Food at Fern Cottage

Vegetable Omelette

2006-02-19T19:17:00.000Z

Another omelette variation: this one is more suitable for cutting into wedges and serving cold, making it ideal party food.

Take enough courgettes (zuchini), brocolli, and green pepper, to half fill a large frying pan and cut them up into small bite-size pieces. Add some salt and pepper and fry in lots of olive oil (easily 7-8 tablespoons) on a medium heat with a lid on for 15-20 minutes, after which the vegetables will have lost some of their volume and be very soft. Add a handful of mushrooms and leave for another five minutes, with the lid off this time until the mushrooms have cooked.

While the vegetables are cooking pre-heat a grill so it is very hot.

Gently beat six large eggs together and season with plenty of salt and pepper again. Turn the heat up on the pan a fraction and add the eggs to the vegetables and leave to set for a minute. Once the eggs have begun to set place the whole pan underneath the hot grill and leave for a minute or two - you need to watch it like a hawk now otherwise it will burn. Once the eggs have taken on a very light brown colour, the omelette is cooked and you should be able to slide it out of the pan and onto a plate. Best eaten cold with some ham and a dollop of chutney.

Chocolate and Chestnuts

2006-02-19T13:37:00.000Z

Based on a French recipe, this dense chocolately tart makes a great pudding.

Butter a small cake tin, preferably one with a removable base. Take a 400g tin of purée chestnuts, and warm them gently over a bain-marie. They will be very stiff at room temperature and doing this makes them a bit more pliable. Once they're warm, put them in a bowl and set aside. Now take a 100g bar of 70% dark chocolate and melt in the bain-marie, with 50g of butter and 1-2 teaspoons of natural honey. As the chocolate and butter begin to melt, mix it all together until you have a smooth paste. Now add the paste to the chestnuts, mix again, and pour into the tin.

Leave the tin in the fridge for a minimum of four hours after which it should be a dense fudge-like consistency. Don't be too greedy though - it's very rich!

Lamb chops with leeks

2006-01-11T22:17:00.000Z

We normally just fry lamb chops but sometimes it's nice to have a change and introduce some additional flavour. This recipe produces a tender chop with a good sauce that isn't too overpowering.

Chop some leeks and bacon and fry on a low to medium heat in some olive oil for a few minutes. Add your chops and fry for another minute and then add some garlic and a large chopped tomato. Leave to settle for a moment and then add a cup of good quality chicken or lamb stock, bring it to the boil, cover, and then reduce the heat.

When the chops have braised for about 20 minutes in the juices, remove them from the pan and keep warm. Reduce the sauce until it's thick and syrupy, then season with a little salt and pepper. Serve the chops with some of the sauce poured on them, accompanied by some buttered green vegetables.

Pork Crackling

2006-01-02T13:48:00.000Z

Don't bother with old wives tales like scoring or pouring boiling water over the fat. All you need to do is make sure that you have a good piece of fatty rind on your joint and then rub the rind with sea salt (at least 2-3 tablespoons). I usually pour the salt in a tray then press the pork into the salt that's in the tray so that the salt sticks to the rind properly. Cook the pork in a moderate oven and you'll have perfect crackling.

Steak with Brandy Butter

2005-12-14T21:59:00.000Z

I think there's few things better than a good steak. I usually cook rib-eye, but sirloin and rump from a good source can be nice too, especially cooked rare.

The first thing to do is make sure you have a hot plate. If you don't, the steak will be cold by the time you've finished eating it. Heat some beef tallow in a frying pan until it's quite hot. Place the steak in the pan and leave for 1 minute. Turn the steak over, and leave for another minute. After that, flip one final time just to re-heat the other side and then place on your hot plate, and ideally keep in a warm place.

Splash a good slug of brandy in the pan (it may flame!) and burn off the alcohol. Add a good knob of butter, season, and pour over the steak.

I prefer to sprinkle chunks of sea salt over the steak afterwards, rather than seasoning during cooking. It goes without saying that this will produce a rare steak - anything else is a waste of good meat.

Vegetables in goose or duck fat

2005-12-12T21:21:00.000Z

More a generic recipe depending on what you've got in.. We tend to have some duck fat or goose fat on the go as we'll roast a bird like this maybe once a month, and you get enough fat to keep you in veg in the meantime. Cooking vegetables in a pan like this mimics roast vegetables, but I actually prefer this method as they're less dry and taste a bit fresher.

Heat a couple of tablespoons of duck or goose fat in a frying pan and add some chunky vegetables, perhaps a selection from: carrots, onions, corgettes, leeks, parsnips, potatoes, and optionally some garlic and a bit of bacon or pork fat. Keep on a medium heat, stir, and put the lid on the pan and leave for five minutes. Stir again, and put the lid back on and leave for another five minutes. Don't be tempted to stir too often as you want some bits of the vegetables to be almost burnt in texture. Depending on the size of your vegetables you may need another block or two of five minutes. Parsnips cook quickly, but potatoes and carrots will take longer. Once you're happy with them, take off the heat and season with plenty of salt and pepper and serve.

