Salmon & Spinach Pasta Bake

I was hungry for something really tasty and made this from bits and pieces I had in the kitchen and freezer. It was a week where needs must and I couldn't go out and buy extra ingredients...

I used organic salmon from my freezer, which I buy from the fishmonger in Kilcolgan called Kelly's (Michael Kelly). They are a local family who have fished for generations. They're next to Mother Hubbard's and have parking right outside ! Telephone (091) 796120. http://www.kellyoysters.com . Email:  kellyoysters@eircom.net

I just threw everything in really, and so these quantities are what I suspect I used. Feel free to adjust them to your own taste.

1 large Salmon darn (steamed until cooked and the flesh stripped from the skin)

4 good handfuls of baby Spinach leaves (normal spinach would be fine, maybe chop it up a bit)

A few mushrooms, chopped up

Half an Onion, chopped small

1 teaspoon ready made English Mustard

4 cups Pasta (use the spiral ones)

3 tablespoons Plain flour

About 4 cups Milk

3 ozs Butter (salted)

Sea Salt

Freshly ground Black Pepper

Cheedar Cheese (grated)

1.   Cooked the pasta and drain it well. Put to one side.

2.   If you haven't already, steam the salmon until nicely cooked. Then remove the flesh from the skin and flake it.

3.  Make a roux.  Melt the butter in a medium sized saucepan.

4.  Mix in the flour until well blended, then heat gently for a couple of minutes.

5.  Take the pan off the heat and add the milk a small bit at a time, whisking each time until it is smooth.

6.   When all the milk is added, return the pan to the heat and slowly bring the mix to the boil, whisking almost constantly to stop lumps forming.

7.  Add salt and pepper to the white sauce to taste.

8.  In a frying pan fry the onions and mushrooms (chopped small) until they are nicely cooked and soft.

9.  Add in the salmon, English mustard and spinach. Fry for another 2 minutes.

10.   In a large bowl mix the white sauce, the salmon and onion mix and the pasta all together. Adding salt and pepper to taste.

11.   Put the whole lot into an overproof dish. Grate the cheese all over the top. Grind a little pepper over the top too.

12.  Bake in an oven at 175C for 30 minutes, or until the cheese has changed colour but not burnt !

Bacon & Leek Hash

Yesterday I was trying to use up stuff I have in my fridge and kitchen, and decided to make a kind of bacon and leek hash, as I had those bits to use up !

I didn't measure anything - just tossed it in. So I hope I can explain how I made it as it was very tasty.

So...

Bacon and Leek Hash

4 slices unsmoked Back Bacon
Half a medium Leek
2 medium Potatoes (cut into small cubes - 1.5cm across)
Olive Oil
Fresh Chives (chopped)
Salt & Pepper

1. Put the chopped potatoes into a saucepan of cold salted water, and bring to the boil. Simmer them for about 5 minutes, no more. Less if they look like they are cooked.

2. Drain the potatoes and return them to the pan. This will allow them to dry a bit.

3. Next chop about half a medium sized leek - roughly the same as one of the two below. It needs to be chopped thinly, like the next photo.

4. Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan and heat. Fry the leeks and chives until they are soft.

5. Add the bacon chopped into pieces. Fry in hot oil until starting to crisp, leaving the leeks and chives in the pan.

6. Put the fried veggies and bacon in a dish for now.

7. Add 3 more tablespoons of olive oil to the hot frying pan.

8. Add the cooked, dried, chopped potatoes to the pan and fry them until they are nicely browned.

9. Add the veggies and bacon back into the pan with the potatoes and heat them back up.

10. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Pork & Sausage Casserole

Yesterday my friend John came over to continue to help me build my raised beds in the polytunnel. He is stronger than me and better with pieces of wood...

I decided to make a pork and sausage casserole for dinner - a kinda cross between a French cassoulet and a Spanish stew... but with no beans and no peppers and with fresh chives !

I took some photos as I was making it. I measured nothing, more just threw things in as I thought of them... so here it is -

Pork & Sausage Casserole
1 Pork Tenderloin (called pork steak in Ireland) chopped in small cubes
1 pack Sausages (any kind - I used skinless ones, but pork and herb sausages would be heavenly) - chopped
1 Onion - sliced
4 medium Mushrooms - chopped into decent hunks
2 x 290ml jars Tomato Pasta Sauce (I used my own homemade sauce from my own veggies - containing tomatoes, basil, garlic and onions all blended smooth and stored for the winter in glass jars LINK TO RECIPE HERE)
3 tablespoons fresh Chives - chopped small
Sea salt and freshly ground Black Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1. Throw the chopped pork and sausages into an ovenproof casserole dish.

