GIVE ME FOOD!
Now that the kitchen is back in full use and the builders are no longer using it as their tool charging/break/storage room, I’ve been spending as long as I possibly can in there (often with a glass on wine and the Spice Girls on because that makes it my ultimate happy place). The recent bout of SNOW (!!) meant that I ate nothing but stews, dumplings, other suet-laden goods and boxes of chocolate like it was Christmas Day, till it turned to sludge outside. So this week I’ve tried to slip back into slightly less stodgier foods, but recipes that are just as tasty that I thought I’d share with you today.
Some I’ve made and some are on my to-eat list, but all look pretty easy to rustle up and require ingredients that are easy to source. In fact keep your eyes peeled because on Sunday I’ll be posting a weekly meal prep/’What I Eat in a Day’ video that I’m filming today (breakfast so far has been the butteriest bagel you’ve ever seen – YES!). Let the food extravaganza – BEGIN…
DINNER
Zanna Van Dijk’s ‘Vegan Three Bean Chilli’. This is the most-cooked dinner in our household. NO COMPETITION. It’s bloody great; takes around 10 minutes to prep and perhaps another 40 to cook in total and requires very little technique or TLC. We’re not veggie, but we’re trying to cut back on our meet consumption, especially during the week and this makes it so easy to do as one batch lasts about 10 years. Even the avid meat-eaters we’ve had over for dinner say how much they enjoy it. Thumbs up all round.
Waitrose ‘Hearty Beef & Beetroot Stew’. Another winter-warmer classic I love making this, especially when we have my parents over for dinner as they gobble down a good stew. Stews are fab because they’re so low maintenance, the only thing you have to remember is to put them in the oven earlier than you think, because the longer you cook ’em the better they get. I actually put this into a casserole pot and cook it in the oven for four hours plus, if possible.
BBC Good Food ‘Greek-Style Roast Fish Recipe’. I haven’t made this one yet, but we often make dishes that are a bed of some kind of veggies with a fillet of fish on top as a dinner during the week. There’s barely any washing up! We’re always trying to get our fish intake up – hello healthy hair and nails! – so finding new ways to spice up a plain ol’ piece of cod, is pretty high on my cooking agenda. If anyone has any other fish recipes that they like then I’m all ears. HOLLER.
LUNCH
BBC Good Food ‘Egg & Rocket Pizzas’. How good do these look? I’ve tried the whole ‘using a tortilla as a pizza base’ before, but I have yet to give this recipe a proper go. It’s such a great idea as I’ve usually got everything I need just hanging around in the cupboard and it makes for a proper lunch that stops me snacking from 2pm-5pm every 10 minutes. Call me crazy, but I am rather fond of an egg on a pizza too. It’s something to dip the crust into!
Madeline Shaw ‘Seared Sea Bass with Lentil & Kale Salad’. There’s a sea bass recipe in Madeleine’s book ‘A Year of Beautiful Eating‘ that Mark and I both love; in fact we made it for our friends when they came over for dinner earlier this week and we had clean plates all round. This is one is a little more ‘salad-y’ so is something that I’d tend to make for a lunch or a dinner in the summer, but it’s good. I’m not the biggest fan of kale, but Madeleine is good as sticking some kind of seasoning in there that always manages to win me round.
BBC Good Food ‘Leek & Butter Bean Soup with Crispy Kale & Bacon’. I LOVE SOUP. You’ll see from my meal prep video that will go up on Sunday, that I’m big into ’em. Mark often takes them to work to re-heat for lunch and they make a great midday eat for me at home too. They’re packed full of veggies and fibre and fill me up with minimal effort – just a whizz in the microwave. This is on my to-make list, but how good does this sound? Plus I think that if I get some leeks at the shop then I’ve already got everything else I need. Maybe this will be on my menu today…
THE REST
Minimalist Baker ‘Actually Crispy Baked Chickpeas’. I remember that attempting to make crispy chickpeas was weirdly one of the first things that I tried to make in the oven when we first got our kitchen re-done, but I hadn’t yet got my head around the settings and ended up grilling a tray full of chickpeas in about 3 minutes until they were black. FAIL. Thankfully I now have my head around the difference between the grill and the oven and I’ll definitely be giving these a go. A fab savoury snack which sometimes you’re just in the mood for.
Madeleine Shaw ‘Cranberry & Pecan Cookies’. I LOVE COOKIES. If I had the time and a never-ending appetite for cookies (who am I kidding? I do), I would happily test out cookie recipes all day long. Madeleine has a real knack for them and this was a recipe that she put together for Valentine’s Day and seeing as I have a bag of Cranberries gathering dust in my cupboards, I think this might be next on my baking list.
Minimalist Baker ‘Raw Vegan Oreo Cookies’. I have a few Vegans in my life that I like to cook for and sometimes I can find vegan baking a little tricky with ingredients that I have to trek into town to the nearest health food store, but I think the bits and bobs for this recipe should be pretty easy to find. I can GUARANTEE that the end result of mine will look no where near as precise as Dana’s, but I’ll give it a go. Expect to see an IG story of these soon.
Madeleine Shaw ‘Raisin & Cinnamon Cookies’. I’ve made these! And they were delicious. I know that oat and raisin cookies can get a bit of flack for being the outsiders in the cookie world, but if balanced with just the right amount of cinnamon and an absolute shedload of dried fruit (I go for sultanas because they’re a little softer and sweeter), I think that the crumbly texture with just the right amount of chew is peeerrfect.
Photos by Lauren Shipley
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