Spring Lamb Shepherds Pie
Ingredients
1 Shoulder Lamb, preferably on the bone
12 Cloves Garlic
12 Sprigs Rosemary
Oil for frying
250g each diced Carrot, Onion, Celery, Leek, Swede, Parsnip
250g roughly chopped fresh Tomato
2 tbsp Tomato Puree
250ml Red Wine
Beef Stock to cover
250g Tomato Fondu (see recipe below)
1Kg Jersey Royals
Lots of butter
Creme Fraiche to taste
30ml Olive Oil
Asparagus Spears (6 per person)
Baby Navets (turnips!) and Baby Carrots (3 of each per person)
Preparation & Cooking Time
This dish takes around four hours to cook, and a further half an hour to take off the bone. The vegetables can be cooked whilst the lamb is in the oven.
Pre-heat the oven to 300 Fahrenheit (150 C, Gas 3)
Serves
Serves 8 - 10
Method
1. Shoulder of Lamb: Score the shoulder on the fleshy side about a dozen times, right down through the meat to the bone. Push the peeled, halved Garlic cloves and Rosemary sprigs into the slits. Season with Salt and Pepper.
(If you don't have a large enough roasting tray to take a whole shoulder, ask your butcher to bone and roll it, and push a knife deep into the flesh so that you can push the Garlic/Rosemary into the meat)
2. In a large roasting tray (or deep casserole if your Lamb is rolled) heat the oil until you can feel a good heat rising. Fry the Lamb on both sides to brown all over. Take out of the tray and leave on a platter to collect the drips.
3. Add a little more oil to the pan and fry off all the other vegetables (except Tomatoes and puree) until softened and browned - about ten to fifteen minutes. Add the Tomatoes and puree, cook for another five minutes. Add the Red Wine to deglaze the pan, replace the Lamb (with any juices that have rendered from the joint) on to the vegetables and push down to "nest" into the veg. Add the beef stock to cover. Bring to a simmer, cover with foil (or lid) and place in the oven for four hours - until the meat is almost falling of the bone.
4. Take the joint out of the tray and leave to cool for around half an hour - until you can handle it without burning yourself!
Whilst the Lamb is cooling, skim off the fat from the cooking stock and pass the remaining liquid through a sieve to remove all the vegetables. Put the stock in a clean pan on a high heat and reduce by two thirds. Set aside.
5. Boil the Jersey Royals - skin and all - in plenty of salted water; blanch (place into boiling water then refresh in cold water) the prepared baby vegetables for a couple of minutes - until just tender.
Crush the cooked potatoes with a potato masher (until well crushed, but not mashed) with plenty of Salt and Pepper - and loads of butter. Beat in the crème fraiche and Olive Oil. Set aside. (This is a lovely snack in itself - but not very healthy with the amount of butter I use!)
6. When cool enough, take all the meat off the bone, discarding all the fat/gristle and bones: the meat should be meltingly tender. Shred with two forks and mix with 250g of Tomato fondue (see recipe below) and enough of the reduced stock to make a moist mixture. (The rest of the tomato fondue can be used in another recipe, or frozen until required).
7. Place 12 cm round moulds (available in any good kitchen shop and it adds a "professional" touch to your presentation!) in the centre of your warmed plates. Fill to ¾ with the meat mixture and top with the crushed potatoes. Pour some of your reduced sauce around the Lamb and finally arrange the re-heated vegetables around the "pie". Take off the moulds and serve. Enjoy.
Tomato Fondue Recipe
This is a basic sauce that we use for all sorts of dishes in the hotel: once made, it will keep fresh in the ‘fridge for up to a week: it also freezes well. Very good as a base for a Pasta sauce. It is important to cook this dish in the order stated: don't try to be organised and prepare everything in advance, as the cooking process is timed to coincide with each stage of the vegetable preparation.
12 Plum Tomatoes
2 Tbspn Tomato puree
3 large Shallots
6 cloves Garlic
2 Tbsp fresh Herbs: Parsley, Basil, Thyme, Tarragon, Coriander
50ml Olive Oil
Warm the Olive Oil gently in a large, thick based, pan (there is quite a lot of stirring, so use a pan that you might otherwise think was too big).
Finely chop the shallots and garlic, put into the olive oil, stir frequently while slowly frying.
