Weekly new recipe thread

[SarahJessicaParkin]

I've decided to try out a brand new recipe every week this year. I seem to make the same things on rotation all the time, so hope this will drag me out of my recipe rut and improve my not great cooking skills!

Would anyone like to join me?

Ottolenghi recommends using freekeh for pilaffs, salads or in recipes where you might otherwise use bulgar wheat. It goes well with sweet spices (such as cinnamon) so a Moroccan flavour profile is ideal. I liked this recipe from Nigel Slater too: Freekeh with summer vegetables

I have also been having adventures with barley, spelt, kamut, sorghum, amaranth and teff.

And then I wandered into the world of indigenous pulses... Carlin Pea Saag with Mango Chutney Halloumi was a definite winner. (I'm a nerd aren't I?!)

Spiced Mince & Rice, Meliz Berg, Dinner Tonight
This was good and looked so pretty, but I felt it was missing the punch of flavour I was expecting, I think the spices could be turned up a notch.

3pm Chocolate Oat Biscuits, Nicola Lamb, Sift
Absolutely stunning, very eager to make these again.

Broccoli Coconut Curry Soup, Melissa Hemsley, Feel Good
I did the cheat of using a pre-made Thai green paste, this was a solid simple soup.

Hi. I want to make a spicy sausage casserole but I don’t want the whole sausage in it. Can I cook the sausages first, then slice them and then add to a casserole to cook? Will that work ok?

(Sorry if this seems like a stupid question - I am autistic and usually ask my mum these type of cooking reassurance/clarifying questions but she isn’t available right now).

@PineappleChicken might be a bit late, but I don't see why that wouldn't work. Another alternative is removing skins from the sausages and just frying off the meat in chunks before adding other ingredients (like in this recipe video)

I do it like @SummaLuvin mentioned @PineappleChicken

I squeeze the sausagemeat from the skins and then break it up as it cooks in a frying pan (ie bashing it to death with a wooden spoon as it cooks)

Thank you. I can’t do it like that because the texture goes funny but thank you. Since @SummaLuvin said it would probably be ok I have tried it with the method of cooking first, then slicing, then adding. I will report back! 🙂

i like to cook the sausage separately to the casserole personally, dont like how the sausages go ,

Placemarking

Will try this starting in the new school term 🙌

It worked fine. Quite tasty actually. Thank you!

Pea, leek & spinach quiche - I made this for my vegetarian DD. Though I haven’t tried it she rated it very highly enjoying the combination of vegetables - I must confess I really didn’t follow the recipe at all!! I couldn’t see how a quiche would work with 1 egg yet serve six people - so I added four eggs and 1 or 2 egg yolks. It also stated to add water to the leeks while cooking, again, I didn’t do that either I added a bit more butter and put a lid on for 10 minutes for them to sweat and cook through. Oh! and four pearls of mozzarella- that really wouldn’t bring anything to the party so I added a large ball of mozzarella and a hunk of very mature cheddar.
I’m sure I’m not the only one to steal the idea of a recipe then tweak it a ‘little’ bit.
Enjoy your weekend and happy cooking

Tahini, date and chocolate pudding, Benjamina Ebuehi, I’ll Bring Dessert
Predictably fantastic, though the tahini flavour far more subtle than I expected.

Jalapeño Chopped Cheese w/ Lime Crema, Ethan Chlebowski
I love the adaptability of a hefty sandwich meal, this was a really good base.

I bought Noor Murad's Lugma today, it is a beautiful book and am looking forward to diving in - the black lime chicken, leek and za'atar fatayer are very inviting!

@myrtleWilson that has caught my eye, it looks stunning

Chilli Prawn Linguine - this is totally delicious and low calorie too! I made it with some large tiger prawns and would absolutely make it again.

Balsamic Chicken - again, another low calorie dish full of flavour and would happily make again. Very straightforward and a good amount of standard store cupboard items.

Chickpea, spinach & potato curry - this was so flavoursome and for those of you who need to cook vegan this is a winner. Is even bette4 made the previous day allowing flavours to mature.

Lemon & raspberry cheesecake - I was gifted this book some time ago and picked it up again this weekend in search of a cheesecake. This one really appealed and it lived up to expectations - for those of you who dislike raspberries this would work with a blueberry and lime combination.

Note to self - revisit old cookery books.

