Method

Gravlax for the Salmon:

In a bowl, mix the dill with the salt, sugar and crushed peppercorns. Put one unskinned salmon fillet skin-side down on to a large sheet of cling film. Thickly cover the cut face of the salmon with the mixture. You can cover this with another salmon fillet if you like, skin-side up.

Tightly wrap the fish in 2 or 3 layers of cling film and lift it on to a large shallow tray. Place a chopping board on top of the fish and weigh it down. Refrigerate it for 2 days, turning it every 12 hours so that the briny mixture which has developed inside the parcel flavours the outside of the fish. Replace the board and weights each time.

Note: Thin fillets of salmon generally take 2 days (if left longer, they can become too salty). Thicker fillets can often be left for 3 days.

To Serve: Unwrap the salmon and place it on a board. Slice on a 45 degree angle with a very sharp knife into very thin slices. Carefully lift off the slices as you cut them. Arrange on a plate and serve with pickled cucumber or pickled beetroot and a spoonful of horseradish cream.

Horseradish Cream:

If you don’t have fresh horseradish, simply use a spoonful of creamed horseradish from a jar. The jars will vary in intensity so add more to taste if required. I like the horseradish to be quite a pronounced flavour.

Whisk the cream to soft peaks. Add the vinegar, sugar, salt and horseradish to taste. Adjust the heat to your preference by adding more horseradish.

Sweet Cucumber Pickle:

A basic pickling liquid is simply vinegar and sugar, heated until the sugar dissolves. Other flavourings are often added but they are not all essential and may be varied.

Put the lemon juice, white wine vinegar, sugar, peppercorns and salt into a pan, bring to a boil, stirring a little to help the sugar dissolve. Leave to cook completely.

Mix the cucumber and red onion slices gently together, and then pack into a sterilised jar, adding the dill as you go. Pour the vinegar solution over, making sure that the cucumbers are fully submerged. Cover with a lid. You should be able to add more cucumbers to the jar the following day once they

Put the sugar and white wine vinegar into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Allow the pickling liquid to cool once the sugar has been completely dissolved. Peel and slice the beetroot. Once the liquid is cold, pour over the sliced beetroot and place in a sterilised jar. Store in the fridge.

Guinness Brown Bread:

Equipment: 2 x 900g/2lb loaf tin

Preheat oven to 200C/Gas 6

Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl.

Put the wet ingredients into a jug, mix and then add to the bowl of dry ingredients. Mix everything well with your hands and transfer to a greased loaf tin. Tap the tin on the counter a couple of times to get rid of any air bubbles. Cut a slit in the top. Sprinkle 25g of oats over the top of the bread.

Place the bread in a middle shelf of a preheated oven. Cook for about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and run a knife between the bread and the tin to loosen the bread. Turn the bread upside down and tip it out. If the bread requires further cooking, place it back in the tin and cook for a further 5 minutes. Leave to cool on a cooling rack.