2. Add the olive oil.


3. Toss in the pasta sauce and stir well in to coat the meat. Homemade pasta sauce recipe click here

4. Add in the chopped chives.

5. Toss in the sliced onions.

6. Bung in the mushrooms as well.

7. Stir it all in together, adding the salt and pepper. Mix well.

8. Shove the covered dish in the oven !

10. Slide in a few whole potatoes in their jackets (skins).

11. Bake the whole lot for 1.5 hours at 180C.

12. Tell everyone how hard it was to make and try not to smile too much...

Sunday Lunch - Roast Chicken & Roast Vegetables

How To Make A Delicious Roast Chicken Dinner

in the Easiest Possible Way

Yesterday I roasted a chicken and some vegetables for Sunday lunch. My good friend John was visiting and doing a few jobs for me. In exchange I cook !

The chicken was a free range, almost organic one from The Friendly Farmer who has a farm near Athenry.

I like to sometimes cook the entire roast dinner in the roasting tray - it saves on electric, time and effort !

I pre cook the vegetables in slightly salted water until they are almost cooked. Then drain them well.

I pour plenty of olive oil over the chicken and into the roasting pan. I then sprinkle in quite a lot of Herbs de Provence. I mix the herbs into the olive oil and then baste

both the chicken and all the vegetables well.

This means that they food is cooked in olive oil and is also flavoured with heavenly Provencal herbs.

I also stuffed the chicken with sage and onion stuffing (packet mix from Paxo - very good taste and texture and not expensive).

Needless to say it was delicious and extremely easy to prepare and cook.

Cottage Pie & Shepherd's Pie

Here is one of my all time favourite lunch or dinner recipes.

My Mother used to make this in the same way, as did my Nan. It's very simple and basic - no fancy unusual ingredients.

Fast n Easy !

Good old fashioned home comfort cooking at its best !

What's the difference between Cottage Pie and Shepherd's Pie ?
The only difference between cottage pie and shepherd's pie is that cottage pie is made with minced beef and shepherd's pie is made with minced lamb. Everything else is the same. I'm sure there are many variations - but this is how I make it.
Cottage Pie - Shepherd's Pie

This recipe is for the beef version (Cottage Pie) - if you are making Shepherd's Pie, just substitute minced lamb for the beef.

1.5 lbs (700g) Minced Beef/Lamb
1/2 medium Onion (chopped well)
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
2 tablespoons Bisto Instant Chicken Gravy Mix (the chicken version tastes 100 times better in any recipe than the beef version and you can't taste that it's chicken !)
1.5 tablespoons Lee & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
Water (small amount)
6 medium sized Potatoes
2 ozs Butter
2 tablespoons Milk
Freshly ground black Pepper
Sea Salt
1. Lightly cook the chopped onion in a saucepan in the olive oil for 3 to 4 minutes.


2. Add the minced beef or lamb and mix it in well - breaking up the mince so that there are no clumps.




3. Cook the meat and onion until it is all brown. Keep the lid on the saucepan as much as possible in between stirring, in order to keep as much liquid as possible (rather than loose it via steam).

5. Add the gravy mix granules and stir in well.

6. Immediately add the worcestershire sauce and a small amount of water. The amount of water added should be just enough to make a moist mix, but not one with runny sauce. Mix it in well while still cooking on the stove top.

7. Spoon the meat mixture into an ovenproof dish.

8. Peel and chop the potatoes into small chunks as below. Cook for about 20 minutes until they are soft.

9. Drain the cooked potatoes and return them to the saucepan (its still warm and will keep the mix warm and soft).

10. Add the butter and milk to the potatoes and mash very very well.

11. Add a nice bit of freshly ground black pepper and some ground sea salt, then mash and mix this in well too.

12. Spoon the mash potato onto the top on the meat mix in the dish. If you spoon it in small amounts you can cover the area without having to 'spread' it too much. Spreading it often stirs up the meat underneath and makes a mess.

