Lamb Rasher ( Lamb Breast) Salad with wild watercress and hedge garlic

Last Saturday Laurence Keough made a Lamb Rasher Salad on Saturday Kitchen and Nick the lovely boyfreinds’ ears pricked up , mostly because anything with the word rasher has him salivating Homer Simpson- style

On Friday  he returned happy from the butchers clutching a breast of lamb. It really doesn’t look like the most appetising cut , lot of fat and ribs. It make sense if you understand it as Lamb belly though obviously lambs have a lot less meat on their tummys than pigs,  which  explains why despite pork belly being the meat du jour ,lamb breast is still a cheap cut .

Making rashers of lamb is a little time consuming since the lamb needs to be cooked and then pressed overnight but once cooled and  sliced it takes just a few minutes to grill it leaving  sweet golden strips.

Lawrence also used Dandelion Leaves in his salad , this is appealed to the forager in me so  this morning on a gorgeous spring day we went for a little stroll round the local canals.

Just 5 minutes from home we stumbled on a tonne of wild watercress ( Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum) , this is only the second time I had found watercress. Though myths abound that watercress  only grows in clear running water , I have known people grow it in tubs in backgarden . This was close to regularly running water on a culvert leading down from the canal but growing out of concrete. Picking watercress you must be careful to leave the roots in place  and there is also a danger of liver fluckes where  watercress comes from a water course where there are animals grazing upstream. You can cook the watercress to avoid any risk it makes a lovely soup .

Here I decided to risk a salad , adding a little extra foraged hedge garlic to bulk out the watercress but any other flavorsome lettuce would be good too
Breast of Lamb Rasher Salad with wild watercreass and hedge garlic

1kg breast of lamb
1 bunch of watercress
1 bunch of hedge garlic
20 mint leaves
Few slices of wholegrain bread

Sherry Vinegar Dressing

1 tsp of whole grain mustard
1 glug of sherry vinegar
1 glug of olive oil
Salt and Pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas 2.
2. Place the lamb belly onto a roasting tray , season with salt & pepper.
3. Roast in the oven for 2 hours and 30 minutes
4. Remove the lamb from the oven and, while still warm, pull the bones away from the flesh.
5. Lay the cooked meat between two baking sheets weighing the top on down with something heavy, I used a mortar from my mortar and pestle
6. Chill in the fridge overnight.
7. Thinly slice the lamb , place the slices with the brown bread , under a medium grill until golden brown
8. Chop the bread into 1cm cubes , mix together the salad leaves lamb and breadcubes
9. Mix with the sherry dressing

Hot Peas

Yesterday the weather wasn’t really great for walking,  dark clouds in the sky,  so we opted for a day hanging out in Nottingham .  Off course we stopped off at  Victoria Market carefully secreted at the top of a shopping mall , ignoring the fluorescent light and suspended ceilings, the market  has several good butchers , fish and vegetable stalls where we stocked up on rabbit, gammon hock ,mutton.

In Victoria Market,  is a Nottingham institution , the “Hot Pea” man which serves bowls of well… um … hot peas . These are  mushy peas ,  dried marrowfat peas which are first soaked overnight in water and bicarbonate of soda, and then simmered with a little sugar and salt until they form a thick green lumpy mass.

As a confirmed Southerner, these are not something I have ever experienced , occasionally you get mushy peas with fish and chips but apparently in Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and parts of Lincolnshire, they are often served as a snack on their own . In Nottinghamshire at least the traditional accompaniment seems to be lashings of thin mint sauce ( dried mint mixed with malt vinegar).

