Chicken tikka, potato, cauliflower and red pepper tray bake - with onion bhajis

Chicken thighs in the freezer - a random jar of tandoori tikka masala sauce in the cupboard - some potatoes and a cauliflower in the veg box ... Tah dah!  Also, luckily the last veg box left us with quite a few onions and I had a bag of gram flour ... so - it was almost as if I had planned it.

Chicken thighs
Tandoori masala cook in sauce
Olive oil
Potatoes
Cauliflower
Red pepper


Onions
Salt
Chilli flakes
Fennel seeds
Bicarbonate of soda
Gram flour
Sunflower oil

1.  Marinade the chicken thighs in masala mix - mine was from a jar - which is unusual - but it was using up what was in the cupboard!  Leave for a couple of hours.
2.  Into an oven dish, with a little oil on the bottom, add cubed potatoes, cauliflower florets and red pepper chopped into biggish pieces.
3.  Mix the veg together in an oven dish/tray.
4.  Plonk the marinated chicken thighs in and between the veg - and mix up gently.
5.  Roast it all for about 45 minutes - an hour at 180.  Mix through a couple of times.
6.  Prepare onions - remove skin - cut into half moons - shake into a bowl.  Add a teaspoon of salt and shake through the onions.  This will release some moisture, and soften the harsh flavours.
7.  To the onions add chilli flakes, fennel seeds, onion seeds (whatever you think might work) and toss about a bit.
8.   To the onion mixture add a scant tsp of bicarb, a handful of gram flour and mix together.
9.  Heat sunflower oil in a pan and fry the onion mixture in hot oil, in small spoonfuls, for 30 se onds - to a minute-ish on each side - drain on kitchen paper.
10. Serve, scoff ... delish..

Sausage and mash

Sausage and mash is excellent almost any day - but I made a really nice onion and mustard gravy which turned this into a real treat.

Potatoes
Sausages - these were pork and apple
Olive oil
Butter
Red onion
Garlic
Flour
Vegetable stock
Grainy mustard
Baked beans
Cabbage


1.  Prick the sausages with a fork and bung in the oven in an oven dish.  I add the tiniest splash of olive oil, roll them round in it - just to stop any initial sticking.
2.  Peel potatoes, boil for 15 minutes - until softish to a sharp knife.  Mash with butter and put into another oven dish - bake for 20 minutes, until the top goes golden brown.
3.  Sautee chopped onion and crushed garlic in olive oil until soft, add a tablespoon of flour and stir in until it becomes a paste.  Add stock and simmer, add a spoonful of grainy mustard, simmer again.  The gravy will thicken.
4.  Heat beans.
5. Steam shredded cabbage.
6.  Serve, scoff .... delicious

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.

Burgers and "chips"

Burgers and chips - a perennial favourite - made a bit more special by mixing caramelised onions into steak mince, topping with mushrooms and onion - and served with a simply dressed salad.

Potatoes
Onions
Olive oil
Steak mince
Mushrooms
Cos lettuce
Balsamic vinegar.

1.  Saute finely chopped onion until it's caramelised (you could add a sprinkle of sugar to help).
2.  Mix onion into steak mince, form into burgers and refridgerate for 30 minutes.
3.  Cut potatoes into wedges, toss in olive oil, and roast in hottish oven for about 45 minutes.
4.  Chop onions, sautee in olive oil, add chopped mushrooms and cook through.
5.  Wash and shred lettuce, lightly dress with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
6.  Fry burgers in hot pan to taste.

This was delish - I am hungry writing it up now.

Onion bhajis

Onion bhajis seem to strike fear into many people, and they would only consider getting them as part of a take away - but they are simples ...
Onions
salt
Chili
Cumin
Bicarbonate of soda
Gram flour
Oil, for frying.

1.  Peel the onions and cut into fine(ish) half moons.  Shake the pieces apart into a big bowl.
2.  Sprinkle on salt, shake around - leave for about half an hour.  This will draw the liquid, and somehow, some of the bitterness from the onions.
3.  Sprinkle, and mix in, a pinch of chili flakes and of cumin seeds.
4.  Add a teaspoon of bicarb and mix quickly, it will start reacting with the liquid drawn our of the onions.  Add a few spoons of gram flour and mix until evenly distributed.
5.  Add a couple of spoonfuls of cold water, and mix to form a batter around the onions.
6.  Fry spoonfuls in oil.  Don't overcrowd the pan - fry in batches - drain the bhajis on kitchen towel and keep them warm in the oven until they're all done.

Vegetarian sausages in onion gravy, sauteed turnip and new potatoes - with salads

We went off Linda McCartney vegetarian sausages for the longest time - but then I had a think about why - and it's that they go too dry if baked, and too greasy if fried, so I now bake them for 20 minutes, and finish them off with onions in a frying pan - delicious!

The turnips are ours, from the allotment ... loud fanfare - and we had some cooked new potatoes left, so an easy sautee was the way forward.

Green salad with various of our, home grown, salad leaves - and artichoke salad from The Mediterranean Pantry.