Whilst this is cooking, quarter and deseed the tomatoes: retain the seeds in a sieve or strainer as you are going to push the seed with the back of a ladle to extract the tomato juices. Cut the quartered tomatoes into thin strips, and when all are done, add to the shallot/garlic mixture. Stir frequently and continue to cook over a low heat.
Now pick the herbs and chop finely. Rub the tomato seeds through a sieve over a bowl to collect the juice. When you have done all of this, add the Tomato puree to the Tomato mix. Stir frequently and cook for 10 minutes: this seems quite tiring, but the Tomatoes must be given adequate time to cook out thoroughly.
Add the Tomato juice and chopped herbs, cook for a further 5 minutes.
Adjust the seasoning and you are ready to go!
Shrimp Risotto
Ingredients
Serves 8 as starter
For the risotto:
200g Risotto rice (Arborio or Carnaroli)
2 Large Shallots, finely chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, crushed and finely chopped
4 tbsp Olive Oil
About 600ml Chicken stock (made up from good quality stock cubes)
100ml dry white wine
2tbsp freshly grated Parmesan
20g butter
100ml Double Cream
For the Shrimps:
500g Solway Shrimps, rinsed
50g butter
2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped*
75g Fresh root Ginger, peeled, crushed and finely chopped
3 cloves Garlic, crushed and finely chopped
2 Tbsp chopped Leaf Coriander
Juice of 2 Limes.
* Deseeding the Chillis takes out a lot of their fiery heat: if you prefer, chop them whole, but it will give you a very spicy dish!. When deseeding and chopping fresh chillis watch your fingers – if you lick them, they’ll burn your tongue!. Wash your chopping board and knives thoroughly before using them again (and your hands!).
Preparation Time
Risotto - 10 minutes
Shrimps - 15 minutes
Cooking Time
Risotto - up to 30 minutes - depending on size of pan, level of simmer etc
Shrimps - 3-4 minutes
Serves
8 as a starter
Method
For the Risotto:
Put the chicken stock in a pan and bring to a simmer.
Meanwhile, heat the Olive Oil in a saucepan and add the Shallots and Garlic. Cook until beginning to soften. Add the rice and stir constantly for 2-3 minutes until it start to shine. Add the wine and let it bubble until almost all is absorbed. Now start adding the hot chicken stock. Add one third, stirring regularly until the stock is absorbed. Add another third, again stirring as the liquid is absorbed. Pour in half the remaining stock, stir and simmer until absorbed. Now taste the risotto to see if it is “al dente”. If the rice still
tastes a little chalky, add some more stock and repeat until the rice has a texture that suits you. If you are eating this now, add the cream and Parmesan and stir to incorporate. Season to taste with Salt and Pepper.
(If you are cooking this ahead of time, spread the risotto onto a tray in a thin layer, and cool in the refrigerator: reheat when required, adding the cream and Parmesan at this time).
For the Shrimps:
Put the Chillies, Ginger, Garlic and Coriander in a pan with the butter. Sautee gently in the butter for 2-3 minutes without colouring. Add the Shrimps, warm through for just a minute, add the Lime juice.
To serve:
As you please! Either place a mound of risotto on a plate and spoon the shrimps on top, or you can mix the Shrimps into the risotto and stir to mix, and then serve to your guests.
A note on taste of risotto; there is no right or wrong about the texture of a risotto: it's what you like. Some people like a nice "bite" to their rice, some prefer it to be cooked right through - it's a bit like vegetables, so don't listen too much to people telling you it should be this or that, you're going to be eating it, so cook it how you want it!
Ingredients for Chocolate & Raspberry Tart
For the Sweetcrust Pastry:
100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
70g Caster Sugar
1 Vanilla Pod
1 medium free range egg, beaten
200g Plain flour
1 pinch salt
1 egg yolk, beaten, to glaze
For the Chocolate and Raspberry filling:
9 oz Fresh Raspberries
7 oz Dark Chocolate (at least 70% Cocoa solids)
9fl oz Double Cream
1 oz diced butter
Serves
Make one 8” Tart to serve 6 – 8 depending on how hungry they are!
(It’s very rich).
Method
For the Pastry 1) Beat the butter with the sugar until smooth and creamy.
