Spicy Cottage Pie with Nutmeg Brussels Sprouts

Cottage Pie in its most basic form is of course minced or ground beef, topped with mashed potato. Usually, however, there will be some vegetables added to the beef. Carrots, peas and onions are popular additions of this type. This Cottage Pie is a little bit more spicy, however, designed to provide a little more heat on a cold Winter's night and I hope that it is something which you will be prepared to try. This is a recipe for two people.

Ingredients

1lb minced/ground beef
1 pint fresh beef stock
1/2lb potatoes
1 small carrot (diced)
1 small onion (very finely chopped)
2 cloves of garlic (very finely chopped)
1 small red chilli pepper (de-seeded and very finely chopped)
20 mini Brussels sprouts or ten larger ones
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Butter
Large pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

Method

The beef should be browned in a dry, non-stick pan, before the carrots, onions, garlic, chilli and heated beef stock are added. The mix should be seasoned to taste with salt and freshly black pepper. It should then be simmered for half an hour.

When the beef is simmering, the potatoes should be peeled and chopped and added to a pot of salted, boiling water and simmered for twenty to twenty-five minutes until soft. They should then be drained and mashed with a little butter.

The beef, vegetables and remaining stock should then be placed in to a casserole dish. The potato should first be spooned evenly on top and then smoothed out carefully with a knife. The Cottage Pie should then be placed in to the oven - pre-heated to 400F/200C/Gas Mark 6 - for twenty-five to thirty minutes. It can be browned under the grill for a couple of minutes, prior to serving, if desired.

The small sprouts that I have used here should be simmered in salted water for around eight minutes. larger sprouts will take ten to twelve minutes. It is important not to overcook the sprouts, as this will cause them to turn mushy and most unappealing. They should then be drained and swirled in a little butter and the nutmeg before being served with a portion of Cottage Pie.

Pork and Leek Sausages with Garlic, Coriander and Sun Dried Tomato Mash

Sausage and mash? Have I lost all my inventiveness? Am I now resorting to including on this blog blase meals from my childhood?

Hopefully you will see from the photograph to the right alone that this recipe is not just for any old bangers and mash! This is a recipe incorporating high quality, high meat content pork and leek sausages, with mash which has more than just a little bit of a twist and a lightly poached egg just to round it off. I very much hope that you will try it out - or at least a similar version of it - for yourself.

The recipe described below is for one person.

Ingredients

4 pork and leek sausages
2 large potatoes
1 egg
1 clove of garlic
4 pieces of sun dried tomato (about 2 tsp when chopped)
2 tsp freshly chopped coriander/cilantro (plus a little bit extra for garnish)
Sunflower oil
White wine vinegar
Pinch of paprika for garnish

Method

There is often much argument surrounding how best to cook sausages. The way I do it is to cook them in a little oil in a frying-pan on as low a heat as is possible. This will prevent them from bursting as you should never prick sausages prior to cooking them. This serves only to allow the juices (thus the flavour and moisture) to escape and for the sausages to be served like something akin to hot, dry, tasteless sawdust in dried out, wrinkled skins.

The sausages should therefore be the first item to be put on to cook. When they are gently sizzling in the pan - to be turned occasionally - the potatoes may be peeled, chopped and added to a pan of boiling, salted water to simmer for around twenty-five minutes until moderately soft.

A large pan of water with a little white wine vinegar in it should then be brought to the boil for poaching the egg. When the water has reached a rolling boil, it should be stirred carefully but firmly to create a whirlpool effect, in to the centre of which the raw egg should be carefully deposited to cook, before the heat is reduced and the potatoes are drained and mashed.

It is important to drain and mash the potatoes before adding any of the other ingredients, except perhaps a little butter. This prevents the other ingredients becoming entangled in the potato masher. The sun dried tomatoes which I used in this recipe came in a glass jar, preserved in olive oil. The tomatoes must be dried thoroughly in paper kitchen towel prior to being chopped and added to the potatoes or the olive oil will spoil the overall effect.

