Thai Tom Yum Soup (Veggie)

Over the years, despite growing into a very competent home cook, the one cuisine family that has always flummoxed me is the Pan Asian cuisine, and especially Thai. All of our peers seemed to rave about it and there are many thai restaurants in our area to meet the demands of mid life professionals reliving their gap year glory days. Having never been on a gap year, I always put that down as the reason I just 'didn't get Thai', and I have always loved the butter, cream and dairy laden European diet. I also blame the horror of nasty Anglicised green curry for my rejection of this beautiful cuisine too.

However, as I near my forties, my body and digestion is changing dramatically, and I've found myself drawn increasingly to lighter, more refreshing food packed with flavour, and so... my recent experimentation with Thai and Chinese food has really taken off, and that's been helped by our local restaurant Thai Charms doing a lunch time special £8.95 menu, allowing me to discover authentic thai dishes that are simply out of this world.

Last night I made a vegetarian version of the classic Tom Yum Soup and it was deliciously warming, perfect for the freezing temperatures. It was the first time that I had ever had tofu, too. The tetra packed silken tofu for reference and it was lovely. I definitely urge you to try this type if you've been put off by the other drier tofu.

LEVEL: EASY
BUDGET: LOW (approx £1.25 a serving) 
FEEDS 2-3 comfortably as a main dish
TIME: FAST
VEGETARIAN


Budget Notes: Having a general stock of thai ingredients regularly in the fridge reduces the cost of cooking thai as a little goes a long way and will make several dishes across the week. I always have a fresh ginger root, couple of red chilis and a bunch of lemon grass in the fridge and soy and fish sauce in the cupboard; so initially the cost may be a little bit of an outlay, but it stretches very economically.


INGREDIENTS
1 lemon grass stalk
2 cloves of garlic
1tsp of sea salt
1/2 red chili or dried chili flakes to personal level
2 x good stock gels (veggie or chicken)
6-7 Shitake mushrooms
2tbsp soy sauce
Splash of fish sauce (optional)
Pak choi or dark green cabbage
Corriander
Basil
1 bundle of dried egg noodles.
1/2 pack of tetra packed silken tofu (optional)


METHOD
1) In a large casserole pan / soup pan make the stock up into 1 1/2 pints of stock. Mince the lemon grass and garlic and ginger together in a pestle and mortar with salt to help break it down. Add to the stock mix and heat until well infused.

2) Add the 2thsp of soy sauce, splash of optional fish sauce, and a tbsp of brown sugar.

3) Add the noodles and cook for approx 5 until softened.

4) Add the chopped shitake mushrooms greens, basil and coriander and heat until greens are vivid.

5) Cube the tofu and place in the bottom of the bowl. Heap the noodles and solids on top to help heat it through and then pour over the broth.

TIP: Add more or less stock depending on your tastes, and adjust salt accordingly.

Blue Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts on Polenta

This dish is one inspired by a dish that my mother used to cook when entertaining in the 80s/90s. I think she got the original recipe from the Dairy Book of Cookery, but my childhood increasingly belongs to history LOL.

I do remember being wowed as a little girl but the magic of this culinary dish in a time when homecooking was going through it's first major revolution in centuries. It seemed so sophisticated and grown up.

Now, I sometimes cook it as a comforting date night dish as it's just the right amount of special without being too much effort.

I've upgraded it to include spinach and polenta (something that wouldn't have been easily accessible in the early 90s in rural Lincolnshire but which goes with this dish beautifully.)

This dish begs for a good bottle of white bourgone or chablis, and so that's another reason to save it for date night or a Friday night special supper with friends.

COST MEDIUM ££ (If using Cornfed organic chicken £10 for 2 / £5 a head)
LEVEL MEDIUM. 
MEAT


INGREDIENTS

• Chicken breasts (Preferably Corn Fed and organic) OR Guinea Fowl breasts 
• Blue cheese (Whatever you have in the fridge, stilton or gorgonzola are best)
• 2 slices of Pancetta
• Bag of spinach
• 1/2 pint of cream
• 2 garlic cloves
• Polenta 
• Generous bowl of grated parmesan cheese. 

METHOD

1) Butterfly out the chicken breasts and give a light beat to flatten out a little but don't rekill it

2) take a generous tablespoon of blue cheese and place in the middle of the chicken. Roll. 

3) Wrap tightly with the pancetta and seal off in a frying pan, before placing into a baking dish. 

4) Place in the oven at 180 for approximately 25-35 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. It may look a little pink because of the pancetta. If in any doubt, use a meat thermometer. 

5) Whilst the chicken breasts are in the oven, wilt the spinach in the same frying pan as you sealed the chicken. Add the cream and cook down until thick. Place to one side. 

6) Make the polenta according to the pack instructions. Add plenty more butter and parmesan than they suggest ;) 

7) Allow the chicken to rest for about 5 minutes before cutting it in half. 

8) Plate up by spooning out the Polenta into the bowl and then add a spoonful of the creamy spinach, and place the chicken on top. 

Chestnut Mushroom and Spinach Comfort Pie

We've always had a traditional Sunday lunch. It's how I was brought  up. One of the biggest signs that we had made a family switch to our 2018 goals was that we would have our first Vegetarian Sunday Lunch.

I wanted it to be in keeping with our usual kind of traditional heavy lunch and so a pie was a perfect compromise. After all, if there's pastry, there' joy.

This pie turned out really unctuous and comforting. The creamy sauce was soothing and it worked great with traditional veg; mashed swede sprouts, peas and carrots.


COST: £ (approx £8 per dish / £1.33 per person)
LEVEL: MEDIUM EFFORT
VEGETARIAN
SERVES: 6

INGREDIENTS

• 1 punnet of Chestnut mushrooms
• 1 medium white onion
• 2tbsp of white plain flour
• 1 large tbsp of butter
• 1pint of double cream
• 1/2 pint of milk
• 1 dried pack of porcini mushrooms
• 1 large bag of spinach
• 2 garlic gloves
• 1tsp of nutmeg
• Shop purchased ready rolled flakey pastry

METHOD

 

1) Wilt down the spinach in a frying pan. Place in a sieve and leave to sit for about 5-10 minutes 

2) Soak the porcini in warm water for approximately 15 minutes. Drain but keep the liquid. 

2) In a frying pan, add butter and crushed garlic, add sliced mushrooms and rehydrated porcini and cook until golden, remove and place in a bowl. 

