Dinner #3

This post is going to be short, so I apologise. I'm very tired, and have already written one blog post tonight! 

I confess I may have not cooked tonight's dinner in the best way possible, as I was too busy talking to my fiancé about his day, and left the pan simmering for too long. But it sure was tasty with a fiery kick of chilli!

Dinner tonight was Toulouse sausage cassoulet with a kick of chilli. It proved very easy to make by frying the onions and garlic, and then adding the tomato puree, cannelloni beans, thyme, bay leaf, seasoning, a whole chilli, chicken stock and cherry tomatoes. The grilled Toulouse sausages with their rough fibery texture and herby taste, are served ontop of the simmered cassoulet. This is where I went wrong, the simmer time was 20 mins, and I must have simmered for 30 mins. Anywhos, it was delish but very spicy (I shouldn't have stabbed the chilli too many times and pushed the seeds out into the pan because I thought I could handle it..oops!)

I got in!

Today is a day for celebration. I've been keeping this a secret for the past week, but I can now tell you, since I found out today, that I've been accepted at Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in London! It's a dream come true. I can't believe I am actually going. The shock hasn't really hit me yet, especially the fact of what's to come next January! It's going to be intense. The Patisserie Diplome is what I have enrolled into, and since i've chosen the fast-track route, the first three months is going to be 30 hours a week, and the last 3 months 15 hours a week. But I can't wait to get stuck in, meet the chefs and the rest of the students. I'm sure you'll here me talking about my journey on here, as I really appreciate and love reading blogs such as http://theaspiringbaker.wordpress.com/page/3/ and https://sinmatok.wordpress.com for writing our their time at LCB, which really helped with my decision and has given me a great insight already. 

Eek! So here's to the start of a new, potentially scary, hard-working, life enhancing, dream-come-true (cheesy I know) path in life!!

Cheers! 

Dinner #2

Tonight's dinner from Hello Fresh was the absolutely succulent Vietnamese Chicken Skewers with Ginger Rice.

After a hectic day, I came home to preparing this dinner, which proved to be very simple; cutting everything (garlic, ginger, onion, kaffir lime leaf) and then marinating the chicken, which I did for half an hour instead of ten minutes, as I was waiting for my fiancé to arrive home before I started cooking. The meat ended up melting in the mouth (chicken thigh is definitely better than breast), once cooked on skewers under the grill. 

The ginger rice was interesting. I'd never added chicken stock to my rice before, and nor had I fried the rice in oil and ginger before adding the water - what a cool idea that I may have to adapt and try with other recipes/ingredients.
The only thing was that the rice was meant to be cooked for ten mins and then left to stand for ten mins, however I felt it needed an extra 15 mins as mine wasn't fully cooked. When it was it still had a bite, which we like anyway. 
All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed this dish - top marks i'd say (it was definitely the added broccoli that swung it!)

Starting a 'Fresh'... dinner #1

Last week I discovered something that has turned out to be really a great thing. I was browsing through my November copy of The Simple Things, and out dropped a £25 off voucher card for Hello Fresh, another one of those recipe box schemes I thought. However, tempted by the money off, I decided to try it out. A box of 5 meals for £49, and then £25 off, making it £24 for 5 meals, is a bargain! 
The only downfall is delivery, as you they could come anytime between 8am and 5pm, so you kinda have to be in, or ask someone else to pick it up for you, like a neighbour. I was in, so all was okay. 
It arrived, and the joyous moment of opening the box was so exciting! I ripped it open and what stared at me was a bundle of fresh ingredients, all neat and organised in little sections, all the right quantities (the spices were in their own little pots, all weighed out ready!)

It's not that I don't like cooking, as it's obvious I do! It's just a brilliant thing if you are busy and don't have the time to sort out what you are eating. 
So this week I'm going to aim to show you what I've been eating from my box, and what my thoughts are after 5 days.

Last night we ate Mediterranean Hake with Pommes Mousselines (basically posh mash potato!) It was scrumptious. The hake was apparently supplied by the same supplier that the Queen uses...ohlala. And couldn't I tell!! It was yummy, and the portions of hake given were very generous! The Mediterranean sauce consisted of onion, garlic and yellow pepper, then passata and thyme. It was then poured onto the fish and popped into the oven to bake. I don't think I need to explain how to make the mash! 

If you like the sound of Hello Fresh, check them out here: wwww.hellofresh.co.uk

I also have been given a code for a friend to have £20 off their first box, so if you are interested, let me know! First come first serve basis, obviously.