Nourish by Spinneys: November/December 2022 by spinneysuae

Retro recipes full of cheer

EMMA BUNTON On her Kit & Kin range

Spectacular New Year’s Eve snacks and sweets Counting down

MAKING SPIRITS bright

Turkey, roast potatoes, gravy, cheese, fruit cake, trifle, mince pies – the list of Christmas specialities is delicious. You’ll find recipes for all these classics, plus many new festive foodie treats in this latest edition of Nourish For the ultimate Kitschmas see pages 82-93 – we had a lot of fun creating a sensational retro spread. Kids will love our Santa-inspired feature starting on page 111. And to ring in the new year, don’t miss our countdown snack and sweet platters to share on pages 101-109.

We’re all about making spirits bright and celebrating holiday cheer!

Whether you’re travelling or staying in the UAE – we wish you all the best of the season from Spinneys.

Until next year,

CEO SUNIL KUMAR

GENERAL MANAGER OF COMMERCIAL TOM HARVEY

GENERAL MANAGER OF MARKETING WARWICK GIRD

CREATIVE AND CONTENT DIRECTOR TIFFANY ESLICK tiffany.e@ﬁnefarefood.com

DEPUTY CONTENT EDITOR KAREN D’SOUZA

DESIGNERS

MICHELLE CLEMENTS, FRANCIS GACER & GIHANE YOUSSEF

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER ANKIET GULABANI

DIGITAL EDITOR DEVINA DIVECHA

DIGITAL CONTENT CREATOR REEMA RAHMAN

DIGITAL CONTENT WRITER LYNN SOUBRA

CONTENT ASSISTANT DIANNA ACIBAR

CONTRIBUTORS

ZAHRA ABDALLA,KATELYN ALLEGRA, HELEN FARMER, AASIYA JAGADEESH, LINDSAY TRIVERS & CASSANDRA UPTON THIS MAGAZINE IS PRODUCED BY

PUBLISHED ON BEHALF OF SPINNEYS

Spinneys Dubai LLC and the publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for error or omissions contained in this publication, howsoever caused. Readers are advised to seek specialist advice before acting on information contained in this publication, which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the readers’ particular circumstances. No part of this publication or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form without written permission.

DUBAI LLC BY

Regulars

THE CUT

Carlos Frunze, executive chef of Teible, loves fermentation for its ability to transform flavours and to ensure zero wastage in his kitchen. We discover why this Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant has a menu that truly considers the environment

18 USE IT UP

Don’t discard leftover Christmas cake or extra fruit, spices and herbs you may have lying around. Use them to make rusks, flavoured botanicals and decorations to hang on your tree

20 READ, WATCH, LISTEN Cookbook, podcast and streaming recommendations

IN SEASON

24 Make the most of our fresh Brussels sprouts, potatoes, cherries, clementines and grapes

MEET THE PRODUCERS

32 WHAT'S BLOSSOMING?

We work with several flower producers in Kenya to bring you an assortment of quality blooms. Who are some of our primary? And what makes the country’s growing conditions perfect? Find out more…

36 TASTE THE OCEAN

We work closely with our supply partner Mowi Ireland to bring premium-quality, organic salmon to our stores in the UAE. We chat with Catherine McManus, operations director, to find out more about this world-class seafood company

WEEKNIGHT WONDERS

40 Whip up nutritious, family-friendly and easy dinners for four in under 30 minutes

Recipe features

‘TIS THE SEASON

48 MAKING A LIST, CHECKING IT TWICE Prepare a range of essentials and delicacies in advance this Christmas

54 THE ULTIMATE CHRISTMAS CAKE GUIDE

From a traditional recipe to indulgent Black Forest and Middle-Eastern inspired twists, these rich cakes are perfect for the festive season

60 GOOD MORNING

Whip up these indulgent Christmas breakfasts to start the big day off just right

64 FINER TASTES

European butters, especially French varieties, are delicious because they’re made from the finest-quality cream. Elevate the flavour of festive appetisers and mains with this silky-smooth, rich ingredient

A TOUCH OF GREEN

Impart flavour and aroma to your festive dishes with our fresh sage, thyme, mint, rosemary and parsley

BABY’S CHOICE

Kit & Kin is committed to making kinder products, not just for babies’ skin but also the planet

120 AUSSIE EATS

Heading to Sydney this festive season?

Members of our content team, who travel to eat, share their tips on the hottest chefs and tables there right now

124 CHEESE THE DAY

Digital content creator Reema Rahman visits France’s Franche-Comté and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions for the cheesiest trip of her life

126 MAGNIFICENT MARBELLA

75 GO NUTS

Nuts are a standard snack at Christmas. How about spicing things up by making a vegan nut roast and adding them to sweet treats?

78 SUGAR AND SPICE

Think beyond cookie cut outs. Use gingerbread to make a variety of savoury and sweet dishes

82 12 DAYS OF KITSCHMAS

Our spin on the popular Christmas carol will have you indulging in some nostalgic dishes with our retro-themed festive menu

94 NAUGHTY AND NICE

It’s the perfect time of year to indulge in a tower of choux puffs topped with ganache, a mince pie tart with lashings of cream and custard, and our decadent version of bread and butter pudding

98 CELEBRATING THE SOLSTICE

Zahra Abdalla celebrates Shab-e Yalda, the Iranian winter solstice festival, every year with family and friends. The longest night of the year is a time for singing, dancing, reading poetry and eating foods that are symbolic of abundance. Here she shares a recipe for a traditional pomegranate soup as well her twist on a baklava cake

101 HELLO 2023

Countdown to the new year with an array of snacks and desserts

LITTLE COOKS

Santa and his reindeers are coming to town! The kids will love these treats!

Seventy-two years after its debut in Spain, premium family holiday provider Club Med returned to the country with the launch of Andalusian-inspired Club Med Magna Marbella: a sanctuary for families, epicureans and sports buffs

129 5 WAYS TO AN ECO-FRIENDLY FESTIVE SEASON

Whether you’re looking at cost of living or have the planet as a priority, here are Helen Farmer’s suggestions to prevent wastage during Christmas

PLANT-BASED FOR YOUR EVERY COFFEE CRAVING

The cut

Food, restaurant and product news that we think is worthy of being on the list!

Dried citrus slices

Word of mouth

New products, the latest trends and foodie news

Family fun

Our all-new SpinneysFOOD Gingerbread House makes a lovely gift for your little ones as well as a fun family activity. The kit contains six gingerbread biscuits, icing, rock candy and Smarties and includes step-by-step building instructions. Also keep an eye out for our brand new SpinneysFOOD Christmas Tin Shortbread Biscuits. Find them in stores now.

MADE FOR THE MATCH

GAME ON

Get set for the FIFA World Cup in November with our giant tubes of Pringoooals Football Collection – three original flavours, one hot & spicy and one sour cream & onion. Perfect for a big game night at home with friends, these chips are irresistible on their own, but also taste great with SpinneysFOOD Tzatziki and Guacamole.

MADE WITH love

Blogger, cookbook author and restaurateur Zahra Abdalla has been working tirelessly to expand her line of frozen food, which first launched in Spinneys in May this year. She recently unveiled six new products out of which five are plant-based snacks such as pumpkin kibbeh, beetroot falafel, and spinach and cheese puff bites. These wholesome, bite-sized nibbles are handcrafted and contain no additives or preservatives. What’s more? The packaging is biodegradable.

ULTIMATE INDULGENCE

Intense mint cream encased in rich dark chocolate – it doesn’t get any better than After Eight Fine Sticks. These fine chocolates are also free of artificial colours, flavours and preservatives.

SMOOTH OPERATOR

Top brownies or a skillet cookie with Denada Sugar Free 99.3% Mint Chip Ice Cream or enjoy a tub on its own. Made with natural, unrefined spearmint, dark chocolate chips and no added sugar, you can eat this dessert without any guilty feelings.

FAMILY DELIGHT

Another minty treat the whole family can enjoy together. Quality Street Matchmakers Cool Mint is filled with crunchy mint pieces coated with milk chocolate.

FESTIVE FAVOURITE

7 of a kind

Mint is synonymous with the festive season, so we’ve shared a few of our favourite items in store

REFRESH AND REVIVE

There’s nothing better than settling down on a sofa with a warm cup of tea and a cosy blanket. Summerdown Peppermint Tea is made with the finest English peppermint rolled in barrel-aged peppermint oil for a clean, sharp flavour.

‘TIS THE SEASON

Hang them on trees or pop them into stockings – these classic Candy Canes are part and parcel of the holiday season for adults and kids alike.

DOUBLE TROUBLE

Fans of mint chocolate will love Maltesers Mint Reindeer with peppermint-flavoured malt filling and crunchy honeycomb bits.

A TOUCH OF LUXURY

Charbonnel et Walker Peppermint

Cookie Truffles are an excellent gift option for the holidays. The white chocolate centre with peppermint oil is perfectly balanced by the dark chocolate and cookie coating.

DRINK UP

Use aromatics to add fl avour to festive beverages

i vers

Tips from The Tasting Class

The festive season is meant for entertaining at home. Keep your hosting duties easy by making large volumes of any festive drink that you can serve to large groups. Mulled beverages are an evergreen favourite of the holidays, so I’ve created a spiced apple cider – double or triple the recipe to make larger batches. Traditionally this drink is served warm, but if you are celebrating in Dubai, you may prefer to chill it, then serve over ice. Bear in mind that adding warm cider to ice will water down the flavour, so chilling it is crucial. Lastly, add the ginger beer just before serving to preserve the bubbles.

3 to try

BELVOIR FARM MULLED WINTER PUNCH

A heartwarming, non-alcoholic beverage made with real fruit juices and cinnamon, clove and nutmeg.

BELVOIR FARM SPICED GINGER PUNCH

Real root ginger, fruit juices and spices make this a great winter warmer.

BELVOIR FARM MULLED WINTER CORDIAL

Notes of cinnamon and nutmeg make this cranberry and orange cordial an ideal festive drink. For more information, visit belvoirfarm.co.uk

SPICED APPLE CIDER

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves: 5

3 SpinneysFOOD Cinnamon Sticks

4 star anise

750ml Martinelli’s Gold Medal Apple Juice

250ml SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

250ml Crossip Dandy Smoke

250ml Belvoir Farm Ginger Beer

To serve

Dried orange peel

Star anise

SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

1 Place the cinnamon sticks, star anise, apple juice and water in a saucepan over a low heat. 2 Heat it for 30 minutes being careful not to let it boil otherwise the flavour will change. 3 Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add the Crossip Dandy Smoke and Belvoir Farm Ginger Beer and stir to combine. 4 Serve warm with dried orange wheels, star anise and a sprig of rosemary.

TOP TIP!

Make the dried orange wheels in advance by drying out 3mm-thick orange slices at a low temperature in an oven or air fryer until fully dehydrated.

Spiced apple cider

VEGAN

GIVES YOU WIIINGS.

ALSO WITH THE TASTE OF CACTUS FRUIT. LIMITED

OPEN SEASON

The end of the year means one thing: there’s a slew of restaurant openings coming your way. We round up some of the cool new spots we’re looking forward to visiting

The UAE is undoubtedly a global dining destination worth visiting, and for residents, it’s a playground of quality food and innovative chefs all vying for our attention. The last two months of 2022 look set to produce a bumper crop of must-visit food and beverage outlets – with each opening more exciting than the next.

The St. Regis Downtown Dubai will soon house Hayal, a Turkish concept with a menu that is being created by Infini Concepts’ head of culinary Roberto Segura – also behind TABU. The restaurant will have an open kitchen and Turkey’s most well-known dishes presented in a modern way.

The Marriott Resort Palm Jumeirah, Dubai is up for a few restaurants going live over the next few months. Notably among these is Bangkok institution Above Eleven. Created by Soho Hospitality, the rooftap bar concept will offer up a delicious Japanese-Peruvian menu as well as a garden maze. Other restaurants in the hotel will include Miami-inspired Coco Fizz, an Italian trattoria, Cucina and a Korean BBQ concept Smoki Moto

After exiting Marina Social at the InterContinental Dubai Marina, Jason Atherton will be opening three outlets in Grosvenor House – although the timeline is yet to be confirmed. The first will be City Social Dubai, followed by Japanese-inspired Seven Tales, followed by an as yet unnamed fine dining restaurant with a tasting menu.

The inimitable Reif Othman is working on the launch of his licensed Korean restaurant, Hoe Lee Kow, for the end of the year. The location is still under wraps, but we’re keeping

an eagle eye out for where it will land. This is also not the only restaurant he’s working on: another branch of Reif Japanese Kushiyaki is slated for Dubai Hills, along with the 12-seater TERO by Reif.

Sofitel Dubai The Palm is adding beach destination concept, Laguna Beach Taverna, to its portfolio. Set to open in early November, the chic restaurant will showcase Mediterranean cuisine in a rustic yet elegant setting. The launch follows the successful opening of Laguna Beach Lounge earlier this year, a Mediterranean-inspired boho-chic venue.

We are also loving the number of collaborations taking place in Dubai, and this one – planned for 7 November – is a cracking good one. For one night only, chefs Yunus Emre Aydin from Marea and Solemann Haddad from Moonrise are presenting a special menu where all dishes have been created by both of them. The menu is said to showcase Solemann’s passion for local ingredients and tales of growing up in Dubai mixed with Yunus’ expertly cooked seafood

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Hayal is a Turkish concept opening at The St. Regis Downtown Dubai; Reif Othman has a number of restaurants on the cards; Marea’s Yunus Emre Aydin; Laguna Beach Taverna is launching in November 2022; Solemann Haddad is teaming up with Yunus Emre for one night to showcase their combined culinary wizardry.

and NYC-meets-Levant flavours, all on the same plate.

And while this is planned for early 2023, we’re extremely hyped for the fine dining stalwarts opening shop at The Royal Atlantis Dubai – from Heston Blumenthal, Ariana Bundy, Nobu, José Andrés and Gastón Acurio, among others.

So it’s time to get your foodie explorer hat on because there’s plenty to look forward to.

THE PROS IN OUR PROTEIN

19g of plant-basedprotein

No cholesterol

Made withoutGMOs, soyor gluten

Koshercertified

Halalcertified

100% plant-based

TheBeyond Burgergenerates 90% less greenhouse gas emissions, requires 46%less energy, has 99% less impacton water scarcity and93% lessimpact on land use versus a ¼-lb, standard 80/20 U.S.beefburger 1

1: Check out the peer reviewed Life Cycle Analysis(LCA) we leadwiththe University of Michiganquantifying the environmental difference between the Beyond Burger anda beefburger here: www.beyondmeat.com/about/

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

WHAT IT IS

The Beyond Burger is the world's first burger that looks, cooks, and satisfies like a traditional beef burger but is made entirely from plants, without GMOs, soy or gluten. It is a perfect option for meat lovers who want the delicious, juicy burger experience, with no sacrifice required.

HOWIT’S MADE

We rebuild meat from the ground up using simple plant-based ingredients. Peas provide the protein; beetroot provides the meaty red hue and coconut oil and potato starch offer mouth-watering juiciness and chew.

Through our unique process of braiding together proteins and fats, we're able to recreate the basic architecture, and thus texture, of meat that carnivores know and crave. It's meat that’s made from plants, made for meat lovers.

TheBeyond Burger cooks just like your favorite beef burger — on the grill, in a skillet or on a flat-top, for 3.5 - 4 minutes per side. Check out the Beyond Meat website (beyondmeat.com/recipes) for more inspiration!

Teible manners

Carlos Frunze, executive chef of Teible, loves fermentation for its ability to transform flavours and to ensure zero wastage in his kitchen. We discover why this Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant has a menu that truly considers the environment

This chef, born to Russian and Mexican parents, grew up in Dubai, carried out compulsory military service, broken his spine, had multiple body parts reconstructed, and in the first few months of operating his restaurant, won a spot in Michelin’s Bib Gourmand. Meet Carlos Frunze, executive chef of Teible.

It sounds like an ‘only in Dubai’ story, but perhaps, because it really is.

After more than three years of serving in the military, Carlos wasn’t sure what to do next. His mother said, “Why don’t you become a chef, like your grandfather?” He liked that idea. One Bachelors Degree in Culinary Art & Culinology and a Masters in Science, Nutrition and Culinology later, Carlos went out in the world of hospitality. With experience at Kuala Lumpur’s grand dame, The Majestic Hotel, French Laundry, Per Se and more, Carlos returned to Dubai in 2015 and worked with the likes of Tom&Serg, Surf House Dubai and 3 Fils, before eventually launching Teible.

Teible, developed by Peter Ahn, who is also the founder of ramen hotspot Yui, opened at the end of January 2022 at Jameel Arts Centre. Carlos says, “I met Peter and he told me he wants to focus on local seasonal

food.” The restaurant, offering a fine diningstyle degustation menu, prides itself on its seasonality and sustainability. Carlos confirms that approximately 95 per cent of the menu is sourced from local ingredients.

Being able to source bounty from regional land and sea has led to many discoveries for Carlos and his team as well. “I discovered a lot of fish. We found mahi mahi, barramundi, five different types of snappers, pink mullet and many different types of shellfish. And they all taste amazing.”

It’s not just about seasonality, Carlos asserts, but also about a hyperfocus on one ingredient and what can be done with that. “For example, this season is about seafood. So how can we discover more seafood? What can we do to preserve the flavours?” he says.

“We tried fish garum (fermented fish sauce) with four different fish and one of the best fish ended up being mackerel,” he adds. Carlos worked with Dibba Bay Oysters to make his own oyster sauce, curated kingfish eggs to make his own bottarga and also created mahyawa, a local fish sauce. His creativity can be challenging; he says, “I don’t know where to put this dish (mahyawa).

We experiment with so many things that I don’t know where to place it and how to use it at that time.” His preservation extends to as many ingredients as possible, preserving fruits and creating jams and syrups, and saving the seeds for his farmers to sow.

The executive chef confirms he has a direct relationship with a number of farmers and works with them to figure out what can be grown locally. With his team, he also visits Dubai’s fish market three times a week to see what is available. “This region, this country is so rich with ingredients, we just need to use it,” he adds.

His experiments with fermentation involved creating ‘fake Parmesan cheese’ made from local feta cheese, using shio koji (a grain-based fermentation) made from Egyptian rice, in-house buttermilk and creating a ‘milk’ from fig leaves that almost tastes like coconut.

Using every part of an ingredient is important to not just Carlos, but his team. Ingredients used in the savoury section of the menu often find their way through to desserts; Carlos shares how fennel is used by him as well as his pastry chef Sheerin Ghaffar. She’s also been instrumental in launching the restaurant’s vegetable garden. His meticulous attitude towards zero waste has gotten to a stage where, Carlos says, “In the kitchen, as per our last report, we had three-anda-half per cent of wastage.”

When asked to describe his cuisine style, he calls it ‘renegade’. Carlos says, “I grew up in Dubai. I have a lot of friends, so one day I’d eat Moroccan food. Another day it’d be Palestinian food and the next day I’d try Indian food. Then on some days Japanese food and Korean food. How do you think that influenced my cooking? I mix everything. I want to do cuisine that doesn’t have identity – a renegade.”

His vision is paying off. Within a few months after opening, the restaurant was rated in Gault&Millau and listed in Michelin’s inaugural Bib Gourmand in Dubai. “It’s beautiful, it’s a dream for every chef... Michelin is our Oscars, our Olympics medal, it’s everything.”

What’s next for Teible? Its latest menu is seafood-themed and Carlos reveals a mushroom menu is also forthcoming. The restaurant and kitchen have recently undergone an interior refresh, which includes significant changes made from a sustainable standpoint. About this, he adds, “There’s a lot of things we are changing; these are small. These changes matter. I want to make hospitality a no-wastage place.”

Carlos concludes, “Everything is possible, you just need to make an effort. Don’t be lazy, just do it.”

Carlos will feature on the 8 November episode of the Nourish by Spinneys podcast. Go to page 20 to scan the QR code to subscribe and listen.

Devina

Written

Divecha ; Photography Aasiya Jagadeesh & Supplied

CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP LEFT: Carlos Frunze is the executive chef at Teible; creating the koji corn dish; the restaurant interiors have undergone a refresh.

TABL E TALK

Creating a dish from corn (cue the viral Corn Song), Carlos Frunze says this dish is one of his favourites which is made using corn, labneh (made in-house) with fermented koji, Mexican salsa, local cheese, local green jalapeños and citrus oil. “We also use a feta cheese crumble – or fake Parmesan. It comes with sourdough crackers with nigella seeds.” Carlos also ferments the husks to make corn-based shio koji.

He says the salsa roja is made using 100 per cent of all the ingredients, where the chillis and tomatoes are grilled with stems. “When you buy ingredients for this dish and make this dish you use 100 per cent. You know there is no wastage at all. You just need to then eat it all!”

SCAN FOR RECIPE

Koji corn

Use it up

Don’t discard leftover Christmas cake or extra fruit, spices and herbs you may have lying around. Use them to make rusks, fl avoured botanicals and decorations to hang on the tree

50g almond ﬂakes

60g marzipan

50g mixed peel

Prep time: 30 minutes (plus drying time)

Cook time: 1 hour

Makes: 16-18

150g salted butter

95g SpinneysFOOD Dark Muscovado Sugar

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg

280ml buttermilk

500g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

4½ tsp baking powder

1 tbsp mixed spice

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

1 orange

50g pecan nuts

175g crumbled Christmas cake or Christmas pudding

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Grease and line a 40cm x 30cm baking tin with parchment paper. Set aside. 2 Melt the butter and sugar together in a large saucepan placed over a low heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Once cool, whisk in the egg and buttermilk. Set aside. 3 Sift the flour, baking powder and spices together into a large bowl. 4 Zest the orange. Toast the pecans and almond flakes. Grate the marzipan. 5 Add the zest, toasted nuts, mixed peel, marzipan and

crumbled Christmas cake or Christmas pudding to the flour mixture. Mix until well combined.

