Q&A
AMELIA ROPE INTERVIE W GEMMA BILLINGTON
T I M B O OT H; PAU L W I N C H - F U R N ES S/ PAU LW F.C O.U K
T H E C H O C O L AT I E R A N D P I M L I C O R E S I D E N T O N T H E S W E E T R E T R E AT SHE FOUND IN SW1
LET’S DO BRUNCH
R ECIPE PAU L DA N I E L E xe c u t i v e c h e f, V I L L AG E LO N D O N
A
dam White, managing director and co-founder of restaurant group Village London, which comprises Village East, The Garrison and The Riding House Café, is confirmed as the latest name to join the celebrated chefs and restaurants at Nova, Victoria. The Rail House Café is to be modelled on the all-day dining style of the popular Riding House Café and will have a sizeable outdoor dining area, an upstairs bar and private dining room. Reflecting on his new project, White says, ‘I’ve been interested in this area for many years. In the past, when people thought of Victoria, they thought just of the train station, but there have always been a lot of interesting businesses and plenty of creative people living and working here, and now other amenities are opening, too. Nova, Victoria will be a real neighbourhood hub and I’m proud we’ll be at the heart of it.’ Ahead of the opening later this year, Village London’s executive chef, Paul Daniel, shares a delicious brunch recipe. Essentially an upgraded eggs Benedict, eggs hussarde is served with a rich, red-wine-based sauce, adding a dose of decadence to a particularly lazy Sunday morning. SERVES 4 FOR THE BORDELAISE SAUCE 2 banana shallots, peeled 1 cinnamon stick juice of half an orange 250ml red wine 500ml beef stock
1) Chop the shallots as finely as you can. 2) Add the shallots, cinnamon stick, orange juice and red wine to a saucepan set over a low heat. Reduce until sticky, making sure the mixture doesn’t burn. 3) Add the stock, bring the pan back up to a simmer and reserve until required – this sauce can be made ahead, refrigerated then reheated.
FOR THE HOLLANDAISE SAUCE 200g butter 4 egg yolks a pinch of salt 1 tbsp lemon juice 2 tsp hot water 1) Melt the butter in a saucepan set over a low heat, skim off any white solids from the top and keep warm. Set the buttery pan aside to use again. 2) Set a bowl over another pan of simmering water, ensuring the base remains above the water. Add the egg yolks and whisk for 8–10 minutes or until they are light and fluffy. 3) Turn off the heat and continue to whisk the eggs as you very slowly pour in the melted butter. 4) Continue whisking as you add the salt, lemon juice and hot water. Keep warm – this sauce needs to be used as soon as possible after it is made. FOR THE EGGS HUSSARDE 4 thick slices of white bread 4 thick slices of cooked ham 4 thick slices of beef tomato 200g steamed spinach 8 lightly poached eggs a handful of chopped chives 1) Toast the bread and place a slice on each of four plates. 2) Briefly fry the ham and tomato slices to warm them, then layer a slice of each on the four pieces of toast. 3) Briefly reheat the spinach in the buttery pan before dividing this between the toast, then top each stack with two poached eggs. 4) Spoon a small ladleful of the bordelaise sauce around each stack and one of hollandaise sauce over the top. 5) Sprinkle over some chives and serve immediately.
How long have you been based in the SW1 area? I moved back to Pimlico about three years ago – I’ve lived here on and off since my twenties. I really like this area. It’s often overlooked, viewed as a sort of passing-through place, but it has a phenomenal community and some brilliant shops, and better restaurants are arriving all the time. It’s also so central – I can get to the West End in 10 minutes, which is brilliant. You worked in a number of PA and admin roles before setting up Amelia Rope Chocolate in 2007. How did you make the leap into confectionery? It just sort of happened – I’d never seen myself taking the risk to set up my own business, although I’d always wanted to. The turning point came when I was a practice manager at a doctor’s surgery – a really busy and demanding job. Through work, I had a session with a life coach and discovered, the more I went to see her, the clearer I was becoming about what was important to me and would make me happy. She helped me believe in myself enough to take the leap. So, what is it about chocolate that’s so special? I just love experimenting with it. I started making it at home and really enjoyed it, but lacked confidence – in fact, that was one of the things John Torode and Gregg Wallace said to me when I appeared on Masterchef. Anyway, I sent some samples to national newspapers and magazines and got lucky – they were featured in Stella and then the Daily Mail and the business gathered momentum from there. And what would you say makes your chocolate so special? It’s all about the end note – that’s what I strive for. I aim for it to be clean so you don’t crave more and more, which is what happens with cheap chocolate. I think there are three reasons people like mine: the taste, the end note and the packaging. I think my story inspires people, too, so they buy into the brand. Finally, what creations do you have planned for Easter? In 2015, I made Easter eggs for the first time: mini salted caramel, and lemon and salted caramel in both milk and dark chocolate. That’s what I’m going to be doing again this year. ameliarope.com
T H E S P R I N G/S U M M E R I S S U E
EGGS HUSSARDE