The beaver is a proud and noble animal
Notes from a bemused canuck
I really like making boards like this. I like the variety of tastes and textures, the symmetry and I find the assembly process very zen. This one had roast beef, pastrami, tzatziki, pickled onions, chili gherkins, brie, olive bread with and without tomato and espelette tapenade, balsamic roma tomatoes, radishes and cheese stuffed peppers.
The cats were also very interested.
Ingredients
100ml olive oil
2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves , plus a few extra for scattering
4 garlic cloves, sliced (optional)
1/4 tsp dried chilli flakes
140g semi-dried tomatoes in olive oil, drained
175g pack or jar grilled artichoke hearts in oil
2 x 200g packs feta cheese
85g Kalamata olives (or any good olives)
Method
Tip the olive oil and thyme into a bowl and blitz with a hand blender. Stir in the garlic, chilli and lots of black pepper (but no salt). You could add some of the oil from the tomatoes and artichokes, too.
Cut each block of feta into 4 (or 6) and arrange in a dish or a food container with the tomatoes, artichokes and olives. Spoon over the herby oil, scatter with extra thyme and leave to marinate in the fridge overnight.
Notes: the tomatoes can be replaced by an equal amount of grilled red peppers.
Ingredients
375g strong white bread flour
50g caster sugar
7g sachet fast-action dried yeast
75ml milk
3 large eggs, plus 2 beaten eggs for glazing
185g unsalted butter, softened
250g round brie
8 slices prosciutto
Method
Mix the flour, 1 tsp salt, caster sugar, yeast, milk and eggs together in a mixer using the dough attachment for 5 mins until the dough is smooth. Add the butter and mix for a further 4 mins on medium speed. Scrape the dough bowl and mix again for 1 min. Place the dough in a container, cover with cling film and leave in the fridge for at least 6 hrs before using.
Wrap the Brie in the prosciutto and set aside.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Roll into a 25cm circle. Place the wrapped Brie in the middle of the circle and fold the edges in neatly. Put the parcel onto a baking tray lined with baking parchment and brush with beaten egg. Chill in the fridge for 30 mins, then brush again with beaten egg and chill for a further 30 mins. Leave to rise for 1 hr at room temperature. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6, then bake for 22 mins. Serve warm.
TIP – Serve warm but not too hot, so the cheese isn’t too runny.
Serve this French cheesy potato dish with pickled onions, gherkins, charcuterie and a salad.
Ingredients
1kg Charlotte potatoes, peeled (or any waxy potato)
250g bacon lardons
1 onion, finely chopped
100ml oz white wine
150 ml single cream
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 whole Reblochon cheese (about 450g/1lb), sliced
25g butter
splash of olive oil
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas 7.
2. Bring a pan of salted water to the boil, then add in the potato slices and boil for 8-10 minutes, until just tender. Drain.
3. Heat the butter and olive oil in a frying pan. Add in the onion and fry gently for 5 minutes, stirring now and then.
4. Add in the bacon, mixing well, and fry for a further 5 minutes until both the onion and bacon are lightly browned. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and continue to cook until most of the liquid has evaporated.
5. Layer half the potato slices in a buttered 1.5 litre ovenproof dish. Sprinkle over half the onion and bacon mixture and half the Reblochon cheese. Season lightly with salt and freshly ground pepper.
6. Repeat the layering with the remaining potato, onion, bacon and Reblochon.
7. Pour the cream evenly over the potato dish.
8. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.
9. Remove from the oven and serve.
Ingredients
1 rustic loaf of bread, unsliced, either Italian or French
350g strong cheese (mix of stilton, cheddar, gouda, etc)
250g cooked chicken breast
1/4 cup (less or more to taste) pickled jalapeños
1/4 cup (less or more to taste) olives
1/4 cup chopped green onions, including greens
50g butter
Method
I have found a cheese producer that would sell me cheese curd. Yay. Unfortunately, it’s in Somerset (about 150 miles away) and the cost of having it shipped would be more than the value of the cheese. All is not lost though, as apparently there are some pubs in East Anglia that order cheese from them and I *might* be able to piggy back on their order.
I’m not giving up that easily :)
Based on a recipe from Nigel Slater. Pure indulgence, this. As the Camembert bakes, the cheese underneath the crust becomes a hot, creamy, sticky, smelly, bubbling pool.
Ingredients:
a whole small Camembert in it’s wooden box
a little white wine
Method:
Take the cheese from it’s wooden box and remove the paper wrapping. Push the cheese back into the box.
Make half a dozen tiny holes in the rind and drizzle a little white wine into them. Just a few drops. Replace the lid. Bake in an oven preheated to 200ºC for twenty-five or until hot and bubbling.
While the cheese is cooking put the potatoes on to boil in salted water. Serve the melted cheese in its box, dipping in the spuds or some gherkins, or simply a chunk or two of very crusty bread.
CHEESE can boost your sex life, help beat stress and act as a painkiller, experts claimed yesterday. It contains natural chemical phenylethylamine (PEA) which releases endorphins or happy hormones into the body, says a British Cheese Association study. Cheese has ten times more PEA than chocolate. The study says a matchbox-sized bit of cheese a day helps boost calcium intake and provides happy hormones.
Source: http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2006150270,00.html