Cabin Fever

The month of June was wonderful, weather wise; the sun shone, we had BBQs, picnics in the park and the flipflops and sandals were dusted off for the duration.   School came out on the very last week and we holidayed in the UK, with the sun hitting off our backs.   Ah, it was glorious.............

Then July comes.   The rain with it and it Just Won't Stop.   We're used to rain of course but after a while spent in cagouls, braving the park in the downpour or getting soaked on a short trip to the shops, it all starts to get a bit....well, wet.   On top of it all, we are waiting to go camping...methinks the wait will linger a wee bit longer so I'm contemplating tossing us all on to a passing plane and heading for sunnier climes in Italy, France or Cornwall.   Any suggestions?

 Making Risotto

Making risotto is easy; it may not seem it but it really is, as long as you are happy standing at the cooker for 20 minutes because this is how long it takes to cook.   You make your stock and have it sitting next to you, still warm and ready to go alongside a glass of wine or champagne.   

To begin, gently fry onions and garlic (or whatever else you want to use...mushrooms, celery etc.) in some olive oil and butter until soft.   You add in the unwashed rice (I always add in a wee bit extra olive oil just before this) and 'gently fry' by stirring it around the oil for a good few minutes.   When it looks like no oil is left and the rice appears translucent, then pour in the wine. 

The amount depends on how much risotto you are cooking; approx. 400g/14 oz rice-2 pints of stock- 2 glasses of wine or alcohol like Noilly Pratt.

Stir until all all the wine has been soaked up and then add a ladle of stock and a pinch of salt to the risotto.   Stir until all the liquid is soaked up once again and repeat (without the salt!) until the stock has been used up.   Take your time, don't rush it; as long as you stir and add in the stock a little at a time, you can't go wrong.  It should take approx. 15 minutes.

You must taste it at this point; I prefer the rice to be soft although it is supposed to have a tiny little bite to it and I stop cooking at this stage as it is still to 'mature'; more on that in a moment.   If I don't feel the rice is ready by the time the stock runs out, I add in some water from the boiled kettle until it is.   Check seasoning.

Remove from the heat and add in a good handful of grated Parmesan alongside a great knob of butter (for the amount of cooked risotto above, approx. 4oz Parmesan and 2oz butter).  Stir well.

Now for the maturation!   You must put a lid on the pan and leave it to sit for approx. 2-3 minutes.   This is when the risotto changes into a wonderful, creamy dish as the butter and Parmesan works it's magic, the rice continues to soften a little and it all matures.

 A messy dod of risotto with peas but what a tasty dod it was!

I like to add cooked peas to my risotto alongside another grating of Parmesan and a good grinding of black pepper.   Utterly delicious!   I always have loads left over and, although purists would be banging their heads off the keyboard at this, I put the remainder in the fridge and use it throughout the week as an accompaniment to dinners; it goes particularly well with roast chicken.   Heat up in the microwave for 1 minute.   Enjoy.

Caught in the rain.

My husband insisted that I be there for 5.30pm on the dot. I was not to be late. So, knowing it would take me five minutes to walk round in the rain and the gales, I left on time. I was unable to even put up my brolly for fear of it blowing away in the storm. Windswept and wet, I knew he'd be at the corner waiting and a smile crossed my face as I ran the last few steps, finally reaching my destination....

He wasn't there. It was exactly 5.30pm and he was nowhere to be seen. So I began to walk. And walk and walk and walk. Eventually, the glare of the headlights caught me like the proverbial rabbit and he must have realised his fate, when he saw mascara running down my face, hair plastered to my head and the useless brolly, pathetic at my side.

A mug of tea has been made, a bath is being run and a contrite husband looks forward to being forgiven. Goodnight.

Atchooo!

I can see clearly now the rain has gone.

Despite still not sleeping very well last night, I did sleep a little and woke up feeling great. I was reminded by a friend that I felt a bit blue the last time Brian left for a week but it passed quickly. This morning, the sun was shining...for five minutes...but it was enough to cheer me alongside a large coffee, freshly baked lemon cake (I made four!) and a re-run of Friends. It would have been a different story if Lyn's husband Ken had not picked up the kids for me as the clock had stopped and we all slept in.

I had a lovely night with Anne and Karen, all three of us munching through canapes throughout the evening and enjoying a few glasses of wine. Brian took my camera to Greece and alas, the kids camera isn't working properly so no pictures which was a shame as the table looked so festive.

I served:
Parma bundles stuffed with goats cheese and crispy basil
Chilli bruchetta, chicken tikka, yogurt and coriander with a little caramelised onion chutney
Baked cherry tomatoes on top of crispy ciabatta with olive oil, parmesan and basil
Shredded duck with hoi sin sauce cornets and spring onion with cucumber stuffing
Homemade mini loaf with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and sea salt dipping sauce plus olives

I enjoyed all of them that old modesty of mine kicking in again and the duck, a new edition to my canape repertoire looked lovely and tasted really nice.

