I need Curry and BED!!

I can't cook today. My brain isn't coping very well after a weekend down in Bristol celebrating  Christine's Hen Do. All I need now is a curry and BED!! Never ever wish to see mud again. And yes...it was as cold as it looks. Great fun though!! 

Fruit and Veg Carving

I can hardly remember last week. A combination of night shoots and slightly crazy hours I suppose. However, I can't forget that we did get up to some fancy fruit and veg carving. We had to dress our set on PhoneShop3 for an evening event and rather than just flowers and canapes, Mo took it to a whole new level. We attempted our 'Danny Boyle Vision' as per the script. God knows what our Director actually thought: probably that we are all bonkers. Anyway, this involved the entire art department, clad with black bin bags, sitting and carving melons into swans or peacocks, daikon radishes into birds and carrots into daffodils until the early hours of Thursday morning in Sutton. I certainly cannot complain that my job is boring can I? And I can say I've learnt a new, albeit not that useful, skill.

Hearty Chick Pea, Apricot and Almond Tagine

I've been a little slack of late but today I've decided to make a winter warmer of a supper. A few weeks ago we went to visit Nel and Duncan in Nottingham and Nel cooked this lovely tagine for us. So Nel today I'm attempting to copy your gorgeous dish. It's rich and comforting packed full of Moroccan flavour.

I've also chosen a nice Chianti to go with it- which I must admit I chose based on the lovely label. Think I might start collecting wine labels to make a cool montage. A hommage to my favourite wines in a nice big artwork in the nice big kitchen that I always aspire to own (along with a sausage dog) . One day!

It's actually a very easy dish to make. First, I chopped some carrots and put them in a roasting dish with some paprika. I roast these for 40 minutes on 180 degrees. You could just add the carrots to the dish when you add the potatoes, but I prefer to roast them.

Meanwhile, Fry the onions and garlic until softened. Then add all of your spices, tomato puree, potatoes, peppers, chick peas, almonds, apricots,  finishing with a can of tinned tomatoes, harrissa paste and vegetable stock cube. You'll need to add water as well. I used my empty tomato can and filled it half way.

When the carrots are ready, stir them into the stew. Then it's just a waiting game. Put the lid on and let it cook on a low heat for an hour or so, letting the flavours all infuse.

Occasionally I had a taste to make sure it was seasoned correctly, and I added a bit of salt as well as a few teaspoons of Marmite (which is completely optional but added a savoury twist). I also added some balsamic vinegar to add some acidity to the sweetness. Just before serving I added some fresh parsley and a handful of rocket.

Serve with Cous Cous or Bulgar wheat. It's a great dish to have on a lazy Sunday as there's not a lot of work involved. Or you could easily serve it at a dinner party with a nice green salad, adding a rack of lamb on the side perhaps for the meat eaters of the party.

Ingredients (serving 4 roughly):

1 red onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 potato, pealed and chopped.
2 carrots
1 red pepper
1 can of chick peas
1 can chopped tomatoes
2 teaspoons of harrissa paste
1 and a half handfuls of flaked almonds
10-15 dried apricots
half a teaspoon of paprika
shake of mixed herbs
good shake of celery salt
half a teaspoon of ground corriander seeds
1 large cinamon stick (add this at the end so it doesn't snap)
fresh parsley
1 vegetable stock cube and water
1 hand full of rocket to add just before serving

Cauliflower Cheese with a Stuffed Mushroom

So last weekend we were away in Nottingham visiting Nel and Duncan in their very fancy abode. We saw the sites of Nottingham: the Castle, Wollaton Hall, wore silly hats in the cold, and even got to sample some of Pete (Master Baker) Mitchell's lemon Drizzle cake. Very nice!!!  It did mean that we were so late home that a Roast was simply out of the question. So this week, even though I am running late again, I'm going for it. And, as I currently have a cauliflower cheese obsession, why not have it with the roast.

The mushrooms:
For the Mushroom filling, I covered some Bulgar wheat with boiling stock and let it rest for half an hour before adding a chopped tomato, some fresh garlic (only 1/4 of a clove for two people), parsley and herbs.

Then in a baking dish I drizzled olive oil over two flat mushrooms, which I then stuffed with the Bulgar mix and covered with a mix of breadcrumbs, cheddar cheese, crushed pistachios and seasoning.

The cauliflower cheese:

As I had baby cauliflower I left them whole. I put each one is a small dish to bake. Or if you're using normal cauliflower then cut into sections and place raw into a larger baking dish.

In a pan, make a roux with butter and flour. Use a good knob of butter and two tablespoons of flour. Then stir until the flour is mixed in with the butter. Add some salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add your milk and cheese and stir continually until you have a thick cheese sauce. This amount serves two.

Pour your cheese sauce over the cauliflower and top with a little more cheddar.

Roast everything for around 40 minutes. Meanwhile I conjured up a nice thick onion gravy. You definitely need some sort of gravy. Recipe to follow ...