Food

Christmas Buffet

BUFFET FOOD IS PERFECT IF YOU’RE HAVING PEOPLE OVER AND YOU DON’T WANT TO BE CHAINED TO THE KITCHEN WHILE YOUR GUESTS ARE HERE. YOU CAN ALSO PREPARE THESE DISHES IN ADVANCE

By Belinda Prince

Belinda, the ‘Accidental Chatelaine’ loves to cook at any opportunity and is delighted to be able to share that love with you

www. chateaumareuil.com

Ingredients

(Serves 8, simply double for a crowd) ½ medium red cabbage 3 medium sized beetroots 4 medium carrots 1 red onion, finely sliced 2 tsp salt 2 tsp sugar 2 tbsp red wine vinegar 150ml home-made or good quality mayonnaise 2 tbsp creamed horseradish or Dijon mustard

Method

1. Cut the woody core from the cabbage and shred as finely as possible with a sharp knife. 2. Peel the beetroots and carrots and use a peeler to slice thinly, then shred into strips. 3. Place all the raw vegetables in a large colander, add the salt, sugar and vinegar, toss together well, and leave to drain in the sink for an hour. 4. Meanwhile, make your mayonnaise or use a commercial one and mix in the horseradish or mustard to combine. 5. Press down the vegetables in the colander to squeeze out any excess liquid and tip into a large bowl. 6. Spoon over the mayonnaise, toss together and serve. This creamy coleslaw goes well with so many different buffet food!

Creamy Coleslaw

Blue Cheese & Spinach Puffs

Ingredients (Makes 16 - 20) 100g blue cheese, mashed 75g cream cheese 375g ready rolled puff pastry 300g frozen spinach, thawed 1 egg yolk, beaten 25g walnuts, roughly chopped plus 16-20 for the ‘centre’ decoration (if creating squares) Sesame seeds for garnishing Pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/fan 180ºC/Gas 6 1. Stir together the mashed blue cheese with the cream cheese. 2. Squeeze as much water out of the spinach as possible and blend with the cheese mixture 3. Lay out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and cut the pastry into 7cm squares (or a 7cm round cutter and cut out circles if you prefer them to be sealed parcels). Re-roll any leftover pastry and cut out more shapes. 4. Brush a little egg yolk around the edge of each shape. Then put a heaped teaspoon of the cheese/spinach mix in the centre of the square. Fold the pastry over the filling, pressing the corners together to meet in the centre and then place a half walnut over the join in the pastry. If you’re using circles and making enclosed puffs, add the filling to one half, and make sure you press out any air to ensure the parcels are well sealed. 5. Place on a large non-stick baking sheet, baste with the remaining egg and sprinkle over the roughly chopped walnuts and sesame. Leave to rest in the fridge for at least 15 minutes. These can be frozen at this stage for up to 1 month). 6. Bake for 12-15 minutes until puffed up and golden.

Ingredients (Serves 8) 300g boneless chicken breast, chopped 2 garlic cloves, crushed 2 sprigs thyme 2 tbsp sage, chopped 2 tbsp brandy 250g rindless streaky bacon (poitrine fumée) 1kg sausagemeat (chair) Parsley 100g shelled pistachios 100g dried cranberries Salt & pepper

Method

1. Put the chicken, garlic, 1 thyme sprig, and the brandy in a bowl and mix together, cover and leave to marinate overnight in the fridge. 2. Heat the oven to 180ºC/fan 160º/Gas 4. Butter or oil a 1kg loaf tin or terrine mould, put the remaining sprig of thyme in the bottom, and line it with overlapping strips of bacon, leaving any extra hanging over the edges. 3. Add the sausagemeat to the bowl with the marinated chicken and mix well. Stir through the sage, parsley, pistachios and dried cranberries, and season well. Take a small amount and fry to check the seasoning, adding more if required. 4. Pack the terrine with the mixture, pressing down well, flatten and stretch over the bacon. Cover with buttered/oiled foil and wrap the whole terrine in a double layer of cling film. 5. Place the terrine in a roasting tin, half-filled with boiling water, and cook for 1 hour. Cool and chill overnight – you can press down the terrine as it cools in the fridge using a board and a couple of tins to weigh it down which will produce a firmer texture. 6. Release the terrine by dipping briefly in hot water and turn out onto a serving platter. If there is any jelly around it, you can either scrape it off or leave it according to taste. Serve with some good bread or toast and cornichons.

Chicken Cranberry and Pistachio Terrine

Salmon Wellington with Ginger and Raisins

Ingredients (Serves 8) 100g butter , softened 40g blanched almonds, chopped 40g currants 4 balls stem ginger in syrup, very finely chopped grating of nutmeg 500g block puff pastry 1½ tbsp semolina 2 salmon side portions (about 500g each) cut from the middle, boneless and skin removed ½ lemon , juiced 1 egg yolk 2 tbsp milk

For the sauce

15g butter 1 shallot, very finely chopped 1½ tsp plain flour , plus extra for dusting 350ml double cream 1½ tsp Dijon mustard

Method

1. Mash the butter, almonds, currants, ginger and nutmeg together with a fork. Divide the pastry in two, making one piece slightly larger – this will be the top. 2. Roll out the smaller piece of pastry, for the base, on a lightly floured surface until it is large enough to fit the fish with a 2.5cm border all the way around it. Put this onto baking parchment or a non-stick metal baking sheet. Sprinkle the semolina over the pastry base. 3. Place one piece of the salmon on the pastry. Sprinkle over some lemon juice, season and spread the butter mixture over the top of it. Place the other half of the salmon, with the side that had the skin on it facing upwards, on top of the butter. Brush any excess semolina off the edges of the pastry. Mix the egg yolk and milk together and use to brush the pastry around the salmon. Roll out the rest of the pastry to fit the top and, once you’ve laid it over, pinch the pastry edges together to seal. Use the excess pastry to make shapes to decorate the top. Chill for 30 mins and heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. 4. Brush the salmon parcel with more egg wash and put in the oven for 40 mins. Now make the sauce. Melt the butter in a small pan and fry the shallot until it softens. Add the flour and stir for 1 min. Take the pan off the heat and gradually pour in the cream. Put it back on the heat and gently bring to the boil. Turn the heat down, add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for a couple of minutes until the flavours of the herbs come through. Check for seasoning. 5. Leave the salmon to cool for about 10 mins, then move it onto a warm serving platter and serve with the sauce.

Ingredients (Serves 8) 2 tbsp icing sugar 300g frozen raspberries 2ltr good quality vanilla ice cream, softened 30g meringues, coarsely chopped 120g nougat, coarsely chopped 40g dry-roasted almonds, coarsely chopped 4 buttery crunchy biscuits of your choice, finely chopped

Method

1. Place the icing sugar and half the raspberries in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook gently, stirring, for 4 mins or so until the raspberries collapse. Strain through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl. Discard the solids and set aside to cool. 2. Grease a 2ltr pudding basin and line with cling film, allowing the sides to overhang. Combine the ice cream, meringue, nougat, almond, biscuits, and remaining raspberries in a large bowl. Add half the icing sugar mixture and gently fold to marble. Spoon into the prepared basin and cover with the overhanging cling film. Place in the freezer for 6 hours or overnight to freeze. 3. Turn the ice cream bombe onto a serving plate. Drizzle with the remaining icing sugar mixture. Serve immediately. 4. You can decorate with extra raspberries, blackberries and coulis, and if you don’t have a pudding basin, freeze the mixture in a lined loaf tin, then scoop or cut into slices to serve.

Christmas Ice Cream Bombe

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