3) In the same frying pan, add the chopped onions and fry until translucent. Add the butter and the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until it's a smooth paste and then add the milk a little at a time, stirring as you go to make a white sauce. Add the cream. (Add more or less milk as required to make a thick white sauce and add a couple of spoons of the porcini mushroom liquid to add depth / stock. 

4) Add the spinach having given it a little squeeze before hand to the creamy sauce. Add the mushrooms and gently stir until mixed. 

5) Place in a pie dish and cover with the rolled out flakey pastry, ensuring that you have put a good split in the pastry to let the steam out and avoid it going soggy. 

6) Cook until the pastry is golden brown -- approximately 25 minutes at 180c. 

Spaghetti Squash Stuffed with Mushrooms and Ricotta

It's not always easy to get a hold of spaghetti squash, but when you do, it's always exciting. Spaghetti squash gets its name from the way its fibres look like spaghetti. It's much more fibrous than other squashes such as butternut, and as a result, I much prefer it. It's not sweet either; more akin to pumpkin.

This dish is super easy and super special as well as being an awesome Vegetarian dish  that makes a refreshing change from the standard Veggie menu.


COST MEDIUM ££  (Approx £2 a head) 
LEVEL EASY
VEGETARIAN

INGREDIENTS Serves 2 (Generously)

• 1 spaghetti squash
• 1 tub of Chestnut mushrooms
• 2 gloves of garlic
• Salt and pepper for seasoning
• Truffle oil for drizzling (optional) 

METHOD:
1) Cut the squash in half and spoon out the seeds
2) Place in the microwave for approximately 5-7 minutes, just to soften it slightly to reduce oven cooking time.
3) Place into the oven with a drizzle of olive oil for approximately 30 minutes until beginning to yield under pressure.
4) In a frying pan, sautee the garlic and the sliced mushrooms in a pan until slightly golden. Remove from heat and put into a dish.
5) Stir in a pot ricotta cheese and then spoon into the squash halves. Return to the oven for approximately 25minutes.
Serve with a good dose of black pepper and a drizzle of truffle oil

Salmon Miso Broth. Guest Post.

The Frugal Snob Club, over on Facebook (See join button on this page) encourages our members to share their dishes and favourite recipes, and it's always fun to share them here, too. 

As a thank you for her contribution, we'll be sending her a set of our homemade wax wraps. If you want to share your recipes, head on over and join the group, and if yours is selected to be featured, we'll send you a little gift. 

Today's recipe comes from club member Tara Whiteson, and as soon as she posted this on the club page, I knew it was a sharer. 

Tara, like many of us over at The Frugal Snob is attempting to enact small but significant changes for health and environmental reasons. 

I think you'll agree that this dish looks nutritious, filling and very appetising. 

In an ideal world, and if budget allows, you'll use wild salmon (available reasonably priced in the frozen section) We buy a side of wild salmon from the fishmongers, or when it's on promo / reduced at Waitrose, and then freeze it down, which makes it more economical. 

Ingredients:

• garlic, chilli, ginger (according to taste)
• Broccoli cut into small florets 
• Rice noodles
• Miso paste - a generous 2 teaspoons
• 2 salmon fillets cut into chunks, seasoned; squeeze juice of half a lime
• Several splashes of soy sauce (about half a soup ladle)
• Spring onions. 

Method: 

• Put all ingredients into a saucepan but keep the salmon back.
• Simmer for 3 mins and squeeze rest of lime in
• Add the fish and continue to simmer for another 3 mins
• For LUXURY miso add prawns in with the salmon. Other greens - spinach, peas or asparagus also work equally well.
• Season to taste
• Add in a splash of teriyaki.
• Add finely sliced spring onion.
• Eat, slurp and enjoy!

2019 Frugal Snob Review and Intentions.

Our main resolution as a family this year is to build on the groundwork that we achieved last year. We could have done better, but we did make some lifelong embedded changes, and most of all, our awareness and attitude changed.

It's all about doing small things until they become natural behaviour, and then expanding on that. It's also about not setting unrealistic expectations.

It's very tempting to hit January with intentions and motivations; no more plastic, no more meat, no more animal products, no more alcohol. For some folks that will work, but for most folks, I give it less than six weeks.

We made the resolution last year to cut down on our waste, our plastic, our spending, and to eat far more vegetarian dishes, and the meat we consumed to be sustainable, of good welfare, and where possible, not pumped full of preservatives.

We've done well, but we haven't been perfect. We've forgotten our cotton bags on supermarket trips, we've succumbed to a bacon sandwich, and the occasional McDonald's. Our Christmas waste situation was a disgrace---A DISGRACE, but we're learning.

Things we HAVE ACHIEVED.

We succeeded in cutting our alcohol consumption by around 70% and now drink well under the recommended healthy alcohol unit consumption a week. (Christmas was a bit of a slip, but then, hey, it's Christmas.'

We succeeded in cutting our meat consumption by around 60-65% and we have been eating more locally sourced, butcher, free range and sustainable meat.

We started well on the budget, but we have some hefty ingrained spending habits that we still need to address in 2019. City living and city parenting comes with a hefty price tag and simple pleasures are harder to come by. That's possibly an excuse but when you're children's extra curricular clubs come in at around £2.5k a term because it's all outsourced, and you live in a pokey little house, there are lifestyle challenges that come with it. We did okay, but we need to do better.

We have been doing huge strides towards becoming more environmentally aware, we've cut our plastics by around 50% and we recycle at least 90% of our plastics. However, there's a lot  more we can do.


2019 INTENTIONS

ENVIRONMENTAL

> To swap clingfilm for wax wraps
> To buy all our veg loose in paper bags
> To stop buying single use water bottles. 
> To remember our cotton shopping bags

FOOD
> To increase our vegetarian intake to 80% 
> To only buy butcher's meat from known sources
> To dehydrate, store and can more food for economy and health
> To reduce household sugar intake

BUDGET
> For weekly shop to be between £50-80 rather than £150
> To reduce coffee shop trips to 2x a week (currently 4 or 5) 
> To shop to the weekly menu plan and use shopping lists. 

OTHER
> To spring clean and Marie Kondo the house room by room to create a calmer, more creative space. 
> To engage the family in more creative and cheaper enrichment activities. 
> To build the Frugal Snob community and blog to help others reach their environmental, health, and budgetary goals. 

Persian Inspired Rice & Pheasant, with Chestnut Patties and Cauliflower Puree

This ended up being a really popular post on the Instagram Page and so I've prioritised the recording of the recipe.

