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christmas recap December 27, 2009

Posted by molly in : about the kitchen , 5comments

we’re back in london for less than 24 hours, so i thought i’d write a brief post about our christmas up in northumberland and saying adieu until next time (whenever that may be!)

i had an absolutely wonderful time with phil’s family for christmas. to be honest, i was a little unsure as to how things would go – this was my first time having christmas away from my family and i hadn’t met phil’s aunt and uncle whom we were staying with. not to mention, i’d never been to that part of england before.

but as soon as we arrived, it was clear i had nothing to worry about. everyone made me feel so welcome and i had a blast joining in their christmas traditions. everything from the pub dinner on christmas eve to the chaotic present opening on christmas morning to the stroll along the beach in alnmouth on boxing day.

we had some absolutely amazing food — and i am forever grateful to phil’s aunt (and mother and cousins) for cooking me some extra special versions of the food we were all enjoying. i didn’t get very many photos unfortunately (too busy eating) but here are just a few…

sausages which were put into sandwiches on christmas morning brunch… YUM.

a beautiful christmas cake decorated by phil’s cousin katie – featuring the snowman and edible glitter!

and finally, my extra special christmas pudding (with a nice glass of red) — it may not look like much but, trust me, it was fantastic. and especially egg free just for me! (thanks aunt helen!) i enjoyed mine with some warm bird’s custard (made with oat milk).

and finally, a photo of phil and i during our snowy walk on christmas day around snitter.

hope your christmas was as wonderful as mine!

we’re in the midst of unpacking and repacking in time for our flight to boston tomorrow afternoon. i hope to have some random posts for you during our travels over the next two weeks, but please bear with me as i’ll be sans-iphone and sans-laptop for the majority of the time. also, it’s new year’s eve, my birthday, and cara’s wedding reception while we’re away!

regular posting will resume on my return to london – january 11th.

in the meantime, have a wonderful start to 2010 (if i don’t manage a post before then)!

three salad dinner December 24, 2009

Posted by molly in : salad , add a comment

merry christmas eve! i’m currently up in northumberland with phil’s family for christmas and will have very limited internet/iphone access, so i may be signing off for a couple of days. i’ll be back with a quick post when we return on sunday – but then it’s off to america for two weeks, so who knows when i’ll get the chance to write out there? it’s a big mystery…

in the meantime, take a look at our dinner from tuesday night. it’s a big ol’ plate filled with three different salads. two come from leiths, one is a stripped down version of our classic particular nicoise (you may notice a boiled egg in the photo below – that’s phil’s plate).

as for the other two, i think the winner was the warm lentil salad. just don’t grill your goat’s cheese unless you know it won’t melt through the bars!

warm lentil salad

recipe from leiths (you can kinda see it in the background, behind all the green beans and cherry tomatoes)

the particulars:

  1. put the lentils in a small saucepan with the thyme, bay leaves, and garlic. cover with stock and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, or until tender.
  2. in another saucepan, heat the oil, add the red onion and sweat until soft, then add the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar and allow the onions to caramelise.
  3. preheat the grill. cut the crottin in half and grill, cut side up, until the tops are brown and bubbling.
  4. drain the lentils, add the walnuts, chopped sage, red onion mixture, and olive oil. mix together well and season to taste with salt and pepper.
  5. divide the lentils between 4 individual plates and place 2 goat’s cheese halves on top.

lesson learned: YUM. this is a whole meal in itself. the only mistake was with the goat’s cheese portions. but other than that, it’s a winner.

merry christmas everyone!

a lush dessert December 23, 2009

Posted by molly in : desserts , 2comments

are you allergic to dairy / lactose intolerant?

do you LOVE creamy desserts?

is your idea of comfort food something soft and warm?

are you also gluten-free / vegan / soy-free / egg-free / sugar-free?

