Langoustines, Gin and More Chocolate in Fife - Part Two

After our feast of chocolate at the Pittenweem Chocolate Company, it was er...time for lunch!  We headed just along the coast to St Monans, one of the quieter East Neuk villages, well it used to be quieter but it seems to be emerging from it's sleepy image and starting to challenge the tourist packed Crail, Anstruther and Pittenweem.  The focus of our visit and lunch was the East Pier Smokehouse.


I had been to the East Pier Smokehouse about four years ago when my Mum and I bought some smoked langoustines, at that time there was only the shop and it was pretty basic, however things have changed and the East Pier Smokehouse now boasts it's own restaurant as well as selling seafood to take away.


I think you will agree that the views from the restaurant are absolutely stunning and Claire from Foodie Quine and I were treated to an absolute feast, starting with a rich and creamy courgette and goats cheese soup and a box of smoked langoustines, the meat in Scottish seafood is really sweet which  is down to the cold water around our shores!  We also tried the smoked salmon and cranberry Quiche with a turmeric pastry, which was the special of the day, very good indeed.


This was followed by the arrival of a range of the dishes that are served at the East Pier Smokehouse, lobster, crab cakes, salad and smoked salmon all served in cardboard boxes, it's a bit like going for a picnic on the deck of a ship!  All of the seafood was totally delicious and next time I'm in Fife, I'll be making a reservation for an evening meal.


We were quite taken aback when owner, James Robb, opened the door of he smokehouse and we saw just how small it was and really just a cupboard in the wall, but the smell of the cold smoked salmon was incredibly enticing.  It's well worth a visit to the East Pier Smokehouse, but get there early for lunch as you can't book.

Claire and I were now completely stuffed, as we jumped back into our luxury mini-bus, complete with water bottle holders, and were ably driven by Andy through St Andrews and on to the Eden Mill distillery and brewery at Guardbridge.



The Eden Mill is Scotland's only distillery and brewery on a single site, based on the site of a former Haig distillery, it produces award-winning beer and gin as well as small batch single malt whisky.


We started with a taste of a new Chilli Ginger Porter which Eden Mill expect to have on sale for Christmas.  I'll certainly be looking for a few bottles of this brew in my stocking, it was smooth, not bitter at all, but with a lovely warm kick.


We then had a tour of the brewery and distillery with Kathryn Baker, where we learned about the gin basket which holds the botanicals during distilling, and saw the private casks of whisky, one signed by a former First Minister of Scotland. We then moved on to our task for the day; Gin and Chocolate matching, it was a hard job, but someone  had to do it!


Eden Mill have five different types of gin and the chocolates we tasted with the matched gin came from Iain Burnett, The Highland Chocolatier who uses a unique single origin cocoa from the volcanic Island of Sao Tome. This intense cocoa is carefully selected for its exceptional range of fruity aromatic and spicy characteristics and painstakingly matched with unblended fresh Scottish cream from a particular herd of cows in Perthshire.

Original Eden Gin - the interaction between Seabucktorn berries, lemon balm, and bitter citrus results in a light yet complex spirit.  The Eden Gin is classic, crisp, refershing heavily citrus flavoured gin (and my favourite)
This was paired with White Lime and hint of Chilli Velvet Truffle  "Fresh notes of the Lime and sharp citrus of the gin are well matched, with the subtle heat of the cayenne highlighting a similar dryness in the Eden."  Gorgeous combination, the chocolate seemed to bring out the gin flavour and vice versa, suddenly I'm convinced that matching chocolate and gin is a good idea.

Hop Gin - A logical progression from brewing into distilling, using Galaxy hops to craft this first gin, This unique creation has a zesty freshness, and slight bitterness on the finish.  The unusual colouring is as result of he hops, and persists once tonic is added. I quite liked the Hop Gin, although it is an acquired taste and I think would be good with something like ginger ale.  This gin was paired with a Blonde White Langue de Chat "the simplicity of the creamy Madagascan vanilla which let's all the fruity flavours of he gin take centre stage"  I didn't think the white chocolate added much to the gin and felt that the gin overpowered the chocolate.

Love Gin - Bringing together an outstanding blend of local botanicals, Love Gin is also infused with rose petals and whole hibiscus flowers to give it a subtle pink colour.  Rhubarb root and raspberry leaf ensure a delicate sweet finish. This is one of the most popular of the Eden Mill gins, it is very smooth without the 'edge' that I associate with gin.  Paired with a White Raspberry and heather honey Velvet Truffle "an excellent match of both sweet fruit and Madagascan vanilla in the white chocolate play along with the summer fruits and even the honey doesn't dissipate the sweetness of this gin"  The chocolate was lush, but I found the overall effect of the sweeter gin and the sweet chocolate just a bit much for my palate, the honey seemed to dominate the after-taste.

