Friday 15 July 2011

The Meadow Restaurant

Sunday Roast Beef at The Meadow
Converted from an old banking hall this is a spacious venue decorated in neutral colours and well located in the attractive Palmira Square, minutes from Hove seafront. Most of the produce is locally sourced where possible. We tried their Sunday Roast menu recently. I had sirloin of Arun Valley beef with yorkshire pudding, shallot gravey and watercress served with a selection of vegetables and the potatoes are roasted in goose fat.This was a well cooked course on a par with the best roasts around East Sussex.

Rye Bay Plaice at the Meadow
Sunday Roast with side dishes

The rye bay plaice however was not as good and this reviewer thought that the fish portion was rather small for the price. However I would return to The Meadow restaurant as the staff are eager to please and the desserts here are truly scrumptious!



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Wednesday 13 July 2011

ENGLISH SAUSAGES RECIPES

British and Irish sausages are among my favourites comfort food and for me have much more use than a simple English breakfast, but I more like my sausages in a bread sandwich ideal for picnic, summer concerts or even to watch Wimbledon. Here 3 British sausages ideas.
Two sausages by serves are the best measures. Two sausages are around 265 kcal.

Sausages Sandwich


Onions & tomatoes mixture
Sausages Sandwich in a roll bread

Serves 4. Timing 30m. kcals 483.
2 red onions (finely sliced)
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. light brown soft sugar
½ tsp. thyme leaves (fresh if is possible)
8 pork sausages
120g cherry tomatoes
4 white bread rolls
Grill to medium-high

1.       Start cooking the sausages, read the package instruction, but approx. will take between 15 min and 20. Always depend on the brands
2.       Heat the oil in a medium-low heat and fry the onions until soft (about 10-15 min) stirring from time to time.
3.       When the onions are soft, add vinegar, sugar, thyme and black pepper, stir for 2 min.
4.       Add the tomatoes and stir for another 3 min.
5.       Halved the rolls and warm-up them in the oven.
6.       Serve. Fill the rolls with the onions-tomatoes mixture and the sausages.

Saltimbocca sausages sandwich
1. Wrap the sausages in parma ham with sage
2. Coat the sausages in flour.


Serves 4. Timing 30 min. Kcal 440

4 slices of parma ham.
8 sage leaves
4 pork sausages
2 tbsp. plain flour
2 tbsp. olive oil
35g butter
150 ml dry white wine
4 ciabbata or crusty bread rolls
1 garlic (peeled)
Grill to medium

1.       In a clean surface lay out a slice of parma ham. Sit a sage leaf on one edge and put one sausage on top. Roll up, wrapping the sausage with the sage in the ham. Repeat with the rest of sausages.
2.       Coat the sausages in the flour, shake any excess.
3.       Heat the olive oil and 25g butter in a frying pan. Use a low heat.
4.       Add the remaining sage leaves and stir in the sausages and fry until golden brown (10 min at least). Be careful can get a bit messy. Control your heat
5.       Pour in the wine and bubble gently for another 10 minutes, until the sausages are cooked and you have a thick sauce.
6.       Melt the rest of the butter, after turn off the heat
7.       Meanwhile the sausage rest, halve the bread and grill until crusty remove and rub the garlic.
8.       Serve. Fill the rolls with the sausages and spoon over a little of sauce.


Baked sausages with summer vegetables.

Serves 4. Timing 1.15 min. Kcal 550kcal
Baked sausages with vegetables for an easy sunday brunch

Baked sausages with summer vegetables

8 pork sausages
2 red onions (in wedges)
3 red peppers (cut in wide strips)
500g new potatoes (quartered)
250g cherry tomatoes
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 garlic cloves (sliced)
5 thyme sprigs and 2 tsp. of dried oregano
Oven at 200ºC

1.       Already in an ovenproof dish mix all the vegetables with the herbs and 2 tbsp. of olive oil. Season and roast for 15 minutes.
2.       Now stir in the garlic and stir the vegetables. On top sit the sausages and drizzle a little of extra olive oil over the sausages. Roast for another 20 minutes.
3.       Finally drizzle the balsamic vinegar, stir over the sausages and stir the vegetables as well. Cook for another 15 minutes, until golden brown.

