Sausage & Butternut Casserole - one for Nanna!

As I expect you know by now, my Dad has been in hospital for heart surgery (and now is back home, doing brilliantly!)*.  So as to help out a little bit, we made a few meals that could be extended to serve four people and put one serving into a freezer box for my Mum.  Doing this just meant that when she came home from a potentially stressful day of getting to and from the hospital and visiting (because it can wear you out, visiting people in hospital!), she wouldn't need to worry about making anything good to eat.  She'd just need to get one of the dinners out of the freezer in the morning, then pop it in the microwave in the evening.  Done.

This is one of those "easy but yummy" meals.

I suspect that everyone has a Sausage Casserole recipe tucked behind their ear for the moment when nothing else will do.  My Sausage Casseroles always involve beans in some form or another - well, sausage & beans?  They're one of those matches like cheese & pickle, or chicken & stuffing!  I tend to make them as a true "one pot" dish that contains all the necessary protein, carbohydrate and vegetable in one.  However, it's a bit like Cottage Pie - everyone has their own ideas as to what goes into one and they all taste that little bit different.  In the case of Sausage Casserole, they all contain sausages and vegetables.  After that, the world is your oyster.

This version of Sausage Casserole, which was one of hubby's creations, involved using the other half of a Butternut Squash that didn't have a home to go to.  We'd bought some decent quality Cumberland sausages (Cumberlands are less herby, more black peppery and contain a good quantity of pork) and together with onion, celery, carrot and some green peas for colour, it made a lovely combination.

He also made use of one of the Stock Pots that Knorr had kindly sent us recently - a chicken version - which together with a teaspoon of tomato puree, some mushroom ketchup and a little thickening from a teensy touch of chicken gravy granules (don't faint - they have their place!) it made a lovely flavoursome gravy.

 

Mum broke this one out as the first of the "meals on wheels" as we called them and said it was delicious and just the job.  Inevitably, we'd packaged up far too much for one person - but as I said at the time, better to have too much than too little!

We ate the casserole with plain white rice, whereas Mum made a couple of potatoes to go with it - so the choice is yours.

Sept 2015 : I made this casserole again today, but jazzed it up a little bit as Mum wasn't going to be eating this one!  Not "jazzed" by much, but I added two sliced mushrooms, two cloves of finely chopped garlic, a tbsp of chopped chargrilled peppers in oil and a tbsp of chopped sundried tomatoes in oil.  Of necessity (because I didn't have the chicken stockpot), I used a Knorr Ham Stock Cube and a tsp of reduced salt Knorr chicken stock powder.

As you can see, I served the casserole with mashed potatoes this time and the clean plates all round were testament as to how good it was!  I really should make this one more often, as it really is a perfect autumn dinner.

* Updated since to say that in April 2015 he sadly passed away following a fall at home.

SAUSAGE & BUTTERNUT CASSEROLE  (feeds 4)

Ingredients :

8 Cumberland sausages
1 tbsp rapeseed oil (vegetable or olive oil would be fine)
1 onion, chopped small
1-2 sticks celery, diced small
1-2 medium carrots, peeled and diced into 1cm chunks
half a butternut squash, peeled, de-seeded and cut into 1cm chunks
1 tsp tomato puree
a Knorr chicken stock pot (or 200-300ml chicken stock)
200ml water (leave out if you're using liquid stock)
1 tbsp mushroom ketchup or Worcestershire sauce
1 dessert spoonful of good quality chicken gravy granules
2 handfuls of frozen peas
freshly ground black pepper.

Method :

1.  Begin to heat a large wide-bottomed saucepan and add the sausages and oil.  Fry until the sausages are coloured all over, then remove and retain somewhere warm.

2.  Add the onion and fry on a gentle heat until transparent, softened and just beginning to colour - around 5 minutes or so.

3.  Add the celery and continue to cook until the celery has begun to soften.

4.  Add the carrot and butternut squash.  Cook gently and stir, until the vegetables are heated through.

5.  Add the tomato puree, stock pot (or liquid stock), water (if appropriate) and mushroom ketchup and stir to combine.  Bring up to a lively simmer.

6.  Cut each sausage into three or four pieces and add to the saucepan.  Again, stir to combine.  Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cover the pan.  Continue to simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the carrot and butternut squash are tender.

7.  Add the frozen peas and bring back up to a lively simmer.

8.  2-3 minutes later, if necessary, stir in the chicken gravy granules to thicken and freshly ground black pepper to taste.  Once the gravy is at your preferred consistency, serve.

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Pepperoni & Mozzarella Millefeuille - or pie!

I suppose it all depends on how much you want to befuddle your audience, as to whether you call this one a "Pepperoni & Mozzarella Millefeuille" or a "Pepperoni & Mozzarella Pie".

Because I'm feeling quite classy today - and it doesn't happen often, so it's good to make the most of it - I shall be calling the dish a Millefeuille.  However, don't be thinking of layers of crisp pastry interspersed with common old pepperoni and squishy mozzarella - oh no.  Be thinking of lovely golden puff pastry, filled with a luxuriant mixture of pepperoni, mashed potato (oh, sorry, did your expectations just crash and burn? *chuckle*), mozzarella cheese and spring onion.

