Category: Seasonal

For the Bruschetta you will need:

• The juice and zest of one lemon
• 10 twists of black pepper
• Three cloves of raw garlic brunoised
• 60 ml olive oil
• Freshly chopped curly parsley
• Loaf of seeded artisan bread.

To begin, in a large bowl zest and juice one lemon, then season with Maldon sea salt and black pepper, add your olive oil and raw garlic. This is the first thing in your beautifully toasted bread will soak up whilst piping hot off the grill.

Slice your bread and toast until golden brown on both sides, whilst the bread is still warm drizzle over your infused lemon and garlic oil. To finish add a little chiffonade of freshly picked curly parsley.

For the Mussels:

Just before beginning your mussels place a pan of water onto a high heat for your pasta heavily salt the water.

Ensure that you have cleaned your mussels from any beards that maybe attached to them or any barnacles on their shells. Once your mussels are clean and have been looked over, store them in the bottom of your fridge in a damp tea-towel.

If you are unsure of how to prepare a mussel you can also ask your fish monger to do this for you.

Forming a fragrant base for when you steam your mussels:

Firstly finely brunoise one large banana shallot, one red chilli with the seeds left in. 8 – 10 parsley stalks, and four garlic cloves.

Add these to a large a saucepan and cover with around 50 ml of olive oil to infuse, as this will take your mussels to the next level.

As mussels take around the same time to cook as the pasta ensure you have everything ready.

To begin place the pan onto a medium heat, once the olive oil has begun to lightly smoke and the aromats are soft and tender add in your mussels along with one small drinking glass of white wine, as this will help to generate steam which will then open your mussels.

Once your mussels are open and juicy, at this point discard any that have not opened. Begin to bring your pasta over using a pair of tongs, you want a little bit of the cooking water, as this helps to form an emulsion with the mussel cooking liquor.

Just to finish the dish, add the juice and zest of one lemon along with a hand full of finely chiffonade parsley.

This recipe is designed to be relaxed, as it would be the perfect dish to cook either outdoors or on a beach.

Serve into warmed artisan bowls, enjoy with a glass of cold Sauvignon Blanc along with family and friends.

Fuelled by fizz and smoked salmon and cream cheese bagels

Grilled Sea bream and field mushrooms stuffed with stilton, spinach and nutmeg walnuts, alongside Cambolda stuffed baby bell peppers home grown by friends in Devon!

Since my kitchen is currently undergoing a refurb and the cooking facilities are very limited, here’s some grilled mackerel (finished with a blow torch) and honey roasted seasonal veg. Simple and slowly roasted realising all those seasonal flavours and I guess you could say I took inspiration from my deconstructed surroundings when it came to plating!

Ingredients:

• 3 large red chicory
• 4 large figs
• toasted walnuts
• toasted cob nuts
• stilton
• Soft blue cheese
• Richmond honey

1. To begin this dish toast off your cob nuts and walnuts until golden brown. Once your cob nuts are toasted crack them and reserve to one side to be grated over the dish just before being served.
2. Next into a pre-heated oven cross your figs and using your fingers gently push them open, Next drizzle them with some of the artisan honey, roast in the oven for 10 -15 minutes until sweet and tender.
3. To plate, wash you chicory, click the leaves to loosen them, and spread over your chosen plate. Next add your honey roasted figs along with the blue cheese pieces.
4. To finish the dish add your walnuts and then just before service grate the cob nuts and serve with a drizzle of artisan honey.

By using chicory leaves this gives the dish a little bitterness, which is well balanced with the sweetness from the honey. Both the walnuts and cob nuts add to the texture but also offer some creaminess.

Please see the Beef Guinness and Oyster Pie recipe. But cut out all meat, instead I made a vegetable stock (exactly the same just without the bones) and tray roasted seasonal vegetables.