13. Flatten the top with the back of a fork.

14. Place in the oven at 160C (325F & gas mark 3). Cook until the top is golden all over and the ridges are slightly brown and crispy looking. (Takes about 30-40 mins usually).

15. Serve with something like mashed swede (as below) then eat !

The instructions for making the mashed swede / turnip (called turnip in Ireland - swede in UK) are in the next post (Click Here)

Baked Ham with Honey & Mustard Glaze

This is a traditional and very versatile part of the Irish Christmas Dinner. Although the honey and mustard glaze is my preference, traditionally it would more likely have been just honey or brown sugar, if anything.

The really great thing about cooking a ham at Christmas, is that you also have loads of cold ham for sandwiches, for salads, to serve with cabbage and white sauce, for on pizzas, for almost anything in the days after the Big Dinner.

Here in Ireland (and in the UK) we have our Christmas Dinner on Christmas Day, usually around 1.30pm to 3.30pm. It lasts all afternoon and then in the evening we eat cold meats, cheeses, pickles, anything we have left over and we fancy !

I'm English living in Ireland for a good while now. I have noticed that basically the traditions are the same, but with a few interesting differences. Turkey and ham as the dual meats in the Christmas Dinner is one of them. In England we would have had just turkey (well we did in the part I come from).

So here is my baked ham recipe for this Christmas...

Christmas Baked Ham with Honey & Mustard Glaze

6 lb (2.5 kg) unsmoked best prime Ham Joint (this is from the hind legs)
Vegetable Stock Cube (I use Kallo organic stock cubes, but Knorr aren't bad either for taste. I really don't like Oxo cubes for cooking)
1 Onion
1 Carrot
2 Bay Leaves
Whole Peppercorns
2 tablespoons grainy Mustard (good quality)
3 tablespoons clear Honey
Water
150ml Apple Juice
Fresh Black Pepper

1. Put the whole ham (gammon) joint into a large saucepan and cover it with cold water. Leave the skin etc on it at this stage.

2. In a bowl dissolve the stock cube in 300ml of hot water.

3. Add the apple juice to the dissolved stock cube, as well as the onion (in large chunks), the carrot (large slices), the bay leaves and 12 whole peppercorns. Stir a small bit to mix.

4. Pour the stock, juice and veg mixture into the sauce pan with the ham.

5. Place the lid on the saucepan and bring it to the boil on the hob (top of the stove).

6. Once it is boiling, turn down the heat so that it simmers lightly. Simmer like this for 2.5 hours. Make sure you skew the lid slightly, so that the steam can escape.

7. After the 2.5 hours, cover it again and bring it to the boil slowly.

8. Once boiling, again reduce it to a simmer and gently cook it for another 1.5 hours.

9. Now allow the ham to cool in its liquid in the saucepan for 40 minutes.

10. Remove the ham from the liquid. Using a very sharp narrow knife (a fish filleting knife works), remove the skin and most of the fat underneath, leaving only a thin layer of fat.

11. With a sharp knife, cut a lattice (checkered) pattern into the ham (through the fat and into the meat).

12. Put the ham into a roasting dish, tray or pan.

13. In a small bowl mix together the honey, the mustard, and some freshly ground black pepper.

14. Spread this mix evenly over the exposed surface of the ham.

15. Cook the ham in the oven now for 30 minutes at a preheated 200C (gas mark 6), when it should be light brown on the surface and caramelised.

Serve with the dinner !

You can also bake a ham like this and use the meat cold.

You will be left with a ham and vegetable stock. You can use this as a stock base for soups and other dishes. I would skim off as much fat as possible from the stock, remove the bay leaves and freeze it in small portions ready for use.

The World's Healthiest Meal - An Anti Cancer Curry

I was recently browsing around news sites and newspapers, and especially the health, food and medical news, doing my usual thing and getting lost in time...

After a lot of reading bits here and there, I found an article in the Telegraph talking about an Anglo Indian chef who was fanatical about finding the perfect curry - a superfood - superspice curry.

My interest was piqued !

Gurpareet Bains is an English born Anglo Indian cook and nutritional therapist, who has an incredible passion for what he is interested in - and it happens to be extremely healthy food which tastes incredible !


He has developed - designed - invented - whatever you want to call it - The Ultimate Cancer Fighting Curry - which also happens to be incredibly healthy in many other respects.

