Roast lamb dinner

Bracewell's butchers - Todmorden Indoor Market - had their own lambs this week - totally irresistible.  So we had the top end of a leg.  Also, if you ask them, they will cut out the bone - and stick it back in so that you can roast it bone in, for full flavour, and then simply remove it to carve into slices ... thanks!

Lamb
olive oil
garlic
rosemary
potatoes
salt
carrots
leeks
white wine
cornflour
chicken stock

1.  Rub the lamb with olive oil, season, chuck plenty of smashed garlic cloves in to roasting pan, with a good sprinkle of rosemary - roast on high for 20 minutes, then turn down a little.
2.  Peel and chop potatoes, toss in olive oil and roast.  The lamb and potatoes can now happily sit in the oven for 30 minutes while you chat etc.
3.  Prep veg for steaming.
4.  Splosh a glass of white wine into the lamb pan, and leave for a further 10 minutes.
5.  Put the veg on to steam, drain the juices from the lamb into a small pan, put the lamb to one side to rest - covered in foil and a teatowel.
6.  Simmer the pan juices, add about a pint of chicken stock, slake cornflour in water and stir it into the grave to thicken it
7.  Serve, scoff

(veggie had halloumi)

Hake and chorizo, with roast potatoes and asparagus

Todmorden market win again.  Paul had some lovely hake, Garry had some irresistable fat asparagus (from Peru, oops not good on the food miles, but just this once I succumbed) - some chorizo from me at The Mediterranean Pantry and yum!

Olive oil
Potatoes
Asparagus
Frozen peas
Chorizo
Hake

1.  Slice the potatoes and toss in olive oil and salt, roast for about 30 minutes.
2.  Steam the asparagus, put the peas in the pan underneath.
3.  Chop the chorizo and fry briefly, remove from the pan.
4.  Fry the hake in a hot pan for a couple of minutes on each side - skin side first.
5.  Chuck the chorizo back in the pan with the fish to warm back through.
6.  Serve, scoff ... the veg dodger doesn't like asparagus ... madness, but more for me.


The pescatarian had the fish without the chorizo.

Red pepper pasta

Occasionally I look in the fridge to see that I have built up a glut of something - this time it was red pepper (which is unusual because I can bung it in nearly anything) - so, I decided to make it the main veg of this easy pasta dish.  The pasta is gluten free, but obviously it doesn't have to be.  The only non vegan ingredient is the cheddar, so miss that out, or replace with tofu, and it could be vegan too.

There are lots of varieties of gluten free pasta available now - we stock 9 varieties at The Mediterranean Pantry at the moment, all of them delicious. I also have olive oil, veg stock, tomato puree, olives and herbs. Cheddar is available from The Crumbly Cheese, and vegetables from Garry outside - so once again, can be fully sourced from Todmorden Market.


Onion
Celery
Olive oil
Garlic
Red pepper
Italian herbs
Mushrooms
Tomato puree
Vegetable stock
Olives
Pasta
Baby spinach
Cheddar

1.  Make the sauce - sautee chopped onion and celery in olive oil, add crushed garlic and a sprinkle of italian herbs.
2. Add chopped pepper and soften a little, add chopped mushrooms.
3.  When veg is a little bit soft add tomato puree and veg stock and simmer until it forms a glossy sauce, the add a few sliced olives.
4.  Put the pasta on.
5.  When the pasta is done drain it.  Turn the heat off the sauce.
6.  Chuck the pasta, a huge handful of baby spinach and cubed cheddar into the sauce and stir until it's all mixed.
7.  Serve, scoff ...

The cheese mixed into the pasta is a change from melting it on the top - as you eat your way through the nice comforting bowl of tasty sauce you come across half melted little cubes of salty sweetness - it's great.

Baked potatoes, spicy pork mince, root "mash" ... and the rest

It's a root vegetable festival - not one but 4 different varieties.  Potatoes, carrots, swede and beetroot.

The beetroot was done before - roasted in their skins with garlic - then peeled and sploshed on olive oil and balsamic.

The dhal and curried veg were leftovers from here.

Baked potatoes - prick with fork, rub with olive oil - bake.

Root veg mash - peel and chop into even sized peices 4 carrots, 1 swede and 1/2 a big butternut squash - boil, add butter and loads of black pepper - slash many times with a sharp knife.

Spicy pork mince - sautee leek, celery and garlic in olive oil, add mince, brown off a bit, add a spoonful of mustard, a teaspoon of moussaka seasoning (or other spice/herb mix), add about a pint of chicken stock - simmer.

Serve, allow veggies to eat veggies and carnivores to scoop up loads of mince - actually the veg dodger had thirds of the carroty thing!

Rice'n'dhal, with curried veg

Twas a cold and drizzly Sunday afternoon, and I didn't have so much inspiration, but I did have a fridge full of vegetables, which needed using before the next batch are delivered on Tuesday.  Also, some garlic and turmeric will help send the lurgy into the ether, finally.