Chicken a la Creme

2005-12-04T19:59:00.000Z

I think with chicken it's particularly important that you get hold of a good specimen. I actually like the look of chickens which are quite boney without massive plump breasts, as this indicates to me that it's led an active life and will therefore have tastier meat.

Season the chicken and dab with butter all over. Preheat the oven on a medium heat and roast the chicken. It's very hard to prescribe an exact roasting time as there are so many variables, but a medium-sized chicken usually takes about an hour for me.

Take the chicken out of the oven and put aside in a warm place to rest. You should have a lot of juices in the roasting tin. Separate the yolks of two eggs, season them, add a squeeze of lemon juice and set aside. Remove the chicken legs and put them on hot plates. I normally eat the legs first as I think they're the best bit and I'll eat the breast in a salad the next day.

Your juices should have cooled down enough now, so pour the eggs into them and whisk so that the eggs don't scramble. A creamy emulsified sauce will develop. As soon as it looks good (usually about 20seconds of whisking) pour it straight over the legs and eat. If you want any vegetables, something like courgettes are good because they'll soak up the sauce.

Piperade

2005-11-23T19:37:00.000Z

There are many versions of this famous Basque egg dish, from spartan versions like Elizabeth David's, to more intricate versions like Keith Floyd's. I find the following recipe works well for me and makes a great lunch.

Serves 2

1 medium onion, sliced
1 small red (bell) pepper or half a medium one, sliced into thin strips *
3 tomatoes, chopped *(2)
Plenty of pork fat / lard / dripping, at least 3 tablespoons
4 eggs
1 small red chilli chopped and deseeded
A tablespoon of green herb, e.g. marjoram, parsley, or chives. (optional)

Crack your eggs into a jug and season generously with salt and pepper (do not mix them!). Heat the fat in the frying pan to a medium heat and add the sliced onion. Swizzle around in the fat for a few minutes, and then reduce the heat to low and put a lid on the frying pan. The object of this first phase is to try and make a pulp, so don't cook the onions too quickly otherwise they'll go brown and start to burn. After five minutes, take the lid off, stir, and add the pepper and chilli. Put the lid back on and leave for a minimum of twenty minutes, stirring every five minutes and double-checking that the heat isn't too high and that the peppers and onions aren't burning. After twenty minutes, they should be soft and the mixture should start to turn more pulpy - but don't be afraid to leave for longer if there's still some crunchiness. Add the tomatoes, put the lid back on and leave for a further five minutes.

You should now have a nice looking pulp in the pan. To serve the piperade fresh, you need to be prepared now. I suggest making sure you have two bowls that are hot and that you can supervise the eggs whilst they cook without any distractions.

Make sure your heat is still low. Pour the eggs in the pan that has the pepper mixture in, add the green herbs if using, and start stirring them around the piperade, making sure you break the yolks as for scrambled eggs. Don't let any of the egg stick to the pan. You need to keep stirring constantly to make sure this doesn't happen. The consistency you're looking for is thick and runny - almost porridgey but not quite - so it's very important that you don't overcook the eggs and that you don't let them stick. This usually takes around a minute to a minute and a half. As soon as you have a good texture remove the pan from the heat and pour them into two heated bowls and serve.

* - Real pros would have the peppers peeled - I personally can't be bothered, this is meant to be a relatively painless dish. I guess if you can source good "ready-peeled" peppers then those might make a good substitute

*(2) - I think using three tablespoons of tinned organic chopped tomatoes is fine here too, especially given the poor quality of tomatoes available in the UK. As above, I probably wouldn't bother skinning them unless I particularly wanted to impress someone, I just don't have the time when it's a quick lunch

Basic Omelette

2005-11-02T19:58:00.000Z

A good omelette starts with good eggs, so I suggest good quality fresh, free-range eggs. Break three or four into a jug depending on how hungry you are and season with a lot of salt and pepper. Give them a quick shake around the jug with a fork, but maybe just two or three delicate movements - you should avoid creating a homogenous solution like scrambled eggs.

Gently heat some butter in a small frying pan. Once the butter has started to foam, add the eggs and as soon as the eggs hit the pan start stirring with a wooden spoon, so the eggs don't stick. If you don't do this the omlette develops a skin which can be unpleasant. Keep stirring and moving it around the pan, trying to keep the egg omelette-shaped. When you think it's almost cooked, that's the time to take it off the heat. The omelette should have some slight runniness to it but be solid enough to come out of the pan in one piece. By the time you get it to your plate, it will be cooked to perfection.

Either serve the omlette flat or if you prefer fold it in half.

Lamb Shanks

2005-10-23T21:26:00.000+01:00

These are quite nice to cook in advance and leave for a day or two in the fridge before reheating again. I'll be deliberately vague about quantities as it's the kind of thing you should just throw together.

In a saucepan fry off some chopped onions in some lard or bacon fat until they're soft but not coloured too much and then set aside. Take a couple of lamb shanks and brown in the same pan with some additional fat, removing them once they're brown. You should now have a nice layer of browning on the bottom of the pan from the meat and the onions. Splash in a cupful of red wine and give it a good stir so that you scrape the browning off - this forms the basis of your sauce. Add the shanks back into the pan with the onions and top up with some more wine. If you like you can add a few more aromatics (I tend to stick to a carrot and possibly a bay leaf) and then leave covered on a slow simmer for between two and three hours until the lamb is tender.

