Sunday 7th of April 2013

Home from a lovely week staying with my parents and guess what? I'm straight back into the kitchen!

For some reason at the moment, I've gotten a bit obsessed (again) with French food, so today for lunch we ate one of my personal favourites, poulet à l'estragon (chicken with tarragon).  This is such a French classic, and it's a shame that this herb is often so overlooked, as it really is magical when combined with chicken like this.

For my Distracted version of this dish, I marinade eight chicken thighs (bone-in, skin-on) in about 100ml of rapeseed oil mixed with a dash of vinegar, a minced clove of garlic, a good pinch of sea salt flakes and a teaspoonful of dried tarragon.  Leave this for an hour or two.  I like to cut some potatoes up and parboil them during the marinading. then put them in the bottom of the tin I'm going to cook the chicken in.  When you're ready to cook, put the chicken pieces, skin-side up, on top of the potatoes and pour over the remaining marinade.  Cook at 180ºc for 20 minutes, then pour a glassful of dry white wine into the roasting tin.  Cook for another 25 minutes, then transfer the chicken and potatoes to a serving dish and keep them warm while you make the sauce.

Tip all the juices from the tin into a small saucepan and bring them to a simmer.  Whisk in the juice of half a lemon, a little white pepper to taste and 2 tbsp double cream.  Add some chopped fresh tarragon.  Simmer, still whisking, for a few minutes until the sauce thickens slightly, then pour over the chicken and potatoes in the serving dish. Throw over a bit more fresh tarragon and serve with a green salad.

To follow lunch, and in keeping with the obvious (though admittedly unintentional) theme of the day, we ate some madeleines that I made this morning.  I then proceeded, in clearly-obsessive Francophile mode, to make gougères for supper, but that's another story...

Cath xx

Tuesday 26th of March 2013

A favourite recipe tonight, or a riff on it at least, adapting it for the slow-cooker... This is based on Mary Berry's 'Chardonnay Chicken with Artichoke Hearts' from Cook Now, Eat Later, but is very much my lazy-arse 'distracted' version.  Somehow all my regular 'book recipes' suffer this fate eventually, with the exception of those written by my kitchen God, the sainted Mr Simon Hopkinson (or Si-Ho, as he is very affectionately know at Distracted Towers).  I simply do not muck about with his recipes; he wrote them that way for a reason and I love every single one of them just the way it is, whether for late-night, drool-inducing bedtime reading or for spattering with butter, flecks of chopped herbs and roasting juices while I cook yet-another much loved favourite.

200g slow-cooked onions or 1 can EAZY fried onions
250g small chestnut mushrooms
8 chicken thighs, bones left in but skin pulled off
2 x 280g jars of chargrilled artichoke hearts in oil
200ml dry white wine 
1 tbsp cornflour
3 tbsp crème fraîche

Put the onions and the mushrooms in the bottom of the slow-cooker pot.  Add the chicken thighs in as close to a single layer as you can manage, then add the drained artichoke hearts (I recommend saving the oil to use in salad dressings).  Whisk the wine, cornflour and crème fraîche together, adding a twist or three of pepper, then pour this into the pot.  Cook on LOW all day.

I served this with couscous and a big green salad, but a bowl of rice or some crusty bread, along with a green vegetable of some sort, would be an equally good option.

Cath xx

Monday 25th of March 2013

Well, what a hectic (and BLOOMING FREEZING COLD) few days we've had at Distracted Towers.  The weekend consisted, mainly, of trying to keep the children occupied indoors when the weather was so dismal, which usually, for me at least, means roping them into some kitchen activities.  We cooked a huge batch of my slow-cooked onions.  We did them, this time, with red onions, as I especially love their sweet flavour, combined with stickiness when cooked this way.  A large portion of the onions went into the base of an ovenproof dish and was topped with chicken thighs with some soft goat's cheese pushed under the skin.  This was roasted for 45 mins at 180ºc and served with a basket of baguette chunks and some salad leaves for a surprisingly warming and really very satisfying meal.

Of course, we needed something sweet as well, and that came (as it so often does) in the form of my Fabulous Chocolate Brownies.  I had prepared some Jam Ice-Cream (strawberry as usual, but with a hint of amaretto for a change) with this weekend in mind, but what with the weather and all, serving ice-cream would just feel downright silly!

Tonight is, of course, a Monday so, armed with a batch of My Big Fat Chilli con Carne from the slow-cooker, I laid on a mini Tex-Mex fiesta with taco shells (bought-in!), grated cheddar, salad leaves, sliced avocado and soured cream.  Plates all clean, and out of the door on time...  Result!