Whatever you call it, it was flipping lovely.

The filling, before the top layer went on

This was another one of hubby's creations, in that he knew we had a pack of pepperoni and two balls of mozzarella in the fridge, left over from an expected pizza voyage that never happened.  The mozzarella is used up easily at lunchtimes, but the pepperoni was a different matter.  So he devised a use for it - and very nice it was, too.

All pleated up and egg washed - ready for baking

For simplicity, we bought some ready-made puff pastry and even a tub of ready-made mashed potato.  Now shop bought mash isn't my favourite by any means, but I have to admit that it did make what could have been a right old palaver a lot easier.  Of course, the best thing of all would be to make a bit extra the day before (presuming you have a dinner with utilises mash the day before).  For us, our meal plan that week had gone completely to worms and the rhythm of our dishes was completely up the creek - hence the shop bought mash.

The only two changes we'd make when making this again, would be to use a better quality of mozzarella - which would give better flavour, plus to use a small quantity of grated cheddar, just to increase the cheese flavour by a tiny bit.

The addition of the spring onion to the mixture was a stroke of genius, though.  Far nicer than straight chopped white onion, or a sweated off onion.  It gave a lovely bite to the texture plus a welcome splash of colour - not to mention the sweet, mild onion flavour which of course went so well with the other ingredients.

Mmmn, squidgy!

This is a recipe that I suspect would appeal to menfolk everywhere - and you could even get away with serving with a little salad, so long as you promise that there's lots of cheese involved in the pie!

Son & heir definitely approved and even ate his salad without complaint.  Hubby was, of course, super critical of the dish as it was his own creation - but agreed that it was definitely one that he'd do again.  I was pleasantly surprised by the flavours as I'm not the biggest fan of pepperoni outside of a pizza and found that the pepperoni flavour was muted by the mashed potato, which allowed the cheese to come through most agreeably.

One note that is worth mentioning, is that the fat content of this dish is off the scale.  It would be impossible to substitute chorizo, for example, as the fat that chorizo brings would just swamp out the texture.  If you consider that every single ingredient - the pastry, mashed potato, pepperoni and mozzarella - all contain a significant amount of fat, this is very definitely a dish for "once in a blue moon".  I'm sure it has a place, though - perhaps as a sharing dish for a mixed buffet, or as a picnic dish (it was very good cold, too!).  Something where you don't need to have a huge slab of the stuff.

Definitely one of those meals that are naughty, but very nice!

PEPPERONI & MOZZARELLA MILLEFEUILLE  (serves 4-8)

Ingredients :

400g puff pastry, rolled out into two sheets approx. 15" x 8"
120g sliced pork pepperoni
400g mashed potato (leftover mash is best)
250g mozzarella, grated
50g cheddar cheese, grated
5-6 spring onions, trimmed & chopped into quarter inch pieces
freshly ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten.

Method :

1.  Prepare a baking sheet with non-stick aluminium foil and pre-heat your oven to 180degC/350degF/Gas4.

2.  Slice the pepperoni into strips and place into a good sized bowl.  Add the remainder of the ingredients and season with a good pinch of black pepper.  Mix with a fork until evenly combined.

3.  Place one of the sheets of pastry onto the baking sheet.

4.  Tip the pepperoni mixture out onto the pastry piece and form into a rectangle, at least an inch in from the edges of the pastry.

5.  With a pastry brush, brush a little of the egg wash around the edges of the pastry.

6.  Lay the second piece of pastry across the top and press down around the edges, to seal.  Make sure you're not trapping air inside the pastry, by cutting two or three slots into the top of the rectangle.

7.  Pleat the edges of the pastry, to seal and neaten.  Then give the pastry a good coating with the egg wash.

8.  Place into the oven for some 35-40 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown.

9.  Serve with a side salad.

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Tenderstem & Smoked Haddock Stack - more Tenderstem in 10!

Hubby and I just couldn't think of a suitable name for this one which described all of its attributes in one snappy title.  It is, after all (and from the bottom up) toasted sourdough bread, tenderstem broccoli, smoked haddock, poached egg and hollandaise sauce.  I defy you to think of some sharp-sounding title, we couldn't!

This is another recipe for the Tenderstem in 10 challenge, where bloggers have been asked to dream up a recipe that can be put on the table in 10 minutes, using 10 or less ingredients - one of which is lovely Tenderstem Broccoli.

Now, this Tenderstem in 10 recipe is entirely reliant upon you having some leftover Hollandaise sauce available - although I'm quite sure it would work just as well with a knob of butter on top!

I love poached eggs and since discovering that hubby makes a creditable Hollandaise, we've often got a little pot of it lurking in the fridge.  Poached egg on ham, on toast, with Hollandaise.  Oh yum.  Provided you are very, very careful and heat it through so, so gently and mix well, there's no reason why you can't have a little pot of Hollandaise too.  I generally put my little pot into the water I've just cooked the egg in, just to take the chill off of it.

