I can’t quite believe that it’s the beginning of December and of course in just a couple of weeks Christmas! On Christmas day I will be cooking a traditional fare (see my menu here) but during the rest of the holiday period, I’ll be preparing more relaxed dishes which won’t leave me in the kitchen while friends and family are relaxing and enjoying themselves in the front room – particularly on New Year’s Eve when I’m feeling totally ‘over’ the whole Christmas thing! So I thought I’d share a couple of recipes which could make it onto my ‘easy dining list’...

Menu One, ‘Chicken Fricassée with Morels’, is one of those dishes which has an air of ‘special occasion’ about it, however, it’s quick and easy enough to cook on any weekday evening. The chicken is cooked in a cream and wine sauce thus creating an indulgent and comforting dish. Menu Two, ‘Spiced Lamb Meatballs with Peas’, is Simon Hopkinson’s take on an Indian ‘Keema Curry’ – a deluxe version; these subtly spiced meatballs are wonderfully moreish. Doubled up, this recipe is perfect for feeding a crowd so is a good option for a casual get-together! Finally, Menu Three is ‘Baked Sausages with Chestnuts’; a great casual supper for those evenings between Christmas and New Year. The Chestnuts give this simple dish a sophisticated finish – it’s definitely not your average tray bake!

Hopefully you’ll get time over the Christmas period to enjoy at least one of these recipes!.. (Recipes for my traditional Christmas Dinner can be found here!).

Don’t forget to pop by next week for my ‘Tuesday Treat’ – it will make a great centrepiece for any festive table!

Menu One

Chicken Fricassée with Morels (Serves 4)

This is one of those dishes which has that air of ‘special occasion’ about it yet is quick and easy enough to cook on any weekday evening. The chicken is cooked in a cream and wine sauce thus creating an indulgent and comforting dish; it will warm up the coldest, darkest winters day! The recipe is from Rick Stein’s cookbook, ‘Secret France’.

20g dried morels

200ml tepid water

40g unsalted butter

4 boneless chicken breasts, skin on

1 banana shallot, finely chopped

90g chestnut mushrooms cleaned and quartered

100ml Noilly Prat (or dry sherry)

130ml chicken stock

300g full-fat crème fraiche

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Soak the morels in the tepid water for about 15 minutes, then drain them in a fine sieve over a bowl. Strain the liquid and reserve 75ml for the sauce. Rinse the morels under cold water to remove any debris, dry them on kitchen paper and cut them in half lengthways.
2. Melt half of the butter in a large frying pan. Fry the chicken, skin-side down until light golden brown. Turn them over and repeat on the other side. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
3. Add the remaining butter to the pan. Fry the shallot over a medium heat until softened, then add the morels and chestnut mushrooms and fry for a few minutes. Add the Noilly Prat (or sherry), the reserved morel soaking liquid and chicken stock, bring to the boil then turn the heat down and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
4. Add the créme fraiche and stir, then put the chicken back in the pan along with any resting juices. Cover the pan and cook over a medium heat for about 8-10 minutes until the chicken is just cooked through. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately with rice or potatoes.

Menu Two

Spiced Lamb Meatballs with Peas (Serves 4)

This is chef, Simon Hopkinson’s take on a Indian ‘Keema Curry’ – a deluxe version. The recipe is similar to his ‘Lamb Kofta Curry with Rice’ (which I shared back in 2021) but the flavours are subtly different; this dish is lighter as it is made with natural yogurt rather than coconut milk. In addition there’s the key ingredient for a Keema curry – peas. I suggest you try both recipes!..