The garlic, coriander and sun dried tomatoes may then be stirred in to the mash, which should be arranged on a circular plate as shown in the picture to the left. The sausages and the egg should then be added on top, with the coriander and paprika garnish sprinkled on last of all.

Beef Meatballs Poached in Tomato Sauce with Onion Ciabatta Roll

Although meatballs and tomato sauce are more popularly used to accompany a pasta such as spaghetti rather than served alone in this fashion, I decided one night recently to have them accompanied instead by a fresh, onion ciabatta roll. I was delighted with the results - and even found that I had sufficient tomato sauce left over to cool, refrigerate and re-heat to have with some pasta shells for the following day's lunch!

This recipe is for one person.

Ingredients

1/2lb minced/ground beef
1 garlic clove (crushed or grated)
Generous pinch of dried oregano
2 14oz tins of chopped tomatoes in tomato juice
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 onion ciabatta roll

Method

Put the beef, garlic and oregano in to a large bowl or basin and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix very thoroughly by hand before taking parts of the mixture to shape it in to meatballs, each about the size of a golfball. The quantities given here should make seven or eight meatballs.

Add enough olive oil to a pot to cover the base of it and bring it up to a medium heat. Carefully place the meatballs in the pot and gently stir them around with a wooden spoon until they are browned, as shown in the photographs to the left. This process should take no longer than two to three minutes.

When the meatballs are evenly browned in this way, add the chopped tomatoes and turn the heat up until they begin to simmer. Reduce the heat to keep them at a gentle simmer and cook in this way for half an hour, stirring gently and occasionally.

The meatballs should then be added to a serving plate and the desired amount of tomato sauce spooned over the top. The onion ciabatta roll should be served on the side.

Remember to allow the remaining tomato sauce to cool before refrigerating and to use it up the following day.

Useful Associated Links

Meatballs with Tomato Sauce from the BBC

Spanish Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

Pasta with Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

Meatballs with Tomato Sauce and Spaghetti

Organic Meatballs in Fennel and Tomato Sauce

Pork and Pineapple Stew with Garlic and Sage Roast Potatoes

Pineapple is of course very popular served with gammon steak but the fact is that it goes equally well with pork. This simple, one pot stew is delicious and very warming on a cold Winter's night and should adequately serve two people.

Ingredients

3/4lb diced leg of pork
2 pineapple rings (each cut in to 6 segments)
1 small onion (quartered)
1 pint of fresh chicken stock
2 large potatoes (peeled and chopped)
1 clove of garlic (crushed)
Pinch of dried sage
Salt and pepper
Corn oil

Method

Begin browning the pork in a dry pot over a gentle heat. You are only looking to seal the meat at this stage and constant stirring should prevent sticking. When the meat is browned, add the chicken stock, bring to a boil and simmer gently for half an hour.

When the pork has been simmering for about twenty-five minutes, put the chopped potatoes in to boiling, salted water and reduce to a gentle simmer. Put a deep baking tray - the base liberally covered with corn oil - in to the oven and the oven on to preheat to 400F/200C/Gas Mark 6. Add the pineapple and onion to the pork and bring back to a simmer.

After fifteen minutes, the oven should be heated. Remove the potatoes from the heat and drain them well. Return them to the empty pot and shake the pot carefully to fluff up the outsides. This will help them to crisp up in the oven. Add them to the hot tray and again shake carefully to ensure even coating in the corn oil.

When the potatoes have been in the oven for around twenty minutes, add the crushed garlic and dried sage to a large bowl. Remove the potatoes from the oven and carefully tip them in to the bowl. Stir carefully but well to coat them in the garlic and sage before returning them to the tray and the oven for another couple of minutes only.

Useful Associated Links

Sweet and Sour Pork Recipe

Pork Fillets with Pineapple

Spiced Pineapple Pork Recipe

Ken Hom's Pork with Pineapple Recipe

Cuban Pork with Pineapple Recipe

Lamb Steak and Kidney Pie with Savoy Cabbage and Onion

Although steak and kidney pie is a very popular dish in the UK, the most common steak and kidney included in the pie are of the beef variety. Traditional steak and kidney pie is one of my all time favourite dishes but in this instance I decided to experiment a little and see how the recipe turned out with leg of lamb steak and lamb kidney. I was delighted with the results.

