Shooters Sandwich

SDC13223, a photo by soul_babycakes on Flickr.

Picnic Heaven

Eating alfresco is a joy, a simple pleasure that we British embrace with gusto, at any clement opportunity. A picnic in the park with a group of friends, or with the object of your affection, is often a memory in the making. Picnics remind me of past times; sports events and ‘Speech Days’, burgeoning romances and the occasional youthful tipsy excursion to Cranham Woods with a ghetto blaster, lots of beer and a few pork pies.

What is the perfect food to eat “en plein air” I asked my friends? Go to Marks & Spencer was the overwhelming response, and one that I have previously resorted to myself, but surely nothing will taste as good as the food you personally prepare.

As much as I love barbeque, the other mainstay of outdoor eating, I find it a bit tedious, unless someone else is tending the coals. The stereotype of the ‘man of the house’ hovering over the grill, wielding a pronged fork falls short of reality in my world; my husband has never shown any interest in wearing an apron and a comedy chef’s hat, more’s the pity. When it comes to BBQ season – the Nightingales eat at the invitation of others.

So for the purpose of this article I fall back on the staple of the British Picnic; the sandwich. Oh, but what a sandwich, what a truly exceptional example of the genre this is. Ladies & Gentlemen – I give you Mrs. Nightingale’s version of The Shooters’ Sandwich; with the supplement of a glorious Gloucestershire ingredient, Tewkesbury Mustard.

A sandwich is functional, portable and easy to prepare. The magic is in the ingredients contained within. This is something special - a meal in itself, satisfying beyond compare. The Shooters’ Sandwich groans with Edwardian tradition. It is customary to prepare a Shooters’ Sandwich with rare beef and a mushroom & shallot duxelle, rather like a Beef Wellington sandwich; I also like to add blue cheese to jazz it up.

Method

The first process is to make the mushroom mixture. Fry 3 shallots and a clove of garlic in a little olive oil, then add a couple of finely chopped Portobello mushrooms. Add the herbs and a splash of Masala wine if you like, season and cook for five minutes,

Next step – pan fry a couple of pre-oiled & seasoned steaks (not too thick) until they are still fairly rare. No need to rest them – we want the steaks to be juicy. Then take (or make) a round crusty loaf and lop the top off. Hollow out just enough of the bread from the centre of the loaf to make a cavity for your ingredients.

Smear the steaks with Tewkesbury mustard. Use Dijon & horseradish sauce if you can’t find our magnificent indigenous mustard, but in deference to true culinary ‘Cotswold Style’ let’s celebrate this wonderful local product.

Tuck the first steak in the hollowed bread, mustard side next to the bread, then add a little blue cheese of your choice – Stilton works well but you could use St. Agur or Dolcelatte according to preference.

Next comes a generous addition of mushroom duxelle, topped with the second steak. Pop the “lid” back on top, wrap and tie up tightly in greaseproof paper, then wrap again in foil. Weight this down (a heavy chopping board, perhaps with a couple of bricks on top) and keep cool for about 5 hours, or overnight.

Ingredients

3 x shallots
1 x clove of garlic
2 x large Portobello mushrooms
2 x rump steaks
1 x large round crusty loaf
Blue cheese
Tewkesbury mustard
Pinch of Thyme

Take the unwrapped parcel along to your picnic, and slice up into wedges to eat. This is so filling you probably won’t need much else in your picnic basket, bar a meaty red wine. Raise a glass to the King of Sandwiches !