Oak Gin - matured in oak-aged beer casks, this gin carries hints of vanilla and toasted caramel.  With a warmth and spice reminiscent of whisky, this gin can easily be enjoyed neat. Paired with Ginger Velvet Truffle "the warm ginger is reminiscent of the warm spices of the gin and its gentle oak woodiness is as subtle as the oak notes which follow at the end of the dark Sao Tome chocolate."  This combination certainly delivered on the warm flavours.

Golf Gin - flavoured with hickory (reminiscent of the hickory shafted golf clubs made by the St Andrews Golf Company) this gin is described as a modern classic with notes of sweet lemongrass with a burst of mild pepperiness, strong hints of lime, coriander and aromatic spice.
We had two different chocolates to try with the Golf Gin, Garden Mint Velvet Truffle, what a chocolate, it tasted just like fresh mint, I've never experienced anything like this in a chocolate and I would definitely recommend it.  Tasted with the Golf Gin the story is that "this fresh light herb is the perfect segue to the aromatic gin in a ply of pepper and menthol", personally, much though I loved the chocolate, I felt that the strong mint flavour overwhelmed the gin.
The second chocolate was a Lemongrass and hint of Lime Velvet Praline "a strong and heavy introduction to the grass and spices of the Golf"  oh yes, now this was more like it.  Again the freshness of the lemongrass was outstanding but, for me, a better compliment to the gin, of course lemon and lime are very much a traditional match for gin.


The truffles had the most incredible intense flavours, a fresh and fruity explosion in your mouth,  they went remarkably well with the different gins they had been matched to, something I wouldn't have imagined.


The Visitor Centre is well laid out with plenty of space for large groups and these amazing stained glass windows. You can drop in, but if you'd like to have a tour and tasting it's worth booking ahead.

BREWERY TOUR - £7.50 per person (£5 for students/concessions) - 7 days a week - 11am, 1pm, 3pm & 5pm
GIN EXPERIENCE - £10 per person (£7.50 for students/concessions) - 7 days a week - 12pm, 2pm & 4pm
Subject to availability

Chillies and Chocolate in Fife - Part One

Coming in Part Three - Courses for Cooks

Disclaimer: I was the guest of Welcome to Fife and I'd like to thank them and the host organisations  who made this a truly memorable trip.

Labels: crab, East Pier Smokehouse, Eden Mill, Foodie Quine, Gin, Langoustine, lobster, quiche, Seafood, smoked salmon, St Andrews, St Monans, The Highland Chocolatier, Velvet Truffles, Welcome to Fife

posted by Janice @ 19:38 12 Comments

Seafood Risotto and an Italian Deli experience

Of all the countries I have visited, my first choice would always be Italy.  I first visited with my parents when I was 15 years old and immediately fell in love with the markets, the architecture and the art.  It took until 2009 before I was able to return and found it was even better!

Montalcino

Of course, for me, food is a really important part of my holiday and it's lovely to try to recreate dishes that you have tasted on holiday.  Getting the right ingredients makes all the difference when making dishes from another country.  I was delighted when UFUUD contacted me to try some products from their extensive selection.

An Italian Deli in Montalicino

UFUUD is the UK’s place to buy Italian food online, it is synonymous with high quality and tradition. As the number one portal in the UK to purchase traditional products, they offer a wide array of exclusive goods that come from 60 local producers throughout 16 regions of Italy. Some of their most popular products include cold cuts, pasta, ready-made sauces, oil, rice, vinegar and sweets, to name a few. At UFUUD  they have the passion to satisfy the tastes of everyone looking to savour the tastes that are the foundation of our country’s gastronomy.

Here is what I ordered from UFUUD :

The website it easy to use and each product comes with detailed information about the product including the ingredients (where appropriate) conservation information and chef's advice.  Search the site by FOOD, DRINK, ORGANIC OR PROMO.


The products in the photo collage above were used in the Seafood Risotto. The carnaroli is a lovely quality, creamy but it didn't disintegrate when cooked in the risotto.   I loved the big soft chunks of long fin tuna, quite unlike those I usually buy in a tin, it was much more like real fish.  The marinated anchovies were soft and delicious and not overly salty.  The Romaniae Terrae Pecorino caused some comment from the family who asked why I had a 'roll' in the fridge!  The cheese is semi-hard and has a good strong flavour.  I found the wheat berries a bit of an annoyance as they are too hard to eat.  I dare say they add flavour to the cheese.  The other ingredient is my wild garlic pesto.

