Italian sharing platter style wedding menu tasting in Cheltenham

Sharing platters seem to be the new thing for 2014 weddings - we have had so many enquiries. It's great for a more informal feel - everyone shares platters around the table which gets them all talking and it feels more like a family meal rather than a corporate event. Also rather than a traditional buffet it means nobody has to get up from the table - much easier. I have a large collection of vintage platters which we use - each plate has a story......

This couple in Cheltenham wanted an Italian theme menu for their wedding tasting - my favourite. This is what we came up with together......

Canapes
Smoked salmon with marsacpone and rocket
Asparagus spears wrapped in parma ham

Canape spinach and pine nut stuffed mushrooms. Originally we had suggested the idea of using the mushrooms instead of bread as a pizza base - then changed it to this. 

Canape breaded mozzarella bites (with panko breadcrumbs)

Starter platter of grilled vegetables and Italian style cured meats with ricotta stuffed peppadew peppers and caper berries 

Italian style cheese platter - gorgonzola, taleggio, buffalo mozarella, parmesan, Italian goats cheese

Saffron arancini, fresh anchovies, olives and grilled halloumi. Originally part of the antipasti we decided it worked as canapes. 

Baked chicken marinated in balsamic, fresh thyme and oregano

Italian style butterflied roasted leg of lamb

Melanzane Parmigiana from Ms Marmitelover's book. They liked it so much it all disappeared and rather than just having it as a vegetarian choice they decided to have it more as a main course accompaniment for everyone. 

Peaches baked in marsala topped with amaretti biscuits - sometimes the simple things are the best. They loved them! Served with vanilla marscapone

Zucotto. This was a recipe I saw while having lunch the day before (no time is wasted). On the outside is lemon drizzle cake, inside vanilla cream with raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. Then it is pressed and turned out and coated in white chocolate ganache and sprinkled with coconut. Absolute dessert heaven!
There was also tirimisu cheesecake - amaretti biscuits as a base, coffee and amaretto cheesecake filling, whipped vanilla cream and chocolate on top.
I also had mini lemon tarts and prosecco jelly from another party the night before so served these as well. They might go for all 5 as small versions. 

What a feast this will be!

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Crown of lamb with red rice stuffing

A 40th birthday from the 1st December near Stratford on Avon. I had been trying to tempt people with the idea of a crown of lamb for ages - finally we did one for this party. 

 They wanted a lighter starter so this is what we came up with:

Salad of watercress, poached pear, parmesan and toasted hazelnuts with hazelnut dressing

Crown of lamb raw in the morning - based a little bit on this recipe

Cooked and ready to go - we carved this at the table infront of the guests - it makes quite a wow dish as it is taken to the table - the whole point is it has to be served whole. Served with dauphinoise potato and vegetable accompaniments. 

Then, as we were preparing their assiette of desserts, there was a odd noise coming from the living room, like a window had blown opened and something was blowing in the wind. Alas, it was just their pet hamster going full steam ahead on the wheel.......

Dogs, birds, cats, snakes, lizards, stick insects, goats, horses, sheep, gineau pigs, rabbits, chickens, geese, ducks, fish, rats, tortoises - you name it we've  worked along side it. Sometimes chased/ pecked by them too!

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Curry night! Chicken passanda & lamb madras with soda naan bread, bhajis, kachumber & pilaf rice

Chicken passanda - based on this recipe, but loads of other things from the spice shelf added as well to taste.  

Madras powder for making lamb madras using this recipe souped up at the end with a bit of this, bit of that.
Toasting whole spices, then grinding them  - it 's the secret to  real flavour. The curry powder you buy ready made is so dull in comparison. You roll the raw diced meat in this powder then leave it to marinade overnight in the fridge. 

Cucumber, tomato and pomegranate kachumber - a recipe from  Ms Marmitelover's  Eat Pray Love press night which I helped out with last year

Soda naan bread (using this recipe) - with one guest having an onion and yeast allergy it meant everything being made in 2 batches - apart from the naan bread which we made all soda. Actually first time I'd made naan bread - something you keep putting off, but then realise how easy it is, and how many million times better it tastes than a brought version. 

Looking back now it all looks a similar colour - but this is without the lamb madras, slightly darker. This is everything they had asked for - but colourwise it's something worth thinking about for next time......

Pilaff rice from the rice cooker (essential piece of kitchen equipment)

Onion bhaji - a combination of this recipe and this one.

Bombay aloo - using this recipe with a few added extras including tomato coulis

Sweetcorn pakora - adapting this recipe

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Country feast barbecue wedding catering with yurts near Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire

Marquee weddings - all very nice, but if you're after a wow factor is has to be a yurt. This was a wedding we catered for back at the beginning of June - a whole lifetime ago, but only if you measure in terms of food.

Yurts came from Yurts for Life - the one above was a separate children's tent - with a couple of entertainers keeping the children happy while the adults grazed on canapés by the lake. They had their own much larger yurt (in the background below).

To help keep the budget down we brought along our own gazebo to turn into a field kitchen.

Scallops wrapped in pancetta the night before

Thai style fish and fishless cakes (cheese, onion and sage)

Barbecue with a view. Sausages from Home Farm about 2 miles away as the crow flies made from their Gloucester Old Spot/ Berkshire breed pigs. Trying to get everything cooked before the rain set in....... 