So, this beautiful stack of loveliness is hubby's creation.  He is a great one for using fish in every which way he can - and my goodness but it worked well here.

Our local supermarket is currently selling perfectly sized portions of smoked haddock, all neatly packaged in a little microwaveable bag with its own pat of butter and quite affordable at the moment at a special offer price of 99p.  Just a couple of minutes in the microwave, slit the top and you've got a perfect piece of fish - which is just the job for this recipe.

So, once you've cut your bread and put it on to grill, chucked the fish into the microwave and got it twirling, the only thing left to do is put the kettle on for some boiling water for the tenderstem and the egg.  Once it boils (and I recommend getting the heat on under the saucepan, so as not to knock all the heat out of the water by pouring it into a cold pan) three to four minutes later your tenderstem is done and you've a lovely poached egg to go on top.  Drop your little bit of Hollandaise in its pot into the hot water and seconds later it's ready to drizzle over the top.  After that, it's just an assembly job!

You don't even need to butter your toast - depending on how much Hollandaise you've got.  Just pop it onto a plate, lay the tenderstem across the toast, then the fish on top of that, the egg crowns the lot and the Hollandaise drizzles beautifully across everything.  Knockout!

Hubby is sensitive to eggs - as you probably remember - so he made one for himself that didn't have the poached egg.  I reckon that it looks every bit as tasty and inviting as the poached egg version - so if you're egg sensitive too, why not go for the egg-free version and pop a knob of butter on top of your fish.  Delicious!

I can see this recipe appearing again at the weekends, for lunch.  Son & heir was distraught that he'd missed it because he was at school.  Ooops!

TENDERSTEM & SMOKED HADDOCK STACK  (feeds 2)

Ingredients :

2 slices of sourdough bread or some other robust bread
butter for spreading
4-6 stems of Tenderstem broccoli
100g of smoked haddock (microwave in the bag is perfect)
a capful of white wine vinegar
1 egg
a small amount of leftover Hollandaise sauce, or a knob of butter.

Method :

1.  Boil a kettle and, while it boils, place two saucepans onto a gentle heat.  (Not if they're non-stick, or you'll damage the non-stick coating).

2.  Put the bread into your toaster to toast, or under the grill - but remember to keep an eye on it!

3.  Place the fish into the microwave for the prescribed time.

4.  Once the water boils in the two saucepans, add the tenderstem to one and the white wine vinegar to the other.  Crack the egg into a ramekin and pour it gently into the water.  Cook for 3-4 minutes (or to taste).


5.  When the toast is done, put it onto the plate and spread a little butter onto it.


6.  When the tenderstem broccoli is done, drain well and lay 2-3 stems across the toast.


7.  When the fish is done, slit the bag carefully (those things are evil for scalds!) and tip the fish onto the tenderstem.


8.  Carefully lay the poached egg on top and drizzle over the Hollandaise.


9.  Season to taste and dig in!


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Marco Pierre White's Chicken Chasseur ... oh dear.

My version - doesn't look too bad ..

I - honest, swear to god, hand on heart, scout's honour, the lot - didn't do anything other than follow Marco Pierre White's recipe faithfully.


So why, then, did my Chicken Chasseur turn out to be such a disappointment?


Let's start with the recipe (for once), so that you can see what I had to deal with :

CHICKEN CHASSEUR

Ingredients :

• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1 tbsp plain flour, for coating
• 1 small chicken jointed into 8 pieces or 8 chicken thigh portions (skin on or off as preferred)
• 2 shallots, very finely chopped (100g)
• 50ml brandy, optional
• 100ml white wine
• 1 Knorr Chicken Stock Pot
• 600ml tomato juice (with an optional touch of gravy browning added in for extra colour if desired)
• 250g button mushrooms, peeled and finely sliced
• 3 tbsp chopped tarragon
• 2 tbsps chopped parsley
• 2 tomatoes, skinned, de-seeded, finely diced.

Method :

1.    Gently heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large heavy-based frying pan. You want the oil to be hot but not so hot that it scorches the floured chicken.
2.    Spread a layer of flour on a plate or a tray. Flour the chicken pieces, coating them in the flour evenly and thoroughly and shaking off the excess.
3.    Add the floured chicken pieces to the hot olive oil, skin side down. Fry the chicken without moving the pieces until golden-brown underneath, around 8-10 minutes; turn over the chicken and fry until browned on the other side.
4.    Add the finely chopped shallot to the chicken pieces in the frying pan, placing them under the chicken so that the shallot cooks.
5.    If using brandy, pour it in around the edge of the pan so that it runs underneath the chicken pieces. Cook for 2-3 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
6.    Then add in the wine, again pouring it in round the sides of the pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes so that the alcohol from the wine cooks off and its acidity is reduced.
7.    Now add in the Knorr Chicken Stock Pot and the tomato juice. Shake the pan to gently work it in, turning the chicken pieces to coat them in the liquid.
8.    Slowly bring to the boil, dissolving the Knorr Chicken Stock Pot. Add the tarragon to the chicken and simmer for 5 minutes.
9.    While the chicken is simmering, heat remaining olive oil, in a separate frying pan.
10.    Add in the sliced mushrooms and fry them for 3-5 minutes. Add in the parsley, shaking the pan to mix it in well. Add in the diced tomato, shaking to mix in well.
11.    Spoon the mushroom mixture over the chicken pieces, garnish with parsley sprigs and serve at once.