Cath xx

Monday 18th of March 2013

Another slow-cooker meal tonight and, feeling a little stuck in a recipe rut, I've decided to try out a couple of new ideas this week.  Tonight's meal, luckily, turned out well; a layered concoction of chicken, ham and cheese topped with a crust made using shop-bought stuffing.  I used one with lemon and garlic, but choose whichever you fancy, natch...

295g can condensed cream of chicken soup
125ml milk
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped
5 thickish slices of ham, cut up roughly
200g Gruyère,thinly sliced
130g pack stuffing mix (and see above)
30g butter, melted

Mix together the condensed soup and the milk.  I think I might try using white wine instead of milk the next time I cook this.  Smooth a thin layer of this mixture into the bottom of your slow-cooker pot, then add the chicken, in as much of a single layer as you can manage.  Next, a similar layer of ham, and finally a layer of cheese.  Pour over the remaining 'sauce' and smooth the top.  Scatter the dry stuffing mix over the surface, then drizzle with the melted butter to help it crisp up a little (as always, you can 'fridge it all night at this point).  Cook on LOW all day.

I served this with (yet) another batch of the herb butter-tossed potatoes that I mentioned last Wednesday and a bowl of peas.  Delicious...

Cath xx

Wednesday 13th of March 2013

Owing to a marathon baking session inspired by the children's school's 'red nose day' request, which saw us making 40 (!) gingerbread men to ice, with red noses,. tomorrow, tonight's dinner needed to be a quick, and relatively effortless production tonight. A bag of chicken thighs sitting in the 'fridge, plus a couple of lemons and some soy sauce from the storecupboard easily made this Soy-and-Lemon Glazed Baked Chicken, then all I had to think about was the side dishes.

8 chicken thighs (though I think you could use up to 12 with this amount of glaze)
juice of 2 lemons
120ml soy sauce

Put the chicken pieces in an ovenproof dish.  Pour over the lemon juice and soy sauce.  Bake at 180°c for 45 minutes, basting often.  Lift out of the liquid to serve.

I served this with steamed broccoli and some steamed new potatoes, which I had tossed in melted (salted) butter that I mixed with lots of very finely chopped herbs; I vary these according to what I have on the kitchen windowsill, but tonight it was lots of parsley , chopped with a smaller amount each of fresh basil, mint, dill and thyme.  This is my favourite way to eat potatoes at the moment...

Cath xx

Friday 8th of March 2013

Hooray, it's Friday!  Our supper tonight was one of those dishes that I first started cooking to use up leftover meat from a roast chicken, but, in common with quite a few of our favourite 'leftovers' meals, has become so popular in its own right that I now have to contrive the necessary leftovers (i.e. cook them specially the night before).  Having said that, I did take the 'Distracted' option this week and buy a ready-roasted chicken from a local shop.  The other advantage of this being that the carcass of a 'rotisserie' chicken does make really wonderful stock, so that'll help with another supper later this week.  Sometimes, there seem to be so many different containers of homemade stock in our 'fridge that there's hardly enough room for any other food!  I can always find space for some cheese, though, funnily enough. 

You need ready made tortillas, or 'wraps' for this recipe.  These are easy enough to find; even our village shop carries them now.  I prefer to get mini-sized ones if I can (and the Co-op stocks good ones), just for ease of serving, but the more usual, larger ones can easily be used.  It's a long list of ingredients for me, but as it's only a stir-together job, I don't mind.  Anyway...

200g cream cheese

150g bought 'salsa' dip 

squeeze of lime juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp ground cumin

3 spring onions, shredded

60g parmesan,grated

200-300g cold cooked chicken, shredded

chopped parsley

Combine all these ingredients in a large bowl.

!6 'mini', or 10 'standard' tortilla 'wraps'

Dollop filling onto the bottom edge of each tortilla (warm them briefly in the microwave, a few at a time, to make rolling them up easier).  I reckon on about 2 tbsp for a 'mini' tortilla and about 4 tbsp for a standard one.  Roll up as tightly as you can, then place on a lined baking sheet.  When all the tortillas are filled and rolled, brush with oil and sprinkle with coarse salt.

Bake the filled tortilla rolls at 180°c for 15 to 20 minutes, until they are crisp and tinged with brown at the edges.   Incidentally, if you like, you can make up a batch of these and freeze them, unbaked (but still brushed with oil and sprinkled with salt).  Cook from frozen, at the same temperature, for 25-30 minutes. We like to eat these with a green salad and bowls of soured cream and guacamole.  They go down very well, so don't be shy! Happy Friday, everyone!

