Our best bolognaise sauce recipe
I love pasta. Danny was so so for years. When we visit Italy I am keen to sample as many of their sauces and starters as possible – looking for secrets and hints for the ultimate pasta sauce recipe. Danny sticks to steaks and puds. “They’re the same price and I love steak.” Danny is Chief Taster back home so he leaves the R and D to me when we are on holiday. We haven’t eaten spaghetti bolognaise for ages. So yesterday I thought I’d try and make a sauce with less meat. Cheaper? Yes. But I was aiming to create something that was...
read moreThe Pickled Walnuts project: stage two. Plus original recipes for spiced pickling vinegar
Good pickled walnuts are a wonderful accompaniment to strong cheese or cold meat. They are an English tradition. Often they are made with malt vinegar and can be very challenging to eat. This year I was determined to try to make the ultimate pickled walnut. Part one of the challenge can be perused here. After the two week saline soak (changing the solution after one week) I rinsed the walnuts and moved them down to the greenhouse to dry. This can take from 3-5 days. They turn a greyish black quite quickly. Not knowing how black the walnuts...
read moreSeasonal for some: Baked red bell peppers with tomatoes, pesto and preserved lemons recipe
I love seasonal cooking. The arrival of Winter Celery, beetroot and asparagus has tiny hands clapping with glee at the Cottage Smallholder. But we still buy tomatoes and peppers throughout the year. I look at the little aeroplane label on the pack and feel a twinge of guilt as I place them carefully in the delicates section of my trolley. There are many ways of preserving these summer harvests for winter use. Perhaps this year I will finally get my act together and bottle them. Oded Schwartz’s Preserving book has loads of great recipes...
read moreBest recipes for leftovers: Quick and easy pork and summery vegetable risotto recipe
I always used to choose risotto in Italian restaurants as I imagined that it was a complicated dish to cook. “Let them do all the stirring and sweating.” I’d think as I pointed to my choice on the menu. Recently I discovered that risotto is easy and quick to make. And a great way to transform the leftovers from the Sunday joint into something delicious. You can use uncooked meat and fish in a risotto but this recipe is designed to breathe life into pork or chicken that you find kicking about in the fridge. There are two...
read moreLight Winter Celery soup with blue cheese recipe
Tiny hands clap with glee at the cottage when the winter celery season begins. This celery has been traditionally grown on the Fens since Victorian times. It is now grown in other parts of England too. It is the most celery tasting celery that you will ever find. Great with cheese, and superb for soup, stocks, stir fries and casseroles. The winter celery season runs from now up until Christmas. And it is top of the shopping list for the next few fleeting weeks. We make vast batches of winter celery soup and generally languish in a surfeit of...
read moreSpecial pork chops with herbs and white wine recipe
When I started buying my meat from Fred Fitzpatrick (Butcher, Exning Road, Newmarket) we began to eat chops regularly. His pork chops are chunky and cheap and his lamb chops are an absolute bargain compared wth supermarkets. All his meat has much more flavour. Fred clearly has a great eye for selecting the best. We discovered a good recipe in Nigel Slater’s The 30 minute Cook. Pork chops with tarragon and white wine. Danny is a creative cook and his recipe has evolved over the past few years. It is also quite a handy recipe for me as it...
read moreSea bass baked with wild fennel and lemon recipe
Do you remember the craze for cooking fish in little foil parcels in the oven? I was looking through some old Waitrose recipes and I thought that I’d try baking some sea bass in them. It worked well and infused the fish with the fennel and lemon flavours. It was easy too, giving me some time to potter in the garden whilst it baked in the oven. We served the bass with the first new potatoes from the garden and warm samphire. Sea bass baked with wild fennel and lemon recipe Set the oven to 220c (200c fan) Ingredients: 2 sea bass, cleaned,...
read moreSunday Roast: Emma’s easy roast chicken recipe with automatic garlic sauce (also works well with roast pheasant)
My friend Emma gave me this special roast chicken recipe. Everyone loves it, including her young children and it’s quick and easy to prepare. The chicken sits in the stock as it roasts so it is succulent and full of flavour. The garlic sauce is delicious and doesn’t blow your head off. If you are looking for an easy way to cook pheasant this recipe works very well with game. Ingredients: 1 chicken (approx 1.5 kilos) 1 head of garlic 300-600 ml of hot chicken stock (depending on the size of your casserole. There needs to be enough...
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