Hurrah, today is payday!!! Rather than go out and booze till there is no tomorrow (I'm still shaking from Sunday's exploits) or purchase yet more kitchen utensils, I decided to treat myself to the best hummous in the world, or at least that I can buy in a shop. Try as I may I cannot make hummous as good as the San Amvrosia lot can, so I went a little mad and bought avocado hummous too. You see, I am wild after all. I also purchased some oven-roasted cherry tomatoes and oh my god these were so good!! I purchased all three from Whole Foods but I need to find out if there is a deli that stocks them near Streatham Hill as I'm all for supporting the local community in my ripe old age. My sister is coming over this week and what with her being as much of a glutton as I, I have a list as long as my arm of all the local shops and delis I want to check out. Liv if you are reading this, do not fear, I'm not expecting to view all of these this week, but whatever goods I do come across I will most surely pass your way after my little wander.

Anyway, the resulting dinner had me quaking in my boots with glee. It was one of those moments where I thought 'to hell with this, why should I stop? Why can't I just get fat?! Is that so very very wrong!!!'. I always ruin those moments of excitement by saying out loud over and over how exciting it is and how excited I am and how perfect what I'm eating is. I should just absorb myself in the moment and bloody eat it. Anyway, I did and it was the best. Everyone may be skint and jobless, but we all need a little treat every now and then.

Resulting meal:

San Amvrosia avocado hummous

San Amvrosia plain hummous

Rocket and spinach salad

Radish from Clapham market

Cheese (Yep, I have no idea what cheese I bought, but it tastes damn good and is also from Clapham market)

'The Tomato Stall' roasted cherry tomatoes

Crusty amazing bread from Wholefoods

So at first I felt disapointment. Disappointment in myself, in Delia, in my pitiful looking loaf in the oven.... but then greed took over, my Easter optimism prevailed and I cut into the fresh bread. Do you know what, it's true when they say do not judge a book by its cover because it was bloody tasty. Really soft in the middle and perfectly crispy on the outside. I have convinced myself that the bread was actually supposed to only be an inch and a half high and that this is exactly what Delia would see when she opened her own oven. I'm not saying that if the bread had risen like a sun on a glorious summers day that my heart would not have welled up with pride, but I will settle with my greedy satisfaction for today.

Then the following day, my lovely friend Sarah came to visit for a nice cup of tea.I didn't really have much to offer in the way of food, so I put the second batch of dough in the oven and we feasted on fresh warm bread, cheese and pickle. A simple but much appreciated lunch and I promised Sarah I would put the recipe up. So, this is for you Sarah:

Delia's No-Knead Bread

570g flour (I used country grain but you can use whatever you want) at room temperature

2 tsp salt

1 tsp light brown sugar

2 tsp easy blend yeast

400ml water (half boiling, half cold)

Grease a 450g loaf tin (you can use a 900g tin and cook for an extra ten minutes, but I make up the dough so I can bake one loaf and keep the other half of the mix for the following day) 

If the flour is cold warm it in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Put the flour in a large mixing bowl and add the salt, sugar, yeast and mix well. Make a well in the centre of the dry mix and pour in about two thirds of the water. Mix well with a wooden spoon and then add the rest of the water when the mix starts to dry up. You can just add all the water at once, but I do it this way to make sure the mix is not too wet at the end.

Form the dough into a big ball and transfer to a floured surface. Divide the mix in two and reserve one for the next day. Stretch the remaining dough into an oblong and fold one edge into the centre and the other edge over that. Fit this into the loaf tin and press down the edge of the dough slightly where the dough meets the tin. Sprinkle the top with flour and cover with a warm, damp and clean teacloth. Leave the dough to rise for at least a couple of hours.

Heat the oven to gas mark 6/400°F/200°C/180fan. Bake the bread for 30 minutes. When the bread is cooked, turn it out on to a cloth – if it is cooked it will sound hollow when rapped underneath with your knuckles. Then return the bread, out of its tin, upside down to the oven for a further 5-10 minutes to crisp the base and sides.