This dish came about because we had Jonathan's parents for a couple of days over the Christmas period and I'd planned on doing a rare beef salad, but the meat, although beautifully hung, was spoiled and so we had to ditch it, meaning a very quick menu replan out of the freezer.

Fortunately I had 3 packs of 4x pheasant breast from the Farmer's market as they had been on 3 packs for £10. Then it was very much a case of what did I have in the store cupboard. After a swift gin and tonic, this dish was the result, and it was absolutely beautiful.

And apologies to the legacy of Persian cuisine for me totally messing with your food. I'll hope you'll forgive my joyful inspired culinary moment based on my small knowledge of Persian food.

This dish is a bit of a challenge but it's a pleasure to cook and great fun if you can bring in a sous chef to help you out. There's a lot going on but none of it is particularly difficult if you take your time and enjoy the fact that it isn't a fast food dish.


SERVES 8

COST £   (£13 total - approx £1.65 a head)

DIFFICULTY - medium

TIME  approx 50-60mins

For the Persian Inspired Rice. (v) 
This makes a fabulous salad dish when served cold. It's a dish inspired by a very similar rice dish that we've had as a side dish on Christmas day for nearly 20 years.

INGREDIENTS

1tbsp olive oil
3 cups of wild rice
3 cloves of chopped garlic
2 onions
1 heaped tbsp of powdered coriander
1 tsp of coriander seeds
1 tsp of ground cumin
1 heaped tsbp of fennel seeds
1 bay leaf
2 tbsp of whole blanched almonds
1 tbsp of chopped blanched almonds.
5/6 chopped dried figs
2tbsp of dried cranberries
2 knorr veggie stock cubes
1-1.5pints of boiling water
1 fresh ripe mango (which is a cheeky alien addition but works)

METHOD 
1) Finely dice the onions and add to a heavy bottomed frying pan with the olive oil, cook until translucent. Add the chopped garlic and spices and cook out for about 1-2 minutes
2) Add the rice and turn over in the oil.
3) Make the stock by adding the stock gels to the boiling water and pour half of it into the pan with the rice. Stir occasionally to stop it sticking.
4) When the rice is on the turn (approx 20 minutes) add the chopped figs, cranberries and stir, adding the rest of the stock little by little waiting for it to absorb before adding more. Continue cooking until the rice is on point and all the liquid has been absorbed.
5) Add the nuts and fresh chopped mango, stir, place a lid over the top and set aside for at least 20 minutes for all the flavours to infuse.

*

For the Pureed Cauliflower (v) 
A little time consuming but worth it as it serves as your sauce.

INGREDIENTS
1 cauliflower
0.5 pints of double cream
Nutmeg

1) Steam or microwave the cauliflower florets so it has minimal water contact.
2) Using a hand blender, blitz the cauliflower until it's smooth as possible.
3) Stir in the double cream and the powdered Nutmeg and then pass through a fine sieve until a smooth puree is achieved.

*

For the Pheasant

Much hilarity accompanied my attempts at sous vide.
 I think we might invest in a vacuum gadget being as
they aren't too expensive and the sous vide
 technique makes cooking for big numbers super easy. 

Pheasant has a reputation for being a little tricky, in that if it's 
over cooked or under cooked then it can go tough, but please
 don't let that put you off this wonderful sustainable healthy 
meat. In oder to prevent it going tough it is really recommended 
that you firstly sous vide the pheasant, which sounds a lot more complicated than it actually is.

We had great fun using the method suggested in The Field, the classic British Country magazine but it comes very much with 
a non liability form.


HOW TO SOUS VIDE AT HOME

• Place the pheasant breasts, 4 at a time into a ziplock food bag.
• Add a dash of olive oil and a sprig of rosemary along with a grinding of pepper
• Press out as much air as possible as you ziplock it up, and then taking a drinking straw, insert into one corner of the bag, sucking the rest of the air out to create a vacuum
• Place in a pan of water at 67 degrees Celsius for approximate 20-30minutes.  
• Then pan fry your pheasant breasts in hot butter until the breasts take on a golden brown colour. Rest for at least 5 minutes and then slice thinly. 

A jam / cooking thermometer is
crucial for this activity

*

For the Chestnut Patties

INGREDIENTS

6 good quality Herby sausages

8 slices of back bacon

cooks chestnuts

METHOD

1) Split the sausages and place into a bowl. 

2) Add the chopped chestnuts. 

3) mould into small patties and wrap in a slice of bacon

4) Oven bake for 20-30 minutes on 180 until cooked through. 

Traditional Celebration Trifle

There are some things not to be messed with. Part of their pleasure is the tradition and nostalgia, and this is never truer than when we're talking about the classic English Trifle, which is one of the few times I'm an advocate of cutting the same culinary corners my mother, mother's mother and mother's mother's mother also used.

There's only one tiny modern modification that I've added, and that's the addition of a couple of spoonfuls of Chambord, a black raspberry liquor which I use instead of sherry.

This is one of our family's favourite puddings. There's something incredibly nurturing and celebratory about the combination of smooth creamy custard, and punchy raspberry jelly, and everything is better with cream. When our daughter had severe chicken pox and could barely swallow, her sad-eye request was for mummy's trifle. The girl lived off it for almost four days, and was the only time she smiled. That's the power of trifle. It's literally happiness in a bowl.

Traditionally, trifle is served on Boxing Day, New Year's Eve or any other family celebration day, such as birthdays, but honestly, if the weather is grey and you've got an afternoon to kill, most of the ingredients can be in permanent store aside from cream and milk, and it's the perfect mood enhancer.

Enjoy x


SERVES 10
COST £  (approx £8 - less than £1 a head)

INGREDIENTS: 

Trifle Sponges
Tin of raspberries in syrup (In this very rare case, tinned work better than fresh)
Raspberry Jelly squares
3/4 pint of boiling water
2tbsp of Chambord liquor
2.5tbsp of Birds Custard Powder
1 pint of milk
2tbsp of sugar
1.5 pints of Double cream, whipped until very stiff.
Sprinkles to decorate.

NOTE about the Bowl: kitsch vintage is best. Cut glass is transformed in candlelight, adding to the showgirl nature of this dish. If you haven't had a heavy crystal bowl passed down to you, then they are very often available at charity shops, car boots, and flea markets for just a few pounds. We use Jonathan's granny's bowl, and the sentimentality adds an extra layer of sweetness.


