At Oldfields, we’re lucky enough to get venison from Raby Estates down in Teesdale. Traditionally kept on country estates for both food and sport, deer are now generally kept as part of the view and contribute much as a tourist attraction. However, they need managing and their numbers controlled by occasional culling. As a result, I picked up a couple of roe deer last week and our head chef, Anthony Taylor, decided to use the loins for a twist on Beef Wellington. And the results were a triumph. Just as tender as the normal beef fillet that’s traditionally used but with much more flavour.
You should always be able to get venison from good butchers as well as estate farm shops and some farmers’ markets. However, you could always make the dish with the equivalent weight of beef fillet.
Serves two
One pack of frozen puff pastry – defrosted
300g venison loin in one piece
100g button mushrooms
One clove of garlic - peeled
½ a medium onion – peeled and roughly-chopped
The leaves of a sprig of thyme picked from the stalk
Two egg yokes - beaten
A knob of butter
Oil for cooking
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
Place the mushrooms, garlic, thyme and mushrooms in a blender or food processor and blend to a course paste. Spoon into a dry pan and, stirring occasionally, place over a low heat; gently cooking until all the resulting liquid has reduced and evaporated and you’re left with a thick, black paté. Season with salt and pepper then allow to cool before placing in the fridge to chill.
Heat a frying pan, add a tablespoon of oil and then the venison, followed by the butter. Cook the meat for no more than 90 seconds on either side and the finished dish will be medium rare. Remove from the pan and place in the fridge to chill.
To cook, pre-heat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Roll the pastry into a large square and spread with the cold mushroom paté, leaving a 3cm gap around the edge. Place the venison in the middle and wrap the meat up in the pastry; trimming as necessary. Brush all over with the egg yokes, place on a baking tray and cook in the oven for 15 minutes before removing and allowing to rest for five minutes.
To serve, cut into two portions through the diagonal and serve with spring vegetables.
Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts
Thursday, 3 June 2010
Salmon with tomato and wild garlic
It’s spring and there’s wild garlic, also known as ransoms, growing in woodland, along river banks and where the bluebells grow. Different from the bulb garlic we’re all used to, it’s the leaves that you use. They’re long and deep green and, when crushed in your hand, smell of fresh garlic. It’s easy enough to find, identify (by the smell if nothing else) and pick. However, it’s worth moving that little bit away from the path before gathering; particularly if there are plenty of dog walkers about. And if you can’t pick it yourself, you’ll sometimes find it at farm shops and farmers’ markets.
Serves two
Four salmon fillets, skin on and scaled
Four ripe tomatoes
One bunch of wild garlic
50ml rapeseed or olive oil plus a little more for frying
Sea salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
One bunch of watercress
Two inner sticks of celery with leaves still on
A little fresh parsley
Before starting, check the salmon fillets for pin bones by running your hand across the flesh and removing any small bones with tweezers or pointy pliers.
Then, with the point of a sharp knife, remove the eyes from the tomatoes and then cut them into rough lumps. Place in a bowl, season with a little salt and pepper and put to one side.
Place half the wild garlic and the 50ml of oil in a blender or food processor and whizz until you’ve a pungent green dressing.
Heat a frying pan, add a little oil and place the salmon fillets in, skin side down. Season with salt and pepper and don’t touch them for at least five, possibly seven, minutes, until the skin is nice and crisp. Gently turn them over and cook for another three to four minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and keep warm.
Wash the watercress and parsley and shake dry. Tear up the remainder of the wild garlic, roughly chop the celery including their leaves and toss them together with the tomatoes and a small amount of the green dressing.
Spoon the tomato and watercress salad onto a couple of plates, place the salmon alongside and dribble the rest of the dressing over and around.
Serves two
Four salmon fillets, skin on and scaled
Four ripe tomatoes
One bunch of wild garlic
50ml rapeseed or olive oil plus a little more for frying
Sea salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
One bunch of watercress
Two inner sticks of celery with leaves still on
A little fresh parsley
Before starting, check the salmon fillets for pin bones by running your hand across the flesh and removing any small bones with tweezers or pointy pliers.
Then, with the point of a sharp knife, remove the eyes from the tomatoes and then cut them into rough lumps. Place in a bowl, season with a little salt and pepper and put to one side.
Place half the wild garlic and the 50ml of oil in a blender or food processor and whizz until you’ve a pungent green dressing.
Heat a frying pan, add a little oil and place the salmon fillets in, skin side down. Season with salt and pepper and don’t touch them for at least five, possibly seven, minutes, until the skin is nice and crisp. Gently turn them over and cook for another three to four minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and keep warm.
Wash the watercress and parsley and shake dry. Tear up the remainder of the wild garlic, roughly chop the celery including their leaves and toss them together with the tomatoes and a small amount of the green dressing.
Spoon the tomato and watercress salad onto a couple of plates, place the salmon alongside and dribble the rest of the dressing over and around.
Rhubarb trifle
Used as a fruit but actually a vegetable, it means I nearly always go to the wrong part of the wholesale market to try and get rhubarb. You may have a rhubarb plant and not be convinced that it’s the season yet. Well, after the recent cold winter, you may be right. But we’ve a tradition in this country of forcing rhubarb; that is, covering it to make it come early. And it’s the resulting pale and interesting stems that can give us one of the first fruity tastes of summer – even though it’s still not a fruit.
Unless you have a palate for things very tart, it’ll always need at least a little sweetening. Used here in our trifle, that’s done with the sugar and lemonade. The recipe calls for a homemade custard but, if you were short of time, there’s no reason why you couldn’t use a tin of readymade custard with a little vanilla essence added.
400g rhubarb
140g castor sugar
One vanilla pod
150ml lemonade
550ml double cream
275ml milk
Three leafs of gelatine
Eight egg yolks
One pack of sponge fingers
One trifle bowl
Chop the rhubarb into 1 inch pieces, put into a non-aluminium pan with the lemonade and 100g of the castor sugar and cook gently until the rhubarb has broken down.
Meanwhile, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water and, when soft, remove from the water and squeeze out the excess before mixing it into the cooked rhubarb until dissolved.
Cover the base of the trifle bowl with the sponge fingers, breaking them if necessary, and then spoon the rhubarb mixture over the top. Refrigerate for an hour or two until set.
Meanwhile, make the custard by putting half the cream and all the milk into a pan and gently bring to the boil. While it’s heating, place a pan containing an inch or so of water on to heat to come to a simmer. Split the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Place them into a bowl along with the egg yolks and 30g of the remaining sugar. Whisk them together a little and, when the cream and milk comes to the boil, pour over the egg yolk mix, whisking all the time. Place the bowl on top of the pan of simmering water and stir continuously until the custard starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon. Remove the bowl from the pan, allow the custard to cool and then spoon over the rhubarb jelly before returning it to the fridge to set.
To serve, whisk the remainder of the cream and sugar until it forms soft peaks and spoon this over the custard. Then maybe sprinkle over some grated chocolate or almonds or both or anything you can think of.
Unless you have a palate for things very tart, it’ll always need at least a little sweetening. Used here in our trifle, that’s done with the sugar and lemonade. The recipe calls for a homemade custard but, if you were short of time, there’s no reason why you couldn’t use a tin of readymade custard with a little vanilla essence added.
400g rhubarb
140g castor sugar
One vanilla pod
150ml lemonade
550ml double cream
275ml milk
Three leafs of gelatine
Eight egg yolks
One pack of sponge fingers
One trifle bowl
Chop the rhubarb into 1 inch pieces, put into a non-aluminium pan with the lemonade and 100g of the castor sugar and cook gently until the rhubarb has broken down.
Meanwhile, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water and, when soft, remove from the water and squeeze out the excess before mixing it into the cooked rhubarb until dissolved.
Cover the base of the trifle bowl with the sponge fingers, breaking them if necessary, and then spoon the rhubarb mixture over the top. Refrigerate for an hour or two until set.
