Category: Potatoes

Sausage, veg & mashed potato pie

March 13, 2017

 

 

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Crispy mash top

 

I have just come in from being in the garden ( yes, sowing already )!  And even though we had glorious sunshine this morning in Leicestershire, it now has turned somewhat dull, and cloudy with a nip in the air still, due to the changing of seasons.

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Looking “Spring – like” in my garden. That is my rocket that has gone to flower in the background.

 

I’m starting off the week with a recipe that I have made twice now in our household and both times we have gone back for seconds, in fact one house guest actually had thirds!

We had this yesterday for our Sunday dinner as I had currently bought some reduced pork sausages and my leeks were only 21p too, bargain. The first time I made it was on a Friday night when a friend of ours stayed for the weekend. I wouldn’t have normally cooked something like this on a Friday but I’m glad I didn’t do my first choice, which was a fish pie…as it turns out, he wasn’t keen on fish! I was meant to write about it then, but it went down so good that muggins here forgot to take photographs.

This dish is great for a family midweek meal. By all means, if you don’t want the wine in it, take it out. It’s such a frugal recipe that will stretch far for portions and has lots of hidden veg inside too. I have used frozen peas and sweetcorn in this so for families who have the frozen mixture with carrots in also, use that if you like.

What a  great way to make sausage and mash that little bit more special. A real, rustic bake that you will have your family wanting more.

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Not the greatest photo, I admit, but I can assure you, this is comfort at its best.

Ingredients:

( Serves up to 6 people or 4 very generous portions )

  •  1 tbsp rapeseed oil
  •  1 pack of 8 British pork sausages ( not with a lot of herbs )
  •  2 onions sliced
  •  1 leek sliced
  •  A good splash of red wine ( I used a French full bodied ) about 125ml * Optional *
  •  1 tbsp tomato puree
  •  dash of Worcester sauce
  •  1/2 tbsp of Damson jam or any thing such as red current jelly to a similar taste
  •  Fresh herbs ( small sprig of each ) rosemary, thyme and sage
  •  handful of frozen peas and sweetcorn ( defrosted and drained )
  •  1/2 pork stock cube
  •  2 tbsp of chicken gravy or pork ( good quality )
  •  Salt and cracked black pepper to season ( may not need salt )

Mashed potato topping 

  • 8 good sized potatoes ( I use Marfona from a local farm )
  •  2 good knobs of unsalted butter
  •  1 tsp of Dijon mustard
  •  dash of double cream ( 100 ml )
  •  Salt and cracked black pepper to season if needed.

 

Method:

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Pretty self explanatory really…some sausages cut up!

 

  •  Boil your potatoes. Mash with the other ingredients or use a potato ricer like I did, then add in the ingredients.

 

  • Preheat your oven to 180c

 

  • Fry off your sausages until starting to turn golden brown.

 

  • Cut your sausages into 3 and place into your chosen oven proof dish.

 

  • Fry your onion until starting to soften and turn colour. Add in the red wine, tomato puree, Worcester sauce, Jam or jelly, stock and gravy and stir together. Add 300ml of water or until consistency is correct for a thick sauce. Taste to see if you need anything else more.

 

  • Add in your leeks and herbs. Cook for about 5 more minutes. Adding water if need be. Pour the gravy mixture over the sausages.

 

  • Scatter your peas and sweetcorn over. Cover with the mash and fork the top to create lots of crispy bits.

 

  • Pop in the oven for 20-30 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Serve with green veg such as cabbage, Spring greens or broccoli.

 

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Layering up

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That crispy top again. You’ll fight for this corner/ end bits! 

Shepherds Pie

January 13, 2016



Nowadays we use mince in our shepherds pies, however back in Victorian times they would always use up their leftover roast meat as a frugal way of living. It must have been some treat back then as it still has a certain endurance about it every time I eat it. The same with a cottage pie also, which if some of you aren’t aware, that is used with beef mince or in this case would have been leftover from your roast the previous day.
 I love doing this and creating different recipes with the leftover meat than just putting it cold into a sandwich for lunch the next day. 
  This way definitely gives more flavour I feel to the dish, a deeper earthier taste. Plus it brings a coarse texture that can be more appealing to others also. Plus it’s less fatty. 
This meat was taken from just a fore leg of Lamb, a bit like a large shank that I managed to buy and I got two huge parts of the leg for only £8! Down from £21! What a bargain!
  So you see my readers, not always is a roast an expensive dinner, it’s looking for that bargain first and it’s also what you manage to get out of it. 


