Thai Vegetable Salad with Sweetcorn and Kaffir Lime Fritters.

 

I decided to make another quirky salad recipe last
week in the hope of being a bit healthier again. I also made a Butterscotch and Pecan Cheesecake one day though and some Chocolate Mousse's so, I think my 'try to be healthy salad efforts' were a little bit wasted I have to admit :/.

I found this exotic, tasty sounding Thai vegetable salad in my Hamlyn 200 Veggie Feasts cookbook and decided to serve it with some sweetcorn fritters which, were also featured in the book. The thai salad was lovely, light and refreshing and had lots of juicy flavour and the sweet chilli dressing had a gorgeous sweetness and tang which, suited the salad perfectly. As for the sweetcorn fritters; it's actually difficult for me to judge if I'm honest as I don't really like sweetcorn :/... I know, why make sweetcorn fritters then? I have no idea either. I just thought they would go nicely with the salad and they did.

Considering I'm not a big sweetcorn fan these sweetcorn fritters did taste good but, I wasn't blown away. Then again, I don't think you would be blow away if you didn't really like the main ingredient. My Mum and Dad on he other hand, both really really enjoyed them so, I think they make better judges as they do actually like sweetcorn and so, I am sure that if you like sweetcorn then you will love these. They go perfectly with the salad and as they are fried they have a gorgeous crisp texture. I think personally for me though, the next time I make this salad I will try and make some Vegetable spring rolls to go with it as I think they would work perfectly with the salad and I absolutely adore spring rolls. Definitely try this gorgeous, unique salad though and if you are a sweetcorn fan then deffinately serve it with these sweetcorn fritters as they are nice and simple and I guarantee any sweetcorn lover will love them.

 

 

Recipe

 

For the Sweetcorn and Kaffir Lime Fritters- (Serves 4)

 

275g (9oz) can sweetcorn, drained

65g (2 1/2oz) plain flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 tbsps. light soy sauce

1 1/2 tbsps. lime juice

4 Kaffir lime leaves, very finely shredded (I couldn't find these in a shop but, you may have more luck than me, if not I purchased a pack of dried leaves for just 99p on ebay)

1 tbsp. chopped fresh coriander

2 tbsps. vegetable oil

 

For the Chilli Jam-

 

500g (1lb) ripe tomatoes

4 red bird's eye chillies

2 garlic cloves

2 tbsps. light soy sauce

200g (7oz) soft light brown sugar

75ml (3 fl oz) rice wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. salt

 

For the Thai Vegetable Salad- (Serves 4)

 

250g (8oz) cherry tomatoes, quartered

1 cucumber, thinly sliced

1 green mango (I used a packet of Whitworth's dried green mango, available in Tesco on offer for £1 at the moment.)

1 large red chilli, deseeded and thinly sliced

150g (5oz) bean sprouts

4 spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced

small handful of Thai basil leaves

small handful of mint leaves

small handful of fresh coriander leaves

4 tbsps. unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped

 

For the Chilli Dressing -

 

2 tbsps. Chilli Jam

2 tbsps. light soy sauce

2 tbsps. lime juice

4 tsps. soft light brown sugar

 

 

Method

First, prepare the chilli jam. Roughly chop the tomatoes, chillies and garlic cloves, then put in a food processor and process until fairly smooth. Transfer to a saucepan and add the remaining ingredients. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally to prevent the sauce sticking, for 30-40 minutes until thick and jam like. Set aside to cool completely. (This can be prepared in advance to make things easier for example, the day before.)

Next, prepare the sweetcorn fritter mix. Put half the sweetcorn in a food processor and process until fairly smooth. Sift in the flour and baking powder and add the egg, soy sauce and lime juice. Process again until combined and transfer to a bowl. Stir in the remaining sweetcorn, lime leaves and coriander.

Then make the Thai vegetable salad. First make the dressing. Put all the ingredients in a small saucepan and warm over a low heat, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved. Leave to cool.

Put the tomatoes, cucumber, mango, chilli, spring onions and herbs in a bowl. Fry the bean sprouts in some olive oil and tip into the salad. Add the dressing and toss well. Transfer to a platter and sprinkle over the peanuts.

Finally, fry the sweetcorn fritters. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Drop in 6 separate tablespoons of the batter, pat them flat and fry over a medium-high heat for 1 1/2 minutes on each side until cooked through and bronzed. Repeat with the remaining batter to make 12 x 5cm fritters. Serve the fritters hot with the Thai salad and a dollop of chilli jam.



