POP UP RESTAURANT CLASSIC FRENCH BISTRO

Fabulous fun, turned my friends home in to a pop up one night only restaurant for a fund raising event, 46 people booked and with great help from family and friends it was a very successful night in all areas, reminded me of my days running our family restaurant, great atmosphere coming from all the guests in the dinning room and great vibrant atmosphere in the bustling kitchen which the 8 people booked on the Chefs table enjoyed being part in the midst of the action!.  

With great organisation and precision planning, (weeks of virtual cooking on paper), we were able to take orders from the table on the night and had served all starters and main meals within 1 hr 25 minutes, this was due the great friends that turned themselves into kitchen assistants, waiters, bar servers and waitresses.

The Menu

A gorgeous classic French menu that gave choices of rich decadant food, following old traditional recipes and methods and using the very best of ingredients like prime organic dry aged beef, organic chicken livers, Welsh outdoor reared lamb along with fresh boquet garnis, 48 hrs marinating and the deepest richest burgundy's, cognac and one bottle of vintage port allowed to breath for a few hours before use, I knew all these flavours would bring these meals to the highest quality and give the deepest of flavours.

The Lounge Restaurant

46 seats booked, along with the Chefs table in the kitchen, I have always want to run a service with a chefs table in the kitchen, in our last restaurant we had an open kitchen so that the regular customers would often pop their head in to say hello and could watch and hear the service, after all without them there would be no service, so this was exciting for me that customers would fully be part of the kitchen and get to feel the energy, passion and love of serving people great food that happens in a commercial kitchen along with enjoying the natural flowing organised chaos and banter that goes with the kitchen.

The kitchen, I turned my friends kitchen in to a commercial set up for the night, having to cook on a AGA cooker for the first time was a baptism in fire and I pulled it off with the help of numerous how to handle an aga books and listening to the owner of the aga and the aga itself, they have a mind of their own and the more you cook the lower they drop their cooking temperature, so this turned out to be a help as I was able to use some of the lower ovens as warming holding stations giving me more control over timings.

Fabulous atmosphere from great people and strangers alike, a truly wonderful experience for everyone and for a great cause, guests started arriving at 7 pm and were greeted in the marque lounge bar with a complementary homemade elderflower champagne, before being asked to take their tables.

Chef's Table in The Kitchen

Really enjoying myself, in mid flow, it was great to run a service again, (I had forgotten how much I love bossing people about through service)!  It has been nearly 15 years since I, along with my husband ran our family restaurant, and I do miss the banter, atmosphere and customers, but doing a pop up is a great way to remind myself why my husband and I sold up and focused on being a rustic cook and a small holders and producers of loved and pampered meats, the other end of the chain!  

The First Time Cooking on a Aga !

Fabulous experience cooking on this beauty, I now want one !  Hint to husband !!!  I read numerous aga cookbooks on how to and helpful hints and this stood me in good grounds, as I had a concern on what to expect as the evening went on, aga's have their own personality and will not follow rules, we got on great together!

Brilliant use of an aga, the whole top of the aga is a variable hot plate that will keep your cup of coffee warm all day, warm your children's clothes on a winters morning, keep second servings of food hot and great for melting 40 ish french camemberts infused with white wine, garlic and thyme.

Fabulous help in the kitchen and this is what made service run so smooth, fabulous organised friends who were great to spend the evening with, I had a efficient chain of three helpers keeping all plates washed up and returned to the plate warmer and keeping all workspace tidy, as well as all leftovers going in the compost bin, along with two gorgeous kitchen assistants who plated up the meals and ensured the plates were immaculate after I handed over the main meat before heading to the pass for service in to the dinning lounge where my husband was running front of house with a great team of waiters and waitress.

