Just for a moment, we thought Spring had sprung, but we’re back in front of the fire after being lulled into a false sense of security by a couple of days of warm sunshine. Now we are back to rain and hailstones with winds from Russia and Bulgaria, which are by no means tropical even before they’ve swept down over our very snowy mountains. Continue reading “Pumpkin and spinach coconut curry (vegan)”
Category: Main course
Spicy lentil ‘shepherd’s pie’ (vegan)
Another grey day, though it hasn’t actually started raining (so far). I feel a day of catching up with a few jobs coming on, interspersed with a spot of light blogging activity. I think we are having a 5:2 day too – I was put off eating any breakfast this morning by having to deal with the regurgitated remains of a mouse – at least I think that is what it started life as – which had been left in the middle of the kitchen terrace, so I’m off to a good start. (Thanks guys). Continue reading “Spicy lentil ‘shepherd’s pie’ (vegan)”
Herb-roasted vegetables (vegan)
The weather’s taken a serious downturn, so we are being treated to several thunderstorms each day, with short periods of sun in between the downpours. A perfect excuse to light the fire, stay indoors and catch up with a few chores.
Post-trip laundry and ironing are finished, so now I can turn my attention to using some of the produce from the garden. Our Seville orange trees are groaning with fruit, so I will make some more marmalade to share amongst my family next time we go back to the UK and I plan to make a Seville orange drizzle cake today, to take with us when we go out to dinner this evening. Our friend Cafer and his wife Sultan, who own our favourite restaurant in town, have just had a baby, so they are pretty busy with the new arrival, as well as chasing after their six-year-old and running a restaurant. All food treats are being gratefully received! Continue reading “Herb-roasted vegetables (vegan)”
Slow-cooked beef and Old Speckled Hen stew
We’ve been in the UK for the last ten days, mainly drifting about in Devon and Cornwall, where the temperatures were surprisingly mild and the sun shone most of the time. Now that we are back in Warwickshire, things have taken a downward turn, with strong winds and pelting rain.
My parents are due back from a holiday in Madeira today, so if I can ever brave the rain to get across to Tesco, I am planning to make a warming beef and ale stew to leave for them to heat up when they get home – they have a two-hour drive from Gatwick when they land, so my mum certainly won’t be wanting to cook. A bowl of stew and a herby dumpling or two should be just the ticket. Continue reading “Slow-cooked beef and Old Speckled Hen stew”
Mediterranean beef & cinnamon braise (and Cevdet’s carrots)
Hmmm, we seem to have a change in the weather. Shock, horror, only 25 degrees and very blustery. Lots of white horses on the water (or ‘white geese’ as our neighbour calls them) and the sun keeps hiding behind the clouds. Last night, we ate dinner inside for the first time since May – it was so windy that the contents of half of the garden were blowing around our terrace (which always includes the possibility of a flying saucer in the shape of a carelessly discarded cat bowl), and I also feared for the wine glasses – we’ve had so many blown over in the past, so now we always go for low-slung models when we are choosing replacements. Continue reading “Mediterranean beef & cinnamon braise (and Cevdet’s carrots)”
Super-easy Asian chicken stir fry
Autumn is on its way; I can sense it. That dazzling light that we get in the Mediterranean during the summer has gone, replaced by much gentler sunshine and cooler breezes. Despite the fact that it’s still 30 degrees in the middle of the day, and we are enjoying going to the beach now that the last of the tourists have departed for the year, our neighbours are getting out their winter woollies and refusing to leave the house without several layers and a flat cap. Continue reading “Super-easy Asian chicken stir fry”
Prawns saganaki-style
While we were on holiday in Tonga, one of the ladies in our group was a marine biologist, who spends a good deal of her time in Africa. In an idle moment when we were bobbing about in the Pacific, waiting for whales to come and join us, she filled us in on some of the less attractive features of the prawn fishing industry, which made me never want to eat them again. Continue reading “Prawns saganaki-style”
Heidi’s Tongan ham & cheese pancake rolls
I’m having a little cleaning flurry. Where I sit at the breakfast bar to write this blog, I get a birdseye view of the wall behind my worktop/stove, where all the action takes place. When we redesigned our kitchen, we got one thing wrong: we allowed the nice man at Vitra to convince us that matte tiles were OK to use as a splashback. Not true, never be tempted to try this at home. It is practically impossible to remove grease spots from the little darlings – the grease just soaks into the tiles. Continue reading “Heidi’s Tongan ham & cheese pancake rolls”
Poulet au vinaigre
Yes, well spotted, that’s ‘chicken with vinegar’ to you and me. I know it doesn’t sound particularly appetising, but it’s not vinegar as we know it in the UK, and of course the dish involves wine, posh vinegar, garlic and tarragon, so things are getting better already.
We’ve been in France a couple of times this summer – I lived there for some time during the 1980s, but have hardly visited since, so it’s been fun re-encountering some of the absolutely delicious food I remember from my youth. I lived in quite a rural area, so the restaurants served good, tasty, country food to a clientèle mostly made up from farmers and shopkeepers (and the odd British cook from a neighbouring restaurant, of course…) Continue reading “Poulet au vinaigre”
What to do with that Swiss Chard in your veggie box
Today is probably the hottest since we arrived back – ironic, since we’ve just moved into September. This morning it was 44 degrees, but has now cooled to a more manageable 34, so I might yet venture out – according to our little weather station, the temperature has been as low as 27 at some point since midnight – not sure when that was, I must have missed it while I was asleep. When I had my morning swim, I complained that the pool was starting to get cold – a quick temperature check assured me it was still 32 degrees in the water – it must have been the super-hot air temperature confusing me. Either that or I really have turned into a total wimp. Continue reading “What to do with that Swiss Chard in your veggie box”
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