My Christmas Ultimate Chestnut Stuffing
Learn how to make our own ultimate chestnut stuffing in time for Christmas. Make it now and freeze it ready for the big day.
Author: john.webber22
Cranberry and Whisky Luxury Christmas Mince Pies.
The festive period looms and it’s time to begin thinking about my Christmas Mince Pies and organising things to make the period as enjoyable and stress free as possible. And it’s particularly time for me to think about this year’s mince pies filled with cranberry and whisky mincemeat.
A Quick Kale, Egg, and Bacon Supper.
Something a little different here. A quick kale, egg, and bacon supper, a warming winter supper dish of with a hint of garlic and chilli to provide a little kick. This has been built around kale from the garden. Its one of the hardier veg and survived the feast of wind and rain we have experienced of late.
Its reasonably healthy meal with most of the fat cooked out of the bacon and topped off with a poached egg. Of course you could also use a fried egg if poaching is too much of a challenge. But read on, it’s easier than you think.
This is one of my fall-back suppers if Mrs W is working late, and I’m home alone for dinner. To make things even simpler you can poach the eggs ahead of time and warm them up when you are ready. This is a great dodge and widespread practice in kitchens for breakfast or if poached eggs are required for a menu dish. So even if you’re not a fan of kale is worth reading on to improve your skills and become a master of the poached egg.
Serves 1
85g picked kale, well washed and dried
1 clove of garlic
1 small red chilli
olive oil
2-3 tbsp distilled vinegar
Dash lemon juice
4 rashers thinly sliced dry cure streaky bacon (pancetta)
Mill pepper
Sea salt
How to Poach Eggs.
As a child I have fond memories of the metal egg poachers, they produced a kind of egg igloo which was dropped on toast. They were kind of ok, but useless to top off a nice salad or produce Eggs Benedict for brunch.
Weather you choose to poach your eggs when needed or ahead of time it’s up to you. But whatever you choose it’s a two-stage process. You will need an espresso cup or similar, a bowl for some iced water with a perforated spoon. Make sure your pan is deep enough to allow the egg to have formed a skin before it hits the bottom of the pan, about 15cm should be fine. Equally the top of the pan should be wide enough to allow the rim of the espresso cup to sit in the centre of the water when the egg is added.
Fill the pan with fresh water to about 3cm from the top, but do not add salt. Salt will begin to break down the white and spoil the shape of the egg. Add the vinegar to the water and put on the heat to come to the boil.
Its actually a simple process to poach eggs and there is one simple trick – fresh eggs. Have a look at the Food Files page All you need to know about- Eggs to understand why freshness is so important.
Crack your first egg into the espresso cup and fill the bowl with cold water and a few ice cubes leaving enough space to take the cooked eggs.
Adding the Eggs.
When the pan comes to the boil, turn down the heat to very low and grab the perforated spoon. Stir the water vigorously to create a whirlpool in the centre of the water. Pick up the expresso cup and lower the cup into the water ensuring the rim of the cup is directly in the centre of the whirlpool. Hold the cup in the water for three or four seconds then gently tip the egg into the water holding the cup in place. You should see a string of egg white from the cup holding the egg in place and the egg itself sitting in the centre of the water. The egg is been held in place by the circulating current of water. It’s important that there are no bubbles forming in the water or the movement will spoil the shape of the egg.
Let the egg cook for about four to five minutes then gently lift the egg from the water with the slotted spoon. If it looks like it’s going to collapse return it to the water for another minute.
Stopping the cooking.
As soon as its ready lift the egg into the iced water, this will stop the cooking and wash off any vinegar. Repeat the process if needed and with practice you will be able to poach two eggs at once.
Pop the egg to one side if you are going to use them within an hour or so but make sure the water has not warmed up, (you may need to add another couple of ice cubes). If you are making the eggs for later use, again check the water is cold then cover them and place the bowl containing the eggs into the fridge. When you are ready to serve the eggs fill a clean pan with fresh water and add some salt, (it can’t damage the egg white now that its set).
To finish the dish
To finish off our supper you will need a deep sided frying pan, I’m using a stainless sauté pan which is also suitable for frying.
