It's Monday so I made tea for my 2 lovely Brownies (chicken mini fillets dipped in cornflour/water mix and rolled in crushed cornflakes, drizzled with olive oil and baked in oven til done and crispy, served with mash and peas/sweetcorn) and D is big on her carbs, so I deliberately made too much mash and she still ate more than I'd imagined possible! But there was still some left, so I divided it and made 2 different things with it - one to have for our supper, the other cos I fancied it.
The thing I fancied was an utterly Bengali dish, alu bhathe, or alu bharta. V simple, just chopped green chilli, normally also chopped raw onion or spring onion, and mustard oil and salt all stirred into the cold mash til smooth. Inordinately good to eat, and always eaten COLD! Yum...
With the rest, I fried some mustard seeds, curry leaves, seeded sliced chili, turmeric powder and sliced garlic, in a little oil, then I mixed this all into the rest of the mash, with the left over veg thrown in for good measure.
This was served with Pilsbury Variety Mix dosa/uttapams and a really hastily put together coconut chutney from Anjum Anand's Indian Every Day which I have from the library and am definitely planning to buy to keep.
Last Friday, we indulged in her pink pickled prawns recipe, with homemade naans, which I'd probably say now is an easier accompaniment to Indian food than rice! Dough made in breadmachine, naans grilled on pre-heated baking tray for about 3 mins altogether. I've finally cracked the naan issue, won't be doing it any other way again, will post the recipe in another post soon...
Monday, 29 June 2009
Thursday, 11 June 2009
back again and raring to go, new toys at the ready!
ok, it's been a little while as things were manic and I just wasn't sticking to budget or doing anything adventurous really, so nothing to report essentially, but I'm back with bells on and ready to go.
Last week we did one of our quick standby meals on Saturday; lamb mince from freezer, fried with cumin, pomegranate syrup and cinnamon, then with cous cous added, with stock poured on and left to steam til done. With some roasted cherry tomatoes. Yum.
Sunday was a tenderly slowly cooked ragu, with spaghetti, free-from, with some saved for the Brownies on Monday.
The grown-ups had beetroot keftedes on Monday, with pitta bread and tzatziki. Basically boiled grated beetroot formed into patties and fried. I found the recipe in Good Food mag, in a review of a veggie cookery book and had a lot of beetroots over a couple of Abel and Cole deliveries, it was delish, even the carnivores enjoyed it! As Claire put it, meatballs without the meat, like it!
Tuesday was a homestyle chicken curry, with a carrot and spinach and potato curry with green mango powder, and rice. Very yum. Love the rediscovery of green mango powder.
Wednesday was (apart from Mr D. J. Betts' birthday) stuffed prepared trout with potatoes and salad. Yum, but no acutal cooking really, so can't take credit. Godpapa bought the trout when they were on offer, and we put them in the freezer for just such an occasion.
Friday was a delish and wonderful rediscovered much loved recipe of one pan coconut and red paste rice and salmon curry. Very easy and uttely wonderful comforting food. Totally my kind of dish. I ate leftovers twice and LOVED it!!! LOL.
This week, we've had 2 brilliant slow cooker dishes: easy simplified cassoulet on Saturday, and slow cooked sausages and apples in cider, on Tuesday.
Sunday we had tandoori chicken cooked in a tandoori pot : http://www.spicesofindia.co.uk/acatalog/Tandoori-Pot.html - I used Anjum Anand's recipe, got one of her early books from the library, definitely buying a copy.
Monday we had another Anjum recipe, yellow sunshine daal and rice. Comfort food, yum. The Brownies had home made turkey mince burgers, with sweet potato chips (oven cooked) - tho we can call them yam chips for nightshade-phobics.
Wednesday we had an absolutely wonderful - shock horror - beef biryani, made with frozen casserole beef cubes, cook from frozen, and using a Pataks paste, and Abel and Cole baby spinach, and Easy Cook mag recipe.
Today we had a Cooking like Mummyji recipe, dry chickpea curry with home made naan, made the dough in the new bread machine, and tried to cook the naans in the tandoori pot but it wasn't working quickly so I stopped and used the chapati pan (tawa) instead.
