Was it wrong to laugh?

Yello everyone.
How are you all today? Good I trust.
I'm having a few wee problems with my camera again so that's why I aint been blogging for a few weeks. Well that and the fact that It was me and my twinny Arlene's Birthday, Claire's Birthday, My wee Grannie's Birthday my Dad's Birthday, my friend Kath is over from New Zealand and whaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. Celebrations have been going on  for a whole month now don'tcha know.
Anyhoos, I think I'm all partied out and getting back into my normal routine of making nice food and force feeding it to Pauline. She loves it.
Tonight I'm making porky schnitzel. Yum.
Due to my cameralessness I'm sticking up a few wee recipes that I have back logged. Don't like putting up recipes without being able to prove I made them. I am no fraud.

So on one of my days off I stuck my head into the cupboard to see what I could make. Ready steady cook stylee again. I checked the back of the cupboard but unfortunately our new flat does not come with a Narnia out the back. Gutted. Yeah newbies. This is a throw back to an old blog.

I had bought a Cumberland sausage ring from Westmoorland farm shop on the way back from Hammerfest. Yes, yes. The blog for that is still in construction. It's a trilogy though and it takes some people a whole life time to write them????

Aye, so Cumberland sausage. I had a pack of cooked black lentils too, so decided to make sausages with lentils in tomato sauce. Mmmmmmmmmm.



I was too hungry to wait till after the photo to start eating it.

While I was making said dish I had Scuzz on the TV in the background. I heard a guitar riff that drew me like the rats to the pied piper into the living room. I sat on the arm of the couch, covered in tomato sauce splashes and watched the video. It was from a band called Revoker and the song was called Stay Down.
S

I couldn't make my mind up about what was going on in this song. It was like early 90's Grungyness smashing into the naughties hardcore movement. The hardcore guitars riffage and growly, shouty chorus and then the flamboyant, slightly overacted campness of the main singer. I dunno. I sat there laughing. But you know what? I bloody well like it. So there.

Here's my recipe for sausages and lentils. Enjoy.

Lentils in a tray

Add a sausage

Et Voilà

Sausage and lentils for two

Ingredients

200g Cumberland sausage ring
250g pack ready to eat black or puy lentils (I got mine from Merchant Gourmet)
1 red onion diced fine
3 cloves garlic minced
1 stick celery diced fine
1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 bouquet garni
Hand full sun blush tomatoes
Half teaspoon paprika
Half teaspoon dried oregano
Half teaspoon dried basil
Glug olive oil
Glug red wine
1 chicken jelly stock cube
1 tablespoon maple syrup
200ml water
Salt and pepper

First you want to make your tomato sauce.
Put a glug of olive oil into a saucepan and put onto a medium heat.
Add the onion, celery, garlic and paprika and cook for a few minutes until vegetables are softened and garlic is smelling lovely and fragrant.
Add the chopped tomatoes, bouquet garni, basil, oregano, red wine, jelly stock cube, water and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir then bring to the boil. Once it has started to boil turn it down to a low simmer and cook for 30 minutes stirring every now and then to make sure the sauce does not stick to the pan.
Pre heat your oven to 190 or equivalent.
When sauce is ready, take out the bouquet garni and stir in the lentils. Put into an oven proof dish.
Pop the sausage on top of the lentils and cook in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes until sausage is cooked through. The juice and fat from the sausage will drip into the lentils and make them super nice.
Check the seasoning and serve. I made some soft polenta to go with mine but you could serve it with a nice green salad or a big chunk of bread to mop up the juices.

Stay down, on the ground.

My first ever blog recipes

Hallo there.

So here goes, my first ever blog recipe.Yey. Are you excited? I may burst with joy.

Well, I was at my first BBQ of the year yesterday in honour of Chris' 24th birthday.
We were listening to some Aerosmith and random other tunes while Torsten ( My sisters better half) was taking over as BBQ Meister.
 He is very good at it.
I was eating a sausage on a stick and my good friend Claire named it a "sausageicle". Classic.