Cath xx

Friday Night Fakeaway : Ginger Chicken

Now, this is GOOD... Happy Friday, everybody

Ginger Chicken

For the sauce:

2 tbsp soy sauce

4 tbsp cider vinegar

1 tablespoon tahini

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp fresh ginger, chopped

1 lemon, zested and juiced

1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

4 tbsp rapeseed oil

Place all ingredients except rapeseed oil into a bowl. Slowly whisk in said oil to make a thick, pale brown sauce. Set aside while you do everything else (or you can make it the day before).

4 chicken breast fillets, cut into bite-size pieces

Cornflour

2 beaten eggs

Roll the chicken pieces in cornflour, then egg, then cornflour again.  Heat about 4 tbsp oil in a large pan and fry the chicken in batches until ncrisp and brown.  Don’t worry about cooking it all the way through, just get it looking good… Remove and drain on kitchen paper.

Now, you could (and I have)just throw it in a dish and pour the sauce over before baking it, but I like to add noodles and spinach underneath to make it a more ‘complete’ meal.  Soak two or three nests of dried egg noodles in hot water from the kettle, then drain them over a colander containing a handful or so of chopped leaf spinach.  Put this into an ovenproof dish and stir through a few spoonfuls of the sauce.  Top the noodles with the crisp pieces of chicken,  in a single layer (or as near as damn it),, then spoon over the remaining sauce, making sure you get a bit on every piece of chicken.  Scatter with some sesame seeds and bung it in a 180 degree oven for 25 minutes.

Cath xx

Chicken, Chickpea & Spinach Curry

This straightforward dish feels like real cooking, somehow.  Pootling about in the kitchen for a while, wearing an apron; sounds of sizzling and amazingly delicious smells wafting through the house.  Even better, the simmering time is sufficient for me to put two cups of basmati rice and a few cardamom pods into the hallowed rice cooker with some water and switch it on for a perfect, no-tears side dish;  my relaxed raita is easily stirred together, leaving me plenty of time for a cheeky pre-prandial while I straighten up the kitchen.  


Chicken, Chickpea & Spinach Curry


3 tbsp cooking oil
a few cloves
a few cardamom pods
2 fresh or 1 dried bay leaf
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
about an inch of ginger root
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
500g carton passata
150ml carton single cream
400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 tsp garam masala
500g chicken thigh meat, sliced 
250g spinach leaves, washed


Whizz the garlic and ginger, with about 4 tbsp of water, in the blender to make a runny paste.  Heat the fat in a large pan. Add the cloves, cardamom and bay leaves to the pan and sizzle for a few seconds.  Add the the onion and fry until soft but not coloured.  Scrape the garlic-ginger paste into the pan and stir everything together well, then mix in the spices and cook briefly; the smell really is brilliant!  Pour in the passata, add the rinsed chickpeas and swirl in the cream.  Sprinkle in the garam masala, then add the chicken to the pan.  Simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring only occasionally, then fold the spinach into the curry until wilted.  Serve with rice and a dollop of  raita.  It tastes even better than it smells, believe me.


This curry really does freeze amazingly well; so much so that I often do a double batch, squirrelling half of it away for a future meal.  It's great when you can just defrost a really nice home-cooked evening meal in an emergency!

Cath xx

It's Leeking again!

I love cooking with leeks.  It feels right, somehow, using them as often as I do when I live in Wales, but I suspect that I would use them almost obsessively wherever I lived.  They give a delicacy of taste that onions, however useful (and they are) in cooking, simply cannot provide - leeks are, to me, definitely the blushing ingénue to onions' dashing cad.   They go particularly well with chicken, cheese (ooh, leeks and blue cheese...) and ham or bacon, but I also love them with black pudding and with salmon.  Mustard is another friend of the leek, and this wholegrain mustard-spiked chicken dish is a great favourite of ours.


Chicken with Wine and Mustardy Leeks


8 chicken thighs
5 leeks, halved and sliced
200ml white wine
2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
200ml chicken  stock
15g butter


Heat a little cooking oil in a casserole pan and brown the chicken well all over.  Remove to a plate and set aside, then put the sliced leeks into the pan and cook, stirring, until soft.  Add a splash of boiling water from the kettle to help scrape up any chicken bits from the bottom of the pot as you stir.  Stir in the mustard and add the stock. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and stir in the butter until it melts.  This will help to emulsify the saucy leeks a little.  Put the chicken pieces back on top of the leeks, pop the lid on and transfer the pan to the oven.  Cook at 160°c for 30 minutes, then remove the lid and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes to crisp the chicken skins and reduce the sauce a little.