Tomorrow is going to be tuna and jersey pot and beans salad, recipe from Good Food mag.
Other things I've done in this time frame have been the famous better than drugs choc brownies, in tiny cubes, for the church BBQ celebrating our Confirmation. (Along with 8 others, Godpapa and I took this momentuous step and it was fab. Can't say if it's made a difference, but will keep at it.) I also made custard fairy cakes, and fruit flapjacks for the BBQ, and I ended up staying up til after 1am baking, since typically Littl'un decided not to nap that day, so I couldn't use that time to do the baking! Glad those things worked out well, cos I did bake a disasterous banana bread, same recipe I've used for 15 years and it didn't work properly, was claggy and undercooked at the bottom. Oh well.
I also took delivery of the long awaited bread machine! I've tried plain white rapid loaf, which my handsome older nephew ate most of, then I tried a half and half white and rye n the timer, to be ready at breakfast so we could have some at elevenses and lunch. That's a hit, Little'un has been chomping that with great pleasure. Tho she has a preference for "crunchy skin", doesn't so much like it when the crust is soft the next day, any ideas? And I made the naan dough in the machine, what a breeze! My next try is gonna be bacon and cheese. Will keep you posted...
Last week we did one of our quick standby meals on Saturday; lamb mince from freezer, fried with cumin, pomegranate syrup and cinnamon, then with cous cous added, with stock poured on and left to steam til done. With some roasted cherry tomatoes. Yum.
Sunday was a tenderly slowly cooked ragu, with spaghetti, free-from, with some saved for the Brownies on Monday.
The grown-ups had beetroot keftedes on Monday, with pitta bread and tzatziki. Basically boiled grated beetroot formed into patties and fried. I found the recipe in Good Food mag, in a review of a veggie cookery book and had a lot of beetroots over a couple of Abel and Cole deliveries, it was delish, even the carnivores enjoyed it! As Claire put it, meatballs without the meat, like it!
Tuesday was a homestyle chicken curry, with a carrot and spinach and potato curry with green mango powder, and rice. Very yum. Love the rediscovery of green mango powder.
Wednesday was (apart from Mr D. J. Betts' birthday) stuffed prepared trout with potatoes and salad. Yum, but no acutal cooking really, so can't take credit. Godpapa bought the trout when they were on offer, and we put them in the freezer for just such an occasion.
Friday was a delish and wonderful rediscovered much loved recipe of one pan coconut and red paste rice and salmon curry. Very easy and uttely wonderful comforting food. Totally my kind of dish. I ate leftovers twice and LOVED it!!! LOL.
This week, we've had 2 brilliant slow cooker dishes: easy simplified cassoulet on Saturday, and slow cooked sausages and apples in cider, on Tuesday.
Sunday we had tandoori chicken cooked in a tandoori pot : http://www.spicesofindia.co.uk/acatalog/Tandoori-Pot.html - I used Anjum Anand's recipe, got one of her early books from the library, definitely buying a copy.
Monday we had another Anjum recipe, yellow sunshine daal and rice. Comfort food, yum. The Brownies had home made turkey mince burgers, with sweet potato chips (oven cooked) - tho we can call them yam chips for nightshade-phobics.
Wednesday we had an absolutely wonderful - shock horror - beef biryani, made with frozen casserole beef cubes, cook from frozen, and using a Pataks paste, and Abel and Cole baby spinach, and Easy Cook mag recipe.
Today we had a Cooking like Mummyji recipe, dry chickpea curry with home made naan, made the dough in the new bread machine, and tried to cook the naans in the tandoori pot but it wasn't working quickly so I stopped and used the chapati pan (tawa) instead.
Tomorrow is going to be tuna and jersey pot and beans salad, recipe from Good Food mag.
Other things I've done in this time frame have been the famous better than drugs choc brownies, in tiny cubes, for the church BBQ celebrating our Confirmation. (Along with 8 others, Godpapa and I took this momentuous step and it was fab. Can't say if it's made a difference, but will keep at it.) I also made custard fairy cakes, and fruit flapjacks for the BBQ, and I ended up staying up til after 1am baking, since typically Littl'un decided not to nap that day, so I couldn't use that time to do the baking! Glad those things worked out well, cos I did bake a disasterous banana bread, same recipe I've used for 15 years and it didn't work properly, was claggy and undercooked at the bottom. Oh well.