6 Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add the buttermilk mixture. Stir until just combined. 7 Transfer the dough to the tin and bake until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre of the loaf comes out clean, approx. 30 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool in the tin. 8 Remove the loaf from the tin. Using a serrated bread knife, slice the loaf into slices measuring approx. 7cm. 9 Arrange the slices on 1 or 2 baking trays and place them in the oven. Keeping the door ajar, set the temperature to 80˚C and leave the slices to dry out, approx. 6 hours or overnight. 10 Store the rusks in an airtight container for up to one month.

CHRISTMAS CAKE RUSKS

Recipes, food styling and photography by

Christmas cake rusks

LEFTOVER CHRISTMAS CAKE VEGGIE

DRIED ORANGE AND ROSEMARY WREATH

Prep time: 20 minutes

Drying time: 4-6 hours

Makes: 1

3 oranges

3 grapefruits

3m ﬂorist wire

4 x 30g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

1m transparent ﬁshing line or gut 1m ribbon of your choice

1 Preheat the oven to 150°C, gas mark 2.

2 Slice the citrus into ½cm thick slices. Place the slices in a single layer on baking sheets topped with wire racks. Place in the oven for 4-6 hours, until dry to the touch, rotating every few hours. Cool completely before storing, or using. 3 Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one month. 4 To make the wreath, make a 30cm hoop using the wire and twist the ends to secure. 5 Make small bunches of the rosemary sprigs. Using the fishing line, attach the rosemary bunches to the hoop, arranging them so that the hoop is fully covered. 6 Attach the dried citrus slices to the wreath by looping a piece of transparent fishing line through the centre of each slice and tying it to the wreath.

7 Tie the ribbon in a bow at the bottom of the wreath then display it.

Flavoured non-alcoholic vodka

FLAVOURED NON-ALCOHOLIC VODKA

Add extra ﬂavour by adding a teaspoon or two of rose water or orange blossom water to infuse in the vodka along with the rest of the ingredients.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Makes: 750ml each

For the vanilla-spiced Stryyk Not V*dka

750ml Stryyk Not V*dka

1 vanilla bean

1 SpinneysFOOD Cinnamon Stick

1 tsp pink peppercorns

6 SpinneysFOOD Cardamom Pods

4 juniper berries

For the herb-citrus infused Stryyk Not V*dka

750ml Stryyk Not V*dka

3 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Thyme

2 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Rosemary

1 orange

1 lemon

VANILLA-SPICED STRYYK NOT V*DKA

1 Decant the non-alcoholic vodka into a bottle of your choice. 2 Slice the vanilla bean in half and scrape out the seeds. Add the bean and seeds to the bottle. 3 Set a small pan over a medium heat. Add the spices to the pan and toast until fragrant, approx. 2 minutes. 4 Add the toasted spices to the bottle and seal. 5 Store for at least one week before gifting.

HERB-CITRUS INFUSED STRYYK NOT V*DKA

1 Decant the non-alcoholic vodka into a bottle of your choice. 2 Place the herbs in the bottle.

3 Peel the rind off the orange and lemon and add to the bottle. 4 Seal and store for at least one week before gifting.

Dried orange and rosemary napkin wreath

VEGAN

FL N

COOKBOOK RECOMMENDATIONS

The best new releases to add to your library wish list

For the movie buff

THE CHRISTMAS MOVIE COOKBOOK by Julia Rutland Bringing the joy of festive flicks into your kitchen, The Christmas Movie Cookbook is packed with 65 recipes inspired by foodie scenes from some your favourite Christmas movies including Buddy the Elf’s “Special” Spaghetti, and the Christmas Pudding from A Christmas Carol. Completewith tips on entertaining and menu ideas for your festive gatherings, it’s the perfect addition to your cookbook collection. (After all, ’tis the season to recreate the Really Rich Hot Chocolate from Polar Express, right?)

For the TikTok scroller THE PASTA QUEEN by Nadia Munno with Katie Parla TikTok superstar and pasta pundit Nadia Caterina Munno AKA

The Pasta Queen is releasing her debut cookbook this November featuring over 100 authentic Italian recipes. Wannabe pasta queens (and kings) will be taken on a tour of Italy through stunning photographs and tales of the country’s rich culinary heritage, along with stories about Nadia’s own life and family. Whether it’s her viral lemon pasta, a classic carbonara, or her famous assassin’s spaghetti, The Pasta Queen’s recipes will charm even the newest of pasta chefs.

For the dessert lover WHAT’S FOR DESSERT by Claire Safﬁtz

New York Times bestselling author Claire Saffitz returns with 100 all-new different answers to that all-important question: What’s for dessert? A love letter to all things sugary and sweet, What’s for Dessert features everything from impressive-yet-easy molten lava cakes to decadent brownies, pies, cookies, puddings and more. No stand mixer? No problem. Straightforward and simple, even the most novice of bakers will be able to work their way through the foolproof recipes with ease thanks to troubleshooting advice and encouragement from Claire.

NOURISH BY SPINNEYS

Say hello (hi, right back at you!) to our first-ever podcast: Nourish by Spinneys. Hosted by Spinneys’ very own creative and content manager

Tiffany Eslick and digital editor Devina Divecha, Nourish by Spinneys brings you engaging conversation, fresh ideas and hopefully the inspiration to help you eat and live well. Throughout the season, Tiff and Devina will be chatting to leading players in the food community, from farmers to foodies, as well as health and well-being experts. Episode one (which is out now) kicks off with a fiery interview with Arab pitmaster Hattem Mattar. Subscribe today and stay tuned for more interesting and entertaining personalities.

Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Anghami.

SCROOGE: A CHRISTMAS CAROL

Landing on Netﬂ ix on 2 December, Scrooge: A Christmas Carol is one of the most anticipated Christmas movies releases of 2022. Charles Dickens’ beloved tale is reborn in this animated, musical adaptation of the deﬁ nitive Christmas story. With his very soul on the line, Scrooge has but one Christmas Eve left to face his past and build a better future. Featuring re-imagined songs from the legendary and two-time Academy Award winning British composer Leslie Bricusse OBE, this is one the whole family will enjoy.

SCAN TO LISTEN

THE PURSUIT OF PERFECTION

t t1 F

Only when their tomatoes are ready to fall off the vine, do our farmers harvest them from their sun-drenched fields around Parma in Italy.

Freshly picked, the tomatoes are carefully transported to the factory where, for close to 120 years, the Mutti family has been crafting a range of the finest tomato products.

3 4 t 5

Every batch is analysed and hand tested for colour, acidity, sugar content and a number of other exacting criteria. Only the best will make the grade.

They’re washed clean and made ready for Mutti’s signature process. Nothing is added — no water, no sugars, no citric acid, just fresh tomatoes and a pinch of salt.

And within 12 hours of being plucked from the vine, our tomatoes are ready for your kitchen - as polpa, passata and paste, all with our unmistakeable just-picked flavour.

In season

Make the most of our fresh cherries, grapes, Brussels sprouts, tomatoes and more

Cherries

MEET THE PRODUCERS

CHERRY STRUDEL

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Serves: 4-6

1 lemon

700g fresh cherries

150g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

250g full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature

60g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

1 large egg yolk

1 tsp almond extract

12 sheets phyllo pastry

60g salted butter

30g ground almonds

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Coarse Demerara Sugar

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 2 Zest the lemon. Pit the cherries. 3 Place the cherries in a saucepan and add the sugar and cinnamon. Place over a medium heat and simmer gently until the cherries are soft and the sauce is reduced and syrupy. Set aside to cool. 4 Place the cream cheese, caster sugar, egg yolk, almond extract and lemon zest in a bowl and beat until smooth.

5 Place the phyllo pastry on a clean surface. Cover with a damp tea towel while you work with individual sheets to prevent the pastry from drying out. Brush a phyllo sheet with a little melted butter. Top with another phyllo sheet. Continue layering until the pastry is finished.

6 Spoon the ground almonds along the long edges of the phyllo, leaving a border around the edges. Top with the cream-cheese mixture and then the cooled cherries. Fold in the ends. Roll up to enclose the filling. 7 Place the strudel, seam-side down, on the baking tray. Brush with the leftover melted butter and sprinkle with the demerara sugar. 8 Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and golden. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly. 9 Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

Cherry strudel

San Clemente

The large, juicy cherries currently in store are from Chile. Spinneys sources them from San Clemente, a producer that works with cherry growers across the country. Chile’s geographical diversity and varied climate allows for an extended cherry season that runs from November to February. The Rainier variety of cherries San Clemente supplies to Spinneys are harvested and packed by hand to ensure we get the best quality.

VEGGIE

Clementines

Turkey

TURKEY SALAD WITH CLEMENTINE DRESSING

This salad is a great way to use up leftover turkey or chicken. We’ve used roasted turkey breasts, but shredded meat would also work well.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 0

Serves: 2-4

4 clementines

½ lime

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Maple Syrup

2 tsp wholegrain mustard

80ml SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2 leftover roasted turkey breasts

1 ripe SpinneysFOOD Organic Avocado

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Coriander

2 baby gem lettuce

1 Zest and juice 1 clementine. Juice the lime.

2 Place the vinegar, clementine and lime juices, maple syrup, mustard, olive oil and salt in a resealable jar or small bowl and shake or mix to combine. Set aside. 3 Shred or slice the turkey breasts and set aside. 4 Peel and pit the avocado. Using a melon baller, create avo balls. 5 Roughly chop the coriander. Slice the lettuce into wedges. Peel and slice the remaining clementines. 6 Arrange the salad ingredients in a bowl and serve with the clementine dressing.

MEET THE PRODUCERS

Rio Tinto

The top-quality organic and conventional citrus fruit such as clementines in stores at present are imported from Spain where they are grown by Spanish producer Rio Tinto. It has one of the largest growing areas in the country. The region’s mineral-rich soil and warm days and cool nights contribute to the fruits developing optimal colour, firmness and flavour.

salad with clementine dressing

Grape and gorgonzola crispy sharing flatbreads with walnuts

Grapes

GRAPE AND GORGONZOLA CRISPY SHARING FLATBREADS WITH WALNUTS

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus 1 hour prooﬁng time)

Cook time: 15 minutes

Makes: 4

500g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

5g instant dry yeast

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

400ml warm SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for brushing

200g SpinneysFOOD Seedless Red and White Grapes

100g gorgonzola cheese

100g whole walnuts

8 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

1 Place the flour in a bowl with the salt, yeast and sugar. Mix well to combine. Add the warm water gradually to form a soft sticky dough. Knead for 8-10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. 2 Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and allow to stand for at least 1 hour or until risen and doubled in size. 3 Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 4 Remove the dough from the bowl, divide into 4 balls and place on a floured surface. Roll out into a long rectangles. The dough should be quite thin. Transfer to the tray. Brush with the olive oil. 5 Halve the grapes. Scatter over the dough along with the gorgonzola cheese. Crush the walnuts and scatter over the dough. Pick the rosemary leaves and scatter over the dough. 6 Place in the oven and bake until crisp and golden – approx. 15 minutes. 7 Serve immediately.

The Grape Company Spinneys sources top-quality, juicy grapes from The

which is based in South

It works with a carefully selected group of growers who focus on quality and innovative farming practices.

The Grape Company also partners with major grape breeders to secure acceess to the latest and best varieties. It also oversees cold-chain management and shipping.

Grape Company,

Africa.

MEET THE PRODUCERS

VEGGIE

CRISPY PARMESAN-CRUMBED

BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH SMOKY AIOLI

Crumb the Brussels sprouts and then freeze them in a single layer. When you’re ready to serve them, simply arrange on a baking tray and roast.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves: 4-6

For the Parmesan-crumbed Brussels sprouts

50g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

50ml water

100g grated Parmesan cheese

30g Panko breadcrumbs

500g Brussels sprouts

For the smoky aioli

2 garlic cloves

4 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tsp smoked paprika

2 tsp chipotle in adobo

1 tsp lemon juice

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

To serve

Lemon wedges

SpinneysFOOD Fresh Coriander

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.

2 Place the flour, salt and water in a small bowl and whisk until smooth. Place the Parmesan into a small bowl and mix in the breadcrumbs.

3 Working with one or two at a time, place the Brussels sprouts in the flour paste and toss to coat. Using a fork, place the coated Brussels sprouts in the Parmesan-breadcrumb mixture and toss to coat. 4 Place on the baking tray. Repeat this process with the rest of the Brussels sprouts. 5 Place the tray in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until golden and tender, when a fork is inserted into a Brussels sprout.

6 Meanwhile, peel and finely grate the garlic. In a small bowl, whisk the aioli ingredients together and adjust the seasoning, if necessary.

7 Remove the Brussels sprouts from the oven and arrange on a serving platter. Place a skewer into each one, if desired. 8 Serve with the aioli, lemon wedges and fresh coriander.

Crispy Parmesan-crumbed Brussels sprouts with smoky aioli

Brussels sprouts

MEET THE PRODUCERS

Global Green Team

The Brussels sprouts currently in store are sourced from The Netherlands. They are grown by farmers who protect the environment they work in by taking steps to restore biodiversity and reducing the ecological footprint of their operations. The Global Green Team works closely with these Dutch growers to deliver the best-quality Brussels sprouts to Spinneys.

VEGGIE

TOMATO AND CRISPY CROUTON SALAD WITH CAPERS

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Serves: 4

For the salad

200g cherry tomatoes

4 SpinneysFOOD Organic Cucumbers

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 tbsp salted capers, rinsed, drained and patted dry

2 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Dill

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Balsamic Vinegar of Modena

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

SpinneysFOOD Black Peppercorns, freshly ground

For the croutons

200g leftover bread

1 large egg white

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Cumin Seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD White Sesame Seeds

1 tbsp black sesame seeds

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Paprika

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 To make the salad, halve the tomatoes and roughly chop the cucumbers. Place in a large bowl and add the olive oil, capers, dill, balsamic and seasoning. Toss well to coat and allow to stand while you make the croutons.

2 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 3 To make the croutons, slice the bread into cubes. In a large bowl, whip the egg white until soft peaks form. Add half the olive oil and whisk until combined then add the remaining olive oil and whip to mix. 4 Add the bread cubes and toss to coat. Add the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, sesame seeds, paprika and salt. Toss to coat evenly. Spread the croutons on the baking tray. 5 Bake for 20 minutes or until golden and crunchy. 6 Sprinkle the croutons over the salad and serve immediately.

Tomatoes

are grown in a substrate known as rockwool and nutrient rich water reaches the roots via a hydroponic system. MEET THE PRODUCERS

Tomato and crispy crouton salad with capers

Pure Harvest Smart Farms Spinneys sources a variety of fresh, high-quality tomatoes from Pure Harvest Smart Farms, which is based in Abu Dhabi. The company s state-of-the-art greenhouse employs the latest agricultural technologies to grow tomatoes around the year. The plants

VEGGIE

FRIED ANNA POTATOES WITH SALSA VERDE

These flaky Anna potatoes are the perfect make-ahead side for a festive menu since the potatoes can be layered, baked, sliced and frozen weeks before. Then all that’s left to do on the day is fry them.

Prep time: 30 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Serves: 6

1.2kg Holland potatoes

150g salted butter

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2L SpinneysFOOD Pure Sunﬂower Oil, for deep frying

For the salsa verde

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Parsley

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Basil

1 garlic clove

2 tsp capers

125ml SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

To serve

SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

1 Preheat the oven to 150°C, gas mark 2. Line 20cm-square baking tin with parchment paper.

2 Peel the potatoes and thinly slice them lengthways using a mandolin – they should be thin enough so you can almost see through them. Place all the potato slices in a large bowl.

3 Melt the butter and pour over the slices. Season with the salt and toss to coat completely.

4 Layer the potatoes in the tin, overlapping them slightly until all the slices have been used. Cover the tin with foil and place in the oven. Bake for approx. 1 hour 30 minutes or until tender all the way through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature. 5 Cover the top with baking paper and place another 20cm baking tin over the potatoes and press down using some heavy tins or weights. Place in the refrigerator to chill overnight. 6 Meanwhile, place the fresh herbs, garlic and capers in a small blender and blitz until finely chopped. With the motor running, pour in the oil and lemon juice until well combined. Add the salt and set aside. 7 Fill a medium-sized pot with the sunflower oil and heat it to 180°C. 8 Remove the potatoes from the tin and slice into equal-sized rectangles. Working in batches, place a few of the slices in the hot oil and fry until golden, approx. 4-5 minutes. Drain on paper towels. 9 Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and serve with the salsa verde.

Potatoes

MEET THE PRODUCERS

Fried Anna potatoes with salsa verde

Global Green Team

The Global Green Team partners with specialist growers, packers and logistics teams to ensure customers receive the freshest produce. We work closely with Global Green Team to bring Jac van den Oord potatoes from The Netherlands to Spinneys stores. These potatoes are grown by experienced farmers who respect the environment, which is evident from the quality and taste of the produce.

VEGGIE

Meet the producers

Get to know our Kenyan flower and organic Irish salmon partners

Farah Shamji, co-founder of AAA Roses

What’s BLOSSOMING?

We work with several flower producers in Kenya to bring you an assortment of quality blooms. Who are some of our primary partners? And what makes the country’s growing conditions perfect? Find out below…

Written by Tiffany Eslick

Photography by Camilla Hylleberg

“There’s never a dull moment in the flower business,” says Robert Quak of SQ Flora. “And there’s always something happening in Kenya.”

Robert, who used to be a buyer at Spinneys, is now one of our partners. He heads up SQ Flora, a joint-venture with Kenyan producers AAA Roses that is owned and managed by Ariff and Farah Shamji. The company not only supplies Spinneys with top-quality blooms, but it also works with 20-25 boutique floral suppliers – with Robert managing existing relationships and looking out for new varieties to introduce to us.

Why is Kenya such a valuable source market? It’s the perfect place for growing flowers because of its proximity to the equator, which provides daily sunshine and mild temperatures year-round. And the country’s roses are known throughout the world for their high quality and large heads due to the high-altitude locations of its farms.

In addition, growers are increasingly investing in innovation and dynamic varietals, which is encouraging.

“It’s an upcoming country,” says Robert. “And there are many opportunities there, which keep me inspired, every single day.”

AAA ROSES

As mentioned, AAA Roses is owned and managed by Ariff and Farah Shamji. They’re also behind AAA Growers –which has supplied us with pre-packed and baby vegetables for many years. The couple has always offered products grown in Kenya with a difference – such as large-headed luxury roses – which they saw as a gap in the market.

OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Bert Louwerse of Blooming Innovations; rows of Baby’s Breath at Afri Calla’s farm; Red Lands Roses’ highlytrained staff handle all flowers with the utmost care; pink limoniums; Highness roses have unusually long stems and large head sizes ranging between 6½-7cm; Geert and Emily Rooijakkers, co-founders of Afri Calla; Spinneys sources luxury roses in an array of colours; delphiniums.

FOLLOWING PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Purple limoniums; Confidential is a rose varietal with a medium head size; spray roses.

“We thought people would appreciate something that offers more value,” explains Farah. “Spinneys was one of the first retailers to connect with us on this,” she adds. Their Bellissima collection, grown at Chui Farm (which is Fairtrade and MPS-A certified), is a collection of T-Hybrid Rose varieties that are unique due to their large head size. The farm sits at 2,500 metres above sea level, at the foothills of Mount Kenya.

Their most famous variety is arguably Highness (named by Farah). With a stem length of one metre and a stunning head size of 6½-7cm it stands out as one of Africa’s exceptional roses.

“Our next best variety is called Silantoi – it’s an orangeyellow hybrid and it’s stunning and opens well in the vase,” says Farah. “But, my personal favourite is Pink Floyd. It is dark cerise, it opens beautifully and it’s magical in a vase.”

Another of AAA Roses’ farms is Simba, near the Aberdare mountain range in Kenya. There, production is split into different varieties that cater to different markets and tastes.

Farah is passionate about regenerative farming and is championing this movement with her team. “We’re starting to see that there’s a possibility to do things differently,” she explains. “There’s been a big focus on soil and soil health, inter-cropping, putting good fungi, nematodes and good bacteria back into the soil – and thinking if we can encourage the soil to be healthy, we’ll need less fertilisers and pesticides. The results over the last seven to eight months of doing this, on a more, shall we say, scalable level have been dramatic. Crops are healthier, products are better and pesticide usage is down – so far the start has been in the right direction.

RED LANDS ROSES

Located in Ruiru, 35km northeast of Nairobi, this boutique company (helmed by Aldric and Isabelle Spindler) specialises in growing spray, garden, mini and T-hybrid roses in a range of close to 200 varieties. All roses are grown hydroponically, in relatively small numbers, in greenhouses set on 28-acres of non-arable land. And, Red Lands Roses is internationally recognised for its green horticulture (it achieved Carbon Neutrality in 2020) as well as the exemplary promotion of its team and neighbouring communities.

BLOOMING INNOVATIONS

Renowned for its hydrangeas, delphiniums and limoniums, Blooming Innovations, run by Bert Louwerse, is situated northwest of Nairobi – close to lake Naivasha.

“The excellent growing conditions in this region enables us to produce flowers year round,” says Bert.