Marco's version - looks totally different!

Sounds easy enough, doesn't it?  Well, it certainly wasn't difficult - apart from jointing the chicken that is, but I'll talk about that later - once you've done all your preparations (which took me an hour!).

First up, I'll say that I did tinker with the given recipe slightly in that I fried off the mushrooms and tomato first, then retained them under the grill to keep warm whilst I fried the chicken and made the sauce.   Well, it seemed daft to lose that mushroom flavour by using a separate pan!

The end result, both hubby and I felt, was nothing like the traditional recipe from France being completely washed out by the final addition of the fresh tomato, which seemed to gang up with the tomato juice involved in the sauce.  All traces of brandy and wine (which had been deliciously apparent right up until the inclusion of the mushrooms and tomato) were totally obliterated - as was the flavour of the mushrooms!  The overwhelming flavour wound up as being simply tomato.  Looking at Marco's version above, it doesn't look like it has had 600ml of tomato juice involved in the sauce at all - it looks rather more like as though it's had more stock and gravy browning!

Now the whole point of this exercise - the making of the Chicken Chasseur - was to spotlight how delicious Knorr's Stock Pots are, instead of making your own stock.  However, where was the stock in the recipe?  I know that one of the points of Knorr's Stock Pots is that you can either dilute the contents of the pot to make stock, or just use it direct in a dish to flavour the gravy or sauce - as in this case.

The trouble, it seems to me, is that the tomato juice was used in such quantity (I even didn't use as much as is stated in the recipe - just 400ml instead of 600ml) that the sauce didn't taste an awful lot different after the addition of the stock pot, than before it.  The tomato juice was very definitely the dominant flavour, albeit that you could still taste the brandy and the lovely wine at this stage.

Why, oh why, didn't I just make my own version of a Chicken Chasseur?  You may well ask.  I suppose, I was being what I thought was true to the spirit of the challenge in following the given recipe.  You live and learn.

The ingredients for the Chicken Chasseur had come from Knorr and been supplied by Foreman & Field - who are famous in bloggerland for providing some real quality goods.  Our Seasonal Box was no different, in that the ingredients were all top notch - and don't think that I'm being ungrateful, I'm not!  I am very grateful to be given the opportunity of cooking with such lovely things, but it makes it all the more disappointing when your recipe doesn't work out how you thought it might.

Take the chicken, for instance.  It came from the Rhug Estate and if you take a look at their website, you'll see that they purport to give their chickens a lovely life, which winds up with a tender and flavoursome bird.  Well maybe we've eaten a lower grade of chicken for too long, but hubby's description of the chicken was "a tough old bird", as his breast portion left something to be desired in the tenderness department.  Incidentally - and interestingly, to buy direct from Rhug the chickens cost £12.  From Foreman & Field, they suddenly shoot up to £19.95.  I refer you all back to my comments on the British Rose Veal posts, about buying direct from the farm!  (Aside from all that - £20 for a chicken?  OMG!).

I'm afraid I don't really know how my thigh portion tasted, as it was still bloody even after frying, then cooking in both brandy and wine, together with simmering in sauce for a good half an hour.  I even started it before the breast portions, with its longer cooking time in mind!  So I had a dinner of tomato sauce with tasteless mushrooms over new potatoes, carrots and tenderstem broccoli.  ~sigh~

It was the first time I'd broken a whole chicken down into individual portions.  However, I'd watched enough people do it and even had a pull-out magazine "how to" to hand.  Even with all that help, it took me FOR EVER to break that chicken down into portions.  It has to be that the bones on this free range organic chicken were so much stronger than "normal" chickens (i.e. free range, from the butcher), because my feeble grip was having significant trouble getting my brand new and sharp as anything poultry shears through it.  I was determined not to call for help though, as I knew hubby really dislikes anything remotely yukky - and dismembering a chicken could quite conceivably be termed "yukky".  That chicken fought back.  Yes, alright, passively - but it fought back.

I hadn't really considered the waste that is involved with breaking into portions, either.  I could have cried if I'd have stopped long enough to think about what I was throwing away and how it could have been put to making a chicken soup or suchlike.  I considered putting it all in the freezer until another day, but as we've just a tiny freezer that is absolutely bursting at the seams at the moment, it just couldn't be done.  It fair broke my heart to throw that carcass and all the rubble away.

I did manage to put the other leg portion and the wings into the freezer for another day, though.  We had a tiny corner left that I wedged them into.  I also have a drumstick in some of the tomato sauce in the fridge, for lunch tomorrow.  (Today's lunch is taken up with a Tenderstem in Ten challenge!).

