As promised, lots of lovely food!! First is the recipe for the stuffed aubergine. The quantities are to serve two people. You will need : 1 large aubergine, olive oil, 250g minced lamb, 1 onion finely chopped, 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped, 1 tbsp tomato puree, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 50 g feta, roughly crumbled. Heat the oven to 180C. Cut the aubergine in half and scoop out the flesh, chop the flesh finely, then rub the aubergine shells with some olive oil. Put a glug of oil in a frying pan and fry the mince, add the onion and garlic and cook for about 5 mins until the onion is soft. Add the tomato puree, cumin and cinnamon and mix well then stir in the feta. Spoon the mixture into the shells, drizzle with a little oil, then bake for about 30 mins until the shells are soft. Serve with a side salad.
Now for our wonderful dinner yesterday! First the starter .....
Smoked salmon and strawberry mousse
100g smoked salmon
50g strawberries
150ml double cream
lemon pepper
grapes, lemon zest and dill
Put the salmon, strawberries and cream in a processor and season with the pepper. Using the pulse setting, gradually blitz until well mixed, but not too thick.
Put the mixture into four ramekins and garnish with the grapes, dill and lemon zest. Cover the dishes with cling film and refigerate. You can make this the day before - take it out of the fridge about 30 mins before eating.
The main course
a piece of rolled brisket(this one is about 2kg)
carrots
onion
parsnips
Put the brisket and vegetables in a saucepan and add about an inch of water. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 3 hours. We cook ours the day before and leave the meat in the liquid overnight.
The next day, remove the vegetables. They make a good base for making soup - or add them to your dog's dinner!
Bring the liquid up to the boil, and boil briskly until the liquid is almost boiled away. Turn the meat frequently, coating it with the reduced liquid.
Put the meat on a serving plate and allow to cool - it is much easier to slice when it is cold. Pour a little boiling water into the saucepan to deglaze the pan of all those wonderful meaty flavours and use this to make your gravy.
We served it with roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, turnip, broccoli .... and of couse, lots of lovely gravy. There was lots of meat left over - it's delicious on sandwiches with some chutney, or make more gravy and heat it up and serve with lots of mashed potatoes.
And of course there was pudding!
250g pannetone
2 eggs
75g caster sugar
215ml double cream
215ml milk
softened butter
1 slightly underripe pear
Slice the pannetone and butter on both sides, then arrange in an oven proof dish. Whisk the eggs and sugar together, then beat in the cream and milk. Pour this over the panetonne. Peel and core the pear, then slice it lengthways. Tuck the pear between the slices of pannetone.
Stand the dish in a roasting tray and pour in cold water to come about two thirds of the way up the sides. Bake at 180C for about 45 mins - check regularly, if the top edges of the pannetone are getting too dark, cover with some foil. Check that the custard is set. You can serve this hot or cold, and with cream or custard.
I forgot to take a photo when the pudding was ready, but if the proof of the pudding is in the eating, then this photo says it all!!
And lastly I haven't forgotten about Charlene's prize ....
A gorgeous little Cath Kidston book, full of tips to achieve that vintage look.