I don’t know if it is just me but I feel the month has flown by - very unusual for a January.
We started the month very well with a recipe from
, at first I thought it might be a little indulgent for a Tuesday night but this duck cooks so quickly it was a treat to be able to cook for a mid week meal. I swapped the spinach for curly kale and I think next time I might swap out the butter beans for cannellini beans, I just prefer the firmer texture.By the second of January I had done a brief inventory of what was left in the fridge from Christmas and referring to my new cookbook Mogali I had already drafted a mental list for at least a weeks worth of recipes but I found I was feeling a bit down at the thought of returning to work and a few issues that needed to be dealt with had kept me busy that morning so I went for a bit of a retail therapy in the Waitrose aisles, this has meant the fridge is completely full again.
I had also forgotten I’d ordered a recipe box (Bang Bang Tofu Noodles) from Riverford to arrive on Wednesday on the assumption I would not have had time to go shopping.
My first recipe from Mogali was a pumpkin curry. I made a few adjustments by using butternut squash in place of pumpkin and coconut milk instead of milk, the cream of which gave the dish a beautiful glossy finish. And a whole teaspoon of chilli powder. I served mine with the Winter Slaw I made the other day, which paired perfectly so I wasn't surprised when I saw the recipe for the Mogali Slaw which uses similar ingredients, sweet and mustardy.
I cooked a second dish from Mogali on Saturday night, with friends over for dinner, we did Mother Butter Chicken, again I doubled the chilli powder, I get the feeling that they have dubbed down the spices to suit an wider audience. We did rum bananas with ice cream for pudding, so very simple, but delicious and not too heavy.
Don’t worry I’m not planning on taking you though every meal I ate this month. Stick with me we have some recipes you might want to try.
Back in November I entered a little give away from
and I can’t believe it but I actually won something - I really was quite overjoyed - unfortunately there was an issue with the delivery and the products arrived damaged but the lovely people at Lebnani (a Lebanese restaurant in Reigate that specialises in food inspired by Beirut) soon sent me a replacement - it really cheered me up and the products are fantastic, the spices come in beautiful little bottles and I have used the Zaatar on my snack of the month.Air-fryer Chickpeas
After a disastrous attempt at making popcorn in the air-fryer I have found a delicious snack that does not get stuck in the elements at the top. I have had my fryer for a long time, long before the recent interest in them so maybe this is different in design.
Rinse a 400g can of chick peas and then leave to dry for an hour or more on some kitchen towel. Heat the air fryer to 185c and cook the chickpeas for 18 to 20 minutes, towards the 15 minute mark take the pan out and give it a good shake.
As soon as you remove the pan from the heat immediately drizzle 1 tbsp of olive oil, shake the pan well so the oil coats the chickpeas then sprinkle on some seasonings - I used some Zaatar and toasted cumin seeds.
A Wicked night out.
I have been a very lucky girl indeed this month as I was also gifted a couple of tickets to see the musical Wicked a few weeks ago. A neighbour introduced me to one of the main cast members Stephen Pinder a few months ago and he invited us along. The show was excellent, and I really look forward to doing something like this again soon, I’ve not been to a show in ages, I think the train strikes of last year really put me off planning any trips to London by train. We popped into the Market Halls at Victoria where they have a large range of pop up style food shacks so was an excellent place to meet friends and have a quick bite to eat before the show.



Burns Night
It’s never going to be easy to take a beautiful picture of Haggis Neeps & Tatties, but we had a fantastic Burns Night Supper with friends, an Address to a Haggis from our very own 33% Scottish Wragg. Dinner finished with a cranachan cheesecake made by Sarah the cheesecake queen, even if she does not remember eating it and an amazing selection of mostly Scottish cheeses from Rennet & Rind from their new shop in Stamford.



Smoothie of the month
I’m sure I have mentioned before how lucky we are to have Mee Blueberries on our doorstep. Featured on country file back in September. They have a pop up shop a couple of times a month at which I buy 2kg of blueberries for the freezer. I made the mistake once of walking Floyd up there thinking I could do my purchase combined with a dog walk, forgetting I would then have 45 minute walk back home with 2kg of frozen blueberries. Next time I took the car! The next pop up shops are: 17th February & 2nd March.
2 handfuls of frozen blueberries
2 tbsp Greek yogurt
1 tsp almond butter
1 tbsp dried cranberries
Put all the ingredients in a blender, add a little milk of the yogurt if thick. Proportions are estimates as I never really measure these out. If your using fresh berries then ad an ice cube or two. I always put the yogurt in the blender before the almond butter which I ensure sits central to the ingredients to make sure the butter does not stick to the wall of the blender. And blitz until smooth.
Well it feels like a bit of a whirlwind of a write up but I’m now looking forward to February and the 6 Nations - subscribe now so you don’t miss out on the upcoming recipes for Rugby snacks.
Thank you Ex