Loin of Chalk Downland Lamb stuffed with Goats Cheese, Sundried Tomatoes and Olives

I was set a challenge by Marlborough News Online to create a menu using only ingredients found at the Marlborough Communities Market. See the article at http://www.marlboroughnewsonline.co.uk/features/food-drink/recipes/1506-local-ingredients-given-a-mediterranean-twist . This is what I made from some beautiful artisan ingredients made in Wiltshire. Try this recipe for Mother's Day Lunch.

1kg/2.2lbs of Chalk Downland Lamb Loin

For the stuffing

150g/ 6oz Preston West Farm goats cheese

 50g/2oz sundried tomatoes- chopped

50g/ 2oz kalamata or other black olives - chopped
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves - chopped

For roasting
olive oil
6 cloves of garlic -unpeeled
juice of lemon

salt and pepper

Mix all the stuffing ingredients together in a bowl.
Open out the loin of lamb to give you a squarish piece of meat. The loin may already have been rolled and tied in which case cut the strings to open the loin out.
Spread the stuffing evenly across the lamb loin and then roll it back up and tie it with string to give you a rolled up joint.

Place the loin of lamb in a roasting tin.
Pour over 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the lemon juice. Add the unpeeled garlic cloves to the pan. Don’t worry about peeling them as these are just to add flavour to your meat.

Place your meat in the oven at the preheated temperature for 30 minutes. After this time turn down the heat to Gas mark 4/ 180ᵒC . Remove the lamb from the oven and pour over a wine glass of white wine. Place back in the oven to roast for another 30 minutes. The wine, lemon and garlic will create a lovely gravy while the meat cooks. Cook for 20 more minutes by which time the lamb will be cooked through.

Serve with some roasted potatoes and steamed green beans dressed with a little olive oil and lemon while still warm.

Welsh Cakes

Tomorrow is St David's day so I have just made a batch of Welsh Cakes. My girls and I have just eaten about three each as they are so delicious warm from the griddle and sprinkled with sugar. They are like a cross between a scone and a biscuit, lightly spiced and not too fruity.
Other food associated with St David's Day are the leek which is St David's personal symbol.
In the 18th century gingerbread confectioneries known as "taffies" were baked in the shape of a Welshman riding a goat.

Ingredients

8oz/225g self raising flour
4oz/100g butter
3oz/85g caster sugar
1/4 tsp mixed spice
2oz/50g sultanas
1 egg -lightly beaten

Method

Place the flour into a bowl and add the butter cut into cubes. Rub into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar, spice,and dried fruit. Add the beaten egg and mix until you have a dough.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface and cut the dough into rounds with a 3 inch fluted cutter.

The Welsh cakes are traditionally fried in lard but for a less fattening version use a heavy griddle or baking stone to cook the cakes. Butter the stone and place on the heat for the stone to heat up. Place the cakes on the stone and "fry" the cakes for 5 -7 minutes a side. Only turn them once as if you try to turn them before they are "set" then they will break apart.  Allow the cakes to brown well as this will give them a lovely flavour.

Serve the warm cakes sprinkled with caster sugar or you can split them and serve them with butter and jam, or even cream and soft fruits as a dessert.
They will keep in an airtight container for about a week but they are better served warm.

PASTITSIO

My recipe for Pastitsio as it appeared in Marlborough Town and Country Magazine 

 March 2013 Issue 59 

When cooking for a family you need something nutritious, filling and tasty as well as being economical. If you are cooking together you need a dish you can all become involved in and this recipe is perfect.

Pastitsio is Greeces’ answer to lasagne. It is a pasta dish with a meat ragu which is then covered in a creamy white sauce and baked in the oven .My recipe uses lamb but you can use any minced meat you like.

It is a great dish for the family to cook together as the different components of the dish can be put together by different members of the family- meaning you can cook it in half the time! It can be made in advance up to a day before you are going to eat it and kept in the fridge until you are ready to bake it.

