Seared Pigeon Breasts

Pork loin braised in milk

By: Gioconda Scott From: Gioconda Scott's Paradise Kitchen

1 kg Loin of Pork

Black Pepper

6 tbsp Olive Oil

3 Cloves Garlic, sliced lengthways

1 Onion, sliced

2 Carrots, finely chopped

6 Peppercorns

2 Bay Leaves

Milk, to cover

1. Season the pork loin with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

2. Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a casserole dish. Add the pork and brown on all sides. Remove the pork and set aside.

3. Add the remaining olive oil in the casserole dish. Add the garlic, onion and carrot and cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 5 minutes until softened.

4. Return the pork loin to the casserole dish. Add the peppercorns and bay leaves.

5. Pour in enough milk to come three-quarters of the way up the pork loin. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

6. Bring the milk to the boil, cover the dish, reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for 1 and a half hours, turning the pork over halfway through.

7. Once the pork is so tender that it is practically falling apart, remove it from the casserole dish and let it rest for 5 minutes, keeping warm.

8. Meanwhile, transfer the cooking liquor and the vegetables to a blender and blend until smooth.

9. Finely slice the pork loin and serve with the sauce made from the cooking liquor.

Roast Pork Loin with Mustard Butter

Serves 4

3 Garlic Cloves
1/2 Spanish Onion, finely chopped and mixed with 30 ml (2 tbsp) Olive Oil
50 g (2 oz) softened Butter
5 ml (1 tsp) crumbled fresh Thyme
1 Bay Leaf, crumbled
15 - 30 ml (1 - 2 tbsp) Dijon Mustard
salt and freshly ground black pepper
25 g (1 oz) Flour
25 g (1 oz) Butter
White Wine


1] Remove the pork from the refrigerator 4 hours before you plan to cook it.

2] Cut each garlic clove into 4 slices. Pierce the pork loin in 12 places and insert a garlic slice and a little chopped onion mixture into each hole.

3] Mix the softened butter, crumbled thyme, bay leaf and mustard to a smooth paste and rub this well into the pork. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and let the meat stand at room temperature for 4 hours.

4] Heat the oven to 230°C (450°F) gas 8. Brown the meat for 15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 180°C (350°F) gas 4 and continue to roast until the meat is done, about 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 hours.

5] Deglazed the pan with some white wine. Mash together the flour with the butter and add this a little at a time to the pan. Stir constantly over a low heat until the sauce thickens. Pour this mustard butter into a small serving dish.

6] Garnish the pork with sprigs of watercress and serve with mashed celeriac/potatoes and the mustard butter.

Pork Stuffed Peppers

Based on a recipe by Lizzie Kamenetzky

Serves 4
Takes 10 minutes to prep, 45 minutes to cook

Olive Oil
Ciabatta, torn into small pieces
1 Onion, finely diced
2 Garlic cloves, crushed
500g Pork Mince
150ml chicken stock
4 Romano Peppers
4 Spring Onions, sliced
3 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
Large handful of fresh coriander leaves, plus extra to serve

1] Heat some Olive Oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat and
fry until the Ciabatta pieces start to crisp and colour. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bread and set aside on kitchen paper.
2] Add some more Oil id needed and add the Onion. Gently fry for 10 minutes until soft and golden.
3] Add the Garlic and mince and fry, stirring, until browned.
4] Add the stock and simmer for 15–20 minutes. Put aside to cool.
5] Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6.
6] Halve the Peppers, de-seed them and place cut-side up on an oiled baking tray.
7] Add the Spring Onion, Sweet Chilli, Soy and Coriander to the mince. Adjust the seasoning and stir in the Ciabatta pieces.
8] Spoon into the Pepper halves and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
9] Scatter with the extra coriander leaves and serve.

Notes: I had some offcuts of Pork Loin, so I roughly minced that with some Chorizo instead of using plain Pork mince.
I didn't have any Romano Peppers and I imagine they would be a lot sweeter than regular Bell Peppers.

Spicy gammon steak with crisp potato stack

By Gino D'Acampo
From Ready Steady Cook

Preparation time: less than 30 mins
Cooking time: 10 to 30 mins
Serves 1
Ingredients
For the spicy gammon steak
• ½ gammon steak
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
• ¼ tsp chilli powder
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
For the crisp potato stack
• 30g/1oz butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 free-range egg, lightly beaten
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 1 potato, peeled and grated
•salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the apple sauce
• 1 tbsp butter
• ½ apple, peeled, cored and grated
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• sprig fresh parsley, to garnish

1. For the spicy gammon steak, use a 7.5cm/3in chefs' ring to cut out a disc of gammon, then dust the gammon with the cayenne pepper and chilli powder.
2. Heat the vegetable oil in a non-stick frying pan and fry the gammon for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until completely cooked through. Set aside and keep warm.
3. For the crisp potato stack, heat the butter and oil together in a non-stick frying pan.
4. Mix the egg, flour and grated potato together in a small bowl and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
5 .Divide the potato mixture in half and press into two chefs' rings the same size as that used for the gammon. Fry for 8-10 minutes, turning halfway through to cook on the other side, until crisp and golden-brown.
6. For the apple sauce, heat the butter, grated apple and lemon juice together in a small saucepan until the apple has broken down to a pulp. Stir in the mustard.
7. To serve, place one potato cake in the centre of a serving plate and top with the disc of gammon. Finish with the second potato cake and garnish with parsley.