The family members that went to England (two siblings and both parents) returned today.
I wanted to cook something nice.
Possiblities were narrowed somewhat as dinner had to involve a whole cooked chicken that had been lurking in the fridge. Serving it whole was out of the question because it wouldn't stretch to seven people. A salad seemed too dull, sandwiches too pedestrian, a pie too boring. So funnily enough I settled on a dish that many find repellent in it's blandness, but seemed slightly exciting to me as I had never cooked it before. I have eaten risotto half-heartedly many times, yet never once made it myself.
I shredded the meat and used the carcass to make the chicken stock. I had no peas so instead sliced green beans into tiny rounds which were added with the shredded chicken to the risotto. Alongside, we had asparagus that had been brought from England. I forgot to add saffron.
Don't you hate it when bananas go brown before you have a chance to eat them? There were five like that in the fruit bowl this morning so I baked banana bread. We haven't had it in a while, so it was lovely to make it again.
Banana bread is pretty hard to get wrong. Case in point, I completely made up this 'recipe' today and it turned out beautifully. This recipe is not very sweet, so tweak the sugar content to your liking. I used five bananas to save them the fate of being chucked in the bin, however three is around the right number.
The riper the bananas the better.
Makes one loaf.
Ingredients:
3 bananas
3 tablespoons natural yoghurt
1/2 cup granulated or muscavado sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 free-range eggs
100g butter, melted
2 cups self-raising flour
salt
cinnamon
How to do it:
Preheat oven to 350°F/gas 4
1. In a large bowl mash the bananas with the yoghurt, sugar, and eggs.
2. Stir in the butter, vanilla, salt and cinnamon.
3. Fold in the flour.
4. Pour mixture into a loaf tin lined with greaseproof paper. Bake until a skewer comes out clean.
This weekend was good.
My first loaf of bread and my first risotto.
Looks great Sophie :) I'm afraid my sensitive gag reflex often puts me off making banana bread because I can't bear the thought of mashing up the bananas....! Silly sausage. I love making and eating risotto - something very theraputic about just standing and stirring. However, unless I add tomatoes, my risotto often ends up looking a bit like vomit. I add peppers, sweetcorn, chicken etc etc etc but still looks a bit too....well....pukey. Tastes fab though!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI AM NOT MUCH FOR COOKING MYSELF (I COULD EAT MACARONI AND CHEESE, MASHED POTATOES, AND TAMALE PIE EVERY DAY), BUT I CONTINUE TO ENJOY YOUR PICTURES, AND YOUR SUPERB CONTROL OF THE LANGUAGE, ITS DISCIPLINE AND RHYTHM.
ReplyDeleteMacaroni cheese is the best thing ever.
ReplyDeleteYou should make this cake, it's incredibly easy and even if the texture goes wrong it still tastes superb!
Do you not enjoy cooking or is it just something you choose not to partake in?
the medications i take for atrial fibrillations, pulmonary embolism, hypertension, and ruptured esophagus have, alas, killed my appetite for anything but basic spuds, cheese, and pasta. Vicariously, your pix and column make up for that ...
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear that ):
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I deserve such praise however, but I am really glad that you enjoy the blog. You are my favourite follower (but shh, don't tell the others..).