Meanwhile, make the custard by putting half the cream and all the milk into a pan and gently bring to the boil. While it’s heating, place a pan containing an inch or so of water on to heat to come to a simmer. Split the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Place them into a bowl along with the egg yolks and 30g of the remaining sugar. Whisk them together a little and, when the cream and milk comes to the boil, pour over the egg yolk mix, whisking all the time. Place the bowl on top of the pan of simmering water and stir continuously until the custard starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon. Remove the bowl from the pan, allow the custard to cool and then spoon over the rhubarb jelly before returning it to the fridge to set.
To serve, whisk the remainder of the cream and sugar until it forms soft peaks and spoon this over the custard. Then maybe sprinkle over some grated chocolate or almonds or both or anything you can think of.
Ham shank and peas pudding
My love of the North East started with a girl but quickly embraced peas pudding. However, some years ago, if you’d seen it on a restaurant menu you’d have done a pretty quick body swerve.
Now though, we serve it in Oldfields at lunch as a starter and it flies out of the kitchen. And while it takes a little time on the cooker, there’s little effort involved. It’s well worth the wait.
Serves four as a light lunch, starter or supper
One ham shank
250g yellow split peas
One onion – peeled and chopped
One sprig of thyme
Two bay leaves
One carrot – peeled
Two sticks of celery – roughly chopped
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little chopped parsley or a few chopped chives to finish
Place the ham shank in a large pan along with the carrot, celery, bay leaves and thyme. Cover with cold water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for around a couple of hours or until the meat is falling from the bone.
When cooked, remove the meat and bone from the liquid and allow to cool on a plate. Strain the liquid through a sieve into a clean pan and add the chopped onion and split peas. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 60 to 90 minutes or until the peas are completely broken down. Pour the lot into a food processor or similar and blend until smooth; adjusting the seasoning with salt and pepper as necessary. Allow to cool.
Remove and discard the fat from the now cool ham shank and tear the meat from the bone into coarse pieces.
To serve, place a dollop of peas pudding on a plate with a handful of ham alongside. Give a couple of twists of pepper, sprinkle chopped parsley or chives over the top and serve with buttered crusty bread.
Now though, we serve it in Oldfields at lunch as a starter and it flies out of the kitchen. And while it takes a little time on the cooker, there’s little effort involved. It’s well worth the wait.
Serves four as a light lunch, starter or supper
One ham shank
250g yellow split peas
One onion – peeled and chopped
One sprig of thyme
Two bay leaves
One carrot – peeled
Two sticks of celery – roughly chopped
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little chopped parsley or a few chopped chives to finish
Place the ham shank in a large pan along with the carrot, celery, bay leaves and thyme. Cover with cold water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for around a couple of hours or until the meat is falling from the bone.
When cooked, remove the meat and bone from the liquid and allow to cool on a plate. Strain the liquid through a sieve into a clean pan and add the chopped onion and split peas. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 60 to 90 minutes or until the peas are completely broken down. Pour the lot into a food processor or similar and blend until smooth; adjusting the seasoning with salt and pepper as necessary. Allow to cool.
Remove and discard the fat from the now cool ham shank and tear the meat from the bone into coarse pieces.
To serve, place a dollop of peas pudding on a plate with a handful of ham alongside. Give a couple of twists of pepper, sprinkle chopped parsley or chives over the top and serve with buttered crusty bread.
Friday, 16 April 2010
Rhubarb trifle
Used as a fruit but actually a vegetable, it means I nearly always go to the wrong part of the wholesale market to try and get rhubarb. You may have a rhubarb plant and not be convinced that it’s the season yet. Well, after the recent cold winter, you may be right. But we’ve a tradition in this country of forcing rhubarb; that is, covering it to make it come early. And it’s the resulting pale and interesting stems that can give us one of the first fruity tastes of summer – even though it’s still not a fruit.
Unless you have a palate for things very tart, it’ll always need at least a little sweetening. Used here in our trifle, that’s done with the sugar and lemonade. The recipe calls for a homemade custard but, if you were short of time, there’s no reason why you couldn’t use a tin of readymade custard with a little vanilla essence added.
400g rhubarb
140g castor sugar
One vanilla pod
150ml lemonade
550ml double cream
275ml milk
Three leafs of gelatine
Eight egg yolks
One pack of sponge fingers
One trifle bowl
Chop the rhubarb into 1 inch pieces, put into a non-aluminium pan with the lemonade and 100g of the castor sugar and cook gently until the rhubarb has broken down.
Meanwhile, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water and, when soft, remove from the water and squeeze out the excess before mixing it into the cooked rhubarb until dissolved.
Cover the base of the trifle bowl with the sponge fingers, breaking them if necessary, and then spoon the rhubarb mixture over the top. Refrigerate for an hour or two until set.
Meanwhile, make the custard by putting half the cream and all the milk into a pan and gently bring to the boil. While it’s heating, place a pan containing an inch or so of water on to heat to come to a simmer. Split the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Place them into a bowl along with the egg yolks and 30g of the remaining sugar. Whisk them together a little and, when the cream and milk comes to the boil, pour over the egg yolk mix, whisking all the time. Place the bowl on top of the pan of simmering water and stir continuously until the custard starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon. Remove the bowl from the pan, allow the custard to cool and then spoon over the rhubarb jelly before returning it to the fridge to set.
To serve, whisk the remainder of the cream and sugar until it forms soft peaks and spoon this over the custard. Then maybe sprinkle over some grated chocolate or almonds or both or anything you can think of.
Unless you have a palate for things very tart, it’ll always need at least a little sweetening. Used here in our trifle, that’s done with the sugar and lemonade. The recipe calls for a homemade custard but, if you were short of time, there’s no reason why you couldn’t use a tin of readymade custard with a little vanilla essence added.
400g rhubarb
140g castor sugar
One vanilla pod
150ml lemonade
550ml double cream
275ml milk
Three leafs of gelatine
Eight egg yolks
One pack of sponge fingers
One trifle bowl
Chop the rhubarb into 1 inch pieces, put into a non-aluminium pan with the lemonade and 100g of the castor sugar and cook gently until the rhubarb has broken down.
Meanwhile, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water and, when soft, remove from the water and squeeze out the excess before mixing it into the cooked rhubarb until dissolved.
Cover the base of the trifle bowl with the sponge fingers, breaking them if necessary, and then spoon the rhubarb mixture over the top. Refrigerate for an hour or two until set.
Meanwhile, make the custard by putting half the cream and all the milk into a pan and gently bring to the boil. While it’s heating, place a pan containing an inch or so of water on to heat to come to a simmer. Split the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Place them into a bowl along with the egg yolks and 30g of the remaining sugar. Whisk them together a little and, when the cream and milk comes to the boil, pour over the egg yolk mix, whisking all the time. Place the bowl on top of the pan of simmering water and stir continuously until the custard starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon. Remove the bowl from the pan, allow the custard to cool and then spoon over the rhubarb jelly before returning it to the fridge to set.
To serve, whisk the remainder of the cream and sugar until it forms soft peaks and spoon this over the custard. Then maybe sprinkle over some grated chocolate or almonds or both or anything you can think of.
Fruit fool
Late summer's the time of plums, damsons and blackberries. But if you're lucky enough to have grown any of those in your garden, you've probably had to freeze some of them and now wonder what you can do rather than just pies and crumbles. When it comes to damsons I've been known to make damson gin and give it away for Christmas presents - as well as keeping some for the obligatory skiing hip flask.
But fruit fools are a quintessentially British pudding which are easy to make and very luxurious. You can use most common fruits, even apples and pears. They may need cooking for different lengths of time but it doesn't take much experience to work out how much and it's not particularly critical. It's worth having a go because, as you have to taste as you go along due to the differing sweetness of different fruits, the results are bound to be good.
You don't have to use the dessert wine but I saw the idea in a recipe recently and it does add that little extra.
