The recipe I’ve chosen is from Leon Book 3 Baking and Puddings. The book is wonderfully put together, broken down into two sections; everyday and celebration. In ‘Everyday’ there are subsections entitled cooking with children and power snacks and under the celebration title there you can browse though Easter, Christmas, Valentines day and even Wakes. There is something for everyone, even the gluten free! All the recipes are relatively easy and once you start reading I don’t think it will take much persuading to get your apron on and start baking!

Leon Chocolate Mousse serves 4 (But I just might have seconds) 

Ingredients.

100g chocolate (70% cocoa solids)

30g unsalted butter

2 free-range egg yolks

3 free range egg whites

1 shot of dark espresso

1 drop orange oil or very finely grated zest of half an orange (optional)

15g fructose (if you don’t have fructose use 20g caster sugar)

Method.

Melt the chocolate and butter until smooth in a large bowl in the microwave, or over a pan of simmering water, making sure the water does not touch the surface of the bowl.

Separately whisk the egg yolks until nearly white and thick in consistency. Gently stir in the whisked yolks into the butter and chocolate, then stir in the coffee and orangey bit, if you are adding it.

Use an electric hand whisk to whip the egg whites to soft peaks, then add the fructose and whisk for just another minute to get that shine.

Beat in a third of the egg white into the chocolate mixture until smooth, then add the next third more gently, and the last third with the strokes of an angel.

Neither over whisk or leave white streaks, then divide the mousse into pretty things and leave in the fridge for an hour.

You can use Cointreau or Grand Marnier instead of orange oil or zest. Or you can leave the orange flavour out all together.

Enjoy!

“JamJar is London’s best kept secret when it comes to flowers. The brainchild of former Take 2 Model Director Melissa Richardson and i-D designer Jocelyn Lloyd, JamJar offers bespoke floral designs in an eclectic choice of beautiful vases and jam jars. Pouring passion and personality back into floristry by the vase-load, Melissa and Jocelyn inject floral fantasticness into London’s leading fashion houses and design agencies on a weekly basis, as well as turning their green fingers to weddings, parties and photoshoots up and down the country.  If you want to join those in the know, pull the thorn from your side, flip over a new leaf and embrace some good old-fashioned flower power.” i-D Magazine,  Summer 2011

Our good friends JamJar flowers have been delivering us beautiful bouquets of flowers every Monday morning for the past year. With each week bringing a different bouquet, from seasonal Peonies, to English Poppies and Amarylis or even Tuscany Roses with flowering Eucalyptus and beautifully styled always in a different jar chosen to suit the flower in question, we couldn’t think of a better way to start a Monday morning.

This year are are teaming up with Jamjar and taking orders for their Valentines bouquets. You can, of course, put your order in directly to them but, if you are in the Shoreditch area, the opportunity is there to pop in to Material, take a look at a few examples jars (on display from this Monday) and choose from the following options…

Jamjar £38

Pickle Jar £45

Kilner Jar £60

Collect in store on Valentines day or, for an additional £15, you can get delivery to any London address on the day. Email us for enquiries or to place an order. You can also place your order online

To find out more abut Jamjar, visit their website

Okay, we all know what day it is today- Tuesday- but, it is also pancake day and, for those of you who treat it like a religious thing, akin to Christmas but better because there is no need for the social anxiety that comes with family gatherings…

I like pancakes, not enough to make them all the time but enough to eat too many of them once a year. With that in mind – here is nice recipe for your basic run of the mill pancake and a selection of fillings (I will almost certainly make and consume all three tonight – I’m not even sorry).

Pancakes:

(serves 4-6)

2 eggs

220ml milk

2 teaspoon caster (superfine) sugar

60g butter, melted, plus extra for greasing

174g of plain (or self raising) flour

4 teaspoons baking powder (if using plain flour)

–

Whisk together the eggs, milk and melted butter in a bowl.

Sift the flour, salt, baking powder and sugar in another bowl.

Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and gently fold it in. Take care not to overmix; in fact there should still be some small bits of flour in the mix… Just a little.

Grease a frying pan or skillet with a little butter and set over medium-high heat,

When the pan is hot, drop about 3 tablespoons for each pancake into the pan, without overcrowding it, and cook until bubbles start to appear on the surface.

Turn the pancakes over and cook for another 30  seconds, until golden.

Turn Transfer to a warm dish and keep warm while you cook the remaining pancakes.

Serve immediately with maple syrup and blueberries or your accompaniments of your choice.

