Spring was definitely in the air last weekend.  It was still chilly, especially in the early morning and evening, but when the sun was shining one could actually feel the heat from it.  Early Spring blossom has started to appear on the trees in Bristol and the daffodils are very much in flower.  So it might seem odd that I chose to cook rather wintry, comfort food dishes, but I thought I’d better get them in before temperatures really do rise.

Lancashire Hotpot

My husband says I can’t possibly write a post about this meal because we didn’t take a photo of it, but, with apologies for the lack of illustration, I’ve decided to do it anyway.  It was a success and the ideal thing to cook last Saturday when I had plenty of time in the morning but wanted to watch England play Wales in a crucial Six Nations rugby match in the afternoon.  Honestly, as you will see, this hotpot is more or less just an assembly job.  While I was preparing it I managed to keep an eye on the Italy v Ireland match.

For the ingredients, I more or less followed Felicity Cloake again and make no apologies for that.  Here is what I did.

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

• 6 lamb cutlets
• 400g diced lamb shoulder
• Flour, salt and pepper
• 3-4 large, floury potatoes
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 300ml stock (Felicity says lamb stock, but I used a homemade chicken one because that’s what I had in the fridge, and it was fine.)
• 20g melted butter, plus extra to grease.

Method

• Dust the meat with the flour and seasoning.  Peel and slice the potatoes thinly.
• Butter a casserole which has a lid.
• Put a layer of overlapping potato slices in the bottom of the casserole, season them and sprinkle with a little thyme.
• Put the meat and bay leaf on top, followed by the onions and some more seasoning.
• Top with the remaining potatoes, overlapping them again.  Season these and pour on the stock, which should not come above the topping.
• Brush the potatoes with the melted butter.
• Put the lid on and place the casserole in the simmering oven.  Cook for 4-6 hours.
• Thirty minutes before serving, remove the lid and transfer to the roasting oven to brown the potatoes.

I placed it in the oven at about 2pm and then all I had to do when we were ready to eat was steam some carrots (in the simmering oven of course) and cook some cabbage.

By the way, for afternoon tea on the sofa, in front of the England v Wales match, we had buttered slices of this delicious “hot cross” fruit loaf which I’d bought in the morning from the Bordeaux Quay stall at Whiteladies Road Market.

Simple Stroganoff

This beef stroganoff, based on Delia Smith’s recipe, has the flavours of “proper” stroganoff but the advantage that it can be made ahead instead of at the last minute; it’s ideally suited to Aga cooking.

Ingredients

(Serves 4 people)

• 700g fairly lean braising beef
• 2 onions, sliced
• 50g butter
• 275 ml dry white wine
• 250g mushrooms, sliced if large
• 250ml sour cream
• Freshly grated nutmeg
• Salt and freshly milled black pepper

Method

• Cut the meat into thin strips, about 5mm wide and no more than 6cm long.
• Melt the butter in a casserole and soften the onion in it in the simmering oven for about 15 minutes.  Remove to a plate with a slotted spoon.
• Place the casserole on the boiling plate and brown the beef in batches.
• Once the meat is browned, move the casserole to the simmering plate and return the beef and onion to it.  Season and pour in the wine.
• Bring to simmering point, put on the lid and let it cook in the simmering oven for 3-4 hours.
• An hour before you want to eat, stir in the mushrooms, cover and return it to the oven.
• Taste to check seasoning, stir in the sour cream with a good grating of nutmeg.  Don’t let the cream boil.
• Serve with plain boiled rice and perhaps some broccoli or a green salad.

I could have used a smaller casserole.

This wine was a good accompaniment.

Chopped fresh parsley makes a nice garnish.

Depending on the weather, perhaps my next posts will move on to lighter, fresher dishes.