The following recipe is designed for two people:

Ingredients

1/2lb leg of lamb steak (chopped)
3 lamb kidneys, cleaned and chopped (see instructions below)
1 pint fresh lamb or chicken stock
6oz puff pastry
1/4 large Savoy cabbage (de-cored and sliced)
1 small onion (thinly sliced)
1 clove of garlic (crushed)
1 tbsp sunflower oil
Salt and pepper

Method

The lamb steak and kidney should be rapidly browned in a large, dry pot and the heated stock added once this has been achieved. The stock should be brought back to the boil and then the heat turned down until a gentle simmer is achieved, for around half an hour. The meat can thereafter be used immediately to make the pie or allowed to cool.

The puff pastry should be rolled out to a sze where it is capable of covering a 10" by 5" ashet pie dish. The meat and stock should then be added to the dish, the edges lightly greased with a little butter and the pastry placed on top, firming it down around the greased rim. The top of the pie should be glazed with a little milk or egg wash and a "+" made in the centre to allow steam to escape during the cooking process.

The pie should be placed in the oven, pre-heated to 400F/200C/Gas Mark 6 for thirty minutes.

Approximately ten minutes before the pie is due to be ready, the sunflower oil should be added to a large pot and brought up to a medium heat. The cabbage, onion and garlic should then be added, stirred thoroughly and again at frequent intervals for ten minutes. Please note that no water or any other liquid is required.

This delicious meal is then ready to be served.

How to Clean and Prepare Kidneys

The easiest option is of course to have your butcher clean and prepare the kidneys for you, or to simply buy them pre-packed in this way from the supermarket. It is not difficult, however, to clean and prepare kidneys, provided one knows what to do.

The first step is simply to cut each kidney in half, down through the centre length-wise. It will then be possible to clearly see the white, fatty substance in the centre of the kidney which should carefully be cut out and discarded. The remaining meat can then be chopped to size as desired.

Relevant Associated Links for your Further Information

Healthy Lamb Recipes

New Zealand Lamb Recipes

Simple Healthy Recipes (Lamb)

Low Fat Lamb Recipes

Lamb Recipe's on Australia's Cuisine.com

Thanksgiving Dinner for One? Turkey, Sprouts and Sweet Potato Alternative

I am of course aware that Thanksgiving in the USA - and some weeks earlier in Canada - is a time for family get-togethers and celebrations with a large roasted turkey and assorted accoutrements. Equally, as many of us should be aware, not everyone is in the position of having a family with whom to gather and some may actually spend the day alone or simply as part of a couple. In such circumstances, the purchase of a whole turkey is not really practical but this in no way means that turkey, sweet potatoes, et al, need be off the menu altogether. It is entirely possible to buy fresh turkey in portions and this turkey and Brussels sprouts stir fry, served on a bed of cinnamon mashed sweet potatoes, could be just the job in such a situation.

Ingredients (per Person)

1/2lb diced turkey thigh
5 or 6 small Brussels sprouts
1/2 small onion (very roughly chopped)
1 medium to large sweet potato
1 clove of garlic (crushed)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Corn or sunflower oil for frying

Method

Peel and chop the sweet potato and add the pieces to boiling, salted water. They will take around twenty minutes to soften.

Bring a wok up to a high heat and add around a tbsp of oil. Stir fry the turkey pieces until they are just sealed and have turned off-white. Remove them from the wok to a plate. There is no need to keep them warm.

Chop off the surplus stalk on the sprouts but be sure to leave enough that the leaves remain held together. Do not put a "+" in the bottom of them as all this achieves is to cause them to fall apart during cooking. Remove any dead outer leaves and wash and dry thoroughly.

Add more oil to the wok if required and stir fry the sprouts only for about five minutes. Keep them moving around the pan and don't allow them to burn. As I like Brussels sprouts crunchy, this is the way I cook them but if you like them a little softer, cut them in half down through the centre prior to frying them.

