And now for the Xmas Menus...

Cos otherwise I'll forget like...

Christmas Eve

To Start
Vegetable Tempura with dipping sauces

To Follow
Pad Thai
Thai Red Curry
Jasmine Rice

To Finish
Exotic fruit kebabs with toffee sauce
Mango Sorbet

Christmas Day Lunch

To Start
Potted Stilton
or
Melon
or
Smoked Salmon with Lemon and Brown Bread

To Follow
Roast Gammon
Quorn Roast
Chestnut Roast
Veggie Pigs in Blankets
Roast Potatoes, Parsnips & Carrots
Brussels Sprouts, Carrots, Broccoli, Cauliflower & Peas
Braised Red Cabbage
Cranberry Sauce
Gravy

To Finish
Christmas Pudding
served with Brandy Sauce, Brandy Cream, Single Cream and Brandy Butter
or Chocolate Truffle Torte

Christmas Day Tea

Cold cuts (ham, quorn roast and chestnut roast)
Salad
Selection of chutneys and pickles
Bread
Cheese
Christmas Cake, Mince Pies
Chocolate Truffle Torte; Yule Log

Meal Plans for Next Week

This week we will mostly be noshing on:

Celery and Leek Soup
Grandad's Soup
Home made pizzas (triple cheese, cheese and tomato and vegetable with blue cheese)
Cheat's donuts
Bakewell slice
Spicy fajitas and mexican rice
Bruschetta with tomatoes and pesto
Sausages and mash
Miso with noodles
Pasta and sauce

Sunday Lunch with Friends

We have some friends coming over tomorrow for a bike ride and lunch, and this is what I've made to tickle our taste buds and replenish our energy levels. Hope they like it!!

Potato wedges
Blue cheese dip
Cheddar and Spinach Muffins
Bean salad
Green salad
Crudites (for the kids ;-))
Pain de Semolina

And for pudding:
Mississippi mud pie
Apple and nut loaf
Gulab Jamans (at Lex's request, we didn't really need three puddings...!)

Moroccan Feast

I love Moroccan food, and ever since we visited there a couple of years ago I like trying to recreate the food we ate. Especially when it's cold here!

We had the following feast for lunch today. I'll blog all the recipes separately to make them easier to search for later.

Chilli, parsley and feta salad
Zaalouk (aubergine and tomato salad)
Arabic salad
Olives
Toasted pitta with zatar
Cous cous with almonds, pine nuts and cashews
Houmous

Followed by melon and of course mint tea!

Am pogged now! And have plenty of leftovers for lunch next week. Yum.

Meal Plans for Next Week

I've fallen out of the habit of doing this recently as I've been ill. But I am finally feeling better so have resumed enthusiasm for this. Next week we will mostly be eating (in no particular order...):

Lentil and vegetable soup
Pizza (shop brought, shhh!)
Garlic bread bruschetta
Pasta and sauce
Spicy potato cakes served with chickpea and onion bhajis and cocount dhal
Lentil croquettes with tomato sauce, veggies and sweet potato wedges
Tofu laksa
Curried eggs and naan

And the sweet things are:
Sticky toffee pudding
Tropical fruit salad with coconut rice pudding
Carrot cake
Easter biscuits

Meal Plans for Next Week

Forgot to do this earlier in the week and it shows as there's a lot of food to be used up by the middle of the week. Ho hum.

Plans are:
Italian feast for my birthday
Pizza (cheated and went out for lunch to Pizza Express!)
Roast dinner with steamed veggies and roast potatoes
Puy lentil salad with seni dried tomatoes and mozzarella
Tofu satay and stir fried veggies
Leftover veggies in cheese sauce with roast potatoes
Caesar salad
Cous cous salad with dried fruits

Meal Plans for Next Week

New year always sees a return to mostly vegan and usually middle eastern/far eastern meals as a contrast to the rich, UK fare of the festive season.

Next weeks meals are:
Thai coconut broth
Tofu satay and noodles
Dhal, rice and roti
Spaghetti and meatballs
Mexican - fajitas probably with rice, tortillas and chips and dips
Carrot and Jerusalem artichoke soup
Chicken noodle soup
Tortilla soup

Puddings are lemon suprise pudding, apple crumble and custard and syrup sponge and custard.

Meal Plans for Next Week

Having mostly finished the xmas leftovers, and with 3 different food mags to ponder over, I think the following will be filling our bellies this week, in no particular order!

Hot dogs
Bangers and mash
Caesar salad
Broccoli and stilton soup with cheese and onion bread
Miso soup (for L when we have the broccoli one!)
Vegetable tagine and cous cous
Quinoa salad with smoked tofu and shoots
Vegetable and tofu stir fry with chow mein
Chinese omelette and sticky rice
Dukkah rolled eggs qith chickpea puree and wilted greens

Menu Planning

After much angst I think the following menus will be served. Recipes for items to follow over the weekend...