Still, when I think how (potentially) nice that chicken would have been if we'd have roasted it .... 

The wine that was supplied for the cooking deserves a word or two, as it was really lovely.  Now, when I say "really lovely", you need to sit up and pay attention - not because I'm a great wine buff, but because I'm anything but and normal everyday wines leave me fairly cold.  Every now and then, though, I find one that I really like - so enter the Biddenden Wines' Ortega 2011.  Looking at their website, it is described as "Winner of  "Best Kent Wine" at the Taste of Kent awards 2012. A medium full fruit wine, well balanced with a distinctive fragrance and good acidity. Serve slightly chilled as an aperitif or with food.  Silver Medal UKVA Awards 2012; Bronze Medal SEVA Awards 2012".  Well, I can understand why!

The wine has a very pale colour which leads you to expect a delicate flavour - not the big fruity flavours that burst upon your tongue, ricocheting back and forth across your palate, leaving shooting stars and sparklers in their wake.  Then comes the warmth as the back of your throat radiates a deliciously comforting glow in the aftermath.  This is a wine that makes you purse your lips and nod appreciatively in the way of wine buffs everywhere.

So it was a terrible shame that it all got obliterated by the addition of that last dose of tomato.  ~sigh~

I tried.  I really, really tried.

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Tenderstem Rarebit - a "Tenderstem in Ten" recipe!

Hubby will complain bitterly about broccoli appearing on the menu too often, but even he has been heard to exclaim that where tenderstem broccoli is concerned, "it is as nice as asparagus".  With which I completely agree.

I remember when son & heir was a little chap being weaned onto veggies, we used to call broccoli "trees" and he was sufficiently intrigued to eat them.  Since then, he's been accepting "trees" on his plate without too much complaint and has even been known to enjoy having "tall trees" (or tenderstem broccoli) for dinner.

For those who think that it is just a matter of difference in shape, rather than flavour, the tenderstem has a much sweeter flavour than "ordinary" broccoli, with less of a cabbage flavour than Purple Sprouting broccoli.  It is true that it is more expensive than your ordinary broccoli, but for a meal that you want to be a little bit special, it makes the grade beautifully.

So, when I was asked whether I'd like to take part in the "Tenderstem in Ten" challenge (to create a recipe that can be on the table in ten minutes or less), it seemed like it could be fun!

I had my first go at the challenge yesterday and my recipe for a lunch time Tenderstem Rarebit had a few teething troubles - none of which involved the tenderstem itself, I hasten to add - which sent it over time.  Add to that my inability to get around my kitchen with anything faster than a snail's pace - and you begin to realise that making anything edible within ten minutes is quite a feat!

For instance, is the time from when you set foot in the kitchen, or from when you start the cooking process?  If it's the former, then I've had it for all the challenges - but if it's the latter, then I'm in with a shout.

I often find, when I'm cooking something that involves a number of different processes, that my disabilities get right in the way.  Take the Tenderstem Rarebit, for instance.  I needed to grill the Ciabatta rolls to toast them, whilst the tenderstem simmered and the rarebit cooked on the hob.  Now, I forgot that I can't use the grill at the same time as the hob - it's one or the other, because I need to sit at the cooker.  Our cooker has the grill immediately under the hob and with the grill door open, I can't reach the back burners on the hob!  Anyway, I'm always scared I'll set my t-shirt on fire trying to see into the pans on the front burners.  That'd be a bit of a distraction, if ever that happened!

So, for you, you'll be able to combine operations in a way that was impossible for me - and save at least seven minutes doing so!  For me, I'll be grilling the cut rolls on a grillpan in future - at least then I can see what's going on without fear of combustion.

I can tell you that it is very worthwhile.  Hoooo, yes!  This Tenderstem Rarebit recipe is going to go on the list of "can we have it for lunch again soon" recipes.

I figured that as broccoli and cheese are natural partners, and cheese on toast is another natural partnership, that bringing them all together in this recipe might just work.  It did.  With bells on.  As a control experiment, I made one Tenderstem Rarebit and one just with the Rarebit topping - and the Tenderstem Rarebit was far easier to eat as the flavour of the tenderstem allowed some relief from the enormous (and gorgeous) flavours of the rarebit.  The sweetness of the tenderstem was a lovely foil for the big savoury flavours of the cheese, mustard and stout.

Son & heir thoroughly enjoyed his helping and munched his way stolidly through, murmuring in appreciation, uttering "gorgeous!" and "cor!" every so often - so I think he approved.  Hubby and I were both agreed that it was a do-again recipe that was much nicer with the tenderstem than without - and one that could easily be a substantial snack on those days when one has missed lunch!

Hence, I leave it up to you to have a go and tell me whether you managed to create your Tenderstem Rarebit in ten minutes.  I am quite sure it's do-able, so long as you do all your preparation (getting everything out, separating the eggs, grating the cheese, etc.)  before you start the ten minute timer!


