Celebrate sunny days with these mouth watering recipes from the newly launched summer menu from Lough Erne Resort’s Culinary Director Noel McMeel and Executive Head Chef Stephen Holland.

Irish Spring Lamb Rump with Black Garlic Purée

INGREDIENTS

4 lamb rumps

30g of lamb fat

1 sprig of rosemary, leaved stripped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

salt to taste

For the Black Garlic Purée

190g of black garlic, peeled

85ml of water

15g corn starch

2.5g of salt

15g of white wine vinegar

15g of caster sugar

METHOD

1 Set the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Start on the lamb rump by placing half the lamb fat in a pan on a medium to high heat.

Season thoroughly all over and place the rump fat side down in the pan. Continue to turn until all sides are sealed and golden brown. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 6 minutes.

2 Remove from the oven and add the remaining lamb fat, rosemary and garlic.

Coat the lamb in the rosemary and garlic mixture. Set aside to rest.

3 Return the lamb rump to the oven for a further 3 minutes.

4 For the black garlic purée, place all the ingredients in a blender, but with boiling hot water instead of cold water. Pass through a fine sieve and set aside to cool.

5 Prepare the plate by piping the black garlic on the plate. Carve the lamb rump which can be placed on any vegetable of your liking.

Pan-fried Fresh Halibut with Fennel Cream & Dill infusion

INGREDIENTS

4 halibut fillets

oil

1 knob of butter

salt

pepper

1 lemon, juiced

90g of dill, picked

10g of spinach

200g of olive oil

40g of butter

20g of olive pomace oil

30g of shallots, finely sliced

30g of button mushrooms, finely sliced

100g of fennel, finely sliced

¼ lime, juiced

3g of fennel seeds

1.5g of sea salt

100g of fish stock

100g of white wine

40g of vermouth

100g of whipping cream

METHOD

1 Make the dill oil by blitzing the dill, spinach with the olive oil in a blender for 8 minutes, or until hot. Strain through muslin cloth set over a bowl and place in the fridge to collect the bright green oil.

2 For the fennel sauce, heat 10g of the butter and the olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the shallots, fennel, mushrooms, fennel seeds, salt and lime juice and cook over a low heat until soft(do not allow to colour). Add the fish stock, white wine and vermouth, bring to a simmer and reduce by half. Add the whipping cream, bring to a rapid boil and cook for 1 minute, then strain through a fi ne sieve into a blender (push down on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible).

3 For the halibut, add some oil to a hot pan and lay down each portion of fish in the pan - you may need to pan fry in batches depending on the size of your pan. Once the fish is golden brown, turn over and add a knob of butter to the pan. Cook until the fish looks golden brown on both sides but still white-ish in the middle.

4 Place the sauce in the middle of the plate with the cooked halibut and surround with drops of the dill infusion.

Seared Duck Breast with Orange Sauce

INGREDIENTS

4 duck breasts

salt and pepper

60ml of vegetable oil

1 small shallot, round, finely chopped

½ cinnamon stick

1 tsp five-spice powder

½ tsp ground ginger

2 cardamom pods

2 star anise

10 pink peppercorns

1 bay leaf

15ml of white wine vinegar

15g of sugar

15ml of Grand Marnier

50ml of orange juice, freshly squeezed

300ml of duck stock, or chicken stock

20g of butter

METHOD

1 In a saucepan, heat 15ml of the vegetable oil. Add the shallots, spices and bay, cook until the shallots are translucent and are soft in texture. Deglaze the pan with the vinegar, add the sugar and reduce, cooking until it is a light caramel colour.

2 Add the Grand Marnier and orange juice and reduce by two thirds, or until it resembles a syrup. Add the stock and reduce the sauce by two thirds. Pass through a fine sieve, discarding the shallots and spices, and pour the sauce back into the saucepan. Set aside until needed.

3 Score the skin of the duck breast by making shallow cuts and season both sides of the breast with salt and pepper.

4 Heat the remaining vegetable oil in a large, heavy heat proof pan until very hot. Add the duck breast to the pan skin-side down and cook until brown and crispy, 4-5 minutes. Turn the breast over without piercing the meat and cook for another 4-5 minutes, depending on how pink you like your duck. Remove from the heat and allow it to rest.

