Republic Bier Halle pizzas

I have been neglecting my little blog of late, and I want to remedy that fact!

Takeaway is becoming increasingly popular as people keep a closer eye on the pennies; in Glasgow we are spoiled for choice with the wonderful range of cuisines on offer.
I am absolutely bowled over by the delivery from the Republic chain, proper, stonebaked pizza - and they bring alcohol too!

My favourite is the one with the Parma ham, blue cheese, rocket and balsamic, a salty, vinegary mix of Italian gorgeousness...

Check out the menu here...

Another easy-peasy midweek meal

I know it's the weekend, but this is the kind of meal I often produce when I'm pushed for time. It's adapted from a recipe of Nigella Lawson's - and it can be varied according to what you have in the house.

The basics you need are pasta (preferably penne, rigatoni, conchiglie, farfalle) as well as double cream and cheese. Yes, this isn't a meal for calorie-counters...

Boil the pasta in salted water; then pour your tub of cream into a separate pan, on a very low heat grate in some hard cheese (parmesan if you have it), then add in some cooked ham. Add some frozen peas to the cooking pasta for the last couple of minutes, and then drain and combine the contents of both pans!
Delicious. And you could substitute bacon for the ham, but fry it before adding to the creamy mixture. Cherry tomatoes would be a sweet addition too.

Chickpea and tomato stew

I saw a great recipe in the Somerfield magazine (yes, seriously) this week for a cheap but filling stew that would be just the thing for a cold autumnal evening. I think I might serve it with some lamb chops, but it would be just the thing on its own (which might be how I eat it tonight!)

Ingredients

1 large onion (peeled and chopped)
1 tbsp sunflower oil, or any other oil you have to hand
1/2 tbsp chilli powder (or, in my case, a small amount of English Pomander's Very Lazy Red Chillies)
2 cloves garlic (or, again, the Very Lazy Garlic!)
can of chickpeas
can of sweetcorn
can plum tomatoes
some fresh coriander to garnish


Method
1. Fry onion in oil for 10 mins over a low heat - add chilli and garlic and fry for another minute or so
2. Add chickpeas (with their liquid), sweetcorn and tomatoes. Bring to the boil. Break pup tomatoes with a wooden spoon and allow to simmer for 20 mins, until reduced and flavours have mingled.
3. Sprinkle with fresh coriander, and serve.

I can imagine this would be gorgeous as part of a bigger meal with Moroccan lamb, with pitta bread, or with a fresh mediterranean salad. To give it a more smoky Mediterranean 'edge', stir in a little smoked paprika with the chilli and garlic. If like me, you are a committed omnivore, I'd also consider very finely chopped ham or bacon. Chicken pieces and some red peppers transform the dish into a thick casserole.

Picture from Flickr user Rooey202

Credit crunch cook

My house is small, and doesn't heat easily. I've decided the best way to heat it this winter is to have the stove on, cooking, most of the day, rather than burning gas filling my rubbish heaters. Because the rooms are small, a good stew can heat my whole house for a day, not to mention the hot, steamy joy of actually eating the finished dish. 

The coq au vin I made tonight (see below) has made the house so lovely and warm that I'm going to dig out some old favourite cookbooks, including Lindsay Bareham's A Celebration of Soup, in preparation for my stew and soup heating-eating solution. I am already looking into getting a weekly organic vegetable box delivered (there are links to a couple of box companies who deliver to Glasgow at the bottom of the page), and I hope to be able to top this up with the farmers' market maybe once a month, a deli shop if I happen to be passing and, of course, the butcher and fishmonger. Luckily, my dad's a keen angler and can often surprise me with the odd catch. The wild salmon in my freezer came from his line. Making a conscious decision to stay away from the supermarket as much as possible, ironically in an effort to save money, has changed my eating habits forever for the better. I will occasionally do an online shop at a well known supermarket for bulk items: tins of  coconut milk and plum tomatoes; jars of curry paste; huge bags of rice. But in these times of financial anxiety, cooking big pots of healthy, fresh food will last a couple of days, be cheaper and heat your home (if it's as small as mine). It's a no-brainer for me.

Picture by Gypsy D, Flickr