Whole Rainbow Trout / Spinach & Leeks / Apple Mash / Herb Butter

Image courtesy of maine.gov

*part of the Sizzling Staffordshire menu series*

As we all know I love a good fish dish. This fish dish although simple is very very tasty, and combines less orthodox and more subtle sweet flavours to bring out the sweetness of the fish. It can be quite cheap to make, as rainbow trout can be cheap to get hold of if you shop around, and the advent of supermarkets make this fish an abundant choice year round.

You will need (serves 2):

2 whole rainbow trout, descaled, gutted and cleaned.
4 generous handfuls of baby spinach, although adult spinach will work just as well, picked and washed
3 Large leeks, white section, trimmed, washed, chopped into echelons and blanched in salt water.
2 portions herb butter
2 large baking potatoes, peeled chopped boiled and mashed.
1 bramley apple or apple sauce.
tbsp brown sugar

The doing bit:

For the fish:

Slash the skin in 4 places unfiromly accross the fish either side, making a deeper cut where the fish is thicker nearer the head. Season with salt and pepper and small piece of the herb butter. Place under grill for about 5 minutes or until cooked, and finish with the herb butter.

For the leeks and spinach: In a pan sautee the leeks in a small amount of oil and keep the pan covered on a gentle heat until the leeks are bright green and soft. Add a small amount of the herb butter and a pinch of salt and black pepper, then add the spinach and continue cooking until the spinach has wilted. Serve.

For the mash, peel , core and chop the bramley apple into roughly 1cm pieces, and sautee in a pan on a very gentle heat until they soften. Add the sugar and stir in until the sugar has melted. Add the mash and heat up until piping hot, adding milk or butter or even an egg as required (all down to preference). Season where necessary and serve along side the trout, and the leeks / spinach.

Christmas Turkey Pie (for Beau)

Image courtesy of sodahead.com

I've always been fond of turkey as a rule. I hear so many people whinge and complain that they aren't much for it because it's dry - to be honest i think they must be doing something wrong as i've always found turkey to be quite succulent. I suppose the key to this is keeping it covered, moist and well basted during cooking. Nobody wants a dry turkey.

This recipe is posted at the request of Beau - who desires a "family sized, festive Christmas Turkey Pie". I agree with him - there are too many turkey and leek pies out there, and granted they may be nice - they're not impressive and don't entirely fit the festive periods ideal.

This recipe can work for you in a variety of ways, giving scope to use up any leftover turkey from festive dinners, or you can calso buy cheap cuts of turkey from a supermarket that are ready year round. You can also make this in advance and freeze it in readiness for baking at a later point, providing adequate convenience to suit your busy schedules.

Ingredients

(makes a family sized pie serving roughly 4)

500g Shortcrust pastry (recipe can be found here) (you may want to double the amounts though)
2 or 3 Turkey legs
200g is bacon cut into 1/2 cm pieces
1 large onion (1/2 scored and studded with 3 cloves, other half chopped finely)
3 bay leaves
1 stalk celery chopped finely
1 carrot, chopped finely
1 leek chopped finely
100g chestnut mushrooms. Use porcini if feeling extra festive.
Handful fresh cranberries or redcurrants.
tbsp raisins
Pinch nutmeg and cinnamon
Zest 1 orange
2 cloves garlic crushed
200ml whole milk
200 ml chicken or turkey or game stock
1 and 1/2tbsp plain flour
tbsp butter
tbsp Fresh rosemary, sage and thyme
tbsp fresh tarragon
100ml white wine or dry martini
50 ml sherry

Roll out the pastry and line a suitable dish for cooking our pie. Reserve enough of the pastry for the lid

Preparation: Strip the meat from the turkey legs, be sure to discard any of the small bones. keep the skin if you can. Cut the meat into equal sized pieces (about 3/4 inch should do it). Set to one side.

In a pan saute the 1/2 onion first until soft then add the carrot, celery garlic and mushrooms. Allow to colour and soften then add the turkey meat and herbs. when the turkey meat has coloured nicely, set to one side and cover the pan to keep it warm.

While the main flavours are cooking in a seperate pan infuse the milk with the studded onion and bay leaves. Bring up to temperature but do not allow to boil. Cook for about 15 mins at this heat.