5 Slice in halves and serve with orange sauce

Stone Bass with Lobster & Celeriac Remoulade

INGREDIENTS

2 stone bass fillets with skin (each about 7 ounces)

1/3 cup mixed fresh herbs such as parsley, dill, and chives

1 teaspoon olive oil

1½ tablespoons unsalted butter

1/3 cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 small, whole cooked lobster (about 400g, defrosted if frozen)

½ a small celeriac

½ lemon , juiced

3 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

splash of Tabasco

½ small pack dill , chopped, reserving a few fronds to finish

METHOD

1 To prepare the lobster, remove the roe if there is any (if you want to include it in the remoulade, set it aside). Twist o and peel the tail, halve lengthways, slice thickly and set aside. Crack the claws and try to remove the meat whole, setting it aside with the tail.

Winkle out the rest of the meat from the knuckles and the legs and keep separate.

2 Pour the lemon juice into a bowl. Finely cut the celeriac into matchsticks, or coarsely grate or spiralise it. Tip it straight into the lemon juice and toss to prevent it browning.

Add the mayo, mustard and Tabasco, season and mix well. Now stir in the broken bits of lobster meat, most of the roe (if using) and the chopped dill. Can be done 1 day ahead up to this point – keep in the fridge and remove 1 hr before serving. When serving add the chopped-up lobster and mix. Use one quenelle of this mixture onto the plate when serving.

3 Chop herbs. Using tweezers, remove any bones from sea bass. Pat fillets dry and score just through skin in 4 places. Diagonally cut each fillet in half and season with salt and pepper. In a heavy pan heat oil and 1 tablespoon butter over moderately high heat until foam subsides and sear fish, skin sides down, about 3 minutes, or until skin is golden. Turn fish over and cook 2 minutes more, or until just cooked through. Remove pan from heat and add white wine to deglaze, scraping up any brown bits with a wooden spoon. Stir in lemon juice, herbs, remaining half tablespoon butter, and salt and pepper to taste. Place the cooked fish onto a plate along with a quenelle of Lobster & Celeriac Remoulade.

Ham Hock & Chicken Terrine

4 smoked ham hocks from the butcher

2 chicken breasts

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tbsp chives

2 tbsp parsley

2 tbsp shallots chopped

2 tbsp tarragon chopped

1 onion, peeled and quartered

1 carrot peeled and roughly cut

3 sprigs thyme

1 clove garlic cut down the middle

salt, pepper

METHOD

1 The ingredients should be fully submerged in warm water. Place the pan over high heat and bring the ingredients to a boil for 10 minutes.

Then turn the heat lower and put a lid on the pan. Cook the ham and trotter for 2 hours.

2 Pan-fry the chicken breasts till cooked without much colouring. Cut each breast in half and leave to cool in a fridge

3 Turn the heat o‑ and let it all cool. Remove the ham hock and trotter. Strain the broth and discard the cooked vegetables.

4 Pour 3 cups (720 ml) of the broth in a pan again and bring it to a boil and reduce by half.

It should thicken a little. Pick the meat o‑ the ham hock. There is no meat in the trotter. Discard any skin, bones, cartilage and fat.

5 Shred the boiled ham roughly. Combine the shredded ham, vinegar or lemon juice and parsley in a mixing bowl. Add pepper and salt to taste.

6 Coat a small baking dish with several layers of cling film and fill it with the ham to halfway and then add the pieces of chicken.

Cover with the rest of the ham hock and parsley mixture. Press well.

7 Then pour the reduced ham broth on top. Let the broth sink slowly. It can take some minutes until the broth has reached the bottom of the dish.

8 Let it all cool for an hour at room temperature. Then wrap the cling film hanging from the sides around the ham hock and chicken terrine and put it in the fridge to set. Place a heavy weight on top of it. Let the terrine rest in the fridge for 24 to 48 hours. Unwrap and slice it up into thick slices. Serve cold.

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