Let’s Start Cooking!…
(All Recipes have Gluten-Free Options)
Welcome to Menu Mistress…
I love cookbooks and have an extensive collection! The idea of Menu Mistress is to share recipes from these books that I’ve tried and tested. This blog is essentially for people who love food but don’t have the time, energy or patience to find that winning recipe – that’s the job of Menu Mistress! Naturally I also enjoy eating out, so I’ve turned my hand to restaurant reviews too – check them out here!..
(Recipes are updated regularly – scroll down and sign up at the bottom of this page to receive reminders)
November 2026
Last month I shared a very modern cassoulet made with chicken and lentils. I could almost hear the French swearing at this recipe from across the channel; this French dish is traditionally made with pork and duck, never with chicken! So, this month I’m setting things right by sharing a cassoulet that is closer to the real thing. However, the ‘real thing’ is rather labour-intensive, so I’m sharing a recipe which is much quicker to prepare! Menu One is ‘Quick Cassoulet’. It’s a recipe from Nigel Slater that I found in a magazine many years ago and one which I return to every winter. Menu Two, ‘Lamb with Coconut & Black Pepper’, is another recipe I found flicking through a magazine that also appears on my cooking list at least once a year, usually around the same time I’m turning up the central heating. It’s a warming dish in which chunks of lamb are cooked in a tasty, very lightly spiced coconut sauce.
You’ll have these two delicious dishes on your table in just over half an hour; now that is a very heart-warming thought, and just what November deserves!..
Menu One
Quick Cassoulet (Serves 4)
Cassoulet is a wonderfully comforting dish, however, traditional recipes can be very labour-intensive. This is a fantastically simple version from Nigel Slater – you’ll have a steaming plate of this on your table in just over half an hour!..
4 plump spicy sausages, or 8 smaller ones (gluten-free if needed)
1 duck breast cut into thick slices
1 tablespoon olive oil
225g smoked bacon lardons
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon tomato purèe
55ml red wine
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
2 x 425g tin haricot or butter beans, drained
1 bayleaf
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
50g coarse beadcrumbs (optional)
Sea salt and black pepper
1.In a casserole, cook the sausages and duck in the olive oil until their fat runs and the sausages and duck fat are golden brown on all sides. Scoop out the sausages and duck and set aside.
2.Add the bacon lardons to the casserole and fry until golden then add the onion and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until they have slightly softened, then stir in the tomato purèe. Cook for another minute then pour in the red wine. Simmer for a minute, then stir in the tomatoes, the cooked sausages, and the duck.
3.Bring to the boil, then stir in the beans, bay leaf, mustard and salt and pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes.
4.Remove the casserole from the heat. You can serve straightaway or, if using, scatter over the breadcrumbs and place under a hot grill until golden, and then serve.
Menu Two
Lamb with Coconut and Black Pepper (Serves 4)
This is a wonderfully easy recipe; tender chunks of lamb are cooked in a tasty, very lightly spiced coconut sauce. Simply serve with rice.
740g cubed lamb
400ml tin coconut milk
2 teaspoons black peppercorns
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
4 tablespoons groundnut oil
2 medium onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3cm piece ginger, peeled and finely shredded
4 medium-sized ripe tomatoes, peeled, deseeded and roughly chopped
1 rounded teaspoon ground turmeric
2 medium-sized hot red chillies, deseeded and chopped
15g fresh coriander, finely chopped
Sea salt and black pepper
1.In a dry frying pan, toast the coriander seeds over a moderate heat for a couple of minutes, until they are warm and fragrant. Remove from the heat and grind finely in a pestle and mortar. Repeat with the peppercorns but this time grinding coarsely.
2.Pour the oil into a casserole and warm over a high heat. Put in the cubes of lamb and brown lightly on all sides – you may need to do this in batches- then remove and set aside.
3.Add the onions, garlic and ginger to the pan, reduce the heat a cook, uncovered for 10-15minutes until the onions are translucent. Add the tomatoes, stir and leave to simmer until they have collapsed into the onion mixture.
4.Stir in the coriander seeds and peppercorns, turmeric, lamb and red chillies. Pour in the coconut milk, season with about a teaspoon of salt, stir and leave to simmer gently, covered, for about 30 minutes, until the lamb is just tender. Stir regularly.
5.Just before serving stir in the chopped fresh coriander and correct the seasoning with salt and black pepper. Serve with rice.
A Little Bit of Housekeeping…
To find all the recipes from my blogs go to the Recipes page where there is a link to print them off.
Oven Settings – All my recipes presume that you are cooking with a fan oven, increase the temperature by 20’c for conventional ovens without a fan.
‘Staple Side Dishes’ – when you see this note beside a recipe, it indicates that I have previously published this side dish on Menu Mistress. I have re-published it so that you don’t have to trawl through my old recipe blogs to find it – Menu Mistress is about making your life in the kitchen easier!
Gluten-Free – I eat gluten-free, so all of my recipes have gluten-free options, although I must stress that if you have an allergy please double check all ingredients. If flour is used you can substitute it with gluten-free flour (I use Dove’s Free From range) and likewise with other ingredients such as pasta or soy sauce, you can use gluten free options.
Most of the recipes on Menu Mistress are courtesy of the creativity of cookery book writers, old and new. The recipes are an ‘amuse-bouche’ of those available in their books. Please go to my Cookbooks page for more information.
Music to Cook to….what I’ve been listening to in my kitchen!….Click on this link to listen to my playlists (listen without judgement – it’s just a bit of fun!)
Any feedback or recipe ideas? Leave your comments at the very bottom of this page… or feel free to contact me personally here!…
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