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.