Enjoy!

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

 

Garlic and Basil Ciabatta Recipe.

 

This recipe is really delicious and dare I say it, pretty simple. It does involve leaving the ciabatta mix over night to rise which, adds a certain element of faffiness to the overall product but, when you think about it all you have to do is add some water, flour and yeast each time and mix which, is pretty easy and doesn't take too much effort. My ciabatta didn't really rise very much at all though, as you can see from the pictures but, that didn't really matter as the garlic bread still tasted lovely. I'm not sure why it didn't really rise but, then I did halve the recipe I used as I only wanted to make one loaf so, perhaps because I only had a very small amount of mixture it didn't rise very well. I adore garlic bread so, I really wanted to have my own recipe and I really enjoyed this one. The garlic butter topping is very rich and creamy which, is nice too. I originally planned to slice the ciabatta and then spread some garlic butter onto each slice and grill but, as the ciabatta didn't rise I just spread it on top which, worked just the same.

 

Here is the tasty recipe which, I served with some homemade Caramelised Red Onion Quiche, Roast Red Pepper and Veggie Bacon Quiche and some Puy Lentil, Cherry Tomato and Haloumi salad to which, you can find the recipe here.

Recipe

 

    Ovenight preparation-

     125g Italian type '00' bread flour

    100ml water

    7g yeast

        To finish the bread-

125g Italian type '00' bread flour
7g yeast
100ml water
6g salt
 
Garlic Butter Topping-
 
1tbsp. Mayonnaise
2 tbsps. Butter, softened
1 bunch basil
2 tbsp. grated cheddar
2 garlic cloves, crushed
 
Method
 
1. For the overnight preparation, mix the flour with the water in a large bowl and add the yeast. Whisk for three minutes and leave to rise overnight (or at least eight hours).
2. To finish the bread, add the remaining flour and yeast to the bread mixture and mix well.
3. Gradually add the rest of the water to the bread mixture. When nearly all of the water has been added, add the salt to the remaining water and mix together for a further five minutes, until a sticky dough is formed.
4. Transfer the dough into a large oiled bowl and leave to rise for one hour.
5. Transfer the dough to a heavily floured work surface and leave to rest for a further 30 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 240C/465F/Gas 8.
7. Place onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper and leave for ten minutes.
8. Transfer the dough to the oven to bake for 25 minutes, or until risen and golden-brown.
9. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
 

 

10. Heat the grill to high. Beat together the mayonnaise, butter and garlic cloves until smooth. Chop the basil, stir through and season with salt and pepper. Put the halves of the ciabatta, sliced lengthways, on a baking tray and spread with the butter. Sprinkle with grated cheddar, then grill for 2-3 mins and serve.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

Roast Dinner- Toad In The Hole, Roast Vegetables, Golden Syrup Carrots and Dauphinoise Potatoes.

 

Yesterday, I thought as it was Sunday why not try and make a nice yummy Sunday Dinner. Whenever I cook I always try and make something a bit unique and different and end up needing to buy a million different ingredients so, I thought it would be nice to do something a bit more traditional for once and just jazz it up a bit. Obviously I had to buy a few extra ingredients to make the meal as it wasn't the roast dinner we usually have but, it was mostly just vegetables so nothing too expensive.

 

I really really loved this roast dinner actually as I always love a good gravy meal anyway and all of the components of this one made it a bit more exciting. The toad in the hole was lovely as Yorkshire pudding always is, it rose nicely and tasted delicious with a lovely crisp edge and my favourite soft, squidgy, gravy soaked middle. Thanks Mary Berry. The Dauphinoise potatoes; oh god one of the best things I have ever tasted. I had never made them before and had always wanted to try them so I thought why not give them a go. I made up the recipe myself and they tasted so rich and creamy with a lovely light cheesy, garlicy flavour and the potatoes were lovely and soft. They weren't the most healthy thing on the plate with a whole 600ml double cream pot added but, it's nice to have a treat every now and then isn't it ;)? The golden syrup carrots had a lovely sweetness and light orangey flavour and the roast veg was gorgeous and vibrant as it always is. Do you ever do anything a bit different with your roast dinner? If you give this lovely dinner a go I really hope you enjoy it and definitely give the dauphinoise potatoes a go if nothing else!

