The Cook and The Chef aka Maggie Beer and Simon Bryant are an odd duo that somehow balance each others quirks and spark of each other, with witty banter and colourful dialogue.

Their recipes are always unusual and delicious. like this one below, a delicious….

Pumpkin and Pistachio cake

INGREDIENTS

Pumpkin Cake 
3 eggs, yolks and whites separated
40g castor sugar
75g self raising flour
100ml sour cream
100ml extra virgin olive oil (evoo)
250g pumpkin
1 tablespoon evoo
¼ cup Verjuice to deglaze

Pistachio Brittle
¼ cup castor sugar
¼ cup water
¼ cup pistachio (new season if you can get them)

Verjuice Syrup
½ cup verjuice
¼ cup sugar
Crème fraiche

Method

Cake
Cut the pumpkin and roast with evoo at 180C for 20-30 minutes. 
Deglaze with verjuice. Mash.

Beat the egg yolks with 2/3’s the sugar until really pale.
With a metal spoon, gently fold in the, sifted flour, olive oil, pumpkin mash and sour cream until well combined.
In a separate clean bowl, whip the egg whites with the remaining sugar to a medium peak. 
Add a 1/3 of the beaten egg whites to the egg yolk mixture and mix until well combined. Add the remaining egg whites and gently fold into the mixture. 
Line a 20cm square cake tin with greased baking powder, and pour the mixture into this and bake at 180C for 35- 40 minutes. 

Pistachio Brittle
Make caramel with sugar and water till deep golden brown. Add peeled pistachios immediately.
Turn out onto tray greased with a little olive oil
Allow to cool. 
Break up a little then put into mortar and pestle and crush.

Boil verjuice and sugar to a syrup to a rich burnish. 
Pour over warm cake immediately out of oven and then sprinkle brittle over.

Serve warm with crème fraiche.

ABC1 Wednesday night 6:30pm