Next, add the onions and the garlic and stir fry for about another minute before re-adding the turkey to complete its cooking process, along with the soy sauce. This should take no more than another minute or two.

Drain the sweet potatoes and mash them well in a pot or bowl before adding and stirring through the cinnamon. Serve the sweet potatoes on a dinner plate as shown, with the turkey and Brussels sprouts stir fry served on top.

How to Make Tortilla Espanola (Spanish Omelette)

A Tortilla Espanola is simply a Spanish style omelette. It is far more substantial than the French style omelette and includes in the ingredients slices of potato and onion. This version of Tortilla Espanola is my own interpretation of the techniques and I hope that you enjoy this slightly different from the conventional dish.

This recipe should be sufficient to serve two people.

Ingredients

4 large eggs
2 small new potatoes (whole and unpeeled)
1/2 medium sized Spanish onion (thinly sliced)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

The first step is to put the potatoes in to some boiling water and simmer them for around twenty-five to thirty minutes until cooked. Drain them well and set them aside to cool a little until they can safely be handled.

Break the eggs in to a bowl and beat thoroughly, seasoning with salt and pepper. Add the olive oil to a 10", non-stick frying pan and heat gently, adding the butter to melt as the oil begins to heat up. When the butter has melted, add the sliced onions and cook gently for a few minutes until they take on that luminous sheen.

Chop the potatoes in to 1/2" cubes (skin can either be left on or discarded) and add them to the pan with the onions, stirring well to let them heat through only. Add the egg and turn the heat up to medium to high and cook for around three or four minutes until it can be seen that the egg is almost completely set.

It is normal practise at this stage to turn the Tortilla at least once to cook it on the top side but I prefer simply to place the pan under a hot grill and allow it to finish cooking in this fashion, before serving immediately. Note that I only get away with grilling at this stage as this recipe makes a fairly thin Tortilla.

In Spain, Tortilla are very often served with homemade tomato sauce. If you wish to serve it in this fashion as I have done, here is the recipe for my Spanish tomato sauce. Again, this is my interpretation of Spanish tomato sauce and is a little bit different from that generally served in SPain. (Note that it will be necessary to start preparing the tomato sauce once the potatoes have been put on to simmer.)

Ingredients

1 14oz can chopped tomatoes in tomato juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp paprika
2 garlic cloves (crushed)
Salt to taste

Method

Put the olive oil in to a small, non-stick saucepan and gently heat. Add the garlic and stir around for a minute to cook it but not brown it. Add the tomatoes, paprika and salt and simmer as gently as possible - stirring frequently - for around thirty to forty minutes until a lush sauce is formed.

Tortillas are also often eaten cold in Spain. This can either be in the form of slices as with a pie, or even on a bread roll with perhaps a little tomato chutney or relish, as I have prepared it in the photograph above.

Whichever way you choose to eat your Tortilla Espanola, I very much hope that you enjoy this authentic taste of Spain and the Mediterranean as much as I did.



Relevant Associated Links for your Further Information

Spanish Omelette Recipe

How to make Tortilla Espanola on About.com

Tortillas as a Traditional Cuban Breakfast

Video of How to Make a Spanish Omelette

Spanish Tapas Recipes Made Easy

Ham and Egg Fried Rice

Fried rice is usually thought of in the Western world as simply being an accompaniment to a main meal. The reality is, however, that in many Asian countries, fried rice with certain additives represents the entire content of the meal. This delicious recipe for ham and egg fried rice can either therefore be used in smaller quantities as a meal accompaniment or very successfully enjoyed as a meal in itself for two people.

Ingredients

6oz basmati or long grain rice
2 medium free range, organic eggs
4 rashers of bacon
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp corn oil for frying
A little butter

Method

The first step is to cook the rice by boiling it. Put the rice in to a very fine sieve and wash it thoroughly under running cold water. Put it in to a pan of boiling, salted water and simmer for around twelve minutes. Drain it well through the same sieve, cover it and set it aside to cool.

