Yesterday was Mothers Day. It started with Foodie Loon bringing me a cup of tea in bed. The kids were still fast asleep. Eventually there were some rumblings downstairs followed by the smoke alarm going off. Breakfast in bed was clearly on its way. Pancakes, Bacon, Maple Syrup and assorted sauces were duly served up along with pressies, cards and flowers. I was really rather spoiled.
But the treats didn't stop there as a table had been booked for Mother's Day Lunch at The Cock and Bull in Balmedie. It would have been rude not to start with a glass of fizz. This was followed by Grilled & tempura purple sprouting broccoli with chorizo & goats curd. Main course was Peterhead cod fillet, potato dumplings, Shetland mussels, spiced courgettes and for desert baked ginger parkin, poached rhubarb & custard. The rest of the family enjoyed haggis, Cullen Skink and salmon scotch egg followed by roast beef and roast chicken and finally sticky toffee pudding, cheesecake and sorbet. All absolutely delicious. Hats off to all the staff both in and out of the kitchen on what was a very busy service with four sittings throughout the day.
We'd also enjoyed a fantastic evening at The Cock and Bull last month having a sneak preview and giving feedback on their new feast sharing platter concept. The food was as absolutely amazing as it looks, lots of it and great company. We were totally stuffed by the end of the evening. Check out the Meat, Chicken, Scottish and Shellfish options on their Feasts! page.
Chicken liver pate, fruit chutney, Stornoway black pudding scotch egg, smoked salmon & prawns, marie rose sauce, Great Glen Game Charcuterie, home cured goose ham
Whole roast free range chicken and 35 day aged picanha steak
Served with skirlie, caramelised cauliflower, roast bone marrow, chantenay carrots, winter greens, chips and gravy
Classic custard tart, Yorkshire rhubarb
Lincolnshire Poacher and Cropwell Bishop Stilton served with fly cakes
Whilst we thoroughly enjoyed the whole Cock & Bull feast, the two stand out items for me were the caramelised cauliflower and the eccles cake eaten alongside blue cheese. Sounds weird but trust me it really works. Cauliflower seems to be the vegetable of the moment with Diana Henry in the Telegraph and Yotam Ottolenghi in the Guardian extolling its virtues. I recreated the caramelised cauliflower for Sunday lunch and it was a hit with the whole family. Give it a try, it raises the humble Cauli to a whole new level.
CARAMELISED CAULIFLOWER
1 Cauliflower
Scottish Rapeseed Oil
Salt & Pepper
Ridged Griddle Pan
Remove the leaves from the cauliflower and cut into approx 1.5-2 cm thick slices.
Steam the slices over boiling water for approx 5 minutes until just tender. Test with the tip of a sharp knife.
Remove from the pan and brush each side of each slice with rapeseed oil and season with salt and pepper.
Preheat a ridged griddle pan and cook the cauliflower until it has caramelised stripes on each side.
Disclaimer : We dined as guests of The Cock & Bull at the Feast Night. The Mother's Day meal was at our own expense. Feast Night photos courtesy of The Cock & Bull. All views expressed are my own.
The caramelised cauliflower looks absolutely amazing! I adore roasted cauliflower, but haven't tried it in a griddle pan yet (no idea why!)
ReplyDeleteI'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that I pretty much only do Cauliflower Cheese! I'll promise to try roasted if you try griddled - deal?
DeleteOh yum! I've never seen caramelised cauliflower before but it does sound lovely. I can imagine it making a fantastic soup too.
ReplyDeleteOooooh yes. I bet it would be fantastic in soup.
DeleteI really, really want to dig into that cauliflower. For real.
ReplyDeleteNo licking the screen please! ;-)
DeleteCauliflower is my favourite vegetable, I'm really into roasting it with spices and lemon at the moment but I am going to have to try this it looks delicious.
ReplyDeleteGlad you had a lovely Mother's Day, what a treat you had
Roasted with spices and lemon sounds great. I really need to break further out of my cauliflower cheese comfort zone!
DeleteMother's Day here is in May so whenever I read posts like this I'm always happy to hear mama's being celebrated! Sounds like a fun evening. That cauliflower looks amazing!!! Need to make it!
ReplyDeleteFound ya on #TastyTuesday
.:Marta:.
Seems strange that its not the same date worldwide. Hope that you do try making the cauliflower.
DeleteWow it all looks amazing, love the caramelised cauliflower too! Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays x
ReplyDeleteThanks for hosting #tastytuesdays
DeleteIt was an amazing feast and so glad I recreated the caramelised cauliflower
Ooh what a perfect Mother's Day morning! I'm really intrigued by your caramelised cauli - must give it a go soon. Thanks again for joining in with #FoodieFriday x
ReplyDeleteIt was indeed an absolutely perfect day, pity its only once a year! Griddling the Cauli lifts it to a whole new level.
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