“Pretty lame, unimaginative title, I know, but we’ll come up with something better soon. I could almost guarantee it…” G

One ingredient… two dishes… one sweet… one savoury… two chef’s… one gerbil… a Spanish man named Kevin… hang on I went slightly of track for a second. Someone out there and you know who you are has set us this challenge, we both have a different ingredient but the rules remain the same…

‘Only one chef leaves the arena alive!!!’

There I go again talking bollocks for no apparent reason, I really do feel this blog would have best been called ‘talkingbollocksisthebestshitever.com.au’ but as the saying goes “bollocks is in the eye of the beholder” or something like that.

Now the trick with taking a usually savoury item and making it sweet is to forget everything you’ve ever learnt, now I’m obviously not at this point expecting you to drop to the floor and start jabbering random noises, do not forget the basic’s for living, how to stand and talk are definitely in this category… but thinking chilli, anchovies or in this case pepper are only for savoury foods are items that can be flung from your metaphorical window as you drive crazily along the metaphorical highway to enlightenment (this is real enlightenment, not metaphorical enlightenment, thought I’d best clear that up)

Once you have cleared your mind, and I feel reading this will go along way to achieving that! You can slowly start to place your chosen item in everything sweet you like and imagine whether you’d like it, once you have imagined liking it, its now time to actually try the dish/recipe out, this at first may be reasonably hit and miss but over time its gets easier much like lying to yourself about how you really do care for the environment and starving children even though you have never done a god damn thing about either… haha didn’t see that coming did you child hater!!!

Its OK, I have taken my medication and we’re back on track… now for making something usually sweet savoury, that’s really easy as in the western culture we’ve done it with just about everything because in general people have shit palates and think they only like things that are sweet… hence McDonalds being so popular and hence why most of us are fat fuckers who can’t seem to lose weight… do you understand this you fat child haters with shit palate’s?

Only joking we love you all ☺

Anyway my point is… actually I’ll be honest I have no point, maybe I did maybe I didn’t but I can assure you I do not now…

Maybe it was to just try things, if at first it doesn’t work then have a drink, get him to dress up like a woman, maybe if he shaved it would feel more normal, or maybe you were right the first time and women are your cup of tea.

Graeme has given me Peppercorns for my ingredient so I’m not going to go over the top with dishes you can’t try, instead I’m going to win this challenge by being amongst the common man/woman and not create dishes your nan would love, and we all know your nan loves it!! (Too far?)

Peppercorn nougat (sweet)
125ml honey
225g glucose syrup
100g castor sugar
2 egg whites
50g praline (sheet of toffee/caramel smashed into pieces)
1 tablespoon of whole black peppercorns (ground fine but not powder)
2 sheets of rice paper

• In a sauce pan heat honey and 175g of glucose to 130c
• In another pan heat sugar and remaining glucose and 25ml of water and heat till 175c
• In mixer whip up whites till still peaks, add honey mix first till it fluffs up and has a nice sheen
• Now add sugar mix and mix until combined
• Take out of machine and once cool enough to touch fold through the pepper like kneading dough
• Roll into two logs and roll up in the rice paper
• Whack it in the fridge

This is absolutely delicious by itself, but would make a superb accompaniment for raspberry sorbet.

Peppercorn fillet (savoury)
200g beef fillet
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon duck fat
sea salt
hollandaise sauce (learn how to make this, it is the best shit ever)

1 x something to serve with steak (decide yourself I can’t be arsed)

• Roll (room temp, very important) steak in the peppercorns
• In pan heat duck fat and seal steak on both side for a few seconds only
• Take out of pan place on tray, sprinkle with salt and place in oven(180c) for 4 minutes
• Then rest it out of oven for another 4 minutes (we’ve explained why we do this previously)
• Serve with hollandaise and whatever else you have conjured up

Now any one that knows me will know that I’m really not a big lover of fillet but for this dish it works and it really is delicious, in fact I leave out the oven part and enjoy a really rare piece of spicy meat.