PAELLA A LA MAESTRE by Miguel Maestre
Serves: 4 generously
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
1 tablespoon olive oil
400g Calasparra rice
500g mussels, cleaned
2 king prawns
1 blue swimmer crab, cleaned, quartered
4 baby calamari hoods, cleaned
4 yabbies
2L fish or chicken stock
salt and pepper
200g fresh or frozen peas
2 lemons, halved
2 limes, halved
chopped parsley, to garnish
sofrito
150ml olive oil
15ml sherry vinegar
3 large ripe oxheart tomatoes
½ chorizo sausage
3 pink eschallots, peeled
4 cloves garlic, peeled
4 piquillo peppers
½ bunch thyme, leaves only
½ bunch mint
½ bunch parsley
½ bunch coriander
1 bunch chives
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon spicy paprika
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
To make sofrito, place all ingredients in a food processor. Process until smooth.
Heat oil in a large paella pan. Add rice. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes or until it changes colour from white to transparent.
Stir in 12 large tablespoons of the sofrito. Cook for 3 minutes. Add seafood and stock. Season. Cook, over medium heat, without stirring, for about 25 minutes or until stock has been absorbed and rice is almost tender. Reduce heat to low and cook for a further 3 minutes to form a nice ‘soccarrada’ or crust on the bottom. If hob plate is not as big as pan, move pan around a little during cooking to ensure even heat. Add peas and remove from heat.
Stand, covered with a tea towel, for 5 minutes. Squeeze over lemons and limes and season. Garnish with parsley. Serve paella warm, not steaming hot.
CHURROS CON CHOCOLATE by Miguel Maestre
Serves: 4–6
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
250ml milk
1 teaspoon caster sugar
100g unsalted butter, chopped
2 vanilla beans, split, seeds scraped out
115g plain flour
3 egg yolks
vegetable oil, for deep frying
caster sugar, to dust
chocolate sauce
250ml condensed milk
200g dark eating chocolate, chopped
splash milk
splash rum
To make chocolate sauce, stir condensed milk in a small saucepan, over medium heat until hot. Add chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Whisk in milk and rum. Remove from heat. Cover to keep warm.
Bring milk, sugar, butter and vanilla beans and seeds to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat.
Sift in flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until combined and dough comes away from side of pan. Remove from heat. Stand, covered with plastic wrap, for 10 minutes.
Beat in egg yolks with woden spoon, one at a time.
Spoon dough into a piping bag fitted with a 2cm star nozzle.
Heat oil to 180°C (350°F) (when a cube of bread turns golden brown, oil is hot enough). Pipe 5cm lengths into oil, cutting off the dough with a sharp knife.
Deep fry churros until golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper.
Dust with caster sugar. Serve with chocolate sauce.
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