Pea and mint Soup

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS:

50g butter

2 onions, peeled and chopped

2 potatoes, peeled and chopped

3 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 litre of hot vegetable stock

1 kg frozen peas

2 tbsps fresh mint

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD:

Place the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Once the butter has melted stir in the onions, potatoes and garlic – season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and stir. Reduce the heat to low and cover with a lid. Every couple of minutes stir and check to make sure the vegetables aren’t sticking to the bottom of the pan. Leave to cook for five minutes.

Pour in the hot stock, leave the lid off and allow to cook for about 15 minutes or until the potato is completely cooked. Then pour in the frozen peas and cook for three minutes, followed by the fresh mint and cook for another minute.

Next blend the soup in a food processor and taste for seasoning.

Salmon En Croute

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

For the salmon en croûte:

40g watercress, chopped

200g cream cheese

2 tbsp chopped dill

1 lemon, zest and juice

Flour, for dusting

2 packs (320g each) ready-rolled puff pastry

400g salmon fillet joint, cut into 4 pieces

1 egg, beaten, for glazing

To serve: 

16 asparagus spears, trimmed

1 lemon, cut into 4 wedges

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/gas mark 6. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Mix the watercress, the cream cheese, the dill, the lemon zest and juice and some seasoning in a bowl.

Dust a work surface with flour and unroll one of the pastry sheets. Cut in half across the longer side. Spread ¼ of the cream cheese mixture on one side of one of the pastry rectangles – leave ⅔ of the pastry clear so you can fold it over to form a parcel, plus a 1cm border to seal. Top the cream cheese with a salmon fillet. Wet the border with a little water and fold over the pastry to form a parcel. Trim the edges, then seal by either crimping together or using a fork. Transfer to the baking sheet and repeat with the remaining pastry. Chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Remove from the fridge and use a teaspoon to create a scale effect in the pastry. Brush with the egg and bake in the pre-heated oven for 20-25 minutes.

Steam the asparagus until tender.

Serve each salmon en croûte parcel with asparagus and a drizzle of hollandaise and a wedge of lemon.

LEMON & RHUBARB GINGER CRUNCH CHEESECAKE

Serves 8

Ingredients:

250g digestive biscuits

100g gingernut biscuits

100g butter

300ml double cream

340g cream cheese

1 tsp of vanilla extract

Zest of 3 lemons, juice of 2 lemons

150g caster sugar

For the rhubarb

1kg rhubarb, chopped

330g caster sugar

3 inches stem ginger, chopped

Method:

Start by preparing the rhubarb. Place the rhubarb and caster sugar in a bowl and toss well so that the sugar completely coats the fruit. Then transfer to a colander and leave for 2 hours.

Line the base of a 20cm spring-form cake tin with cooking parchment or strong greaseproof paper. Melt the butter in a small pan. Crush the biscuits to fine crumbs and stir them into the melted butter. Tip them into the cake tin and smooth them flat. Refrigerate for half an hour or so until firm.

Put the cream and sugar in the bowl of a food mixer and whisk until thick. Keep an eye on the mixture all the time, stopping once it starts to thicken. Remove the whisk then stir gently to mix. Add the cream cheese, lemon zest and juice, and the vanilla. Tip the mixture into the crumb-lined cake tin, cover with film and put in the fridge for at 2 hours to set.

Place the rhubarb in a saucepan over a low-medium heat. Leave to simmer for 15 minutes, stirring every few minutes.

Allow the rhubarb to cool and stir in the chopped stemmed ginger. Spoon the rhubarb on top of the cheesecake.