Goats' cheese salad with figs and pomegranates
A classy little starter this, full of crisp leaves and fresh tastes.
serves 6
9 small goats' cheeses
5 bushy sprigs of thyme
12 black peppercorns
4 or 5 bay leaves
250ml olive oil
36 walnut halves
6 large handfuls of salad leaves (trevise, radiccio, rocket)
1 large pomegranate
18 small, ripe figs
2-3 tbs red wine vinegar
Cut each cheese in half horizontally. Put the discs of cheese in a flat dish, tuck in the sprigs of thyme, the lightly crushed peppercorns and the bay leaves then pour over the olive oil. Cover with clingfilm and leave in a cool place for at least 4 or 5 hours, turning the cheeses once or twice if you remember.
Rinse the salad leaves. Peel the pomegranate and pick out the seeds. I know it's a bore but you really must remove every scrap of the bitter pith. You want just the jewel-like seeds. Cut a cross in the top of each fig and press its shoulders with your fingers and thumbs so that it opens out like a flower.
Pour the oil from the cheeses into another dish, holding them in place with a spatula, then add a little salt and the vinegar, whisking lightly to give a sharp dressing. Toast the walnuts in a hot, dry non-stick pan till they smell nutty. Divide the salad leaves between six plates. Lay three slices of cheese on each plate, three figs, a scattering of pomegranate seeds and the walnuts. Spoon over a little of the dressing.
Mildly spiced fish soup
A luxurious thing to start a meal with, but it would make a fine main course, too.
serves 4
2 tbs olive oil
1 medium-sized onion
1 large carrot
2 cloves of garlic, or more if you wish
a little crushed dried chilli
a long piece of orange peel
a couple of bay leaves
a big pinch of saffron threads
750g tinned or fresh, skinned and seeded tomatoes
fish: you will need about a kilo of mixed white fish such as monkfish (get the fishmonger to skin and bone) and eel, a couple of red mullets, filleted, and a few handfuls of clams or mussels in their shells.
a handful of sprightly coriander leaves
a small handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped
water or wine
Warm the oil gently in a large pan set over a moderate heat. Meanwhile peel and roughly chop the onion, then add it to the oil and let it cook till soft and pale. While that is happening you can peel and finely dice the carrot, and peel and chop the garlic. Add them to the onions and cook till soft.
Stir in the dried chilli flakes, the length of orange peel and the bay leaves. Put the saffron onto a saucer and moisten with a tablespoon or so of water. When it has softened, add it and the liquid to the vegetables. Crush the tomatoes and add them along with their juice. Let them cook down a bit, then add liquid - water or white wine - accordingly. You want it to have the consistency of a loose, soupy stock. Now let it bubble gently towards a boil.
Check the fish for any stray scales and loose bones. Any fish still firmly on the bone is a good thing. Cut the eel, monkfish, haddock or whatever into large chunks, much longer and fatter than you could eat in one go. Too small and they will shrivel to nothing. Add the fish according to how long it will take to cook. Meaty fish, such as the eel, will take longer than the thin fillets of say, red mullet. Slide them into the thick broth and let them cook until opaque - a few minutes, but at any rate less than 10.
Scrub the mussels and clams, discarding any whose shells are gaping open or seem lifeless when you squeeze them. Rinse them all thoroughly. Add the clams first. Then the mussels. Prawns fall somewhere in between the two, depending on what type they are. The most suitable here will be raw (grey) ones. Ready-cooked ones will toughen. The shellfish is ready when it has opened. Taste for salt, adding it gingerly with black pepper and the green herbs.
Prawn, avocado and dill salad
What appears, at first taste, to be a creamy dressing contains nothing richer than olive oil, lemon juice and green herbs, this is a truly pretty salad, all pinks and greens. Elegantly sliced brown bread and butter would be perfect with this mild-mannered salad, or some crusty French bread.
serves 2
400g large prawns, raw if possible
1 large, perfectly ripe avocado
a large bunch of beautiful, very fresh watercress
for the dressing:
2 tbs of chopped dill leaves
2 tsp smooth Dijon mustard
the juice of a lemon
60ml olive oil
35ml water
If you have been lucky enough to get hold of raw prawns, drop them into boiling, salted water and leave them till they turn pink - a matter of seconds. Lift them out and cool them under running water. Peel away their skins then, with the help of a small knife remove the black vein that runs along their back. If you are using cooked prawns then remove their shells. Frozen prawns should be defrosted.