Serves four
150g to 200g of fruit such as stoned and chopped plums, blackberries or damsons.
100g caster sugar (plus some more for adjustments)
Five tablespoonfuls of dessert wine
Juice of half a lemon
250ml of double cream
Place the fruit into a pan with about half the sugar and a couple of tablespoonfuls of water. Cook gently for ten minutes or so. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar if necessary. Then allow to cool.
In a large bowl, mix the remaining sugar with the lemon juice and dessert wine. Add the cream and whisk until it's at the soft peak stage. Don't make it too hard.
Gently fold the cooked fruit mixture into the whisked cream but don't worry about it being uniformly mixed. Changes in mixture only make it more interesting.
Spoon into wine glasses or suitable dessert bowls and chill for a couple of hours before serving - perhaps with a piece of shortbread. If you wished, when folding the fruit into the cream, you could keep some of it back in order to top your fool or even put a little in the glasses beforehand.
But fruit fools are a quintessentially British pudding which are easy to make and very luxurious. You can use most common fruits, even apples and pears. They may need cooking for different lengths of time but it doesn't take much experience to work out how much and it's not particularly critical. It's worth having a go because, as you have to taste as you go along due to the differing sweetness of different fruits, the results are bound to be good.
You don't have to use the dessert wine but I saw the idea in a recipe recently and it does add that little extra.
Serves four
150g to 200g of fruit such as stoned and chopped plums, blackberries or damsons.
100g caster sugar (plus some more for adjustments)
Five tablespoonfuls of dessert wine
Juice of half a lemon
250ml of double cream
Place the fruit into a pan with about half the sugar and a couple of tablespoonfuls of water. Cook gently for ten minutes or so. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar if necessary. Then allow to cool.
In a large bowl, mix the remaining sugar with the lemon juice and dessert wine. Add the cream and whisk until it's at the soft peak stage. Don't make it too hard.
Gently fold the cooked fruit mixture into the whisked cream but don't worry about it being uniformly mixed. Changes in mixture only make it more interesting.
Spoon into wine glasses or suitable dessert bowls and chill for a couple of hours before serving - perhaps with a piece of shortbread. If you wished, when folding the fruit into the cream, you could keep some of it back in order to top your fool or even put a little in the glasses beforehand.
Rabbit and black pudding casserole
When I was 17, I brought a girlfriend home to be fed by my mum. After she’d cleaned her plate she proclaimed that it was delicious and asked what it was. When Mum told her it was rabbit casserole she shoved her plate away, burst into tears and said she didn’t like rabbit. And over the years, I’ve found many who might not actually cry but really won’t entertain the idea of rabbit. Which is a shame because it’s plentiful, cheap, easy to cook and very tasty.
For a casserole such as this, the rabbit makes a great stock which, when flavoured with the black pudding, makes a superb gravy.
Rabbit is actually one of the animals that is often better farmed than wild. It’s usually more tender with a slightly higher fat content due to them not doing quite so often what rabbits in the wild spend much of their time doing – if you get my meaning.
Serves four
One rabbit – wild or farmed – left whole
A handful of pearl barley
300g of good quality black pudding – cut into chunks
One onion – finely chopped
Two carrots – peeled and roughly-chopped into 1cm lumps
Half a swede – peeled and roughly-chopped into 1cm lumps
A sprig of fresh thyme
Two bay leaves
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
In a casserole or pan large enough to take the rabbit, cover the rabbit with cold water and add the thyme and bay leaves and a little salt and pepper. Bring to the boil and then cover and reduce to a simmer or put into a pre-heated oven at 180°C, gas mark 4 for about 1½ hours or until the meat is falling off the bones.
Remove the meat and bones, pass the resultant stock through a fine strainer and return to the pan. Add the pearl barley, black pudding, onion, carrot and swede and bring back to a simmer for around 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Leave the lid off but watch that it doesn’t get too thick and add a little water if necessary.
Meanwhile, pick all the meat off the bones, watching out for any fine bones. When the vegetables are cooked, add the rabbit meat to the casserole, check the seasoning, reheat and serve with lots of creamy mashed potato.
For a casserole such as this, the rabbit makes a great stock which, when flavoured with the black pudding, makes a superb gravy.
Rabbit is actually one of the animals that is often better farmed than wild. It’s usually more tender with a slightly higher fat content due to them not doing quite so often what rabbits in the wild spend much of their time doing – if you get my meaning.
Serves four
One rabbit – wild or farmed – left whole
A handful of pearl barley
300g of good quality black pudding – cut into chunks
One onion – finely chopped
Two carrots – peeled and roughly-chopped into 1cm lumps
Half a swede – peeled and roughly-chopped into 1cm lumps
A sprig of fresh thyme
Two bay leaves
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
In a casserole or pan large enough to take the rabbit, cover the rabbit with cold water and add the thyme and bay leaves and a little salt and pepper. Bring to the boil and then cover and reduce to a simmer or put into a pre-heated oven at 180°C, gas mark 4 for about 1½ hours or until the meat is falling off the bones.
Remove the meat and bones, pass the resultant stock through a fine strainer and return to the pan. Add the pearl barley, black pudding, onion, carrot and swede and bring back to a simmer for around 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Leave the lid off but watch that it doesn’t get too thick and add a little water if necessary.
Meanwhile, pick all the meat off the bones, watching out for any fine bones. When the vegetables are cooked, add the rabbit meat to the casserole, check the seasoning, reheat and serve with lots of creamy mashed potato.
Eccles cake and ginger custard
I like Eccles cakes and have most of my life. My father-in-law picked up on this fact years ago and so every time I go to his house, even at his age of 88, he makes me a cup of tea and gives me an Eccles cake. And sometimes two. Lovely.
But not quite as lovely as making your own which I’d never done until recently. The following recipe is for what I think is the best dessert on our menu at the moment. And to think I thought they’d be difficult to make.
And the ginger custard is a lovely twist and, again, so easy.
Serves four
One sheet of frozen puff pastry – defrosted
500g raisins
100g sugar
150ml water
A pinch of cinnamon
One orange
One egg for egg wash
100ml double cream
100ml milk
Three egg yokes
Sugar to taste for the custard – around a tablespoonful
A thumb-sized piece of stem ginger – finely-chopped
Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC (gas mark 4)
Remove the zest from the orange and chop finely. Then squeeze the juice from the orange.
Place the water, chopped zest, orange juice, cinnamon and the 100g of sugar in a pan and bring to a simmer until the sugar’s dissolved. Remove from the heat, add the raisins and allow them to soak in the liquid for an hour to allow them plump up.
When they’re ready, roll out the puff pastry into a rectangle that’s about 5mm (¼”) thick. Drain the liquid off the raisins (it doesn’t need keeping) and spread the raisins evenly over the pastry before rolling it all together in the style of a Swiss roll.
Beat the single egg and then brush it over the pastry. Place the roll on a baking tray and place in the oven for 20 minutes or until crisp and golden. Remove and allow to cool (or you could serve it immediately hot if you’ve already made the custard).
To make the custard, put the milk and cream in a pan and bring to the boil. While it’s heating, place the eggs and sugar into a bowl and whisk until pale, adding the ginger towards the end. When the milk and cream is boiling, pour onto the egg mixture whisking all the time. Pour the custard back into the pan and put it over a very low heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon for five minutes or so until the custard thickens a little. Make sure that you stir everywhere, including into the corners so that the eggs don’t cook and scramble. While stirring, taste the custard and add a little more sugar if necessary but remember that the Eccles cake is already quite sweet.
To serve, either serve the Eccles cake cold or reheat in the oven if necessary, chop into serving sizes and pour the custard around.
But not quite as lovely as making your own which I’d never done until recently. The following recipe is for what I think is the best dessert on our menu at the moment. And to think I thought they’d be difficult to make.
And the ginger custard is a lovely twist and, again, so easy.