METHOD
1) layer the bottom of a heavy glass bowl with trifle sponges. Spoon out the tinned raspberries over the sponge and a couple of spoons of syrup over the sponge.
2) Make the jelly according to instructions, except reduce the amount of water slightly to ensure a good firm set. I use 3/4 of a pint rather than the recommended pint. Allow to cool slightly before pouring over the sponge mix. Set in the fridge until firm.
3) Whilst the jelly is setting, make the custard, according to the directions but instead of using 2tbsp to a pint of warm milk, use 2.5tbsp to ensure that it sets. When the custard is is thick enough to see spoon tracks, set aside in the pan, covering the top with clingfilm  (pressed against the custard) to stop a skin forming. Allow to cool. If time is short, place the custard in a bowl and then place the bowl on top of a bowl of ice, stirring continuously for about 5-7 minutes to take the heat out.
4) When the jelly is set and the custard is cool (but not cold enough to set) pour over the jelly base and return to fridge, where it can sit for about 2 hours.
5) Whip double cream until is is stiff and then spoon over the trifle, smoothing it.
6) Go crazy on the sprinkles.

SERVE with either a glass of Chamord and sparkling wine, or a glass of ice wine.

Homemade Crab and herb Ravioli

Years ago, I made quite a lot of homemade pasta, and then with the busy-ness of a young family, it became a quick fix after the school run to chuck some dried pasta in the pan whilst multi-tasking. 

Today we got the pasta maker out of the cupboard, and I thought it would be the perfect mummy, daughters kind of cooking activity. As it happens, they chose to sit at the breakfast bar doing their homework and leaving me to it - yep, I have those kind of gloriously quirky kids. So, in the end, to the backtrack of Chris Country radio and the ocassional question about the Victorians, I started making pasta.

I had forgotten just how easy it was - and how glorious it is to take some really basic ingredients and turn it into something substantial and sustaining that will feed a crowd on a really small budget. Pasta making is truly an act of alchemy.

And even though the girl weren't massively engaged in making it, they certainly took a very active interest in eating it.

INGREDIENTS

200g of plain flour
2 large eggs
pinch of salt


FOR CRAB & HERB FILLING
1 tin of white crab meat
small bunch of coriander (about 10 stalks)
small bunch of dill  (about 4 stalks)
Red chilli to taste.


METHOD

1) Combine the flour, egg and 2-3tbsp of water. Mix well into a dough and knead for about 4-5 minutes.

2) Flour your pasta maker and ensure that it is on the largest setting. Feed the pasta through and then fold it in half and feed it through again. Gradually reduce the setting on the side, folding and feeding and folding and feeding so that all the glutens breakdown and you start to notice a change in the texture of the pasta. Continue doing this until you are happy with the consistency and size.

3) Flour a ravioli tin and cut a length of pasta to a little longer than the tin.

4) In a bowl, mix the crab meat and the blitzed herbs and chilli. Spoon a little mixture into each diet.

5) cover with another layer of pasta and using a rolling pin, roll over the ravioli creating a tight bond between the two sheets. Holes and open seams are your enemies (that's how the water gets in)

6) set aside on a floured board for about half an hour so that the pasta dries a little and becomes more stable.

7) cook in a large simmering pan of water for about 5-7 minutes. (They'll float to the top when they are nearly cooked and give them another 3 or s minutes when they get to that stage.)

8) In the meantime, sauté some spinach in butter and with garlic and soft poach runny eggs to sit on top.

Cook Book Review: Yotam Ottolenghi JERUSALEM

Having watched Yotum Ottonlenghi's cookery program a little while ago, we purchased the cookery book on a wave of vegetable enthusiasm. Although not a Vegetarian book, many of the recipes have vegetables as their stars rather than meat.

As part of our frugal snob project, one of the tenants is to try new foods and to start cooking from the literally hundreds of cookery books we own. Having not touched 'Jerusalem' since we got it, I decided to try both a vegetarian and meat based recipes from the book - and I am so pleased I did; I feel that my cooking has been injected with a fresh and interesting new lease of life.

Pearl Barley Risotto with
marinated feta cheese.
An absolutely gorgeous dish
packed full of big flavours and
the ideal comfort food. 

The flavours are full and the dishes just different enough to make it feel like a real foodie experience. I like the little anecdotes and extra information that heads up the recipes, and the instructions are clearly laid out, if not a little unnecessarily complicated in places.

Chicken with Caramelised onion
and cardamon rice with barberries.
This made a huge portions is
great for a big crowd.  

I highly recommend this cook book for those who love food adventures and who want to embrace food that is both familiar and exotic all at the same time. If you love aromatics and spices, this book is for you. It's also great for big family or crowd cooking. 

I highly recommend this book and give it 5 STARS.  

Holy Nora - where has Bircher muesli been all my life?

So surprised how seriously lovely this was.
In truth, I was expected a rather unpleasant experience
and what I had instead was a creamy, indulgent bowl
of loveliness that gave all the 'naughty treat' vibes
whilst creating a halo of nutritional virtue. 

Breakfast - the meal of champions, or so they say. Now, I've never really done breakfast - not unless we're talking elevenses of either a full English fry up or a weekend brunch, but this whole eating just because you've got up and need to boost your energy stores -nope.

But in the interests of the Frugal Snob project, I have been trying to eat a better breakfast knowing that in my heart of hearts, it's the 'better' thing to do. My go to has been a slice of wholemeal toast with peanut butter, because the salty creaminess is just about bearable.

However, Jonathan is a breakfast man (he also does that whole healthy drinking water thing, too) and having spent quite a bit of time in the Nordics, we have come across the idea of that nordic style of breakfast - oats, muesli, flax, sunflower seeds, fruits, yogurts, all that healthy stuff.

You've seen the beautiful images floating around Fantasygram I'm sure. Big socks, giant knits and fairy lights - little kilner jars of ridiculously healthy 'cold porridge'.

It's never really appealed to me as I'm the 80's generation who grew up on Readybreak with five tablespoons of sugar but as we have said, The Frugal Snob project is all about experimentation and doing things differently - embracing a more healthy lifestyle and so.....

I went out yesterday and purchased a kilner jar (although I have since discovered this isn't entirely necessary) and 2 giant bags of oats from TESCO for 70p a bag - which I have now discovered was a) slight oat overkill and b) ridiculously economical for the amounts you make.

