Author: Claire

Chipotle Chilli Grilled Salmon Kebabs

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Grilled salmon skewers with a smoky and spicy marinade.  Served with a cooling mint and coriander yogurt dip, pita bread and salad.  Perfect for hot and spicy summer nights!

Salmon kebabs2

All of my family love salmon, so these go down really well and can be cooked on a griddle pan, the barbecue, or even on a lined baking sheet in the oven. You can up the spice levels by adding more of the chipotle marinade. The coriander/cilantro used in the yogurt dip is entirely optional. I love it, but the rest of the family – not so much!

As a contact lens wearer, I always use disposable latex gloves when chopping, or using any kind of chilli in a marinade. So much pain and the chilli lasts on your skin for hours, despite washing like Lady McBeth!

salmon kebab close

Salad:
Baby salad leaves
Handful of black olives
Hothouse cucumber slices
Small handful of cherry tomatoes – halved
Feta cheese, crumbled
Lemon wedges and warm pita to serve

Chipotle marinade:
2tbs prepared chipotle paste
Juice of 1 small lime
2tsp olive oil

Kebabs:
Around 400g/14oz Salmon cut into large cubes – this is enough for 2 hungry people
1-2 Courgettes/zucchini, halved down the middle and cut into chunks
1 yellow pepper, cut into large squares
Salt and pepper to season

Yogurt dip/dressing:
6tbs Greek yogurt
Small bunch of chopped mint and coriander/cilantro
Zest and juice of a small lemon
Pinch of salt and pepper

Mix together the chipotle paste, lime juice and olive oil and add to the salmon, turning to coat.  I use gloves and gently rub the marinade over the fish with my hands. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.

Method:
When you are ready to cook, pre-heat the griddle pan and assemble the salad ingredients on the plates. This is also a great barbecue recipe but just remember to soak any wooden skewers first. I use flat metal skewers so the salmon and vegetables don’t move around when I’m turning them.

Thread the fish and vegetables onto your skewers and season with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Place onto the hot grill pan or barbecue. They will cook very quickly – around 2-3 minutes per side.  If you are cooking in the oven.  Cook at 200°C/400°F. They will take around 12 minutes, depending on the size of the chunks of salmon, but keep an eye on them so that the salmon doesn’t overcook.

salmon kebab closeup

Serve over the salads with the yogurt, warm pita and lemon wedges and a little coriander sprinkled over the top (or not if you don’t like it!)

Stichelton & Smoked Bacon Salad

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Stichelton is a delicious, unpasteurised blue cheese, made to the original Stilton recipe at the Welbeck Dairy in Nottinghamshire.  I first tried this at the School of Artisan Food on the Welbeck estate, at one of their amazing lunches during a baking course.

Stilton and bacon salad plate

I bought my cheese from the Welbeck farm shop, where I can easily spend way too much money as there are so many good things to buy!  I love it with the apple sourdough that I always buy a loaf of when I go there too.

Stilton and bacon salad

Blue cheese and bacon go so well together and with the addition of toasted pecans and a few tart, dried cranberries, this salad is one of my favourite lunches.  Sometimes I add grilled chicken for a substantial warm salad that is good any time of the year.  I serve this with a simple honey and mustard dressing

I usually use smoked streaky bacon for this salad, but I bought some black treacle cured, smoked back bacon today, which worked really well.

Stilton bacon salad closeup

This is enough for 1-2 people, but the quantities can easily be increased.

Ingredients:
Mixed salad leaves – baby leaves, spinach, Rocket/Arugula, Romaine – anything you like
4-6 slices of good quality smoked streaky bacon with the rind removed or 2-3 slices of black treacle cured smoky back bacon
Stichelton or Stilton blue cheese at room temperature with the rind removed
Red and yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
A handful of pecans, toasted in the oven for 5 minutes
A few craisins (dried cranberries)

Dressing:
1tsp Dijon mustard
1tsp Wholegrain mustard
2tsp Runny honey
4tsp Extra virgin olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
Salt and pepper if desired

Pre heat the oven to 220°C/430°F

Line a baking sheet with foil and place the bacon on the sheet. Cook for around 10 minutes or until crisp and chop into rough pieces.

Arrange the leaves, warm pecans, cranberries and tomatoes on the plate and whisk the ingredients for the dressing until you have a nice, slightly thickened consistency.

Stilton bacon closeup

Toss the salad gently in the dressing. Break the Stichelton into large crumbles and top with the hot bacon, toss gently once more and serve immediately.

Mini Cheddleton & Chive Scones

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These little bite-sized scones are made with Cheddleton from the Staffordshire Cheese Company, which is a creamy and quite crumbly cheese with a nice tang. It goes perfectly with the freshly snipped chives that are in these little scones. These are very nice, served warm with proper butter.

Cheese chive scones

Ingredients:
250g of self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1tsp English mustard powder
125g cold butter – cut into small cubes
150g grated Cheddleton Cheese plus extra for topping with
2tbs finely chopped chives
120ml whole/full fat milk
1 egg beaten and a little milk to make an egg wash

Method:
Sieve the flour, baking powder, mustard and salt in a bowl with the paddle attachment fitted. Add the cold, diced butter and mix until the butter is mixed into the flour but still visible.

Add the cheese and milk and mix until just combined.

Form a flattish disc and wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C/425 degrees F

When you are ready to back, turn onto a floured board and roll out to around 2.5cm thick and use a small round cutter – around 2cm.

Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or silicon mat and brush the tops with a little egg wash and more of the grated cheese.

cheese and chive scones

Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden and well risen.

Best served warm from the oven with salted butter and perhaps a glass of wine.

Cheese scone butter