My recipe choice this month is Crispy Goat’s Cheese parcels, with a walnut salad and fresh figs – or you can substitute whatever fruit is in season. This month a good alternative would be Alfonso Mangoes from India. They are only available for a short while during May, but most good supermarkets should have a small stock at this time. This recipe complements the subtle flavours of the goat’s cheese, which is made with great care by Vivien Hall of Skylark Hill Goats.

This is a great recipe for a light lunch or perhaps a starter for a more formal dinner or lunch party, especially suitable for these first warm and sunny days of early summer.

Recipe:

Crispy Goat’s Cheese Parcels, Fresh Figs, Salad and Walnut dressing (serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 2 Skylark Hill goat’s cheeses, cut into 8 pieces each

• 16 wonton or filo pastry squares (each measuring about 4in/10cm square)

• 1 egg, beaten

• Cracked black pepper

• Celery salt

Method:

Lay out all 16 pieces of wonton or filo pastry and lightly brush with the beaten egg wash.

Place a piece of goat’s cheese in the centre of each sheet and sprinkle with cracked black pepper and celery salt.

Bring all corners together and crimp tightly to seal, making a purse shape.

Heat 3 tbsps olive oil in a pan, drop in wonton parcels and turn to brown evenly on all sides. Remove from pan and drain on kitchen paper.

Alternatively bake filo parcels in a pre-heated oven at 190C/375F/Gas Mark 5 for 2 to 4 minutes.

Salad:

• Selection mixed salad leaves, including watercress or rocket

• 1 red onion, finely chopped

• 12 roasted walnut halves

• 1 tsp chopped herb fennel

Assemble all ingredients in salad bowl

Walnut Dressing:

• 8 roasted walnuts

• 1 egg yolk

• 1 tsp Colsterworth honey

• 1 tsp grain mustard

• 1 tsp cider vinegar

Place all ingredients in blender and blitz for 10 seconds.

Gradually add 4 fl oz/100ml olive oil, 4 fl oz/100ml walnut oil and season with salt and pepper. If the dressing starts to look a little thick, thin down with a teaspoon of warm water.

Assembly:

Dress salad leaves with walnut dressing and divide onto 4 plates.

Stud each plate with 4 crispy goat’s cheese parcels, plus a fresh fig cut into 4 pieces.

Sean’s Top Tips

• Goat’s cheese freezes well, so you can make this quick and simple recipe at any time

• If you haven’t time to pick out the salad leaves you wish to use for this recipe, a ready sorted and assembled pack from the supermarket will do just as well

• To make an egg wash for coating food, beat 1 egg yolk with 2 tbsps water or milk. Flour ingredients and roll in egg wash to make breadcrumbs or pastry stick to the food when cooking

• Deep-fried fennel herb adds an unusual aniseed flavour and texture to a salad: rinse herb under water then pat dry. Deep-fry for 10 seconds then leave to drain and cool on kitchen paper. You can also use basil or parsley in the same way for additional and unique salad flavourings

Sean Hope is the owner/chef, together with business partner, Ben Jones, of the Michelin Pub of the Year 2008, The Olive Branch Pub and Beech House B & B at Clipsham, Rutland, together with the Red Lion Inn at Stathern, Leics.

Got a problem or a query with your cooking? Then just ‘Ask Sean’;

e-mail us at localliving@btopenworld.com. We’ll pass your culinary conundrums on to Sean who will very pleased to help you out with whatever’s bothering you.

Local Suppliers

Bob Halsey at Colsterworth Honey Farm also produces fine local honeycombs and flavoured honeys, such as heather or borage. Tel: 01476 861176

Local farm shops are a good source of fresh salad stuffs; it’s always worth taking a look or visiting one of the local farm shops listed under ‘Our Local Food Heroes’ tab at our Olive Branch pub website: www.theolivebranchpub.com

Vivien Hall at Skylark Hill Farm, makes unpasteurised goat’s cheese from the milk of their home-bred Anglo-Nubian goats, bred by crossing British goats with bucks of Indian or African origin.

Cheese making begins within minutes of the milk leaving the goats, and goes straight from milking into the dairy, ready for a morning of cheese making. Vivien says: “Our cheese has a mild, delicate flavour that reflects the healthy way we keep our goats.”

Skylark Hill Goats, Skylark Hill, Cropwell Bishop, Notts, NG12 3BG. Tel: 01159 892475;
www.skylarkhillgoats.co.uk