Pear poached in mulled wine with brandy sauce

This is a recipe for christmas. I've never even tasted mulled wine before so this crimbo I bought some to try it out. Now I'm not a wine person generally but I wanted to see if mulled wine is any different in case I'm missing out.

Turns out I'm not really cos it's quite dry like most wines but then that's why I cook. I changed it. I added a little sugar and made it more palatable. Then I considered dessert and thought I'd try poaching a pear in sweetened mulled wine then reducing the wine to make a sauce. I spied the brandy sauce and my plan came together.
So I had that a couple of nights ago but this morning I thought I'd experiment further.

I love having desserts for brekkie cos it feels so naughty it has to be right. The looks I get you wouldn't believe. No one seems to care that I'm starting the day with my one of five a day. I mean I'm starting with a pear, and sure, it's wine but it's mulled wine made from all sorts of fruits. That has to be good for you doesn't it?

To mix it up a little though, I decided to add some crunchy oat cereal, partly for extra crunch and partly to make it more breakfasty. Boy that did add some interest. It was only half a poached pear left over from the previous dessert but it's still a real pear and part of my five a day. The oats contain sultanas and coconut and stuff so also add to the five a day but also add to the fibre. I just like that crunchy oats can be a nice way of adding fibre with relatively unprocessed ingredients.

Anywho it certainly make breakfast interesting. Can't wait to do that again. Now I've got to wait for my rhubarb crumble to finish!!!!

Oyster mushrooms in garlic butter with roast vegetables

Ok, so the last couple of articles have been a bit intense. So I'm gonna lighten the mood. I just had a terrific meal and so I have to share. Sorry that I didn't take a pic but I'd started eating before I remembered.

What I really want to share is how darn easy it was. I've been working on this easy way of cooking for a while and it's starting to come together. The end result is that I'm now having gorgeous meals I can whip up as my mood dictates that are home made yet have the ease of being frozen.

Todays delight was oyster mushrooms I'd bought half price on offer at the supermarket. I washed and froze them in individual portions as soon as I got home. The roast veg I made yesterday and froze after. I freeze them after I've boiled the root veg then toss in some oil, this time duck and lamb fat cos that was what I was cooking, herbs, and seasoning.

So, feeling lazy but wanting something nice I checked the freezer. I spotted the gravy I made yesterday, then the mushrooms in the freezer and the roast veg, mmmmm I thought.

Just poured the veg into a tin to roast and popped in the oven. I thought about the mushrooms. They cook much quicker than the veg and I couldn't be bothered to keep popping back to the oven to put extra items in and stuff. So my answer. Put them in their own tin with a dash of butter on each shroom. Then cover with tin foil so they won't dry out and put in the oven.

Half an hour later I came back, heated up the gravy and dished up. I know it's my own cooking but it was a real treat. The flavours were big and it all worked together. Best of all I got to carry on with christmas!!!

Baked fish with Roast Butternut Squash and Crushed cashews

ok, I won't always talk about food but since you get 3 chances a day to treat yourself I like to make sure that atleast once it feels like a treat.

This time the treat was in how quick and easy it was to make. The ingredients weren't designed to match perfectly like a recipe. I do that a lot. I thought I'd try something out to see if it would work.

The dish is fish with roast butternut squash, sprouts and crushed cashews.

Not sure how that sounds to you but it was very nice. The main issue is that I have to take our collie Cali out for a walk when I get home. So cooking my dinner has to fit in aswell. With this meal I roasted the squash while I was walking Cali and had the fish ready to pop straight in the oven when I got back.

I had a halved squash in the fridge, I removed the seeds, scored the flesh, sprinkled with olive oil, thyme, rosemary and seasoned. Then got the fish (it's wrong but I'm not sure exactly what fish it was. It wasn't salmon, but I've bought a few different fish recently and it could be any one of them) out of the freezer. Unwrapped the clingfilm, put a nob of butter on it and seasoned it. Put in an oven dish and covered with baking paper (I've run out of foil).

With all that done I put the squash in the oven and took cali out. When I came back I took the squash out for 10 minutes and put the fish in the oven.

Then prepared the sprouts, slicing them and putting them in the squash centre where there was a puddle of oil. I added a little seasoning to taste.  Back in the oven. then I crushed the cashews and added right near the end. The fish took about 30 mins.

Then I just plated up and ate it. What I love about this is how little work I actually have to do. I'm beginning to love butternut squash cos when you roast it your really have no hassle. Roasting makes it so soft and juicy and sweet. And I love that you can use it's skin as its own bowl. No peeling needed. I loved the fish too. I used to think it was really awkward to cook cos I used a frying pan, you have to defrost it overnight and you've got a bunch of washing up to do. But this way was almost effortless.

Now I've got some spare time to watch some snooker.

Roasting, my way

Another way of making meals full of taste but simple to make is to mix cooking methods. I'm being very liberally in my use of the term cooking method.

Tonight I used a roasted chicken breast that i'd frozen a few weeks ago from a freshly roasted chicken i'd bought from the supermarket. Rather than defrost it I tried a trick I copied from the fish I cooked last week. It was wrapped in tin foil with a little butter added and put in the oven. I had no foil so I used baking paper instead.

For the veg I opened a can of tinned carrots, yep I'm really being lazy and experimental at the same time, a bit of olive oil, sprinkling of thyme and rosemary. Salt and pepper the roast carrots are sorted. Then I peeled an onion sliced the top and wedged a little butter in. Put in tthe same tray. As the carrots.

Then, cos it's christmas I'm trying out sprouts. I never liked them but feel like I might find a way. This time I've sliced 4 sprouts and mixed them with some tinned peas a little mint and sauteed them in a frying pan.

When it all came together I added some pinenuts to the sprouts and peas.

Anywho. The point is I loved it but I didn't have to put so much effort into it. Sure I do it all properly when I have time and the energy but I wanted a roast without all the effort. My dinner hit all the right spots. I had a bunch of tasty veg so I feel real healthy and now I'm just putting my feet up and chilling