Hi there lovely readers!

I’ve just had to move my site www.countrywoodsmoke.com to a new host as I had outgrown the previous one.

Sadly I have been unable to move your details over, so if you wish to continue receiving my posts directly please head to the site to register again.

I promise it will be worth it, the new site looks ace, and there will be even more recipes and mouth watering photos.

Cheers

Marcus

Lardo with Walnut Pesto

Lardo…..hasn’t got the healthiest ring about it has it? But trust me a couple of slithers of Lardo Di Colonatta will be a little treat worth the extra calories.

Lardo is the cured pork back fat, that has been rubbed with with herbs and then cured. The Lardo is incredibly creamy and slightly sweet with a lovely subtle porkiness. I sliced off wafer thin slithers, and placed them on a slice of toasted sourdough.

I then laced with a drizzle of Walnut Pesto, to make this blitz up a handful of walnuts, a sprig of flat leaf parsley, a dribble of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Blitz this in a spice grinder or similar until a coarse consistency is reached.

Plum Teriyaki Glazed Venison

I love this time of year, the whole palate of the seasons changes, and I get very excited of the possibilities of cooking with game once again.

Venison seems to really thrive when teamed up with fruity style sauces, so I marinated this stunning venison strip loin for a couple of hours in a marinade made from 1tbsp plum conserve, 1 tbsp teriyaki marinade and half a teaspoon of dried chilli flakes.

I seared in a medium hot frying pan with a little wok oil, and cooked both sides caramelising the glaze, 3/4 mins a side was perfect for this inch thick steak to be served perectly pink inside.

I rested the venison and then served in slices on white rice with the resting juices poured over. A simple chinese cabbage sake pickle went well with it, as did a little dry sake to wash it down.

Dirty Steak Video…Redux

One of my first attempts at a video for you guys was an attempt at filming me cooking my “Dirty” Steaks.

So I wanted to share my latest attempts with you, and let you into the secrets of down dirty way I cook them….

Enjoy!

Pitmans Farm Butchery Course

I’m very fortunate to have a wonderful butcher on my doorstep, who I count as a friend, Steve and Joyce Greenslade at Pitmans Farm, produce some stunning rare breed meats, including the recently awarded Taste of The West Gold for their Devon Rose Veal.

They hold Butchery and Pig Keeping courses, and I have been able to spend time with Steve learning butchery skills, he’s a true star who is able to share the inner secrets of butchery, and how to get the best out of each cut, he is a true mine of information, but has a great way to make you feel relaxed.

A course would make an ideal present for someone wanting to learn traditional artisan butchery skills.

The Crab Shack – Teignmouth

I’m a huge fan of crab, for me it is a real luxury that is difficult to beat, when I have a choice of something special to eat for a birthday or Fathers Day treat, I will always go for crab sandwich and chips by the seaside.

One place that I’ve wanted to visit for quite a while is The Crab Shack on the beach at Teignmouth in sunny Devon. We arranged to meet some special friends for a lovely meal there, and to say I was excited would be an understatement.

There was a wonderful selection of platters that I was tempted by, but in the end I went for a platter of River Teign oysters which were stunningly good, a real hit of sea, and followed with a bucket of garlic butter smothered roasted crab claws and chips which were perfect.

A real welcoming place, the staff were excellent, the food wonderful, and we left very content, well worth a visit, but book ahead.

Giving something back

Hello my lovely readers, I’m grateful for all the support and feedback I get from you all when I share my recipes and pictures, but occasionally I ask for you to give something back, and the time has come around once more for the Food Magazine Reader Awards 2014.

I would be incredibly grateful if you have enjoyed what I do, if you could take a moment to nominate my blog CountryWoodSmoke.com in the Food Blogger category. There are some other great categories in the awards with some great businesses, chefs that deserve our support.

The initial stage is to be nominated, and then the finalists will be named and can be voted for. Please follow the link below to vote

Vote Here

I’m up against some stiff competition this year, and so would really value your support.

Thanks

Marcus

P.S. if it helps you to decide to vote here’s a subtle reminder of what I do 😉

Hot Smoked Mackerel

Oh hello October you cheeky devil, you steal away summer like a thief in the night, and then slap us round the face with the threat of winter……

But we fight back, we keep the BBQ fires a burning….

I caught these lovely mackerel on a recent bouncy boat ride, and rescued a large number from being destined as lobster pot bait, so what better way of using them but hot smoking them to an amber burnish.

I cured them for 24 hours in 50/50 salt sugar mix, rinsed this off and allowed to dry for an hour uncovered in the fridge before smoking with Silver Birch for 40 minutes in a barrel BBQ. I hope you enjoy the video.

Smokie and Black Pudding Linguine

 

Abroath smokies are wonderful creamy smoky hot smoked haddock that are a real treat, as you open them from their wrapping you get a hit of real woodsmoke, peel away the golden skin and you reveal the soft creamy flakes of fish….

They are wonderful just as they are picked at with smoky fingers, or lavish them in this simple pasta recipe.

Gently soften a finely chopped shallot and garlic clove in a little olive oil. Set some Linguine cooking as per the packet to al dente enough for 2.

Flake the the flesh from the smokie into the onion and garlic, and fine zest of half a lemon and warm through, add 3 tbsps of creme fraiche, a good grind of black pepper, a handful of finely chopped flat leaf parsley and chives.

Using tongs remove the pasta from the water and into the sauce, splash a little of the pasta water in too, stir through, and top with some crisp crumbs of Stornoway black pudding that have been dry fried in a pan, a squeeze of lemon, a little olive oil, and a little grated parmesan.

Scallop, black pudding and fig skewers

This skewer recipe utilizes the well loved pairing of scallops and black pudding, with the less common fresh fig, instead of the usual apple sauce, and I have to say it’s a bit of a winner. Figs are wonderful and in season at this time of year.

Simply skewer alternately plump scallops, quarters of fresh fig, and cubes of black pudding, crisp up over a hot BBQ grill for a few minutes each side, until the scallops are browned on the outside but still slightly undercooked through, (how I like them best) and the fig and black pudding crisp on the outside.

Season with a little coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice.

I served mine with a crisp salad and a piece of olive oil drizzled bruschetta. The flavours worked perfectly together, sweet plump scallops, crispy black pudding and juicy sweet caramelised fig.