I also took delivery of the long awaited bread machine! I've tried plain white rapid loaf, which my handsome older nephew ate most of, then I tried a half and half white and rye n the timer, to be ready at breakfast so we could have some at elevenses and lunch. That's a hit, Little'un has been chomping that with great pleasure. Tho she has a preference for "crunchy skin", doesn't so much like it when the crust is soft the next day, any ideas? And I made the naan dough in the machine, what a breeze! My next try is gonna be bacon and cheese. Will keep you posted...
Monday, 8 June 2009
natural colourings
I just spotted lots of lovely bread flours in Asda, but more importantly, a whole range of natural food colourings, and writing icing, own brand, really good price, and it means I can now do funky bright coloured icing on fairy cakes for the girls, and they can do the age old icing on cookies/dig bikkies crafting! Yay! Well done Asda! They also do their own brand colas without Aspartame, tho most did contain Acesulfame K, which I avoid also. It's a start!
More actual food blogging coming soon...
More actual food blogging coming soon...
Monday, 25 May 2009
anyone else noticed
price of Sainsbury's basics going up suddenly and sneakily?
A few months ago they did HUGE advertising campaigns about the Basics, and I was converted, and one of the big things was the Basics 10 fish fingers for 49p, using sustainable not minced fish, and sustainable palm oil. Suddenly its gone up to 69p!
That's a LOT to increase in one go, on a so called "hero" product, and that's the only one I noticed, wish I had more old receipts around to compare now...
A few months ago they did HUGE advertising campaigns about the Basics, and I was converted, and one of the big things was the Basics 10 fish fingers for 49p, using sustainable not minced fish, and sustainable palm oil. Suddenly its gone up to 69p!
That's a LOT to increase in one go, on a so called "hero" product, and that's the only one I noticed, wish I had more old receipts around to compare now...
I don't have anything to prove!
(and no this isn't about bread making!)
But yes, I used a Pataks biryani paste for the quick biryani, and it was yum, and it's all decent ingredients. I tend to always have a jar on hand, as I find the one pan pilaf is such a quick and easy meal. I don't always use the Biryani, I've also used the Korma, tikka masala and Rogan Josh, I think. Don't get the tandoori if you're like minded, as it does contain one of the to be avoided colours, which I was highly disappointed to find out.
I added frozen leaf spinach and peas to the "biryani", as well as the liver, obviously. Would you be surprised to know Littl'un adored the liver? She's had liver a few times before, and always asks for more. Of course it's "chicken" to her. Classically, all meats are "chicken" even the beautifully fresh haddock we had as a treat the other day! LOL! I don't give liver too often as it's v high in iron and vit A, both of which not good in too high doses in little people.
On the other hand, I may have used a bought curry paste for that meal, but I made chapatis myself today! And the "subji" was really simple today, just made with cumin (whole and powdered) salt, tomatoes (half a tin) and a little sprinkling of turmeric and garam masala to fry the veg in. I microwaved the chopped unpeeled potatoes before adding to the pan to speed up the cooking. Shimples!
Just like the chicken yesterday, wow, pop it all in slow cooker before Mass, come home to be tempted by the divine smells of the poaching chook. Early supper with the kids, juicy tender bitey meat. Didn't so much carve it as stop it from falling apart as it was taken out of the pot.
I have poorly just returned from abroad parents, so used some of the poaching liquor and veg and a lil of the leftover meat (there wasn't much left!) to make a soup for the sickly ones. Added some ginger and garlic and more stock and sent it in a flask. Hope there weren't any passengers who'd been to Mexico on their plane...
But yes, I used a Pataks biryani paste for the quick biryani, and it was yum, and it's all decent ingredients. I tend to always have a jar on hand, as I find the one pan pilaf is such a quick and easy meal. I don't always use the Biryani, I've also used the Korma, tikka masala and Rogan Josh, I think. Don't get the tandoori if you're like minded, as it does contain one of the to be avoided colours, which I was highly disappointed to find out.
