Cheese bubble and squeak

And one of my favourite things to do post Christmas is upon us - eating left overs.  I added the remains of the honey roasted parsnips, the Brussels sprouts with pancetta and Marsala, roast potatoes and Brie to my squeak and whilst this doesn't look great, it made a great brunch.  

Apple and lemon purée

I really wasn't sure about this as the apples didn't really fall apart in the pan as Nigel had promised but I needed have worried as once whizzed this was perfect.  Again, it cut through the fattiness of the goose.

Juniper sauce

I did roast goose for Christmas dinner but rather than the way Nigel does it I joined #teamNigella and made her Bohemian Roast Goose (from Feast) which is stuffed with sauerkraut and apple giving you a lovely sharpness to counter the fattiness of the goose. However, alongside it was Nigel's juniper sauce which was predictably delicious. 

Christmas cake

Slightly less success with this in that whilst I found this perfectly edible and my mum, her partner and my brother in law really liked it (and took some away for later) my daughter hated it and my sister wouldn't try it as she thought it looked too heavy, although said she would try some after Christmas.  I was particularly pleased with the icing of the cake!

Nigel's Christmas Pudding (part 2)

Well, I'm converted.  This was delicious.  Plus I'm not the only convert as my dried fruit hating daughter and sister also tried the pudding and liked it. We had ours with salted caramel ice cream.  This isn't the worst photo from yesterday but the state of the table is telling its own story.

Nigel's Christmas Pudding

Well! Who knew that I'd be desperate to tuck in to Christmas pudding but look at this beauty!  I can't wait!  Whilst I do have a further 3 and a half hours of cooking it on Christmas Day to go, and therefore there are still things that could wrong, I think Nigel may have turned me.  My kitchen smells of Christmas right now.  

Baked red mullet with pine kernel stuffing

The stuffing here was absolutely beautiful - a real surprise.  It really made the dish.  There is no getting away from the fact that whole fish is a pain in the neck to eat and a lot of effort for little reward, but the stuffing compensated fully.

Job done?

Not quite.  I started this blog by saying that there was no way I was going to make Christmas pudding or cake because I don't eat them. However, having put my trust in Nigel for the last 12 months I have tried many things I wouldn't have previously considered, so I'm obviously going to have to do them.  There were 6 further recipes I didn't get to do, for one reason or another, and they are:

Taramasalata (March)

A warm summer fruit compote (June)

And all from December:

Baked red mullet with pine kernel stuffing

Roast goose, juniper sauce and apple and lemon purée

Passion fruit roulade

Cheese bubble and squeak

Therefore, my blog continues until I'm done.  

On another note, look at the state of my book a year on!

Pork ribs with honey and anise

I've broken one of my own rules tonight and made this which is already a regular feature in my life.  Whilst Nigel does his in the oven I do mine in the slow cooker, which makes them less sticky than his, but the flavours here are amazing.  I also wanted to end my year of recreating The Kitchen Diaries with a dish that I know my daughter loves and so here we are.  

September is complete

I've struggled to find a favourite this month as there were a few winners in the list, but on reflection I'm going for the fruit crumble as it will shape the way I make a crumble for many years to come.

Fresh borlotti with olive oil and focaccia

I did a 'Stars In Your Eyes' version of this one today, in that fresh borlotti beans were nowhere to be found, so I used organic tinned, my salad leaves were mixed rather than just rocket, my oil was walnut rather than olive and my bread was ciabatta rather than focaccia.  Shakin' Stevens as opposed to Elvis, if you will!  I hadn't been looking forward to this one particularly but it was absolutely fine as a quick and simple lunch and brings September to an end, albeit a few days late.  

Plum crisp

Knowing that I may be disappointed by the curry I saved this beauty for tonight.  The crisp was lovely and set off the sharpness of the, in this case, damsons. A very satisfying pudding.

A tomato curry

I've been dreading making this all month - well all year really.  I mean, really, a tomato curry?  What's the point?  But make it I must, so make it I have.  The vegetarian boyfriend liked it but for once the daughter and I agreed on it being a bit meh.  I wouldn't make this again.

