Perfect Steak from Graig Farm Organics

For me, there's nothing quite like a really nice bit of steak.

Graig Farm Organics very kindly sent me some steak, gammon and chicken to try.

You can order online from Graig Farm Organics for quality organic food products delivered over-night, straight to your door.

It has to be said, you really can taste the difference in Organic food.

For a start, the steak tasted like steak - by that I mean some supermarket meat really is tasteless and is no comparison to that from Graig Farm. 

Prosciutto and Salami Pizza Topped with Sacla' Char-Grilled Peppers

 It is seriously easy to make this plate of melty, cheesy goodness in the way of a pizza!   

Slight saltiness from the Prosciutto and a little heat from the Salami, dotted with colourful Sacla' Char-Grilled Peppers.  Add a mixture of Mozzarella and Cheddar and I think you’ll agree you have the perfect pizza.

     Of course you don’t have to use the exact toppings that I chose, just use this recipe as a suggestion and add whatever takes your fancy.

Philly Chilli Pasta Bake - Super Quick Recipe

Philadelphia have just launched some super speedy recipes that even Paul (the husband) could make!  I was asked to give one of them a go to see if they really are that easy and quick.

Okay my picture isn't the best but at least you can see I really did make it.

Kefta Mkaouara - Spicy Egg, Meatball and Tomato Tagine

Rick Stein's 'Mediterranean Escapes' cookbook has been out a good while now but in my opinion it's one of the best books I own. 

Even though I've made this time and time again, we still love it.
Of course you don't have to have a Tagine to make this, I didn't use mine as it's a bit on the big side, so I just used a shallow oven proof baking dish.

Keevil and Keevil Steak Box and Delivery - a Review

I was very kindly sent the Smithfield Meat Box to review from Keevil and Keevil the on-line butchers.  

I must say I'm totally impressed!  The steaks were delicious, excellent value for money and of the highest quality.  As the box contained 8 steaks (and there are only the two of us) so far we've only tried the Ribeye and the Sirloin.  Now, when I say they tasted good - I mean they tasted GOOD!  

   Pictured below - Ribeye Steak:

 Sirloin Steak:

Some beef you buy these days seems to have very little in the way of taste - not these steaks, they were juicy, tender and full of flavour.  

Spatchcock Chicken with Aubergine, Roasted Tomatoes and Feta

Readers of this blog will remember the fantastic day I had back in May with Marco Pierre White and Knorr along with a lovely bunch of other food bloggers.

Now, as if the day wasn't already just the best day out ever, there was more to come!  We were told we'd be sent three Seasonal British produce boxes courtesy of Knorr.  As I was about to go on holiday, mine was sent a little later and arrived at the end of last week.

  Well, what a treat!  The box was huge and filled with lovely fresh Organic meat from The Well Hung Meat Company, Organic Vegetables and herbs from Rod and Ben's and some Knorr stock cubes.  It was hard to take a picture but buried beneath those beetroot leaves are potatoes, cauliflower, carrots and courgettes!

  Marco Pierre White uses these stock cubes to season meat, poultry and fish which really works well.  All you do is mix a small amount of olive oil with a Knorr stock cube and mix to make a paste.  He then adds a few finely chopped herbs, mixes and spreads over the meat and cooks on a griddle. 

So what to cook with all this fantastic meat and veg??!!

Marco has just released his latest recipe 'Spatchcocked Poussin with Aubergine'.  I loved the look of anyway, but I added roasted tomatoes and some crumbled feta.  It worked really well.  Marco's recipe for this can be found over at the Knorr website along with a whole lot more great recipes too!

I used a small chicken to make this instead of Poussin. 

I'll be sure to let you know what I make with the rest of this lovely seasonal box.
A big thank you again to Jen, Knoor, The Well Hung Meat Company and Rod and Ben's.

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Linguine with Prawns Chorizo Sun-dried Tomatoes and Chilli

Yesterday I fancied eating prawns. Why? I've no idea, but you know how you just fancy something sometimes.  
Nothing else would do, so prawns it was - time to invent something......

The flavour combo was amazing.  If I do say so myself I did a right good job of this dish and can't wait to make it again.

Jan's Spaghetti Bolognaise

This is my version of spaghetti bolognaise (bolognese) or Spag Bol.  

Although it's really simple to make it isn't a 10 minute job......all good things are worth waiting for and all that!

Far better than those jars of ready made sauce that all seem to be the same colour whatever brand you look at.  With red wine and herbs, with extra garlic, without garlic, original, traditional - they're all the same colour!

