Difficulty: Hard

Let’s give the classic beef wellington a ‘vegetal’ twist this year with our delicious beetroot and chestnut filling!

The traditional beef wellington is a type of beef joint pasty, made out of fillet steak, coated with pate and duxelles and then wrapped in puff pastry before being baked. Many historians believed the dish is named after Arthur Wellesley, who was the 1st Duke of Wellington.

Beetroot is the main component for our wellington, giving it a deliciously sweet and earthy flavour. We pair the beetroot with a bundle of chestnut mushrooms, lentils and butternut squash to give a gloriously nutty undertone to the dish. Once combined and wrapped together with a beautiful crisp pastry, your wellington will be the perfect centrepiece for Christmas.

If you want to take out the beetroot component, we offer a wonderful Butternut and Mushroom Wellington, which both equally looks impressive in colour and flavour! We recommend serving either wellingtons with our mouthwateringly good hasselback potatoes and lemon & honey glazed carrots.

  1. Preheat oven to 180C / 356F / Gas Mark 4
  2. Begin with the butternut squash. Place the diced squash onto a baking tray and drizzle with some oil, Maldon salt and cracked black pepper. Place into the oven and roast for 20 minutes until soft and cooked through.
  3. Meanwhile, in a large frying pan heat 1 tbsp oil. Once the oil is hot, add the diced onion and fry gently for 5 minutes until softened. To the softened onions, add the crushed garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes. Next add the chopped chestnut mushrooms and continue to cook these for 5 – 8 minutes until the mushrooms have softened and beginning to caramelize.
  4. Once the mushrooms are cooked, add the chopped sage and thyme leaves, followed by the cooked puy lentils and double cream. Allow this to fry and cook for 3 minutes, mixing well so everything is well combined. Remove from the heat and add the crumbled cooked chestnuts, Maldon Salt, cracked black pepper and the cooked butternut squash. Set aside and allow to cool.
  5. Once the mixture has cooled, you are ready to assemble.
  6. On a lightly floured surface roll out the puff pastry block until it is a roughly 30 x 40cm rectangle and 1cm thick. At this stage you want to carefully lift the rolled pastry onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Next spoon on the cooled filling and spread out evenly, leaving a 1-inch boarder along the top and 1cm board round all the rest of the edges. Next take the cooked beetroot and make sure they are dry of any excess liquid. Choose beetroot that are similar in size and place them in a row down the middle.
  7. Take one of the long sides and lift it up and over the beetroot to enclose them. Pinch the pastry together at the seams and rest the whole wellington seam side down. Pinch the pastry at either end of the wellington also, and trim off any excess.
  8. Use the excess pastry to create long strips and decorate the top of the wellington with a lattice pattern (optional). And brush the entire thing with the beaten egg.
  9. Place the wellington into the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes (but the longer, the better) to cool.
  10. When ready to bake, take your chilled wellington from the fridge and place into the preheated oven. Bake for 40 – 45 minutes until the pastry is golden and crisp all over.
  11. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

How to avoid your wellington becoming soggy?

The pastry base of your wellington may become soggy from the juices of the beetroots and mushrooms dripping down to the base when cooking.

To avoid this from happening, make sure that the beetroots and chestnut mushrooms are cooked until all of the liquid has evaporated. You can do this by chopping the vegetables finely and fry until dry. Equally, you can blot the veg with kitchen paper to ensure any further water is taken out.

What sauce goes well with a wellington?

A red wine sauce goes beautifully well with a wellington! You should add a handful of minced shallots to a red wine, slowly cooking on low heat until it is reduced by two thirds. Once reduced to a desired consistency, you can strain and discard of the shallots, leaving a beautiful red wine sauce to be served.

This recipe takes the traditional trifle but gives it a Christmassy twist with additions of clementine’s, cardamom, amaretto and pistachio. Not only does it taste amazing, but it makes for a show stopping dessert at your Christmas table.

