The Hackney Butchers Association

Brill, Brussel Sprouts, Carrots , Celery, Cockles , Cod, Coley , Clementines, Cauliflower , Chicory, Clams , Celeriac, Cranberries , Duck, Guinea Fowl , Grouse, Goose , Haddock, Halibut , Hazelnuts, Hake , John Dory, Jerusalem Artichokes , Lemon Sole, langostine , Leeks, Marrow , Monkfish, Mussels , Mackerel, Oysters , Onions, Pollack , Pomegranates, Plaice , Parsnips, Potatoes , Quince, Red Cabbage , Squid, Sea Bream , Skate, Scallops , Sea Bass, Tangerines , Turnips, Turkey , Turbot, Sea Kale , Satsumas, Swede , Salsify. Wild Foods for December… Chestnuts, Grouse (Until 10th December) , Hare, Mallard , Nettles, Partridge , Pheasant, Sea Purslane , Sea Beet, Teal , Venison, Wigeon , Woodcock, Wood Pigeon , Wild Rabbit, Walnuts . Rather wierdly, my daughter is mad on Brussel Sprouts.  There's a fight over lots of other vegetables, but never sprouts.  For years I had bad memories of them from school.  Grey, watery, cabbagey things.... ugghh.  But now I ...

Butternut Squash, Brussels Sprouts , Beetroot, Clementines , Cabbages, Celeriac , Celery, Chard , Chestnuts, Chicory , Clams, Crab , Cranberries, Dover Sole , Duck, Eel , Goose, Grouse , Guinea Fowl , Haddock , Hake, Halibut , Hare, Horseradish , Jerusalem Artichokes , John Dory, Kale , Kohlrabi, Langoustine , Leeks, Lemon , Lobster, Mallard , Medlars, Monkfish , Mussels, Nettles , Onions, Oysters , Parsnips, Partridges , Pears, Pheasant , Plaice, Pollack , Pomegranate, Pumpkins , Quince, Rosehips , Salsify, Satsumas , Scallops, Squid , Sea Bass, Sea Beet , Sea Purslane, Skate , Sole, Swede , Swiss Chard, Tangerines , Turbot, Turnips , Venison, Walnuts , Wigeon, Wild Mushrooms , Wild Rabbit, Winkles , Wood Pigeon, Woodcock Wow.  Lot's of good stuff in there...

The next one in my quest to start drinking a little less in the week...  This one is 0.5% alcohol, which will have no effect unless you drink a bathtub full. This is a nice drink that actually tastes like lager! I got it from Tescos, it's mass produced and should be readily available. A few of the other alcohol free beers I've tried have an unpleasant bitter metallic taste.  This one is clean, light, and refreshing with a malty taste.  Quite impressive considering how bad some of the others are! I might try one out on a friend and see if they can spot that it's low alcohol... Also recommended is the Bavaria Wit 0% (Wheat Beer)

I had a go at these recently.  I small cup of polenta goes a very long way!  You end up with 4-5 cups of polenta...

Beetroot, Borlotti Beans , Cabbages, Cardoons , Chard, Fennel , Kohlrabi, Pumpkins , Rocket, Salsify , Spinach, Turnips , Apples, Crab Apples , Damsons, Pears , Quinces, Wild Mushrooms , Chestnuts, Walnuts , Thyme, Butternut Squash, Rosehip, Sloes , Rowanberries, Scottish Oysters , Parsnips, Guinea Fowl , Clementines, Wood Pigeon , Sea bass, Squid, Turbot, Venison , Elderberries, Figs , Grouse, Watercress Clams , Crabs, Duck , Grey Mullet, Goose , Haddock, Hake , Halibut, Hare , John Dory, Kale , Lemon Sole, Lobster , Mackerel, Mallard, Monkfish, Mussels , Onions, Partridges , Pheasant, Plaice , Plums, Rabbit, Scallops. That reminds me...  rabbits!  It's about time to make some rabbit stews again, phew.   Maybe like the Eagle pub's classic... Arroz con Conejo - Spanish Rice with Rabbit It's cold, but I love October!

