A Champagne (or sparkling wine) tasting and Russian-style smoked salmon and 'caviar' feast

In the run-up Christmas there’s not much time for time-consuming dinner parties so this tasting and light supper is a fun and indulgent way to entertain good friends. Ask each of them to bring a chilled* bottle of bubbly - Champagne or otherwise - provide a couple of your own, cover up the bottles and taste them ‘blind’. Great fun for a start to see who can spot the ‘real’ Champagne (don’t worry if you can’t - many professionals are fooled by these kind of exercises) and a delicious way to get into festive mood.

I’d include a well known brand such as Moet et Chandon or Veuve Clicquot, a ‘grower’s’ Champagne (I like Serge Mathieu in the Aube), a supermarket own brand Champagne, a good quality Californian sparkling wine such as Roederer Quartet (Anderson Valley Brut in the US) and a quality Australian sparkler such as Green Point but there’s no reason why you shouldn’t pop an easier-to-spot Prosecco or a Cava into the line-up.

Follow your tasting with a Russian-style smoked salmon and ‘caviar’ feast followed by a light grape and lemon tiramisu tart. Totally simple but none the less impressive for that.

* sparkling wine should always be chilled prior to opening otherwise the pressure in the bottle can create an explosive release of the cork

A Russian-style smoked salmon and ‘caviar’ feast

I once had a meal like this in St Petersburg with real caviar and fake Champagne or champanskya as they call it in Russia. I suggest you reverse that and serve real fizz and a caviar substitute.

For eight people you will need:

About 1 kg good quality finely sliced smoked salmon
3-4 x 50g jars of a caviar substitute such as Onuga (or, of course, caviar if you’re feeling wildly extravagant!)
1 x 284ml carton sour cream
1 mild, sweet white onion, peeled and finely chopped
4 large hard boiled eggs, peeled and finely chopped
3 lemons, cut into wedges
Black pepper
A selection of breads and crispbreads such as Irish brown soda bread, light rye bread or rye crackers and/or some blinis

All you need do is lay out the smoked salmon and put all the accompaniments in bowls or on serving dishes for people to help themselves. It really couldn’t be easier.

Recommended wine match: Champagne or dry Champagne-style sparkling wine (see above)

Grape and lemon tiramisu tart

This is an unbelievably easy and impressive looking tart with a tiramisu-style topping that goes wonderfully well with a sparkling moscato. The quantities given will serve 4-6 so make two tarts for 8.

230g pack of ready rolled puff pastry or 225g home made puff pastry rolled thinly into a 28cm (11 in) circle
2 large eggs, separated
2 level tbsp caster sugar + 1 tsp for sprinkling on the pastry
1 x 250g tub of mascarpone
2 1/2 tbsp Limoncello liqueur
250g/ 9 oz white seedless or halved and seeded grapes, rinsed and dried
250g/9 oz red seedless or halved and seeded grapes, rinsed and dried
1 level tsp icing sugar

You will need a large square baking sheet (about 31 x 33cm), lightly greased

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. Take the pastry out of the fridge and let it rest for 10 minutes before you use it. Unroll it carefully onto the baking sheet, removing the greaseproof paper and cut about a 1 1/2 cm strip off round the edge to leave you with a 28cm circle. Lightly whisk the egg whites and brush a thin layer onto the pastry. Sprinkle with 1 tsp of sugar then prick the base all over with the prongs of a fork and bake for 10-12 minutes until puffy and brown. Leave on one side to cool while you make the topping. Tip the mascarpone into a bowl and gradually work in the Limoncello. Whisk the egg yolks with the remaining caster sugar until pale, thick and creamy. Gently fold the mascarpone mix into the eggs until thoroughly blended. When the pastry base is cool transfer it to a large serving plate or tray and spread over the creamed mascarpone with a spatula, taking it almost up to the edges. Scatter the grapes randomly over the surface so you get a nice mix of colours. Sift the icing sugar over the top and serve straight away or chill the tart for a couple of hours then sprinkle with icing sugar.

Note: this recipe contains raw eggs

Recommended wine match: great with a gently sparkling, sweet Moscato d’Asti or Asti

The ultimate strawberry tartlets

Before home-grown strawberries disappear totally from the shops, a re-run of what I reckon is the ultimate strawberry tart recipe from Orlando Murrin's irresistible book, A Table in the Tarn and which he used to serve at his French guest house Le Manoir de Raynaudes.

Orlando says "This pastry is so good you can eat it like a biscuit. Everyone imagines it must have a host of ingredients to give its supreme nutty crunch, but not so. The secret is in the Demerara sugar and the handling of the pastry. You really do need to need to follow the instructions to the letter. The cook who taught me this pastry, an Austrian, said she had given the recipe to a couple of my neighbours, without telling them the secret of how to handle it. How fortunate she took a shine to me!"

Makes 6

For the pastry
110g self-raising flour
25g plain flour
110g unsalted butter
2 tbsp Demerara sugar

To finish
6–10 tbsp mascarpone, cool but not straight from the fridge
icing sugar, to taste
few drops of vanilla extract
250g strawberries, not too big, halved

You will also need a marble slab or large flat board

If serving for dinner, make the pastry in the morning or afternoon. Mix the flours with a good pinch of salt and rub in the butter (can be done in the processor). Mix in the sugar until the mixture comes together into a crumbly ball. Shape into a squared-off sausage and refrigerate for about an hour until just firm.

