food, reviews & life in my kitchen
At the end of a busy Bank Holiday weekend, I just wanted to share a quick update from the garden, because I can’t believe we’re already harvesting and eating our home-grown produce in May! The recent rain and sun weather combo has probably helped a lot, but I didn’t expect to be eating from our… Continue reading Veg update – May harvest!
Roast dinners are simple, but comforting. The smell of roast meat cooking makes me think of family dinners around a table crowded with dishes of potatoes and veg ready for us to help ourselves. Having a roast has always been a Sunday tradition in my family, and even though I no longer live with my… Continue reading Cook the perfect roast potatoes every time with this easy recipe!
We love eating lots of fresh veg and salad, so this year we’re growing our own. As you can imagine, I’m very excited. Having grown up in a village where having a vegetable patch is the norm, I was determined that I would do this myself when I left home – it’s just on a… Continue reading Growing our own veg
This pasta bake, with ricotta filled conchiglioni (giant pasta shells) in spicy, tangy tomato sauce, is one of my favourite pasta recipes. It is simple to make, yet feels luxurious and special thanks to the creamy cheesy filling in each shell, which goes oh-so well with the spicy tomato sauce. It’s a perfect recipe to… Continue reading Baked ricotta stuffed conchiglioni recipe
This is a really easy recipe, that’s perfect for a midweek pasta dinner. The leeks go perfectly well with the creamy ricotta cheese and this is really satisfying. Serves 3–4, cooking time 40 mins You will need: 3 leeks, trimmed 1 stick of celery 1 tsp dried mixed Italian herbs 250g ricotta cheese (1 regular… Continue reading Leek & Ricotta Lasagne recipe
Anyone who knows me well will know that I love pie. I love pie with creamy mashed potato, doused in thick gravy until the mash begins to dissolve in the liquid and the pie crust starts to soften (to my mum’s sheer horror). I love cutting into fresh, crisp pastry, homemade when I have the… Continue reading 3 things that make a perfect pie & my 3 favourite pie recipes
This recipe was born one chilli (get it?) January night, when I was craving a rich hearty chilli con carne, but a) had no mince in the house and b) could not muster the effort to go to the shop. So I delved instead into the kitchen cupboard reserves of tinned beans, topped it up with some veggies, added tomatoes, spices, and chillies, and was extremely pleased with the result. (Especially as I had enough over for 2 lunches!) It’s rich, smoky and satisfyingly savoury, despite all the lovely sweet veggies. I even convinced a very reluctant fiancé that it’s good! (With a little encouragement and a LOT of cheese. But you can’t win em all!) In fact, I was so pleased with the flavour that I didn’t miss the meat at all, and aside from what you serve it with (yogurt or cheese), it’s not only a vegetarian recipe, but a vegan one too! A very happy coincidence, as I want to start making some better choices about the food I eat. So naturally, I felt obliged to share this little discovery with you all – and I’d love to know what you think!
In the winter, all I want to eat is comforting, hearty food, and especially over Christmas, I probably eat a little too much of it! In January I still want the comfort and to feel full, but with a bit of health and a lot of veg thrown in. It’s a great way to recover from the over-indulging, and I always feel better when I eat better. I don’t know if that’s psychological or not, but it’s true! There are lots of different recipes to choose from, but these are 3 of my staples which I fall back on time after time. They all pack a huge veggie punch, and don’t feel like diet food either! I’ve included a stir-fry, soup and curry recipe. The stir-fry is quick and easy to cook, perfect for staving off any Chinese takeaway cravings. The carrot soup is warming, and ideal to cook in a batch so there’s some for lunch the next day (or the whole week!) too, and a veggie curry which is one of my favourite Friday or Saturday night treats, and much healthier than ordering in.
I cook and eat the food I love and that those around me will enjoy (hopefully!). I don’t often follow trends or diets – I don’t want to force a shoe that doesn’t fit me. It’s just not worth it. It doesn’t make them bad diets or bad ideas, it just means they aren’t meant for me personally. Our likes and dislikes keep the world interesting and full of variety, and keep inventors dreaming up new tasty ideas. I don’t believe that food is a one-size-fits-all situation! However, it is great to keep updated with new ideas. You never know when inspiration will strike, or what new delicious things you might discover! So with that in mind, I’ve had a look at the predicted food trends for 2018 from company Whole Foods, as curated by their team of super trend spotters. I’ve picked my top 5 trends that I’m most excited to find out more about, and here’s a quick round up the 5, with my verdict.
The ultimate savoury taste of a steak and ale pie I difficult to beat, I love it best when freshly baked: puff pastry layers crackle under the knife, and dark, sticky gravy oozes out onto the edges of the pastry. I love chunky steak, sweet carrots and earthy mushrooms. I love rich saucy gravy edging slowly across my plate, muddling with muddling with creamy, buttery mashed potato. Drooling yet? I am.
