This year there was no snow but a ridiculous amount of Prosecco and an intense game of Cranium which resulted in the boys winning and closing the led on the girls of three games to two (we have also played this on Ultimate New Years Day and Ultimate Easter).
I was in charge of a starter so went for a posh prawn cocktail from BBC Good Food (two people at the dinner had only ever experienced prawn cocktail in crisp form). Made with lots of fennel, lemon juice and tarragon it avoided the sweet tang usually associated with this 70s classic and was instead fresh and light. I used Taste the Difference king prawns from Sainsburys and I think this made a big difference to the flavour, especially the ones with the shell on I used to decorate it with. The homemade soda bread was great to mop up the sauce with.
This was followed by a full on lamb roast dinner and two puddings - the first an old skool black forest trifle served in individual jam jars and the second a fully homemade chocolate log - delicious.
One of the highlights are the secret santa pressies which I even better when they are something to play with. The monster hand puppet transfers were a big hit!
It was a great day even though the journey home involved me being unsure if I was going to be ill from the over indulgence of food and booze... but strangely I am already looking forward to next year.
Prawn & fennel cocktail
Serves 8
Ingredients:
• 4 heads fennel ,
trimmed
• 1 tbsp caster sugar
• 2.5 tsp Maldon sea salt
• juice 1/2 lemon
• 500g cooked, peeled king prawns
• handful chervil leaves, roughly chopped
• handful tarragon leaves,
roughly chopped
• 8 small handfuls mixed salad leaves
• 1 lemon ,
cut into 8 wedges
For the rouille:
• 1 small red chilli , deseeded
• 1 garlic clove
• pinch saffron strands
• 300ml good-quality mayo
Method:
• To make the rouille, use a pestle and
mortar to mash chilli and garlic to a smooth paste. Bring the saffron to a simmer
with 4 tbsp of water. Stir saffron water, garlic and chilli into the mayonnaise
and put in the fridge, until ready to use.
• Cut the fennel into quarters, remove the
cores and use a Japanese mandolin or sharp knife to slice as thinly as
possible. Bring a pan of water to the boil and blanch the fennel for 1 min
until just wilted. Drain and tip into iced water. Drain again and use a cloth
to wring out all the excess water, then leave in the fridge.
• To assemble the dish, season the fennel
with the sugar, salt, a decent grinding of pepper and the lemon juice. Cut most
of the prawn tails in half, saving a whole one for each serving. Mix the
chopped prawns into the fennel, then add the chopped chervil and tarragon and
enough rouille to bind everything together (about 6-7 tbsp). Half-fill 6-8
martini glasses loosely with the fennel mix. Place the mixed leaves on top,
then a whole prawn tail, then drizzle with the fennel juices that will have
collected at the bottom of the bowl. Serve straight away with a wedge of lemon.
Irish Soda Bread
Ingredients:
• 170g/6oz self-raising wholemeal flour
• 170g/6oz plain flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 290ml buttermilk
Method:
• Preheat the oven to 400F/200C/Gas 6.
• Tip the flours, salt and bicarbonate of
soda into a large mixing bowl and stir.
• Make a well in the centre and pour in the
buttermilk, mixing quickly with a large fork to form a soft dough. (Depending
upon the absorbency of the flour, you may need to add a little milk if the
dough seems too stiff but it should not be too wet or sticky.)
• Turn onto a lightly floured surface and
knead briefly
• Form into a round and flatten the dough
slightly before placing on a lightly floured baking sheet.
• Cut a cross on the top and bake for about
30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack.
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