*This blog post is part of a sponsored collaboration with Harrods*
When I was a little girl I had an Uncle called Bob. He wasn’t actually my uncle by blood, but an old family friend, drinking partner to my father and trusty companion to my widowed grandmother. He was dapper in a very proper, old fashioned British way, always immaculately turned out, sporting a spotted silk cravat around his neck. Every Christmas when the family descended on our house to feast, Uncle Bob would appear at the doorstep with a twinkling smile, invariably brandishing a glossy dark green Harrods bag.
I remember the giddy anticipation I felt looking inside, because we all knew that Harrods was a very nice shop in London, and that it would be something really special, usually some smoked salmon and chocolate truffles. My job at Christmas was always to lay out the starters on my mum’s best china, and we’d use Bob’s smoked salmon dusted with a little cayenne pepper and served with melba toast and sliced avocado. I still remember exactly the way it melted on the tongue with its exquisite and gentle smoked flavour. To this day Harrods uses the same supplier – Formans in East London, and their salmon still tastes just as sublime (I know this because I actually filmed a VT about them with Saturday Kitchen last year!).
This year I took a leaf out of my Uncle Bob’s book and headed to Harrods for my own special festive grocery shop. I didn’t have Christmas lunch in mind (though you can read last year’s post with my Christmas recipes and hacks here), but rather wanted to create some simple recipes and ideas for those hungry days before or directly after Christmas, when you need an abundant table laid with picky bits for everyone to dive into. I thought it might be useful to share recipes for some fresh, crunchy, zingy winter salads (for welcome respite from all that rich, meaty fare) and some suggestions of special cheeses, cold cuts and charcuterie. A visit to Harrods’ newly relaunched Fresh Market Hall provided huge amounts of inspiration.
The first thing that greets you when you enter the new Fresh Hall is the “Vegetable Butcher”, a counter where a chef brandishing some seriously impressive knife skills cuts vegetables to order. Along the side of the wall are shelves heaving with the most gorgeous produce: pink-marbled heads of castelfranco and curly Treviso radicchio (see recipe below), an impressive selection of winter squashes and gourds, musky golden Muscat grapes (perfect to go with the cheese board below), earthy heirloom beets of many hues, and spiral-headed romanesco cauliflowers. I get so excited about cooking with these kinds of unusual, flavourful veggie ingredients and stocked up for the toothsome winter salads you’ll find below.
On approaching the cured meats section of the hall I was offered a sample of truffle salami – who could say no!? – cut through with actual flakes of black truffle. It was so luxurious and delicious – just the perfect treat for Christmas. I also fell for the pepper-flecked wild boar salami and San Daniele ham which had been aged for 18 months and was sweet and luscious. Having some high quality charcuterie on the go, ready to pull out of the fridge, lay on a platter and offer up to guests is always a good shortcut and special treat, and the same goes for cheese.
At the cheese counter I was once again lured by the heady scent of truffles, this time in the form of a nutty aged pecorino shot through with fragrant white truffles. A wedge of that, along with Harrods’ own exemplary Comte and a hunk of good old Stilton found its way into my basket, along with a small wheel of St Jude, a deliciously buttery soft cheese made in Suffolk with raw cow’s milk. Of course, I had to pick up some of the foremans smoked salmon, for old time’s sake, which were destined for blinis with dill and pearls of coral-coloured trout roe.