Serves four
One sheet of frozen puff pastry – defrosted
500g raisins
100g sugar
150ml water
A pinch of cinnamon
One orange
One egg for egg wash
100ml double cream
100ml milk
Three egg yokes
Sugar to taste for the custard – around a tablespoonful
A thumb-sized piece of stem ginger – finely-chopped
Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC (gas mark 4)
Remove the zest from the orange and chop finely. Then squeeze the juice from the orange.
Place the water, chopped zest, orange juice, cinnamon and the 100g of sugar in a pan and bring to a simmer until the sugar’s dissolved. Remove from the heat, add the raisins and allow them to soak in the liquid for an hour to allow them plump up.
When they’re ready, roll out the puff pastry into a rectangle that’s about 5mm (¼”) thick. Drain the liquid off the raisins (it doesn’t need keeping) and spread the raisins evenly over the pastry before rolling it all together in the style of a Swiss roll.
Beat the single egg and then brush it over the pastry. Place the roll on a baking tray and place in the oven for 20 minutes or until crisp and golden. Remove and allow to cool (or you could serve it immediately hot if you’ve already made the custard).
To make the custard, put the milk and cream in a pan and bring to the boil. While it’s heating, place the eggs and sugar into a bowl and whisk until pale, adding the ginger towards the end. When the milk and cream is boiling, pour onto the egg mixture whisking all the time. Pour the custard back into the pan and put it over a very low heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon for five minutes or so until the custard thickens a little. Make sure that you stir everywhere, including into the corners so that the eggs don’t cook and scramble. While stirring, taste the custard and add a little more sugar if necessary but remember that the Eccles cake is already quite sweet.
To serve, either serve the Eccles cake cold or reheat in the oven if necessary, chop into serving sizes and pour the custard around.
Beetroot and Ox tongue with horseradish
Like ox heart described elsewhere on this site, ox tongue is one of the animal’s most-used muscles and is also one of the least-used cuts of meat. It really is worth a try and produces an inexpensive dish.
Also, this recipe uses whole, uncooked beetroot; in my opinion, one of the most under-rated vegetables available to us.
Beetroot should always be cooked whole. Don’t be tempted to top and tail it because, once you’ve broken the skin, the red leeches out into the cooking water which not only stains everything it touches, it impairs the flavour as well.
Serves four
One ox tongue
Two raw beetroot - washed
Sea salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
A couple of teaspoons of horseradish sauce
One white onion – peeled and thinly sliced
White wine vinegar
Rapeseed (or similar) oil
80g watercress – washed and drained
Place the tongue in a large pan of cold water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and allow to simmer for one and a half to two hours or until tender. Drain off the water and allow the tongue to cool before peeling off the outer skin and discarding.
Meanwhile, while the tongue’s simmering, place the unpeeled beetroot into a pan of cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes before cooling in cold water. Drain, peel the beetroot and cut into equal-sized cubes. Place in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and a splash of white wine vinegar.
Once cool and peeled, cut the tongue into slices and season with salt and pepper. Mix the horseradish sauce with a little rapeseed to loosen it.
Place the tongue, beetroot, onion and horseradish mix in a large bowl and toss together before piling onto serving plates or into a single serving dish.
Also, this recipe uses whole, uncooked beetroot; in my opinion, one of the most under-rated vegetables available to us.
Beetroot should always be cooked whole. Don’t be tempted to top and tail it because, once you’ve broken the skin, the red leeches out into the cooking water which not only stains everything it touches, it impairs the flavour as well.
Serves four
One ox tongue
Two raw beetroot - washed
Sea salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
A couple of teaspoons of horseradish sauce
One white onion – peeled and thinly sliced
White wine vinegar
Rapeseed (or similar) oil
80g watercress – washed and drained
Place the tongue in a large pan of cold water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and allow to simmer for one and a half to two hours or until tender. Drain off the water and allow the tongue to cool before peeling off the outer skin and discarding.
Meanwhile, while the tongue’s simmering, place the unpeeled beetroot into a pan of cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes before cooling in cold water. Drain, peel the beetroot and cut into equal-sized cubes. Place in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and a splash of white wine vinegar.
Once cool and peeled, cut the tongue into slices and season with salt and pepper. Mix the horseradish sauce with a little rapeseed to loosen it.
Place the tongue, beetroot, onion and horseradish mix in a large bowl and toss together before piling onto serving plates or into a single serving dish.
Monday, 12 April 2010
Fish stew with tomato and fennel
Here’s a light dish to remind us that spring is arriving and, being a fish dish, is just so quick to cook.
All sorts of fish can be used but I’d avoid the oily ones for this such as mackerel. So salmon, monkfish, ling, gurnard and so on; fish that can hold together when simmered a little. Just make sure it’s all boned and skinned. Also, any shellfish is great such as mussels, cockles, prawns and crab claws. Just be careful not to overcook shellfish and if it’s already cooked, just add it at the end for 30 seconds or so to heat through.
The main flavouring is bulb fennel which, similarly to dill with its light aniseed taste, is a perfect complement to fish.
Serves two
300g mixed fish – boned and skinned and cut into bite-sized pieces
One bulb of fennel – roughly chopped
One onion – peeled and chopped
One clove of garlic – peeled and crushed
One tin of tomatoes
Extra virgin rapeseed or olive oil
Sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little chopped parsley to garnish
Place a tablespoon of oil in a large saucepan and gently sweat half of the fennel along with the onion. After a few minutes, add the garlic and continue until the vegetables are soft but not coloured. Add the tomatoes along with their juice and simmer for ten minutes or so. Remove from the heat and blend in a liquidiser or food processor or with a stick blender and then, if you wish, pass through a sieve.
While the vegetables are sweating, heat another pan, add a little oil and sauté the other half of the fennel until it’s a little coloured. Remove from the pan and add to the blended tomato mixture. Bring this to the boil, reduce to a simmer and add the fish for three or four minutes until cooked, adding any cooked shellfish at the end. Taste and add salt and pepper as necessary. Pour into warmed serving bowls, scatter over a little chopped parsley and a sprinkling of oil. Great served with crusty bread. Don’t try to tell me that cooking’s not easy.
All sorts of fish can be used but I’d avoid the oily ones for this such as mackerel. So salmon, monkfish, ling, gurnard and so on; fish that can hold together when simmered a little. Just make sure it’s all boned and skinned. Also, any shellfish is great such as mussels, cockles, prawns and crab claws. Just be careful not to overcook shellfish and if it’s already cooked, just add it at the end for 30 seconds or so to heat through.
The main flavouring is bulb fennel which, similarly to dill with its light aniseed taste, is a perfect complement to fish.
Serves two
300g mixed fish – boned and skinned and cut into bite-sized pieces
One bulb of fennel – roughly chopped
One onion – peeled and chopped
One clove of garlic – peeled and crushed
One tin of tomatoes
Extra virgin rapeseed or olive oil
Sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little chopped parsley to garnish
Place a tablespoon of oil in a large saucepan and gently sweat half of the fennel along with the onion. After a few minutes, add the garlic and continue until the vegetables are soft but not coloured. Add the tomatoes along with their juice and simmer for ten minutes or so. Remove from the heat and blend in a liquidiser or food processor or with a stick blender and then, if you wish, pass through a sieve.
While the vegetables are sweating, heat another pan, add a little oil and sauté the other half of the fennel until it’s a little coloured. Remove from the pan and add to the blended tomato mixture. Bring this to the boil, reduce to a simmer and add the fish for three or four minutes until cooked, adding any cooked shellfish at the end. Taste and add salt and pepper as necessary. Pour into warmed serving bowls, scatter over a little chopped parsley and a sprinkling of oil. Great served with crusty bread. Don’t try to tell me that cooking’s not easy.