Despite the gloomy exterior, spring has officially sprung and who am I to argue with a four day weekend and stuffing my face with chocolate? In fact, already I have lied to you as I have only received one Easter egg and I polished that off pretty much as soon as I got it. Never the less one must not be downcast and I must look to the future, Easter Sunday that is, and expect a flurry of eggs in the same way I expected a flurry of Valentines card (not even one that time). I'm chuckling to myself now as I imagine the post man fretfully shoving each glorious chocolate egg through my post box, wondering to himself "how on earth will I ever get this 15th egg through?!". Yes that's right my post man comes on Sundays and people also now get sent eggs in the post. It's true I swear.

Anyway, no roast lamb dish to speak of yet, but there are definite Spring time happenings going on in my flat this weekend. Ok so this may have so far involved the announcement of a 'spring clean', where by I instantly stood by my word and emptied two laundry baskets full of washing into the spare room, sorted them into about eight large mounds and that is where they still lay. But all good intentions need to start somehwere and I anticipate a busy day.

Foodwise, I thought it worth a mention that I decided to bake some bread which requires no kneading. I scoured some recipes online and I decided to go with old reliable Delia, who assured me that as long as I leave the dough to rise for long enough then I will end up with perfect bread. I duly made up the dough last night and left it overnight and it is now waiting for me to pop it in the oven. I have included a 'before' picture and will report back later with a Blue Peter style 'after'. At the moment I'm not sure whether to trust Delia as it does not seem to have risen as much as she predicted, but I won't dismiss her until after. Like most things I have imagined this will change my life and envisgae every Saturday from now on for the rest of my life waking up earlier than I should and starting the day off with a freshly baked loaf and a mop of my floury domestic brow. Alas like most of my visions this in unlikely to happen, but in the spirit of Easter (happy spring lambs, green fields....um....chocolate eggs that make you smile) I will retain my optimism.

                                              
 
For a  crazy moment yesterday I considered postponing pancake day to another day, as the thought of sickening myself with sugary pancakes did not really appeal (I assure you this is true, I was shocked myself). Then I received a message from my good friend Emma who happened to be staying with me that evening and had just twigged what day it was. Emma was very excited about the prospect of pancake flipping and so I thought, who am I to stand between a woman and her dreams…..
 
I thought back to the glorious moment in Paris, when after a very long and stressful morning everything was made wonderful by this magical parcel of goodness I had clasped between my hands - a bolognese crepe. Even now as I type I am salivating at the memory, and those of you who laugh at me and mock the idea of such a thing being so delicous, I pity you for you have no idea. Not a clue!

Anyway, I was going to re-create my minced beef dream but I knew I would need a lot longer than a couple of hours in the evening to perfect a bolognese (it really is a Saturday/Sunday event if you want the real deal and I knew I would faff about and ignore my dinner guests), so instead I went for a similarly French themed ham and leek crepe. I say pancake above as it did end up being more of a pancake, so I didn't want to be attacked by any French people who happened to try this out!

I must say, it was a tatse sensation and anyone who is stuck on sweet pancakes should really have a go with this simple recipe. Would also be really nice with pancetta instead of ham, fried for a few minutes with the leeks.

Ham and Leek Pancakes

Serves 4

Vegetable oil

250g plain flour (can substitute half for buckwheat flour)

3 eggs

250ml milk

250 ml water

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

200g ham

4 large leeks, sliced

150g cheddar or other hard cheese of your choice

5 tbsp creme fraiche

Put the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the eggs, milk and water and whisk together until smooth. Leave to stand for an hour and a half.

To make the filling, heat a glug of olive oil or butter in a pan and when warm add the chopped garlic and leeks. Cook for around ten minutes, stirring throughout. Season with salt and pepper and add the ham. Remove from the heat and stir in the creme fraiche and cheese.

