Do you remember these delicious Crusty Lasagna Buns? Tasty meaty lasagna sauce, stuffed into a bun, slathered with cheese and baked until the cheese oozes and the sauce is bubbling up. Oh so good with a salad on the side. Nom! Nom!
Do you remember these delicious Crusty Lasagna Buns? Tasty meaty lasagna sauce, stuffed into a bun, slathered with cheese and baked until the cheese oozes and the sauce is bubbling up. Oh so good with a salad on the side. Nom! Nom!
For the meat layer:
1 TBS oil
1 shallot, peeled and finely chopped
1 small carrot, peeled and grated
1 stick of celery, trimmed and minced
1 sprig of fresh thyme
375g (about 3/4 pound) of minced lamb
60ml of red wine (1/4 cup)
1 TBS tomato ketchup
1/2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 lamb bouillion cube, crumbled
sea salt and black pepper to taste
1 pound of large floury potatoes (In the UK a Maris Piper is ideal, in North America
I would use a russet or idaho)
2 ounces unsalted butter (1/4 cup, or one half stick)
Heat the oil for the meat layer in a large saucepan. Add the vegetables and thyme, and cook over about 8 minutes over low heat, stirring from time to time, until glossy and beginning to soften. Add the lamb mince and increase the heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the meat changes colour and separates. Add the wine, ketchup, Worcestershire Sauce, crumbled bouillion cube and some salt pepper to taste. Simmer over a low heat for 15 to 20 miknutes. It should still be somewhat juicy. If it isn't add a bit of broth. Check the seasoning and adjust as needed. Keep warm.
Peel and quarter the potatoes then place the potatoes into a pot of lightly salted water to cover. Bring to the boil and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until fork tender. Drain well in a colander and then return them to the hot pot. Cover with the lid and give them a good shake, which will help to break them up. Add the butter and warmed cream or milk, adding the latter a little at a time, whilst mashing the potatoes, only adding as much as is needed to give you the correct consistency. Season to taste with salt, pepper and nutmeg. The potatoes should be light, fluffy and creamy. Keep warm.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is golden brown and everything is piping hot. Serve immediately.
My husband is a really simple man with very simple tastes. If meat and potatoes are on the menu, he is one very happy camper indeed! He's been working really hard getting our garden Spring ready these past few days so I thought I would treat him today to a simple stew . . . which is one of his favourite meals of all.
I had some cubed leg of lamb that I had picked up at the butchers . . . perfect for a simple lamb stew. It seems kind of silly presenting this as a recipe as it's something which I just kind of throw together . . .
There might be a few of you though that would appreciate some simple instructions as to how to go about it. I can do it with my eyes closed, but that is because it is something which I have been throwing together for many, many years . . .
Stews are simple creatures . . . a bit of browned meat, some herbs, stock, a few vegetables . . . and you have something which is quite delicious and family pleasing. Today I had some Chantenay Carrots that I had picked up the other day for 50 pence. They were a bit larger than they normally are . . . each being about 4 inches in length. I thought it would be fun to simply peel them and then cut them in half before adding them to the stew.
I thought it gave a nice look to the finished dish . . . unusual . . . and in that same vein of thought, I added peeled whole new potatoes, which held their shape nicely and were not overly large. Altogether it gave a very rustic look to the finished dish, which I garnished simply with some chopped parsley and a few fresh thyme leaves . . . a bit of coarse salt and black pepper. It went down a real treat and we are both looking forward to the leftovers tomorrow . . . because as anyone knows, any stew tastes twice as good for having ripened overnight in the refrigerator.
*A Simple Stew of Lamb*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe
I love the simple things in life. They always please, no matter what.
1 TBS olive oil
1 pound leg of lamb cut into bite sized chunks
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 leek, washed, trimmed and cut into rounds
2 stalks celery, trimmed and chopped
2 TBS flour
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 TBS dried parsley
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
hot chicken stock (about 1 litre)
4 carrots, peeled and cut into batons
(Today I used half a bag of overgrown Chantenay Carrots, peeled and halved lengthwise)
12 medium new potatoes, peeled
1 large parsnip, peeled and cut into chunks
a handful of cubed Swede (Rutabaga)
Heat the oil in a medium sized heavy dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the lamb cubes, celery, onion and leek. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften and the meat to brown. Once the meat has browned all over, sprinkle it with the flour, rosemary, thyme, parsley and some salt and pepper. Cook and stir to coat meat. Pour over hot chicken stock to cover, giving it all a good stir. Cover tightly and simmer for about an hour. Add the carrots, parsnip, swede and potatoes, adding more stock as necessary and leaving the potatoes whole. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a slow simmer. Cover tightly and cook until the vegetables and meat are very tender. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. Spoon out into heated bowls to serve.
