MASTERCHEF AT HOME brings the excitement and flavours of MasterChef Australia into your own kitchen, with over 100 mouth-watering recipes from your favourite contestants. This collection offers a diverse range of dishes that are as fun to cook as they are to eat, whether you’re a seasoned home cook or a beginner.
Get ready to elevate your cooking with flavours and techniques from some of the nation’s most talented home cooks, and discover the joy of creating MasterChef-worthy meals in the comfort of your own home – from vibrant salads and hearty mains to decadent, show-stopping desserts.
STEAK, SAUCE AU POIVRE WITH CAULIFLOWER PUREE
Better than your average pub meal, this recipe delivers tender, juicy steak paired with a velvety cauliflower puree that’s full of flavour. A modern take on a classic, the creamy cauliflower adds a subtle sweetness and lightness that will have you coming back for more. Once you try this combo, it might just become your new go-to.
SERVES: 4
Ingredients
Cauliflower puree
- ½ cauliflower (600g), chopped into florets
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 tablespoons thickened cream
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
Steak
- 4 x 300g porterhouse steaks, excess fat trimmed, room temperature
- salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
- extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
Sauce au poivre
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- 1 golden shallot, finely sliced
- 125ml (½ cup) dry white wine
- 2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
- 160ml (⅔ cup) thickened cream
- salt flakes
To serve
- thyme leaves (optional)
For the cauliflower puree, cook the cauliflower in a saucepan of boiling water until very soft, about 15 minutes. Drain and place the florets in the canister of a stick blender. Add the sour cream, thickened cream and butter and process until smooth. Pass through a fine sieve and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and set aside.
For the steak, season both sides of the steak generously with salt and pepper. Heat a large frying pan over high heat until smoking hot. Drizzle a little olive oil into the pan and carefully add the steaks – you will need to cook them in batches. Turn the steaks every 20 seconds for 1 minute, then add the butter and baste the steaks continuously, turning every 20 seconds, until the internal temperature reaches 54°C, about 2–3 minutes each side. Transfer the steaks to a plate and allow to rest. Drain all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan.
For the sauce au poivre, place the same pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and shallot and sauté for 5 minutes until just beginning to colour and caramelise. Add the white wine and flambé, if possible, to burn off the alcohol. Add the worcestershire sauce and stir to deglaze the pan. Add the peppercorns and simmer until the liquid has reduced by half. Slowly pour in the cream and mix continuously to combine. Taste and season with salt. Remove from the heat.
To serve, slice each steak into 2 cm pieces. Spoon the cauliflower puree onto the centre of each serving plate and use the back of a spoon to smooth it out into a circle. Add the steak, pour the sauce au poivre over the top and sprinkle with thyme leaves, if using.
CARAMEL DUMPLINGS WITH BAILEYS CREAM
When you’re craving something sweet and need a quick midweek treat, this dish is sweet comfort in every bite. These sticky caramel dumplings, cooked in a rich caramel sauce, must be served with a generous dollop of Baileys cream. Yum!
SERVES: 4
Ingredients
Dumplings
- 80g (⅓ cup) caster sugar
- 15g unsalted butter, softened
- 155g self-raising flour
- 80ml (⅓ cup) full-cream milk
- 1–2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Caramel sauce
- 280g brown sugar
- 15g unsalted butter
Baileys cream
- 150 ml thickened cream
- 1½ tablespoons Baileys Irish cream liqueur
For the dumplings, place the sugar and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk to form a creamy paste. Add the flour, milk and vanilla and mix well to form a smooth batter. Set aside.
For the caramel sauce, combine the sugar, butter and 375 ml (1½ cups) water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil and simmer for 6 minutes. Whisk well to combine.
Using a tablespoon, spoon eight portions of dumpling dough into the caramel sauce and spoon the sauce over the dough. Reduce to low heat and cover with a lid. Cook for 6 minutes, occasionally turning the dumplings for even cooking. Remove the saucepan from the heat and set aside for 5 minutes.
For the Baileys cream, combine the cream and liqueur in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk to soft peaks. To serve, spoon one or two dumplings and a generous amount of caramel sauce into serving bowls and top with some Baileys cream.
Images and text extracted from Masterchef at Home by Masterchef, published by Macmillan, RRP: $54.99, photography by
Rob Palmer.