I served this with a pan of brown rice, and we had pre-dinner munches on root vegetable crisps (with a cheeky G&T for me!)

Cath xx

One Pot Wonder

I love a meal that cooks in one pot... Not only is it easy to serve but, happily, easy to wash up after.  This is something that was quick to throw together with ingredients that, bar the chicken, I always have in the cupboard.  As for the chicken, thighs are always a sensible option, easily portion-controlled and much, much tastier than all the skinless breast fillets you can throw at me!  I usually have these in the freezer so it was an ideal meal to make when we are snowed in.  The Jamaican spice blend can be any of your choosing, bringing a hint of sunshine and warmth to what is - essentially - a very simple meal.

One-Pot 'Jamaican' Chicken with Rice and Peas

3 tbsp dripping or oil
1 large onions, peeled and chopped
1-2 tbsp Jamaican or jerk seasoning
8 chicken thighs (skin on)
350g long-grain rice
1 litre chicken stock
400g can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed well

Heat the fat in a large pan and lightly brown the chicken pieces on all sides.  Remove from the pan and set aside.  Fry the onion gently until soft.  Add the spice mix, then tip in the rice and cook for 1 min, stirring all the time. Stir in the kidney beans and then add the chicken stock.  Lay the browned chicken pieces, skin-side up, on top.  Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down, cover the pan and simmer for 40 minutes or so until the chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender.

Cath xx

Passing it on...

This is something of an old-time family classic for me, one that my Mum cooked when I was a child and that I, in turn, now cook for my brood.  I'm sure that my boys will one day pass it on to their own families.

In fact this recipe was originally passed on to my Mum. A teacher at the school where she worked as a newly-qualified teacher, a lady named Doris, unselfishly passed on several of her recipes. Now, years later, I pass it, and others, on to you now through this blog.  Part and parcel of a love of cooking is, often, the almost obsessive collecting of recipes, which inevitably leads to the sharing of the same.  I understand the (perhaps perceived) necessity for a business to keep a 'secret recipe', but I have no real idea where the benefit might lie for a home cook.  Sure, I eat things that I'd rather keep secret, but that tends to be my 'dirty little secret' foods; Bombay mix eaten with a chunk of mature cheddar, cream crackers with cheese spread and sweet chilli sauce and peanut butter-and-salad sandwiches.  But I digress...  This is my version of the genuine article, modified as it is with my preferred garam masala replacing the curry powder used in the original recipe.  You can also use some chili powder for a spicier edge; try both, and decide for yourself which you prefer.  It works well in the slow-cooker too, but do make sure you buy condensed mushroom soup, not the regular kind, or the sauce will be altogether too watery.

Quick Chick

4 roasted peppers (from a jar!), cut up roughly with scissors
6 chicken thigh fillets, halved if very large.
1 tsp mild chilli powder
295g can condensed mushroom soup

Put the pepper into the bottom of an ovenproof dish (or, indeed, in the slow-cooker).  Put the pieces of chicken into a plastic bag, add the chilli powder and give it a good shake about.  This is by far the easiest way, but if you prefer, put the chilli powder on a plate and roll the chicken in it.  Pour and scrape the soup over the top of the chicken, it won't look like enough, but slap it about with a spatula to get a bit of the soup over all the bits of chicken.  Cover the dish with foil and stick it in a 180°c oven for 45 minutes or so.  Do all this in the morning, if you're using the slow-cooker, forget about the foil, stick the lid on and leave it on LOW all day.  Serve with rice, though noodles are also a very acceptable side dish.

 Cath xx

Su-pie-lative

 I may have pointed out before, just once or twice, how much pie means to the members of this household.  I am always greeted with smiles, and shortly thereafter blissful munching, when I bring a pie to the dinner table.  This is my version of a classic chicken pie; no frills really, but easy to make and lip-smackingly rewarding to eat. Adding suet to the pastry makes for a gorgeously flaky, almost melting texture.  I have all but stopped glazing pies with egg-wash; dusting the pastry with flour instead makes for the pie-crust of my husband's dreams, soaking up, as it does, the chickeny juices and his beloved Henderson's Relish.