Wipe a frying pan lighting with oil and set over a medium heat. When the pan is hot, ladle in enough batter to fill the pan, tipping the pan so that the surface is completely covered. Allow to set and then flip when the bottom of the pancake is turning golden. Cook for a further minute or until the other side is also brown.

Spoon the mixture into the pancakes, roll and serve with salad.

                                               
This weekend has been spent consistently feasting, which is why I think I need to eat only soup for the next three days in order to give my stomach a well-deserved rest. We shall see….

On Saturday morning I had arranged to meet my friend Sarah at Borough market. We had originally hoped this would be an early morning venture so we could feel smug about being up and about whilst most of our friends were in bed with wine-heads and also to beat the crowds that steadily creep in all morning. But alas we decided on meeting at 10:30, which became 11 after I slept in (sorry about that Sarah) and Sarah was slightly late herself (thanks, because then I didn’t feel so bad). It was pretty heaving, so we made a bee-line line for the sausage rolls, then the veg stall, followed swiftly by the cheesecake stall and then after hasty zipping in and out of the crowds we managed to find some sausages for Sarah’s bangers and mash. Our cheese hunt was abandoned when we realised we could not be bothered to worm our way back in to the dense crowds at the market and also were not too enthusiastic about joining a half hour queue in Neil’s Yard.
 
So yes we were slightly pathetic, but we got most of what we intended and a bit more (sausage roll, carrot cake….) and decided to wander down along the river to South Bank, where I had heard a rumour there was another food market on, which was where Sarah managed to pick up some cheese. So quite the foodie day, and it did not end there…..
 
I must thank the fish man and lady (see last post) as they were true to their words and the mackerel was amazing. In the end I just had it with salad and sautéed diced potatoes (par-boiled for a few minutes to make things easier for myself, and then cooked on a high heat with some olive oil, sea salt and black pepper). The mussels were frozen, which I thought I should mention just in case you had a mental image of me writhing around hallucinating after ignorantly eating week-old mussels, but this did not hamper the taste. I decided to cook them in the traditional way with white wine, shallots, cream and garlic seeing as I had no plans to leave the house, so I may as well stink. I thought it useful to include the recipe as I know lots of people are fearful of cooking mussels, with no good reason as they are really very easy to cook (especially so with frozen ones!) and as long as you throw away the ones that are still closed when you have cooked you will be ok. This seems silly to me, as who would try to eat a mussel that is closed? Still, there are many things that amaze me every day and perhaps this is just one of those things.
 
Mussels in White Wine
 
Serves 2
 
500g mussels (if fresh, scrub well and discard any that do not close when tapped)
Glug of olive oil

1 banana shallot or two small shallots, finely diced
1 large clove of garlic
1 glass of wine
300ml (or nearest pot size, I think it may be 284ml) double cream
 

Throw the mussels in a large pot and cover. Cook on a high heat for approx five minutes and until the mussels have opened up (remember there may be a couple which will not open, discard these).

In a seperate pot*, heat the olive oil over a medium flame and then add the shallots. Stir. After a couple of minutes add the garlic, stir, and after another couple of minutes add the wine. At this point I would probabably raise the heat slighlty so that the wine reduces.

When the mussels are cooked, drain** and add to the pot with the garlic, shallots and wine. Add the cream and stir in. Sprinkle over some fresh parsely, black pepper and serve with crusty bread.

*I used a seperate pot because the mussels were frozen and I wanted to drain the gritty water at the end before adding to the sauce, if fresh I would cook the shallots and garlic, then add the mussels.

**If the mussels were fresh and not frozen I would not drain and would use the juices in the sauce, but the frozen water from the mussels was a bit gritty so in this instance I drained. It's completely up to you.

Breathe a big sigh of relief for I have returned! My my what fun I have had, packing up an entire house, unpacking an entire house, berating (well, as best I can because I am quite pathetic like that) useless estate agents, surviving without the internet and generally being poor as a result of having to furnish a completely empty new flat. But now I can relax on my new sofas (thank you Ikea) and delight in my spanking new kitchen (thank you Swiss Bank landlords who completely screwed us around). Of course we are still having fun having our internet transferred, but we have been assured this will be very simple – probably at a charge of £500. But despite all the ups and downs I will remain optimistic and say how amazing it is to have a lovely new flat, with cupboards and a fridge that are all mine to fill!!! Ah the excitement is too much for me, too much indeed.

