King prawns with garlic and chilli – so good I made it twice!

Ready, steady, cook! The basic ingredients…

Tonight had to be a quick one….. I am exhausted…. Jon was out running a debate…. Abbie now in bed…..Tesco have delivered…. washing is in machine….. need wine asap!  I went for an old stand-by, ‘Chilli and garlic prawn’ beacuse it is delicious and primarily quick!  Jon came in about 45mins after I’d cooked and eaten mine and looked so forlorn that I made it again!  As Abbie would say… ‘Two thumbs up, times two!!’

Ingredients for one – splash of cold-pressed rapeseed oil (or olive oil), 1/2 red chilli, big squeeze of garlic puree, 8 huge, frozen raw king prawns, slosh of dry white wine, pinch of Maldon salt, sprinkle of finely chopped corriander (cilantro).

• Heat oil, add chopped chilli, garlic and stir, add frozen prawns (fine to cook from frozen as long as they are raw)
• Keep stirring until the prawns start to turn pink on both side and add a slug of white wine (I use dry vermouth if I am out of wine)
• Add a pinch of salt, stir and let it bubble down until the prawns are pink and cooked. Pour into a bowl and serve, sprinkling over the corriander (parsley would also do here)
• Accompany with a nice, crusty bit of bread, drizzled with a little oil, to soak up the juices

a little bit of prep - chop the chilli

add the wine and let it bubble down...

served with a piece of toasted sourdough (courtesy of my Mum)

Turkey, sweet potato and pea curry… well Jon and I liked it!

I got this recipe from an old BBC Good Food ‘Cooking for Kids’ booklet, created by Leslie Waters, and had really high hopes for it – Abbie is keen on chilli flavours, but not yet on curries….  Jon and I both LOVE curries! This was very mild (korma paste used) and had cocunut milk in it. Have to admit that Abbie has never eaten as much of a curry before, but still only ate about half of the small portion I gave her – she tried all the componenets, but told us that it did not get ‘two thumbs up’ – her rating of a good dish!

Abbie was not altogether convinced!

The recipe was supposed to feed 2 adults and 2 children, but we only at half of the curry last night (even though Jon had seconds) and so I have frozen the leftovers for another go, maybe for when Abbie is not so tired and more receptive to new flavours.  Jon and I loved the curry, even though it was a bit tame for us.

I would love you to have a go with your children and let me know what they think about it!   Here’s the link: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1555/chicken-sweet-potato-and-coconut-curry

A one pot meal!

served on top of rice, to soak up the cocunutty juice

The windowsill of life…. I feel a song coming on!

‘From the day we arrive on the planet, And blinking, step into the sun, There’s more to see than can ever be seen, More to do than can ever be done….’ (Tim Rice)
This definitely resonates with me this week…. in a week full of parents’ evenings, finshing off work, getting ready for the holidays is there any time to grow plant or get readyso we actually have a summer harvest! Here’s proof that you don’t need immense gardening skills or equipment to get growing.  Currently on the windowsill are; some chitting pink fur apples, old clean tins containing basil and corriander (I’ve heard that the metal gets hot on the windowsill and helps them to grow), two different varieties of chilli peppers waiting for the greenhouse to arrive and Abbie’s tomato plants from a grow-your-own pack in Sainsbury’s (likewise needing a greenhouse). 

Have to say that looking at this every morning and afternoon makes me feel as if we are really nearing summer now… even if the weatherman continues to be a burgeoner of doom!

It's the windowsill of life.... and it moves us all

Jon's chillis

Abbie's tomatoes

Basil and Corri!

#Healthmonth here we come! Wish me luck….. and join up too!

I got a tweet from my friend and twitter expert (would that be called a twexpert??), Andrzej, who invited me to join his team for Healthmonth – a social game which encourages you to be healthy – definitely AJs thang – 8 mile runs in the morning and so forth.  Health at the moment… not always mine and although I am currently in my skinny jeans (yay!), there are definitely areas that I could address!

You pick from diet, physical, mental and other targets and then commit to 3 ways to improve your health for a month – you then win points for your team based on how well/consistently you perform the tasks that you have set yourself.  Then you can have a reward if you reach your targets, but have to set yourself a punishment if you don’t! I have picked 1) drink more water 2) exercise twice a week for at least 30 mins and 3) wake up early – no snoozing the alarm!  The last one is going to be tough as I am on holiday for the whole of April, BUT not as tough as one of the targets for my HB Jon – he can only eat 3 portions of fried food a week. Let’s just say that yesterday he had a donut and there is a huge double decker in the fridge….  healthy! His reply to my question about the benefits of these for his health was ‘Healthmonth doesn’t start for 2 more days….’ not really sure this is the right attitude. 

