Buttery chilli prawns

Spicy seafood is a really versatile dish for sharing - make sure there's plenty of bread for the juices 

Ingredients

Serves 2

• 1 oz butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves , finely chopped
• 1 red chilli , seeds left in and finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
• 12-20 large raw king prawns with shells
• juice 1 lemon , plus a few slices for a finger bowl
• ½ x small bunch parsley , roughly chopped
• small loaf crusty bread , warmed to serve

Method

1. Melt the butter and oil together in a frying pan. Add the garlic, chilli and paprika, then fry for 1-2 mins until starting to turn golden. Turn up the heat, throw in the prawns and fry for a few mins, stirring, until all the prawns turn pink. Take off the heat, season and stir in the lemon juice and parsley.
2. Add some lemon slices to a finger bowl of warm water, grab a bowl for the shells, then dig straight in with your fingers and hunks of crusty bread.

Gorgeous dinner of porchetta stuffed with wild mushrooms, celeriac mash & gravy

This is a bit of a special weekend dinner,but worth the time & trouble and a sure winner with your guests. This recipe serves 10. 

Serves 10

Ingredients

• For the stuffed porchetta:

  1 large handful mixed wild mushrooms (such as shiitake, field mushrooms and oyster)

• olive oil
• 1 small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked
• 2 bulbs garlic, cloves of 1 bulb peeled and finely sliced
• 1 knob butter
• zest of 2 lemons
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• a few slices stale bread, roughly torn
• 3 kg higher-welfare pork loin, boned, skin off, belly on
• 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
• 2 sticks celery, washed and roughly chopped
• 2 carrots, washed and roughly chopped
• 1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 small wineglass cider
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 565 ml organic chicken or vegetable stock

• For the mash

• 1 kg celeriac
• 500 g potatoes
• 1 knob butter
• 150 ml milk
  
  

  Method

  Preheat your oven to its highest setting. Tear or roughly chop your mushrooms – thick, thin and wonky, it doesn't matter, you want it chunky and rustic. Heat a large frying pan over a medium heat, add a lug of olive oil, the thyme leaves and mushrooms, and toss around a bit. Next, add the sliced garlic and knob of butter. Fry everything off for about 10 minutes until the mushrooms are browning a little around the edges. Add the lemon zest with a good pinch of salt and pepper, then remove to a bowl and let it cool. Once cool, add the bread and toss together.
  
  Now turn your attention to the pork. Lay the loin and belly on a board, fatty-side down, and use a knife to make a little pocket between the loin and the belly meat. Stuff the cooled mushroom mixture into the pocket, then season well all over with salt and pepper. If you've got any garlicky, thyme and lemon juices left in the pan, pour these over the pork for some wonderful added flavour. Rub all the seasoning and juices into the pork.
  
  Roll the belly around the loin and tie it tightly with 5 or 6 pieces of string to keep it all in place. If your butcher gave you the bones, scatter them around the bottom of an appropriately sized roasting tray – you want the pork to sit quite snugly in the tray - and put the meat on top. Place in the oven and immediately turn it down to 180°C/350°F/gas 4 so the meat cooks through nice and evenly. This is a good time to get the crackling ready for the oven, so score the skin with a small sharp knife to open it up for seasoning. Bash up the fennel seeds and salt in a pestle and mortar, rub a generous amount of this into the skin and place it on a baking tray.
  
  After the meat has had an hour in the oven, take it out and add the chopped vegetables and remaining bulb of garlic to the tray, roughly broken apart into unpeeled cloves. Pour in the glass of cider and give the tray a shake to coat everything. Put it all back in the oven to cook for another hour. The crackling can also go in at this point.
  
  Before the second hour is up, put a large pan of salted water on to boil. Peel and cut the celeriac and potatoes into even-sized chunks, then boil for 12 to 15 minutes until soft and ready to mash. Drain and let them steam-dry, then return to the pan with a good knob of butter, some seasoning and the milk. Mash until smooth, adding a splash more milk if you need it. Cover and keep warm until ready to serve.
  
  When the pork is ready, remove it from the oven on to a plate and cover with tin foil, so it can rest for about 20 minutes while you crack on with the gravy. You'll have some nice roasted root veg and sticky goodness left in the bottom of the tray. Pour or spoon off the excess fat in the tray, then place it over a very low heat and pour in the stock a little at a time (you may not need to use all of it), using a potato masher as you go to mash up all the vegetables. Keep stirring to make sure you get all the lovely sticky brown bits off the bottom of the tray. Add the flour and keep reducing the gravy down until you get the consistency you like. Pass the gravy through a sieve to get rid of any lumps, then serve with the warm mash, stuffed pork and beautiful crackling.

Rack of lamb with warm salad of mixed beans & slow-roast tomatoes

Tender, lean lamb and a selection of the finest vegetables makes this a romantic dish you won't forget





 For the Slow Roast Tomatoes 

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 ripe plum tomatoes , trimmed and halved
• few thyme sprigs
• 3 garlic cloves , left whole
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• handful basil leaves

  For the Lamb 

• 1 x 8-bone rack of lamb , well trimmed (see tip, below)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 25g butter
• 4 garlic cloves , smashed but with skin on
• few thyme sprigs

• For the Warm Bean Salad 
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• 200g podded broad beans
• 200g fine beans , trimmed
• 85g mangetout
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 shallots , finely sliced into rings
• small handful toasted flaked almonds

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• For the Dressing 
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Method 

1. Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. For the tomatoes heat the oil in an ovenproof frying pan (if you don't have an ovenproof pan, use a standard frying pan then transfer to a roasting tray before putting in the oven) and fry cut-side down. Add the thyme and garlic and cook for 3 mins until coloured. Turn over the tomatoes, drizzle with vinegar, then roast in the oven for 20 mins until soft and caramelised. Leave to rest.
2. While the tomatoes are roasting, cook the lamb. Season the meat generously and heat the oil and butter in another ovenproof frying pan. Place the lamb, fat-side down, in the pan and scatter round the garlic and thyme. Brown the lamb really well, then turn over.
3. Baste the lamb with the pan juices, then transfer to the oven for 10 mins for lamb that is pink. If you prefer it more well done, give it 5 mins more. Leave the lamb somewhere warm to rest.
4. While the lamb is cooking, prepare the bean salad. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the broad beans for a few mins. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon straight into a bowl of ice water, then slip them from their skins into a bowl. Boil the fine beans for 2 mins, then add the mangetout and cook both for 1 min longer. Drain, plunge into iced water (this keeps their bright green colour), leave for 1 min to cool down, then drain again.
5. Heat the oil in a frying pan, quickly cook the shallots for 1 min until starting to soften and colour, then add the fine beans and mangetout. Cook for about 1 min to heat through, then toss in the almonds and finally toss through the broad beans.
6. Scatter the basil over the tomatoes, saving a few of the very small leaves for garnishing. Make the dressing by simply whisking the oil and vinegar together. Carve the lamb into cutlets on a board with a very sharp knife (see tip, below). You are now ready to plate up.
7. Place the salad to one side of each plate. Line up three tomato halves down the other side of the plate. Lay three chops on top of the salad, slightly overlapping, with the bones pointing in the same direction. Drizzle the dressing around the plate and scatter the small basil leaves over the tomatoes.

AND ENJOY

Quick prawn, coconut & tomato curry

Make curry in a hurry with this speedy recipe - a fragrant spice pot ready in half an hour 

Make double and freeze half for another midweek supper. 

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion , thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves , sliced
• 1 green chilli , deseeded and sliced
• 3 tbsp curry paste
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 7 fl oz vegetable stock
• 7 fl oz coconut cream
• 12 oz raw prawns
• coriander sprigs and rice, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Fry the onion, garlic and half the chilli for 5 mins or until softened. Add the curry paste and cook for 1 min more. Add the tomato purée, stock and coconut cream.
2. Simmer on medium heat for 10 mins, then add the prawns. Cook for 3 mins or until they turn opaque. Scatter on the remaining green chilies and coriander sprigs, then serve with rice.

• Cook 20 mins
• Prep 10 mins
• Freezable

Nutrition per serving

335 kcalories, protein 19.0g, carbohydrate 7.0g, fat 26.0g, saturated fat 16.0g, fibre 1.0g, salt 1.03g.

Duck breast with spiced red wine and orange sauce

Make this special dish a part of an indulgent weekend lunch/dinner perfect for friends.

• Ingredients

• 6 duck breasts (see note), skin scored
• 2 eschalots, finely chopped
• 300ml dry red wine
• Grated zest and juice of 2 oranges, plus 2 oranges, segmented
• 2 tbs spiced redcurrant jelly (see note), plus extra to serve
• 1/3 cup (80ml) demiglaze (see note)
• 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp red wine vinegar
• Flat-leaf parsley sprigs, to serve
  
  

  Step 1

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Season the duck with salt and black pepper.
2. Step 2
   Place a non-stick frypan over low heat, then cook the duck, skin-side down, for 5-6 minutes until golden and most of the fat has rendered. Transfer to a baking tray, then roast for 5-6 minutes for medium-rare, or until cooked to your liking. Rest, covered, for 5 minutes.
3. Step 3
   Meanwhile, drain all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan. Add the eschalot and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes, or until soft. Add wine and allow to bubble for 3-4 minutes until reduced by half.
4. Step 4
   Add orange zest and juice, then allow to bubble for a further 3-4 minutes until reduced by half again. Stir in the jelly and demiglaze, then simmer for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until thickened.
5. Step 5
   Place orange segments in a bowl and toss with oil and vinegar. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
6. Step 6
   Slice the duck, then divide among plates. Top with orange segments and parsley sprigs, then drizzle with the red wine sauce and serve with extra jelly.

Herbed Beef Tenderloin Recipe

Cooking on the grill or BBQ has always been one of my favorite hobbies. This recipe is a popular choice for my family's Sunday Lunch (perhaps in the Garden!) or our special birthdays or Fathers Day is next weekend why not try this one for the Old Man! I like to serve tenderloin with baked potatoes and homegrown vegetables.

• Prep: 5 min. + marinating Grill: 30 min. + standing
• Yield: 12 Servings

53035

Ingredients

1 beef tenderloin roast (4 to 5 pounds)

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon each dried basil, thyme and rosemary, crushed
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper

Directions

• Place tenderloin in a large resealable heavy-duty plastic bag. In a bowl, combine the remaining ingredients; pour over meat. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate overnight.
• Prepare grill for indirect medium-hot heat, using a drip pan. Drain and discard marinade from beef. Place beef over the direct heat. Grill, covered, over medium-hot heat for 10-15 minutes or until beef is browned, turning frequently. Move beef to indirect side of the grill. Cover and grill for 20-25 minutes longer or until meat reaches desired doneness (for medium-rare, a meat thermometer should read 145°; medium, 160°; well-done, 170°). Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing. Yield: 12 servings.