Worryingly  these simple  mushy peas could be at the heart of a political storm. Last year  the British Food Standards Agency has asked for a voluntary ban on artificial food colourings.  At present there  is no alternative to tartrazine (E102), that gives a bright green colour without which the dried peas would be murky grey. For me adding artificial colours or flavourings is not really the way to go  but the peas were very tasty and will be thinking of some recipes

For the full Midlands experience we also went to see ” The Damned United”,  a new film about Brian Clough .  Clough is a probably as massive as hot peas in  Nottingham . As manager of football team Nottingham Forest he took them them
from small provincial side to First Division Champion and two consecutive European championships. They  even have a statue of him in the city centre . The film however  focuses on Cloughs prior experiences with football teams Derby and Leeds so Nottingham supporters might be hoping for a sequel. I really enjoyed it .

Before the film Nick even persuaded me to try some proper beer  starting me off easy with some Flowers Indian Pale ale it was a revelation creamy and delicious is felt like a was drinking soe kind of citruses cream .. is this the beginning of a real ale obsession

Salmon and Dill Fishcakes

This morning on Something for the Weekend they were making CornBeef Hash cakes , easily influenced I instantly began craving something potato cakey ..

I have made salmon fishcakes before with leeks and also spicy fishcakes with asian Slaw , dill though is a classic companion ingredient and for the first time I also tried a  breadcrumb coating . Breadcrumbs seem to have become very fashionable suddenly especially  panko which are japanese breadcrumbs made from bread without crusts . My breadcrumbs seemed set to be the very opposite of panko  since I made them using a incredibly stale heel of homemade wholemeal bread found lurking in the breadbin . However putting it first through the thin grating setting of the food processor meant they were very fine and acutally they had a delicious crunch once baked in the oven.

Served with some fresh green salad and a dill and mustard dressing

Salmon and Dill Fishcakes

200g of floury potatoes peeled and chopped into quarters
200g of skinless salmon fillets
4 tbsp of capers
4 tbsp of fresh parsley
4 tbsp of finely chopped fresh dill
100g wholemeal breadcrumbs
1 egg
Salt and Pepper

1. Bring a frying pan of water to a gentle simmer,  add the salmon and poach for 4 minutes, once cooked remove from the water and flake the fish.
2. Boil the potatoes in salted water until soft.
3. Mash the potaotes with plenty of salt and pepper.
4. Mix  capers, parsley , and dill into the potatoes.
5. Shape the mixture into cakes with your hands about 1.5 cm thick 5cm across.
6. Lay the cakes on a baking sheet and place in the freezer if possible for 20 minutes.
7. After the cakes come out the freeezer dip each first into beaten egg then roll into the breadcrumbs.
8. Returns to a baking sheet and either fry in sunflower oil or bake at 190degC for 30 minutes.

Dill and Mustard Dressing

1 tbsp of fresh dill finely chopped
1 tbsp of wholegrain mustard
1 tbsp of sugar
Juice of one lemon

Mix togther the ingredients and use to dress salad and the fishcakes

Hedge Garlic Roasted Chicken and Potatoes

My first bit of foraging of the year . I was working from home on Friday , which meant at 5 on the dot  I shut off the computer and dragged my lovely boyfreind off for a walk along the canals .  There isn’t lot growing even the nettles seems to be off to slow start down our way but there was a  lot of hedge garlic ( Alliaria periolata)  which won’t have its delicte white flowers until April or June but the tasty leaves have already unfurled.

Hedge Garlic a lighter flavour than one of my favourite wild foods Wild Garlic ( Allium ursinium )  shown above which is so makes many woods in the UK smell like an italisn restaraunt later in the Spring .

Having gathered several large handfuls of hedge garlic leaves I  decided to use them with the large organic chicken we had planned for Friday night . First I stuffed  garlic leaves under the chicken skin ,  seasoning the skin itself with a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper.

Into roasting dish with the chicken I popped in a  few chopped raw potatoes  also added some sundried tomatoes , chopped home preserved lemons and a few more garlic leaves . This means the potatoes cook in the juices and fat from the chicken, for little effort you get delicious flavoured potatoes all you need to do if two or three times during cooking while turn the potatoes in the dish to ensure they are coated with cooking juices and cook evenly.