 

Recipe

 

Toad In The Hole- Serves 6

 

16 sausages (or veggie sausages)

125g (4 oz) plain flour

3 beaten eggs

200ml (7 fl oz) milk

A pinch of salt

 

Dauphinoise Potatoes - Serves 6

 

1kg Potatoes (Maris Piper or King Edward)

600ml Double Cream

100ml Evaporated milk (optional)

2 Garlic Cloves, crushed

120g grated cheddar cheese

3 spring onions, chopped finely

Salt and pepper

 

Roast Vegetables - Serves 6

 

3 tbsp. olive oil

1 Red Pepper, cut into medium chunks

1 Yellow Pepper, cut into medium chunks

3 Large Red onions, each cut into 8 wedges

2 Parsnips, chopped into medium chunks

1 Medium Sweet Potato, chopped into medium chunks

 

Golden Syrup Carrots - Serves 6

 

2kg Carrots, peeled, trimmed and chopped into quarters lengthways

30g butter

2 clementines, zest and juice

1 tbsp. golden syrup

 

Method

 

To make the Toad In The Hole -

 

1. Place the sausages in a large roasting tray and pre-heat the oven to 200C. Lightly brown the sausages in a little bit of olive oil for 15-20 minutes (only 10 minutes for veggie sausages).
2. While the sausages are cooking prepare the Yorkshire pudding batter. Sift 125g plain flour and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Make a well and add 3 beaten eggs and a little milk taken from 200ml. Whisk the milk and egg together in the well with a little of the flour from the sides, then whisk in the remaining milk, gradually drawing in all of the flour to make a smooth batter.
3. Remove the sausages from the oven and pour the Yorkshire pudding batter around the sausages into the hot oil.
4. Bake in the oven for around 15-20 minutes until the Yorkshire pudding is well risen, golden and crisp. Cut into 6 and serve immediately.

 

 

 

To make the Dauphinoise Potatoes -

 

Pre-heat the oven to 160C.

1. Peel the potatoes and cut them into slices about 3-4mm thick.
2. Place half of the potato slices into a baking dish and pour over half of the cream and milk. Scatter with 60g of grated cheese, 1 clove of crushed garlic and 1 chopped spring onion.
3. Place the rest of the potato slices on top and pour over the remaining cream and milk. Scatter with the other clove of crushed garlic and 2 chopped spring onions. Season with salt and pepper and cover with the remaining grated cheese. 
4. Bake in the oven for 1hr 30 min until the potatoes are soft and the cheese is browned.

 

 

For the Roast Vegetables -

 

1. Remove the seed from the peppers and chop into medium chunks. Peel the sweet potato and parsnips and chop into chunks. Peel the red onions and chop each into 8 wedges. Place all of the vegetables into a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil.
2. Bake in an oven at 200C for around 45 minutes or until the vegetables are softened and lightly bronzed/ golden.

 

 

For the Golden Syrup Carrots -

 

1. Cut the carrots into quarters lengthways and place in a small pan over a low heat.

2. Add the butter, clementine juice and zest and golden syrup. Season, then cover the carrots with water, put the lid on and simmer for 20 minutes until the liquid has reduced to form a syrupy glaze.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

 

 

Mini Egg and Bacon Tarts with Polenta and Pesto Roasted Peppers.

 

I made this recipe a fair few weeks ago now but, I completely forgot to post about it until now. I really enjoyed it at the time as it was very different to any of the meals I've ever made before and I always think it's nice to try new things. The roasted red peppers with polenta, pesto and halloumi were absolutely gorgeous and really flavourful and the mini egg and bacon tarts were really tasty and cute. It did take quite a bit of time to prepare everything and to get everything ready but, it was definitely worth it as it all tasted delicious in the end. The peppers actually didn't take long to prepare at all and so if you are a fan of polenta, pesto, red peppers and/or halloumi then I would definitely recommend giving these peppers a try as they are quick, tasty and a really unique little side dish that could accompany so many different things from pizza to quiche or chicken to sausages. Whatever you like. I am in love with halloumi and pesto at the moment so they were particularly great for me as well. I then served them alongside my little egg and bacon tarts (a vegetarian version for me ofcourse and real bacon for the family)  and they went together great. The slight sweetness from the peppers went perfectly with the savoury flavour from the tarts.