2) Slit the Vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds with the tip of a knife. Add to the butter/sugar.
3) Add the flour and egg alternatively until you have a smooth dough. Wrap in clingfilm and chill for 30 minutes.
4) Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface until it is 2-3mm thick and round, about 25cm across: enough to line a 180cm flan tin, about 3cm deep comfortably, with an overhang. Lift the pastry using the rolling pin and press well into the corners of the tin. Don’t trim the overhang: the pastry will shrink a little during resting/cooking. Place the tin on a baking tray and place a large sheet of foil or parchment inside the tin and fill with baking beans/peas: chill for 20 minutes, while you heat the oven to 180C, gas 4, 350F.
5) Bake the pastry case bind for around 15 minutes: remove the foil and beans and, using a pastry brush, brush the beaten egg yolk over the pastry base. (This helps to seal the pastry for when you put the chocolate mix in later).
6) Bake the pastry uncovered for around 5 minutes, until lightly golden: now trim the top of the pastry case level with top of the tin with a sharp knife. Set aside.
For the filling:
1) Bring the cream to a simmer, remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate to melt. Cool a little.
2) When down to “finger hot” temperature (around 40C if you have a thermometer) whisk in the butter. Cool a little more.
To Assemble:
Line your pastry case with the fresh Raspberries and pour over the cooled chocolate mix: refrigerate until set.
Just before serving, remove from the fridge to allow the chocolate to soften a lttle.
Decorate the plate with Raspberry Coulis and Cream swirls, add Raspberry Ice cream and serve to your guests.
The Ice Cream looks fabulous if served in a Brandy Snap basket.
Brandy Snap Baskets
2oz Butter
2 Tbsp Golden Syrup
2 oz Caster Sugar
2 oz Plain Flour
½ Tsp Ground Ginger
Finely Grated rind ½ Lemon
1 Tbsp Brandy
1) Turn oven on to 350F (180C, Gas4)
2) Melt together the Butter, Golden Syrup and Caster Sugar: do not overheat as the butter will split. Not good!
3) Beat the powdered Ginger and Flour into the sugar mix
4) Add the finely grated Lemon rind and Brandy
Allow to cool.
To Cook:
You will need small moulds to make the cases: preferably a small individual tartlet mould, approximately 8cm across. An upturned ramekin or small sugar bowl will do the trick.
Put a teaspoon of the cold mix, per person, in a blob onto a flat, very lightly oiled, baking tray. Place into the oven for 7-10 minutes.
The mixture will melt and spread out in the heat of the oven – no need to spread it around. It will then bake to a dark golden colour.
When it reaches this colour, remove from the oven and leave to cool for a minute.
Gently lift the edge of the biscuit - it will still be very soft and pliable and quite fragile, so handle with care: lift away from the baking tray and “drape” over your mould. Press gently down around the mould and leave to set.
Lift off and store in an airtight container until needed.
Elderflower Cordial
Ingredients
35 fresh elder flower heads – always pick the sweet smelling ones (which tend to be a bit buttery in colour and which do not drop petals when shaken)
2 oranges, rough sliced
2 lemons, also rough sliced
2oz tartaric or citric acid – we prefer citric which makes for a more lemony taste, but some of our friends like tartaric. You can buy either from a shop that sells winemaking stuff and you can get citric acid from your local chemist.
3 pints boiling water
3lb granulated sugar, (if you are worried about your sugar intake, you can use the equivalent of granulated Splenda (it is very light so follow the instructions which substitute volume for weight….)
1 Camden tablet per gallon of cordial (these come from “winemaking” shops and are brilliant – they kill the natural yeasts that arrive with the elder flowers and allow you to store the cordial for years without it going fizzy). If you do not use them, then you can deep freeze the cordial you want to keep for Christmas….
One or two large containers (the size depends on how much you make at once)
Glass or food grade plastic bottles with airtight caps
a Siphon tube
J-cloths or wine filtering fabric
A large sieve
Method
Boil the water and dissolve the sugar in it. Allow it to cool properly.
Add the orange and lemon slices to the cool sugar water
Stir in and make sure the tartaric or citric acid is dissolved
Add the elder flower heads.
Cover it up with a lid or cloth (we like to use 5 gallon (25 litre) home winemaking plastic barrels) and leave it for 48-72 hours.
