Crispy Duck A L'orange

I LOOOOVE CRISPY SKIN. There, I've said it. My guilty pleasure, I love crispy skin on duck and chicken especially - I mean super crispy, not an ounce of fat remaining. When I found out about Dollop and Scoff I immediately fell in love with their name and branding, and it got me thinking about what I could dollop their product onto and then scoff myself! When it comes to Marmalade there is a marriage made in heaven on it's way - to crispy duck!

So for my crispy warm salad I started off by roasting 3 duck legs in a preheated oven (180 degrees fan) after pricking their skin all over with a cocktail stick in order for the fat to flow out of them whilst cooking. I then assembled my salad with mixed leaves, cucumber sticks, spring onions and baby tomatoes. The only other salad item missing at this point is warm baby potatoes (to be added at the last minute).

For the dressing- I used Dollop and Scoff's  Medium Set Orange Marmalade (about 4 or 5 tablespoons worth), soy sauce and balsamic vinegar to taste. Keep adding little by little to the marmalade until you reach a point of sweet and sour you enjoy.

Finally add sesame seeds to the dressing and wait for your duck legs to emerge from the oven crispy and golden brown - they will take around 1.5 hour in total (well worth the wait). You will also want to cook a handful of baby potatoes in a pot of boiling water just before the end of the cooking time.

Once all components are ready, rip the duck legs apart (including the skin) and arrange on the plate, spoon over the delicious sweet, sour and crunchy salad dressing and there you have a  moreish Crispy Duck a l'Orange!

Happy Scoffing! x

 

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Langoustines with a Roast Garlic and Lemon Butter

I'm a biiiiig fearty when it comes to fish, well not all fish, just the super scary ones which resemble aliens rather than animals. Ones like these actually...

I like regular fish. Fish with flesh. Simple, unassuming fish that doesn't look at you when served with eyes full of sadness! Fish such as filleted salmon, cod, sea bass, haddock -you get the picture- and I often order fish when eating out as I rarely know what to 'do' with it to make it appetising! So when I agreed to embark on a fish based challenge presented by Willie Little of Fish in Crieff I really was treading water!

I knew langoustines didn't take long to cook, nor should they be masked by any heavy flavours or sauce but other than that I was a tad stumped. My innate reaction was to pair them with lemon and parsley so I went with my gut and did just that (along with a clove of roasted garlic as this gave a sweet hum to the butter). After reading a couple of articles I soon established they would be cooked in around 8 minutes (fast food indeed!) and after consulting a few videos on YouTube I was confident on how to get the blighters open.

Although I did have to 'coach' myself when cooking and handling these sea based creepy crawlies (including the removal of their "poop chute") they were very much worth it and encourage you all to visit your local fishmonger and ask for his or her recommendations. Sadly,  the vast majority of our fish caught in Scottish waters travels overseas to be enjoyed- this is down to people like me who are afraid to branch out, don't know what to do with it or have simply never tried it before! With variety in abundance, short cooking times and many health benefits associated with lean mass and essential oils, Fish is a great alternative for a week day main meal or a special weekend dinner date.

I urge you to try this receipe if you haven't before, or dabble in some other varieties of seafood should you be an regular visitor to your fishmonger already! And please.... whilst your at it.... help ME out too! This is definitely one area I will be working and experimenting more on...

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• To enjoy fresh langoustines in minutes simply place them into boiling water, cover with a lid and cook for 8 minutes. 
• Whilst they are in the pot, melt butter in a seperate pan, add coarsely chopped parsley, a clove of crushed pre-roasted garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. 
• To remove the meat from the cooked langoustines remove the head, squeeze the sharp sides together until you hear a crack (all the way along) and finally prise apart the shell to remove a relaxed 'C shape' of succulent meat. 
• This meat can then be dipped in the butter or drizzled over, either way they make a fantastic fast food starter or fancy appetiser! 

Happy fishing everyone! x

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Hot Drinks Just Jumped Up a League...

I must admit, I'm not a coffee drinker. I do like coffee and I adore the smell of it more than anything but sadly, most of the time (not always), coffee does not like me and leaves me with stomach cramps and sickness. From time to time, I run that risk as I just fancy a cup, or I'm lucky to get away consequence free but the recently discovered Counter Roast from Dollar, Clackmannashire Scotland, certainly produces blends worth taking that risk for. Hubs and I both loved the full bodied Réveillez Blend and they also produce a very satisfying decaf, as well as others, which is great for the caffeine averse like me!

I have two simple ideas for bringing your hot drinks into a league of their own (with or without a shot of dark, rich coffee). Either as an indulgent treat on Saturday afternoon, to end a dinner party with a bang or to take campfire cocoa into a whole new realm!!

Hot Buttered Rum Cappuccino

To a pot on the stove add:

• a shot of freshly brewed, deep, dark espresso  (2 if you're feeling lively)
• a good knob of butter
• a couple of drops of vanilla essence
• a shot of dark rum
• a sprinkle of brown sugar

 

Melt this all together briefly and pour into a mug, top with steamed milk and foam - sprinkle with cinnamon on top!
 