350g onions, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

4 tablespoons olive oil (plus a little more to grease)

750g minced lamb

2 tablespoons coriander seeds

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

2 teaspoons ground turmeric

1 tablespoon garam marsala

½ teaspoon chilli powder

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon fresh chopped mint (plus an extra handful, coarsely chopped)

1 egg, beaten

Flour (gluten-free if needed)

50g butter

½ stick cinnamon

4 cloves

4 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped

350g frozen peas

150ml plain yogurt

Juice of 1 lemon

1. First of all dry roast the coriander and cumin seeds in a frying pan until fragrant, then grind with a pestle and mortar. Leave to one side.
2. Fry the onions and garlic in the oil until golden brown, allow to cool before mixing into the lamb together with the all the spices, salt, the tablespoon of chopped mint and the beaten egg.
3. Form the mixture into balls the size of a walnut, roll in flour. If time allows, place in fridge for 30 minutes or so to firm up.
4. Melt the butter in a roomy frying pan, add the meatballs, fry until golden brown all over.
5. Add the cinnamon and cloves, stir over a medium heat for a minute or two before adding the tomatoes and peas. Allow the tomatoes to collapse and exude their juices then stir in the yogurt. Cook for a further 20 minutes.
6. Finally add the lemon juice, a handful of coarsely chopped mint and a little salt if necessary. Serve with rice.

Menu Three

Baked Sausages with Chestnuts (Serves 4)

This seriously simple recipe from Diana Henry’s ‘Pure Simple Cooking’. Despite its simplicity it’s not your average sausage traybake – the addition of chestnuts and red wine lift it to higher realms! Simply serve with some creamy mashed potato (recipe below).

8 good-quality pork sausages (gluten free if required)

150g cooked vacuum-packed chestnuts

350g field mushrooms, cut into thick slices

1 large onion cut into half-moon-shaped wedges

1 bulb garlic, cloves separated but not peeled

4 tablespoons olive oil

4 sprigs rosemary

1 bay leaf

250ml red wine

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Put everything except the red wine into a broad, shallow baking dish/ roasting tin. Turn the ingredients so that they are coated in olive oil.
2. Roast in a preheated oven, 190’c fan, for 25 minutes. Pour in the red wine and cook for another 25 minutes.
3. Serve with mashed (or roasted potatoes) and a salad of winter greens.

‘Staple Side Dish’ – ‘Favourite’ Mashed Potato (Serves 4)

There are numerous recipes for mashed potato, and yes, I have tried many, but this one is probably my favourite. It actually doesn’t contain any butter, which makes me feel that it could be healthy, although admittedly it does contain double cream! Don’t be put off by the garlic, you really can’t taste it, it just enhances the flavour of the potato. I must admit I ‘cheat’ when it comes to mashing, I am fortunate to have an amazing kitchen appliance, a Thermomix, this is a serious piece of kitchen kit; I can actually steam my potatoes in it and then mash them in seconds. If you don’t have a Thermomix you can either mash by hand, however,  for an easier option I would recommend doing as Delia Smith suggests in her ‘Winter Cookbook’ – whisk them with an electric hand whisk. When whisking them you do have to be careful – make sure that the potatoes are absolutely cooked, otherwise they will go gluey. Start off with the speed slow to break up the potatoes and then increase to a high speed to quickly whip them until smooth – don’t do it for too long, as again, they will go gluey, which is not good!

1kg potatoes (floury, such as Maris Piper)

100ml full-fat milk

100ml double cream

2 cloves garlic, sliced

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into even sized chunks. Steam until completely cooked through.
2. Put the milk, cream and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat.
3. Mash the potatoes (see note above) adding the milk mixture a little at a time. Season well with salt and pepper.

The Ultimate Hot Toddy (Serves 1)

Ok this isn’t exactly a cocktail but it’s a very good alcoholic beverage! And as it’s getting cold out there, I thought it was the right time to share this ‘Hot Toddy’; I have shared a recipe for a ‘Hot Whiskey’ before but I must admit that this new recipe is far superior! It has just the right balance of whisky and honey plus there’s a touch of cayenne pepper which gives it the perfect punch! It’s seriously good!

180ml water

60ml honey

30ml bourbon (I like Makers Mark)

30ml lemon juice

Pinch of cayenne

Thin slice of lemon (optional)

1. Place the water and honey in a small saucepan and bring to the boil.
2. Add the bourbon, lemon juice and cayenne. Whisk to distribute the flavours evenly.
3. Serve in a mug or heat-proof glass, topped with a lemon slice (if using)

Tarragon Pot Roast Chicken (Serves 4)

Scrolling through the recipes which I’ve shared with you, I was shocked to discover that I haven’t already re-shared this recipe as it’s probably one of my all-time favourite chicken recipes! So without further ado I’m posting it again… If you haven’t already, you must try it as it’s not only very good but is super easy; the sauce is created from the delicious juices which are caught under the chicken in the pot. Tarragon and chicken are, of course, a classic combination so you honestly can’t go wrong with this recipe! I serve it with Garlic Green Beans, which are amazing – try them – and also with either Concetta’s Potatoes or Roast Potatoes .