In the spirit of Healthmonth, I made a quick, vitamin-filled pasta dish, with some fire to warm my tired body.

Spaghetti aglio olio con brocolli e pepperincino (doesn’t that make it sound fancy – am sure my Italian is not quite right!) – feeds one tired parent

75g spaghetti

Handful or more of brocolli florets – cut large florets into half

splash olive oil, squirt of garlic puree, pinch Maldon salt, sprinkle of dried chilli flakes and grating of pecorino

1) Cook spaghetti in large pan of salty water – add brocolli for final 5-6 mins cooking

2)Drain pasta and leave in colander for a moment…. put a splash of olive oil into the pan, back on a low heat, add garlic puree and pinch salt and stir until it sizzles.  Add back in the pasta and brocolli and stir to coat.

3) Pour it all into a wide bowl or plate and add chilli flakes to taste – grate over some pecorino.  Enjoy the warming sensation which runs to all the extremities while you bask in your healthiness!

Tapas….. Barcelona here we come??

As you can see we took our very over-tired daughter for a meal out on Sunday…… 

We were attending a cathedral service in the afternoon and needed a quick bite beforehand – Jon suggested ‘La Tasca’ along the lines of ‘They’ve got olives and bread, perfect!’. Abbie has always loved olives (as do many of her friends) since we attended the ‘Italian’ market in Norwich – she aged 2 – where she was made a huge fuss of by some rather dishy Greek men. They were delighted to see a young child eat an olive and so Abs was given stuffed, garlic, spicy… in fact every type of olive on offer! As the cuteness of my daughter meant that we were given a free tub of these delights for later, who was I to complain that she then wouldn’t eat her lunch!

An olive a day....

 La Tasca was, remarkably, really child-friendly; even if, as we did, you did not order from the children’s menu.  Abbie was given crayons and an activity book on arrival. They do a 5 dishes for 12 pounds deal for lunch which was great for us and we ordered extra bread and olives.  Abbie is really into dipping bread into balsamic vinegar and oil at the moment – if you haven’t tried it with your children – do it! She loves the drippyness of it and how you have to get through the oil to the vinegar. 

We ordered calamari – yummy for us (refused by Abs), fried white fish (enjoyed), patatas bravas (really enjoyed), tortilla (refused and I don’t blame her – not the best!) and a really yummy aubergine dish which I think she would have been happier about if she weren’t so tired!  We were encouraging her to eat it, as all parents do – imagine the scene ‘Just try it…. come on Abbie’ – ‘No!’ – ‘Come on darling, you’ll like it’ – ‘No!’… just as the waitress approaches to perform the predictable ‘Is everything alright??’ – if ever there was bad timing that was it!

What is fabulous about La Tasca? Pudding!!  They do a great 3 mini dessert tray (lemon tart, choc brownie and Sangria Mess) all with an espresso – we are returning just for that.  Jon has decided we are going to Barcelona in October half-term….. at least they have olives and bread there!

A child-friendly chilli for a chilly day!

The sodden patio

What a horrible, rainy day!  The camelia may be blooming, but my family definitely isn’t. Abbie has a runny nose and a chesty cough, Jon is recovering from said-same cough (and now off to play rugby in the rain) and I have come back from work feeling depressed by the weather and with a cracking headache…..   so to enter the house and be presented with a warming, cardamon and chorizo-scented bowl of Nigella’s chilli on a jaket potato was heaven! Abbie and Jon had already eaten there’s – this one is great for children and adults as the hotness is reduced, but the flavour is still there….  if you are a chilli freak, like my husband, add some dried chilli flakes.

I’m afraid I gobbled it up instantly and forgot to take a photo, but here is Nigella making it in the states on Fox news! 

Nigella Lawson’s Quick Chilli – from Nigella Express

Nigella’s Quick Chilli – serves 4
150g chorizo sausage, chopped – again, the fresh chorizo sausage I have used before can be used here.
500g minced beef
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 cardamom pods, bruised
1 x 500g jar chunky veg pasta sauce
1 x 390g can mixed spicy beans

2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
A good pinch of chilli flakes (optional)

Heat the sliced chorizo in heavy saucepan over a medium heat and cook until a little crispy. Add the mince and cook until browned.
Stir in the spices and cook for a further couple of minutes. Add the pasta sauce, chilli beans, chilli sauce and chilli flakes (there’s no such thing as too much chilli!).
Bring to the boil and then turn down the heat and simmer for 20-30 mins.