Make the dressing by putting the dill into the jug of a blender, then adding the mustard, lemon juice, a little salt and the olive oil and water. Blitz to a smooth, green flecked cream then scoop into a bowl.
Put the prawns into the dressing. Halve the avocado, remove the stone, peel and slice thickly. You want slices thick enough that they don't fall apart when you mix the salad. Gently mix the avocado pieces with the dressed prawns. Wash the watercress and trim away the toughest stalks. Pile it onto two plates, then divide the prawns and avocado between them.
Spiced pumpkin soup with bacon
As festive as you can get. A soup that smells and tastes like Christmas.
serves 4, generously
1 medium onion
50g butter
2 plump cloves of garlic
900g pumpkin
1 tbs coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seed
2 small dried chillies
1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
4 rashers smoked bacon
up to 100ml single cream
Peel and roughly chop the onion. Melt the butter in a large, heavy-based saucepan and cook the onion and the garlic, peeled and sliced, until soft and translucent. Meanwhile, peel the pumpkin, remove the stringy bits and seeds and discard them. Chop into rough cubes and add to the onions. Cook until the pumpkin is golden brown at the edges.
Toast the coriander seeds and cumin in a small pan over a low heat until they start to smell warm and nutty - about two minutes. Grind the roasted spices in a coffee mill or using a pestle and mortar, keeping the pan to one side for later. Add the spices and the chillies to the onions and pumpkin. Cook for a minute or so then add the stock. Leave to simmer for 20 minutes or so until the pumpkin is tender.
Fry the bacon in the pan in which you toasted the spices. It should be crisp. Cool a little then cut up with scissors into small pieces. Whizz the soup in a blender or food processor till smooth. Pour in the cream and taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as necessary. Return to the pan, bring almost to the boil and then serve, piping hot, with the bacon bits scattered on top.
Partridge with pumpkin and wild mushrooms
I used to worry about cooking game birds - that they might be tough, or that they would be too easy to overcook. In truth, nothing could be more straightforward, and in my experience a tough one is a rare occurrence.
serves 2
2 oven-ready partridges
1 medium-sized onion
60g butter
1 rib of celery
200g pumpkin
a few sprigs of thyme
50g fresh wild mushrooms such as girolle
80g small chestnut mushrooms
a little dry vermouth and cognac
You will also need two sheets of greaseproof paper, or two roasting bags, large enough to loosely wrap the birds.
Peel the onion and slice it into thinnish rings. Melt half the butter in a shallow pan and cook the onion till soft and tender, stirring from time to time. Meanwhile cut the celery into slices no thicker than your little finger, add them with the thyme leaves to the onion and continue to cook till they have softened slightly. Peel the pumpkin and cut the flesh into small dice, about 1cm in diameter, then cut the mushrooms into bite-sized pieces, stir into the onion.
Lay the sheets of paper out and divide the mixture between them. Put the empty pan back on the heat, add the remaining butter, then, when it starts sizzling, put the birds in, breast-side down. Let them cook for a couple of minutes till their skin is golden, then turn. Lift the birds out and put them in the middle of the onion mixture.
Pour over a couple of glugs each of dry vermouth and cognac then pull the paper up around the birds and scrunch the edges together to seal. Lift the parcels onto a baking sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes until the parcel is golden brown and puffed up. The partridge should be golden and juicy.
Baked red mullet with pine nut stuffing
Large, juicy flakes of fish are what appeal here. I find you need a large red mullet per person, or two smaller ones. This sounds a lot, but trust me, they have quite big bones. This stuffing is good for other things too, whole squid perhaps, or even partridge.
serves 4
4 large red mullet, cleaned with the heads left on
1 large shallot
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
50g fresh white breadcrumbs
15 black olives, stoned
50g pine nuts
the juice and finely grated zest of a lemon
2 tbsp raisins
a small handful of chopped parsley
the leaves from a couple of bushy sprigs of rosemary, chopped
2 tsp of capers
olive oil
Heat the oven to 190 c/gas 5. Rinse the mullet, pat them dry with kitchen paper and lay them snugly in a roasting tin. Peel the shallot and chop it finely, then let it cook slowly with the olive oil and garlic in a small pan over a moderate heat until it is soft and translucent. Add the breadcrumbs and let them colour slightly. Chop the olives and add them to the crumbs with the pine nuts, lemon zest, raisins, chopped herbs and capers. Season with salt and pepper.
Stuff as much of the filling into the fish as will go comfortably. Any remaining stuffing can be scattered over the fish. Squeeze over the lemon juice and add a drizzle of olive oil and a grinding of salt then bake for 20 minutes till the fish is opaque and comes easily from the bone.