Mushroom parpadelle

Last night I was entertaining a friend whose absolute favourite dish is mushroom parpadelle, so I saved this one to make for her.  Whilst it was not the same as the beautiful offering in the restaurant we frequent when on holiday in northern Tuscany (how could it be?) it was still good.  In a very man v food way my friend told me how she could pick out each individual flavour, occasionally getting a hit of Parmesan and so on.  Whilst it doesn't sound like a great dinner party meal it worked for us. 

An almond and plum crumble

I love this time of year - I always associate September and October with crumbles and I love Nigel's take on it.  The crumble tasted so biscuity it was delicious - this will definitely be entering my permanent repertoire.  I made this last night and had a portion for breakfast this morning - it was the king of breakfasts!  

Roast pork sandwiches

I had a problem making this as my pork belly took longer than Nigel had recommended to cook through, which meant that I ended up burning the onions - a great shame because they smelled amazing and the edible bits tasted amazing.  Hey ho.  Apart from that, this was as wonderful as you'd expect.

Grilled squid with thyme and lime

So simple to make, it made me wonder why I never had before.  

A wonderfully moist, fresh plum cake

And wonderfully moist it is.  This is such an interesting cake because the walnut flavour really comes through (which I love) and there is a real sharpness to the plum (which I also love) - no sooner was this cake out of the oven than it was almost all gone so it wasn't just me who approved. 

Courgette and Lancashire cheese crumble

As Nigel says in the book there is a definite nod to the 1970s here, but is that necessarily a bad thing?  We all really enjoyed this - astonishing given the fussiness of my daughter.  The cheese flavour came through perfectly even though there was relatively little in there.  If I make this again I would be tempted to add baked beans on the side, transporting the eater straight back to 1975!

Baked mushrooms with tarragon mustard butter

I had these as recommended in a bap, making it into the most delicious of veggie burgers.  Oh my, this was good! 

Baked lamb with tomatoes and rosemary

I have jumped ahead a few days, seizing the opportunity to make lamb again whilst my daughter is out.  My butcher had run out of neck chops so I gambled on normal chops (I've no idea what part of the lamb a run of the mill lamb chop comes from and, to be frank, I'm not going to over think it) which worked absolutely fine here.  This is very much my kind of cooking (as simple as it gets, roasted in one pan) and my kind of food (the cooking process turning the veg sticky and sweet) so it's very much a yes from me tonight.  

August is complete

For me, this month's highlight was the grilled chicken with garlic and lemon butter.  I can't believe that I only have a month left (plus those few dishes that I wasn't able to get the ingredients for) - what am I going to do with myself?  What's that you say? Kitchen diaries 2? Mmm ...

Orange yoghurt water ice

And finally (and only 3 weeks late) this refreshing delight.  I had not been looking forward to having this at all, due to my general yoghurt indifference, but I need not have worried as Nigel came through for me again.  The citrus flavours here almost made me feel that I was injecting vitamin c directly into my bloodstream - which was much more pleasant than I've just made it sound!

A salad of red mullet with lime and ginger

This is the kind of thing that I would never have considered making prior to tackling a year of Nigel and it would have been my loss.  I loved the vinegary sharpness of the sauce and in particular the way the onions responded to it.   I'm late making this as I wouldn't dream of making it for the daughter so it was today's lunch whilst she's at work.  

Bread and tomato salad

If I must eat salad then this is exactly the kind of salad I must eat.  The bread was a lovely addition and the anchovies a subtle flavour hit.  This could become a regular side dish in this household, which is praise indeed - thanks Nigel.

Seared beef with mint and mustard dressing

Wow!  This was amazing.  Obviously the cut and quality of meat makes a massive difference to a dish and this fillet did not disappoint.  The beef melted in the mouth and the dressing was a perfect accompaniment.  I had to give the joint about 7 minutes longer than that recommended by Nigel as it was in my opinion too raw rather than perfectly rare.  Beautiful and I would definitely make again. 