Begin by making your custard. In a large bowl whisk together the egg yolks with the golden caster sugar until pale and thickened. Then add the cornflour and mix again. In a saucepan, heat the 450ml whole milk, 250ml double cream, 6 based cardamom pods and the vanilla bean paste gently until it reaches scalding point. Then remove from the heat and pour gradually into the egg mixture through a sieve to catch the cardamom pods, whisking as you go until all the milk and cream is added and you have a smooth mixture. Clean out the saucepan and the pour the custard back in. Place it onto the heat once more and gently heat over a low flame, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon or spatula until the custard has thickened.

Remove the custard from the heat and pour into a bowl. Use clingfilm to close cover the surface of the custard – this will stop it from creating a skin – and place into the fridge to cool.

You will need a large trifle dish to assemble your dessert. Start with the clementine’s, peel them and cut into rounds roughly 1cm thick. Place the slices of clementine around the bottom of the trifle dish so they stand up against the sides. Next take the slices of madeira cake and place into the bottom of the dish (these can be used to help stand the clementine slices up) and keep layering up until you have used all the cake.

Next you want to drizzle the madeira cake layer with the 3 tbsp amaretto. The next layer is the custard. Remove the cooled custard from the fridge and pour this over the cake layer.

Finally add the 600ml double cream to a large bowl and add the icing sugar and a pinch of Maldon salt, then either using a balloon whisk or an electric whisk whip the cream until it starts to form soft peaks. Add the 60ml amaretto and whisk again – ensuring not to over whisk – you want medium peaks that aren’t too stiff.

Spoon the cream over the custard layer and use the back of your spoon to create soft peaks in the top. Decorate the top of the trifle with crushed amaretti biscuits, chopped pistachios, physalis fruit and gold leaf, if desired. Serve.

Porchetta makes a wonderful alternative to Turkey for your festive centrepiece. Porchetta originates from Italy and is a rolled joint of pork belly stuffed full of fragrant herbs. It is slow cooked for soft tender meat but still with beautiful crispy crackling on the outside. Serve this Porchetta alongside rosemary roast potatoes and fresh sautéed greens.

Begin by prepping your pork. Score the skin of the pork belly with a knife in lines at an angle across the whole skin, then place in the fridge uncovered overnight – this will help dry out the moisture in the skin and ensure you have super crispy crackling.

Meanwhile you can make the stuffing for the porchetta. In the olive oil lightly fry the onion with a pinch of Maldon salt for 5 minutes until softened. Then add the crushed garlic and fennel seeds and fry for another 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and tip into a bowl to cool. Once cooled add the lemon zest, chopped pistachios, sage, parsley, breadcrumbs and season with Maldon salt and cracked black pepper. Mix well and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Once you are ready to cook your pork remove from the fridge. Place it on a board skin side down, and then cover the flesh with your stuffing mixture. Using butchers string carefully roll your meat and bind together in 3 or 4 places tightly to keep it in a roll.

Place the rolled joint onto a baking tray and drizzle the skin with olive oil, rubbing it in and then sprinkle liberally with Maldon salt. Place the tray into your preheated oven for 30 minutes until the crackling is crispy and golden. Then turn your oven down to 180C and cook for a further 2 hours. If the crackling begins to look a little too dark, then you might want to cover it with some foil.

After the cooking time remove your porchetta from the oven and rest for 20 minutes until ready to serve!

Macaroons are considered dainty and beautiful treats and are surprisingly simple to make too. These delicious coffee ones have sweet almondy shells which are sandwiched between a salty and rich dark chocolate ganache – they are perfect when paired with the Salted Caramel Espresso martinis as an after-dinner showstopper.

In a food processor, place the icing sugar, ground almonds and espresso powder. Blitz together until fine in texture.

Sift this through a sieve into a large bowl and discard any larger bits that don’t pass through. In a separate bowl, use an electric whisk to beat together the egg whites until they resemble soft peaks. Slowly add the sugar – a tsp at a time – whisking to incorporate after each addition. Keep whisking until all the sugar is added and the egg whites are glossy and at stiff peak stage.

Tip the egg whites into the ground almonds and fold them through until fully incorporated, trying not to overmix.

Line two baking trays with baking paper. A good tip is to use a little of the macaroon mixture to stick the corners of the paper to the tray to ensure it doesn’t blow and flutter in the oven. Place the macaroon mixture into a piping bag with a small nozzle attached. Pipe 30 small circles (15 on each tray). Then bang the tray onto the work surface firmly a couple of times to knock any air bubbles out. Leave the macaroons to dry out at room temperate for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 180C.