INGREDIENTS

3 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion –finely chopped
2 garlic cloves – finely chopped
1lb of minced lamb, beef or pork mince
1 bay leaf
1tsp ground cinnamon
¼  tsp grated nutmeg
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1tsp dried oregano
5 floz white wine
14 oz tin chopped tomatoes
1lb short pasta –e.g penne, riagatoni
salt and pepper

For the béchamel sauce
4 oz butter
4oz plain flour
20floz milk
2 egg yolks – beaten lightly
salt and pepper
¼ tsp grated nutmeg
grated parmesan cheese.

Oven gas mark 6, 200ᵒ c

METHOD

1.       Heat the oil in a frying pan and gently fry the onion and garlic until soft and translucent.

2.       Add the minced meat and fry over a high heat to colour and sear the meat –about5 -10 minutes.

3.       Add the bay leaf, cinnamon, nutmeg, oregano and salt and pepper. Add the white wine and tomatoes and mix all ingredients together well. Leave to cook over a gentle heat for about 20 minutes.

4.       Meanwhile cook the pasta until al dente in a pan of boiling, salted water. When it is cooked drain the pasta and stir it into the meat sauce. Place the pasta mixture into a lightly greased, deep gratin dish.

5.       Make the béchamel sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in the flour and cook over a moderate heat for a couple of minutes. Gradually add the milk stirring continuously until you have a smooth white sauce. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Remove from the heat and stir in the egg yolks.

6.       Pour the sauce over the pasta and meat mixture. Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese and bake a preheated oven for 35 -40 minutes until golden brown and bubbling on top.

7.       Serve warm with a big Greek salad. 

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

 I made these over the weekend with my daughter. They were lovely warm from the oven with a cup of tea. Perfect for a cold and rainy afternoon.

makes about 20 cookies

6oz/150g butter
5oz/120g sugar
1 large egg- lightly beaten
12oz self raising flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
 1-2 tablespoons milk
4oz/100g dark chocolate chips
4oz/100g white or milk chocolate chips
pinch of salt

Preheated oven 180 degrees centigrade/gas mark 4
baking sheet lined with baking parchment

Cream together the butter and sugar using an electric mixer or hand mixer with a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, the vanilla extract and the milk.
Fold in the flour, salt and the chocolate chips. You will begin to get a soft dough and if necessary mix with your hands to get a soft pliable dough.
Roll out the dough on a floured board  to a thickness of about1/4 inch. Cut into rounds using a 2 inch biscuit cutter and place on the baking sheet spaced well apart.
Bake in the centre of the oven for about 20 minutes until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes on the baking tray before placing on a wire rack to cool completely.

Banoffee Brownies

This recipe was created so that I could use up that one banana that was lying around in the fruit bowl!
I am expecting a crowd of people over the weekend so thought these would be good to have with cups of tea or even as a dessert with ice cream. That is if they last that long.......

Ingredients

1lb/400g granulated sugar
8oz/200g butter -softened
1 medium banana- mashed
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
4 eggs
10oz/250g self raising flour
2oz/50g cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4oz/100g fudge chunks
4oz/100g chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade/gas mark 6
lightly greased 13" x 9" pan

Method

Using an electric mixer or hand held electric whisk combine the sugar and butter and beat on a medium speed until light and fluffy.
Add the mashed banana and vanilla extract. Beat until well blended.
Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt and beat on a low speed until blended.
Stir int the fudge chunks and chocolate chips.

Spread the mixture into the prepared pan and level the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan.


When completely cold spread with ready made dulche de leche. This is a ready made caramel spread which is available in supermarket. Cut into even sized squared to serve. This should make about 32 brownies.