Those of you who have been reading my blog for a number of years now might remember a few years back when I did a review of this food company called Gousto. Gousto is a London based company which is devoted to ensuring that families enjoy quality food in the comfort of their own homes, even after a busy day. They have a professional team of chef's creating delicious recipes weekly. All the shopping and measuring has been done for you. All you have to do is to pick what you want to eat, and order it . . .oh, and cook it, of course, but if you are like me that's the easy part!
They contacted me again several weeks back and wanted to know if I would be interested in doing another review for them. They said that they had made some improvements since my first time reviewing them and they were keen to have me do another review. They did not have to ask me twice. I remember really enjoying my past experience with them.
First of all the packaging was slightly different. The box was extremely well packaged, the contents being divided and separated so the herbs and vegetables didn't spoil by getting too cold by being too near the meat and poultry. The meat and poultry were packed in a special woolcool bag which kept them perfectly cold. ( This bag is biodegradable and can be put in the compost bin when taken out of the plastic.) 95% of the packaging materials Gousto uses are recyclable. Cardboard boxes can be disposed of in your recycling bins.
The vegetables are and Soil Association certified organic and Gousto use meat and poultry from high quality animal welfare British farms. They have also lowered their prices by 17% and now offer meals costing between £5.00 to £7.00 per portion, which includes delivery. When you are talking about high quality, farm ingredients, this is pretty economical and on average that is substantially better than most supermarkets. Gousto have worked really hard on making improvements and have passed on any savings to their customers.
Included in my delivery was everything I needed to make three main course meals, two (two serving) ones and one (four serving) one . . . fresh organic produce and meats in perfect quantities for each recipe, plus essentials such as stock cubes, herbs, etc. There are only a few things that you might need to come up with yourself at home . . . things such as olive or vegetable oil, vinegar, milk, butter, salt, pepper, sugar and flour . . . the rest all comes in the box. Also included are step by step recipe cards, a folder to keep your recipes in and a letter telling you exactly when you need to enjoy your meal by so that you don't risk things going out of date.
The first recipe I made was the Moroccan Chicken & Lemony Couscous. The directions were very easy to follow. They had sent the wrong almonds, sending me ground almonds instead of whole, but thankfully I had whole almonds in the cupboard. The lemon was a bit on the green side, which doesn't really affect the flavour of the lemon, but was not as asthetically pleasing as a pure yellow one. Also the onion was not fresh, having begun to spoil a bit, but I just trimmed off the bad part and used the rest. I was a little bit surprised by that as, knowing it was going out for review, they should really have made sure everything was as it should be.
The dish however was absolutely fabulously delicious. We both enjoyed it very much! I would make it again.
Add the lemon and couscous to a bowl. Add 200ml(400ml) of boiling water to the bowl, cover well and set aside for 8 minutes. Coarsely chop the almonds. Fluff th ecouscous with a fork. Serve the couscous on a plate with the chicken strips on top and the remaining lemon pieces Drizzle with the sticky sauce and sprinkle with toasted almonds. Enjoy.
The next recipe in the box was for a Lamb Moussaka with a side salad. I have made moussaka many times myself and so I was really excited about trying their recipe. It used potatoes, which I had never done when I had made my own.
Once again the instructions were very easy to follow. All of the ingredients for this dish were fresh and present. No mistakes there. The finished dish was quite delicious. I think I will add potatoes myself the next time I made moussaka. The salad was a nice touch as well. I liked the simple dressing of olive oil and yoghurt with some seasoning. This was really good.
one oven proof dish
salt, pepper and olive oil
Meanwhile add the potatoes to the pot and boil for 7 minutes, or until soft with a slight bite. Peel and dice the onion and garlic finely. Add the onion, cinnamon and oregano to the lamb in the pan and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Once the potatoes are done, drain well and add to another oven tray. Coat well with 1 TBS (2 TBS) of olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Put in the oven for 10 minutes, or until starting to brown, turning halfway through. Add the garlic to the lamb pan and cook for one minute.
