December 29, 2015
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Cheese Glorious Cheese!

La Fromagerie

La Fromagerie

Christmas means enjoying spending time with family and friends with good food & joyous music that enhance the festivities. I recently heard some fabulous live music at The Worlds End, Finsbury Park, N4 3EF hosted by Lorraine & Pete of Success Express Music.  On Christmas Eve Eve I visited my favourite cheese shop in London- La Fromagerie, W1U 4EW.

 

I entered the shop where there was a great atmosphere in anticipation of entering  the cheese equivalent of  Aladdin’s cave – the Cheese room. Lots of other people had the same idea and although we had to queue for 25 minutes, the staff were lovely coming round with tasters of fabulous  cheese and asking if we need anything else, charcuterie, chutneys, breads.

Wall of Cheese

Wall of Cheese

I got chatting with a lady from Switzerland & man from Texas, who had just bought some whisky & was looking for cheese to pair it with. It sounds cheesey, excuse the pun, but it was actually an enjoyable queuing experience.

Stacks of Deliciousness in the Cheese Room

Stacks of Deliciousness in the Cheese Room

I finally got into the cheese room and with some expert help chose the following cheeses:

 

 

  • Beaufort Chalet D’Alpage, Savoie, France –  a classic La Fromagerie cheese, sweet, buttery & nutty (made from cow’s milk)
  • Lincolnshire Poacher Double Barrel, Ulceby Grange, England – strong, tangy, slightly fruity (made from cow’s milk)
  • Caprini Freschi, Piedmont, Italy – fresh & creamy, with a hint of lemon (made from goat’s milk)
  • Brie De Meaux, Ile de France, France – soft, melting texture with strong slightly truffle taste (made from cow’s milk)
  • Ossau, Pyrenees, France – tangy, complex flavour, slightly firm texture (made from  sheep’s milk)
Glorious Goat's Cheese

Glorious Goat’s Cheese

The Ossau was selected specially to compliment my homemade spiced pear & grape chutney.

I also chose a Blacksticks Blue, Butlers Farm, Inglewhite, Lancashire (bought elsewhere) for a strong, tangy blue cheese. I served a 1999 Dow’s Crusted Port decanted, together with grapes, celery, apples and crackers to accompany the cheese.

No Oliver Twist but just cheese glorious cheese!

 

 

 

December 27, 2015
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Super Smoked Salmon Pate

I recently visited The House of Sverre, a traditional Nordic Smokehouse in North London, N4 2HS. Organised by Simon of Craft Food London Meetup, where foodies get to meet artisans and learn how to make bread, cheese, charcuterie or  smoked salmon.  Gunnar Lieungh, the Swedish founder and descendent of King Sverre of Norway, is passionate about his craft and produces amazing  smoked salmon.

In the Smokehouse - at House of Sverre

In the Smokehouse – at House of Sverre

He uses sustainable salmon sourced from Faroe Islands,  a 7 hour sea salt cure followed by a 40 hour cold smoke using a blend of Scandinavian beech, juniper & alder woods. We tasted smoked salmon from the neck, belly and tail, that vary in intensity of smoke taste and texture.

House of Sverre Smoked Salmon

House of Sverre Smoked Salmon

 

 

 

 

Gunnar ready to prepare my smoked salmon

Gunnar ready to prepare my smoked salmon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I decided to make a simple pate made from the tail, which has the strongest smokey taste and firmest texture.

 

 

 

Ingredients

  • 140g (5 oz) smoked salmon (heavy smoke, works best)
  • 140g (5 oz) whipped cream cheese
  • 3 tablespoons creme fraiche
  • 1 tablespoon of fresh dill, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon of fresh chives, finely chopped
  •  1/2 teaspoon of hot horseradish sauce
  • 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
  • black pepper & sea salt, freshly ground

Method

  • Chop up the smoked salmon into small pieces
  • Combine with the remaining ingredients
  • Check the seasoning and adjust
  • Chill for 1 hour

I serve with smoked salmon hand sliced from the belly on a blini accompanied by a rocket salad.

Super smoked salmon pate – a favourite family starter.

December 27, 2015
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How to make Perfect Roast Potatoes

Earlier this week, The Times of London were analyzing which was the best fat, or oil to cook Roast Potatoes for Christmas Dinner and so, I thought I might add my own thoughts to this controversial  debate

In my opinion, the perfect Roast Potato should have a fluffy crispy skin and a soft melt in your mouth interior and adding some herbal garlic flavor that lifts them from the ordinary. My recipe turns this common side dish into a delight

Ingredients (for 4)

The key ingredients

The key ingredients

  • 4 large potatoes – I use the Yukon Gold variety, which is just fantastic for roasting but  in the UK, Maris Piper are a more common variety that work just as well
  • 2-3 large sprigs of fresh rosemary – around a tbsp of leaves
  • A couple of cloves of garlic – peeled and chopped
  • Maldon sea salt flakes and fresh ground pepper
  • 3-4 generous knobs of hard vegetable cooking  spread (yes, I mean margarine, please don’t be shocked foodies!)
  • Around 1 tbsp of canola / rapeseed oil

Method

The 3 stages of cooking - note the fluffy exterior of the potatoes about to be roasted

The 3 stages of cooking – note the fluffy exterior of the potatoes about to be roasted

  • Peel each potato and dice it lengthwise into equal wedges
  • Add the potatoes to a pot of boiling salted water and cook on high heat for around 5-6 minutes to soften their exterior – you need to do this to get the fluffiness that will absorb the fat
  • Remove from the water and drain
  • Meanwhile heat your oven to 425 f / 200 c adding the vegetable fat to a roasting dish, pop it into the oven until the fat melts
  • Then, remove from the oven, add the potatoes and muddle about until covered in the fat, drizzle in the oil and stir again
  • Sprinkle over the garlic and rosemary, sea salt and pepper
  • Return the roasting dish in the oven for around 30 minutes, or until the outer layer of the potatoes has crisped golden

Serve immediately for Roasted Potato Nirvana

Postscript

Apparently, the experts blind tested at The Times concluded a vegetable oil they bought from a supermarket worked best but what do you think?  Check out the poll and let me know