POSH NOSH
Fabulous Food for Family &Friends

 

By Lannice Snyman

 

 

In POSH NOSH, Lannice Snyman’s new book, Lannice invites
you to reunite with the pleasures of the kitchen and the joy of
cooking for family and friends. "A celebration of cooking because",
as she says, "you want to and not because you have to!" 

 

A truly sumptuous book, POSH NOSH has been inspired by Lannice’s family roots, her travels throughout southern Africa and internationally, a rich and colourful life as a well-known restaurateur, restaurant critic, accomplished writer, publisher as well as mother of two lovely daughters; Tamsin and Courtenay, both vital contributors to Snyman Publishing.

 

Cooking, eating, delving for the unique and surprising element, POSH NOSH is a prestigious award winner and a warm, charming book that is gathering accolades!

 

Part of the joy of POSH NOSH is the partnership between wine and food. Dave Swingler, author of Top 100 Wines and a long standing writer for John Platter, steers you towards the best possible pairing of wine and food in each recipe. If you are wanting to start or develop your own wine cellar he will be a helping hand. 

 

Showcook illustrates Lannice’s love of the harvest from the sea.

 

 

 

Marrying into a fishing-mad family and visiting fish markets all over the world - Tokyo, Singapore, New Orleans, Fremantle, Mauritius and Zanzibar - turned me on and tuned me in to the pleasures of catching, cooking (and eating) great seafood. It also resulted in my first cookbook, Free From The Sea, first published in 1979 and still going strong. 

 

 

Smoked Trout Frikkadels with Charred Limes

 

Forget about plain fishcakes. Use smoked trout, give them an Indian zing with masala and fresh coriander, and call them frikkadels. If you can’t find trout, any sort of fish will do, leftover or freshly cooked for the occasion. Serve frikkadels hot or at room temperature but never chilled, as they lose all their flavour.

 

Frikkadels is a lovely old-fashioned word I grew up with. It refers both to fishcakes and meatballs. My mom would make big, fat ones for family dinners, and teeny ones to serve with drinks when friends came around. She would spear them on toothpicks and I always thought they looked extremely smart!

 

Makes about 12; Serves 4 to 6

 

500 g smoked trout fillets
sea salt and milled black pepper
300 g potatoes, peeled and diced
60 ml (4 tablespoons) finely chopped onion
45 ml (3 tablespoons) chopped flat-leaf parsley
5 ml (1 teaspoon) turmeric (borrie)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
small bunch coriander, chopped
5 ml (1 teaspoon) roasted masala (recipe follows)
freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon or lime
vegetable oil 
charred limes, to serve (see posh tip, below) 

 

Tartare Sauce
250 ml (1 cup) mayonnaise
1 hard-boiled egg, finely chopped
10 ml (2 teaspoons) dijon mustard
15 ml (1 tablespoon) drained capers

 

Skin and flake the trout, jettisoning all the bones. Place in a large bowl and season generously with salt and pepper. 

 

Cook the potato in salted boiling water. Drain well. Mash and season with salt and pepper. Mix in the fish, onion, pars­ley, turmeric, egg, coriander and roasted masala, and flavour with lemon or lime juice. Form into patties, and flatten slightly between your palms. 

 

Tartare Sauce Mix the ingredients together in a small bowl.

 

To Serve Fry the frikkadels in hot oil until crisp and well browned. Drain on paper towel. Serve with tartare sauce and char-grilled limes for squeezing.

 

Make ahead Frikkadels should be fried just before serving, but the mixture may be refrigerated for a day. Charred limes and tartare sauce are fine for an hour or two.

 

Posh Tip Charred limes are fabulous with seafood. Cut a couple of limes in half, brush generously with olive oil and grill in a heavy frying pan until lightly charred and smoky.

 

Posh Quaffing The compendium of flavours in this medley directs vinous fare with attitude. Blanc fumé (oaked sauvignon blanc) delivers. The grassy fruit spikes the smoky, oil-rich trout, counters the masala and its wood vanillins spar with the charred limes. Steely riesling blends initially support the plate but flag, and reds turn metallic.

 

Chilli-Zapped Fish with an Eastern Twist

 

 

This seductive fish dish with an oriental attitude has shredded vegetables to add colour and crunch. Any fresh fish may be used, including red steenbras, stumpnose, geelbek, kob, dageraad – even ordinary old hake or hottentot (hotnotsvis), if there aren’t any more exotic types on offer. 