TENDERSTEM RAREBIT   (serves 3)


Ingredients :


3 ciabatta rolls, cut in half lengthwise
12 stems of Tenderstem broccoli (or more if they are thin stems), cut to fit the ciabatta rolls
1½ tsp English mustard powder
4 tbsp stout
45g butter
1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, to taste
 250g mature Cheddar cheese, grated
3 egg yolks
freshly ground black pepper.

Method :

1.  Boil a kettle and pour enough boiling water into a saucepan to cook the tenderstem, and place on the heat.

2.  Place the rolls, cut side up, under the grill or onto a grillpan and toast until lightly browned.  Turn and toast the other side.

3.  At the same time, add the tenderstem to the boiling water and set a timer for 3 minutes.  When they are cooked (when a knife inserted into the stem goes through without complaint), drain and set to one side.

4.  Place the mustard powder, stout and butter into a small saucepan and heat gently until the butter is melted.  Add the worcestershire sauce and the cheese and stir until the cheese is all melted but take care not to let it boil.  Set aside to cool for a moment, while you rescue your rolls that are threatening to burn.


5.  If you've used a grill pan, now is the time to get your cooker's grill heating up.


6.  Place the roll halves onto the grill pan and distribute the tenderstem broccoli across the roll halves.


7.  Add the egg yolks to the cooled (and hopefully thickened) cheese mixture and beat them through until completely incorporated.  Add a little black pepper.


8.  Spoon the cheese mixture across the tenderstem and place under the grill until browned and bubbling.


Serve.

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Chocolate & Cherry Pots - using Picota cherries

When I was offered a small amount of Picota Cherries to try, I didn't have to think too hard about it.  You see, we all love cherries - but hubby more than any of us.  Any cherry that comes into our kitchen isn't going to last terribly long - not even long enough to put its suitcase down and start looking for the Sangria.

So before we go any further, what makes a Picota cherry different from any other cherry?  Well, mostly the fact that it has been grown in a particular area of Spain - but I'm also reliably informed by the "Eat Spanish" website that :

"Flavor is the main distinguishing characteristic of Jerte cherries, both because of their high sugar content and the balance between sweetness and sharpness. The flesh is juicy and usually crisp. Color depends on the variety - from red juice and red flesh, to colorless juice and yellow or cream flesh. The color of the flesh and juice is usually stable, especially that of the juice. The flesh in the varieties named above is medium firm to very firm".

I have to agree with them.  Picota (Jerte) cherries are indeed crisp, sweet and a beautiful colour.  They also come without their stalks, which is something of a shame as I quite enjoy hanging a double cherry over my ears and exclaiming about my new earrings.  (Yes, well, we all have our juvenile moments).

So.  What to do with these lovely cherries, that might do them rather more justice than simply scoffing them until they're all gone and just a particularly lovely memory?

I've been wanting to make a cherry clafoutis for (probably) years now - but it seemed as though everyone was making cherry clafoutis and if you know anything about me, you'll know that I do like to be a little bit different.  I gave up dyeing my hair purple when the grey threatened to take over, so I have to make my difference in other ways these days.

On went the thinking cap and I started with the usual question of "what flavours go particularly well with cherries?".  Well chocolate was the first one to immediately spring to mind, quickly followed by alcohol (red wine, port and Kirsch, for instance) and cream.


Sounded like the bones of a very acceptable dessert, to me!


Having had a rummage in the alcohol corner - no, we don't have a wine cellar (what are you like?) - it seemed we had both red and white wine and no Kirsch, but we did have some Creme de Cassis which seemed to me to be something of a better prospect.  Kirsch can be a bit harsh sometimes, I think, whereas the softness of the blackcurrant Creme de Cassis would complement the flavour of the cherries.


Now, what about the chocolate?  Milk or dark?  Hmmmn, cherries and dark chocolate always speaks of luxury and decadence, to me.  If I was to make a mousse or a kind of ganache with the chocolate and lay that on top of some soused or macerated cherries?  Aha!  I think we have it!

Hic! You're my best mate, you are ..

So I got on with macerating the cherries by stoning them (at which point I was glad I didn't have so very many, as I don't have a cherry stoner!) and mixing them through with two dessertspoons (and a bit for luck) of Creme de Cassis.  I left them to get thoroughly drunk for the next two hours.


Next job was to make up the chocolate component, which was so diabolically easy that I am sure I shall be making this again with raspberries or clementines or any other fruit that goes well with chocolate!


Basically, it involves melting some 85% dark chocolate in a bowl over some simmering water but without stirring it more than once.  Then, set it to one side to cool slightly whilst you divide the cherries up amongst the dishes - I used glass bowls so that you could see the lushness within - and then stir Greek yoghurt and runny honey into the chocolate.  Once it is mixed through, divide up into the bowls, sprinkle with a little more chocolate and chill.

From being a soft, mousse like consistency, the chocolate sets up into more of a firm ganache type of consistency.  However, once you get a little onto your tongue it just melts and the flavour of the chocolate, with the flavour of the cherries is just beyond divine.