Old-Fashioned Chicken Pie

350g plain flour
90g suet
85g butter, diced
cold water, to bind pastry
400g chicken thigh meat, diced
1 tbsp flour, seasoned with salt and pepper
1 large onion, roughly chopped
4 sausages, skinned
breadcrumbs
100ml chicken stock
1 tsp cornflour, slaked with 1 tbsp water

Make the pastry. Rub the suet and butter into the flour, season it well and bind it with some cold water.  This is made much, much easier if you can just bung it all in the processor and whizz, but no matter if not.  Roll out the pastry and line a pie dish.  trim the excess and roll out a lid for your pie.

Toss the chicken in the flour, then mix this with the chopped onion.  Squidge the sausagemeat together with a handful or so of fresh breadcrumbs, divide the mixture into six and roll each into a small ball.  Put the floured chicken, onion and sausagemeat balls into the pastry-lined dish.  Mix the sock and the slaked cornflour together and pour this liquid evenly over the ingredients in the dish.  Top with the reserved pastry lid, crimp the edges and dust lightly with flour.  Bake at 180°c for  25 minutes, then turn the oven temperature down to 150°c and cook for a further hour. 

Serve with a (preferably green and leafy) vegetable of your choice, tonight we had some simple steamed-and-buttered cabbage.  Perfect plus.

Cath xx

Weekend Cook

While cooking during the week has its rewards and is a worthwhile occupation, it can be fraught; keeping the family happy, the cook composed and the suicide hour as peaceful as is reasonably possible.  Weekdays find me looking for shortcuts, quick solutions and recipes for the all-important slow-cooker.

Weekends are another matter, though.  I am rarely more at peace with myself than pootling around in my little kitchen at the weekend; baking for the week ahead, preparing bits and bobs in advance for the week's meals and just generally idling hours away planning lovely meals...

Saturday night was pie night for us and, while I would usually make a pie like this with leftover roast, or otherwise cooked, chicken, his one was a scratch pie from start to finish.  Poached chicken has such a beautiful succulence in a pie and the liquid provides a tasty sauce with little work.

Chicken & Leek Pie

Obviously you could use leftover cooked chicken, as detailed above and just steam the leeks while you make the sauce with a pint of stronger chicken stock (and I would recommend the Knorr Stock Pot stock gel if you have no homemade stuff to hand)


4 chicken breast fillets
60ml dry vermouth
3 leeks, trimmed and sliced thickly
light chicken stock or water, to cover
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
1 dried whole chilli pepper
40g butter
40g flour
1 sheet ready-rolled puff pastry

Put the leeks and chicken breasts into a large saucepan and pour over the vermouth.  Pour the stock or water into the pan and add the peppercorns, bay leaves and chilli.  Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes.  Remove the chicken and leeks from the pan with a slotted spoon and strain the liquid into a jug.  Pour the liquid back into the clean pan and boil it, reducing it to a pint.  Leave the liquid to cool.  Chunk or slice the chicken breasts as you like and put them, and the leeks, into a pie dish.  Put the butter and flour into a saucepan with the poaching liquid and bring to the boil, whisking continuously.  Turn the heat down and simmer, still whisking, until the sauce has thickened.  Pour this into the dish and gently mix to coat the other ingredients.  Top the dish with the puff pastry and bake at 180°c for 30-45 minutes until the pastry is cooked and everything has had chance to heat through completely.



This weekend has been boosted by my acquisition of Kitchen, the lovely new offering from Nigella Lawson.  Filled with all sorts of good things and the sort of perceptive, evocative writing she is so well-known for, I have been sofa-bound, armed with this book, whenever time allows.

Today, I decided to try out a few of the recipes; the Everyday Brownies (p.217) and the Crustless Pizza (p.26) and the Ham Hocks in Cider (p.368).  The brownies were very popular with the children, being more 'cakey' and considerably less opulent than my usual Fabulous Chocolate Brownies.  The pizza was a delicious kind of  'Yorkshire Pudding' pizza and went down very well with all of us at lunchtime.

Ham Hocks in Cider are now simmering on the stovetop in readiness for our supper this evening.  Happily, the ingredients are things that I generally have in the house (apart from the fennel seeds, so I left those out and added a couple of bay leaves instead).  Two large hocks cost only £3.00 from the butcher yesterday, so hardly extravagant.  To that end, I plan to serve the hocks with extravagantly buttery mashed potatoes and, I think, the last of the purple sprouting...

Cath xx

Oh, me and my paella...

