land and becoming more aware of where their food comes from.

Harvest, Recipes from an Organic Farm by Christine Stevens is the story about a family’s journey from Cape Town city life to the good life on an organic farm.

She discovered that real organic farming, without chemicals, pesticides and artificial fertilisers, although rewarding, is incredibly challenging.

The book documents both the family’s trials and tribulations, as well as a good selection of unique recipes revolving around the food grown on the farm.

From baskets of heirloom tomatoes to home-raised pork and wine made from backyard grapes, this cookbook goes inside the kitchen of an organic farm to explore a rural lifestyle and its delicious benefits.  She shares not only her favourite recipes but also her passion for taking food straight from the garden into the kitchen. Using seasonal ingredients without much fuss, the recipes alternate between quick dishes from the best ingredients to slower, more indulgent meals that truly test one’s culinary skills. Tips for organizing a pantry are also included, and wonderful photography provides both food shots and a tour of the postcard-perfect farm.

Interested in buying this book? visit - Red Pepper Books – The South African online bookshop, they will be able to offer you great prices on any book you are looking for.

Wickedfood Cooking School, Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking School 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.

The green leaves of spinach, Swiss chard and turnips are exceptionally good for you.  This recipe from Wickedfood Cooking School’s Greek cooking class, uses spinach, together with feta cheese and pinenuts to make a delicious Mediterranean-inspired pie – Spanakopita.   These spinach leaves can be substituted with either Swiss chard or turnip leaves.  Serve with a simple rocket salad on the side, and for a more substantial meal, simply-roasted chicken or pan-fried fish fillets.

225g packet ready-made filo pastry (you’ll need about ten sheets measuring about 34cm x 30cm), defrosted

85g butter, melted, for brushing

Filling

2T olive oil

1 large red onion, halved and sliced finely

600g baby leaf spinach

freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

salt and freshly ground black pepper

55g sultanas

85g pine nuts, toasted

200g feta

3 medium free-range eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. You’ll need a non-stick lipless baking sheet about 34cm x 30cm.
2. Remove the filo pastry sheets from their packaging and place them on a clean work surface. Keep them covered with a clean, damp cloth while you’re working, to stop the pastry from drying out.
3. For the filling, heat 1T oil in a frying pan. Add the sliced the onion and gently fry for 5-6 minutes over a medium heat, until lightly browned and softened.
4. Heat the remaining 1T oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pan. Add the spinach and cook, uncovered, for a few minutes, until it wilts. When the spinach is cooked, place it in a colander set over a bowl to drain and cool. Discard any liquid that comes out.
5. Remove the fried onions from the frying pan and place on a plate to cool.
6. With a sharp knife, trim the filo pastry sheets to a size just smaller than your baking sheet. Place a sheet of filo pastry on the baking sheet and brush with some of the melted butter, using a pastry brush. Repeat with four more filo sheets, brushing with butter as you go. This will be the base of the pie. Cover the remaining five filo pastry sheets with a clean cloth.
7. When the spinach has cooled, place it into a large bowl. Grate in some fresh nutmeg and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir in the sultanas, the cooled onions and the pine nuts.
8. Crumble the feta into the mixture and mix together well. Beat the eggs together in a clean bowl. Add some of the egg mixture to the spinach mixture. Add just enough so that the mixture is moist but not runny (you may not use all of the beaten egg).
9. To assemble the pie, spoon the spinach and feta mixture onto the prepared filo pastry base. Leave an empty ‘frame’ around the edge of about 4cm on each side.
10. Fold the four edges of the pastry in towards the middle to enclose the filling.
11. To make the top of the pie, trim the remaining five sheets of filo pastry to the size of the base with its folded-in edges. Brush one of the filo sheets with some of the remaining melted butter and place on top of the spinach and cheese mixture. Repeat with the remaining four sheets, brushing with melted butter as you go.
12. Brush the top layer of filo pastry with the last of the melted butter. Lightly score the top of the pie with a sharp knife. Bake it in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until the filo pastry crust is a deep golden-brown.
13. Serve slices of the pie with a rocket salad.

Click here for more tasty spinach recipes.

Wickedfood Cooking School, Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking School 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.