These are what salted peanuts want to be when they grow up. This is a classic Spanish tapas.  It's very simple and very rewarding.  Gotta love the Spanish! To read how to do it click below

Beautiful tender meat infused with Caraway seeds and garlic, with a mountain of crispy crackling. This has to be one of the cheapest cuts of meat and massively under-valued.  The ones I bought yesterday (from Theobalds ) were £1.80 per knuckle.  There is a lot of meat on them, a big one can easily feed two hungry & greedy people, that's porky-heaven at 90p per person!  It's a fatty cut so not for everyone I guess.  It's like a cross between gammon & pork belly.  You can use them for a classic pea & ham soup, or braised Chinese style with cinnamon and star-anise, or plain roasted like they do in Germany.  The last route is the one I did last night.   Yum... The cooking time is quite long, 2-3 hours, so this would be perfect for a lazy Sunday lunch on a cold winter's day.  Log burning fire... bottle of wine...or two... mmmnnnn CLICK BELOW FOR RECIPE:

I was reminded recently about Beetroot Hummous (thanks Leila).  I had been meaning to make some for a while. A lot of recipes seem to mix roughly equal amounts of cooked beetroot and chick peas, with the usaual culprits, garlic, olive oil, tahini & lemon juice.  For maximum flavour use left-over roasted beetroot.  All well and good... but the recipe here is even better!  This recipe is quite different, the flavour comes from lots of toasted cumin & walnuts & garlic.  The slight bitterness of the walnuts with the sweetness of the beetroot makes a great balance.  This is rounded, delicious stuff. It looks amazing too.  It's insanely colorful as seen in the picture above. This has to be tried! RECIPE BELOW:

This is a fantastic way to spruce up lentils.  This is a satisfying dish with bags of flavour, it's very more-ish.  It has lots of cumin, coriander (cilantro) and garlic, so it's always going to be good!  Thankfully there is a little leftover of this batch for tomorrow. Phew.  It reheats really well, so can be made in advance and warmed up before serving.  Once cooked it will lst in the fridge for a few days. We had this tonight with some pan-fried fish, some beetroot, walnut & cannelini puree and some green beans.  It was awesome, if I do say so myself!... Don't forget to season it well at the end of cooking, it massively brings all the flavours to life. Oh, and if you know of any great lentil recipes please leave a comment below.  I'll try them out and post the results.  Thanks. FOR RECIPE CLICK BELOW:

Around October this starts to appear in the UK at the odd farmers market.  I'm yet to see it in a supermarket. It's really easy to cook and has a lovely nutty taste.  Like artichokes, they can discolour once peeled.   To avoid this, drop them into water with a little lemon juice in it, or just rub they directly in lemon juice. FOR RECIPES CLICK BELOW

This recipe came from a great blog I came across called Limepickle.com It is very simple and makes a great pickle!  I''ve not changed a thing other than to convert it into metric.  You could swap the limes for lemons.  Mmnnn pickles....

This is brilliant with grilled fish or chicken. Pictures will follow when I next cook it (which will be very soon... It's very easy and makes a great side-dish of onions without the time of roasting. All in all about 15mins, so good for mid week meals. If you can't get pomegranate molases, you can add a teaspoon or two of brown sugar instead, just keep stirring or it will burn. RECIPE BELOW:

This is becoming a bit of a habit.  Another unmissable music track, with the lame excuse that you could listen to it while cooking? The original by Feist is also really beautiful.  It has a really old school, Carpenters type feel.   Amazing what a bit of sub-bass can do though.  Awesome song either way. I don't think it's been released as a single & youtube have removed it since I posted. But you can still hear it on Hype-M.  Click here for link    Phew. CLICK HERE

FOR THE MOJO ROJO RECIPE CLICK HERE! GARLIC ALERT!!!!

Dukka is a traditional Egyptian side-dish, but exists across many Arabic countries..  It's usually made from crushed dried spices, herbs & nuts.  It's often eaten with bread or raw vegetables, but can be used to flavour cooked foods too. The exact mixes vary enormously and can include sesame, nigella seeds, coriander seeds, cumin, marjoram, mint & a whole host of other spices.  The flavour can also therefore vary quite a bit!   They are simple to make.  Lightly toast whatever nut your using in a hot dry pan, then add your selection of spices for a minute.  (The smell coming off the pan will be incredible!).  Then blitz in a food processor until it goes to a light crunchy texture.  The whole procedure takes about 5-10mins. This would be something you could make in advance and sprinkle over all sorts of foods for a bit of wow factor. For a sweeter flavour, you can add desicated coconut & ground roasted almonds. The one I made here ...

You can buy this bottled, it lasts for ages.  There are dozens of different brands available. I'm lucky enough to have a large Turkish community nearby, so can get this easily.  If you can't get it from local shops, you can try online.  There are loads of companies shipping all over the world.  This is one I found immediately. I'll be posting a load of pomegranate recipes soon.  In the meantime, I came across this good looking BBQ sauce using pomegranate.    It can also be made from scratch very easily if you can get hold of a pomegranate or two... CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE:

Za'atar is an Arabic spice blend made with toasted sesame seeds.  There are many variations using cumin, savoury, caraway seeds, fennel seeds etc. The one given here is a lovely citrus mix, thanks to the addition of sumac. You can rub it on chickens or fish prior to roasting, add a small amount to vinaigrettes,  add to olive oil as dip for toasted bread, roll meatballs in it prior to sealing, sprinkle over hummous... There are hundreds of recipes using it, it's very easy to make, and keeps for months in a sealed jar. Gotta be done really... RECIPE BELOW :