 

I will admit though that the preparing of the tarts didn't go too well initially :/. I didn't really feel like putting greaseproof paper and baking beans in the bottom of each individual little pastry case and so  I decided to just pop them straight in the oven without the baking beans and thought, what could possibly go wrong? Well, apparently the whole tart goes wrong. The pastry sinks and collapses and goes all soggy and although, I already knew this was likely to happen for some reason I thought, ten minutes in the oven... I'm sure they'll be fine. They weren't. Me and mum were there trying to stretch the hot pastry; burning our hands and just so you know, it doesn't work anyway. And then we decided to squash some raw pastry into the holes and cracks and risk the oven again and at that point the cases weren't looking too professional but, once the filling was added I think they actually worked out quite nicely so, it all worked out in the end. I think they look really sweet and I love the cheerful little yellow egg yolk perched on top.

 

If you decide to make these little tarts yourself, and I really hope I haven't put you off as they are really yummy and quirky, don't be lazy like me and use some baking beans :P... or don't I guess, it seems it all works out in the end anyway. I really enjoyed them served warm with the peppers but, it is also suggested to eat them as picnic food with ketchup and I think that sounds really yummy. If you do decide to give this recipe a go or to just try the peppers or the tarts I hope you really enjoy them!

 

Recipe

 

For the mini egg and bacon tarts- makes 6

 

375g packet of ready-rolled shortcrust pastry

8 rashers bacon (or veggie bacon)

1 small red onion, finely diced

1 tbsp. olive oil

2 tsp. chopped sage

75ml single cream

1 egg, beaten

6 egg yolks, separated (the whites can be used to make meringues or frozen and used later).

 

For the pesto polenta peppers- serves 4

 

2 tbsp. olive oil

1-2 tbsp. pesto

1x 500g pack ready-made polenta, cut into medium cubes

1 large red onion, cut into wedges

4 pointed red peppers, halved and deseeded

1x 225g pack lighter halloumi, sliced

handful of fresh basil leaves to serve.

 

Method

 

To make the egg and bacon tarts-

 

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. On a lightly floured surface roll the pastry sheet out until it is a few centimetres larger all around. Trim the edges, cut into 6 even squares, then use each square to line each hollow in a large, 6-hole muffin tin, or 6 individual ramekins. Don't worry if the corners stick up or look untidy. Chill for 20 minutes.

  

2. Line each pastry cup with a square of non-stick baking paper and fill with baking beans or dried pulses. Bake for 10 minutes then carefully remove the paper and beans and return to he oven for a further 5 minutes, until the pastry is just golden.

3. Meanwhile, lay 6 bacon rashers on a baking tray and bake for 10 minutes. Set aside.

 

4. Chop the remaining 2 rashers of bacon and gently fry with the onion in the olive oil for 10 minutes, until the onion has softened but not coloured. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the sage, cream and beaten egg. Season.

 

5. Tuck a bacon rasher into each pastry cup, curling it around to fit. Divide the onion-and-cream mixture between the tarts and place one whole egg yolk in each. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the pastry is golden and the bacon rashers are just brown. Set aside to cool for a few minutes before turning out.

 

 

To make the pesto polenta peppers-

 

1. Preheat the oven to 200C. In a small bowl, mix the olive oil and pesto together until well combined. Put the polenta and red onion in a large mixing bowl and drizzle with half the pesto mixture. Toss until well coated.

 

2. Scatter the polenta and onion on a baking tray. Nestle the pepper halves on the baking tray and brush each with the remaining pesto mixture. Roast in the oven for 15 minutes and then top the peppers with the halloumi slices and cook for a further 10 minutes until golden.

 

3. Finally, scatter over the basil leaves to serve.

 

Now enjoy!

 

 

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

Pesto and Pepper Gnocchi.

This Gnocchi is super tasty and super easy to make. It is probably one of the quickest, simplest and tastiest little meals I've ever made actually which, is why I love it so much. It literally takes like 15 minutes to whip up and has lots of flavour to it. I love pesto too but, not in massive doses which, is why this dish is lovely as it just has a light pesto-eey and cheesy flavour and the peppers add a lovely sweetness and bright vibrancy to the dish as well. I definitely recommend giving this dish a go and I'm sure I'll be making it all the time at Uni myself as it is really cheap to make with hardly any ingredients needed. It is also perfect served alongside some garlic bread so, if you do give it a go I hope you enjoy it and are as amazed as me that something so delicious and simple can be whipped up in barely any time at all!
 

Recipe

 

1 Pack of Gnocchi, 500g (65p Tesco)

1 Red Pepper (80p Tesco, currently two for £1)

1 Yellow Pepper (80p Tesco)

1 tbsp. Butter

3 tsp. reduced fat pesto (£1 Tesco)

50g Grated cheddar

 

Method

 

Chop the peppers into quite chunky pieces and place in a saucepan with the butter and cook over a medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes until softened slightly.