If you're fussed that it takes too long why not make double the amount and freeze it - dinner another day will then be sorted as quick as you like.

Haggis Neeps and Tatties!

Haggis is traditionally eaten in Scotland to celebrate the life and poetry of Robert Burns and is known as 'Burns' night.
It is always held on the 25th January, which was his birthday.

Haggis is a kind of savoury sausage meat which has lovely spices added.
Now, all that said, I personally can only cope with the haggis from M&S that comes in a plastic bag instead of a sheep's stomach!



Haggis is served with 'neeps' which is swede (or rutabaga to some people) boiled in slightly salted water and then mashed with a little nutmeg.
The 'tatties' are just mashed potatoes.

Some people serve haggis with a dish called clapshot which originated in the Orkney islands. To make this you just mix equal amounts of mashed potato together with the mashed swede and stir in some snipped chives.

How knowledgeable am I you may be thinking? - all with thanks to the Internet!

Jan's Chilli con Carne - Nice and Spicy

A right nice n spicy Chilli con Carne always goes down well and is so, so easy to make.

Just the thing for cold weather or when you have friends round.

Cottage Pie with Guinness and Other Good Things

Who can't love a nice cottage pie?

I came across this recipe by Gordon Ramsay that has Guinness in it. I made it exactly (which is strange for me to follow a recipe exactly) and it was totally delicious.

I did put come cooked peas and carrots in the bottom of mine.
If you've never used a potato ricer you must immediately go out and get one - they are amazing! I brought mine for just £5 from Marks and Spencer.

To serves 6 you will need:
a large pie dish
2 tbsp olive oil
900g good quality (low fat) minced beef
sea salt and black pepper
3 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
a few thyme sprigs, leaves only
2 nice fat plum tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons of tomato purée
330ml bottle of Guinness
5 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
300ml chicken stock (I used fresh home made chicken stock) but you can use a Knorr stock cube
1 kg floury potatoes, such as Maris Piper or King Edward, peeled and roughly cubed
50g butter a handful of grated cheddar, plus extra for the top of the pie
1 large egg yolk
plus a good handful of cooked peas and carrots if you fancy

How to do it:
Put a large frying pan over a high heat and add a thin layer of olive oil. Season the mince with salt and pepper and fry, stirring, in two or three batches, until nicely browned.
Drain off any fat, although you shouldn't really have worth worrying about if you used good quality mince.
Put the cooked mince into a bowl and set aside.
In the same pan you just used, put it over a medium-high heat and add a little olive oil. When it's nice and hot, fry the onions, with the garlic for a few minutes until until soft and golden.
Now add the thyme and cook for another minute or so.
Add the browned mince, tomatoes and tomato puree. Stir constantly for 4-5 minutes.
Add the Guinness and Worcestershire sauce and boil until the liquid has reduced by half. Pour in the stock and return to the boil.
Turn the heat down and simmer for 20-25 minutes, by which time the mixture should be lovely and thick and glossy.
Continue to simmer for another 5-10 minutes if it doesn’t seem quite thick enough. Once done remove it from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F or Gas 4

Meanwhile, add the potatoes to a pan of salted water, bring to the boil and cook until tender. Drain and return to the hot pan for 15 seconds or so, to dry out, then take off the heat.
Pass the potatoes through a potato ricer back into the pan or mash smoothly. Mix through the butter, cheese and egg yolk.
Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Put the cooked peas and carrots into the bottom of the dish if you are using them and then spoon the mince mixture on top.
Spoon the mashed potato on top and rough up the surface with a fork.
Grate over some extra cheese and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes until bubbling and golden brown.

Conchiglioni Rigati Stuffed with a Ragu Bolognese

Conchiglioni Rigati are large pasta shells, which I think look lovely. Each shell stuffed with a rich meat sauce that's been slowly cooked with red wine with tomatoes and other good things. Topped with a white sauce and finished with a good amount of Parmesan cheese is delish and well worth the fairly long cooking time.

