Category Archives: Uncategorized

Delicious smoked salmon salad recipes

 

 

You’ve been having that obligatory post-festive purge since New Year’s Day. But now, two weeks in, you’re beginning to want to kick the New Year health kick into touch. If this describes you, then fear not. These two tasty smoked salmon salad recipes will stop you from falling off the wagon and prove that you can indulge yourself and remain healthy.

 

Coln Valley Hot Smoked Salmon with a lemon chilli dressing

 

As Coln Valley is renowned for its hot smoked salmon (or Kiln roasted smoked salmon, as we like to call it), we thought we’d open with a hot smoked salmon salad recipe.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

 

A whole side of Coln Valley’s Kiln Roasted Smoked Salmon

250g new potatoes (halved)

100g asparagus tips

125g bag of mixed salad leaves (any of your choosing)

1 x small bunch of parsley (leaves picked and chopped)

1 x small bunch of mint (leaves picked and chopped)

70g radish, thinly sliced

2 x spring onions (sliced diagonally)

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

60ml olive oil

1 x teaspoon wholegrain mustard

1 x red chilli
Method

 

Boil up the potatoes for around 10 minutes or until tender. A minute or so before taking them off the boil add the asparagus tips to cook. Drain, leave to cool and then whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, mustard and chilli in a separate bowl.

Grab a large bowl and mix together the potatoes, asparagus, salad, herbs and radishes. Add the majority of the dressing and mix further before laying out the contents on a large dish. With your hands, break up the kiln roasted smoked salmon into large chunks, covering the salad, and throw the spring onions over the top. Complete the dish by pouring over the remaining dressing – and enjoy.

 

 

Jamie’s smoked salmon & avocado salad

 

 

Trust Jamie to save us from ourselves! This smoked salmon salad recipe sounds pretty standard, but as is always the case with Jamie Oliver, there’s something a little but special about this variation of the dish.

Serves: 2

Ingredients

 

 

200g Coln Valley smoked salmon

½ ciabatta loaf (sliced into two)

1 x avocado (stoned and sliced)

½ lemon

¼ cucumber

1 handful of fresh herbs, leaves already picked

½ punnet of cress

1 x tablespoon mixed seeds

½ blood orange (cut into two)

Olive oil

Black pepper (freshly ground)

 

 

Method

 

Grab a griddle and heat. Whilst heating, place the sliced avocado in a bowl, squeeze over some lemon juice and then, using a peeler, peel the cucumber on top. Then add the herbs and cress.

Take another pan and gently toast the seeds. Once toasted, leave to cool.

In a small bowl, squeeze the juice from the blood orange and mix with a glug of olive oil. Season to taste.

Now that the griddle is piping hot, griddle both sides of the ciabatta until charred both sides. Once toasted, sprinkle the dressing over the top. Place each slice on a plate and then top with smoked salmon before drizzling over the remainder of the dressing. Add the salad mixture before topping with the toasted seeds.

Happy New Year from everyone at Coln Valley – and stay healthy!

 

For more smoked salmon recipe ideas, promotions and competitions visit our Facebook page.

Uncategorized, ,

Smoked salmon soup recipes for winter

 

Smoked salmon soups are delicious and healthy
Smoked salmon soups are delicious and healthy

It’s cold. It’s wet. It’s January.

 

These three things in themselves are enough to make you want to shut yourself away until at least February.

 

Although Coln Valley is very much a believer in the fact that it’s the small things that count, so in that spirit we thought we’d offer you something that deals with all three: smoke salmon soup recipes.

 

“How’s that, then?”, we hear you ask.

 

Well, firstly, when it’s cold and wet, people tend to seek solace in soup. Secondly, as it’s January (and after all that Christmas indulgence), people often gravitate towards healthy eating in order to shift some of that Christmas excess. So, here are some tasty soup recipes that allow you to eat healthily – and enjoyably – whilst in a period of semi-hibernation.

 

Not only that but smoked salmon soup, for many, isn’t a natural choice of soup, so here’s our effort to bring it up to the top of the menu.

 

  1. Smoked salmon, leek and potato soup

 

Yes, it’s as simple as adding smoked salmon to an established and much-loved soup. However, the addition of the smoked salmon really does add another dimension to this UK favourite.

