THE BRETT SESSIONS | VOL.5
OUR CULINARY HEARTBEAT
by the stove
on THE STOVE
JOHANNES, LISA & JOSEPH
HASSELBACK PUMPKIN with PILAF rice,
Offenbacher MEATBALLS AND SAFFRON SAUCE
Hasselback pumpkin
// Christmassy, sweet, fragrant.
A vegetarian roast. Christmassy, sweet, fragrant, with almonds and oranges, accompanied by fresh Turkish figs, goat cheese, and a creamy saffron sauce.
Please note the order of preparation:
1. Prepare pumpkin completely, so it only needs to go into the oven.
2. form meatballs and get them ready
3. prepare rice completely and cover with a kitchen towel
4. put the pumpkin in the oven
5. 15 minutes later, put meatballs in the pan
6. set the table
Preparation: about 30 minutes / cooking time: 20-35 minutes
- THE BRETT SESSIONS | VOL.5
- HASSELBACK PUMPKIN
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2-3 pieces of butternut squash
Saffron
2 packets of butter
100 ml maple syrup
3 pieces of organic oranges
fennel and coriander seeds
cumin, cinnamon
150g chopped almonds
figs
Goat cheese
Some fresh thyme
PREPARATION
1 - We use the Hasselback cutting technique to rub, or lard, the pumpkin with spiced butter, maple syrup, and orange slices. To do this, peel the pumpkins, cut them in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, and place on the cutting board.
2 - Then place "cut limiters" (such as chopsticks) on both sides of the pumpkin to prevent cutting too deep by accident. Using a sharp, wide knife, cut down to the chopsticks at 2 mm intervals, leaving the pumpkin intact at chopstick depth. This creates "fanned" pumpkin slices that you arrange side by side on baking sheets.
3 - Finely slice oranges and tuck about 3-4 slices per half squash into the sliced wedges, evenly spaced. Also, tuck fresh thyme sprigs between the slices.
4 - Crush the spices in a mortar and knead them together with the almonds and some salt with 150-200 g of butter. The amount depends somewhat on the size of the pumpkin - we want to rub the pumpkins completely with the butter, so better too much than too little. Spread the butter by hand on the pumpkin and rub it completely.
5 - Finally, drizzle some maple syrup lengthwise over the top of the pumpkin to add a little sugar kick.
6 - Place the pumpkin in the oven at 180° for 20 - 35 minutes. The cooking time varies slightly depending on the size of the pumpkin. Please keep an eye on the degree of cooking with a fork, nose, and critical eye.
7 - Cut the figs into wedges, crumble the cheese. Both will be decorative on the finished pumpkin later.
SAFFRON SAUCE
8 - The saffron sauce was indeed just awesome. Please note: With saffron, there are different qualities, which is reflected in the taste and of course accordingly in the price. Here in Offenbach, you can find a good selection at any Arabic greengrocer. Feel free to try the most expensive one - it is usually not that expensive, because you only need a little - and it makes a big difference in taste.
9 - Grind the saffron threads (about 0.4 g) with 1 tablespoon sugar in a spice grinder or mortar. Heat 200 g of butter once and let it melt, then remove from heat and only then stir in the saffron.
10 - Then boil about 200 ml of water. Mix 3 tablespoons of rice starch with a little cold water until there are no lumps. Then gradually add the mixture to the boiling water, always bringing it to a boil between portions. Starch does not set until it comes to a boil, so it is important to proceed gradually to achieve the desired consistency. The target consistency is about the same as wall paint.
11 - The "wall paint" is now mixed into the butter to make it slightly lighter in fat content and fluffier. Finally, add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice as well as some salt to taste. The result should be a bright yellow, creamy, and homogeneous sauce that you can pour over the pumpkin. Spectacular. The whole thing is probably also an excellent base for a dessert. That's what we're going to try out.
NOTES
Offenbach meatballs
// aka Köfte
- THE BRETT SESSIONS | VOL.5
- MEATBALLS
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2kg minced meat (real or vegan)
2 large onions, diced
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
250g bulgur
4 eggs
salt
pine nuts
150 g mint, chopped
200 g parsley with stems, finely chopped
5 tablespoons sweet paprika powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tbsp ground allspice
1 tbsp ground pepper
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp. chili flakes
4 tbsp. soy sauce
PREPARATION
1 - Pour 500 ml of hot water or broth over the bulgur, stir and let it swell. Put all the other ingredients in a large bowl, reserving some parsley and mint. Season to taste. Form balls and finish frying in a pan with oil over medium heat.
2 - After frying, pile up on a plate, herbs on top, and serve.
NOTES
Pilaw rice
// Turkish rice with browned risi noodles
For this rice dish, we used some great Turkish rice with browned risi noodles and lots of butter. A classic side dish for kebab on a plate and really very tasty when done well. Served with blanched rapa, wild broccoli. A rather unknown vegetable with a great unique flavor. Actually only available from wholesalers and certain Arab or Turkish greengrocers. Additionally, barberries as a tart highlight, salty pistachios, fried shallots, and finally a fragrant cumin butter on top. Very fine. Here’s how:
- THE BRETT SESSIONS | VOL.5
- „Pilaw RICE"
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500 g rice noodles
Sushi rice
2 medium onions, diced
½ garlic bulb, unpeeled, cloves just pressed with a knife
1-2 liters of water
2 bunches rapa, stems finely sliced, leaves picked off
shallots, cut lengthwise into thin rings
Barberries
cumin butter (cumin + 150-200 g butter)
Pistachios
80 g dill, finely chopped
STEPS
1 - In a large shallow pot, sauté the rice noodles with the diced onion and garlic cloves in a little vegetable oil over medium heat until they turn nice and golden. Meanwhile, wash the sushi rice thoroughly. When the rice noodles are nicely browned, add the drained rice to the pot and sauté a bit more.
2 - Then—like with risotto—gradually add hot water so the rice is always slightly covered. Stir regularly to prevent burning. Cook this way until the rice is delicious. Then add a little salt.
3 - Meanwhile, in another pot, bring water to a boil with plenty of salt and sugar. Have a container of ice water ready nearby to cool the vegetables.
4 - Blanch the rapa stems in batches for about 1.5 minutes in boiling water and immediately cool them down. Then blanch the leaves for about 30 seconds and cool. Keep ready for later.
5 - Deep fry the shallots in hot fat (about 160°) until they are completely brown and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon, spread out on paper towels, and lightly salt.
6 - Roast the pistachios in a dry pan without fat, then add a splash of salted water, toss, and continue roasting until the water evaporates.
7 - Finally, prepare the caraway butter: Melt the butter, briefly crush the caraway seeds in a mortar, then add them to the butter, remove the pot from the heat, and let it steep for 10 minutes. Reserve a little pistachios and barberries.
8 - Combine the cooked rice, rapa, dill, pistachios, and barberries in a large bowl, pour the cumin butter over them, and mix everything thoroughly.
9 - Place everything on a suitable platter or in a bowl and pile it up nice and high. On top, add the fried onions and the remaining pistachios and barberries.
NOTES