Once everything is done, use half of the potato slices to line your oven proof dish. Layer with half of the aubergine slices, followed by half of th e lamb mince and repeat until layering is complete. Top with the remaing yogurt and season with black pepper to taste. Put in the oven for 15 minutes or until golden.
Allow th moussaka to cool slightly before eating. it will improve the flavour and stop you from burning your mouth. Toss the dressing over the salad and work into the leaves. Serve the moussaka with the salad. Enjoy!
The third recipe was for Stilton & Pork Steaks with Pears and Pecans. I actually have not made that recipe yet. I froze the pork and cheese so that I can do it another time when I have more time. But it does look very good. If you want to know more about that recipe you can check it out on the Gousto Blog.
I have to say that one of the great things about this service is that there isn't any waste. Often in the ships it is impossible to get exact amounts of what you need to cook a dish, more often than not leaving you with an acess of ingredients which may or may not be used in time. Everything in the Gousto box gets used in order to make each recipe. Even the spices are measured out so there's no mystery, guessing or waste involved.
Gousto have recently launched a new website, so you can now easily make choices on your mobile phone. You can rate your recipes too and they're launching a few dozen new features over the next few months. Have a look at their menu - with 10 recipes to choose from each week there's something for pretty much every taste. There is also no comittment, so there is no monthly cost involved . . . just a whenever you fancy ordering a box to make life easier way of doing things. This is a fantastic option for those of you who are keen cooks, but don't have the time to faff about. With this service all the faffing is done for you. You simply have to throw everything together and enjoy the end results.
At the moment you can get meals for as little as £3.30 with the order of your first box. Also I have a code which you can use (which is only valid for 30 days) at the checkout. You can use the code friends25 and get £25 off of your first box.
Find them on Facebook
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See what they're up to on Instagram
Their home page
Many thanks to Gousto for sending me this box to use and enjoy. The food was really tasty and I could not really find much fault with it, except for the two things I mentioned, which was really not all that bad in the scheme of things. Although I was sent a box to use free of charge, any and all opinions are my own.
Hotpot is a very regional Lancashire dish consisting essentially of meat, onion and potatoes left to bake in the oven all day in a heavy pot and on a low heat. Originating in the days of heavy industrialisation in Lancashire in the north west of England, it requires a minimum of effort to prepare.
There are many regional variations, and it is frequently found listed amongst the usual pub grub dishes in various hostelries around Britain. The basic recipe consists of a mix made up of meat and vegetables (carrot, turnip, potatoes, onions or leek) which are then covered with a buttery thatch of sliced potato or pastry. Don't you just love the idea of a "thatched" roof of potato covering the top?
Lancashire Hot Pot
ingredients:
- 1/2 TBS olive oil
- 350g diced lamb (3/4 pound)
- 1 onion, peeled and sliced
- 1 carrots, peeled and grated
- 1/4 medium swede (rutabaga) peeled and grated
- 300ml lamb stock (1 1/4 cup) (can use chicken stock)
- 1/2 TBS Worcestershire sauce
- 1 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 350g of potatoes, peeled and cut into thin slices (3/4 pound)
- softened butter
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
instructions:
- Pre-heat the oven to 165*C/325*F/ gas mark 3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the meat in batches and fry it until browned on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon to a large casserole dish (one with a lid) as it browns. Set aside.
- Once all the meat it browned and removed from the skillet add the vegetables to the pan. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring them occasionally. Return the lamb to the skillet and pour over the stock. Add the Worcestershire sauce and season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix it all in well and then carefully pour the mixture back into the casserole dish. Tuck the thyme into the mixture, burying it.
- Cover the top of the mixture with a layer of half of the sliced potatoes. Season with salt and pepper and then dot with butter. Finish layering with the remaining potatoes and adding a final dusting of salt and pepper and dot once again with some butter. Put the lid on.
