Trout and apple tartare

A crisp, light and fresh-tasting starter for the Christmas meal or for serving as canapés. Add crunch with radishes or the larger, milder mooli. Failing that, use a chunk of cucumber, lightly peeled to keep some of its colour.

Serves 2-4

trout 2, fresh, filleted, pin boned and skinned
apple 1
mooli or radish 50g , peeled and cubed
yuzu juice 1 tbsp
chopped dill 2 tbsp

Skin the trout fillets. Make sure that the trout has been thoroughly boned and any trace of tiny pin-bones removed. This is a really important step and one that shouldn't be missed.

Slice the fish into very fine dice, each piece about the size of a pea, then put it in a mixing bowl and chill in the fridge. Cut the apple into similar-sized dice and place in a separate bowl together with the yuzu juice.

Peel the mooli, then cut into small pieces. If you are using radishes then dice them without peeling and add to the apple. Finely chop the dill then toss it with the apple and radish.

At the last moment before serving, add the diced trout to the apple mixture, toss gently and serve.

Crab terrine

Sea bream carpaccio with citrus dressing

Monkfish with tandoori spices, smooth parsnip puree and creamy sesame sauce

Griddled scallops with white asparagus and a creamy orange sauce

Griddled fish, tender green peas with chorizo

Five Spice Duck Salad

(Serves 2)

Ingredients

1 large duck breast
1 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder
1 pomegranate, halved
3 spring onions, trimmed and sliced
1 sprig fresh coriander, leaves picked
a few sprigs watercress
½ ripe mango, peeled and cut into chunks
juice of ½ lime
sesame oil, to drizzle
1 little gem lettuce

Method

Season the duck breast and dust with Chinese five spice powder. Put in a medium-hot frying pan and fry very gently for 5 minutes, turning halfway, until lots of fat has come out of the skin and the skin is golden brown. Take out of the pan and slice thinly – the duck will still be raw in the middle but don't worry! Discard the fat from the pan and put the sliced duck back in. Stir fry for a few minutes, until cooked through and crispy. Set aside.

Mix the pomegranate seeds, spring onions, coriander, watercress, mango and crispy duck together. Dress with the lime juice and a drizzle of sesame oil. Season to taste.

Separate the lettuce leaves and arrange on plates. Top with the dressed salad to serve.

Couscous salad with fennel, herbs and walnuts

(Serves 5 – 6)

Ingredients
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
I teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
300g wholemeal giant couscous, also called Israeli couscous, or moghrabieh
1 onion, diced
2 celery sticks, diced
1 fennel bulb, chopped, tops reserved
2 garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped
1 bunch of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
a small handful of mint leaves
75g walnuts, lightly toasted (if you can be bothered) and roughly chopped
zest and juice of 1 lemon
extra virgin olive oil
walnut oil (optional)

Put the cumin, coriander and fennel in a dry frying pan and toast for a few minutes, shaking the pan to make sure that they toast evenly. When they are fragrant, tip them into a mortar and grind them into a powder.

Fry the vegetables and garlic in some olive oil a large frying pan for about 5-8 minutes. Fry them on a medium heat stirring often, so that they soften a little bit, but still have some crunch. Remove from the heat and add the spices and lemon zest.

Cook the couscous according to packet instructions in boiling, salted water – about 8-9 minutes. When it is done, drain it and mix it with the vegetable and spice mixture.  Allow it all to cool slightly, and then add the chopped herbs, walnuts and lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper. Before serving add a little bit more oil and lemon juice.

Sipulipiirakka

(6 palaa) Tuplaa pohjan annos!

1/4 dl perunahiutaleita (esim. Mielihyvä)
3/4 dl vehnäjauhoja
1/4 tl leivinjauhetta
1/4 tl suolaa
25 g voita
1/2 dl vettä
Täyte
3 punasipulia
3 salottisipulia
25 g voita
1 rkl sokeria
1 rkl tummaa balsamikastiketta
(esim. Rajamäki)
1 (luomu)kananmuna
1 dl cheddarjuustoa raastettuna
1/2 tlk (à 250 g) mascarponejuustoa
(esim. Galbani)
1 rkl pinjansiemeniä
2 oksaa timjamia

• Laita uuni lämpenemään 200 asteeseen. Sekoita pohjataikinan kuivat aineet keskenään. Sulata voi. Lisää se ja vesi kuiviin aineksiin. Sekoita, kunnes perunahiutaleet ovat imeneet nesteen ja taikina kiinteytyy.
• Painele käsin taputellen taikinasta leivinpaperille pyöreä piirakkapohja. Esipaista pohjaa 200-asteisessa uunissa noin 10 min.
• Valmista täyte. Kuori ja viipaloi sipulit. Kuumenna pannulla voi ja sokeri. Asettele sipuliviipaleita pannulle vieri viereen. Älä laita viipaleita päällekkäin, vaan toista paistaminen niin monta kertaa, että saat kaikki viipaleet käsiteltyä. Pienennä lämpöä ja anna viipaleiden hautua pehmeiksi keskilämmöllä noin 5 min. Käännä sipulit varovasti, kun alapuoli on saanut kunnolla väriä. Anna myös toisen puolen pehmetä ja ruskistua. Kun viipaleet ovat läpikuultavia, valuta päälle tipoittain balsamikastiketta.
• Sekoita muna ja juustoraaste mascarponen joukkoon.
• Levitä esipaistetulle taikinapohjalle ensin juustoseos ja sen päälle sipuliviipaleet. Paista piirakkaa vielä 20–30 min
• Paahda pinjansiemeniä kuivalla pannulla koko ajan sekoitellen, kunnes ne saavat väriä, noin 5 min. Koristele valmis piirakka paahdetuilla pinjan-siemenillä ja riivityillä timjamin lehdillä