A week of winners and celebrations…. masterchef, marriage and a marvellous meal courtesy of Yotam Ottolenghi

Lamb cutlets with sumac, aubergine and green tahini

What a week it’s been….. back to school, Masterchef finals with a sensational winner and a royal wedding to boot! Last weekend I found this recipe in the Guardian on Saturday…. I always look at Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipes and think ‘I must make that’, tear them out and stick them on the fridge/put in a book for later and of course… never get around to it! This week, inspired by once again seeing his handsome physique on Masterchef (I have a little bit of a crush!), I was determined to make this dish on Friday to finish off a wonderful day, spent at school celebrating the royal union. I also tried my hand at a bit of fancy presentation and learnt that you should serve up quickly before the juices run out of the lamb!  The three components of the dish are individually amazing and the flavour combination was a total ‘wow!’  Loved it!

You can find the recipe at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/apr/23/broad-bean-salad-lamb-recipes

It really was delicious, subtly spiced and after using sumac in this way on lamb, I am now going to experiment with other meats, fish and veggies in preparation for bbq season!

A well deserved hearty dinner – rapid ragu.

Fuelled by my sunny lunch, I decided to embark on the mammoth task of cleaning the patio and front porch  – Abbie helped for about….. 5 minutes. I then continued to scrub and power wash for 4 hours, taking only a quick break for tea and malt loaf.

Jon offered to make one of our favourites – Nigella’s Rapid Ragu – which we ate with leaftover olive bread from lunchtime – PERFECTION!  It is hearty, warming and supremely yummy – just what you need when you can’t unbend your fingers after they have been squeezing a power hose!

The link to the recipe is:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/rapidragu_87337

See below for youtube Nigella clip….