Halimul Salam Munna says

“It’s important for us to visit our Spinneys’ producers, and I enjoyed our recent trip to Kenya. The countryside there is so green, all the farms are beautiful, growers are becoming increasingly innovative and I found an assortment of new varieties to add to our product portfolio. For example the 90cm single-head and spray roses are outstanding. As we have multiple nationalities in the UAE, I must keep different preferences in mind whenever I select flowers from our producers. I ensure we have a range of bright and pale colours always. Yellow, orange and red are among the most popular colours for our customers.”

And all of them come guaranteed with a long vase life. Holding Global G.A.P. certification means this producer goes the extra mile when it comes to the environment and employee welfare. It also goes without saying that their products and processes are of outstanding quality.

AFRI CALLA

Neighbouring Blooming Innovations is Afri Calla – owned and managed by Geert and Emily Rooijakkers. While they’re known for their calla lilies, they grow a variety of niche flowers, all outdoors, too.

“We started the company from scratch three years ago,” says Geert. “And it was important for us to bring people from different backgrounds in growing together.”

The team at Afri Calla trials its cut flowers extensively before any decision is taken to grow new varieties on a larger scale. This way, only top-quality contenders remain.

Spinneys flower buyer

THIS IS HOW GOOD TOOTHBRUSHING FEELS,

AS TAUGHT BY DENTAL PROFESSIONALS

A good dental professional will tell you this: a soft toothbrush is better for your teeth. Our gums are delicate and our enamel can‘t grow back, so we need to protect them. A soft brush is gentle yet highly effective at removing bacterial plaque if you know how to brush right.

Together with Suncica Ilija – dental professional and educational manager at Curaden, we prepared a brief guide on the proper brushing technique.

1. Touch lightly with minimal pressure. A light touch is all you need to achieve better results. When we brush too hard we can harm our gums and miss some of the critical places.

2. Hold the brush like a pen while brushing. It helps ensure you don’t push too hard on your teeth, and the brush will fit in your hand under the correct 45° angle.

3. Brush along your gumline. Bacteria usually hide in the gumline. To get rid of them more effectively, the brush head should be slightly inclined towards the gumline.

4. Start with the most difficult places. Usually, people start brushing the front and very often overlook the inside of their teeth and the back molars. This is why these are the most caries-prone areas.

5. Clean in between, too. Although a soft brush is more effective than a hard one, a regular toothbrush can only clean 70% of the teeth surface. The other 30% are the interdental areas, which must be cleaned by a special interdental brush.

6. Lick your teeth to feel if you’ve brushed properly. They should be as smooth as glass. If some places are still rough, you might want to brush a bit more.

TASTE THE OCEAN

We work closely with our supply

partner Mowi Ireland

to bring

premium-quality, organic salmon to

our

stores

in the UAE. Here we chat with Catherine McManus, operations director, to find out more about this world-class seafood company

Interview by Warwick Gird

Photography by Camilla Hylleberg

Mowi Ireland is the world’s leading supplier of farm-raised, organic salmon. How did the company start?

Catherine: Mowi Ireland began in 1979 in the Fanad Peninsula in Donegal. It was founded by a group of college friends – one of whom was a teacher in Dublin, but he wanted to try something different. So, he established a trout farm with two Irish shareholders. In the 1980s they enlisted the help of a Norwegian company called Mowi, which led to the first partnership with Mowi. In subsequent years, as the company grew and became more successful within Donegal, it was taken over by other Norwegian interests before it came full circle and merged with the larger Mowi Group a few years ago.

Why is the coast of Ireland such an incredible environment to farm salmon?

Catherine: Ireland’s west coast – the Atlantic coastline –is sparsely populated. There’s not a lot of industry and activity other than a few rural farming and small coastal communities. As a result, the waters in this region are pristine and in a completely natural state, which is perfect for farming Atlantic salmon.

How does the farming process work?

Catherine: We have a full cycle – known as a closed herd cycle – that covers every stage from breeding to harvesting. We have our own juvenile production units or hatcheries in Donegal. The juvenile fish are sent to our sea sites along the western coast of Ireland from the north in Donegal down to Kerry in the south. The first phase of the production cycle involves only freshwater – covering breeding, spawning of eggs, fertilisation and hatching –and lasts around 14 months in land-based tanks.

The young salmon then undergo smoltification, which is a series of physiological processes that help them adapt to living in seawater. At that stage we move them to pens at sea for a further 20 months. We have approximately 14 sea sites. All in all it takes close to three years to rear fish for harvesting.

The organic salmon we source from Mowi Ireland is always consistent in terms of ﬂavour and quality. What steps do you take to ensure premium quality in each batch?

Catherine: Our entire production process – from breeding

Ciaran Stafford says Spinneys buyer – Seafood

“When it comes to seafood the most important element Spinneys looks for is quality. In the case of Mowi Ireland, we have visited its facilities and it’s evident that the team is passionate about salmon. The team goes to great lengths to ensure their fish receive the best care from the earliest stages of the farming process right up until harvest. This directly impacts the flavour and quality of the final products. Mowi Ireland is also the only organic salmon supplier in the world.”

stock right through to harvesting – is based on organic principles. The feed that we give our fish must adhere to organic principles in terms of ingredients, but at the same time we have to meet the nutritional requirements of the fish. The feed is carefully selected and includes ingredients such as fish meal and fish oil from trimmings, organics peas, beans, wheat as well as vitamins and minerals. We have low-density rearing for our fish; the maximum density of fish in seawater pens is 10 kilos of fish per cubic metre of water space. This gives them plenty of room to grow and develop. We also have to manage pests and diseases very carefully. All our fish are vaccinated for the most common salmon diseases before they get sent to pens in the sea. At that stage we have to be prepared for naturally occurring parasites. We prepare for that by introducing cleaner fish into our salmon population. These fish naturally graze on parasites found on other fish. We’ve adapted that for our salmon farming operations. As a result, we rarely ever have to treat our salmon for parasites.

Tell us about the role of sustainability in Mowi Ireland’s production processes.

Catherine: Pristine freshwater and marine environments are essential to the production of fish, especially our organic farming operations. As I said earlier, we’ve been farming here since 1979. That’s a long legacy and sustainability is an important component of our business. We aren’t only focused on environmental stability, but also social and economic stability. We employ people in coastal and marginal communities that don’t have many other employment opportunities. Many of our employees are third-generation farmers (their grandparents started working with us in the early days). These are the three pillars of sustainability that we take care of because we rely on natural resources as well as human resources.

Salmon is naturally high in Omega-3. Why is this important for our diet?

Catherine: Salmon is a carnivorous fish, which feeds on other fish in the wild. As a result, they accumulate marine oils in their bodies. These oils are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids particularly EPA and DHA, which are essential for heart and neurological health. Since the human body doesn’t manufacture these nutrients on its own, we rely on fish to add these fatty acids to our diets.

THIS PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: The west coast of Ireland offers pristine marine environments for farming salmon; pens are closely monitored; the sparsely populated Atlantic coastline; the salmon pens at sea are large with plenty of room for the fish to grow and develop; Mowi Ireland is passionate about sustainability and ensures its salmon are responsibly produced; feed is carefully selected and adheres to organic guidelines; Catherine McManus.

Looking for a light snack with 0% added sugar?

Try our range of lite bite and rice cakes. AVAILABLE IN MILK AND DARK CHOCOLATE. Look no further! our range o

Weeknight wonders

Whip up easy, nutritious, family-friendly dinners for four in under 30 minutes

AUBERGINE, COCONUT AND PEANUT CURRY

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Serves: 4

2 large aubergines

2 garlic cloves

1 Cut the aubergines into large chunks. Peel the garlic and ginger. Roughly chop the leek. 2 Place the leek, garlic, ginger and water in a blender and blitz until smooth.

3 Heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large frying pan placed over a medium heat. Once hot, add the aubergine chunks and season with the salt. Flip over once they start to brown, approx. 10 minutes. Once tender and golden, remove from the pan and set aside. 4 Add the rest of the oil to the pan and reduce the heat to medium-low. Place the leek paste in the pan and sauté for 2 minutes before adding in the spices. Simmer for a further 1 minute or until fragrant. 5 Stir in the coconut milk, tamarind paste and peanut butter. Cover and simmer until the peanut butter dissolves. Add in the aubergines. 6 Serve warm on a bed of rice, and top with the fresh coriander and peanuts.

2cm piece ginger

1 leek

1 tbsp water

4 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt, to taste

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Cumin Seeds

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Coriander Seeds

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Turmeric

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Garam Masala Powder

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Chilli Powder

1 x 400g tin coconut milk

1 tbsp tamarind paste

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Smooth Peanut Butter

To serve

500g SpinneysFOOD steamed rice from our deli Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Coriander

100g roasted and salted peanuts

TOP TIP!

To cook the aubergine quickly, place the aubergine slices in a pot of oil heated to 180°C. Deep fry until dark golden brown. Season with salt and add to the curry before serving.

Aubergine, coconut and peanut curry

VEGAN

PULL-APART CAPRESE SLIDERS

Prepare the sliders and refrigerate for up to two days. When ready to serve, place in the oven and serve immediately. You can also use SpinneysFOOD Malted Burger Buns, Sourdough Burger Buns, or Potato Buns in place of the brioche burger buns.

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Makes: 6

6 SpinneysFOOD Brioche Burger Buns

12 slices mozzarella cheese

3 SpinneysFOOD Roma Plum Tomatoes

75g SpinneysFOOD Classic Basil Pesto

1 tbsp salted butter

1 garlic clove

1 tsp Italian seasoning, optional

To serve

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Basil

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.

2 Slice the burger buns in half and place the bottom halves on the baking tray. 3 Place 2 slices of the mozzarella over each bun. Slice the tomatoes and divide between the buns. Spread 1 tablespoon of pesto on the top half of each bun and place on top of the bottoms. 4 Melt the butter. Finely chop the garlic.

5 In a bowl, mix together the butter, garlic and Italian seasoning. Brush the top of the buns with the butter. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Serve hot scattered with fresh basil leaves.

CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE CRISPY WONTONS

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Serves: 4

For the wontons

2 Spinneys Kitchen Cooked Chicken Breasts

1 leek

1 In a large bowl, using two forks, finely shred the chicken breasts.

2 Finely chop the leek. Peel and crush the garlic and ginger. 3 Heat the oil in a large saucepan placed over a medium-high heat. Add the leek, garlic and ginger and sauté until tender, approx. 2 minutes. Add in the stir-fry mix and sauté for a further 5-10 minutes or until tender. Remove from the heat and place in a medium-sized bowl. 4 Add the soya sauce, sweet chilli sauce, sesame oil and shredded chicken. 5 Finely chop the coriander and add to the mix. Stir to combine and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. 6 To make the dipping sauce, place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until well combined. Set aside. 7 To assemble, place a wonton wrapper on a flat surface, spoon a teaspoon of the filling in the centre of the wrapper, brush water around the edges of the wrapper, then fold the wonton over the filling to create a triangle. Pinch to seal. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling. 8 Heat a large pot of oil over a medium-high heat. Once the oil reaches 180°C, fry the wontons for approx. 2-3 minutes per side or until crispy and browned. 9 Serve the wontons warm along with the dipping sauce, sesame seeds, microgreens and roughly torn coriander.

2 garlic cloves

2½cm ginger

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Pure Sunﬂower Oil

250g SpinneysFOOD Crunchy Vegetable Stir Fry

2 tsp soya sauce

1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce

2 tsp sesame oil

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Coriander

30 wonton wrappers

For the dipping sauce

4 tbsp soya sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce

To serve

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD White Sesame Seeds

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Micro Greens

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Coriander

TOP TIP!

For a healthier alternative, place the wontons in a pot of salted boiling water and cook until they float, or place them in a steamer and steam for 6-8 minutes.

Chicken and vegetable crispy wontons

RICOTTA, SPINACH AND SAGE BAKED GNOCCHI

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Serves: 4

COOK’S NOTE

Heat 2 teaspoons of salted butter in a small non-stick pan and fry a handful of sage leaves until crisp and slightly golden. Serve with the gnocchi.

1 leek

2 garlic cloves

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Sage Leaves

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

100g SpinneysFOOD Organic Baby Spinach

2 x 400g tins SpinneysFOOD Chopped Italian Tomatoes

2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar

250g SpinneysFOOD Ricotta

500g Essential Waitrose Fresh Gnocchi

250g SpinneysFOOD Mature Cheddar Cheese

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. 2 Roughly chop the leek. Finely chop the garlic and half the sage. 3 Heat the oil in a small saucepan placed over a mediumhigh heat. 4 Sauté the leeks, garlic and sage for 1 minute or until tender. Add the tomatoes and balsamic vinegar. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until thickened. 5 In a large roasting dish, layer the ricotta and leek and sage mixture and then top with the gnocchi. 6 Grate the Cheddar cheese and sprinkle over the top of the gnocchi. Place the remaining sage leaves on top. 7 Bake for 10 minutes until bubbly and golden. Serve warm.

Ricotta, spinach and sage baked gnocchi

VEGGIE

MUSHROOM BAKE WITH TAHINI CRUST

Add 250ml of pouring cream along with the tomatoes to make this bake creamier. This dish can be made in advance and frozen. Divide it into individual portions and freeze. When ready to serve, reheat it in an oven set to 180°C, gas mark 4, until warmed through.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves: 4

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. 2 Peel and finely chop the onion. 3 Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large saucepan placed over a medium-high heat. 4 Sauté the onions until tender, approx. 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, season with the salt and sauté. Stir in the tomato, ras el hanout and stock. Simmer for 10 minutes. 5 To make the topping, combine the tahini, lemon juice, cold water, eggs, feta and salt in a small bowl. 6 Pour the mushroom mixture into a mediumsized, oven-proof dish, then pour the tahini topping over. 7 Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown. 8 Serve topped with fresh parsley, pine nuts and pomegranate seeds.

1 red onion

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

300g mixed exotic mushrooms

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 x 400g SpinneysFOOD Chopped Italian Tomatoes

1 tbsp ras el hanout spice

500ml vegetable stock

For the topping

90g tahini

2 tbsp lemon juice

100ml cold SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

2 SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

50g SpinneysFOOD Feta

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Salt

To serve

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Parsley

2 tbsp pine nuts

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Fresh Pomegranate Jewels

Mushroom bake with tahini crust

VEGGIE

‘Tis the season

Gear up for the festivities with an array of savoury appetisers and mains as well as decadent desserts

MAKING A LIST,

Prepare a range of essentials and delicacies in advance this Christmas

CHECKING IT TWICE

TOP TIP!

Freeze the pies in the muffin tray until firm then pop them out and place in a zip-top bag until you need them – just make sure to place the pies back in the muffin tin when baking.

Prepare the lamb, cranberry and walnut pastry wreaths up to a month in advance and freeze them until needed. Add 10-20 minutes to the baking time when baking from frozen.

MAKE-AHEAD MINCE PIES

Prepare the pies a week in advance and freeze until needed. Add an extra 10 minutes to the baking time, if baking from frozen. The pies can be frozen for up to one month.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Makes: 12

For the pastry

210g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

90g corn ﬂour

100g SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

250g salted butter, softened

For the filling

70g salted butter, softened

70g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

45g SpinneysFOOD Self-Raising Flour

50g ground almonds

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg ½ tsp almond extract

500g store-bought fruit mince pie ﬁlling

To serve

SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

1 Preheat the oven to 150°C, gas mark 2. Place a large metal baking tray in the middle of the oven. Grease a 12-hole muffin tin. 2 To make the pastry, combine the dry ingredients in a stand mixer or food processor and gradually add the butter until the shortbread comes together. 3 Dust a clean surface with flour and roll the pastry out until 5mm thick. Cut out rounds a ½cm larger than the muffin tin holes. Reserve the leftover pastry. 4 To make the filling, cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy then add the flour, almonds, egg and extract to form a smooth batter. Place in a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle. 5 Place a spoonful of the fruit mince into each pastry cup. Pipe the frangipane filling on top then crumble or grate over the remaining pastry with a box grater. 6 Bake for approx. 25 minutes until the pies are golden and risen and the pastry feels firm at the sides. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. 7 Dust with icing sugar then serve. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks once cold.

CONFIT DUCK WITH STAR ANISE CHERRY SAUCE

Store the cherry sauce in a sterilised airtight container for up to two weeks.

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus marination time)

Cook time: 2 hours

Serves: 4-6

6 duck leg quarters

1kg duck fat

For the salt rub

3 garlic cloves

1 orange

25g SpinneysFOOD Black Pepper, freshly ground

75g SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

3 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

3 SpinneysFOOD Bay Leaves

For the cherry sauce

1 orange

3 star anise

5cm piece ginger

1 tbsp soya sauce

1 tbsp red grape vinegar

1 x 410g tin pitted cherries

1 tbsp corn ﬂour

1 Place the duck legs, skin-side down, in a deep tray. 2 Peel and slice the garlic. Zest the orange. 3 Combine all the ingredients for the salt rub then spread over the duck leg quarters. Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for 24 hours. 4 Preheat the oven to 120°C, or lowest gas mark. 5 Place the duck fat in a deep roasting dish and warm through. 6 Wash off the salt rub from the duck leg quarters and pat dry before placing them in the warm fat. Cover with aluminium foil and roast in the oven for 1 hour 30 minutes. To check if the duck is ready, try twisting the thigh bone; if it comes away easily the duck is ready. 7 Remove the quarters from the fat and allow to cool slightly, if using immediately. Remove the thigh bones from the meat and try to ensure that the meat stays in one large piece. French-trim the drumstick end so that it looks neat, then tuck in the meat and trim off any loose ends. 8 When ready to serve, heat a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the duck leg quarters, skin-side down. Once golden and crisp, turn over and warm through for a couple of minutes. Alternatively, place in a hot oven for 5 minutes. You can also seal them

in bags of two, with some fat and freeze the confit of duck. 9 To make the cherry sauce, zest and juice the orange. Place the juice, zest, star anise, ginger, soya sauce, vinegar and cherries (reserving 2 tablespoons of the juice from the tin) in a medium-sized saucepan placed over a high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low heat and simmer for 5 minutes. 10 In a small bowl or glass, combine the reserved cherry juice with the corn flour then stir into the sauce. Cook for a further minute until the sauce thickens. 11 Serve the duck leg quarters with the cherry sauce on the side.

LAMB, CRANBERRY AND WALNUT PASTRY WREATHS

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Serves: 4-6

500g butternut squash

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 tbsp smoked paprika

100g walnuts

1 small handful of dried cranberries

2 x 400g packet ready-rolled all-butter puff pastry

200g lamb sausages

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg

To serve

SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

SpinneysFOOD Bay Leaves

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with baking paper. 2 Halve the butternut lengthways and place in a roasting dish. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and paprika. Roast for 40 minutes or until soft.

3 Chop the walnuts and add to the tray. Roast for a further 5 minutes. 4 Using a fork, mash the flesh of the butternut and mix in the walnuts and cranberries. Set aside. 5 Unroll the pastry, cut in half lengthways to make 2 long rectangles, then dampen the edge of a short side and join the rectangles to make one long rectangle.

6 Spoon the butternut filling down one half of the rectangle. Slice the lamb sausages lengthways to remove the casing. Shape the sausage meat into a roll the length of the pastry and lay it on top of the butternut filling. 7 Brush the exposed pastry with the beaten egg. 8 Roll up the pastry to seal in the filling, then arrange in a circle on the

VEGGIE

Confit duck with star anise cherry sauce

Lamb, cranberry and walnut pastry wreath

baking tray. Make 10 cuts on top of the sausage roll at even intervals. Brush all the pastry with the remaining egg wash. 9 Rub the rosemary sprigs and bay leaves with ½ a tablespoon of olive oil, then stick into the pastry around the wreaths. The wreaths can now be frozen until they’re ready to be baked. 10 Bake for 35-40 minutes or until puffed and golden.

CORIANDER AND MINT CHUTNEY

Use any leftover herbs you already have.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Makes: 250ml

50g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Coriander

50g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Mint

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cumin

1 small green chilli

½ garlic clove

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

4 tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp water

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 tbsp white grape vinegar

1 Place all the ingredients in a blender. Blitz until smooth. 2 Place in a sterilised jar. This chutney can be made up to two weeks before serving.

GET-AHEAD GRAVY

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Makes: 500ml

1 brown onion

1 celery stick

1 carrot

1 garlic clove

1 sprig SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

1 SpinneysFOOD Bay Leaf

6 chicken wings or meat bones

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Black Pepper, freshly ground

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 tbsp tomato paste

Get-ahead gravy

4 tbsp miso paste

1L SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. 2 Peel and chop the onion, celery, carrot and garlic roughly. Place in a roasting pan with the thyme, bay leaf and chicken wings. Season well and roast until golden brown, approx. 30-40 minutes. 3 Transfer the vegetables and wings to a large pot and add the tomato paste and miso paste. Cover with the cold water. Slowly bring to a gentle simmer over a low heat and allow to simmer for 30 minutes until thickened and reduced. 4 Strain the gravy. Allow to cool then pour into a zip-top bag. Freeze until you need it. 5 When ready to use, defrost the gravy. When the turkey/roast meat comes out of the oven, remove from the roasting tray, cover with foil and allow to rest. Add the defrosted gravy to a saucepan and place it over a medium heat. Bring to a simmer, scraping the bottom of the pan to remove all the pan juices. Adjust the seasoning, decant into a serving jug to serve.

