Butternut squash, spinach and feta filo pie

Victim suggested it would be better as individual tarts - but all in all, not a bad veggie offering.  So, roasted a butternut squash with garlic with a splash of olive oil for about a hour.  Made filling by softening red onion, a clove more garlic, a grated courgette and a handful of chopped mushrooms in olive oil,  added roast squash and good amount of spinach - heated gently and mixed until spinach wilted - added cumin, more garlic, chili and whatever curry spices were to hand - looking for gentle flavouring, not heat.  Took off heat and stirred in feta.  Made pie by scuffily layering fio sheets in a kind of overlapping diamond shape - brushing with olive oil every sheet.  Dollop mix in the middle, grind on some black pepper. Top with one layer of filo, olive oil, and sprinkle on pine nuts.  Scrunch up ends of remaining filo sheets over the top of the pie.  Brush with olive oil, and sprinkle on sesame seeds.  Bake for 30ish mins... depnding on your oven (about 180C).  Salad - beetroot, spring onion, chopped carrot, cherry tomatoes - dress with balsamic vinegar and olice oil, topped with radish sprouts.  Best thing.. leftovers for lunch tomorrow.  :)

Self saucing lemon pudding

Dinner with outlaws - beef casserole, mash and green veg - followed by self saucing lemon pudding.... yum yum yum... did I mention yum?!  More or less from here
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/5781/lemon-selfsaucing-pudding ... but included half lemon and half lime.

British Pie Week: Day 3: Heston's pie

Heston designed it, a factory made it and I bunged it in the oven - with some bought potato gratin, swede and carrot puree and opened a bag of frozen peas.  No excuses except it's a proper busy week.  Better than chicken standby pie, but homemade would be better still.

British Pie Week Day 2: Pancake Day

Standby chicken pie, veg and potatoes - disappointing I admit - but I was not prepared for British Pie Week (mea culpa and all that) - and I defy you to commute 3+ hours, work for 10 hours solid and come home to bake a pie from scratch and still get up at 5:30 the following morning.  Will do better!  Did, however, make the pancakes from scratch - was full so only wanted one - but had it with sugar and lemon in time honoured fashion.  It might look a bit puny, but it was tasty - I put the lack of colour down to i) aga being low heat due to being later home ii) oil, not butter in the pan, and no butter in the mix.  Both victim and I were left with bloaty tummy which we can only put down to standby pie - so would have been better with summat else from scratch after all!  In other news watched Heston trying getting posh people to snort aerosol water up their hooters to improve the flavour of airline food... 'spose some of them might be used to snorting, but a dose of water vapour up the nose is not often known to improve the appetite, even if it does clear the channels - starter madam?  scallops on a cauliflower puree, thai fishcakes or a cleansing nasal douche!  Still he did manage to point out the bleeding obvious, that a chef should taste their food at point and condition of consumption!  Less disappointed with this week's offering than with last week's flavoured popcorn.

British Pie Week - sausage and bacon penne

So, definitely not a pie.  Will do better. 

No spend month! epic FAIL

Dearie me.  You know what it's like.  As soon as you go on a diet you can't resist that cheese/ pizza / doughnut - well, no spend month has gone the same way.  Will try to keep to no spend week - starting again tomorrow.

Day 3: spend nothing month

£10 - on the Euro Lottery - wasn't gunna... but it's a £51 million jackpot!

Day 2: spend nothing month

FAIL.  Spent:  £11.40 - train ticket after some exam confusion (not mine) and £1.50 car parking AND £27.19 at the Coop!  Only excuse was a visitor, so wanted vino and something nice for tea - Sea Bass counts as nice, yes?  So nice, infact, that I forgot all about pics before it was scoffed.  Total spend for the day £40.09.  Thus far in "no spend" month £50.64!

Spend nothing March: Day 1: sausage and bacon paella

8:36 on spend nothing day - day 1... and I have already spent £2.30 - well, it's better than a £35 parking ticket!  Also, forgot I had a dinner meeting, but luckily I bought the drinks (£3.25).  One of the lottery syndicate stumped up their subs so I am shamed (not) to admit spending it on a nice red (£5) ... OK decent plonk!  So - spends - £10.55