- Bake in the heated oven for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the lid and bake for a further hour until the meat is very tender and the "thatch" is nicely browned in places and tender as well. Serve hot spooned out onto hot plates along with seasonal green vegetables on the side and plenty of crusty bread and butter to mop up the delicious juices.
THE ULTIMATE SUNDAY LUNCH
One of the most iconic British traditions is that of "Sunday Lunch", also known as the "Sunday Roast" or "Sunday Dinner." Its a pretty good reason to look forward to Sundays, and can be great if you have a large family or group of people coming around that you want to sit down and share a meal with.
Typically it will be eaten around 3 in the afternoon, although these days you will find more and more people sitting down to it around supper time, due to their big Sunday breakfast. Its also quite popular these days for people to go "out" to a carvery or a pub for Sunday lunch and give mom a day off.
At one time it typically would have consisted mainly of Roast Beef and all the trimmings, but other meats are now becoming more popular, probably due to the rising cost of Beef.
Historically Roman Catholics and Anglicans abstained from eating meat on certain days of the week. This made having the Sunday roast a bit of a celebration because on Sundays all meat and dairy products could be eaten. It is widely believed that the first Sunday roasts were instigated during King Henry VII's rule in 1485.
In fact Royal Body Guards became known as Beefeaters due to their love of eating Beef and you will still see Beefeaters guarding the Tower of London.
A Sunday roast usually consists of roasted meat of some sort, the most traditional being Beef. It is not uncommon to also see people enjoying roast lamb, pork or chicken. All will be served with roasted potatoes, a variety of fresh vegetables, gravy and Yorkshire puddings, or batter puddings as they are also known.
Interestingly, Yorkshire puddings historically began as a starter dish, served with lots of gravy. I suppose the thought was that once people had filled up on the puddings, they wouldn't have as much room to stuff themselves with the meat, therefore helping it to stretch that much further. These days you will see them served along side of the meal. To the British a roast dinner is not a roast dinner without a crisp and light Yorkshire pudding to enjoy!
Ingredients for Sunday lunch can be picked up locally at any large supermarket, or (best scenario) your local Butchers and farm market.
Saturday mornings will find the local Butcher in most British communities filled with customers and often a line-up of people wanting to pick up their Sunday roast spilling out onto the pavement. There is something quite familial about picking up your meat at your local Butcher, which hearkens back to the days when people knew their neighbors and had a strong sense of community.
Whatever is served, the most important thing is that Sunday lunch remains a wonderful time to gather together around a table, relax, and catch up on the going's on of everyone's week just gone. Its a beautiful tradition that I hope never dies.
Today I am sharing my Sunday Lunch favorites, for both main and side dishes!
THE MAINS
PERFECTLY COOKED ROAST BEEF - This is more of a technique than it is a recipe. There is a lot more to cooking a roast than just banging into an oven. Whilst it is also very simple to cook, there is a proper way to do it and helps and tips that can produce the perfect roast every time. (if you follow them!) You can use this technique for any roasting cut of beef. I used to cook the Prime Ribs for the people at the Manor in this way every time.
ROAST PORK WITH CRISPY CRACKLING - Crispy brown on the outside, the tender meat studded with slivers of garlic, and dusted with plenty of salt and pepper, this is a real favorite Sunday Lunch around here. Served with Crispy Roast Potatoes and all the traditional veg, not to mention a tasty gravy. If you can remember, take it out of it's wrapping the night before and store open to the air in the fridge. This helps to make a nice dry and crisp crackling!
PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN - A perfectly cooked roast chicken, with moist and succulent meat and a crispy skin. This is my favorite way to roast a chicken. It turns out moist and delicious each and every time. There are plenty of tasty drippings to make a lush gravy with as well.
SLOW ROASTED LAMB SHOULDER - This succulent piece of meat melts in the mouth it is so tender. This is my favorite cut of lamb. Tender deliciousness that falls apart at the touch of a fork. Delicious and simple to make.
PERFECT ROASTED BONELESS LEG OF LAMB -These instructions depend on how large your piece of meat is and servings will vary accordingly. You will want approximately 1/2 pound of lamb per person. Mellow and deliciously tender.
APRICOT GLAZED GAMMON - Perfectly glazed . . . nice and sticky . . . tender, perfectly cooked meat. Tender ham with a lovely fruity glaze. Gammon is uncooked ham. Once it is cooked it becomes ham. Or so I am told.
