The Hambrough at Home in November

Dig in, because this is the latest slice of cookery pie from our fancy friends at The Hambrough. Yes, The Hambrough – the Ventnor restaurant with 5 AA stars, and rather lovely accommodation. Last month, we showed you how to make Lemon and poppy seed cake, honeycomb, fresh strawberries and lavender ice cream. This month, we’re expanding our minds (and our waistbands) even further with some more tasty treats. On the smorgasboard for November we have:

• Great tips on presenting food from Head Chef Darren Beevers.
• A round-up of the best seasonal ingredients.
• Another amazing recipe for you to try at home.

Enjoy…

Bite-sized tips from top chef Darren Beevers

1. How can I make a bowl of pasta look more interesting (I usually just grate cheese on top)? 
Add different herbs (picked not dried). This will also give the whole dish more freshness.

2. How can I make my boring meals look more inviting?
Use natural colourful ingredients such as beetroot or carrot. I always use three colours in my dishes to brighten them up and make them look more exciting.

3. What can I add to a salad to make it look appealing?
Use different types of salad leaves and cut them into different sizes and shapes to give the final salad more volume. I would also use something like radicchios or puntarella (early winter chicory).

4. Can you think of an easy hors d’oeurve that will wow my guests?
I am a big sucker for miniature things, so easy hors d’oeurves would be mini sausage rolls or burgers. Or I would probably go Italian style with pickled artichokes, cured meats, roasted courgettes or sundried tomatoes.

My top three November ingredients by The Hambrough’s Darren Beevers

1. Jerusalem artichokes: knobbly and nutty, these are a great alternative to potatoes. Boiled, mashed, roasted or pureed to a soup, these winter favourites work with most meat and fish.
2. Winter truffles: a super luxury, taste and smell sensation. Add to soups, sauces and pasta to create truly special food. Truffle oil (pictured here) is a good alternative if you can’t buy fresh truffles.
3. Goose: this is the perfect winter treat. Goose meat is richer and darker than turkey and far superior in taste. Make sure to save the goose fat collected during cooking and reuse it to make the best roast potatoes in the world.

Darren says: “All three of my ingredients combined would create an amazingly luxurious plate of food… make sure you come and see us at The Hambrough over Christmas as I shall be using all these ingredients!”

Recipe of the Month: Blue cheese and white chocolate ganache, walnut frangipan, walnut mousseline, tulle and celery sorbet

Serves 12

Ganache
120g Double cream
120g Philadelphia cheese
120g IOW soft blue cheese
400g White chocolate

Mousseline
100g Walnuts
200g Milk
200g Double cream

Sorbet
300g Celery
180g Sugar
180g Water
50g Glucose syrup

Tuille
125g Caster sugar
100g Glucose syrup
12g Butter
100g Walnuts

For the ganache – break the blue cheese into small pieces. Boil the cream cheese and Philadelphia in a pan. Add the chocolate and blend with a stick blender. Leave overnight to set. Using an electric hand whisk, whisk until pale and light. Chill.

For the frangipane – beat the butter and sugar in a machine with a paddle until pale and light. Gradually add the eggs and fold in the flour and ground walnuts. If you don’t have the ground nuts you can blitz them to a powder in a food processor.

For the mousseline – simmer the walnuts in the milk on a low heat for an hour or until the nuts are soft and dark brown. Blend all together in a blender and push through a sieve. When cool, softly whip the cream and fold it through the walnut pure. Chill.

For the sorbet – boil the water, sugar and glucose syrup. Clean the celery. Put all ingredients in the blender and blitz to a puree. Pass through a sieve. Churn in an ice cream machine.

Chef’s tip: If you don’t have an ice cream machine, take a large bowl (glass or metal) and make sure it fits in your freezer. Pour an inch of water in the bottom and freeze overnight. Take a smaller bowl and place it inside the other, on top of the ice (preferably one with allows an inch between the two bowls). Place a tin can or something heavy in the smaller bowl (this should be something that is OK to go in the freezer). Pour water in between the two bowls until it reaches the top. Freeze overnight. Place your ingredients into the “ice bowl”.

For the tuille – mix the sugar, glucose syrup and splash of water in a pan over a medium heat. Cook until it starts to turn yellow (blond caramel). Add the butter and take off the heat. Mix well and stir in the walnuts. Leave to set. When fully set, smash it up with a rolling pin and blend to a powder in a food processor. Sprinkle evenly on a greaseproof lined baking tray. Bake at 180C for approx. 4mins until melted. Place another sheet of paper on top and use a rolling pin to push it evenly over the tray. Leave to set again, and break as required.

To serve
Plate as shown in the photograph.

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We hope you’ll enjoy making this recipe at home. Please email a pic of your dish to and we’ll put the best (and the funniest!) on the website. Next month, we’ll be asking Darren Beevers for a few Christmas tips. If you’ve got any culinary questions that you’d like to put to him, drop us an email at .

In the meantime, check the Hambrough’s website, as they will be offering cookery demos at their restaurant over the next few months.

Buon appetito!

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The Hambrough
Address: Hambrough Rd, Ventnor PO38 1SQ
Tel: 01983 856333
Website