Food and drink
Comfort food recipes from Edinburgh cafe Honeycomb and Co, plus Rose Murray Brown on Spain’s best new sherry makers
As we move towards winter, much of our normal routine and rhythms have been disrupted this year – no Bonfire Night parties, no evenings out with friends in our favourite cosy bar or restaurant.
Nothing can hold back the change of the seasons and the ingredients that come into our kitchens as a result. At Honeycomb & Co there are some favourites that are near permanent fixtures on the menu, but we also take the opportunity to make the best use of seasonal produce with some updates for regular dishes, or new weekly specials. Comfort food doesn’t have to mean heavy stews and stodgy puddings – we’re still looking for food that’s packed with flavour and colour, using warming spice and fresh herbs, and plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables wherever we can.
Many of us are missing the opportunity to cook for friends and family right now. While the chance to do that again may be a way off, there’s something to be said for making something a little different for your own household, or even as a bit of selfcare for those of us who live alone.
Honeycomb & Co, 1 Merchiston Place, Edinburgh is open from 9am- 5pm daily, honeycombandco. com
Chicken and lemon with butternut squash and puy lentil salad
A simple dish that’s packed with flavour.
Serves four
4 free range chicken breasts 100g rose harissa
2 preserved lemons, deseeded & finely chopped salt and pepper
1 butternut squash, peeled, deseeded & cut into 2cm cubes
200g puy lentils
100g feta, crumbled
½ red onion, finely sliced
20g flatleaf parsley, finely chopped 100ml olive oil
1 preserved lemon, deseeded and finely chopped
100ml buttermilk
100g toasted pinenuts
1. Start by marinading the chicken. Place the harissa, preserved lemons and seasoning in a bowl and combine. Marinade for at least two hours ( ideally overnight) for flavours to develop. Place squash in a large baking tray and roast for 45 minutes until tender and caramelised. Set aside to cool.
2. Put lentils in a pan of cold water over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 20 minutes or until lentils are just cooked and have some texture. Drain and set aside to cool.
3. Place lentils in large bowl, add squash, feta, onion and parsley and mix well. Add olive oil and preserved lemon and mix through salad.
4. Roast chicken at 180C/ Gas Mark 4 for 15- 20 minutes until cooked through, remove from oven and rest for 5 minutes. Spoon salad into serving bowls, slice chicken and place on top. Finish with a spoonful of buttermilk over each breast and a sprinkling of toasted pinenuts. Serve.
Pan- roasted sea trout with hispi cabbage, ginger, lime and mascarpone
A little advance prep makes this a dream to cook – bring everything together when you’re ready to eat and you’ll have a really delicious dish on the table within minutes.
Serves four
4 x 140g fillets sea trout, skin on salt and pepper
50ml olive oil
½ green cabbage, roughly chopped 250g mascarpone
25g root ginger, grated zest and juice of 1 lime 200ml vegetable oil
50g tomato paste
5g chipotle chilli
1. Prepare chilli dressing. Heat oil over low heat, add tomato paste and chilli and cook for 2 minutes. Set aside and cool completely.
2. Add cabbage to a large pot of boiling water, cook for 2 minutes. Remove and blanch in a bowl of ice water. Drain and place on tea towel. Set aside.
3. Mix mascarpone, ginger, lime and a pinch of salt. Set aside.
4. Place a large non- stick pan over medium- high heat. Heat oil in pan and place trout skin side down. Fry for approximately 2 minutes, then turn, take off heat and allow residual heat to finish the cooking process.
5. In a separate pan over high heat, toss cabbage with salt and pepper for 1 minute to heat and crisp up the edges.
6. Spread mascarpone over the base of four plates. Place cabbage in the centre of each and place trout on top. Finish with a few teaspoonfuls of chilli dressing and serve.
Toast and jam
This fun dish can be a hearty brunch or smaller- portioned pud.
Serves four to eight
180g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
90g caster sugar
70g desiccated coconut
2 free range eggs
1 tsp vanilla paste
30g whole milk
120g coconut milk
200g ricotta
160g double cream
1 tsp vanilla paste
200g fresh blueberries
160g sugar zest and juice ½ orange lemon thyme
25g lemon thyme dried overnight in oven at 50c
10g flaky sea salt
1. Preheat oven to 170C/ Gas Mark 3. Grease and line a 450g loaf tin. Put wet and dry ingredients separately in two mixing bowls and combine well. Add wet to dry ingredients and mix until smooth batter is formed. Pour into tin, bake for 45- 50 minutes or until golden and a knife comes out clean. Cool.
2. For jam, add all ingredients to a heavy- based saucepan, simmer on low heat for 45 minutes or until thickened. Cool and remove thyme.
3. For the whipped ricotta, combine cream and vanilla in bowl and whisk to form soft peaks. Add ricotta and fold through cream until just combined. Refrigerate until needed.
4. Combine thyme and salt.
5. To finish, slice bread into 8 pieces and toast. Spoon ricotta on each piece, top with jam and sprinkle with the lemon thyme salt. Serve.