Linda McCartney vegetarian sausages
Olive oil
Onions
Garlic
Tomato puree
Bouillon powder
Turnips
Cooked new potatoes
Chives

Salad leaves
Basil infused olive oil
Artichoke salad

1.  Drizzle a little olive oil in an oven dish, pop in sausages and turn over so there is a thin film all over them.  Bake in medium-hot oven for 20 minutes.
2.  Peel and thinly slice turnips, sautee in olive oil.  
3.  Finely chop onion and fry in olive oil.  When the onions are softish add a squitt of tomato puree and a cup of stock, made from the bouillon.  Simmer to reduce a little.  Add the sausages.
4.  The turnips will be nearly done, so add sliced potatoes and chopped chives, toss around and keep cooking until the edges get a little golden.
5.  Drizzle salad leaves with basil infused oil (or other light dressing).
6.  Scoff

Gammon in a mustard and cider sauce, with purple mash and cumin cabbage and carrots

It messes with your head a little bit does purple mash, but it's just purple potatoes, mashed ... and it's delicious.

The gammon is organic and came with the veg box - and was really good.

So, ...

Potatoes (they don't have to be purple!)
Olive oil
Onion
Grainy mustard
Cider
Cumin
Carrots
Cabbage
Bouillon powder (well, stock of any sort really)
Gammon
Butter

1.  Peel potatoes, chop into chunks and boil in salted water.
2.  Peel and chop onion, sautee in olive oil.
3.  Add a spoon of mustard to the onions, and about 1/2 pint cider.  Simmer.
4.  In another pan, heat a little olive oil and add a teaspoon of cumin seeds.
5.  Peel and slice carrots, shred cabbage.  Add to cumin and oil, and mix around.  Add half a cup of water, put a lid on and cook on a medium heat for about 12 minutes.
6.  When the potatoes are done, drain, add a good knob on butter and mash.  Put in a hottish oven to keep warm and/or if you have long enough get a crunchy crust on top.
7.  Add the gammon to the cider sauce, lid on simmer for about 5 minutes, turn over, and do the other side for 5 minutes or so.

Should all be done ... serve and scoff.

The veggie option was grilled haloumi with the onion sauce - removed before the meat was added.  Also delicious.

Roast rib of beef, braised onion, boulongere potatoes (?), french peas and lettuce...

Christmas Eve in style

Roast rib - hot oven, season beef, roast for 20 mins per lb plus 20 minutes ... leave to rest

Potatoes - layer thinly sliced potatoes and onions - add garlic and stock - bake

Braise onions in olive oil and loads of red wine, with seasoning, thyme and bay - for ages

Peas - sautee onion, garlic add white wine, peas and shredded lettuce

Start with the beef and work down the list ... prep for the peas, but only add them 5 mins before serving.

I am full!

Onion bhaji, potato and pea curry, chickpea and pumpkin curry

Another end of veg box challenge.  Onions, butternut squash and kale ... and a handful of potatoes.

Onion bhajis

3 onions, finely sliced
chili flakes
bicarb
gram flour
oil


Potato and pea curry

Diced onion
black mustard seeds
cumin seeds
turmeric
crushed garlic
oil
diced potatoes
water
frozen peas
garam masala

Chickpea and pumpkin curry

Olive oil
diced onion
fennel seeds
cumin seeds
chili flakes
crushed garlic
butternut squash
tomato puree
water
chickpeas
shredded kale

1.  Start onion bhajis - sliced onions and add salt and spices.  Leave to sit - this will draw the water out of the onions, allowing them to bond better with the gram flour forming their own batter.
2.  Start other curries by sauteeing diced onion, and the spices and garlic.
3.  Add potatoes to one pan and butternut squash to the other, cook for a few minutes.
4.  Add tomato paste to butternut squash, and water to them both.
5.  Simmer curries for about 15 minutes, add more water if they get dry.
6.  Add chickpeas to butternut squash, and then cook a little longer.
7.  Add shredded kale to butternut squash and peas to potatoes, simmer for 5 more minutes.
8.  When other curries are ready, add bicarb and gram flour to the onions for the bhajis, and mix.
9.  Fry spoonfuls of onions, drain on kitchen roll and eat.

Roasted squash with barley groat and vegetables.

Roast squash in olive oil with garlic and red onion.

 

Sautee onion and garlic, peeled and chopped carrots, green beans and sweetcorn (this was kernals taken off the cob), in a little olive oil.  Add water and simmer gently until veg is nearly done - add shredded kale a little vegetable stock and simmer again until done.  Meanwhile boil groats for 15 minutes, drain and mix with the veg.  Season - quite a lot - add some chopped herbs.

 

It's an earthy dinner, very filling and good for you.

Onion and red wine tarte tatin, roast potatoes and green vegetables

Have been thinking about trying another savoury tarte tatin for a while - and visit from (nearly) vegetarian mother prompted me.  Was lovely - details will be sketchy as busy chatting - but - soften onions in butter and olive oil - make pastry - par boil poatatoes - then roast... chop leeks, celery, green beans - add herbs, white wine and stock - casserole for a while.  Drain potatoes and chuck inothot oil in roasting pan for 45+ mins.  When onions are good and soft add soft brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, red wine and seaoning... simmer until reduced.  Take onion mixture off the heat and cool a bit, add sliced brie and cover with pastry.  Bake for 20+ minutes.  Steam and butter cabbage.  Serve.  Listen to adoring fans... or not - they are too busy with sudoku.