Beef, Mushroom and Chestnut Stew with Polenta.

In a large pan sear your seasoned chunks of beef in veg oil, this is best done in small batches, set aside each batch in a bowl as they are browned.

When all the meat is seared reduce the heat to lowest it will go and add to the pan a chopped carrot, stick of celery, a quartered unpeeled onion, several bay leaves, some springs of thyme, a few peppercorns and any other stock veg you have to hand, return the beef plus any resting juices cover with water and cook for at least an hour preferably longer at just under a simmer - It's ok to turn the heat off and let it cool for a while before reheating again if you dont have a heat diffuser to keep the heat low enough.

I always leave a stock to cool for an hour after cooking. Drain the liquid into a clean pan, remove the beef pieces and reserve, discard the stock veg and then reduce the stock by half.

Fry off a chopped onion in a stew pot until it starts to turn golden then add a couple of chopped garlic cloves and a couple of chopped carrots, season with salt and pepper and cook for a further few minutes to soften. Add a small glass of red wine and turn up the heat and burn off the alcohol, then reduce the heat.

Add the beef to the stew pot along with finely chopped thyme and rosemary and a couple more bay leaves, add the stock and bring to a simmer then put on the lid and place in a low oven- the slower and longer you cook the stew the better it will be.

After an hour or so of cooking peel your chestnuts by your prefered method if using fresh and add to the stew along with lots of chopped mushrooms.

In a cup mix a tablespoon of flour with a good squeeze of tomato puree some dijon mustard a teaspoon of marmite and any other codiments you like to add to a gravy mix  - some people like using ketchup, soy sauce, redcurrent jelly etc - I added a few dashes of tobassco to mine - mix with some of the stock from the stew and stir until all the lumps are gone then return all the thickening mix to the stew pot, return to the oven and cook on until ready to serve.

Cook your pollenta in a mix of 2/3 water 1/3 milk with a dash of good salt as per instructions on the packet. At the end of cooking remove from the heat and stir in a knob of butter and some grated parmesan. Spoonon to a plate making a small well in the centre for the stew.

This goes very well with polenta, as shown, jacket potatoes, mash and seasonal buttered greens, kale or carvol nero. 

Beetroot, Radish and Carrot Salad with Apple & Balsamic Dressing.

 

Par cook the carrots pieces in salted water until slightly softened, but still retaining a bit of crunch in the middle.

Drain and refresh in cold water to stop the cooking process.

Place your beetroots in a pan of salted water, bring to the boil and simmer until you can slide a knife in easily. 

Drain and leave to cool before peeling.

Make the dressing with a little apple juice, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, salt and pepper and a glug of veg oil.

Arrange a few salad leaves on a plate with the carrot pieces, sliced radishes, chopped beetroot, a little red onion and dress.

Scatter with toasted crushed hazelnuts and a few torn mint and parsley leaves and serve.

Parsley Soup.

 

If you are making a veg stock from scratch for this recipe add all the stalks from the parsley to it.

If you have a premade stock remove all the stalks from a large bunch of parsley, rip up and place in the stock, bring to the boil and leave to infuse.

In a genrous knob of butter and a little veg oil soften the white part of a leak, chopped onion a couple of cloves of garlic and a small stick of celery.

Add a couple of peeled and diced potatoes and season generously with salt and white pepper. Pour over your stock (remembering to remove the parsley stalks), add a quarter of your chopped parsley leaves and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are soft, and allow the soup to cool for a while.

Bring a small pan of water to the boil and blanch the rest of the parsley for 20- 30 seconds and immediately cool in a bowl of cold water. Drain and squeeze out any excess water.

Place the cooled soup in a blender along with a squeeze of lemon juice and the ball of blanched parsley and blitz until smooth.

Return to a pan and reheat - adjust the seasoning if needed 

Serve in a bowl with bread. 

Tarragon and Mustard Marinated Pork Cutlet with Puy Lentils and Salsa Verde.

 

Marinate the pork in whole grain mustard, tarragon vinegar and a little vegatable oil for several hours or over night.

Place the lentils in a saucepan with a dash of wine and cover with vegatable stock (do not season as salt will make the lentils go tough), bring to a boil and simmer for 20/25mins until they are tender, but  still have a bit of bite.

While the lentils are cooking make a salsa verde using parsley and a few other soft herbs, chopped capers, dijon mustard, seasoning and some olive oil.

Drain the lentils and leave in the saucepan with some chopped red onion and carrot battons. Replace the lid and put to one side for five mins, this will parr cook the onion and carrot.

Make a classic french dressing with plenty of salt and pepper and dress the lentils.

Pan fry or griddle your pork, seasoning it on both sides.

While it is resting add lots of ripped parsley leaves to the lentils, which by now should be warm rather than hot and serve the pork on a bed of lentils topped with the salsa verde.

Tomato and Basil Soup with Pesto.

 

Quarter and de-seed half of your tomoatoes and place on a baking tray with a little oil and seasoning then roast in the oven until cooked, allow to cool.

With the reamining tomatoes score a cross on the top of them with a sharp knife and drop into a pan of boiling water.

When the water returns to the boil drain and when cool enough peel the skins from the fruits and de-seed. 

Add a chopped shallot, a small chopped stick of cellery and a small amount of chopped carrot to a pan and soften in oil.

When softened season with salt and pepper and add all the the tomatoes, along with some veg stock and a handful of torn basil leaves then simmer until everything is cooked through.

Biltz in a blender then return to the pan to reheat.

Serve with freshly made pesto and a few extra chopped basil leaves. 

Asparagus with Parmesan Cheese Sauce.

In a heat proof bowl combine an egg yolk, creme fraiche, lots of grated parmesan and a pinch of white pepper.

Cut the woody ends from the asparagus and peel the tough ends - boil in salted water with a small knob of butter until tender.

While the asparagus is cooking place the bowl with the other ingreidients over a simmering pan of water (make sure the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl) and whisk away until the mixture thickens to a sauce.

Plate and serve the asparagus on top with a grating of parmesan.

Tomato Essence.

 

Chop cherry tomatoes, a small bulb of fennel, a garlic clove, half a stick of celery, and a small amount of red onion (half a shallot also works well) and place into a blender with a few torn basil leaves, a few drops of tabasco and a dash of Worcester sauce.

Pulse a few times until you have a puree and then transfer to a bowl, cover with clingfilm and refridgerate for six hours or overnight.

Line a clean bowl with muslin and pour the puree into it.

String the muslin up over the bowl and leave overnight to strain - do not squeeze the bag!

Once strained serve with a little chopped tomato and parsley or refridgerate until needed.