The new mayonnaise. And that is saying a lot because I adore mayonnaise and happily eat it straight out of the jar. Always have and always will. This my friends is my absolute favourite new thing and I have been slathering it over bread, dipping veggies (well ok then crisps too) into it and drizzling it over salads all summer long.
Cream and nuts. Sounds so very wrong and yet it is so very very right. This sauce sort of has shades of skordalia the Greek ode to garlic (olive oil, garlic potatoes) and a Balkan “scordolea” (sunflower oil, garlic and walnuts) and is stunning for its simplicity. It really is just sour cream, walnuts and garlic perhaps helped along with a little salt and pepper. Made thick it is a sublime dip and side sauce for fried slices of aubergine or zucchini. Thinned a little it is a sublime salad dressing especially for green beans. And warmed it is a standout walnut pesto sauce over some home made ravioli filled with charred aubergine. And in case oysters and champagne are not your thing this little number has some fairly saucy health benefits too, read on…
Ingredients
Being so simple the recipe relies on very very good ingredients. Go in search of your very best buffalo dairy products. Here is my favourite and absolute best local shop
250g walnuts
250g the very best quality sour cream. The type where the spoon stands up so you are looking at 30-40% fat. see spoon standing up test below. If you cant find, then a very good Greek Yoghurt at 10% fat or a good Creme Fraiche will work well too as will Mascarpone.
2-3 cloves of garlic
Some salt and pepper.
How To
Blend the nuts until they are just about to become a paste. Its that point where they are as powdery as they will become in a blender and start to clump together. This is what that looks like.
Add the garlic to the nuts here and further blend or pound the garlic in a pestle and mortar and add separately.
Now carefully mix the nuts into the cream. Do not blend! It will become horribly liquid.
Now if it is very thick (and this will depend on the quality of the nuts and the type of cream) just thin with a little water until it is just how you want it. Sometimes with very very rich cream and good nuts there is a lot of oil and the sauce can split so add some breadcrumbs and beat with a spoon.
That is all there is to it.
You Are What You Eat
Walnuts – Good for your heart: less heart attacks, lower your cholesterol, battle cancer and in particular prostate cancer due to their elagic acid, high in vitamin E. High in zinc which is needed to create testosterone.
Garlic – It thins the blood, wards off the vampires and lowers blood pressure but do you know its good for producing testosterone too?
Buffalo Milk – contains 40% more protein , 60% more calcium and 40% less cholesterol than cows milk and is a rich source of Vitamins B12, E and A as well as minerals magnesium and potassium.
- 250g walnuts
- 250g the very best quality sour cream. the type where the spoon stands up so you are looking at 30-40% fat. If you cant find, then a very good Greek Yogurt at 10% fat or a good Creme Fraiche will work well too as will Mascarpone.
- 2-3 cloves of garlic
- Some salt and pepper.
- 2-3 teaspoons of water to thin until it is the consistency you want
- a teaspoon of breadcrumbs on standby if the nuts "weep" and oil seeps out
- Blend the nuts until they are just about to become a paste. Its that point where they are as powdery as they will become in a blender and start to clump together. This is what that looks like.
- Add the garlic to the nuts here and further blend or pound the garlic in a pestle and mortar and add.
- Now carefully mix the nuts into the cream. Do not blend! It will become horribly liquid. Now if it is very thick (and this will depend on the quality of the nuts and the type of cream) just thin with a little water until it is just how you want it. Sometimes with very very rich cream and good nuts there is a lot of oil and the sauce can split so add some breadcrumbs and beat with a spoon.
- That is all there is to it.