Monday, the calm before the Storm

 I call today the calm because everything opens up again tomorrow, life is back to normal after the holidays...bah!

Yummy

I was up half the night dealing with a crotchety baby so awoke at a ridiculous hour, missed breakfast entirely again and thought I may as well wait until lunch, however I was NOT in the mood for cooking so thank goodness for this recipe:

Lunch

Quick Welsh Rarebit

2 slices bread (mine was homemade bread so thick slices)
1 tsp Margarine (omitted)
1 tsp Chutney or Yeast Extract (Marmite)
2tbs Grated Cheese

Toast bread, spread with Margarine and Marmite/chutney
Add cheese and put back under grill until cheese has melted, serve with Salad.

Taste

Well what can I say really, it is cheese on toast, carbs + fat...what's not to like?  I think a side salad was a bit ambitious for January, I served mine with a nice heap of sauerkraut.

Fresh out of the oven

This spelt the end of the cheese by the way, so tomorrow will be entirely cheese free.

Dinner

Lancashire Hotpot

3/4lb of meat (used Leftover Tivall Slicing sausage from yesterday)
2 carrots
1 Onion or Leek
3lbs potato (I used three small potatoes and third of a swede)
1 dessertspoon of fat or dripping (omitted)
1/2 pt stock (I used about two)
1 dessertspoon of flour
salt and pepper to taste

(opt. I added a small cauliflower because it needed to be used and I used extra stock and added a 3rd cup (80grams) of barley to this pot)

(MP Classic recipe)
Add cut up and sliced meat and veg and half the potatoes and place in casserole dish, add fat and cover, bake for half an hour. Take out of oven, add stock, and the flour (mixed with some of the stock as a thickener) and the rest of the potatoes, salt and pepper and bake for a further 10 minutes without the lid until potatoes are brown (around 10 mins)

Natja's vegetarian version - place stock, onions, potatoes, carrots and cauliflower in casserole dish, add parboiled Swede if fancied) mix in barley and cook for 30 mins with lid on.

Take out and stir, add Tivall sausage cut into mouthsized chunks and flour thickener (you may need to use more flour than the classic recipe), stir and put back in oven without lid for another 10 minutes at least.

Finished dish

Serve with bread

Taste

This came out much better than I could have imagined, tasty and wholesome, just a lovely stew. I will admit for putting a bit of mixed herbs in mine.  It was heavy in sage which was lovely and really enhanced the flavour.
Truly a dish that never goes out of fashion.

Afters

Tinned fruit salad