It was a picturesque morning when I hopped on the bicycle and cycled to the farmers’ market. On setting off I was very pleased with myself for saving the planet and burning calories at the same time. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and I was thoroughly convinced I was the modern day Snow White. It wasn’t particularly far or mountainous but to say I arrived less than glamorous and somewhat flustered would be an understatement. Let’s just say there was a bumble bee that seemed certain its hive was my nostril.
Aubergine Curry
Ingredients
You will need (for five to six large portions):
- 1/2 a teaspoon each of cardamom, mustard seeds, cumin and turmeric
- 1 teaspoon of coriander seeds
- salt and pepper
- 2 large aubergines, in roughly chopped
- 4 onions, sliced
- 4 large garlic cloves
- Oil for frying
- 4 tomatoes, seeds removed and quartered
- 1 tin tomatoes
- 2 chillies, sliced (add more or less depending on how hot you like it)
- 1 tin coconut milk
- 300ml vegetable stock
- Large handful coriander, roughly chopped
Method
Add all the spices and salt and pepper to a pestle and mortar and grind them up. The smell is so fresh.I have a real aversion to soggy, slimy, sloppy aubergines and so to prevent my distress I always cook them separately first. In this case I griddled them to give them a characteristic smoky flavour. Don’t add oil to the aubergine, I find the oil soaks in too much. I have found that for some recipes soaking the aubergines in salt is absolutely necessary but in this recipe, not so much.
Sweat the onion and garlic in a little oil until they look fairly sumptuous and then add the spices. Stir until your nostrils are dancing.
Purple Sprouting Broccoli and Bacon Pasta
Ingredients
To feed 4 people I used:
Beef, Vegetable and Red Wine stew
Ingredients
What you will need (for four to six portions):
- Braising steak (at least 500-750g)
- Seasoned flour
- Vegetables of your choice – carrots, swede, onions, leeks, pasnips – a few good handfuls of each
- Potatoes – 4-6 medium
- Red wine (1 small glass)
- Stock (750ml)
- Oil and seasoning
Method
Cut up the steaks and roll them in seasoned flour. Fry them in a pan that you can also then put in the oven. Keep all the goodness in one place. I am not fortunate to own one of these modern day contraptions.
Get chopping! It’s not that bad once you get going and you get lots of goodies to go straight into the compost bin. It’s true when they say you don’t get something for nothing.
Into my cauldron of lusciousness I added a healthy (large) glass of red wine, a stock cube (I know, I’m sorry) and some water. I threw in a bay leaf for good measure and a load of seasoning. I find when I think I’ve seasoned enough, I season some more.
Seasonal Stir Fry
Ingredients
What you will need (for 2):
- Stir fry strips or other thinly sliced steak
- Vegetables of your choice, I used onion, garlic, ginger, sweetcorn, carrots, spring onion and spinach
- Noodles
- Soy sauce
- Lemon or lime
- Oil, preferably vegetable or groundnut
- Salt and pepper
Method
I was lucky enough to strike up a conversation with the lady from Challow Hill Meats and she told me the story of her stir fry strips. She explained to me that when cutting the sirloin and the fillet off she was left with all these bits of meat. They used to go into the meat for stewing etc. Then she put them up for sale as I buy them now and I couldn’t be more pleased. The perfect amount of meat, of excellent quality and cut, ready sliced and for £1.84. Who can moan about that?
To make the most of these little bits of loveliness I let them marinate in salt, pepper and soya sauce while I cut up all my vegetables.
Quick Cheat Risotto and Roasted Vegetables
Apparently I have become a magnet for books and other similar reading materials. Old and new, modern and traditional, there is not a manuscript that passes me by without a glance or sometimes a purchase. Because of this new exponential accumulation I needed to reorganise and rearrange my boudoir in preparation for a charming new bookcase I had clapped my eyes upon. I wrestled with the idea of what to have for dinner and I knew this rearrangement would take many hours. Do I have a quick sandwich and feel an intense sense of disappointment or…Quick cheats risotto and roasted veg.
Baked Marrow
What to do with quite a significant sized marrow, no time and a fridge full of food but nothing to eat. It was then that I remembered the very wise man who sold me the marrow in the first place. He recommended a baked marrow but not to cut it down the middle and then stuff it as one might expect but to go about it as follows.
Ingredients You will need (for four):
Classic Toad in the Hole with Onion Gravy
It’s been getting colder, the days getting shorter and the need for all things comforting increasing. I went to the butcher and managed to get hold of some local recipe sausages. Toad in the Hole would be it. With some gravy and mash. Proper British.
Ingredients
What you will need (for two)
Sausages of your choice
1/2 pint of milk
120g flour
3 eggs
Pinch of salt and pepper
2 onions
2 garlic cloves
90ml balsamic vinegar
Thyme
Stock cube
Method
I started off by frying my sausages and made the batter while they were cooking. I find the best way for Yorkshire pudding batter is to put it all in a bowl and whisk furiously. It’ll all come right in the end. I was also clever enough to plan ahead, pre-heat the oven as hot as it would go and heat some oil in a dish.
Gnocchi with Bacon, Broccoli and Creamy Garlic Sauce
This is another cheap and cheerful recipe that was recently discovered. Again, it feeds two for less than £3 and counts as two of your five a day. My recipe for gnocchi with bacon, broccoli and creamy garlic sauce is quick, easy and frugal too. It’s really creamy and just what you need when you’re craving a dauphinoiseque meal.
Ingredients
What you will need (for two people): Potato gnocchi – 59p 4 rashers of bacon – £1Small head of broccoli – 35p
Feed 2 for £3 – Spaghetti Bolognese
It’s the end of term and funds are running low. Gone are the days of spontaneous eating out and in are the days of making whatever is edible from the darkest corners of the cupboard.
Never fear. Over the last few days I have made meals which feed two for £3 or less and even if I do say so myself are rather nice. Also, they are at least 2 of your 5 a day! Here’s my recipe for a budget spaghetti bolognese.
Ingredients
What you will need (for two servings):
200g minced beef – 99p
A load of fresh tomatoes from the market – 50p
Onion – 10p
Garlic – 3p
Tomato puree – 13p
Spaghetti – 30p
Milk, stock, seasoning and herbs Total price: £2.05 (not including the milk etc.)