-

I made some pancakes on Sunday as a practise. They were good. I had the fore-mentioned blueberries and maple syrup. They were good however, I am more of a savoury-type person so… I also concocted an oriental-esque prawn, garlic, chilli thing (remember to omit the sugar in this case). They were also good. I later had more pancakes, this time with some raspberry ripple that I found in the freezer – I have never bought raspberry ripple ice cream in my life. I have no idea how it got there – but it was enjoyable. I can’t be bother to make pancakes today…

Recipe taken from “How to boil an egg” by Rose Bakery – it’s a marvelous book about eggs and how to cook them. There is no mention of the classic scene in Cool Hand Luke and the 50 eggs…

Back in 2008 we took ourselves off on a journey to the small town of Chaumont in the Champagne region of France. As much as we did have a bit of a jolly whilst there, our alterior motives for the trip was to visit the 19th Annual International Poster and Graphic Design Festival of Chaumont. 

Feted by Graphic Designers, students and professionals worldwide, the Festival has, over the years, succeeded in carving out a special name for itself on the french and International cultural and artistic scene. With a wealth of organisation, the festival triumphantly brings together panels of discussion, a series of workshops with designers & 

students form the world over, exhibitions , retrospectives and a programme of evening music events . Not to mention a constant flurry of fly posting throughout the town,

Highlights of the year we visited included a retrospective of Joseph Muller-Brockmann curated by Vincent Perrottet and our good friend William Jean (Billy Jean as he is known is some circles), Uncle Toby’s bowling green by Paul Cox and  ’Shouts from Paper’ and exhibition of work produced during and inspired by the 1968 political uprising in Berlin, Vietnam and Paris .

So… the weather has turned and, here at Material, we’re certainly feeling the chill. Now is the time to rustle up something to remind us of warm weather and sunny skies. Fish is the book I’ve chosen to browse as it presents over 200 simple Italian recipes for fish and seafood, culminated from Phaidon’s Silver Spoon cookbook series Perfect for post Christmas warmth with fresh flavours.

There is a wealth of simple yet fertile recipes, think sardines al forno(baked sardines stuffed with breadcrumbs),razza in salsina verde alle erbe (skate with green herb sauce), bucatini al sugo do cozze(bucatini with mussels) and risotto speziato ai gamberetti (spicy shrimp risotto with saffron). Coherently presented within chapters on fish variety ”White Fish,” “Oily Fish,” “Freshwater Fish”, you can be sure to select a little bit of what you fancy.

Spicy Prawn (Shrimp) Risotto serves 4

Preparation Time 15 mins

Cooking Time 23 mins

Ingredients.

1.5 litres fish stock

25g butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 shallot, chopped

320g risotto rice

200ml dry white wine

1/4 red bell pepper, seeded, cut into thin strips

150g shelled peas

pinch of saffron threads, lightly chrushed

1/2 teaspoon paprkia

1/2 teaspoon mild curry powder

150g peeled cooked prawns

salt

Pour the stock into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Melt half the butter with the oil in a flameproof casserole, add the shallot and cook over a low heat, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes, until softened. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, for a few minutes, until all the grains are coated with fat. Add the wine and cook until the alcohol has evaporated. Add a ladleful of the hot stock and cook, stirring, until it has been completely absorbed. Continue adding the stock, a ladleful at a time, and stirring until each addition has been absorbed, about 18-20 minutes. Halfway through the cooking time, add the bell pepper  and peas. Mis the saffron with a little hot stock in a bowl and stir into the rice. Stir in the paprika and curry powder, add the prawns about 5 mins before the end of the cooking time. When the rice is tender and creamy, remove the pan from the heat, stir in the remaining butter, season and serve.

Here at Material, we have been browsing our selection of cookery books here and asked ourselves what we would most like to eat at this time of year. For me, the answer is in fact everything! When winter rolls around the temptation to delve into the pantry and just eat, like continual grazing, is overwhelming. So when I finally surface from my self indulgent – pantry scoffing – hibernation, I decide it’s time to be constructive and actually cook something, from a book, not a packet.

This week’s recipe is from the book ‘The Lebanese Kitchen’ by Salma Hage, a Lebanese housewife who has 50 years experience cooking for a very large family. This is a wonderful book which will undoubtedly inspire greatness from anyone who reads its zig zag pages. The one I have chosen is Lamb Stew With Eggplant (Aubergine) to bring much needed warmth in these chilly months.

Preparing time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 2 hours

Serves 4

Ingredients.