Putting on my new wave nordic folk - which actually, I am genuinely a massive fan of (check out the incredible Rebecca Karijord and Anna Ternheim, who I'm listening to at this moment) I set about making Bircher muesli

The idea is to make it the night before, so it's perfect for those who are in a rush in the mornings or who want to take it to work as part of their commute ritual - which is what Jonathan has done. Although be warned, as pretty and instagramable as his blueberry and pistachio Bircher was when he made it in his kilner jar, he's just messaged me to say that after a 40 minute overland and underground commute it looks like it's now been through a washing machine.

I have a plan for that - and it's going to involve a sewing machine; watch this space for Hipster commuter Bircher Museli carriers coming soon.

INGREDIENTS for 2 generous servings (but you can multiply and it will keep in fridge for 3-4 days)

110g Porridge oats
200ml Greek yogurt
350ml Whole milk or semi-skimmed

You can fiddle with these quantities depending on your personal preference of consistency.


TOPPINGS:

Grated apple, sunflower seeds, flax, chi seeds and honey

Blueberry compote (simple cookdown Blueberries with a tablespoon of honey)

Fresh blueberries, pistachios, honey or maple syrup

Cherry compote with flaked almonds


METHOD: 
In a tupperware box add the oats, yogurt and milk and then leave over night to soak and chill.

Add your toppings.

Yep, it really is that simple and I can't imagine us now ever looking back.

Is trendy instagram 'Bowl Food' just food porn?

Lunch today. It may not be beautifully
styled but it was certainly more of
an experience than I'd been banking
on and it's made me think. 

So, in the interests of spreading the Frugal Snob message out to a wider base and engaging with a community who really know what they're talking about when it comes to foo and environment, I set up an instagram account for The Frugal Snob. You can follow it here. 

I am a massive Instagram girl and use it a lot with the other side of my life, which is writing YA fiction. I love the aesthetics of Instagram and how it brings out people's passions and creativity.

The food communities are insanely food obsessed. I mean, half an hour on there and I feel somewhat of a fraud, but I'm carving out  my own little cosy, middle-aged, elder niche and have had some great interactions so far.

It's fascinating exploring other people's relationships with foods, and being that a lot of what we are doing on Frugal Snob is about trying to change our lifestyle habits as a family, obviously I have been engaging more with the health guru timelines than the copious amount of accounts that are temples to the great burger and BBQ

Instagram is full of beautiful presented #bowlfood
or #nourishbowl as they are sometimes hashtagged
I shall be following them much closer from
now on as I'm converted. 

Because of that, I've come across this really pretty but sort of food porn version of eating called 'Bowl food'. Now when I first started seeing picture after picture of food arranged like carefully arranged flower arrangements, my grumpy middle-aged lady mode switched immediately to cynical.

WHAT IS BOWL FOOD?

Well, I'm certainly no expert but what I see is the idea that you take a bowl and you arrange your ingredients in it (attempting to be artful, I guess) so that they are all separate in their own little sections, with the idea that you can see how your various components measure up against each other and balance. It also helps you check your colours as well as separating them out so you're forced to mindfully select what item you're going to choose rather than just dipping into it all jumbled up.

WHY IS BALANCE SO IMPORTANT?

I've been reading (well, actually TEDx Talk watching and internet surfing) around the idea of superfoods and nutrients, mostly with the idea of satisfying my own beliefs that a lot of it is all nonsense and over hyped.

However, it seems that it's not quite such nonsense after all. I'm educated, like the vast majority of folks and we all know what a healthy diet looks like - or at least we think we do, but these guys, they are seriously into knowing how foods work on the various parts of the body, and importantly, how our requirements change depending on our age, lifestyle and medical health.

As a young family, we've had our share of health issues over the last twelve months. There's me who's diagnosed prematurely perimenopausal and having suffered years of IBS, there's our daughter who has had two episodes of pneumonia in three months and as a result has obliterated her immune system, then there is hubby who is having a minor mid-life crisis about his executive commuting lifestyle, and we have a pre-teen who is hormonally all over the place.

We're a great candidate for needing some serious nutritionally input and boosting - which is partly why our family project is The Frugal Snob.

So having read about nutrition plates, and rainbow food and food colour theory over the last few weeks and how it can medically and psychologically impact on our well being, I returned to some of the food bowl gurus and have given it a bit of a go. Now my Instagram page prides itself on the fact that all the food pictures are real food that is minutes away from being in our bellies, so it's not food porn, but food love -- so this is my lunch today. It's not perfect but I'm applying the principles that I've picked up and here's my findings.

WHAT DID I DISCOVER? FOODPORN OR FOODLOVE? 

1) It's ridiculously filling to eat like this -- I left nearly 1/3 of it.

2) By dividing your food up like this, every forkful becomes a conscientious mindful choice, slowing the eating process down and helping you engage with your food.

3) I'd forgotten what some of those flavours tasted like in their natural standalone state. I can't remember the last time I had celery without a big spoonful of stilton on it.

4) It felt clean and light - now I know that's hocus-pocus, but I can't fully explain how it just felt good to eat. Like when you're thirsty on a hot day and you drink a chilled drink.

5) In preparing it, I made choices and thought more carefully about how I was balancing out my vitamins and mineral intake in a way that I don't normally do when slapping together a cheese sandwich.

6) It was easy to eat whilst typing at my desk - which is how I have lunch everyday despite working at home.

So, what's the conclusion - it may look all a little foodporn - but trust me when I say, just like with other aspects of our lives, sometimes it's nice to make the extra bit of effort and feel like a goddess.

Cookbook Review: 'Delia's Vegetarian Collection'.

Today I'm doing a quick book review on Delia's Vegetarian Collection, which is proving to be an absolute inspiration and motivation. We have a joke in our house about vegetarian food, and it comes from trying to eat less meat for years. We go through the vegetarian recipe books, magazines and invariably ask, "Nice but where's the lamb chop?"

So many vegetarian recipes are what we think of as side-dishes and seem to sit on the plate missing something, a bit like a room without the focal point of a fire. 

A lot of vegetarian recipes also rely on the whole one pot / mixed pot kind of meal, which is okay, but I have always preferred my foods separated out on the plate, so that I can blend and mix my own combinations. It's a reason I have never gone too potty over pasta dishes or risottos; after a couple of mouthfuls, all mouthfuls are the same - sometimes, like with rice pudding, that's the beauty of it, but a lot of the time, it's just disappointing. 

