Sausage and bean casserole

Recently I've been on something of a budget kick so I've been limiting my food shopping to an absolute minimum. This has meant no big food shop this month, attempting to only use the food I have in my cupboards and rediscovering food I hadn't event realised I owned. I haven't done very well - I have gone shopping occasionally but my shopping bill this month has been well over half what it normally is.

It helps that I own a slow cooker but I have to ask, why kidney beans? I hate kidney beans, in fact I dislike most legumes. I struggle to eat them because as I chew them my brain is yelling "this isn't edible, it's not food, why are you giving me this?!" ( I know, my brain is overly dramatic). In my kick to be more money conscious I've been attempting to battle this irrational dislike and have been able to get as far as liking black beans (when done correctly - they can't be grainy) and I've been able to stomach butter beans, just. Yet for some reason I have owned a tin of kidney beans for longer than I can remember, they have even moved house with me. So today I have cooked with them in a vain hope to defeat my dislike of them.

This dish was made with every I had in the cupboard with no need to go shopping and it's a dish that will serve 6 and can be frozen. It is a good dish to be made on the weekend in a large batch, frozen in individual portions and then eaten slowly through the week.

Serves 6
Ingredients
450g sausages
1/4 cup water
2tbsp olive oil
2 bell peppers (not green), seeded and sliced lengthways
2 medium carrots, 1 sliced, 1 grated
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
200g butter beans (pre-cooked)(drained if from a tin)
1 tin kidney beans/ aprox. 200g pre-cooked kidney beans (drained if from a tin)
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup red wine
2 bay leaves
1 tsp rosemary
1/2tsp fennel seeds
Salt & pepper

Directions
Put half the oil in a frying pan and brown the sausages on all sides on a medium heat. Then add the water, cover and cook until completely cooked through - this should take about 10-12 minutes. Uncover and cook for about a minute more then let cool and slice.

If needed, the rest of the oil to the pan, then warm over a medium heat. Add the peppers, onions, garlic and sliced carrots. Cook over the heat, stirring occasionally until just tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to the slow cooker and add all other ingredients. Check the water level, it should be only just covering the sausages, if it feels a little low then add a 1/4 cup of water and gently stir in. Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or low for 6 to 8 hours. Near the end of the cooking time, check and cook with the lid off to thicken if needed. Season and serve with some fresh chunky granary bread.


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Lamb Goulash (with some tweeks)

I was pleasantly surprised by this recipe, the mix of Lamb and lemon worked really very well although due to the cost of lamb at the moment i must admit that its not something I'd do frequently. To get good quality diced lamb, i like to buy a whole shoulder and then bone and dice the meat myself.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients
45g Butter
1 Large Onion, chopped
900g Lamb, preferably a stew cut such as shoulder
1 Lemon, seeded & very thinly sliced
1 tsp Caraway seeds
2tsp Rosemary
1tsp cinnamon
1/2tsp nutmeg
1tsp Oregano
1tsp fresh Greek basil
3cloves of garlic
1 Cup Veg Stock
Salt & Pepper
1 tin of tomatoes, drained and roughly diced
1 Large carrot, grated

Directions
Smear the bottom of the slow cooker with the butter and sprinkle with the onion. Put the Lamb in the cooker and arrange the lemon slices over it.

In a mortar, mash together all herb (except the basil), spices and garlic with a pestle before stirring into the stock. Add the stock mix to the slow cooker, cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until the lamb is tender.

Add the tomatoes and carrot then turn up the heat to high for 30 mins. Just before serving add the basil and season to taste.