Finally The Food

Chicken Liver Parfait

500 g organic chicken livers, 150 ml cognac, 1 small onion finely diced,  2 cloves garlic finely chopped, 100 g butter, another 100 g butter for sealing the jars, 100 ml double cream, sea salt and ground black pepper, 1 tsp fresh thyme, 8 slices of white bread.  Marinated the chicken livers in the cognac for a minimum of one hour, drain and reserve the cognac.  Melt half of the butter in a pan and gently pan fry the onion and garlic for five minimum keeping them from coloring, add the chicken livers and gently pan fry until three quarters cooked and pink in the center, add the thyme and reserved brandy, simmer for two minutes, take off the heat and leave to cool for a couple of minutes.  Place in a blender and blitz until smooth, add the butter and cream and blitz again to incorporate, season with salt and pepper to taste, pour into serving dishes leaving one inch head space, melt the butter reserved for sealing and pour over the top of the pate, chill in the fridge until needed.

Seared Grass Feed Welsh Rack of Lamb

To cook the perfect rack of lamb, served juicy pink. chefs pink medium rare, season the rack of lamb with a dash of olive oil, sea salt and fresh ground pepper, pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees, heat a non stick pan to a high heat, sear the lamb for approx 30 seconds on each side until you have a lovely crust, place on a flat baking tray in your oven for 17 minutes, this is crucial, not a second more!  Remove from the oven and cover with a tea towel and allow to rest of up to five minutes, now serve your perfect pink and succulently juicy lamb.

Dauphinois Potatoes

Finely sliced potatoes, as thin as you dare, soaked in a large bowl of whipping or double cream, layer in a deep roasting tin and season each layer, (several layers), with a tiny pinch of sea salt, black pepper, nutmeg and grated gruyere cheese, finish off the top with extra gruyere and bake in your oven for 1 hr 40 minuets, covering after 30 minutes or when the top is a lovely light golden brown,

Traditional Boeuf Bourguignon

A most decedant sumptuous boeuf bourguignon, first roughly dice the meat,1.5kg and place in a deep bowl along with one bottle of top quality deep red burgundy wine, fresh bouget garni (3 cloves garlic, 2 bay leaves, hand full parsley stalks, pinch thyme), leave for 24hrs to infuse, drain the meat, reserving the marinade.  Heat some butter, (generous amount) in a pan and gently pan fry some diced onion, carrot, celery and leek along with another fresh bouquet garni, cook for a few minutes then remove from the pan and reserve to a casserole dish, add some more butter to the pan, add the meat, brown off in batches and add to the casserole dish, add the reserved marinade to the pan and bring to a simmer to de glaze the pan then add to the casserole dish along with enough burgundy to almost cover the beef, add some beef stock, bring the casserole dish up to almost just a simmer and leave to tick over gently for 3-4 hours until the meat is so tender it can only just hold itself together but really wants to break apart, but you do not want it to, so no excitable stirring! 

Second Layering

In a pan heat some butter and place a generous hand full of silverskin onions, mushrooms and diced pancetta and cook until the silverskin onions are softened but not browned and the mushrooms are just softened and the pancetta has released all its gorgeous flavours into the mix, fold into the finished bourguignon and leave to infuse for 10 minutes before serving.

Tart au Citreon

New York Baked Cheesecake

FABULOUS FRESH FRUIT AND CHILLI MARSCAPONE PIZZA

This rich creamy decadent marscapone fresh fruit chilli pizza is a great way to start you day, the warm pan seared naturally caramelised pineapple and melon is succulent and sweet which is contrasted with  pleasantly sharp blueberries, raspberries and blackberries and my favourite bit is the rich creamy marscapone cream and fresh chillies

Prep Time 10 minutes / Cook time 5 minutes

Ingredients

(Serves 2-4)

1 250g marscapone

2 tbsp icing sugar

1 lrg red chilli sliced

1/2 a pineapple diced

1/2 cup raspberries

1/2 cup blueberries 

1/2 cup blackberries

1/2 cup melon diced

4 strawberries fan sliced

1/8 cup broccoli florets

1 tbsp torn coriander

1 small red onion finely sliced

1 large flat bread

Heat a non stick frying pan to a medium heat, pan sear the pineapple and melon until slightly caramelised on both sides, remove from the heat, mix the icing sugar with marscapone, spread a gorgeous thick sumptuous layer all over the flat bread, layer on all the rest of the ingredients and finish of with a sprinkling of red chilli, onion and coriander.

