Poussins with potato, celeriac and porcini gratin
Serves: 4
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Toby Scott
Poussins with potato, celeriac and porcini gratin
If doing a whole turkey for four people seems a lot of work, this is a great, easy substitute. The birds are baked on top of a rich, creamy gratin, so all you need to do is take the tray to the table and serve
Serves: 4
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
904Kcal
Fat
73gr
Saturates
37gr
Carbs
22gr
Sugars
7gr
Fibre
8gr
Protein
36gr
Salt
1.6gr
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst’s recipes
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst’s recipes
Ingredients
- 2 rashers streaky bacon
- 35g salted butter, softened
- a few sprigs of thyme, leaves picked
- 2 poussins
- sea salt flakes
For the gratin
- 20g dried porcini mushrooms
- 200g young spinach
- 300ml double cream
- 225ml whole milk
- a few sprigs of thyme, leaves picked
- 1½ tbsp wholegrain mustard
- 325g potatoes, peeled and finely sliced
- 325g celeriac, peeled and finely sliced
- 100g chestnut mushrooms, finely sliced
Step by step
Get ahead
Prep the gratin to the end of step 4 the day before, cover and chill. Continue from step 5, baking the gratin for 1 hour initially from chilled before adding the poussins for 45 minutes.
- To prepare the gratin, put the dried porcini in a heatproof bowl and cover with hot water. Soak for 10 minutes, then drain and set the mushrooms aside (the porcini liquid can be frozen to add as a stock to beef casseroles or mushroom dishes).
- Preheat the oven to 190°C, fan 170°C, gas 5. Cook the spinach in the microwave for 1 minute, until wilted (or cook down in a large lidded pan on the hob). Squeeze out any excess liquid from the spinach.
- Put the double cream, milk, thyme sprigs, mustard and a good amount of seasoning in a pan and bring the mixture just up to the boil, then remove from the heat.
- Pour a little of the cream mixture into the base of a medium baking dish or roasting tin then layer in roughly one third of the sliced potato and celeriac. Add half each of the spinach, chestnut and porcini mushrooms in a layer and then pour over some more of the cream mixture. Repeat again and finish off with celeriac and potatoes as the top layer, with the rest of the cream mixture poured on top.
- Bake uncovered, for 45 minutes initially. Meanwhile, dry fry the bacon for 3-4 minutes, until cooked through and starting to crisp. Remove to a board to cool slightly, then chop finely. Mix together the bacon, butter and thyme leaves.
- Gently tease the skin away from the breast on the poussins, and then divide the bacon butter between the two poussins under the skin, smoothing so the breast is well- covered. Smooth any remaining butter over the skin and then sprinkle with a little salt.
-
When the gratin has had 45 minutes in the oven, remove the dish from the oven and add the poussins on top. Return to the oven for 45 minutes, or until the poussins are cooked through. Remove from the oven and cover with foil. Leave to rest for 10 minutes before serving, carving each poussin in halfWaste notUse a food processor to blitz leftover dried porcini to a powder to use as a seasoning in soups, stews and pasta sauces. Or, for an indulgent side, sprinkle through mashed potato with a splash of cream.