You get a hint of the almost smokiness of the honey, with the tang of the Greek yoghurt, all smoothed over by the unctuous chocolate, which is then washed away with the cherry juice and smooth, gentle liqueur.  Fabulous.


If you're not a person who has alcohol in the house - do not despair!  I am sure that if you were to use a cordial - cherry, blackcurrant, or even elderflower would be nice and every bit as good as the liqueur.


In the same way, if you find 85% dark chocolate to be too dark for your taste, then lighten it up a bit by using a lighter grade of chocolate - I am absolutely sure it would work perfectly.

It seems to be something of a discovery, this recipe.  Both hubby and son & heir despatched their portions with many approving mumbles and murmers - the point (in hubby's case) of the brain knowing he should have stopped eating a while ago, but the tummy saying "no! Carry on!".  It's not the best dessert for a diabetic, it's true - between the sugars of the chocolate, cherries, honey and liqueur, there's just no getting away from them.  However, at least with the use of Greek yoghurt it's not as bad as it might have been from a fat point of view.  *cough*


As an easy make and one which can be both successfully prepared prior to the event and scaled up numbers-wise, this dessert would be absolutely perfect for a meal with friends, a birthday or any get together where you want to impress.  It impressed the heck out of me, and I made it!


CHOCOLATE & CHERRY POTS   (serves 3)


Ingredients :


Sufficient cherries to cover the base of your three individual-sized serving dishes
2-3 dessertspoonfuls of Creme de Cassis
100g dark chocolate (I used 85%)
250g Greek yoghurt
2 dessertspoonfuls of runny honey
chocolate shavings to decorate.

Method :

1.  Stone the cherries (I cut them in half, but if you've a cherry stoner, use it!) and place into a bowl.  Sprinkle over the Creme de Cassis and thoroughly mix it through, ensuring that every cherry is well coated.

2.  Cover the bowl and refrigerate for the next 2 hours.

3.  Break the chocolate into a large bowl that will fit over a saucepan of simmering water, without touching the surface of the water.  Allow the chocolate to melt, without stirring.  Once well melted, stir gently just sufficient to mix it through and then leave to one side, to cool slightly.

4.  In the meantime, divide the cherries up between the serving dishes.

5.  To the chocolate, add the Greek yoghurt and the honey and stir through using a cutting and folding motion until you've a smooth mousse-like texture.

6.  Lastly, simply divide the mousse between the three bowls and top with the chocolate shavings.

7.  Refrigerate until time to serve.

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Mediterranean style giant couscous with barbecue pork chops

If you're me, you'd look at that title and have to come and see what it's on about!  After all, giant couscous?

It really isn't so long ago that I was bewailing not being able to get enough flavour into normal couscous, without venturing into giant couscous - or Mograbiah, to give it its proper name.

Mograbiah does bear plenty of similarity to ordinary couscous in that both of them are round in shape, made from pasta dough and are vehicles for other flavours.  However, where they differ (apart from the obvious size) is that where ordinary couscous is prepared by putting in a bowl and pouring a small amount of boiling water onto it, giant couscous is prepared by putting into a saucepan, pouring a slightly larger amount of water (or stock) on and heating gently or simmering until the majority of the water is absorbed, then you can leave it to soak up the remainder of the liquid.

It has a different texture too, well okay each grain is a lot larger so that would follow, but it also has a slightly slippery texture that can make eating it a bit of a challenge for youngsters who haven't yet learned that they eat with their mouth closed.  Son and heir had no problem with it, but then there's little that disappears into his maw that ever sees the light of day again.

As with all couscous, its own flavour is very bland and it is entirely reliant upon what you put with it, for flavour.  As such, cooking it in stock is a very good start.

With our Mograbiah, I decided to go for one last mediterranean style dish and roasted some courgette, aubergine, butternut squash, red pepper and red onion and dressed the lot with fresh mint and coriander plus a lemon juice and olive oil dressing.

For a welcome zing, I baked the pork chops in some of the excellent Mic's Chilli El Loco BBQ Sauce.  The highly flavoured pork went so well with the calming influence of the roasted vegetables and zesty dressing.  A real ying/yang thing was going on there!

Of course, it isn't essential that you put a barbecue pork chop with your giant couscous - you can use it however you fancy and with whatever you fancy.  I found my pack of Mograbiah in my local Asda, which has a particularly good World Foods section.  However, I'm sure you would be able to find some at your local ethnic food store - for instance, I know that Makkah's on the Ashley Road, Poole, definitely carries it.  For me, it makes a nice change from ordinary couscous - and as I often have problems trying to decide upon the carbohydrate element in a meal, anything that extends my options can't be bad!

MEDITERRANEAN STYLE GIANT COUSCOUS (MOGRABIAH)  (feeds 3)

Ingredients :

1 tablespoonful of giant couscous pearls per person, plus a little for luck
vegetable or chicken stock (home-made, powder, cube or Knorr stock pot - all are good)
half a butternut squash, cut into half inch dice
a red pepper, seeds removed and cut into one inch sheets
a courgette, cut into half inch dice
half an aubergine, cut into half inch dice
a red onion, peeled and cut into thin wedges
olive oil
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
juice of half a lemon
a handful of mint leaves, shredded
a handful of coriander, chopped finely.

