Most weekdays I don't have a lot of time for cooking at home. I cook all day at work, with only a short break in between my morning and my evening shift, and so it is during that time that I must get a dinner ready for Todd and myself. I know that when I get home later in the evening, not only will I be too tired to cook, but neither one of us likes to eat that late at night . . .



People wonder how I can spend my days cooking at work, and then come home and continue to cook there.



It's easy really . . . when you love cooking as much as I do!!

This is a real stand by type of dish, easy and quick to throw together when I don't have a lot of time to spend.



It is rib sticking delicious! My kind of dish.



Lazy day food.




Store cupboard food.



Comfort food at it's best.



*Marie's Spicy Rice*
Serves 8
Printable Recipe

A tasty one pot dish made with veggies, meat and rice. Delicious! You only need a tossed salad on the side to complete the meal. This is rib sticking comfort food! Just perfect for those rushed weekdays when you are starving, but don't have a lot of time to put a meal together!

2 TBS butter
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 sweet green pepper, seeded and chopped
8 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
2 stalks of celery, trimmed and chopped
16 ounces cubed cooked ham
16 ounces smoked sausage, sliced
(Mattesson's makes a good one, and it comes in low fat)
1 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika with Sweet Red pepper and thyme
(I got mine at Marks and Spencers)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
5 cups cooked rice

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once it starts to foam, add the onion, green pepper, spring onions and celery. Cook, stirring from time to time until tender. Add the ham, sausage, chopped tomatoes, salt, pepper, paprika spice and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 15 minutes, until the tomatoes are quite reduced and the mixture is thickened. Stir in the rice and cook for an additional 15 minutes. Serve hot.

Sometimes you are in the mood for something simple and uncomplicated. Something that you can just throw together using bits and bobs from your larder and your fridge.

A tasty lasagne is just the ticket for days like that.



Simple and clean flavours. It needn't be too involved, or a work of art.



Just a tasty tomato sauce, some rich bechamel and layers of cheese.



You can throw in whatever you wish. If you want to add a layer of browned minced beef, then do so . . . or a layer of browned spicy flavoured Italian sausage . . .



Or some grilled vegetables and a mixture of a variety of cheeses. It can be as fancy or as simple as you are in the mood for. There are no firm and fast rules about what is needed, as long as you have the three basic barebones ingredients . . . a tasty tomato sauce, some lovely bechamel and lasagne noodles of course. I like to use the fresh ones, but you can use dried ones that you need to boil first. The rest is all up to you . . .



Sometimes it's the uncomplicated things that are the most comforting of all. All you need here is a tossed salad and perhaps some garlic toast on the side.

If mama's happy . . . everybody's happy.



*Tomato Lasagne*
Serves 6 to 8
Printable Recipe

This is simple, uncomplicated, straightforward and delicious. A delicious tomato sauce, with some cheese, lasagna sheets and a good bechamel. You can dress it up by adding some different cheeses, such as goat's cheese, or a few dollops of pesto, or some grilled vegetables between the layers. What you have here is a canvas to write your own story upon . . .

For the Tomato Sauce:
4 ounces olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and mashed slightly
3 14-oz tins of chopped tomatoes in their own juice
(I like to use a good Italian brand)
about a dozen or so torn basil leaves
salt and black pepper to taste

For the Bechamel:
4 1/2 ounces butter
a scant 3 ounces flour
2 pints of whole milk, warmed
freshly grated nutmeg
salt and black pepper to taste

Also:
12 ounces of fresh lasagne sheets
3 ounces freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
6 ounces grated mozarella or a mixture of mozarella, cheddar, fontina, etc.
(In other words which cheese you are in the mood to eat, or what you have on hand)
butter



For the sauce, place the oil in a saucepan and heat it til fairly warm. Add the garlic and cook until it becomes quite fragrant. Add the tomatoes and a good pinch of salt. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes or so until it resembled a sauce. Add the basil and 1 cup of hot water towards the end of the cooking time. Puree until smooth with a stick blender, or very carefully in a regular blender. (You can either leave the garlic in, or remove it as you wish.) Taste and adjust seasoning, adding salt and some pepper if required.

To make the bechamel, melt the butter in a saucepan and then whisk in the flour. Cook for several minutes over low heat and then slowly whisk in the warm milk. Cook and stir until the sauce thickens and is smooth. Season with salt, pepper and a bit of freshly grated nutmeg to taste. Cook for an additional 5 minutes or so on low heat, until you have a very thick and smooth sauce. Set aside.