Both parts of this side-dish are great by themselves.  The frying cooks out most of the pepper taste of the radishes, and makes them far more like a potato.  So this is like crispy potatoes with a slight twist.  They are a healthier option than fried potato too.  Which means you can eat more... bonus! The spiciness of radishes is mostly in the skin.  Peel them if they are too strong.  Personally I love the spice. RECIPE BELOW:

I know you only need the recipe Pete, but I've added the method too in case anyone else needs it.  Enjoy! x 450g Flour (Type 00 preferably) 14g quick yeast 1 pinch sugar 1 pinch salt 225ml warm water 2 tbs olive oil This makes 2 large pizzas. CLICK HERE FOR METHOD:

Totally unrelated to food except for a few apples, but great none-the-less.

This is lighter than it sounds but is still is a great winter warmer.  You can substitute normal onions, or use leeks & fennel.  HERE'S HOW:

This is a great simple side dish for a roast.  I served it up today with roast chicken, and it was wolfed down by everyone.  It may sound like a lot of mustard, but it doesn't end up overpowering anything.  This can be easily adapted with any fresh herbs depending on what it's being served with. Definitely one to repeat. CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE:

If i was a tomato, I'd want to be eaten like this... This came from a Ruth Rogers & Rose Gray recipe from a weekend newspaper a few years ago.  I just found the battered scrap of paper I'd scribbled it on.  I've cooked it dozens of times, it really is a great, simple recipe for all tomato lovers. It's only worth doing if you can get your hands on amazing tomatoes.  If they are sweet and delicious raw, they will be perfect, as this dish is basically a tomato salad with linguine.  It's all down to the ingredients with this one.   If you use great oil, vinegar & tomatoes this can be restaurant quality grub at it's simplest. Recipe below:

This is the real McCoy and not pink like shop bought ones.   Don't be temped to use a good olive oil, it will all be way too strong.  If it still turns out too strong, keep adding bread to tame it. RECIPE BELOW:

This is a great Turkish Meze dish that can be eaten with bread or other small dishes.  It's also perfect alongside some grilled fish or meat.  It's basically a salsa, but strong and fresh tasting thanks to the pomegranate and sumac. RECIPE BELOW:

This is a real treat.  We cooked this recently for a party and not a scrap was  left.  How much meat you get depends on how big your pig is!...  The last one we cooked was 8-10kg with head  trotters still on.  It easily fed about 16 adults and gaggle of kids. You should probably cook this on a rotisserie to get the real drama, but here's how to do it if you only have an oven.  This way gets amazing crispy skin and unbelievably succulent pork. I got my pig from http://alternativemeats.co.uk/. They do a massive range of game, goat, mutton and loads of really interesting meats like Crocodile, Buffalo, Kangaroo, Kudu, Springbok, Blesbok and Zebra.  This pig was £90, so not cheap!  But it goes a long way, and in in this instance it's worth splashing the cash! CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE:

This takes 5-10mins depending on how quickly you can chop... It's a great dressing for tomato salad or mixed bean salads.  It's got quite a strong flavour, so it's good even if your tomatoes aren't the best.  It's delicious in a humous wrap the next day too. CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE:

This is a Jamie Oliver jobbie.  It's easy, cooks in 1 hour, and always works.  It's a perfect hassle free Sunday lunch.  My kids love it too. The recipe below will feed 6 with roasted veg. You need: 1 large leg of lamb - butterflied 500g Natural Yoghurt 1x can Chickpeas Bunch of Coriander Bunch of mint 1 tsp cumin seeds 1tsp coriander seeds Salt & pepper Grind the coriander and cumin seeds, then put in a food processor with the fresh herbs.  Blitz, then add the yoghurt.  Blitz again.  Season with salt & pepper. Put half of the flavoured yoghurt in a tub and keep in the fridge.  Put the lamb in a clean plastic bag (with no holes in!), then add the remaining yoghurt mixture.  Give it a really good massage to coat the lamb thoroughly.  Then pop the bag in the fridge and leave for at least an hour, or preferably overnight. When it comes to cooking, put the lamb straight on to a shelf in a preheated oven at 220C.  P...

