A Winter Feast

The festive season is the perfect time to experiment with something a little bit special for your guests. All of these recipes are favourites of ours at Farmer, Butcher, Chef but we’ve simplifi ed some of the methods and accompaniments a little to make them more practical for you to cook at home. Many of the elements can be made in advance, so you can relax and enjoy time with your guests. All the dishes include seasonal ingredients and – as we like to showcase in the restaurant – some unusual cuts. And of course, if you like the sound of them but you’d rather we did the cooking, be our guest! We hope to see you at Farmer, Butcher, Chef soon to enjoy our winter menus.

Darron Bunn and Ben Hammett

STARTER

Gin & Tonic Trout

This is one of our most popular starters. It’s aromatic, fresh and the gin gives the bright flavours an extra kick. With a cured dish
like this the quality of the fish is important, so make sure you get yours from a decent fishmonger and check that it’s sustainably
sourced. The best thing about this dish is that most of the work is done before your guests arrive.

Serves 8

2 sides sea trout, trimmed and pin bones removed
1 lemon, zested
2 limes, zested
200g rock salt
50g sugar
½ bunch dill
30g coriander seeds, lightly crushed
30g juniper berries, lightly crushed
10g black peppercorns, lightly crushed
50ml gin
50ml tonic water

1 For the marinade, place the coriander seeds, juniper berries and black peppercorns in a dry, nonstick frying pan. Gently toast the spices for two minutes, moving them around to avoid scorching. Combine the toasted spices with the rest of the ingredients –
except the trout – in a food processor and pulse together to form a loose paste.

2 Place the trout fillets in a deep, flat tray, skin-side down. Evenly spread the marinade over the fillets, ensuring that all the flesh is covered. Cover with a lid or clingfilm and leave in the fridge for 24 hours.

3 Remove the fillets from the marinade, wash in cold water. Pat dry with a clean towel. Remove the skin and dice into 1–2cm
cubes (alternatively, slice the fi llets like smoked salmon if you prefer).

4 We like to serve this with a dill mayonnaise, crunchy croutons, pickled fennel and a garnish of nasturtium leaves (if in season).

MAIN

Chestnut crusted tricep of Sussex beef, wild mushrooms & red wine

There’s nothing quite like the hearty combination of beef, mushrooms and red wine to banish the winter chill. This is a rich, satisfying main course that’s packed with flavour and perfectly complemented by mashed potato, sprouts and all-important roasted chestnuts, which give it an added festive feel. If you can’t get tricep then shin will work too.

Serves 6

BEEF

2 triceps, outer sinew removed (ask your butcher to do this)
200g Maldon sea salt
50g light brown sugar
20g mustard powder
20g smoked paprika
20g ground black pepper
3 onions, roughly chopped
10 cloves garlic, lightly crushed
1 bottle red wine (Rioja or similar)
500ml brown stock
½ bunch thyme
80ml vegetable oil for frying

1 Mix the salt, sugar, mustard powder, paprika and pepper together to form a rub. Rub this all over the trimmed triceps and leave to marinate for 1 hour.

2 Sear the beef in a hot frying pan to get a deep brown colour all over. While it’s searing, gently fry the onions and garlic for 1–2 minutes in a casserole pan to soften until they are light brown in colour. Add the red wine and bring to the boil, then add the brown stock. Bring back to the boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.

3 Once simmered, add the seared beef. The top third or so of the beef should be clear of the liquid. Cook in the oven, uncovered, at 150°C for 4–5 hours, turning every 30 minutes so the top of the beef goes back into the liquid. Once the beef is very tender, remove from the oven and leave to sit for 30–40 minutes.

4 Carefully remove the beef from the liquid and mould the 2 triceps into neat cylinder shapes in clingfi lm. Place these cylinders in
the fridge to set overnight.

5 Pass the cooking liquid from the casserole dish through a fi ne strainer and keep two thirds of this to use as a sauce. Pour the other third into a saucepan, bring to the boil and gently simmer until it is reduced to a syrupy consistency. Allow to cool and then put the reduced sauce in the fridge until required.

