Chefs Night in With Freddie (one chef and his dog).

Me old mate Freddie came to my house for dinner tonight, here is the menu,


Grilled Chicken with Baby Leeks,
Watercress Potatoes and Mustard.

Cheese(Epoisses), With Chutney.

Chocolate Mousse alla Ha Ha!
(see next post)

I simply grilled the chicken, but the leeks I cooked 'Vichy style', its a French technique where the leeks cooked in just enough water to cover then, a nob of butter, pinch of salt and pepper, the water/butter mix is boiled until it evaporates almost completely and the leeks are soft and coated in a lovely, salty, buttery emulsion. The potatoes (Charlottes) I peeled, boiled from cold in lightly salted water then added a guzzle of Olive Oil and a bunch of roughly chopped Watercress, which wilts slightly and tastes great. I made a wholegrain Mustard sauce by sweating a finely diced carrot and half an onion in a nob of butter, then adding a small bottle of cider (280 mls) and reducing by half, then adding a glug (100 mls) of double dream and reducing to sauce consistency, then adding a large table spoon of wholegrain mustard and seasoning with salt and pepper.
The Cheese was Epoisses, a rich, smelly, rummy cheese from France, which is washed in Brandy and therefore has a slight hint of Brandy flavour. Freddie bought round a bottle of Amarone.