Rice - cook using your chosen method - I bring to the boil in a cast iron pot and then transfer to a low oven to absorb the water.

Dhal

Red lentils
Olive oil
curry leaves
mustard seeds
coriander seeds
cumin seeds
chili flakes

1.  Boil the lentils until they are done.
2.  Make the tarka by heating the spices in oil - throw onto the cooked lentils - done....

Curried vegetables

Leeks
Garlic
Celery
Cumin seeds
Fennel seeds
turmeric
garam masala
vegetable stock
cabbage

1.  Sautee chopped leek and crushed garlic, add spices of your choice.
2.  Add chopped celery, continue to sautee until softenned a bit - then add veg stock and simmer.
3.  Add garam masala and shredded cabbage.  Simmer until veg is done.

Serve, scoff - delicious, comforting and very good for you.

Cornflake haddock, and chips

Paul the fish, Todmorden market, has lovely fish all the time - this Friday I choose haddock, but wanted a little bit of a change, so a bit of a spicy coating, and a covering in crushed cornflakes gave us this lovely crunchy dinner - served with oven chips (oh, give me a break!) and frozen peas.

For the spicy coating mix a spoonful of ketchup, a teaspoon of mustard, a few chili flakes and a dash of worcestershire sauce with a couple of spoonsful of olive oil.  Mix it well.  Crush a couple of handfuls of cornflakes.  Coat the fish with the sticky sauce, then dredge with cornflakes ...

"it's weird!  It tastes great ... I know they are cornflakes, and I can still taste the cornflakes, which is the weird bit - but it really, really works"  ... well, you can't say fairer than that, can you?

Spanish omelette packed with veggies

I like broccoli - really I do, but sometimes I don't want BROCCOLI, if you see what I mean - we also have a bit of a glut of red peppers from the veg box, so I wanted to do something tasty but quite quick.  Purists probably wouldn't call it a spanish omelette, possibly a fritatta but they tend to be potato free.  Lots of delicious slaw left over from last night, so a good big serving of that too - that's got to be 7 of my 5 a day, at least!




Veg packed spanish omelette

Olive oil
onion
red pepper
Mixed herbs
Potato
broccoli
eggs (lots)
grated cheese

1.  Sautee onions in olive oil, when softened a little add red pepper, and continue to soften, add a pinch of mixed herbs.
2.  Meanwhile boil sliced potatoes, steaming broccoli florets on the top.
3.  Beat together lots of eggs, season with salt and pepper.
4.  When the veg is cooked drain and leave to cool slightly - then mix into the eggs.  (Allowing them to cool slightly stops them scrambling the eggs as soon as you mix them in, which gives the omelete a peculiar texture.)
5.  Tip the mixture into a spoonful of olive oil in a big deep frying pan, fry gently for about 5 minutes.
6.  Put under the grill to cook from the top.  When the top is set add grated cheese, put back under the grill until its bubbling and delicious.

Crunch slaw

Red cabbage
Green cabbage
Onion
Carrots
Radish
Lemon juice/ cider vinegar
Olive oil

1.  Shred cabbages and chop carrots into slivers.  Chop onion into fine half moons, and radish into slivers.
2.  Mix veg, add a good pinch of salt, and mix again.
3.  Add a spoonful of vinegar or lemon juice and a slosh of olive oil, mix again.
If you like creamy coleslaw you could add mayonnaise and/or natural yogurt at this point.

Burger night

Burger and chips - sometimes it's just the thing.  I have to admit - I made neither the chips, nor the burgers! I did however top them with blue cheese, shredded lettuce and pickle - and make a mushroom, blue cheese and tomato "burger" for the veggie - and put together some delicious crunchy slaw - which is actually pictured on the next recipe - here - so I'll put the instructions there instead.  Burger night comes without formal "recipe" because we can all bung some oven chips in the oven and toast a bun.

Monster pork chop and onions, with cider and mustard sauce

Monster pork chops from Fielden's family butcher, Todmorden market - juicy and delicious!  Served with mash and veg of your choice (ours was left over from previous dinners ... here, and here).  Made the pork extra lovely with fried onions and a cider and mustard sauce.

(Butter from The Crumbly cheese, mustard and olive oil from The Mediterranean Pantry ... great ingredients from Todmorden market).

Potatoes
Onions
butter
Pork chop
cider
mustard

1.  Peel and boil potatoes for mash, mash with butter and seasoning.
2.  Fry onions in olive oil until soft - remove from pan, and keep warm.
3.  Pan fry pork chops in onion pan - when done, transfer to oven dish and keep warm.
4.  Make quick sauce by adding mustard and cider to pork pan - simmer briefly - done.
5. Meanwhile cook/heat veg.
6.  Serve, scoff ...  veggie had halloumi and onoins ... everybody was happy.

Hake with fennel and cavolo nero

Gorgeous silver hake from Paul the fish - some baby roasties and seasonal veg made a very delicious Friday dinner. The aniseediness of the fennel and the celery go very well with the fish, tied in together with a spritz of lemon.

