If you try out the recipes below, let us know at Go Surrey and show us your finished dishes! Or, you can find the full article at Fabulous Festive Feasting with two local Surrey chefs.
Katharine’s Delicious Mince Pies
An absolutely delicious, mouth-watering taste that is sure to impress everyone!
(Makes 12-15)
Ingredients –
For Clementine curd:
3 clementines
1 lemon
1 lime
175g caster sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
50g butter
For the pastry:
250g plain flour
50g caster sugar
150g cold butter, diced
Zest ½ orange
1 egg, beaten
200g mincemeat
50g mascarpone
Instructions –
– Begin by making the Clementine curd. Place the zest and the juice from the fruit in a bowl. Add the sugar, eggs and egg yolk and mix well and then add in the butter. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water and cook stirring all the time until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
– Pour the curd into a sterilised jar and leave to cool before placing in the fridge. The curd will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks.
– Make the pastry by blending the flour, icing sugar and butter in a food processor until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the orange rind and half the beaten egg and pulse to bring the pastry together, adding more egg as necessary.
– Lightly dust the work surface with flour, then roll out the pastry to approximately 5mm thick. Cut out 12 x 8cm rounds with a fluted cutter and press into a 12-hole non-stick bun tin. Re-roll the trimmings to the same thickness and stamp out 12 x 5cm rounds for the tops.
– Spoon about 1 teaspoons of Clementine curd into each base, top with 1 teaspoons of mincemeat and a teaspoon of mascarpone. Dampen the edges and then press on the top.
– Brush the tops with the remaining beaten egg, then bake at 180°C/gas mark 4, for 15-20 mins until golden and crisp. Cool for a few mins, then lever out of the tins with a table knife and cool on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Warm gently to serve and dust with sifted icing sugar.
Laura’s Rare Beef, Basil Pesto & Parmigiano Reggiano Bites
This is one of Laura’s favourite canapés to serve at Christmas time: “It is simple to prepare and what makes all the difference is the home-made pesto. Everybody seems to love them, and you can never make enough!”
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 3 minutes
Total Time: 33 minutes
Servings: 12
Author: Laura Scott
Ingredients –
1 rib-eye steak seasoned with olive oil, salt & pepper
For the basil pesto –
1 clove garlic
1 bunch fresh basil
25 g pine nuts
30 g Parmigiano Reggiano grated
100 ml Extra virgin olive oil approx. Use more for a looser sauce.
salt to season
For the garnish –
wild rocket leaves
Parmigiano Reggiano shavings use a vegetable peeler to make them
Instructions –
– Fry the rib eye steak in a very hot pan for no more than 3 minutes, then leave it to rest for 5 minutes before slicing thinly
For the pesto –
– Using a pestle and mortar, blend the garlic with salt and the pine nuts to form a rough paste then tip onto a plate
– Using the same pestle & mortar, crush the basil to a rough paste then add in the blended pine nut and garlic paste
– Add in the olive oil gradually and mix to form a rough paste. For a smooth pesto, blend the mixture for longer
– Pour in the Parmigiano, then mix until it is blended into the pesto. Check the seasoning
To assemble –
– Top the sliced steak with some pesto and flakes of Parmigiano Reggiano and fold in half. Place the steak onto a bed of wild rocket and continue to make the bites until you have used up all of the steak. You will have some leftover pesto to use another time.
Images, content, and recipes by Katharine Eldridge at Quince House Cookery School and Laura Scott at How to Cook Food.