Remove the shanks, strain the sauce through some muslin and then reduce it to the desired consistency, seasoning right at the end. Serve the shanks with the sauce poured over, with perhaps a green vegetable such as broccoli or spinach.

Fried Eggs

2005-10-16T22:11:00.000+01:00

The first thing to do is obtain a good solid frying pan. Preferably heavy-bottomed cast iron, but at the very least non-stick. Pop the frying pan on a medium heat and add a good lump of butter and let it melt. It's important that the butter doesn't burn, so don't have the heat too high. Once the butter has reached a foaming stage, crack your egg (or eggs!) into the pan. Once the egg starts to set, use a spoon to splash a bit of the melted butter over the yolk to help cook it. After about two minutes your egg will be cooked. Season with salt and pepper and serve with your choice of accompaniment.

The Perfect Pork Chop

2005-10-03T21:35:00.000+01:00

The perfect pork chop should come from an organic animal, and ideally be fresh rather than frozen for maximum flavour. Before you cook the chop make sure it is thoroughly seasoned, taking particular care that the rind has a good layer of salt pressed into it.

Heat some pork dripping in a pan to a high (but not quite smoking) temperature, and fry the rind of the chop first for at least three minutes. You may be splashed by hot fat at this point suspending the chop in the pan but it's a small price to pay for a good chop. After that fry for a couple of minutes a side. Depending on the thickness of the chop, that in itself might be enough, however a thick chop may well need as much as five minutes a side in total. The right chop will be quite forigiving if you overcook it slightly, so no need to be too cautious.

If you've used good pork dripping, add the tiniest splash of water, white wine, or cider to the pan juices, deglaze, and serve poured over the chop.

Sticky Carrots

2005-10-02T19:10:00.000+01:00

For those watching the carbs, this one is a little bit naughty because of the honey (and possibly the carrots, too!). However, I always struggle to come up with nice vegetables that are quick and easy without the blandness of boiling, so here you go:

Ingredients

Carrots, as many as you fancy
Butter, enough to cook the carrots in - probably 10g/0.5oz per carrot is a good guide
0.5tsp of mustard powder
1tsp of honey
Salt + Pepper

Method

Peel the carrots and cut into chunky pieces. If the occason merits it, how about some julienne strips?
Melt the butter in a saucepan, reduce to a low-to-medium heat and add the carrots.
Put a lid on and check them once every five minutes until they're cooked how you like them. If the pieces are small, five minutes is plenty; if they are large then nearer fifteen may be better. If they start to dry out add more butter. There's no shame in having some butter left over, as it makes a nice little sauce.
Finally, add the honey and mustard to the carrots, season, then give them a quick stir and serve.

Chocolate Mousse

2005-10-01T22:46:00.000+01:00

Everyone's favourite. This one is made with no added sugar and has a superb palette-cleansing quality - great to finish a rich meal with.

Ingredients (per person):

25g/1oz of Green & Blacks Maya Gold (or some other high quality 70% chocolate)
1 medium egg
Splash of brandy or whatever your tipple is
Whipped cream (optional)

Method

Separate the egg yolk from the white, and beat the white until you have "stiff peaks"
Keep the yolks in a separate bowl
Melt the chocolate in a basin over a pan of boiling water until it melts
When the chocolate has melted, add the yolks, taking care to stir so that the yolks don't scramble
Fold the yolk/chocolate mixture gently into the whites, taking care not to lose any air in the mixture
Drizzle in your brandy and/or tipple
Spoon the mousse into small shot-sized containers - espresso cups are ideal for this
Add the whipped cream (if using)
Finally chill for an hour or two in the fridge

Buttered Cabbage

2005-10-01T18:00:00.000+01:00

This works well with either a Savoy or Spring Cabbage and is so much nicer than the usual boiled affair.

Ingredients:

Makes 4

A Savoy or Spring Cabbage
1 small onion, chopped
About 25g/1oz of either ham or bacon cut into small pieces
Butter (salted) - as much as it takes but perhaps 50g/2oz is a good place to start, and have some more to hand if required

Method

Finely shred the cabbage, taking out any thick bits of core. Try and keep some of the outer leaves with the cabbage, as they tend to be tastier.
Add half of the butter to a saucepan and sautée the onion on a medium heat for 3-4 minutes until it starts to go clear. Try not to brown too much.
Add the bacon or ham, and let it sizzle for a minute or two.
Add the remainder of the butter and let it melt.
Once the butter has melted, add the cabbage giving it a good stir. Put the lid on the cabbage and leave for 3 minutes.
The cabbage will start to absorb the butter. If the saucepan's looking dry, add some more butter. Keep checking the cabbage every 3 minutes, give it a quick stir, and add more butter when required.
After about 10 minutes, the cabbage will be cooked. Finish off by seasoning with plenty of salt and pepper.