December
Now who wants to be a pheasant plucker? Definitely not Hilary who was hosting our monthly Just Roasts dinner. Hubby Richard had been given the task of procuring two birds and although he had spotted several at a local butcher, when he went back the following day there were none left, only a brace in full feathered regalia. Needless to say they were not well received on arriving at the Edwards residence and returned tout de suite.
A quick phone call to another local butcher came up trumps. Hilary said "I knew how long it would take him (Richard) to be a pheasant plucker"! Anyway, a lovely roast pheasant dinner with all the trimmings was enjoyed by all, followed by a warming steamed syrup and ginger sponge pudding and the obligatory custard.
November
Now Wild Boar isn't the easiest of meat to get hold of, but a well-known butchers in Baldock kindly got hold of some from Belgium for me and what a treat it turned out to be. Cooked slowly in a low oven, and sitting in a very nice bottle of Rioja to keep the meat lovely and moist, I think I would be very happy to have this on my Christmas dining table, but unfortunately hubby is adamant it must be turkey! Served with an array of veggies and roast potatoes, with of course a delicious gravy and lots of robust red wine, this turned out to be a great Sunday lunch. We finished off with a 2-year-old home-made Christmas Pud and pears poached in red wine (we cannot get enough of the stuff obviously).
October
Heading into Autumn (although these early Autumn days feel more like Spring), we had the first of our game bird roast dinners. Guinea Fowl, which tastes somewhere between a chicken and a pheasant, was on the menu. It certainly tastes delicious and not something we tend to eat very often, so this was a real treat. Accompanied by the usual roast potatoes and vegetables (note - please make more roast parsnips!), stuffing and a lovely gravy we just managed to fit in a homemade apple pie and crumble. Sorry Hilary, we didn't realise you never got any of your own crumble!
April
Duck was the roast of the day, served with creamy, garlicky Dauphinoise potatoes, Charentaise carrots, green beans and red cabbage. Nigel insisted on making a sauce/gravy à l'orange which turned out to be better than I expected as I'm not a fan. A chocolate mousse finished off the meal which definitely had a bit of a European theme on this occasion.
February
Our last get-together had us all enjoying roast pork with all the trimmings, including
homemade apple sauce and stuffing. A veritable rainbow of vegetables accompanied the pork and some crunchy crackling for those of us whose teeth were up to it!
