Rich bread and butter pudding

So, we saved the innards of the crusty cob that held our goulash last week and so bread and butter pudding needed making.  Again, not a recipe that the more recent darlings (Nigella, Jamie, Nigel etc) seem to have in their repertoire and so when that happens who to go to but trusty old Delia and her complete cookery course (incidentally this is the first cook book I ever owned and was a housewarming present from my sister when I bought my first house is 1992)?  We had this with cream and I really enjoyed it, particularly the lemon tones coming through.

Spinach salad

I know a spinach salad doesn’t sound like much but as it is from Jamie’s 30 minute meals you know it’s going to be good - and it is full of sun dried tomato, fresh mint, pine nutty deliciousness.  You never know, I may start liking salads!  I made this because the weather is stunning and we are having a barbecue, so it’s a pretence at healthy eating.

Rhubarb, ginger, cream

I have been gifted rhubarb from my friends allotment and didn’t fancy the delicious but bogstandard crumble that I usually make so went hunting through the lesser used books and found this recipe for what is essentially a rhubarb fool in ‘Hugh’s Three Good Things’ by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.  I’ve missed out 250g yoghurt because I haven’t got any in and during lockdown we don’t go to the shops more than once a week so I made do with double cream that I had in plus a little vanilla essence.  I love rhubarb so this is a winner for me. It was very rich though so a reasonably small portion was enough - with homemade gingernuts.

Yorkshire gingernuts

I have deviated from my usual (Delia) recipe today in order to try something new and have made these from Mary Berry’s Baking Bible, to go with the rhubarb fool.  They are so good, even though they felt exceptionally dry and unpromising when they were going in the oven.  This is the only recipe I will use from now on - plus I made them on my lunch break in order to sneak one (or five) with my afternoon cup of tea.  Mary says this quantity makes 50 biscuits, but hers must be very small as I only turned out 30 - but 30 buttery, gingery beauties!

Hungarian goulash

Another suggestion from the boyf’s son. I have the feeling that goulash is really out of fashion and I went through all my Jamie, Nigella and Nigel books for it, to no avail.  I knew Delia would come good for me and so she did in her Complete Cookery Course.  Rather than do it it in oven though I put this in the slow cooker. And I ignored her advice to serve with rice and instead dumped it it a bread bowl.  It was absolutely fantastic!  The flavour was gorgeous- I can’t believe I’ve not made this before,  but I’ll definitely be making it again.

Gingerbread ice cream

This is from an American book I have called The Homemade Ice Cream Recipe Book.  My boyf’s son, who is half American had suggested gingerbread as a flavour when I said that we had to stop just having the white chocolate ice cream, which is our favourite.  I was extremely sceptical when he said it but when I saw the recipe I could see that it would probably work really well.  And it did - the ginger was not overpowering but just hit the right note.  Lovely - can imagine this working well with a sponge pudding.

Pears baked with Marsala and cinnamon

I have reorganised my cookbooks and decided to try, over the next 12 months, to cook at least 1 recipe from each book.  Starting on my top shelf I took out The River Cafe Cook Book which I don’t believe I’ve cooked anything from previously.  I had all the ingredients in for this and it was incredible - like a posh toffee apple!  But a pear!  I had mine with homemade white chocolate and dulce de leche ice cream.  So good!

Lamb kofta flatbreads, pickled red cabbage

Oh Jamie, Jamie, Jamie!  I think that I may love you, now that you have introduced this into my life!  I saw him make this on his lockdown programme Keep cooking and carry on and found that it is also in his 5 ingredients book.  Each element was so simple to make but the flavours are completely divine.  Mine had added feta.  And homemade flatbreads - who knew?

Red cabbage and crispy bacon

I am really in a baking mood today (even though I’m on one of my two fasting days and so wouldn’t eat a freshly baked item anyway) and was looking for cake inspiration in Jamie’s Great Britain, home of one of my daughter’s all time fave cakes, the St Clement’s cake, when I came across this recipe and remembered that the boyf’s son had used a quarter of a red cabbage nearly 2 weeks ago and it has been languishing in the fridge since.  All the other ingredients are store cupboard essentials so I got cracking on this instead.  It’s really good, but I expect it will be even better tomorrow, which is when I can eat it, so I’m going to save it till then.

Pale ale fondue

This is from Jamie’s Great Britain, the book that made me reevaluate Jamie as it is so packed with properly flavourful recipes.  I made the baguettes again to go with this and I’ve got to say it was all pretty amazing.  Will be making this again, and again and again

Asian braised shin of beef with hot and sour shredded salad

From Nigella’s Kitchen, a book I have made so many thing from and return to time and time again.  I’m not sure why this one has passed me by but the time given to us by lockdown and the fact that these kind of flavours are favourites of both me and the boyf’s son that I gave it a go.  The house filled with amazing smells over the long cooking time and the end result was completely delicious.

Pork chops, crisply crackling and minty cabbage

We are spending a fortune on the food shopping during lockdown so I’ve said that we need to run the freezer and the cupboards down to try and limit it.  Incredibly, we had all the ingredients in for this meal from Jamie’s 30 minute meals.  I’ve totally given up on disliking Jamie as he is always absolutely bang on with his flavours - I wasn’t disappointed tonight.  The pork chops were delicious and a white cabbage was transformed with addition of mint sauce.  Bravo Jamie, bravo!