Gorgeous Gastronomy from the Green Room

by Ulster Life • June 25, 2015 • Socials • Comments (0) • 2335

The Green Room at the newly refurbished, four star, Ramada Plaza, Shaw’s Bridge, has a culinary team and sumptuous menu to rival the very best in Northern Ireland and beyond.

Head Chef Graham Burns is passionate about the changing seasons and fresh foods that are in tune with the land. His dishes are truly seasonal, stunning in design and delectable in taste.

He and the team change the menu regularly to ensure that they always benefit from the freshest, most delicious ingredients.

Speaking from the stylish restaurant, Graham Burns commented: “We are proud of the range and quality of locally sourced produce available in Northern Ireland and we are working with the best farmers and producers to deliver a cuisine that reflects the best our country has to offer. We have just launched our summer menu which showcases the very best dishes and produce available here in Northern Ireland.”

Ramada Plaza, Shaw’s Bridge is located just a stone’s throw from Belfast city centre, in the heart of south Belfast, adjacent to the idyllic Lagan Valley Regional Park which boasts some of the finest landscape in the country.

Below Graham Burns shares with us some of his favourite recipes, which you can create at home…

Rack of spring lamb, warm crushed comber potato salad, redcurrant lamb jus

2 rack of spring lamb

250 grm cooked comber baby potato

8 vine cherry tomatoes

50 ml balsamic vinegar

40 grm redcurrant jelly

4 cloves garlic

brown sugar

rosemary sprig

red wine glass

knob of butter

Sear lamb racks in a hot pan with a little oil with garlic and rosemary sprigs until the lamb is brown
Place the lamb in oven at 180c for 20 minutes.
When pick remove from the oven and cover with foil and allow to rest for 4 mins.
Using the same pan as lamb was cooked in, add sliced potato and fry until golden, then add cherry tomato until soft, add a splash of balsamic vinegar and a sprinkle of brown sugar plus salt and pepper to taste.
Pour the juice from the lamb into a small pot, add roasted garlic and rosemary and red wine and redcurrant jelly, reduce until it becomes a little sticky, then add knob of butter and serve.

Bushmills and raspberry cranachan, shortbread, raspberry and lavender ice cream.

Ingredients

2 tbsp medium oatmeal

300g fresh raspberries

a little caster sugar

350ml double cream

2 tbsp heather honey

2-3 tbsp whisky, to taste

Method

1.To toast the oatmeal, spread it out on a baking sheet and grill until it smells rich and nutty. It will not darken quickly, so use your sense of smell to tell you when it is nutty enough. Cool the oatmeal.

2.Make a raspberry purée by crushing half the fruit and sieving. Sweeten this to taste with a little caster sugar. Whisk the double cream until just set, and stir in the honey and whisky, trying not to over-whip the cream.

Taste the mix and add more of either if you feel the need.

3.Stir in the oatmeal and whisk lightly until the mixture is just firm.

Alternate layers of the cream with the remaining whole raspberries and purée in 4 serving dishes. Allow to chill slightly before eating.

lavender ice cream

Ingredients

12 sprigs lavender 100 grams caster sugar 300 ml single cream 4 egg yolks

300 ml double cream

Method

1.Separate lavender flowers and buzz them with the sugar until fine. Put into a saucepan with the single cream and stir over a low heat to dissolve the sugar. Bring almost to a simmer; draw off the heat. Infuse for 10 minutes.

2.Put the egg yolks in a bowl and stir to break up.

3.Pour the infused cream into the yolks, whisking to make a custard. Return custard to rinsed out saucepan; stir over moderate heat until custard thickened. Do not boil.

4.Pour the custard into a bowl at once. Cool, then chill for several hours.

5.Whip the double cream to soft peaks then fold in the lavender custard.

Turn into a freezer container and freeze until firm.

6.As sides harden, turn them to the centre and stir â€“ takes 4-5 hours. Or freeze in an ice cream machine.

