The perfect ‘farewell to summer’ lunch

It’s the last day of summer. Oh. It’s over. Actually here in Orange it feels like Summer never really began. But this weekend I’m going to pretend it’s warm and balmy even though the rain is forecast to continue and the farm and surrounding forrest and hills will probably remain covered with low misty clouds till Sunday afternoon. My good friend and Alice’s godmother is coming to stay and I think eat this for lunch and drink abottle of Rose to farewell summer.

Trout, Kipfler and horseradish salad and vanilla roasted peaches

The perfect 'farewell to summer' lunch

Easy trout, kipfler and horseradish salad

Serves 2-4
This recipe takes only 10 minutes to throw together and is just delicious. The trout we use comes from Arc-en-Ciel trout farm just south of Tamworth but you could use any smoked or even pan-fried fish handy or local to you. It’s also great with strips of poached chicken. On the side, this time, will be a beautiful loaf of bread and a wedge of local dairy Jannei’s Cheddar Chevre.

5 kipfler potatoes, peeled
2 smoked trout fillets
1/2 cup flaked almonds
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
4 tbsp creme fraiche
2 tbsp horseradish cream
1 lemon
A couple of handfuls of baby spinach leaves
A few mint leaves

Cook the potatoes in a big pan of salted water until tender. Meanwhile toast the almonds and set aside. Mix the creme fraiche, horseradish cream and lemon juice together and season to taste. When cool enough to handle, slip the skins from your potatoes and slice into thick pieces, on the diagonal. Toss these in the olive oil and red wine vinegar.

To assemble, scatter the spinach leaves on a platter, top with the potatoes, flaked trout fillets, almonds and then dollop over the horseradish cream mixture.

Vanilla roasted peaches

Serves 2-4
I honestly can’t think of a nicer way to eat peaches (other than ‘au naturale’). And this is so easy it’s hardly a recipe. Also great with plums, berries…. pretty much any summer fruit. These peaches came from our little tree. We only managed to harvest about six this year before our ducks consumed the rest (I’d never heard of ducks eating peaches from the tree before but there you have it!). If you are in more of a chocolate-y mood, try these prune brownies with pot-roasted rhubarb from over at Local is Lovely.

3 peaches
4 tbsp caster sugar
1 vanilla bean
juice and rind of one orange
2 tbsp pine nuts
4 tbsp (extra) caster sugar
Natural yogurt sweetened with honey if you like

Halve and stone the peaches. Preheat the oven to 180C and scatter the caster sugar on the base of a ceramic baking dish. Place the peaches in the dish turning once or twice to make sure all sides receive a coating of caster sugar then leave cut side up. Scrape vanilla seeds from bean and smear all over the peach sides. Squeeze juice all around and throw in a few big pieces of rind too. Splash in about 1/4 cup water and place in the oven for 25 minutes. Meanwhile pour the remaining sugar into a heavy-based saucepan on medium. Swirl around while the sugar melts into a nice brown (not too brown!) syrup then tip over the pine nuts manouvering the toffee so it coats them all in a semi-even layer.

To serve, place the peach halves in a nice platter or use the baking dish if that’s nice. Pour over the cooking syrup and crumble the pine nut praline over the top. Serve with the yogurt.

These peaches are just as nice served room temperature as warm.