Neil Forbes cooks with blood oranges, plus Rose Murray Brown on rosés for Valentine’s Day
Blood orange adds flavour and colour to dishes, including trout with almonds and wood pigeon
If you’ve ever been to a warm Mediterranean country, you may have fond memories of orange and lemon groves stretching for miles, and the sound of cicadas, crickets or grasshoppers. Pollination is crucial for the production of fruit, and thankfully we seem to be moving away from pesticides and harmful chemicals being sprayed on our land, bringing a welcome return to biodiversity.
Since we moved into our current house, I have always been a keen feeder of the wide array of species found in our urban garden. We have a resident robin (who, of course, we named after our youngest son), as well as blue tits, sparrows, starlings and blackbirds. We see dragonflies, butterflies and many other insects. These birds and insects are integral to the biodiversity which is hugely important for the future, and what we eat. We all now know that if we don’t look after the bee population, we may not have anything to eat as these beautiful insects pollinate much of our food and are essential for farmers, smallholders, and keen gardeners like me.
We all have a role to play. Even the gardener’s enemy, the snail, has a purpose. Other than being bathed in hot garlic butter, they feed the birds and help mulch down compost.
I love getting my hands dirty in the garden, feeling the soil with my fingers, choosing and planting seeds for the growing season. I always remember that some of what I plant and grow will be taken by birds, slugs and snails. And some sweet nectar will be taken from a flower by a beautiful dragonfly so there is food for that gorgeous little robin, Louis. ■
Trout fillet with blood orange, capers and almonds
I adore classics like trout and almonds. The addition of capers and blood orange really enhances the taste. Finish the dish with a big handful of chopped parsley, and always use the juice from the citrus. You can either pan-fry or grill the fish, but always ensure it is scaled first.
Serves two 2 100g pieces of fresh trout. Sea trout is nice, rainbow trout is great. 1 blood orange, segments cut out and cubed
1 tsp capers
1 tbsp flaked almonds
100g unsalted butter, cubed
1 tbsp cold-pressed rapeseed oil
1 tsp chopped parsley good salt and pepper juice of half a lemon pepper dulse seaweed, optional
1 Toast the almonds in a hot oven or under the grill until golden. 2 Pre-heat oven to 180C/gas Mark 4. 3 Place a non-stick, ovenproof pan on a moderate heat and add the oil. Season the fish with salt and pepper, and place in the pan, skin-side down. Cook gently for 2 to 3 minutes all over, turning as it colours. Place the fish, in the pan, in the oven for a minute or two. Once cooked, remove the fish from the pan and squirt with lemon juice. Let it rest.
4 In the same pan, melt the butter and add the capers, almonds and parsley. Taste and season, then add the blood orange.
5 To serve, divide the sauce between two plates, retaining a little. Place the fish on top and drizzle with the remaining sauce. Garnish with a little seaweed, and a pinch of good salt.
Warm salad of wild wood pigeon, blood orange, bacon and toasted hazelnuts
It’s still not that common to see pigeon in the shops. I’ve been cooking it for years and find it to be the most amazing source of protein. I love its slightly gamey flavour, and it is relatively cheap. Pigeon is hugely versatile and goes so well with roots, in particular beetroot and celeriac. Spices like cumin and star anise also work well. In this recipe, I’m keeping it nice and simple with good bacon and some toasted nuts.
Serves two 2 to 4 breasts of wild wood pigeon, skin on
2 blood oranges, cut into segments a small handful of peeled hazelnuts 2 large handfuls of mixed salad leaves. A mix of organic mustard leaves, watercress and rocket is good.
3 to 4 rashers of bacon, cut into lardons
4 tbsp cold-pressed rapeseed oil 1 tbsp of your favourite vinegar, like a cider or a Beremeal
1 tsp runny honey
1 tsp grain mustard a few chives, cut into small batons good salt and pepper
1 Toast the hazelnuts in a good frying pan on a high heat for a minute or two, moving them all the time as they brown. Remove and set aside.
2 In the same pan, add a tablespoon of oil and bring to a moderate heat. Fry the bacon until crispy, but not overly so. Remove from the pan and keep warm.
3 In the same pan, heat another tablespoon of oil and add the pigeon breasts, skin-side down. Season and cook for 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Be careful not to overcook or it will be well done. The meat needs to be rare and pink inside. Remove from the pan and allow to rest with the bacon.
4 In the same pan, off the heat, add the remaining oil and stir vigorously to combine the remaining delicious bits of goodness. Then add the vinegar, honey and mustard. Stir well, season and taste, then add the chives.
5 To serve, arrange the salad leaves onto plates. Slice the pigeon into thin slices and arrange over the salad. Then scatter over the bacon, toasted hazelnuts and segments of blood
orange. Spoon over the dressing and eat at once. This dish is great served on a big platter in the centre of the table with sautéed potatoes.
Blood orange posset
Most of us will have heard of lemon posset, a very old British cream-based pudding. In this recipe I’m using deep ruby blood oranges, full of vitamin C, and delicious. I like a posset as it uses up all the fruit. So often a recipe just uses the segments but here we are using the zest and the juice so there is virtually no waste.
Serves six 900ml double cream
225g caster sugar
4 blood oranges, zested and juiced shortbread biscuits to serve, optional blood orange segments to garnish, optional
1 Bring the cream and sugar gently to the boil in a good, high-sided pot. Gently boil for 3 minutes exactly.
2 Add the orange zest and juice and turn off the heat. Leave to infuse for 2 to 3 minutes, then pass through a sieve into a jug.
3 Pour the mixture into 6 glasses or serving bowls. It will set quite firm, but not solid hard, just bear that in mind. Place in the fridge to set for 3 to 4 hours.
4 To serve, garnish with a few segments of blood orange and shortbread biscuits.