Strain the mixture and leave for another 48 hours.
Bottle, leaving behind any more dregs.
Braised Grouse with Pink Grapefruit Marmalade
Ingredients
2 Old Grouse, ask your supplier to halve each bird
12 small shallots, peeled but leave the stem on
6oz smoked Bacon, cubed
Sprig Thyme
Dozen Juniper Berries, crushed
½ Pint Guinness
3 Tbsp Pink Grapefruit Marmalade (I use our own homemade marmalade, but Seville Orange Marmalade will do just as well)
1 small glass Dry Sherry
1 Tbsp Butter
1 small bunch baby white turnips (“Navets”)
Serves 2
Method
Pre heat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a heavy based casserole and brown the grouse, bacon and shallots. Add the Thyme, Juniper and Beer. Bring to the boil on top of the stove: cover and cook slowly in the oven for one hour.
Mix together the Sherry, Marmalade and Butter and add to the casserole, stirring so that the butter doesn’t split.
Add the baby Navets (shouldn’t need peeling) and return to the oven for another hour. If the dish starts to dry out too much, add a little more Guinness. Serve with Mashed potato.
Hedgerow Jelly
Ingredients
1kg Crab Apples (if not available, use cooking apples: they are only there, really, for the pectin!)
250g Blackberries
250g Damsons
250g Rowan or Elderberries
125g Hawthorne Berries (Hawes)
125g Rosehips
2 litres water
Method
Rinse and cut apples in half.
Strip all berries from stalks, rinse.
Place all fruit in a pan with the water.
Bring to boil and simmer until all fruit is mushy – about 1 hour.
Strain through a jelly bag overnight. Place in a clean pan and add 300 g sugar for every 600ml juice. (This replaces the old fashioned 1lb of Sugar to very 1 pint of juice!) Bring to the boil and boil rapidly until set point is reached. (105c, 220F)
Put into clean jars.
I don’t sterilize the jars in advance, because we tend to make much larger quantities than this and it is simpler to sterilize as follows:
Seal the jars with tightly fitting lids. Once cool place the jars in a deep pan and cover with cold water – enough so that the jars have at least one inch of water covering them. Bring the pan (and its contents) to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for one hour: this sterilizes both the jar and its contents: these will keep in a cool place for as long as needed: I have a jar of jelly sealed in this way from September 2008!
If you do not have the exact quantities of fruit above, don’t worry: just replace what you are short of with more of another fruit: as long as the total is the same (1kg of apples, 1kg of Hedgerow fruit). The same applies of you don’t particularly like one of these fruits – it’s all down to personal taste.
Sacher Torte
Ingredients
5 oz Butter
5 ½ oz Castor sugar
6 ¼ oz Dark Chocolate (The highest cocoa content you can find – I use 72%)
5 oz plain flour
5 ½ Egg Yolks (just use 6! It’s easier and doesn’t make a difference)
8 Egg Whites
1 Vanilla Pod
Apricot Jam – around 4 oz
Method
Oven on to 350 F (180 C, Gas 4)
Butter and flour an 8 inch mousse ring
- Cream the butter with half the sugar
- Melt the chocolate as this is beating, and slowly add to the butter cream, together with the seeds scraped from inside the vanilla pod.
- Beat in the Egg yolks one at a time.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the Egg whites until they form stiff peaks: beat in the rest of the sugar and then fold in the flour immediately
- Fold in the Egg yolk/chocolate/butter mix.
- Pour into the mousse ring and flatten with a spatula and bake for approximately 30-35 minutes until risen and just – but only just – firm to the touch in the middle. (Because there is cooling, melted chocolate in this mix, it will be fairly stiff, so it won’t actually “pour”: you will have to help it along a little bit with a bowl scraper or spatula).
- Remove from the mousse ring to a cooling tray until cold.
When the cake is cold, to get the traditional perfectly cylindrical shape, trim the top of the cake flat before glazing.
Sandwich and coat the whole cake with Apricot Jam and then cover completely with Chocolate icing as follows:
5 ¼ oz Chocolate – as above
5 ¼ oz Castor Sugar
4 ½ fl oz water (approx)
Chop the chocolate into small pieces, add the sugar and water and heat gently until luke warm and glossy, stirring occasionally.