This chicken was about 2kg so I roasted it for 2 hours at 190degC , covered in foil for the first hour uncovered for the second. The hedge garlic added a delicious hint of garlic without being overpowering , I fancy trying it in a kind of sag aloo so it if bound to pop up on the blog again

Indian Spiced Mackerel

Went into Derby this weekend to check out the markets , despite being in a landlocked county Derby has at least three good permanent fish stalls in the market each with a massive range of fish and friendly staff . Nick banned me from buying an Octopus though he might relent after I show him gorgeous and tasty it can look on Food Stories blog

Instead I was permitted to buy two lovely Mackerel which are just coming into season . Though the fishmonger offered I quite like de-heading and gutting them myself they seem to stay fresher so Sunday morning saw me clutching fish guts .

I love mackerel simply grilled ( memories of Lyme Regis last summer ) but I really wanted to try something a bit different I have loved the fish curries at festivals over the years but have never tried making my own

Once cleaned I slashed the sides of the fish and smothered them with a spicy curry paste ( red chilli, coriander , tumeric and ginger mixed in oil ) sorry for being lazy and not toasting and grinding my own spiced but I was anxious to get out and enjoy the sunshine .

After a day pottering round in the sunshine , I popped them under the grill and served with a pile of green lentils topped with yogurt and a , fresh cucumber , parsley, mint and spring onion salad dressed with salt , pepper and fresh lemon juice Would have been even better served in the sunshine in a tented field ,  but its definitely a sign of good things to come .

Chicken Cacciatore

This is a classic Italian dish , Cacciatore means hunter in Italian  I had a  busy week hunting and gathering  or sitting at my desk and getting eye strain from my monitor  ,this seemed a suitable dish to be  waiting for me when I got home on Friday night with a glass of red wine .

Chicken thighs are definitely superior to breasts in a casseroled dish like this they cut easily with the side of a fork so perfect with a pasta dish allow 2 thighs per person.

Chicken Cacciatore

300g of skinned chicken thighs
400g of tinned plum tomatoes
1 large onion , roughly chopped
3 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary
300ml of white wine
2 tbsp of white wine vinegar
1 bay leaf
1 handful of pitted olives
2 tbsp of sundried tomatoes
1 bay leaf
2 tbsp of olive oil

1. Heat the oven to 180degC
2. Season the chicken with salt and pepper
3. Heat the oil in a lidded casserole dish
4. Remove from the pan and add the onions, rosemary and garlic
5. Return the chicken to the pan , add the tomatoes, olives, bay leaf, wine & vinegar
6. Place the casserole with the lid on in the oven , cook for 30 minutes
7. Remove the lid for the final 10 minutes
8. Serve with pasta or new potatoes

Prunes in blankets ( Prunes wrapped in bacon)

While my bofreind was tucking into his breakfast on Saturday , bacon, egg and black-pudding,  I was pondering what to do with any leftovers from the pack of bacon

In a blinding flash I remembered that my mum often cooks prunes wrapped in bacon and we had some prunes leftover from the Lamb slow cooked with prunes dish a few weeks back. The combination of  sweet & saltiness is delicious. So I made some  for Sunday brunch accompanied by skewers  of scallops and black pudding for good measure.

The wrapped prunes make a luxiourous brunch but also make excellent canapes hot or cold . 

Prunes in blankets

6 sprigs of rosemary
6 large prunes
3 rashers of smoked bacon

1. Cut each rasher of bacon in half
2. On each half place at one end a prune and a spring of rosemary
3. Roll the prune/rosemary into the bacon
4. Grill for approx 5 minutes turning halfway through

Scallop and Black Pudding Skewers

6 scallops
6 discs of black pudding ( roughly the same diameter as the scallops , 1/2cm thick  )
6 stems of woody rosemay

1. Season the scallop and black pudding with pepper brush with oil
2. Skewer scallops and blackpudding  through the centre with woody stalk of rosemary
3. Grill for 2 minutes
4. Serve with a spalsh of balsamic vinegar

Rosemary and Garlic Slow Roast Shoulder of Lamb

It was the last of the lamb from Welsh Farm Organics and , the shoulder  ,  undoubtedly my favourite  cut.  I often  slow casserole lamb shoulder with red wine. But this shoulder deserved something special to ensure I could taste all its organic sweetness so I went for a really slow roast with the plenty of garlic and rosemary.