 

Serves 4

 

Ingredients

 

125g pack of Coln Valley Smoked Salmon, cut into small pieces

1 x medium knob of butter

1 x large leek, halved and thinly sliced

1 x bay leaf

500g potatoes

500ml stock (either vegetable or chicken)

50ml double cream

1 x handful of chives, chopped

 

Method

 

Heat the butter in a pan and add the bay leaf and the sliced leeks before cooking, on a low heat, until soft. Add the potatoes, making sure that they have a good coating of the butter.

 

Pour the stock and cream over the mixture and simmer until the potatoes are tender. Add the majority of the smoked salmon, saving a little to sprinkle on top, and stir through before serving up in bowls and adding the chives and the remaining salmon on top.

 

 

  1. Hot smoked salmon chowder

 

This possibly isn’t the leanest smoked salmon soup recipe you’ll find, but it’s arguably one of the most delicious.

 

Serves 5 – 6

 

Ingredients

 

2 x 160g packs of Coln Valley’s Kiln Roasted Salmon

3 x large knobs of butter

1 x large onion (chopped)

5 x carrots, peeled and diced

3 x celery stalks, sliced

250ml white wine

6 potatoes, diced

1 x tablespoon of thyme

600ml stock (chicken or vegetable)

500ml milk

1 x tablespoon of flour

300ml cream

 

Method

 

Melt the butter over a medium heat before adding the carrots, celery and onion and cook until soft. Then add the wine for 30 seconds before adding the potatoes, thyme and half the stock. Gently boil until the potatoes are tender and then whisk the milk and flour in. Add another cup of broth and simmer for a further 10 minutes.

 

Add the hot smoked salmon and cream a minute or so before serving. Taste, season and enjoy.

 

  1. Creamy salmon and cashew nut soup

 

Serves 4

 

Ingredients

 

250g pack of Coln Valley Smoked Salmon

200g cashew nuts (unsalted)

500g sweet potatoes, chopped into small cubes

100g tomato puree

800ml water

3 x cubes of chicken stock

1 x shallot, finely chopped

 

Method

 

Blend the cashew nuts and add the water to form a paste.

 

Add sweet potatoes, tomato puree, chicken stock cubes and cook in a pan for 20 minutes.

 

Just before serving, add the smoked salmon and stir for a few minutes before serving up in bowls. Garnish with the shallot.

Share your smoked salmon soup recipes with us via our Facebook page or @Coln_Valley on Twitter.

Uncategorized, , , ,

Smoked salmon Christmas breakfasts

 

It's Christmas... so here are three smoked salmon Christmas breakfast recipe options.
It’s Christmas… so here are three smoked salmon Christmas breakfast recipe options.

Yes, breakfasts and not breakfast. We’re not advocating you eat more than one breakfast, of course. We just want to provide you with Christmas smoked salmon breakfast recipe options (three in fact) to make sure that the annual Christmas breakfast a) isn’t a damp squib, b) suitably impresses and c) sets the tone for the day ahead.

 

These three options range from the much-loved smoked salmon with scrambled eggs to something a little more adventurous.

In order to buy smoked salmon for Christmas, or if you’re looking to send smoked salmon as a gift, then you need to make sure you placed your online order by 20 December.

 

Option 1: Smoked salmon with scrambled eggs

 

This familiar smoked salmon recipe from Jamie Oliver ticks a number of boxes. It’s easy to make, it looks and tastes fantastic and, let’s face it, readies the stomach for the festive tipple, which, for many, also starts at breakfast!

We’ve based all these recipes on four people, however halving, doubling or even tripling shouldn’t prove too tricky to work out.
Ingredients

 

  • 60g butter (for cooking – use extra for spreading if required)
  • 12 large free range eggs
  • 4 slices of sourdough bread
  • 8 slices of Coln Valley Smoked Salmon (we would advise buying our 454g pack of Classic Smoked salmon
  • 2 lemons (each quartered)
  • Freshly cracked black pepper
  • Sea salt

 

Method

 

Place the bread in a toaster and then whisk the eggs in a bowl. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. When melted add the eggs and stir continuously with a wooden spoon or spatula, making sure that no part of the egg gets stuck in the same place for too long. Take off the heat when the egg is still smooth and runny. Place the toast on plates and share the egg out evenly over the toast before laying two slices of Coln Valley smoked salmon over the eggs. Add lots of black pepper and one lemon wedge before serving.