Coat the cake with the chocolate mix: the easiest way to do this is to pour the chocolate mix over the cake – now “torte” – whilst it is still on the cooling rack over another tray. In this way, any chocolate that drips off can easily be re-applied to the top.
Allow the chocolate icing to set and serve to your guests.
Terrine of Foie Gras
Although fresh Foie Gras is an expensive luxury - and there are some who object to its production, sorry I disagree with you - the end result of this terrine is well worth the time and money for a special Christmas treat!
Ingredients
2 whole fresh foie gras
75ml Port
75ml Armagnac
15g Rock Salt
Method
Bring the foie gras to room temperature over a couple of hours.
Turn on the oven to 110 Centigrade (225F, Gas mark 1/4).
Once they have become malleable and soft, you will find that each liver is made up of two slightly different sized lobes: lightly pull the two lobes apart and find the main group of blood vessels in the middle (about the size of a small hazelnut). Gently pull this out and then follow the blood vessels leading from this, pulling them out with either your fingers, or pick them out with the point of a sharp small knife.
At this stage, I differ from all of the other experts. No surprise there, then!
The “classical” way to prepare foie gras is to gently “tease” the blood vessels out of the foie gras, keeping the livers as intact as possible. However, if you do it my way and break the lobes into smaller pieces – and I am talking here of pieces no smaller than a large man’s thumb, don’t mince the thing! - then you will find that this gives the finished terrine a lovely marbled look when carved.
Once the two lobes have been de-veined and pulled into smaller pieces, season with the rock salt and ground pepper and layer them in a dish with the Port and Armagnac and leave to marinate for around 1-3 hours. (The length of time determines how much of the Port/Armagnac flavour you get in your terrine: obviously the longer you leave it, the stronger will be the flavour of the liquors in the finished article).
While the foie gras is marinating, prepare your terrine.
First, find a piece of stiff cardboard a little smaller than your mould– the foie gras will exude quite a lot of fat that you don’t want and we will be pressing the terrine later. Cover this piece of cardboard in foil and then a couple of layers of cling film. Find a couple of tins from the larder to fit onto the cardboard, and a few weights that will balance on the tins.
Find a roasting tray large enough to hold your terrine mould and deep enough so that the hot water will reach half way up the sides of the mould. Place a kitchen towel folded over four times on the bottom of the tray - this provides insulation so the bottom of the terrine won't cook too quickly or unevenly. Half fill the terrine with water and place on the hob and heat until the water reaches 75 degrees Centigrade: if you don’t have a thermometer, that’s a bit too hot for you to dip your finger into and keep it there for more than a blink of an eye – but before any small bubbles start to form and simmer!
Take the foie gras out of the marinating mix and place into the mould lined with a double layer of cling film overlapping the edges for later. Press the foie gras lightly into the corners and cover with the overlapping cling film. Place in the water bath in the pre-warmed oven to cook for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Remove terrine from tray. Discard water and return terrine to roasting tray - this is to collect the fat in a minute. Pierce the cling film on top of the terrine a couple of times and put the wrapped cardboard directly on the surface of the foie gras and place the weights on top of this. Chill overnight, preferably 24 hours.
Remove weights and cardboard and melt any fat that has dripped over side and spoon on top of the terrine (the fat will seal terrine, keeping it for at least 3 days).
To Serve:
Unmould your Terrine of Foie Gras by dipping the mould into hot water for a few seconds and gently pulling it out using the cling film it is wrapped in.
Cut into slices with a heated sharp knife and serve with freshly baked bread.
GNOCCHI
An easy to cook, simple but delicious Italian speciality. Serve with a Tomato or Mushroom sauce for a quick and easy snack. Or use it as we do, flavoured with Wholegrain Mustard (instead of Herbs) as a side dish to Pan Fried Rabbit saddle.
Ingredients:
250g baking potatoes - unpeeled
1 egg yolk
75g plain flour
Salt & Pepper
Olive Oil
Fresh herbs as required - chopped
Time:
To cook the potatoes – 15-20 minutes
To prepare the Gnocchi – 10 minutes
To cook the gnocchi – 3 minutes
The potatoes need to be hot for this to work properly: they absorb the flour properly (otherwise the gnocchi can be too sticky).