Not-so-sufferin' succotash

I learnt about succotash whilst visiting the elder sister in NC. Despite a horribly rude shop assistant, we managed to visit a book shop to get me plenty of inspiration of what to make for dinner that night, whilst sister Soo created a dress (all in all, it felt like a rather domesticated evening with the two of us indulging our various hobbies). Since that first night I've worked more on the succotash recipe, added some of Soo's suggestions and made it my own. It's a wonderful fresh, clean tasting side dish that can be bulked up with the addition of some chorizo or bacon and a bread crumb crust to make it a healthy main (NB. the amounts below are appropriate for a side dish)
I would recommend using fresh corn with this dish rather than frozen- they do have a different taste and the more intense, buttery flavour of the fresh is needed here.
Serves 4
Ingredients
2tbsp olive oil
1/2 large red onion
1 large red bell pepper, diced
Kernels from 3 ears of sweet corn
1 cup edamae beans (if you can't get these then substitute with broad beans)
4tsp White wine/Vermouth/ or in my case Sake
1/2cup water
1/2 cucumber, seeded and diced
3 spring onions, sliced
1/4 cup coriander, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup parsley, coarsely chopped
Juice of 1 lime
1tbsp butter
Salt and pepper
Directions
Put the oil in a wide bottom pan, and warm to a medium high heat. Add the onion and the bell peppers and stir until they soften, this should take about 2 mins. Stir in the corn, beans, sake, water and a good crunch of salt and pepper. Turn down the heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally until most of the liquid has evaporated and the vegetables are almost cooked through. Add the cucumber and spring onions and cook for another minute just to allow them to heat through. Add the herbs, the lime juice and another crunch of black pepper before allowing to cook for another 30 seconds. Add the butter and stir in until melted, taste and adjust seasonings if needed.
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Courgette and asparagus salad with grilled haloumi

Taken, and somewhat abused, from the Ottolenghi recipe book, this has become my go to salad when I have company coming and I need either a starter or a salad that's strong enough to stand on it's own. In the picture below I've served it with some olive bread (made with a recipe from the dough cookbook but that's for another story). This salad isn't your typical limp, delicate creature. The flavours are robust and served with a good bread, this should make for a fully satisfying lunch.
Be warned here - there's a fair amount of prep with this one.
Ingredients
For the salad
350g cherry tomatoes, halved
4 rashers of prosciutto ham, ripped into chunks
140ml olive oil
24 asparagus spears
2 Courgettes
200g haloumi, in 2cm slices
25g rocket
Plenty of salt & pepper
Basil Oil
75ml olive oil
1 garlic clove
25g basil leaves
Pinch of salt
1/4tsp black pepper
Preheat the oven to 170C. Mix the tomatoes with a tablespoon of the oil Nd season well before spreading out on a baking sheet, skin side down. Roast for 50 minutes then leave to cool.
Trim the asparagus and blanch for 4 minutes in a large pan. Drain and refresh under cold water to stop the cooking process, leave to drain fully whilst you prep the courgettes. Slice the courgettes very thinly lengthwise and place into a large bowl with the now fully drained asparagus. Toss with 3tbsps of the olive oil and plenty of salt and pepper.
Place a griddle pan on a high heat and allow to warm up. Grill the courgettes and asparagus, turning them over after about a minute. You're looking for char marks on all sides before you remove them from the pan and leave to cool. Whilst the pan is still hot, chargrill the cheese for a about 2 mins on each side - until char marks have been left on each side.
To make the basil oil, put all the ingredients in an blender until smooth - the quantities here will give you far more than you need but I fine it's a great staple to have in the fridge. I use it on pasta, salads, even in risottos.
To assemble, arrange the rocket, vegetables, ham and cheese in layers on a flat serving plate. Drizzle with as much basil oil as you like and serve.

Summer salad (even when the weather is suffering from bipolar)

In April the weather in dear old London town was so warm, people were talking heat waves. By the time we got to May, the news was talking of the annual hose-pipe ban. Now we're firmly in June and and the weather seems to think its April with intermittent showers. Heavy enough to make one look as though you entered a wet t-shirt contest just before entering the office but not frequent or lasting long enough to make me remember my umbrella.
I don't care - I've given up trying to work out what you cook in this weather (certainly not macaroons, the humidity is all wrong). At this time of year my body craves salads and vegetables. This is a great salad to round off the day, as the sun goes down and the rain beats the windows. There are warm components but I wouldn't call it a warm salad as such.

Fig salad with spiced honey dressing
Serves 1

Ingredients

For the salad
3 figs
25g rocket
A few rashers of Prosciutto ham
1 egg
Handful of fresh basil leaves

The dressing
1/4 tsp saffron
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
Ground coriander
Cumin
6 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ribena's chili jelly (be careful here, this stuff kicks)- if you can't get this then a mix of cayenne pepper and Thai sweet chilli dipping sauce makes an acceptable substitute.

