Warm Duck and Crunchy Red Cabbage Salad

If you're anything like me Monday night is not a night when you want to be coming home from work and cooking something taxing. I'm loving my new job but even so, the start of the working week after the weekend off usually requires that little extra effort to get you going and into it, especially in the winter when it's cold, wet and windy outside. So when you've travelled home in the dark on a train-full of tired commuters like yourself you probably don't want to be spending ages in the kitchen just to get a good meal on the table. Well that's certainly how I felt this evening, anyway.

So tonight I opted for duck breasts, which take only about 20 minutes to cook, with salad. To liven up the usual salad leaves I added some raw, shredded red cabbage and drizzled over a simple dressing of 3 parts extra virgin olive oil to 1 part white wine vinegar, whisked together.



To cook the duck breasts season them and put them skin side down (assuming you haven't gone for skinless) in a frying pan and cook over a medium heat. They will release their lovely fat into the pan - which you can save for roast potatoes (store in the fridge). After about 10 minutes turn them over and give them about another 10 minutes if you like them deliciously rare, as I do. Make sure you leave them to rest for 5 minutes so that their juices go back into them.

The Frugal Cook...In a Book!

Even in the best of times it makes good sense to be cost effective when planning and cooking meals, but when you’re in an economic crisis with spiralling unemployment and rising food costs it may become essential to pull in the belts, make the food on your table go further and become altogether more thrifty. If the credit crunch is making you have to re-think your food shopping and cooking fear not: help is at hand.

Fiona Beckett is a renowned food writer and the author of the blog and the book of the same name: The Frugal Cook. If you haven’t yet visited the blog you should - on it we follow Fiona on her journey of thriftiness, picking up lots of tips and recipes along the way. And now there’s a book too; one that I’ve been eagerly awaiting the release of ever since I first heard Fiona talk about it on her blog. Now that I finally have a glossy copy in my hands I’m certainly not disappointed.

What I particularly like about this beautifully illustrated book is the general advice scattered through it. Not only do each of the original recipes come with a ‘thrifty tip’ to help you get even more for your money, but there are whole pages dedicated to frugality (isn’t that a great word?) such as ’20 Ways to Cut Your Food Bills by 20%’, ‘The Frugal Storecupboard (and Fridge)’ and ‘How to be more Energy-Efficient’. There’s also a handy A to Z of ingredients and leftovers which gives ideas on what to do with them.

It’s a great book, coming at a time when it’s needed most, and I just know you’re going to love it.

In the Bag: Cooking the Month of October - The Round-up!

Last month I hosted a Halloween special 'In the Bag' and invited you to carve or cook a pumpkin. Here are the spectacular entries in all their glory.

Frolicking Foodie:





...and a Little Bit More:



Yum in Tum:



Dil Se:



My Kitchen Diaries:



Priya's Easy N Tasty Recipes:



I'll Eat You:



Not Quite Nigella:



Coffee and Vanilla:





Apple Pie, Patis and Pate:



R Khooks:



eCurry:





Good Things Come in Small Packages:




Aren't they just fabulous? Thanks to everyone who entered!

'In the Bag' is a monthly food event run by Julia from A Slice of Cherry Pie and Scott at Real Epicurean

Bonfire Feast

Yesterday afternoon our parents, my cousin, his wife and their little daughter Hannah (our gorgeous god-daughter) came over to have dinner with us and then watch a firework display. My cousin's wife had suggested that she and I make a chilli and she found a quick recipe by Gordon Ramsay. We made a great team - and this is a good dish to make in a team as there’s quite a bit to do like chopping the vegetables, browning the meat while the dried spices are added to the onions, cooking the rice. We must have done a good job as the response of our chief taster, 2 year old Hannah, was “more!”.













We doubled the recipe up so used 2 red chillis, but didn't use the seeds so that we'd keep it mild, particularly as Hannah was eating with us. We did find though that it was very mild indeed - perhaps the chillis we used weren't very hot - so next time we'd probably use some seeds. Even so it was really flavoursome and everyone enjoyed it; I'd happily make it again. If you decide to try this recipe be aware that there's an error; the tomato puree is listed twice with different amounts, but the recipe says to taste so go with what you think is best. We used 4 tablespoons (remember we doubled the recipe) and found that was plenty for us.