While the macaroons are drying, make the ganache. Finely chop the dark chocolate and place in a large heatproof bowl along with a pinch of Maldon salt. Pour the cream into a small pan and heat gently until it reaches scalding point but before boiling. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and then without stirring, leave it to sit for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, use a whisk to mix and combine the chocolate into the cream – it will thicken and become smooth and glossy. Set aside.

After an hour, put the macaroons into the preheated oven and bake for 15 – 20 minutes until crisp. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool completely.

Once cool, sandwich the shells together with the ganache. Dust them with cocoa powder and serve alongside salted caramel espresso martinis.

Arancini are a traditional Sicilian dish, comprising of balls of cooked risotto rice that have been stuffed, coated with breadcrumbs and then gently fried in oil until deliciously golden and crispy. In Sicily, arancini are a common street food dish which is served all year round!

The most common types of arancini is an al ragu, which is filled with meat, and an al burro, which is filled with ham and cheese within a béchamel sauce.

We’ve put a twist on the classic and included the wholesome butternut squash and fontina cheese. The squash will give a soft, nutty and slightly sweet taste, whilst the fontina cheese will give a gentle butteriness to the dish.

We also pair our arancini balls with a delicious homemade salsa verde. This is made through a combination of chopped herbs, capers, cornichons, and of course a sprinkle of Maldon Salt for elevation!

You can wash these down with our delectable Italian Negroni Spagliato, a cocktail in which is both vibrant in taste and looks! It is made from using prosecco instead of gin, with Campari and vermouth.

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C.
  2. Place the diced butternut squash onto a baking tray and drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Place the tray into the preheated oven and roast for 20 minutes until the squash is tender and golden.
  3. In a large sauté pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil and 30g butter until they are melted and foaming. Add the finely chopped onion and a generous pinch of Maldon Salt. Gently fry the onion over a low heat until they turn translucent and soft, without catching or going golden. Next add the crushed garlic and chopped sage and fry this for an additional 3 minutes.
  4. Next add the arborio rice and stir into the onions and garlic so the grains are well coated. Fry for a couple of minutes before adding the white wine. Allow the white wine to bubble and be absorbed by the rice. Once the wine is absorbed begin adding the hot vegetable stock a ladle at a time, allowing each addition to be absorbed by the rice before adding the next. The rice should be tender but still with a little bite.
  5. Take half the roasted butternut squash and place into a blender or food processor and blitz until smooth. Add the pureed butternut squash to the risotto and heat through until smooth and creamy. Now add the roasted butternut cubes and stir them through. It is important to season the risotto well, adding a good pinch of Maldon Salt and cracked black pepper – taste to check.
  6. Finally, take the risotto off the heat and add the 10g butter, stirring through to give a glossy finish. Set aside and allow to cool completely before placing in the fridge for at least 1 hour (it is best to do this the day before and leave in the fridge overnight).
  7. Once the risotto has been in the fridge, it is time to shape and roll the arancini balls. Take some risotto and flatten in the palm of your hand, then place a small chunk of fontina cheese in the middle before closing your palm and shaping the risotto around the cheese. Press firmly and roll the risotto into a ball just slightly smaller than a golf ball. Place this on to a baking tray and repeat with the remaining risotto and cheese.
  8. Take 3 bowls. In one bowl add the plain flour and then season it with Maldon Salt and cracked black pepper, mixing in well. In the second bowl add the egg and beat it. In the third bowl add the panko breadcrumbs. You want to coat the arancini balls in this order, starting with the flour and tapping off any excess, then the beaten egg and finally the panko – making sure to press the breadcrumbs in well. Repeat until all the balls are coated and then place them in the fridge for 20 minutes.
  9. Meanwhile, make the salsa Verde. In a food processor add the olive oil and herbs and pulse together until they are roughly chopped but not completely smooth. Tip this into a bowl and add the chopped capers, cornichons, mustard, red wine vinegar and some Maldon Salt and cracked black pepper. Stir until combined and set aside.
  10. Place some oil into a large high sided pan so it is at least 3 inches deep. Heat it until it reaches 160C and then you are ready to fry. Fry the arancini for 2 – 3 minutes until they are golden brown and crisp on the outside, you may need to do this in small batches. Remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon or spider and place onto a tray or plate with some kitchen paper so it can absorb any excess oil.
  11. When all the arancini are fried serve them warm on a platter with the salsa Verde to dip. These are perfect alongside a sparkling bitter-citrus Negroni Spagliato.

