Mussels aka moules marinière

Mussels are in season ANY month as long as it has an 'R' in the name (September to March). My dad always let us try his fish dinners when we were younger, it felt like a real treat to be eating what he was and I have grown up adoring mussels. This recipe is prefect with crusty bread and a large glass of white wine, so simple and it will definitely impress friends and family!

How to prepare mussels:

• Make sure they are fresh and eat them on the day you buy them.
• Throw away and mussels which are broken and ones which do not close if tapped or lightly squeezed.
• Do not soak the mussels in water as they will drown, give them a few rises instead to get rid of any dirt or grit.
• Clean the mussels under running water - take a knife and remove any barnacles from the outside shell, also pull out the 'beard' which is the fibres which emerge from the mussels shell (you can pull this out or cut it off with a knife).
• You can store them in a bowl under a damp cloth in the fridge until they are needed.

Ingredients:

Serves 4 people

• 1 bag or mussels or 1.75 kg
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 stalks of celery chopped
• 1-2 cloves of garlic chopped
• 100mls white wine
• 120mls double cream
• Chopped parsley to serve

Method:

1. Fry the onion and the celery in a large pan for 5-10 minutes until softened, add in the garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes .
2. Add in the wine and the mussels, give it a stir and leave the lid on for 4-5 minutes until the mussels have opened.
3. Add in the cream and scatter the parsley.

Serve in big bowls with chips or crusty bread to mop up the juices with!

Simple Carrot and Artichoke Soup

This recipe is great, really simple and full of flavour. Also Jerusalem  artichoke's are in season, I have to admit that I have never cooked them before so this is a nice simple way to start using them.


Ingredients:

• 450g carrots
• 700g  Jerusalem artichoke's
• 75g butter
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 3 celery stalks chopped
• 2 1/2 pints of chicken stock
• Salt and pepper
• Chopped parsley
• Crème fraîche or cream to finish

Method:

1. Peel the artichokes and soak them in salted water so they do not colour. Peel and chop the carrots and set aside.
2. In a large saucepan melt the butter and cook the onion and celery for 5  minutes, then add the carrot and artichoke. Cook with the lid on for 10 mins so the juices release from the vegetables.
3. Add the stock and put the lid back on for 20 minutes - it should be simmering and hot with the vegetables soft (you can test them with a knife).
4. Liquidise the soup with a hand blender or in a food processor. Return back to the pan and season and warm through for serving.

Serve with a swirl of crème fraîche and chopped parsley and crust bread! Perfect.

Its British Pie Week! - My chicken, sweetcorn and tarragon pie

As its British Pie Week I thought I would share my favourite pie recipe, you just cant beat this combination. This recipe is perfect for rainy days and great with mash or just veg!

Ingredients:

• 4 Chicken breasts or some leftover roast chicken
• 1 chopped onion (red or white)
• 2 Leeks washed and chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic crushed
• 150ml white wine (only use wine you would drink, if not just swap for extra chicken stock)
• 150mls chicken stock
• 142mls double cream
• 1 sprig of chopped tarragon (or a teaspoon of dried)
• 1 tin of sweetcorn
• 1 sheet of ready rolled puff pastry
• 1 egg

Method:

1. Sauté the onions and the leeks for 4-5 mins, the stir in the garlic. 
2. Add the white wine and reduce by 2/3, add the stock and reduce by 1/2.
3. Add in the cream, tarragon and sweetcorn then simmer until thickened.
4. Season and then put it into a pie dish, cover with the puff pastry  and fold over the overhanging pastry on to the pastry lid. Brush with beaten egg and cook for 40 mins at  190ºC/375ºF/gas.

Cathy Crawford's version of Helena Lyttle's - Cheesy Potato Pie!

Word's cant really explain how good this is, so try it! Have it as a side dish with chilli, roast meat, pasta or as a vegetarian main with lots of veggies. Everyone adores the crispy top!

 This is a great dish to bring to a BBQ, or house party, Cathy always brings two to special events! It goes a long way and everyone comments on how Moorish it is. It is soooo simple. Also its even BETTER the next day heated up on its own :)

A note from Cathy Crawford: Thanks to my Auntie Helena Lyttle for my take on her legendary cheesy pie and lovely childhood memories. 