NOT THIS BOOK: Thank the heavens for Delia, a long term heroine of mine. Delia and Floyd are my first memories of the whole cooking thing. It's thanks to them that I fell in love with food and cooking. Now, Floyd was not the man to turn to in a meat-free crisis, but Delia has proven her goddess reputation with her book 'Delia's Vegetarian Collection'. 

When you flick through it, you see recipe after recipe that is proper, wholesome, home cooked, comfort food that has a main focal point to the meal. She  has managed to collect many recipes in this book whereby you don't even think about 'where's the lamb chop'. 

The only criticism I would have of this book is that her methodology is sometimes over complicated for the same end result. I used her Chickpea cake recipe last night as a starting point for the recipe I posted earlier today - but being an intuitive home cook, who REALLY struggles with following instructions, the very lengthy method was a little confusing. I read it over a couple of times and then streamlined it in my head, missing out or combining several stages so that it became a lot less overwhelming. 

But other than that, this is definitely a book that is worth investing in if you are determined to make the switch from total carnivore to more meat-free days. It won't leave you disappointed. 

4.5 STARS and highly recommended. 

IT's currently on Amazon for around £6.50 in the hardback. Here's the link  But it's also worth checking out your local charity shop, too. That's where I got mine from a year or so ago. 

The ultimate mouth party: Spicy chickpea cakes with Red onion and coriander Salad

Throw a party for your mouth and embrace
Meat Free Monday in style. Perfect
pick you up for a cold and gloomy day
as it has tastes of summer. Don't stomp
on the citrus element of this dish. It's the
ingredient that makes it. 

Okay, so I have fallen in love. If you are people who love BIG flavours then these moreish little chickpea cakes are for you. They are fabulous for entertaining on a big scale because you can just multiple the quantities and batch cook them.

There is a definite nod to Indian cuisine and I went quite heavy on the green and red chilli because I like it spicy.

This recipe is an adaptation of Delia Smith's Chickpea Cakes in her fabulous book Vegetarian Collection (A book I can't recommend highly enough).

I've stripped down the rather long methodology and tweeked a few ingredients due to my own stock cupboard staples and the result is divine.

LEVEL: EASY
COST: SUPER CHEAP (approx)  £1 per person
TIME: 30-40minutes all in.

SERVE on top of a big salad platter. I added avocado to the salad just to balance out with the heat of the chick pea cakes.

INGREDIENTS: (Serves 3 as a main or 6 as a starter) Makes about 12 cakes.

1 Tin of chickpeas
1 finely diced medium onion
1 red onion
1 bunch of coriander
1 tbsp of low fat mayonnaise.
1 egg
1 lemon
cup of flour.
2 medium garlic cloves
1/2 a green chilli
1tbsp fennel seeds
1/2 tbsp caraway seeds
1tbsp turmeric
pinch of dried red chilli flakes

METHOD

The smell that will fill your
house is amazing and will
make you feel instantly
uplifted. 

1. First thinly slice the red onion. Place in a nice serving bowl. Roughly chop half the bunch of coriander (approx 10-15 stalks) and then squeeze the juice of half a juicy lemon (1 full not so juicy lemon) and let sit whilst you prepare the rest of the meal. 

2. Place the caraway and fennel seeds in a heavy based frying pan. Warm and then add the diced white onion and cook until softening down and taking colour.

3. Add the garlic, turmeric and chopped green chilli. Stir for a couple of minutes.

Don't over blitz your chickpeas.
You want them to still hold some
structure and texture. 

4. Meanwhile: Using a blender, pulse the chickpeas and about 15 stalks of the coriander until they are broken down but retain some texture.

5. Add this to the frying pan with the onion mixture and give a good stir. Squeeze in the juice of half a juicy lemon. Transfer to a mixing bowl.

6. Add the mayonnaise and stir thoroughly.

7. Taking a table spoon, heap the mixture and then work in your hands until it becomes a small ball. Dust it in flour and then using a pastry brush, brush with beaten egg.

Would make a great buffet
party dish, too. 

8.
Fry off in batches until it takes a golden colour. Place on a baking tray in the oven for 10 -15 minutes whilst you prepare the salad.

Serve on one big platter and get folks to dip in.

TIP: They would be nice served with a pot of lemon mayo or a yogurt and mint raita. We served ours with a mango and apricot chutney we had lurking in the back of the cupboard (part of some random hamper we got at christmas LOL)

Fail of the week: Shocking Avocado story ...

Well, welcome. Thanks for following my somewhat hyperbolic click-bate kind of title - and yes, there is some irony in there (just a bit) but on a more serious note, there is a valid and important point in my failure this week.

This week were away the weekend travelling to see Jonathan's nan right at the top of the country. She was celebrating her 100th birthday - which is certainly reason to celebrate.

Last week, avocados came home in a
brown paper bag, which was then folded
ready for the next green grocer tip. 

As a result, I pre-booked a shopping delivery from Waitrose (Who, interestingly by using their ultra-user-friendly website and combining their genuinely good offers, I find to come out cheaper by the time I get to the end of the receipt - kudos to Waitrose.)

This meant that we did not do our usual green grocer's shop and the impact is immediately evident, and to be honest, it's made me feel quite shameful.

I appreciate that avocados are delicate little creatures, who bruise easily and who people are quite precious about (I count myself in that bracket). I appreciate Waitrose have a duty to their client base to ensure that people's avocados get to a home in good condition and only have us in mind

BUT

Last week, I got four avocados from our green grocers, shoved in a brown bag, transported on a bus with handfuls of other overloaded bags, knocked by two kids, and they still managed to get home in one piece - okay, one had a little bruise but really? I just cut it out.

This week, avocados came in home delivery
in 2 sets of plastic houses and cellophane
wrapping. 

OR

Why not pack avocados in paper based boxes, like eggs?

THIS IS THE VERY REAL result of straying off the path and falling back onto easy one click shopping where you do it without thought.

I can't promise I won't fall into this trap again - I'm human and family life is busy and often distracting, but my heart sank a little with self-disappointment today.

I guess there is another option in that I keep the avocado plastic boxes and put them in the 'shopping bag'  basket we have in our kitchen and then I can use them to transport my non packaged avocados from the green grocers in the future. At least then, it won't feel so disposable.

LET'S THINK OUTSIDE THE PLASTIC BOX

EASY HOMEMADE GNOCCHI, with ANYTHING YOU LIKE

This is a recipe that once tried, you'll come back to over and over again.