Can this be made vegan?

This recipe can easily be adapted to become vegan-friendly! Instead of the fontina cheese, you can use a mixture of both nutritional yeast and soy cream to create a cheese-like flavour to the arancini balls.

Make sure to use vegan white wine instead of your usual, as most white wines usually contain animal-derived fining agents within the ingredients. Most supermarkets will carry this alternative for you. Look out for the label ‘Certified Vegan’ as the registered trademark.

What can you serve with arancini balls?

Arancini balls can be served with a multitude of things!

You can include arancini within your cheese platters, which is a popular choice amongst many! You can accompany this with a delicious fig jam amongst a bed of freshly baked focaccia.

If you want to serve your arancini balls with something warmer, we recommend pairing the balls with our delicious Squash Soup with Crispy Mushrooms, made by the talented Xanthe Gladstone. Not only is this great for warming yourself up during the cold days, but the pairing of both squashes in the arancini and soup go beautifully together!

Lastly, if you are looking for something lighter, why not try our delicious Stir Fried Kale with Chilli and Fried Garlic. This makes a perfect mid-week side dish, where the arancini balls can be gently added to give depth to the recipe.

Can you make these ahead of time?

If you have time, it’s best to make the risotto up the day before and allow it to cool in the fridge overnight – it makes shaping them into balls and coating them in breadcrumbs much easier.

Cooking a large piece of salmon feels like a celebratory treat, I like to use a couple of thick 1kg salmon fillets, with the stuffing sandwiched between them for ease of ‘carving’, and I make sure my fishmonger cuts them so they are the same size and fit together neatly. However, you could also adapt this recipe to use a 2kg whole salmon if you like, using the stuffing in the gut cavity – the cooking time should be pretty similar.

You also need baking paper, a whole newspaper and some string to tie it up.
Begin by making the stuffing. You can do this several hours in advance if you want to get ahead.
Set a large frying pan over a high heat, tip in the pine nuts, and let them toast to a golden brown.
Transfer to a bowl and stir through the capers, garlic, parsley, chives and olive oil. Season well with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle a little salt on the skin side of both salmon filets, rubbing it in well in the cuts through the skin. Rest one of the salmon fillets, skin side down, on a large sheet of baking paper. Spoon the filling on top of the fillet, pressing it down firmly all the way to the edges.
Lay the second fillet, skin side up, over the filling to make a salmon ‘sandwich’. Bring up the sides of the baking paper to wrap and cover the fish completely. Then spread out the newspaper and lift the fish on to it, wrapping it up in a bundle. Use string to tie and secure the newspaper in several places – you might want to enlist a second pair of hands so you can get the knots good and tight.
Now lift the fish parcel and hold it under a gently running cold tap to dampen the newspaper all over. This will create a steamy environment for the fish to cook in.
When you are ready to cook, fire up your barbecue ready for indirect grilling. Rest the fish parcel on the grill bars away from the fire. Insert the Weber Connect probe deep into the centre of the fish and shut the lid. Leave to cook until the internal temperature is 60C. This may take and hour or so, depending on the heat of the barbecue.
Whilst the fish is cooking, make the lemon yogurt dressing by simply mixing together the yogurt, lemon juice and zest and a good seasoning of salt and pepper.
Rest the parcel on a serving platter, then cut through the top of the newspaper and peel back the layers to reveal the fish below. Cut into chunky slices and serve with lemon yogurt on the side.

@chefswarehouse_chef_liamtomlin

Prepare the chicken wings: Grind the Maldon salt, star anise,

crushed coriander seeds, peppercorns and cinnamon quill in a

pestle and mortar. Transfer the ground spices to a bowl and

add the bay leaf, thyme and garlic. Rub the spice mix into the

chicken wings, cover with cling-film and refrigerate for 3 hours.

