Slow Cooked Shoulder of Lamb with Rosemary Scented Shallots.

Serves: 6

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 4 - 5 hours

You’ll need:

1 boneless shoulder of lamb

1 head of garlic

½ bunch of rosemary

2 peeled carrots

50ml olive oil

Salt and pepper

400g whole round peeled shallots

20g tomato puree

Pinch of flour

1 litre of chicken stock

** Ask your butcher to take out the bone of the shoulder but give it to you to use in the pan when roasting the shoulder to help make the gravy.

What to Do:

Go over the joint and remove any large fat deposits or unsightly skin.

Stab the joint several times over with the tip of a small sharp knife and insert one ½ clove of garlic per incision. Also stick in a little sprig of rosemary per incision to enhance the flavour.

Place the shoulder on the lamb bones with the 2 carrots cut just in half, drizzle over the olive oil and season with sea salt and pepper.

Place in the oven at 160c for 4-5 hours, covering with a sheet of foil for the first 3 hours. With one hour to go, throw in the peeled shallots and remove the foil.

When the lamb is cooked and the shallots are also cooked, remove everything from the tray and allow to rest somewhere warm.

Add the tomato puree and flour to the cooking tray and place back on the stove to cook slightly. Then add the stock and bring to the boil.

Strain through a very fine sieve into a clean pan and bring back to the boil, season if required.

Carve the lamb onto a warm serving dish, place the shallots around and put the gravy in to a sauce boat.

Serve with green vegetables and some potatoes.

Recipe credit: www.UKshallot.com

Farmers roast chicken with creamed Chantenay

There’s nothing better than a delicious roast chicken dinner, it’s a real crowd-pleaser. Served with creamy, lemony Chantenay carrots what could be better?!

Serves: 4-6

Preparation time:  30 minutes

Cooking time:  2 hours

You’ll need:

For the chicken:

1 whole chicken, roughly 1.5 kg

120g unsalted butter

1 lemon, zested and halved

4 sprigs fresh thyme leaves, 1 finely chopped

4 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves, 1 finely chopped

Sea salt and black pepper

1 small onion, peeled and quartered

1 whole garlic, cut in half crossways

175ml white wine

Sea salt for sprinkling on top of chicken after it’s roasted

For the Chantenay:

350g Chantenay carrots, sliced

300ml chicken stock

120g bacon lardons

3 tbsp double cream

Squeeze of lemon juice

1 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley

Half tbsp chopped dill, Sea salt and black pepper

What to do:

Preheat your oven to 190c.

Discard chicken giblets. Remove any excess fat from around the cavity of the chicken, and discard.

In a medium mixing bowl mix together the butter, lemon zest, finely chopped thyme and rosemary, sea salt and black pepper.

Rub the chicken inside and out with the butter and some under the breast skin.

Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the lemon halves and the quartered onion and the remaining sprigs of the thyme and rosemary, along with the head of garlic. Place the chicken in a roasting tin and pour over the wine. Roast, basting with pan juices every 20 minutes, for 1.5 hours or until golden brown and cooked through.

When the chicken is cooked, remove the chicken from the baking tin and leave it to rest on a large plate or platter, covered with aluminium foil, for at least 10 minutes before carving. Sprinkle with sea salt, to taste.

About 15 minutes before you take the chicken out of the oven cut the carrots into slices and put them into a saucepan. Add the stock and bring to the boil, then cook until the carrots are just tender, and the stock has reduced.

Heat a frying pan over a medium heat and sauté the bacon lardons in their own fat until golden and coloured. Remove from the heat and add the cream, lemon juice, parsley and dill. 

Stir the cream sauce in with the cooked carrots and season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Carve the roast chicken and serve with the creamy carrots.

Recipe credit: chantenay.co.uk

Quick Cooked Radishes and Kale

This vibrant green and pink side dish has a delicious flavour that'll keep you coming back for more. The perfect accompaniment to a hearty roast.

Serves: 4 (as a side dish)

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 5-7 minutes

What to do:

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and add the sliced garlic, halved radishes, chopped kale and thyme leaves.

Toss in the pan for 5-7 minutes until the kale is toasty at the edges and the radishes have softened slightly. Season to taste.

Serve immediately.

Recipe credit: www.loveradish.co.uk

You will need:

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

200g radishes, halved (we’ve used French Breakfast radishes)

250g chopped kale

½ small pack thyme, leaves stripped from the stalks

Salt and freshly ground black pepper