Nick’s Dad swears by the magical temperature of 150degC, so with 3 hours to spare for cooking , I thought I would give it a whirl , adding water just adds to the moistness and means there is plenty of juice for gravy .  But the true treat has to be giving meat time to rest something I am finally learning to do .

If you have noticed  a lot of rosemary on the blog  we have a massive bush right next to the front door it is  flowering right now and just begging to be used.

Rosemary and Garlic Slow Roast Shoulder of  Lamb

Serves 4

1.5kg organic lamb shoulder
6 springs of rosemary
6 cloves of garlic skinned
2 tsps of fennel seeds
1 large onion thickly sliced
Salt and Pepper
500ml of water

For gravy
300ml of red wine
2 heaped tbsp of plain flour

1. Turn the oven onto 150degC
2. Rub the joint with fennel seeds , salt and pepper.
3. Spear the shoulder surface in 12 places with a knife ,push sprigs of rosemary and the skinned garlic cloves into the slots
4. Slice some onions and put them at the bottom of a cast iron casserole dish, put the lamb shoulder on top , of the onions & pour the water into the bottom of the dish
5. Cover the casserole dish with a lid ( or tent the roastng dish with foil )
6. Roast the lamb with the lid , after two hours remove the lid and roast for another hour to allow the lamb  to brown.
7. After the final cooking time remove the lamb from the cooking dish Cover with the lamb with foil and leave to rest for half an hour .

Making gravy

1. Pour the juices including the onions , any fallen garlic cloves and rosemary into a measuring jug, in just a minute the fat will rise to the top, pour the fat off leaving the  cooking juices
2. Return a few glugs of  the cooking juice to the casserole dish and heat on a hob for a few seconds ,add 2 heaped tbsp of plain flour and stir in
3. Slowly add the rest of the juices mixed with 1/2  a pint of wine .

Lasagne

Why hasn’t lasagne made it onto my blog before , I think because it is often not very photogenic, and thats a terrible reason not to put something on , because I love lasagne.

Lasagne is a dish of my childhood , my mum reckons  there is not a child alive who doesn’t eat it so when school freinds came for dinner we always had a massive dish of lasagne .  Still whenever someone goes into hospital the first thing my mum does it make and deliver a lasagne to the abandoned family.

I can also chart my childhood cookery progress  through lasagne.  First I was allowed to grate the cheese , later make the whole bechamel sauce , later the meat sauce and  during my time as a vegetarian I learnt to make a tasty lentil filling .

For me making a lasagne is a joyously times consuming activity which shouldn’t be rushed .

The beschamel  sauce is satisfying to make from scratch, to make
its extra luxurious , stirring  it with a rosemary stalk imparts a
herby taste and I have also added white wine but the real secret has to
be to use a strong cheese , very mature cheddar or even stilton

Meat sauce these days  has expanded to include lentils and olives to give  texture. It also contains  both beer and wine . I find the beer acts as a good replacement for beef stock which I don’t really have since we don’t often have beef on the bone
.

I like the pasta to be cooked but still a little chewy crispy chewy edges . I have to stop myself eating it cold from the pan.