 

After about 10 minutes of cooking the peppers, place the Gnocchi in a pan of boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes until the gnocchi is softened and floats to the surface.

 

Drain the gnocchi. Tip the melted butter and pepper pieces into the gnocchi and stir.

 

Add 3 tsps. of pesto to the gnocchi and stir.

 

Then add the grated cheddar to the gnocchi and stir again as the cheese begins to melt. (I never actually weighed the cheese, I just put about 2 handfuls in so, feel free to add in as much as you want to make it as un-cheesy or cheesy as you like.)

 

Serve in a bowl topped with some more grated cheddar and serve alongside some garlic bread! Finally, enjoy!

 

Byee.

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x
 

Puy Lentil, Spiced Roast Carrot & Feta Salad.

 

The other day I came across another rather yummy sounding salad recipe and as I had a packet of Puy lentils left over from my last recipe I thought I'd give it a try. I was a bit worried plating it up that it would be a bit boring as it didn't seem to have much to it but, it actually tasted lovely and refreshing and I really enjoyed it. The carrots tasted lovely and sweet after being roasted in the honey, the lemon juice caramelised the red onion and tasted delicious and finally the mint came through amazingly and tased perfect with the feta.

 

I originally planned to serve my salad with some garlic bread but, as I am planning to make Gnocchi this weekend I thought I would whip up some scones to serve with it instead and I love this scone recipe.

 

 

Recipe

 

2 tbsp olive oil                                                                   

1 tbsp. cumin seeds  (I made the mistake of only adding 1 tsp. the actual recipe called for 1 tbsp. so feel free to add 1 tbsp if you like it spicy.) 

500g carrots , peeled, halved and cut into batons

1 tbsp clear honey
250g pouch cooked Puy lentils (or canned, drained and rinsed)
1 red onion , finely sliced
½ lemon , juiced
large handful mint leaves, roughly chopped
100g lamb's lettuces
85g feta cheese , crumbled

For the scones -
60g Butter
250g self-raising flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 egg
about 150ml milk
125g grated mature cheddar
1/2 tsp. mustard powder
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 onion, diced
3 rashers of bacon (or veggie bacon)


Method

1. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. In a shallow roasting tin, toss together half the oil, the cumin, carrots and some seasoning. Roast for 25 mins, turning halfway through cooking. Drizzle over the honey, stir and roast for 5 mins more.
2. Meanwhile, gently heat the lentils with the onion, lemon juice, remaining oil and some salt and pepper. Allow to cool slightly while the carrots finish cooking.
3. Toss the dressed lentils with mint and lamb's lettuce. Lay warm spiced carrots on top and scatter with feta. Serve alongside a warm scone spread with butter.

(To make the scones - Lightly grease a large baking tray. Cook the bacon and fry the onion in 1 tbsp. olive oil until soft. Chop the bacon into small pieces. Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Rub in the butter with the fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the grated cheese, mustard powder and dried basil. Stir in the onion and bacon. Break the egg into a measuring jug and make up to 150ml with milk. Beat lightly to mix. Add to the bowl and mix to a soft dough. Lightly knead the dough until smooth. Roll out until 1cm thick, cut into rounds with a pastry cutter, and put on the baking tray. Brush with milk. Bake in pre-heated oven at 220C for about 10 minutes until risen and golden. Serve warm with butter.) 

Enjoy!

 

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

Puy Lentil, Cherry Tomato and Haloumi Salad.

 

For a vegetarian who adores pretty much all vegetables, for some reason I have never been a big fan of salads. I think it's because I've never really been fond of raw vegetables in general, I love cooked carrots for example, but can't stand them raw (unless they are in coleslaw ofcourse). I've decided to try and start being a bit healthier though as I'd really like to lose a bit of weight before the summer so, I thought I would start looking for some tasty low fat recipes including some more interesting sounding salads.

I stumbled across this lovely recipe last week and thought it sounded really nice and tasty and very different to the usual bag of lettuce leaves topped with slices of cucumber and pieces of pepper. It got really good reviews on the website too so I thought I would give it a go and I'm very glad I did as I love it! I was a bit worried incase it was going to be a bit bland as some of the reviews said it was and that in needed a bit of chorizo or something added to it to liven it up. Ofcourse I can't have chorizo but, I considered popping some in for my Mum and Dad as I wanted to make sure they enjoyed it but, in the end I didn't and it really didn't matter as this salad had lots of lovely flavour to it.