Roast duck with pancetta and potatoes
The point of this recipe is that the potatoes absorb some of the duck fat, you can then balance the richness with some peas with lemon and mint.
serves 2-3
1 large duckling, weighing about 2.5kg
150g pancetta
5 or 6 little thyme sprigs, leaves stripped
6 medium sized potatoes, such as Maris Piper
a wine glass of Marsala
olive oil, mild, not fruity
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
Preheat the oven to 200 c/gas 6. Remove the giblets from the duck, rinse the bird inside and out and pat it dry.
Peel the potatoes and cut them into finger-thick slices, dropping them into cold water as you go. Cut the pancetta into cubes, then put it into a large roasting tin with a tablespoon of oil, over a low heat. Let the pancetta flavour the oil, but don't let it colour. Introduce the slices of potato, shaken dry, and let them cook slowly.
Add the onion and the thyme leaves to the potatoes. Turn everything gently as it cooks, letting the potatoes and onions colour slightly. Season and remove from heat.
Prick the skin of the duck with a fork then season it inside and out with salt. Lay the duck on top of the potatoes then put in the oven and roast for around an hour, until the potatoes are soft and both they and the duck are golden. From time to time, push the spuds, particularly those that are browning quickly to one side, and spoon any cooking juices over any that appear dry.
During the cooking, carefully tip off most of the fat that has not been absorbed by the potatoes. Test to see that the duck is done. There should be no blood in the juices and the skin should be crisp and singeing. Remove the potatoes to a warm dish.
Turn the oven up to 220 c/gas 7. Put the duck back in the oven and let it crisp up for 5 minutes or so then move to a warm dish. Quickly pour the Marsala into the roasting tin and place it over a moderately high heat (you don't want it to boil away), scraping at any stuck bits in the pan. The idea is to get any pan stickings and sediment to dissolve into the gravy. While the sauce is bubbling, carve the duck and serve with the potatoes. Check the pan juices for seasoning , then spoon over the duck.
Any fat left over shouldn't go to waste - it is one of the most delicious of all cooking mediums. Put it in the fridge to set, then use it for roasting potatoes.
Three great mashes for Christmas.They will go brilliantly with turkey, beef or goose.
serves 4 as a side dish
2 large celeriac roots (about 1.5kg total weight)
4 large potatoes (about 650g total weight)
a thick slice of butter (about 30g)
125ml whipping or double cream
2 tbs smooth French or grain mustard
Peel the celeriac then chop the flesh into fat chunks just as if you are preparing potatoes for boiling. Bring to the boil in deep, salted water and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes till tender to the point of a knife.
Meanwhile, peel the potatoes and cut them up, then boil them in a separate pan of salted water. They should be ready in about 20 minutes. Drain both lots of vegetables and tip them into one pan, return to the heat for a minute or so to let them dry out then tip them into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a beater attachment. Drop in the butter, beat till almost smooth.
Tip the cream and mustard into a small pan. Warm through for a minute or two then remove from the heat just before it boils. Scrape the seasoned cream into the potatoes with a generous grinding of black pepper and beat till smooth and fluffy.
Roasted squash mash with spiced onions
serves 2 as side dish
900g butternut squash or pumpkin
25g butter
for the spiced onions:
2 medium onions
50g butter
tsp cumin seed
1 tsp crushed dried chilli flakes
Set the oven at 200 c/gas 6. Cut the squash in half and scrape out and discard the seeds and fibres with a spoon. Cut it into four or six large pieces depending on its size and place them snugly, skin-side down in a baking dish. Slice the butter thinly and dot over the squash then grind over a little salt and pepper. I know this doesn't sound like enough butter but you want to keep the flesh moist during cooking. Bake for a good 40-50 minutes till the flesh is thoroughly tender. The 'neck' pieces of butternut squash will take longer than the more bulbous ends, so remove them as soon as they are tender.
While the squash is roasting, peel the onions and slice them finely. Melt the butter in a shallow pan, add the sliced onions and cook until deep gold. Stir in the cumin seed and the crushed chilli and continue cooking until the onions are deep gold in colour and spicily fragrant.
Using oven gloves or new Marigolds, pick up the pieces of roasted squash and scrape the flesh from the skins into a warm bowl. Mash the flesh with a fork, seasoning with salt and black pepper as you go. Place the spiced onions on top of the mashed squash and serve.
Read part two of this article here