Lasagne Assembly

Feeds 6

10 sheets of dried lasagne
My lasagne dish which is 50cm long X30cm wide and 20cm tall

1. Layer of bolagnese sauce (recipe below ), followed by a layer of pasta followed by
2. sauce to 3/4 of the way up the dish finally pour over the beschamel sauce ( recipe below) . I have tried laying the beschamel  sauce alongside  with the meat sauce but its seems to just vanish into the pasta and I love a cheesy layer
3. Scatter grated cheese over the top and a few sprinkles of fresh rosemary and black pepper
4. Bake at 150degC for 40 minutes

Bolagnese Sauce

400g of minced beef
200g of red lentils
600g of chopped tinned plum tomatoes
1 large onion finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic minued
1litre  of water
200ml of red wine
200ml of dark ale
3 tbsp of roughly chopped stoned olives ( black and green)
3 tbsp of olive oil
3 tbsp of mixed herbs ( Dried Oregano , parsley and rosemary)
Salt and Pepper

1. Heat the olive oil in the pan.
2. Fry the onion and garlic til soft, then add the meat in batchs to brown
3. If you want to make this vegetarian replace the meat with 300g of green/continental lentils
4. Once browned add the tomatoes , lentils , wine , ale and half the water
5. Simmer for at least an hour on a low heat with the lid off , add more water if it begins to look too dry
6. Add the olives and mixed herbs
7. Add the other half of the water simmer for a further hour.

Beschamel (White) Sauce

Makes 1.5 pints of sauce

1.5 pints milk
2 heaped tbsps butter
2 heaped tbsp of plain flour
200g of cheddar cheese (- half stilton if available)

1. Melt the butter in a pan  add the  plain flour and cook for a few minutes on a low heat
2. Begin to add the milk a little at a time , stirring continuously until it has all been incorporated
3. The milk should thicken to form a glossy sauce.
4. Finally add the cheese saving a little for the top of the lasagne , stir well taste and if required season with a little salt and pepper

Steak and Kidney Pie

It was  British Pie Week 2nd – 8th March 2009  a secret I have been keeping  from Nick the lovely boyfreind otherwise he would be feasting on pie all week. The winning recipe in a competition by Jus Roll Pastry was a Game Pie from the Keystone in Guildford  but there are plenty of other recipes online

To celebrate we had a steak and kidney pie ,we got some lovely firm lambs kidneys from the butchers nothing like the vacuum packed New Zealand imports you get from the supermarket .

Steak and Kidney is a very manly pie which for me has to have  a rich gravy, I spiked mine with ale and horseradish .  Our pie was topped with a crumbly shortcrust pastry. I have used puff pastry before and you get a lovely dramatic effect  but I do like making my own shortcrust pastry  for the full  domestic godess effect  . Definitely  don’t worry is some gravy oozes out when baking  if you brush it over the pie and continue to bake it will form a golden crust.

We almost ate this massive pie between us just one portion has made it into the freezer

Steak and Kidney Pie

300g of beef stewing steak
8 large lambs kidneys  tubes removed and cut lenghtways into quarter
400ml of Bishops Finger ale
2 tbsp of mixed herbs
1 tbsp of horseradish sauce
2 tbsps of flour season with salt and pepper
1 large onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp of butter

Pastry

200g of plain flour
100g of butter
1/2 tsp of salt
60ml of water

Extra flour for rolling out

1. Heat the oven to 190degC
2. Make sure you have removed the tubes from the kidneys
3. Toss the steak and kidneys in seasoned flour
4. Heat the butter in a cast iron pot , fry the onion and garlic
5. Add the steak and kidneys and fry until browned , the flour will add
6. Add the ale , horseradish , mixed herbs and stir well . Keep on a low heat to gently simmer while you may the pastry the ale should thicken with the flour from the meat

Make the pastry

1. Add the salt to the flour
2. Rub the butter into the flour to form crumbs
3. Add the water slowly to form a dough

1. Place the steak and kidney mixture into a pie dish it should have plenty of gravy
2. Roll the pastry out to 3/4 of centrimetre and cover the pie, brush over with a little milk
3. Bake at 190degC for 20 minutes then turn down to 150degC for 45 minutes final baking,