This Nigel Slater chocolate and chestnut terrine  is a seriously rich recipe to be enjoyed in thin slices, perfect as a decadent Easter treat, with chestnuts just coming into season. You will get a good 8 to 10 portions from the cake. This cake is very similar to one that we make at Wickedfood Cooking School in our chocolate cooking class. Chestnut purée is available from specialist delicatessens.

Photo: Jonathan Lovekin

Cake

250g butter
225g golden caster sugar
225g self-raising flour
2t baking powder
30g cocoa powder
4 eggs
80ml milk
3T hot espresso coffee

Chestnut and chocolate filling

250g dark chocolate (79 per cent cocoa solids)
125g butter
400g chestnut purée
2T caster sugar

To finish

10–12 cooked or candied chestnuts
250g dark chocolate

Cake

• You will need a 20cm sq cake tin lined with baking parchment, and a 20 x 9cm loaf tin or similar for shaping the cake (measurements are taken across the bottom of the tins).
• Set the oven at 160°C. Cut the butter into small pieces and put into a food mixer with the caster sugar. Beat until light and fluffy.
• Sift together the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder (don’t miss this step; it is really important that the dry ingredients are well mixed).
• Crack the eggs into a small bowl, beat them briefly to mix, then stir in the milk.
• Introduce the flour mixture and the eggs and milk to the butter and sugar, adding a little of each at a time, with the mixer going constantly till you have a smooth mixture. Finally mix in the coffee.
• Spoon the mixture into the lined square cake tin and smooth the top, then bake for 45-50 minutes, until risen and firm to the touch. Test with a metal skewer. If it comes out moist but clean, without any raw cake mixture stuck to it, then it is ready. Remove from the oven, leave to settle for 15 minutes, then run a palette knife around the edges and gently turn out on to a cooling rack. Peel off the baking parchment.

Chestnut and chocolate filling

• Break the chocolate into small pieces and melt it in a glass or china bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Do not stir, other than to push any unmelted chocolate down into the liquid chocolate. Turn the heat off as soon as the chocolate has melted.
• Cut the butter into small pieces and stir it gently into the chocolate until it has melted.
• Beat the chestnut purée with the sugar until well mixed, then fold gently into the melted chocolate and butter. Try not to over-mix. Set aside.
• Cut the cake in half to make two long pieces. Slice each half in two horizontally and trim to fit the loaf tin. Place a piece of cake in the base of the tin, add half the chocolate chestnut cream and smooth the top. Place a second piece of sponge on top, followed by the rest of the chestnut cream.
• Place a third and final piece of cake on top. (You will be left with one remaining piece, which I suggest you freeze for later or nibble at will.)
• Wrap the entire loaf tin in clingfilm, pressing down firmly to encourage the layers to stick together. Refrigerate for at least two hours.

To finish

• Remove the clingfilm, loosen the cake from the sides of the tin and turn it out on to a wire rack. Place the chestnuts along the top.
• Melt the chocolate as before, then pour it over the top of the cake, smoothing it over the sides. Leave to set before serving, sprinkled with cocoa powder if desired.

Makes 10 slices

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.

Nigel Slater is a cook who writes, he’s no doubt one of the top food writers around at the moment. He has been the food columnist for The Observer for eighteen years and is presenter of BBC1′s Simple Suppers. Author of seven cookery books, including Appetite and The Kitchen Diaries.

He however, remains very much an amateur cook. Nigel is not a chef and has no restaurant or commercial connections. His food is understated, handcrafted home cooking that is easy to accomplish and without a trace of what he affectionately calls ‘celebrity cheffery’. He is not fond of fussy food and prefers simple suppers made with care and thought.

Over the years, he has produced a variety of superb cookbooks.  In Tender, his last book, Nigel focused on his vegetable patch. Now, in Tender: Volume II, A cook’s guide to the fruit garden, he turns to his fruit garden for inspiration, with recipes for everything from stews and soups, to puddings and pies.

With over 300 recipe ideas and many wonderful stories from the fruit garden, Tender: Volume II is the definitive guide to cooking with fruit. And even if you do not cook regularly, this book will certainly inspire you, not only to prepare the fruit dishes, but to go out and plant a few trees. To quote just one passage from the book.

