The Cottage Smallholder


stumbling self sufficiency in a small space


Lazy mini roast potatoes. A crisp, slow cooked roast potato recipe at low temperature.

Posted in Vegetables and Sides | 8 comments

Lazy mini roast potatoes. A crisp, slow cooked roast potato recipe at low temperature.

I was introduced to the Penultimate Paramour’s elderly parents thirteen years ago on a classic “come down for the weekend” invitation. They were charming and we offered to cook supper. They had bought a chicken so roasting was the easy option. We grinned. Roast chicken is easy. We could shine. Looking back now, I appreciate that going to the pub before we started cooking the bird was a bad idea. Half an hour into the cooking process we realised that we had forgotten the roast potatoes. “They are essential.” The PP...

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Simple rack of lamb recipe

Posted in Lamb | 14 comments

Simple rack of lamb recipe

Rack of lamb (best end of neck) is such a treat. There are 6-8 cutlets on a joint. Sometimes we treat ourselves to one from Fred Fitzpatrick’s. His chops are much chubbier than the supermarket ones so he cuts the rack in half and we pop one half in the freezer. Our freezer clearing project has unearthed several delights and tonight we ate a half rack of lamb that had been languishing in the freezer disguised as something else. For years I used to order rack of lamb when I went to a restaurant, imagining that it would be a palaver to...

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Quick cranberry sauce recipe

Posted in Christmas, Sauces Gravy Dressings | 82 comments

Quick cranberry sauce recipe

Two years ago I made cranberry sauce to die for. It kept for months in the fridge and was wolfed down with everything from goat’s cheese toasties to roast chicken. I particularly loved it with brie in sandwiches. In fact we both agreed that it really comes into its own after Christmas, when it is not jockeying for position with so many other treats. Although I would feel bereft if it didn’t make an appearance on Christmas Day. Cranberry sauce is dead easy to make and it’s quick too. Once you’ve tasted homemade...

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Overwhelmed by fruit flies. Time for ‘Baked Bananas in Rum’ recipe

Posted in Desserts | 1 comment

Overwhelmed by fruit flies. Time for ‘Baked Bananas in Rum’ recipe

When I got back this evening, Danny was muttering about the fruit flies in the kitchen. Unfortunately one had taken a nosedive into his whisky. He paced the room looking for the source of the invasion. Could it be the tomarillos, the wild plums, the carrier bags of grapes, the tiny greengages that Jocelyn and I had picked on Wednesday that were ripening on the side? I nervously pointed to a bag of elderly bananas that were sitting on the wood-burning stove, just behind his chair. Danny just laughed and asked, gently, “Why do you keep on...

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