This recipe will serve 6 or 4 quite greedy people
Printable Recipe

You will need:
One large or two medium sized ovenproof dishes
400g Conchiglioni Rigati pasta (large pasta shells)
200g Parmesan, freshly grated

For the Meat Sauce:
2 onions
1 carrot
1 stick celery
4 fat cloves of garlic
80g of either smoked streaky bacon or pancetta
1 tablespoon tomato puree
5 or 6 sun dried tomatoes drained from their oil (or re hydrated dried ones)
30g butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
250g minced beef
250g minced pork
1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes – including the juice
160ml red wine
3 bay leaves

For the Béchamel sauce:
100g butter
70g plain flour
560ml milk
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
freshly grated nutmeg

How to do it:
Peel the onions and carrots and chop into big cubes. Do the same with the celery. Peel the garlic cloves and put them all including the bacon into a food processor and finely chop to almost a paste.
Don’t bother washing the processor up just yet – hold up on that as you’ll need it again in a minute!
Heat the butter and oil in a large pan and fry this mixture along with the tomato puree over a low heat and cook for about 10 minutes or until soft.
Now add the beef and pork and stir it about a bit until it browns evenly.
While this is cooking nicely add the sun dried tomatoes to the food processor and give them a good whizz up so you end up with a tomato paste.
Add this paste to the meat. Give everything a good stir.
Add the tomatoes, red wine and bay leaves. Stir well and bring to the boil.
Now turn down the heat and cover with a bit of kitchen foil or a lid but only partially cover.
Let this mixture cook for about on a low heat for about 1 and half hours stirring now and then. It shouldn't go dry unless you have the heat too high.
If it does you will need to add a teeny bit more wine or water if you must.

For the Sauce:
Melt the butter in a saucepan then add the flour and stir and cook together. Take off the heat briefly, and whisk in the milk with a hand held balloon whisk.
Now put back on the heat stirring all the time.
Once the sauce is bubbling leave it for a few minutes to cook stirring all the while.
Season with salt and pepper and turn down the heat and cook until slightly thickened.
You want a fairly running sauce. When that’s done remove from the heat and stir in some freshly grated nutmeg.
Preheat your oven to 200C/400F/ Gas 6
Put a large pan of slightly salted water on to boil ready for your pasta. When it’s boiling add the pasta shells. Cook them until they are almost done (al dente). You don’t want soggy pasta.

Drain the pasta shells and let them cool at bit.
One at a time, fill each shell with a good spoonful of the meat sauce (bay leaves removed) and place meat side up and side by side in your baking dish.
Keep going until you've no room left in your dish or dishes if you your making two lots.
Now pour the white sauce over and in between the shells. Sprinkle the top generously with grated Parmesan – you can mix in some grated cheddar too if you fancy.
Cover loosely with foil and cook for about 25 minutes - if you let the sauce get cold before you made this then it will of course take a bit longer to heat through.
Now remove the foil and cook for another 10 minutes until it’s cooked through, piping hot and the top is bubbling, golden and crispy.

Lamb Kofta Kebabs - Easy and Delicious

Jan's 'make it up as you go along' recipe for Kofta Kebabs worked!

Not the best plated up pictures in the world but you get the idea.

There I was in work on Monday filling up the meat fridges when I spied kebabs and so felt the need to be making them!

Once again I read the back of the packet to see what they'd put in and went home with a mission to make them.

Must say, I was really pleased with the result and will make these again.

 Print Recipe

To make 6 you will need:

1 slice of bread to make breadcrumbs

1 onion

3 garlic cloves

500g minced lamb

1 egg yolk

2 teaspoons of garam masala

1/2 a teaspoon of cumin **as garam masala already contains cumin I only used this much

1 and a half tablespoons of Belazu Rose Harissa

a squeeze of lemon juice

freshly chopped flat leaved parsley

a little salt and pepper

6 wooden skewers about 8 inches in length

**If you are going to cook these on a BBQ soak the skewers in water for an hour before hand. I'm not too sure if they would fall apart though on a BBQ - I did have to be careful turning mine.

How to do it:

You will need a food processor/whizzy thing. 



Tear the slice of bread in half - leave the crust on it wont matter. Whiz for a few seconds till you have breadcrumbs - remove and set aside.

Now quarter the onion and throw that in along with the garlic cloves and whiz that up till the onion is chopped nice and small.

Now put in the minced lamb but only whiz for a few seconds as you don't want it too whizzed up or it will go all horrid and paste like - we don't want paste like yuk!

In a large mixing bowl put in the onion and garlic the egg yolk, rose harissa paste, garam masala and cumin. Give it a good mix and then add the minced lamb along with 5 tablespoons of the breadcrumbs and a squeeze of lemon juice.

You need to mix it together to even out the spices and combine it all. Just be careful not to get carried away mixing or as I said before, the lamb will go like paste.

When your almost done, season with a little salt and pepper and add the parsley to the mixture.

