Radicchio in Saor, home-made Pumpkin Ravioli and Rooibois Crème Brûlée
I promise, doing your own Crème Brûlée is easier than it looks, and all your guests will be so impressed!
On this week’s table, we have a seasonal menu inspired by my roots – well, two thirds of it at least:
Radicchio in Saor
The starter, which actually works even better as a palate cleanser after the reachness of the ravioli, is a homage to my region: a typical Venetian Saor (literally meaning flavour) – which consists of pickled onions gently cooked with sugar and vinegar generously scattered on top of your main ingredient – traditionally sardines or prawns, but works a treat on any vegetables, from pumpkin to Radicchio, like in this case. I chose the Treviso variety, which is grown a mere 30km from my home-town (if you manage to find the curly type, even better!), but it would work with endives as well. The preparation is super simple but it must be done the day ahead, and in fact I find it works even better if you let it sit in the fridge for a couple of days, allowing the flavours to meld.
Pumpkin Ravioli with Guanciale, brown butter and hazelnuts
I am not going to sit here and pretend that making your own egg pasta (and in particular, filled pasta) is the easiest, most effortless of endeavours. BUT, I would also argue it’s not as difficult as you might think, and few things will fill you with a similar sense of satisfaction and achievement as biting into your very own Raviolo. You do need to be armed with time, patience and a pasta rolling machine (either an old-school manual one or the Kitchen Aid attachment, unless you are a pro at hand rolling). Or, you could get store-bought pumpkin ravioli (no judgment here!) and follow the sauce part of the recipe!
Rooibois Vanilla Earl Grey infused Crème Brûlée
This was my very first time making Crème Brûlée, and I found it much easier than I thought it would be. The ingredients are so simple, it takes no time at all to put together, although you need to keep a watchful eye on your oven. You will also need a little culinary blow torch, I got mine on Amazon for £30. I infused mine with Rooibois Vanilla Earl Grey Tea from Avantcha but you can have it plain, or get experimenting with different teas and flavours!
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Radicchio di Treviso in Saor
Serves: 4 as a starter
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
2 heads of radicchio di Treviso, quartered
3 tbsp olive oil
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp raisins
1 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
Salt and pepper, to taste
Method
Using a griddled pan, sear the radicchio quarters until slightly wilted and browned on the edges. Remove and set aside.
Heat the remaining olive oil in a pan. Add the sliced onion and cook over low heat until soft and caramelized (about 10 minutes), taking care it doesn’t burn. Stir in the vinegar, sugar, and raisins. Season with salt and pepper and cook for another 2–3 minutes.
Arrange the radicchio on a serving platter and spoon the saor mixture over the top. Sprinkle with toasted pine nuts. Keep in the fridge overnight and serve at room temperature.