Platinum Jubilee recipe suggestions
A handful of recipes to help celebrate the Jubilee
The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee weekend is fast approaching, running from 2nd to 5th June, a time to celebrate 70 years since the Queen’s accession.
To help you start planning your street parties, alfresco dinners and afternoon teas we’ve pulled together some of our favourite recipes to celebrate the Jubilee in style.
Chicken and tomato salad with minted pea dressing
A healthy version of the traditional coronation chicken this hearty chicken and tomato salad recipe with minted pea dressing is bursting with flavour and just perfect for sharing at your Jubilee event. Just up the ingredients to serve a crowd.
Serves: 4
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 4 minutes
You’ll need:
Juice of half a lemon
3-4 tbsp olive oil
1 heaped tsp cumin seeds, lightly crushed
500g mini chicken fillets
750g mixed Heirloom tomatoes
1 bunch spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced
For the minted pea dressing:
175g frozen petit pois peas
8 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
A good pinch of caster sugar
2 large shallots, halved and thinly sliced
The leaves from a 20g packet of mint, chopped
What to do:
Mix the lemon juice, olive oil, crushed cumin seeds and 1/2 tsp sea salt flakes together in a shallow dish. Stir in the mini chicken fillets and leave to marinate for 30 minutes.
For the salad dressing put the peas into a bowl and cover with boiling hot water. Leave for 5 minutes, then drain and set aside to cool. Whisk the oil, vinegar, sugar, and some salt and pepper to taste together in a bowl. Stir in the shallots and set aside with the chicken.
Five minutes before you are ready to serve, cut the tomatoes into small chunky pieces and put them into a bowl with the spring onions and some sea salt flakes and pepper to taste. Toss together gently then spread over the base of a large serving plate.
Preheat a ridged griddle of griddle pan over a high heat until smoking hot. Reduce the heat to medium-high. Lift the chicken fillets out of the marinade, lay them on the griddle and cook for 2 minutes on each side until cooked through and golden brown.
Lift the hot chicken fillets onto the tomato salad. Stir the mint and peas into the dressing and spoon it over the chicken and tomatoes. Scatter over the mint leaves and serve.
Beetroot stained boiled eggs and parma ham
This colourful salad topped with pink beetroot stained eggs makes a vibrant addition to any party table and quantities can easily be adjusted for more guests.
Serves: 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes plus chilling (at least one hour)
Cooking time: 10 minutes
You’ll need:
For the salad
4 eggs
6 cooked beetroot
1 tsp olive oil
1 thick slice of bread, crusts cut off and ripped into small chunks
4 slices Parma ham, torn
1 bag Fresh & Naked Little Leaf salad
For the dressing
2tbsp olive oil
2tsp red wine vinegar
small bunch chopped parsley
What to do:
Put the eggs in a pan of water, bring to the boil and cook for 6 minutes. Drain and run under cold water to cool, then remove the shell.
Slice the beetroot and put a layer into a bowl small enough to hold the eggs snugly. Put the eggs on top then tuck more beetroot all around the eggs and add another layer over the top. Cover with cling film and chill for at least an hour, but preferably overnight.
When the eggs are done, heat the oil in a frying pan and add the bread, toss a few times to coat in oil and season. Cook for 3-4 minutes until crisp and crunchy.
Make the dressing by combining the oil, vinegar and parsley and seasoning.
Set the eggs aside and toss the beetroot (reserved from staining the eggs), leaves, croutons in a bowl with the dressing then tip onto a serving plate. Halve the eggs and lay them on top with the torn ham.
Cook’s Tips: Try to pack as much beetroot as possible around the eggs to stain them evenly. The longer you leave the eggs to stain, the stronger and more even the colour will be.
Mixed berry tomato focaccia
Summery tear and share focaccia with multi-coloured cherry tomatoes. Perfect for an alfresco gathering with friends.
Serves: 6-8
Preparation time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Cooking time: 20-25 minutes
You’ll need
340ml warm water
7g fast-acting dried yeast
500g strong bread flour
800g mixed cherry tomatoes
Olive oil
8g Maldon sea salt
25g oregano
What to do
Pour the warm water into a large bowl and add the yeast. Whisk this together then add half the flour to form a very wet dough.
Place the bowl in a warm area to prove. After 40 minutes the dough should have risen, and you should now be able to see small bubbles within the mixture.
Add the remaining flour, salt and one tablespoon of olive oil and mix together thoroughly.
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead well until nice and smooth (about ten minutes). Place back in to a bowl, drizzle over a little olive oil and cover with a damp cloth and allow to prove once more (about 40 minutes).
When this is done turn out again onto a floured surface and stretch it to a large rectangle and then fold over on itself into thirds. Now there should be three layers.
Place on an oiled non-stick tray and drizzle with more olive oil. Push your fingers into the dough to spread it out and to make the ‘holes’. Pop a cherry tomato and oregano into each hole, pushing them down into the dough.
Allow it to prove once more until almost doubled in height (about 30 minutes) and then sprinkle over some Maldon sea salt.
Cook in a preheated oven at 220°c for 10 minutes. Turn down the oven to 200°c and turn the tray around. Cook for a further 15-20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and drizzle with a little more olive oil and fresh oregano.
Blueberry and buttermilk scones with blueberry jam
What better than to serve a scone with afternoon tea; this quick and easy light and fruity blueberry and buttermilk scones recipe is perfect.