So, food-wise I am very excited about what creations this kitchen will bring. I have been using recipes from food magazines as inspiration lately as there are loads of good articles and recipes for healthy food (much needed I tell you) and meals on a  budget (also so). I get very sad when I look through my cookbooks and magazines and see all of the things I planned to make but never did, so this is my belated resolution. I am also going to try my best to get all meat, fish and vegetables from the market and local shops, which I hope will benefit me (perhaps more cost effective and hopefully more fresh and tasty) and also the owners of said shops and stalls. What with everything going on in the world at the moment it’s important to keep as many little businesses afloat as possible. It may be more convenient to get everything in the one shop, but I love walking out to the market and getting a few bits of whatever fruit and veg looks good, then going and getting some meat or fish elsewhere and then picking up a nice loaf of bread from a bakers. Ok, I know this does seem laughably idyllic, but it really is so much nicer than stressing out and bashing trolleys in Sainsbury’s! But anyway, that’s my idea of a perfect afternoon and I must understand not everyone is as big a granny as I am…..

Anyway, this is how I spent my first free Saturday in my new area, Streatham Hill. I wandered down to Brixton and explored my new stomping ground. Ok, I know Brixton hardly fits into the idyllic picture painted above, but really there is a lot more to Brixton than you would first think and for people who are into food it is really a great place. It has everything you would want, apart from any of the pretentious impressions you might get from a more ‘upmarket’ area. From my brief little Saturday trip the best find was the fishmongers on Brixton Station Road (I think, don’t quote me, I can confirm) where I met two delightful fishmongers, who provided me with some fresh smoked mackerel and a bag of mussels. I say met with, this implies we are now firm friends when in fact the conversation went a bit like this:

Rhona: Hello, do you have any mussels?

Fish lady (an unfortunate name, but it suits all the same): Yes we do

Rhona. Thanks, can I also have some mackerel?

Fish lady: Certainly.

So no great excitement, but all was done with a loving (not just on my part I doubt) smile and some handy advice on how to cook my mussels. I appreciated the fish man’s efforts, which is why I purchased the mackerel. So, it really does pay to be helpful, it does not got unnoticed by all!

If I had managed to attack the millions of sacks/boxes of crap in the spare room and found my camera charger, I would have provided a lovely picture of my mussels, but sadly this did not happen and you will have to get by with a random picture instead. I have not yet made the mussels, so a picture of the final result is much better than a picture of a bag of uncooked mussels anyway. I believe so.

Only other news to tell you of is that I am rather bloody excited about the prospect of a new cake stall coming onto the scene at Northcote Road market. Lucy and Nat are finally going to put their amazing cake-baking skills to good use (I can certainly vouch for Lucy and I do not doubt Nat either as she does produce the best stack of Tex Mex glory you have ever seen) and start selling their goods. I am going to a tasting session next Saturday, it would only be right to do so, and will give you an update after that. Watch this space as this will be the best cake stall you have ever been to in London!!! Actually, as my main picture today I have included a picture of a chocolate and beetroot cake that Lucy and I made for our lovely Emily. It looks so pretty and it should warm you up nicely for what will be in store on the cake stall of dreams.....

Ooooooh cakes.

It’s two weeks in to the worst month of the year (in my opinion), so just another two weeks to go! I have been rather slack lately so I must apologise. It seems the Christmas/New Year spirit really did take over and I must admit I did not put up much of a fight. But now it is back to work and back to reality and moving house is dominating my thoughts and my wallet, and cooking blogworthy meals has taken a back seat. Not for long though, as long as I get the all clear with my new flat, a brand new kitchen awaits me (and I hope an oven that actually works)!

