Pudding for one

Lemon and ginger are a great combination in a traditional steamed pudding.

I once bought some red cabbages for a reason other than to use for a crisp salad or to cook slowly with apples, vinegar and juniper berries. Instead, I wanted to decorate the top of the bar in the restaurant. Eight cabbages were lined up along the lintel, with a rusty old kitchen knife thrust deep into the heart of each one. I’m not sure what artistic statement I was trying to make, but their remarkable keeping qualities meant they sat there for several weeks before their blackened leaves began to look more than a little withered. My enthusiasm for such dramatic statements continued; pumpkins were next and the restaurant then resembled a ­Halloween ride.

It’s the dusky, mauve-coloured leaves with their soft bloom and the solid weight of the tightly packed head that draws me to red cabbage. Unfortunately, though, I usually choose the savoy cabbage that sits next to it, because when I run through the cooking pro­cess in my head, I know what it takes to get the red cabbage to the stove.

It makes a perfectly good winter salad, shredded finely and tossed with fried bacon and crumbled cheddar cheese, but when it is cooked slowly with brown sugar and vinegar it becomes a star in its own right, enhancing any dish it graces. It is worth being patient, for red cabbage is much better as an ingredient to cook with than it is a design element.

I use Te Matuku Bay oysters from Waiheke Island, which are plump, salty and flavoursome. Anyone who thinks they don’t like oysters should try these. The best way to eat oysters may be to give them nothing more than a squeeze of lemon juice then simply tip them down your throat, but they are particularly good pan-fried and served over this tart. A salad of rocket sprinkled with chopped fennel leaves is all it needs to make a good lunch.

Oyster and Onion Tart

1 cup of flour

lemon juice

Using a food processor, process the flour, butter, parmesan and egg to form a smooth dough. Scrape the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap, mould it into a log shape and refrigerate until required.

Preheat the oven to 180°C and lightly grease 4 individual tart cases with the butter. Cut off sections of the dough and press into the cases, then bake until golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside.

For the filling, mix the yolks with the parmesan and cream. Season with salt and pepper. Finely slice the onion, heat a tablespoon of the olive oil in a frying pan and gently cook the onion until soft and translucent – about 5 minutes. Place a little onion in the bottom of each tart shell and pour some of the egg-yolk mixture over the top. Put the tarts into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until set. Heat the remaining olive oil in a frying pan and lightly fry the oysters until just puckered. Season with salt and a squeeze of lemon juice. Arrange 3 oysters on the top of each tart and serve.

Serves 4.

The deep magenta of cooked red cabbage is probably associated more with pork dishes, but it can be eaten with every­thing from boiled potatoes and pickled herrings to thick slices of salty ham layered over a dark rye bread.

Pan-Fried Fish with Red Cabbage and Green Beans

½ a head of red cabbage

1 lemon

Shred the cabbage finely. Melt the butter in a deep saucepan, add the cabbage and turn it over until it becomes glossy, using a pair of tongs. Add the water, sugar and vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Leave to cook gently for 20 minutes until tender, tossing occasionally. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Pat the fish fillets dry with absorbent kitchen paper and set aside while you heat a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When the butter begins to foam, carefully add the fish fillets and cook on each side until golden brown. Bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil and cook the beans for 4 minutes until tender. Drain and transfer to a bowl. Gently toss with the remaining olive oil, the juice of half the lemon and a little freshly ground black pepper. Remove the fish from the oven, season with salt and a squeeze of lemon juice. Place a pile of red cabbage on serving plates and arrange the green beans over it. Top with the fish, trickle over any pan juices, and serve.

Enough for 4.

My favourite steamed pudding is my mother-in-law’s self-saucing chocolate one, but as she won’t give me the recipe, we will have to settle for this one. As you can see, it contains no chocolate, but that’s not the point. It’s still a wonderful way to end a meal.

Steamed Ginger and Lemon Pudding

2 lemons

50g unsalted butter, plus a little extra for greasing the moulds

Preheat the oven to 190°C, and grease 4 150ml pudding moulds with a little of the butter. Line the base of each mould with a circle of baking paper. Slice one of the lemons into thin circles. Place them in a saucepan with the 3 tablespoons of sugar, then cover with water. Cook gently over a low heat until soft – about 10 ­minutes. Drain, and place a lemon ring in the bottom of each mould with a little of the cooking syrup.

Separate the eggs, then cream the yolks with the sugar and zest of the second lemon until thick and white. Gradually add the milk and fold in the flour, cinnamon and ginger. Melt the butter and stir into the batter. Whisk the egg whites to soft, gentle peaks and fold into the mixture. Fill the moulds two-thirds full, cover tightly with aluminium foil and place in a deep roasting dish. Pour in enough hot tap water to come halfway up the sides of the moulds. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes, then remove and turn out onto serving plates. Serve with custard, cream or ice cream.

Serves 4.