I had prepared Pauline's recipe for pakora and reheated it in the oven later on in the night; I served it with a yoghurt and tomato dipping sauce. That went down a treat.

Parma Bundles
Mix together a few tablespoons of goats cheese, the crumbly kind, some finely chopped spring onion, cucumber, tomatoes and yellow pepper-remove skin and seeds from cucumber and seed from tomatoes. Add a little grating of lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice. No ingredient has to be exact, just add roughly equal quantities and add extra of what you like. A sprinkling of sea salt...just a little, the cheese and prosciutto is salty enough...and a little grinding of black pepper.

Add a little amount of this to each slice of parma ham/prosciutto or halve the slice if you want smaller bundles. Wrap into a parcel shape and top with a crispy basil leaf; to make these, dip leaves in olive oil and place into a hot oven for a few minutes until they crisp up.

Chilli and oregano bruchetta with chicken tikka
I buy the bruchetta pre-done and crispy from Asda; any type of thin, flat crispbread would work just as well. Chicken tikka, you can make or buy the mini pre-made ones from the supermarket on sticks. I made this batch myself but have been known to buy it and it doesn't make too much difference. Separate the tikka into bite sized pieces, if buying or else cut chicken into bite sized pieces and marinade in tikka sauce and bake in oven.

Make yogurt sauce by mixing some chopped coriander, lemon juice, salt and pepper to half a bowl of yogurt, to taste. Add tikka bites and coat. Place tikka on top of bruchetta and add a little chutney (any kind of chutney would work) on top of that. These are very moreish, so make loads!

Baked cherry tomatoes
Halve tomatoes, sprinkle with sea salt and pepper, dribble over some olive oil and then some chopped basil and thinly sliced parmesan. Bake in oven until the cheese has started to melt and serve on ciabatta, bruschetta or crispbreads.

Shredded duck
Roast half a duck until cooked and the skin is crispy. Shred with two forks until you have a pile of shredded duck with some of the crispy skin shredded too. Thinly slice cucumber and spring onions into three inch sized strips. Buy hoi sin sauce. Buy little wafer Chinese pancakes. Cut pancakes into quarters, of equal sizes. Place on each quarter a little duck and one or two strips of cucumber and spring onion. Spread a little hoi sin sauce (or plum sauce if you prefer) down one side and roll into a cornet or cone shape. The sauce will 'stick' it together and the cucumber and spring onion should stick out. These are so dinky and look great. I served them with some extra shredded cucumber and spring onion on the side.

Homemade mini loaf and olives
The loaf is a standard bread recipe but divided into four small tins...you know I'm going to use those tins to death, right? I added a little golden linseed into the dough, just because I like it and it's good for you. I served it on a wooden board with two small bowls of the dipping oil and my heart shaped dish filled with my own olives. Good enough for breakfast, lunch AND dinner.

The pakora was made with flour, Indian spices, blanched spinach, chopped red onions, salt, pepper and water to make a batter, then fried in oil, both sides for a minute or two. I reheated them in the oven and they tasted great. Thank you Pauline! I think I may add some chopped coriander for the next batch, just to try.

The sauce was made by adding tomato sauce, lemon juice, salt and pepper to some plain yogurt. I also added chopped coriander just because I love the stuff (cilantro?).
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I ran out of milk today and wasn't in the mood to go seek some out as the rain and wind had begun it's usual descent homewards towards Glasgow. I needed a few tablespoons for the lemon cake and thought I would improvise rather than get soaked to the skin; I used condensed milk instead. It definitely gave a slight different flavour but it was lovely, thank goodness.
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A large shop was completed this week with the total bill coming to £118. £18 of the bill was for items other than shopping and I purchased two weeks worth of groceries plus stocked up on all my flour. I shall post the receipt once I find it, alongside the dinners to be cooked, consumed and smiled over.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Weekly Receipt

Oh, how glorious the weather is! This being Scotland, don't be surprised, if you visit from abroad, to find people running round in circles with their hands in the air, yelling with delight, bumping into each other with a pack of ice lollied children with bright red cheeks trailing behind them. We do love the sun. We love the rain too, but like any visitor that comes 5 times a day, you start to weary. We shall drop the kids at their disco, sun ourselves at the Burnbrae and bring in the weekend with...a gin and slimline tonic, just the one.

I did my shopping in this lovely heat in record time because, well, the sun was shining and I wanted to get out in it and it was also nearing 3pm so I had to get the kids from school. We just spent a pleasant hour in the park but husband volunteered to take the shopping home-those prawns aren't cheap, y'know!

I'm smug. The bill, once again, was under £50 (£48.12) and that was with 2 free range chickens, 3 salmon fillets, fresh haddock fillets, tiger prawns and sausages. I also managed to refill the baking cupboard. Go, Helen...Go, Helen.....