As a family, we always value our Sundays spent together and with Father’s Day approaching, it’s the perfect time to gather to enjoy a long, leisurely Sunday lunch or supper.
I’m very close to my parents and, as a father myself, I often look up to my dad. I have great respect and admiration for him. I can’t see a better reason than Father’s Day to make a meal and something special, not only for my dad, but for the rest of the family. This year, we’re gathering everyone at our house for a special supper.
I’m using it as a chance to let the adults try some of the cooking I’ve been doing with my first ale, in collaboration with Isle of Skye Brewing – Yer Ben. Sometimes the classics are the best. Mussels are a great French classic which I like to give a bit of a Scottish twist with the addition of some Yer Ben. It gives the dish a lovely fresh, citrus, bittersweet flavour which complements the mussels perfectly.
When it comes to the main, this pork dish is a real crowd pleaser, and a perfect one-pot sharing dish if you’ve got lots of people round the table. The pork works well matched with some lovely seasonal vegetables, like local mushrooms, carrots and wild garlic.
Not many dads can resist a good chocolate cake – and when served with a little splash of ale it’s even more irresistible.
We started out making a Yer Ben ice cream at the restaurant, which we served with a chocolate and coffee souffle. It became hugely popular with our guests, so we started to create some different recipes, and this chocolate and ale sponge is a great one to try at home with some local fresh raspberries.
Chocolate and ale actually make a great flavour marriage – the citrus back notes and slight sweetness of a craft ale like Yer Ben work incredibly well to balance the bitter, rich flavours of this chocolate cake. Combined, the two ingredients make a really nice, velvety, fresh finish to a meal. A perfect way to treat dads this Father’s Day.
- Isle of Skye Brewing Company’s Yer Ben is now available in Waitrose across Scotland or online at skyeale.com
YER BEN MUSSELS
- SERVES 4
- 1kg mussels (washed and beards removed)
- 400ml Yer Ben
- 1 handful of parsley, chopped
- 1 bunch of chives, chopped
- 1 small clove of garlic, chopped
- 2 shallots, finely diced
- Olive oil
Clean the mussels thoroughly. Scrub the shells under cold running water and pull away the hairy “beard” from the side of each shell. Discard any with cracked or damaged shells. Gently tap any open mussels with the back of a knife and check that they close; if not they are dead and must be discarded.
Meanwhile, heat a large, heavy-based saucepan over a high heat and add a good drizzle of olive oil. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring for about 30 seconds. Now add the mussels and pour over the Yer Ben. Cover immediately with the lid. Keep the mussels over a high heat for about 3 minutes, ensuring that they are steaming vigorously. When they are all open and cooked, remove from the heat. Stir in the parsley and chives and eat immediately.
BRAISED PORK SHOULDER
- SERVES 4
- 500g pork shoulder on the bone
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- Sea salt & cracked black pepper
- 2 tblsp flour
- 5 large carrots
- 1 onion
- Half a leek
- 1 stick celery
- Half bulb of garlic
- 1 small bunch sage
- 1 bunch of thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 100ml brandy
- 100ml Madeira
- 800ml chicken stock
- 300g pork caul fat
- 4 baby pearl onions, peeled
- 75g pancetta, cut into lardons
- 8 buttons mushrooms, halved
- 200ml chicken stock
- 1 small bunch parsley
- Bay leaves
In a large, heavy-based pan heat 3-4 tablespoons of vegetable oil over a medium to high heat. Season the pork shoulder with salt and pepper, dust with flour and caramelise until dark golden all over. Remove and allow fat to drain on a rack and reserve for later. Cut 3 of the carrots in half at an angle and caramelise in the pork fat with a pinch of salt until dark. Roughly chop the onion, leek, celery and garlic and add to the carrots.
Sweat the vegetables all together, with the sage, thyme and bay leaf for 15 minutes, then add the brandy and Madeira. Reduce until dry, then add the pork back to the pan. Cover with 800ml chicken stock and simmer gently for 3-4 hours, until the pork is falling off the bone. Remove the pork from the liquid and rest on a tray. Strain the vegetables and reduce the liquid to a sauce consistency. Shred the pork shoulders then mix half of the sauce in. Adjust the seasoning. Allow to cool, then shape into golf-ball sized balls. Wrap the balls in a single layer of caul fat, then chill in the fridge.
In a pan of seasoned water, simmer the pearl onions until tender. Cut the remaining carrots into 1cm rounds and cook in the same water. In a frying pan, sauté the lardons until crisp. Add the button mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes until tender. Drain the carrots and onions and add to the pan.
Heat the oven to 180C. To glaze the pork balls, place in a pan and add some of the reserved sauce and a ladle of chicken stock. Bring to the boil, baste and place in the oven. Cook, basting every 4 minutes, for 20 minutes, until the pork balls are caramelised and dark, coated in sauce. Add the meatballs to the carrots, mushrooms, pancetta and onions and garnish with parsley and bay leaf.
- SERVES 6-8
- 200ml Isle of Skye Yer Ben ale
- 50g bitter cocoa powder
- 110g unsalted butter
- 275g soft Demerara brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 175g plain flour
- Quarter tsp of baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- FOR THE ICING:
- 220g quality 70% dark chocolate
- 220g icing sugar
- 100g salted butter
- 3 tbsp of Isle of Skye Yer Ben ale
- TO GARNISH:
- 54-72 fresh raspberries
- Cream or ice cream as desired
You’ll also need a baking tray 34cm by 24cm in size, lined with greaseproof paper. Start by pre-heating the oven to 180°C. Mix 200ml of Yer Ben beer and the cocoa powder together to form a paste. In a separate bowl, beat the unsalted butter and brown sugar together until smooth and creamy. Then beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in the cocoa and beer mixture and mix well. Sift the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda and gradually add to the previous mix, scraping down the sides of the bowl with each addition. Pour on to a baking tray of 34cm by 24cm lined with greaseproof paper, and bake for 30 minutes in the oven at 180°C.
For the icing, melt the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl. Beat the butter and icing sugar together until soft. Add 3 tbsp of Yer Ben to the melted chocolate and combine with the butter and icing sugar mix, folding in gently.
Remove the baking tray from the oven and cut the sponge into even squares of around 12cm x 12cm. Build the sponge cake with a layer of icing between each layer of sponge. We usually find you’ll get around 3 or four layers per individual cake. Garnish with raspberries and icing sugar and serve with your choice of cream or ice cream.