Shepherds pie

(Using leftover Roast Lamb)





Ingredients: (Serves 4 approximately )
Mash: 
  • Roughly 6 floury potatoes such as Maris piper, wilma or marfona peeled and cut into even size chunks.
  • 100 ml double cream 
  • a good size knob of unsalted butter
  • Salt and pepper to season
Meat mixture:
  • 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
  • approximately 400g leftover Roast Lamb meat coarsely chopped
  • 1 large onion diced
  • 1/2 leek sliced thinly
  • 1 carrot finely diced
  • 1/2 celery stick finely chopped 
  • 1 clove of garlic finely chopped
  • a small sprig of thyme
  • Any gravy/juices/stock saved from the joint, use for a sauce
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • a good splash of red wine such as a cabernet sauvignon/merlot or Cotes du Rhone
  • a few splashes of Worcester sauce
  • a few grinds of cracked black pepper
  • Salt if needed or if too strong tasting, use a pinch of caster sugar to even out.

Method:
 * Boil potatoes in a pan of boiling water until tender. Drain and mash the potatoes adding the ingredients to it. Set aside.
  • preheat oven to 190c 
  • In a hot frying pan pop in your rapeseed oil and fry off your onion for about 2-3 minutes. Then add your celery and carrot and fry off for another minute.
  • Add in your leeks to the mixture, fry of for a further minute and then add in your garlic and thyme.
  • Add your chopped meat, gravy/juices,tomato puree, Worcester sauce, wine, pepper stir and leave to simmer for 20 minutes.
  • Taste as you go along and you can add more wine or water as you wish if it becomes dry.
  • When the mixture is reduced down to a gravy like sauce and the meat is tender again pop into a pie dish, top with your mash and roughen the mash with a fork.
  • Then place into the oven for another 20 minutes or when the topping is golden brown and bubbling at the edges. 

*  Serve on its own or with some green vegetables and a glass of red. 







Sausage, vegetable and apple traybake

October 6, 2015
This oven-roasted meal really is incredibly easy to make. Not to mention how inexpensive it is also.
 After a long day the last thing you need is to be slaving over the oven or even waiting a long time for something to cook. Plus, now that Autumn is making more of an appearance and becoming darker in the evenings this is the perfect comfort, pick me up food and with a little cheekiness from the cider I’ve popped in there.
 Ive used apples in this recipe as it just adds an extra burst of sweetness against the sausages and sage in there. Plus lots of people are giving them away due to bumper crops this year. 
  If you have a family get-together coming up or you just want to do a Sunday lunch thats a little easier, this is a perfect choice for that. Leftovers can be chopped up and put into a spicy tomato pasta bake.
 With the lovely colours it gives off, it truly is Autumn in one dish really.




Sausage, vegetable and apple traybake:






Ingredients:
(Serves 2)
–    1-2 tbsp Rapeseed oil
  • 6 British sausages ( I used a Pork and chive variety)
  • 2 red onions sliced into wedges
  • 2 garlic cloves crushed and roughly chopped
  • 1 chicken stock cube crumbled over or half a gel pot
  • 1-2 parsnips roughly diced
  • 1 red pepper roughly diced
  • 1 orange pepper or yellow diced roughly
  • 2 apples, something like a British cox 
  • 2-3 potatoes peeled and chopped into inch size chunks
  • a good sprig of thyme
  • a few fresh sage leaves
  • 200ml Apple cider
  • 1 tbsp dijon mustard
  • 1 tbsp honey 
  • salt and cracked black pepper to season
  •  
Method:
  • Preheat oven to 190c. In a frying pan, brown off the sausages.
  • Coat all vegetables in oil, ( not the peppers or apples yet )and pop into the oven for 15 minutes.
  •   After 15 minutes coat the vegetables with the honey and mustard, add the peppers, thyme, garlic, stock and seasoning.
  • Place the sausages in between the veg and pour into your frying pan the cider to get all the sticky juice from the sausages.then pour that into your traybake.

*  Pop back into the oven for a further 15 minutes. After that put your apples and sage in-between the sausages and veg and pop back into the oven for approximately another 15 minutes or when all golden and cooked.



I couldn’t help diving in with a knife and fork before even serving it up, it was THAT nice!

Potato and pea tart

August 3, 2015
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I have found myself baking a lot of these style of tarts over the last couple of months, as It’s that time of year when a lot of British produce is in abundance and the weather is starting to warm up. So we find ourselves entertaining a lot more outside and wanting lighter meals. If I’m invited to somewhere such as a garden party or a BBQ this is a great alternative to turn up with.
This style of tart is also very easy to swap your ingredients around. I, in fact did a tomato and aubergine one with lots of herbs on the other week and it went down a storm. However this one I feel is much better for this time of year as our peas are in season now so you can even pod them yourself for it. Also with the added pea shoots on top, there’s an extra burst of sweetness.
If you are growing your own vegetables like me and you’ve got a row of Peas, maybe not quite as many as you hoped for, then do this recipe.
This is quick and simple to make, great for using up odd potatoes that you have and possibly that Packet of Pastry that’s in the freezer. A dish that shows Seasonality at its best.