Coriander and mint chutney

VEGAN

the ULTIMATE Christmas cake guide

From a traditional recipe to indulgent Black Forest and Middle-Eastern inspired twists, these rich cakes are perfect for the festive season

THE ULTIMATE CHRISTMAS CAKE

It’s important to bake this cake low and slow as it helps it retain moisture and prevents the cake from getting too hard on the edges.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 2 hours

Makes: 2 x 20cm cakes

125ml SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water or fruit juice

130g SpinneysFOOD Dark Muscovado Sugar

750g dried fruit mix (use a combination of raisins, sultanas, currants, prunes, cranberries, candied citrus peel)

125g salted butter

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

1 tbsp vanilla extract

125g toasted mixed nuts

3 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

165g SpinneysFOOD Self-Raising Flour

1 Preheat the oven to 120°C, lowest gas mark setting. Line 2 x 20cm springform cake tins with three layers of baking paper. 2 Place the water and sugar in a large saucepan. Add the dried fruit mix, butter, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, vanilla extract and mixed nuts to the saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes. Allow to cool completely. 3 Whisk the eggs, then stir into the dried fruit mixture along with the self-raising flour. 4 Divide the cake batter between the tins. 5 Bake the cake for 2 hours or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool completely. This cake will keep well for up to one year when wrapped securely with cling film.

TRADITIONAL ICING

Prep time: 15 minutes

Makes: 800g

250g marzipan

3 egg whites

600g SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar, plus extra for dusting

1½ tsp liquid glycerine

1 tbsp lemon juice

To decorate

SpinneysFOOD Bay Leaves

Sugared cherries or cranberries

Small pine cones

Star anise

1 Place one of the cakes on a cake plate or foil board. 2 Dust your hands and a clean work surface with a little icing sugar. Knead the marzipan until soft. Roll out the marzipan and cut out a circle big enough to cover the top of the cake on the plate. 3 To make the icing, sieve the icing sugar. In a large bowl, lightly whisk the egg whites adding the icing sugar at intervals. Beat well until the icing forms soft peaks. Add the glycerine and lemon juice. 4 Place the second cake on top of the first. 5 Using a palette knife or an offset spatula, spread the icing all over the cake. 6 Allow it to dry before decorating with the bay leaves, sugared cherries, pine cones and star anise.

The ultimate Christmas cake

ICE IT!

BLACK FOREST CHRISTMAS CAKE

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 2 hours

Makes: 2 x 20cm cakes

125ml SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water or fruit juice

130g SpinneysFOOD Dark Muscovado Sugar

250g glacé cherries

500g mixed dried fruit (equal ratios of cranberries, raisins, sultanas)

125g salted butter

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tbsp vanilla extract

125g hazelnuts

100g chocolate chips

3 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

165g SpinneysFOOD Self-Raising Flour

1 Line 2 x 20cm springform cake tins with three layers of baking paper. 2 Place the water and sugar in a large saucepan. Add the cherries,

ASSEMBLE IT

mixed dried fruit, butter, bicarbonate of soda, vanilla extract and hazelnuts. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes. Allow to cool completely. 3 Preheat the oven to 120°C, or lowest gas mark. 4 Whisk the eggs then stir into the wet mixture along with the flour. Add the chocolate chips. 5 Pour the cake batter into the tins. 6 Bake for 2 hours or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool completely. Once securely wrapped in cling film, this cake will keep well for up to one year.

Spread 200g of cherry jam over the top of one of the cakes then top with the second cake. +

Place 1 tsp of edible gold powder in a small bowl. Dust 200g of cherries with the gold powder. Place them on top of the cake and serve immediately.

PLACE CHOCOLATE BARK ON THE CAKE.

CHOCOLATE BARK

300g baking chocolate

To make the chocolate bark, melt the chocolate over a double boiler or in 20 second bursts in the microwave. Using a large offset spatula, spread the melted chocolate in a thin layer on a large sheet of baking paper. Roll up from the short side of the baking paper. Place on a baking sheet and refrigerate or freeze until firm. Unroll to create chocolate bark.

USING AN OFFSET SPATULA, ICE THE SIDES AND TOP OF THE CAKE WITH WHIPPED MASCARPONE CREAM.

WHIPPED MASCARPONE CREAM

750ml whipping cream, chilled

40g SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

250g SpinneysFOOD Mascarpone

To make the whipped mascarpone cream, place the cream and icing sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whip to form soft peaks. Alternatively, use a handheld mixer. Gently fold in the mascarpone. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Black Forest Christmas cake

MIDDLE-EASTERN TWIST

SPICED FRUIT CAKE WITH ROSE WATER ICING

You don’t want to skip out on the garam masala in this cake.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Makes: 1 x 20cm Bundt

100g seedless SpinneysFOOD Khodri Dates

100g dried ﬁgs

100g walnuts

375g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 tsp ground nutmeg

½ tsp ground cloves

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Garam Masala Powder

225g salted butter, softened

250g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

6 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

100g raisins

For the rose water icing

100g SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

3 tsp rose water

Few drops of pink colouring

To serve

1 orange

50g pistachio slivers

20g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Pomegranate Jewels

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark

4. Grease and flour a 30cm Bundt tin.

Chop the dates, dried figs and walnuts.

2 Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and spices in a bowl then set aside.

3 In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Add the flour mixture, dried fruits and nuts and stir well.

4 Pour the batter into the tin. Bake for 50 minutes or until cooked through. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before turning out.

5 To make the icing, sift the icing sugar into a medium-sized bowl. Add the rose water and pink food colouring and stir to combine. Drizzle over the cool cake.

6 Zest the orange. 7 Sprinkle the pistachio slivers, pomegranate seeds and zest over the cake and serve.

Spiced fruit cake with rose water icing

TOP TIP!

This cake will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Alternatively, freeze it unfrosted.

GOOD morning!

Coconut

Whip up these Christmas breakfasts to start the big day off just right

crumpets with vanilla crème fraîche and salted caramel

Make a double batch and freeze any leftover cooked waffles for up to two months. They can easily be reheated in the toaster.

Courgette waffles with smoked salmon, crispy fried eggs and caviar

Mini apple and blue cheese galettes

Instead of making mini apple and blue cheese galettes, make one large galette by cutting the pastry sheet into a 40cm round and then continue as instructed.

COCONUT CRUMPETS WITH VANILLA CRÈME FRAÎCHE AND SALTED CARAMEL

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Serves: 4

For the vanilla crème fraîche

1 vanilla bean

250ml double cream

2 tbsp pouring cream

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

For the coconut crumpets

3 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

250ml coconut milk

50g coconut sugar

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

150g gluten-free ﬂour or cake ﬂour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp coconut oil or salted butter

To serve

50g coconut ﬂakes

100g Bonne Maman Salted Caramel

1 Using a knife, split the vanilla bean in half then scrape out the seeds. 2 In a small bowl, combine the double cream, pouring cream and vanilla seeds and sieve in the icing sugar. Stir to combine and refrigerate until needed. 3 To make the crumpets, place the eggs, coconut milk, sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk at a high speed until light and fluffy. Alternatively, place the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and whisk with a hand mixer. 4 Sieve the flour and baking powder and gently fold in to combine. 5 Melt a teaspoon of coconut oil or butter in a non-stick frying pan. 6 Using a tablespoon to measure the batter, add 3-4 tablespoons of the batter to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden and cooked. Set aside and keep warm. Repeat the process with the remaining batter. 7 Serve the crumpets warm with a dollop of vanilla crème fraîche, a generous sprinkle of coconut flakes and drizzle of salted caramel.

COURGETTE WAFFLES WITH SMOKED SALMON, CRISPY FRIED EGGS AND CAVIAR

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves: 4

For the courgette waffles

450g courgettes

100g SpinneysFOOD Mature Cheddar

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Dill

2 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

125ml buttermilk

160g SpinneysFOOD Self-Raising Flour

SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt, to taste

For the crispy saffron eggs

3 tbsp salted butter

Pinch of saffron

4 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt, to taste

SpinneysFOOD Fine Black Pepper, to taste

To serve

200g SpinneysFOOD Smoked Salmon

60g caviar

280g labneh

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Zaatar

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Dill

1 lemon

1 Finely grate the courgettes and place in a cheesecloth or sieve. Squeeze out as much liquid as possible. 2 Grate the Cheddar and finely chop the dill. 3 In a large bowl, whisk the eggs then add the buttermilk and flour. Whisk to combine. Add in the Cheddar, grated courgettes, chopped dill and salt. 4 Preheat a waffle iron and generously grease with cooking spray. 5 Spoon enough batter to cover the base of the waffle iron, making sure to spread to the edges. Close the iron and cook for 3-5 minutes until golden brown. Set aside and keep warm. Repeat with the remaining mixture. 6 Place the butter and saffron in a large non-stick frying pan placed over a low heat. Allow to infuse for approx. 2 minutes. Increase the heat and crack in the eggs and fry to your liking. Season with the salt and pepper and keep warm. 7 Divide

the waffles between four plates. Top with the eggs. Serve along with the salmon, caviar and labneh sprinkled with the za’atar. Garnish with the extra dill and quartered lemons.

MINI APPLE AND BLUE CHEESE GALETTES

Prep time: 30 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 45 minutes

Makes: 4 mini galettes

1 x 320g Just Rol Shortcrust Pastry Sheets

For the caramelised onions

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 red onions

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2 tbsp soft brown sugar

1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar

For the filling 450g Fuji apples

50g Panko breadcrumbs

60g Ambrosi gorgonzola dolce

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Raw Sugar

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD White Sesame Seeds, optional

1 On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry out to 40cm in length and roughly cut into 4 x 15cm circles using a sharp knife. Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. 2 Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frying pan placed over a mediumlow heat. Finely slice the onions and add to the pan along with the salt. Sauté, stirring often, for 20-30 minutes. If the onions start to stick to the pan, add a splash of water to the pan and mix well. Once softened and golden, stir in the sugar and vinegar, cooking for a further 5 minutes or until the vinegar has reduced and the sugar has caramelised. Set aside. 3 Slice the apples in half and remove the core. Using a very sharp knife or mandolin, finely slice the apples and keep in a bowl of cold water to prevent them from browning. 4 Preheat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 7. 5 Remove the pastry from the fridge and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the base of each pastry round, leaving a 3cm border. Crumble the blue cheese and divide between the galettes. Top with the caramelised onion and the apple slices, fanning them to fit the rounds. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the apples and bring the edges of the dough up and over the filling, creasing and gently pressing down onto the feeling as you go. 6 Whisk the egg and brush over the edges of the pastry and sprinkle the sesame seeds over. 7 Place in the oven and bake for approx. 15 minutes or until golden brown. 8 Transfer to a cooling rack for five minutes before serving.

VEGGIE

FINER tastes

European butters, especially French varieties, are delicious because they’re made from the ﬁ nest-quality cream. Elevate the ﬂ avour of festive appetisers and mains with this silky-smooth, rich ingredient

Butter-poached lobster Benedict

Brown-butter leeks with toasted hazelnuts and sage

Lemon, garlic and thyme butter-roasted chicken

BUTTER-POACHED LOBSTER BENEDICT

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Makes: 4

4 fresh lobster tails

For the poaching liquid

4 tbsp water

220g salted butter

1 garlic clove

1 SpinneysFOOD Bay Leaf

1 lemon

For the Hollandaise sauce

2 large egg yolks

1½ tbsp good-quality white vinegar

250g unsalted French butter

SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt, to taste

SpinneysFOOD Fine White Pepper, to taste

Lemon juice, to taste

To assemble

4 English mufﬁns

1 tsp salted French butter

100g SpinneysFOOD Organic Baby Spinach

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 To remove the shell of the lobster, cut through the underside of the tail using a pair of kitchen scissors. Gently remove the meat keeping it in one piece. Remove the vein by running a small pairing knife down the centre of the tail and gently pull it out. Repeat with the remaining lobster tails. 2 Heat the water in a small pot over a medium-low heat. Cube the butter. Add a cube at a time to the pot, whisking between each addition. 3 Peel and finely chop the garlic. Add it to the poaching liquid along with the bay leaf. 4 Juice the lemon and add the juice to the liquid. Using a thermometer, maintain the temperature of the liquid between 70°C to 80°C. 5 Add the lobster tails in a single layer and poach for approx. 6 minutes. Turn every 2 minutes until opaque and cooked through. Remove the tails from the liquid and set aside. 6 To make the Hollandaise sauce, place the egg yolks and vinegar in a blender. Blitz until combined. Melt the unsalted butter and gradually add it, while hot, to the blender in a steady stream with the motor running until the sauce is thick and glossy. Season with salt, white pepper and lemon juice. Pour the sauce into a jug and keep warm. 7 Halve and toast the English muffins until golden. 8 Melt the butter in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the spinach and turn it over using tongs for 1-2 minutes until wilted. Season with the salt and press out as much liquid as possible. 9 Divide the muffins between four serving plates. Top each with spinach, a lobster tail and Hollandaise sauce. Serve immediately.

BROWN-BUTTER LEEKS WITH TOASTED HAZELNUTS AND SAGE

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves: 4

4 leeks

100g hazelnuts, skinless

200g salted French butter

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Sage

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

1 lemon

1 Remove the tops and roots of the leeks. Place the leeks, leaf-side down in a jug of water to remove any sand. Chop the hazelnuts. 2 Melt the butter in a large frying pan over a low heat. Add the leeks, tossing until coated in the butter. Season well and lower the heat. Sauté for approx. 20 minutes or until very soft. If the leeks stick to the pan, add in a splash of water. 3 Once the leeks are soft, increase the heat and gently stir in the sage leaves and hazelnuts so they toast in the butter. 4 Squeeze in the lemon juice and adjust the seasoning. 5 Serve immediately.

LEMON, GARLIC AND THYME BUTTER-ROASTED CHICKEN

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Serves: 4

1 x 2kg whole chicken

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

2 lemons

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Thyme

100g salted French butter

4 tbsp chicken stock

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Organic Natural Honey

2 heads of garlic

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4.

2 Season the chicken with the salt, inside and out. Tie the legs together with kitchen string. 3 Quarter the lemons. 4 On a large roasting tray, place the chicken breast-side up then stuff the cavity with 2 thyme sprigs and 1 quartered lemon. 5 Melt the butter in a pot over a medium heat. Pick the thyme leaves off the remaining sprigs and add to the butter along with the stock and honey. Cook on a low heat for approx. 2 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly. 6 Pour the butter mixture over the chicken, basting to cover it completely. 7 Slice the tops off the garlic heads. Place in the tray and coat with the butter mixture. 8 Roast the chicken, basting with the pan juices every 15-20 minutes, until golden and cooked through, approx. 1 hour 30 minutes. 9 Remove from the oven and rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving.

Add flavour to a variety of dishes with the range of French butters in stores.

Rich and creamy, this unsalted butter is an excellent everyday option. Reach for it when making silky sauces, smooth mashed potatoes, savoury toppings for steak, or baked goods such as flakey pastry, cakes and cookies.

Le Beurre Bordier Unsalted Butter

This butter gets it’s silky texture from the special wooden machine through which it is kneaded before it is pounded by hand. These artisanal methods are believed to enhance the flavour and texture.

Waitrose Salted French Butter

Made to a classic Breton recipe, Waitrose Salted French Butter is speckled with sea salt crystals. Use it to make salted butter caramels, decadent treats such as Kouign-amann, or enjoy it on crusty bread.

Président Unsalted Butter

A TOUCH OF GREEN

Impart ﬂ avour and aroma to your festive dishes with our fresh sage, thyme, mint, rosemary and parsley

Crispy sage and lemon roasted potatoes

SAGE

CRISPY SAGE AND LEMON ROASTED POTATOES

To ensure the sage leaves stick to the potatoes, use a fork to rough up the centre of the ﬂat side of each potato. Then press in the sage leaves, so they stick to the surface.

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Serves: 4-6

1kg Russet potatoes

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

100g duck fat

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Sage

To serve

Maldon sea salt ﬂakes

1 Preheat the oven 200°C, gas mark 6. Place a roasting tray (one big enough to take the potatoes in a single layer) in the oven. 2 Peel and halve the potatoes and place in a pot of cold salted water placed over a medium-high heat.

3 Boil until fork tender, approx. 5-10 minutes.

4 Place the duck fat in the hot tray and place it back in the oven to heat up. 5 Drain the potatoes in a colander then shake the colander back and forth a few times to fluff up the outsides. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of flour over the potatoes and give them another shake or two so they are evenly and thinly coated. 6 Press a whole sage leaf into the cut side of each potato and place them cut-side down into the fat. 7 Using a tablespoon, coat the potatoes with extra fat and place them in the oven. 8 Roast for 15-20 minutes before turning them over for a further 15 minutes.

9 Once golden and crisp, remove the potatoes from the oven and place them on a paper towel to drain off any excess oil. 10 Season with the salt flakes and serve.

PARSLEY

ASPARAGUS AND GREEN BEAN SALAD WITH PARSLEY-ANCHOVY DRESSING

Asparagus and green bean salad with parsley-anchovy dressing

To get extra crunchy asparagus ribbons, place them in a bowl of iced water and set aside for 10-15 minutes.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Serves: 4

300g green beans

200g asparagus spears

For the parsley-anchovy dressing

1 lemon

8 anchovy ﬁllets

Small handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Parsley

1 garlic clove

4 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

PAIR ME WITH... A mustard crusted lamb crown roast on page 90

Home-made fresh mint jelly

Rosemary hasselback butternut with honey

To serve

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Parsley

50g toasted ﬂaked almonds

1 Bring a medium-sized pot of salted water to a boil. 2 Blanch the green beans for 5 minutes before refreshing them in iced water. Set aside. 3 Peel the asparagus spears into ribbons and set aside. 4 Juice the lemon. Peel the garlic. Place all the ingredients for the dressing in a blender and blitz until smooth and combined. 5 Place the green beans and asparagus ribbons on a serving platter. Top with roughly torn parsley, sprinkle with the flaked almonds and drizzle over the dressing.

MINT

HOME-MADE FRESH MINT JELLY

Store the mint jelly in sterilised jars for up to three weeks.

Prep time: 5 minutes (plus setting time)

Cook time: 5 minutes

Serves: 5-6

For the jelly

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Mint

560ml boiling SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

2½ tsp agar agar

100g granulated sugar

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

To serve

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Mint

1 Rinse the mint leaves and stems then place them in a small saucepan. 2 Crush with a potato masher or the bottom of a jar or glass. Add boiling water; cover and allow to stand for 10 minutes. 3 Strain the mint mixture and return it to the saucepan. Stir in the agar agar. Mix in sugar and place the pan over a high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice then pour into a mediumsized bowl. 4 Refrigerate until set, approx. 30 minutes. 5 Place the set mint jelly into a blender

and blitz until smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl. 6 Finely chop the mint and stir into the jelly. 7 Serve alongside roasted lamb.

ROSEMARY

ROSEMARY HASSELBACK BUTTERNUT WITH HONEY

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Serves: 4

For the butternut

1 whole butternut

8 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

45ml SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Organic Natural Honey

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

For the pangratato

2 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

1 garlic clove

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

50g Panko breadcrumbs

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with baking paper. 2 Halve the butternut and scoop out the seeds. Place one half, cut side down, on a chopping board.

3 Align a chopstick lengthways along one side of the squash. Using a very sharp knife, carefully slice through the squash to the chopstick at ½cm intervals. Repeat with the remaining half.

4 Arrange the rosemary sprigs between every other slice. 5 In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil and honey until combined. 6 Place both halves of the butternut on the tray – cut side down – and drizzle with olive oil-honey mixture. Season with the salt. Cover tightly with aluminium foil and roast for 20 minutes before removing the foil. Roast for a further 20-30 minutes or until golden.

7 Finely chop the rosemary. Peel the garlic.

8 Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan placed over a medium heat. Once hot, add the

breadcrumbs, sea salt and rosemary. Crush or grate in the garlic. Sauté, stirring often, until it turns golden, approx. 3-4 minutes. Transfer the pangratato to a bowl. 9 Sprinkle the pangratato over the hasselback butternut and serve.

THYME

BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH PINE NUTS AND THYME

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Serves: 4

For the maple-thyme dressing

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Pure Maple Syrup

1 tsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

For the pan-fried Brussels sprouts

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

800g Brussels sprouts

4 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

1 garlic clove

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

50g pine nuts

To serve

3 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

1 In a jar or small bowl, combine the ingredients for the dressing and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. 2 Heat the oil in a large pan placed over a medium heat. Halve the Brussels sprouts and add to the hot pan along with the thyme. Sauté until tender and golden, approx. 15 minutes. Crush in the garlic, add 2 tablespoons of the dressing to the pan and cook for a further 5 minutes or until caramelised. 3 Season and add the pine nuts to the pan. Remove from the heat. 4 Serve the Brussels sprouts sprinkled with a few thyme leaves.

SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

Produce Fresh Sage

Fresh Parsley SpinneysFOOD Fresh Mint

Find an abundance of fresh herbs in stores.

VEGGIE

VEGAN

TOP TIP!

For extra tender Brussels sprouts, add a splash of water to the pan and place the lid on for 5 minutes while sautéing.

Brussels sprouts with pine nuts and thyme

Nuts are a standard snack at Christmas. How about spicing things up by making a vegan nut roast and adding them to sweet treats?

roast

MIDDLE-EASTERN NUT ROAST

This nut roast is loaded with a blend of nuts, veggies, lentils, dried fruit and fresh herbs. It is easy to prep in advance and delicious served with cranberry sauce or gravy.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Serves: 4

2 SpinneysFOOD Beauregard Sweet Potatoes

2 Russet potatoes

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 red onion

3 garlic cloves

50g dried apricots

180g mixed nuts

1 lemon

100g shelled pistachios

90g pine nuts

125g SpinneysFOOD Halloumi Cheese

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Parsley

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Dill

250g quinoa

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cumin

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

100g dried cranberries

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Zaatar

2 tbsp Aleppo pepper powder

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

3 tbsp pomegranate molasses

2 SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

To serve

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Dill

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4.