Method:
Place the potatoes in a large pan of cold, salted water and bring to the boil. Simmer until tender. Drain and peel – you might want to wear your marigolds!. Cut into quarters and put in the oven for 5 minutes to dry out.
Put another large pan of salted water on to boil.
Mash the dry potato – either through a sieve or use a ricer - season with salt and pepper, add the egg and mix. Add 1 handful of flour and the herbs (if required) and mix thoroughly.
Put the potato onto a table and put the remaining flour on top and mix to form a dough: knead lightly until a pliable dough is formed. Work quickly – remember the dough should be warm throughout. Flour the table and take a piece of the dough and roll out to a “sausage” 3cm thick. Cut into 2cm pieces (they should be slightly flattened into “pillow” shapes) with the back of a kitchen knife until all the dough has been used. The dough should still be warm. Place on a floured tray.
Tip your the gnocchi into the now boiling water: they will sink to the bottom. Stir and leave to cook: you know when they are done - when the gnocchi have risen to the surface they are cooked (approx 3 minutes).
If using immediately, take out, put in a serving dish a top with your sauce
If you wish to cook the gnocchi in advance for later use, boil for only two minutes, refresh in very cold water, drain and then add a good dash of Olive Oil and toss. To re-heat, place in a pan of boiling water a couple of minutes, until heated through.
GUINEA FOWL PITHIVIER
A lovely summer dish, using the whole of this little-used (should be used more!) bird - a very tasty alternative to chicken. If you can, find a butcher who will joint the bird for you: the "confit" of the leg can be made a few weeks in advance and kept in goose fat until needed, while the carcass and breasts can be frozen until you decide to cook this dish.
Ingredients:
2 Guinea Fowl Breast – cut into 1cm dice
2 Guinea Fowl leg confit – cut into small pieces
½ Onion – chopped
8 x Juniper Berries
1 sprig Thyme
6 x Sage leaves
100g Wild Mushrooms
50g Sultanas
50ml Guinea Fowl stock
50ml Marsala
Puff Pastry
Time:
Confit: Preparation and Cooking 12 hours – may be made in advance
Pithiviers: Preparation – 30 minutes. Cooking – 20 minutes
To make the filling:
Heat 1 tbsp duck fat until nearly smoking and quickly brown the chopped Guinea Fowl breast. Remove from the pan. Lower the heat and add the Onion, Wild Mushrooms and Juniper, fry for a couple of minutes, add the Marsala, Stock, herbs and Sultanas, stir 1 minute and then add the chopped confit and browned breast meat. Stir and refrigerate.
To make the Pithiviers:
Cut the puff pastry into two pieces, one slightly larger than the other.
Roll the smaller out to 2mm thick – this is the base.
Roll the larger out to 3mm thick – this is the top.
Cut the thinner piece into rounds using a 8cm cutter. Eggwash the edges and fill the middle with the required filling above. Top with 12cm circles of the thicker pastry: make sure the edges are completely sealed to keep in all the juices whilst cooking. Using a small sharp knife, cut a small hole in the top of the pithivier (to allow the steam to escape whilst cooking) and decorate with small cuts from the tope of the pithivier down to the sealed edge in a nice pattern. Eggwash and rest for at least 30 minutes.
To cook:
Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C, Gas mark 8) and bake until golden – around 20 minutes.
CONFIT OF GUINEA FOWL
(Duck or Chicken legs can be used)
Ingredients:
6 Guinea Fowl legs
6 cloves Garlic
2 Sprigs Rosemary
2 Sprigs Thyme
24 Juniper Berries
A few Cracked Peppercorns
Rock Salt
Goose Fat
PreparationTime;
1 hour to cure
4-6 hours to cook
Method:
Trim the Guinea Fowl legs of any spare bits of bone or feathers.
Mix the herbs, Garlic and crushed Juniper berries with the rock salt: you will need enough Salt to entirely cover (top and bottom) the legs. Put a layer of the seasoned salt in a non-reactionary tray. Place the legs on top and cover with another layer of Salt. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Pre-heat the oven to the lowest setting possible: I operate on a temperature approximately 50°F below low! The last thing you want is for the goose fat in which the legs are to be cooked to boil.
Shake off the salt, rinse and pat dry the legs (put the salt into a sieve or colander to drain and keep in a covered storage container for next time: it does not need to be kept in the ‘fridge – the salt will do the preserving).
