Christmas sandwich and cake buffet for an office party

Chocolate log
Turkey, red pepper, spinach and cream cheese Christmas tree
Smoked salmon and cucumber Christmas trees
Beef, rocket & horseradish snowmen
Oreo white chocolate baubles

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Pesto recipe

What is it suddenly about guests asking for recipes? Must be  doing something right - lots of them keep asking atm, even when you're in the middle of serving 82 covers (not quite the right time).

Nettle and chorizo risotto with grilled scallops and nettle pesto

If you're a purist you believe in only basil pesto. Go beyond the boundaries, however, and in Pestoland there are as many variations as you can dream up: beetroot, parsley, nettle, walnut, tarragon, pistachio, red pepper, sun dried tomato, kale, pumpkin seeds, courgette, even sweetcorn (apparently). Take a look at some here!

Pine nuts or Cashews?

If you look at the ingredients on a jar of shop brought pesto you'll often see cashews on there. Pine nuts are one of the most expensive nuts so they add cashews to lower the price. Adding cashews also gives you a smoother flavour. It really depends how you want it to taste. 

You can use plenty of other nuts as well - pistachios (if you're feeling decadent), walnuts, brazil nuts, almonds etc.    

Top tips to a good pesto? 

• Extra virgin olive oil can be a little strong & pungent for pesto - if using extra virgin consider using 1/2 and 1/2 with vegetable oil or low grade olive oil to tone it down. 
• Like a good stew, pesto seems to taste better the next day when all the flavours have developed. 
• If you want to keep it for a few weeks in the fridge transfer to a jar. Add oil so the herb/ nut body of the pesto is covered - this prevents the air getting to it and it will keep. 
• If you want to turn the pesto in a dressing simply add more oil. 

Pesto recipe

125g ish of herbs, depending on what you have growing. The version I made a few weeks ago was heavy on the basil, also with spinach, rocket, parsley, tarragon and nettles which all add a bit of depth.
75g Nuts - I used a mix of half pinenuts, half cashews.
75g Grated parmesan
75ml Extra virgin olive oil
75ml Regular blended olive oil, or vegetable oil
1 - 2 Garlic cloves, depending on size and pungency.

1. If you need to wash the herb leaves, make sure they are well dried on a clean dry cloth before using. Water mixing with the oil in the pesto makes it go white as it emulsifies, after it settles it splits - not good!
2. Traditionally you would use a pestle and mortar. Now we have food processors and vitamixes and life is all good. You can choose how fine you want your pesto: a blunt charity shop food proccessor will make a coarse pesto, and slightly darker, as the more herbs are chopped and bruised the darker they go. The vitamix will whizz it into a fine bright green puree in seconds. The Kenwood mini chopper seems to go somewhere in the middle. It really depends on what you want to use your pesto for. 
3. Blend all the ingredients till your desired texture is achieved. 
4. Taste for seasoning.

Pesto baked salmon with orange and feta

Dairy free and nut free alternatives

Yes - we have it all these days, including garlic free. Anything's possible!

Dairy free pesto - replace parmesan with a splash of lemon juice, or adding nutritional yeast. I've tried it with vegan 'cheese' and it's not nice (soy cheese tastes too weird). A few cannellini beans are another cheese replacement possibility. 

Nut free pesto - replace nuts with brown rice, bulgar wheat, chickpeas, soy beans, sunflower or pumpkin seeds. Also check the oil you are using - blended oil can include nut oils!

Disclaimer

Links to the Vitamix and Kenwood above certainly weren't paid for - they're just great machines which make the kitchen a happier place......

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Parma ham, rocket, sun dried tomato and parmesan pinwheel, rhubarb and custard cake and other lunch buffet items

Parma ham, rocket, sun dried tomato puree & parmesan pinwheel

Starts off looking like this. My favourite part of this particular buffet!

Tuna nicoise open sandwich (among others)

Rhubarb - straight from my garden to make this rhubarb and custard cake.
There are also coconut cake bars there and some left over roast rhubarb in the middle.