2 tablespoons chopped tarragon

1 garlic clove, crushed

50g unsalted butter, softened

1 x 1.6-1.8 kg chicken

2 teaspoons oil

150ml chicken stock

30ml white wine

1 tablespoon plain flour (gluten free if required)

1 heaped tablespoon tarragon leaves, roughly chopped

150ml double cream

1. Mix together half the butter with the 2 tablespoons of chopped tarragon and the garlic. Season with salt and pepper and place inside the cavity of the chicken, then tie the legs together.
2. Heat the remaining butter and the oil in a large casserole dish, and brown the chicken all over.
3. Add the wine and chicken stock. Cover the casserole and place in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 1 hour 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked.
4. Remove the chicken to rest in a warm place, making sure that you drain any juices from it back into the pan.
5. Skim a tablespoon of the surface fat from the cooking liquid and put it in a small bowl. Skim off any remaining fat and discard.
6. Add the flour to the reserved fat and mix to a smooth paste.
7. Whisk the paste into the cooking liquid over a moderate heat until the sauce boils and thickens.
8. Strain the sauce into a clean saucepan and add the heaped tablespoon of chopped tarragon leaves, simmer for 2 minutes and then add the cream, reheating without boiling. Season with salt and pepper.
9. Carve the chicken, serve with the sauce spooned over and with Garlic Green Beans, Concetta’s potatoes or Roast potatoes (Click here for recipes).

Almond Amandines

These make such a tasty treat. They are quite sweet so you only need a small square although the problem is that they’re rather moreish! The recipe, from Claudia Roden’s ‘Med: A Cookbook’ is super simple. The recipe calls for a shallow baking tin around 30 x 30cm, I didn’t have a tin but used a pyrex square dish and they came out fine!

6 eggs

400g caster sugar

500g ground almonds

200ml whole milk

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

5 drops almond extract

100g pine nuts

150ml apricot jam, to glaze

*You will need a baking tin about 30x30cm (or dish – see my note above), lined with baking parchment

1. Using a fork, lightly beat the eggs with the sugar then add the ground almonds, milk, vanilla and almond extracts and mix thoroughly. Pour into the prepared tin. Sprinkle the pine nuts on top and bake in a preheated oven, 160’c fan, for 1 hour or until the top is brown and the cake feels firm. If it is browning too early cover the tin with foil.
2. While the cake is still warm, melt the apricot jelly with 1-2 tablespoons of water and brush it over the top. Leave to cool.
3. To serve cut into small squares and lift out the amandines from the tin one by one.

I particularly love winter food so although I’m a lover of the sun, the food that I cook in my kitchen over the winter months makes winter more palatable! We’ve been rather spoilt this year as the summer weather lasted well into our autumn days, therefore I’ve been a bit slow in embracing ‘winter-warming’ recipes but with the advent of November and the chill it will no doubt be bringing that is about to change!..

…I’d like to think I’ve chosen recipes to suit almost everyone this month. There’s pork chops for the meat lovers, a tasty cod and chorizo recipe for fish lovers and finally an ‘almost’ vegetarian recipe (there’s a touch of anchovy in it!) for those of us who are trying to be good. They’re all recipes with a robust, tasty edge so they’re rather warming. Menu One is a real ‘crowd pleaser’ from Diana Henry’s cook book, ‘Pure Simple Cooking’; as the name of the book promises, this recipe is effortless but with plenty of flavour! Menu Two is ‘Roast Cod with White Bean & Chorizo Mash’, it’s one of those recipes which sings with flavour despite being a quick- throw-together recipe. I particularly like the idea of mashed cannellini beans rather than traditional potato as it’s so much quicker to prepare, and, with the chorizo is super tasty. Finally, Menu Three, ‘Penne with Braised Courgette, Broccoli & Cauliflower’ is simply a combination of braised vegetables with anchovies, garlic and chillies, however, by slow-cooking the vegetables you create a wonderfully rich sauce. Unfortunately the vegetables do lose their lovely fresh green colour through cooking but all is forgiven when you taste the sauce!..

