Summer breeze
Keep it simple and let the flavours of seasonal produce do the work for you, writes Neil Forbes of Cafe St Honoré
Kids out the house, barbecue ablaze, flights booked, garden looking green and vibrant with pretty flowers everywhere – I adore summer with its warm, balmy evenings. But when we’re off work or school it seems we are busier than ever as jobs in the garden, decorating and projects of all sorts need to get done in holiday time.
Compared to winter with its long meat braises and casseroles with roots and dumplings we often have less time to cook. We just want a quick salad or something light. We eat less when it’s warm so think outside the box, plan ahead and use what’s in season.
Food and cooking has become quite cool and I love being part of the good, clean and fair movement promoted by Slow Food. I’m not cool, but the farmers, organic veg growers, cheesemakers and fish folk are pretty cool in my opinion. I suggest we think of dishes that support them. Don’t overcomplicate things, keep it simple but keep it tasty. When we’re so busy rushing around we want great tasting food. Have a wonderful sunny summer. n
@chefneilforbes Honey and mustard ham hock with watercress and pickled onion
Here’s an easy one for us all to try. A slow-cooked ham hock removed from the stock and gently roasted whole with honey and mustard. Serve with a peppery watercress salad and pickled onions from a jar or make your own. Add some soft cheese or crème fraîche to bring together all those meaty, sweet, mustardy flavours after the roasting. Serve with bone in at the table. Alternatively, for a less messy eating experience, flake the meat from the bone after roasting and let it cool for a while.
Serves four 1 to 2 ham hocks for 4 people depending how hungry you are. Try a smoked one for a change 2 tbsp runny honey 1 tbsp Dijon mustard 1 carrot, peeled 1 shallot, peeled 1 stick celery a few peppercorns, bay and thyme a big handful of watercress 2 to 4 pickled onions each good salt and pepper
1 Place the hocks in a large pot and cover with water. Add the peppercorns, bay, thyme, carrot and shallot and celery. Place on the hob and bring to the boil – this should take 20 minutes. Once boiling turn down the heat to a very low simmer and cook for a further 3 to 4 hours, skimming any impurities as they rise to the surface. Long and slow is the only way to cook a hock. 2 Heat the oven to 160C/gas Mark 3. 3 Once cooked allow to cool slightly in the stock which you can reserve for soup. Remove the hock from the stock and place onto a baking sheet or dish and brush with the mustard. Apply enough to just cover all the fat and meat of the hock. Next brush with the honey, leaving a little to re-apply as it roasts in the oven.
4 Place the hock in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes until it starts to caramelise and become slightly tinged. Remove from oven and rest for 20 minutes. Serve with a watercress and pickled onion salad seasoned with salt and pepper.
Halibut and petit pois à la Française
It’s so easy now to obtain sustainable fish from your fishmonger or market, so for this recipe I’ve chosen halibut. I adore this fish, but hake, cod, coley – or any other fish of your choice – work well with this classic and versatile garnish. Bacon lardons, peas, lettuce, a touch of mint and a lot of butter is key here. And I love adding the crunch of garden radish. Peas are everywhere now but frozen will do outwith the short harvest. Or try it with broad beans – if they are fresh, keep them in their shells after podding. Delicious.
Serves four 4 150g pieces of halibut or whatever fish you like, all skin and bones removed 200g petit pois, or your own homegrown peas, shelled, podded and blanched in boiling salted water for 3 minutes 1 baby gem lettuce, washed a handful of mint leaves a small handful of curly parsley 150g piece of good bacon or pancetta, cut into lardons ½ a shallot, finely sliced 100g butter 30ml cold-pressed rapeseed oil 1 tsp flour, optional a handful of radishes, sliced 1 lemon good salt and pepper
1 Heat half the oil and fry the lardons until just starting to go brown. Then add the shallot and fry gently for 2 to 3 minutes. Next, add the blanched peas and season with salt and pepper. Add half the butter and bring the ingredients together.
2 Meanwhile, get the remaining oil hot in a non-stick pan and fry the halibut steaks for 3 to 4 minutes either side or until they are just cooked. Season with salt and pepper. Add the remaining butter and baste the fish as it finishes cooking in the frothy butter. Add a squeeze of lemon and place the pieces of fish on a warm plate.
3 Shred the lettuce, rip the mint and parsley and add to the pea mixture with a touch of flour if you like to thicken the butter slightly. Season and add the radishes. Serve with the halibut and bring to the table warm.
Iced crowdie and raspberry parfait
The taste of this parfait is similar to a frozen cheesecake with the slightly salty, textured crowdie mixed with the sweetness of Angus raspberries. It knocks me for six every time I eat it. This recipe will make two terrine moulds worth (classic le Creuset style) or ice-cream tubs rubbed with oil and lined with 2 sheets of cling film. Very importantly, before lining, add a strip of triple layered tin foil so you can lift the parfait out of the terrine when it’s frozen. Allow for an overhang of the tin foil and the cling film.
Serves 12 350g raspberries, chopped plus extra for garnishing roasted pinhead oats, toasted as a garnish, optional
260ml water 540g sugar 175g whole raspberries 300ml double cream 600g crowdie 4 egg whites 8 egg yolks
1 Begin by making a coulis. Boil 140g of sugar, 150ml water and 175g of raspberries together until syrupy then blitz and pass through a sieve. Put to one side.
2 Next make the crowdie cream, by whisking together the cream and crowdie until smooth. Keep to one side.
3 To make a classic meringue mix, whisk the egg whites until ¾ whisked then add 250g of sugar a little at a time as you continue to whisk. Use a mixer for this if you have one. Keep to one side.
4 To make the pâte à bombe parfait mixture, heat the remaining water and 150g of sugar until it reaches 121C. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks and continue to whisk as you gently pour in the molten sugar. Use a mixer for this if you have one. Keep whisking until the mix starts to cool slightly. This will take about 5 minutes.
5 To assemble, use a large bowl to fold the meringue into the pâte à bombe. Then fold in the coulis and crowdie cream, being very gentle as you go. And finally fold in the 350g of chopped raspberries.
6 Ensure all is combined and scoop into your prepared terrine moulds. Fold the cling film over the top and freeze overnight. The next day, remove the parfait from the moulds by lifting out using the tin foil handles.
7 Serve sliced with some toasted oats and fresh raspberries.