Break the eggs in to a bowl and whisk with a fork until they begin to froth. Melt a little butter in a small, non-stick frying pan and add the egg mixture. Turn up the heat to medium to high and gently move the egg mixture from around the edge of the pan towards the centre with a plastic spatula until the eggs begin to set. When the eggs are almost completely set, turn the omelette over for the top to finish cooking. We are not making the omelette to eat as an omelette so it is important that all the egg mixture is fully cooked. Remove the omelette from the pan on to a plate, cover and leave it to cool.

The rashers of bacon should be grilled under a medium grill until cooked and then added to the plate with the omelette.

When the omelette is cold, carefully roll it up as tightly as you can in to a cylindrical shape and then slice it as finely as possible. This will produce long, narrow strands of cooked egg. Place the bacon rashers one on top of the other and slice equally finely.

Bring a wok up to a very high heat before adding the corn oil. Allow the oil to heat up before adding the cold rice and stir fry for a couple of minutes. Add the egg, bacon and soy sauce and fry for about another minute for everything to heat through.

Season to taste (though be careful, as a lot of salt will be obtained from the bacon and soy sauce) and serve immediately.

Do You Have a Proper Chinese Wok?

A Chinese wok is a fantastic addition to the appliance range in any kitchen. A wok is essential in order to cook Chinese and other Asian style food at its very best. Here are a couple of excellent deals on woks currently available on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk for you to consider.



Relevant Associated Links for your Further Information

How to Make Biryani

Egg Fried Rice Recipe

The Easiest Way to Cook Basmati Rice

Easy Fried Rice and Chicken Chow Mein Recipes

Easy Thai Fried Rice

A Scottish Mother's Spaghetti Bolognese Sauce

There is clearly a bit of a story attached to this recipe which it is better to relate before I proceed with the recipe itself. This recipe differs from any other that I have included on this blog - or anywhere else, for that matter - in that it is not one which I created or at least adapted. No, I am not committing plagiarism, nor have I been chatting up any elderly ladies of Italian descent: the recipe is actually my mother's.

This is a recipe which I vividly remember my mother (who has no Italian links) preparing from my earliest childhood but - even as a food writer and editor - I have strangely enough never asked her how she actually makes it until very recently. This is especially surprising, given the fact that it is so good. I therefore deemed to put that fact right and share it with the wider world at large. My mother (a vegetarian!) devised the recipe through trial and error, without clearly ever tasting it herself. I was certainly surprised myself both by certain inclusions and omissions from this recipe but please try it out for yourself before judging it.

The quantities in this recipe provide for two people.

Ingredients

1/2lb minced/ground steak (or beef)
2 small carrots (scraped and diced)
1 medium white onion (moderately finely chopped)
2 large closed cup mushrooms (moderately finely chopped)
8oz tomato puree
1 tbsp tomato ketchup
A little boiling water

Method

Brown the minced/ground steak in a large pot. Ensure that it doesn't burn. Add the carrots and the onion then enough boiling water to ensure that everything is submerged. Simmer gently for ten to fifteen minutes.

Add the mushrooms, followed by the tomato puree and ketchup. Stir very well and leave to simmer gently while the accompanying spaghetti is prepared according to the instructions on the packet.

Drain the spaghetti and arrange on the serving plates, prior to spooning the bolognese sauce on top. Freshly grated parmesan cheese can be added if and as required.

Footnote: I have to admit that there is one thing I always add to this recipe and that is salt. That again, however, is a matter of personal taste.

Bonus Recipe Today! - Bolognese Sauce with Cheese on Toast

I couldn't bring myself to publish this post with my own sole contribution to the recipe being the addition of some salt, so I decided to share with you a way in which I love to eat any leftover bolognese sauce.

Ingredients

2 tbsp Bolognese sauce
1oz grated/shredded cheddar or other hard cheese
1 slice of bread
Freshly ground black pepper

Method

The first step is simply to re-heat the Bolognese sauce. Toast the bread thereafter on one side and turn it over before spooning on and smoothing out the Bolognese sauce. Sprinkle the cheese carefully on top and grind the pepper liberally on top of the cheese. Place back under the hot grill until the cheese has melted and begins to bubble furiously.

