supper last night was very easy. it needed to be as david was doing the final coats of paint in the kitchen, a job i started last september when we moved into the house, but didn’t get round to finishing (for a good but very boring reason!).

it was also a meal of necessity as the fridge was almost empty and the choice of ingredients limited. the starting point was a couple of pieces of lamb neck fillet which i’d bought during one of summer’s many chilly patches, with a warming stew in mind.

instead, inspired by this delia recipe, i decided to slowly roast the lamb with onions, lemon and herbs. after 3 hours in the oven the result was beautifully tender meat, meltingly soft onions and a meal which should have resulted in leftovers but which was completely demolished. i shall be making it again!

Click to read more ...

since borrowing a friend’s copy of cuisine i’ve been using their website as a regular source of inspiration. the new zealand recipes are often just a bit different from those i find via uk websites, newspapers and magazines and it has been a great way to get myself out of the rut that long days at work and hot weather can engender.

these lamb cutlets, which i received courtesy of abel & cole, were cooked with inspiration taken from a number of their recipes. i rubbed the lamb with a bit of olive oil and then sprinkled them, on both sides, with lemon zest, finely chopped rosemary, finely chopped garlic, chopped anchovies and freshly ground black pepper. the cutlets marinated for a couple of hours before being cooked on the griddle for c3 minutes on each side. i was a bit unsure how the flavourings would cope with being griddle but most of them stayed put and the slightly charred taste added extra layers of flavour, especially to the rosemary and anchovy.

we ate this with a green bean, asparagus and roasted tomato salad which was a lovely contrast to the beautifully tender and very delicious lamb.

leftover roast lamb is a blessing and whenever we have roast lamb i always try and get a piece of meat that will be large enough to yield leftovers. my usual way of using the leftovers is to make nigel slater’s lamb shawarma.

this week i fancied a change and took inspiration from a jill dupleix recipe where she fries the chunks of lamb in a little olive oil before sprinkling with oregano, lemon juice and seasoning. add some greek salad (i used tomatoes, feta cheese, black olives and fresh mint with a little olive oil and red wine vinegar) and warmed pitta breads to the mix and you have a quick and delicious leftovers lunch.

the sunday roast is a british tradition which i’ve never been particularly excited by. in fact it was probably my ambivalence towards roasts, which are often held up as being the best way to eat meat, that contributed to my decision to be a vegetarian many years ago. and having reverted to being a meat eater i have never felt the need to put traditional roasts into my menu planning.

however, i have found my own ways of cooking and enjoying large pieces of meat. slow roasted pork belly is always a pleasure as is slow roasted lamb. however, neither of these will ever be served with the traditional accompaniments of roasted potatoes and a selection of vegetables. far more likely is the appearance of noodles, rice or lovely vegetable side dishes.

last week i was inspired to adapt a nigella recipe which sees a lamb shoulder slow-roasted (i did mine for c7 hours) on top of a bed of cannellini beans and this was superb, not least as the beans soak up all the rich lamb flavours and make a lovely accompaniment to the meltingly tender meat or, if you have leftovers (i made sure we had leftover beans!) are delicious as the base for a thick winter soup which is lightened with the addition of cavolo nero.

i served our lamb with roasted pumpkin and buttered savoy cabbage flavoured with chilli flakes and lemon zest and am sharing it with johanna, the passionate cook, who is asking us all to cook roasts as part of waiter, there's something in my...

Click to read more ...