For pudding we had a fantastic pumpkin pie spiced with cinnamon that my cousin's wife made. It was delicious with vanilla ice cream and went down really well. Here’s the recipe, which I can definitely recommend.



After dinner we all wrapped up warm and headed out to watch the fireworks. Hannah was squealing in delight all the way over to the park as she saw fireworks through the car windows. The typical British Bonfire night rain held off for long enough for us to see the display but we did get rather wet on our way back to the cars. The excitement was all too much for little Hannah, who fell asleep in her Dad’s arms as he carried her back.

The Heart of Autumn

Autumn is in full swing now and the landscape is rich with colour; the remaining shades of green specked with gold, brown and red. It’s so beautiful and every year never fails to leave me with a sense of wonder at the pictures nature paints for us with its ever changing palette. I’m well positioned to appreciate it right now, as Rob and I have escaped for a few days to Suffolk, where we’ve hired a lodge overlooking a picturesque lake. It’s cold and as I type, sitting on the verandah under the cover of the lodge roof and the table umbrella, fine rain is gently falling, rippling the lake. But we have fleeces to keep us warm, and the concerns I had before we arrived about the lodge being cold were completely unfounded: it has very good central heating and a gas fire.



There are four lodges here, each well equipped, most notably with their own private hot tubs; somewhat of a novelty for a guest house here in Britain. This has been my first experience of a hot tub and what an experience it is! Braving the cold air in my swimming costume and stepping into the bubbling hot tub on the first evening had me giggling like a school girl. Once in I wasn’t at all cold though and the bubbles and steam rising up relaxed me within minutes. Bliss.



Rob and I love to take short breaks in retreats like this, where we can hibernate for a few days, forgetting the hustle and bustle of everyday life. I, as you might imagine, particularly enjoy stocking up on good food to cook and eat. Our hoard on this break includes (off the top of my head) duck and port pate; crusty bread; bacon (which in fact came in our welcome hamper along with other goodies such as Champagne and chocolates and essentials like eggs and butter); sausages; cheese; chestnuts; potatoes and a free-range chicken. Not to mention the mouth-wateringly rich chocolate fudge cake toped with shaved chocolate that jumped into our basket of its own accord.



Last night I cooked a brace of pheasants for a sublime Autumn dinner. As they can easily dry out when roasted I decided to pot roast them with lots of stock to keep them as succulent as possible. In keeping with the season I added mushrooms and roasted chestnuts. It was lovely and a dish I’d like to try again before the game season is out. As nice as the gamey broth was I think perhaps next time I may just add a tablespoon of flour before the stock in order to thicken it.

Pot Roast Pheasants with Chestnuts and Mushrooms

Ingredients
A brace of pheasants
1 onion
2 large field mushrooms
300 ml Chicken stock
2 sprigs of thyme
A handful of flat leafed parsley
2 handfuls of cooked chestnuts (either pre-roasted, tinned or vacuum packed)
Salt and pepper


Preheat the oven to 170c.

Ensure the pheasants are clean and their innards removed, then brown them all over in about a tablespoon of olive oil in a flame-proof casserole dish over a high heat. Remove from the pan and then turn the heat down to medium.

Peel and dice the onion and add it to the pan. Wipe any dirt from the mushrooms, cut them into eights and add them to the onions. Cook for about 5 minutes and then add the stock and herbs.

Season with salt and pepper, bring up to a simmer and then add the pheasants back to the dish.

Put on a lid and pop the dish into the oven for an hour, or until the pheasants are cooked through. To check, pull on the legs, which should have some give in them and be easy to pull away from the body, and skewer the thigh and check that the juices run clear.

Add the chestnuts about 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time to allow them.

Before serving spoon off any excess fat from the liquid and either serve it as it is with the pheasants or reduce it on the hob first.