On my birthday earlier this month, finding the queue at the Cadbury shop untenable, I sneakily visited the Professional Cookware Company shop at the designer outlet 'village' in Bridgend.  How chuffed was I, to find a gorgeous paella pan for £6.00; half price from the usual £12.00.  We have had several variations on the paella so far, starting off with the pork, chorizo and spinach version from Moro: the cookbook.  The most surprising part has been how effortless it is, nothing too taxing is ALWAYS my kitchen motto!


Gaining confidence in the process has been swift; I concocted a version with added black pudding last weekend, but tonight I truly did myself proud and I really had to share this one with you.  I suspect that you don't really need a proper paella pan for this; I'm sure a decent, deep, non-stick frying pan would do.


Chicken & Chorizo Paella with Purple Sprouting Broccoli

cooking oil (your choice)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 chicken breast fillets, cut into scraps 
1 tsp smoked paprika
80g chorizo, diced
250g paella rice
800ml chicken stock, hot
100g purple sprouting broccoli, in 2cm lengths

Heat the oil and fry the onion until soft and golden.  Add the chicken and the garlic and continue to cook until the chicken is well sealed and the garlic is fragrant in the pan.  Stir in the paprika and add the chorizo and the rice.  Pour in the chicken stock and turn the heat down to a simmer.  Leave the pan alone; stirring at this point makes the rice 'claggy', trust me!  Cook for 10 minutes, then tip the chopped purple sprouting onto the surface of the rice and leave for a further 5 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat, cover  with foil and leave for a further five minutes. Remove the foil, fold everything together with a fork and serve, not without a hint of smugness.

Cath xx

Puff the Magic Dinner

Much as I love making pizza, it can be a step too far on a weeknight to start mixing, kneading, resting and rolling out the dough base.  While I sometimes have the organisational capacity to make the dough during the day, or even the night before, the suicide hour usually calls for a meal that can be quickly banged together and plonked on the table, with the confidence that it will taste great and keep everyone happy (for now, at least...).  This is, I suppose, a kind of midweek variation on a Roasted Vegetable Tart which I used to make all the time.  In fact, as I've remembered about it now, I'll have to make it again very soon!

Sheets of frozen, ready-rolled puff pastry are often on special offer at the supermarket and I always take the opportunity to stock up, as they make all sorts of meals that feel 'special' with not too much actual work.  Even I am organised enough to transfer a rolled-up sheet of frozen pastry from the freezer to the 'fridge before going to bed, so that I can use it the next evening.  Make sure you take it out of the fridge for a bit before you try to unroll it though, as the pastry is apt to crack it's too cold when you handle it.

Pesto Chicken 'Pizza' Tart

You can, of course vary this by changing the chicken for something else, such as roughly chopped salami, shredded lamb (though I prefer to use red pesto with lamb) or some sliced mushrooms.  You could even just 'do' a tomato and cheese version, I suppose.


1 sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry
2 tbsp pesto (from a jar)
3 tomatoes, sliced
200g cooked chicken, shredded
100g mozzarella, grated

Preheat the oven.  I admit that I don't bother for most recipes, but with some things it really does seem to make a difference to the end result.  Unroll the sheet of pastry and place it on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Gently score a narrow border about 2cm from the edge, and prick with a fork.  Spread the pesto across this centre area, then lay the sliced tomatoes, in a single layer, on the pesto-smeared base.  Top this with the chicken and the grated mozzarella and bake at 180°c for 15 minutes until the pastry is puffed up and golden, with a lovely, browned and bubbled cheesy surface blanketing the delicious filling below.  Allow to cool slightly, then cut into slices to serve.

I like to accompany this with salad or a green vegetable; tonight I served steamed broccoli. Another reason why I love the puff pastry is that my family are learning to adapt to my no-potatoes-with-pastry edict (though, of course, I break my own rules on occasion), so no peeling needed.

Cath xx

Tikka Time

Saturday evenings for us, these days, are increasingly ruled by my sons' growing obsession with Doctor Who.  Not terrible, because Hubby and I enjoy watching it with them (even if we do have to tolerate a running commentary on what's happening in the program we. are. watching. too.).  Early evening television means an earlier supper than we might otherwise have and this spicy dish is perfect for a Saturday night, eaten from sticky fingers, noshed without ceremony but with huge enjoyment, before they rush to the sofa for their weekly 'fix'.  Tonight I prepared a bowl of my ever-popular Spiced Potatoes with Spinach, but these wings are just as good with a bowl of rice or a nice green salad.   Cross-culturally, I rather love them with Tzatziki, too, especially leftovers eaten cold for a sneaky snack or a light lunch.