PERFECTLY PINK RACK OF LAMB

One of my most favourite cooks, perfectly pink medium rare rested juicy sumptuous rack of lamb served with rich creamy dauphinoise potatoes and naturally sweet caramelised roasted baby carrots and parsnips, with a red wine burgundy and port stock sauce.

Prep Time 15 minutes / Oven Cooking Time 1hr 45 minutes

Ingredients

(serves 2-4)

Lamb

2 full racks of lamb

Pinch sea salt & ground black pepper

 4 tbsp olive oil

20 baby carrots peeled

20 baby parsnips peeled

1 tbsp chopped parsley

Dauphinoise 

1kg Desiree potatoes

400ml whipping cream

2 cloves garlic grated

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg

400g Gruyere grated

Salt 

Black pepper

Burgundy Port Sauce

500ml lamb stock

300ml burgundy

200ml port

200g butter

1 shallot finely diced

First pre heat your oven to 180 degrees, take the lamb out of the fridge and leave to one side to come up to room temperature, meanwhile peel the potatoes and finely slice, if you have a mandolin brilliant, if not, as thin as you can by hand, place in a large bowl, pour in the cream and mix well.  In a deep roasting tin place a single over lapping layer covering the bottom of the pan, season with a tiny pinch of salt, black pepper, nutmeg, grated garlic and a sprinkle of grated cheese.  Repeat the layers and finish the top off with extra cheese.  Bake in the oven for 1 hr 40 minutes, cover the potatoes after 30 minutes.  This gives you your time line for serving the finished dinner.  Next prepare the roasted vegetables.

Bring a pan of water to a simmer, add the carrots and parsnips, blanch for 5 minutes, drain and plunge in to a bowl of cold water, drain and place in a bowl with a generous glug of olive oil toss and season with salt and pepper, place in a large low sided roasting tin and pop in the oven for 45 minutes, 1hr after the dauphinoise went in, next make the sauce.

Place the shallot in a deep saucepan add the lamb stock, on a rolling simmer reduce the stock by half, add the burgundy and port and reduce by half again, add the butter and whisk in, this will thicken the sauce a little and add another layer of richness and give the sauce a glossy finish, leave ticking over on the lowest heat.

When there is only 25 minutes left before serving, place a non stick frying pan on a high heat, rub the lamb racks with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper, place in the pan and sear each side for about 30 seconds, until nicely browned all over, place the racks on a flat roasting tin and pop in the oven for 17 minutes, this timing is Crucial, do not leave the lamb in the oven for one second longer!  Take out and cover with a tea towel to rest for five minutes while you serve up the rest of the dinner, add any lamb resting juices to the burgundy sauce before serving, sprinkle a pinch of parsley over the finished plate. 

The lamb racks can be cut in half to feed four or left whole as a generous portion for two.

BIG GIRLS DIET TUNA AND CHILLI STUFFED CARROT AND BEETROOT CHARD WRAP

Such gorgeous eating, loving my garden produce and what wonderful fresh vibrant and sumptuous meals it is providing me with, along with the paleo lifestyle this is one of those meals I just don't know how I did not eat before!  Mind you that probably explains how I got to 305lbs !  But with the Big Girls Diet lifestyle I am now down to 209lbs and 27lbs left to go, and I know I will never go back (18 mths) as this lifestyle makes perfect sense, in fact I have more gorgeous foods like creamy coconut curries, glorious roasted vegetables, beetroot chard leaf burritos and tons of avocados, so why would I!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

(serves 2)

3 large beetroot chard leaves & stems

1 carrot grated

1 beetroot grated

1 tin of yellow fin tuna

2 red chilli finely sliced

2 spring onions finely diced

1 tomato finely diced

3 tsp sweet chilli jelly

First chop off the beetroot chard stems, chop these glorious red stems finely and mix with one of the red chillies and spring onions as a raw salsa.

Next loading the wrap which is more of a layering assemble, lay your beetroot chard leaves, place some of the grated carrot, then top with grated beetroot, sprinkle on the spring onion, tomato and chilli, then place a tsp of the sweet chilli jelly and finally a generous amount of tuna, fold over both ends and then roll over both sides and roll the whole parcel over so that the parcel is sitting on its seam.  Cut in half and serve with a sprinkling of the beetroot stem salsa, enjoy.

