Karen Wright writes: Three glorious days in Wakefield over the weekend for the Rhubarb Festival.
The weather could not have been more perfect and Wakefield was alive and buzzing.
I was busy cooking up rhubarb all three days, Friday and Sunday in the marquee and on Saturday in the Ridings.
It was a real treat to have catering students from Wakefield College on hand in the marquee to help and great experience for them to be working on stage too.
The dish I made on Friday was a savoury one and lots of people in the audience asked for the recipe so I said that I would share it this week.
I created a dish using spices often found in Middle Eastern food, soft and fragrant rather than fiery and hot.
I used skinless and boneless chicken thighs, parsnips, honey for sweetness to offset the tang of rhubarb, and the juice of a lime to bring it life.
I garnished it with toasted flaked almonds, pomegranate seeds for colour and texture, roasted rhubarb and parsley.
Here is the recipe:
Add a splash of oil and a knob of butter to a frying pan and brown 600g chicken, then remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.
In the juices left in the pan soften a diced onion and add a few crushed garlic cloves and some grated fresh ginger.
Add a teaspoon each of cinnamon, ground coriander, turmeric and sumac, along with a tablespoon of tomato puree.
Return the chicken to the pan. Sprinkle over a couple of tablespoons of plain flour and add 500ml chicken stock. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.
Next, add 100g diced parsnips and 200g chopped rhubarb.
Keep cooking to reduce the liquid until you have a thick sauce.
Season with salt and pepper, add enough honey to sweeten to taste and then squeeze over the juice of a lime.
Enjoy!
It is quite unbelievable how fast the months fly by – we are in March! We all love spring though and I love to see the beautiful crocuses as I drive past the park. And of course up next are the glorious daffodils.
It is such an uplifting sight and a promise of great things to come.
For more tips and recipes visit https://www.karenwrightbakes.co.uk/
