THIS week’s recipes are great for a Sunday lunch, especially at this time of year. I always get asked what are the best dishes to do when you have guests and my firm favourites are recipes that you have perfected with your family as the audience. One of the hardest things anyone can do is try and serve a dish that they are not sure of, or haven’t tried and tried again. Practice makes perfect.
Lamb as a main course at this time of year is great and I have spiced things up with some herbs and complimentary flavours. One of my all-time favourite desserts in apple tart Tatin. This is a large one so serves a minimum of six people but can do more.
SLOW COOKED SHOULDER OF LAMB WITH CORIANDER, CHILLI AND CUMIN
(Serves 6)
1 shoulder of lamb, boned by butcher
1 red chilli, chopped
½ bunch fresh coriander, rough chopped (leave a few leaves to garnish)
2 teasp cumin seeds, lightly toasted in a dry pan until aromatic
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
2 sticks of celery, chopped
4-6 plum tomatoes, quartered
olive oil
2 bay leaves
sprig of thyme, rosemary, sage
sea salt
500ml chicken stock
sprig of fresh parsley
When you are picking up your shoulder of lamb, ask the butcher to take the bone out and trim off the excess fat. You will want to marinade the lamb the day before you intend to cook it.
Start by making the marinade, by mixing the chilli, coriander, toasted cumin seeds and garlic with the olive oil to make a paste. You can use a pestle and mortar or a blender.
Place the lamb in a roasting tray and cover with the marinade paste, rubbing it into the lamb flesh and then folding the lamb shoulder over on itself. Tie the lamb up using string in order keep in place.
Add the vegetables to the dish, place the lamb on top and add in the herbs (bay leaves, thyme, sage and rosemary). Cover with cling film and place in the fridge for at least 12 hours, but longer if you can.
Preheat the oven to 180C when you are ready to cook; remove the clingfilm and leave on the counter until the oven is at right temperature. When ready to place the lamb in the oven, sprinkle with salt and place in the oven for 20 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 150C, add in the chicken stock and cook for a further 60 minutes.
Remove from the oven and check if the lamb is tender; if it requires a little more cooking place back in the oven for a further 20 minutes and then remove and leave to rest and cool.
To serve, place the lamb and vegetables on a serving dish and gently pull the lamb apart using two forks. Serve with sprinkling leaves of coriander and parsley and if, you like it, a squeeze of half a lemon.
APPLE TARTE TATIN
(Serves 6)
4 large cooking apples
100g caster sugar
80g butter
1 ready made pack of puff pastry
This dish requires you to have access to a large frying pan with a deep side, with a metal handle. It is simplest to use a pan like this for this dish.
Start by preheating the oven to 180C. Peel the apples and core them, then chop into quarters. In your frying pan place the caster sugar with two tablespoons of water; heat this gently until it is bubbling and the sugar has started to caramelise. Make sure you incorporate all the caster sugar into the wet mixure. Take the pan off the heat and add in the butter and stir well.
Start by placing the apples in a circular motion in the pan, laying them next to one another and ensuring that they are getting coated generously with the liquor. Arrange the apples after three minutes of cooking in the liquor into a nice shape where there are no gaps in the pan. Lay on top the piece of puff pastry, ensuring that all of the apples are covered and that the puff pastry fits into the pan. You can easily just turn this in. Pierce a little hole on top for steam to escape.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes at 180C – the top should be golden. Once cooked remove from the oven and turn over into same sized serving dish. Slice and serve with vanilla ice cream.