Tikka-Style Wings

I have a Typhoon CrushGrind, (highly recommended) so I grind *these* spices in that before adding them to the whizzer.  Alternatively, crush in a pestle-and-mortar or even substitute 1/2 tsp each of the bought ready-ground spices

12 chicken wings
6 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp cider vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp tomato purée 
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 inch piece ginger root, roughly chopped
5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
2 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
6 cloves*, ground (and see above)
seeds from 8 cardamom pods*, ground (and see above)
tbsp black peppercorns*, ground (and see above)

Put the chicken wings in a large bowl and everything else into a blender or food processor.  Whizz to a fragrant, nubbly paste.  Pour and scrape this over the chicken wings, then turn them really well to coat them completely in the spicy paste-marinade.  You can either cling-film the bowl as it is or, to save space (always important in a family 'fridge), I transfer the whole shebang to a lidded plastic box.  Either way, chill for at least 6 hours or overnight. 

Cook the chicken wings, still coated in the flavour-paste, in a 200°c oven for 40 minutes.  I usually line a roasting pan with foil because any burnt-on paste is a nightmare to wash up!  Serve on a large platter and make sure to provide plenty of kitchen paper and a poubelle de table (aka 'table dustbin') for the discarded bones. Slurp!

Cath xx

Forgetful, moi?

OK, so this is basically supper made with what I had in the fridge.  I had planned to make a risotto tonight; we had a roast chicken yesterday and I used the slow cooker to make some stock last night, while we slept.  Mid-afternoon, though, I had a mini-panic attack when I realised that I had completely neglected to take any bacon or similar out of the freezer to use in the risotto and that, having all had chicken rolls at lunch, it was unlikely in the extreme that the cold, cooked chicken would cut it .  On its own, in any case...  

Necessity being the mother of all invention, come suppertime, I opened the fridge and began unloading 'possibles' onto the counter.  Decision: chorizo would boost the bit of chicken we did had and spinach is always a winner in this household.  Result: possibly the best risotto I have ever made.  Very inauthentic, very unItalian, but very delicious nonetheless.

Risotto with Chicken, Chorizo & Spinach

25g butter and a drizzle of olive oil
1 onion, diced
200g risotto rice
50ml dry vermouth
800ml hot chicken stock
800g chorizo sausage, diced
100g cold, cooked chicken
couple of handfuls spinach leaves
25g fresh parmesan, grated

Melt 15g of butter with a drizzle of olive oil in a deep, heavy frying pan. Soften the onion, then tip in the rice, stirring to coat all the grains with the fat. Pour in the vermouth and cook for a minute or so to evaporate the alcohol. Then, still stirring all then time, add a ladleful of chicken stock at a time and allow it to be absorbed by the rice each time before adding the next. After you've put in all but 2-3 ladlefuls, add the chorizo and chicken and continue cooking in the same way. . When the last of the stock is absorbed, fold in the spinach, then add the parmesan and the last 10g of butter, cut into pieces. Give it all a good stir, then take the pan off the heat, cover it and leave it for a couple of minutes.  Throw a green salad together, set the table, pour a drink and serve, smugly...

Cath xx

Casserollin', rollin', rollin'!

Apologies to Limp Bizkit, there...  Casseroles of one sort or another are a real regular favourite in this house;  Christopher, especially, when asked what he'd like for supper, invariably requests a casserole.  Sometimes, though, one wants to feel that the finished dish is somewhat more than the usual bung-it-all-in-and-see; more of a classic dish that happens to be a little bit like the good old cass.  Chicken Chasseur is much maligned by packaged 'recipe mixes', purporting to recreate this classic dish (just add chicken, onion, mushrooms etc.).  It is, in fact, hard to see how following the instructions on one of these packets is , realistically, any easier than making it properly.  There are no strange, recherché ingredients here, just a short list of, well, real food.  The only, perhaps, slightly specialist item you need here is a large plastic bag...

Chicken Chasseur

I keep some of those small 200ml bottles of wine in my kitchen cupboard to use in cooking; if I open a 'big' bottle just for a little bit, I inevitably drink the rest, so better safe...