Cut the pastry into 6 chunks and on a lightly floured surface roll out each to a thin circle about 10cm in diameter. For a professional finish use a cutter to perfect the circle. Transfer to an ungreased rimless baking sheet using a spatula or palette knife and bake at 180°C (170°C fan) for 10–15 minutes until lightly golden (neither pale nor actually browned) and just firm when you touch it.

Remove from oven, count to ten and with extreme care slide a palette knife under one of the pastry discs. Tilting the tray, slide-push the pastry disc on to the marble slab. Continue with the other discs. Nudge the discs lightly while cooling a couple of times so they do not stick to the slab or board. Leave there, covered with clingfilm, till ready to serve.

Have ready 6 serving plates. Beat the mascarpone to soften, sifting in a little icing sugar and vanilla to taste. It needs to be spreadable: too warm and it will be in danger of curdling when you beat it; too cold and it will tear the pastry when you spread it. Spread on to the pastry discs, right to the edge, then top with a tight layer of halved strawberries and a dusting of icing sugar.

You can dress up this dish further by using a lemon cream instead of mascarpone. Make some lemon curd by bringing to the boil 180g sugar, the juice of 2 lemons, 75g unsalted butter and 1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest, and then whisking into 3 large beaten eggs. Return to pan and cook gently for about 5 minutes, till thickened and 71°C. This keeps for a week in the fridge. For this recipe, fold about 100ml of lemon curd into 100ml whipped cream and spread on the tartlets before adding strawberries.

Recommended wine match: I'd suggest a Gaillac doux from the area where Orlando was living but you could also drink a dessert wine from Juranon or Pacherenc-du-Vic-Bilh or a sweet, sparkling Clairette de Die from the Rhône.

Can Can chicken

Continuing with our series of South African Braai recipes to celebrate the World Cup, here’s winemaker Paul Cluver’s version of beer-can chicken made with apple juice rather than beer.

This is a fantastic way of cooking chicken for any of you who haven’t tried it. You need a barbecue with a domed lid like a Weber.

Serves 4–6 (You can double up the recipe for two chickens)

One large free-range chicken, giblets removed

For the marinade
100g butter
125ml red wine vinegar
100ml olive oil
Handful of Italian flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
3–5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red onion, finely chopped
Freshly ground salt and black pepper
1 can Appletise (or any unsweetened sparkling apple juice or good cider)

Melt the butter, then add all the other ingredients except for the Appletise. Marinate the chicken in a large bowl – leave it for at least an hour. This will also give you time to prepare the barbecue. You need to place the charcoal on the sides and make sure you have a drip tray in the middle. Open the can of Appletise, pour off half the contents, put the chicken over it and place it in the middle of the barbecue. It takes about an hour to cook.

You can obviously cook this on a gas barbecue too FB

Wine note: Paul recommends the Paul Cluver Pinot Noir with the chicken but you could also drink a Chardonnay - or, obviously, apple juice or cider if you don’t want to drink wine.

This recipe comes from Cape Wine Braai Masters published by Wines of South Africa

Warm smoked eel with carrots, marjoram and apple sauce

Smoked eel is not so difficult to find but most retailers sell it vacuum packed*: the problem with this technique, whilst keeping the fish admirably, is that it tends to express the oil from the meat. It is worth drying the fillets on kitchen paper before slicing. Most people don’t peel young baby carrots: I prefer to because I like to see them look smooth and glossy but I see the point of those who don’t.

1 large cooking apple
1 lemon
Cinnamon stick, 4 cloves, nutmeg
500 grams bunched baby carrots
750 grams smoked eel
1 teaspoon chopped fresh marjoram
2 tablespoons olive oil

Peel and core the apple, chop coarsely and mix with the juice of the lemon in a small saucepan. Add a small piece of the cinnamon stick, the crumbled heads of the cloves and a grating of nutmeg. Add a couple of tablespoons of water and simmer on a gentle heat until the apple disintegrates. Remove the cinnamon, blend in a mixer until completely smooth, adding a little water if necessary to produce a light and smooth puree.

Wash the carrots and remove all but an inch of the stalks. Peel the carrots with a fine peeler and place them in a saucepan with just enough water to cover, a generous pinch of salt, likewise of sugar and a tablespoon of the olive oil. Cover with greaseproof paper and simmer briefly until the carrots are tender and enrobed in a syrupy glaze. Keep warm.

Slice the eel thinly and distribute, without overlapping on six plates. Place them in a warm oven or plate warmer just long enough so that the eel is warm but not hot. Distribute the carrots on each plate and dribble the apple sauce (no more than a dessertspoon per plate) artfully over each dish. Mix the marjoram with a tablespoon of oil and spoon a very small amount over each dish, equally artfully. Serve.

Suggested pairing: a German Kabinett Riesling

* If you can't find smoked eel locally you can order it online from the admirable Brown & Forrest which specialises in smoked eel FB

Rowley Leigh is chef at Le Cafe Anglais and cookery writer for the Financial Times in which this recipe was first printed.