Preheat the oven to 120 °C. Wipe the salt mix from the chicken

wings, place in a heavy-based saucepan and pour the rendered

duck fat over the chicken wings. Bring to simmering point over

a low heat, cover with a lid and transfer the saucepan to the

oven. Cook for 1ó – 2 hours. The chicken wings are cooked when

the bones are easily removed. Lift the wings from the duck fat

and place on a tray. Allow them to cool sufficiently to handle

and then extract the bones and cartilage. Place on a greaseproof

paper-lined tray and cover with a second sheet of greaseproof

paper. Place a second tray on top with enough weight to press the

wings. Refrigerate until ready to use. Strain the duck fat through

a fine sieve and refrigerate in a sealed container for future use.

To make the sweet corn and basil sauce follow the same method

as for the sweet corn soup recipe, adding a little

more cream if necessary.

To serve increase the oven temperature to 180 °C. Melt a

teaspoon of duck fat in a cast-iron pan over a medium heat.

Add the chicken wings skin side down and transfer to the oven.

Cook the chicken wings for 3 – 4 minutes until the skin is crisp

and evenly coloured. Lightly season with freshly ground pepper.

Remove the wings from the pan and keep warm while preparing

the rest of the dish.

Bring 25 ml water to the boil in a saucepan, add the butter and

bring back to the boil until melted. Add the sweet corn and

courgette, reheat and lightly season with salt and freshly ground

pepper. Strain the corn and courgette and keep warm. Gently

reheat the sweet corn and basil sauce and adjust the

seasoning and cream content if necessary. Strain the sauce

through a fine sieve.

Spoon the sweet corn and courgette into the centre of a plate

and spoon over a little of the sweet corn and basil sauce. Place

the chicken wings onto the sweet corn and spoon a little more

sauce around the dish. Garnish with the deep fried shallots and

basil leaves.

We’ve teamed up with Chef Jason Whitehead to create a delicious beef fillet recipe, paired with a refreshing asparagus and leek terrine.

Beef fillet is the most tender of all steaks to eat, with it’s flavour often being described as having a mild, beefy flavour. It is not as flavoursome as other meaty cuts such as rump or sirloin. However, there is a reason why beef fillet is the most desired out of all cuts; it is very lean, with minimal marbling, meaning it is less fatty in taste and texture. As a result, you are greeted with a almost melt-in-your-mouth beef cut that is beautifully soft and tender.

Chef Jason Whitehead serves his beef fillet with a tasty asparagus and leek terrine. Nothing pairs better than green vegetables with a hearty protein! Both the asparagus and leek help balance the meal and add a gentle hint of sweetness as you cut into the dish. Jason composes the two vegetables into a terrine, where layers of each vegetable are delicately placed on top of one another and packed into a rectangular dish. It looks very impressive and makes a great side dish!

The charred leek puree brings a gentle warmth and smokiness to the dish, with a pinch of Maldon Salt to elevate the sweetness.

How to make the charred leek puree…

  1. Pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees.
  2. Cut your leeks in half straight down the middle, then drizzle some EVOO and season with some Maldon Salt.
  3. Pop them into the oven and leave them there until they start to turn black / burn.  Keep an eye on them, and when the leeks are completely black, remove them from the oven.  While still warm, add them to a blender along with your garlic clove, rosemary sprigs and about 1/8 cup of EVOO.  Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides as you go and adding more EVOO as needed.  You want a thickish paste.  Pass this mixture through a sieve, then taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.  Place into a squeezy bottle and set aside. 

Here’s how to make the leek and asparagus terrine…

  1. Blanch your spinach leaves for 20 seconds in hot water, then immediately place them into an ice bath.  Remove from the ice bath and dry thoroughly with a kitchen towel. Remove the thick white stem from the spinach leaves, trying to keep the leaves intact.
  2. Cook your leeks whole in some salted water until tender, then drain and pat dry.
  3. In a small saucepan, bring your veggie stock and agar-agar to a simmer for 2 minutes, then strain and set aside (it must remain warm or it will start to set).
  4. Line a small loaf tin with clingfilm.  Now line the tin with your spinach leaves, making sure they overlap each other, and also hang over the sides of the loaf tin.  Place your asparagus spears and cooked leeks inside the loaf tin and press down gently to make sure they are nice and compact but not squashed. Pour over your veggie stock mixture, then fold in your overlapping spinach leaves to ‘close off’ the terrine.  Using another loaf tin of the same size, place it on top and fill it with some dried lentils or beans to weigh it down. Pop it into the fridge to set. 