Start by ripping up the rocket and basil leaves before tossing them together. Place on the plate to create to make a bed for the other ingredients. Cut the figs in a crisscross, almost to the bottom, then squeeze the base of the fig to encourage more of the flesh to expose itself. Doing this will allow more of the dressing to soak into the fruit. Arrange onto the plate.

Weave the ham rashers in-between and around the figs and start poaching your egg. Whisk together your dressing, tasting as you go- adjusting the amounts as required. (There is no salt in the dressing as the ham is quite salty so only add salt if needed once the dressing has been added to the salad.) When ready, place your poached egg in the centre of the salad and drizzle the dressing extensively around the salad, making sure to get copious quantities inside the cuts of the figs.

The devil makes work for idle hands ...

Yesterday I was bored, no other word for it. So I decided to bake- its a bad look for me when I have nothing better to do on a Saturday. I end up getting up late, sitting around in my pj's with the cats and watching really bad TV for far too long. Before I realise it, the day has gone by and I've achieved nothing except drank lots of tea, looked at lots of nonsense on the internet and hugged the cats. This vicious cycle has to stop
So I baked, at least that way I'm achieving something. Apple cake with maple syrup icing. It's a comforting cake with soft fruit that isn't just another fruit cake. The outside is ever so slightly crunch while the inside is soft and fluffy.

Apple Cake with Maple Syrup Icing
(taken from the Ottolenghi cookbook)

Ingredients
Cake
80g sultanas
4 tbsp water
280g plain flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking power
1 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
120ml olive oil
160g Caster sugar
Vanilla pod
2 eggs
3 bramley apples
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 egg whites

Icing
100g butter (room temp)
100g light brown sugar
85ml maple syrup
220g cream cheese

Directions
Grease 2 8inch tins and line with greaseproof paper.
Put the sultanas and water in a small pan and simmer over a low heat until the water has been absorbed by the sultanas. Put aside to cool.
Preheat the oven to 170C. Sift together all the dry ingredients except the sugar. In a separate bowl, beat the oil, sugar and vanilla together until light and fluffy then gradually add the eggs. Mix in the fruit and lemon zest then fold in the dry ingredients.
Whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form. Fold them into the batter in 2 additions, trying to loose as little air as possible
Split the batter evenly between the two tins and smooth them out with a palette knife before sliding into the oven for about an hour (or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
To make the icing, beat together to butter, sugar and maple syrup until light and airy. Add the cream cheese and best until smooth.
Assemble the cake when completely cold.

What to do with duck

I've often believed that when the universe hands you a gift, it's just plain silly not to use it. When the supermarket decides to sell Duck breasts for less than Chicken (only counting the free range varieties of course), then that has to be not just a gift but also a sign; a sign that its time I cooked something slightly more interesting for dinner. I am fond of duck, but poor experiences have made me wary of ordering it in a restaurant. Like steak, it is often overcooked and tough, or even too greasy. However when treated with respect, Duck has a tender flesh and good strong flavour.

The honey in this recipe is a good contrast to the natural oils of the duck, however as the main flavours are quite complex you want to aim for simple and clean flavours in the side dishes. I've done this recipe a few times in the past now unfortunately this time I wasn't quite patient enough and didn't reduce the sauce enough
.

Duck Breast with Honey and Rosemary

Serves 2
Ingrediants
2 Duck Breasts
100g Butter
Olive Oil
2Tbsp Clear honey
1Tbsp White Wine Vinegar
300 ml Stock (preferably Duck but when pushed i'll use whatever i have in)
3 Sprigs of Rosemary, finely chopped
1/2 tsp All spice
Salt & Pepper

Directions
Score the skin of the Duck breasts with a sharp knife and season well on both sides with a good helping of the salt, pepper, 1 of the sprigs of chopped rosemary and allspice. Let the duck sit for at least 15 mins to help the flavours develop. Heat the oven to 200 C. Place the Duck skin side down in a smoking hot pan with a drop of olive oil. When well browned, turn over and place in the oven for 10 mins. Remove from the pan and leave to rest in a warm place.
In the pan which cooked the duck, add 1.5Tbsp honey and vinegar and place over a high heat. When caramelised, add the stock and reduce to a light sauce. Whisk in the butter and remaining rosemary.
Brush the duck skins with the remaining honey and place under a hot grill until crisp. Carve the duck and serve with the sauce.