 

Serve hot from the oven or cooled to room temperature. Choose your fish with care; a life-time of catching, cooking and feasting on the freshest of Neptune’s bounty has taught me that less-than-perfect seafood should be given the short shrift it deserves.

 

 

 

 

Serves 4

 

2 whole fish fillets, trimmed and skinned (about 800g in total)
sea salt and milled black pepper
30 ml (2 tablespoons) medium dry sherry
30 ml (2 tablespoons) soy sauce
15 ml (1 tablespoon) ketjap manis (sweet soy sauce)
5 ml (1 teaspoon) sesame oil
1 red or green chilli, seeded and very finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped 
4 thin slices fresh ginger, finely shredded
250 g vegetables cut into fine threads (red or yellow pepper, mangetout, celery courgettes)

 

Lay the fish fillets in a dish to fit snugly and season lightly with salt and pepper. Mix together the sherry, soy sauce, ketjap manis, sesame oil, chilli, garlic and ginger in a small jug, and pour over the fish. Cover and set aside in a cool spot for an hour to marinate, or refrigerate for a couple of hours if you prefer.

 

Heat the oven to 180ºC. Scatter the vegetables into a casserole; choose one large enough to accommodate the fish in one layer. Lift the fish from the marinade and place on top of the vegetables. Pour the marinade over, cover with foil and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the fish is done, and the flesh is opaque right through. 

 

To Serve Lift the fish fillets from the baking dish and place on a serving platter. Top with the cooked vegetables and pour over the baking liquid.

 

Make Ahead Let the marinating time dictate your timing schedule. It’s surprisingly flexible, and the fish can be set aside to gain flavour for anything from 30 minutes to three hours. 

 

Posh Quaffing ‘Drink what you cook with’ is an old kitchen adage, and sherry promises to meet and match the oriental charm that oozes from this dish. It doesn’t hold up however, and the individual character of the sauce wins through. Support it, and your palate, with draughts of chilled, dry white. Entry-level blends, often sauvignon based, refresh.

Barbecued Linefish with Tomato, Pawpaw and Caper Salsa

 

Use any linefish you fancy but the cooking method (barbecued or grilling) is simple, so fresh fish is infinitely preferable to frozen. My favourites for this recipe include red or white steenbras, geelbek and kob. Even gamefish like yellowtail and tuna would be good. Have fun with the salsa: add shredded chilli or loads of chopped flat-leaf parsley; use avocado or sweet melon instead of pawpaw; replace the coriander with rocket.

 

 

Serves 4

 

4 fillets fresh linefish (skin on), each about 200g 
sea salt and milled black pepper
6 bay leaves, lightly crushed
60 ml (4 tablespoons) olive oil
freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon or lime
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

 

Tomato, Pawpaw and Caper Salsa
200 g cocktail tomatoes, quartered
1 small pawpaw, skinned and cut into small cubes
small bunch coriander, chopped
45 ml (3 tablespoons) drained capers
45 ml (3 tablespoons) olive oil
freshly squeezed juice of 2 limes or 1 large lemon

 

Place the fish fillets in a dish to fit snugly, and season with salt and pepper. Scatter over the bay leaves. Mix together the olive oil, lemon or lime juice and garlic, and pour over. Cover and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours to marinate. Turn the fish occasionally so that it flavours evenly.

 

Tomato, Pawpaw and Caper Salsa Mix the tomatoes, pawpaw, coriander and capers together in a bowl. Drizzle over the olive oil and flavour the salsa with lime or lemon juice, salt and pepper. Toss everything together gently.

 

Just before serving, lift the fish from the marinade and barbecue skin-down, over medium-hot coals until gloriously browned. Then turn and cook skin-down until done. If grilling the fish, place on a foil-lined tray. Grill close to a hot oven grill until done right through – this will take 7 and 10 minutes, depending upon the thickness and texture of the fish. There’s no need to turn it while cooking. Take care you don’t overcook the fish and dry it out. Test for doneness by parting the flesh with two forks and taking a peek; it should be opaque right through.

 

To Serve Place the fish on warm plates and spoon a little salsa on top or alongside.

 

Make Ahead The marinade is so gentle that the fish won’t mind languishing in it for up to eight hours in the fridge. Salsa will be fine in the fridge for about four hours; longer than that and it gets limp and soggy.

 

Posh Tip Linefish refers to pelagic fish living in the open sea, usually near the surface, which are caught on a line (hand-line or fishing rod) and not by other methods, such as trawling, when nets are involved.

