The Herald - The Herald Magazine
GRAEME CHEEVERS’ CHRISTMAS TREATS
Thrift and imagination make for a flavoursome festive feast
THERE are many traditions associated with Christmas, but the ritual of greatest relevance for our purposes is glut. Leftovers inform a large part of the recipes you’ll find on these pages, meaning most of them will be best suited to scoffing on Boxing Day or even later in the week. The recipes are bursting with classic Christmas flavours and mostly use ingredients that are kitchen essentials, so it’s fairly likely you’ll already have them. Each recipe is simple and quick to prepare and can be made well in advance – ideal for using up dead time before any visitors arrive.
WALNUT PUFF PASTRY TWISTS WITH PEAR AND STILTON Serves 4-6
100g parmesan 100g walnuts 2 eggs 50ml whole milk 5g sage 500g puff pastry 2 pears 200g stilton 500ml creme fraiche
Set the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4.
Start by making the puff pastry twists. Grate the parmesan finely and chop the walnuts finely as possible, combine the eggs and milk, and roll the sage leaves into a cylinder before slicing thinly.
Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface to a large rectangle 5mm thick. Brush it with the egg wash and sprinkle the parmesan, walnuts and sage over it, then fold it in half and roll it back out to 5mm thickness. Set the pastry aside to rest for 30 minutes.
Once rested, cut the pastry into strips 1cm wide and 20cm long, twist them four or five times and lay them on a non-stick tray. Brush them all over with the remaining egg wash before placing in the oven and baking for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the tray and allow to cool.
While the pastry twists rest make the dip by placing 100g of the stilton in a food processor with the creme fraiche and blending until smooth. Transfer the mix to a serving bowl, grate the pears over the top and finish by crumbling the remaining cheese on top.
Serve the dip along with the cheese twists.
CORONATION TURKEY AND GOLDEN RAISIN BABY GEM WRAPS Serves 4-6
50g egg yolks 5g English mustard 10ml white wine vinegar 5g mild curry powder 400ml vegetable oil 1 Granny Smith apple 100g golden raisins 600g cooked turkey leg meat 4 baby gem lettuces
Start by making a curry mayonnaise. Place the yolks in a large mixing bowl with the mustard, white wine vinegar and curry powder. Season well with salt and whisk for two minutes until light in colour. Now add the oil slowly and gradually, whisking continuously, until you’ve used all the oil and the mayonnaise is thick. Now add 20ml water to soften the mayonnaise.
Next peel and chop the apple into 5mm dice and add to the mayonnaise along with the raisins. Flake the turkey meat and add it to the mayonnaise.
Now cut the core from the base of the baby gem lettuces and remove the outer leaves so you have between four and six from each lettuce and set aside. Once all the outer leaves are removed shred the cores and combine them with the mayonnaise too.
Divide the turkey mixture evenly between the lettuce leaves, roll them into parcels and serve immediately.
CHESTNUT MOUSSE Serves 4
2 sheets of gelatine 200g milk chocolate 200g unsweetened chestnut puree 2 egg yolks 400ml double cream 2 egg whites 40g sugar 100g vacuum pack of cooked chestnuts
Soften the gelatine for a few minutes in cold water.
Melt the milk chocolate along with the chestnut puree in a mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water until soft and warm then add the egg yolks and continue to warm, stirring continuously and making sure the mixture doesn’t get too hot and scramble. Remove the bowl from the heat, stir in the gelatine until dissolved then set aside to cool.
Whisk the double cream in a bowl until soft peaks form and set aside. Whisk the egg whites, adding the sugar gradually, until a stiff meringue forms.
Add a third of the cream to the chestnut puree mixture and whisk well to soften the mixture. Now gently fold in the remaining cream to the mixture followed by the meringue, making sure everything is well incorporated.
Place the mousse into glasses or bowls in the fridge for two hours to set.
Before serving roughly chop the chestnuts and add them to the top of the mousse.
WINTER SLAW WITH CANDIED NUTS Serves 4
70g sugar 50g walnuts 100g hazelnuts 100g cashew nuts 10g butter 500g red cabbage 200g Brussels sprouts 1 red onion 4 carrots 1 celeriac 20ml red wine vinegar 20g wholegrain mustard 500ml creme fraiche
Start by caramelising the nuts. Add the sugar and 50ml water to a large saucepan and cook gently until the mixture starts to bubble. Add the walnuts, hazelnuts and cashew nuts and stir continuously until they are coated in the sugar mix and sticky. Continue to cook and stir until the mixture crystallises over the nuts then cook until light brown before adding the butter and stirring well. Remove the nuts from the pan on to a baking tray and allow to cool.
When the nuts are cool, smash them into small pieces using a rolling pin or a mortar and pestle and set aside.
Cut the red cabbage into quarters then slice it finely along with the Brussels sprouts and red onion. Place all three into a large mixing bowl. Peel and grate the carrots and celeriac and add them to the bowl. Season the vegetables well with table salt and allow to stand for 30 minutes to soften.
Once the vegetables have softened add the red wine vinegar, mustard and creme fraiche and mix well. Divide the slaw between serving bowls and top with the caramelised nuts.
5g salt
10g caster sugar
135ml whole milk
135ml water
100g cold butter, cut into 2cm dice
190g flour
4 eggs
70g butter
80g demerara sugar
40g pinhead oatmeal
3 clementines
50ml whisky
250ml double cream
30g icing sugar
Set the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4. Start by making the choux pastry. Take a saucepan and add the salt, caster sugar, milk, water and diced butter. Place the pan on a medium heat and slowly bring the contents to the boil. Once boiling, add 150g of the flour and stir continuously over a medium heat until the mixture comes away from the side of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat, place the contents in a large mixing bowl and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
When the mixture is slightly cooler beat in the eggs one at a time. After all the eggs are incorporated beat well until smooth before setting aside.
Now make the oatmeal topping. Take the 70g butter and beat it until soft before adding the remaining 40g of flour, demerara sugar and oatmeal and mixing until smooth. Now take the mixture and roll it between two sheets of greaseproof paper until 3mm thick. Place this in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm up.
Line a baking tray with non-stick parchment paper. Place the choux pastry in a piping bag fitted with a 1cm nozzle and pipe balls around one teaspoon in size 3cm apart on the tray. Now take the oatmeal topping and cut with a 1cm ring cutter before placing one on top of each choux bun.
Bake the buns by placing the baking tray in the oven for 10-12 minutes until puffed up and golden. Do not open the oven when the buns are baking as this may cause them to collapse. When the buns are cooked remove them from the oven and allow to cool.
Now finely grate the zest of two clementines into a large mixing bowl and add the whisky, double cream and icing sugar. Whisk until it reaches soft peaks before placing the cream in a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle.
Cut the choux buns in half, fill them with the cream then piece them back together. Dust the buns with icing sugar and zest of the remaining clementine.