It is in fact a chicken and blueberry curry, with goji berry pilau rice. Gurpareet says that it can help fight off carcinogenic cells. But it also contains many traditional ingredients like ginger, turmeric, chilli and garlic, which are all in their own right a superfood. And all are antiviral and antibacterial.

Every portion of this incredible curry contains the same nutrition as 49 helpings of spinach, 23 bunches of grapes or 9 helpings of broccoli. The article explains that experts have agreed that it contains up to 20 times as much nutrition as any specially formulated 'healthy' meal.

Gurpareet says that you need only eat this once a week to help deal with the prevention of cancers and many other illnesses such as Alzheimers.

So - what is in this incredible meal ?

I emailed Gurpareet and asked him if he would mind if I included his recipe on my blog. His reply was enthusiastic and he was kind enough to agree.

So here it is...

Chicken Curry with Blueberries & Goji Berry Pilau Rice
(serves 4)

20g chopped Coriander
200g fresh or frozen Blueberries
2 tablespoons freshly grated Ginger
Sea Salt
500g low fat Greek Yogurt
4 cloves Garlic - chopped
5 tablespoons extra virgin Olive Oil
2 teaspoons ground Turmeric
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon Chilli powder
500g uncooked Chicken breast
1 teaspoon Garam Masala
Fresh Coriander leaves
2 teaspoons Cumin seeds
1 small Onion - sliced
1 Carrot - grated
1 & 3/4 cups of Water
1 cup Basmati Rice
50g Goji Berries
Handful of peas (fresh or frozen)

The Curry


1. Blend 20g of chopped coriander, the blueberries, the grated ginger and 3/4 of a teaspoon of salt with the low fat Greek yogurt. Once well blended put this to one side.

2. Put the chopped fresh garlic into a saucepan with 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Heat on a low-medium heat until the garlic starts to brown. Just 1 or 2 minutes.

3. Add 1 teaspoon of turmeric and mix it in well. Heat for 20 seconds.

4. Mix in the ground cinnamon and the chilli powder. Cook this for another 20 seconds.

5. Add 500g of uncooked chicken breast meat, which has been cut into bite sized pieces.

6. Seal the meat, stirring frequently. This should take no more than 5 minutes.

7. Next slowly pour the yogurt mixture (that you prepared above) into the saucepan with the meat.

8. Bring this to a simmer on a low heat.

9. Simmer for 10 minutes. Do not cover. Stir it from time to time.

10. Then stir through the Garam Masala.

11. The curry is made. Garnish with some fresh coriander leaves.

The Rice

12. Place the cumin seeds and 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a saucepan.

13. Heat on a low to medium heat until the seeds begin to pop. This should take no more than 3 minutes.

14. Add the sliced onion and cook until it is soft.

15. Add 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder. Stir it in and heat for 20 seconds.

16. Add the grated carrot and cook for 2 minutes.

17. Boil 1 and 3/4 cups of water.

18. Place the onion mixture, 1 cup of basmati rice, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the boiling water into a large microwavable bowl. Mix well with a fork.

19. Cook, uncovered, in the microwave for 4 mins (700W), 3.5 mins (800W), 3 mins (900W).

20. Mix it well again.

21. Cook again, uncovered, for 4 mins (700W), 3.5 mins (800W), 3 mins (900W).

22. Now cover the bowl (clingfilm if no lid) and cook for 4 mins (700W), 3.5 mins (800W), 3 mins (900W).

23. Remove from the microwave and add the Goji berries and the peas. Fork them in.

24. Re-cover the bowl and let it stand for 10 minutes.

25. Fluff the pilau rice up with a fork and serve with the curry.

Gupareet Bains website is at www.gupareetbains.co.uk Please take a look - he has some amazing ideas.

Irish Atlantic Salmon with Baby Pasta, Tomato Pesto & Mascarpone

Hi again - I just wanted to share something that I whipped together quickly to take to this evening's party. It's easy to make, although I just threw the stuff in - so adjust the quantities to your taste !