This makes a great lunch idea for the day after the Spaghetti Bolognese has been served but remember to ensure that the sauce is refrigerated if being left overnight and very thoroughly re-heated prior to use.

Yet Another Bonus Today

Do you ever have a problem judging how much spaghetti to make per person? I know that it used to be a common problem for me! Not long ago, however, I found this clever little tool on Amazon. You simply determine how many people you are cooking for and use the appropriate hole to determine how much spaghetti to cook. Obviously, it is not foolproof, as peoples' appetites vary, but it should at least significantly reduce the amount of unrequired and cooked spaghetti you are forced to discard - or even worse, the number of occasions upon which you come up short!

Click on either the Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk panel below to go a long way to ensuring that your cooked spaghetti is of the right quantity in future.



Relevant Associated Links for your Further Information

Tomato and Basil Pasta Recipe

Healthy Beef Recipes

How to Easily Make your own Homemade Pasta

Quick, Delicious, Homemade Pasta Dishes

A Pasta Guide from A-Z

Poached King Scallops with Parsley Mashed Potatoes and Cream and White Wine Sauce

The process of how to cook scallops requires above all that considerable attention be paid to the concept of ensuring that the scallops not be over-cooked. If scallops are in any way over-cooked, they will acquire an extremely unpleasant texture, as well as losing much of their delicate flavour, and prove to provide a decidedly unpleasant eating experience. This recipe for scallops poached in milk provides for a very defined cooking method and virtually ensures that the scallops may be enjoyed at their very best. Please note also that the orange, "Roe," or, "Coral," as it is more properly called is entirely edible and should be left attached where possible.

Ingredients (Per Person)

5 King Scallops (Coral attached)
Approximately half a pint of milk
2 large maris piper potatoes
1 tbsp double (heavy) cream
1 tbsp white wine
1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley plus a small sprig for garnish

Method

The first step is to peel the potatoes and chop them in to approximately one inch cubes. Put them in to a pan of boiling, salted water and simmer for twenty to twenty-five minutes, until soft. When the potatoes are almost ready, put the scallops in to a small pot and add enough cold milk to ensure they are fully covered. Put them on a moderate heat and simply leave them until the milk just begins to simmer. At this stage, the scallops are cooked and should be removed from the milk with a slotted spoon.

Drain the potatoes well and return them to the empty pot. Add about a tablespoonful of the warm scallop poaching milk (more can be added if and when required) and mash them thoroughly. Reserve a generous pinch of the chopped parsley for the sauce and add the remainder to the potatoes, stirring it through well.

The sauce will only take seconds to make. Add the wine to a very small saucepan and bring it up to a simmer. Add the cream and stir it in gently until the sauce returns to a simmer. Stir in the parsley and the sauce is ready to serve.

Spoon the mashed potatoes on to a plate and arrange in a flat disc. Add the scallops on top before pouring over the sauce. Garnish with the remaining sprig of parsley and serve immediately.

Relevant Associated Links for your Further Information

Healthy Fish Recipes

Healthy Shrimp and Cashew Nuts Recipe

Causes and Symptoms of a Shellfish Allergy

How to Cook Mussels

Seafood Dinner Ideas and Recipes

Easy Vegetable Stir Fry with Fried Rice

A vegetable stir fry is probably one of the easiest and quickest stir fries of all to prepare and as it has been some time since I have included a vegetarian option on this blog, I decided that this easy vegetable stir fry served with simple fried rice was one of the best ways to put that right.

Ingredients (Serves One)

1 red bell pepper (deseeded and sliced in to half inch wide strips)
1 small onion (peeled and quartered)
6 cobs of baby corn
Handful of mangetout
6 button mushrooms
1 clove of garlic (finely chopped)
1 tbsp corn oil for frying
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp light soy sauce (optional)

Fried rice

Method

Prepare the fried rice first as instructed via the link above and keep warm in a serving dish while you stir fry the vegetables.

