How To Entertain This Month With Alexandra Dudley

/ 10 September 2024

How To Entertain This Month With Alexandra Dudley

Alexandra Dudley is a food columnist, cookbook author and host of the Come For Supper podcast. In this instalment of her monthly column, she shares an end-of-summer dinner party menu – plus the entertaining accessories she’s loving right now.

Alexandra Dudley

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For me September feels like the last breath of summer and it’s a moment I hold onto. I find it a great month for entertaining, with more people around for an impromptu Friday night or weekend supper. If I can eat outside I will. There is just something about eating outside that makes it feel like summer even if you do need to wear a jumper. This month’s menu is inspired by some of the flavours I enjoyed in Greece, but with a nod to autumn’s arrival.

You can rarely go wrong with a roast chicken and there are few things more comforting than the smell of chicken skin crisping up in the oven. This salsa brings a summery freshness to it all, as well as a pop of colour (always good). Pudding is simple but delicious, a brown butter cake with a hint of thyme. It’s very good with some roasted plums or figs (both in season and delicious at the moment). Or you could even take more of a summery approach and serve it alongside a big bowl of fat juicy strawberries.

DISCOVER ALEXANDRA’S MENU

One Tray Citrus Oregano Chicken & Potatoes

Lemon, garlic and chicken is a much-loved combination. I love the addition of oranges which brings a subtle sweetness to it, cooking the citrus pieces in large wedges along with the potatoes. Cooking the garlic this way allows it to almost confit, leaving you with soft jammy garlic that can be smashed into the citrusy cooking juices and spooned over the finished dish.

Ingredients

600g of potatoes

3 banana shallots

1 whole bulb of garlic

2 whole lemons

1 whole orange

1 bunch of fresh sage

1 bunch of fresh oregano, leaves separated

3 tsp of dried oregano

Salt

Olive oil

1 medium sized chicken

250ml of stock or 1 stock cube dissolved in 250ml of hot water

150ml of white wine

Method

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan.

Step 2

Chop the potatoes into roughly 1cm thick wedges and peel and quarter the shallots. Cut the orange and just one lemon into wedges and add everything in a large deep roasting pan (large enough to also hold the chicken) with most of the sage leaves and oregano leaves (reserving a small handful for the chicken cavity), 2 tsp dried oregano, a pinch of salt and a good slosh of olive oil. Toss with your hands to coat.

Step 3

Slice the bottom third of the entire bulb of garlic and place this cut side down in the tray with the citrus and potatoes.

Step 4

Place the chicken on top of the potatoes and stuff the cavity with the remaining lemon halved and the remaining sage and oregano. Add a good slosh of olive oil a tsp of dried oregano and a few good pinches of salt, rub the chicken all over to coat finishing with a little more salt on the breast and thighs.

Step 5

Gently pour the stock and wine into the tray over the vegetables.

Step 6

Cook for 1 hour and 10 minutes checking after an hour that the chicken is cooked. The skin should be golden brown and crisp and when a thigh is pierced the juices should run clear.
Remove the chicken from the potatoes and allow it to rest for ten minutes, then carve.

Step 7

Remove the chicken from the potatoes and allow it to rest for ten minutes, then carve. Squeeze the garlic cloves from the skins. Transfer the potatoes, shallots and cooked citrus to a serving dish along with the carved chicken and use the back of your spoon or fork to press that garlic into the remaining juices. Spoon this over the chicken and potatoes and serve alongside my olive, caper and chilli salsa if you like.

Green Olive, Caper, Chilli Salsa

This salsa is almost a hybrid between a salad and condiment and is very much inspired by the punchy olive salads I enjoyed in Greece. I like to keep the olive pieces big and the capers whole for added texture but you could finely chop the lot if you wish. I always prefer to buy olives with the stone in because I think they taste best this way. Chopping around the stone involves a bit of fiddly work but the result is worth it.

Ingredients

70g of green olives

2 tbsp of capers, rinsed & drained

Bunch of parsley leaves, finely chopped

Bunch of mint leaves, finely chopped

Bunch of dill, finely chopped

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped or grated

Juice of one lemon

Pinch of salt

Olive oil

Method

Step 1

Chop the olives to remove the stones.

Step 2

Combine with the capers, finely chopped herbs, finely grated garlic, lemon juice and salt and enough olive oil until you have a thick glossy salsa.

Brown Butter Honey & Thyme Cake

This is a simple cake but one that really delivers on flavour. The brown butter adds a rich nuttiness to the taste, which is wonderful with the thyme. I love some roasted plums with this, but a spoonful of Greek yogurt or crème fraiche is excellent too.

Ingredients

150g of unsalted butter

250g of runny honey

100g of golden caster sugar

130ml of full fat milk

1 tsp of vanilla extract

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

300g of white spelt flour (plain flour works too)

3 tsp of baking powder

½ tsp of bicarbonate of soda

Pinch of salt

1 tbsp of fresh thyme leaves

Icing sugar to serve

Greek yoghurt or crème fraiche to serve

For the plums:

12 plums

1 tbsp of sugar

Juice of ½ lemon

Method

Step 1

Preheat oven to 180°C Fan and grease and line the base and sides of a 9in spring form cake tin.

Step 2

Melt the butter over a medium heat until it begins to froth and show dark flecks at the bottom of the pan (about 4 minutes).

Step 3

Pour into a large mixing bowl and whisk in the honey, sugar and vanilla extract. Allow the mix to cool to almost room temperature, then add the milk and beaten eggs and whisk again until smooth.

Step 4

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and whisk until you have a smooth batter.

Step 5

Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 40 minutes until the centre is bouncy to touch. Allow the cake to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then release the sides and allow it to come to room temperature. Dust with icing sugar and serve with roasted plums and yogurt if you like.

Step 6

For the plums, preheat the oven to 160°C Fan. Halve the plums and remove the stones. Toss in a pan with the sugar and lemon juice then arrange cut side up. Bake 20-25 minutes until the plums are soft and released their juices.

THE ENTERTAINING ACCESSORIES ALEXANDRA’S ADDING TO HER TABLE

Set Of 6 Scallop Napkins

£37 | Same Time Tomorrow

I can never resist a checkered fabric, and I love these soft rust napkins. They are a blend of silk and cotton, which makes them feel a little bit more luxurious.

Available at SAME-TIME-TOMORROW.COM

Line Tablecloth

£84 | Same Time Tomorrow

I have been on the hunt for a dusty pink tablecloth for months. I love the warmth that subtle pink brings to a table during the warmer months. I have a lot of brightly coloured napkins, so I tend to keep the tablecloth neutral.

Available at SAME-TIME-TOMORROW.COM