In a seperate pan heat up the butter and add the flour bit by bit. When all the flour is added, strain the milk and add to the flour and butter mix until all liquid is added and the mixture is uniform. You should have a thick white sauce at this point. Keep it moving on a low heat and add the wine, then add the stock. Allow to simmer and reduce until roughly 1/3 of the original volume has evaporated.  This should take about 30 mins or so. Stir occasionally. When done, add the sherry combine this liquid with the turkey mix and if thick enough add to the pie dish (already lined with pastry).

Add the cranberries or redcurrants (or both) with the raisins and the orange zest. Sprinkle with pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon.

Lid the pie and pinch the edges - make an air hole in the top. Brush the pie lid with milk then bake in the oven at 180C for about an hour, (longer may be required). Glaze with eggwash (1 egg and butter mixed) every 30 mins for extra shine.

Serve.

Chicken Cacciatora (Hunters Chicken)

Image courtesy of bbc good food

This dish comprises a combination of latin flavours, but in supposition its an ideal dish for hunters to cook in the field, or would have been back in the day. The flavours aren't complex, and complement each other perfectly. Also if you shop around for ingredients you can produce this dish extremely cheaply. Substitutions such as using thigh meat instead of breast, and using generic cream cheese help alot to cut costs, as do using standard red onions instead of shallots. Granted the authenticity may wane, but i suppose not everybody's pockets are deep, and the economic situation at the moment lends favour to saving money wherever possible.

That said the substitutions element will not detract from the enjoyment of this recipe. Its hearty, rustic and suitable year round. Feel free to add mushrooms also if you have them available.

Ingredients
(serves 1)

1 breast of chicken, skin on with wing bone trimmed. (Or thigh).

2 slices of chorizo sausage (You can use salami or pepperoni if you wish).
2 shallots finely diced (or 1 small red onion)
1 clove of garlic crushed
Olive oil
100g cherry tomatoes
75ml of mascarpone cheese (or other full fat cream cheese)
Basil shredded
Seasoning

Tuck under the chicken skin the two slices of sausage, season and seal in a hot pan with a little oil, finish in the oven for 12 minutes

In a sauce pan sweat off the garlic and shallots, do not brown

Add the tomatoes with a little water and cook for 10 minutes

Stir in the mascarpone cheese and the basil leaves, season

Once chicken is cooked pour over the sauce

Serve with new potatoes roasted in olive oil and rosemary. You can quite legitimately serve with other things such as rice, or pasta. I hoever prefer the potato approach.  

Salt & Pepper Chicken

This wonderful oriental dish is frequently served among the orient, inclusive of China, Malaysia, Taiwan, & Japan. Its delightful year round, and can be amended to suit a variety of palates. Chopsticks at the ready... here we go...

Image courtesy of Kats 9 Lives blog. Her recipe can be found here:

http://www.kats9lives.com/2008/12/taiwanese-style-salt-pepper-chicken.html

Ingredients

Serves: 2
vegetable or sunflower oil
1 to 2 onions, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
4 to 5 cloves garlic, minced
3 to 4 green and / or red chillies, sliced
1/2 to 1 teaspoon sugar
coarse sea salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
300g breaded boneless chicken

Preparation method


Prep: 10 mins | Cook: 25 mins

1. Usually the breaded chicken takes about 20 minutes to cook in the oven, so put your chicken in first as it takes about this much time to cook the rest of the ingredients.
2. Put 4 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan or wok and place on a moderate heat. Add the onions and green pepper, and stir fry for a few minutes. Add the garlic and chillies when the onion and pepper have gone soft.
3. Stir until the onions have turned slightly golden, then add the sugar (start with 1/2 teaspoon; you can add more later if needed) 2 pinches of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Continue stirring until chicken is ready and turn down heat if needed; the ingredients in the pan should be a soft golden colour.
4. When the chicken is ready, cut it up into thick slices, place in the pan and stir it all together. The aim here is to get the chicken smothered in the all the other ingredients. Add more oil if you need to. If you don't think it's sweet enough, add more sugar and garlic.
5. Once the chicken has been covered with the mixture, serve up