Turn Up The Heat with a Meaty Masculine Valentines Meal

They say the way to a man's heart is through his belly. Well when better to pass through than on Valentines Day? When best to show it's not just a day for girls, it's not just about dainty candle lit dinners for 2 - it can be about hand held food that covers your face in Love Red sauce and leaves you licking your fingers after! Yeah, you probably guessed this isn't one for first dates.....

Inspired by Subway's Meatball Marinara and their BMT I created a pre -valentino meatball sub for hubz and I. The beauty of this is it's really simple to make, it can suit lunch or dinner, you can homemake as much or as little as you like, you can make it as spicy as you like and it's all ready in under 30 minutes!

First start my making your tomato based sauce. Fling in what you really like here- I'm talking chillies, spices, garlic, vinegar, beef stock....the lot! Anything goes really but for mine I chopped two small red onions, added half a red chilli, 1 large glove of garlic crushed and allowed these to soften for a few minutes in a small amount of oil. To this I then added 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, half a tablespoon of sugar, half a beef stock cube, 1 tablespoon of wostershire sauce and 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. Let this simmer for 10 minutes.

Whilst the sauce is simmering place 12 good quality beef meatballs into the oven at 190 for 20 minutes (turning half way through). You can make your own meatballs if you have time and really want to impress!

Return to your sauce, taste it. Does it need anything more? At this point I added a little salt to mine and "the kicker", Scotch Bonnet Sauce by the The Whiskey Sauce Co. I went for medium heat on this but as I said, you can really crank it up should you wish.... ;)

Just before the meatballs are due to come out the oven, slice your baguette and melt some strong cheddar cheese on one side in the oven also. You then want to layer the baguette with some deli meat- I chose Spanish chorizo and salami, 2 slices of each on each baguette.

Now assemble! Warning: in just a minute your going to get messy! So don't worry about prettying it up. I served this with sliced pickled gerkins but why not add homemade coleslaw or fries?

Whatever you cook this Valentine's Day- enjoy it and don't forget your napkin!

Big love x

Campsite Style Salmon- at home!

I guess this could easily fall into the category of Solo Suppers as recently launched by What Claire Baked (go check her out!) But this was an impromptu dinner 'pour une' tonight and so I had to be creative. The name of the game on weekday evenings for me is quick, tastey and filling so this adaptation of a campsite classic worked a treat!

I buy fish fillets frozen by the bagful. They are cheap, good quality and easy to prepared (simply defrost, so no need to skin or debone). Typically, I drizzle a bit of lemon on my salmon or tuna fillets, oven bake and then serve with potatoes or salad but tonight I didn't want to faff about with pots, boiling water, salad items and a peeler so I came up with this...

To make your campsite fish dish (at home) first, place your fillet on a tin foil sheet, create a good old trusty tin foil pocket, squeeze fresh lemon juice all over and grind some black pepper- it was salmon tonight. I also added some left over spring onions to the pocket tonight. Cook at around 160 for 9 minutes.

For the side, Morrisons are doing these really neat wee tins of pre-mixed beans which could be added to salads, stews or casseroles. I chose to add half a can of white bean mix to my tin foil parcel after the 9 minutes were up and squeezed remaining juice from the lemon wedge on to them with a dash of salt. I returned this to the oven for 4 minutes and hey presto- job done!

Easy!

I can confirm it was quick, tastey and filling but even if u added a whole tin of beans to this dish they are super healthy!

Whatever you are making, enjoy your weekday supper! I'd love to hear what's cooking in your kitchen tonight....x

Easy Lunchtime Tartlets

Getting bored of soup and sandwiches for lunch? Yeah me too, so I'm experimenting with easy to assemble finger food, or more substantial bites which can be made the night before. These quick and easy tartlets can be made with any filling of your choice and take minutes to prepare!