8 chicken thighs
plain flour
salt and pepper
20g butter and a splash of oil
1 onion, sliced
200g mushrooms, sliced
200ml white wine
200ml chicken stock
a bay leaf
parsley, to finish

Put some flour a a large plastic bag and season it well.  Chuck in the chicken pieces and toss them well in the flour to coat them thoroughly.  Shake off the excess flour and ditch the bag.  Heat the fat in a large casserole, then brown the floured chicken pieces well and set them aside for a moment.  Fry the onion until soft and golden, then stir in the mushrooms and cook, stirring, until they  absorb all the fatty juices and start to 'squeak' a little on the pan.  Reduce the heat, then pour in the wine and stock and bring to a low simmer.  Add the bay leaf and return the chicken to the pan.  Cover and cook for 10 minutes, then remove the lid and simmer for another half an hour.  Turn the heat up a lttle towards the end, to bubble the juices away just a little.  Throw over a handful for chopped parsley, for pretty, and serve.

Tonight, we ate ours with mashed potatoes and a dish of leeks in cheese sauce, but it's equally good with a bowl of rice or some plain steamed potatoes and peas.  Quite frankly, bread and salad is more than enough... Enjoy!

Cath xx

Going Coco-nutty!

This is a lovely, mild and creamy curry for a weekend family supper.  It is quite 'saucy', because we like lots of sauce to soak into our rice, and to mop up with our naan, but you could cut the liquid down a little if you want, I guess.  Creamed coconut is a lovely addition to make to curries when cooking for the children as the sweetness seems to allay any potential tiresome behaviour about 'too spicy' foods.

Coconut Chicken


50g ghee (or butter and a splash of oil)
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp turmeric
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
a few cloves
500g chicken, sliced
1 pint milk
1 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tsp water
100g creamed coconut, chopped

Heat the fat in a large pan (one with a lid!) and fry the onion until soft.  Add the garlic and stir well, then mix in the spices.  The aroma will really hit you sometimes, so be careful with your eyes and that cayenne!  Add the chicken and fry quickly to seal it, then pour in the milk, cornflour-and-water mixture (which will stabilise the milk and prevent it from curdling unappealingly).  Simmer gently for 30 minutes, then stir in the coconut until the sauce is smooth and thickened.

Serve with rice or naan bread, or both in this house.  Yum!

Cath xx

Stick It!

Satay chicken or chicken satay, whichever, has been a favourite of mine for longer than I care to admit.  My first taste of it was when on a independently-organised field trip to Port Solent in Hampshire (with my Mum!) to collect information for my GCSE Geography individual study.  I did get full marks for the study and an A* overall, but I this suspect it wasn't entirely down to the satay... The memory of it, however, has stayed with me to this day, whereas my knowledge of reclaimed land in Hampshire and Holland has retreated somewhat!  I continued to dream of this, and to make it myself, through my university years and beyond.  Far superior to the mimsy, minuscule, ready made 'satay stix' you can buy, this is real food (and very popular with the children, who love any excuse to play with their food).  Can't think who they get it from...

Satay Chicken

This recipe is for 1kg of chicken breast meat, cut into long strips, which makes more than enough for four - with some leftover to eat cold as a snack.

1 medium onion, very finely chopped
1cm fresh ginger root, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp rapeseed oil (or sunflower, or vegetable)
juice of 1/2 a lime
2 tsp light muscovado sugar
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp chili powder (NOT powdered chillies, I mean the blended stuff!)
1/2 tsp turmeric

Stir all the prepared marinade ingredients together in a large bowl.  Mix the chicken (and see above) into the marinade, coating it thoroughly, then cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, but preferably longer.  I did these mid-morning, for supper tonight.

Soak some bamboo skewers (I used 12) in cold water for 30 minutes, then thread the chicken strips onto them in a wiggly fashion (you can do cubes, which is probably easier, but I like the wiggles).  Space them out on lightly oiled baking trays and bake at 200°c for around 25 minutes until cooked through and just starting to 'catch' in places.  Serve with this satay sauce...

Satay Sauce

100g dry-roasted peanuts
25g creamed coconut, finely chopped
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp tomato purée
1 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 tsp light muscovado sugar
1 tsp cornflour
1 tsp lemon juice
smidgen cayenne pepper

Put all the ingredients into a small pan  with 150ml water and bring gently to a simmer.  Cook for 5 minutes, then set aside to cool.  You can reheat it to serve, or put in straight into a serving dish.to eat at room temperature with the satay sticks.

To go with the chicken and the peanut sauce, I like nothing more than a bowl of steaming basmati rice and a simple salad, something to balance the taste of the rich peanut sauce; today I made a cucumber salad with radishes, only very lightly dressed.

Cath xx