Jones the egg

Just for Mr Silverbrow, then, a quick recipe for Welsh eggs, the veggie version of Scotch eggs that I served up with some success as comfort food on New Year's Eve. They were brilliant served hot with a dish of ultra-comforting pommes dauphinoise and some butted kale, but they'd obviously also work well as a picnic treat.

The recipe follows more or less exactly one found in a friend's book that focused exclusively on canapés. It was American, I think. That's all I can remember. The quantities involved were to make six eggs but (perhaps with a more generous coating) I used most of the stuffing mixture up on just four.

Chop one regular-sized leek (I used four babies) and soften in butter without colouring. Meanwhile pop your eggs into boiling water for about seven minutes (they will be pleasingly still soft in the middle when you serve). Allow the leeks to cool a bit and run the eggs under a cold tap before peeling and coating in seasoned flour (I added some smoked paprika to the flour). Then combine the leeks (and the butter) with 4oz of fresh breadcrumbs, 2oz of vegetarian suet, a handful of chopped parsley, some salt and pepper and the chopped zest and juice from a lemon. Carefully form a layer of this mixture around each egg before dredging in some lightly beaten egg and coating in some staler breadcrumbs. Chill for half an hour so before deep frying for three or four minutes at 190C.

Lovely.

Comments

[Silverbrow]

Mr Ambassador, how you spoil me.

Seriously though, thanks for that. Any piccies? What's vegetable suet though?

I'm sure I've read somewhere a recipe for Scotch eggs made with a smoked fish - salmon or mackerel perhaps? Must get experimenting in the kitchen.

[Ben Bush]

Didn't take piccies this time. They look like Scotch eggs, if you can imagine such a thing...

Veggie suet seems to be just rendered vegetable fat. Ingredients: vegetable oils (59%), wheat flour and pectin. That's the Atora Light version. Available in the baking section of a supermarket near you.

Liking the sound of the smoked fish version. Kind of re-engineered kedgeree. I may experiment too!

[Silverbrow]

Exactly. Actually, if you had some leftover kedgeree (not possible, shurely?), stuck it in a blender, plastered it to an egg and then fry, you might well be on to a winner - or a cholestoral nightmare.