Rum and raisin cupcakes - see recipe here

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Salad of grilled butternut squash, rocket, feta, pommegranate and black olive

Oh is that a feather boa?

It was a 20's theme for one of the hen parties we cooked for on Saturday just outside Chipping Norton . I had cooked for the organiser's friend at another hen party the Saturday after new year - amazing how word of mouth spreads :)

7 hour slow cooked shoulder of lamb (see more here) was on the menu - one of the most popular dishes. This salad goes relly well with it - and it all dissappeared on Saturday - always a good sign. Butternut squash goes on the grill pan (see tip for grilling it by clicking photo below) and is then roasted to finsh cooking & diced into thick chunks.

You don't need a recipe surely - it's not (ahem) rocket science.....

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Honey roast Gloucester Old Spot/ Berkshire cross gammon cooked in Piddle in the Hole ale

Cooking gammon in cider was a revelation from Carol Webb about 5 years ago. Looking for new bistro menu ideas in January this year, Ethan suggested gammon and it morphed into this & has been very popular from the moment we first served it.
The gammon from Home Farm (they have a new collie puppy btw - so cute) starts off being braised in the wonderfully named ale brewed around 15 miles away for 7 hours - so it is meltingly soft.
Then glazed with honey and spices and roasted.
The juices and some of the reduced cooking liquor is made into a beer, honey & mustard dressing to go with it.






This particular gammon is from Cheltenham race week (18 events in one week - amazing) and the clients wanted it cold with a selection of salads - a nice simple meal after travelling to the Cotswolds from Ireland. It must have been good - they re-booked for next year's Cheltenham week, along with the other week-long party we served.

Traditional waldolf salad which they requested.

Beetroot, lentil, rocket, fennel and radish salad. Healthy living.

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Carpaccio of courgette with pickled mushrooms, rocket, parmesan and beetroot dressing

A vegetarian version of the adults starter last Sunday night near Cirencester.
Courgettes are so versatile. And so nice raw, sprinked with a little maldon salt and lemon oil and left to macerate. Curling them like this and popping the pickled wild mushrooms inside was a last minute idea (they're always the best).

Also nice as courgette noodles with orange zest.


Related posts

Pickled mushrooms

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Warm salad of duck confit and lentils

Just mining the photo archives I found this.

Lentils, bacon, onions, carrots, garlic, thyme braised in duck stock and white wine, finished off with a little reduced duck stock. This was a delivery meal, so no photo of the finished dish. I gave them rocket too and a vinaigrette made from reduced duck stock, cider vinegar, olive oil (a nut oil would be good too) and wholegrain mustard. The version on the above right was the left over lentils with shredded confit..... well you have to 'test' things.

Originally it should have been pigeon but it was a last minute booking. When you're in London you can find ingredients all over the place at the last minute. In the Cotswolds it's not so easy with some items. Like the pigeon. Collins, the butcher in Broadway had sold out and they needed a week's notice. So had the Tewkesbury butcher. And all the other ones I tried. Finally I remembered Clive Porter in Mickleton where I once lived for 2 years. He is about as traditional as butchers get - with game hanging up on the meat hooks outside the shop in season. Yes he had some pigeon and would save me some. I timed the Friday delivery route so I could stop off there just before he closed at 5pm. 4:45pm - no sign of life, van gone, windows closed, door bolted, phone unanswered. The sun had come out - it was a Friday afternoon. Butchers and chefs live at different hours. I was out of time - there was nothing I could do but go back and substitute the pigeon for duck confit. But you know - it's hard to say which is better. And of course they liked the duck.

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Parma ham with rocket, parmesan, caper berries and balsamic dressing

Less is more when you have a collection of the best ingredients. It makes a nice light bistro starter.

Served at Hill House near Shiptson on Stour last Saturday as part of a bistro meal.


Related posts:

Other dishes we have serve at Hill House before
Balsamic syrup


Bistro menu: http://www.bensonofbroadway.co.uk/autumn_and_winter_bistro_menu.html

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