2 Peel and slice the sweet potatoes and Russet potatoes into rounds. Spread them evenly on a large roasting tray. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the potato rounds and season with salt. Roast for 15 minutes or until tender. 3 Peel and slice the onion. Peel and crush the garlic. Roughly chop the apricots and the mixed nuts. Zest and juice the lemon. Toast the pistachios and pine nuts. Grate the halloumi. Finely chop the parsley and dill. 4 Cook the quinoa according to package instructions. Set aside. 5 Heat the remaining oil in a mediumsized pan over a medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until caramelised. Set aside. Sauté the garlic, cumin and cinnamon in the same pan. 6 In a large bowl, combine the onion, spices, quinoa, zest and juice, apricots, pistachios, pine nuts, mixed nuts, fresh herbs, cranberries, za’atar, Aleppo pepper, salt, pomegranate molasses and eggs. 7 Layer half the roasted potato slices at the base of a loaf tin then spoon over half the nut mixture. Repeat with the remaining slices and nut mixture. 8 Cover the loaf tin with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 20-25 minutes. 9 Serve warm topped with fresh dill.

BERBERE ROASTED PISTACHIOS

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Makes: 300g

For the berbere spice blend

2½ tbsp smoked paprika

½ tbsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cayenne Pepper

1½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Ginger

½ tsp ground cardamom

½ tsp fenugreek seeds

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Coriander

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cloves

¼ tsp ground allspice

For the pistachios

1 lemon

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Organic Natural Honey

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 tbsp berbere spice blend (see above)

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

300g pistachios in the shell

1 Preheat the oven to 150°C, gas mark 2. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside. 2 To make the berbere spice blend, place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined. 3 Zest and juice the lemon. In a small saucepan placed over a medium heat, combine the honey, peanut oil, berbere spice, salt, lemon juice and zest until heated through. 4 Place the pistachios on the baking tray and pour the warm mixture over the nuts. Toss until the pistachios are evenly coated. 5 Place in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until toasted. 6 Allow to cool before serving.

Brown sugar and orange pecan brittle

Berbere roasted pistachios

BROWN SUGAR AND ORANGE PECAN BRITTLE

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 35 minutes

Makes: 550g

1 orange

250ml SpinneysFOOD Light Muscavado Sugar

125ml glucose

4 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

1 tbsp salted butter, softened

125g pecan nuts

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

½ tbsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp salted butter, softened

1 Zest the orange. 2 Place the sugar, glucose, water and butter in a saucepan set over a medium-high heat. Boil until the mixture reaches 115°C or soft ball stage (a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water should form a soft ball almost immediately). 3 Add the pecan nuts, salt and zest. 4 Continue to cook until the thermometer reaches 132°C or hard ball stage. Allow to cook until the thermometer reaches 154°C or hard crack stage – this will take a while so keep an eye on it. Remove from the heat and add the bicarbonate of soda, vanilla and softened butter. Stir to combine. 5 Pour the mixture onto a sheet tray lined with a silpat. Spread it out into a thin layer and allow to cool and harden. 6 Break into shards and serve.

HAZELNUT PRALINE SPREAD

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Makes: 500g

100g almonds

100g hazelnuts

135g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

45g coconut oil

2 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

200g milk chocolate

1 Preheat the oven to 150°C, gas mark 2. Line a baking tray with baking paper. 2 Spread the nuts in the tray. Roast for 15 minutes. 3 In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Stir over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Add a sugar thermometer to the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil and allow it to reach 150°C (approx. 4-5 minutes).

4 Pour the caramel over the nuts and allow to cool completely. 5 Once the caramel has hardened, carefully break into smaller pieces. Place the pieces in a blender and blitz until it turns into a thick paste.

6 Melt the coconut oil. Add the oil, cocoa powder, vanilla and salt to the blender. Continue to blitz until the mixture is as smooth as you like. 7 Remove the mixture from the blender and place in a mediumsized bowl. 8 Melt the chocolate and add to the mixture. 9 Pour into a sterilised jar and seal. Store in a cool, dry place for up to two weeks.

Sweet, salted or spicy – our selection of

is ideal for the festive season.

Waitrose Christmas Hazelnuts

Waitrose Christmas Rose Harissa Spiced Nut Mix

No 1 Waitrose Chocolate Cherry & Nut Selection

Waitrose Duchy Organic Mixed Nuts

Waitrose Christmas Maple Caramelised Cashews

nuts

Hazelnut praline spread

SUGAR SPICE

and

Think beyond cookie cut outs. Use gingerbread to make a variety of savoury and sweet dishes

Gingerbread men granola

GINGERBREAD MEN GRANOLA

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 45 minutes

Makes: 500g

For the gingerbread men

180g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Ginger

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

½ tsp mixed spice

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

85g salted butter

60g SpinneysFOOD Dark Muscovado Sugar

3 tbsp molasses syrup

1 egg yolk

For the gingerbread granola

20g candied ginger

250g rolled oats

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Ginger

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Salt

50g coconut oil

50g SpinneysFOOD Pure Maple Syrup

2 tbsp molasses syrup

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Light Muscovado Sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

50g dried cranberries

100g chocolate chips

1 In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, bicarbonate of soda, spices and salt. 2 In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, approx. 5 minutes. Add the molasses and egg yolk and beat until combined. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. If the mixture is a bit dry, add a splash of milk. 3 Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough to approx. 1cm in thickness. Using a small gingerbread man cookie cutter, cut out shapes and place on baking trays. Cover the baking trays and place them in the fridge while the granola is being made. 4 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line two baking trays with parchment paper.

Gingerbread-rubbed roast beef

VEGGIE

5 Chop the candied ginger. 6 In a large bowl, combine the oats, spices and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the coconut oil, both syrups and sugar. Place in the microwave for 2 minutes to melt. Pour the melted coconut oil mixture over the dry ingredients along with the vanilla extract and stir to combine. Spread the mixture on a lined baking tray and bake for 20-30 minutes, tossing the granola halfway. Remove from the oven and cool completely before adding the cranberries, chocolate chips and candied ginger. 7 While the granola cools, bake the gingerbread men until just golden brown approx. 10-12 minutes. Cool completely before adding to the granola. 8 Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

GINGERBREAD-RUBBED ROAST BEEF

Allow the beef to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving to ensure it retains all its juices.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Serves: 6-8

For the roast beef

1.6kg boneless rump roast or beef tenderloin

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil 250ml beef stock

For the gingerbread spice rub

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Ginger

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Black Pepper, freshly ground

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Raw Sugar

¼ tsp ground allspice

¼ tsp ground cloves

Pinch of ground nutmeg

Pinch of ground cardamom

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Fine Coriander

For the brown butter sauce

120g salted butter

2 garlic cloves

1 tsp corn ﬂour

1 tbsp water

1 Remove the beef from the fridge and bring it to room temperature. 2 Combine the spices in a small bowl and set aside. 3 Preheat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 7. 4 Place the meat on a large plate and coat with the olive oil and spice mix, ensuring all sides are well covered. Place the beef on a wire rack set in a large roasting dish and pour the beef stock into the base of the dish. Roast for approx. 35-40 minutes for medium-rare. 5 Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small pan placed over a medium heat. Grate in the garlic and allow the butter to brown slightly then remove from the heat.

6 Remove the beef from the oven and place on a chopping board. Cover loosely with foil and allow to rest. 7 Drain the stock into the butter mixture. 8 Whisk the corn flour and water

The gingernut biscuits add extra crunch to the gingerbread-stuffed duck with maple glaze, but they can be swapped out for soft gingerbread.

together and whisk into the butter-stock mixture.

9 Place the pan over a medium heat and cook, whisking continuously, until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and pour into a serving jug. 10 Carve the roast beef and serve along with the brown butter sauce.

GINGERBREAD-STUFFED DUCK WITH MAPLE GLAZE

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 3 hours

Serves: 4

For the gingerbread stuffing

1 leek

1 Granny Smith apple

1 orange

30g salted butter

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

200g gingernut biscuits

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

For the roasted duck

2kg duck

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2 red apples

3 garlic cloves

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Black Pepper, freshly ground

250ml vegetable stock

For the maple glaze

250ml SpinneysFOOD Pure Maple Syrup

50g salted butter

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

1 Finely chop the leek. Grate the apple. Zest the orange. 2 Heat the butter and oil in a large pan placed over a medium heat. 3 Sauté the leeks and apples in the pan for approx. 10 minutes or until tender. Add the orange zest then remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly. Roughly crush the gingernut biscuits and add to the leek-apple mixture. Whisk the egg and stir through the cooled mixture and season with the salt. Set aside. 4 Preheat the oven to 190°C, gas mark 5. 5 Place the duck on a clean work surface and fill the cavity with the stuffing. Generously season the duck with the salt. 6 Slice each apple into three thick slices. Peel and finely slice the garlic. Pick the thyme leaves. Place the apple slices, garlic and thyme at the base of an oven-proof dish and place the duck on top. Pour

the stock in the pan and place in the oven for approx. 2 hours. 7 Meanwhile, melt the maple syrup, butter and salt together in a pan then remove from the heat. 8 Generously baste the duck after the first 15 minutes then return to the oven for a further 15-20 minutes before basting again. Repeat this process for the remaining cooking time. Once the skin is crispy, cover with foil and lower the heat, cooking for a further 45 minutes to 1 hour. 9 Once golden and cooked through, remove from the oven and rest for 5 minutes before carving and serving.

GINGERBREAD MERINGUES

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Makes: 35

For the gingerbread spice

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Ginger

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

Pinch of ground allspice

Pinch of ground nutmeg

Pinch of ground cardamom

220g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

For the meringues

4 large egg whites

1 tsp white grape vinegar

1½ tbsp cocoa powder

1 To make the gingerbread spice, combine the spices and sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

2 Preheat the oven to 150°C, gas mark 2. Line two large baking trays with parchment paper.

3 Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk until soft peaks form. Add the spice mixture a tablespoon at a time. Whisk for a further 6 minutes or until stiff and glossy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the vinegar and whisk for 2 minutes. 4 Remove 4 tablespoons of the meringue mixture and place in a medium-sized bowl. Add the cocoa powder and mix until fully combined. 5 In a piping bag fitted with a fluted nozzle, spread the cocoa meringue mixture around the inside of the piping bag, then fill the bag with the rest of the meringue. Pipe 3cm rounds on the baking trays and place in the oven. 6 Reduce the oven temperature to 120°C (lowest gas mark). Bake for 30 minutes or until crisp to the touch. 7 Turn off the oven and allow the meringues to cool in the oven with the door closed for 30 minutes, before serving.

VEGGIE

Make the meringues up to two weeks in advance and store in an airtight container.

Gingerbread meringues

Gingerbread-stuffed duck with maple glaze

12 DAYS OF Kitschmas

Our spin on the popular Christmas carol will have you indulging in nostalgic dishes with this retro-themed festive menu

Classic glazed turkey

TOP TIP!

To unmould the jelly, run hot water on the outside of the mould until the jelly loosens slightly. Place a cake stand or serving plate on top of the mould and flip, lightly shaking the mould until the jelly releases.

Rose water, coconut and orange blossom moulded jelly

CLASSIC GLAZED TURKEY

The more frequently you glaze the turkey, the glossier it will look when it’s served.

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus brining time)

Cook time: 1 hour

Serves: 4-6

For the dry brine

3 lemons

1 orange

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Whole Black Peppercorns

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fennel Seeds

6 SpinneysFOOD Bay Leaves

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Raw Sugar

1 x 1½kg turkey

For the stuffing

1 large red onion

4 garlic cloves

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Parsley

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

50g salted butter

500ml vegetable stock

For the glaze

110g SpinneysFOOD Light Muscovado Sugar

160ml apple cider vinegar

50g salted butter

3 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Smooth Orange Juice

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

To serve

Handful of curly parsley

1 Preheat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 7.

2 Zest the lemons and orange. 3 Add all the ingredients for the dry brine to a small bowl and toss to combine. Rub the dry brine all over the turkey. Place the turkey in the fridge, uncovered, for 5-6 hours. 4 Rinse the dry brine off the turkey and pat dry with paper towels. Place it on a rack set in a large roasting dish, breast side up. Stuff the onion, garlic and herbs in the cavity of the turkey. 5 Working from the neck end of the turkey, gently loosen the skin from the breasts and rub the butter under the skin and all over the outside. 6 Truss the turkey. Pour the stock into the bottom of the tray. Roast for 35-40 minutes or until the internal temperature is 75°C. 7 To make the glaze, place the sugar and vinegar in a small pot and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer and cook until syrupy. Take off the heat and whisk in the butter. 8 Pour out the stock from the bottom of the roasting tray and return the turkey to the oven to roast for a further 40-45 minutes, brushing with the glaze every 15 minutes. Remove the turkey from the oven and brush with the glaze. Roast for 15-20 minutes. 9 Transfer to a clean platter and allow to rest for 30 minutes before carving. 10 Serve with curly parsley.

ROSE WATER, COCONUT AND ORANGE BLOSSOM MOULDED JELLY

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 2 hours 30 minutes

Serves: 8-10

For the orange blossom jelly

2½ tbsp powdered gelatine

4 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

270ml SpinneysFOOD Smooth Orange Juice

70g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

2 tbsp orange blossom water

For the coconut milk jelly

2½ tbsp powdered gelatine

4 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

600ml coconut milk

140g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

For the rose water jelly

2½ tbsp powdered gelatine

270ml SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

2 tbsp rose water

70g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

2 drops of pink food colouring

To serve

Whipped cream

1 maraschino cherry

1 To make the orange blossom jelly, bloom the gelatine and water together in a small bowl and set aside for 5 minutes. In a small pot, combine half the orange juice and the sugar. Bring to a gentle simmer over a medium heat and stir to dissolve the sugar. Take off the heat and add the bloomed gelatine. Stir to dissolve and add the rest of the orange juice and orange blossom water. 2 To make the coconut milk jelly, bloom the gelatine and water together in a small bowl and set aside for 5 minutes. In a small pot, combine half the coconut milk and sugar. Bring to a gentle simmer over a medium heat and stir to dissolve the sugar. Take off the heat and add the bloomed gelatine. Stir to dissolve and add the rest of the coconut milk. 3 To make the rose water jelly, bloom the gelatine and 4 tablespoons of water together in a small bowl and set aside for 5 minutes. In a small pot, combine 105ml of the leftover water and sugar. Bring to a gentle simmer over a medium heat and stir to dissolve the sugar. Take off the heat and add the bloomed gelatine. Stir to dissolve and add the remaining water and rose water. 4 To create the jelly layers, pour in 100ml of the rose water jelly into a 1½L jelly mould or Bundt tin. Place in the refrigerator for approx. 30 minutes or until just set. Top with 150g of the coconut jelly and repeat the setting process. Top with all the orange blossom jelly mix and repeat the setting process. Top with 200g of the coconut jelly and repeat the setting process. Finish off by setting the rest of the raspberry

jelly and then the coconut jelly to form the final layer. Refrigerate overnight to set. 5 Serve with whipped cream and a maraschino cherry.

VEGETABLE TERRINE

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus setting time)

Cook time: 5 minutes

Serves: 8-10

5 SpinneysFOOD Organic Cucumbers

90ml white balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp Tabasco

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

60g gelatine powder

2 heirloom tomatoes

285g SpinneysFOOD Roasted Mixed Peppers

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Basil

1 Peel 4 of the cucumbers. Place them in a high-speed blender and blitz until smooth. Strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve. Discard the leftover solids. 2 Pour the juice into a large bowl. Add the vinegar, Tabasco and salt and whisk to combine. 3 Pour half the cucumber mixture into a medium-sized saucepan. Place over a medium heat until just beginning to simmer. Remove from the heat. 4 Whisk the gelatine into the remaining cucumber juice mixture and set aside for 5 minutes to bloom. 5 Pour the warmed mixture into the gelatine-cucumber mixture, whisking to combine. 6 Place a layer of tomato slices in a mould and pour a small amount of the liquid (approx. 265ml) into the mould. Place in the fridge for 20-30 minutes to set the first layer. 7 Finely slice the remaining cucumber into rounds and arrange it on top of the first set layer. Pour 265ml of the gelatine-cucumber mixture over the cucumber rounds. Place the mould back in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes to set the second layer. 8 Arrange the roasted peppers on top of the third layer. Pour the remaining mixture (whisking first, if necessary) on top of the last layer. Cover the mould with cling film and refrigerate. 9 To plate, place the mould in a bowl of warm water until the edges melt slightly. Lift the mould from the water. Place a large rectangular serving platter on top of the mould and invert. Carefully remove the mould. 10 Wrap the terrine and platter in cling film. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.

GLAZED CARROTS

Grate fresh nutmeg over the carrots just before serving. Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Serves: 4-6

800g SpinneysFOOD Baby Carrots

250ml vegetable broth

50g soft brown sugar

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2 tbsp salted butter

½ lemon

VEGGIE

Vegetable terrine

Glazed carrots

Classic prawn cocktail

Mustard crusted lamb crown roast

Parmesan and mushroom vol au vents

Smoked salmon mousse with dill

Piped duchess potatoes

Sundried tomato pesto pinwheels

For the caramelised pecan nuts

50g pecans

1 tbsp salted butter

To serve

3 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

1 In a large non-stick pan placed over a medium heat, add the carrots, stock, 2 tablespoons of sugar and salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer and cook until the carrots are almost tender and the liquid has evaporated by half, approx. 5 minutes. 2 Stir in the butter and remaining sugar and cook, stirring frequently, until the carrots are completely tender and the glaze is lightly golden. Remove from the heat and squeeze in the lemon juice.

3 Remove the carrots, but allow the caramel to remain in the pan. 4 Add the pecan nuts and butter. Toss until caramelised and toasted. Add in a splash of water, if necessary. 5 Serve the carrots and pecan nuts with a sprinkle of thyme.

CLASSIC PRAWN COCKTAIL

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Serves: 4

For the Marie Rose sauce

200g mayonnaise

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Tomato Ketchup

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cayenne Pepper

½ tsp smoked Tabasco

Dash of Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp lemon juice

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

For the grilled prawns

16 medium prawns, cleaned and deveined

1 tsp smoked paprika

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cayenne Pepper

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

To serve

1 SpinneysFOOD Hass Avocado

4 tbsp lime juice

50g cocktail pickled onions

2 baby cos lettuce

1 Place the sauce ingredients in a mediumsized bowl and whisk to combine. Adjust the seasoning, if necessary. Refrigerate until needed.

2 Preheat a barbecue grill or griddle pan over a high heat. 3 Place the prawns in a bowl with the paprika, cayenne pepper, oil and salt. Toss to coat. Grill the prawns for 2-3 minutes on each side until just cooked through. 4 Halve and peel the avocado. Lay one half of the avocado, cut side down, on a flat surface and thinly slice. Fan out the slices so that they form a long line with the slices overlapping each other. Split into two lines and, starting from one end, curl avocado slices toward the centre. Continue curling the avocado

slices until you get a rose. Sprinkle over some lime juice and set aside. Repeat this with the rest of the avocado. 5 Halve the pickled onions and trim the lettuce. Divide the sauce between four glasses and top with the avocado roses. Divide the prawns and lettuce between the glasses. Skewer the pickled onions with a toothpick and place in each glass. 6 Serve immediately.

MUSTARD CRUSTED LAMB CROWN ROAST

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Serves: 8-10

2 brown onions

3 carrots

2 garlic cloves

2 celery sticks

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2 x 3½kg lamb racks

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

800ml vegetable stock

For the mustard crust

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp wholegrain mustard

100g breadcrumbs

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

2 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

To serve

300g SpinneysFOOD Hand Shelled Garden Peas

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6.

2 Peel and roughly chop the onions, carrots, garlic and celery. 3 In a large roasting dish, combine the vegetables, olive oil and salt, then toss to combine. Place the lamb racks on top of the vegetables and scatter the thyme sprigs around. Add the stock to the roasting dish. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C, gas mark 4, and roast the lamb for 1 hour 20 minutes, adding more water occasionally.

4 Thirty minutes before the roast is cooked to your liking, combine the mustard crust ingredients in a bowl. 5 Remove the roast from the oven and press the crust into the centre of the crown roast and bake for a further 15-20 minutes.

6 To check if the lamb is cooked, insert a skewer into the thickest part for 30 seconds, then lay it against the back of your hand. If it feels cool, the meat is rare; if warm, it is medium-rare; if hot, it is medium. 7 Remove from the roasting dish and allow to rest, covered with foil, for 20 minutes.