Pork shoulder with butter beans, tomato and sage
Pork shoulder is my favourite cut of pork and benefits from slow cooking. I prefer to cook it on the bone but you can get it boned and rolled. It is worth sourcing good pork because there’s a world of difference between intensively-farmed pork and that which has been reared with care and respect. Good butchers, farm shops and farmers’ markets will also often have rare-breed pork available from such breeds as Gloucester Old Spot and Saddleback. If you try them, it’s unlikely you’d be disappointed.
Serves four to six
1kg to 1½kg pork shoulder
One tin butter beans
One tin chopped tomatoes
One onion – peeled and diced
A stick of celery - diced
Two carrots – peeled and diced
100g fresh sage leaves
Extra virgin rapeseed oil
Salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C (gas mark 6)
Place the pork in a roasting dish with a little salt and pepper and a wineglass of water. Place in the oven and, after about twenty minutes, turn it down to 150°C (gas mark 2). Leave for a total cooking time of about four hours, pouring a little more water in every now and then if it runs dry. When it’s cooked, you should be able to almost scoop the meat apart with a couple of spoons.
While it’s cooking, put a little oil in a saucepan and sweat the onion, celery and carrot over a low heat until soft, making sure they don’t brown. Then add the tinned tomatoes and butter beans along with the sage leaves. Cook over a low heat for a further ten minutes or so and adjust the seasoning with little salt and pepper.
To serve, reheat the bean stew if necessary. Roughly divide the meat into portions, spoon the stew into warmed serving bowls, place the meat on top, scatter a little rapeseed oil over and around accompanied by a little black pepper.
Serves four to six
1kg to 1½kg pork shoulder
One tin butter beans
One tin chopped tomatoes
One onion – peeled and diced
A stick of celery - diced
Two carrots – peeled and diced
100g fresh sage leaves
Extra virgin rapeseed oil
Salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C (gas mark 6)
Place the pork in a roasting dish with a little salt and pepper and a wineglass of water. Place in the oven and, after about twenty minutes, turn it down to 150°C (gas mark 2). Leave for a total cooking time of about four hours, pouring a little more water in every now and then if it runs dry. When it’s cooked, you should be able to almost scoop the meat apart with a couple of spoons.
While it’s cooking, put a little oil in a saucepan and sweat the onion, celery and carrot over a low heat until soft, making sure they don’t brown. Then add the tinned tomatoes and butter beans along with the sage leaves. Cook over a low heat for a further ten minutes or so and adjust the seasoning with little salt and pepper.
To serve, reheat the bean stew if necessary. Roughly divide the meat into portions, spoon the stew into warmed serving bowls, place the meat on top, scatter a little rapeseed oil over and around accompanied by a little black pepper.
Boiled bacon and pork sausage
If you’re the type that really needs the names of your dishes to appear exotic, comprising superlatives with vivid descriptions, rather than something straight and honest where you depend on quality of the ingredients, then this dish may not be for you, and you may not choose it from our menu. However, if you love good food and have the confidence to let the ingredients do the talking, this is really worth it.
Because it’s so simple, it really is important to get good bacon and sausage. Go to a good butcher and pay for the best. The bacon loin needs to be in a chunk rather than sliced and there’s no need to get highly spiced or flavoured sausages - just the best quality pork sausage. But why would you want anything else?
Although it doesn’t effect the taste, some people like the sausage to have some colour rather than staying pink. And if that’s you, heat a grill or frying pan and brown the sausages for a few minutes first. Otherwise, just poach them in the liquor as in the recipe.
You’ll notice there’s no salt in the ingredients list and it’s unlikely you’ll need it as the bacon is fairly salty in the first place and this flavours the resulting liquor.
Serves two
350g bacon loin in one piece
A bay leaf
A sprig of fresh thyme
One onion – peeled and finely sliced
Three carrots – peeled and cut into chunks
¼ swede – peeled and cut into chunks
Four good quality pork sausages
Freshly-ground black pepper
A handful of fresh parsley – chopped
Place the bacon loin in a large pan, add the bay leaf and thyme and add enough cold water to cover. Bring to the boil and simmer for two hours, skimming the surface if any scum appears and topping up the water if it falls below the top of the meat. With a slotted spoon, remove the bacon and put to one side.
Add the sliced onion and chopped carrot and swede to the liquor and simmer for ten minutes before adding the sausages with a little black pepper and simmering for a further 10 to 15 minutes – depending on whether you’ve part-cooked the sausages first to brown them.
To serve, roughly slice the bacon and add to the liquor to reheat and then add the chopped parsley.
Because it’s so simple, it really is important to get good bacon and sausage. Go to a good butcher and pay for the best. The bacon loin needs to be in a chunk rather than sliced and there’s no need to get highly spiced or flavoured sausages - just the best quality pork sausage. But why would you want anything else?
Although it doesn’t effect the taste, some people like the sausage to have some colour rather than staying pink. And if that’s you, heat a grill or frying pan and brown the sausages for a few minutes first. Otherwise, just poach them in the liquor as in the recipe.
You’ll notice there’s no salt in the ingredients list and it’s unlikely you’ll need it as the bacon is fairly salty in the first place and this flavours the resulting liquor.
Serves two
350g bacon loin in one piece
A bay leaf
A sprig of fresh thyme
One onion – peeled and finely sliced
Three carrots – peeled and cut into chunks
¼ swede – peeled and cut into chunks
Four good quality pork sausages
Freshly-ground black pepper
A handful of fresh parsley – chopped
Place the bacon loin in a large pan, add the bay leaf and thyme and add enough cold water to cover. Bring to the boil and simmer for two hours, skimming the surface if any scum appears and topping up the water if it falls below the top of the meat. With a slotted spoon, remove the bacon and put to one side.
Add the sliced onion and chopped carrot and swede to the liquor and simmer for ten minutes before adding the sausages with a little black pepper and simmering for a further 10 to 15 minutes – depending on whether you’ve part-cooked the sausages first to brown them.
To serve, roughly slice the bacon and add to the liquor to reheat and then add the chopped parsley.
Ham shank and peas pudding
Moving up from the South some decades ago, my love of the North East started with a girl but quickly embraced peas pudding. However, if you’d seen it on a restaurant menu all those years ago, you’d have done a pretty quick body swerve.
Now though, we serve it in Oldfields at lunch as a starter and it flies out of the kitchen. And while it takes a little time on the cooker, there’s little effort involved. It’s well worth the wait.
Serves four as a light lunch, starter or supper
One ham shank
250g yellow split peas
One onion – peeled and chopped
One sprig of thyme
Two bay leaves
One carrot – peeled
Two sticks of celery – roughly chopped
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little chopped parsley or a few chopped chives to finish
Place the ham shank in a large pan along with the carrot, celery, bay leaves and thyme. Cover with cold water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for around a couple of hours or until the meat is falling from the bone.
When cooked, remove the meat and bone from the liquid and allow to cool on a plate. Strain the liquid through a sieve into a clean pan and add the chopped onion and split peas. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 60 to 90 minutes or until the peas are completely broken down. Pour the lot into a food processor or similar and blend until smooth; adjusting the seasoning with salt and pepper as necessary. Allow to cool.
Remove and discard the fat from the now cool ham shank and tear the meat from the bone into coarse pieces.
To serve, place a dollop of peas pudding on a plate with a handful of ham alongside. Give a couple of twists of pepper, sprinkle chopped parsley or chives over the top and serve with buttered crusty bread.
Now though, we serve it in Oldfields at lunch as a starter and it flies out of the kitchen. And while it takes a little time on the cooker, there’s little effort involved. It’s well worth the wait.
Serves four as a light lunch, starter or supper
One ham shank
250g yellow split peas
One onion – peeled and chopped
One sprig of thyme
Two bay leaves
One carrot – peeled
Two sticks of celery – roughly chopped
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little chopped parsley or a few chopped chives to finish
Place the ham shank in a large pan along with the carrot, celery, bay leaves and thyme. Cover with cold water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for around a couple of hours or until the meat is falling from the bone.