I hope you’ll find the below helpful and find some inspiration in these marvellous ingredients from Harrods which I’ve used to create them. I think my Uncle Bob would approve…
A festive table
Roast squash and castelfranco radicchio salad
1/2 kabocha or crown prince squash (about 750g), peeled and cut into slices
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 banana shallots, split
A pinch of chilli flakes
Tbsp pistachios
Handful of sage leaves
½ head of castelfranco radicchio, broken down and leaves washed and dried
Tbsp orange juice
2 tsp sherry vinegar
Romanesco cauliflower grain salad with tardivo Treviso radicchio and stilton
200g buckwheat, spelt or pearl barley
1 bay leaf
Romanesco cauliflower, broken down into florets
Squeeze of lemon juice
Olive oil
2 red or Roscoff onions, finely sliced
Coriander seeds
Fennel seeds
Leaves from 2 sprigs rosemary
Sea salt and cracked black pepper
Handful of sultanas, soaked in 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
2 tbsp pistachios
Tsp honey
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 head of tardivo treviso radicchio, broken down and washed and dried
100g stilton, crumbled
Crunchy winter slaw
½ head red cabbage
Sea salt flakes
½ red onion, finely sliced
1 beetroot, peeled and finely sliced using a mandolin
1 carrot, peeled and julienned
1 red chilli, finely sliced
Tsp caraway seeds
1 tbsp tarragon leaves
Sea salt
Juice from 1 mandarin
Juice of ½ lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
For the roast squash and castelfranco radicchio salad:
Heat oven to 200 fan. Coat the squash and shallot halves in 2 tbsps of olive oil and season well with sea salt, cracked black pepper and the chilli flakes. Roast for 45 mins or until the squash is soft and the shallots caramelised. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Put the pistachios in a pan over a medium heat and dry fry, tossing every now and then for a few mins until toasted. Remove to a bowl and pour a slug of olive oil into the pan, returning it to the heat. Now fry the sage leaves until crisp – about 20-30 seconds, draining them on some kitchen towel.
Whisk 2 tbsp olive oil with the orange juice, sherry vinegar and a pinch of salt to make a dressing. Lightly dress the radicchio then tumble it into a bowl or platter and top with the squash and shallots. Scatter over the pistachios, garnish with the sage leaves and drizzle with a little more of the dressing.
For the romanesco cauliflower, buckwheat and Treviso radicchio salad:
Cook the buckwheat, spelt or pearl barley with a bay leaf and ½ tsp sea salt, according to the packet instructions, drain and allow to cool.
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and, once rolling vigorously, slide in the cauliflower florets. Cook for 3-5 mins, until tender (this will depend on the size of your florets), then plunge into some iced water to cool and keep it green.
Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the coriander seeds, fennel seeds and rosemary and fry for a couple of mins, stirring to infuse the oil, then slide in the onions and season with a good pinch of salt and cracked black pepper. Cook, stirring, for 10-15 mins, until the onions are softened and starting to caramelise, then scrape them into the drained buckwheat, spelt or pearl barley, and stir to combine. Drain the sultanas of their vinegar, reserving the vinegar, then tip them in along with the pistachios, giving everything a good toss to combine the flavours.
Whisk the reserved vinegar with 2 tbsp olive oil, a pinch of salt and the honey and mustard and taste for balance. When you’re happy, dress the radicchio and cauliflower with a couple of spoonfuls of the dressing, and stir the rest through the grain and onion base. Now layer up your salad with the radicchio, cauliflower and grain and onion base. Crumble over the stilton and serve.
For the crunchy winter slaw:
Finely shred the red cabbage into a bowl along with the red onion. Season generously with a good pinch of sea salt and allow to sit for 30 mins, then drain off any water that has escaped from the veg. Toast the pistachios over a medium heat in a frying pan, tossing until toasted and crisp, 2-3 mins, then add the caraway seeds and toast for about 30 more seconds, being careful not to burn them.
Allow the nuts and seeds to cool for a couple of mins, then combine with the cabbage and onion, adding the beetroot, chilli, carrot and tarragon, tossing with your hands to combine thoroughly. Whisk together the mandarin and lemon juice with a pinch of salt and 2 tbsp olive oil and taste for balance. Now drizzle some of the dressing over the veg and get your hands in there and scrunch it into everything – you want every little bit to be kissed with dressing but not sodden – so you might have some dressing leftover which you can serve alongside.
Cheese and meats serving suggestion:
100g each of Harrods truffle salami, wild boar salami, San Daniele ham and cold roast beef, served with spelt and garlic crackers.
200g each of Harrods Comte, white truffle pecorino, stilton and 1 small St Jude wheel, served with a bunch of golden muscat grapes.
For the smoked salmon blinis
150g Formans smoked salmon from Harrods Fresh Market Hall
4 tsps Petrossian trout roe from Harrods Fresh Market Hall
8 Harrods blinis
80g creme fraiche
2 sprigs of dill
Roast the blinis in an oven set to 180 fan for 8 mins, turning halfway through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool, then spread with creme fraiche, top with the salmon, dill and trout roe.
Styling ideas for dressing the table
Eucalyptus, fresh or dried
Dried decorative leaves, for strewing
Foraged pine cones
Tangerines with green leaves
Dark coloured linen