1. It's SUPER EASY
2. It makes you feel like an Italian Domestic Goddess
3. It's SUPER CHEAP
4. It's versatile to the point you can pretty much stick anything you like over it. 
5. It's great to make with the kids. 

When Roo was weaning and we were very skint, I made a lot of gnocchi. That was about 9 years ago. We were mad for the stuff, and then I kind of just forgot about it. Well, in the interests of our budget saving, I returned to it last night - and honestly, I can't believe how easy it is and how silly I've been for not making it in several years. 

I had forgotten the simple joy of making dough, cutting it and then watching with child-like fascination as it pops to the top of the boiling water announcing to the world that it's cooked. 

I'm going to give you last night's recipe but at the end of it, I'm going to talk you through some fabulous alternatives. 

Last night I fried mine off in butter - because that is how I really love gnocchi, but very often you don't need to do the frying stage, especially if you're going to do sauce based bakes - more on that later. 

Gnocchi is so versatile, you can do a lot of
different things with it. Last night we had it
with wilted spinach and blue-cheese and
roast tomatoes. It was delicious with salad,
and very man-pleasing LOL. Jonathan
said it was his favourite dish of the week,
and there has been some stiff competition
this week. 

So many recipes and cooking books suggest that Quick and Easy is all people want. This has always frustrated me. There are some days that I actually want to take it SLOW and MINDFUL in the kitchen; when I'm not looking for a chuck it together kind of deal. I want dishes that I can chill out and cook with the kids whilst chattering about school, life and the universe. This is one of those dishes. 

It's a time to put on your pinny and the radio and lose yourself in the simple pleasures of turning basic ingredients into something special, just as if you were a magician. 

This dish will do ANY social occasion from after school children's dinners, to date night, to big family gatherings, to Sunday lunches. 

LEVEL: EASY

COST: £ (per portion, the gnocchi is about 40-50p a portion and then toppings vary) 

VEGETARIAN

TIME: About an 1 hour of lovely relaxing prep. 

INGREDIENTS  (Serves 6)

Basic Gnocchi recipe

1. 4-5 medium potatoes peeled, quartered and boiled until just soft. 
2. 90-100g of flour 
3. 1 egg

Pan Fried in Butter with wilted spinach, blue cheese and warm tomatoes. 

a couple of teaspoons of butter

1 bag of spinach or 2 large bunches from the market

1 palm size piece of blue cheese - gorgonzola or stilton or any other blue cheese

5-6 cherry tomatoes. 

METHOD. 

The dough should just hold
together like this. You'll
feel when it's right in
your hand. 

1. Rice or mash your boiled potatoes until they are fluffy and lump free (I always use a ricer) 
2. Scatter and fold in half the flour into the mashed potatoes 
3. Add the beaten egg and fold
4. Add the rest of the flour. and with your hands, begin to turn the dough over in the bowl. You want to keep the dough as soft as you can but so that it still holds together. You may need to had a small handful of extra flour if you're potatoes were a little bigger. 

NEXT 

They firm up whilst cooking
and go a little heavier and a
little slimy. 

1. Cut the dough into about 6 pieces and using your fingers on a floured board, make it into a small sausage / snake shape. Cutting it into small pieces a little wider than the width of a fork. 
2. In a large pan, bring water up to the boil and turn down to a gentle simmer. Plop your little soft dough balls into the hot water and watch as they sink to the bottom. After a minute or two, they will float to the surface and let you know they are ready. 



Cut them a little wider than
a fork and then press the
fork in - the idea is that
it will trap the sauce and
flavours, as well as making
it look pretty. 

3. Scoop from the surface and put on a plate. Repeat this process until you have used all your dough. 

NEXT - if you're not making a sauce-baked dish (see below for details) 

Fry until golden brown

1. In a frying pan, heat butter and oil until the butter starts to foam. Fry them off in batches (if you add too many, the residual water will make them sweat rather than fry golden brown.) Each batch takes a few minutes and they need a little care so as to keep them golden and not burned. 

2. In the same buttery pan, add your washed spinach and wilt it down. Spread out across the bottom of an oven proof dish and layer up the gnocchi around it, pulling out bits of spinach to make it look pretty. Add crumbled blue cheese and the tomatoes halved. 

3. Warm through in the oven for about 15 minutes. For the purposes of last night, I wanted to serve it with salad so didn't want it piping hot - just warmed, but leave it in for 20-25 if you want it really hot. 

TOP TIP: You can make these in big batches and then keep them in the fridge in a Tupperware box for 3-4 days, just heating them up when and as. 

OPTIONS & IDEAS

SPINACH AND PARMESAN

I split the gnocchi portions and fed the girls with the gnocchi, wilted spinach and parmesan - a drizzle of truffle oil is wonderful on top. 

BAKED TOMATO GNOCCHI

Stop at the boiling stage and place in a casserole dish / oven proof lasagne dish. Add pasta, basil leaves and mozzarella and bake for around 30-40 minutes. 

CREAMY CHICKEN GNOCCHI BAKE

Stop at the boiling stage and make a white cheddar cheese sauce. Add either fried or roasted chicken, asparagus or peas and / or blue cheese and pour over the gnocchi, baking for around 30-40 minutes 

PAN FRIED WITH HOT SMOKED SALMON & HORSERADISH CREAM

Pan fry the gnocchi, place on a warmed plate and flake over hot-smoked salmon or trout. 

3tbsp Mayonaise

1 tbsp Creme Fraiche

1 tsp (to taste) Horseradish

PAN FRIED WITH PRAWNS & SCANDI CREAM & DILL

Pan fry the gnocchi, place on a warmed plate. On the side place the Prawn and Scandi Cream & Dill mix

3tbsp of Mayonnaise

1 tbsp Creme Fraiche

About 2-3 tbsp of finely chopped dill

3 handfuls of small atlantic prawns. 

The options are endless and I look forward to reading some of your favourite combinations in the comments. 

Parmesan Truffle Polenta with Garlic Wild Mushrooms.

So of all the dishes I have made during the last fortnight, this has to be my absolute favourite. It's so packed with big flavour, indulgent, and elegant enough to be used for entertaining - or humble enough to eat on the sofa with a box-set.

Polenta can be a bit of a tricky ingredient to conquer,
but I promise you that it's worth the persistence. It's
temperamental but divine once you've cracked it - and
like most life-skills, once you've learned how to
do it, it becomes second nature. It's delicious with
chicken / guinea fowl and fabulous with casseroles
and stews. Be brave. 