6 When needed, remove the clingfilm from the beef, cut the beef into portions, brush liberally with the reduced sauce, cook in the oven at 180°C for 10–12 minutes, re-brushing with reduced sauce every 5 minutes. While it’s cooking, gently heat the reserved sauce from the braise in a saucepan.

7 Once the beef is hot and glazed, coat it liberally with the chestnut crumb and serve with smooth creamy mashed potato, fried wild mushrooms, roasted chopped chestnuts and the reserved sauce.

CHESTNUT CRUMB

A chestnut crumb adds a pleasing crunch and texture to the beef.

200g stale brioche or sourdough bread
100g roasted chopped chestnuts
30g butter, melted
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
1 teaspoon salt

1 Tear the bread into large chunks and place onto a flat baking tray. Bake in a low oven at 150°C until very dry and brittle, remove from the oven and allow to cool.

2 When it’s cool, place the dried bread in a food processor along with the onion powder, mustard powder, thyme, salt and pepper. Blend to a rough crumb.

3 Tip into a bowl, mix in the butter, then mix in the chestnuts and parsley. It’s now ready to be coated onto the beef.

CRISPY SPROUTS

A dish of crispy sprouts for the centre of the table will make a nice accompaniment to the beef. These are boosted with crispy bacon to make them especially tasty.

500g sprouts
8 rashers smoked streaky bacon (baked until crispy, cooled and finely chopped)
200g corn flour
200ml vegetable oil for frying (amount is approximate, depending on pan size)

1 With a sharp knife, cut a cross in the bottom of your sprouts. Drop into boiling salted water and allow them to cook through.

2 Drain the sprouts well, place them in a mixing bowl, add a small amount (about 50ml) of oil and mix through. Sieve in the corn flour and mix through the sprouts until they’re evenly coated.

3 Deep fry the sprouts until golden brown, drain and sprinkle with the bacon or chopped roasted chestnuts.

PUDDING

Cranberry & clementine baked Alaska

Baked Alaska is one of those dinner party showstoppers that always goes down a treat with guests – and it’s one of the Duke of Richmond’s favourite puddings. You can make it with a variety of diff erent fruit combinations – we’ve opted for clementines, which add a nice freshness, while the tartness of the cranberries prevents this wonderfully indulgent dessert from being overly sweet. There are four stages to making an Alaska: the parfait, sponge and meringue are prepared individually, then assembled and baked. It’s slightly more complex thansome desserts but well worth the effort.

Serves 6

CLEMENTINE AND CRANBERRY PARFAIT

300ml cream
2 egg whites
200g caster sugar
400g clementine purée (available either frozen or fresh from good delis or online)
50g dried cranberries

1 Semi-whip the cream to soft peaks.

2 In a diff erent bowl, whip the whites with the sugar to a stiff peaked meringue, then fold the cream and meringues together gently with a spatula.

3 Fold in the clementine purée and the cranberries. Place in a domed mould or round-bottomed bowl and freeze.

GENOISE SPONGE

5 free-range eggs
200g sugar
160g plain flour

1 Whisk the eggs and sugar to a pale and thick consistency that coats the back of a spoon. Slowly sieve the fl our onto the eggs
and gently fold in with a spatula.

2 Once fully incorporated, spread onto a fl at baking tray lined with greaseproof paper and bake at 180°C for 8–10 minutes.

3 Cool on a baking tray.

ITALIAN MERINGUE

250g caster sugar
80g water
100g egg whites

1 Place the sugar and water into a pan and boil to 120°C. While sugar is boiling, start to whisk the whites to soft peaks.

2 Once the sugar has reached the required temperature gradually add the boiled sugar to the egg whites and continue to whisk until
the mixture forms very stiff peaks.

TO FINISH

1 Cut the sponge to the same size as the bowl that you have put the parfait in.

2 Plunge the frozen parfait bowl into warm water for a few seconds to release it from its mould.

3 Place the parfait onto the sponge disc. Spread with the meringue and form nice peaks with a palette knife.

4 Bake in the oven at 220°C for 5 minutes, remove and colour the meringue further using a blow torch. Serve immediately.

This article was taken from the Winter 2019/2020 edition of the Goodwood Magazine.