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Monday 11 July 2011

San Fermines Bull Running Recipes

A reveller falls next to a steer during the first bull run of the famous running of the bulls. REUTERS/Eloy Alonso
 Every  6 July the Txupinazo a (fire rocket ) it is the signal of beginning for nine days of party  without end in Pamplona where every morning their street will have a frenetic and always dangerous bull run.
Far away are the days that San Fermin was the days of the patron saint of the city, one of the last  martyr death that  the roman empire make in the last attempt to stop the expansion of the Christians and also seem to  be far away the days of Ernest Hemingway visited the city and wrote the novel The Sun Also Rises and also begins to disappear the days where the Spanish families booked a restaurant for have a traditional meal with seafood,  meat from the running bulls and perhaps some  lobster, today the restaurant prefer to serve cheap food to the tourist and the local families  go away from the city for avoid the 9 days of 24 hours of noise and drunkest for those that think that are following the step of the magnificent Ernest Hemingway.
However going to Pamplona still a real culinary experience where seafood, good quality meat  and excellent vegetables dishes with very good Navarra wines still worth pay a visit at any time of the year to this proud city of the north of Spain.

Navarra Beef Stew style.

Frying beef stew
Running bulls Navarra beef stew
1kg of stewing meat (ideally steer meat)
3 onions (chopped) and 5 Garlic cloves (chopped)
3 carrots (diced). 2 hot red peppers (chopped)
2 bay leaves – 2 cloves - 1tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp. flour – 2 tbsp. chopped parsley
200 ml olive oil – 250 ml red wine - 3 tbsp. red wine vinegar.
800 ml organic beef stock.

1.    If your butcher hasn’t done already cut the meat in bite-size chunks
2.    Heat the olive in a large heavy pan and fry the meat in a medium high flame. Brown all sides.
3.    Lower the heat to medium-low and add the onions and garlic and fry for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add the 2 tbsp. of flour.  Stir everything.
4.    Now put in the carrots and vinegar; add the bay leaves, cloves and peppers, plus the wine. Simmer for 2 minutes and add the stock.
5.    Bring to boil, cover and simmer in a low heat for 2 hours. Stirring time to time.
6.    Before serve sprinkle with cinnamon and fresh chopped parsley.

Pan fry Navarra Trout Style.

1 fresh trout per serve (cleaned and gutted)
4 slices of Serrano ham (per 2)
140g smoked bacon (diced)
2 garlic cloves (sliced)
Flour for coating.
Some wooden picks.

1. Fill the trout with the ham

2. Secure the ham with wooden sticks


3. Wrap the trout with ham

4. Coat the trout with flour


5. Fry the trout until golden brown
6.Add the bacon for 2 extra minutes.



 1.    Season the trout with salt and pepper and rest for 10 minutes.
2.    Put a slice of ham inside of each trout and pierce all together with wooden picks and then wrap with an extra (or 2) slice of Serrano ham.
3.    Coat the trout’s in flour and then shake for remove any excess.
4.    Heat 3 tbsp. of olive oil in a large pan and fry the bacon until the fat start to run, add the garlic until begins to soft. Remove from the pan and set aside.
5.    Now fry the trout for about 4 minutes each side, when the trout in golden brown in both sides and the bacon and garlic for another minute.
6.    Serve the trout on a plate and scatter over the bacon.


Top 5 delicatessen items to buy in Navarra

Wooden Fire of Pimientos del Piquillo (Jar or canned)
Jar or canned white asparagus.
Smocked duck ham.
Roncal cheese from the mountain valleys of Navarra (is sharp taste)
Navarra Rosé wine made from the process named “tear the wine” (Rosado de Lágrima).

Follow the bull running at:
San Fermin TV
RTVE

and Felices San Fermines 2011!!






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