Luxury Hot Chocolatte

(Do not add coffee if you are just looking for an upgrade to your regular hot chocolate)

Melt a large bar of dark chocolate (60-70% Cocoa), a small tin of condensed milk, 1 (or 2) shots of espresso and a few large spoonfuls of double cream in a pot to provide you with a sweet, rich and heart stopping (in more ways than one) luxury chocolatte! It's that simple!

I hope you enjoy these premium hot drinks, let me know how you find them or better still - post pictures of you slurping them onto my Twitter or Facebook page! x

 

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Arbroath Smokie Smash

Arbroath Smokies: quintessentially Scottish. A rustic looking and highly flavoursome coastal treat which can be enjoyed on their own, for breakfast, lunch or even dinner. This dish is a lazy lady's (that would be me) verison of fishcakes but can certainly be enjoyed on its own as a weekday tea. 

To fully form fishcakes from this Smash: 

• Take small scoops of mixture and mould by hand into rounds
• Flatten each round slightly 
• Dip in egg wash and then breadcrumbs
• Pan fry until golden brown. 

The reason this Smash works so well, especially for a Scottish or even Harvest themed supper, is due to mix of land and sea, with earthy potatoes and deep smoked haddock. To rustle up this dish simply:

• Put your potatoes onto boil (you can roughly chop these but make sure they are appriximatly the same size as you want them to cook equally). You will also notice I have not peeled my potatoes, that again would be down to my lazy style of cooking but I honestly love the texture and taste provided by potato skins but feel free to peel beforehand if you wish!

• Whilst these are on the boil, flake apart your Arbroath Smokies (one pair)

•  Finely chop 3 spring onions and roughly chop a good handful of parsley

• Once the potatoes are soft, drain them. You are now ready to get smashing.
• Pile everything back into the same pot (potatoes, parsley, spring onions, flaked Smokie, a knob of butter and squeeze over juice of half a lemon).

• Add ground black pepper to taste, you may wish to add a pinch of salt too but taste your Smash first.

You now have a rough and ready meal, similar to that of stovies for dinner, or as mentioned you could refine it further and transform this into dainty fishcakes whilst would ideally be served with a side of Chilli Jam and fresh salad leaves.

Happy 'smoking' everyone! x

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Pumpkin and Roast Pepper Soup

Fancy a simple yet tasty soup to serve as a starter at an up and coming family get together or even to bring a change to your typical weekday packed lunch? This deliciously comforting soup was brought to mind when discovering Arnprior Pumpkins at a local food fayre...

• Start by roasting peppers and garlic cloves in a warm oven (around 180 degrees fan for 15 - 20 minutes) and chop up your pumpkin, three celery sticks and one onion.
• Sweat off your onions and celery in your soup pot and then add your pumpkin chunks.

• After roasting, add your peppers (3 in total) and 2-3 garlic cloves to your pot also. Life is too short to worry about removing the 'bitter' skins, but if you like you can roast your peppers for longer and remove the charred skins adding an even greater sweetness to your soup.

• Once everything has been added to the pot, top up with water throw in a chicken or good quality vegetable stock cube - bring to the boil,  reduce to a simmer and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft.
• Blend your soup in an/with an electric blender until smooth and then taste - season at this point with salt and pepper if you feel it is required.

That's it! Truly simple and certainly worth a visit to you local pumpkin patch - they aren't just for halloween :)

Happy Harvest Everyone x

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Sticky Chilli Beef Steak

This dish was inspired by my love for Asian style food and the top quality produce I've been discovering recently from the Stirlingshire region of Scotland. It's soooo exciting to try food that's been lovingly nurtured or hand made right on my doorstep and two such producers which have come together in this recipe are Falleninch Farm Butchers and The Wee Kitchen Company. 

To quickly, and easily make Asian style Sticky Chilli Beef simply follow these steps:

• Select your cut of steak  - ideally you want something that will fry quickly although there is nothing stopping you slow cooking your beef, shredding it apart and adding the jam reduction at the end! 
• If opting for the quick fry option, rub a little oil onto your steak before it hits a hot pan (rather than pouring it into the pan- you use less oil this way) and season.
• You are in the process of cooking this steak to your liking (rare/medium/well done) and as you do so you will smear Caramelised Onion and Chilli Jam on the side which looks up to you.

• Once each side has had at least one smear of jam, been flipped over and faced the heat on that side you will want to remove your steak (once cooked to your liking) and rest for a few minutes - double coating the jam will add extra flavour.  I also like to keep my steak in tin foil during its rest time just to make sure it doesn't go cold.
• Whilst resting, add a few tablespoons of jam to a few teaspoons of marsala wine in a pot and at the very last minute of heating add the steak juices which will be lying in your foil jacket. Cook and reduce down into a bubbling, sticky sauce.
• Cut you steaks into either thin or chunky strips of meat and smother in this sticky drizzle. 

These strips are fabulous in a salad and corriander loaded wrap, with coconut rice or even noddles! 

 Enjoy! x

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