Spicy Meatloaf

Ingredients:

* 2.5 lbs specially selected Scotch beef, minced (ground)
* 1 tbsp olive oil for frying
* 1 finely chopped onion
* 2 cloves garlic chopped
* 1 red pepper, de-seeded, skin removed, chopped
* 1 tsp aromatic cumin
* 1 tsp mixed herbs
* Half cup tomato sauce (canned sauce or passatta)
* Half cup fresh breadcrumbs
* Half cup beef stock
* Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Put oil in pan and heat. Add onions, garlic and mixed herbs. Sweat over heat until onions are soft without browning. Transfer to large bowl and allow to cool.
Add tomato sauce, breadcrumbs and beef stock to the cooked mixture. Stir together. Break up the ground beef and add to mixture. Season to taste and mix together gently.
Pack this mixture into 11 x 5 x 3 inches deep loaf tin and bake in a pre heated oven 350F for 50 – 60 minutes.
Remove carefully from oven. Pour off any excess fat, let the loaf cool for about 10 minutes. Slice and serve with crisp green salad, spicy tomato salsa and crusty bread.

Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding

* 1 (5 1/2-pound) fore-rib, wing-rib or sirloin of beef, French trimmed (2.5 kilograms)
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
* Olive oil
* 3 red onions, halved
* 2 bulbs garlic, plus 4 cloves garlic, peeled
* 7 pounds (3 kilograms) roasting potatoes, peeled
* 3 rosemary sprigs
* 2 thumb-sized pieces ginger, peeled and diced
* 1/2 bottle robust red wine

Yorkshire pudding, recipe follows

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C), and heat a large thick-bottomed roasting tray on the stove top.

Rub the beef generously with salt, then add a little olive oil to the tray and lightly color the meat for a couple of minutes on all sides.

Lay the onions and bulbs of garlic in the tray with the beef on top of them, then cook in the pre-heated oven for a total of 1 1/2 hours.

While the beef is roasting, parboil your potatoes in salted boiling water for around 10 minutes and drain in a colander. Toss about to chuff them up, this will make them really crispy.

After 30 minutes, take the tray out and toss in your potatoes and rosemary. With a garlic press or grater, squeeze or grate the cloves of garlic and ginger over everything in the tray.

Shake the tray and whack it back in the oven for the final hour. Remove the potatoes to a dish to keep warm, place the beef on a plate, covered with foil, to rest, and get your greens and Yorkshire puddings on.

Remove most of the fat from your roasting tray and you should be left with caramelized onions and sticky beef goodness.

Add 1 teaspoon of flour to the tray and mash everything together. Heat the tray on the stove top and when hot, add the red wine. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until your gravy is tasty and coats back of a spoon. Add any juice from the beef and feel free to add some water or stock to thin the gravy if you like.

Pour through a coarse sieve and push it through with a spoon, pushing it through with a spoon, and serve in a warmed gravy jug. Serve with Yorkshire puddings.

Yorkshire Puddings

* 1/2 pint (285 milliliters) milk
* 4 ounces (115 grams) all-purpose flour
* Pinch salt
* 3 eggs
* Vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Mix the batter ingredients together. Let rest for 10 minutes

Preheat a Yorkshire pudding tray or muffin tin with 1/2-inch (1 centimeter) of oil in each section. After the 10 minutes divide the batter into the tray. Cook for around 15 to 20 minutes until crisp and puffy, don’t open the oven door before then or they won’t rise.

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Ingredients:

* 2 oz  soft margarine
* 1½ oz  butter
* 7 oz  white sugar
* 8 oz  plain flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 egg whisked
* 6 oz  or 1½ cups stoned dates
* 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
* 2½ oz  light brown sugar
* 2 tablespoons double cream
* ½ pint boiling water

Preparation:

Cream together the margarine and sugar. Sift together the flour and baking powder. Beat the whisked egg into a creamed mixture with a little of the flour and baking powder and continue beating for about a minute before adding the rest of the flour/baking powder.

Chop the dates and flour lightly. Pour the boiling water over the dates and mix in the baking soda and add the date mixture to the batter and mix well.