8 Serve on a bed of boiled peas.

PARMESAN AND MUSHROOM VOL-AU-VENTS

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 45 minutes

Makes: 6

For the vol-au-vent cases

2 x 250g puff pastry

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg

For the mushroom filling

2 shallots

2 garlic cloves

150g exotic mushrooms

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Thyme

50g SpinneysFOOD Mascarpone

100g Parmesan

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

To serve

SpinneysFOOD Microgreens

Parmesan shavings

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 2 To make the cases, lightly flour a clean surface then unfold 1 sheet of pastry. Using an 8cm-round cutter, cut out 6 circles. Place on the baking tray and lightly prick the pastry with a fork. Roll out the remaining pastry sheet. 3 Cut out 6 more circles with the 8cm-round cutter. Using a 6cm round cutter, cut centres out of the circles to form a ring. Place the rings on top of the circles that are on the baking sheet. Place the centre circles also on the baking tray. 4 In a small bowl, whisk the egg and brush over pastries. Chill for 15 minutes. 5 Bake until dark golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. 6 Finely chop the shallots. Crush the garlic. Roughly chop the mushrooms into even-sized pieces. 7 Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan. 8 Once the oil is hot, add the shallots and garlic to the pan and sauté until tender, approx. 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms to the pan along with the thyme leaves and sauté until golden. Remove from the heat and add the mascarpone, Parmesan and salt. Stir to combine. Place in a small bowl, cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes. 9 When ready to serve, divide the mushroom mixture between the vol-au-vents and top with the micro greens and Parmesan shavings.

SMOKED SALMON MOUSSE WITH DILL

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus setting time)

Serves: 4-6

For the smoked salmon mousse

280g SpinneysFOOD Smoked Salmon

560ml whipping cream, chilled

1 lemon

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Dill

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

200g smoked salmon ribbons

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for greasing

To serve 1 lemon VEGGIE

Melba trifle

Handful of curly parsley

100g pitted green olives

4 celery stalks

1 Place the smoked salmon in a food processor. Blitz until smooth. Lower the speed of the food processor and slowly pour in the chilled cream, scraping the sides, if necessary. Once smooth, transfer the mixture to a large bowl. 2 Juice the lemon. Finely chop the dill. Add the juice and dill to the salmon mixture along with the salt and stir to combine. 3 Brush a 1L mould with the olive oil. 4 Evenly distribute the salmon mixture in the mould, making sure to press it into any grooves. Arrange the smoked salmon ribbons on top then cover the mould in cling film and place it in the fridge for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight. 5 When ready to serve, carefully run a knife around the edge of the mould to loosen the mousse and turn it out onto a serving dish.

6 Serve with lemon slices, curly parsley, olives and celery stalks.

PIPED DUCHESSE POTATOES

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 50 minutes

Serves: 4-6

800g Yukon gold potatoes

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

90g salted butter

2 garlic cloves

4 tbsp pouring cream

50g Parmesan

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

4 egg yolks

To serve

SpinneysFOOD Fresh Chives

Grated Parmesan

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 2 Peel and cube the potatoes into even-sized pieces. Place the cubes in a medium-sized pot of water along with the salt. Place over a medium heat and bring to a boil then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook until tender, approx. 15-20 minutes. Drain well and set aside to cool in a medium-sized bowl. 3 Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium-sized frying pan. 4 Crush the garlic and add to the pan, sauté for 2 minutes before stirring in the cream. Set aside.

5 Using a potato ricer or masher, mash the potato until there are no lumps. Grate in the Parmesan and garlic cream. Season with the salt. Cool slightly before adding in the yolks, one at a time. If the mixture is too thick for piping, add in a tablespoon or two of cream to loosen it up. Adjust the seasoning, if necessary, and transfer to a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle. 6 Pipe 12 even-sized mounds on the baking tray. 7 Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and brush over the

mounds. 8 Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden. 9 Serve with the chopped chives and grated Parmesan.

SUNDRIED TOMATO PESTO PINWHEELS

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Makes: 24

For the sun-dried tomato pesto

150g SpinneysFOOD Sun-dried Tomatoes

1 garlic clove

50g Parmesan

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

50g SpinneysFOOD Roasted Mixed Peppers

For the pinwheels

50g Parmesan

280g butter puff pastry

For the egg wash

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Full-Fat Milk

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.

2 Place the pesto ingredients in a food processor and blitz until combined. 3 Finely grate the Parmesan and set aside. On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry out to 5mm thick.

4 Spread the pesto over the dough, leaving a 1cm border. Sprinkle over the Parmesan and roll up the dough to form a log. Using a serrated knife, slice the log into 1cm thick slices and place them on the baking tray with approx. 3cm between each pinwheel. 5 Whisk the egg and milk together. Brush the pinwheels with egg wash. 6 Place in the oven and bake for approx. 10 minutes before lowering the temperature to 180°C, gas mark 4. Bake until golden brown, approx. 10-15 minutes. 7 Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

MELBA TRIFLE

This triﬂe is a riff on the classic peach Melba combination of peaches, raspberries and vanilla ice cream.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Serves: 4-6

For the raspberry jelly

2 x 80g Green’s Raspberry Jelly

For the custard

1 vanilla bean

250ml pouring cream

250ml double cream

4 large egg yolks

80g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

1 tbsp corn ﬂour

For the raspberry coulis

125g raspberries

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

2 tbsp lemon juice

For the whipped custard

750ml whipping cream

To serve

3 yellow ﬂesh peaches

450g Swiss roll or pound cake

250g amaretti biscuits

200g raspberries

Handful of SpinneysFOOD Fresh Mint

1 Prepare the jelly according to package instructions. Pour into a 2L trifle dish and place in the fridge to set. 2 To make the custard, split the vanilla bean, scrape out the seeds and place in a medium-sized saucepan along with the bean and both creams. Place over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer. Place the egg yolks, sugar and corn flour in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Gradually whisk in the cream mixture until combined. Return the mixture

VEGGIE

to the saucepan and stir over a low heat for 2-3 minutes, or until thickened (coats the back of a wooden spoon). Set aside to cool, cover and refrigerate until needed. 3 To make the raspberry coulis, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and blend until smooth. Pass through a sieve and set aside. 4 When ready to assemble, use an electric mixer to whisk the cream to soft peaks. Add in the custard and whip for a further 5 minutes or until soft peaks form. 5 Halve, pit and slice the peaches. Slice the Swiss roll into 1cm-thick rounds. 6 To assemble, remove the jelly from the fridge. Evenly spread the coulis over the top of the jelly. Top with 2⁄3 of the amaretti biscuits, pressing them against the edge of the dish so they form a row and fill the centre with the rest of the amaretti. Top with a layer of Swiss roll rounds. Layer half the whipped custard over the Swiss roll layer. Halve the raspberries and place them in a row, cut-side pressed against the glass. Scatter the rest of the raspberries and half the peaches in the centre and top with the rest of the Swiss roll rounds. Finish with the remaining whipped custard, sliced peaches, the rest of the amaretti and a

serve immediately.

UPSIDE DOWN PINEAPPLE CAKE

You can also use tinned pineapple rings for this cake.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Makes: 1 x 22cm cake

1 whole pineapple

380g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

375ml SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

20 maraschino cherries

190g salted butter

3 SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

300g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

1½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

60g ground almonds

250ml buttermilk

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Grease and line a 22cm cake tin. 2 Peel the

pineapple and slice into 1cm-thick slices. Using a 2cm-round cookie cutter, cut out the centre of each slice to form a ring. 3 Combine 110g of the sugar and water in a medium-sized pot placed over a medium heat and stir to dissolve. Add in the pineapple rings, bring to a gentle boil and cook for approx. 15 minutes or until tender. Remove the rings from the syrup and set aside. 4 Place the rings over the base of the cake tin along with 3 tablespoons of the syrup. Place the cherries in the centre of the pineapple rings as well as a few scattered around. 5 Combine the butter and the rest of the sugar in an electric mixer. Mix for approx. 10 minutes or until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Add in the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, ground almonds and buttermilk. Mix on a low speed until just combined. 6 Pour the batter over the pineapple rings and place in the oven for approx. 45 minutes. Cover loosely with foil and bake for a further 15-20 minutes or until cooked through. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool slightly before unmoulding. 7 Serve with the leftover syrup.

few raspberries. 7 Finish with a few mint sprigs and

Upside down pineapple cake

VEGGIE

NAUGH T Y a nd NICE

It’s the perfect time of year to indulge in a tower of choux puffs topped with ganache, a mince pie tart with lashings of cream and custard and our decadent version of bread and butter pudding

Mocha croquembouche

Sharing mince pie tart

To save time, prepare the pastry case and stars for the mince pie tart the day before serving. Keep them covered on a baking tray in the fridge until you’re ready to bake it.

MOCHA CROQUEMBOUCHE

Prepare the choux puffs a day or two in advance and ﬁll them as needed.

Prep time: 40 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 1 hour

Makes: 24

For the choux puffs

110g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

80g salted butter

250ml cold SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

3 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

For the mocha custard

150g dark chocolate

2 egg yolks

55g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

450ml pouring cream

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Sea Salt Flakes

2 tsp SpinneysFOOD Colombian Instant Coffee

1 tsp vanilla extract

250g SpinneysFOOD Mascarpone

For the chocolate sauce

100g dark chocolate

300g pouring cream

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 2 To make the choux puffs, sift the flour into a bowl. Heat the butter and water until just melted then bring to a rolling boil. Immediately remove from the heat and add all the flour at once. Mix until a smooth dough forms, place back on the heat and cook for approx. 1 minute or until the pastry pulls away from the sides of the pot. Allow to cool until lukewarm. 3 Lightly whisk the eggs then beat into the pastry a little at a time until smooth, shiny and of piping consistency. 4 Place the pastry in a piping bag fitted with a large plain nozzle. Pipe small blobs of pastry approx. 4cm in diameter onto the baking tray. 5 Bake for 25 minutes or until puffed up and golden. Turn off the oven and remove the choux puffs. Using a small paring knife, poke and twist small holes in the bottom of each puff and immediately return to the oven to dry out for 15 minutes. 6 To make the mocha custard, roughly chop the chocolate. Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a large pot set over a low heat. Add the cream and sea salt. Set the pot over a medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir continuously until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a wooden spoon, approx. 5-8 minutes. Remove

from the heat. Stir in the coffee, chocolate, vanilla extract and mascarpone. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. 7 To assemble, place the custard in a piping bag fitted with a medium straight nozzle. Fill the choux puffs with the mocha custard.

8 Chop the chocolate. Heat the cream in a small pot until barely simmering. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate. Stir until smooth and keep warm. 9 Dip the tops of each puff in the chocolate sauce before stacking them on a serving plate.

SHARING MINCE PIE TART

Prep time: 10 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Serves: 8-10

For the pastry

425g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

50g SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

250g salted butter

2 large egg yolks

45ml cold SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

For the filling

1 orange

500g fruit mince

150g mixed nuts

To serve

250ml whipping cream, chilled

500ml vanilla custard

1 To make the pastry, add the flour, icing sugar, spices and butter to a food processor. Blitz for 1 minute or until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Whisk the egg yolks with the cold water then add to the processor. Blitz again until the pastry comes together; adding a few more drops of cold water, if necessary. Alternatively, add the flour and icing sugar to a bowl then rub in the butter by hand. Add the egg yolks and water and mix until the pastry comes together. 2 Tip the pastry out onto a lightly floured surface and bring it together to form a ball. Divide in two and flatten into discs. Wrap with cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes.

3 Grease a 20cm x 28cm x 2½cm deep fluted tin with cooking spray. 4 Lightly dust a clean work surface with flour and roll the pastry out in a rectangle slightly larger than the tin’s dimensions, approx. ½cm thick. Roll the pastry onto your rolling pin and gently drop into the tin. Press the

pastry into the tin and use your thumb to lightly press into the grooves of the tin to form the fluted edges. Evenly prick the base using a fork and refrigerate for 20 minutes. 5 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Place a large baking tray in the oven to preheat. 6 Line the pastry case with baking paper – scrunch it first before opening it out again and fitting it into the pastry shell. Add baking beans (or uncooked rice) and put the tin on the hot baking tray and into the oven for 20 minutes. 7 Towards the end of the cooking time, take the other disc of pastry out of the fridge to soften slightly. After the 20 minutes, lift the paper and beans out of the pastry shell and bake the pastry case for a further 10 minutes, then set it aside to cool slightly. 8 Meanwhile, roll out the other pastry on a lightly floured surface to approx. 5mm thick and cut out star shapes using a mixture of different-sized cutters. (Bake any extra stars alongside the tart on a separate lined baking tray to eat as biscuits.) 9 Zest the orange. Mix the fruit mince with the mixed nuts and orange zest and spoon into the tart case. Arrange the cut-out stars on top and bake the tart for 30-35 minutes or until the shortbread stars are lightly golden. 10 Whip the cream to soft peaks. Serve the mince pie with the whipped cream and custard.

LEMON AND RASPBERRY PANETTONE AND BUTTER PUDDING

For the best results, allow the pudding sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before baking.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 50 minutes

Serves: 4-6

80g salted butter

450g panettone

1 lemon

50g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

4 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

300ml double cream

450ml SpinneysFOOD Full-Fat Milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

125g frozen raspberries

To serve

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

100g SpinneysFOOD Madagascan Vanilla Beans

Ice Cream

1 Preheat the oven to 160°C, gas mark 3. Grease a 1L round baking dish with a little butter.

2 Slice the panettone into approx. 2cm thick slices, leaving the crusts on. Spread the butter over the panettone slices then slice them in half. Arrange the panettone buttered side up in the greased baking dish. 3 Zest the lemon. Rub the zest into the sugar. 4 Whisk the eggs, double cream, milk, vanilla extract and sugar together in a bowl. Pour evenly over the panettone. Top with the frozen raspberries. 5 Bake for 35 minutes until the pudding is just set with a slight wobble. 6 Dust with icing sugar and serve with ice cream.

VEGGIE

Lemon and raspberry panettone and butter pudding

Celebrating the solstice

Baklava brioche

Ash-e-anar

ASH-E-ANAR (POMEGRANATE SOUP)

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 2 hours

Serves: 6-8

125g SpinneysFOOD Long-Grain Basmati Rice

125g yellow split peas

1 large red onion

4 garlic cloves

50g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Coriander

50g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Parsley

50g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Chives

50g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Mint

100g spring onions

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Pure Sunﬂower Oil

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Turmeric

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Black Pepper

1½L SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

1¼L fresh pomegranate juice

80ml pomegranate molasses

SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt, to taste

For the meatballs

1 red onion

500g SpinneysFOOD Lean Beef Mince

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Black Pepper

¼ tsp cardamom powder

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Turmeric

Pinch of ground saffron

For the garnish

2 large red onions

70ml SpinneysFOOD Pure Sunﬂower Oil, for frying

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Dried Mint

¼ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Turmeric

125g SpinneysFOOD Fresh Pomegranate Jewels

1 Wash and soak the rice for 30 minutes, drain and set side. Wash and soak the split peas for 30 minutes, drain and set side. 2 Peel and diced the onion. Peel and roughly mince the garlic. Finely chop the fresh herbs and spring onions. 3 In a large pot, heat the oil then add the onions and sauté until they have softened and become light golden brown. Add the garlic, turmeric, pepper, yellow split peas and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add 1L of water, bring to a boil and reduce the heat; leave to

simmer for 20 minutes. Add the rice and allow to cook for a further 20 minutes. After boiling, add the remaining water. 4 Stir in the herbs, spring onions and pomegranate juice. Cover the pot and allow to cook over a medium heat for a further 45 minutes. 5 To make the meatballs, finely mince the onion and drain the excess liquid from it. Combine the beef, onion, salt, pepper, cardamom, turmeric and saffron in a medium-sized bowl and combine well. Shape the mixture into 5g balls and set aside on a large plate. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan over a medium-high heat. Once hot, fry the meatballs until they’ve browned. Remove and set aside. 6 Add the meatballs and pomegranate molasses to the soup mixture and season with the salt. Allow to simmer for a further 30 minutes. 7 Peel and finely slice the onion. 8 Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan placed over a medium heat. Fry the dried mint and turmeric for 30 seconds then set aside. Add the remaining oil to the pan and heat. Fry the onion until crispy and golden. Set aside. 9 Serve the soup topped with the fried mint, crispy onion and pomegranate seeds.

BAKLAVA BRIOCHE

Prep time: 15-20 minutes (plus 2-3 hour resting time)

Cook time: 25-30 minutes

Serves: 6

For the dough

3 tsp active dry yeast

3 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

4 tbsp lukewarm SpinneysFOOD Full-Fat Milk

4 tbsp lukewarm SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

500g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

1½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

3 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs, room temperature

200g SpinneysFOOD Unsalted Butter, room temperature

1 SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg

1 tsp water

For the nut filling

110g cashew nuts

110g pistachio nuts

100g brown sugar

1 tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

¼ tsp cardamon powder

115g SpinneysFOOD Unsalted Butter

For the honey syrup

180g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

125ml SpinneysFOOD Organic Natural Honey

2 tbsp lemon juice

180ml SpinneysFOOD Bottled Drinking Water

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Fine Cinnamon

1 Place the active yeast, sugar, milk and water to a small bowl. Gently stir, cover with a kitchen towel, then set aside for approx. 8-10 minutes. 2 In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour and salt. Add the yeast mixture and combine the ingredients on a medium speed for a couple of minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well between additions. Reduce to a low speed. Add the butter, one tablespoon at a time, until fully incorporated. Finally, increase the speed and knead the dough for an additional 5-7 minutes until it pulls away from the sides of the bowl and has a smooth, supple consistency. Bring the dough together. 3 Coat the sides of a large bowl with butter. Place the dough in the centre. Cover the bowl with cling film. Allow the dough to rise for 2 hours until it has doubled in size. Gently deflate the dough by lifting around the edges and letting it fall back into the bowl. Cover the bowl tightly with cling film and set aside for an additional hour, or ideally overnight. 4 Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Place the nuts in a blender and blitz until coarsely ground. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the nuts, sugar, cinnamon and cardamom powder. 5 Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 4. Butter a 23cm springform pan or cast-iron skillet. 6 On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a 23cm x 30cm rectangle approx. 1cm thick. Spread the butter evenly over the dough, followed by the nut mixture and press down slightly. From the long edge, gently roll the dough into a log. With a serrated knife, cut the log in half lengthways. With the cut sides up, gently braid the two halves together. 7 Lift the dough gently and place it in a circular shape in the pan. Cover it with a kitchen towel and allow the dough to rest and rise for a further 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes. 8 Prepare the egg wash by beating the egg and water together. Brush the egg wash over the risen dough. 9 Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown. 10 Meanwhile, prepare the honey syrup. In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the ingredients and bring to a boil over a medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved, then reduce to a medium-low heat. Leave to simmer for a further 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. 11 Once the baklava brioche has come out of the oven, gently brush the syrup over it. Allow to cool before serving.

2023 Hello

Countdown to the new year with savoury snack and dessert platters that are great for sharing ‘TIS

10 ingredient snack platter

9 ingredient sweetcorn and feta arancini

8 ingredient bay leaf and

berry Pavlova

7 ingredient miso prawn toasts

6 ingredient pear and goat’s cheese tart

5 ingredient flourless chocolate cake with passion fruit

4 ingredient Cheddar and Nigella seed crackers

10 INGREDIENT SNACK PLATTER

Prep time: 5 minutes

Serves: 4-6

150g Purely Plantain Chips Naturally Salted

120g Other Foods Crunchy Oyster Mushrooms

200g Mulu Muruku

200g popcorn

300g SpinneysFOOD Mixed Nuts

200g SpinneysFOOD Khodri Dates Seedless

200g SpinneysFOOD Strawberries

200g pitted green olives

200g SpinneysFOOD Beef Dry Wors Sticks

200g SpinneysFOOD Moroccan Hummus

1 Arrange all the ingredients on a serving platter. 2 Serve immediately.

9 INGREDIENT SWEETCORN AND FETA ARANCINI

Prep time: 10 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 1 hour

Makes: 40 arancini

For the risotto

1 brown onion

1.2L chicken stock

4 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil

400g arborio rice

200g frozen sweetcorn kernels

150g SpinneysFOOD Feta

2 tsp chilli sauce

For the arancini

50g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

200g breadcrumbs

1 Peel and finely slice the onion. Heat the chicken stock. 2 To make the risotto, heat the oil in a pan placed over a medium heat. Sauté the onion in the oil for approx. 5 minutes, until soft and translucent. Add the arborio rice and sauté for a further 5-10 minutes or until the rice is lightly toasted. Add a ladle of chicken stock to the rice every 5 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed, stirring constantly. This will take approx. 30-40 minutes. Once the rice mixture is creamy and the rice is just tender, add the sweetcorn, feta and chilli sauce.

3 Line a baking sheet with cling film and evenly spread the risotto in the tray. Place another sheet of cling film over and refrigerate for 1 hour. 4 Place one heaped tablespoon of risotto in the palm of your hand to shape into a ball. Repeat with the remaining risotto.

5 Whisk together the flour with 100ml of water until smooth. Spread the breadcrumbs on a plate or baking dish. 6 Roll the balls in the flour paste until fully coated then roll in the breadcrumbs.

7 Heat a pot of oil to 180°C. 8 Fry the arancini in batches of two or three at a time for approx. 3 minutes or until golden. Drain on paper towels. 9 Arrange the arancini

in the shape of number 9 on a platter, if desired, and serve hot.

8 INGREDIENT BAY LEAF AND BERRY PAVLOVA

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Serves: 6-8

For the Pavlova

280g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

3 SpinneysFOOD Bay Leaves

6 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

20g corn ﬂour

2 tsp white vinegar

For the topping

250ml cream

100g fresh raspberries

SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

1 Preheat the oven to 120°C, lowest gas mark setting. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 2 Place the sugar and bay leaves in a blender and blitz until fine. 3 Separate the egg yolks from the whites. 4 Place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk until soft peaks form. Gradually add the bay leaf sugar, beating well after each addition, until the meringue mixture is thick and glossy and the sugar has dissolved. Add the corn flour and vinegar and whisk until just combined. 5 Pile spoonfuls of the meringue onto the baking tray and, using a spatula, shape the meringue to form an 8-shape or 20cm mound. 6 Bake for 1 hour 30 minutes or until dry and crisp to the touch. Turn off the oven and allow the Pavlova to cool completely in the oven. 7 Place the cream in a bowl and whisk until soft peaks form. 8 Place the Pavlova on a cake stand or plate and top with the cream and berries. Dust with icing sugar and serve.

