Much-loved TV chef, food writer and owner of Ballyknocken House & Cookery School, Catherine Fulvio does not believe in complicated recipes. Instead, her focus is on creating recipes that are doable and delicious while not compromising on flavour.

A Taste of Home is Catherine’s food story from Ballyknocken House & Cookery School, nestled in the hills of Co Wicklow where three generations of her family have lived and farmed for over 100 years. Her latest cookbook is a selection of her favourite recipes and a reflection on Catherine’s upbringing at Ballyknocken, featuring wholesome Irish food as well as tips on how to grow your own micro-herb garden, make yoghurt and churn butter. Here she shares some delicious recipes from the book for entertaining friends and family over Christmas. Watch out for the new Taste of Home cookery class coming to Ballyknocken soon. You can also see Catherine every Friday on RTÉ One at 7.30pm in her TV series Tastes Like Home, which captures the flavours of family recipes from around Ireland before Catherine sets off to recreate that taste of home for the Irish diaspora abroad.

Visit www.ballyknocken.ie for more

Chicken Liver Parfait

Serves four

There is nothing nicer in the winter than a well-made chicken liver parfait with crispy bread while you toast your toes in front of the fire. Here’s a tip: taking the parfait out of the fridge 20 minutes before serving takes the chill off and enhances the flavours. Serve with your favourite seed bread.

120g butter

1 medium onion, finely chopped

350g chicken livers, trimmed

1 tsp chopped thyme

4 tbsp brandy

½ orange, juice and zest

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Few small bay leaves, washed

4 tbsp melted butter

1 To make the parfait, melt the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat and add the onion. Sauté for six minutes until softened but not browned. Add the chicken livers, thyme and brandy and sauté for four to five minutes until the livers are just cooked.

2 Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked livers to a food processor. Add the orange juice and zest and Worcestershire sauce. Blend until smooth. Check the seasoning and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Spoon the parfait into small pots or ramekins.

3 Allow to cool and place in the fridge to set. Once set, place a bay leaf on top of each ramekin, spoon over a little melted butter and return the parfaits to the fridge. Serve each parfait with crusty bread and relish if desired.

>> Smoked salmon roll salad

Serves four

Our cookery students are always looking for quick and easy starters that can be prepared ahead. I’d highly recommend this recipe as it’s so easy, so tasty – and always impressive!

For the dressing

1 orange, zest and juice

100ml extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp caster sugar

1 tbsp chopped dill

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the smoked salmon rolls

150g firm cream cheese

3 tbsp natural yoghurt

½ lemon, zest only

3 tbsp finely chopped black olives

1 tbsp chopped capers

1 tbsp chopped chives

2 tsp chopped dill

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

200g sliced smoked organic Irish salmon

200g assorted lettuce leaves, washed and trimmed

4 radishes, thinly sliced

2 oranges, peeled and sliced

4 tbsp capers, drained

1 To prepare the dressing, put the orange zest and juice in a small bowl, add the oil, sugar, dill, salt and freshly ground black pepper and whisk well. Check the seasoning, adding freshly ground black pepper and a little salt if needed.

2 To make the smoked salmon rolls, combine the cream cheese, yoghurt, lemon zest, olives, chopped capers, chopped chives and dill together. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Then lay a piece of salmon flat on a plate, place a spoonful of the seasoned cream cheese at one end, roll up and set aside on a clean plate. Continue with all the salmon slices.

3 To assemble the salad, place the lettuce leaves, radish and orange slices and capers in a bowl, spoon over a little dressing and lightly toss. Transfer the salad to a serving platter and then arrange the smoked-salmon rolls over the leaves. Serve the remaining dressing in a jug on the side.

>> Mousse cake

Serves eight to 10

All I can say is that this is a proven favourite among our resident guests at Ballyknocken Farmhouse. Many have asked for the recipe, so here it is. For a taller chocolate mousse, use a springform tin rather than a flan tin and simply increase the quantity of cream – anything up to 700ml will work nicely.

For the base

15 digestive biscuits, finely crushed

50g ground almonds

100g melted butter, plus extra for brushing

For The Filling

350g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), broken into small pieces

2 tbsp golden syrup

1 tsp coffee essence (or 2 tsp coffee granules dissolved in 2 tbsp hot water)

¾ tsp ground cinnamon

500ml double cream

Cocoa powder, to decorate

Toasted flaked almonds, to decorate the sides

Chocolate curls, to decorate

1 Brush a 20cm loose-based deep flan tin or springform tin with butter. Line the base with parchment paper.

2 To make the base, combine the biscuits and ground almonds and add enough melted butter to bind (the amount needed will depend on the size of the biscuits). Spoon the biscuit mix into the base and flatten. Place in the fridge to set for 30 minutes.

3 To make the filling, heat the chocolate, golden syrup, coffee essence and ground cinnamon in a medium saucepan over a very low heat. When the chocolate has melted, remove from the heat and allow to cool.

4 Meanwhile, whip the cream to a soft-peak stage. Fold the cooled chocolate mix into the whipped cream and pour over the biscuit base. Leave to set in the fridge for at least five hours.

5 To serve, unmould from the tin and slide onto a cake stand.

6 Dust the top with cocoa powder. Carefully pat toasted flaked almonds on to the sides of the cake and dust the excess off the cake stand. When you’re ready to serve, place the chocolate curls in the centre of the cake. CL