“Like a melting snowflake, the perfectly ripe pear is a fleeting thing. Something to be caught, held tenderly, briefly marvelled at, before it is gone forever. Ripeness is all.”

At Wickedfood Cooking School, this book will definitely become an instant reference source for future cooking classes.

Click here for Recipes from the book and here for even more.

Interested in buying this book? For the next 2 weeks Red Pepper Books is offering a special discounted price for Tender: Volume II. Visit - Red Pepper Books – The South African online bookshop, they are able to offer you great prices on any book you are looking for, and they deliver to your door.

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.

Once in a while a recipe book comes along that is truly inspirational.  That can definitely be said about Nigel Slater’s  Tender: v. 1: A Cook and His Vegetable Patch. Many consider Nigel as one of the top cookbook writers in the world, and with good reason.

This book is once again a masterpiece. With over 400 recipe ideas and many wonderful stories from the cook’s garden, this book  is the definitive guide to cooking with vegetables. Each chapter looks at a different vegetable (29 vegetables in total), giving a background to the vegetable,  how to grow it, how to treat it in the kitchen, quick cooking tips, and then an assortment of mouthwatering recipes. If you are at all interested in food and growing it yourself, then this book is indispensable and should definitely be on your bookshelf.

Other books by Nigel Slater, reviewed on this blog site – Appetite and Tender: Volume II, A cook’s guide to the fruit garden

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.

Nigel Slater is one of the top cookbook writers in the world, and with good reason. His latest book, Nigel Slater’s Tender has over 400 recipe ideas and many wonderful stories from the cook’s garden. This recipe has been inspired from one of his delicious recipes. These fritters make a delicious snack, served with a simple yoghurt dip, or together with a roast.

± 6 medium carrots, trimmed and washed
3-4 spring onions, both green and white parts, sliced
1 cup fresh coriander, roughly chopped, plus extra to serve
2 large free-range eggs, beaten
±1T  plain flour
±1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Oil for frying

1. Grate the carrots, then place into a large bowl with the spring onions and coriander.
2. Add in the eggs and the flour to bind everything together, followed by the  cheese (it will melt and again will help to hold the fritter together) and stir well, seasoning to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3. Just before you fry it’s worth just squeezing some of the mixture together in your hands to ensure it won’t fall apart when cooking. If you think it will, just add either a little more beaten egg or flour, only just enough to stick them together.
4. Heat a large frying pan, add the oil and form the mixture into thin fritters, so they will cook quickly. Fry for 4-6 minutes until golden-brown on both sides. Remember the golden rule of frying – don’t play with the food too much, let the fritters form a crust before you turn them over. Serve straightaway, scattered with more coriander.

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.

Every year from about September the cookbook shelves start filling with a mouthwatering selection of new titles.  This year is no exception, and all of the big names are there.  What is however pleasing,  is the growing number of superbly produced local cookbooks.  In our top ten for this year  we have three contributions from local authors.  What is also interesting this year is the lack of Asian cookbooks on the shelves. During the course of the next few months we will be doing more in depth reviews on our top ten.   The Wickedfood Cooking School top ten cookbooks  for 2009 are as follows (Click on any of the titles will  take you directly to  Red Pepper Books – The friendliest South African online bookshop, they offer great prices on any book you are looking for).