1 large aubergine ,cut into 4cm cubes

4 tablespoons olive oil

1lb /20z/500g lamb, cut into 4 cm cubes

1 tablespoon plain flour

1 onion, sliced

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 teaspoon chopped dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried mint

1 bayleaf

scant half cup (3 1/2 fl oz/100ml) red wine

3 tablespoons tomato paste (puree)

14oz/ 400g chopped tomatoes

1 3/4 cups/ 14fl oz/ 400ml beef stock

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

salt and pepper

For the spice mixture.

2 teaspoons pepper

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

pinch of grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 200 oC/ 400 oF/ gas mark 6. Toss the aubergine cubes with half the oil to coat, then put them onto baking sheet. Roast for 20 mins, then remove from oven and set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 160 oC/ 325 oF/ gas mark 3. Mix together all spices for the spice mixture in a large bowl. Dust the lamb with the flour. Heat half the remaining oil in a large flame proof casserole, add the lamb, in batches if necessary, and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for 8-10 mins until evenly browned.

Remove from casserole and set aside. add the remaining oil to the casserole and heat. Add the onion and cook over a low heat, stirring occasionally, for 7-8 mins until softened and lightly coloured. Add the garlic and herbs and cook for 1 minute, then pour in the red wine and cook for another few minutes. Return the meat to the casserole, stir in the spice mixture, and cook 1-2 mins until the spices release their aroma. Stir in the tomato paste , tomatoes and stock and bring to the boil. Add the aubergine cub, cover the casserole, transfer it to the oven and cook for 2 hours. Remove and discard the bay leaf and taste, adjust the seasoning if necessary.

Stir in chopped parsley and serve.

Enjoy!

Buy the Lebanese kitchen online here and don’t forget to add SANTA DELIVERY at he checkout for free delivery within UK

FAVIKEN, a 12-seater restaurant located in the remote village of Jämtland in north-west Sweden is voted number 34 in the S. Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Awards 2012 and is celebrated for its imaginative use of foraged native produce and its approach to nature. The book by the restaurant’s chef Magnus Nilsson is a very different sort of cookery book. It’s certainly not one to flick through on a Monday night for supper inspiration, it is, however, a joy to read cover to cover, curled up in front of the fire on a Sunday afternoon- a moment when you feel you have all the time in the world.

Understanding is difficult initially, but once you have read the section on “How to use the recipes” it all becomes a little more clear. The recipes are not recipes as such they are more, as Magnus would say “Guidelines“. He wants people to make the food their own instead of replicating what he can do, at one point he even says “Just pick the spoon that seems right and go for it“. For me this cookery book is one to play with. Embrace Magnus’s ethos and make every recipe your own. His easy going way of lovingly describing the food is almost like hearing a recipe told by your best friend making it very easy to succumb.

This recipe looks quite easy and I think the same principal could be applied to other large cuts of meat.

Black grouse in hay

Serves 6

- 1 black grouse, perfectly matured, plucked, gutted and at room temperature.

- Soft (salted) butter, for cooking.

- A bunch of good quality hay with a high herbal content.

- Some branches of heather and pine

- Salt.

Brush the bird with a thin layer of butter and brown it in a heavy cast-iron casserole until nicely amber in colour all over. Take out the bird and keep it warm while you make a nest with hay, heather and pine branches at the bottom of the hot casserole.

Put the bird back into the casserole and cover it well all around with hay, ensuring it is very tightly packed in. Put the lid on and leave it for a while to cook. Depending on the size of the bird and amount of energy stored in the iron, the cooking time will vary. The easiest way to do it the first few times, when learning the method, is to place a thermometer in the casserole to keep track of whats happening inside it. But do not open the lid more than is absolutely essential. When the bird is ready it will be slightly above 50 oC or 125 oF.

Do not cook the bird more than medium rare and serve it as soon as it is cooked, otherwise it will acquire a mealy texture due to raised levels of enzymatic activity. When the bird is ready, take the lid off , remove the hay covering, take the bird out, remove any pieces of hay adhering to it, and carve it.

Enjoy!

The Stone Raspberry is an exhibition of new drawings and prints by artist and illustrator Steph Von Reiswitz. A core member of artist collective LE GUN, Steph lives in a fin-de-siècle fantasy world of the mysterious unknown, of murder, alchemy, genteel hedonism and civilised depravity. Working predominantly in ink, she creates beautifully intricate illustrations of the outrageous and absurd, with ambiguous scenarios often epitomising the social misgraces of her characters with a touch of parody and satire. 