I found that 5 tablespoons of breadcrumbs was fine but if you think your mixtures is too sloppy - if you've paid attention it shouldn't be! but if it is then you can add a little more of the breadcrumbs.

Divide the mixture into 6 and using your hands mould it around each wooden skewer keeping them all the same size and shape.

You can take a little of the mixture and fry it - give it a taste then you'll know what you want more of. I usually do this but couldn't actually be bothered so took a chance and they were perfect.

Now get them cooking.

I cooked them on my amazing electric griddle thing - perfect! But you can of course use a grill pan. Turn them a couple of times so they cook evenly. When they are nicely done and cooked through serve straight away.

I served them with pitta bread that I'd put on the griddle before the kebabs. Along with a lemon wedge, shredded white cabbage, onion, tomato, cucumber and a couple of pickled chilli peppers (shop brought in a jar). The dipping sauce was this hot pepper sauce - again shop brought.

The Yummyest Meatloaf Ever!

When I saw the Greek meatloaf Peter over at Kalofagas had made a while back, I had to make it the very same day!

I've now made it twice and each time I've served it with lemon roasted potatoes, which, I must say seem to look very pale in this picture.

I didn't mess about with the recipe at all - I followed it very nearly almost exactly!

All the ingredients were followed as Peter says to in his recipe here.

I only used one slice of bread for the breadcrumbs, then added them to the mixture and poured the wine over the bread instead of soaking the bread in water. Also, I didn't have a sausage to go in the middle and I made the loaf in a bread tin, just for quickness.

Here it is pictured at the stage where the bacon that was placed over the top has crisped up a bit after being in the oven.

The tomato sauce is then poured on top and the meatloaf then goes back to the oven to cook further.

I must say this was one really yummy meatloaf - thank you Peter.

I say you just have to give it a go!

Sausage and Guinness Casserole with Mustard Mash

Delicious filling meal just perfect for cold winter days.

Print Recipe

This amount will serve two greedy people. But you could add a couple more sausages and it would easily serve four.

To serve 2 greedy people you will need:

1/2 a tablespoon of vegetable oil

6 good quality pork sausages - mine were pork and leek

2 large onions - sliced

2 celery sticks - chopped

2 carrots - peeled, sliced length ways and cut into 2 inch sticks

2 teaspoons of sugar

1 tablespoon of English mustard - Colman's is best

8 rashers of smoked streaky bacon - chopped

2 tablespoons of plain flour

440ml can Guinness

2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce

250ml beef stock - I used 1 Knorr stock cube in 250ml hot water

3 tablespoons of tomato puree

150g chestnut mushrooms - halved

salt and freshly ground black pepper - to taste

Preheat your oven to 170C/325F or Gas 3

You will need a casserole dish that, ideally, can go both on the oven top and also in the oven. Just saves on the washing up!

Heat the oil in a large casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the sausages and brown them all over. Don't fuss about them cooking through as they will have plenty of time to cook later. Remove and set aside.

Now, in the same pan, add the bacon. Cook until it starts to brown and crisp up nicely. Once done, remove and set aside with the sausages.

Using the same pan, add the onions, carrots and celery and sugar.

Cook stirring until the onions have softened - about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for a couple more minutes.

Now stir in the flour and add the Guinness and bring to the boil. Now add the stock, tomato puree, Worcestershire sauce and mustard.

Return the sausages and bacon to the pan. Season with a little salt and some freshly ground black pepper.

Now put the casserole into your preheated oven and cook on a low heat - you just want it simmering - not boiling. I left mine in for 1 and a half hours until the carrots were nicely cooked through.

I did some mustard mash to go with it - just mashed potato with some wholegrain mustard stirred though.

Spicy Lamb Patties

These patties are just baby sized spicy lamb burgers that I made up as I went along.

I did wonder about the amount of Harissa paste that I put in being too much - but it turned out just fine.

Even if I do say so myself they were really yummy!

This was not the dish I was going to make last night (long story) but I couldn't get the correct olives for what I was going to make - so will leave that until I can.

Anyway, so there I am with some minced lamb, but now not knowing what to make with it.

I had some pitta bread and Greek yogurt too and so Tzatziki had to be made!

Also I had some Turkish red pepper sauce in my fridge - perfect!

For the patties you will need:

500g minced lamb

approx 3 tablespoons of breadcrumbs

1 onion - chopped

1 garlic clove - finely chopped

1 egg yolk

2 teaspoons of garam masala

1/2 teaspoon of cumin (as garam masala already contains cumin so only use this amount)

1 and a half tablespoons of Harissa paste (I used the one by Bart spices)

salt and pepper to taste

How to do it:

Using a mixer put the onions in to make them very finely chopped. Remove and set to one side in a large bowl.