7 INGREDIENT MISO PRAWN TOASTS

Prep time: 10 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 20 minutes

Makes: 24 pieces

3 spring onions

6 slices SpinneysFOOD White Bread

400g prawns, peeled and cleaned

3 tbsp miso paste

3 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

3 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp SpinneysFOOD White Sesame Seeds

1 Rinse and finely chop the spring onions. Remove the crusts from the slices of bread.

2 Place the prawns, miso and 2 egg whites in a food processor and blitz to a paste. Stir in the spring onion. Scrape into a bowl, cover and chill for 30 minutes. 3 Brush one side of

each piece of bread with sesame oil. Spread the prawn mixture on top, taking it right to the edges of the bread. 4 Beat the remaining egg then brush it carefully over the top and sides of the prawn mixture and bread slices. Generously sprinkle with the sesame seeds so they stick all over. 5 Heat 2-3cm of oil in a deep frying pan until hot. Fry each piece of bread individually, plain-side down for 1½ minutes, then carefully turn over and fry for 1-2 minutes on the prawn paste side, or until the sesame seeds are golden and the prawn paste cooked through. 6 Slice each toast into four squares, arrange them all to form a 7 and serve.

6 INGREDIENT PEAR AND GOAT’S CHEESE TART

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Serves: 4

400g puff pastry

2 sprigs SpinneysFOOD Fresh Rosemary

3 ripe pears

200g goat’s cheese

4 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Organic Natural Honey

SpinneysFOOD Mediterranean Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for drizzling

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2 Unroll the puff pastry onto the sheet and cut into the shape of a 6 or a 30cm x 20cm rectangle. Prick the pastry all over with a fork, leaving a 1cm border around the edge. 3 Bake until the centre is golden-brown and puffed, approx. 8 minutes.

4 Once cooled, press down the centre to form the indent for the filling. 5 Meanwhile, finely chop the rosemary. Finely slice the pears. 6 Combine the goat’s cheese, rosemary and 2 tablespoons of the honey in a medium-sized bowl. Spread the cheese mixture inside the border of the puff pastry. Arrange the pear slices on the cheese.

7 Bake until the rim of the pastry is golden-brown, approx. 7 minutes. 8 Drizzle with the remaining honey and cool for 15 minutes before slicing.

9 Drizzle with olive oil and serve.

5 INGREDIENT FLOURLESS

CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH PASSION FRUIT

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 55 minutes

Serves: 6-8

250g salted butter, at room temperature

375g dark chocolate

440g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

7 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs, at room temperature 200ml passion fruit pulp

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4.

VEGGIE

3 ingredient chicken and za’atar triangles

2 ingredient cashew and harrisa dip

Grease or line a 20cm-round springform cake tin or a tin in the shape of a 5 with the equivalent capacity. 2 Melt and warm the butter in a medium-sized saucepan placed over a medium heat. Remove from the heat. Chop the dark chocolate. Add it to the butter and stir until melted. 3 Whisk in the sugar and eggs. 4 Pour into the cake tin and bake for 35-40 minutes – it should be barely set with a bit of a wobble in the middle. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely (it will fall and crack a little). 5 Carefully remove from the tin. Spread the passion fruit pulp on top, then continue to decorate as desired.

4 INGREDIENT CHEDDAR AND NIGELLA SEED CRACKERS

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Serves: 4-6

100g salted butter, chilled

75g SpinneysFOOD Grated Mature Cheddar

150g SpinneysFOOD Self-Raising Flour

2 tbsp nigella seeds

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Cube the chilled butter. 2 In a mixing bowl, crumble the grated cheese with your fingers to make it as fine as possible. Remove 25g and set aside. Add the flour to the cheese, followed by the butter, then bring it together with your fingers until a dough forms. 3 Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out to a thickness of approx. 5mm, then cut into the shape of a 4 or cut out 7cm rounds using a cookie cutter. 4 Place onto the baking tray, then sprinkle each biscuit with the reserved cheese and nigella seeds. 5 Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden, then allow to cool before serving.

3 INGREDIENT CHICKEN AND ZA’ATAR TRIANGLES

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Makes: 12

6 sheets phyllo pastry

500g chicken sausage

3 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Zaatar

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 2 Lay the phyllo out on a clean surface. Cut the phyllo into 7cm-wide long strips. 3 Remove the chicken sausage from its casing. 4 Place a walnut-sized amount at the bottom of the pastry strip. Sprinkle with a little za’atar then fold the corner over the filling to form a triangle. Keep folding from corner to corner to form a samosa shape. Secure the edge with some water. Sprinkle with more za’atar. Repeat with the remaining strips of pastry. 5 Place the triangles on the tray and bake for approx. 10 minutes or until golden. 6 Serve with labneh or a yoghurt dip, if desired.

2 INGREDIENT CASHEW AND HARRISA DIP

Prep time: 5 minutes (plus soaking time) Makes: 250ml

300g cashew nuts 3 tbsp harrisa paste

1 Add the cashews to a bowl and cover with hot water. Allow to soak for at least 10 minutes. 2 Drain the cashews and dispose of the water. 3 Add the cashews, harrisa paste and 3 tablespoons of water to a food processor or blender. Blitz until smooth. Add more water if you prefer a thinner dip. 4 Transfer the dip to a serving bowl.

1 INGREDIENT CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Prep time: 5 minutes (plus setting time) Cook time: 20 minutes Serves: 4-6

230g dark chocolate (70% cocoa)

1 Place 180ml of water and dark chocolate in a saucepan. Set the saucepan over a low heat. Stir continuously until the chocolate melts. 2 Pour into a glass or metal bowl. 3 Fill a large bowl with ice cubes. Place the bowl with the chocolate on top of the ice cubes. 4 Using an electric hand mixer or whisk, beat the chocloate mixture until it starts to thicken and forms soft peaks. 5 Immediately pour the mousse into a serving bowl or individual glasses and refrigerate. 6 Serve topped with silver, white and gold sprinkles, if desired.

VEGGIE

1 ingredient chocolate mousse

Little cooks

Santa and his reindeers are coming to town – the kids will love these treats!

Santa cupcakes

Rudolph marshmallow pops

SANTA CUPCAKES

Make the icing just before you serve the cupcakes.

Prep time: 35 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Makes: 12

For the Santa legs

240g red fondant

120g black fondant

120g white fondant

For the cupcakes

125g SpinneysFOOD Salted Butter

150g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

2 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

100g SpinneysFOOD Self-Raising Flour

1 tbsp cocoa powder

125ml SpinneysFOOD Full-Fat Milk

For the meringue icing

4 large egg whites

120g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

To serve Desiccated coconut

1 Divide the red fondant into 10g balls and shape into 24 small cylinders for the Santa legs. Divide the black fondant into 5g balls and shape into 24 boots. Divide the white fondant into 5g balls and flatten into rounds for the cuffs of the

VEGGIE

Strawberry Santa hats

pants. 2 Using a small toothpick, assemble the legs by pressing the legs onto the toothpick, then the cuff, then the boots – make sure to leave some of the toothpick untouched to press into the cupcake. 3 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a 12-hole muffin tin with gold foil cupcake wrappers. 4 Using an electric mixer, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla together until light and fluffy – approx. 8-10 minutes. Gradually add the eggs one at a time and beat well in between each addition. Sieve in the flour and cocoa and whisk in the milk. 5 Fill the cupcake wrappers 2⁄3 full. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden and a skewer comes out clean. Allow them to cool completely. 6 To make the icing, whisk the egg whites and sugar in a bowl over gently simmering water until hot to the touch. Remove from the heat. Using an electric mixer, whisk on high until soft, fluffy and completely cool. Add the vanilla extract, if using. 7 Using the back of a spoon or a palette knife, spread a layer of the icing onto each cupcake for a snow-like effect. Place the Santa legs in the cupcakes. 8 Serve with a sprinkle of desiccated coconut.

RUDOLPH

MARSHMALLOW

POPS

These make great decorations to place in a glass on the table.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Makes: 12

100g milk chocolate chips

12 marshmallows

24 pretzels

24 candy eyes

12 red M&M’s

12 lollipop sticks

1 Place the milk chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on low until melted. 2 Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 3 Thread a marshmallow onto each lollipop stick then dip them into the melted chocolate until completely coated. Shake off any excess chocolate and then place on the baking tray. 4 Place the remaining chocolate into a

piping bag. 5 Once the chocolate has hardened on the marshmallows, pipe chocolate onto the back of each marshmallow then attach two pretzels to form the antlers. Pipe two chocolate dots on the front of the marshmallows and attach the candy eyes. Pipe a dot of chocolate in the middle of the marshmallows and attach the M&Ms to make the noses. 6 Allow the marshmallows to sit until the chocolate has fully hardened then serve.

STRAWBERRY SANTA HATS

You can make this one large Santa hat by pouring the cheesecake mix into a 1½L microwave-safe dish and microwave for ﬁve to six minutes or until just set.

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Makes: 12

For the base

200g digestive biscuits

50g SpinneysFOOD Salted Butter

For the cheesecake mixture

1kg Greek-style yoghurt

1 x 387g tin condensed milk

1 lemon

To serve

250ml whipping cream

12 strawberries

1 Grease 4-6 microwave-safe ramekins or silicon moulds (if you want to unmould the cheesecakes). 2 To make the base, place the biscuits in a food processor and blitz to fine crumbs. Melt the butter and add it to the crushed biscuits. Pulse to combine. Press the biscuit mix evenly into the base of the ramekins. Chill until firm. 3 Combine the yoghurt and condensed milk in a large bowl. Zest and juice the lemon then add to the yoghurt mixture. Pour over the bases. 4 Microwave on high for 2-5 minutes or until set – the cheesecakes should jiggle slightly.5 Whip the cream and place in a piping bag fitted with a fluted nozzle. Pipe a ring around the edge of the cheesecakes.

6 Hull the strawberries and place cut-side down in the centre of the whipped cream and serve.

SANTA RASPBERRY PANCAKES

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Makes: 12

For the pancakes

250ml SpinneysFOOD Full Fat Milk

2 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs

25g SpinneysFOOD Salted Butter

225g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

2 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

For Santa’s face

100g strawberries

1 banana

50g SpinneysFOOD Blueberries

150g raspberries

1 Place the milk and eggs in a large bowl and mix until combined. Melt the butter then add to the milk and eggs, mix until well combined. Add the fl our, sugar, baking powder and salt to the milk mixture and whisk until well combined. 2 Place a large frying pan over a medium heat and grease with cooking spray. 3 Using a large spoon, add a generous dollop of batter to the pan in a circle to form Santa’s face. Allow the edges to set and bubbles to form on the surface, before fl ipping the pancake. Cook for a further 1 minute until golden brown. Repeat with the remaining batter. 4 To decorate Santa’s face, place the pancake on the lower half of a large plate. Remove the top of the strawberries and halve them. Arrange the strawberries in the shape of a hat over the top of the pancake. Slice the banana into rounds. Place one round in the centre of the pancake as the nose. Arrange the raspberries as Santa’s beard. Place two blueberries just above the nose for the eyes. Repeat the process with the remaining pancakes.

We have a range of Santa-themed treats this festive season.

Reese’s Advent Calendar

Cadbury Christmas Plush Stocking Selection

Cadbury Festive Friends Lovemore Gingerbread Santas

MooFree Selection Box

VEGGIE

TOP TIP!

Set the fruit out on the table and let the kids decorate their own Santa pancakes.

Santa raspberry pancakes

Live well

Baby Spice’s baby range, foodie and family travel and Helen Farmer on sustainable festive choices

Baby’s choice

Kit & Kin is committed to making kinder products, not just for babies’ skin, but also the planet. We find out more from co-founder Emma Bunton

The inspiration for your company came from your children – how and why?

Talk us through your business story from concept please?

Oh yes, it was definitely a personal experience for me. Both my kids suffered from eczema when they were little. It was so difficult to find natural products that didn’t cause them additional skin irritation. All we want as new parents is to protect our babies, so I found this incredibly disappointing. At the same time, I was concerned for the environment and the impact made by my everyday choices as a new mum. I knew I wasn’t alone in this, so I wanted to find a solution for other parents like myself. Once I was introduced to my co-founder Chris Money through a mutual friend, that was it and the idea of Kit & Kin was born. We use gentle, natural and sustainable materials and ingredients across all our products to make sure they are kind on even the most sensitive skin. Giving back is at the heart of Kit & Kin and every product we sell makes a difference through the Kit & Kin Foundation. It protects acres of rainforest and supports those living in the nearby communities, as well donating nappies locally.

Please can you give us an overview of your current range of products?

We’re all about making baby essentials that are better for babies and better for our world. Our range includes all the gentle, sustainable products that new parents need for their little ones. We’re probably best known for our hypoallergenic nappies. Did you know they’re the most accredited eco nappies on the planet?

Our nappy sacks are biodegradable, so are our 99 per cent water baby wipes. Alongside our eco nappy range we also have a complete range of reusable nappies, wipes and boosters. Other brands choose to provide either one or the other, but many of our parents mix our eco nappies and cloth nappies, which I think is amazing. Oh, and I could go on about our skincare all day. We have eight products for baby and for mum and they’re all certified natural by the Soil Association. The Bubble Bath and Baby Shampoo & Body Wash are firm favourites at our house – popular with the kids and the grown-ups. They are so gentle and leave our skin and hair feeling gorgeous. But my number one secret is our Magic Salve. It’s such a clever balm that calms, moisturises and helps clear up skin irritation anywhere on the body. It’s a miracle worker on dry lips! And finally, there’s our super soft and stylish baby wear. It’s all made from 100 per cent organic cotton. We put a lot of thought into the design of our onesies and included clever features to make them versatile pieces so babies can continue to wear them as they grow. And have you seen our bunny hat? I am obsessed with it.

The Kit & Kin factory has been carbon neutral since 2020 – why was this so important to you?

And what carbon saving ﬁgures are you proud of?

We are always trying to minimise our impact on the environment even more. So, becoming carbon neutral was the logical next step. We’ve already saved over 400 tonnes of greenhouse gases this way – the equivalent of driving a car around the world over 57 times! I’m so proud of this achievement. But we are not going to stop there. We’re now working hard towards becoming carbon negative.

Tell us more about your eco credentials across the range?

We use plant-based and sustainably sourced materials across our entire range. On top of being produced in a carbon-neutral factory, our nappies are also made using chlorine-free wood pulp from sustainably managed forests and water-based inks. The beautiful thing about using natural materials and ingredients is that they’re also extra-gentle. This means that our nappies are hypoallergenic, Dermatest-certified and approved by dermatologists. All our skincare is naturally nourishing, certified by the Soil Association and our clothing is made from 100 per cent organic cotton. And of course, everything in our range is cruelty-free. I think that using sustainable production methods and natural ingredients is fantastic, but giving back to the planet is even better. That’s why every Kit & Kin product helps protect acres of rainforest through the Kit & Kin Foundation.

The designs across your range are eye-catching and adorable – what made you choose certain characters, colours etc?

The animal prints reflect the fact that at Kit & Kin we care for not only your little world but also for the natural world around us, through our giving back programme. We wanted to create a nappy that not only provides premium performance, is sustainable and kind on sensitive skin but also one that stands out and is super cute! We played around with many different designs but as soon as we saw the animal faces on the bottom, we knew. They’re just so unique and really help our nappies stand out. Nappies might be an

everyday necessity but that doesn’t mean they can’t be fun and stylish.

Are you proud of the brand’s achievements thus far? And what is your goal for the brand?

I’m extremely proud of the 42 industry awards we have won but for me it’s always all about the giving back. When we turned five-years old, we worked out that we had protected thousands of acres of land and tens of thousands of trees through the Kit & Kin Foundation. I was just blown away when I heard these figures. This area will now be protected forever. It has already created millions of litres of water and locked in hundreds of thousands of tonnes of carbon and it’s home to some of the world’s most endangered species. I feel very protective of it. We’re now approaching our sixth birthday so I can’t wait to hear the updated figures.

We also help provide healthcare to the people in remote areas and as you can probably guess, I am all about empowerment. So it was important to me to play our part in making education more accessible. That’s why the Kit & Kin Foundation runs a scholarship scheme. We donate uniforms, materials, food and transport to kids who otherwise wouldn’t be able to attend school. If we continue to grow at our current rate, our positive impact on the planet will multiply. We’re already sold in over 30 countries, so we’re on the right path.

How will proceeds from sales in the UAE go towards giving back?

Gulf for Good is partnering with Little Birdy Group to raise funds for Kisoro Children’s Foundation, a Ugandan charity that supports mothers and babies in need. This fundraising initiative will be organised through the launch of Kit & Kin in the Middle East in early November. The funds raised will be used by Kisoro to pay for diapers that are purchased locally for babies at the foundation. Businesses and individuals will be invited to donate to the foundation during the event via YallaGive.

For more information, visit kitandkin.com and @kitandkinuk

OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Kit & Kin prides itself on creating products that are gentle, natural yet effective; the Magic Salve is Emma’s go-to solution to calm and moisturise irritated skin; Emma Bunton; gentle bath products are great for both kids and adults; co-founders Chris Money and Emma Bunton; nourishing skincare for mums; sustainably produced nappies with animal prints are symbolic of the brand’s commitment to the natural world.

Aussie eats

Heading to Sydney this festive season? Creative and content manager Tiffany Eslick and social media manager Ankiet Gulabani , who travel to eat, share their tips on the hottest chefs and tables there right now

Wooden shelves are laden with the likes of rhubarb and buckwheat bomboloni, almond and cumquat twice-baked croissants, Aleppo pepper and asiago cheese scrolls…

FOR GREAT BAKES

PiOik Shady and Rose Wasef are the Egyptian couple behind this, one of Sydney’s best bakeries. It’s open from Thursdays to Sundays, and only between 7am and 11am, so get in line first, or you’ll be queuing for your daily bread. For something beyond a loaf, try an airy potato focaccia or egg sandwich with rocket, Parmesan and tomato chutney.

ALL PURPOSE BAKERY aka A.P. Bakery, sits atop Surry Hills’ Paramount House Hotel. The space is essentially an all-weather rooftop terrace which is never not abuzz. Wooden shelves are laden with the likes of rhubarb and buckwheat bomboloni, almond and cumquat twice-baked croissants, Aleppo pepper and asiago cheese scrolls…we could go on! For heftier meals there’s an equally impressive everyday menu.

BOURKE STREET BAKERY Head to this iconic, hole-in-the wall café in leafy Surry Hills for a lamb, almond and harissa sausage roll followed by a ginger brûlée tart. Chances are you’ll be taking your order to go as there are a few sidewalk tables, but they fill up fast. We found a spot on the neighbours porch to devour our pastries – we’re not sure that’s really allowed!

FOR SEA VIEWS

NORTH BONDI FISH Helmed by Matt Moran –who is behind Aria and Chiswick (one of Tiff’s favourites), this sea-side spot on Bondi beach is busy throughout the day, from breakfast to sundowners. When we visited, Kepos Street Kitchen was hosting a pop-up serving its Middle Eastern cuisine. Their swordfish on stately skewers were scrumptious. They’ve gone, but

PAGE,

Matt’s new menu with tacos, sashimi and Crystal Bay prawns steamed in their shell with chilli and soft herbs sounds equally delicious.

FOR MODERN AUSTRALIAN COOKING

ESTER Kate Christou from LOWE in Dubai said we couldn’t miss this sophisticated yet unstuffy subtly-hip spot helmed by chef Mat Lindsay.

OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Lotus Dumpling Bar is a local hotspot for Chinese cuisine; Moreton Bay bugs with muntries at Ester; all products at PiOik Bakery are free of artificial flavours and colours; Josh Niland.

THIS PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Fish chorizo; head to Ester for innovative combinations; expect an explosion of flavours at Lotus Dumpling Bar.

FOLLOWING

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Potato bread with trout roe, dashi and keffir cream at Ester; it’s all about modern Vietnamese food at Kinhboy; Aiden Darling Harbour; Tiff and Ankiet.

His ever-evolving menu features innovative combinations like ricotta gnuddi, whey sauce, sesame and saltbush or Treviso with blood orange and goat’s curd. Presentation is simple yet striking – like Mat’s malawach (flatbreads) which are effortlessly wrapped in tuna and anchovy like an exquisite gift. The Moreton Bay bug with muntries (small native fruits) and herbs is worth ordering to savour Aussie ingredients alone. And the Murray cod forequarter with native tamarind that’s cooked over woodfire was so moreishly meaty and tangy.

SAINT PETER If you don’t know the name Josh Niland – a multi-award-winning chef, restaurateur and author – please Google him. When it comes to fish, he’s pioneered a nose-to-tale ethos. And his ethical, sustainable and revolutionary approach is acknowledged globally. Saint Peter is his petite place in Paddington, which is set to move sometime in 2023, so make a reservation and get there fast! Even if you don’t like seafood – try it, because the way Josh transforms fishy bits is incredible. Like his ‘chorizo’ with Gentlemen’s relish, which is pure magic.

You’ll sit at a marble bar counter, overlooking a small open kitchen. Take your time and enjoy rounds of small plates. We’re still thinking about hand-filleted sardines in a bergamot olive oil and fried potato brioche with taramasalata and trout roe. Oh, and the Bouillabaisse!