When cooked, remove the meat and bone from the liquid and allow to cool on a plate. Strain the liquid through a sieve into a clean pan and add the chopped onion and split peas. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 60 to 90 minutes or until the peas are completely broken down. Pour the lot into a food processor or similar and blend until smooth; adjusting the seasoning with salt and pepper as necessary. Allow to cool.
Remove and discard the fat from the now cool ham shank and tear the meat from the bone into coarse pieces.
To serve, place a dollop of peas pudding on a plate with a handful of ham alongside. Give a couple of twists of pepper, sprinkle chopped parsley or chives over the top and serve with buttered crusty bread.
Saturday, 20 March 2010
Fillet of salmon with roasted beetroot
Have you ever cooked beetroot? Most people only know it bottled in vinegar and to be brought out with the pickled onions, gherkins and chutneys. But beetroot is more versatile than many other root vegetables and is great roasted as in this recipe.
Before roasting, the beetroot needs boiling for anything between 30 and 90 minutes until tender. You can tell when it’s cooked by piercing with a skewer. However, before boiling, just brush off any soil and wash the skin and any top and root without damaging the skin. This preserves the colour and goodness inside. And, regarding the colour, you may wish to wear rubber gloves when skinning and cutting it up so as to avoid red hands.
Serves two
Two 175g fillets of salmon – skin on, scaled and pin boned
Eight smallish new potatoes
Two medium raw beetroot
One clove of garlic – peeled and crushed
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little rapeseed or extra virgin olive oil
Place the washed beetroot in a pan in salted water, bring to the boil and simmer until tender as described earlier. At the same time, boil the potatoes for around 15 minutes until tender but not fully cooked. When cooked, allow the beetroot and potatoes to cool a little before halving the potatoes lengthwise.
To peel the beetroot, rub the skin off with a clean tea towel which lets you keep the original shape rather than using a knife which means you end up with a 50 pence piece shape. Cut two thirds of the beetroot into wedges and reserve the other third.
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C (gas 6). Pre-heat a large oven-proof frying pan, add a little oil and then the salmon, skin side down. While that’s cooking, add the potatoes, cut side down. As the salmon cooks you’ll you see its colour change, rising up the fish from the base of the pan. When it gets about a third of the way up, about five minutes, turn the salmon over by which time the skin should be crispy. Add the beetroot wedges to the pan, season everything with a little salt and pepper and place in the oven for five minutes.
While that’s roasting, puree the rest of the beetroot or push it through a sieve into a bowl. Add the garlic, a little salt and pepper and enough olive oil to make a paste when all mixed together.
To serve, pile the beetroot and potatoes onto warm plates, place the salmon on top and some beetroot puree on top of that. Maybe finish with a little oil over and around.
Before roasting, the beetroot needs boiling for anything between 30 and 90 minutes until tender. You can tell when it’s cooked by piercing with a skewer. However, before boiling, just brush off any soil and wash the skin and any top and root without damaging the skin. This preserves the colour and goodness inside. And, regarding the colour, you may wish to wear rubber gloves when skinning and cutting it up so as to avoid red hands.
Serves two
Two 175g fillets of salmon – skin on, scaled and pin boned
Eight smallish new potatoes
Two medium raw beetroot
One clove of garlic – peeled and crushed
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
A little rapeseed or extra virgin olive oil
Place the washed beetroot in a pan in salted water, bring to the boil and simmer until tender as described earlier. At the same time, boil the potatoes for around 15 minutes until tender but not fully cooked. When cooked, allow the beetroot and potatoes to cool a little before halving the potatoes lengthwise.
To peel the beetroot, rub the skin off with a clean tea towel which lets you keep the original shape rather than using a knife which means you end up with a 50 pence piece shape. Cut two thirds of the beetroot into wedges and reserve the other third.
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C (gas 6). Pre-heat a large oven-proof frying pan, add a little oil and then the salmon, skin side down. While that’s cooking, add the potatoes, cut side down. As the salmon cooks you’ll you see its colour change, rising up the fish from the base of the pan. When it gets about a third of the way up, about five minutes, turn the salmon over by which time the skin should be crispy. Add the beetroot wedges to the pan, season everything with a little salt and pepper and place in the oven for five minutes.
While that’s roasting, puree the rest of the beetroot or push it through a sieve into a bowl. Add the garlic, a little salt and pepper and enough olive oil to make a paste when all mixed together.
To serve, pile the beetroot and potatoes onto warm plates, place the salmon on top and some beetroot puree on top of that. Maybe finish with a little oil over and around.
Pearl barley and beetroot risotto with cauliflower cheese
This is a complete dish from our current evening menu and, even though I’ve done another recipe for barley risotto before, I make no excuse because it’s such an underused food. I also used beetroot a couple of weeks ago but I’m really into beetroot at the moment, so there.
You could cook this dish without the cauliflower cheese and serve the risotto on its own or with something else. But this really is a tasty and complete vegetarian dish.
Serves two
One small head of cauliflower – leaves removed and florets divided
50g butter
50g plain flour
200ml milk
100g mature cheddar - grated
200g pearl barley
One carrot – peeled
½ an onion – peeled
Two cloves of garlic – peeled
A little extra virgin rape seed or olive oil
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
One whole beetroot – fresh or pre-cooked and vacuum-packed
If you’ve got an uncooked beetroot, wash it, trim the root and the leaves but don’t cut into the skin in any way. Place in a pan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 30 to 90 minutes until it’s tender when you insert a pointed knife. Drain, allow to cool a little and then rub the peel off with a cloth. The cooked beetroot then needs pureeing in a food processor or pushing through a sieve.
To make the cauliflower cheese, bring a pan of salted water to the boil and blanch the cauliflower florets in it for two to three minutes. Drain and cool under running water.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the flour and stir, allowing it to cook for a couple of minutes over a low heat. Add the milk bit by bit, stirring all the time to avoid lumps and then bring to a simmer for about five minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat, add the cheese and then taste before seasoning with salt and pepper.
To make the risotto, blend the carrot, onion and garlic together in a food processor or chop all very finely. Place in a largish pan, add a slug of oil, the barley and enough water to cover plus another centimetre. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes until tender – topping up the water if it appears dry but the aim is to end up with no liquid left.
To serve, place the blanched cauliflower into a heatproof dish, pour the cheese sauce over the top and place in a hot oven for five to ten minutes until beginning to bubble and colour. Stir the pureed beetroot into the risotto (standing back to observe the incredible colour) and spoon onto warmed plates serving the cauliflower cheese on top or alongside.
You could cook this dish without the cauliflower cheese and serve the risotto on its own or with something else. But this really is a tasty and complete vegetarian dish.
Serves two
One small head of cauliflower – leaves removed and florets divided
50g butter
50g plain flour
200ml milk
100g mature cheddar - grated
200g pearl barley
One carrot – peeled
½ an onion – peeled
Two cloves of garlic – peeled
A little extra virgin rape seed or olive oil
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
One whole beetroot – fresh or pre-cooked and vacuum-packed
If you’ve got an uncooked beetroot, wash it, trim the root and the leaves but don’t cut into the skin in any way. Place in a pan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 30 to 90 minutes until it’s tender when you insert a pointed knife. Drain, allow to cool a little and then rub the peel off with a cloth. The cooked beetroot then needs pureeing in a food processor or pushing through a sieve.
To make the cauliflower cheese, bring a pan of salted water to the boil and blanch the cauliflower florets in it for two to three minutes. Drain and cool under running water.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the flour and stir, allowing it to cook for a couple of minutes over a low heat. Add the milk bit by bit, stirring all the time to avoid lumps and then bring to a simmer for about five minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat, add the cheese and then taste before seasoning with salt and pepper.
To make the risotto, blend the carrot, onion and garlic together in a food processor or chop all very finely. Place in a largish pan, add a slug of oil, the barley and enough water to cover plus another centimetre. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes until tender – topping up the water if it appears dry but the aim is to end up with no liquid left.