Place in a buttered tin (or one lined with baking parchment) and bake for 40 minutes at 350F. When the pudding is cooked, heat the brown sugar, butter and cream and simmer gently for 3 minutes. Pour over the pudding and place under a grill until it starts to bubble. Then serve.

FADGE (POTATO BREAD)

* 2 lb Unpeeled “old” potatoes
* 1 Egg, beaten
* 1/2 Stick butter
* 3 T Flour
* 1 1/2 T Chopped parsley
* 1 1/2 T Chopped chives
* 1 1/2 T Chopped lemon thyme -(these three mixed, opt)
* Cream
* Salt
* Freshly ground pepper
* Seasoned flour
* Bacon fat or butter for –frying

Boil the potatoes in their jackets, pull off the skins and mash straight away. Add the egg, butter, flour and herbs (if using) and mix well. Season with plenty of salt and pepper, adding a few drops of cream if the mixture is too stiff. Shape into a 1″ round and then cut into eight pieces. Dip in seasoned flour. Bake on a griddle over an open fire or fry in bacon fat or melted butter on a gentle heat. Cook the fadge until crusty and golden on one side, then flip over and cook on the other side (about 4-5 minutes on each side). Serve on its own on hot plates with a blob of butter melting on top.

Trout and Herb Jelly

Ingredients:
* 2 trout (each one about 8oz when cleaned) (rainbow are best)
* 1 smoked trout (about 8 oz when cleaned).
* 1 pint of fish stock
* 4 fl oz dry white wine
* 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
* 1 large shallot
* ½ teaspoon coarse ground pepper
* 1 tablespoon powdered gelatine
* 1½ tablespoons chopped tarragon
* 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
* 1 tablespoon chopped chervil

Preperation:

1. Pour ½ pint water into a large saucepan and note the level. Discard the water.
2. Pour the fish stock, wine and wine vinegar into the saucepan. Add the chopped shallot and the ground pepper. Bring to the boil, stirring occasionally. Keep boiling this mixture until only about 8 fl oz (½ pint) is left. (The liquid level is has reduced to the mark made earlier). Take it off the heat.
3. Pour 3 tablespoons of cold water into a smaller saucepan. Sprinkle the gelatine onto the water and leave to swell for 5 minutes. Then very gently heat the gelatine to dissolve it. As it starts to dissolve pour a little of the fish stock mixture into the gelatine and really mix it well. When it is well mixed, pour this gelatine mix into the large saucepan with the fish stock mixture. Stir to mix then leave to cool.
4. Grill the trout under a high heat for about 4 minutes each side. They are ready when the flesh turns opaque and is easily opened up with a fork. Leave to cool, then remove any skin or bones that were left from the cleaning.
5. When the trout are cool, flake off the flesh and put into a bowl. Add the herbs and mix well by carefully folding them together. (Stirring these dry ingredients will break up the flesh).
6. Now pour into the bowl that contains the trout/herbs the cooled fish stock/gelatine and stir to mix. When mixed pour into a loaf tin or bread tin (about 7½ x 3½ inches). Cover with cling film or foil and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before serving.
7. When you are ready to serve – it can be difficult to turn out the wonderful looking trout jelly – so dip the loaf tin into hot water for a few seconds (it just starts to melt the jelly in the tin). Turn this out onto a serving plate and garnish with a few sprigs of parsley.

Traditional Scottish Scones

Ingredients:

*  8oz of all-purpose flour with 3 teaspoons baking powder
* 1 oz (¼ stick) of butter or margarine.
* ¼ pint of sour cream
* One beaten egg
* Pinch of salt

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 400F

Sift the dry ingredients together and then rub in the butter. Pour in the sour cream and then the beaten egg in the center of the mixture and mix to obtain a soft elastic dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and roll out to about ½ inch thick. Prick all over with a fork and cut into small rounds with a cutter about 1½ inches in diameter. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes.

Scones are delicious if served warm. Cut in two and spread with butter and/or jam (preserves) to add even more flavor and moisture.