Start with a packet of shortcrust pastry (why not make your own if you have the time?) and decide what filling you fancy on the inside. I opted for red onion and goats cheese and jazzed these tasty bites up by caramelising the red onion in a raspberry balsamic and sugar reduction, this took about 8 - 10 minutes and I would advice the same if stir frying vegetables before adding them to the pastry too.

Whilst your 'base' is frying off, roll out the pastry and use cookie cutters to trim out your lunchtime biscuits. A 500g pack will give you around 15-20 snack sized tarts. Once the pastry was cut, I laid them onto a lined baking tray and 'prodded' them (it's a technical term!) with my finger to create a sort of well for my remaining ingredients.

All that's left to do now is place your fillings of choice onto the pastry base and cook at 180 for around 10 minutes. If you wanted to, you could cut the pastry into larger pieces and seal the fillings in 'bridie-stylie'.

I packed 3 of these small tartlets in for lunch at work today, added to a side salad dressed with lemon juice. It was fresh, filling but smoothly comforting also. A winner for me.

Happy experimenting x

Fryer free crispy hot wings!

A quick post night, purely because the longer I sit and think about these finger licking, tastey delights, the more likely I am to brave the storm outside and go grab me a packet of wings! I.must.resist.

Years ago, chicken on the bone and chicken skin creeped me out big style! Which was a pity as I was missing out on so much flavour with parts like the thigh! I'm glad to say I got over that 'phase' however, I'm still not overly OK with skin - particularly soggy skin. Yuck!

I came across THE best chicken wings in a sea view hotel in Northern Ireland a few years ago and I have been hooked ever since, having to order them whenever I see them on a menu and always being disappointed when they don't live up to expectations. However, I have recently managed to recreate those crispy yet succulent chicken wings with moreish hot sauce from home following multiple (failed) trials. This is how to get exceptionally close to those hot wings I first tried in Ireland.....without the use of a deep fat fryer!

For the crispy skin you MUST first of all boil the chicken wings in VERY salty water- salty like the sea. Don't worry this doesn't translate into your end meal but it does zap out some of that fat and dehydrate the chicken skin before roasting- you can often hear the wings squeek (or is it chirp?) in the pot as they go. Boil for 20mins in this VERY salty water and then transfer to a lined preheated baking tray.

Your oven and tray should be hot, around 200 degrees and roast the wings for 40mins or until the wings are golden.

Meanwhile, in a pot melt together butter (unsalted), Franks Hot Sauce and Worcestershire sauce until you get a light orange colour. (I will leave volumes to you as some like it hot, hot however I would say 50g butter to 2 tablespoons of Franks  and a glug of WS)

Once your wings are ready, dress them in the orange hot sauce and serve. Remember to take kitchen wipe, these are messy! Or be sophisticated if you are sharing with guests and have a bowl of warm water with sliced lemon in it to hand- quite literally.

Enjoy folks! I'm actually salivating as I type! !!! X

Affordable Luxury - Pork Wellington

So, you're having family round for a meal or hosting a dinner party with friends and want to impress but you don't want to break the bank, or your back for that matter...something simple, straightforward yet stunning, am I right? Well this one is definitely for you!

By adapting yee old traditional Beef Wellington (which will cost you an arm and a leg to cook properly) you can have a cost effective and absolutely delicious main meal.  Plus, for any of you out there with a dislike or intolerance to garlic, I've added some alternative tips to help you retain that flavour without it - winner, winner pork based dinner!

First, what your going to have to do is gather the troops, so to speak. Grab yourself a decent sized pork tenderloin (which can be picked up from between £3-5 amazingly!), a packet of puff pastry (if you want to be mega impressive, make your own), chestnut mushrooms, a small bottle of white wine (or a large one if you want to feed the pan and yourself), one packet of Parma ham and shallots. This is based on the assumption you will already have cupboard essentials like chicken stock, garlic, plain flour, eggs, salt and pepper - if you don't, grab these too!

