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By Sheffield Food Blogger,

Serves 2 as a Starter

Ingredients:

• 4 x Pigeon Breasts, taken off the carcasses & skinned
• Some Winter Salad Leaves
• 50g Smoked Bacon or Pancetta Lardons
• 1 tbsp. Pontack sauce (optional)
• 2 x tbsp reduced Game Stock or a splash of Red Wine

For the Salt Baked Beetroot:

• 2 x Medium Beetroot
• 350 g cheap Table Salt
• 150 g Sugar
• 2 x Egg Whites
• Piece of Orange Zest
• Sprig Thyme
• 1 cm piece of Fresh Horseradish, grated (optional)

For the Whipped Goat’s Cheese:

• 150 g soft English Goat’s Cheese Log
• 100 g Cream Cheese (Philadelphia or the like)
• 2 x tspn Freshly chopped Flat Leaf Parsley

For the Hazelnut Crumb:

• 6  Hazelnuts, shelled

Method:  

Make the Whipped Goat’s Cheese by taking the rind off the cheese and place in a bowl with the cream cheese. Beat together until light and fluffy and add the parsley. Reserve. 

Make the Salt Baked Beetroot by preheat your oven to 190 C/gas 5.

Mix all the ingredients together except the beetroot and place on a baking tray in a mound. Put the beetroot in the middle and push the salt mixture up around them to cover them completely. Bake in the oven for 1 hour then allow to cool. Then remove the salt crust, peel the beets and either slice or dice. Reserve. 

Make the Hazelnut Crumb by putting the hazelnuts in a hot oven (180 C) for 10 minutes. Rub them in a cloth and the skin will come off. Crush with a rolling pin. Reserve. 

When you’re ready to eat, heat a frying pan till it’s medium hot and add the lardons and fry for 5 mins till crisp. Lift out with a slotted spoon and keep the fat that’s come out of them in the pan. Keep warm. 

Take the breasts out of the bag or bowl and wipe any thyme tips off them.

Season with salt & pepper and place in the hot frying pan and cook till just pink, about 2 minutes a side. NO MORE! If overcooked the pigeon will be tough. Remove and keep warm to rest for a few minutes. Add the game stock or red wine to the pan and deglaze and allow to bubble down to a sauce consistency. 

On two plates, arrange quenelles of Goat’s Cheese, the Beetroot and the Bacon attractively.  Add a few Winter Salad Leaves and sprinkle the Hazelnut crumb around. Slice each breast into two and place 2 breasts on each plate. Drizzle with the reduced stock and Pontack sauce and serve.

By Sheffield Food Blogger,

Serves 2 as a Main Course

Ingredients:

• 2 x Lamb Rumps (Chumps) about 180 g each
• 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 x sprig Thyme
• 1 x Garlic clove sliced
• 75 g Umbrian or Puy Lentils
• 1 medium Carrot
• 1 small Leek
• 150 ml  reduced Lamb Gravy
• 1 x dessertspoon each of roughly chopped Mint and Flat Leaf Parsley
• 1 tbsp Oil

For the Potato Gratin:

• 1 medium firm Potato (Maris Piper or similar)
• 100 ml Cream
• 100 ml Milk
• 1 clove Garlic sliced
• Sprig Thyme
• 1 x Bay Leaf
• 75 g Gruyere Cheese grated 

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Preheat your oven to 200 C gas 6. Put the rumps in a bowl or bag and add the oil, thyme and garlic. Leave to marinate overnight.

 Peel the potato and slice thinly into 1mm thick slices. Bring the milk, cream, garlic, thyme and bay leaf to a simmer and add the potatoes. Simmer till tender, about 5 – 8 minutes.      Take out the slices and mix with ¾ of the cheese. Put into a small ovenproof dish. Pour over a little of the creamy milk and top with the remaining cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or until the top is golden.

Peel the carrot and leek and cut into 5mm slices. Heat the oil in a pan and saute the vegetables for about 5 mins until cooked but still firm.

Bring a pan of salted water to the boil and add the lentils. Simmer for 15 minutes or until cooked but with a little bite still in them. Drain and add the vegetables. Keep warm.

Heat a pan and add the lamb rumps, wiping off any thyme leaves or garlic slices first.         Cook for around 5 minutes a side. The lamb should be pink, not rare or well done. Remove, cover with foil and leave to rest for 5 minutes in a warm place.

Deglaze the pan with the lamb gravy then add ¾ of it to the lentil mixture. Keep the rest for dressing the plate.

Add the herbs to the lentils. Spoon the lentils onto the centre of 2 warm plates. Carve the lamb and arrange on top of the lentils. Spoon the remaining gravy around and serve with the potatoes.