Thinly slice the garlic and the chilli. How much chilli you like is up to you I use about four to five slices if you don’t like it too hot remove the seeds of the chilli.
Firstly cook the bacon.
Heat the pan and add the oil as soon as the oil is hot lay the bacon in the pan and cook over a medium heat. The aim to cook the bacon crisp so don’t have the pan too high or it will simply brown without crisping. Turn the bacon regularly to even up the cooking and when brown and crispy lift the rashers out of the pan onto kitchen paper to absorb the fat.
Remove 80% of the remaining fat from the pan which should have a deep golden coating of flavour from the bacon. Turn down the heat a little and add the garlic, fry steadily for two to three minutes but do not let the garlic burn or it will be ruined.
Your poached egg/s can now be lifted from the bowl into the pan of hot water which should be at no more than a low simmer.
Wilting the Kale.
Turn up the heat under the bacon pan and add the kale to the pan closely followed by the chilli, salt, and pepper.
Stir fry the kale until cooked and wilted but don’t cook it right down to a soggy mess. Adding a small amount of water from the egg pan from time to time will help cook the kale without frying it and will also help lift the flavour from the base of the pan into the kale.
Finish the kale with a couple of drops of lemon juice check the seasoning the lift the kale into the centre of a plate and set the finished egg on top. Lay two rashes of bacon on the egg with a twist of pepper then break up the remaining bacon and scatter it around the kale with any cooking juices or a drop of olive oil as you wish.
I must say my poached egg is not one of my best efforts. Been a one man band, I am, Chef, Home Economist, Food Stylist and Photographer all in one. This meant my egg was standing by a little too long and became too firm. You should aim for a runnier yolk which will form a second sauce mixed in with the kale.
Give the dish a try, and by all means ring the changes. I have done this with picante Chorizo sausage instead of bacon. Works very well if you like a bit more spice. And even if kale is not your cup of tea, do practice your egg poaching.
Enjoy life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
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Fantastic Garlic and Chefs Secrets – Oils
Fantastic Garlic and Chefs Secrets – oils.
Fantastic Garlic and Chefs Secrets, It’s not long before the clocks change, and with the prospect of shorter days and the first frosts already glazing the fields it’s time to prepare the garden for Winter. Time for clearing sensitive foliage before it succumbs to the lower temperatures, and beginning to think ahead to next year.
The last of the tomatoes are in, some getting that last bit of ripening in the house and the stubborn ones still green waiting to made into chutney in time to be ready for Christmas. However, it’s not all finished in the polytunnel the cauliflower Is slowly developing and the kale is the raised beds is still going strong.
If your a fan of garlic (life me) check out our post on gathering wild garlic and making a pea and wild garlic houmous
New beginnings.
This year as last I’ve been planting hardneck garlic, Caulk White. There are two types of garlic, hardneck and softneck. It’s the stems of the garic which as the name suggests are ether stiff and hard or soft and floppy. Most of the garlic in supermarkets is a softneck variety as it keeps well and isn’t too strong. As far as I am aware the hardneck varieties are a little hardier which is an advantage for growing in Scotland. The main reason I prefer it though is that hardnecks produce an edible flowering stem called a scape. This means I have two products to use from the one bulb. I am looking forward to using the scapes and trying out some new dishes.
As some things end, some begin.
The empty beds in the polytunnel have received a composing crop of Crimson Clover Green Manure to be cut back and dug in in a few week’s time. The chives have been cut back and the main event is to plant a new crop of garlic to be ready next spring. Last year was my first attempt at growing my own bulbs. All seemed to go well and the joy of using really fresh mellow garlic was more than worth the effort involved.
Time to plant next year’s garlic.
This year I have also chosen to plant some Elephant Garlic with large mild tasting cloves perfect for roasting and making oven baked garlic puree. I have planted mine in pots using a 50/50 mix of soil and compost. Planting is simple, separate the cloves and locate the flat root end of the clove. Push the garlic into the prepared soil until the tip is jest showing then firm up around each one. For standard sized garlic about 6” between each clove is ok. For elephant varieties 12” spacing is better. Because of the size of my pots, I have planted the cloves a little closer, fingers crossed it works.
Bad press.