POLY From the group behind Ester, this grape bar-meets-restaurant is known for its delicious small plates and casual atmosphere. There’s nothing remarkable about the space itself with its industrial brick interiors, but rich jazz tunes, an extensive beverage list and an ever-evolving menu make it a favourite of the arty Surry Hill locals. We recommend the smoked beetroot with candied walnuts, an ingenious hash brown with a creamy texture topped with salted egg yolk and the indulgent crema Catalana with Meyer lemon and coffee to finish.

FOR ITALIAN

REGAZZI We braved Sydney’s winter rain for 30 minutes before a spot opened up at what must be the hottest ticket in town. Inside, this joint is cosy enough for a date night but it could double as a lively choice to bring colleagues to after work. The salt cod and potato pansotti was a great way to begin. Next was the Ligurian-style ravioli, which arrived floating in a buttery sauce, topped with a few spoonfuls of pistachio salsa. The pasta was delicate, not over packed and we had extra bread to mop up the sauce. We left Ragazzi with tote bags that say ‘Cacio e Pepe’ and a sense that these guys take their food seriously.

FOR ASIAN

LOTUS DUMPLING BAR To start, order dumplings – whether steamed, blanched or pan-fried – at

popular pre-theatre Chinese spot in Walsh Bay. Then, have the shallot pancakes, addictive crispy eggplant coated in a lip-smackingly good honey and chilli sauce PLUS the lotus fried rice with duck and asparagus. For people watching, choose a street-side table. If it’s more of a dimlylit ambiance you’re after – head indoors.

KINHBOY The vibe at this restaurant in Redfern is all about modern Vietnamese food served with soul and a side of humour – such as the neon LED sign ‘Pho King Amazing’ which greets you upon entry. It’s tempting to order a lot here – these three dishes stood out for us: truffled mushroom fuh (pho) with real depth of flavour; corn ribs with sweet soy, coconut oil, togarashi and macadamia snow and the fresh tofu rice paper rolls with slaw, herbs and yuzu miso sauce.

WHERE TO stay

AIDEN DARLING HARBOUR

Housed in a 1930s Art Deco building on the cusp of Darling Harbour and Pyrmont, this boutique hotel is conveniently located. It’s within walking distance of designer shopping boutiques, galleries, museums, the aquarium and, most importantly, the Sydney Fish Market and charming cafés – like PiOik and The Quick Brown Fox, which does a special chef’s congee and a great chermoula green bowl. There’s a lot we liked about this hotel. Firstly, the self-check in – who wants to speak to anyone after a long-haul flight anyway? On-tap complimentary still and sparkling water stations kept us hydrated. Tiff appreciated the Dyson Supersonic hairdryer. Ankiet loved the wireless phone charger. And we both thought the smashed avo on sourdough with cream cheese and dukkah at the hotel’s Wayfarer’s Bar and Café was good.

Cheese the day

Our digital content creator Reema Rahman recently visited France’s Franche-Comté and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions for the cheesiest trip of her

life

When you’re invited by the French Dairy Board and the French Ministry of Agriculture to learn about, discover – and most importantly, taste – artisanal French cheeses, you say yes. Or in this case, oui.

DAY 1

Flying from Dubai to Lyon in France’s Auvergne-RhôneAlpes region, our trip began with a picturesque three-and-a-half hour drive to France’s second-largest fortress, Fort des Rousses, in the heart of Les Rousses’ Haut-Jura Regional Natural Park. Here, Comté is aged by Juraflore, a family-run cheese empire created by legendary affineur Jean-Charles Arnaud.

Home to the most incredible quantity of cheese we’ve ever seen – some 160,000 wheels, each wheel weighing around 45 kilogrammes (that’s approximately 7,200,000 kilogrammes worth of Comté!), Jean-Charles along with François Robin, cheese expert extraordinaire and our unofficial tour guide for the entirety of the trip, took us on a fascinating private excursion, sharing with us stories passed down from three generations of cheesemongers.

With Fort des Rousses contributing to 25 per cent of France’s Comté production, the craftsmanship, dedication and passion exhibited by Jean-Charles is admirable.

“You must respect the cheese,” he tells us as he gently knocks a year-old Comté to listen to its sound. “A cheese master must use all five senses to check the quality of the cheese they’re producing,” he adds.

After touring the maze-like cheese caves and sampling three rich and complex Comtés (aged 18, 24 and 36

THIS PAGE, FROM LEFT: Cheesemonger Pierre Gay; the Thiou, one of the smallest rivers in France, flows through the old town and several districts of Annecy; just one of the many Comté cheese caves at Fort des Rousse.

OPPOSITE PAGE, FROM TOP: A selection of cheeses available at Fromagerie Pierre Gay; François Robin, cheese expert extraordinaire and our unofficial tour guide; the beautiful ‘Mousse de Beaufort dans l’esprit des Alpages’ made by Chef Jean Sulpice.

months) with Jean-Charles (who has tasted over one million different Comté varieties in his lifetime!) we make our way to a fifth-generation organic dairy farm in Jura, which produces the milk Jean-Charles and his team use to make the delicious Comté we had just sampled.

“It’s magical to imagine that with just a glass of milk, you can achieve so many different types of cheeses,” says François, as we explore the sprawling farm. With 60 Montbéliarde cows delivering over 400,000 litres of milk per year, the quality of cheese depends on the quality of milk and everyday samples are taken and analysed. The cows happily graze on natural hay that’s stored to keep its nutrition as well as fragrant yellow alpine flowers which add to the cheeses’ mellow colour.

After an overload of information, a belly full of some of the finest Comté possible and some 15,000 steps later, we end the first day of our cheese trip in the best possible way – at a quaint chalet-like restaurant with cheese fondue for dinner.

DAY 2

The second day of what is quite possibly the best trip any cheese enthusiast could take begins bright and early with a 7am start. Caffeinated and primed for day two, we ventured to Fromagerie du Haut Jura to explore more cheese caves and discover just how Comté and Bleu de Gex (blue cheese) are produced. After an in-depth demonstration and more cheese tasting, we began the next leg of the trip to the ‘Venice of the French Alps’: Annecy in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France.

Just a short drive from Geneva and known for its cobbled streets, meandering canals and charming boutique shops, it’s not hard to see why Annecy is often referred to as the jewel of the Haute-Savoie. After a light lunch at Brasserie Irma (of Paul Bocuse fame), we’re taken on a tour around the Vieille Ville, or old town, with François showing us some of his favourite places including artisan fromager Alain Michel, specialist grocer Saveurs d’ici et là and Glacier des Alpes where we queued for a scoop of the best ice cream in Annecy, followed by supper at Michelin Guide bistro Brasserie Brunet.

DAY 3

After a breakfast of freshly baked, buttery viennoiseries, we walked to Fromagerie Pierre Gay, which was founded in 1935, for a Fontainebleau and cheeseboard-making workshop. Arriving at the Annecy institution, we’re greeted

MUST-TRY CHEESES

COMTÉ

Did you know that it takes between 400-500 litres of milk to produce just one wheel of Comté of approx. 50 kilogrammes? Mild, balanced and moreish, it’s the most widely produced PDO (Protected Designation of origin) cheese in terms of volume. The older the stronger, but with Comté, the older the more complex.

BLEU DE GEX

Robust in flavour, Blue de Gex is perfect for melting on top of a juicy burger. It takes 60-65 litres of milk to produce 6-7 kilogrammes of blue cheese and a minimum of 21 days to age – the younger the cheese, the creamier and lighter in taste.

REBLOCHON

Reblochon is just one of those life-changing cheeses. Made with unpasteurised cow’s milk and considered a semi-soft cheese, its taste is creamy and mild with an intense nutty aftertaste.

BEAUFORT

One of the finest French mountain cheeses from the Savoie, and easily recognisable by its concave heel, Beaufort is stronger than Comté, but equally delicious.

by Pierre Gay, who has been running his grandparents fromagerie since 1982.

Pierre, who like François, was awarded a ‘Meilleur Ouvrier de France’ in 2011 (a title awarded in France by trade category in a competition between professionals), and prides himself on only selecting the very best Savoyard cheeses to be sold in his shop. From Reblochon to Beaufort, the cheeses on offer are exquisite (and fun fact, he purchases 600 45 kilogramme wheels of Comté per year).

Along with his wife and business partner Sophie, Pierre showed us how to curate the perfect cheeseboard. Echoing a similar sentiment to Jean-Charles, Sophie explained how it’s important to respect the cheeses and waste as little as possible.

With our Pierre Gay-approved cheeseboard and Fontainebleau desserts prepared, we ventured to another third-generation business; apple and pear plantation Vergers Tissot, for a picnic and Savoie grape pairing workshop in the middle of the picture-ready orchards.

DAY 4

With cheese still on the mind, we started day four with a drive to the village of Talloires by Lake Annecy to visit L’Auberge du Père Bise.

Helmed by Jean Sulpice – the youngest French chef to ever receive a Michelin Star at just 26 years old (and his second at 31) – we were given an exclusive demonstration, preparing the most deliciously rich ‘Mousse de Beaufort dans l’esprit des Alpages’ made using cream and Beaufort, or as chef Jean Sulpice refers to it as, ‘The king of Gruyère’.

After an exquisite meal at Sulpice’s other restaurant, Le 1903, we resumed day four with a trip to Schmidhauser, another generational family-run business of cheesemakers producing Tomme de Savoie, Reblochon and Beaufort.

With our minds brimming with all things fromage, we headed back to the Vieille Ville for an afternoon of exploring before ending the day with dinner at Bon Pain Bon Vin – an ultra-trendy restobar specialising in tapas-style French dishes.

DAY 5

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end and it’s sadly the last day of our epic jaunt across the Franche-Comté and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions.

Before our journey back to Lyon, we drove to the Chartreuse Mountains range to visit family-run cheese manufacturer Ferme de Plantimay. Specialising in unpasteurised cheeses such as goat’s cheese, faisselle, Saint-Marcellin IGP and Tomme de Chartreuse, we were given a tour through the cheese caves and farm where we met 100 goats, 60 cows and one tabby cat.

Staying true to the nature of the trip, our final day ended with one last cheese tasting and a special visit to Fromagerie Tête d’Or from Les Frères Marchand group in Lyon with Patrice, one of the three Marchand brothers, showing us the impressive selection, explaining each type with expertise.

After five jam-packed days of cheese tastings, stories, facts, cheese caves, learning all about the fascinating French cheese industry, and a million and one memories later, it’s time to say au revoir.

With a suitcase full of artisanal cheeses and enough knowledge to give François a run for his money, I boarded the plane – already planning my next cheese night.

OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP

LEFT: Fine

Magnificent Marbella

Seventy-two years after its debut in Spain, premium all-inclusive family holiday provider, Club Med has returned to the country with the launch of Andalusian-inspired Club Med Magna Marbella: a sanctuary for families, epicureans and sports buffs

The way to Marbella from Malaga’s Costa del Sol airport feels like flipping through a catalogue of postcards. Limestone-clad beachfront houses poke through clusters of leafy trees. The sun is on watch duty, keeping sunbathers warm as they doze off to the ebb and flow of the Mediterranean Sea. Kite surfers dot the glistening water, putting on a show for locals and holidaymakers alike.

A little over 50 minutes into the scenic journey, the road takes you to Marbella’s inner artery, exposing lush high grounds at the foot of the picturesque Sierra Blanca mountains. Atop one of the hills sits Andalusia’s newest resort – and a ticket to your dream holiday destination – Club Med Magna Marbella.

ONE WITH NATURE

Located on acres of protected land, Club Med Magna Marbella lives in a remodelled helixshaped building with an interior inspired by the region’s heritage. A go-to getaway for families, the resort is a cultural, culinary and communal sanctuary complete with Club Med’s archetypal convenience and service excellence.

It has 485 multi-tiered rooms, including connecting rooms for families, five swimming areas and round-the-clock assistance courtesy of an army of fun and energetic hosts and hostesses whose sole mission is to help you make the most of your stay.

On its way to getting Green Globe-certified like its global contemporaries, the resort uses rainfall for its irrigation systems and solar

panels to generate energy. It also follows a zero single-use plastic policy, thanks to its ‘Bye Bye Plastics’ programme.

SEEK, AND YOU SHALL EAT

Travel and training are the driving force behind Club Med’s seven-decade-long F&B success.

“It’s a school of life,” explains hospitality and leisure director Guillaume Radius. “Our chefs have grown with us and experienced different cultures, cuisines and lifestyles through travel, acquiring the necessary knowledge and expertise to cater to our guests’ needs while infusing their personal touch.”

And as is the case for its other locations worldwide, the resort offers a glocal approach to food with a focus on sustainability.

THIS PAGE: Sweeping vistas of the coastline from Club Med Magna Marbella.

dining at Tierra Gourmet Lounge; the Zen Zone’s pool is a child-free space; the Alhambra palace and fort complex; padron peppers; atmospheric alleys in Marbella’s old town; try your hand at padel tennis at the resort.

“We source 70 per cent of our products locally, which means our guests can discover the region’s rich offering while we support the economy,” says Guillaume. “We base our recipes on the availability of local produce, not the other way around.”

Whether it’s eggs, yoghurt, pancakes and seasonal fruit for breakfast; tapas, pasta, salads and steak frites for lunch, or ceviche, beef tartare, oysters and foie gras for dinner, the resort’s main dining outlet – and live-cooking hall – Sueños is a place of culinary opulence and personalised eating.

Alternatively, Tierra Gourmet Lounge offers all-day à la carte dining in an intimate setting. The sweeping coastal vistas, extending to neighbouring Morocco, and the restaurant’s live music create the backdrop for indulgent meal of creamy seafood paella and melt-in-the-mouth côte de boeuf.

GUILLAUME RECOMMENDS...

In the mood for an authentic Andalusian feast? Guillaume suggests the ensalada malagueña (salt cod salad with potatoes and sliced orange), rabo de toro (braised oxtail stew) and tocio de cielo (a traditional flan-like caramel custard).

Cue the sobremesa, which translates to ‘upon the table’, a Spanish tradition of relaxing at the table after a big meal.

WORKING OUT AND WINDING DOWN

In true Club Med fashion, countless sports, leisure and entertainment activities are available year-round.

Challenge your friends and family to a game of padel on one of the resort’s six courts, stretch your muscles in an invigorating pilates session, or practise your golf swing on the manicured driving range with the Sierra Blanca as your backdrop. Children can join in on the fun at the family fun zone play area, unleash their creativity at any of the resort’s three kids clubs or hop on an educational family excursion to learn about the environment.

Other activities include beach volleyball, tennis, archery, circus and trapeze school, basketball, yoga and ping pong, including lessons for all ages on select sports.

If relaxing and becoming one with nature sounds more appealing to you, head to the Zen Zone’s adults-only pool for some downtime or enjoy celebrity-worthy spa treatments at the Club Med Spa by Cinq Mondes.

Come sundown, get ready for social evenings at one of Club Med’s emblematic parties.

“Our staples include our garden parties and post-padel tournament parties where we’ll have food, drinks and entertainment,” says Guillaume. “We also host food-focused events every day around the Rouge Bar.”

All scheduling, dress code and booking details are available on the resort’s bespoke mobile app.

GO BEYOND

Marbella’s picturesque old town is a 30-minute walk from the resort. Its winding cobbled alleys hold secrets of Renaissance-era buildings and hole-in-the-wall stores from where you can pick up any number of handmade souvenirs. Don’t miss the historic Iglesia Mayor de la Encarnación, a church dating to the 15th century while you’re out and about. The lively Plaza de los Naranjos’ (Orange Square), lined with numerous open-air cafés and tapas bars, is an excellent place to rest after a day of exploring.

For more information, visit dnatatravel.com or get in touch at +971 04 389 8407 or stop by the store.

5 WAYS TO AN ECO-FRIENDLY festive season

Whether you’re looking at your cost of living or have the planet as a priority, here are HELEN FARMER’s suggestions to prevent wastage during Christmas

THE TREE

It’s an ongoing debate – real vs fake? Which is better for the environment? Research suggests that you’d have to reuse your artificial tree 20 times for it to be greener than that sweet-smelling fir. Ideally, try to compost your real one come January, and Spinneys is offering a collection service to make it easier on you. Alternatively, if your aesthetic or lifestyle requires you to fake it, look for a classic you could reuse – Spinneys offers big and small trees to suit every home. In terms of decorations, the most sustainable way to make that tree sparkle is with LED lights and decorations that you recycle every year.

WHAT TO EAT

There’s something about Christmas that has people shopping like the apocalypse is coming, which often results in a fridge of uneaten leftovers that inevitably get chucked out. Planning for meals, days and number of guests means you’ll buy less to begin with, and if you really do need a lot, try to eat everything in your freezer to free up some space. Where your items are coming from is just as important and choosing local makes a big difference to those food miles, from opting for veggies grown in the UAE to Dibba Bay oysters.

GIFTS

There might be something breath-taking about a bounty of beautifully wrapped gifts under the tree, but landfills typically see a spike after the holidays, from cards to unwanted presents. Be mindful that everything you buy affects surrounding ecosystems: it takes energy, natural resources and raw materials such as trees or fossil fuels to manufacture what you see on the shelf, be it IRL or virtual.

In terms of wrapping, gift wrap isn’t easy to recycle, so try to swap these out for squares of fabric, brown paper (get the kids involved in rubber stamping designs) and reusable gift bags. Take it a step further and turn last year’s cards into this year’s tags.

WHAT TO WEAR

Break out the sequins, it’s Christmas! As tempting as it is to add another shimmering number to your closet, your price per wear is going to be very high on statement pieces such as this. Also, most brands use PVC sequins and they are not biodegradable. If you’d like something new, host a pre-party season swap night with friends, or check out a variety of at pre-loved items at Retold (shopretold.com) or Thrift For Good (thriftforgood.org)

FINISHING TOUCHES

Kids and teens alike love the thrill of a little daily treat courtesy of an advent calendar. Buying one that you can reuse significantly reduces waste and you can get a bit more creative, with sweets or handwritten notes and count down consciously.

And when it comes to dining, try to skip the disposables and have fabric napkins, tablecloths and runners that can be washed and reused. Above all, this is really a time for family and connection, so try not to lose the true meaning in the madness and you can’t go wrong.

DON’T MISS

Listen out for Farmer’s Kitchen on Dubai Eye103.8FM in collaboration with Spinneys. It airs from 2-5pm on Fridays.

RECIPE INDEX

STARTERS, SOUPS, SALADS & SIDES

Turkey salad with clementine dressing 25

Grape and gorgonzola crispy sharing flatbreads with walnuts 26

Crispy Parmesan-crumbed Brussels sprouts with smoky aioli 27

Tomato and crispy crouton salad with capers 28

Fried Anna potatoes with salsa verde 29

Lamb, cranberry and walnut pastry wreaths 50

Brown-butter leeks with toasted hazelnuts and sage 67

Crispy sage and lemon roast potatoes 70

Asparagus and green bean salad with parsley-anchovy dressing 70

Rosemary hasselback butternut with honey 72

Brussels sprouts with pine nuts and thyme 72

Berbere roasted pistachios 76

Vegetable terrine 84

Glazed carrots 84

Classic prawn cocktail 90

Parmesan and mushroom vol-au-vents 90

Piped duchess potatoes 92

Ash-e-anar (pomegranate soup) 99

10 ingredient snack platter 105

9 ingredient sweetcorn and feta arancini 105

7 ingredient miso prawn toasts 105

3 ingredient chicken and za’atar triangles 108

CONDIMENTS

Coriander and mint chutney 53

Get-ahead gravy 53

Home-made fresh mint jelly 72

Hazelnut praline spread 77

2 ingredient cashew and harissa dip 108

DRINKS

Spiced apple cider 12

Flavoured non-alcoholic vodka 19

MAINS

Aubergine, coconut and peanut curry 40

Pull-apart Caprese sliders 41

Chicken and vegetable crispy wontons 42

Ricotta, spinach and sage baked gnocchi 43

Mushroom bake with tahini crust 44

Confit duck with star anise cherry sauce 50

Lemon, garlic and thyme

butter-roasted chicken 67

Middle-Eastern nut roast 76

Gingerbread-rubbed roast beef 80

Gingerbread-stuffed duck with maple glaze 80

Classic glazed turkey 84

Mustard crusted lamb crown roast 90

Smoked salmon mousse with dill 90

BREAKFAST & BRUNCH

Coconut crumpets with vanilla crème fraîche and salted caramel

Courgette waffles with smoked salmon, crispy fried eggs and caviar

Mini apple and blue cheese galettes

Butter-poached lobster Benedict

Gingerbread men granola

raspberry pancakes

BAKED GOODS & DESSERTS Christmas cake rusks

strudel

Make-ahead mince pies

ultimate Christmas cake

frosting

Forest Christmas cake

Spiced fruit cake with rose water icing

Brown sugar and orange pecan brittle

Gingerbread meringues

Rose water, coconut and orange blossom moulded jelly

Sundried tomato pesto pinwheels

Melba trifle

Upside down pineapple cake

Mocha croquembouche

Sharing mince pie tart

Lemon and raspberry panettone and butter

Baklava brioche

8 ingredient bay leaf and berry Pavlova

6 ingredient pear and goat’s cheese tart

5 ingredient flourless chocolate cake with passion fruit

4 ingredient Cheddar and Nigella seed crackers

1 ingredient chocolate mousse

*Lavazza is not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by Nespresso. **Lavazza offsets the CO2 emissions of this product. Discover our commitment on: www.lavazza.com/co2impact.