Tomato Tarte Tatin

One of my absolute favourites! Eat it straight out of the oven ;)

Tomato Tarte Tatin

Ingredients:
60 g butter
60 ml (¼ cup) Huletts Caramel Sugar
5 ml (1 t) dried chilli flakes
350 g baby tomatoes
salt and black pepper, to taste
400 g ready-made puff pastry, defrosted
1 extra large egg, beaten
fresh basil leaves, to garnish

Method:
Melt the butter in an ovenproof pan (about 28cm diameter) over low heat.
Add the Huletts Caramel Sugar and chilli flakes, mix well.
Add baby tomatoes and sauté until tomatoes are just soft, ± 5 minutes.
Remove tomatoes from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Reduce the syrup in the pan until slightly caramelized.
Return the tomatoes to the pan and spread to cover the base. Add salt and pepper to taste and set aside to cool completely.
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface large enough to cover the top of the pan (28 cm diameter).
Drape the pastry over the tomatoes and tuck in the edges.
Brush the pastry with the beaten egg.
Bake the tarte tatin for 20 – 30 minutes until golden brown and puffed.
To serve, invert the pan onto a serving dish and garnish with fresh basil.

Hint: The tarte tatin is best served freshly baked as a starter or a side dish to your main course.

Mushroom Sosatis

I just love mushrooms! They are fabulous fresh in salads, fried with garlic and butter or as kebabs (or sosatis). The perfect vegetarian braai option or a delicious side to any grilled meat.

Mushroom Sosatis
Serves 4 as a side

Ingredients
8 sosati sticks
± 400g mixed mushrooms (shitake, big brown, portabelinni etc)
100g butter
1 T garlic, crushed
Pinch of salt
1 cup (chopped & loosely packed) mixed herbs (sage, rosemary, thyme, parsley, fennel etc)
Truffle oil for serving

Method
Soak the sosati sticks in water for at least 10 minutes (to prevent them from burning on the while cooking).
Cut the large mushrooms into halves or quarters so that all the mushrooms are more or less the same size.
String the mushrooms onto the soaked sosati sticks.
Heat your griddle pan or get your fire ready.
Melt the butter in a pot. Add the garlic and salt and fry for a minute. Add the herbs and fry for another minute.
Place the sosoatis on the grill or fire and brush with the melted herb butter while cooking, turning regularly.
Once the mushrooms are cooked (soft and juicy), serve immediately drizzled with truffle oil.
Tip: The mushrooms shrink quite a bit during cooking, so 2 kebabs per person won’t be too much.