Place the legs in a roasting tin and cover completely with melted goose fat: put a piece of greaseproof paper over the legs to keep them submerged. Cook in the low oven for at least 4 hours (as much as 6 for Duck) or until the meat is falling off the bone when picked with the tines of a fork. Transfer to a storage container and cool in the goose fat: this will preserve the “confit” for – well, years, as long as the fat remains undisturbed!. The meat will continue to mature in flavour the longer it is kept
To use: bring to room temperature and remove the number of legs that you require, ensuring that when the rest are returned to storage the fat once again completely covers the meat.
The whole “confit” can be pan fried to crisp the skin and finished off in a warm over. Serve with a salad. Otherwise, remove the meat from the bone and shred or chop as your recipe requires.
Lobster and Langoustine RavioliA real treat for the summer months – if you can find a decent wet fish shop. They are a dying breed, unfortunately. Once again, an expensive dish, but ideal for that special party. These Ravioli can be prepared a few hours ahead and stored in the ‘fridge until they need to be cooked – ideal for the harassed hostess!  Ingredients for 12 small ravioli (two to a portion): 300g Lobster - cooked 200g Langoustine - cooked 1 Tsp Finely chopped Dill, Chervil, Chives 200g Salmon – diced quite small 30ml Vermouth 1 egg yolk 50ml Double Cream Saffron Pasta – see later for recipe Time: To make the Pasta: 15 minutes, with an hour to rest To make the filling: 5 minutes To make the Ravioli: 15 minutes To cook the Raviloi: 1 minute Method: In a food processor, mousse the Salmon with the vermouth. Scrape the bowl 2 or 3 times. Do not over mix – see below for details. Add the egg yolk, blend 10 seconds, add the cream, blend 10 seconds. Season with salt and pepper: taste. Pass the mousse through a sieve and chill. Pat the Lobster and Langoustine dry with a paper towel and cut into a small dice, around 4mm. Mix with enough of the Salmon mousse to bind the whole together: add the chopped herbs. Taste and season again if necessary. Chill. Using a pasta machine, roll out the Saffron pasta paste to the thinnest setting. Cut two sizes of circle: the largest 10cm round cutter for the top; an 8cm cutter for the base. Place a 4cm portion of Lobster mix on the base, moisten the edge and top with the large piece of pasta. Seal well. Using your two forefingers, press the ravioli all round to seal completely and ensure the lobster mix is contained in the centre of the ravioli. Store on a dry tea towel with plenty of flour to prevent sticking. The ravioli should keep in this way for at least 4-5 hours: if you prefer, you can blanch the ravioli now for 30 seconds in boiling, salted water: drain, refresh and brush with a little Olive Oil to prevent sticking. When required, simply tip into a large pan of boiling salted water for another 60 seconds) To cook immediately: place in a large pan of boiling water and simmer for one minute. Drain and served with a julienne of vegetables on a Lemon butter sauce. Or on buttered Spinach with a Sweet Red Pepper sauce. Recipes to follow shortly!. Saffron Pasta Ingredients: 1lb Pasta Flour – any good supermarket should have it and it is worth using: you can use a good plain flour, but it does not work as well 3 egg yolks 5 whole eggs (medium eggs) A good pinch of Saffron strands, boiled in White Wine to a syrup – to extract the colour and flavour Salt and Pepper Method: In a food processor, blitz the egg yolks with the whole eggs and 1 dessertspoon of olive oil. Add the sffron “syrup” and scrape in the Saffron strands from the pan. Add the pasta flour one spoon at a time, quickly, until a dough is formed. Remove to a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes until smooth. You may not need all of your flour whilst blitzing – you may need a little more. That depends on the size of the eggs. The dough should not be too dry and firm – nor too sticky. Add an egg yolk and knead if the dough is too dry: if too wet, knead in a little more flour. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for one hour before using. This dough can be cut into small portions and frozen for later use. Whilst cutting pasta, the cut offs can be re-used – but only once! Don’t try to roll and re-roll and then roll again the trimmings from your work. It gets too dry and cracks. Making Fish and Meat mousses. There are a few essential “do’s” and “don’ts” when it comes to mousse-making. We use a lot of mousses here at Overwater and there is nothing as pleasing as getting a mousse just right! But, there are a myriad of ways in which things can go wrong, so here are a few tips: 1) Mousses are very delicate: handle them with respect. Keep all ingredients chilled as much as possible at all times: if allowed to get warm – even to room temperature (very easy in a hot kitchen, remember), - they can easily split. 