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Butter a deep 8 1/2 by 12 inch baking dish. Drizzle the bottom with some of the bechamel. Put a slightly overlapping layer of the lasagne sheets over the bechamel. Dollop with some of the tomato sauce, spreading it out. Dollop another two hefty spoonfuls of bechamel over top and then a layer of the cheeses. Add another layer of lasagne, and then repeat with the tomato, bechamel and cheese as before, and then again, repeating the layers one more time, finishing with a final layer of lasagne and a few tablespoons of tomato sauce and a good portion of bechamel. You can sprinkle with some additional parmesan cheese if you desire, or dot with some butter. Place in the heated oven and bake for about 30 minutes, until it is bubbling and golden brown on top. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into squares to serve.

I know you must get sick of hearing about yet another food that I just love, but I can't help sharing my loves with you and I love Dates! It has ever been so. I can eat them just like raisins . . . so sweet and dense and moreisly moist. As my teeth sink into one, I can just picture Desert Bedoins rolling along the dunes of the Sahara on the back of camels, and I am very glad that I am sitting in my little cottage in the South East of England munching on dates . . . but I digress . . .



My mother always, always , ALWAYS made us Date Squares at Christmas time . . . all buttery and crumbly and oaty and chock full of dates. We just couldn't get enough of them. I'm sure she had to make more than one batch each year just to keep us happy. In fact, the very recipe that she used is in my cookbook, Recipes From The Big Blue Binder, which you can find HERE.



But it's not Christmas . . . and it seems like the wrong time of year to be munching on my mother's date squares as delicious as they are.



I have dates that need using up though . . . and so I turn to these.

Moreishly tasty Date Slices . . . delicious cake base, filled with dates, coconut and toasted nuts, and covered with a scrummy lemon icing . . .



Bet you can't eat just one!



*Date Slice*
Makes one 8 by 12 inch pan
Printable Recipe

If you like the flavour of dates and coconut, then this slice is for you. Moreishly moist and datey cake, beneath a tangy lemon icing. What's not to like! You can add 1.4 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts for an extra bit of flavour and texture if you wish.

100g of dessicated coconut
7 ounces caster sugar
6 ounces self raising flour
90g of butter
1 large egg
125g of stoned dates, finely chopped
2 TBS whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
For the lemon icing:
1 cup of sifted icing sugar
1 TBS butter
the juice of one lemon



Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Line the baking tin with baking paper and lightly grease. Set aside.

Melt the butter. Once melted cool and then whisk in the milk, vanilla and the egg to combine well.

Sift the flour into a bowl. Whisk in the castor sugar, the coconut and the dates. Pour the butter mixture over top and mix well with a fork. Spread evenly into the prepared tin.

Bake for 25 minutes until risen and golden brown. Remove from the oven to a wire rack to cool.

To make the icing whisk the icing ingredients together until smooth. Spread over the cooled cake. Cut into squares to serve.

Apium graveolens is a tasty plant commonly known as celery, or celeriac, depending which part of the plant is being eaten. We often eat the roots, or celeriac. We love it mashed with cream and herbs, it makes a fantastic gratin and as a soup, it's just lovely. (I make a mean Celeriac, Apple and Stilton soup that is to die for!)

The seeds are wonderful in salads. I always like to add a few to my coleslaw and they are fabulous in a vinaigrette dressing.

Dieters love celery, as it is relatively low in calories, being mostly water. It's when you add the cheese or the peanut butter topping that it ceases to be real diet food. I think because it is normally eaten by dieters that it gets a bit of a bad rap, not to mention it's also really hard to eat quietly.



I can't imagine making a soup or stew without adding at least a few chopped stalks. It adds a lovely flavour in my opinion. And a tuna fish or chicken salad sandwich just wouldn't be that good without chopped celery added in my opinion!



Today I'd like to show you a rather unique and unsual way of using it. These scone like whirls are quite, quite tasty . . .

It goes without saying that wrapping this crunchy vegetable in scone dough, rather takes away from it's fat busting qualities . . . but what the heck!



*Cheese and Celery Whirls*
Makes 10
Printable Recipe

Very pretty with a lovely green celery swirl in the centre. They make an excellent accompaniment to a soup meal and are wonderful as a tea-time savoury. Wonderfully light and very tasty!