Roast cauliflower with harissa pilaf - Meera Sodha
Predictably quiet from me while settling into life with a baby, but we had the ingredients for this in from before he was born and it was really easy. It was really hot - I used the rest of a vegan nduja I didn't want to go mouldy at the back of the fridge rather than harissa, but I'd reduce the amount next time because I really struggled with the spice in the end. Otherwise it was a nice simple meal

aww @toastofthetown lovely to hear from you - thread baby! Hope all is going well x

Meera Sodha Baked Butter Paneer

Very easy and lovely. I halved the recipe but found one tin of tomatoes reduced quite quickly in the oven which meant the paneer was exposed and burning, I added more tomatoes to correct and all was good in the world!

I also have tons of cookery books, and a huge list of links to online recipes (mainly picked up off MN).

During lockdown, I started going through my books one at a time and made a list of recipes I would realistically make in a note book, listed by cook book, and annotated whether a family meal, entertaining, buffet etc. Also noted recipes suitable for guests with specific requirements - in our case we frequently feed friends who vegetarian and gluten free, and less frequently a vegan guest . I’ve kept that up whenever I acquire a new book. Now I can just browse through the notebook instead of all the books when I’m meal planning.

We still fall back on the old favourites but I do try to make at least one new recipe a week, or be inspired if I don’t make it exactly. I meal plan and find it really helpful.

A bumper week from me feels appropriate on might well be my final post before this thread fills up! I will be wanting to continue when we get to 1000.

white cabbage, peanut butter and gochujang noodles, Meera Sodha, The Guardian
Solid noodle recipe, not my fave, but I tend to feel that way about ones with a nut butter/tahini base which I forget every time.

Miso Butter Onions, Ottolenghi Flavor
I first made these a few weeks ago for a friend who had just had a surgery and was quite sad handing them over as they looked and smelt so tasty. This time I made them for myself and they didn’t disappoint, just lovely and they look so pretty.

Festive Rumbledethumps, RovingHagggis
This has been in my bookmarks for ages, and I was really excited about it however in the end I think there was just a little too much going on and I would have preferred a simple mash, or even the mash/cabbage part of the recipe but without the crispy top.

chicken poached in spicy tomato broth, Ixta Belfrage
This is right up my street, the warming broth was perfect for drop in temperature we have had, but still felt fresh and suitable for spring.

Tonkatsu, J. Kenji López-Alt/Brian Lagerstrom/Babish, Youtube
Deep-frying really intimidates me, but every time I do it I realise I get myself worked up over nothing and it’s really not that bad. I probably ended up closest to Kenji’s version, though all three videos are pretty much the same process. The end result was fantastic, really reminiscent of the tonkatsu I had in Japan - I served with Bulldog sauce, a pile of shredded cabbage, and steamed short grain rice so it felt like a proper katsu set.

I made lemon loomi chicken from Lugma yesterday - was delicious, the black lime added an extra layer of flavour and the yoghurt/lemon sauce was lush. My only grumble is that for some reason I find carving spatchcocks next to impossible - but thats a me problem! I may try it with normal chicken and hope can retain the juiciness

I picked up a yellow sticker cauliflower and a carton of mushrooms the other day. I was thinking curry but ended up with a blitzed mushroom, cauliflower, walnut mince to make a vegan ragu. Mine admittedly wasn't vegan due to addition of cream (because it was in the fridge and needed using up) and Worcestershire sauce - and also added 10g of dried porcini and liquor.
Was v impressed with this. I halved the recipe but it still made enough for 4!

https://www.blog.greenearthorganics.ie/vegan-ragu-w-cauliflower-walnuts-and-mushrooms/

I’m also up for thread 2! Happy to start it and tag people?

No bake granola bars - Cookie and Kate
Maybe a stupid complaint looking at the ingredients, but I found these a bit too peanutty. I like the concept, so might try with almond butter in future to see if iI prefer that.

a favourite, spicy prawn, from delia smith, not online, from a book!

Yes please for a new thread.

Rhubarb Meringue Cake - Trine Hahnemann (Simply Scandinavian)
Made this for friends yesterday and it was lovely. I was sceptical about how sharp the rhubarb might be but it was a perfect balance with the meringue topping.

'Nduja ricotta & lemon stuffed chicken (Delicious magazine) I didn't do this on sourdough as the recipe suggests but served with buttery new potatoes. Really lovely springtime recipe. Very simple too.