So in honour of the "sausageicle" and sunny weather I have written a few nice light summery recipes for you to savour while basking in the sun. Or mild drizzle if you live in Glasgow.

As with all my recipes instead of giving you a wine choice I will instead suggest a piece of music that I feel will perfectly compliment the cooking and eating of the dishes. So for the cooking I would suggest the sunny Southern drawl of Corrossion of Conformity's Deliverance album. And for the dining could I suggest an accompanyment of the Dazed and Confused soundtrack. Both excellent choices to compliment a sunny day.

Enjoy. Angela.xxx

The Sausageicle
Serves 4

6 big fat porky sausages
6 bamboo skewers which have been soaked in water for 15 minutes
Half jar onion marmalade
2 tablespoons runny honey
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

In a bowl or tupperware dish mix the onion marmalade, honey and Dijon mustard. Add your sausages and mix to coat. Cover and store in the fridge for 10 minutes.
Heat your grill on medium or get your BBQ fired up.
Take the sausages out of the fridge and impale with the skewers.
Cook the sausages turning every now and then till cooked through and nice and crispy and sweet on the outside. For the BBQ and the grill this should take about 10 to 15 minutes.

Spiced pomegranite lamb with roast sweet potato wedges and curry dressing with toasted almonds and simple rocket salad

For the lamb
4 lamb gigot (leg) chops or 2 big fat aubergines
3 tablespoons pomegranite molasses ( If you can't get pomegranite molasses then just use normal molasses mixed with 50ml of pomegranite
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Half teaspoon ground corriander
Big pinch dried chilli flakes
Big cinnamon
Big Pinch paprika
2 cloves garlic minced
Olive oil
Pinch salt and pepper

For the roast sweet potatoe wedges
2 large sweet potatoes cut into thick wedges(Not too thick that you cant fit them in your gob)
4 tablespoons mayonaise
2 tablespoons creme fraiche
1 tablespoon curry powder
2 tablespoons mango chutney
Handfull toasted almonds
Pinch salt
Olive oil

I bag rocket washed
Juice of half a lemon
Splash balsamic vinegar

ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Sorry got distracted there I was watching Rick Stien's French Odessy Tv show and was drooling down my chin.

So. If you are making this recipe with the aubergines then you need to cut off the stalks at the top then half them length ways down the middle. Then you want to score the flesh with a knife in a criss cross design. This will allow the spices and garlic to permiate through.
In a large bowl or tupperware dish add your lamb chops or aubergine. Then add the garlic, cumin, corriander, cinnamon, paprika, chilli flakes, salt, pepper, pomegranite molasses and a big glug of olive oil. Mix well and rub into the lamb/aubergine. Cover and leave to marinade in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 200 c or equivalent.
To cook the aubergines place onto a lightly greased oventray drizzle over any remaining marinade and bake on the top shef of the oven for about 40 to 50 minutes until the aubergines are tender and browned on top.
Place the sweet potato wedges onto a lightly greased oventray. Sprinkle with salt and drizzle with olive oil. Mix to coat then place into the oven and cook for about 30 to 40 minutes till tender on the inside and crispy on the outside.
While the sweet potatoes are cooking make your dressing.
Place the mayonaise, creme fraiche, curry powder, mango chutney and salt into a bowl. Mix well, cover and store in the fridge till everything else is ready.
To cookthe lamb heat a griddle or frying pan brushed with a little oil on high. Place the lamb chops in and drizzle with half the remaining marinade and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes. Turn over drizzle over the rest of the marinade and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes. If you like your lamb well done then cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side. You filthy heathens.x
Place your lamb or aubergine on your plate, add a big heap of the sweet potato wedges drizzled with the curry dressing. Sprinkle over the toasted almonds. Place a hand full of rocket on the side and squeeze over the lemon juice and drizzle over the balsamic vinegar.

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. Let me know how the recipe works out.xxx