Polenta is one of our family favourites, but there's no denying that it's a little bit of a tricky beast to master. We like ours soft, just slightly loser than the consistency of cream mashed potato. We also like it heavily loaded with butter and parmesan; so this isn't the best of the healthy eating recipes, although it is all natural ingredients and it is meat free, so it has that going for it. It's also fantastically economical as an entertaining / dinner party dish.

The trick is to fry your mushrooms longer than you think you need to and play Russian Roulette with your chopped garlic pieces so they are just on the cusp of burning. You need them to caramelise but not go bitter.

This is why I'm giving this recipe a MEDIUM-TRICKY level because it's very much about being confident to work organically with the recipe and the instructions, and also because quite a lot could go wrong with this recipe if you don't keep your eye on the ball. It all happens within a slightly hectic 8 minutes - but honestly, the results are more than worth it, and I promise you, the more you cook with polenta, the easier it gets.

If you've never cooked with polenta, I would save this recipe until you've got it down pat. The best way to do this is to cook polenta as a mashed potato replacement with big stews and ragu so that if it goes a little wonky, it doesn't matter too much. I cut my teeth making polenta for Sunday lunch to go with Chicken or Guinea fowl, as it makes a lovely Sunday lunch accompaniment.

LEVEL: MEDIUM-TRICKY (Polenta experience recommended)
COST: £ approx £2 a portion
VEGETARIAN
TIME: 10 minutes start to finish.

INGREDIENTS: (Serves 2-3)
3 cups of Polenta grains
Hot water approx 750ml
35g of butter
truffle oil
Standard Box of mixed wild / exotic mushrooms
3 large cloves of garlic
Good handful of grated parmesan

(I'd serve it with wilted spinach in future, although I served it with Salad this week, which was fine but wilted spinach or black kale would be nicer)

METHOD
Okay, hold your horses, you're going to have to multi-task.

• Each polenta grain mix has ever so slightly different properties so follow the ratios they recommend on the box. The ones I have given above are a rough guide and I sometimes add a little more water as I go along to thin it slightly. 

• Boil water in a sauce pan and add half the butter, then sprinkle the polenta over the top, stirring all the time. It will swell almost immediately, but it's still quite grainy. You need to cook it out until the grains split and it transforms from grainy to floury/ soft. It will thicken rapidly and that's fine just keep stirring. If it becomes so your spoon doesn't move easily through it, add a little more water. 

• Add in the parmesan and the other half of the butter (be as generous as your conscience will allow) turn down to a low heat and continue to stir with one hand - it will take around 8-10 minutes for it to change state. 

• Meanwhile, in a good heavy frying pan, melt a knob of butter and a splash of olive oil (to stop the butter burning) until it foaming. 

• Break the mushrooms apart with your fingers - and for the button mushrooms, slice into 1cm slices. 

• Roughly chop the garlic at least 3 cloves but more if you like. 

• Place the sliced button mushrooms in the butter first and let them start to get brown. Add the garlic at this point and give a good stir / toss of the pan. 

• Add the broken down softer mushrooms and cook out until they are golden brown and the garlic has started to caramelise. This may take a good 6-10 minutes. You don't want them soggy but golden.

• Add about 1-2tbsp of truffle oil to your polenta and spoon onto a warmed plate. It should just hold but sort of sag around the edges.

• Place the mushrooms on top 

Snuggly, Creamy, Warm Rice Pudding...

On a cold winter's day, when the ice
is on the cars and the night has come in
early, the perfect remedy for the January blues
is the rich, creamy, indulgent hug that
old fashioned rice pudding gives you. 

My children love Rice Pudding, which was my completely self-interested excuse to make homemade rice-pudding. 

My mum was a great cook but she never really liked puddings and so didn't often make them, which is a bit like me now. However, one of my resounding memories of my childhood is my mum's homemade rice-pudding. 

Simply, one day, after years of me loving and eating the tinned rice-pudding (hot or cold) my mum produced a casserole dish from the oven and presented me with homemade rice-pudding. Perhaps it was its completely unexpected arrival that added that extra note of sweetness, but ever since, Rice Pudding as been one of my favourite non-pudding-sort-of-girl puddings. 

Then whilst we were in Copenhagen over New Year's Eve, every tea room and eatery we went in had a very special rice pudding dish on the menu, which when I first ordered it, I hadn't realised was something very specific to Danish Christmases. Which is why, when on Jan 2nd when I went to order it, I was told in no uncertain terms that Rice Pudding was finished for the year! It seemed that it was as ridiculous as me asking for Christmas Pudding in July.  

Rice Pudding, the Danish
Christmas way. We had this
in a tea-room in Copenhagen.
Served cold with almonds and
 a cherry compote, it's a very
 special celebration dish. 

In Denmark, it's served over the Christmas period, cold, creamy and with almonds, topped with a rich cherry compote. Next year, on our Christmas Eve's Eve Book Gifting Night (another tradition we've adopted from our beloved Denmark) I shall be making it the Danish way. 

But for now, whilst it's gloomy, grey, icy and snowy, the only way I can think of Rice Pudding is hot from the oven, baked with the caramelised bits around the edge and the nutmeg turning the top a golden brown. 

It's not a necessarily cheap dish to make but it's worth making indulgently if you're going to do it. There's no room for skimping on calories here. 

This is a mash-up recipe from my mum, who she thinks used a Delia Smith recipe all those years ago -but to be honest, no one can really claim to own the Rice Pudding recipe; it's been a nursery pudding for as long as time itself. 

INGREDIENTS: 

1/4 a packet of pudding Rice

1 standard can of Evaporated milk

1 pint of milk

30g of golden caster sugar 

25g of butter

1/2 a nutmeg

METHOD

Heavily butter line a heavy based casserole dish

Pour in the rice 

the evaporated milk

the milk

the sugar

the butter

Give it a good stir with a wooden spoon and place in the oven on 180 for around 40 minutes. Remove it and give it a really good stir, loosening the rice from the bottom. 

Grate half a nutmeg over the top and return to the oven, turning it down to about 120 for a further 40-50 minutes.

Serve immediately. 

TOP TIP, if left or you put left overs in the fridge, it has a habit of going solid as the rice takes up more of the liquid. Don't panic, get another ovenproof pan, spoon in the solid mass and break down with a fork, add about a cupful of milk and return to the oven for 15-20 minutes and it will be all good again.