By Dalziel Douglas

Its the partridge season at the moment and they are really delicious. You can get them from your fish monger or game dealer. Have one each if you are hungry or half each for a starter.

Ingredients:

• 1 Partridge per person
• Bunch of thyme
• Olive Oil
• Butter
• 2 x lemons
• Garlic
• Waxy spuds – 1 per person
• Single cream
• Gruyere cheese
• Salt and Pepper

This season, my husband has been chopping the bird in half, down the breast bone and marinating the two halves in extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. Add some fresh thyme or your favourite herbs if you like and leave for 24 hours. The next day get your oven really hot before supper and blast the birds in their marinade in the oven for 15 – 25 minutes. I like my meat practically raw so I vear towards the 15 minute mark but Paul prefers them slightly more cooked and I think he’s probably right in terms of the texture being just right. You have to pick it up to eat it other wise there is absolutely no chance of getting the meat off the legs. Simply pour the olive oil and lemon sauce around the birds and mop it up with some lovely bread or dauphinois potatos.

Dauphinois potatoes - Instructions:

Use waxy potatos for this dish – 1 large potato per person . I use red skins.

Peel and slice your potatos very thin and layer the slices with butter, chopped garlic, fresh thyme, salt and pepper.

When you have reached the top of whatever dish you are going to cook the dauphinois in, pour double cream up to the top so the potatoes are just covered. This needs to be cooked for approximately 1 and a half hours at about 150.

If you wish you can add slices of gruyere cheese onto the top towards the end of cooking.