Harry's Bar Club Sandwich

This is the One. Makes 6 sandwiches. The key trademark Harry's sandwich is a hump in the middle, a self-centered sort of sandwich, and definitely too posh for triple decking...

12 slices bacon

2 tblsp unsalted butter, softened

12 slices good quality thinnish unsweetened white bread

1 cup home-made mayonnaise

1/2 head shredded bibb lettuce

3 sweet red tomatoes, halved lengthwise then sliced crosswise

3 cups cooked chicken, shredded or cut into julien

S&P

worcestershire sauce

poached chicken

2 breasts chicken

home-made chicken stock

celery, onion, carrot, bay leaf, salt

mayonnaise

egg

red or white wine vinegar

1/4 tsp dry mustard

salt, white pepper

light olive oil

lemon juice

chicken broth to lighten

1. make mayo using listed ingredients
2. boil (uncovered) the vegetables, bay leaf and salt in the chicken broth for 10 minutes, then add chicken, lower heat and simmer for five minutes; remove from heat and let chicken cool in broth for 30 minutes
3. preheat broiler
4. cook bacon in skillet until crisp, dry on paper towel
5. butter one side of each slice of bread, toast buttered side up under broiler
6. spread mayonnaise generously on unbuttered side
7. mound layer of lettuce on top of mayonnaise on six slices of toast, leaving a one inch margin of bread!
8. lay half of tomatoes, chicken on top of lettuce
9. season with S&P, a few drops of worcestershire sauce
10. drizzle a bit more mayonnaise, lay on the remaining tomatoes, followed by 2 slices of bacon on each toast
11. cover with remaining bread, toasted side up
12. press edges to seal sandwiches and trim off the crusts
13. just before serving, broil sandwiches two inches from heat source until crisp and golden

Caprese Spasso

This is a circa 1997 recipe from the Grand Hyatt's Spasso restaurant in Bangkok. I'm pretty sure it was still on the menu some years later. The thing that makes this a special caprese is the oven-dried tomatoes, red onions and the generous amounts of black pepper.

sweet cherry tomatoes (or any sweet tomato)

red onions

buffalo mozzarella

basil leaves

EVOO

best quality aged balsamic

maldon sea salt

fresh ground black pepper

1. cut tomatoes in half; place in oven for 6 hours at lowest temperature possible
2. slice onions super thin with a mandolin, place on a paper towel and let dry a couple hours
3. assemble: in separate bowl dress tomatoes and onions with EVOO, vinegar, S&P and scatter on platter; rip up cheese and scatter on top of other ingredients along with basil; add lots of pepper

Tagliolini alle Erbe

I first came across this recipe at Assaggi on Chepstow Road. The fun thing about it is that you can adjust the individual quantities of herbs according to taste over time. I've added mint to this recipe for a special twist; just a tad of it will produce question marks on your guests' foreheads (although I don't take credit for this combo as we often see the pairing of mint and pecorino in certain pasta dishes).

thyme

oregano and/or marjoram

rosemary

basil

parsley

mint

S&P

softened butter to taste

parmesan (optional)

1. chop/mince all herbs quite finely (take particular care that the rosemary is minced up very finely)
2. heat oil, warm herbs for about a minute, add S&P
3. cook pasta, drain very well
4. add pasta into pan with herbs, butter and toss well off heat
5. transfer to a heated platter, garnish with remaining parsley
6. pass around parmesan, if desired

Prissy Croque Monsieur

An elegant version of this cafe staple from Harry's Bar, complete with its individual napkin wrap. It's normally greeted with big smiles as a casual late afternoon snack, perfect with a glass of crisp white wine. For six sandwiches, or 18 batons.

12 thin slices of artisan white bread, crusts removed

225 gr gruyere or emmental, diced, at room temperature

1 large egg yolk

1 tblsp worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp dry mustard

1/8 tsp cayenne

maldon sea salt

single cream, if needed

110 gr of boiled ham, julienned

EVOO

1. put all ingredients except cream, ham and salt in a food processor and mix until smooth
2. taste and season with salt; if too thick to spread easily, thin mixture with some cream
3. spread mixture over one side of all the bread slices
4. arrange ham over cheese on half the slices of bread and invert the remaining bread over the ham; press sandwiches firmly together
5. film skillet with EVOO and heat on medium/high heat until very hot
6. add as many sandwiches possible in the pan, fry, turning once until they are golden brown and crisp
7. repeat with remaining sandwiches, adding more oil to the pan as necessary
8. cut sandwiches in thirds (three rectangles) and wrap with small, individual paper napkins

Heston's Potatoes

Found this recipe in the Times, which is remarkably close to Michelle's version!

potatoes (Maris Piper, or if possible Golden Wonder or Arran Victory)

EVOO, or beef dripping

garlic

rosemary

maldon sea salt

1. cut potatoes so that there are plenty of corners and edges get crispy
2. cook potatoes in simmering water, taking them as far as you can go--just as they're about to fall apart; strain them off and let them steam dry
3. give the drainer an extra shake if you're confident that the potatoes won't fall apart completely
4. put them in a pan of either olive oil or beef dripping (dripping better than goose or duck fat, according to Heston); a "centimeter or two" of fat is recommended quantity, but I got by with a lot less.
5. once potatoes are in pan, put in oven at 180-190 degrees, start turning after a half hour; potatoes will take between 60-90 minutes, but about 10-15 minutes before they're done, bash up some rosemary and garlic in a mortar and throw this in
6. once out of oven, sprinkle with salt!

Potatoes Sauteed a Crus

These come out nice and crispy, based on a recipe by Joel Robuchon's cousin near Poitiers. Key is to use waxy red-skinned potatoes, to rinse the latter very well and to season just before serving so that they don't go soggy. Make sure potato pieces are all about the same size to assure even cooking.

450 gr small red-skinned potatoes

1 tblsp goose fat

1/2 garlic clove, minced

maldon sea salt

1. peel, rinse with cold water and quarter potatoes; rinse again with several changes of water and dry thoroughly with a thick towel
2. in a large skillet, heat the fat over medium-high heat; when hot add the potatoes and brown thoroughly one side before tossing to brown the other side (resist temptation to meddle!).
3. cook until potatoes are nicely browned and offer no resistance when pierced with a fork, about 15 minutes
4. add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more; don't allow it to brown!
5. transfer the potatoes to a serving bowl, season with salt and serve immediately

Lasagnette Pesto

A superb dish that makes its presence known! First discovered in Santa Margherita, this is indeed a very popular local dish. The most renowned version is at Da Laura, an island beach shack just a quick motorboat ride out of Portofino. The trickiest thing about this dish is to keep it hot without cooking the pesto. Doing the latter makes the parmesan gooey and the pesto separates into a sad affair.

silky pasta (see blog entry)

pesto (see blog entry)

butter

maldon sea salt

parmesan

1. make pasta, put through finest setting, cut in 3x3 inch squares
2. heat plates in oven
3. spread 6-7 tblsp of pesto on a serving platter, put the latter over the pot of boiling water as lasagnette are cooking (a better, more risk-free option is to put the pesto into a large bowl straight into a low heat oven to slightly warm)
4. add 1-2 tblsp butter to pesto, stir to melt and take platter off heat (or out of oven); drain pasta well, mix in with pesto and toss well until lasagnette are perfectly coated (alternatively remove pasta sheets from boiling water with thongs and place straight into bowl of warmed pesto-- the pasta water will help to warm the pesto as well)
5. bring to table, grate parmesan over lasagnette and add a bit more salt, if you like before serving