Now add the minced lamb to the mixer and whizz for a few seconds - just so it's a little finer. Remove and add to bowl with the onions in. Season well with salt and pepper.

Using a fork add the garlic, breadcrumbs, egg yolk, chopped garlic, garam masala and cumin and Harissa paste. Now give it all a really, really good mix.

Now take a small amount of the mixture and shape with your hand into small patties. This amount of ingredients should make 12 patties. You can fry a very small amount of the mixture and taste to check for seasoning.

Fry the patties in a frying pan. There should be no need to add hardly any oil. Just wiping the pan with a teeny piece of oil, using kitchen paper towel should be enough.

Fry - turning half way through for about 5 minutes each side - or until the patties have browned nicely and are cooked through.

I served mine in warm pitta bread with some shredded white cabbage, cucumber, tomato, sliced onion and shredded lettuce.

The Turkish red pepper sauce is quite hot so only a small amount is needed. if you don't have time to make some - if can be found in some large supermarkets.......although I've never found it yet (in the UK) that is. You could, I suppose use any other pepper sauce - like Jamaican Hot pepper sauce.

I also made some Tzatziki too.

As I only needed a small amount, I used the following:

150g Greek Yogurt

1 clove garlic - chopped really finely

4 inches of cucumber - peeled, seeds removed and grated with a cheese grater.

a smidgen of white wine vinegar (say 1/4 teaspoon and no more)

1/2 a teaspoon of dill - finely chopped (I'm afraid to say I used dried dill - but it was just fine)

a glug of extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to season

How to do it:

Once the cucumber has been peeled and grated, press it between some kitchen paper towel to squeeze out the moisture and put it into a small bowl.

Add the rest of the ingredients apart from the olive oil and salt and pepper.Mix it together and then season carefully with a little salt and pepper . Add the olive oil - just a teeny bit and mix once more......Job done.

Sirloin Steak with Roquefort Sauce

Roquefort sauce is so very easy to make.  Steak is my all time favourite food to eat.  For me it has to be cooked medium-rare  - more on the rare side than the medium.
I personally don't like to have any sauce served with mine. Just simple steak, chips, Portobello mushrooms, tomato and either peas or salad and I'm happy.
I pour a little red wine into the pan after the steak has been removed let it simmer for a few secs (it removes any of the nice cooking bits on the bottom of the pan) and I then pour it over my steak - am very particular about that having to happen!

Paul (the husband) loves to cover his steak with Roquefort sauce. He had in in a restaurant and I tasted it, it was okay, but quite runny and not too much going on in the way actual Roquefort!
I had a go at making it myself and made it up as I went along and I've made it the same way since.

Print Recipe

You will need:

1 Knob of Butter
1 Small Red Onion or a Shallot, chopped (I do usually use a shallot but didn't have any last night when I made it).
100g of Roquefort Cheese cut into small cubes so it melts quicker.
150ml of Double Cream (Heavy cream I think they call it in the US)?
2 Teaspoons of Brandy

 

How to do it:

In a small saucepan melt the butter over a low heat and add the onion. Saute until soft but not coloured. Turn the heat up and add the Brandy, stirring for a minute.
Turn the heat back down and add the Roquefort and stir with a wooden spoon when it starts to melt add the cream. Don't be tempted to use single cream (it must be double) or it will split when being cooked.

Don't let it boil. Stir until heated through and serve immediately.



The finished Roquefort sauce.



Jan's steak cooked to perfection!

Sunday isn't Sunday......

Without a Traditional English Roast.
Sunday's to me mean crispy, crunchy potatoes roasting in the oven with the sticky gooey bits scraped from the roasting pan. The smell of a nice juicy joint of Beef roasting in the oven. Cauliflower, carrots, swede and of course butter beans simmering away on the hob.
Gravy made with 'Bisto' powder adding the juices from the meat as you stir. Throwing in a bit of cooked cauliflower, swede and the odd carrot and mushing them into the gravy. And finely you must not miss out on the Yorkshire puddings.....

As a child I wouldn't and couldn't eat a roast dinner to save my life - but I don't know why. I think it must just be a child thing of deciding that all vegetables must taste horrid. That said I don't think I ate a roast dinner until I was in my 20's!
We don't always have beef sometimes we have chicken or pork. My personal preference will always be beef.