Colourful plates to beat the blues

Add cheer to Blue Monday with dishes full of vibrant ingredients – including nourishing nuts, greens, salmon and mackerel – advises Pip Sloan

The day after tomorrow is known as “Blue Monday”, supposedly the most depressing day of the year. Although it was actually created by a holiday company in 2005 using a formula factoring in weather, credit-card debt and our faltering motivation to continue with New Year resolutions, it’s true that this time of year can leave many feeling rather down in the dumps.

But there are ways to avoid the blues; how about a pick-me-up in the form of a plate of wholesome, colourful food? With omega 3-rich salmon and mackerel in the mix, healthy fats such as nuts and avocado, plus plenty of leafy vegetables, these vibrant dishes add plenty of reds, pinks, greens and yellows to your not-so-blue Monday. 1 tbsp fish sauce 4 soft-boiled eggs, peeled and halved

METHOD

Heat a large, high-sided pan over a medium-high heat and add the oil.

Add the lemongrass, garlic and half of the chilli and spring onions and fry for two minutes, before stirring through the curry powder.

Add the rice and stir through until combined. Pour over the chicken stock and bring to a steady simmer.

Cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes or until the liquid has been completely absorbed.

Five minutes before the rice is done and while there is still some liquid in the pan, lay the prawns across the top of the rice and cover with a lid. Cook until the prawns are firm and no longer translucent.

Fluff up the rice with a fork and mix through half the herbs and the fish sauce.

Arrange the warm soft-boiled egg halves on top of the rice and sprinkle with the remaining herbs, chilli and spring onions to serve.

Recipe from Eat. Live. Go. by Donal Skehan (Hodder & Stoughton, £25)

INGREDIENTS

2 tsp Chinese five spice

½ tsp cinnamon

1 whole duck

300g baby carrots, washed and larger ones halved

300g baby parsnips, washed and larger ones halved or quartered 1 small celeriac, peeled and cut into slim wedges

200g kale, tough stalks removed and leaves torn

Sea salt

1 lemon, zest and juice

100g granulated sugar

2 tbsp water

300ml orange juice

1 cinnamon stick

1 star anise

2 cloves

50g cold unsalted butter, cubed Sea salt

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Line a roasting tin with a double layer of foil and place a trivet on top.

Mix the five spice, cinnamon and one teaspoon of crushed sea salt together in a little bowl. Rub the mix all over the duck and place it on the trivet. Pop into the preheated oven for two-anda-half hours. Turn once halfway through cooking.

After one-and-a-half hours, the duck will have rendered a huge amount of its fat, which will have collected in the foil liner. Spoon two tablespoons of that fat into another roasting tin.

Put the carrots, parsnips and celeriac into the tin and shake the tray to coat them with the fat. Season and pop them in the oven on the shelf below the duck for the last hour of cooking, shaking after half an hour.

To make the sauce, first peel the lemon zest off in big strips and juice the lemon. Then put the sugar and water in a saucepan over a medium heat.

The sugar will start to dissolve and then melt. Don’t be tempted to stir, just swirl every now and again to keep it cooking evenly. Keep going until the sugar goes golden brown – like caramel. At this point (carefully) add the orange and lemon juices – do be careful as it will sizzle and spit.

The sugar may harden but it will melt again as the juices warm up. You can stir gently and encourage it to dissolve. Add the strips of lemon zest along with the spices and leave to infuse and reduce over a low heat for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the kale leaves into a mixing bowl along with half a teaspoon of crushed sea salt. Massage the salt into the leaves with your hands for a few minutes – you should find that the kale will suddenly go much softer. Leave to one side until you are ready to serve.

When the duck is cooked, remove it from the oven and leave to rest for 10 minutes. Check the root veg are done and remove them as well.

Take the sauce off the heat once it has reduced by around half of its original volume. Remove the zest and spices and discard.

Add the cubes of butter one at a time, whisking to incorporate them into the sauce as you go. It should be smooth and glossy and beautifully perfumed. Taste and add a pinch of salt to help balance the sweetness.

Lay the kale leaves on the base of a serving platter and top with the roasted root veg. Shred the duck with two forks and pile all over the veg.

Drizzle over some of the sauce and serve the rest on the side.

Recipe from Big Salads by Kat Mead (Quadrille, £16.99)