Bring the wok up to a fairly high heat and add the corn oil. When the oil is equally hot, add the onion, followed by the pepper and then the baby corn. Stir fry for about thirty seconds before adding the remainder of the vegetables one at a time. Stir fry for about another minute before adding the soy sauce (if desired) and seasoning with salt and pepper.

Ensure that the seasoning is well mixed through the ingredients before turning off the heat and serving immediately on a bed of fried rice.

Relevant Associated Links for your Further Information

Vegetarian Thanksgiving Recipes

Alternatives to Soy for Vegetarians

Vegetarian Christmas Recipes

Vegetarian and Vegan Cooking Tips

Healthy Vegetarian Recipes

Braised Scottish Venison with Red Wine and Red Pepper Reduction

Venison is a meat which is used in a lot of traditional Scottish recipes. Although this method of cooking venison could hardly be classed as a traditional Scottish recipe - with the inclusion of red wine and red pepper - this method of cooking quality Scottish venison makes for a hearty, warming and delicious meal.

Ingredients (Serves One)

6oz Scottish venison (diced)
1 red bell pepper (deseeded and cut in to 1/2" strips)
1 small onion (finely sliced)
2 cloves of garlic (crushed or very finely chopped)
1/2 pint red wine
1/2 pint fresh beef stock
2 tbsp plain or all-purpose flour
2 tbsp sunflower oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2oz basmati rice
1 tsp freshly chopped parsley and small sprig of same for garnish

Method

Put the sunflower oil in to a large pot and bring it up to a medium to high heat. Put the flour in to a bowl and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the venison pieces and stir them around well in the seasoned flour. Shake the excess flour off each piece of venison and add them to the hot oil. Stir them around in the oil with a wooden spoon for a couple of minutes until they have completely browned and sealed. Add the onion, red pepper and garlic and stir in this way for another minute or so before adding the red wine and fresh beef stock. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer as gently as possible for at least two hours, until the venison is tender, stirring occasionally and well. Note that it is possible that a little more stock or wine will be required towards the end of the cooking time.

Around fifteen minutes before the venison is due to be ready, wash the rice thoroughly in running cold water through a sieve and add it to a pan of boiling, salted water. Cook for twelve minutes before draining well. Line a small ramekin with clingfilm that the film overhangs by at least an inch and pack the rice tightly inside, filled level with the top of the ramekin. Place the serving plate on top of the ramekin and carefully turn them over that the plate is now on the bottom. Gently hold the edges of the clingfilm and lift the ramekin away before carefully peeling the clingfilm away to leave the rice ready to serve as shown in the photograph.

Spoon the braised venison and red wine and red pepper reduction around the rice and garnish with the freshly chopped parsley.

Fried Chicken Livers and Onions with New Potatoes in Garlic Butter

Chicken livers are probably not as popular as such as ox liver or lamb's liver. They are obviously considerably smaller in size and even more delicate in texture and in flavour, however they serve very well as the principal ingredient in many good recipes. This recipe for chicken liver and onions with new potatoes in garlic butter is not only delicious, it is incredibly simple to make.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

1/2lb chicken livers
2 tbsp plain or all purpose flour
1 large onion (halved then sliced)
Generous pinch of dried sage
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tbsp sunflower oil
12 new potatoes
1 clove garlic (crushed)
1/2oz Butter

Method

Put the potatoes in to a pot, season with salt and cover with boiling water. Simmer for twenty-five to thirty-minutes.

Put the flour in to a bowl and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir well. Just over ten minutes before the potatoes should be ready, put the sunlflower oil in to a large non-stick frying-pan and bring it up to a medium to high heat. Add the chicken livers to the bowl of flour and stir them around well to evenly coat them in flour. Pick the pieces out one by one, shake them free of excess flour and add them to the frying-pan.

Fry the livers for around three minutes each side before adding in the onions and sage and stirring well. Fry for another couple of minutes before adding the balsamic vinegar for the last two minutes of cooking time, continuing to stir frequently.

Drain the potatoes and return them to the empty pot. Add the butter and the garlic and swirl around well to ensure good and even coating.

Serve the livers and potatoes immediately.