340g self rising flour (2 1/3cup)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry English mustard powder
56g butter, softened (1/4 cup)
115g mature cheddar cheese, grated (1 cup)
1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
1 large free range egg, beaten
5 fluid ounces milk
3 to 4 stick of celery, trimmed and coarsely chopped



Pre-heat the oven to 220*C/425*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Whisk together the flour, salt and mustard powder in a bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add most of the grated cheese, reserving a small amount for sprinkling on top before baking. Mix together the egg, milk and garlic and then stir this into the flour mixture, mixing in well until everything is well mixed together. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead lightly. Pat or roll out into a 12 by 9 inch rectangle. Scatter the celery over the surface. Roll up like a Swiss Roll, starting at the narrow end. Cut into 1/2 inch slices. Place flat side down on the baking tray. Sprinkle each with some of the reserved cheese. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown and well risen. Remove from the oven and serve warm.

Note - I'm not sure why this happens but from time to time the flour doesn't seem to absorb as much of the liquid as it should. This could be down to the brand of flour used, the humidity etc. IN any case, only add as much of the liquid ingredients to the flour mixture as will give you the consistency of a soft dough. Sometimes you may need more of it than at other times.

They say you learn something new every day, and I guess it's true. At least that is the way it usually works for me

Take today for instance . . . Today, I learned that cauliflower is considered to be, not only a cruciferous vegetable, but also an Inflorescent Vegetable. By that, I expect they are referring to the fact that it is a vegetable that is also a flower head, as other vegetables in the Inflorescent family include Artichokes and Broccoli, both of which are quite flowery as well . . . and none that I have ever seen actually glow in the dark . . . or am I missing something huge??!!!



I love Caulifower . . . me . . . I do. It's one of my favourite vegetables. It's very versatile and I think it tastes just wonderful. Low in calories, and chock full of vitamins, I ljust adore it raw, or cooked. If you are low carbing it, cauliflower is a God send as it can replace potatoes in a lot of dishes. The other night we had a chicken curry, and I served some steamed caulifower with it on the side. The cauliflower with some of the curry sauce on it was my favourite part of the meal!!

One of my absolute, ABSOLUTE loves . . . has got to be Cauliflower Cheese.



mmmm . . . those lovely tasty florets of Cauliflower, all tender and sweet, all blanketed, bathed and smothered beneath a lucious cheese sauce, and then browned until crispy on top in a hot oven or under a grill. Ohh, it's so, so, SOOOO good.

Sometimes I even add crispy buttered bread crumbs to the top.



I could make, and often DO make a meal of it!



*Cauliflower Cheese*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Some people may eat this as a main course, and it certainly makes for a delicious one. Other's may choose to have it as a side dish. Whichever way you choose, you will not be disappointed.

1 large cauliflower, broken into bite sized florets
1 1/2 pints milk
1 bay leaf
1 onion, halved
a few whole cloves
freshly grated nutmeg
2 ounces butter
2 ounces flour
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 TBS grainy mustard
4 ounces mature farmhouse cheddar, grated
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
To finish:
additional cheese as desired



First make the bechamel sauce. Place the onion, stuck with the cloves and the bay leaf into a saucepan with the milk. Bring just to the boil, then remove from the heat and allow to stand for 30 minutes to allow the onion and herbs to infuse the milk with their flavour. At the end of half an hour, melt the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour. Cook for one minute, then slowly whisk in the infused milk, discarding the onion, bayleaf and cloves.



Whisk and cook until thickened. Turn heat to very low and allow to cook for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently as to prevent it from catching. Remove from the heat and then whisk in the grated cheddar and Parmesan, along with the mustard. Flavour with some grated nutmeg and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Pre-heat the oven to 205*C/425*F.

Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and then add the cauliflower florets. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the cauliflower is crispy tender. Drain well and then place into a buttered shallow casserole dish. Pour the cheese bechamel sauce over top., cloaking it well. You can leave this plain or you can sprinkle over a handful of additonal grated cheese. (I have chosen to sprinkle over top a mixture of jack, cheddar, and jalapeno cheese here)

Place in the heated oven and roast until it begins to brown in places and the sauce is bubbling. Try not to go past this stage or the sauce will split and turn oily.

Serve hot.



Sometimes I even go all out and do something daring with my cauliflower cheese . . .

For instance, what do you get when you pop a cheese covered puff pastry hat on top of your Cauliflower Cheese???



Why . . . a Cauliflower Cheese Pot Pie of course!

It's no secret that I love grocery shopping, and I reckon I spend roughly twice as much time in grocery stores than most people, because of my job . . . so it's a pretty good thing that I do love it! I work as a personal chef in a big manor house and so, if I am not cooking and shopping for myself . . . I am cooking and shopping for work!



