Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/558086
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 19 AUGUST 2015 14 Food The gbejna's boundless resourcefulness Following a period where as a population, we tended to go with the notion that if it was made abroad it was better, the local stuff is starting to take over and artisan foodstuffs are being given the credit they deserve. Gbejniet recipes have been passed down from generation to generation and remain a trusted favourite among both Maltese and tourists alike. But the cheeselet's versatility goes beyond the traditional recipes. Try Michael Diacono's delicious ravioli stuffed with gbejniet in saffron butter and borage flowers or Sean Gravina's inventive soufflé made with gbejniet and Maltese sausage. Ingredients Pasta • 300g flour • 3 eggs • 1 tsp salt • 1 tbsp olive oil Filling • 6 fresh gbejniet • Handful borage leaves • Handful borage flowers • Salt and pepper Sauce • 1 tbsp butter • Olive oil • 1 clove garlic • Salt and pepper • A few strands saffron Method 1. To make the pasta place the flour directly onto the surface and make a well in the centre. 2. Add the eggs, olive oil and salt and beat the mixture slowly incorporating the flour from the sides. 3. Knead the dough until smooth. 4. Wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 mins. 5. To make the filling place the borage leaves in a pan with some butter and olive oil and allow to wilt and allow to cool. 6. Mix in the fresh gbejniet and grate the dried gbejniet into the mixture. 7. Add a handful of borage flowers and season with salt and pepper. 8. Add the chopped parsley and set aside until ready to use. 9. Roll out the dough, using a pasta machine if you have one. 10. Place teaspoons of filling approx. 1 inch apart. 11. Moisten the sides with water and fold the pasta over the filling and press down to seal. 12. Cut into individual ravioli and place on a floured tray until ready to cook. (You can freeze the ravioli at this stage.) 13. To make the sauce, melt the butter in a pan and add the garlic, saffron, salt and pepper. 14. When ready to serve place the ravioli in boiling water and cook for a couple of minutes until the ravioli come to the top of the boiling water. 15. Place in the pan with the sauce and toss. 16. Serve with a handful of borage flowers. This recipe first appeared on Gourmet Today TV, aired on TVM on 6 March, 2015. Ravioli stuffed with gbejniet in saffron butter and borage flowers Gbejna soufflé with crispy Maltese sausage Ingredients • 25g soft butter to grease ramekins • 25g Benna peppered gbejna, grated to coat dish • 10g butter • 10g plain flour • 125ml Benna milk • Salt and pepper • Pinch cayenne • 3 medium yolks • 5 medium egg whites • 120g peppered ġbejna • 60g Maltese sausage Pickled fennel salad • Watercress salad • Orange • Sherry vinegar • Fennel (pickled) Method 1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. 2. Remove the sausage meat from its casing and cook in a pan until it becomes crispy. 3. Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until soft peaks form. 4. Generously grease the inside of 4 standard ramekins with the softened butter. Put about 25g grated gbejna into one dish, rotate it to coat the inside, then tip the excess into another ramekin. Repeat to coat them all. 5. To make the béchamel, melt the 20g butter in a pan. 6. Add the flour and cook for 2 mins, stirring with a whisk, to make a roux. 7. Still stirring, add the cold milk and bring to the boil over a medium heat. Let bubble for a minute or two, then pour the béchamel into a bowl. 8. Season lightly with salt, pepper and cayenne, then whisk in the egg yolk. 9. Cover the bowl with cling film and let cool slightly. 10. Immediately mix one-third of the egg whites into the warm soufflé mixture with a whisk, then, using a large spoon, fold in the rest with one hand while showering in the grated gbejna with the other sprinkle the crispy sausage too. Stop as soon as the mixture is amalgamated. 11. Spoon the mixture into the ramekins to come 5mm above the rim. Smooth the surface with a palette knife, then use a knife tip to ease the mixture away from the side of each ramekin to help it rise. 12. Stand the ramekins in a deep oven proof dish lined with a sheet of grease proof paper and pour in enough almost boiling water to come halfway up the sides. Bake the soufflés for 4 – 6 mins, until risen. 13. Put the cooked soufflés on individual plates and serve at once with pickled fennel salad. This recipe first appeared on Gourmet Today TV, aired on TVM on 6 March, 2015.