Ingredients

Serves 4

Agedashi Tofu
375 g medium–soft fresh tofu
Corn flour or potato flour or plain flour, for dusting (corn flour or potato flour will puff up the crust more than plain flour)
60-120 ml vegetable oil or grapeseed oil, for frying
2 x 10 g sachets vegetarian dashi
1 litre water
4 tbsp mirin
4 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp freshly grated daikon radish
4 cm piece fresh ginger, grated
2 spring onions, finely chopped

 

Caramel Hedgehog
150 g butter
1 x 250 g packet Marie biscuits
1 tbsp golden syrup
3 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp sweetened condensed milk
½ - 3/4 cup walnuts, roughly chopped
Dark Chocolate Ganache:
2 tbsp cream
110 g dark chocolate, broken into pieces

Method

Agedashi Tofu
This Japanese dish of fried tofu served in a flavoursome broth is complemented by the punch of fresh ginger and clean crispness of daikon radish. It’s a lovely entree or accompaniment to an Asian-style meal or simply on its own with a bowl of hot rice. Be sure to use medium–soft tofu for this dish – silken tofu will fall apart, while tofu that is too firm will not achieve the beautiful lightness that makes the dish so delicate.

Wrap the tofu in paper towel or a clean tea towel to absorb any moisture, then cut into 3–4 cm cubes and dust with flour. Heat the oil in a frying pan until hot, then fry the tofu over a high heat for 2–3 minutes each side until light and golden. The cubes should look like they are about to burst. Drain on paper towel.

To make the broth, combine the dashi and water in a saucepan. Add the mirin and tamari and heat gently until hot but not boiling.
Pour broth equally into each serving bowl. Divide the tofu among the bowls, then top with daikon and ginger. Garnish with spring onion to serve.

 

Caramel Hedgehog
No family celebration is complete for us without this treat of my mum’s. What I like about this version is that the biscuits are not finely ground but broken into pieces, which allows clumps of caramel to form. The dark chocolate ganache offsets the sweetness of the caramel perfectly. Divine.

Grease a 28 cm x 18 cm baking dish with a little of the butter. Break the biscuits into chunks the size of 5 cent and 10 cent pieces and place in a bowl.
Put the golden syrup, brown sugar, condensed milk and remaining butter in a saucepan over a medium heat (be generous with the quantities!) and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring.
Pour the hot mixture over the broken biscuits and stir, making sure they are well coated. Tip the mixture into the baking tray and pack it down firmly by pressing with a small rolling pin or glass. You may need to beat it down a little to make sure it is firmly packed together and smooth on the top. Refrigerate overnight.
Next day, make the ganache. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over a medium–high heat until just boiling, then reduce the heat and stir in the chocolate until melted. Pour the ganache over the chilled hedgehog and sprinkle with the walnuts. Gently press down on the walnuts to secure them.
Let the ganache set (this will take about 1 hour), then slice the hedgehog into squares.
The hedgehog will keep for 4–5 days in an airtight container.
 

Recipes are from Lauren's book Food from a Loving Home
http://www.laurenburns.com