If you can’t find buttermilk, try this simple swap instead; use ordinary milk with a squeeze of lemon juice or 1 tsp cider vinegar to sour it.
Makes: approx. 12 Prep time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes
You’ll need
For the blueberry jam
- 400g BerryWorld blueberries
- 200g caster sugar
- Zest and juice of 1 large orange
For the scones
- 150g BerryWorld blueberries
- 350g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 100g salted butter, cubed
- 50g caster sugar
- Zest of 1 orange
- 175ml buttermilk
- 1 tbsp milk
What to do
- First make the blueberry jam. Place the blueberries, sugar, zest and juice of the orange in a large heavy based pan. Allow the sugar to dissolve over a medium heat then increase the heat and allow to boil for approximately 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent it catching on the bottom of the pan. Allow to cool a little then spoon into sterilised jars. Cover with a lid when completely cooled and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
- To make the scones, preheat oven 220c/200c fan/gas 6. Wash and pat dry the blueberries, dust in a little flour.
- Sift the flour and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl. Rub in the butter using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Stir in the caster sugar, orange zest and blueberries, make a well in the centre and pour in the buttermilk and milk, mix together with a knife until you have a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead very lightly, pat into a round 4cm thick.
- Cut out scones using a 5 cm fluted cutter, place on a lightly greased baking tray. Brush the tops with a little milk.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until risen and golden, cool on a wire rack.
- Serve split in half topped with the blueberry jam.
Cheese and Marmite Scones recipe
A tasty take on the classic recipe, these savory scrumptious scones are wonderful served hot with a generous dollop of butter.
Ingredients:
(Makes 8)
150ml whole milk
1tbsp Marmite
300g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
1tsp baking powder
½tsp salt
85g butter, chilled and cubed
150g hard cheese (such as Cheddar), coarsely grated
1tsp mustard powder
1tbsp caster sugar
Method:
First, heat the milk in a pan until it is just starting to feel hot – blood temperature. Whisk in the Marmite until it has combined completely with the milk – the milk should turn a colour similar to milky coffee. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool down. If you have time, chill it as well, but don’t worry if you can’t.
Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Add the butter and rub it in until the mixture is the texture of fine breadcrumbs. Add the grated cheese, mustard powder and sugar, then, if time allows, leave the mixture in the fridge to chill for half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 220°C/Fan 200°C/Gas 7. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Reserve a tablespoon of the milk and Marmite mixture for a glaze and pour the rest into the bowl of dry ingredients. Mix everything together as quickly as you can, using either a table knife or your fingers. Don’t overwork or the scones will be tough.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and pat it down until it is about 3cm thick – do this with your hands, no need for a rolling pin. Dip a 6cm cutter in flour and cut out rounds, pushing the cutter straight down without twisting. Squash the remaining dough together – again trying to keep handling to a minimum – and cut out more scones. You should end up with about eight.
Put the scones on the baking tray and brush with the reserved milk and Marmite. Bake for 12–15 minutes until they are well risen and deep golden brown. Eat hot or cold, with lots of butter.
Blueberry and lemon curd muffins
These deliciously tangy blueberry lemon curd muffins are easy and quick to bake and make for a tasty addition to the celebration table.
Makes: approx 10 Prep time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 20 minutes
You’ll need
100g butter
200g blueberries
250g self raising flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
100g caster sugar
zest of 1 lemon
2 free range eggs
150 ml semi skimmed milk
10 tsp lemon curd
6 tsps demerara sugar
Method
Preheat the oven to 220c/200c fan/gas 6. Line a deep muffin tin with paper cases.
Place the butter in a small pan and melt, allow to cool for a few minutes.
Wash the blueberries and pat dry, toss in a little flour.
Sift the flour and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl. Stir in the caster sugar, blueberries and lemon zest.
Beat the eggs, add the milk and melted butter, mix together and pour into the flour mixture. Mix together quickly and lightly, the mixture should still look a bit lumpy.
Divide between the muffin cases, make a little indent and place a teaspoon of lemon curd on the top of each one, sprinkle with the demerara sugar.
Bake for approx 20 mins until risen and golden. Cool for at least a few minutes before enjoying.
Union Jack Trifle
Steal the show with this delicious themed Union Jack Trifle. Perhaps not as sophisticated as the Platinum Jubilee trifle but so easy to make and the perfect showstopper!
Serves: 10-12 Prep time: 30 minutes
You’ll need
1kg Berries (strawberries, raspberries & blueberries)
30g Icing Sugar
8 Madeleines cakes, shop bought is fine
3 tbsp Marsala Wine (optional)
700g ready-made custard
200g mascarpone
400ml double cream
Extra raspberries, strawberries and blueberries to decorate
What to do
Hull and chop any large strawberries and put into a bowl with raspberries and blueberries, sprinkle over the icing sugar and give everything a gentle mash with a fork. Set aside to macerate.
Lay the Madeleines in the bottom of a large trifle bowl, spread out to fill the gaps as much as possible. Drizzle over the Marsala wine if using. Once the berries look juicy, spoon half of them, with their juice, over the cake and leave to soak in.
Whip together the custard and mascarpone until smooth and spoon half over the berries spreading to the edges. Spoon over the rest of the berries then top with the remaining custard.
Whip the cream to soft peaks and spoon 2/3 over the trifle and level.
Melina - Assistant Editor
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