Mum's birthday lunch. Suggestions please!

[Ormirian]

On Sunday. She's 80.

I want to cook her a special lunch.

She loves smoked salmon so that's a nice simple starter.

Main course - lamb of some sort. I could just roast a leg of lamb but would like to do something a bit more special.

Pud - stumped!

watch Raymond Blanc's Kitchen Secrets (or something like that) on i-player... it was on last night and the whole episode was devoted to lamb

It looked luvverly!

Thanks. I'll give it a go.

Theres a greek lamb recipe in the recipe section that looks good too.

Would she like a proper old fashioned sherry triffle (so good if done well) or is she a bit more hip?

I think she's a bit more hip

She used to be a fantastic cook - really amazing - but she's got out of the habit a bit. I don't want to be shown up! My 91 yr old aunt will be there too and she is still a very good cook.

You could always have a cheese board instead of pud, and get some posh choccies.

Otherwise the Green & Black's chocolate cook book has some amazing recipes. I haven't done many but one was a white chocolate & cardomom mousse.

Ask the butcher to take the bone out of a leg of lamb, and then stuff it -
Make Gratin Dauphinoise to go with the lamb.

Pudding - creme brulee and raspberries

I'd probably just do the lamb simply roasted, maybe studded with garlic and rosemary. But then put the extra touches into the rest of the roast

duck/goose fat for the roasties
boiled veg with flavoured butters
Delia's oven roasted root veg (butternut squash, red onion, parsnips, etc)
cauli cheese
leek/mushroom bake
I tried a nice spring veg gratin dish that my MIL liked - boil carrots, brocolli, parsnips, cauli (whatever really) - then put in ovenproof dish, mix tub of creme fraiche with spoon of wholegrain mustard and maybe 1/3 pack of gruyere - in the oven for 20-30mins. Very tasty.

Pud - how about a cake doubling as a dessert - so maybe choc fudge cake or a lovely sponge with cream and berries?

As its such a special occasion, I'd go for a rack and get your butcher to French trim it. I'd serve with boulangere potatoes and very small veg, incl carrots.

Pudding I would do either a passion fruit pav ( buy the passion fruit now to ripen in time ) or maybe a seville orange ( if you can still get them ) or sharp lemon tart.

Your lucky mum.

Fantastic ideas! Thanks

I was hoping to go for a sort of spring theme - hence lamb.

Spring veg gratin sounds good.

is it too early for new potatoes do you think?

I was sort of thinking of pavlova as it happens - need to experiment with my gas oven to see if it's any better for meringue than my electric fan oven used to be - or I'll be buying them Kiwi is good - how about kiwi and raspberries? I personally think that raspberries and cream are the best pud you could ever have

I am wimping out with the birthday cake for tea though Will be visiting Sainsbos for that this time I'm afraid. (I've been roped in to making a load of salads for DH's nephews 18th on Saturday night).

Am going to ring the butcher right now re rack of lamb.

He reckons between £30 and £35!

But tis organic and welfare-friendly and I had a good long chat on the phone about how much I needed and how to cook. V nice man.

BUMP!

OK. I've ordered 3 racks. Butcher suggested I cook it with a crust. Suggestions please?

So we have:

Smoked trout/salmon pate with lemon and melba toast

rack of lamb with a ? crust. Gratin of leeks. New potatoes, Carrots with tops on baked in foil with butter and lemon. Steamed broccoli (for DC).

Pavlova of raspberries, strawberries and kiwi.

So you reckon cheeseboard too?

oooooo Yum.

Herb crust. Something like this

I love herbs. I'd big up the herbs with your pate too, dill goes really well.

Can you get decent tasting strawbs at this time of year? They are normally a bit tasteless I find. Frozen rasps are very good though, obv defrosted first......They don't look brill, so I'd use them inside and as a coulis/sauce thing dribbled over, blitz them up with some icing sugar and then shove a few fresh ones on top for decoration.

I wouldn't have cheese at the meal, too much. I'd maybe wheel out one or two good hunks of special cheese with the cracker/pickle/chutney/celery/walnut thing an hour or two later. And maybe a few squares of good choc and some nice coffee.

Wow! that looks good. thanks

Actually strawberries are one of the fruit I am allowed to eat in small qtys on my diet. So I have bought the odd punnet and they were quite flavoursome. I was surprised as I usually don't buy out of season. Now if he's had the good sense to be born in June we could have had delicious sun-warm strawbs picked the same day Rasps will have to be frozen though.

Your lucky Mum. Do update us with your culinary achievements!

Well it went really well. Lamb was delicious but I think one of the racks needed a little more cooking as it was bigger so ended up a little pink. They were hoggetts not lambs so bigger and less tender but much tastier.

Salmon pate bloody gorgeous! Pavlova pretty damn good too