To serve, place the blanched cauliflower into a heatproof dish, pour the cheese sauce over the top and place in a hot oven for five to ten minutes until beginning to bubble and colour. Stir the pureed beetroot into the risotto (standing back to observe the incredible colour) and spoon onto warmed plates serving the cauliflower cheese on top or alongside.
Cullen skink with a poached egg
This week’s recipe is technically a soup but could be a meal in itself; a fish and potato dish that gets its name from the fishing village of Cullen, in Morayshire. "Skink" is a soup made originally from a shin of beef but in this case, the main ingredient is smoked haddock. Traditionally served on Burns night, the usual recipe comprises just fish, potato, onion, milk and parsley but this recipe is a little different as we currently serve it in the restaurants with a poached egg on top.
As with most soups this dish is one of the easiest things to make – unless like me, you have a difficulty with professional-looking poached eggs but there’s a tip for this in the recipe. However, the important thing is to try and make sure that the smoked haddock is of the un-dyed sort. Somehow I can’t bring myself to trust the fluorescent yellow stuff.
Serves four
Two fillets of un-dyed smoked haddock - skinned
One large onion – peeled and diced
Three celery sticks – diced
One leek – split open, washed and chopped
Five potatoes – peeled and diced
Two litre of semi-skimmed milk
A handful or two of chopped parsley
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
Four eggs
Run your hand over the haddock fillets and, if you feel any bones, remove them with tweezers or snipe-nosed pliers. Then cut the fish into bite-sized chunks.
Starting with the poached eggs, you can cook them anyway you’re used to but I do like the spherical ones good chefs can do. They do them by swirling the water in a pan before dropping in the eggs but it rarely works for me. So I recently came up with the idea of laying a piece of clingfilm across a saucer, spreading a little vegetable oil on it and cracking an egg into the middle (the oil stops the egg sticking to the film). Gather the clingfilm together and twist well to seal, being careful not to have any air trapped inside. Repeat with the other three eggs before dropping them into a pan of simmering water for around four minutes or until set. These can be done in advance and then dropped, still in their clingfilm wraps, into cold water to stop them cooking.
To make the soup, put the potatoes and milk into a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for around ten minutes and then add the onion, celery and leek. Continue to simmer for another five minutes or so before adding the fish. Simmer for another couple of minutes before removing from the heat. You’ll notice that the potatoes have started to break-down slightly with their starch starting to thicken the soup. Taste and adjust the seasoning before stirring in the chopped parsley and spooning into warmed bowls.
A minute before the pre-cooked eggs are needed, drop them again into simmering water for 30 seconds to heat through before removing them, cutting the clingfilm with scissors and placing the perfect poached egg on top of your skink.
As with most soups this dish is one of the easiest things to make – unless like me, you have a difficulty with professional-looking poached eggs but there’s a tip for this in the recipe. However, the important thing is to try and make sure that the smoked haddock is of the un-dyed sort. Somehow I can’t bring myself to trust the fluorescent yellow stuff.
Serves four
Two fillets of un-dyed smoked haddock - skinned
One large onion – peeled and diced
Three celery sticks – diced
One leek – split open, washed and chopped
Five potatoes – peeled and diced
Two litre of semi-skimmed milk
A handful or two of chopped parsley
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
Four eggs
Run your hand over the haddock fillets and, if you feel any bones, remove them with tweezers or snipe-nosed pliers. Then cut the fish into bite-sized chunks.
Starting with the poached eggs, you can cook them anyway you’re used to but I do like the spherical ones good chefs can do. They do them by swirling the water in a pan before dropping in the eggs but it rarely works for me. So I recently came up with the idea of laying a piece of clingfilm across a saucer, spreading a little vegetable oil on it and cracking an egg into the middle (the oil stops the egg sticking to the film). Gather the clingfilm together and twist well to seal, being careful not to have any air trapped inside. Repeat with the other three eggs before dropping them into a pan of simmering water for around four minutes or until set. These can be done in advance and then dropped, still in their clingfilm wraps, into cold water to stop them cooking.
To make the soup, put the potatoes and milk into a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for around ten minutes and then add the onion, celery and leek. Continue to simmer for another five minutes or so before adding the fish. Simmer for another couple of minutes before removing from the heat. You’ll notice that the potatoes have started to break-down slightly with their starch starting to thicken the soup. Taste and adjust the seasoning before stirring in the chopped parsley and spooning into warmed bowls.
A minute before the pre-cooked eggs are needed, drop them again into simmering water for 30 seconds to heat through before removing them, cutting the clingfilm with scissors and placing the perfect poached egg on top of your skink.
Mince with leek dumpling and peppery swede mash
Spring may be on its way but we still need warming winter dishes, whether eating at home or in restaurants. The following recipe is reminiscent of school dinners or, at least, how they should have been if prepared and served well and is a popular dish at the moment at Oldfields. And it’s interesting to note that there’s no powdered stock cube to lift, add to or mask the flavours. Just making sure you use good quality beef and sweat the vegetables properly allows the ingredients to speak for themselves.
If you’re not sure how good the minced beef might be in those plastic-wrapped polystyrene trays, try buying a little rump steak, chopping it into cubes and dropping a few at a time into a food processor until minced, being careful not to over-process.
Serves two
200g best beef mince
One carrot – peeled and roughly chopped
One onion – peeled and roughly chopped
One medium swede – peeled and roughly chopped
One sprig of fresh thyme
A little vegetable oil
One tablespoon of plain flour
One leek – split down the middle, washed and thinly sliced
100g self-raising flour
50g suet
Butter for the swede
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
White pepper – freshly-ground if possible
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (gas mark 4)
Place the carrot, onion and a quarter of the swede into a food processor and blend until finely chopped. Heat a little vegetable oil into a large saucepan (oven-proof if possible) and gently sweat the blended vegetables for five to ten minutes, being careful not to let them brown.
Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the self-raising flour, suet, sliced leeks and a pinch of salt and add enough water to make a firm but pliable dough – it’ll be four or five tablespoonfuls. Using your hands, mould into dumplings.
Turn up the heat a little under the pan, add the minced beef and brown. Add the plain flour and stir to cook it off for a couple of minutes. Then add the thyme, a little salt and pepper and about half a cup of water; enough to keep it wet. Place the dumplings on top of the mixture and place in the oven for 20 minutes or so, transferring the mixture to a casserole dish if the if the pan’s not oven-proof.
While that’s cooking, boil the remaining swede in salted water for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain, add a good knob of butter, a generous amount of white pepper to taste and then mash until smooth.
If you’re not sure how good the minced beef might be in those plastic-wrapped polystyrene trays, try buying a little rump steak, chopping it into cubes and dropping a few at a time into a food processor until minced, being careful not to over-process.
Serves two
200g best beef mince
One carrot – peeled and roughly chopped
One onion – peeled and roughly chopped
One medium swede – peeled and roughly chopped
One sprig of fresh thyme
A little vegetable oil
One tablespoon of plain flour
One leek – split down the middle, washed and thinly sliced
100g self-raising flour
50g suet
Butter for the swede
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
White pepper – freshly-ground if possible
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (gas mark 4)
Place the carrot, onion and a quarter of the swede into a food processor and blend until finely chopped. Heat a little vegetable oil into a large saucepan (oven-proof if possible) and gently sweat the blended vegetables for five to ten minutes, being careful not to let them brown.
Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the self-raising flour, suet, sliced leeks and a pinch of salt and add enough water to make a firm but pliable dough – it’ll be four or five tablespoonfuls. Using your hands, mould into dumplings.
Turn up the heat a little under the pan, add the minced beef and brown. Add the plain flour and stir to cook it off for a couple of minutes. Then add the thyme, a little salt and pepper and about half a cup of water; enough to keep it wet. Place the dumplings on top of the mixture and place in the oven for 20 minutes or so, transferring the mixture to a casserole dish if the if the pan’s not oven-proof.
