there are so many reasons to drink at the Union Club Hotel, and right now it gets even better: the pink pepper trees in the carpark are bearing fruit (see, why would you go to any other pub?)
being of diminutive stature, and slightly tipsy as I was, I didn't notice the long tendrils of berries hanging from the trees as we staggered off to find a tram. but JG spotted them so we filled our pockets and went home to cook (briefly detouring by the bottle shop to entertain the good people with our strange, spicy perfume and giggling).
pink pepper is not the same botanical genus as black, green and white pepper. these are the various ripening stages of Piper nigrum, which is a vinous plant. pink pepper is the fruit of the Schinus terebinthifolius tree. but despite divergent botanical binomials, pink pepper smells and tastes remarkably like black pepper.
the pink skin is dry and papery. if you buy pickled pink pepper in jars it usually has the skin on (otherwise it wouldn't look pink - the berry inside is olive green). grinding the fresh fruit separates the skin from the inside but the whole lot can be ground up together. the flavour is strangely provocative, first intensely perfumed like rosemary or eucalypt, then piquant and almost sour, with the suggestion of heat that leaves a desirable bitterness.
JG ground a (small) handful of the berries into his ubiquitous salsa verde which I love in all its incarnations; a fine addition to slow-grilled marinated lamb cutlets.
salsa verde
grind fresh herbs and pepper in a mortar and pestle.
usually parsley predominates, with the addition of rosemary, thyme and mint.
add oil, salt and lemon juice as you like and blend to a smooth consistency.
marinated lamb cutlets
finely chop 3 cloves of garlic and mix with oil and lemon juice.
add salt, and thyme or pepper as you like.
marinate the cutlets for at least half an hour, reserving the marinade afterwards.
green pea skordalia
peel and chop two good mashing potatoes.
boil in salted water, and add the same quantity of peas when the potatoes are almost done.
tear up some bread and soak it in cold water.
when the peas are just cooked, ladle the peas and potato into a blender so you keep the cooking water.
squeeze excess water out of the bread and add to the blender.
process to a smooth mash with the addition of chopped garlic, lemon juice, oil and salt.
use the starchy cooking water to thin it out.
this makes a great base for the cutlets, except timing is important: it goes from shrek-green to oscar-the-grouch green the longer it sits.
beetroot with yoghurt dressing
steam or boil whole baby beetroot or beetroot segments.
boil the left over lamb marinade for a few minutes with a little extra oil, some ground cummin and whole nigella seeds.
cool a bit before stirring in a few spoonfuls of yoghurt.
