Picnic fodder for sun lovers
A little planning goes a long way when chef does not want to spend much time in the kitchen.
At this time of year, my priority is about spending as much time outside as possible. I spend enough time in the kitchen throughout the year; I certainly don’t want to spend these summer days slaving over a hot stove when equally hot sand beckons.
Every day is a picnic day. I like to cook the day’s treats the night before, so that all that needs to be done the next morning is to grab food, towels, sunscreen, and labradors before bounding down to the beach.
It’s about time I did a recipe for bacon and egg pie. I’ve been putting it off for ages; I know how passionate we all get about this sort of thing – much like how to scramble eggs or what to top a pavlova with.
I can’t wait for the feedback to start rolling in. By all means, if you think that a bacon and egg pie should have a pastry lid, give it one; if the addition of caramelised onion is just unacceptable, omit it. I like mine to be quite rustic; neaten up the pastry if you wish, and by all means, you don’t need to cook it in a cake tin; use a rectangular ceramic baking dish or tin if you like.
I roast chickens a lot over summer because of their excellent sandwich potential; crisp iceberg lettuce, good mayo, and fresh tomato with generous pilings of cold chicken, crisp prosciutto, and sweet roasted fennel bulb sounds very much like me.
Chicken and cured pork are one of those dreamy combinations; you don’t have to use prosciutto; bacon will work just as well.
My bacon and egg pie
Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 40 mins Serves: 4-8 200g streaky bacon Butter or cooking oil 1 onion, finely sliced Savoury puff pastry 12 free-range eggs
250g cherry tomatoes, quartered – I use Curious Croppers
A few sprigs of rosemary Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Fry the bacon in a frying pan over a moderate heat until crispy and golden brown.
To the same pan, add the sliced onion with a little extra butter or oil and gently cook down for 10 minutes or so until they are soft and caramelised. Season well.
Grease a 23cm collapsible cake tin with the butter or oil. Use the puff pastry to line the tin, trimming the edges. Spread the onion over the base.
Roughly chop the bacon, sprinkle a third of it over the top of the onion mixture, then scatter over a couple of tomatoes and a bit of rosemary.
Crack the eggs over the top. Scatter the remaining tomato, bacon, and rosemary over the top, season with a little salt and pepper, then pop in the oven to bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the egg has just set.
Allow to cool before cutting up and devouring.
Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 45 mins Serves: 4-6
Olive oil 2 fennel bulbs 1 free-range chicken Sea salt and black pepper
teasspoon nutmeg 1 lemon 80g prosciutto 250ml dry white wine Preheat the oven to 180C.
In a large, cast iron pan or roasting tray, add a glug of olive oil.
Core the fennel, slice roughly, and add to the pan.
Cut the chicken down the backbone and splay out. Season the inside with salt and pepper and a little nutmeg.
Arrange the spatchcocked chicken flat over the top of the sliced fennel. Rub the remaining nutmeg and the zest from the lemon into the skin.
Neatly wrap the top of the bird with the prosciutto slices so that they overlap a bit.
Squeeze the lemon juice over the top, and pour the white wine into the bottom of the pan.
Pop into the oven and roast for about 45 minutes, basting occasionally with juices from the pan, until the juices run clear and the flesh is cooked through.
Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes or so before serving.
I like to cook the day's treats the night before, so that all that needs to be done the next morning is to grab food, towels, sunscreen and labradors before bounding down to the beach.
Sam Mannering is a chef and regular contributor to
Magazine. Sunday