I added frozen leaf spinach and peas to the "biryani", as well as the liver, obviously. Would you be surprised to know Littl'un adored the liver? She's had liver a few times before, and always asks for more. Of course it's "chicken" to her. Classically, all meats are "chicken" even the beautifully fresh haddock we had as a treat the other day! LOL! I don't give liver too often as it's v high in iron and vit A, both of which not good in too high doses in little people.
On the other hand, I may have used a bought curry paste for that meal, but I made chapatis myself today! And the "subji" was really simple today, just made with cumin (whole and powdered) salt, tomatoes (half a tin) and a little sprinkling of turmeric and garam masala to fry the veg in. I microwaved the chopped unpeeled potatoes before adding to the pan to speed up the cooking. Shimples!
Just like the chicken yesterday, wow, pop it all in slow cooker before Mass, come home to be tempted by the divine smells of the poaching chook. Early supper with the kids, juicy tender bitey meat. Didn't so much carve it as stop it from falling apart as it was taken out of the pot.
I have poorly just returned from abroad parents, so used some of the poaching liquor and veg and a lil of the leftover meat (there wasn't much left!) to make a soup for the sickly ones. Added some ginger and garlic and more stock and sent it in a flask. Hope there weren't any passengers who'd been to Mexico on their plane...
bacon sour recipe
people have been asking me what is a bacon sour. It's something I invented at uni, and used to serve with rice, or pasta or Ebly, or left over chips, or pitta bread or jacket squds or whatever.
Basically chop up and fry about half a pack to a pack of bacon, however flush/greedy you are feeling... Cook it til its as you like bacon, but it won't stay crispy if that's all you eat, so beware!!
Add some chopped onion if you feel like it.
Pour in some tinned chopped tomatoes, half a tin to a tin.
Add a capful of whatever vinegar or lemon juice you have to hand. Vinegar works better, I've used plain malt and red wine, and some weird posh tarragon one which was lying around, it's all good.
Add some sweetcorn, tinned or frozen, and mix up well. Grind black pepper in. Simmer until thick. Serve.
Basically chop up and fry about half a pack to a pack of bacon, however flush/greedy you are feeling... Cook it til its as you like bacon, but it won't stay crispy if that's all you eat, so beware!!
Add some chopped onion if you feel like it.
Pour in some tinned chopped tomatoes, half a tin to a tin.
Add a capful of whatever vinegar or lemon juice you have to hand. Vinegar works better, I've used plain malt and red wine, and some weird posh tarragon one which was lying around, it's all good.
Add some sweetcorn, tinned or frozen, and mix up well. Grind black pepper in. Simmer until thick. Serve.
week plan 23rd May - 29th May
Saturday - lambs' liver quick biryani + veg
Sunday - slowcooked whole chicken, sauteed potato cubes, greens
Monday - (Bank Holiday, Daddy's B'day) cauliflower, courgette and potato curry with chapatis and rice, followed by double choc brownies as b'day cake, candle and all!
Tuesday - slow cooked beans and bacon on toast (away to Warwick Castle for the day)
Wednesday - beetroot keftedes in pitta bread (recipe from review of the Modern Vegetable in Good Food mag)
Thursday - final episode ever of ER, grilled ham and cheese sandwiches!!!! Probably a salad...
Friday - Fishfingers, mash, some veg from box
Sunday - slowcooked whole chicken, sauteed potato cubes, greens
Monday - (Bank Holiday, Daddy's B'day) cauliflower, courgette and potato curry with chapatis and rice, followed by double choc brownies as b'day cake, candle and all!
Tuesday - slow cooked beans and bacon on toast (away to Warwick Castle for the day)
Wednesday - beetroot keftedes in pitta bread (recipe from review of the Modern Vegetable in Good Food mag)
Thursday - final episode ever of ER, grilled ham and cheese sandwiches!!!! Probably a salad...
Friday - Fishfingers, mash, some veg from box
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