Skip to content
Left arrow
FOUR Magazine logo
Search icon

Spring Recipes

Recipes
|
17 Feb 2013
|
4 min read
FOUR gets ready for Spring with these light yet luxurious recipes

The mornings are brighter, the evenings are lighter and we’ve noticed the spring is back in our step. It can only mean one thing… Spring is back in! So, to help you get ready, we’ve compiled a little collection of Spring-time recipes, including butternut squash tartlets – perfect for packing in your picnic boxes – light salmon fishcakes to replace the heavy, comfort foods which winter will have comprised of, a crispy egg salad and an Italian antipasto brushcetta, all to see you in to the alfresco season.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Pepper Tartlets

These tartlets by Camilla Stephens of Higgidy Piesare perfect for bridging the gap between winter pies and spring finger foods. Try hot or cold, straight from your picnic box.

Makes 6

Equipment

6 tartlet tins (about 10cm diameter and 2cm deep)

Ingredients

For the pastry

200g plain flour

Salt, a generous pinch

30g Parmesan, grated

2 tsp caraway seeds

100g butter (make sure it’s cold)

1 medium free range egg yolk

1-2 tbsp ice cold water

For the filling

2 medium free range eggs and 1 egg yolk

150g crème fraîche

110g ricotta

400g butternut squash, cut into dice

1 large red pepper, de-seeded and cut into large dice

Chilli flakes, a handful for sprinkling

A splash of olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

To begin, roast the butternut squash in the olive oil at 220°c/fan 200°c/gas 7 for about 20 minutes. Add the red pepper pieces to the tray, give it all a good shake, reduce the oven temperature to 200°c/fan 180°c/gas 6 and continue roasting for a further 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside, leaving the oven on.

While the vegetables are roasting, make the pastry. Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl and add the parmesan and caraway seeds; stir gently to combine. Cut the butter into small squares, about the size of dice and add to the flour. Using your fingertips and thumbs, pick up a small quantity of the mixture and lightly rub it together, allowing it to drop back into the bowl. Repeat until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Now add the egg yolk and the water and, using a round bladed knife, combine the ingredients until the pastry comes together, kneading it very briefly so it forms a ball. Wrap it in cling film and chill it for 30 minutes.

Roll out the pastry on a lightly-floured surface to the thickness of a pound coin and use it to line the tartlet tins. Prick the bases with a fork and chill them for 15 minutes. Roll out the trimmings, cut out six stars and set them aside.

Line the chilled tartlet cases with baking parchment and baking beans and bake for 15 minutes at 200°c/fan 180°c/gas 6. Remove the paper and beans and return to the oven for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and reduce the temperature to 180°c/ fan 160°c/gas 4.

Whisk one of the eggs and the egg yolk with thecrème fraîcheand ricotta. Season with a little salt and lots of black pepper and divide the mixture between the tartlet cases. Top with the roasted butternut squash and red pepper pieces and a pastry star. Beat the remaining egg and use it to glaze the star, then sprinkle with chilli flakes. Place the tartlets on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until the filling has just set. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Wild Alaska Salmon Thai Picnic Fishcakes

Fish cakes make a great light Spring-time dinner, made a little more gluttonous with a hot and sticky sweet chilli sauce.

Makes 15

Ingredients

Ground nut or vegetable oil, for frying

Sweet chilli sauce, to serve

Fishcakes

418g red or pink canned or fresh wild Alaska salmon

2 tbsp chopped spring onions

1 handful coriander, chopped

½ red chilli, deseeded and chopped

½ tbsp grated root ginger

½ tbsp Thai red curry paste

1 egg

Zest of 1 lime, juice of half

2 tbsp cornflour

1 clove of garlic, crushed

Pinch salt and black pepper

Method

Drain the canned salmon, reserving the liquid. Remove any skin and bones, if wished, then break the salmon into chunks

Place all the ingredients for the fishcakes in a food processor and blend to form a smooth paste. Leave to chill in the fridge for at least ½ hour

When you are ready to cook, heat a little oil in a non-stick frying pan. Drop spoonfuls of fishcake mixture into the oil and use the back of a spoon to gently shape the cakes into rounds

Cook for 1-2 minutes a side until firm and golden brown

Cook’s tip: These fishcakes are delicious hot and cold – just serve with plenty of sweet chilli sauce

Crispy eggs with a summer salad

Mat Follas (of the happy egg co) never ceases to impress with his brimming collection of gorgeous egg-based recipes, and this crispy egg salad is no exception.