We serve it with some chopped corriander on top, and a dollop of sour cream

Easter-time breakfast – it may be raining outside but we’re feeling springy inside!

Abbie made herself an interesting combination of hot cross buns topped with smoked salmon!

‘Hot cross buns, hot cross buns, one-a-penny, two-a-penny, hot cross buns!’ This was the song on repeat in our house this morning, sung beautifully by Abbie.  I have resisted buying these so far, but tiredness got the better of me last night and I bought 2 packs!  We’ll have a go at making them again this year during the Easter holidays…. watch this space… but just felt that I ‘needed’ their curranty comfort for breakfast. Jon added the scrambled eggs and smoked salmon to the mix, much to Abbie’s delight.  If you haven’t tried smoked salmon with your children, I really encourage you to…. it has to be one of the favourite treats in our house! I asked Abbie, ‘Which do you like best… chocolate or smoked salmon?’ She replied, ‘Chocolate AND smoked salmon!’ – a future Masterchef combination perhaps!

A host of golden daffodils…… and a ten pound meal!

Had to publish this photo – I drive through this village most days and this photo does not do justice to the thousands of daffodils which line this street – such a beautiful springtime image!

Having had the most insane day at work… (basically started at 8.25 and finished at 5.45pm with no break save a quick cup of tea slurped down in 5 minutes at 3.45pm; even had my lunch whilst on duty!!) … could not face anything harder than sitting down with a glass of wine!  So, whilst in the supermarket picking up the week’s goodies, I picked up a 10 pound meal for two; Pork and chorizo meatballs with roasted paprika potatoes, creamed spinach, chocolate tarts (I added the creme fraiche) and a bottle of Dino Sangiovese!  Got home at 7…. put my PJs on and Jon sorted it all in 30 mins.  Sometimes you don’t have to be supermum/superwife…  and just give yourself time to be.  The meal was really delicious and the wine went down really well! And…. I was in bed, asleep by 8.30pm!

It looks a bit sloppy in the photo, but wasn’t in acutality – some of the best creamed spinach I’ve had outside of Boston Market

 

The perfect comforter after a ridiculously busy day

A quickly knocked-together paella-esque supper…

Wednesday night is often leftovers night… tonight was no exception! I had spring onions and a bag of sugar snaps in the veggie draw which looked like they would go off in the next 24hours…..
Instead of the hard chorizo sausages you can buy from the supermarket, I use chorizos which are textured more like normal sausages. My butcher’s make them, but you can also get them in packs from Costco…. they are called ‘goikoa’ fresh chorizos. These are great for introducing children to chorizo as the texture is more familiar and the spice is more subtle. They can also be frozen and then defrosted when needed – in cases like today!
Anyway, the recipe – vary the veg to what you have…
3 small fresh chorizos (1/2 ‘hard’ chorizo) – cut into thin rounds
3 spring onions – chopped
75-100g basmati rice
200ml water
1-2 handfuls frozen sweetcorn
1-2 handfuls sugar snaps

1) dry fry the chorizo – when the amber oil seeps out add the spring onions – cook for minutes until the chorizo is crispy on the outside
2) add rice and stir to coat in the lovely chorizo-y oil and juices before adding the water and frozen sweetcorn
3) if not already boiling, bring to the boil and simmer for 12 minutes with a lid on – check and stir occasionally, add more water if too dry
4) add sugar snaps, stir, lid on – cook for 3 minutes.

 

I was suprised how well Abbie ate, considering the amount of icing she had eaten earlier - this dish got two thumbs up!

Abbie’s patch!

Abbie has loved helping me garden and grow vegetables…. I think it has really encouraged her to eat vegetables as well.
This year I thought it would be a good idea for her to have her own patch and it was easier than I thought it would be to sort out. For those of you also interested in doing this on your patio, you’ll need just over 1m x 1m space…. this is how I made ours.
1) I bought a grow your own raised bed kit from Homebase – 4 mitred, predrilled planks and 4 cornerposts
2) you also need 8 x 50mm screws, 8 x 35mm screws and a screwdriver (I was glad of my electric one!)
3) it is advisable to have someone strong to help you screw it together as you need to hold the pieces together as you screw into the wood
4) Once constructed, I lined the bottom and sides with some black weed preventer fabric (don’t think this is actually what it’s called!)
5) then I put some organic compost (made by our local nursery) at the bottom and then a large bag of multi purpose compost on the top

Abbie has planted a strawberry plant, one pink fur apple potato – probably not enough soil, but she insisted!; and rows of carrots, (enormous) turnips and lettuces (frilly, little gem and an unmarked variety – surprise!)
Keep posted and I’ll put on update photos…