Matt Preston's favourite ways to make the most of autumn fruit
Turkish roast quinces with creme fraiche and halva
For Matt Preston it's no challenge to come up with ways to make the most of autumn fruit, whether it's coaxing out flavour with slow cooking for desserts or livening up salads.
It’s like a MasterChef challenge. I can hear Gary shouting: “Come up with three cool things to do with the best fruit of autumn. Your time starts now.”
Figs
1. Split figs, sprinkle them with caster sugar and lemon zest, and roast them. Serve them with crème fraîche and smashed honeycomb (or Violet Crumble if you want to cheat). Or dredge them with black pepper and serve them with barbecued sausages.
2. Bake a tart with halved fresh figs set cut-side up in golden frangipane. Serve it with sour cream to bring some acidity to this fig party.
3. Cut off the top of the figs, make a cavity with the handle of a wooden spoon and stuff it with white Castello or, if you’re wearing suede loafers with sockettes, use an imported dolcelatte. Bake the figs until they soften and the cheese threatens to bubble out of the top. Serve them with thinly sliced prosciutto and a sense of decadence.
1. Split figs, sprinkle them with caster sugar and lemon zest, and roast them. Serve them with crème fraîche and smashed honeycomb (or Violet Crumble if you want to cheat). Or dredge them with black pepper and serve them with barbecued sausages.
2. Bake a tart with halved fresh figs set cut-side up in golden frangipane. Serve it with sour cream to bring some acidity to this fig party.
3. Cut off the top of the figs, make a cavity with the handle of a wooden spoon and stuff it with white Castello or, if you’re wearing suede loafers with sockettes, use an imported dolcelatte. Bake the figs until they soften and the cheese threatens to bubble out of the top. Serve them with thinly sliced prosciutto and a sense of decadence.
Grapes
1. Roast seedless grapes in a hot oven until they start to shrivel. Toss them with a good pinch of salt and a tablespoon of warm red wine vinegar. Serve them tumbled over roast pork or a wedge of roasted ricotta with a little thyme and some halved fresh grapes.
2. Make a free-form puff tart with seedless grapes on a sheet of frozen puff pastry with slivered almonds, rosemary, slices of brie and a drizzle of honey, leaving a 3cm border around the edge. Bake in a hot (200˚C) oven until the crust is puffed and golden and the filling is bubbling. That’ll take about 30 minutes.
3. Slice a smoked chicken breast and arrange it on a salad of crisp sliced apple dressed in lemon juice, candied walnuts, sliced celery, goat’s cheese and halved seedless green grapes. Dress it with a ranch dressing. Mix sour cream with a dollop of mayo, a good splash of vinegar, heaps of chopped parsley, and a shedload of chives. If it’s too thick add a little milk.
1. Roast seedless grapes in a hot oven until they start to shrivel. Toss them with a good pinch of salt and a tablespoon of warm red wine vinegar. Serve them tumbled over roast pork or a wedge of roasted ricotta with a little thyme and some halved fresh grapes.
2. Make a free-form puff tart with seedless grapes on a sheet of frozen puff pastry with slivered almonds, rosemary, slices of brie and a drizzle of honey, leaving a 3cm border around the edge. Bake in a hot (200˚C) oven until the crust is puffed and golden and the filling is bubbling. That’ll take about 30 minutes.
3. Slice a smoked chicken breast and arrange it on a salad of crisp sliced apple dressed in lemon juice, candied walnuts, sliced celery, goat’s cheese and halved seedless green grapes. Dress it with a ranch dressing. Mix sour cream with a dollop of mayo, a good splash of vinegar, heaps of chopped parsley, and a shedload of chives. If it’s too thick add a little milk.
Kiwi Fruit
1. Mail them back to Auckland and ask them to send more of their delicious flounder and green-lipped mussels.
2. Er…
3. That’s about all you can do with kiwi fruit. And no, placing it on pavlova to echo the green roses on the famous ballerina’s skirt that time she danced in Australia is no reason to use kiwi fruit on your pav. I did once and still regret it.
1. Mail them back to Auckland and ask them to send more of their delicious flounder and green-lipped mussels.
2. Er…
3. That’s about all you can do with kiwi fruit. And no, placing it on pavlova to echo the green roses on the famous ballerina’s skirt that time she danced in Australia is no reason to use kiwi fruit on your pav. I did once and still regret it.