This takes just a few minutes once you've done it a couple of times. It can be a fairly messy job with a fair bit of ink sometimes, so clear a decent space and have a watertight bin bag nearby for the unwanted bits. TO READ MORE CLICK BELOW

This is one of my favorite recipes.  It's an Eagle Pub creation & it's genius!  Cleaning Octopus can be a messy job, but once you've done it a few times it becomes very simple. The sauce can be made in advance and will keep in the fridge for months, good for next time....  RECHEADO SAUCE RECIPE HERE The smell is incredible, a cinnamon spice, it fills the room.  It's great with bread or rice.  You don't need much more. Well, maybe a few beers. This serves 4 .  Cooking time 1.5 to 2 hours . CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE:

Use fresh corn kernels, or thaw frozen ones in a colander for half an hour & then dry them well. Fry the corn on a medium heat with a large knob of butter until golden and nearly popping.  Then season with salt and stir in some finely chopped fresh mint. It takes about 10mins.  Really nice with some steamed fish.

This is a great light ale from a fantastic small brewery, HOBSONS in Mortimer, Shropshire. Well worth a look if you like ale.  A total waste of time if you don't. Even more exciting, you can order direct delivery from this link.  CLICK HERE The site has six breweries, & delivers anywhere.  It would be brilliant for a special event.  You can order cases of bottles, 18/36pint polybins, or even barrels.  Enjoy!

The real McCoy, like your gran use to make.  Well, maybe.  I've made this loads of time from Delia Smith's recipe. This recipe is best left overnight to get a great flavor.  6 lemons makes 3pints (1.75litres) Chill it with loads of ice, it's delicious. The ratio of lemons to sugar is pretty standard.  It makes a perfect, slightly tart lemonade. You can add more sugar afterwards if you're clinically insane. It can be made with less water to make a cordial, that you dilute when you need it.  This is good for fizzy lemonade, just add fizzy water to dilute it.  Nice. You can make instant lemonade by blitzing lemons with sugar & ice in a blender.  Still nice, but not as good in my opinion. Another few things to try... Add raspberries & grenadine. Add a few sprigs of mint. Switch the lemons for oranges (use less sugar!) or limes.  Probably nice, I haven't tried it yet. Pink lemonade with cherry juice, or cranberry juice. ...

These take about 10mins to do, and 1 month to pickle.  If you've got any cuts on your hands, it hurts like hell! They will then last for ages, and can be used for sauces, stews, salads etc. You can add spices like corriander seeds, bayleaves, cinnamon sticks etc to the jar for extra flavouring.  I don't because it keeps them more versatile without. You can always add those flavours directly to a dish at a later stage. The number of lemons you use obviously depends on the size of your jars...  Just put the whole lemons in one at a time, & keep squeezing them in.  The batch I've just made only used about 7.  A little goes a long way. CLICK BELOW FOR INSTRUCTIONS:

My new favourite song.  Ok, I know it's not a recipe, but you could cook while listening to it? It's like the Beta Band mixed with a bit of Simon & Garfunkle.  I love it. http://www.myspace.com/djangotime I can't work out where to buy the album, if there is one. I might have to invent a Django Django sauce...

This is sweet & very moorish.  It's a John Torode recipe.  It's very simple. You can leave it in the marinade all day & then take 30mins to cook in the evening. CLICK BELOW FOR RECIPE:

It was cold out today and this warmed us up! It's a simple stew with an interesting subtle flavour, de-glazed with brandy rather than wine. It's a recipe by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.  My kids loved it. CLICK BELOW FOR RECIPE:

I got given this fantastic book for Christmas.  (Thanks M&P!)  Definitely recommended. It will set you straight on the types of game, their history, and uses.  It has a breakdown of each type of common game with a load of recipes, some straightforward, some more unusual. There is a recipe for Quails on toast with a sweet onion sauce and watercress that looks fantastic.  It's effectively a roast bird with bread sauce, but looks incredible. Another one that leapt out for me is a Partridge escabeche with orange & thyme.  The dish is cooked a day in advance with the meat being almost cured in the process. I'm going to try and get some Partridge tomorrow... There are dozens of things I'm planning on trying out.   I'll post the results. Let me know if anyone else has tried any of these, or has any family game recipes.  Cheers!

This is what winter is for, glorified cheese on toast!  A twist on the delicious classic Welsh Rarebit, this one has the kitchen sink thrown in.  It is rich, & more than a meal in istelf.  You only need a good ale or red wine to go with it. For vegetarians, remove the black pudding and top the grilled rarebit with a poached egg ("Buck Rarebit") This is an obvious breakfast, or lunch, but made a hearty evening meal for me last night.  I'm smiling just thinking about it. CLICK BELOW FOR RECIPE

I had this with some amazing veal cutlets and roasted beetroot last night. Wow they were good! In my mind it's way better than a bought sauce as you can make it as sweet or tart as you'd like.  It takes less than 10mins and is dead simple.  Delicious stuff.  It will last in the fridge for at least a few days. CLICK BELOW FOR RECIPE