WHAT DID WE HAVE FOR TEA?

[busybees]

We are having bacon hotpot with baked beans followed by homemade christmas pudding and rum sauce.. I will pass on the pud and leave that for the kids and my chappy, he does so much walking being a postie he can eat lots.
I am clearing out all my cupboards and freezer and using up because I am moving house in 3 weeks so we are having some weird combinations of meals.
For brekkie we had raisins in our porridge , it tastes fantastic and doesn't half set you up for the day.

Helen

[Julie in Norfolk]

I wonder if your bacon hotpot is the same as my bean do? Ingredients bacon (cut into 1" squares), tin of baked beans, tin of (or fresh) tomatoes and plenty of pepper. Crisp up the bacon, add the tomatoes to the pan, add the beans and season well; cook until the bean sauce thickens up well and serve with bread and butter on cold days. It is filling, warming and thrifty. I think it is also on the me and you for next week.

[Julie in Norfolk]

Oh, and Lasagne tonight. Hand made from ingredients by the number one son. And just in case you are thinking it, yes I am up late tonight.

[Wendyf]

A spicy butternut squash, lentil and chickpea stew. Very tasty and warming.

[Marilyn]

Looking forward to a pub meal with friends tonight....yeeehah...don't have to cook!

[busybees]

Julie, my bacon hotpot is potatoes and onions layered up plenty of salt and pepper , then a 1/4 pint of stock over ,cooked in the oven for a couple of hours then the bacon goes on the top for the last 20 minutes . I like it with spring cabbage but today we had it with beans.

Helen

[Julie in Norfolk]

Bacon Hotpot added to my list of gastronomic must-haves. So much to eat, so little time to cook. As my mother says: "Good belly hold all."

[Stanley]

Jules, snap! I had the bacon hot pot many years ago and had forgotten it. Thanks for that Helen! Yes, dried fruit in porridge is one of my favourites as well.
Black pudding bit the dust. Had some spuds and carrots so chucked 4 Tamworth chops in the roasting tin with two bulbs of garlic and roasted it slowly for about three hours then into the pan with an Oxo cube and seasoning with some frozen peas and simmered for another hour. Lovely chunky stew for tea. Cheese on toast for supper. Am fancying some oxtail again this morning!

[Moh]

As stated before out tonight. Hope this posts, tried to post one on the Kelbrook topic and it told be the form was not correct and to submit again but it did not

[Marilyn]

Ate out at a pub last night. The meal was nice, but we found we had very little choice, as three quarters of the menu contained Garlic! So it was plain old Chicken Schnitzel for us. ( we both would have liked seafood but all of the seafood dishes were laced with Garlic...and it wasn't just sauces that you could omit at the end.) We find it very annoying. We also often find our food tainted from Garlic if we order it plain, as they use the same grill or pans used to cook Garlic for others. They seem to have no concept of how contaminated their cooking utensils can become. It really is a problem...

[Whyperion]

I dont think you should put seafood with garlic anyway. Rough rule of thumb if it grows on soil or grazes then Garlic OK , if it swims then no real need for seasoning other than maybe green herbs if adding a sauce to it orjust a little pepper.

[Marilyn]

Yes...I would be happy with that rule of thumb, Whyperion.( if you want to add to Atlantic Salmon, I think you can't beat a white sauce with lemon zest, black pepper, a touch of tarragon and a touch of dill, and a little parsley.)
Though I wouldn't mess with the veg. I like the natural taste of veg...nothing nicer than a sweet, juicy carrot.
Hubby has a similar problem with Coriander, which he absolutely detests, and that seems to be entering our favourite foods on an ever increasing basis too.

[Stanley]

Morning Maz. I don't observe any of the 'rules'! Who made them anyway? A little of what you fancy does you good!

[Moh]

At The New Waggoners last night, hubby had braised steak in a pepper sauce, he said it tasted just like fillet steak, with chips, and 2 veg., I had home cooked meat pie with chips and 2 veg. There were 2 other kinds of potatoes if you wanted them. Then hubby had jam roly poly and custard, I was too full, and we had a lovely bottle of Chilean merlot. Although wine is dear in pubs £14. the meals were very reasonably priced.

[Whyperion]

Are there different types of corriander - I wonder if taste changes according to soil type as some is ok , others not to my taste. Carrot and Corriander Soup quite nice ( obiviously not 50:50 )

[Stanley]

Got oxtail at Stewart's on Friday, I can feel a roast stew coming on (with dumplings?). Reight cowd weather grub!

[Big Kev]

Got some braising steak to use up so it's meat and potato curry for tea, accompanied by dhal.

[Moh]

We are having roast chicken for a change with apple sauce, roasties and cauliflower cheese.

[busybees]

I am still on my quest to empty the freezer for moving so we are on fish in butter sauce, mash , carrots and broccoli. then maybe some Christmas pud to get that used up.
I used my last allotment onion up yesterday in a celery onion and potato soup , I was thinking to myself we need more space to grow more onions and potatoes so we can be self sufficient all year round cos I use lots of them and this morning Ian Holgate rang my chappy and said he is at the top of the list so as of this morning he has an allotment on Damhead now next door but two to mine so we can grow even more veg for next winters stews, broths and soups..WOOOO . I am so looking forward to spring.

[Stanley]

Lovely BB! So nice to see someone who is so enthusiastic about good food. Remember the indigent pensioners if you have any surplus!
The oxtail will be roasted with veg etc today.... We shall not starve!

[Marilyn]

Tasmanian Salmon tonight. Poached...no garlic!

I bought some purple carrots on the weekend. ( purple through and through...why I thought they would be orange inside...I dont know). They were yum, and said to contain remarkable health benefits.
Note to self...do not cook purple carrots in the same pot as Baby Peas. Everything turns purple. Febby was quite freaked by the colour of the peas.

[busybees]

I grew the purple carrots the other year, I found they turned orange when I cooked them.

We are on plate meat pie,mash , cabbage and carrots for tea. I made 3 pies yesterday and I made 2 steak puddings using beef skirt , a lovely cut of meat,I steamed the puds all afternoon in pans perched on top of the stove. I have put pies and puds in fellas freezer so we can eat well on moving week.

When the gluts come in the summer I will remember you Stanley. I am eaglerly awaiting the first Rhubarb, I could force it but I prefer it unforced.

Helen

[Stanley]

Health and weather permitting, even though knackered, I can still do a spell of light hoeing (Dutch Hoe, I can manage pushing!)
Trip to Co-op, Oxtail in small oven with Parsnip, Carrot, Onion and rough cut spuds. Lovely way of cooking, keeps all the flavour in and can be left alone for 4 hours. Warms the kitchen as well, CH never kicked in last night but no problem, house is warm enough. In fact after making the roast I took me big jumper off, too warm! Things could be worse!

[Marilyn]

BB - the carrots stayed purple during cooking. They were the colour of tinned beetroot. Water went the same colour...I could have dyed the Royal Robes.
They are kind of 'horsey' looking carrots...more like purple parsnips to look at. I have enough for another meal during the week.
I wonder when these amazing health benefits cut in...and what they are!

[Moh]

Cold chicken tonight - not very exciting but tasty.