 

Posh Quaffing Despite headline status, fish is not this plate’s signal flavour – that comes from the electric salsa. No matter, as the best culinary match is with sauvignon blanc: it partners the heady accompaniment as well as it does the linefish. Sauvignon blends with chardonnay add a little extra, the latter being comfortably at home with capers.

Feast on char-grilled crayfish with roasted tomatoes and peppers		"Crayfish (officially called rock lobsters) are visually challenged, not in your wildest dreams could you call them pretty," says Lannice.
Wonderfully sociable, dunk your crayfish in the dressing and eat the crayfish with you fingers!		An extrovert dish with a riot of colour and taste!

Char-Grilled Crayfish with Roasted Tomatoes and Peppers

 

 

Crayfish (officially called rock lobsters) are a sought-after form of edible underwater life, despite the fact that they’re visually challenged (not in your wildest dreams would you call them pretty). Then again, some of our most inspired edibles come in forms that probably terrified those intrepid forebears who first shut their eyes, cooked them, loved them and changed the course of culinary history forever.

 

This is an extrovert dish with a riot of colour and taste. And wonderfully sociable, thanks to the dressing in which to dunk your crayfish if you feel like eating with your fingers. Crusty peasant bread on the side is a good idea. Grilled crayfish has a powerful flavour and enjoys a flavour-zapped accompaniment such as these roasted tomatoes and peppers. 

 

Serves 4

 

4-8 crayfish tails (depending on size)
olive oil 
sea salt and milled black pepper
roasted tomatoes and peppers, to serve (recipe follows)

 

Basil and Chilli Dressing
10 large basil leaves
1 chilli, sliced in half and seeded
2 garlic cloves, peeled
60 ml (4 tablespoons) olive oil
freshly squeezed juice of 1 lime
50 g butter, cut into small chunks

 

Cut the crayfish shells through the back, so they hinge at the belly. Devein, rinse well and pat dry. Place flesh-up in a flat dish, drizzle liberally with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

 

Basil and Chilli Dressing Pound together the basil leaves, chilli, garlic, olive oil and lime juice in a pestle and mortar or with a food processor. Pour over the crayfish and place in the fridge to marinate. The time depends entirely on your schedule; anything from 30 minutes to several hours will be fine. 

 

Drain the crayfish and scrape the dressing into a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil and finish the sauce off by whisking in the butter bit by bit. Season with salt and pepper.

 

Meanwhile, heat a ridged grill-pan and char the crayfish until it’s cooked, turning occasionally and brushing with olive oil from time to time. This will take between 6 and 8 minutes, depending on the size of the tails. Better still, barbecue the crayfish on a grid over medium-hot coals.

 

To Serve Arrange the crayfish on warm plates. Drizzle over the hot dressing and spoon roasted tomatoes and peppers alongside. 

 

Make Ahead  Once the crayfish is marinating in the fridge, the hard part is over. All you need to do is cook them and finish the sauce. Roasted tomatoes and peppers are happily served hot from the oven or cooled to room temperature, so they aren’t a problem either.

 

Posh Tip Crayfish tails freeze more successfully than the whole creature, so don’t hesitate to use them in this recipe if you can’t ferret out fresh ones.

 

Posh Quaffing No, not even full-frontal chardonnay is enough here. The power of grilled crayfish, an emphatic marinade and dressing and singular sides call for a little more. Semillon, underrated and unfashionable, brings complex candle-wax breadth to ‘The Big C’ in a blend. Although you’ll seldom find the ‘S’ word on a dry white blend label, grill your retailer.

 

Roasted Tomatoes and Peppers 

Serves 4

 

2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into quarters
2 red or yellow peppers, cored and cut into quarters
6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
60 ml (4 tablespoons) olive oil
sea salt and milled black pepper
12 basil leaves, roughly torn

 

Set the oven at 200ºC. Arrange the tomatoes and peppers in a roasting dish to fit them snugly in a single layer. Scatter over the garlic, drizzle with olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. 

 

Place in the oven, switch on the grill and grill the vegetables for about 10 minutes until tender and slightly charred.

 

Scatter over the basil and serve the vegetables straight from the roasted, or arrange on a serving dish. Serve warm or at room temperature.

 For further information contact: LANNICE SNYMAN PUBLISHERS
P.O. Box 26344, Hout Bay, 7872
Tel: +27 (21) 790-3367 Fax: +27 (21) 790-1055
E-mail: lannice@lannicesnyman.com 
Website: www.lannicesnyman.com
Orders: Fax +27 (21) 790-1055 or courtenay@lannicesnyman.com