1. Cooked in Africa by Justin Bonello – If you have been watching any of BBC Lifestyle over the past year, you will have come across this quirky South African who has been traveling the length and breadth of the country cooking for friends.   This book is a reflection of some of the destinations, a great boys’ book. Apart from the delicious recipes, it is also full of colloquial tips, and  classic South African recipes (and some modern takes), from koeksisters to babotie . A must for every red blooded South African who loves their food.
2. The Fat Duck Cookbook by Heston Blumenthal – again a recent regular on BBC Lifestyle, this book  demystifies some of  Heston Blumenthal’s dishes from  The Fat Duck restaurant, birthplace of snail porridge and bacon-and-egg ice cream. In the book we  encounter the passion, perfection and weird science behind the man and the restaurant. This is not a book for amateur chefs, but a fascinating insight to the intricacies of some of the dishes, up to four pages for one dish.
3. Jamie’s America by Jamie Oliver – Every year JO managers to bring out a new book.  He bill’s this one as the “ultimate food trip to explore places, ingredients, food culture  and traditions. I wanted to get to the heart of great American food, to get past the junk and super-sized portions …. I found what I was looking for: some of the most diverse and delicious recipes I’ve ever come across! “
4. A farm In My Heart by Emilia le Roux and Francois Smuts – To my mind, one of the best books to come out of South Africa, it is written in a story form, and account of daily life  on the farm with a wide selection of classic farm recipes, home remedies and preserving.
5. The River Cafe Classic Italian Cookbook by Rose Grayand  Ruth Rogers – Over the last twenty years, Rose and Ruth have been at the helm of one of the iconic London restaurants, where a variety of the world’s top chefs and TV personalities have cut their teeth, including  Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, both featured here.  This book is Rose and Ruth’s personal interpretation of Italian home recipes, supported by some beautiful photography.
6. Franchhoek Food by Myrna Robins – Franchhoek has more good restaurants than any other town in south Africa, and some of our top chefs live here.  This book features 18 of the Valley’s best chefs, including Matthew Gordon, Rubin Ruffel and Margot Janse. This is haute cuisine cooking, with a touch of  history and some great photography of the finished dishes.
7. The Italian Cookery Course by Kalie Caldesi – you may remember Kalie from the TV series which chronicled the couple’s trip to Tuscany to rediscover Giancarlo’s culinary roots, and set up a cooking school.  In this book she has collated recipes, techniques and ingredients to create a unique compendium of Italian food.The book will guide you through the vast collection of famous recipes and lesser-known regional dishes, with clear instruction on how to replicate them at home. Each chapter contains ‘masterclasses’ on technique, revealing the practical secrets of Italian cooking and giving the reader new confidence in the kitchen.
8. River Cottage Everyday by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall – Hugh  is one of Wickedfood cooking school’s favourite chefs . His vision that all food should be free of pesticides, growth hormones and additives  that gets pumped into our food. Food should be eaten when in season and sourced locally. Hugh shows you how easy it is to make fresh healthy meals daily. To see o full review of the book, click here
9. Far Eastern Odyssey by Rick Stein – An epic culinary journey along rivers, through jungles and around the coastlines of Vietnam, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Thailand,  Sri Lanka,  Malaysia and Indonesia. Along the way, Rick visits traditional family-run restaurants, street vendors, floating markets, night markets, fishing villages, and the local farmers to learn about the authentic food of the Far East, and to sample the delicious spectrum of exotic flavours.
10. Tender: v. 1: A Cook and His Vegetable Patch by Nigel Slater – many consider Nigel as one of the top cookbook writers in the world.  With over 400 recipe ideas and many wonderful stories from the cook’s garden, this book  is the definitive guide to cooking with vegetables.

Apart from these great cookery books, there are also some great new books on growing food, sustainability and self sufficiency the best of these include:

1. Grow to live by Pat Featherstone – a local book by the founder of Soil for Life.  It takes you on a journey into the field of organic food, a hands-on, no frills guide for the South African organic food gardener  with expounding pencil drawings and stunning photographs.
2. Fruit and Nuts by Susanna Lyle - an informative and comprehensive guide to growing and using more than 300 species of fruits and nuts. Each entry includes a brief history, detailed description, and authoritative information on propagation, as well as helpful advice about harvesting times and methods, cultivation, pruning, pests and diseases.  Suitable for home gardeners and professionals.
   
3. The new complete book of Self sufficiency by John Seymour – As with all Dorling Kindersley books this one is not only highly informative, but also beautifully produced.  This new edition of an enduring classic from the founding father of modern self-sufficiency, it is still the key reference to living off the land. Covering all the practicals from ploughing fields to milking cows as well as information on how to create an urban organic garden and harness natural energy, this is perfect for anyone aspiring to the self-sufficient lifestyle.
4. A Greener Life by Clarissa Dickson – You may well remember her from the TV series Two Fat Ladies.  This book  is  packed with information on how to live a more natural and self-sufficient life. Clarissa, together with co-author Johnny, explores the relevant issues-from growing your own vegetables to using alternative energies, from keeping livestock to mending your own socks-so that you have the knowledge to start living the good life.