Enjoy!.. See you next Tuesday for my ‘sweet treat’!..

Menu One

Pork Chops with Plum and Chinese Spices (Serves 4)

This is a real ‘crowd pleaser’ from Diana Henry’s cook book, ‘Pure Simple Cooking’; as the name of the book promises, this recipe is effortless but with plenty of flavour. All you need to accompany it is some rice and greens – I particularly like a watercress salad or tenderstem broccoli.

450g (about 8) plums, preferably crimson-fleshed ones

4 pork chops, bone in and partly trimmed of fat

5 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

1 teaspoon ginger

1 medium fresh red chilli, seeded and finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

Juice of ½ orange

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

Salt and pepper

1. Halve and pit the plums and if they are quite large cut them into quarters. Lay the chops in a shallow ovenproof dish and tuck the plums in around them where they can lie in a single layer without overlapping.
2. Mix together the honey, five-spice powder, ginger, chilli, garlic, orange juice, vinegar, salt and pepper. Pour over the chops, turning everything to make sure they are well coated. Bake for 45 minutes in a preheated oven, 190’c fan, until cooked through.

Menu Two

Roast Cod with White Bean & Chorizo Mash (Serves 4)

This is one of those recipes which sings with flavour despite being a quick- throw-together recipe. I particularly like the idea of mashed cannellini beans rather than traditional potato as it’s so much quicker to prepare, and, with the chorizo is super tasty.

4 x 175g thick cod fillets with skin (or another white meaty fish)

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to oil the fish

Salt and black pepper

2 x 400g tins cannellini beans, strained (retain the liquid)

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves stripped and chopped

125g chorizo, quartered lengthways and sliced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

4 tablespoons white wine or dry sherry

1 tablespoon chopped parsley leaves

Lemon wedges and parsley sprigs to serve

1. Rub the cod with a little olive oil, season with salt and pepper and set aside.
2. In a small saucepan warm the olive oil, then add the rosemary, chorizo and garlic and cook gently until softened but not browned.
3. Mash the beans and season, add the white wine or sherry and a few tablespoons of the reserved liquid from the tins to create a soft mash.
4. Pour off some of the chorizo oil and reserve then add the contents of the chorizo pan and the parsley to the mash, mix and gently heat through.
5. Meanwhile cook the cod skin side up on a hot (almost smoking) ovenproof frying pan until golden underneath, then turn the fish over and place the pan in a preheated oven, 220’c fan, for 4-8minutes until just cooked through.
6. Place a dollop of the bean mash on a plate, top with a piece of cod and drizzle with the reserved chorizo oil. Serve with a leafy green salad.

Menu Three

Penne with Braised Courgette, Broccoli & Cauliflower (Serves 4)

This sauce is simply a combination of braised vegetables with anchovies, garlic and chillies, however, by slow-cooking the vegetables you create a wonderfully rich sauce. Unfortunately the vegetables do lose their lovely fresh green colour through cooking but all is forgiven when you taste the sauce!..

400g penne pasta (gluten free if required)

4 large courgettes

100ml olive oil, plus extra

12 anchovies

5 garlic cloves, sliced

½ teaspoon chilli flakes

200g tenderstem broccoli, cut into 3cm lengths

125g small cauliflower florets

Parmesan cheese

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Grate the courgette and reserve.
2. In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil and add the anchovies, garlic, chilli flakes and a pinch of sea salt. Fry for 3 minutes, stirring continuously, until the anchovies start to melt into the oil. Add the courgette, broccoli and cauliflower and a dash more oil. Cover the pan and braise the vegetables slowly for about 20-30 minutes, or until the vegetables are well cooked and soft.
3. Meanwhile cook the penne until al dente, according to the packet instructions. Drain and toss the pasta through the sauce and cook for a further minute. Serve with lots of Parmesan grated over the top.