Having seen Sara La Fountain on the Asian Food Channel (StarHub Channel 435) umpteen times – starring in popular television series “Perfect Day” and “New Scandinavian Cooking” along other chefs – I was delighted to hear that she will be coming to Singapore for American Express’s fourth instalment of Celebrity Chef Series.

Captivating our country’s attention, the gorgeous American-Finnish chef who has received training at world-renowned culinary school, The Culinary Institute of America, evinces vast talents beyond her pretty face.

Sara La Fountain is the epitome of brains and beauty: she is a chef, model, entrepreneur, author, columnist and blogger embodied in one.

Her recipes are representative of the various cultures of Finland and a little of her American heritage.

She plays host to a series of exclusive dining-related experiences as part of the tour ‘A Taste of Finland with Sara La Fountain’. Tickets in Hong Kong were sold out rapidly upon release.

Sara La Fountain presented three signature recipes at the AFC Studio over lunch, where we indulged in the delectable Scandinavian fare. It was an intimate and engaging session, with high counter seats where we enjoyed a close-up view of the execution.

Recipe 1

Goat Cheese Salad with Beetroot, Dark Sweet Bread Croutons, Marinated Red Onions and Blueberry-Balsamic Vinaigrette
Serves 5-6

Ingredients

Goat Cheese Salad
- 1 bunch of Romano salad
- 1 bunch of Frisee salad
- 4 pieces of dark bread
- 200g of goat cheese, crumbled

Marinated Red Onion Vinaigrette
- 1¾ cup of water
- 2/5 cup of sugar
- 3½ cups of olive oil
- ½ cup of white wine vinegar
- Salt, to taste
- A pinch of all spice
- 2 red onions, cut into rounds

Marinated Beets
- 5 preboiled beets
- 4 tsp of white wine vinegar
- 1 tsp of honey
- Salt, to taste

Blueberry-Balsamic Vinaigrette
- 3/5 cup of blueberries
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1/3 cup of oil
- 4 tbsp of finely grated parmesan
- Salt, to taste
- Sugar, to taste
- Pepper, to taste

Method (Croutons):
1) Cut the dark bread into 1 to 5cm sized cubes.
2) Put them into a 200°C oven for 5 to 7 minutes so that they are brown and crispy.

Method (Marinated Red Onion Vinaigrette):
1) Combine the water and vinegar together.
2) Add in sugar, all spice and onions and whisk till combined.
3) Slowly whisk the olive oil into the mixture till well combined.
4) Add salt to taste.

Method (Marinated Beets):
1) Preboil the beets for 35 minutes until they can be poked through with a fork*.
2) Quarter the pre-boiled beets.
3) In a bowl, whisk 4 teaspoons of white wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon of honey and salt together.
4) Next, pour the olive oil into the mixture, while whisking it at the same time.
5) Add the beets into a marinade and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes.

*Tip: Wash the beets well before boiling. Also, do not peel the beets or remove the stem and root, as it will cause the beet to lose its colour and taste. Put the beets into cold water once boiled so that the skin can be easily removed.

Method (Blueberry Vinaigrette):
1) In a bowl, mix all the ingredients until they are combined.

To Assemble:
1) On a plate, add some salad mix, marinated beets, crumbled goat cheese and bread croutons.
2) Top with red onion vinaigrette.
3) Drizzle with blueberry vinaigrette.

I love the medley of flavours and the colours on the plate. It is hardly troublesome to make, and once made, will certainly become a regular feature on your table.

Recipe 2

Fried Fish with Summer Potato Vegetable Salad
Serves 5-6

Ingredients

Fried Fish
- 5 perch-fillets (or any other white fleshed fish)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 4/5 cup of breadcrumbs
- Salt, to taste
- White pepper, to taste

Potato Salad
- 400g of boiled new potatoes, cut into quarters
- 1 cauliflower, boiled and cut into bite size pieces
- 8 sugarsnap peas, cut into halves

Salad Dressing
- 1 tsp of Dijon country mustard
- ½ tsp of honey
- 2 tbsp of mayonnaise
- 5 tbsp of sour cream
- ½ tbsp of lemon zest
- 1 tbsp of chopped chives
- 1 tsp of horseradish
- Salt, to taste
- Sugar, to taste

Garnish
- 1-2 tbsp of salmon egg roe

Method (Potato salad and salad dressing):
1) Mix all the salad dressing ingredients together and set aside.
2) Mix the potatoes, cauliflower, radish and sugarsnap peas together.
3) Toss the vegetables and the sauce together. Keep the salad in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Method (Perch fillets):
1) Locate the pin bones by running your fingertips over the fillet. Use the tweezers to pull the bones out.
2) Season the fillets with salt and white pepper.

3) Coat the fillets with egg, followed by breadcrumbs.

4) In a pan, melt some butter, then add the fillets and panfry them till they become golden brown. (Alternatively, you can deep-fry in cooking oil)

5) Drain the fillets on a paper towel to remove the excess oil from the fillets and ensure it stays crispy.

6) Serve the crispy white fish fillets with the summer potato salad.

7) Garnish the dish with salmon egg roe.

Recipe 3

Summer Pavlova with Passionfruit Cream served with Strawberries and Pistachios
Serves 5-6

Ingredients

Meringue Base
- 4 egg whites
- 3/5 cups of sugar
- 4/5 cups of powdered sugar
- 2 drops of white wine vinegar
- 2-4 drops of red food colouring

Passionfruit Sauce
- 5 tbsp of lemon or lime curd
- Flesh of 6 passion fruits

Garnish
- 1 box of strawberries*
- 1/5 cup of unsalted pistachios, chopped
- 1 3/5 cups of whipped cream
*Tip: You can replace the strawberries with any berries that are in season

Method (Meringue):
1) Whisk the sugar and egg white until a stiff peak is formed.
2) Fold in the powdered sugar and the white wine vinegar.
3) Pipe the meringue into small round shapes on the baking sheet.
4) Bake in the oven for 3½ to 4 hours at 80°C or 180°F.

Method (Passionfruit Sauce):
1) In a bowl, mix the lime curd and flesh of the passion fruit together.

To assemble:
1) Place the meringues on a plate, top with a large spoon of whipped cream.

2) Garnish with a drizzle of passion fruit sauce and top with strawberries and chopped pistachios.

Pretty in pink, this is the perfect sweet treat for a girls’ night in! I love the melange of crisp, sugary, chewy-centred meringue with soft luscious cream and fragrantly astringent passionfruit that works perfectly together.

Sara La Fountain cooks and plates the dishes with such poise; she is such a joy to watch. We listened agog as she shares a little of her personal life –her pet Chihuahua Amelie’s favourite food is roasted duck meat!

Thanks AFC studio and American Express for this spectacular event!

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