Recipe: January dauphinoise

From Mark Diacono’s plot in Devon this month, a recipe to make the most of his favourite blissfully bitter root veg - celeriac

“I’ll eat dauphinoise at any time of year, but this potato/celeriac split in the heart of winter’s cold is probably my favourite. Serve with griddled chicory or sprouting broccoli.”

January dauphinoise

Serves 6
25g unsalted butter, softened 
300g waxy potatoes
300g celeriac
300ml double cream
4 bay leaves
2 large garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

1 Preheat oven to 170C/Fan 150C/325F. Rub a gratin dish liberally with butter.

2 Peel the potatoes and celeriac and slice thinly, either with a sharp knife or a mandoline, submerging the celeriac slices in water with a little lemon juice to prevent them discolouring.

3 Whisk together the cream and garlic and season well. Toss the veg in the mixture and layer them in alternate layers in the gratin dish with the bay leaves, then pour over any remaining cream.

4 Bake for 75 mins, pressing down all over with a fish slice or spatula every 20 mins or so, to stop the spuds from drying out. It is ready when the top is bubbling and golden, and the vegetables soft and yielding when pierced with a knife.

Recipe and photograph by Mark Diacono, a green-fingered foodie who grows, cooks and eats the best of the familiar, forgotten and climate-change foods on his Devon smallholding. His book A Year at Otter Farm (Bloomsbury, £25) has inspiring recipes for every season. His latest book is Spice: A Cook’s Companion (Quadrille, £25). This blog was first published in January 2015.

Recipe: Seville and Blood Orange Marmalade

With Seville oranges in season, it's marmalade time. And this blood orange recipe celebrates all that's flavoursome about the citrus classic.

Seville and blood orange marmalade

Preparation time: 30 minutes 
Cooking time: 90 minutes

500g Seville oranges 
500g blood oranges 
1kg granulated sugar 

You will need:
Muslin cloth
Kitchen string
3 large jam jars (or 6 small ones)
Jam thermometer

1 Clean the oranges well and place whole into a large pan. Cover with 4 pints of water (2.25l) and bring to the boil. Reduce to simmer for 1 hour or until the fruit is soft.
2 Remove the oranges from the pan, without discarding any of the cooking liquid, and set aside to cool. Measure out 3 pints of the cooking liquid, topping up if needed with more water.
3 Halve the cooled oranges and scoop out the flesh and pips into a muslin cloth (or white tea-towel); tie with food-safe string. 
4 Place the muslin package into the pan with the 3 pints of cooking liquid.
5 Slice the orange peel as preferred. Add to the pan. Add the sugar and stir over a low heat until dissolved. Bring to a rolling boil for 15 mins. After this time, keep boiling at a lower temp until the liquid reaches 105C. Take off the heat and let sit for a moment before skimming off any scum from the top of the liquid. Pour into hot, sterilised jam jars and seal. 

This blog was first published in January 2012. Pick up our January 2020 for lots more delicious things to do with oranges and lemons.

From our January issue…

More preserves to make…

How to: Write a thank you note

Top manners = repeat invitations

We all know the value of saying “thank you” at this time of year, (even if Nanny Vi did send bath salts again). These days, we have lots of easy ways to say it, from a blanket shout-out on Facebook to a quick text. But nothing tops a hand-written note. Here’s how to compose the perfect message.

BEGIN WITH A GREETING
Always use the correct form and spelling of the person’s name. 

EXPRESS THANKS
Kick off with the most important words: ‘Thank you.’ Or something fancier: ‘It made my day when I opened your gift...’ 

ADD SPECIFIC DETAILS
Tell them how you plan to use or display the present. Even if it was cash, describe how you might spend it (if it’s beer and pick ‘n’ mix, you have permission to make something up). 

LOOK AHEAD
Mention the next time you might see them, or just let them know you’re thinking of them. 

RESTATE YOUR THANKS
Add extra details: ‘I know my friends will be jealous of the beautiful reindeer jumper you knitted for me!’ 

SIGN OFF
‘Sincerely’ is a safe standby but for closer relationships, choose something warmer. Show the love!

January's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe now.

