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James Street Cookery School: Salmon skewers and frangipane mince pies

Salmon skewers will go down well on New Year's Eve
Salmon skewers will go down well on New Year's Eve Salmon skewers will go down well on New Year's Eve

THIS week we have a selection of tasty party treats that are perfect for the New Year celebrations. Salmon skewers with sesame seeds and frangipane mince pies are the perfect recipes to bring in the New Year in style and are sure to impress guests this New Year’s Eve.

SALMON SKEWERS WITH SESAME SEEDS

(Serves 4)

600g salmon fillets, cubed

16 lime leaves

100ml sesame oil

50ml soy sauce (light)

25g fresh ginger grated

3 tsp sesame seeds

3 limes quartered

Black Pepper

Method:

Soak your bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes. Cube your salmon and in a separate bowl place your sesame oil, soy sauce, fresh ginger, sesame seeds, and season with black pepper. Place the diced salmon into the marinade, cover with cling film and place in fridge for 30 minutes.

Next, skewer one piece of salmon, then a lime leaf (fold your lime leaf over to ensure it does not catch the flames as it will burn). followed by another piece of salmon on top. Place back into fridge until you are ready to barbecue or grill but you do not want to let the salmon over marinade. When ready to cook, place directly on the grill pan or barbecue close to the edge and cook for three minutes, then turn and cook for a further three minutes. Serve with a quarter of lime.

FRANGIPANE MINCE PIES

(Makes 18)

For the pastry:

175g plain flour

75g butter, cut into cubes

1 egg, beaten

For the frangipane:

100g butter, soft

100g caster sugar

2 large eggs

1 level tbsp plain flour

100g ground almonds

½ tsp almond extract

For the filling and topping:

1 jar of mincemeat flavoured with brandy (2 tsp),

1 tbsp apricot jam

1 tsp flaked almonds

To make the pastry, place all the dry pastry ingredients into a food processor and mix until like breadcrumbs. Add in the beaten egg and pulse until the mix forms a ball of dough. Knead and wrap in cling film and chill for 30 minutes in the fridge.

To make the frangipane, place the butter and sugar into the processor and blend until creamy. Scrape the mix to the bottom of the bowl and add your eggs and process until mixed, add in the ground almonds, flour and almond extract and mix again.

Next, roll out the pastry on to a lightly floured work surface. You will be placing these into a pie tin that holds 18. Cut the dough using a 6.5cm cutter into circles and place in a greased tin. Use the circles to line the tin. If you have a bigger tin, use a bigger cutter to cut the circles to line the tin. Spoon in a teaspoon of the mincemeat into each tartlet and top with the frangipane mix. Do not overfill. Sprinkle with a few almonds.

Bake in a pre-heated oven for 15 minutes until golden and allow to cool on wire rack. You can glaze with a little apricot jam, slightly warmed, for extra flavour.