Pork and Cider Casserole

A lovely winter warmer…
Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
500g pork shoulder, cubes ( I got hand of pork, apparently right by shoulder as they had run out at the butchers)
3 carrots, sliced
2 onions, cut into chunks
1 leek, sliced
1 stick of celery, sliced
2 glasses of cider ( I used medium still cider, but I’m sure any will do)
Pork gravy granules ( I know this is crap cooking but it makes life easier)
Salt and pepper
A generous shake or two of marjoram

Method:
Brown pork in large heavy based saucepan or casserole dish.
Add onions, leek, carrots and celery and fry for a couple of min.
Add cider. Let bubble down for a few minutes.
Top up with boiling water.
Simmer for about an hour/ hour and a half until pork is tender.
Season, add gravy to thicken and sprinkle in marjoram.

Serve with a nice buttery mash, I made potato and swede mash. Now that should warm your cockles…

Bread and banana puddding

Chicken Curry

Ingredients:
2 onions, chopped fairly finely
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons of mild curry powder (heat it up with stronger if u fancy)
A shake or two of garam masala
A tablespoon of mango chutney
2 garlic cloves, chopped
An inch of Ginger, chopped
Salt
About 500g of chicken thighs (skinned and boned)
A pepper (I went for a red romero, but anyone will do)
A handful or two of frozen peas
A tin of coconut milk ( I use half fat)

Method:

Soften onions, so either nuke for five min like I do or soften slowly in a pan with some oil.
Add onions to pan and crank heat up, add Ginger and garlic, let onions begin to brown slightly.
Add curry powder and Garam masala. Stir together and and to fry for a minute.
Add tomatoes. Simmer for a few min.
Add mango chutney and some salt.
Blitz with hand blender or in a mixer/blender.
Return to heat.
Add tin of coconut milk. Taste. Add salt if needed.

Leftover Hash

We had a lovely sausage and mash supper earlier in the week, not really worth posting about but the next day the leftovers made a very delicious dinner.

Ingredients:
Left over mashed potato and swede
An onion
1 cooked sausage (leftover of couse)
2 rashers of bacon
A cupful of frozen peas

Clearly add anything you’ve got handy this is only a version of the trad bubble and squeak!

Method:

Soften onions.
Fry bacon and sausage until slightly crispy.
Add onions and brown a little. Add peas and mash.
Fry, squash, fry, squash, fry.
Keep turning it over with a spatula to ensure it is heated through and crispy bits are encorporated and a nice crust forms.

Serve with your fav condiment, my choice lovely ketchup but whatever keeps you happy! If you want a more substantial feast then poach or fry an egg to top it off.

Banana Milkshake

I had some bananas that were starting to go brown earlier in the week so I decided to freeze them hoping that at some point I could reuse them in something like this.  I think I read about the freezing bananas thing somewhere when I was first investigating foodstuffs for the little’un but never got round to trying it out.   Anyway, please try this because it makes the milkshake thick and icy like you’ve put ice cream in it but you haven’t! (well you could if you want to) it’s just the glorious frozen banana! Anyways before I get too excited over my thrifty use of overripe bananas here comes the recipe.

To make 1 big glass (as always double, triple, quadruple as necessary, this one is really a feel it as you go one anyway)

Ingredients:

1 banana, sliced and frozen

A glass of milk (whole for full on creaminess, skimmed for the diet)

A teaspoon of vanilla extract

A squirt of Agave syrup or a spoonful of sugar

Method:

Chuck all ingredients in a blender and then whizz.

Result – thick ice cream like banana milkshake, mmm

Steak Tartare (family Flood recipe)

I hadn’t had this for ages, it was always something my dad made for me and my mum. Anyway i was craving it lately and thought i’d have a go. Don’t be put off by the raw steak, it’s really lovely and I think this version is much tastier than some of the recipes i’ve seen in books and on the web.

Steak Tartare (for 1, double triple or quadruple the recipe for more)

Ingredients

1 sirloin steak
1/2 a small onion, finely chopped
Worcester Sauce
Tomato ketchup
Salt and pepper

Method:

Finely chop the steak to a small mince, you can use a processor but it’s nice done by hand.
Mix with the finely chopped onion.
Add a generous few splashes/shakes of the worcester sauce (don’t be shy)
Add a big squirt of ketchup.
A sprinkle of salt and a grind of pepper.
Stir together and taste, you might want to add more worcester or ketchup to taste.
Serve with hot buttered toast, spread tartare on toast and devour. In France this often comes with the option of fries, but i like the toast ( for me gluten free but to everyone else a nice white loaf).

Curried PEAce Soup

This is my favourite winter warming soup and inspired by my mates blog about winter coming in (mathildeheartmanech) i’ve decided to post this recipe.  It’s a family hand me down and very tasty.

You need:

1 onion, chopped

1/2 a leek, sliced

1 small stick of celery, sliced/chopped

About 2/3 mug fulls of frozen peas

1 veg or chicken stock cube

1/2 tablespoons of mild curry powder (depending on how spicy you like it)

Salt and pepper to taste

Boiling water

Instructions:

Sweat off the onion, leek and celery for about ten min or until soft and translucent (i nuke mine for a bout 6/7 min, but you can do this in a pan with some oil).

Add the curry powder and fry for a min or so.

Add the peas.  Stir.

Add some boiling water to just over covering the mixture and crumble in a stock cube.

Simmer for five min.

Blitz with a hand blender or liquidise. Push through a sieve to get rid of any lumpy bits and pea skins. Bring back to simmer.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Add a touch of cream or creme fraiche for extra indulgence but just as nice without it.

Serve.

Yum, yum and very healthy (minus the cream!)

x

Mmm Brownies…

So many people have asked me for this recipe so here goes, by the way the credit is all Nigella Lawsons really but I leave out an ingredient so slightly different.

Flourless Choc Brownies – courtesy of Nigella Lawson (but reworded by Isla!)

225g dark choc

225g butter

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

200g caster sugar

3 eggs, beaten

150g ground almonds

Preheat oven to 170 degrees celcius.

Melt choc and butter together in pan in heavy based saucepan.

Once melted, take off the heat and add sugar and vanilla.

Beat eggs and almonds into pan.

Pour into 24cm sq tin (use one of those disposable ones from ur local pound shop, much easier)

Bake in oven for 25/30 min.  Whilst baking lick the spoon and pan until you feel slightly sick, oh yeah you know it’s good.

And there you go, the richest, most delicious, gluten free brownie you ever tasted!!

Kabuli Pulau (my way)

Ok so inspired by a lot of my Afghani students’ descriptions of one of their favourite foods, I had a go at making Kabuli Pulau.  I’ve added a bit more spice than they traditionally use and opted for some minced lamb and the addition of some courgettes which I don’t think is very authentic but you got to get your five a day some way so what the heck!

Recipe:

Enough for about 3/4 portions (I made enough for generous dinner, two packed lunches and a toddler portion)

1 grated carrot

1 courgette

About a mug full of brown rice

A clove of garlic, chopped

A knob of ginger, chopped

A handful or two of raisins or sultanas

A good sprinkling of mild curry powder and ground cumin

Minced lamb (small packet)

1 onion, chopped

4/5 spring onions, sliced

Instructions:

Wash and then boil the rice for 25 min.

In a large hot frying pan, fry off the lamb until browned and crispy.

Soften some onions and add to lamb.

Add ginger and garlic.

Add curry powder and cumin.

Stir together.  Let the spices fry for a min.

Add carrot, courgette, spring onions and raisins.

Stir and cook til softened.

Add cooked rice.

Add salt to taste.

Voila, yummy Kabuli Pulau ish!