Author - The Bay Tree Home Deli Cookbook

THE

BAY TREE
BEST HOME DELI
RECIPES

EMMA
MACDONALD

After almost 20 years in the food business a great wish of mine has been to publish my own cookery book and now here is The Bay Tree Best Home Deli Recipes , a collection of my favourite deli secrets, and so much more.

From the age of thirteen I wanted to make a career out of cooking and I spent much of my free time devising new recipes and baking cakes for friends and family. I studied catering at college and, after leaving, worked as an apprentice in a number of restaurants in France before then travelling through Asia, working in various restaurants and catering establishments as I went. This was a great way of learning to appreciate different cultures, ingredients and styles of cooking. In Asia, I discovered the eclectic mix of spices sold in markets and how they were used in cooking, along with the techniques that make the Asian cuisine so fresh and vibrant. This has influenced my own style of cooking, especially in the way I like to add a fresh interpretation to classic recipes in our Bay Tree condiments.

I grew up in a house where there was always a supply of home-made jams and chutneys, so it seemed a natural progression to start making my own, and in time I decided to make a living from it. I established The Bay Tree Food Co. in my early twenties, producing traditional, home cooked condiments and marmalades with a modern twist. More recently, we have moved into creating home-style cook-in sauces and pasta sauces. One of our greatest early successes was Aga-dried tomatoes, but unfortunately the demand far outweighed the volume we could make at the time, so we then set our sights on what could be done without sacrificing our wish to create high-quality products with no artificial additives.

It hasnt always been plain sailing, and I quickly found that making products in a jar with a decent shelf life (as opposed to making a meal to be eaten straight away) requires a certain amount of food science, but this aspect has also always fascinated me. Recognizing and appreciating that fresh produce can vary in taste, texture or colour, depending on the season, weather or growing conditions, and using this knowledge, can make such a big difference to the end product. I always make products as close as I can to the home-cooked equivalent without compromising on flavour and texture or having to add artificial additives, while also offering the convenience of a product with a good shelf life.

The recipes in this book like The Bay Tree products are predominantly based on a traditional theme but with an exciting twist. My recipe for gravadlax (see ), for instance, features fresh root ginger and lemon to flavour the salmon, instead of the more classic dill. I also hope youll have a go at making pts, preserves, sauces and even some home smoking. If this doesnt appeal, there are also recipes that use these ingredients bought ready-made from a deli to suit those times when you want to knock up a mouth-watering meal. Some recipes are simple and others demand more effort, but either way the end results are worth it!

Ive also included recipes for some of our popular Bay Tree products such as Piccalilli (see ). You can also create this recipe with a shop-bought piccalilli. Home-made condiments, jams and sauces are such a treat to have in the kitchen and are a delight to give to family and friends. The fact that they are so appreciated and enjoyed makes the effort more worthwhile.

I hope youll enjoy these recipes and find the time to be creative with making the deli products, as well as using the ready-made ones in the recipes.

A good deli is a fantastic treasure trove of culinary delights, from cured meats, smoked fish and sweet preserves to farmhouse cheeses, fresh pasta and hand-raised pies.

This book is designed to be both accessible and inspiring, featuring a collection of recipes for dishes that incorporate ready-made deli foods and also more challenging recipes showing how you can create your own deli products at home, such as home-cured bacon, ricotta, fresh pasta, flavoured vinegar, seafood pt and artisan breads. There are also suggestions on how to give classic deli foods an interesting new spin, such as a crab terrine that forms the filling of a creamy seafood tart (see ). So whether you buy your deli products ready-made or make them from scratch, theres no doubting theres a wonderful variety from which to choose. Enjoy exploring them within these pages.

While the French term charcuterie may traditionally just cover pork, it has become a generic word encompassing all manner of cured and preserved meats from all over the world. Pork still reigns supreme in the world of charcuterie, however, thanks to its incredible versatility: just think pts, terrines, bacon, salami, sausages, ham and pies.

Arguably the finest and most expensive ham is the Spanish jamn Ibrico. The Ibrico pig roams freely and spends its final months in oak forests feeding on acorns (bellota), which give the meat a unique delicate, sweet flavour. The curing process that follows takes at least 12 months, and up to 36 months, to produce a ham with melt-in-the-mouth qualities. Salt curing draws out the moisture in meat, which intensifies the flavour and firms up the texture. It also inhibits the growth of harmful bacteria. You can try salt curing with the recipe for Home-Cured Bacon (see ), which is immensely satisfying and rewarding to make.

Game both feathered and furred is becoming more widely available and is enjoying a resurgence in popularity. Rabbit, pheasant, partridge, pigeon and venison are perfect for pies, pts, terrines and potted meats, but as they are low in fat you may need to combine them with a fattier meat, such as duck or pork, to keep them moist. Its this generous fat content that makes duck and pork perfect for rillettes, potted meat, confit and pts. When youre making meat pts, try duck, goose and chicken livers, which are not expensive to buy and create a great base flavour.

Fish and shellfish can be smoked, salted, cured or pickled, but if you intend to preserve your own seafood, the key is to use the freshest you can buy.

Home smoking is growing in popularity and is easy to do, and the Home-Smoked Trout (see ) is a great starting point. This is hot smoked, which cooks the food while imparting a delicate smokiness. You dont need any special equipment; I use an old wok, but a sturdy biscuit tin, or galvanized dustbin if smoking on a larger scale outdoors, can be used, or you could invest in a purpose-built hot smoker.

In contrast, cold smoking is a much longer, slower process and does not cook the food. However, cold smoking does lend a much more intense smokiness than hot smoking and it also extends the shelf life of a product through preserving it. Cold smoking does also require investment in specialist large pieces of smoking equipment, which makes it out of bounds for most home cooks. Cold-smoked salmon is probably the most popular fish for smoking, but look, too, for halibut, sea bass and haddock, which are delicious when sliced very thinly and served on rye bread with a spoonful of cucumber pickle. Other smoky delights include smoked mussels, kippers, taramasalata and smoked eels.