A noteworthy recipe I tried was a white and dark chocolate cheesecake from Joanne Harris’ cookbook ‘The French Kitchen’, which I made for a friend’s dinner and then adapted slightly for a friend’s birthday. On both occasions I didn’t take a picture, so I will have to do this again in my new kitchen (hurrah!) so you can see what it looks like.

I have also had a request from my friend Emily to put up some soup recipes, so expect that shortly. It’s the perfect time of year to be cooking soups as you want to make the most of the winter veg, but you also need a hearty warming meal that won’t result in adding another stone to the Christmas belly. My soups are never planned and are always the product of excess vegetables that need to be used, but perhaps I should be more creative and put a bit more effort into their production.

Hope everyone is having a more productive January than I. February is the start of the year in my opinion!

For various reasons, in the last week stodge has played a big part in my life and like most things (bad moods, spots, being late for work) I can blame the weather. It seems to have reached that strange time in the year when the thought of a salad keeping away the hunger pains is completely laughable, an easy pasta meal just does not suffice and the slow cooking stew you plan on making never quite happens. This is mainly due to said stew cooking time being wasted drinking far too much wine one night, and thus killing your enthusiasm for stew-making the following day.

So at this time of year, eating out or at friend’s houses is a great option. You can drink as much as want and not feel guilt. After all, sitting at the restaurant table primly drinking your orange juice and looking down on the others just won’t do and is not in the spirit of Christmas. Similarly, if you have been invited for dinner by one of your friends it would be extremely rude not to bring a bottle or two and even ruder to not join in the celebrations and toast good health, family, the food, the table…..So you see, many excuses to drink and be merry and you can also understand a little more why stodge (ok, hangover food) has been playing a large part.

On Tuesday of this week I went to ‘Roast’ in London Bridge, just overlooking Borough market. It was a win-win situation I thought, for if the food was awful I could always neck the wine and then bolt downstairs to the market, grab a sausage roll/wheel of cheese from a nearby stall and polish it off on the way home. Luckily for the general public, I actually really enjoyed the food so they were spared this spectacle.

As you can imagine by the name, the menu focus’ on lots of roast dishes, primarily being meat. My choice was pot roast mutton with gentleman’s relish, glazed turnips and my extra portions of roast potatoes and brussell sprouts, in sticking with the festive feel. Looking around the table I would not have been disappointed with anyone’s main meal and I think it was mutually agreed by everyone at the table that the meal was very good. The only exception in my opinion was my choice of a butternut squash pudding to start, which seemed to be lacking in texture and flavour.

The cheese board, served with fig chutney along with the traditional grapes and apple, made up for any lack in flavour in my first course and a piece of Tunworth has been added to my list of cheeses to buy when I go back to Borough on Monday. Described by Roast as a ‘soft and mellow cow’s milk cheese’ was soft and deep in flavour and favoured most highly on our table.

I already have two trips to Borough planned for next week, round one being cheese and round two being flowers, veg and fruit (because on this day Zac will be accompanying me and the good gent he is, he will help me carry my bags). No doubt I will have some lovely pictures of my purchases, for those who care!! I have also been asked by Olive magazine to partake in the ‘Challenge Gordon’ feature by following two roast chicken recipes (one being Gordon’s and I think the other being a reader of Olive magazine) and rating the recipes out of five. So it appears my week of roasts has indeed truly begun, what a happy week indeed…..

A tsp of butter

6 large onions (red/white or mix of both)

3 cups of sugar (half dark brown, half golden)

3 cups of vinegar (2 sherry vinegar, 1 balsamic)

15-20 crushed black peppercorns

2 bay leaves

Melt the butter in a large pan over a moderate heat. Slice or chop the onions to your preferred thickness (I sliced mine quite thinly) and add to the pan. Cook the onions for a few minutes until they soften, but do not allow them to brown or crisp.

Add the vinegar, sugar, bay and peppercorns and leave the mix to bubble gently for approximately and hour and a half or until the mixture has reached your desired consistency.