Strangford Thai mussel broth

Ingredients

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 red chillies, deseeded, finely chopped

2 sticks lemon grass, white part chopped

4 kaffir lime leaves, shredded

375ml fish or chicken stock

1 cup light coconut milk

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 lime, juiced

1.5kg strangford mussels, cleaned, beards removed

4 green onions, thinly sliced, to serve

1/2 cup coriander leaves, to serve

Method

Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
Add garlic, chillies, lemon grass and lime leaves. Cook for 1 minute.
Add stock, coconut milk, fish sauce, sugar and lime juice. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the mussels to the saucepan. Cover. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until mussels open. Discard any unopened mussels.
Ladle the mussels and broth into bowls. Top with onions and coriander. Serve.

white chocolate and raspberry crème brulee, poached red wine pear, lemon short bread

Ingredients

7oz /200g white chocolate
5 large egg yolks
3 oz/75g caster sugar
1 ½ cups/350ml double cream
½ cup/125ml milk
9 oz/250g fresh raspberries

Preparation

Put the eggs, chocolate and sugar into a large heatproof bowl.
Heat the cream and milk in a saucepan until just boiling, then slowly pour over egg mix and whisk over a saucepan of barely simmering water, making sure the bowl is not touching the water, until thick.
Place in the fridge to cool completely. Divide 3/4 of the fresh raspberries between 6 individual ramekins (3″x 2″ deep, or 5″ x 1″ individual dishes) and spoon the brulée mix over smooth over with a palette knife.
When ready to serve evenly sprinkle the surface of the brulée with a thin layer of caster sugar and blow torch, or place under a hot grill until golden brown. Repeat until you have a thick, golden and hard surface.

Poached red wine pear

Ingredients

1 vanilla pod

1 bottle red wine

225g caster sugar

1 cinnamon stick, halved

fresh thyme sprig, plus sprigs to seve

6 pears, peeled, but kept whole with stalk intact

Method

1.Halve the vanilla pod lengthways, scrape out the black seeds and put in a large saucepan with the wine, sugar, cinnamon and thyme. Cut each piece of pod into three long thin strips, add to pan, then lower in the pears.

2.Poach the pears, covered, for 20-30 mins, making sure they are covered in the wine. The cooking time will very much depend on the ripeness of your pears – they should be tender all the way through when pierced with a cocktail stick. You can make these up to 2 days ahead and chill.

3.Take the pears from the pan, then boil the liquid to reduce it by half so that it’s syrupy. Serve each pear with the cooled syrup, a strip of vanilla, a piece of cinnamon and a small thyme sprig.

Lemon shortbread

Ingredients

100g salted butter, softened, plus a little extra for greasing 50g golden caster sugar, plus extra for dusting zest 1 large lemon 175g plain flour

Method

1.Heat oven to 150C/130C fan/gas 2 and grease a 22cm loose-bottomed fluted tart tin. Put the butter in a bowl and beat with a wooden spoon until soft.

Beat in the sugar, then stir in the lemon zest and ginger.

2.Stir in the flour and work with your hands to form a soft dough. Tip into the tin and press into an even, flat layer with your fingers. Prick all over with a fork and bake in the oven for 40 mins until pale gold. Cut into wedges then leave to cool completely in the tin. Remove from the tin and dust with caster sugar to serve.

goats cheese and beetroot panacotta

Ingredients

serves 8-12

600ml double cream

400ml goats milk

350g goats cheese

6 leaf gelatine soaked

marinated beetroot (redwine vinegar,lime juice,soy sauce to taste)_ beetroot reduction 300ml juice 20g glucose beetroot crisp 200g sugar 450g water sliced beetroot

Method

Heat the cream and milk in a pan and melt in the goats cheese, season
Add the gelatin and blend.
Place and chill in required shape molds.

for the beetroot reduction

Place the glucose and beetroot juice in pan and simmer over a gentle heat until coating consistency.

for the crisp

Slice the beets in a shallow tray, heat the suagr and water until the sugar is dissolved then poach the beetroot over a gentle heat until just soft
Lay out the slices of beetroot on a non stick baking sheet and dry in the oven at 70deg c until crisp for about 4 hours.

And if that all sounds a bit like hard work bookings at the Green Room, Ramada Plaza, Belfast can be made via www.ramadaplazabelfast.com or call 028 9092 3500