Spiced Shepherds Pie

I made this as I had so much lamb left over from the Sunday roast. Normally recipes using leftovers are not so nice and lamb particularly is quite difficult as it seems to change taste when it is cold. I found a recipe in a Diana Henry book called Food from Plenty which is all about how to create meals from gluts of fruit, wild food and leftovers.
I have slightly changed the recipe as it was a bit sweet for my taste. It also contained raisins which my family are not so keen on in a savoury recipe.I also added some other ingredients of my own.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
Leftover lamb - about 11/2 lbs/ 600g cut into small pieces
2 onions, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery, sticks chopped
3 cloves garlic -finely chopped
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp plain flour
1/2 pint/300ml stock
5 floz/ 150ml white wine
juice of one orange
1 tin chopped tomatoes

Mash potato and parsnip topping

1lb/450g potatoes
2lbs/ 900g parsnips
2oz/ 50g butter
2floz /60ml milk
salt and pepper
grated nutmeg

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large pan and brown the lamb. Remove the lamb and set it aside. In the same pan heat a little more olive oil and brown the onion, carrots and celery until golden. Add the garlic and spices and continue to cook for a minute.Stir in the plain flour, stock, white wine, orange juice, and the tin of tomatoes. Allow to come to the boil then add the browned lamb, reduce the heat and allow to simmer for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile cook the potatoes and parsnips in separate pans in boiling water until just tender. Drain and then mash with the butter and milk. Season with salt, pepper and a good grating of nutmeg.

Place the lamb mixture in a deep ovenproof dish and spoon the mash over the top.
Bake in a hot oven,gas 6/200 degrees centigrade for about 30 minutes until golden on the top. Serve with a green vegetable.

Chocolate and Amaretto cake with Raspberries

I made this cake at the weekend for my daughter's 17th Birthday. We were having the family over for Sunday lunch so I wanted something that would double up as a dessert too.

There was 9 of us for lunch so I made a starter of Halloumi cheese wrapped with parma ham and vine leaves and baked in the oven which we had with some warm pitta bread and hoummous.

For main course I made a leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic which I basted with white wine and honey so by the time it had finished cooking it had made its own gravy.

I served this with some crisp roasted garlic and rosemary roast potatoes and a medley of green vegetables including asparagus, green beans and baby lettuce which I cooked in a little white wine and stock until the vegetables were tender.

We then had the cake for dessert with some pouring cream.

 

I doubled this recipe but it was a huge cake and I do still have half left!

 

Ingredients

Serves 8

 

9oz/225g unsalted butter - this needs to be really soft as you will cream all the ingredients together in one bowl.

9oz/225g self-raising flour
1tsp baking powder
9oz/225g caster sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2oz/ 50g cocoa powder

For the filling

10oz/250g mascarpone cheese

10floz/300ml double cream - lightly whipped

2oz/50g caster sugar

1teaspoon vanilla extract

2fl0z/60ml amaretto liquer
8oz plain chocolate -melted over hot water and allowed to cool slightl

raspberries and chocolate nibs to decorate.

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade/ 350 degrees farenheit/gas mark 4. Butter two, 20 cm/8" round sandwich tins and line the bases with baking parchment.

 

To mix the cake you can use a bowl with an electric whisk or an electric mixer. Sift the flour cocoa powder and baking powder into the bowl, then add the softened butter,sugar and eggs. Mix together until well blended but do not over mix as then your cake will not be light. Divide the batter between the tins and level the top of the mixture. Bake for about 20 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean with no uncooked batter.

Loosen the cakes by running a knife around the edge of the tins and turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

 

To make the filling place the mascarpone into a bowl and beat it to soften it slightly. Fold in the double cream, sugar and vanilla extract and the cooled melted chocolate.

To assemble the cake cut the two cakes in half horizontally to make four layers. Place one cake on a plate and sprinkle with the amaretto. Take about a quarter of your mascarpone cream mixture and spread it over the base cake. Place the second tier on top. Repeat the process with the other cake layers. Spread the top of the cake with your mascarpone cream and decorate with raspberries and chocolate nibs. Chill for about an hour before you are ready to serve.