RENDANG CHICKEN CURRY STUFFED BEETROOT CHARD BURRITO

Gloriously fresh and vibrant burrito, how can something this decedent be so good for you!  Rich creamy coconut rendang spiced chicken stuffed in a beetroot chard leaf loaded with raw shredded carrot, beetroot and topped off inside with a fresh tomato and red onion chilli salsa, spicy jalapeno and lime guacamole, then finished off with a drizzle of the creamy coconut curry sauce and a squeeze of lime.

Prep Time 5-10 minutes /  Cook Time 7 minutes / Serving Time 3 minutes 

Ingredients

(makes 2)

Rendang Paste

2 red chillis

2 shallots peeled

1 cloves garlic peeled

1 tsp fresh turmeric peeled

1 tbsp fresh ginger peeled

1 tsp galangal peeled

1 tbsp tamarind paste

2 tbsp coconut oil

1 lemongrass stalks roughly chopped

2 kaffir lime leaves crumpled

2 large beetroot chard leaves

2 kale leaves

1 beetroot raw grated

1 carrot raw grated

4 skinless boneless chicken thighs diced

1 small onion finely diced

1 large tomato diced

1 red chilli diced

1 tbsp fresh coriander chopped

300ml coconut milk

(method below if you want to make your own coconut milk)

Avocado Guacamole

1 avocado mashed

1 spring onion diced

1 tbsp coriander chopped

1 jalapeno diced

1 lime juiced

Place all the rendang ingredients except the kaffir lime leaves in a food processor and blitz to a paste.  Heat some coconut oil in a pan and gently fry your rendang curry paste for ten minutes, add the chicken and kaffir leaves and when three quarters cooked add the coconut milk simmer reducing by half to make your sauce, this will also finish off cooking the chicken, season with salt and pepper and a squeeze of lime.

Mix all the avocado ingredients together and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Take the diced tomato, spring onion, chilli and coriander mix together and season to taste.

Take the beetroot chard leaves and lay the kale leaf in the centre, then top with a sprinkling of raw grated carrot and beetroot, next a generous portion of your rendang chicken, top with a spoonful of guacamole and tomato salsa, fold the two ends up over the filling and then fold over the two sides, rolling over the whole parcel so that you serve the burrito seam side down.  drizzle over a generous spoonful of the coconut rendang sauce over the burrito and enjoy.

To Make Your Own Coconut Milk

This is a really simple and quick process and well worth the effort, your coconut milk will keep for a week in the fridge.  First remove all the coconut flesh and water, place in a food processor and blitz really well, pour in 400ml boiling water and blitz for a further five minutes.

Place a muslin cloth over a large bowl and pour the coconut into the cloth, strain all the liquid through the cloth squeezing every drop out, the left over coconut flesh is great for cakes and sprinkling on breakfasts, or you can dry this out slowly in a low oven and store in an air tight container.  The liquid in your bowl is your coconut milk, if you pour this into a ball mason jar and leave to settle in the fridge, the coconut cream will rise to the top this you can use for a richer creamer coconut flavour or mix it in with the coconut water and use as milk.

Good For You Science bit

Coconut

Rich in fibre, Vitamin C, E, B1, B5, B6, Iron, Selenium, Sodium, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorous.  Coconut is extremely healthy for you full off medium chain fatty acids launic acid which is easily digested and almost immediately broken down in your saliva and gastric juices which means it is less likely to be stored as fat, because of this pancreatic fat digesting enzymes are not essential which puts less strain on your liver allowing the liver to work more efficiently, also full of anti viral, anti bacterial properties protecting your body from infections and viruses, helps regulate the thyroid function and highly nutritious.