2) So, keep the blending time to a minimum: remember that you are creating friction between the blender blade and the food – friction creates heat. Cut the food to be moussed into small pieces first to facilitate speedy moussing and regularly scrape the bowl whilst the food is being processed. 3) Don’t over blend the egg yolk (temperature – it will cook) or the cream. The cream is especially tricky: too much blending and it will solidify! 4) Tasting: is a must. But we are dealing with raw food! So, if your’s not keen on tasting raw food, keep a small pan of simmering (not boiling, the mousse will disintegrate) water handy whilst you are working: to taste, simply put ¼ teaspoon of the mousse in the pan for 15 seconds, cool and taste. Then adjust the seasoning as necessary. 5) Passing. We spend our lives in the kitchen passing everything from vegetable purees to soups to mousses to stocks. Everything gets passed. But what do we mean, and why do we do it? About the only mousse we don’t pass is Prawn: so much of it is sinew and other bits we don’t mention that is wastes about 75% of the mousse of you pass it. However, other meats – and fish – are much lower in sinew and therefore the mousse benefits from being passed: “passing” is the process whereby food of any description is “passed” – or pushed/forced/ladled – through a medium designed to filter out unwanted parts of the food. Hence, after blending a soup, for example, we push it thorough a sieve with the back of a ladle – or “pass” it – to take out the celery and other unwanted fibres to leave a fine, smooth soup. The same is true for this Salmon mousse: the finished mousse is “passed” through a sieve to remove unwanted sinew. THIS IS NOT STRICTLY NECESSARY and some of the mousse is wasted. BUT you really, really can tell the difference.
Damson or Sloe Gin Recipe
One of my favourite times of the year comes around now when the game season is just starting – I don’t know why so many chefs don’t put game on the menu! It’s so easy to cook, it’s usually local produce. It is very healthy (Venison certainly is when compared to Beef or Lamb) and there is so much variety! Game menus to follow, because at the same time as we start to get the game, so the foraging season also starts. Another love of mine is to wander down the wonderful hedgerows we have in Cumbria picking as many of the berries that I can use. Last October I featured Hedgerow Jelly: this month it’s time for something more serious: get your Damson Gin ready for Christmas!
The ingredients and method are the same for both Damson and Sloe Gin
Ingredients:
1lb/454gm of washed damsons (I grow some in the gardens here at Overwater, some are foraged and the rest we sadly have to buy in as we can’t produce enough)
OR/ The same quantity of picked sloes – plentiful this year in Cumbria!
6 ozs/168gm of white granulated sugar
75cl bottle of gin: buy a cheap one, as there really is no point putting in your best gin. All you want is the alcohol!
Sterilised jar or wide necked bottle with stopper/cork
Method:
Wash the fruit and discard any bad or bruised fruit.
Now, the traditionalists would have you prick every fruit several times with a fork. But that’s too much like hard work – especially when you think that I am processing around 100lb of the stuff!
So, I place them in my trusty food processor, and with the pulse button, just blitz them for a few seconds to cut them all a few times. Much quicker!! (This does have ramifications later when it comes to filtering)
Place the fruit into a large jar: Kilner or similar. Add the sugar and Gin. Stir to dissolve the sugar and cover. Shake or stir every day for a week and then leave in a cool, dark place for at least three months. Taste every month and top up with more sugar if you think it needs it.
(The gin can be left longer, however I recommend that the gin is filtered to remove the fruit solids after 6 months. Leaving it longer can spoil the liqueur).
The gin will then last for years!
Filtering
The only problem with using a food processor to blitz the fruit is that it then needs much more careful filtering before drinking.
After the three-six month period, a pass my gin initially through a colander. Leave to drain at least overnight. Next, pass the gin through a muslin or jelly bag – again, leave at least overnight. The gin can then be bottled (I reuse the bottles it came in in the first place: been doing that for five years and have never had a problem!
Do please remember to drink sensibly: this stuff is just gorgeous!!
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