It was so quick and easy to make too with very few ingredients needed and it turned out to be a really great dish which, I will now be making time and time again. The haloumi was also gorgeous so, I am now a big haloumi fan! I had only ever had it once before and it had been cut thinly and fried which, had made it quite tough whereas, this time I grilled it in chunks so it was still nice and soft. The dish looked great too with lots of vibrant colours which, was nice. The first time I made this salad I served it with a poached egg which, went nicely with the flavour but, it wasn't too necessary and Mum and Dad had it with some fish which, they said tasted delicious with it too. Recently I made this salad again though and took some better pictures of the dish which, I have now added to the post, replacing the old ones and this time I served the puy lentil salad with some tasty homemade Garlic and Basil Ciabatta which, I will soon upload the recipe for and also some delicious homemade Caramelised Red Onion Quiche and Veggie Bacon and Roast Red Pepper Quiche. If you decide to give the Puy Lentil, Cherry Tomato and Haloumi salad a go, I hope you really enjoy it too!

 

Recipe

                       250g cherry tomatoes, halved                 

½ red onion , finely sliced

½ garlic clove , crushed

½ lemon , juiced

                                  1 tbsp. olive oil                                  

                                          150g Puy Lentils                                          

250g pack haloumi cheese , cut into chunks

a small bunch coriander , roughly chopped

Method

1. Toss the tomatoes, red onion, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil in a bowl. Cook the Puy lentils until just tender, drain and add to the bowl. Season well and toss.
2. Grill the haloumi until golden. Stir the coriander through the lentils and serve with the haloumi. Eat as it is or serve with whatever you like; fish, slices of chorizo, quiche, pizza or some warm crusty bread and butter etc.

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

 

 

 

Veggie Sausage and Leek Pie.

 

Good afternoon! Who doesn't like pie right? Surely there's no one in this entire world that doesn't like pie. I do hope that's the case anyway. Pastry is so delicious. Last week I made a very yummy Veggie Sausage and Leek pie which, turned out really well so, I was very pleased as I had never made a pie before.

As Dad is at work currently, I thought I would just quickly pinch his laptop... again (he must find me very annoying at the moment), to do a quick recipe post of my Pie recipe as I haven't done one in what seems like forever. I just thought last week that with this horrible chilly, rainy weather we are having at the moment, there would be nothing better to have for tea than a nice, warming, hearty meal so, I made this lovely pie which I found the recipe for on the BBC Good Food website and I served it with some cauliflower cheese, roast vegetables, asparagus and chantenay carrots. I know how posh of me. I absoloutely adore asparagus at the moment.

The pie is normally not vegetarian but, as I am a vegetarian I made it using the Red onion and Rosemary Vegetarian Sausages by Linda McCartney which, worked perfectly in the dish but, ofcourse if you are not a veggie, feel free to use whatever sausages you wish.

There is another winter warmer on the menu tonight as I am making Vegetable Goulash and Chive Dumplings, nom. But, for now here is the lovely, and surprisingly cheap and easy to make, pie recipe.

Recipe

For The Pastry

                                        85g cold butter , chopped                                           

                175g plain flour           

                                                                                                         

For The Filling

450g good pork sausages (I used 

                                            10 veggie sausages)                                                  

2 large leeks , sliced and washed

25g butter

25g plain flour

300ml milk

2 tsp grainy mustard

handful of chopped parsley

1. Preheat the oven to fan 180C/ conventional 200C/ gas 6. Whizz butter and flour in a food processor. Add 2 tbsp. water and pulse to a ball. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill.
2. Heat the grill to high, brown the sausages for 5 minutes. Fry the leeks in the butter for 2- 3 minutes. Sprinkle in flour and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and stir in the milk. Season, add the mustard and bring to the boil, stirring.
3. Cut each sausage into five at an angle and pile into a 1.2 litre dish. Stir the parsley into the leek sauce and pour over.
4. Roll out the pastry and cut out a shape 2.5cm larger than the dish.Re-roll trimmings to make a 2.5cm strip. Brush the rim of the dish with water and lay the strip on top. Lift the rest on top, press to seal and crimp edges. Bake for 25 minutes. (I added 3 simple pastry leaves for decoration instead.)

 

Serve with whatever accompaniments you like whether, it be chips, peas and gravy or fresh vegetables. I served mine with some roast red and yellow peppers, red onion and courgette, as well as some cauliflower cheese, steamed chantenay carrots and a few asparagus spears. Yum.

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x