IMMEDIATELY MAKE THIS DESSERT.

coconut rice pudding

adapted from a recipe in delicious magazine

the particulars:

  1. measure out the rice and add it to a small saucepan, along with the coconut milk, cardamom pods, cinnamon, and vanilla. turn on the heat and leave to warm up.
  2. once simmering, stir occasionally. continue until all the coconut milk has been absorbed by the rice. this should take about 15-20 minutes.
  3. add the agave nectar once cooked to taste. sprinkle nutmeg on top to serve.

lesson learned: previously, i thought of rice pudding as gross lumpy baby food dessert that you get in the school cafeteria. not any more! the cardamom and cinnamon add a wonderful spicy flavour, and the coconut makes it so lush and creamy – there is no need for regular milk in rice pudding ever again!

an early feast December 22, 2009

Posted by molly in : fish , add a comment

tomorrow, phil and i are taking a train up to newcastle to spend christmas and the few days surrounding it with his family. of course, i’ll miss my family – it will be the first christmas i’ve spent without them. but i’m really looking forward to meeting the rest of phil’s family and experiencing christmas in a completely different way with a LOT more people! phil’s aunt and uncle are graciously having me in their home, even with all my dietary restrictions. i’m extremely grateful!

to lighten the load of our suitcases that we’re bringing up north, phil and i decided to have our own little christmas day yesterday. it started with blueberry pancakes (for phil) and present opening by the tree in the morning. then i had to rush off for a hair appointment all the way in east london. it took an hour and a half door-to-door. blah! but i love the new ‘do!

when i got back, we started preparing our christmas dinner. last year, we did something similar, with me having a small roast chicken and phil having a nut roast. but this year, i thought we should have the same thing. so i put my leith’s knowledge to good use and cooked up roast salmon, roast potatoes, honey parsnips, and fried brussel sprouts. yum! not your typical christmas dinner, but some of the components were pretty classic. i’ll tell you all about dessert tomorrow – it deserves its own post!

here’s a nice close-up of the brussels sprouts (and a very blurry me in the background!)

salmon with ginger and orange

from leith’s

the particulars:

  1. place the salmon fillets in a large bowl and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  2. cut the stem ginger into fine sticks and put into the bowl with the salmon. add the orange zest.
  3. mix the orange juice with the ginger syrup and pour over the salmon. cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  4. heat the grill to its highest setting.
  5. grill the salmon on one side until crisp. turn over and baste with the orange and ginger mixture. grill the second side for about 5 minutes or until golden brown. serve.

fried brussels sprouts with lime & parsley

adapted from a waitrose recipe

the particulars:

  1. cook the sprouts in boiling water and drain.
  2. heat the oil in a frying pan and add the drained, cooked sprouts. squeeze the lime juice over the top and sprinkle over the chopped parsley leaves. keep stirring for a few minutes. fry until sprouts get browned on a few sides.

honey roasted parsnips

the particulars:

  1. preheat oven to gas 9 / 500F.
  2. peel the parsnips, chop the ends off, and cut into quarters lengthways. remove the woody stem in the core.
  3. place on a baking tray and drizzle with the canola oil and honey. sprinkle on the salt and pepper. toss with your hands to coat all the parsnips with the oil and honey.
  4. bake for 20-25 minutes, checking constantly and turning around. be careful the honey doesn’t burn!

lesson learned: each part of this meal had quite strong flavours. i wouldn’t recommend serving them altogether. especially the salmon: the orange and ginger is such a wonderful combination, but is quite intense, so is probably best served with a blander veg on the side.

smells like christmas December 21, 2009

Posted by molly in : healthy habits , 4comments

today has been a wonderful fake christmas day so far! phil and i decided to have our own mini christmas a few days early – so we have unwrapped most of our presents, and are going to have a wonderful feast tonight. and then watch love actually. total cheese.

anyway, major thank you to my dad for supplying the keyboard with which i am typing this lil blog post — that’s right, folks, i’m the proud owner of a brand new laptop! it is so pretty. i still need to think of a name. skye, a little help?

also, thank you to naomi of the gluttonous vegan! we met up for some delicious raw cake over the weekend, had a great chat, and i couldn’t be happier to have such a wonderful new friend in london. she graciously wrote a lil something about the particular kitchen on her blog, so now i must obviously do the same. go check it out – she is an amazing photographer and from the looks of it a wonderful cook!

and while we’re on the subject of new stuff, i got a haircut today and it is preeeeeeeeetty drastic. i generally don’t do boring haircuts, but since i’ve been to london, the mop hasn’t been too radical. but today i decided to throw caution to the wind and go for something slightly outrageous. so i’m a bit shorter, a bit brighter, and feeling shiny and new just in time for the holidays. woop!

food-wise, i made a delicious snack yesterday and have to give it a huge ringing endorsement. mama pea knows a thing or two about delicious grub.

pumpkin spice roasted chickpeas

check peas and thank you for the original recipe!

time to make the delicious feast. menu includes at least two recipes i learned at leith’s!