Whiting Fillet in Fresh Breadcrumbs with Garlic Herb Potatoes and Coleslaw

Whiting is one of my favourite types of fish. Its clean, fresh, delicate flavour is beyond the compare of many and provided it is not over-cooked it will provide for a delicious and healthy meal. When preparing any type of fish in breadcrumbs, however, many people make the mistake of using packaged breadcrumbs or fish dressing from supermarkets, when nothing can beat the fresh breadcrumbs simply prepared at home.

Ingredients (Per Person)

1 fresh fillet of whiting
2 tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
3 or 4 new potatoes (or as desired)
1 clove of garlic (crushed)
1/2 tsp dried sage
1 egg
2 tbsp sunflower oil
Salt

Method

If using the larger new potatoes as I have done, they will require a total of forty minutes' cooking time. Smaller new potatoes will require only thirty minutes. In either case, they should first be boiled - unpeeled - for half the alloted time in salted water prior to being very well drained. One tablespoon of sunflower oil should then be added to a large bowl along with the sage and some more salt. This mixture should be stirred, prior to adding the potatoes and carefully stirring them around to coat them all in the seasoned oil. The potatoes should then be poured on to a pre-heated baking sheet and placed in the oven - pre-heated to 400F/200C/Gas Mark 6 - for the second half of their cooking time. The bowl should be left unwashed and set aside for later use.

When the potatoes are in the oven, a slice of semi-stale bread should be grated or shredded to make the breadcrumbs. If the bread is fresh, it should be sat on a vacant shelf in the oven for a minute or two to dry out a bit. The breadcrumbs should then be spread evenly on a dinner plate. The egg should be placed in a small soup plate or similar, seasoned with a little salt and beaten thoroughly.

Ten minutes before the potatoes are due to be ready, put the remaining tablespoon of sunflower oil in to a non-stick frying-pan and bring it up to a medium heat. Draw the whiting fillet through the egg-wash, ensuring all parts of the fillet are coated prior to patting it down in the breadcrumbs on both sides. The fillet should then be gently fried for about four minutes on each side.

Five minutes before the end of the scheduled cooking time for the potatoes, add the crushed garlic to the bowl used earlier. Remove the potatoes from the oven, tip them in to the bowl and stir them around in the oil residue and garlic. Return them to the baking sheet and the oven for the final five minutes.

The fish and the potatoes may then carefully be plated up and a spoonful of coleslaw added as a final accompaniment.

Lambs' Liver, Bacon and Onion Casserole with Roasted Potato Slices

Liver and onions is a popular combination but they are most often cooked together in a frying-pan. This recipe is a little bit different in that although the cooking process begins with the frying-pan, it is mostly undertaken in the form of oven casseroling.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

4 slices of lambs' liver
1 large onion (sliced)
4 rashers of bacon
1 pint of fresh chicken stock
2 tbsp plain flour
3 tbsp sunflower oil
4 large roasting or baking potatoes
Salt and pepper

Method

Put your oven on to preheat to 350F/180C/Gas Mark 4. Pour one tablespoon of sunflower oil in to a frying-pan and bring it up to a medium heat. Add the onions and bacon and fry for a couple of minutes before removing to the casserole dish.

Put the flour on a plate and season well before drawing each slice of liver through it to evenly coat both sides. Fry the liver for about a minute each side to seal and add it to the casserole dish. Pour the warm chicken stock over the meat and cover the dish before putting it in to the oven for forty-five minutes.

I prefer not to peel the potatoes but this is a matter of personal preference. Peeled or unpeeled, therefore, cut them in to quarter-inch thick slices. Add the remaining two tablespoons of sunflower oil to a large basin or bowl and season well with salt. Put the potato slices in to the bowl and stir very carefully but thoroughly to coat each of them in oil. Place the slices on a warmed baking sheet and in to the oven for the final thirty minutes of the casserole's cooking time. Turn them after fifteen minutes.

Arrange the cooked potato slices in a circle around the edge of a large plate. Add some of the bacon and onions to the centre of the plate and serve the slice of liver on top.

Looking for more delicious lamb's liver recipes? Check out the link below!

Lamb's Liver Recipes