How to make the charred tomato sauce..

  1. Fry your shallot in the butter until nicely browned, then add in your tin of chopped tomatoes.  Season with Maldon Smoked Salt and brown sugar, then allow the sauce to reduce until it is thick and the tomatoes have mostly disintegrated.  
  2. Blend until smooth, then pass through a sieve and set aside. 

Here’s how to cook beef fillets…

  1. Make sure your fillets are at room temperature.  Rub them in some EVOO then season well with Maldon Salt and black pepper.  Get a frying pan nice and hot, then drizzle with a little more EVOO.
  2.  Fry your fillets to your liking, then add in your butter, garlic and rosemary, and baste your steaks with this foamy mixture.  Allow your steaks to rest for at least 5 minutes before serving. 

To serve…

  1. Gently remove your leek and asparagus terrine from your loaf tin, then remove the clingfilm.  Cut into 2cm slices and place onto a serving plate.
  2. Place your fillets next to the terrine, then decoratively place dots of your charred leek puree and smoky tomato sauce around the plate.  Add some Maldon Salt to your steaks and then serve. 
  3. Optional – drizzle a little red wine just around the plate.

Can you substitute beef fillet?

Beef fillet is expensive compared to other meats due to it’s time-consuming efforts of cleaning, trimming and preparing the meat cut. Gristle, and fatty tissue are taken out, which although results in a beautifully tender fillet, the price can be pretty costly!

Cheaper cuts of meat normally come from the rear end of an animal, resulting in a tougher, chewier texture. However, a great alternative to beef fillet would be shoulder cuts. This is a very economical cut of meat and rich in flavour! It may not be readily available at your local butcher, but they can either cut or order them for you if requested.

Join Ben Tish in creating the classic spring lamb with a twist! Salt crust baking is a great way to cook lamb – using Maldon Salt for the crust will allow the juices to become trapped, whilst also perfuming the meat without making it overly salty and enhancing the flavour.

You’ll not get a more tender result than this method of cooking your lamb which makes a great addition to your Sunday Roast. Accompanying the lamb are these beautiful, buttery jersey royals which are at their prime in Spring and make a great addition to the roasted lamb.

  1. Mix Maldon Salt with the egg whites to form a thick “paste”. Add some water to loosen if its too thick, you’ll need to be able to roughly mould around the lamb.
  2. Heat the oven to 160°C/ 350°F/ Gas Mark 4
  3. Season the lamb leg and then seal in a large sauté pan to brown on all sides. Turn off the heat and lay the rosemary stalks on top of the leg.
  4. Spoon some of the Maldon Salt mix into a roasting tin and place the lamb on top. Nestle around the garlic and then mould the rest of the salt mix around the lamb to seal but leave the end bones protruding out.
  5. Place the lamb in the oven and slowly cook for 2.5 – 3 hours until the meat is soft and tender with an internal temp of around 65c. Remove from the oven and rest for at least 20 minutes before cracking the crust open and carefully discarding. The lamb should come away from the bone very easily.
  6. Whilst the lamb is cooking, boil the potatoes until just tender and then drain and cool before slitting lengthwise halfway through the middle and inserting a bay leaf. Place the potatoes on a roasting tin, season with Maldon Salt and drizzle with olive oil. Place in the oven and cook for 20 minutes or until golden and crispy. We find this the best way to cook jersey royals because it creates them to have a nice, crispy finish. Reserve and keep warm.
  7. Serve chunks of the lamb alongside the bay potatoes and some garlicky aioli. Spring greens tossed in olive oil would also be a good addition. Baked lamb also pairs well with seasonal vegetables roasted in goose fat or vegetable oil, and sprinkled with Maldon Salt and pepper of course!

Interested in Salt Baking?

We have many other recipes including our delicious Salt Baked Sea Bass which showcases our to create a tender, juicy sea bass using the salt crust baking method.

