• Full Recipe

    Chilli jam

    3 October 2018 - By 

    As yet untried with anything like a nice goat’s cheese, or some such intended accompaniment. With the only tasting coming from the big stirring spoon, it seems real fiery, but with a nice, sweet pepperiness. Used pointy Romano peppers as well as the chillies from the garden. This was very approximately: 100g chillies100g Romano peppers250g jam sugar50g fresh ginger350ml white wine vinegarjuice of a lemon Chillies and peppers were laboriously deseeded and scraped, then chopped along with the ginger in the food processor until roughly small pieces. Brought to a simmer in the vinegar at which point the other ingredients…

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    Chicken, Squash & Beans

    1 October 2018 - By 

    Leon, pg. 231 The marinade is crucial here, almost does a cerviche kinda thing… Only it’s chicken, so don’t eat it until you apply some heat. Pumpkins were oddly difficult to come by, so used a squash. Really enjoyed. Quite quick and simple as long as you remember to prepare the night before. Would definitely do again.

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    Comforting lentil soup

    30 September 2018 - By 

    Nigel Slater – Appetite, pg. 205 Really excellent. Don’t change a thing… Other than the suggestion of cooking the spinach before hand, which is a silly idea, just bung it in. The only reason I can see for that is to change the texture of the spinach in some minor way, which is silly; or to reduce the amount of liquid going in the pot, which would be valid in many dishes, but here it’s a drop in the ocean and really more bother than it’s worth. Delicious.

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    Rice Pudding

    29 September 2018 - By 

    So I used Felicity Cloake’s perfect recipe, albeit without the double cream… And it didn’t go well. The milk curdled, I think because of the lemon zest, which I would leave out in the future regardless of this. Perhaps also because of using a cast iron pan, perhaps pushing the temperature too high. The rice had no body, it had all but disintegrated. There was no creaminess. Possibly due to the curdling. The flavour was lovely, the sherry was nice and the spice well measured.  Other than the cream everything was exactly as listed in the recipe. Think I would…

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    Honey-fried Saganaki

    29 September 2018 - By 

    Rik Stein – Venice to Istanbul, pg. 49 This was a lovely mezze. The soda bead with the delicious saganaki and other bits. The oregano, pepper, poppy seed mix really made it. And the honey wasn’t over powering thanks to the salty cheese. Would love to compare this with how it works with halloumi as well as goat’s cheese, although that would have to be baked.

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    Breakfast Soda Bread

    29 September 2018 - By 

    Dan Lepard – Short & Sweet, pg 51 29/09/2018 Used a mix of plain flour, rye and self-raising, only due to what was in the cupboard. Also greek yoghurt. These are great, close to muffins but without butter or much sugar. Delicious with butter and a sweet topping. Very quick, very filling.

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    Almond filled shortbread

    29 September 2018 - By 

    From Nigel Slater – Kitchen Diaries 3, pg 206 They don’t quite look like his, with the saucer like edges and the bulge in the middle. More like glorious mounds of short biscuit with a slight almond chewiness, and I wouldn’t change a thing. Absolutely outstanding. The barest colour on the edges is enough in the oven. It should be pointed out that Lisa did the leg work on these, I merely facilitated. Do again.

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    Stuffed Peppers, no carbs

    28 September 2018 - By 

    Tom Kerridge – Lose Weight, pg. 196 There might be something to using feta or halloumi instead of mozzarella here, I felt most of it had melted away and burnt in the tray and I’m not sure I got the benefit. Very large peppers are also required for a full meal, these were pretty tiny. The filling is great, very tasty, I are most of it from the pan given that it wouldn’t fit in the peppers. I also added some sriracha as well as some dressing from yesterday which really helped. Finding a way to get the peppers a…

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    Slow-Cooked Short Rib

    28 September 2018 - By 

    Done in the slow cooker for 5 or 6 hours. Removed the meat at the end and thickened the sauce on the hob (after skimming the fat). Anya potatoes are my favourite.   Something disagreed with me though… Felt quite ill afterwards… Although it may have been the portion size which was too much… Or I’m now allergic to beef, mushroom, potatoes, parsley or shallots…  

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    Grilled Veg, Halloumi & Couscous

    27 September 2018 - By 

    Tom Kerridge – Lose Weight pg. 186 This a lovely. The first couscous Lisa has ever enjoyed!  You need all the stuff. Don’t skimp on the herbs on top at the end. Wouldn’t want this without both the basil and mint. The dressing is perfect, using a little alchemy with the cornflour to provide an oil consistency that will coat the veg.