 

Option 2: Eggs benedict with Coln Valley Smoked Salmon & chives

 

If you’ve accepted that Christmas Day is going to be one, long indulgence, then why not start as you mean to go on. Although it’s slightly more involved than option 1, it will certainly impress your guests.

 

Ingredients

 

  • 4 eggs
  • 8 slices of Coln Valley Smoked Salmon (we would advise buying our 454g pack of Classic Smoked Salmon)
  • 2 muffins (halved)
  • Knob of butter for spreading (if required)
  • Chives, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar

 

For the sauce

  • 2 teaspoons of lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons of white wine vinegar
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 100g butter

 

Method

 

Start with the sauce. Add the lemon juice and vinegar in a small bowl before adding the yolks. Whisk until frothy. Then place the bowl over a pan of gently boiling water and whisk until the mixture begins to thicken up. As it does, add the butter until fully combined and then take off the heat.

 

Poach the eggs by boiling water in a pan, add the vinegar, stir they water until you have a whirlpool then add the eggs one by one. Cook for a few minutes before removing with a slotted spoon.

Toast the muffin halves before adding two slices of smoked salmon on each. Add a poached egg on top, pour a spoonful of sauce over the top of that and then garnish with the chopped chives.

 

Option 3: Avocado on toast with smoked salmon

 

This is a nice, healthy option to offset what’s to come.

The inclusion of rye bread also makes it really filling; it may even tide you over until Christmas lunch!

 

Ingredients

  • 2 avocados
  • 4 tablespoons of natural yoghurt
  • 1 lemon
  • 4 slices of rye bread
  • Cayenne pepper
  • 150g Coln Valley Smoked Salmon (our 200g pack of Classic Smoked Salmon will do nicely – and leave you with some leftover)
  • ½ a cucumber – ribboned

 

For the dressing:

  • 1 x red chilli, seeded and sliced
  • 2 x tablespoon of finely chopped mint
  • 1 x lemon (zested and juiced)
  • 2 x tomatoes (finely diced)
  • 2 x teaspoons of white wine vinegar

 

Method

Mix all dressing ingredients together.

Halve the avocadoes, remove the stones and scoop the flesh into a bowl before adding the lemon juice and yoghurt. Add salt and pepper and then mash up.

Divide the avocado mixture between the four slices of bread, sprinkle some cayenne pepper on top before adding a couple of slices of smoked salmon. Finally, spoon over the dressing and then enjoy.

 

What will you be eating this Christmas? Let us know via our Facebook page.

Uncategorized, , , ,

The glamorous couple

There have been countless successful pairings over the years. Morecambe and Wise, French and Saunders and Laurel and Hardy to name a few. Even Bonnie and Clyde were good at what they did (despite the fact that what they did was high-level crime).

 

However in our eyes there isn’t a pairing as successful as that of smoked salmon and champagne. Yes, smoked salmon and champagne represents that classic combination of luxury, flavor and elegance.

 

Which is why everyone at Coln Valley was delighted to learn that it’s National Champagne Week from 1st – 7th October 2015. The organisers claim that ‘the sound of a champagne cork popping is one of life’s finest sounds’. And if that’s one of life’s finest sounds then enjoying a glass of champagne with the finest smoked salmon has to be one of life’s finest flavours.

 

Founded by Searcys, National Champagne Week 2015 aims to emphasise the diversity of champagne across some of the UK’s most iconic venues through a week-long celebration of accessible and approachable experiences – from tutored tastings and champagne masterclasses to parties and pop-ups.

 

Tickets to these events are available at www.nationalchampagneweek.co.uk and there will no doubt be a constant ‘pouring’ of updates available via the #champagneweek hashtag.

 

And if you can’t attend then why not create your own event to celebrate champagne week – at home. It goes without saying that champagne is essential and from our perspective, so is smoked salmon. Whilst we wouldn’t want to advise you on what champagne to buy, we can help with your choice when it comes to buying the finest smoked salmon – from Coln Valley’s range of classic smoked salmon to its speciality salmon products.

 

So, to end this piece we’d like to share the thoughts of F. Scott Fitzgerald, who said: “Too much of anything is bad, but too much champagne is just right.”

 

Naturally we agree.

The glamorous couple: smoked salmon and champagne
The glamorous couple: smoked salmon and champagne
Uncategorized, , , ,