While that’s cooking, boil the remaining swede in salted water for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain, add a good knob of butter, a generous amount of white pepper to taste and then mash until smooth.
Yoghurt cake
This is one of the lightest and freshest desserts you can think of. And somehow just making and eating it reminds me that spring is just around the corner. The recipe calls for a vanilla pod. You could use a little vanilla extract or essence but don’t be tempted to use anything called vanilla flavouring; it’ll make the cake taste of chemicals.
The caramelised walnuts are a nice contrast from the fluffiness of the cake but you could use other nuts such as hazelnuts or pecans. Or you could even use mixed dried fruits with the nuts. The method’s exactly the same.
To serve four or five
Three eggs - separated
70g caster sugar
One vanilla pod
350g natural yoghurt
Zest of an orange
Juice and zest of a lemon
20g plain flour
A further two tablespoons of caster sugar
A handful of walnut halves
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4
First, the nuts. Place the two tablespoons of caster sugar in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan over a medium heat. After a few minutes, the sugar will start to melt and, after a few minutes more, will start to colour. Give it a gentle stir once or twice to evenly colour and then remove from the heat. Break up the walnut halves a little and stir them into the caramel before spooning the mixture out onto greaseproof paper. Allow to cool before breaking into pieces.
To make the cake, in a bowl, and using a wooden spoon, cream the egg yokes with the castor sugar until the mix goes pale. Split the vanilla pod lengthwise and, with the point of a knife, scrape the sticky seeds out and add them to the egg and sugar mixture along with the orange and lemon juice, the lemon zest, flour and yoghurt. Mix well.
In a scrupulously clean large bowl, whisk the egg whites until forming soft peaks and, using a metal spoon, fold them into the yoghurt mix.
Spoon the mixture into a small casserole dish, loaf tin or flan dish with a solid bottom. Place that dish into a roasting tin and add enough water to come 1” up the outside of the cake’s container. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or so until the top has browned a little and the cake resembles a light sponge with wet custard.
To serve, spoon a portion of the cake onto a plate and place broken pieces of caramelised nuts on top.
The caramelised walnuts are a nice contrast from the fluffiness of the cake but you could use other nuts such as hazelnuts or pecans. Or you could even use mixed dried fruits with the nuts. The method’s exactly the same.
To serve four or five
Three eggs - separated
70g caster sugar
One vanilla pod
350g natural yoghurt
Zest of an orange
Juice and zest of a lemon
20g plain flour
A further two tablespoons of caster sugar
A handful of walnut halves
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4
First, the nuts. Place the two tablespoons of caster sugar in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan over a medium heat. After a few minutes, the sugar will start to melt and, after a few minutes more, will start to colour. Give it a gentle stir once or twice to evenly colour and then remove from the heat. Break up the walnut halves a little and stir them into the caramel before spooning the mixture out onto greaseproof paper. Allow to cool before breaking into pieces.
To make the cake, in a bowl, and using a wooden spoon, cream the egg yokes with the castor sugar until the mix goes pale. Split the vanilla pod lengthwise and, with the point of a knife, scrape the sticky seeds out and add them to the egg and sugar mixture along with the orange and lemon juice, the lemon zest, flour and yoghurt. Mix well.
In a scrupulously clean large bowl, whisk the egg whites until forming soft peaks and, using a metal spoon, fold them into the yoghurt mix.
Spoon the mixture into a small casserole dish, loaf tin or flan dish with a solid bottom. Place that dish into a roasting tin and add enough water to come 1” up the outside of the cake’s container. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or so until the top has browned a little and the cake resembles a light sponge with wet custard.
To serve, spoon a portion of the cake onto a plate and place broken pieces of caramelised nuts on top.
Friday, 5 February 2010
Beetroot and Ox tongue with horseradish
Like ox heart described elsewhere on this page, ox tongue is one of the animal’s most-used muscles and is also one of the least-used cuts of meat. It really is worth a try and produces an inexpensive dish.
Also, this recipe uses whole, uncooked beetroot; in my opinion, one of the most under-rated vegetables available to us.
Beetroot should always be cooked whole. Don’t be tempted to top and tail it because, once you’ve broken the skin, the red leeches out into the cooking water which not only stains everything it touches, it impairs the flavour as well.
Serves four
One ox tongue
Two raw beetroot - washed
Sea salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
A couple of teaspoons of horseradish sauce
One white onion – peeled and thinly sliced
White wine vinegar
Rapeseed (or similar) oil
80g watercress – washed and drained
Place the tongue in a large pan of cold water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and allow to simmer for one and a half to two hours or until tender. Drain off the water and allow the tongue to cool before peeling off the outer skin and discarding.
Meanwhile, while the tongue’s simmering, place the unpeeled beetroot into a pan of cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes before cooling in cold water. Drain, peel the beetroot and cut into equal-sized cubes. Place in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and a splash of white wine vinegar.
Once cool and peeled, cut the tongue into slices and season with salt and pepper. Mix the horseradish sauce with a little rapeseed to loosen it.
Place the tongue, beetroot, onion and horseradish mix in a large bowl and toss together before piling onto serving plates or into a single serving dish.
Also, this recipe uses whole, uncooked beetroot; in my opinion, one of the most under-rated vegetables available to us.
Beetroot should always be cooked whole. Don’t be tempted to top and tail it because, once you’ve broken the skin, the red leeches out into the cooking water which not only stains everything it touches, it impairs the flavour as well.
Serves four
One ox tongue
Two raw beetroot - washed
Sea salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
A couple of teaspoons of horseradish sauce
One white onion – peeled and thinly sliced
White wine vinegar
Rapeseed (or similar) oil
80g watercress – washed and drained
Place the tongue in a large pan of cold water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and allow to simmer for one and a half to two hours or until tender. Drain off the water and allow the tongue to cool before peeling off the outer skin and discarding.
Meanwhile, while the tongue’s simmering, place the unpeeled beetroot into a pan of cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes before cooling in cold water. Drain, peel the beetroot and cut into equal-sized cubes. Place in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and a splash of white wine vinegar.
Once cool and peeled, cut the tongue into slices and season with salt and pepper. Mix the horseradish sauce with a little rapeseed to loosen it.
Place the tongue, beetroot, onion and horseradish mix in a large bowl and toss together before piling onto serving plates or into a single serving dish.
Monday, 18 January 2010
Apple and walnut crumble with pouring cream
Why don’t we do more crumbles? They’re so easy to make, take very little time and can be savoury as well as sweet. Great as winter-warmers, here we’ve used apples and walnuts but you could equally use rhubarb or pears or any other fruit you have available – fresh or frozen. And you could serve them with custard or ice cream and so on.
50g unsalted butter – cut into cubes
100g plain flour
50g demerara sugar
50g chopped walnuts
Four large cooking apples
Sugar to sweeten
Pouring cream
Peel the apples, dice them into chunks, place them in a saucepan and let them stew over a low heat until they begin to break down, stirring occasionally.
While they’re cooking, place the diced butter in a bowl along with the flour and rub through with the end of your fingers until you have a breadcrumb consistency. Then mix through the demerara sugar and chopped walnuts. You could wiz the butter and flour together in a food processor if you wished but make sure the walnuts are stirred in by hand.
Once the apples begin to break down, pour them into a heat-proof dish, sprinkle the crumble mixture on top and bake at 180°C (gas mark 4) until the top is golden brown – probably 20 to 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven, give a generous scoop of crumble to each person and serve with the cream.
Oldfields Restaurants cookbook, Passion for Real Food, is out now and available in good bookshops. For discounted copies contact us at the restaurants on Dean Street in Newcastle on 0191 212 1210 or Claypath, in Durham on 0191 370 9595 or go to www.oldfieldsrestaurants.com.
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