Potato and pea tart

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Ingredients:

Small handful of plain Flour for sprinkling
– Half a block of ready to roll Puff Pastry ( 250g)
– A handful of New potatoes or 4 medium sized Potatoes sliced very thinly
– 2 tbsp Rapeseed oil
– 2 Spring onions chopped finely
– 1 finely chopped garlic clove
– A good handful of British podding peas blanched for a minute or 2 or you can use
Petit pois defrosted and drained
– Sea Salt and cracked black pepper to taste
– Handful of grated mozzarella to sprinkle on top
– Handful of pea shoots to finish with





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Method:

* Preheat Oven to 200c

* In salted boiling water blanch your potato slices for only 2-3 minutes, drain and run cold water over them to allow to cool

* Half your 500g black of pastry, Roll out half on a floured work surface with a rolling pin until about 3-4 ml thick.

* Place some baking parchment on a baking tray and pop your pastry on top

* About a cm 1/2 in make a border around the edges with a knife but only slightly ( not all the way through) and then prick your tart within those boundaries with a fork

* Place your sliced potatoes on top some salt and pepper and brush with a little rapeseed oil. Pop into the oven for 10-15 minutes (once the potatoes start to brown around the edges)

* Then pop on your Garlic, spring onion and cheese and cook for a further 5 minutes. If you feel your pastry is cooking too quickly then turn the oven down slightly to 190c.

* After 5 minutes pop on your peas and pop back into the oven for approximately another 5 minutes or until your pastry is nice and golden brown and cooked in the middle.

* Sprinkle with your pea shoots and you’re done!

 

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Spring Lamb Stew with Vegetables and Pearl Barley

April 14, 2015


Last thing you need on a Sunday is to have yourself slaving over a Hot Stove cooking a Large Roast Dinner. Especially now the weather is beginning to become slightly warmer.
    In this recipe, yes it does take some time, however, it is all in one pot as you can leave it to carry on with your Planned activities. Of course, it isn’t just a recipe specifically for Sunday’s but I chose this as an easier option for you.

  This Recipe is Light, Fresh and Easy to do.  You don’t want to overpower this either with bold flavours as you want to capture that Lovely Spring taste of the Lamb, the Sweetness of those Peas popping away in your mouth and a favourite of mine…The Pearl Barley being velvety along the stew’s juices.  

  I have used stewing Lamb in this as the bones will give the extra flavour you need.  I personally like to pick up the Bones with my Hands and get every last Morsel I can Find.
  A dish like this  is always a great winner for me when you can pop it down as a talking point on the dinner table, tuck in and not to forget, there is a MUST for some Crispy Bread to mop up those last bits that have been sitting patiently at the bottom of your bowl. 

  This Recipe capture’s seasonality at its best, It can be done quite inexpensively and will have you craving for more. 




Spring Lamb Stew with Vegetables and Pearl Barley:

Ingredients:
(Serves 4-6 people depending on size of Lamb pieces you buy)

–   1 Kg Of British Stewing Lamb (approximately 8 pieces) You could use Neck of Lamb also
–  1 Tbsp of Rapeseed Oil 
–  A Splash of Dry White Wine
–  2 Onions Roughly Chopped
–  2 Large Garlic Cloves finely Diced
–   3 Tbsp’s Tomato Puree
–  Homemade Chicken stock or 1 Stock pot (Knorr) to every 4 pieces of Lamb you have 
–  A good handful of Chantennay Carrots ( 200g roughly) Halved lengthways 
–  100g Pearl Barley cooked before hand in a little Chicken stock
–  4 medium potatoes diced into cubes of 6. I used Shannon but any will do.Could even use new season Baby ones.
–  1 Large Leek sliced a centimetre thick.
–  5-6 Spring onions Sliced into 4  
–  Small Sprig of Rosemary chopped finely 
–  100g of Petit Pois
–  A few sprigs of Fresh Mint chopped finely
–  A couple of Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley chopped finely 
–  Salt and Pepper to season




Method:

*  Take your Lamb Pieces and pat dry with Kitchen Paper. Season Your Lamb with Salt and pepper if required.

*  In a Heavy bottomed Casserole Dish/Large Saucepan heat up the Rapeseed oil and start to sear of the Lamb just till browned on the outside. Placing each pieces of Lamb into a separate dish once browned on the outside.

*  Fry off your Chopped Onions for a minute or two.

*  Add your splash of White wine to de glaze your large saucepan( allow juices to come away)  Add Your Lamb, Chicken Stock and 2 Tbsp’s of Tomato puree. Cover with water covering everything. 

*  Simmer away for 1/1/2 – 2 hrs adding water when needed.

*  Cook your Pearl Barley to packet instructions with a little chicken stock added and leave to one side.

*  After 2 hours or when the Lamb is starting to soften and theres about 30 mins to go. Then add your Carrots, Garlic and Rosemary.

*  Then pop in your potatoes after another 5 minutes.

*  When your carrots are starting to soften, add your Leeks, rest of your tomato puree and the  Cooked Pearl Barley.

* After another 5 minutes add your Spring Onions and Petit Pois. Only cook for a further 2-3 minutes

*  By now the lamb should be falling off the bones and the veg all cooked. Now Finish with your Chopped Fresh Mint and Parsley

*  Finally, Serve into Bowls with Crusty Bread