Mandarins
1. Poach peeled mandarin segments in cold-infused black Earl Grey tea with a sprig of thyme. Serve the segments on a just-set, family-sized panna cotta.
2. Muddle loads of mandarin segments with brown sugar, lime juice, a few cardamom pods and a slug of rum to make a mandarin mojito.
3. Candy mandarin slices to pile on our salted chocolate tart.
1. Poach peeled mandarin segments in cold-infused black Earl Grey tea with a sprig of thyme. Serve the segments on a just-set, family-sized panna cotta.
2. Muddle loads of mandarin segments with brown sugar, lime juice, a few cardamom pods and a slug of rum to make a mandarin mojito.
3. Candy mandarin slices to pile on our salted chocolate tart.
Mangoes
1. Make Christine Manfield’s nhoam svay trei ang, which she came across in Cambodia. That’s a palm sugar, king fish and green mango salad to you and me.
2. Make Valli Little’s mangomisu like Aunt Honey did for our Christmas lunch. It’s a cracker.
3. Make Matt Moran’s mango and sour cream cake with passionfruit icing.
1. Make Christine Manfield’s nhoam svay trei ang, which she came across in Cambodia. That’s a palm sugar, king fish and green mango salad to you and me.
2. Make Valli Little’s mangomisu like Aunt Honey did for our Christmas lunch. It’s a cracker.
3. Make Matt Moran’s mango and sour cream cake with passionfruit icing.
Pomegranates
1. Make a syrup with the juice of two pomegranates and half the volume of caster sugar. Simmer it to reduce by half. Season it with lemon juice to cut the sweetness a little and use it on vanilla ice-cream or as a glaze, marinade or dressing for lamb chops or skewers.
2. Load pomegranate gems onto a grain salad (of freekeh, spelt or barley) with toasted pine nuts, chopped dates, crumbled feta, chopped parsley and lots of mint. Serve it with slow-roasted lamb.
3. Roast a spatchcocked chicken that’s been marinated overnight in oil, lemon, garlic and crushed cumin and coriander seeds and serve it with grilled orange segments, pistachios, pomegranate gems and a little flaky salt.
1. Make a syrup with the juice of two pomegranates and half the volume of caster sugar. Simmer it to reduce by half. Season it with lemon juice to cut the sweetness a little and use it on vanilla ice-cream or as a glaze, marinade or dressing for lamb chops or skewers.
2. Load pomegranate gems onto a grain salad (of freekeh, spelt or barley) with toasted pine nuts, chopped dates, crumbled feta, chopped parsley and lots of mint. Serve it with slow-roasted lamb.
3. Roast a spatchcocked chicken that’s been marinated overnight in oil, lemon, garlic and crushed cumin and coriander seeds and serve it with grilled orange segments, pistachios, pomegranate gems and a little flaky salt.
QuincesAll my ideas for quinces start with slow-poached quinces. Cover the peeled cheeks of four quinces in a syrup of 500ml wine and 440g sugar and roast them for four hours in a 140˚ C oven.
1. You could continue to make my Istanbul-inspired poached quinces with halva and crème fraîche that you’ll find on our website (perhaps trying mint instead of rose petals).
2. Make a quince flaugnarde, which is like a clafoutis (Ed note: in English, please) which is like setting the poached quince in pancake batter. (That’s better.)
3. Make a quince tarte Tatin using the quince poaching juices in the caramel.
1. You could continue to make my Istanbul-inspired poached quinces with halva and crème fraîche that you’ll find on our website (perhaps trying mint instead of rose petals).
2. Make a quince flaugnarde, which is like a clafoutis (Ed note: in English, please) which is like setting the poached quince in pancake batter. (That’s better.)
3. Make a quince tarte Tatin using the quince poaching juices in the caramel.
RhubarbStart by roasting rhubarb (it keeps the baton shape better than stewing). Toss rhubarb batons in a mixture of orange juice, honey and vanilla and roast them, covered with foil, at 160˚ C for 20 minutes or until they’re soft.
1. Top a rice pudding with roast rhubarb.
2. Serve it on Greek yoghurt for breakfast.
3. Spritz roast rhubarb with rosewater and use it in a Middle Eastern-style trifle.
1. Top a rice pudding with roast rhubarb.
2. Serve it on Greek yoghurt for breakfast.
3. Spritz roast rhubarb with rosewater and use it in a Middle Eastern-style trifle.
“Time’s up! Step away from your benches!
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