To start, you will want to trim off all the "silverskin" on your pork tenderloin with a sharp knife. This is the whitey-silvery connective tissue (hence the name) which is found on most loin pieces, including beef. By leaving it on you risk granny losing her dentures...
Once trimmed, seal the loin in a hot pan for a few minutes and leave to cool.

Whilst the pork is cooling, make your mushroom duxcelle. A duxcelle is a finely chopped mushroom mix which is reduced to a paste and used as a pastry filling, stuffing or garnish. To make yours, you will want to finely chop your mushrooms (at least one packet of), a large handful of shallots and crush 2 cloves of garlic. Fry these in butter until soft then add chicken stock and a glug of white wine. Volumes will differ depending on how much duxcelle you are making but as a general rule, you want your combined liquid to just cover the dry ingredients in your pan in order to reduce down, forming a dry paste. Now, for those of you who wish to make a garlic free alternative, I've found using red onion and finely diced chorizo, instead of shallots and garlic, works a treat! Once ready, leave this to cool also.

Next up, assembly. The beauty of this dish is you can prepare it in advance, bringing it out only to cook on the night! You want to roll your puff pastry onto a clean, floured surface, making it 3 times the width of your pork, and about 1.5 times the length- giving you excess to roll. Place strips of Parma ham along the width of the pastry and then spread your duxcelle over the Parma ham. Plant your pork onto the edge of the Parma ham nearest you and roll away from you. Egg wash where pastry meets pastry- tucking both ends under too. Wrap the full 'log' in cling film and allow to rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour. (You will notice from my pictures, the first time I did this I wrapped the pork, Parma ham and duxcelle in cling film, chilled this in the fridge then removed the film and rolled in the pastry before cooking- you can do it either way but  having done this a couple of times, I would now recommend the method I've just described in order to have a consistent temperature throughout the pastry and inside ingredients).

When the time comes for dinner,  remove the wellington from the fridge and showcase your inner Picasso by decorating the top with any left over pastry you may have trimmed from the sides. You will see as I was on the run up to Christmas I placed holly leaves on mine. Egg wash the top now also and cook in a preheated oven at 180 degrees (fan oven) for approximately 35minutes. This pork will be served pink, but hot all the way through.

Finally, as sides, I served my wellington with homemade apple- cinnamon red cabbage and crushed potatoes but steamed veg or mashed turnip would go just as well.

Let me know how you get on with this one, and as ever- enjoy! x

Our £20 Christmas

Christmas dinner had to come early for hubs and I, or not at all. One of us is working and the other volunteering on Christmas Day so a 3 course slap up the day before was a must. However, I gave myself the added challenge of creating the festive feast, with drinks, for under £20...a success? Yes, with change to spare.

Our Christmas menu consisted of Cream of Broccoli Soup to start; Roast Gammon with Boiled Potatoes, Shredded Sprout Salad and Pineapple Puree for main as well as Luxury Hot Chocolate and Homemade Shortbread for dessert. We are completely full and have left overs to boot so maybe this blog should read 'feed 4 for £5 per head'...!?

In order to keep the target spend in check we bought our necessities from Lidl. We are familiar with Aldi and tend do to most of our shopping there week to week however, if you aren't a regular at these budget supermarkets I would encourage you to give it  bash- quality produce at a fraction of the price compared to mainstream supermarkets, win win in my opinion. Our total spend was £10.63 which included a gammon roast wrapped in streaky bacon, all veg, freshly baked bread rolls, double cream along with white and milk chocolate. Additional bits a pieces such as pineapple chunks and condensed milk were fetched from Tesco, taking the total spend to £13.35.

Our custom made cocktail of rum, bourbon, cinnamon, orange zest and ginger ale tallies up to a grand total of £1 per cocktail (granted you have to buy a bottle of Bulleit and Morgan's upfront) but warms the belly nicely. The finished dishes also included store cupboard items such as mustard, plain flour and stock cubes. Now onto how they were made...