Potatoes
olive oil
Onion
Celery
Garlic
fennel
white wine
cavolo nero
hake
lemon

1.  Chop potatoes into bite sized cubes and roast in olive oil.
2.  Sautee chopped onion and celery, then add crushed garlic and chopped fennel, spritz with lemon juice.  Add half a cup of wine, and the same of water, and simmer gently.
3.  Pan fry the fish, skin side down first - at the same time add shredded cavolo nero to the veg.
4.  Serve, scoff, watch veg dodger have seconds of green veg ... chuckle ...

Lentil ragu, neep and tattie mash

Good wholesome, stick to your ribs, comfort food.  I was going to steam some kale for the "leafy green" health benefits - but we're a bit kaled out - and surely this is healthy enough!

Olive oil
onion
garlic
carrots
celery
chilli flakes.
red pepper
lentils
tomato puree

potatoes
swede
soya spread

1.  Sautee onion in olive oil, add chopped celery and carrot and crushed garlic.
2. Add chopped red pepper, a sprinkle of chilli flakes and a handful of lentils (beluga in this case).
3.  Add about a pint of water, stir and simmer.  After a few minutes add a good squeeze of tomato puree - simmer until done - add more water if it looks like its going dry.
4.  Boil potatoes and swede - cut into even sized pieces, mash with soya spread and plenty of black pepper.

Veggie croque monsieur

Open fridge, sigh, shut fridge, ponder ... brainwave! ... open fridge again.

Onion
Garlic
Sundried tomatoes

Cheese
Eggs
Mustard

Bread (rye in our case, low gluten)

Salad leaves
Olives

1.  Sautee chopped onion and crushed garlic in some of the oil form the sundried tomatoes.  When the onion is soft add in sundried tomatoes and cook, very gently, until they are softenned into a paste.
2.  Grate cheese and mix with eggs and a spoonful of mustard.
3.  Toast slices of bread.
4.  Spread the toast with the tomato paste, and top with cheesey egg mixture.  Return to the grill until the top is golden and the egg set.
5.  Serve with salad and olives - delicious.

Mexican wraps

Nothing beats a lovely DIY construction of messy Mexican bits and pieces - some of us enjoyed a lovely mix of meats (or halloumi) refried beans, red peppers and onion, rice and salads snuggled together in a wholewheat wrap ... some of us ... who shall remain nameless - stuffed as much steak and chicken as possible - with a teaspoon of refried beans - into a similar wrap - and scoffed their own meaty concoction with barely an eyebrow raised towards the veg!

Onion
garlic
Olive oil
Kidney beans
Chilli flakes
Cumin seeds
Tomato puree
Lime

Carrots
Red pepper

Avocado
Tomato

Halloumi
Steak
Chicken breast

7 wholegrains - microwavable packet
Salad leaves

1.  Start the refried beans by frying chopped onion, crushed garlic, cumin seeds and chili flakes in olive oil.  Add a drained tin of kidney beans and a bit squirt of tomato puree, with a can of water.  Simmer gently, then crush with a potato masher ... spritz in the juice of half a lime.
2.  Make the guacamole by mixing finely chopped onion, avocado, tomatoes with the juice of half a lime.
3.  Cut the chicken breast into strips and season with cajun seasoning.
4.  Fry onions with strips of carrot and red pepper, adding a pinch of cajun seasonning.
5.  In multiple frying pans cook the chicken strips, the halloumi and sear the steak briefly.  Make sure that you rest the steak before cutting into strips.
6. Bang the grains into the microwave and put everything in the middle of the table, with some salad leaves.
7.  Stand back as the carnevores hone in on the meat!
8.  Eat your wrap, and then beat a hasty retreat leaving the large stack of washing up for someone else :)

Chicken and mushroom pie

... and mushroom and brie pie for the veggie.

We had some left over roast chicken (believe it or not) so I made pie and mash - it was lovely.

The pastry is made with GF flour.  Actually I made 2 pies, one for us meat eaters, and another for the veggie.

GF flour
butter

Olive oil
Onion
Garlic
Mushrooms
Soya milk

Cooked chicken

Brie

Potatoes
Carrots
Kale

1.  Make the pastry by rubbing butter into GF flour, and making a dough with just enough cold water to hold together - put in the fridge to chill - it's much easier to handle.
2.  Gently sautee chopped onion and garlic, then add chopped mushrooms and cook.
3.  Add a spoonful of GF flour to the mushrooms, stir in, then add enough soya milk to make a sauce, cook until a bit thickenned.
4.  Remove half the mushrooms to a pie dish, top with sliced brie.
5.  Add cooked chicken to the remaining mushrooms and stir into the sauce, move to another pie dish.
6.  Put the potatoes on to boil, steam the veggies on top.
7.  Roll out the pastry, top both pies - brush the top with soya milk, and bake for about 25 minutes.
8.  Mash potatoes with butter.
9.  Serve, scoff