Lamb Cakes

This weekend we made our annual visit to the Royal Berkshire Agricultural Show (or as we ill always know it the Newbury Show). As well as lots of animals on show in all their shampooed and primped glory, the craft tent full of glorious treasures there is the farm food tent. As usual we came back with the car loaded up with high quality meat, artisan chutneys and oils and far too many interesting ciders, vodkas and gins!
Last night we had a simple roast leg of lamb (the freezer was full and the lamb wouldn't fit) with some of the vegetables from the garden. Tonight I fancied something different rather than a straightforward salad.
Serves 2.

Ingredients:
3-4 medium potatoes, peeled, boiled and riced
Good handful of shredded or chopped coat roast lamb (beef would work as well)
Bunch of parsley finely chopped
1 egg, beaten
Salt & Pepper

Mix all the ingredients together and shape into four cakes about 1.5cm thick. Put in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up.

Heat some oil in a pan and shallow fry until crispy and golden on both sides.

Serve with a punchy green salad with watercress and rocket in it. Add some quartered or halved tomatoes and some sliced raw mushrooms. Dress with a vinaigrette (I used a mix of raspberry vinegar and extra virgin olive oil).  

Christmas Curry

Haven't blogged many recipes recently, Liz has been away and with Christmas and guests visiting I've been busy cooking traditional seasonal food. As usual there has been lots of leftovers and salads of cold ham and turkey with slaws made from cabbage, apple, onion and home grown beetroot have been a staple. However after a while I start to crave something spicy and so here is my version of something my mum used to make. She used to make this after we had a roast chicken on a Sunday for supper on a Monday. I've tried many different versions and have eventually been able to get close to the taste of her curry. These quantities made enough for three generous portions and three smaller portions for lunch the following week! The chickpeas are my addition I don't think I had heard of them back in the seventies!

Ingredients:
Two large onions sliced finely
4 medium carrots grated
2 eating apples grated
1 chilli finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons of malt vinegar (I use the vinegar from a jar of good pickled onions as it has a bit more flavour)
Cold roast turkey or chicken or beef or lamb cut into chunks
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 bunch of coriander
A thumb sized chunk of root ginger grated 
1 stick of cinnamon
2 fresh tomatoes, quartered
Handful of frozen peas

Spice blend:

1/2 a teaspoon of peppercorns
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of coriander seeds
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1/2 a teaspoon of cloves
The seeds from 8 cardamom pods
1 teaspoon of turmeric



Method:
Fry the onion in a little vegetable oil until softened and starting to brown at the edges. Add the carrots, ginger and chilli and fry for a few more minutes. Add the apples and fry briefly. Grind the ingredients of the spice blend together and add to the pan and fry for a few minutes (add a little water if the spices start to catch) then add the vinegar, turkey and chickpeas. Stir then add the tomatoes, the cinnamon stick and a can and a half of water.
Simmer for 30 minutes then add the chopped fresh tomatoes, frozen peas and 2 teaspoons of garam masala. Simmer for 5-10 minutes stir in the chopped coriander and serve with rice.

For a non-meat alternative use a firm fish cut into large chunks and add after the rest of the curry have been simmering for 20 minutes, cook for 10 more then add the tomatoes etc. You could also replace the meat with a cauliflower or more chickpeas.

Chicken Stretching

Been a while since I blogged, work has been very busy, but it hasn't stopped me from cooking and thinking about food. Over recent years we have cut back on the meat we've eaten, instead buying less, better quality meat. Also I hate waste so when we have a roast chicken I like to make the most of it!
This weekend I roasted at free range corn fed chicken with some onion wedges, bay leaves, sage, thyme, onion, and new potatoes, adding a punnet of cherry tomatoes for the last half-hour.
Plenty of leftovers after this which went on to make the following meals:

• Monday work lunch of couscous, herbs, red onion, pepper, chicken and tomatoes
• Monday supper of a soup (made with chicken stock from the picked over carcass) of chicken, carrots, onion, canned tomatoes and sliced spring greens (with a portion for my lunch the next day).
• Tuesday supper of chicken curry (chicken, grated onion, carrot, spring greens, apple, dried fruit, cumin, coriander, fennugreek, turmeric, cardamom and creamed coconut), with a portion left over for my lunch the next day.

So from one chicken we got nine meal portions (and could probably have made 10-12 as they were generous portions) not including the little treats the cats persuaded me to dispense! 

Leftovers - Sweet and Sour Turkey

Fancied something with a bit of zing this evening. Serves three or 4 at a stretch depending on how much turkey you have. I cook this in a large (and very cheap) Ikea wok that now has a very nice patina.

Ingredients

1 Medium Onion - Finely sliced into half-moons
1 Large Red pepper - sliced
3 sticks of celery - chopped
2 cloves garlic - finely chopped
Thumb sized chunk of garlic peeled and finely sliced into matchsticks
1 small can of pineapple chunks
1/2 hard white finely sliced
Shredded leftover turkey
1 teaspoon of cornflour
1 tablespoon of tomato purée
2 tablespoons of vinegar
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of chilli sauce (or more if you like it hot or add fresh green chilli)

Fry the onion garlic and ginger in a glug or two of vegetable oil until starting to colour. Add the pepper and celery and stir fry for a few minutes until they start to colour. Add the turkey and stir fry. Drain the pineapple and add the chunks, vinegar, soy sauce, tomato purée and chilli sauce. Stir. Mix cornflour into reserved pineapple juice and add to the pan and stir to thicken the sauce. If the sauce is too thick add more pineapple juice or orange juice or vinegar depending on the sweet/sour balance you want.

Serve with boiled rice.

Leftovers - Curse or Blessing?

I love them - simple as that. Cold turkey and gammon with cold roast potatoes, cranberry sauce and pickles on Xmas Day evening and Boxing day lunch - Yum!
However after a couple of meals you need something to pick them up. A slaw of vegetables with a sharp perky dressing is great for this.

Ingredients
Half a small cabbage finely sliced (or a dozen or so Brussels Sprouts grated)
Half a medium onion - very finely sliced (red onions are especially good)
Two carrots - grated
Two stalks celery - chopped
One apple - grated (something crisp and tart is best)
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds (freshly crushed)
1/4 teaspoon salt (ditto)
1/2 teaspoon Szechuan pepper corns (ditto)
1/2 teaspoons carroway seads (optional but they work well with the carrots)
Glug of oil and juice of half a lemon

Toss the lot together and serve with leftovers, jacket spuds, cheese etc. I make small batches so it stays crisp. You can add yoghurt and/or mayo if you like your salads more gloopy.

The Power of Three

I have been asked "Why do you serve three when there is only two of you?" It is not that we feed the remains to Fitz and Tara, nor is it that I keep an illicit lover in the shed...
No making enough for three means I have enough to take into work and heat up for my lunch the following day, which when it is curry gets all my cow-orkers' noses twitching!