Suet Pastry:

For this pastry I used Delia’s recipe:

• 12 oz. of self raising flour
• 1 Pinch of sea salt
• 1 Pinch of black pepper
• 6 oz. of beef suet
• Enough water

1. To begin this pastry, weigh out all of the ingredients as stated above.
2. Into a large mixing bowl add your sieved self-raising flour along with your suet, using a metal tablespoon stir to incorporate.
3. Next add your seasoning and stir to combine again.
4. To begin working the dough add a drop of water once at a time, first using the metal spoon, work the mixture until it begins to come together.
5. Once at this stage use your hands to work and knead the dough.
6. Remove from the bowl and lay onto a floured plate, allow to rest for 10 minutes.

Beef Stock:

• 1 carrot peeled and sliced
• 1 stick of celery peeled and sliced
• 1 onion peeled and sliced
• 1 bulb of garlic sliced in half
• Tomato Puree
• Thyme
• Bay leaves
• White peppercorns
• 200 ml of red wine
• Coriander seeds
• 5 kg of beef bones

1. To begin this recipe, weigh and prepare all of the ingredients as stated above.
2. Pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees, place your bones into a large roasting tray, drizzle them with olive oil and place into the oven for 30 minutes (until roasted and golden) By roasting the bones you help to intensify the flavour.
3. Whilst your bones are roasting, place your vegetables into a large pre-heated saucepan and allow to colour until golden and tender, as this is the base for your beef stock.
4. Once golden and tender add your red wine along with your aromats, and allow the red wine to deglaze the base of the pan. Next add a heaped tablespoon of tomato puree and cook this out or otherwise your stock will just taste of concentrated tomato puree.
5. Once your bones are ready, remove from the oven and place into the pan. Place the roasting tray onto a high heat and deglaze with cold water as this helps to remove all of the cooked on goodness.
6. Now add this to the pan along with enough water to cover the bones and vegetables (this is a small batch of beef stock). Allow to simmer for 2-3 hours once ready allow to stand for 30 minutes, and then pass through a fine chinois and muslin.

The Pie:

• 6 x sustainable fresh water oysters
• 1 bottle of xx guiness
• 1 stick of celery peeled and sliced
• 1 carrot peeled and sliced
• 1 onion peeled and sliced
• 2 garlic cloves crushed
• 1 punnet of chestnut mushrooms sliced
• Your Beef Stock
• Diced Beef Shoulder
• 10 grams of plain flour
• Salt
• Black pepper

1. To begin this dish, prepare all of the ingredients as stated above
2. Next place a medium sized range master pan onto a medium heat, once the pan is up to temperature add a drizzle of olive oil.
3. Next in a large bowl coat your meat in the seasoned flour (with a pinch of salt and pepper) as this helps to seal the beef but also thickens the sauce.
4. Once the meat has been sealed off and golden brown, remove from the pan and lay onto a clean plate.
5. Deglaze your pan with a little of the Guinness, next add your vegetable base, you want to cook this until they all are tender and golden brown as this helps to form the base of the killer pie.
6. Empty them out and now deglaze the pan with a little more, of the Guinness.
7. Increase the heat of the pan and now add your mushrooms, as you want to cook these hard and fast to help release their earthiness.
8. Next add your vegetable base back into the pan along with a teaspoon of tomato puree, ensure that you cook this out or otherwise you will ruin the dish.
9. Then add your beef stock along with the rest of your Guinness, reduce by half to thicken, now adding your mushrooms and beef back into the sauce.
10. Spoon into a fired earth ovenproof dish and allow to cool in the fridge.
11. Next, shuck your oysters and lay these on top of the pie filling. As the pie cooks the oysters will melt and give the dish an extra depth of seasoning.
12. Before rolling your pastry lid, place your pie filling into the oven to warm through. Now roll out your pastry lid and lay it on top, egg wash around the outside of the dish to ensure your lid stays stuck.
13. Cook until golden brown and crisp, for around 30 minutes at 180 degrees.
14. Serve with a glass of red Malbec and buttered wilted organic kale.