Christmas Slaw

I must admit that I don't know what makes a coleslaw versus a 'slaw'. It seems to have become fashionable to have 'slaw' on the menu but I don't know why we have dropped the 'cole' aspect of it.

Needing something healthy with our leftover meat instead of all the heavy fried and roasted delights in which we have indulged I used the contents of the salad drawer to create a masterpiece. I know that pride is a sin but it was exceedingly tasty ... everybody said so! 

I have not previously made a coleslaw without cabbage but it has been a great success. The ingredients can be adjusted to whatever you have in the fridge and you can adjust the ratio of mayonnaise versus salad cream according to personal preference. Spring onions would be a particularly good addition but because I rarely have them I use the garlic mayo instead. I am fast coming to the conclusion that a recipe is basically a guideline and not a blueprint.

Ingredients:

1large raw beetroot, grated

1 large carrot, grated

1 apple, cored and finely diced

1 stick celery, finely diced

1 Tbsp garlic mayonnaise

1 Tbsp salad cream

lemon juice

salt and pepper

Method: 

I would always use a food processor to grate vegetables as my finger nails and knuckles are not ideal ingredients if I use a manual grater!  I then use the blade of the processor to chop the celery and apple together with a generous squeeze of lemon juice.

Mix all ingredients together and add more mayo or salad cream according to preference. I often use celery salt instead of normal salt to add a little extra je ne sais quois.

It was hard to get a decent photo because of the harshness of the flash but don't be deterred by the look .... it is very tasty and a perfect accompaniment to cold meats or fish. Give it a go and see for yourself

Amaretti Crumble Top Mince Pies

I have never been a great lover of mince pies, mainly because I don't really like pastry ... but I love mincemeat and this creates a seasonal dilemma. However I have discovered the perfect solution in a crumble topping. I found this recipe in a newspaper magazine several years ago while I was sitting in a public cafe and I took a photograph of the page but cannot credit the paper or the chef ... but I thank them for allowing me to recreate the best mince pies I have ever tasted.

Ingredients to make 12 mince pies

For pastry:

200g plain flour

100g butter, cubed

50g icing sugar

2 egg yolks

1 Tbs Amaretto

For crumble topping:

60g flour

40g butter

10g brown sugar

40g amaretti biscuits

25g flaked almonds

400g good quality mincemeat

Method: 

• For the pastry blitz the flour and butter in a food processor to breadcrumbs. Add the icing sugar, pulse and then add the egg yolks and amaretto. Blitz until the pastry comes together in a ball (I needed to add more amaretto and then form it into a ball with my hands). Gently shape into a flat disc, wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for around an hour.
• Preheat the oven 180*C / Gas mark 4. 
• For the crumble top rub the butter into the flour until you have a rough breadcrumb texture. Stir through the sugar and crumble in the amaretti biscuits. Add the almonds and stir to combine.
• Roll out the pastry and cut out 12 circles using a cutter slightly larger than the indentation in your mince pie tin. Press the pastry into the tin and then fill each tart with a spoonful of mincemeat ... don't overfill.
• Top each pie with crumble and then bake for about 15 minutes or until golden.

I like my pastry thin and I found that if I rolled it out thinner there was enough to make 24 mince pies and the topping also stretched this far if pies not too large.

Now enjoy this perfect taste of Christmas