Beetroot and Beetroot Chard

Organ and blood cleansing, lowers risk of heart disease, helps stimulate and improve overall liver function, full of iron, calcium, magnesium, folate, carotenoids, lutein, high in plant flavonoids and beta carotene supports eye health, vitamins A, C, E, B1, B6, B3, copper, potassium maganese and fiber

Carrots

Lowers risk of cardio vascular disease, eaten in abundance significantly lowers the risk further, antioxidant benefits, inhibits growth of diseases, prevents oxidative damage inside the body, detox cleaner, promotes healthy liver and kidney function, antibacterial and anit viral, protects capillaries, chest, skin and eyes.

Tomatos

Outstanding source of lycopene, a carotenoid, packed full of antioxtioxidant, very good source of nutrients, a treasure of riches when it comes to their antioxidants in terms of phytonutrients, tomatoes are off the chart.  Reduce lipid peroxidantion (oxygen damage to fat cells membranes or in the blood stream).  Reduces risk of heart disease by antioxidant support and regulation of the blood stream.  This really supports your cardiovascular system, bone health and reduces risk of alzheimer's.  Vitamin C, K, A, B6, B3, E, B1, biotin, molybdenum, copper, potassium, maganese, fibrer, folate, phosphorous, magnesium, chromium, panththenic aicd, protein, choline, zinc, iron.

Onions

Anti bacterial, cardio benefits, protects heart and blood vessels, anti clotting capacity and  helps prevent unwanted clumping of the blood platelet cells, lowers blood levels of cholesterol and triglycerides, improves cell membrane functions in red blood cells, anti inflammatory, anti carcinogenic, oxidant protects arteries, can increase bone density and connective tissue.  Vitamins C, B6, B1, B7, folic acid, phenolics, flavonoids, manganese, copper, anti bacteria.

Avocado

Compounds help liver to cleanse toxins, lowers blood cholesterol, eat with spinach and carrots to increase absorption of impressive carotenoids, these are fat soluble and aid absorption of carotenoid nutrients, anti flammatory, helps arthritis, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid cardiovascular health, protects blood vessels and promotes blood sugar regulation.  Vitamin B6, K, C, E, a perfect food that provides compounds in fact 67% more un-saturated fats as omega 9, oleic acid, 19% palmittic acid and linoleic acid, 14% saturated fat, potassium, folic acid, high fiber, folate omega 3 and 9 fatty acids.

CANNED SWEET PICKLED CARROTS

I get silly excited about canning and preserving, it fills me with such joy that the natural food I have grown on the farm garden will not only continue to feed my family fresh throughout the season but also by preserving some of the freshest garden bounty it will also provide some prime baby vegetables, pickled cauliflowers, sweet and sour green tomatoes and fruits for those leaner winter months when there is only a selection of fresh garden leafy greens, root vegetables like beetroot, carrots, parsnips, swedes, stored potatoes and squashes available fresh from the garden.

Makes 6 x 490ml Ball Mason Jars / Hands on Time 55 minutes / 3 weeks Standing Time

Ingredients

3lb small fresh home grown carrots 

5 cups white vinegar 5% acidity

2 cups of sugar

3 medium onions finely sliced

2 tbsp mustard seeds

2 tsp celery salt

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp crushed dried chillies

1 tsp fenugreek seeds

1 tsp black mustard seeds

First Jobs Before You Start Your Preparation

Pre heat your oven to 180 degrees.

Put your canning water bath or deep saucepan 3/4 full of water on the heat, this will need to be at 88 degrees and above for successful canning.

Now You Are Ready To Can

Now to start, for the carrots bring a pan of water up to a gentle boil, peel the carrots and chop off the tops, place in the boiling water for 10 minutes or until just fork tender but not cooked all the way through, drain and run under cold water for a couple of seconds to stop the cooking process, leave to one side.  Meanwhile place your canning jars and lids in the pre heated oven for five minutes to sterilise the jars.

In a saucepan place the vinegar, sugar and all the spices, bring to a simmer and add the onions, cook for one minute then take off the heat, you are now ready to can.

When the jars are ready to come out of the oven, fill them with the carrots, pack in as much as you can, gently without breaking any of the carrots, now fill the jars with the hot pickling liquid leaving 1cm head space at the top of the jars, place on the lids and screw bands then give a 1/4 turn back.