Irish Salmon Darns with Baby Pasta, Tomato Pesto & Mascarpone

4 Salmon Darns (fresh, boneless & skinless strips)
Baby pasta (this is very miniature short tubes)
1 cup or mug Tomato Pesto
2 heaped tablespoons Mascarpone (triple cream cheese made from creme fraiche which is denatured with the whey removed)
Freshly ground Pepper
Sea Salt

1. Poach, steam or bake (covered) the salmon. Put to one side.

2. Cook the pasta as per the packet. When cooked, drain it and rinse under a cold tap to get rid of the starchy residue.

3. Flake the salmon into a bowl.

4. Add the salt, pepper, pasta, tomato pesto and mascarpone. Mix gently but well until evenly distributed.

5. Taste (best bit) and add more salt and pepper to taste.

Serve cold as a buffet / side dish, alternatively you can serve it hot as a main meal.

If you don't have baby pasta, normal will do. But be very careful not to swamp the heavenly salmon, pesto and mascarpone with the big lumps of pasta.

Leek & Bacon Gratin (or just Leek Gratin)

This is a favourite 'throw it all together' dish of mine, and I have had to concentrate to work out the quantities so that I can share it with you !

You can make it with bacon or without, so it is great for both carnivores or vegetarians... everyone's happy !

I often make it as a main meal as I am a leek freak, but it also makes a great vegetable side dish for a roast dinner or any main meal really.

Leek and Bacon Gratin / Leek Gratin

4 large Leeks (and I mean large - if not huge then use a lot more to make up - the leeks are important!)
10 slices unsmoked Back Bacon (rashers in Ireland and bacon in the UK - I haven't a clue what you call it in the states)
4 ozs (1 cup) grated Cheddar Cheese
1/2 pint (1.25 cups) Milk
1 Egg (beaten)
1/4 pint (150ml or 2/3 cup) single Cream (light or pouring cream)
1 tablespoon English Mustard (ready made)
Sea Salt & fresh ground Black Pepper

1. Chop the leeks into good sized pieces, about an inch each roughly.

2. Poach the leeks in the milk with salt and pepper to taste (place both in a pan, boil and then simmer for 15 minutes).

3. Remove the leeks from the liquid (but keep the milk for later). Put the leeks in a shallow oven proof dish (a lasagne style dish is perfect). Make sure the dish is well buttered.

4. Miss this bit out if you are vegetarian. Slice the bacon into strips and fry gently until the fat runs out of them. Once that has happened, fry on a hotter heat until they are nice and crispy.

5. Place the bacon strips on top of the cooked leeks and mix in a bit.

6. In a bowl, beat together the egg, the single cream and the mustard.

7. Add the beaten mixture to the left over milk in the saucepan, and mix in well.

8. Heat this gently. DO NOT let it boil please. Just let it thicken a bit.

9. Pour this sauce over the leeks.

10. Sprinkle the grated cheese evenly over the top. (If you have one) slice a fresh tomato and lie the slices over the top to decorate.

11. Place in the oven at 180c for about 20 minutes, or until the top starts to colour. Alternatively for more speed, you can just brown it under a grill.

As a variation you can sprinkle fresh ground nutmeg on the top before putting it in the oven.

Colcannon & the Tradition of Halloween

As All Hallows' Eve, Halloween or Hallowe'en is fast approaching, I thought I would find out some suitable recipes and share with you the roots of this very interesting and fun festival.

Halloween's roots are in the Pagan Celtic festival of Samhain, which later the Christian church amalgamated with All Saint's Day. The Christian church did this with many Pagan festivals and traditions, as a means of encouraging the Pagan populous to more easily accept and join the Christian church. Sneaky huh.

The word Samhain comes from the Old Irish for 'summer's end', although this is a very rough translation. Samhain celebrates the end of the lighter half of the year and the start of the darker half. Some people still refer to it as the Celtic new year and the Pagan ancient Britons held a similar festival called Calan Gaeaf.

The festival has always had an element of a festival of the dead. This type of festival is very common around the world, especially in cultures that are still close to their Pagan roots. The ancient Celts and modern day Pagans believe that the dividing line or border between the land of the living and that of the dead, is at its thinest at Samhain, thus the belief that spirits can visit our land of the living on this evening.

It was and still is for many people, a day to remember and commune with their dead ancestors, as well as a time when you try to keep away the more harmful spirits. It is believed that this is where the custom of wearing masks etc came from, in order to scare away evil and uninvited spirits from the house and the celebrations.

I still have a bonfire on Halloween which has been a family tradition I can remember my great grandmother practising, and probably all my ancestors before her.

I also read somewhere that 2 bonfires were common, with the people and their livestock walking between the 2 in order to 'cleanse' them.