Educated in Brussels and London, Steph Von Reiswitz has previously exhibited worldwide, including shows in Paris, Berlin, London, Brussels, Basel, Beijing, New York, and Istanbul. She is a core member of artist collective LE GUN. Her illustration clients include Faber & Faber, Penguin, The Guardian, and the BBC. 

The above selection taken from the exhibition, The Stone Raspberry, are available to buy framed or unframed as signed, limited edition giclée prints. For more information or to order a print, feel free to drop by and see us in store where you can view the exhibition. Alternatively, you can email lucy@materialmaterial.com.

Exhibition runs : 16th November – 1st December 2012

Private View: Thursday 15th November  6.30 – 9pm

Opening Hours:

Mon – Fri 11am – 7pm 

Saturday 11am – 6pm

Sunday by appointment

For any press-related enquiries or images please contact  lucy@materialmaterial.com

“He is a monster. I hate him. He’s a perverter of children. Mickey Mouse was a pervert. He made children idiots. He created many little idiots. Children don’t like to see that now, they’re more awake; they have better taste.”

Alejandro Jodorowski on Walt Disney

Since Material emerged back in 2007, we have consistently showcased and championed a selection of work  by the Camberwell, RCA Graduate, and founding member of LE GUN – Neal Fox. As an illustrator Neal’s spirit has always resided in the depths of London’s sinister square mile and it is this that has taken him on to exhibiting internationally with shows in Paris, Basel, and Munich.

Neal Fox first encountered the iconic watering hole, The French House, whilst drinking his way round Soho in the footsteps of his long departed grandfather John Watson. John is a totem figure for Neal and features in all his work leading him to his first exhibition, The Aubergine Tongue, at the French House back in 2006.

The French is one of the the best known pub in London’s Square Mile. A place where actors, writers, artists and wits rub shoulders with royalty, bohemians and the film world and, with regulars over the years including Francis Bacon, Daniel Farson, Lucian Freud, Augustus John, and Dylan Thomas it’s no wonder this establishment sets the perfect setting for Neal’s depictions of the detritus and mythology of pop culture and the anarchic artisans and renegades that come with it.

Neal Fox’s ink drawings are unfounded dramas of graphic debauchery, cut with anti-establishment, offbeat and iconic cultural figures. By penning the quixotic worlds of pop-icons, drawn together into fantastical situations, Fox pulls these characters into our physical present while feeding our addiction to escapism and fantasy.

Now, returning to Soho with a new set of prints, including one inspired by the above quote from cult film director Alejandro Jodrowski, Fox merges an iconic scene from Jodorowski’s acid western El Topo, with a gruesome massacre of a multitude of Disney characters.  Also at the scene are fellow Disneyphobes Henry Miller, Charles Bukowski, Hunter S Thompson, and J G Ballard. It’s a cartoon blood bath in the cultural desert. Earlier this year Material joined forces with Neal to produce a print from this series of work titled “Bukowski and the Three Fingered Bastard”. The print is currently available to buy online and in store. Take a look here…

Also on show will be prints based on Fox’s 2011 series of stained glass windows depicting alternative cultural saints such as William Burroughs, Johnny Cash, Billie Holiday, and Serge Gainsbourg. In this work titled “Beware of the God”, Fox uses the iconography of martyrdom to describe each characters cult of personality. A quote on the Burroughs print perhaps goes some way to describe Fox’s work…

“‘There is no line between the ‘real world’ and the world of myth an symbol”

Also, he’s pretty good fun – so get yourselves down to the French tonight, or at the very least go have a view another day while partaking in a small one!

SANGRE DE LOS PERVERTIDOS

A show of new prints by Neal Fox

The French House

49 Dean Street

London W1D 5BG

27th September onwards…

As well as showcasing the work of their contributors, they are always keen to hear about their inspirations and working processes through interviewing the artist. Above, they ask designer Danielle Reid, founder of new Islington design boutique Folklore, about her endeavour to set up shop during a recession. Illustrator Dave Murray worked up a dynamic print ominously titled ‘Until Death’ for the magazine and Ella Kookoo was inspired by the TV show Total Wipe Out for her artwork in the new issue.

Still featuring five pull-out double-sided sheets of deliciously illustrated wrapping paper, Wrap’s new format retains it’s signature element of  reading it then wrapping it and, if that’s not enough excitement for one day, they have teamed up with four fantastic illustrators to bring you Wrap’s first collection of 10 different single sheet wrapping papers. A selection of which will be stocked at Material.