Bream with lemon and anchovy potatoes

The potatoes were the star of the show here.  I can imagine this being my preferred way to make potatoes as the hit of lemon, coupled with the saltiness of the anchovies was just perfect.  The fish was cooked just right and was nice but fish is fish is fish - wonderful potatoes on the other hand are a totally different landscape.

Garlic prawns

And while I was with an un-fussy eater I took the chance to make these.  Fast food at its very best.

A squid in the fryer

I've jumped ahead to September here mainly because my 12 year old nephew is staying with me tonight and his request  for dinner was calamari.  He ate these greedily which was lovely to see (after months of pulled faces from my 21 year old). I don't have a fryer so did this in a shallow pan with plenty of oil which was a little scary but I managed.  These were great and I would make them again.

Grilled chicken with garlic and lemon butter

Oh man, this was good!  The chicken would have been good anyway, as it had been marinating for a couple of hours, but with addition of the herb butter it was amazing.  Lovely, lovely, lovely.

Cannellini beans with Parma, spinach and mustard

Eagle eyed Nigel lovers will instantly see something amiss - the meat in the salad should have been coppa, but there was none to be found, so I used Parma.  I also substituted olives for capers which also worked well.  This salad was really delicious and will definitely go on the make again list. 

Grilled chicken with lemon and couscous

When I was buying the ingredients tonight I got really excited about making this dish as the mint and coriander were giving off such a heady scent.  Ironically it was the herbs that ruined this meal for us in that there was too much of them - were I to make this again I would half the herb content.  Also, I felt that the preserved lemons were a unnecessary and expensive (they cost as much as the chicken) addition - I'd be tempted to just add more fresh lemon juice and flesh instead.  Sorry for the moaning Nigel but you can't win them all!

Mozzarella with grilled fennel

I had to substitute the olives (allergy) for capers and I'll never know how much difference that made to this dish.  I find fennel an overwhelming flavour even when it was toned down by the mozzarella and, whilst I didn't dislike it, this won't be one I'll be taking into my future with me.

Grilled zucchini with basil and lemon

This is a great side dish and one I will roll out for many summers to come I suspect.  Lovely flavours and so simple to make - I did mine on the griddle.

Lamb chops with oregano and tsatziki

Regular readers can guess the daughter's reaction to this, but I loved it.  I've never made tsatziki before and, as I'm not a big yoghurt fan, have barely ever eaten it but it was great - who knew? 

Grilled monkfish with rosemary, served with garlic mayo

I don't like mayonnaise and so wasn't looking forward to that particular element of the recipe.  In trusted Nigel stylee though, he didn't let me down and I realise that the reason I don't like mayonnaise is because I've never had a home made version before, which could be tweaked to my taste.  Overall, this dish was a winner.

Roast tomato soup with basil and walnut oil toasts

Nigel used olive oil but I'm allergic to that so walnut oil it is.  Nigel starts this recipe saying 'chilled soups never really do it for me' -  I can honestly say that chilled anything never really does it for me - I hate cold food, as anyone who knows me will attest.  My devotion to and faith in Nigel, however, knows no bounds and so it was with just a little trepidation that I embarked upon the cold soup making road.  I'm never going to be a cold soup lover but this was good.  I think that because the flavours were robust there was nothing not to like.  Besides, I know I have hot monkfish to come!

Baked aubergine with sheep's.cheese and mint

And not forgetting pine nuts!  What's not to like in that combination?  I proper loved this - as did my two fellow diners.  I made the lamb meatballs to go along with this as suggested by Nigel - good choice Nigel.

July is complete

Yay, I've crammed it in but I did it nevertheless.  Fave this month was the strawberry water ice. 

A soup of roasted summer vegetables

I don't doubt that if I had this Chez Nigel, made by Nigel, I'd have really enjoyed it but to be honest this wasn't my finest hour. I took my eye off the ball and burnt the veg so it was all a bit meh! Still edible mind.  For the record I left the pasta out of mine.

Nigel's delightful trifle

This was really good - my mum was raving about it (she is a true trifle connesseur) so that's a good sign.