So, rather than wondering that Halloween has become more and more colourful and wild in recent years, and blaming commercial interests, think of it this way. We are, in fact, celebrating it more in the spirit that our Pagan ancestors did, albeit most people without the Pagan religious aspect. In my mind this is a good thing, as this is a very important festival and a very important point in the year for anyone who lives close to nature, or is even just a keen gardener.

Another important ancient Pagan tradition, that carried on until extremely recently in Christian times, was that the fire in the house was put out on October the 31st, and lit again from the bonfire used in the festival. At that time (and still in some places in Ireland) you never let your household fire go out, it burned night and day all year, apart from on Halloween, when it was doused.

If anyone would like to share their ancient cultural traditions of Halloween, please just let me know in an email and I will post it here. Alternatively you can add it as a comment, although I think less people read the comments.

And so to Colcannon...

Concannon was once a basic staple food of the less well off classes in Ireland, as potatoes and cabbage were all many people had available at times.

Years ago (and in some houses still today) Colannon was traditionally served on Halloween, and wrapped up gifts of small coins were hidden in it. In more modern times this tradition seems to have been transferred to the Halloween Brack here in Ireland.

Colcannon is traditionally made with kale, although dark leaved cabbage works fine. Kale has a much darker colour and a slightly stronger taste. Colcannon is similar to Champ, but champ doesn't contain the kale or cabbage.

Colcannon

1 lb Kale or dark green leaved Cabbage (finely shredded with no stalks)
1 lb Potatoes (unpeeled)
6 Scallions (also called spring onions outside Ireland) (Chives will also do at a push)
1/4 pint Milk or Cream
4 oz Butter
Salt & Pepper to taste

1. Boil the kale in a pan of salted water until it is very soft and tender, maybe 15 to 20 minutes.

2. At the same time (if you can manage it) boil a pan of the potatoes with their skins on and whole, until they too are tender.

3. Heat the milk and scallions up to a boil in another pan, and then simmer them on low for about 5 minutes

4. Drain the kale and mash it up.

5. Drain the potatoes, peel them and mash them well too.

6. Once the potatoes are mashed, add in the hot milk and scallions. Beat this well until it is really fluffy.

7. Then beat in the kale, adding salt and pepper to taste, and half the butter.

8. Heat the finished dish through well, in an oven or similar, before serving fresh. Use the remaining butter to drop a knob on top of the colcannon as it is served on each plate.

Sophii's Shepherds Pie & Cottage Pie

I have been making Cottage Pie since I was knee high to a grasshopper... and it will always be one of my comfort food favs.

Did you realise that the only difference between Cottage Pie and Shepherds Pie was the animal that the minced meat comes from ?

Shepherds Pie is made from minced lamb (yes the cute and fluffy little bouncy white critters) and Cottage Pie is minced beef (teenage moo cows).

Simple.

About a year ago I told a very good friend of mine in Alabama how I made Cottage/Shepherds Pie. He bought some chicken breast and used that instead ! I was horrified... But he maintains it was delicious and has christened the result 'Chicken Coup Pie'. Thank you Terry !

I really will have to try it sometime...

Bon appetit !

Sophii's
Cottage Pie & Shepherds Pie (how my Granny taught me to make it)

1 lb minced Beef (or Lamb) (or chicken if you dare, Alabama style)
2 Onions
2 Carrots
1 oz Butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin Olive Oil
1 tablespoon Tomato Puree
2 tablespoons Tomato Ketchup
2 tablespoons Lea & Perrins Worcester Sauce
1 litre Chicken Stock
1 lb Potatoes
Dash of Milk
1 Egg
2 ozs Butter
Sea Salt
Freshly ground Black Pepper

1. Peel and chop the onions and carrots (smallish but not tiny).

2. Lightly fry the carrots and onions in the olive oil and the 1oz butter, just until they start to change colour.

3. Add the beef (lamb) to the partly cooked veg, and brown the meat on a higher heat setting.

4. When the meat is brown and looks cooked (no pink bits anywhere), add the stock to the pan, as well as the ketchup, the tomato puree, and the Worcestershire Sauce.

5. Cook for 20 minutes, letting the liquid reduce (so don't cover the pan).

6. Allow to cool and add salt and pepper to taste (I personally add none at all, as if you are using a commercial stock this already contains salt etc).