Wickedfood Cooking School, SUNNINGHILL

Information & bookings (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Hi all,

Apart from hands-on cooking classes, from time to time we also run specialist gourmet meals, often in conjunction with Slow Food. On Sunday we organized a spring feast at Die Ou Pastorie restaurant in Skeerpoort, near Hartebeerspoort Dam.  The function was a tremendous success and generated many enquiries. Out of this success, we have decided that we will run a feast to celebrate each season.  The next one is planned for the end of January.

Find us on Facebook and Twitter – just search for Wickedfood and you will find us. We update the blog on a daily basis and publish it through Facebook and Twitter.

Wickedfood Cooking School news

Cooking class programmes are up on the internet, click the relevant month for the September and October programmes .

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes with a minimum of 8 participants and a maximum of 12 as this gives everyone hands-on experience and keeps the cooking class small enough for maximum learning. These cooking classes are conducted by our senior instructors who have extensive experience in the food industry and share a variety of additional cooking tips throughout the cooking class.

• Sunday 26 September at 4pm – Easy Asian dishes with a Chinese flavour (R390pp). Chinese cooking class – perfect for entertaining, with most dishes prepared in advance including wonton soup with noodles, chilli prawns, master stock chicken, Mu shu pork and ginger pudding.
• Monday 27 September at 6pm – Alfresco Italian dining (R380pp). Real Italian cooking class, tastes of al fresco summer dining and easy entertaining, including char grilled asparagus, affettati misti, insalata caprese, chicken involtini and Hanepoot semifreddo.
• Monday 04 October at 6pm – Gordon Ramsay – Cooking for Friends 2 (R390 pp). This Gordon Ramsey cooking class is based on his book Cooking for Friends. Love him or hate him, he certainly knows his food.  In this book, we see a very different side of him, more relaxed, cooking some best-loved versions of classic British dishes for family and friends, including Shropshire summer soup, farfalle with bacon, peas and sage, braised chicken thighs, new potato, pea and broad bean soup, spicy cauliflower stir-fry and a peach, raspberry and ginger crumble.
• Tuesday 12 October at 6pm – Sushi 1 – The basics of sushi making (R395pp – maximum 18, so book early). The basics of sushi making – cutting fish, making rice, California and maki rolls, nigirizushi (finger), and hand rolls.
• Sunday 17 October at 4pm – Classic Italian dishes (R380pp). One of our favourite Italian cooking classes, preparing 6 hearty dishes including chicken liver crostinis, zucchini frittata, pasta with a clam sauce, Osso Buca, polenta and pannacotta.

Please contact the school should you wish to make a booking:

Looking for info on food?

If you have any food-related questions, or a dish that you just can’t get right or even a certain recipe that you are looking for, but just can’t seem to find, then contact us and we will do our best to answer it as soon as possible. Click Here for more information. Hope to hear from you soon.

On food

Spinach is packed with nutrients including iron, but the oxalic acid it contains makes it hard for the body to absorb the iron. Tea and coffee can also make it harder to absorb, so avoid that cuppa with your spinach supper. Drinking a Vitamin C-rich drink with your meal such as orange juice will help your body along.

Cookbook of the week

Harvest, Recipes from an Organic Farm

In today’s fast world it is gratifying to know that more and more South Africans are returning to the land and becoming more aware of where their food comes from. Harvest, Recipes from an Organic Farm by Christine Stevens, is the story about a family’s journey from Cape Town city life to the good life on an organic farm. … Click Here for more.

Click Here to see Wickedfood Cooking School’s top 10 food-related books for 2010.

Food quote of the week

“Poetry is the synthesis of hyacinths and biscuits” - Carl Sandburg, American writer and editor

Recipe of the week:

Spinach and feta filo pastry pie

The green leaves of spinach, Swiss chard and turnips are exceptionally good for you.  This recipe, from our Greek cooking class, uses spinach, together with feta cheese and pinenuts to make a delicious Mediterranean-inspired pie – Spanakopita.   Serve with a simple rocket salad on the side, and for a more substantial meal, simply-roasted chicken or pan-fried fish fillets. …Click Here for the recipe.

The Wickedfood Team

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. 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 – teambuilding 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 team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.