Christmas Eve

To Start
Carrot and Jerusalem Artichoke Soup with Foccacia

To Follow
Salmon cooked in Champagne or Gammon served with Swede Gratin,
Hassleback Potatoes and Broccoli
or
Baked Camembert with Bread

To Finish
Chocolate Truffle Torte

Christmas Day Lunch

To Start
Watercress, Stilton and Apple Salad
or
Smoked Salmon with Lemon and Brown Bread

To Follow
Roast Turkey, Pigs in Blankets
Quorn Roast
Chestnut Roast
Veggie Pigs in Blankets
Roast Potatoes & Parsnips
Brussel Sprouts, Carrots & Peas
Cranberry Sauce
Bread Sauce
Gravy

To Follow
Christmas Pudding
served with Brandy Sauce, Brandy Cream and Brandy Butter
or
Chocolate Truffle Torte

To Finish
Petit Fours, Liqueurs and Coffee

Christmas Day Tea

Cold cuts (turkey, ham, quorn roast and chestnut roast) with Salad
Selection of chutneys and pickles
Bread and cheese
Christmas Cake, Mince Pies
Trifle

Boxing Day Dinner

Cold cuts (turkey, ham, quorn roast and chestnut roast)
Cheese and Vegetable Bake
Potato Wedges

Leftover Puddings

Let the feasting commence!!

Things to Make This Week

I have long been a subscriber to BBC Good Food magazine but I have to say I am usually more than disappointed with the recipes in the magazine. They taste bland and there's not a lot of veggie choice. November's edition is providing me with lots of inspiration, so well done to the team.

I am planning on making the following from the issue:
p122 toffee apples (done and they taste fab!)
p33 Chicken Chow Mein (using marinated tofu not chicken)
p35 One pan chicken couscous (using quorn)
p36 Spicy tofu kedgeree
p43 wintry rice salad
p45 Chargrilled turkey with quinoa tabbouleh and tahini dressing (using quorn again)
p52 tangy carrot, red cabbage and onion salad
p52 creamy baked leeks with citrus crumbs (I will bulk this out with some gnocchi)
p54 sweet potato and lentil soup
p55 Indian style chickpea soup
p73 custard tart with nutmeg pastry
p110 creamy gratin of butternut squash
p120 mulled apple juice
p120 rarebit toasts
p120 crisp baked potatoes with sour cream
p159 coffee semi-freddo

Next step, finish reading Delicious and Cook Vegetarian and add the recipes to try from there too!

Meal Plans for Next Week

So far, so good on the meal planning front. 2 weeks in and the weekly shop was £65 for the first week and £71 for the second. This is miraculous as it's normally nearer to £150 (blush). Plus we've been throwing less food away which is also good.

So plans for next week are:

Curry and rice (am liking curry a lot at the moment!). This one will probably be potato and carrot as have those to use up and maybe some tandoori paneer with it too.
Leek and potato soup
Lentil stew with mashed potatoes, broccoli, carrots and braised red cabbage
Veggie fry up - bacon, sausages, beans, eggs and hash browns
Omelette, chips and salad
Stir fried veggies in teryaki sauce with quinoa and lentils

Meal Planning

I aspire to plan my meals weekly. Every week I gasp in horror at the total at the supermarket and vow, yet again, to remember to plan my meals in advance and only buy what I need. You see my cupboards are full to bursting. I pride myself on being able to make whatever I fancy at the drop of a hat. Need some groats? No problem. What about some avocado oil? It's in the 2nd cupboard from the left.

However the downside to this is that we throw away more food than I'd like. And there's never any bloody space to put anything away once I have been shopping. Again. I am secretly addicted to supermarket shopping. I feel it's allowed for me to spend money on food. Much moreso than coming home having blown £150 on clothes every week...

So, given that school goes back this week, and that there is a definite chill in the air I have once again vowed to meal plan. So here is the line up for next week in no particular order:

Mains:
Jacket spuds with beans and cheese
Butter masala paneer with dhal and rice
Kedgeree with eggs and lentils
Thai green curry
Miso soup with tofu and noodles
Lentil stew with mash and veggies
Cheese and onion pie with sausages
Chickpea and sweet potato curry

Puds:
Rice pudding
Lemon suprise pudding
Brownies with ice cream
Pear cake and custard

Hopefully we can use up all the leftovers, have something already in the fridge for lunch and not spend a fortune this week. So far the shopping bill total is £51 which is pretty good for me...