Method :

1.  Pre-heat your oven to 180degC/350degF/Gas 4.

2.  Check the cooking instructions on the side of the packet of Mograbiah and follow them, substituting stock for water.

3.  While the couscous (Mograbiah) is cooling, place the vegetables (without the herbs) onto a baking sheet that has been lined with non-stick silver foil.  Drizzle the olive oil over and season well.  Toss the vegetables in the oil and seasoning, then place them into the oven to bake for 25-30 minutes or until tender.

4.  Just before the vegetables are finished cooking, mix together the dressing for the couscous by placing the extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice and some seasoning into a small bowl and whisk together.

5.  Shred the mint leaves and chop the coriander.

6.  When the vegetables are cooked, tip them from the baking sheet directly onto the couscous.  Stir through gently, taking care not to break up the pieces of vegetable.

7.  Add the dressing and herbs and gently stir through again and serve before the herbs have a chance to wilt.

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Roasted Vegetable & Bacon Pasta

I am one of those people who believes that everything can be made better by including bacon with it.  Got to wait in the car for hours?  Have a bacon sandwich - makes it better straight away.  Got a boring old chicken recipe on the list for dinner?  Put some bacon with it - that'll cheer it up no end.  Got to stand on the touchline watching your son put his best foot forward for the local footie team?  A bacon roll can save the day.  So I wasn't wrong when I chose bacon for the meat aspect of this pasta dish.

From hubby's point of view, it could have been made better by losing the garlic and adding some oregano.  I thoroughly agree with him where the oregano is concerned - and have reflected that in the recipe set out below.  I'm not so sure about the garlic, however, as I feel it lent a lovely savoury depth to the entire dish which helped to make it a cohesive whole as opposed to a number of different ingredients on the same plate.

Son & heir had a friend over for tea that day and I felt I was taking something of a risk presenting said friend with a) courgette & aubergine, b) cooked tomatoes and c) goat's cheese.  However, I had confidence in the ability of the bacon to carry us through.  I was using some of Spring Fields Butchers' beautiful smoked back bacon which is always fabulous in that the rashers are huge, thickly cut and tasty as anything.  I would definitely go for some substantially sized rashers if you're going to be cooking this one - as limp thin bacon could wind up being too chewy when accompanying the soft vegetables and pasta.

We got a "thumbs up" from both boys, as they both cleared their plate and declared it to be "lovely" (and without a hint of sarcasm, too!).  Amazing.  Made me wish I'd included mushrooms in the mix!  (Which is a very good idea, if you like mushrooms, by the way).

Hubby wasn't too keen on the fact that the dish didn't have a sauce with it - just relying on the juiciness of the roasted vegetables and goat's cheese wasn't enough for him.  I suspect it's pure and simply a preference thing, as I was quite happy with the "sauceless" state and - to be honest - it made a pleasant change to not have an overwhelming cheese or tomato sauce.  I felt it gave the vegetables a chance to shine on their own, without being overshadowed by a sauce.  The rapeseed oil that I'd used to roast the vegetables was a lovely nutty flavoured one and the cherry tomatoes lent their juice to the overall picture.

The only thing missing was a lovely glass of wine, a patio and a warm evening!

ROASTED VEGETABLE AND BACON PASTA   (feeds 4)

Ingredients :

1 courgette , cut into one inch dice

half an aubergine, cut into one inch dice

a handful of cherry tomatoes, split across the stem end

1 red onion, halved and each half cut into four wedges

two cloves of garlic

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

1-2 tsp dried or fresh oregano

2 tbsp rapeseed oil or olive oil

500g back bacon

400g spirali pasta

50-100g Parmesan cheese (to taste)

a handful of fresh basil leaves, shredded

130g soft goat's cheese.

Method :

1.  Pre-heat your oven to 180degC/350degF/Gas4 and prepare a baking tray large enough to carry all the vegetables.  I usually cover the tray with non-stick silver foil, just because it makes the washing up easier!

2.   Place all the vegetables, including the garlic, onto the roasting tray and sprinkle with seasoning, oregano and the oil.  Using your fingers, toss the vegetables until they are well coated with the oil.

3.  Place the tray into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and just beginning to caramelise.

4.  In the meantime, get a big pan of salted water on to boil for the pasta and grill the bacon, cutting each rasher into largeish pieces with some scissors and retain, somewhere warm.

5.  Once the pasta water boils, get the pasta in and cooking according to the packet instructions - usually 9-11 minutes.

6.  Once the vegetables are tender, take them out of the oven and squash the two cloves of garlic into a paste.

7.  When the pasta is cooked to your satisfaction, drain well and add the vegetables, bacon, parmesan, basil and some seasoning and mix gently to combine.

8.  Spoon the pasta mixture onto warmed plates and break pieces of goats cheese over the top.

Serve.

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