Tony & Giorgio

4 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

300ml/½ pint olive oil

50g/2 oz Stilton cheese, crumbled

salt and white pepper

For the cauliflower:

4 peppercorns

1 sprig of rosemary

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large cauliflower, cut into florets

Place the ham hocks in a large saucepan with the onion and celery and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 4-5 hours, topping up the water level if necessary during cooking to keep the ham hocks covered. The meat should be almost falling off the bone. Leave to cool in the liquid, then flake the flesh from the ham hocks with your fingers and set aside.

For the Stilton dressing, make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature. In a bowl, beat the egg yolks with a little salt and white pepper, half the vinegar and the mustard. Add the oil a drop at a time, whisking constantly to give a thick, glossy mayonnaise; you can start to add the oil in a thin stream once about a third of it has been incorporated. In a separate bowl, beat the remaining vinegar with the Stilton, whisking well until smooth. Then stir this into the mayonnaise. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

For the cauliflower, put the peppercorns, rosemary, bay leaf and olive oil in a large saucepan with 1 litre/1¾ pints water. Bring to the boil and then drop in the cauliflower florets. Cook for about 5 minutes, until tender, then drain and refresh under cold running water.

Place the cauliflower in a serving bowl and arrange the flaked ham on top. Drizzle with the Stilton dressing, add parsley and serve.

Carpaccio di manzo

Beef carpaccio

Beef carpaccio was invented by Giuseppe Cipriani in Venice’s Harry’s Bar in 1961, and named after an Italian artist known for his use of vivid red colours. The Harry’s Bar original is dressed with a mixture of mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice, but here are four variations that work just as well. Because there is nowhere to hide, only top-quality beef will do for this dish. Giorgio

Serves 4

550g/1¼lb beef fillet

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the broccoli topping:

small head of broccoli juice of 1 lemon

3 tablespoons olive oil

For the caper and mayonnaise topping:

tablespoons Tony’s mayonnaise (see page 244)

2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained

For the mayonnaise topping:

2 tablespoons Tony’s mayonnaise (see page 244)

For the rocket topping:

2 handfuls of rocket

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

75g/3 oz Parmesan shavings

Trim the fat from the beef fillet, then cut it into thin slices. Place 3 or 4 slices on a sheet of clingfilm or baking parchment, cover with another sheet of clingfilm or baking parchment and bash with a meat mallet or rolling pin until the meat is paper thin. Set aside and repeat for the rest of the beef. The slices can now be used straight away or rolled up and stored in the fridge for a few days.

For the broccoli topping, trim off the stalks from the broccoli and cut into small dice. Blanch the florets in boiling salted water until they are slightly overcooked, then drain and leave to cool. Repeat for the diced stalks. Reserve a few small broccoli florets for decoration. Put the rest of the broccoli in a food processor and whiz until smooth, then season with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, mix the lemon juice with the olive oil. Take off the top sheet of clingfilm from the beef and season the meat with salt and pepper. Remove a quarter of the carpaccio slices and brush with the lemon oil. Spoon the broccoli purée on to a large serving plate and top with the brushed carpaccio slices. Decorate with the reserved broccoli florets.

For the caper and mayonnaise topping, arrange a quarter of the carpaccio slices on a large serving plate and drizzle over the mayonnaise, then sprinkle over the capers.

For the mayonnaise topping, arrange half the remaining carpaccio on a large serving plate and drizzle over the mayonnaise.

Lay the remaining carpaccio slices on a serving plate. Dress the rocket leaves with the olive oil and lemon juice and season to taste. Arrange the rocket on the carpaccio and top with the Parmesan shavings.

To serve, let everyone help themselves to the different carpaccios.

Steak and kidney pudding

Rognoni e manzo al vapore in crosta di strutto

This is a great version of a great British dish, which I borrowed from Bobby King at the Cottage Inn in Ascot. What makes it so special is the addition of a secret ingredient. No, it’s not the Guinness, and it’s not the tomato purée. Yes, you guessed it. It’s the HP Sauce. Tony

Serves 6

1 tablespoon sunflower oil

1 large onion, thinly sliced

700g/1lb 9 oz chuck steak, cut into

2cm/¾ inch cubes

225g/8 oz lamb’s kidneys, rinsed and cut into 2cm/¾ inch cubes

3 tablespoons plain flour