What does salt crusting do?

Cooking lamb with a salt crust will lock in the natural juices of the meat. This is because when the lamb starts to cook in the oven, steam is then produced within the crust keeping it succulent and tender.

As the steam builds, some of the salt from the crust and natural oils of the meat will start to dissolve. This will then gently seep back into the lamb, giving it a rich, flavoursome taste.

You may worry that it seems like a lot of salt for this dish, however most of the crust is removed after cooking and only the correct amount of salt will season through the leg of lamb.

Should lamb be cooked in foil when roasting?

There’s no need to cover your leg of lamb with foil when it is roasting in the oven. You want a nice, slow roast to this meat so it can be enriched with flavour and covered in succulent juices. However, you may want to cover it with foil while it rests after cooking in order to retain the juices and keep it nice and warm before serving.

Do you enjoy cooking with lamb? We’ve also teamed up with chef Adam Byatt to create the delectable Buttery Lamb Leg with Weber. You may also be interested in our Lamb Chops with Parsley Aioli recipe in which shows you how to keep them tender and rich in taste!

We LOVE seeing your creations! Make sure to tag us on Instagram using #maldonsalt.

Do you want to find out how to make the best hot cross buns? Well look no further – We’ve created a delicious recipe with a fun twist from the classic hot cross buns!

Using chopped dark chocolate and cacao powder in the dough, these buns hold a fantastic, rich flavour whilst also being super soft and dense in texture. We also infused mixed spiced and peel to give a comforting warmth to the bun. Once gently baked in the oven, the chocolate pieces and citrus fruits ooze with flavour, making it the perfect addition to your Easter Sunday Brunch when slathering a generous helping of butter on to the sweet treat!

If you want to become more creative in the way you make your hot cross buns, check out our delicious Salted Caramel and Dark Chocolate Hot Cross Buns to really impress your guests this Easter.

Why add Maldon Salt to your Hot Cross Buns?

Adding a pinch of Maldon Salt as a topper to your hot cross buns will allow the sweetness of the dark chocolate and raisins to enhance, whilst counteracting the bitterness of the citrus peel that is mixed within the dough.

A sprinkling of Maldon Salt will also give a gentle crunch of texture once you bite into these fluffy buns, creating a wonderful treat to be enjoyed amongst family and friends this Easter.

How to Make Chocolate Hot Cross Buns

  1. In a small saucepan, heat together the butter and milk gently until the butter is melted and the mixture is lukewarm. Set aside to cool down.
  2. In a large bowl mix together the flour, cocoa powder, mixed spice, Maldon Salt and yeast.
  3. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and slowly pour half the butter and milk mixture. Mix this together and then add the beaten egg. Now, begin mixing with your hands to form a soft dough.
  4. Either tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand or you can use a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Knead the dough for 10 minutes until smooth, soft and elastic.
  5. In a separate bowl, lightly oil the inside and place the dough into it. Cover with clingfilm and allow it to prove for 1 hour in a warm place, or until it has doubled in size.
  6. After 1 hour of proving, remove the clingfilm and knock the air out of the dough.
  7. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and add the chopped chocolate, raisins and citrus peel by stretching and folding the dough to incorporate, making sure the fruit is evenly distributed throughout.
  8. Now divide the dough into 12 equal size balls. Shape them by rolling between your palm and the surface so they are smooth and even. Place the balls onto a baking tray lined with baking paper and space them with roughly 2 – 3cm gap between them.
  9. Loosely cover the tray with clingfilm and leave again in a warm place for 45 – 60 minutes until they have doubled in size again. They should be puffed up and just touching.
  10. Preheat the oven to 200C.
  11. Make the flour mixture by mixing together the plain flour, olive oil and water. Beat together until it forms a smooth paste and then transfer into a piping bag.
  12. Once the buns have proved and risen, carefully remove the clingfilm.
  13. Pipe the crosses across the top of the buns. Then place into the middle of the oven and bake for 15 – 20 minutes until lightly golden brown.
  14. Remove from the oven and brush the tops with golden syrup so they are glistening and then sprinkle with Maldon Salt.
  15. These buns are best served slightly warm so the chocolate chunks are oozy and melted.