Roasted Halibut, Comber Earlies, Pickled Dulse & Brown shrimp

An Old Inn favourite and a family recipe from our breakfast chef Dermot, the traditional fruit brack is a moist, tea-soaked loaf filled with dried fruit and mild spice. Served as part of breakfast and our indulgent afternoon tea, it’s comforting slice of home-baked goodness. 

Ingredients

• 1x 900g Loaf
• 250g Soft Plain flour
• 15g Baking powder
• 125g  Soft brown Sugar
• 3 Eggs
• 250ml  Cold tea
• 250g dried fruit of your liking
• 50 g  Mixed peel
• ½ tsp Mixed spice
• Honey to brush the top of the loaf

Method

1. Start your loaf the night before, by soaking the dried fruit and peel in the cold tea, and place in a fridge to soften.
2. Pre-heat you oven to 150c
3. With a bowl and flour Sieve, pass your flour, baking powder and spice together, this makes sure that they are thoroughly mixed but also adds air to the flour which helps the rise. Add the sugar, and mix together.
4. Add the beaten eggs and then the soaked fruits, the mix is very wet almost like a batter.
5. Pour into a lined loaf tin and Bake for approx. 1 hour , remove oven allow to cool for 15 mins and then turn out on to baking wire. When cool brush with warm honey and if you like roll in Demerara sugar
6. Serve with cold salted butter and a hot cup of tea!

This is a classic for the Spring season; fresh duck eggs, finely shaved smoked duck, and duck fat-fried bread, finished with a sweet apple vinegar to cut through it all.

Dressing

• Ingredients: 100ml Chardonnay Vinegar, 200ml Pomace Oil, 2 Cloves Garlic, 1 Shallot , 2 Sprigs Tarragon, Salt & Pepper
• Method: Mix all together and allow to sit for 24hours before use.

Mayonnaise

• Ingredients: 4 Egg Yolks, 50ml White Wine Vinegar, 50ml Dijon Mustard, 250ml Neutral Rapeseed Oil, Salt, Smoked Paprika, Cayenne Pepper
• Method: Whisk the yolks, vinegar, mustard together, drizzle in the oil and emulsify, season to taste.

Onions

• Ingredients: 2 Large Spanish Onions, 100ml White Wine Vinegar, 100ml White Wine, 25 ml Dijon Mustard, 25ml Horseradish Cream, 100ml Crème Fraîche
• Method: Finely dice the onions, cover with the white wine and the vinegar and reduce until the pan is dry, cool. When the onions are cold mix in the mustard, horseradish and crème Fresh and season.

Fried Bread

• Ingredients: Brioche loaf, Duck fat
• Method: Break the brioche into small pieces, and fry in duck fat until golden

Apple Balsamic Gel

• Ingredients: 250ml Apple balsamic, 60g sugar, 30g Ultratex
• Method: Whisk all together and allow the Ultratex to thicken the vinegar until golden.

Method for plating:

1. For the plate you’ll need 4 duck eggs, 2 medium sized red onions, mayonnaise, dressing, fried brioche, smoked duck, celery salt, herbs and pea shoot to garnish

2. Bring a medium sized pan of water up to the boil

3. Meanwhile peel and cut your onions in half-length ways.

4. When your water is boiling, gentle drop in the duck eggs and onions, allow to simmer for 7mins & 30secs

5. When cooked refresh the eggs in iced water to stop them cooking any further.

6. The onion, remove and allow to drain but do not let it go cold, season with the celery salt and dress while still hot with the dressing.

7. Peal your duck eggs and cut in half the yolk should still be soft, season with the celery salt

Now to dress the plate:

1. Spoon a little of the onion in the bottom of the bowl arrange the eggs and red onions on top

2. Add a few dots of mayonnaise and apple balsamic vinegar

3. Arrange the shaved smoked duck and crispy fried bread around the plate

4. Finish with the herbs and pea shoots.

The Old Inn’s Head Chef Andrew Turner spent his childhood growing up in Weymouth, Dorset, where Cream Teas are a big thing. Plain or fruit? Cream on first or jam on first? Someone always has an opinion and normally isn’t afraid to share it with you. We say eat the scones as you prefer, with whatever and however you like.

Here’s the recipe we use at The Old Inn. It’s light, a little sweet, and always a treat.

Preheat your oven to 160c

• 600g Self-rising flour
• 17g Baking powder
• 135g Butter
• 75g Sugar
• 295ml Buttermilk
• 1Tsp Vanilla essence
• 1 egg

Additional for Fruit Scones

• 170g Sultanas
• 10 g Additional flour

For the plain scone

• Sieve all the dry ingredients together, rub in soft butter to the dry mix, then add the buttermilk and vanilla essence.
• Mix as little as possible until the ingredients have come together, roll out to about 4 cm thick and cut out using a pastry cutter of the desired size.
• Take the egg and beat with a fork, brush the top of each scone, being careful not to let any run down the side as this will stop the scone rising evenly.
• Cook until golden brown approx. 15/20 mins

For the fruit scones

• Shake the fruit and the 10g of flour together and mix into the dry ingredients then continue as above. 

For the Scotch Egg

Ingredients

• 2 free range hen eggs

• 200g sausage meat

• 200g plain flour

• 1 egg

• 200ml whole milk

• 200g panko breadcrumbs

Method

1. Put the 2 free range eggs into boiling water and boil for 4 minutes then put into cold water to cool quickly

2. Meanwhile in 3 separate bowls, you need bowl 1 the flour, bowl 2 whisk the 1 egg with the milk, bowl 3 the panko crumbs

3. When eggs have cooled, peel and first coat the eggs with the flour then into the egg wash and lastly into the panko crumbs

4. Leave aside to deep fry later

For the Gammon

Ingredients

• 200g gammon slipper

• 2 cloves

• 1 orange

• 1 tablespoon of sugar

Method

1. Steep the gammon overnight in cold water in the fridge to get rid of some of the sulfites

2. Next day wash off the gammon in cold water and put into large pot, cover with lots of fresh water add the remaining ingredients and boil for approximately 1.5 hours or until tender and breaking away. When cooked leave to cool in the cooking liquor.

3. When gammon has completely cooled, remove excess fat, and tear into large chunks and leave aside.

You will also need:

• 200g of good cheddar cheese, smoked if you prefer

• Sourdough bread

• 1 baby gem lettuce cut in half and washed

• 100g of washed watercress

• Pickled vegetables

• Piccalilli

• Goose fat

To Prepare

1. Deep fry your egg for 3 minutes or until golden and crispy, leave to cool for a minute

2. Wash the gem and watercress

3. Cut the cheese into 4 even wedges

4. Slice the bread thickly smear with the goose fat and chargrill

5. Cut the eggs in half being careful not to loose all the runny yolk

To Plate

1. On each plate put half the watercress and baby gem

2. 2 large tablespoons of the pickled vegetables

3. 2 halves of the scotch egg

4. 2 of the cheese wedges

5. A good portion of the pulled gammon

6. Heaped tablespoon of the piccalilli

7. 2 chunky slices of the goose fat charred bread Serve and enjoy!