Smoked trout pate

I have been in the Loire Valley for the last three weeks working for a lovely family with four kids, there has been lots of spaghetti on the walls, wine drinking, chocolatey faces and bum pinching from a certain naughty four year old. We are staying in a big Chateaux and my bedroom in in a turret so I am now calling myself Rapunzel, although no french men have been at my window trying to climb up my hair yet!

Here is a nice little recipe from Jamie Oliver for smoked trout pate which I have been doing as a little addition to summer lunches. So unbelievably easy to make, just mix in a bowl or chuck into a magimix for a smoother pate.

serves 6-8

125g cream cheese
2-3 heaped teaspoons jarred horseradish
1 lemon
small bunch of chives finely chopped
125g hot smoked trout or salmon, skin removed
sea salt and pepper

Mix the cream cheese with the horseradish, zest from the lemon and half of the juice. Mix in most of the fresh chives just leaving a few to sprinkle on the top when you serve it. Season generously and add more horseradish and lemon if it needs perking up, then flake in the smoked trout and stir gently so you are left with a few bigger chunks. Serve in a pretty dish with the chives sprinkled on top with some really good brown bread.

River cafe polenta, almond and lemon cake

This week has been a bit up and down with the weather, lots of rain and then an absolute scorcher yesterday in the 30˚s. Yesterday was an especially good day because not only did I get a little bit less pasty but I also stood up on my surfboard about 10 times!! I did almost die about twice getting absolutely smashed by waves and ended up with my hair looking a bit like a loo brush but very happy!! Since the weather has been crappy I made a huge cake, and I think this could be my newest most favourite cake I have ever made. I have been trawling through my River cafe books and there is so much amazing stuff so since I have all kinds of great ingredients on my door step I am going to go nuts and try loads this month. Serves 12 450g unsalted butter, softened 450g caster sugar 450g ground almonds 2 teaspoons good vanilla essence 6 free range eggs zest of 4 lemons juice of 1 lemon 225g polenta flour or fine semolina 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon of salt Preheat the oven to ...

Caramelised endive with Serrano ham

This is another delicious Ottolenghi recipe, you could do it as a starter or part of a summery lunch. Serves 6 6 endives, cut in half lengthways 40g unsalted butter 4 tsp caster sugar 50g breadcrumbs 70g parmesan cheese, freshly grated 2 tbsp thyme leaves 120ml whipping cream 12 thin sliced of Serrano ham olive oil for drizzling Preheat the oven to 200˚C. Start by caramelising the endive in batches depending on how many you can fit in a frying pan. Put the butter and sugar in the pan over a high heat until the butter starts to bubble, then place the endive halves into the pan cut side down until they are golden. Remove and place into a lined baking tray, caramelised side up. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Mix the breadcrumbs with the cream, parmesan, thyme some salt and ground pepper. Spoon the mix on top of the endives and top with a slice of the ham. Roast in the oven until golden and the endives feel soft when poked with a knife. Serve hot or warm drizzled with a little oli...

Fig, rocket and basil salad with goats cheese and prosciutto

This is the most simple salad to make and the combination of the basil, goats cheese, fig and prosciutto is amazing. Another nice thing to do is turn it into a canape by quartering the figs, putting a small dollop of goats cheese on, season, add a basil leaf and wrap in prosciutto. serves 5/6 as a Starter 1 bag Rocket 2 tubs of soft goats cheese/goats curd 1 Bunch of Basil 1 pack of Prosciutto/Parma ham 10 Figs For the dressing I just make a basic vinaigrette with a little bit of mustard, balsamic vinegar, olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. And for the final touch you can either buy a bottle of balsamic reduction or make it yourself by boiling it in a pan until it becomes thicker, but still runny enough to squeeze through a bottle. Then do a swirl over and around the salad.

Food In My Home

Search This Blog