Christmas begins for me with the annual lunch for my Reading Group - and this year, I think I can honestly say, it was pretty triumphant - despite one of two glitches with a "tried and tested" cheesecake.
I wish I had taken a photo, but I never do. We had:
Inverawe smoked salmon roulade, with small home made seeded rolls
Duck legs in casserole with marsala and mushrooms, pommes etuvees, red cabbage and green beans
The veggies had a butternut, sage and goatcheese tart
Pudding was chocolate orange cheese cake, with a tropical fruit salad.
There was cheese (Shropshire red, Jura, Vintage gouda, camembert and montagnolo affine) all courtesy of Sainsburys, cheesemongers to the gentry.
It was a thoroughly delicious meal. I think there was a bit too much filling in the salmon roulade - the outside of which was made of egg and courgette with herbs (needed more mint) and parmesan...maybe lemon zest too.
The duck legs were great - they are very inexpensive at the cash and carry, but I used about £3 worth of marsala in the recipe - so not such a bargain! Still, a good one for dinner parties.
The cheesecake was mystifying - the cheese mix was divided into 2 - chocolate and orange, and one was meant to dollop them into the case and marble them together... the mix was so thin it didn't dollop - and then it took 2 and a half hours to cook - the recipe said 45 mins... but it was utterly delicious, even if the edible glitter I bought looked more like showy demerara sugar! The tropical fruit salad was gorgeous too. Nice change from the regular - probably the most expensive item on the menu!
I wish I had taken a photo, but I never do. We had:
Inverawe smoked salmon roulade, with small home made seeded rolls
Duck legs in casserole with marsala and mushrooms, pommes etuvees, red cabbage and green beans
The veggies had a butternut, sage and goatcheese tart
Pudding was chocolate orange cheese cake, with a tropical fruit salad.
There was cheese (Shropshire red, Jura, Vintage gouda, camembert and montagnolo affine) all courtesy of Sainsburys, cheesemongers to the gentry.
It was a thoroughly delicious meal. I think there was a bit too much filling in the salmon roulade - the outside of which was made of egg and courgette with herbs (needed more mint) and parmesan...maybe lemon zest too.
The duck legs were great - they are very inexpensive at the cash and carry, but I used about £3 worth of marsala in the recipe - so not such a bargain! Still, a good one for dinner parties.
The cheesecake was mystifying - the cheese mix was divided into 2 - chocolate and orange, and one was meant to dollop them into the case and marble them together... the mix was so thin it didn't dollop - and then it took 2 and a half hours to cook - the recipe said 45 mins... but it was utterly delicious, even if the edible glitter I bought looked more like showy demerara sugar! The tropical fruit salad was gorgeous too. Nice change from the regular - probably the most expensive item on the menu!
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