All recipes serve four
SAUSAGES, PORCINI AND POLENTA
A scant handful of dried porcini mushrooms
8 pork sausages, preferably Italian
olive oil
2 red onions, peeled and finely chopped
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp tomato purée
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
2 tbsp parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh sage
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
400ml chicken stock
250g polenta
Soak the porcini in hot water for 20 minutes. Sauté the sausages in three tablespoons of olive oil until they are lightly coloured, then remove and set them aside. Add the red onions to the hot oil, reduce the heat and sauté gently for 10-15 minutes or until they are soft.
Add the vinegar and allow almost to boil away before adding the tomato purée. Sauté for five minutes, allow the paste to take on a dark colour, but without burning. Add the garlic, parsley, sage and rosemary and sauté for a further minute. Pour in the chicken stock, porcini and soaking liquid, taking care not to include any grit at the bottom of the bowl. Return the sausages to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 40 minutes, uncovered, or until the sausages are cooked. If the juice is a little thin, remove the sausages, reduce for 20-30 minutes and return the sausages. Cook the polenta according to the instructions on the packet. The end result, however, should not be too stiff. Season well, and if you want a richer flavour use milk or stock in place of water. Serve with the sausages and sauce.
CASSEROLE OF SMOKED HADDOCK
500g floury potatoes, cut into 1 cm cubes
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 leeks, trimmed and finely chopped
1 small fennel bulb, trimmed and finely chopped
8 baby turnips
500ml milk
500ml chicken stock
250g smoked haddock
50g butter
2 tbsp roughly chopped chervil
1 tbsp finely chopped parsley
Poach the potatoes, onion, leeks, fennel and turnip in the milk and chicken stock until tender (about 10-15 minutes), seasoned with salt and pepper. Remove the vegetables and add the haddock. Poach it until just tender and return the vegetables to the pan, mashing a little of the potato to thicken the sauce. Stir in the butter and herbs. Check the seasoning and serve.
SPICED BRAISED DUCK WITH POMEGRANATE
1 duck, jointed
500g shallots
500ml chicken stock
pinch of cinnamon
pinch allspice
generous pinch saffron
250ml freshly squeezed pomegranate juice
150g pine nuts
1tbsp butter
seeds from one pomegranate
Gently colour the duck and shallots in a scant tablespoon of olive oil. The duck will release quite a lot of fat (if you substitute chicken, you are likely to need more oil). Pour off any excess fat, season with salt and pepper and add the chicken stock, cinnamon, all-spice and half the saffron (this half adds colour, the latter half flavour). Simmer gently for 30-40 minutes, or until the duck is cooked. Remove and keep warm. Reduce the cooking liquid by half and stir in the pomegranate juice. Sauté the pine nuts in the butter until golden brown. Stir the remaining saffron into the sauce and cook for one minute. Return the duck to the reduced sauce and heat it through. Check the seasoning and serve with plain rice and a scattering of the pine nuts and pomegranate seeds.