It’s St David’s Day today so it seems appropriate to write a post incorporating leeks, especially since I was very kindly offered some magnificent examples the other morning growing bravely through the snow. The person responsible, a neighbour of mine, gave me his technique to go with them. They were a real treat.
This is a dish which has a bit of visual impact, thanks partly to cutting the leeks into 1”/2 cm high pieces and placing shoulder to shoulder in a shallow flat baking dish or a quiche dish, and partly to the decorative properties of the whole grain mustard.
It’s also warming, comfort food but with a bit of ‘pop’.
Recipe for Chad’s comfort food leeks and mustard
Serves 6
Ingredients
- About twelve leeks
- 4 tbsps of wholegrain mustard
- 360ml/1½ cups chicken stock made with two stock cubes
- 60 ml/¼ cup dry white vermouth
- 10 grinds of nutmeg (having trouble with your nutmeg grater? Go here)
- Two or three bay leaves
- 240ml/1 cup crème fraîche
- 10 grinds Indonesian long black pepper
Method
- Preheat the oven to 210°C.
- Cut the leeks and place as described above, add all the other ingredients except the crème fraîche.
- Put in the oven for five to ten minutes to get the liquid boiling.
- Lower the temperature of the oven to 180°C and bake for about half an hour until the leeks are soft and ready to eat with caramelised tops.
- Take out of the oven and spoon over the crème fraîche.
- Serve.
This post is dedicated to Chad McGregor.
Music to cook to
Cambrian Serenade, Arwel Hughes