I regularly see things that I think to myself . . . I could do that and for less than half the price, and it would probably taste a lot better too.



I happened to see what looked like a delicious crumble in the frozen food section of my local Waitrose the other day . . . Orchard Fruit Crumble. What a tasty idea!!



I took a look at the ingredients and then dashed my trolly over to the produce section to pick up some apples, pears and plums.



Easy peasy . . . lemon squeasy. Of course, lashings of custard are a given . . .



And oh so very delish!!



*Orchard Fruit Crumble*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This is delicious and heartwarming. The perfect pud for a chilly autumn evening.

3 Bramley apples, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
3 pears, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
3 ripe plums, pitted and cut into chunks
2 oz butter
a pinch of cinnamon (optional)
8 oz of rolled organic oats
4 oz of soft butter
3 oz soft brown sugar

Melt the 2oz butter in a pan and then add the apples, pears and plums, coating them with the butter. Leave them to simmer on a gentle heat for about 5 to 6 mins or until just beginning to soften. Taste. If it seems a bit too tart, add a heaped dessertspoon of caster sugar. Pour this mixture into a buttered shallow baking dish.

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F.

Place 6 ounces of the oats in a blender. Blitz until they are the consistency of flour. Tip out into a bowl. Add the remaining oats, cinnamon, butter and sugar. Rub it all together until crumbly with your fingertips. Sprinkle evenly over the fruit in the baking dish.

Place into the heated oven and bake, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes, until the topping is nicely browned. The fruit should be completely soft as well. Remove from the oven and let sit for about 10 minutes, before spooning out into individual serving dishes.

Serve with lashings of custard or scoops of good quality vanilla ice cream.

Did you know that from the 2 November to the 8th of November it is British Sausage week? It is, and just in time for Bon Fire Night as well! (More about that later in the week!)

Only in the UK would they have a week designated to honour that most delicious of foodstuffs . . . the sausage.



We here in the UK love our sausages, and for very good reason. I think they are some of the best in the world. There are so many different flavours, and each region seems to have their own speciality, as does each butcher. I, myself, am quite partial to Cumberland sausages. They're lovely and spicy. Most delicious on a barbeque.

I have also rather recently become rather fond of Porkinson's Suffolk Ale and Herb sausages.



Why do I like British bangers so much??? Well, they are rather meaty for one thing. Not small by any stretch, they are fat and lovely. You can get smaller chipolatas of course, and you can get cheap and nasty versions, but if you are willing to spend a a bit more money and plump for quality, you just can't beat a good British Sausage.



Did you know that sausages are even old than ancient Greece or Rome??? The ancient Sumarians made sausages some 5,000 years ago. It is believed that sausages were first brought to the UK from Rome some time before 400AD. Since then they have been adopted by various various English counties, each one having developed their own unique ways of flavouring them. It wasn't until the reign of Charles I that sausages began to be divided into links and at one time they used to stick them up chimney's to be mildly cured! (The mind boggles!)

At any rate there is something rather moreish about a well cooked British Banger, with it's sticky brown outsides and tastily succulent innards.



There's also something pretty moreish about these tasty sweet and sour meatballs made with sausage meat. Sure you could use something else, but why bother . . .

These are incredible.



*Sweet and Sour Meatballs*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

You can use pork spare ribs to make this or pork tenderloin, in which case you will need to simmer them for an hour or so, until tender, before adding the cornflour paste. I, myself, love them made with sausage meat.

398g package of good quality pork sausages
2 ounces vegetable fat
1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
2 medium onions, peeled and sliced
1 large green pepper, halved, deseeded and sliced thinly
1 350g tin of pineapple pieces
4 TBS white vinegar
3 ounces soft light brown sugar
2 TBS soy sauce
1/4 tsp salt
black pepper to taste
2 TBS cornflour



Remove the casings from the pork sausages. Cut each one into fourths and roll each piece in your hands to make a round ball. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the oil and once it is hot add the sausage balls. Brown them well on all sides. Scoop out with a slotted spoon and keep warm. Add the onion, garlic and green pepper to the drippings and cook, gently until softened. Drain off as much fat as possible and add the sausages back to the pan.

Drain the juices from the pineapple into a measuring cup and add enough water to equal 1 pint. Add to the meatballs and vegetables, along with the brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Bring the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

Blend the cornflour with a bit of water to make a paste and stir this mixture into the pan, stirring constantly and cooking until the sauce has thickened and is clear. Serve with plain boiled rice or egg fried rice. Delicious!!