Seafood Risotto
Serves 4-6

1 tbsp olive oil from the Long Fin Tuna
1 onion, finely chopped
250g Carnaroli risotto rice
900ml fresh fish or vegetable stock, hot
4 tbsp wild garlic or other green pesto
180g Long Fin Tuna, drained
40g Marinated Anchovies
240g prawns
100g Romaniae Terrae Pecorino

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. 
2. Add the rice, stir for 1 minute, add a 50ml of stock and simmer until evaporated then add 400ml of the stock and simmer again, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes, until most of the stock has been absorbed.
3. Add the remaining stock and repeat, cooking for a further 10-12 minutes, until the rice is cooked but still has a slight bite to it.
4. Stir in the pesto and cook for 1 minute.
5. Remove from the heat, stir in 60g of Pecorino finely chopped or crumbled and season to taste.
6. Add the tuna, anchovies and prawns and gently stir into the risotto.
7. Serve with the remaining 40g of Pecorino in finely shaved slivers over the top.

Other dishes that I have made with the goodies from UFUUD are Taragna Polenta for my Mackerel with Madeirean Special Sauce.




I used a little of the left over chocolate pastry from the Double Chocolate Tartlets to make some mini tartlets and filled them with a mixture of cream cheese, double cream, some of the juice and chopped up cherries from the Sun-Cooked Morello Cherries and, of course, a cherry on top, absolutely gorgeous.  The only thing about these cherries is they have the stones in, so you do have to be careful of your teeth!

The Cinnamon Chocolate Bar  is rather gritty in texture, but has a really good chocolate flavour.

This little jar of Mostarda, Spicy Fig Mustard, undoubtedly stole the show.  I just loved the contrast of the sweet, jammy fig chutney and the spicy mustard. At £9.00 it's expensive for  160g  so definitely a special treat.  It would be possible to buy substitute products at a much lower price, but it is precisely the quality of the products that UFUUD stock that makes them worth having.  Not everything is expensive, many of the products such as the pastas and polenta are good value, as well as good quality.  But there is no doubt that UFUUD provide an authentic deli experience and I certainly will be visiting again.

Labels: chocolate, long fin tuna, marinated anchovies, morello cherries, mostarda, pecorino, Pesto, Polenta, prawns, risotto, Seafood, UFUUD, Wild Garlic

posted by Janice @ 20:58 15 Comments

Seafood Pancakes

I had defrosted some salmon fillets and prawns with the intention of making a pasta dish, however when I saw Karen's Luxury Seafood Pancakes at Lavender and Lovage, I decided to recreate it as best I could. 

Pancakes need few ingredients to make and as long as you have a good non-stick pan, pretty easy to make too.

Basic Pancake Batter
4oz (1 cup) plain flour
pinch of salt
1 egg
1/2 pint (1 1/4 cups milk) 


Seive the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the egg and half the liquid.  Stir, gradually incorporating some of the flour.  As soon as the batter becomes thick, add the remaining milk .  Beat with a whisk to form a smooth batter of thin pouring consistencey.  Leave to stand for half an hour, then adjust the consistency by adding more liquid if necessary.


Heat a  non stick pan, grease the surface lightly and pour in on tablespoon of batter. Tilt the pan to evenly spread the batter (you will get an idea of how much batter you need after the first pancake) and cook for about a minute and half until the underside is brown.  Loosen the pancake with a palette knife and flip over to cook the other side.  Turn onto a plate lined with a tea towel and keep warm in the oven. This mix made 6 pancakes.




My seafood filling is less luxurious, and more everyday, than the one that Karen made, I didn't have any herb cream cheese, so cooked the fish in some milk, then used that to make a white sauce and flaked the fish back into the sauce.  Seasoned with fennel salt, pepper and nutmeg and spooned onto the pancakes.

Roll the pancakes around the sauce and place in a baking dish, cover with the remaining sauce and cover with a cruncy topping, I used crushed oatcakes mixed with cheese, but you could use breadcrumbs or crushed salted crisps (chips).


I'm always horrified when I see ready made pancakes in the supermarket when they are so simple and so much more delicious to make yourself.  The thicker the batter, the fatter the pancake, add a bit of sugar and you can have a sweet pancake, fill it with whatever you fancy, sweet or savoury.  Pancakes are really very versatile, so thanks to Karen for inspiring me to make pancakes!

Labels: Karen Burns Booth, Lavender and Lovage, pancakes, prawns., salmon, Seafood

posted by Janice @ 21:10 5 Comments

The Seafood Restaurant - St Andrews

For my birthday I went out for a meal at The Seafood Restaurant in St Andrews. I blogged this on my other blog Serial Crafter but Carol from UK Food Bloggers suggested that I create a link to the foodie pictures that I had posted there so if you would like to see the superb food created at this restaurant located right over the sea at St Andrews in Scotland, click right HERE

Labels: Seafood

posted by Janice @ 20:33 1 Comments