Place the jars in the water bath for 15 minutes at a minimum of 88 degrees and above for 15 minutes, remove from the water bath and leave on the side to cool, remove the screw bands and check that the lids have sealed, place the screw bands back on and place the jars some where cool and out of direct sunlight, these will keep for a year on the side and once opened keep refrigerated and eat within a couple of weeks or so.

PICKLED SPICED CAULIFLOWER

Another one of my favourite times of the year, I do love the beginning, middle and end of every season, right now September brings out the canning passion, exciting new recipes and tried and tested old faithfuls ready to reward all the work we have put into the garden and with the help of nature all the food we have produced, we have also had the pleasure of eating from the garden daily throughout the spring and summer and are now coming to the end of this season ready to harvest the final gluts of extra vegetables that will need to be preserved to supplement us through winter along with the new fresh winter vegetables that will be growing in the garden as the cycle starts again.

You will  need a large deep saucepan (water bath) that you can place all the jars in to simmer covered with water for this canning water bath process.

Prep Time 10 minutes / Sterilising Jars 5 minutes/ Canning Water Bath Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

(makes 5 x 1pt jars /1 year shelf life)

2 x heads of cauliflower

2 tsp Himalayan salt

4 1/2 cups white wine vinegar 5%

2 cups caster sugar

2 large onions finely sliced

6 carrots julienned

2 tbsp mustard seeds

1 tbsp fenugreek seeds

2 tsp celery salt

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp dried crushed chillies

1 tsp fennel seeds

Place your large deep water bath saucepan on a high heat and another smaller saucepan of water on a medium heat and bring to a simmer while you prepare all the vegetables, cut all the cauliflower florets and rinse in a bowl of water, when the smaller saucepan of water is at a rolling simmer add the salt and cauliflower and cook for two minutes, drain and leave to one side.

Slice the onions and julienne the carrots, place to one side.  Pre heat your oven to 180 degrees and place your jars and lids separate on a large roasting tin and heat for five minutes, remove and you are almost ready to can.  

In a saucepan place the vinegar, sugar, mustard seeds, fenugreek, celery salt, turmeric, dried chillies and fennel seeds, bring to a simmer add the onions and carrots and leave to simmer for one minute then take off the heat, now you are ready to can, take your cauliflower and fill  your jars, next pour or ladle in the vinegar onion and carrot spiced vinegar almost to the top, leaving one inch head space at the top of the jar, tap the jars or using a chop stick or skewer remove any air bubbles, place the lids on, and just give a quarter turn back so that the lids are not tight.

Place the jars in the simmering water bath, this must be above 88 degrees celsius, simmer for ten minutes, then remove and leave to cool on the side, once cool these are now ready for storage, keep in a cool place for up to one year, once opened store in the fridge and eat within three weeks, but I can't believe that they will last that long!

BRAZILIAN CACHACA CHICKEN

Fabulous zesty lime, chilli, coriander and oregano cachaca marinated chargrilled chicken, great served on its own with a simple salad and drizzle of lime mayonnaise or stuffed into a flat bread and topped with fresh chillies, garlic, onion salad and a lime mayo drizzle.

Prep time 5 minutes / Marinate time 30 minutes / Cook time 7 minutes

Ingredients

(serves 2)

4 boneless skinless chicken thighs

100 ml cachaca 

1 clove garlic finely chopped

Small bunch coriander chopped

2 tbsp fresh oregano finely chopped

2 tbsp fresh parsley finely chopped

Sea salt

Black pepper

1 red chilli finely chopped

1/2 lime juiced

To Serve

Flat breads

Green salad

Sliced onions

1/2 lime juiced

Mayonnaise 

Place the chicken in a bowl, season with the salt and pepper, chilli, garlic, oregano, parsley and coriander rubbing all over the chicken. Pour over the cachaca and lime juice and leave to marinate for a minimum of thirty minutes, or up to 24hrs if you want to do this the day before.

Pre heat your grill to a high heat, take your skewers and spear the marinated chicken, place the skewered chicken under the grill to cook for approx 3-4 minutes each side, until just cooked through, when you lightly press the chicken it should feel bouncy firm.  Leave to rest for a couple of minutes while you assemble either your salad or the flat bread, this is also a great meal to serve family style piled high with bowls of salad and dips on the side so you can all dive in at the table!