Ingredients:

• 10 potatoes( not floury potaoes they do ot slice as well)
• 6oz grated  cheddar cheese and parmesan if you like
• 1 pint milk
• 2oz butter
• 2 good  tbsp plain flour
• grated nutmeg
• salt and pepper to taste
• double cream (optional)

 

Method:

 

1. Boil potatoes until cooked but still firm (10-15 mins), drain potatoes and set out on board to cool slightly before slicing. 
2. Meanwhile prepare white sauce by melting butter, add flour and mix until it looks like buttery paste. Add the milk a little at a time (it is worth doing this slowly to ensure you get a lovely smooth sauce). Heat the  sauce stirring continuously  with a wooden spoon until sauce thickens.  If feeling naughty, add some double cream to the white sauce before adding the cheese. Add grated nutmeg then half of the of grated cheese and stir in until melted.. set sauce aside. 
3. Put a layer of the sliced potatoes in the bottom of a lasagne dish or similar pie dish, sprinkle grated cheese over and then pour on some of the cheese sauce and repeat until potatoes all used. Keep enough of the sauce to pour over the top layer of potatoes (its best with lot's of sauce!) Cover the top of the pie with grated cheese. You can also add parmesan or your favourite hard cheese.
4. Cook in a pre heated oven until sauce is bubbling and the top is gorgeously melted and crispy (30-40 mins). 

Irish Lentil and Bacon Soup

This soup is perfect for when you have not been feeling very perky - which I have not recently! Also my boyfriend can cook it really well so I can relax and not worry that he is about to burn down the kitchen! 

Ingredients:

• 240g (a packet) of smoked bacon chopped
• One chopped onion
• 2 Cloves of garlic
• 250g Red split lentils
• 2 pints of chicken stock
• 3 peeled carrots

Recipe:

1. Fry the bacon in a pan until crispy and golden brown, remove from the pan and set aside.
2. Gently fry the onion until translucent, then try the garlic for 5 mins. Add the bacon again to the pan, lentils and the stock.
3. Cook for 30-40 mins until thickened, 15 mins before the end grate the carrots in (I'm not a huge fan of carrots and I always end up leaving chunks of carrots so this way I can eat the whole soup!)

Serve with fresh bread, garlic bread or cheese on toast - perfect! Making me feel better already :) 

Who likes pancakes?

Who doesn't like pancakes? I remember pancake day when I was little, me and my 3 sisters trying to eat more pancakes than the other - mum making pancake after pancake! I think why I still love pancake day it because it makes me feel like a kid again, that and you cant beat a good pancake!

Here is my easy peasy lemon squeezy pancake recipe:

Ingredients

• 110g/4oz plain flour
• pinch of salt
• 2 eggs
• 200ml/7fl oz milk mixed with 75ml/3fl oz water
• 50g/2oz butter

1. Wisk all of the ingredients in a large bowl until light an fluffy.
2.  Heat up a frying pan with a small amount of sun flour oil. Add one ladle of pancake batter (I like my pancakes really thin but you can change the batter amount depending on what you would like) and swirl it around so the bottom of the pan is covered.
3. Leave the pancake to cook untill the pancake comes loose, you can use a spatula to check its turned a golden brown then flip over! It wont take as long to cook on the other side.
4. Serve with lemon and sugar - or the topping of your choice!

Roasted butternut squash, bacon and thyme risotto

I love risotto, so easy and you can throw in it what ever you have lying around. As my veg box has been stuffed full of butternut squashes I have come up with this winter warmer!

Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash
• 2 cloves of crushed garlic
• a few sprigs of time leaves picked off the stalks
• 1 pack of smoked bacon
• 3 large knobs of butter and 2 tbsp olive oil for the risotto
• 1 chopped onoin
• 400g/14oz arborio (risotto) rice
• 1 glass white wine (optional)
• 2 pints hit stock (chicken or vegetable)

Serves 4

Recipe

Peel, de-seed and chop the butternet squash. Put into a roasting tray and toss in the garlic, a good glug of olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in a 180c oven for 30-40 minuets until softened and becoming golden in colour, once cooked set aside (you can do this while the risotto is cooking). Then fry the chopped bacon until crisp and set aside.

Melt the butter with the oil in a pan on a medium heat, add the onions and cook for 10 mins on a low heat until softened and translucent, add the garlic and cook for 5 mins.  Add the rice and stir for about a minute until the grains are coated with the oil and butter. Pour in the wine and stir continuously until it has cooked into the rice. Add a good ladle of hot stock and and season well with salt and pepper. Turn the heat down so the stock is simmering gently. Keep adding ladles of stock as it cooks into the rice, stirring and moving the rice around in the pan. 

After about 15-20 minutes the rice should be soft but still have a bit of bite left in it. The texture of the risotto should be thick and creamy, but not too loose. Add extra stock if necessary. It may seem tedious standing and stirring but the end result will be worth it.

Remove from the heat, stir through the buttnernut squash and bacon. Season with salt and pepper and leave with the lid on for 5 minuets to become thick and creamy.

Serve with parmesan and home made garlic bread - perfect!