As the previous blog about slow cooking appears to have been a hit, this is a little bit of a follow on in that you can cook all of these and freeze the remainder for another day (or invite some friends over!)

We live in the country where, like it or not, there is a lot of shooting this time of the year.  If given any game birds, remember to respect them as a free range, organic piece of meat who has at least flown and been part of the countryside for most of its life. Cook them to the best of your ability and use all of it.

Pheasant Casserole with Apples

• 25g butter
• 2 tablespoon sunflower oil
• Salt and pepper
• 6 pheasant breasts, skinned (use the carcass to make stock with some carrots and onions and water)
• 2 onions, thinly sliced
• 150ml apple juice (cloudy is best)
• 300 ml game stock – see above but you can also use a cube
• 2 dessert apples, peeled and cut into wedges
• 2 tablespoon double cream
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Heat half the butter and all the oil in a non-stick frying pan until very hot.  Season the pheasant breasts and fry them in the hot pan until golden.  Set aside. Heat the remaining butter in the unwashed pan and fry the onions until tender – about 10 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and gradually blend in the apple juice and stock. Bring to the boil stirring and add apples and breasts.  Cover and simmer over a low heat for about 12 minutes until the pheasant is just cooked through. DO NOT OVER COOK! Stir in the double cream and lemon juice and serve with mashed or baked potatoes and a green vegetable.

Pheasant Stroganoff – a quick and delicious way of using pheasant breasts.

• 4 pheasant breasts, sliced
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 grated cloves of garlic
• 6 – 8 chopped mushrooms
• 200ml double cream
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 4 cornichons, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon capers, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon grained mustard
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt and pepper
• Handful of parsley, finely chopped
• Pasta or rice to serve

Fry the pheasant strips on a high heat until they have a good colour. Put aside. Gently fry the shallot and garlic until soft, add mushrooms, then the cream, mustard and paprika and put the pheasant strips back in. Turn up the heat until they are simmering and the pheasant almost cooked through (you want it to be little pink or it will taste dry).  Add the cornichons, capers and lemon juice, seasoning and parsley.

Partridge with cider and cabbage

• 1 tablespoon rapeseed oil
• 4 streaky bacon rashers,      roughly chopped
• 2 dressed partridges (you can try other game, too – even poussins)
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 leek, sliced
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped thyme leaves
• 300 ml medium dry cider
• 2 tablespoon double cream or crème fraiche
• ¼ savoy cabbage, finely shredded

Heat the oven to 180oC/gas4.  Heat the oil in an ovenproof pan and fry the bacon and birds for 4 – 5 minutes, turning until brown on all sides. Take out and add the onion, leek and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, over a medium heat for 3 -4 minutes until starting to soften.  Return the partridges and bacon to the pan. Add the thyme and cider and put into the oven, cooking, uncovered for 20 – 25 minutes.  Take out of the oven and transfer the birds to warmed plates.  Stir into the pan the cream and cabbage and put over a medium heat to warm through – don’t let it boil! Season and serve with the partridges. ¼ savoy cabbage, finely shredded.

June 21st is the Summer Solstice and is often referred to as the first day of summer, and yet celebrations across the Northern Hemisphere at this time of year carry the name Midsummer, which is pretty confusing. Midsummer and the summer solstice are used interchangeably, but they refer to different things.

The solstice is the beginning of the astronomical summer that has been celebrated since ancient times as the longest day of the year, whereas Midsummer now refers to numerous celebrations that are held over the solstice period, between June 19 and June 24, with both pagan and Christian origins. Midsummer, as in the religious observances traditional in many countries, occurs close to the June or Summer Solstice. With celebrations originating in ancient times as a festival for the summer solstice, this could be where the name comes from. Bonfires were lit up to ward off evil spirits as the sun turned southward. If you only had the sun to measure time and dictate your hours of light, the longest day would feel like a mid-point before you make the descent back into winter.

The past few days’ weather has been glorious so instead of recipes for one, invite three friends round and follow the next few for the perfect Summer Solstice Dinner. 

Salmon Rolls with Asparagus and Butter Sauce

• asparagus spears
• 4 thin salmon fillets
• juice of a lemon
• 2 small shallots, finely chopped
• 6 peppercorns
• 120 ml white wine
• 4 tablespoons double cream
• 200g butter, cut into small cubes
• fresh parsley

Steam the asparagus for 6 – 8 minutes till tender, refresh under cold running water.  Lay on top of the salmon fillet and roll up.  Place on a rack over a pan of boiling water, sprinkle with lemon juice, cover and steam for 3 – 4 minutes till tender.

Sauce: Put the shallot, peppercorns and wine into a small saucepan and heat gently until the wine is reduced to a tablespoonful. Strain and return to the pan.  Add the cream and bring to the boil then lower the heat.  Add the butter to the sauce in small pieces, whisking all the time.  DO NOT ALLOW TO BOIL AS IT WILL SEPARATE! Season to taste, add a little parsley and serve with the salmon roll, some new potatoes and tenderstem broccoli and/or spinach.

Anything with basil immediately transports me to summer and the Mediterranean – sun, warmth and taste in one little green plant!

Chicken, Pepper and Basil Traybake 

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 chicken thigh cutlets, bone in
• salt and pepper, to season
• 2 red onions, peeled and cut into wedges
• 3 – 4 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
• red pepper, cut into thick slices
• yellow pepper, cut into thick slices
• 3 – 6 anchovies, chopped (optional)
• 200ml cup chicken stock
• a pinch of sugar
• loosely packed basil leaves, torn
• a splash of balsamic vinegar

Heat your oven to 200C. Take a large baking dish or frying pan that can be placed on a stovetop as well as into the oven and heat over a high heat. Add the olive oil, season the chicken thigh with salt and pepper and fry, skin side down, until golden brown. Turn the chicken and add the onions, garlic and peppers around the chicken. Scatter with the anchovies (if using) and pour over the stock. Season very well with salt, pepper and a good pinch of sugar and transfer to the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until the chicken is just cooked though. Scatter with the torn basil leaves and serve immediately, with a splash of balsamic vinegar. A side salad  and some little Jersey potatoes would be perfect alongside.

And now for the first strawberries – what else stands for summer?

Strawberry and Mascarpone Gelato – Strawberry and mascarpone is a classic mix and this is also one of the easiest ice cream recipes you could possibly make.

• 300g strawberries, hulled and chopped
• 2 tbsp elderflower cordial
• 150g golden caster sugar
• 500g mascarpone
• 100g white chocolate, roughly chopped
• 200g strawberries, hulled and quartered
• 1 tbsp elderflower cordial
• 2 tbsp golden caster sugar

Put the chopped strawberries in a bowl. Add the cordial and sprinkle over the sugar. Set aside to macerate for up to 1 hour. Beat the mascarpone and white chocolate together, then fold through the strawberry mixture. Put in a cling film-lined, straight-sided freezer-proof box (about 1 litre) and freeze. For the soft strawberries, put the berries and cordial in a bowl, then sprinkle with sugar. Set aside for 15 minutes. Slice the ice cream and spoon over the strawberries to serve.

Meteorologically, we’re nearly a month into summer. Astronomically, the summer has only just begun.

But, of course, it won’t really feel like summer in Britain until we start complaining it’s too hot!