How do you re-create a restaurant dish?

Have you ever wanted to re-create a restaurant dish at home? I do all the time and sometimes I even manage to do it. In December of last year, I had to travel to Dublin by car. Mr T came with me and we stopped on the way to have a snack to break up the journey.

I wasn’t particularly hungry so ordered a starter of whipped Ardsallagh goats cheese with hazelnut, orange and candy beetroot and salad leaves.

The dish came without bread or crackers and I asked for bread. I was given brown bread and have to say that it didn’t match the dish. There was nothing wrong with the dish per se but I thought it could be better.

Firstly, I thought, the hazelnuts could have been caramelised to add a bit of texture. I couldn’t taste any orange but the beetroot added a nice earthiness to the tanginess of the cheese.

My version was slightly difference but in my humble opinion much better. Instead of just hazelnuts, I made a savoury granola, when that was cooled, I added the zest of an orange. I then took yellow and red beetroot, cooked it until just done, then cut it into rounds and caramelised them in a bit of orange oil.

Then I whipped up the goats cheese, arranged the slices of beetroot on a plate, piped the goats cheese on top and scattered the granola over. I didn’t have salad leaves but we had kale which I deep-fried.

The result was a combination of sweet, tangy and earthyness and it was delicious (yes, I am boasting here).

I had lovely crackers from the English Market which completed the dish perfectly. Goats cheese, orange and hazelnuts is a great combination and with the addition of beetroot, creates a wonderful synergy of flavours.

There have been several dishes over the years that I re-created at home without actually having the recipe. Some worked out great while others have been pushed into the dark depths of my memory, never to be talked about again!

I once visited a lovely but expensive restaurant in London and had a lovely dessert of fried spiced pineapple. Although pineapple isn’t my favourite fruit to begin with, I was sceptical but to my surprise, the fried pineapple slices were drizzled with a chilli syrup and served with coconut ice cream – the sweet but spicy syrup took the sting out of the pineapple while the coconut ice cream took the sting out of the chilli.

Over the years, I have made this dish many times and still like it. Now, you might ask about the failures as well – there were a few.

In particular, there was one dish that went terribly wrong. To my defence, I worked on a cooker and oven I wasn’t used to.

It was a French pastry dish of fried puff pastry. I only re-create dishes I think I understand – this is the only way if you don’t have the recipe. And I thought I did understand the dish but it just proved that I have limits.

I’ve never been back to the restaurant and have never tried the dish again. Let’s leave it at the bottom of my dark soul!