Try something other than lamb this Easter, encourages Philippa Davis, with this venison spiedini with crushed buttered potatoes, watercress and pecorino and lemon dressing. Turn your attention to UK venison instead. With the closure of restaurants, there has been an alarming drop in consumption so we must all use it more in our own cooking. This Easter feast is a great place to start.

For more venison inspiration, try our steamed venison dumplings with lime and soy dipping sauce.

VENISON SPIEDINI WITH CRUSHED BUTTERED POTATOES, WATERCRESS AND PECORINO & LEMON DRESSING

Spiedini is an Italian-style kebab; using sticks of rosemary as the skewer imparts a wonderful, herbaceous, aromatic note.

Serves 4

Ingredients

Rosemary spiedini

• 800g wild UK venison (leg or fillet), cubed
• 8 straight rosemary skewers, keep the end leaves on but strip off the rest

Marinade

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed with a little salt
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp finely chopped rosemary
• 3 tbsp olive oil

Pecorino & lemon dressing

• 1 crushed garlic clove
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 50g finely grated pecorino or hard sheep’s cheese
• 6 tbsp mayonnaise
• 3 finely chopped anchovies
• 2 tbsp apple juice

Potato salad

• 800g cleaned Jersey Royals or new potatoes
• 80g butter
• 100g watercress

To serve

• 4 wedges lemon

Spiedini

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl, toss in the venison then skewer onto the rosemary sticks. Leave in the fridge for at least one hour or overnight.

Dressing

Whisk the dressing ingredients together and season with pepper.

Potato salad

Cook the potatoes in salted water then drain and return to the pan. Lightly split the potatoes with the back of a fork.

Just before serving, put the pan back on a low heat and add the butter. Cook until the butter has just started to caramelise. Toss through the watercress and half of the dressing.

To serve

On a high heat in a frying pan with a little oil, cook the spiedini for a couple of minutes, turning at least once to sear all the sides.

Serve the hot spiedini with the warm potato salad, a little extra dressing and a wedge of lemon.