Colcannon (Mashed Potatoes with Cabbage)

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

* 3 cups finely shredded green cabbage
* 1 onion, finely chopped

* 1/4 cup water* 6 cooked potatoes, mashed or 4 cups prepared instant mashed potatoes (prepared according to directions on package)

* 1/4 cup milk
* 1/4 cup butter or margarine
* Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation:

Place cabbage, onion, and water in a saucepan or Dutch oven and quickly bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 8 minutes until tender. Do not overcook.

Poached Breast of Pheasant, Mushroom and Shallot Couscous

Ingredients:

*  8 Shallots
*  One pound Mixed Mushrooms
*  1 quart of fresh Chicken Stock
*  7 ounces Couscous
*  4 Pheasant Breasts
*  Seasoning to taste

Preparation::

Peel and slice the shallots, place in a pan with a little oil and cook for 5 minutes with a little color. In another pot, put chicken stock on and bring to boil, trim and chop the mushrooms, keep the trimmings. Put the mushrooms into the pan with the shallots and cook for a further 5 minutes. Put the couscous into a large bowl, add the mushroom and shallot mixture, pour just under half of the boiling chicken stock and leave for 15-20 minutes, stir occasionally with a fork.

Season the Pheasant breasts, place them into the stock together with the mushroom trimmings and poach gently for 7-12 minutes, remove from the stock and keep warm. Reduce remaining stock down and pass through a sieve to remove mushroom trimmings and add a little olive oil and red wine vinegar to create a warm vinaigrette sauce.

Check couscous for seasoning and place onto heated plates, top with Pheasant Breasts, spoon vinaigrette around and serve.

SOUFFLÉ DEVON CRAB

This recipe originated from Devonshire.

Ingredients:

* 8 oz crab meat
* 4 egg whites
* 1 oz salted butter
* 4 tablespoons bread crumbs
* 1 oz plain flour
* ¼ pint fish stock
* 8 ¼ pint skimmed milk
* ½ lemon
* 1½ teaspoons paprika
* ¼ teaspoon anchovy essence

Method:
1. Chop up the crab meat into small pieces. Lightly butter 4 gratin dishes (about 6 inches diameter) then sprinkle them with the breadcrumbs.

2. Melt the butter in a pan, stir in the flour (carefully to avoid lumps). Then gradually blend in the milk and the fish stock.

Stir well and bring to the boil, then simmer for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Take off the heat.

3. Into the saucepan with the fish stock/milk etc, add the juice from the ½ lemon (and a little grated rind), the anchovy essence, the paprika and the crab meat. Stir well to ensure everything is mixed well.

4. Whisk the egg whites until they just ‘hold soft peaks’. Now, using a METAL spoon fold the egg whites gently into the crab sauce.

5. Divide the mixture into the 4 dishes.

6. Bake them all together in a preheated oven, 375’F for 20 minutes. When they are cooked they will be nicely raised, but still creamy in the centers.

Rhubarb Bread and Butter Pudding

Ingredients:

* 1 pound red rhubarb
* Sugar
* 4 tablespoons butter, preferably unsalted
* 12 slices good-quality white bread, crusts removed
* 2 cups cream
* 1 cup milk
* 4 extra large free-range eggs, beaten lightly
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
* 1 tablespoon extra sugar, for sprinkling on top of pudding

Garnish:

Lightly whipped cream

YOU WILL NEED
A deep 8-inch square or round baking dish
A water bath or roasting pan

Preparation:

Cut the rhubarb into 1-inch pieces. Put into a dish and sprinkle with sugar. Let macerate for an hour.

Butter the bread. Arrange four slices, buttered-side down, in one layer in the buttered baking dish. Scatter half the rhubarb over the bread, and cover with another layer of bread, buttered-side down. Scatter the remaining rhubarb on top and cover with the remaining bread, buttered-side down.

Whisk together the cream, milk, eggs, vanilla, and sugar in a bowl. Pour the mixture through a fine strainer over the bread.

Sprinkle the extra spoonful of sugar over the top. Let the mixture stand, covered loosely, for at least 1 hour or refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Bake in a water bath. The water should be boiling and should come halfway up the sides of the baking dish in the middle of the preheated oven, for about 1 hour or until the top is crisp and golden. Serve the pudding warm, with some lightly whipped cream.