Delicious UK - (03)March 2020

THENIBBLES
Alex’sparmaham,
tomato&basilsticks
withchestnutpesto
MAKES 12 (SERVES 6). HANDSON TIME 15 MIN

Theseprettylittleparcels
canbepreparedwellinadvance.
Mybeautifulbasilandchestnut
pestoisglorious...Serveitwith
radishesfora crispcontrast to
the ham and tomatoes.

MAKE

AHEAD

Assemblethesticksupto 4
hoursahead,thencoverand
chilluntilneeded.Makethe
pestoupto3 daysahead,putina jar
andpourovera thinlayerofoliveoil
topreventit goingbrown.Chill.

ALEX’S

TIP

Putthehaminthefreezer
for 15 minutesbeforeyou
begin.Theslicescanbe
fiendishlydifficulttoseparate– it’s
easier when they’re cold and firm.

• 6 slicesparmaham


• 12sun-driedorsunblush
  tomatoesinoil


• 12verylargeor 24 smallerbasil
  leaves,plusextratoserve


• 12 small radishes

FORTHECHESTNUTPESTO

• 50gbasil(leavesandstalks)


• 1 fatgarlicclove,finelychopped


• 45gvacuum-packedcooked
  chestnuts,finelychopped(we
  usedMerchantGourmet)


• 30gparmesan,freshlygrated


• 5-7tbspextra-virginoliveoil,
  plus a little for drizzling

YOU’LLALSONEED...

• 12smallskewers/cocktailsticks;
  a mini blender or food processor

1 Layeachsliceofhamona board

andcutinhalflengthways.Seta

sun-dried/sunblushtomatoatthe

bottomofeachhalf-slice,topwith

1 or2 basilleaves,thenrolltheham

aroundthem,leavinga littleofeach

pokingoutthesidessothey’re

visible.Secureeachparcelwith

a skewerandsetasideuntilready

toserve(seeMakeAhead).

2 Forthechestnutpesto,bringa

largepanofsaltedwatertotheboil

andseta largebowlofcoldwater

tooneside.Slicethethickbasil

stalksbutleavetheleaveswhole.

Addthestalksandchoppedgarlic

totheboilingwaterfor1 minute,

thenaddtheleavesfor 30 seconds

more.Drainthrougha sieveorfine

colander,thenplungethebasiland

garlicintothecoldwater.Leave for

1 minute,thendrainagain.

3 Transferthebasilandgarlicto

thebowlofa smallblenderor

foodprocessorwiththechestnuts,

parmesanand5 tbspextra-virgin

oliveoil.Blendtoa coarsepurée,

addingmoreoliveoilif neededto

helpthemixtureblend.Season

totastewithsaltand pepper (see

MakeAhead).

4 Toserve,arrangetheparmaham

sticksona platter,thenspoonthe

pestointoa servingdishandset

ontheplatterwiththeradishes

alongsidefordipping.

PERSERVING171kcals,14.8gfat

(3.1gsaturated),5.7gprotein,

3.5gcarbs(0.9g sugars), 0.7g salt,

0.6gfibre

Alex’sparmesantuiles

MAKES 12 TOSERVE6 (PLUS1 OR2 FOR

THE CHEF). HANDSON TIME 20 MIN

I firstcameacrossthisidea

whenI dida stintwiththe

wonderfulchefNadiaSantini

intheearlyNineties.Her

motherwouldmakethetuiles

ina fryingpantoorder.Such

a simpleideabutsoclever.I’ve

been making them ever since.

MAKE

AHEAD

Makethetuilesupto2 days

aheadandkeepinan

airtight container.

ALEX’S

TIP

Usegood-qualityparmesan

(thetuileswon’twork

withthepre-gratedstuff).

Thecheeseisbestblendedtofine

crumbsina foodprocessorrather

thangrated.Workinbatchesof

5-6tuilesata timesoyoucanget

thehangofshapingthemwithout

puttingyourself under too much

pressure.

• 120gparmesan,freshly grated/
  processed(seetip)


• 2 tsp nigella seeds

YOU’LLALSONEED...

• 6cmroundpastrycutter;baking
  sheetlinedwithBac-O-Glide;
  palette knife

1 Heattheovento200°C/180°Cfan/

gas6.Settheovenshelfinthe

uppermiddlepartoftheoven.

2 Puta 6cmpastrycutterontothe

linedbakingsheettouseasa guide,

thensprinkle1 heapedtablespoon

ofparmesanintothecutter.Flatten

thecheeseintoa circle,then

removethecutter.Repeatateven

intervalsoverthesheet,leaving

enoughspacebetweenthecircles

forthecheesetomelt.Sprinklea

dozenorsonigellaseedsoverhalf

thetuiles(leavetherestplain).

3 Bakefor6-8minutes,depending

ontheageofthecheese,untilthe

tuilesarelightlybrownedandlook

dry(iftheyare moist, they won’t

harden).

4 Whilethetuilesarebaking,geta

paletteknifeanda rolling pin ready

toshapethem.

5 Takethetuilesoutoftheovenand

letthemcoolandhardenvery

slightlyfor5-10seconds.Lifteach

tuileoffthetraywiththepalette

knifeanddrapeit overtherolling

pinfora fewminutestocool

completely.Serveona platterwith

theparmahamsticksandpesto.

Thetuilesaredelicateand

irresistible,sotrynottobreakor

eatthemallbeforetheguestscome.

PERSERVING91kcals,6.7gfat

(4gsaturated),7.4gprotein,

0.2gcarbs(0.2g sugars), 0.3g salt,

no fibre 

SUSYATKINS’

WINEPICKS

Crackopen

a crisp,spring-

likeProvence

roséwithAlex’s

parmaham

sticks.Happily,

bothPeter’s

starterand

Georgina’s

porksuitan

appleychenin

blanc– ideally

a premium

SouthAfrican.

WithChetna’s

dessert,treat

everyonetoa sip

ofsweet,golden

French muscat.

deliciousmagazine.co.uk 39

what’s good now.