I always think garlic suffers from bad press. A lot of people have the impression that garlic stinks and produces bad breath. Now I wouldn’t recommend chewing on raw garlic before a hot date, but along with chilies and fresh herbs it’s indispensable in the kitchen. Growing your own will give product better that you can buy. So get going. Now’s the time to get planting for next year!
Chef’s secret – Herb oils
Herb oils are a great thing to have on hand and extremely versatile. A drizzle of the deep green fragrant oil framing a dish is one of the simplest and effective ways of boosting the presentation. If you don’t happen to have chives, don’t worry, this works with any leafy green herb. Parsley, basil, chives, tarragon, chervil are all fine, chive produce the best colour, basil probably the best flavour. Do any one or mix and match as you wish.
It’s the simplest thing on the planet, take the herbs add oil and blend. A hand blender will do for lesser amounts. This will provide a simple quick herb oil but let’s take a chefy approach apply a bit of science and make something so much better ……
Making herb oil.
Right let’s get going, firstly you need a blender, whatever you have will do. a small sauce pan and a heatproof fine sieve. You don’t need to make a great deal of the oil as it goes a long way. But remember you don’t want to run out over the winter and have to buy expensive herbs and run the whole process again. And how we store the oil might surprise you!
Ingredients.
Makes about 180ml of finished oil
65-75g chives
200ml light olive oil.
Take the chives, pick out any withered pieces and check for insects but don’t wash them. Slice or snip them into 3-4 cm sections and pop into the blender. Add the oil, some chefs will tell you they use vegetable oil to bring out the full flavour of the herb. it’s a con, they are just trying to save money. Don’t use a strong oil that will overpower but a light olive oil will give you the best flavour.
Now start blending ideally with the pulse control we don’t want to create an herb smoothie. When you have a green oil with small tealeaf like pieces remaining, stop!
You have created herb oil, but now the magic happens-
The oil can be used straight from the blender but its a crude version which quickly separates on the plate. Heating the oil will improve the flavour and colour and remove the green leafy sludge.
Making an infused oil
Tip the oil into a smallish saucepan so it’s no more than 4cm deep. You will also need a heat proof bowl sitting in a larger bowl filled with cold water and ice on hand to receive the oil and a fine strainer.
Put the pan over a low to medium heat and watch it like a hawk. Patches of clear oil will begin to appear after a few minutes firstly around the edges then in the centre.
As soon as any suggestion of simmering is seen quickly remove the pan from the heat. If it’s a very heavy pan that holds the heat, dipping the base in cold water can prevent it boiling.
Decanting and storing.
Carefully decant the oil into the sieve allowing the oil to drain into the chilled bowl. Heating and cooling the oil will help retain the colour and enhance the flavour. You will be rewarded with a deep green transparent, flavoursome oil, this can be kept in the fridge in a small jar for three to four days before the colour begins to fade. This method will work with any leafy green herb, so don’t let them go to waste, get blending.
The better option is to pour the oil into an ice cube tray and freeze it. YES, OIL FREEZES! Once you know this it opens a world of possibilities. You’re not just storing food, your storing work!
Give it a try, and get planting.
Enjoy life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
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Welcome to the Westcoaster.
Food, and Lifestyle Blog.
Hi, welcome to ‘The Westcoaster’ the food and lifestyle blog by John Webber. Our mission is simple – one to excite and encourage people to produce good fresh food. Secondly to promote the virtues of coastal countryside living, and of course ‘West is Best’. Based on the west coast of Scotland we will show you the best the country has to offer from land and sea. Combined with some stunning images.
We will not just provide recipes but also explain the how and why. Created by a chef but written in everyday language and terms, making good food not just easy to make, but understandable and enjoyable.
The general pages and blog with take you from the garden into the kitchen to produce some great food. Sample the local environment and see what makes the west coast so special.
The Food Files will explain the how and why of cooking and improve both your knowledge and skill giving you all the essential information to master and enjoy the kitchen. If you want to tackle those tricky dishes, we can explain how in understandable terms without any quirks.
Finally check out my photography to see why Scotland, and the west in particular is such a stunning part of Britain.
I do hope you will join us on our journey
Enjoy LIfe.
John.