Tomato soup, with rice and cardamon

 The cherry tomatoes were blitzed in a blender. The rice was a left over from an earlier dish. I once lived with someone who loved tomato and rice soup. A trip down memory lane. 

Feta Cheese salad, with Pasta

A simple salad with feta cheese and two varieties of olives, dressed in olive oil. Diced tomatoes, dressed in some chives and black pepper, diced spring onions, grated carrot, plus cooked wheat-free pasta (ten minutes cooking time, with some turmeric). Drain, and allow to cool.  Then dusted with some smoked paprika. Quick to make. 

Diced Pepperoni Omelette

 A not terribly complicated omelette made with beaten egg (of course), tomato, mushroom, diced yellow pepper, spring onion, and diced pepperoni sausage. Fabulous dish. The beaten egg mixture was added after seven minutes. Cooked in a skillet at a medium heat for ten minutes, and then under glass for another seven minutes or so (judge by eye). 

Chicken in Black Bean Sauce, with Basmati Rice

 Diced chicken breast in a black bean sauce, along with diced spring onion and turmericed basmati rice. 

Chorizo Regio Sausage, with Potatoes

Chorizo Regio with boiled potatoes and fried mixed vegetables. Dressed in some freshly ground black pepper.  

Pamplona Sausage, Spring Onion, Red Pepper

An interesting selection of Spanish sausage from Aldi yesterday. An easy to prepare salad with Basmati rice, spring onion and diced red pepper. All done in five minutes (apart from the rice of course. That was pre-prepared). Served with a little horseradish sauce.

[Chorizo de Pamplona is a sausage that is typical in the cuisine of the Navarre region of Spain It is prepared with equal parts of finely-chopped beef and pork and significant amounts of a strong smoked paprika, and pork fat.]

 
 

Chicken with Ras El Hanout spices

A simple dish of chicken and vegetables, enlivened by the addition of ras el hanout spices. Served with basmati rice. 

Chicken, Egg Noodles and Beansprouts

 Fresh egg noodles bought from Aldi, along with a large bag of beansprouts. 

The chicken was cooked first at a medium heat in some rapeseed oil, along with the spring onions and diced chestnut mushrooms. Then a large handful of beansprouts was added to the pan at a high heat. Once they looked done I added  the egg noodles (which I'd soaked in a pasta bowl with boiling water while the beansprouts were cooking), and turned the heat down to medium again. Constantly stir, otherwise the noodles will stick.

Add chilli and garlic and soy sauce according to taste.

Chicken and Green Bean Minestrone

 The contents of the fridge needed to be reorganised. I rescued what could still be used to construct a dish, and I ended up with a minestrone. The onion and the chicken were cooked first in some olive oil, The rest of the vegetables were prepared and added to the flat pot at a medium heat, along with about half a pint of water. Cooked for ninety minutes under glass, stirring frequently. Delicious!

Winter Salad, with Ham, Apple, grated Carrot, and Spring Onion

Another one of those salads which can be put together in less than five minutes. The beetroot came from a jar (pickled), the ham came from the local supermarket, as did the apple, carrot, and spring onion. Dressed in a little dried coriander.
 

Egg Noodles with Yellow Pepper, Spring Onion, and Green Beans

 A simple vegetarian dish. The diced vegetables were cooked first in a wok with a little rapeseed oil (five to seven minutes at a medium heat). The noodles were prepared in another pan of boiled water (about five minutes - judge by eye). Add the noodles to the wok and stir together for about four minutes or so at a medium heat. Serve and dress with soy sauce. 

Lamb and Cinnamon Stew, with flat Noodles

 Ground lamb, with chickpeas, red pepper, spring onion, courgette and carrot (both spiralised before being added to the stew). With some added ground cinnamon. Plus lamb stock and vegetable stock. 

The lamb was cooked the day before for about two hours at a medium heat under glass until tender. Cooked again for another forty-five minutes with the spiralised vegetables. 

Served with flat chinese noodles (Blue Dragon brand in this case). The noodles were salted and infused with some sesame oil. 

Torunska sausage and Mushroom breakfast

 Diced mushroom and a quarter of a red pepper, a couple of spring onions, plus sliced Torunska sausage. About twelve minutes to cook in a small pan. Served with a baby leaf lettuce salad. 

Horseradish Chicken, with Spinach and Tomato

 Half a breast of chicken, diced, mixed with chopped spring onion, and horseradish sauce (two teaspoonsful). Served with chopped spinach leaves, and one tomato. Delicious!

Pork Loin Steak with Spicy Chips

Pan-fried outdoor-bred pork steak, cooked in a little olive oil for eight minutes each side at a medium heat. Served with diced mushrooms and spring onion, and spicy chipped potatoes (French fries).

The spiced potatoes (first parboiled for about eight minutes) were soused in a mixture of olive oil a chilli sauce and tomato ketchup, along with the herbs oregano and basil. Then grilled for about seventeen minutes until they began to brown (watch by eye, since all grills are different).
 

Vegetable Pie

A simple vegetarian potato pie, made with carrots, red pepper, and spring onion.

The vegetables were parboiled for fifteen minutes, as were the potatoes. Added to a pie dish, while the potatoes were added to a pyrex bowl and mashed with salted butter.

The potato topping was added to the pie dish, and textured with a fork. Cooked in the oven for around fifty minutes at 180 deg C (judge progress by eye).

Beef Chilli with Roast Potatoes

Ground beef, browned for twenty five minutes in sunflower oil along with diced spring onion, Then simmered in water for two hours under glass at a lowish heat. After which the vegetable stock is added, the chilli, the diced yellow pepper, and the haricot beans and tomato puree.

Arrowroot was mixed with some water and added during the last ten minutes (it functions as a thickener). Stirred thoroughly through the beef.

Roast potatoes were cooked in an oven preheated to 190 deg C. Cooking times will vary. These took fifty minutes, drizzled in sunflower oil. Judge by eye. Turned once to ensure even browning. 

 

Spicy Garlic Lamb and Spinach

Ground minced lamb which had been browned and then simmered under glass for two hours. Then I added diced mushrooms, lamb stock, oregano, and two bay leaves. Then simmered again under glass for another 45 minutes, with some onion gravy granules. I added diced spinach leaves and spring onion, plus half of a chopped yellow pepper. 

I added several crushed cloves of garlic, and a couple of red chillies, which I removed (along with the bay leaves) after an hour or so. 

Served with steamed potatoes (thirty minutes or so), and boiled podded peas. 

Baked Potato with Ground Lamb

The baked potato was begun first, with a little butter, in a roasting tray in an oven heated to 190 deg C. It took one hour and fifteen minutes to cook (not wrapped in tin-foil). Check every fifteen minutes, particularly if you don't have an oven thermometer.

From the fridge I took the Fresh ground minced lamb I cooked a couple of days ago, which had been browned and then simmered under glass for two hours. Then I added diced mushrooms, lamb stock, oregano, and two bay leaves. Then simmered again under glass for another 45 minutes, with some onion gravy granules.

I added diced spinach leaves and spring onion, plus half of a chopped yellow pepper. Serve hot.

Potato, Spinach, and Polish Sausage Casoulet

A simple casoulet begun as a stirfry of diced polish sausage, diced potato, spring onion, quartered button mushrooms, chopped green beans. I used a drizzle of olive oil. 

Cooked for about an hour at a medium heat. Then I added boiling water, along with some vegetable stock, plus chopped spinach, and the herbs sage and tarragon. Cooked for a further forty-five minutes.