Baked salmon

And the centrepiece of today's lunch was an enormous whole salmon.  My sister brought a lovely sauce to go along side it, the main ingredients of which were, I think, sour cream and dill and which really worked - a beautiful sauce complementing a beautiful fish.

A lunch of baked tomatoes

Well, to be fair, the lunch today consisted of far more than baked tomatoes but we loved these as part of a vast lunch.  The Parmesan baked on top really made these and stopped them turning into a sloppy tomato dish.  Would make this again.

Peach and blueberry soured cream cobbler

And finally, pudding.  This didn't deliver for us I'm afraid - the fruit part of it was lovely and I would never previously have thought of using peaches and blueberries but they were lovely as a combo - but the cobbler bit just wasn't our thing.   Even the boyf, who doesn't really eat dessert, said that the cobbler bit wasn't sweet enough and I'd have to agree with him just this once.  I would love the fruit part if it was sat under a crumble topping though, so maybe next time.

Zucchini cakes with dill and feta

Now, for this I was totally faithful to the recipe and, whilst I am fully aware that the picture makes them looked burned and hideous, quite the opposite is true.  I could see why Nigel suggested a good chutney as the flavours here were delicate and creamy and the chutney complemented that.  

San marcellin with tomatoes and basil

Well, mine was mozzarella with tomatoes, but the principle was the same.  It is just not possible to buy San Marcellin in the shops near to where I work (in one of the most deprived areas of the country), so mozzarella it was.  This was the first course of last night's dinner and, as it turned out, possibly the best.  Simple yet tasty and perfect for the weather we've been enjoying recently.

A refreshing salad for a hot day

And this was todays lovely lunch - and what a hot day it was!  I don't think that there are 3 things that go together as well as melon, Parma ham and mozzarella (apart from caramel, peanut butter and ice cream) and the rest of the salad made that holy trinity sing.  Regular readers will know I'm not a salad person but this worked for me.  Again, Thanks Nigel. 

Melon sorbet

I also made this today to use up the melon I'd had at lunch - I always feel very domestic goddessy when I do that.  I didn't straightforwardly like this as much as I liked the strawberry one, but it is different and I'm glad I gave it a go.

Strawberry water ice

My daughter pulled her face yesterday when I said I was making this but was as amazed as I was by the gorgeousness of this sorbet.  I would urge everyone with the book (and a freezer) to make this, especially when the weather is as hot as it has been here recently.

Roast tomatoes with anchovy and basil

And to have alongside the lamb this delight.  The photo is so bad that it doesn't do anything justice but did make me laugh which is why I'm using it.

Lamb filled flatbread

What today has taught me is that, having not cooked properly for two weeks,  I love cooking.  Before starting this project I liked cooking but making so many different things which turn out so well (clearly more of a testament to Nigel's writing and recipes than my capacity to follow them) I now LOVE it and have missed making new things over the last couple of weeks.  I have returned to Nigel with gusto today and have made 5 of July's dishes.  This one is right up my strasse and I do believe that it could become a staple in my house - even the lamb hating daughter liked it - adding chilli sauce to hers.  

Roast lamb rolls with oregano and garlic

I had this without the roll to keep the carb count down but the daughter had the full on experience.  We both liked this (yes, even her!) - to be honest, anchovies and lamb are such a perfect combo I could eat this kind of thing all day long.

A lunch of grilled mackerel and tomatoes

Those who know the book well will know that Nigel's was a supper and the tomatoes are described as 'more tomatoes'. Those who know this will also have spotted that I'm not following a sequence, have skipped ahead a little and have done any tomato dishes recently. I'm going on holiday in a couple of weeks and in a bid to lose a few pounds before I go have dropped carbs from my diet where possible, meaning that Nigel has had to go on the back burner just for a couple of weeks. This dish, however, is a good high protein meal so still could be enjoyed. It is also boiling hot today and we sat outside with this lovely lunch - it felt like we were already abroad, reminding me of some of the lovely yet simple dishes you get in Spain. The flavours in this were perfect and even the daughter tucked in with gusto, which considering there were bones was quite unlike her. So, once again Nigel, well done you for changing us!