LAMB KOFTE KEBAB HEALTHY AND GUILT FREE

This kebab will leave you questioning how did I ever eat one of those late night off the hip I want a take away kebab, well we all know it is probably due to a few sherbets or more where we loose that sense of sensibility and just want to chow down on something naughty and comforting, but in reality we are probably playing roulette with the quality and safety of the food along with the morning after guilty feeling of not so good for you food!

Well not anymore, this recipe gives you a gorgeous fresh healthy kebab that is not only good for you but so much more tasty, guilt free and so much healthier for you, a winner dinner all round, quick to assemble and truly fabulous fast food you can prep ahead of time so that it is ready to go at a moments notice for when that urge takes you!

Ahead of Time Prep 15 mins / Cooking time 8-10 mins 

Ingredients

(serves 2)

The Kebab

1 onion finely diced

2 cloves garlic finely diced or grated

1 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp fresh turmeric grated or 1/4 dried

400g grass feed or organic lamb

2 tbsp chopped fresh oregano

1 tsp fresh chopped rosemary

1 tsp fresh chopped thyme

1 generous pinch of sea salt

1 generous pinch of fresh ground black pepper

The Flat Bread

(makes 6)

500g 00 flour

15g dried yeast

10g sea salt

50ml Olive Oil

320g warm water

The Salad

1/4  finely sliced white cabbage

1/4 finely sliced red cabbage

1 lrg onion finely sliced

1 carrot julienned optional

The Mayo

3 egg yolks

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp white wine vinegar

300ml cold pressed olive oil

sea salt

white pepper

I find this a quick simple cook and assemble because I prep everything earlier in the day and store in glass bowls in the fridge ready to go, therefore it only takes me a few minutes to cook and serve this.

First make the dough, this you can do three or four hours in advance, or twenty four hours in advance and leave in the fridge to prove.  Place all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and bring together with your hands or if using a mixer with a dough hook, gently knead for seven to ten minutes, form in to a large ball and place back in the bowl, dust with a little flour and cover with a cloth, leave to prove for a minimum of one hour when the dough would have doubled in size, this dough is happy to be left proving at room temperature for up to four hours.  If you are not using all the dough, once proved you can then freeze the portions of dough, when you want yo use them just defrost and leave to come up to room temperature before rolling.

If proving in the fridge for twenty four hours, bring the dough up to room temperature, this takes approx one hour before using.

To make the kebabs, gently soften the onions and garlic in the coconut oil for five minutes, leave to one side to cool slightly, in a large bowl place the lamb mince and season with the salt, pepper, turmeric, oregano, rosemary and thyme, add the onions and garlic and mix well squiding together as you mix.

Take your skewers and a handful of your mince and squish the mince around the skewer so that it is around  the thickness of half an inch, repeat until you have filled the skewers.  Store in the fridge until needed.  To cook grill for around 4-5 minutes on each side.

To make the mayo, place the egg yolks and white wine vinegar in a large bowl, take your whisk and add a teaspoon of the oil and start to whisk, keep adding a teaspoon amount of oil every few seconds while whisking, once you see the emulsification of the oil and yolk you can add the oil in bigger glugs, stop when you have ribbons and your happy with the thickness of the Mayo, add the Dijon mustard and season with salt and pepper.

When ready to cook, pre heat your grill, place the kebabs under the grill these will take approx eight minutes, turning once half way through the cooking time, meanwhile divide the dough into six or eight balls, on a floured surface roll out each ball into a approx 8" circle, heat a non stick frying pan hot, place the bread in the pan and cook for one to two minutes, turn over and cook again for around one minute, remove and repeat with the rest of the dough, wrap the cooked flat breads in a warm tea towel  yo keep warm while you cook the rest.  

Serve family style on the table with a stack of breads, bowls of the salad, a stack of kebabs and a big bowl of mayonnaise, I also serve with some chopped fresh chillies, garlic and herbs along with a home made jar of hot sweet chilli jelly and just enjoy.