Recipe: Harissa broth with kale and almond pesto

A potent broth full of zingy flavours and vibrant colours, Harissa broth with kale and almond pesto is a wonderful way to spring you through your day.
 

Top nutritionist Vicki from Abel & Cole says, “Almond and kale pesto is set to become the next pesto thing: the almonds are packed with magnesium for a calm 'get up and go', whilst providing a rich, creamy flavour/texture that is so much healthier than dairy cream and high in vegetarian alkaline protein, too. The Mediterranean vegetables offer the best combination of anti-oxidants to mop up the toxins in your body.” 
 

Harissa broth with kale and almond pesto

Serves: 2-3
 
1 carrot
1 onion
3 garlic cloves
500g tomatoes
A pinch of harissa (more or less, to taste)
35g flaked almonds
50g kale
1 lemon
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
 
1. Get a large pot hot. Peel or scrub your carrot. Finely dice. Finely dice your onion. Add a gloss of oil to your warmed pot. Tumble in the carrot and onion with a pinch of salt and pepper. Swirl through the oil. Lower heat. Sizzle till tender.
 
2. Finely chop your garlic. Set 1 tsp aside. Cut your tomatoes into a fine dice. Swirl them into the carrot and onion mix, along with a pinch of harissa.
 
3. Let the tomatoes cook right down till they’ve lost their shape and are almost a paste, about 10 mins.
 
4. Add 500ml water. Bring to a soft rolling boil. Cook till the broth has thickened. Taste and tweak spicing as you go.
 
5. To make the pesto, toast the almonds till just golden. Rinse and finely chop your kale. Blitz the almonds and the kale in a food processor with the reserved 1 tsp of garlic, 6 tbsp olive oil, the zest of your lemon, a squeeze of juice and a pinch of salt till it all comes together, trickling in more olive oil as needed. You want it to be a little loose, so you can swirl it through your soup. Taste and tweak as needed.
 
6. For a smoother broth, puree the soup before serving. Or keep it a little more rustic. Serve the with the pesto on the side, swirling it into the bowl as you serve.

Recipe: Abel & Cole - try a weekly box of organic, seasonal veg delivered to your door. Try the Superb Souping Box (£12.50) - 3 different recipes every week, each making 2-3 bowls per recipe.

 

ABEL & COLE OFFER

Order this week and get:

A FREE cookbook with your first delivery, and your 4th seasonal box FREE with a FREE bottle of organic Prosecco.

Visit Abel & Cole and enter the code TST14 at checkout.

Competition: Win a winter holiday in Norway with Inntravel (closed)

This is your chance to try out cross-country skiing, courtesy of Inntravel and Norway - home of skiing.

The friendliness of fellow skiers, the feeling of being close to nature, and the chance to fully soak up the scenery make cross-country skiing highly enjoyable. And where better to learn than in Norway, where skiing is not so much a sport as a way of life.

We have teamed up with Inntravel to offer one lucky reader and their companion a holiday in Beitostolen in the Norwegian Highlands. As well as sampling a range of other snow-based activities (husky tours, snowmobile safaris and more), you will be able to try out cross-country skiing. Amiable instructor Tor Havard Kolbu and his team of friendly, English-speaking instructors will ensure you soon master the 'gliding stride', and once you get going you will be clocking up the kilometres in no time. 

The village of Beistolen has a wonderfully laid-back atmosphere, thanks to the Hovi family, who run most of it! Your base, the Bergo Hotel, is full of character, as are its restaurant and cosy bar; and you are bound to find yourselves in the lively Svingen pub at some stage. All in all, this is a fantastic holiday, and the connecting flight from Oslo to nearby Fagernes is the icing on the cake.

How to enter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What you could win

A week-long holiday for two at the Bergo Hotel in Beitostolen, including flights from London and transfers; dinner, breakfast and lunch pack every day; 6 days' ski hire, free use of cross-country trails and two 90-minute lessons. You can also use the excellent pool and spa facilities of the neighbouring Radisson hotel.

Try other activities (not included), such as husky tours, snowmobile safaris, downhill skiing or ice fishing. 

Departures from 1-29 March 2015 (Sundays to Fridays).

www.inntravel.co.uk

Full terms and conditions.