Serves 4

Ingredients

5 Eggs

100g Japanese breadcrumbs (you can use normal breadcrumbs if you don’t have Japanese)

100g Plain flour

100g peas

100g beans

2 sprigs of Tarragon

Enough salad leaves for 4 plates

Method

Boil 4 eggs in a pan for 3 minutes. Remove from the pan. Gently tap the egg to crack the shell, and then place in cold water. After a few minutes in the cold water, peel the shell off (it should come off easily). Roll the eggs in flour, then whisked egg, then Japanese breadcrumbs and fry in vegetable oil at 180C for approx 1 minute until they are browned. This can be done either in a saucepan, or if in a frying pan, gently basting them with the hot oil and turning them every 20 seconds until they are browned and crispy. To finish, pan fry the peas and beans with a pinch of finely chopped Tarragon and present on a plate scattered with salad leaveswith the eggs on top, sliced in half, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Italian bruschetta with crumbled gorgonzola, balsamic figs, mint and watercress

A lovely little starter, or even main, for an Italian inspired alfresco dinner.

Makes 4Ingredients

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar, plus extra to serve

2 figs, cut into eight

2 tbsp olive oil

4 slices ciabatta

½ garlic clove

2 small handfuls watercress

2 tbsp fresh mint leaves

50g Gorgonzola piccante

cracked black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Combine the sugar and balsamic vinegar and coat the figs in this mixture, leave for 15 minutes then transfer to a baking tray and roast in the oven for 10-12 minutes until soft and caramelised

Meanwhile, brush olive oil over the ciabatta slices and toast for 1-2 minutes a side on a hot griddle or under the grill. Rub lightly with garlic

Top the ciabattas with watercress, mint, figs, a little black pepper and crumbled gorgonzola. Then, drizzle with a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar before serving

Cook’s Tip: Try adding a few chopped walnuts or pistachios for an added crunch

World’s best winner 2014     |     World’s best luxury lifestyle media brand 2022

About

|

Editions

|

Contact

|

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Four magazine

|

All Rights Reserved

About

|

Contact

|

Editions

|

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Four magazine

|

All Rights Reserved

four-magazine.com use cookies to deliver an optimised experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of all cookies used.
Cookie settingsaccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

CookieDurationDescription
__cfduid1 monthThe cookie is used by cdn services like CloudFare to identify individual clients behind a shared IP address and apply security settings on a per-client basis. It does not correspond to any user ID in the web application and does not store any personally identifiable information.
_abck1 yearThis cookie is used to detect and defend when a client attempt to replay a cookie.This cookie manages the interaction with online bots and takes the appropriate actions.
bm_sz4 hoursThis cookie is set by the provider Akamai Bot Manager. This cookie is used to manage the interaction with the online bots. It also helps in fraud preventions
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Advertisement".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
ts3 yearsThis cookie is provided by the PayPal. It is used to support payment service in a website.
ts_c3 yearsThis cookie is provided by PayPal when a website is in association with PayPal payment function. This cookie is used to make safe payment through PayPal.
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Functional

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

CookieDurationDescription
akavpau_ppsdsessionThis cookie is provided by Paypal. The cookie is used in context with transactions on the website.
nsidThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to enable the PayPal payment service in the website.
tsrce3 daysThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to enable the PayPal payment service in the website.
x-pp-ssessionThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to process payments from the site.

Performance

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

CookieDurationDescription
YSCsessionThis cookies is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos.

Analytics

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

CookieDurationDescription
_ga2 yearsThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gid1 dayThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to store information of how visitors use a website and helps in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visted in an anonymous form.

Advertisement

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

CookieDurationDescription
_fbp3 monthsThis cookie is set by Facebook to deliver advertisement when they are on Facebook or a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising after visiting this website.
fr3 monthsThe cookie is set by Facebook to show relevant advertisments to the users and measure and improve the advertisements. The cookie also tracks the behavior of the user across the web on sites that have Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
IDE1 year 24 daysUsed by Google DoubleClick and stores information about how the user uses the website and any other advertisement before visiting the website. This is used to present users with ads that are relevant to them according to the user profile.
test_cookie15 minutesThis cookie is set by doubleclick.net. The purpose of the cookie is to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE5 months 27 daysThis cookie is set by Youtube. Used to track the information of the embedded YouTube videos on a website.

Others

Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.

CookieDurationDescription
_gat_gtag_UA_120081375_11 minuteThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gat_gtag_UA_83740222_11 minuteThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_mcid1 yearNo description
ak_bmsc2 hoursNo description
CONSENT16 years 9 months 2 days 6 hoursNo description
ec_store_chameleon_fontsessionThis cookie is provided by Ecwid and it is used to save the font utilised in the website's online store.
enforce_policy1 yearNo description
l7_az30 minutesNo description
LANG9 hoursNo description
x-cdnThis cookie is provided by Paypal and is used in context with shopping transactions on the website's store.