Gary Rhodes' perfect starter for a Boxing day lunch, made with lots of leftovers from the day before
Ingredients
- 3 ripe pears, quartered and cored, peel left on
- juice 1 lime
- 100g crème fraîche
- 300g stilton, crumbled, room temperature
- 1-2 tbsp ginger syrup (from a jar of ginger in syrup)
- 100g pack broken walnuts
- 12 dates (Medjool are good), stoned and chopped
- walnut oil, for drizzling
- 225g bag mixed salad leaves
- 1 large watercress, divided into sprigs
Method
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Cut the pear quarters into thin slices and toss in a bowl with the lime juice to help protect their natural colour. Blend the crème fraîche with half the stilton, ginger syrup to taste, and enough water (3-4 tbsp) to give a smooth, thick coating consistency. (Don’t add too much water or it may separate.)
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Scatter the pear slices over six serving plates and follow with the walnuts, dates and remaining cheese. Can be prepared to this stage up to an hour ahead.
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Drizzle each salad with a little of the dressing and some walnut oil. Season with a grinding of pepper – you shouldn’t need salt, as the cheese is salty. Mix the salad leaves and watercress very lightly with just a bit more dressing – some leaves should be touched by the dressing, some untouched. Gently pile the leaves on top of each salad.