Soup: fry 1 large onion and 1 stick of celery in butter adding a whole broccoli (including stems and leaves for flavour) and 500ml of chicken stock. Leave to simmer for 20mins, blitz with a hand blender and add double cream, cornflower to thicken and ground pepper to taste. Tip- add chopped smoked bacon when frying the onion and celery to give greater depth.

Main: the gammon came pre prepped with cooking instructions and was served with boiled potatoes dressed in melting butter and ground pepper. An added twist was given by steaming shredded sprouts for 8 minutes and then running under cold water to give a cold crunchy, yet seasonal, salad side. The pineapple puree was made my warming pineapple chunks in juice with brown sugar, lemon juice, cornflower and mustard giving a final blitz in the last minute with a blender once again.

Dessert: get ready for a heart attack! Melt condensed milk, a full bar of milk chocolate, half a bar of white with milk and cocoa powder...you only need a small cup of this stuff to satisfy your sweet tooth! This was served with shortbread biscuits which were made from a traditional recipe of sugar, butter and plain flour.

We are now throughly stuffed, lying on the couch watching movies- exactly how Christmas Day should be ;) have a great day when it comes folks! Ho Ho Ho x

Queen to Approve Crime Combating Chocolate!

Every so often, when I was younger, my Mum used to allow me to select just a few "posh chocolates" from the Pick'n'Mix  stands in Safeway or Woolworths. You know, the ones in wrappers or the ones with runny centers. It became known, between us, as "3 each"- inventively named as the limit would always be six between us both. I used to feel so priviledged, part of an exclusive club in which I would savour each bite and make each piece last as long as possible. This involved carving off the solid disc chocolate bottom with my nashers, sooking out the thick caramel from within and leaving a crisp naked cup to crunch!

I later became mildly obsessed over "chocolates with sections" (meaning chocolate boxes in which each piece had its own little bed) after watching Ms Trunchbull in the film Matilda wrap her gums around some fine looking morsels and smack the words "much too good for children". It became a tradition thereafter  that each Christmas I received a partitioned box of treats from Maw and Paw which, along with my stocking, made my day!

You can then only imagine the euphoric high I experienced upon discovery of the "confectionery counter" for the first time-  perfectly formed pyramids of choice! I loved everything from their little name plaques, to the varying shades of white, milk and dark. I've maybe only visited confectionery counters six times in all my life, but on Sunday I made that number seven!

Hubs and I were returning from a weekend down south when we stopped off at Lake Windermere and wandered around the village of Bowness. To my delight it held an array of indie retailers and charity shops- I love a good find - but the greatest treasure to uncover was "Huttons of the Lake District" who have been chocolate making since 1920. My eyes widened at the choice of over 30 different, individual chocolate types. That wasn't including wall to wall sweetie cladding around the shop! We refrained from gorging on all varieties by sticking to my previous ritual of "3 each".

As we stood in silence eyeing up 'the chosen ones' the lady infront of me turned and whispered, "I'm being naughty." It was at this point I realised my life long facination stemmed from an enjoyable guilt... tucking into delicacies not everyone could have, unlike mass produced Cadburys or Caramac. There is an air of exclusivity in these crispy, milky, bitter, rose flavoured, flakey, creamy, pretty little bites- often with restricted access once the branded ribbon or sticker  seal have been applied. It's an experience, not just a product!

And so, as hubs and I left the shop, we sought a quiet corner to carefully peel the bag open and try our well considered selection. As my teeth sunk into Turkish Delight, Champagne Truffle and Marzipan I admired the design of Paul Smith style stripes and feather like chocolate curls. I realised this sense of 'being naughty' probably satisfied my rebellious tendencies enough when I was younger to refrain from house breaking and drug taking. Could this be a new solution to young offender rehabilitation? Curbing the cravings of criminals with a trip to the nearest Chocolatier? I'm sure Her Majesty would approve of such new age innovation in her prison service - I mean she's now on Twitter forgodsake. Well, if you are reading this Ma'am, you're welcome, it's been a pleasure. Nikki R.