Mischa de Winter, Author at Amsterdam Flavours

Celeriac Soup

Serves 6

Ingredients
100 g walnuts
3 tablespoons butter
3 leeks, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves
6 medium eating apples peeled, cored and roughly chopped
120 g cashew nuts
4 stalks of celery, sliced, use the leaves as a garnish
2 litres chicken stock or vegetable stock
1 small celeriac - about 250g peeled and roughly chopped
1 small bunch freshly chopped parsley

Method
Toast the walnuts in a large saucepan and then set aside.

Heat the butter in the pan on a medium heat then add the leeks and celery and let sweat for 8 minutes until soft on a medium heat.

Add garlic, thyme and apples and sweat for a further 5 minutes. Add the chopped celeriac and the hot stock, bring to the boil and then simmer on medium heat for 12 – 15 minutes until the celeriac is tender. Take off the heat.

Add the cashew nuts, most of the parsley and the sea salt and pepper. Blend the soup, in batches, then return to the pan on a low simmer. Season with salt and pepper and serve with the toasted walnuts, chopped fresh parsley and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours

by Mischa de Winter

Gin & Tonic

Gin & Tonic is one of the hippest drinks at the moment and certainly is well paired with good weather. Here's a definitive guide to making the perfect G&T.

Use a gin of your choice, as everyone has their favourite brand. Also use the finest chilled organic tonic water (our favourite is by FeverTree and using the 200ml bottles means it is always fresh).

You'll need:
Fresh green lime
A sharp knife
Chopping board
Bottle opener
Long spoon

Start by rolling the lime on a chopping board with the palm of your hand. What this does is massage the fruit to get the juices flowing. You'll be able to get a higher yield of juice from each wedge. Now you're ready to cut your lime into wedges. To do this, don't cut it in half from head to tail but through the circumference of the fruit, then, whilst resting the flat area on the board, cut the two halves into four wedges (cut across the segments). You should end up with eight perfectly formed wedges which are juicy and will add aroma and flavour. If you don't happen to use up all your lime wedges in one go, place them in a sealable container and pop them into the freezer. This way they are ready to be used next time as lime flavoured ice cubes.

Next take one of your lime wedges and between thumb and forefinger, squeeze into the bottom of the highball glass, then drop in the wedge. Take your favourite bottle of gin (if you're lucky enough to have a barman's pourer in your bottle then turn it upside down over the glass and count to five. This should give you a double measure 50ml). If you don't have a pourer then you could use the cap. This measures 15 ml - measure out 3 of these add one last splash for good luck.

Next, fill the glass to the top with ice then stir for a few seconds with the long spoon. Open your chilled bottle of tonic water just before you need it so it's lively, then pour 100ml over the ice. Let the bubbles settle then stir for a couple of seconds to mix the drink and create a consistent flavour. If needed, add more ice cubes to bring the water line to around 1 cm from the top of the glass (not more tonic) then add a second lime wedge (not squeezed) perfectly positioned on the top of your drink to add aroma and visual appeal, but little extra flavour. Now sit back, relax and sip away!

Note: You can also mix the flavours up by introducing spices like pink peppercorns, cloves, fruit such as orange or blueberries.

by Mischa de Winter

Bilder & de Clercq's New Recipes Week 15 - 2015

As you may know by now, we are the chefs behind Amsterdam hotspot, Bilder & de Clercq. Every week we develop 3 new recipes for the stores and we'll be keeping you updated with the week's newest recipes. This weeks new recipes are:

by Mischa de Winter

Easter Lamb

Ingredients
1 de-boned shoulder of lamb about 1 ½ - 2 kg
salt and pepper
fresh oregano or fresh rosemary
small bunch of flat leaf parsley
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves of garlic

Sauce
200 ml white wine
1 bunch of tarragon
2 shallots, finely chopped
400 ml lamb or veal stock

Method
Pre-heat the oven to 160° C.

Make a paste from the herbs using the rosemary or oregano, parsley, garlic and the olive oil by mashing up in a pestle and mortar. Rub on the inside of the shoulder. Take a length of kitchen string and tie up the meat into a tidy roll. Season with salt, pepper.

Heat a heavy casserole with some olive oil over a high heat and brown the lamb on all sides. Place a lid on the casserole and roast for a about 60 minutes.

Remove from the oven and leave to stand for a further 20 minutes in a warm place.

Pour of the excess fat and add a little stock to the pan, bring to the boil and reserve for the sauce.

To make the sauce, ,blanch the tarragon in boiling water for 10 seconds, then plunge into cold water. Dry off, remove the leaves from the stalks and chop finely. Reserve to add to the sauce later.

Place the stalks in a pan with the white wine and shallot, bring to the boil and reduce by half. Add the lamb or veal stock and simmer gently until reduced by a quarter. Add the cooking juices from the lamb and the tarragon, just before serving. Season, if necessary with salt and pepper.

Braised Greens
2 heads of Swiss chard or Cavalo Nero
4 tablespoons olive oil
6 anchovy fillets, chopped
50g raisins soaked in a little brandy or hot water
2 tablespoons toasted nigella seeds (black onion) or pine nuts

Method
Wash the vegetables well in cold water and remove any though stalks.

Blanch the vegetables for a few minutes in boiling salted water and drain well.

Heat the olive oil in a pan add the chopped anchovies, toss in the vegetables and heat through; add the raisins, the seeds or nuts. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

by Mischa de Winter

Bilder & de Clercq's New Recipes Week 14 - 2015

by Mischa de Winter

Lamb Racks with Chimichurri

Serves 6

Ingredients
50 ml soy sauce
50 ml sunflower oil
3 tablespoons sherry
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 racks lamb chops, french trimmed
4 tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted
2 tablespoons Szechuan peppercorns, toasted
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted
1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes (optional)

Coriander Chimichurri
1 cup coriander leaves
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1/2 lime, juiced
2 tablespoons fresh jalapeño or green chilli, chopped
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
80 ml olive oil

Method
Begin with the coriander chimichurri. Blend all ingredients without the oil. Then drizzle in oil with the machine running. Season to taste with salt.

Mix soy sauce, oil, sherry, and garlic together. Cut lamb into 6 equal pieces and marinate for 6 to 8 hours. Grind cumin seeds, peppercorns, and coriander seeds. Mix with salt and chili and sprinkle liberally over lamb. Heat a grill pan over medium heat and grill until rose inside. Let rest about 5 minutes, then slice each piece in half. Serve with the coriander chimichurri.

by Mischa de Winter

Bilder & de Clercq's New Recipes Week 13 - 2015

by Mischa de Winter

Banana Cake

This cake is the perfect think to make when you have some bananas from the past week which are bit over-ripe. Not only will you be using them up and not wasting anything, but your friends and family will love you for doing so.

Serves 8-10

Ingredients
125 g butter, softened
45 g brown sugar
220 gr castor sugar
3 eggs
300 g plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
180 g sour cream
1 cup roughly mashed ripe banana
caramel sauce

Method
Preheat the oven to 180° C. Place the butter, caster sugar and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until light and creamy.

Gradually add the eggs and beat well. Sift the flour and baking powder over the mixture. Add the cinnamon, sour cream and banana and stir to combine.

Spoon the mixture into a greased loaf tin. Bake for about 40 - 50 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Cool on a wire rack.

Make the caramel sauce, according to the recipe given. Serve warm drizzled over the cake.

by Mischa de Winter