7. Peel the potatoes, then halve or quarter them maybe, and boil or steam them until cooked. Drain.

8. Mash the potatoes together with 2 ozs of butter, the dash of milk and the egg. Be very very careful not to put too much milk.

9. Put the minced meat mixture into the bottom of a good sized ovenproof high-sided dish (Pyrex is great). Place the mashed potato carefully across the top, as evenly as possible.

10. Make pretty marks in the top with a fork. Just cus !

11. Cook in a medium oven, 190C, 375F, or Gas Mark 5, until the top is a lovely golden brown colour.
If the top is dark brown (burning) its been in too long !

12. Let the pie sit for 10 or 15 minutes before you eat it.

Enjoy !

Leek, Potato and Cheese Bake

I have been sat here this evening trying to decide what to make for dinner tomorrow from the bits and bobs I have around the kitchen and want to use up.

I have a love of leeks and today I managed to buy a whole bunch of the most gorgeous baby leeks at the Ballyvaughan Farmer's Market (Saturdays 10am-2pm).

So... something yummy to make with them.

I have concocted this recipe from one that uses tomatoes, and I have substituted leeks and tweaked it a bit to make the best of the tastes.

I am going to serve it with a couple of fresh salmon steaks.

Hence -

Leek, Potato and Cheese Bake

5 medium sized Potatoes
3 Leeks (sliced in rounds)
2.5 ozs Butter
2 ozs plain Flour (all purpose)
350 ml Milk
175 ml Chicken Stock
1.5 teaspoons chopped fresh Thyme
4 ozs Mature Cheddar Cheese

1. Peel the potatoes and cut them into slices, about 1/4 inch thick.

2. Slice the leeks into rings of about the same thickness, 1/4 inch.

3. Steam the potatoes and leeks (or boil them) until tender, being very careful not to cook too much or they will disintegrate.

4. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the flour and stir it in. Heat it until it is bubbling then remove the pan from the heat.

5. Very slowly, bit by bit, stir in the milk and the chicken stock. Once it is blended, return the pan to the heat until the sauce boils and thickens.

6. Remove from the heat and stir in the thyme and half of the cheese.

7. In the bottom of a largish greased pie dish, overlap the half the potatoes and half the leeks to cover the bottom of the dish.

8. Pour over 2/3 of the sauce evenly over the potatoes and leeks.

9. Make a second layer of the remaining potatoes and leeks, overlapping them as before.

10. Pour over the remaining sauce and sprinkle the remaining cheese on the top.

11. Cook in an oven at about 180C for 20 to 25 minutes, or until it is lightly browned on the top, no more.

Chicken & Tomato Casserole

My Sunday has been fairly relaxed and easy compared to the last few weeks. Life is beginning to get back to some semblance of normal...

Normal for me that is.

This evening I made a Chicken and Tomato Casserole, adapted from a recipe I found in a hurry this afternoon on the net. MM came to concrete in some fence posts for me over by the barn and stables, and in exchange I baked him some bread and cooked dinner. The casserole is made completely from what I call 'store cupboard' foods, and is very easy to make and cook.

The chicken I used was from SuperValu and cost me just €1.48 as there was only 2 days left until the use by date ! I bought 4 packs and froze them all. MM said it tasted good... And he normally doesn't eat 'messed around' food - so I'm assuming thats a good thing !

Also... I have never photographed food before so please excuse the quality of the photographs... I'm sure with experience it will go from crap to less crap in no time.

Maybe.

Chicken & Tomato Casserole

5 Chicken Wings
5 Chicken Legs (in fact any chicken joints will do)
1 cup of uncooked Rice
1 Onion
2 tins chopped Tomatoes
1 large teaspoon minced Garlic (comes in a jar for emergencies or when you are too tired to cook properly!) or 3 cloves of chopped Garlic if you prefer
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 teaspoon ground Cayenne Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
Freshly ground Pepper to taste

1. In a frying pan lightly fry the rice and chopped onion until it is very slightly browned.

2. Add the garlic, tomatoes, salt, cayenne pepper and pepper.

3. Lay the chicken pieces in the bottom of a large oven proof casserole dish.

4. Pour the tomato sauce over the chicken pieces evenly.



















5. Cook in an oven at about 190C or 400F, for around 1.5 hours until the chicken is falling off the bones.

This is great served with jacket potatoes (baked) and lashings of butter...