QUAIL EGGS WITH CAVIAR

Quail eggs make marvellous bite-sized canapés and the delicate flavour complements the caviar perfectly. Here is a classic excuse for using [lie best caviar you can obtain, but if you are preparing a plateful of the eggs, alternate the caviar with some salmon or trout eggs to give a good colour contrast.

12 fresh quail eggs (you can buy these pre-cooked and peeled, but they taste better if you have time to cook them yourself)

1 Drop the quail eggs into a saucepan of hot water. Bring rapidly to the boil for 2 minutes. Drain and place the eggs in a bowl of cold water. Crack each egg all over and, using the end of a teaspoon, carefully peel off the shell.

2 Cut each egg in half lengthways and place on a plate. Top with a few grains of caviar or salmon roe. Simple and quite delicious!
Wakes 24

SERVE with vintage Champagne,
Chablis or white Bordeaux

MINI PIZZAS TOPPED WITH CAVIAR

These make a sophisticated but simple, bite-sized snack, that even Italians should be happy to hand round at a party.

Pizza bases
1/2 2 tsp dried yeast or 10 g (14 oz) fresh yeast
250 ml (8 fl oz) luke-warm water
37S g (12 oz) strong plain flour

Topping
100 ml (3 1/2 fl oz) créme fraiche
SO g (2 oz) Sevruga or Oscietre caviar
200 g (7 oz) smoked salmon>
1 tbsp dill, roughly snipped
2 tbsp virgin olive oil, plus a little extra to oil the bowl

1 Preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F/Gas Mark 8), and insert a lightly oiled baking pan. Sprinkle the yeast over 2 tbsp of the warm water in a small bowl; allow to stand for about 5 minutes until dissolved. Sift the flour with 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper. Make a well in the centre and add the yeast mixture, the oil and the remaining water. Combine all the ingredients together and work into a dough; keep kneading the dough until it is smooth and elastic, which should take about 8 minutes.

2 Lightly oil a large bowl. Put the dough in the bowl, cover with a damp cloth or clingfilm and allow to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, until doubled in size (or you can leave the dough to rise overnight in the refrigerator).

3 Pull off a small amount of dough and roll into a ball about 2 cm (Y, in) in diameter. You will need a well-floured board as this dough is rather sticky. Press it into a flat pizza shape, about 5 em (2 in) across. Place the "pizzas" on a floured baking sheet, until you have filled it with the rounds. Then pull out the hot baking sheet from the oven and quickly transfer the pizzas onto it. Put into the oven immediately and cook for 8-10 minutes until crisp.

4 Spread the cooked pizzas with créme fraiche then place a small piece of smoked salmon on one half of each one. Place a small spoonful of caviar on the other half and garnish with dill.

Makes about 20 depending on the desired size

SERVE with NV Champagne, Sancerre/Pouilly-Fumé, Mosel Riesling Kabinett or Pinot Bianco.