Herby Madgetts Farm chicken wrapped asparagus  - see recipe link here

Harissa marinaded Home Farm lamb steaks and burgers too - keeping it local with real food!

Salad of grilled butternut squash, rocket, pommegranate, orange and  toasted almonds

Nicoise salad

There was also cous cous. We served all this on platters/ bowls which the waitresses tiook to the tables for guests to serve themselves family style - a great way to get everyone talking & make a more informal atmosphere.

Tomatoes - local are best - grown about 6 miles away from the wedding

Eton mess served in learge bowls one per table. Strawberries grown in the next door county (Herefordshire)

We made the eton mess a larger version of the shotglass eton mess below served at a dinner party a few months ago - i.e. separate. Halved/ quartered strawberries with strawberry coulis at the bottom, whipped cream with vanilla piped on top and crushed meringue on top. Looks much better I think when you mix it yourself at the table as you eat.

We also made large lemon tarts - again for guests to share at the table. What a feast! 

And after all this? It was time for a late night hog roast with guests - which became quite welcome as guests sheltered from the rain which fell later on in the evening (lovely British summer......)

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Tarragon poached chicken, butterflied leg of lamb and prawn, monkfish and squid kebabs - catering for a barbecue wedding near Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire

At last - a wedding where it didn't rain while we were loading & unloading - wahoo! 

The lake at Upper Court - makes a great backdrop to your wedding breakfast!

The previous week on Stow on the Wold cricket field we had been caked in mud, wet through and that was just in the first five minutes of arriving - pushing 2 vans (arriving and departing) through the mud was most.... er.... memorable. The next wedding the day after at Chavenage House we had fared slightly better because they had moved the siting of the marquee right next to the house. That was until it came to packing up in the evening and once again we were deluged. Always helps to have a good set of waterproofs and waterproof kitchen shoes. Good job we love it!

Tarragon poached chicken on the barbecue 

 This weekend just gone - perfect. The sun even came out as the guests arrived back from the church next door. Note the straw in the background though - soaking up the mud around the entrance - all the ground so waterlogged now - that'll be the great English summer.

Here is how the chicken started off the night before (below). We batted it out, filled it with chicken and tarragon mousse (chicken, egg white, cream, salt, pepper, tarragon), sprinkled on a bit more chopped tarragon for good luck and rolled it up,

Then skewered it to hold it in place and poached it in court bouillon with the tarragon stalks.

Once poached it was left to cool down, then one the day itself I just cut it into 3 and gave them a grilling on the barbecue.
The bride had said she wanted chicken, but it had to be moist - chicken can dry out easily on BBQ if you cook it too much. Poached like this you not only get a lot more flavour in there, but it also stays nice and moist.

Tiger prawn, monkfish and squid skewers marinaded in chilli, ginger, garlic, coriander, lemon, mint, turmeric and yogurt

What a revelation these were - maybe you can't see in pic above, but the turmeric gives them an amazing yellowy colour. A couple of minutes on each side with a dusting of flour to stop them sticking and they're cooked perfectly. And the monkfish is one of the best fish to barbecue because it is so meaty and doesn't fall apart like cod, and tiger prawns - well everyone loves those!

Butterflied leg of lamb marinaded in lemon, garlic and cumin yogurt (with a lone kebab tester)  

"Is there anything else we can do than lamb steaks?" asked the bride. We eventually rested on the idea of butterflied leg of lamb - which I then carved on the buffet as guests came along - the inside of the lamb perfectly pink (although there were a few well done bits for the guests who preferred it that way). Lamb as usual came from Home Farm - around 2 miles as the crow flies from the where we were serving it. 5 legs and every last bit went - very popular!

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Gift voucher for a dinner party cooked in your home (2)

"I was looking for an unusual gift voucher..... and found yours...."  That was 4 years ago. The lady buying the voucher was buying it for her sisters birthday - you can see the meal we cooked for her here. She enjoyed it so much she in turn brought a gift voucher for her brother which I served a month ago near Bath. Keep it in the family!

Blacksticks Blue cheesecake and the ever popular smoked salmon blinis

When you live in Britain you have to make the most of those balmy evenings - and this was one! The guests gathered outside on the terrace for drinks and canapés while they watched their meal come together in the kitchen.

Trio of smoked trout - Ballottine of salmon wrapped in smoked trout, smoked trout tartare and smoked trout fillet on courgette carpaccio

Smoking the trout fillet before I left - this is something you can't do at the venue - who wants the smoke billowing through their house?

Honey and lavender marinated leg of lamb

Leg of lamb for the main course - marinated in honey, lavender, soy, grain mustard, five spice and a few secret ingredients. Served with crushed Jersey royals - just coming into season at that time

Salad of grilled butternut squash, asparagus, feta and pomegranate with lime and olive oil dressing 

The good thing about large desserts you can serve yourself at the table is you take as much as you like! And of course you get left overs for the next day - they had a barbecue the next day.

Large passionfruit panna cotta - see 'recipe' here

Large apple tarte tatin - it was virtually demolished!

 See more info on our gift vouchers here.

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Gift voucher for a dinner party cooked in your home (1)

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