Less salt, more flavour for the Christmas table

Super Seed Salmon Blinis

The festive season wouldn’t be complete without something a bit fancy to serve alongside your favourite sparkly tipple. Whether you’re planning a big get-together or simply looking to make your quiet Christmas morning a little more special, these simple Super Seed Salmon Blinis are a tasty way to get into the spirit. Cheers!

Ingredients:
16 Cocktail blinis
180g tub Philadelphia cream cheese
100g Scottish oak smoked salmon
A sprinkle of Cornish Sea Salt Super Seed Topper

Method: 

Generously smear your blinis with cream cheese and gently layer over small slices of smoked salmon. Sprinkle with Super Seed Topper just before serving for a tasty twist on the classic canapé!

Salted Hazelnut Chocolate Truffles

There’s nothing better than a homemade gift, and these morish truffles are perfect for party favours or even as a special finishing touch to your Christmas table setting. A pinch of flakey sea salt makes all the difference, balancing out the rich chocolate for an indulgent festive treat. Make sure you save some for yourself to munch once the guests have gone!

Ingredients:
100g good-quality dark chocolate
100ml double cream
20g unsalted butter
100g chopped roasted hazelnuts
Good pinch Cornish Sea Salt Flakes

Method:
Roughly chop up your chocolate and pop in a large mixing bowl. Gently heat the cream and butter in a saucepan, until the butter’s melted and the cream reaches simmering point. Remove from the heat and pour over the chopped chocolate. Stir your mixture until fully combined and leave to chill for at least 4 hours.
In a small bowl, mix the chopped hazelnuts with a good pinch of flakey sea salt. Once your truffle mix is cool, use a melon baller in hot water to gently scoop up balls of the mixture, roll in the hazelnuts until lightly coated and set aside onto greaseproof paper. Place your truffles in small individual foil cases in a lined box and keep in the fridge until your ready to gift them. These tasty little treats will keep in the fridge for three days, or in the freezer for up to a month.

Salt & Peppery Sausage Plait

This tasty pastry plait is essentially a giant sausage roll (because who doesn’t want that at their Boxing Day buffet?!). Seasoned with our famous Salt and Peppery blend, this super savoury centrepiece is one to serve alongside your cheese board and nibbles in the evening.

Ingredients:
A little oil, for greasing
400g pack pork sausages
1 egg
2 tbsp tomato puree
Flour, for dusting
250g ready-made puff pastry
A pinch of Cornish Sea Salt & Peppery

Method:
Preheat your oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Grease a baking tray with oil using a pastry brush, then cover it with baking parchment and put to one side. Remove the sausage meat from its skin and mix in a bowl with the tomato puree (you can use a fork or your hands). On a floured surface, roll out your pastry into a square, about 30 x 30cm and pop it into the lined baking tray. Spoon your sausage meat filling down the middle of the pastry into a sausage shape, leaving a small gap at the top and bottom.
Cut the pastry into diagonal strips on either side of the filling (about 10 on each side). Beat the egg in a cup and brush over the pastry before tucking the top and bottom over the sausage meat and gently ‘plaiting’ the pastry strips until you have a neat roll. Brush over with the rest of the egg and a good sprinkle of Salt & Peppery before baking for about 35 minutes, or until golden.
Serve with a pinch more of Salt & Peppery and enjoy hot or cold.

Really Garlicky Squashed Sprouts

Love them or hate them, Brussel sprouts are an essential part of Christmas. They don’t have to be bland though- when given a little bit of love (and a hearty pinch of our slow-roasted garlic sea salt), these humble little greens make for a tasty addition to the main event.

Ingredients, serves 4 with Christmas dinner:
330g trimmed Brussel sprouts
50ml oil of your choice
A hefty pinch of Cornish Sea Salt Really Garlicky

Method:
Preheat your oven to 200C. Wash your sprouts and then steam until bright green and just tender. Pop into a baking tray and use a potato masher to squash down the sprouts (they should be about 1cm thick), then drizzle with oil and sprinkle over Really Garlicky. Roast in the oven for roughly 20 minutes, shaking every 5 minutes to make sure they’re evenly brown and slightly caramelised.

Christmas Crystal Margarita  

We’ve given our favourite cocktail a seasonal glow-up, for a festive tipple that’s sure to get you into the spirit (if you’ll excuse the pun). This one is perfect as a pre-dinner drink to greet your guests, or simply to curl up with on the sofa in front of the fire.

Ingredients:
100ml cranberry juice
50ml tequila
50ml triple sec
1 fresh lime, halved
Cornish Sea Salt Crystals, thinly spread onto a plate
Cranberries and/or orange wedges to garnish

To salt the rim of your glass, gently run one half of the lime along the rim before dipping it into your salt, brushing off any excess. Leave the glass to chill in the fridge while you make your cocktail. Fill a shaker with ice and pour in your cranberry juice, tequila, triple sec, and the remaining juice of the lime. Shake well and pour through a strainer into the chilled glass. Pop your cranberries or orange slices on top and enjoy!
Don’t forget to tag us in your #SimpleSeasoning creations on Instagram this Christmas, and shop all the seasonings above at waitrose.co.uk.