THE SIDES
YORKSHIRE PUDDING - Lets begin with everyone's favorite. Yorkshire Pudding. Crisp and light as air, these are the perfect puddings. Its my late FIL's recipe. He was an army cook so you know they are beautifully delicious! I've been making these for over 40 years now! There is an art to getting nice puffed and tall ones, but I share all my secrets.
CLASSIC ROAST POTATOES - Next to the Yorkshire Pudding this is one of the favorite sides in a roast dinner. Also referred to as "Roasties" these potatoes are crisp and golden brown on the outsides and fluffy inside. Parboiled, roughed up, and roasted to the perfect crisp finish in hot goosefat, dripping or hot oil.
CREAMY MASHED POTATOES - Light and fluffy with just the right amount of butter, milk and seasoning. I like to enjoy mine with a pat of butter in the middle, but a pool of gravy is just as nice!
HONEY MUSTARD ROASTED PARSNIPS & CARROTS - Coated in a mix of melted butter, Dijon mustard and sweet honey. These are roasted to perfection, coming out sweetly glazed, beautifully caramelized in places and perfectly crispy tender.
PERFECTLY COOKED CABBAGE - Cabbage really only needs about 3 to 5 minutes of cooking time, just so long as you prepare it properly in the first place. Finely shredded, lightly salted and cooked quickly in boiling water, it comes out perfect every time.
CREAMY PARMESAN BRUSSELS SPROUTS & BACON - Sure you could just boil your sprouts, but why settle for that when you can be enjoying crispy tender brussels sprouts in a creamy garlic sauce. This lovely side dish, topped with bubbling cheese and smoky bacon will be right at home with any roasted meat!
SAUTEED SWEDE (TURNIP/RUTABAGA) - These are quite simply delicious. There is no other word to describe them. Buttery. Slightly sweet. Oh so tasty. I could sit down to a plate of these and nothing else, but they do make the most fantastic side dish with a roast dinner . . . pork, beef or turkey or chicken. Take your pick. These simple old fashioned dishes are my favorite kinds of dishes. They just never get old.
HONEY & DILL GLAZED CARROTS & TURNIPS - These are a little bit more special than just plain boiled vegetables. Being lightly glazed with some butter and honey, then flavoured with dill . . . these arrive at the table glistening like jewels.
MELTING ONIONS -These will be the star of the show! These delicious onions melt in your mouth. Four simple ingredients. One fabulous dish.
ROASTED ONIONS WITH A PARMESAN CREAM - These are delicious and so simple to make. You can have them as a side dish, or a vegetarian main with a grain and a few other vegetables.
SAGE & ONION STUFFING - This is my favorite of all the stuffings. It is Mary Berry's recipe. You can bake it in a flat dish, ready for scooping, or roll it into balls and bake it that way. Why settle for a mix when the real thing is so easy to make and a hundred times more delicious!
PERFECT GRAVY FROM SCRATCH - Why use Bisto when you can make a perfectly delicious gravy from the drippings. No drippings? You don't need them. You can make this gravy easily just using simple ingredients that you probably already have in the house.
People also really enjoy a condiment with their roast dinners. This could be horseradish sauce, apple sauce, English mustard, bread sauce, cranberry sauce, mint sauce, etc. What you choose will largely depend on what meat you have chosen to roast.
It is typical to enjoy horseradish sauce with beef, apple sauce with pork, mustard with gammon, bread sauce or cranberry sauce with poultry and mint sauce with lamb. This is not a die hard rule and you can just have whatever sauce you want to enjoy with whatever meat or no sauce at all!
I could not personally eat a pudding (the British term for dessert) after a Sunday Lunch, well not right away anyways. Maybe a bit later in the day. Many do however. I will do a pudding post at another time.
In the meantime please enjoy my take on Sunday Lunch. I hope that it will inspire you to cook up a roast dinner for your family! They will be over the moon if you do!
Not all of the dishes need to be recipes. Quite often I will only cook a roast and then have boiled new potatoes, peas, carrots, and mashed swede with it along with some gravy. Those are delicious dinners too. The important thing is to enjoy it. Together. As a family!
As Julia would say Bon Appetit!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
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