The Cottage Smallholder

This may sound crazy but up until the past month or so I’ve always though of squid as a starter. It’s often knocked right down in price at the supermarket but I’ve tended to avoid it – my eye being on ingredients for a main course. When I made my yummy squid soup I suddenly Read More »

When I first noticed Pak Choi (bok choy or Peking cabbage) twinkling on the supermarket sheves, I wasn’t exactly sure what it was or how it would taste. Even though it seemed rather expensive it was attractive so I invested in a pack and rushed home. Simmered gently for a couple of minutes it was a revelation. Wilted Read More »

Spaghetti bolognaise is a favourite in the cottage. Our recipe is high on vegetables and low on meat  – delicious and economical, it’s difficult to tire of it. I cook it in the slow cooker and freeze it in bags flattened to about half an inch (one and a half centimetres) so that it can Read More »

Some of the best recipes are not written down. These recipes are so good that they allow for flexibility and still taste delicious. I overheard this recipe at a party. “We were walking in the mountains and my friend gathered some wild dill.” My ears clicked into overdrive. “Back home, she cooked some spaghetti. Chopped Read More »

I love prawns and asparagus. At this time of year there are a lot of two for one offers on UK asparagus and we cash in. Our asparagus patch is into its second year and not thriving. However, an asparagus expert visited the garden recently, inspected the spindly spears and gave me some great advice. Read More »

  Sometimes I get bored with our old favourites when it comes to rustling up the evening meal. Although the freezer is full of my own ‘ready meals’ nothing appeals. I pick through the shelves and even consider a takeaway. Last night I found a pack of Atlantic line caught smoked salmon – 100g for £3.99 happily Read More »

  Spaghetti bolognaise is one of our staples. Our recipe is more like the traditional Italian one with lots of vegetables and not so much meat as the UK version. It tastes delicious, you are not aware of the vegetables and isn’t as sickly and dense as some UK recipes can be. The great thing about Read More »

  Well I wish that I’d put my tiny foot down years ago and insisted that Danny tried macaroni cheese. All those years spent out in the wilderness without my comfort food.   “Why it’s just like cauliflower cheese, with macaroni instead!” He had three helpings. I did have to work on my cauliflower cheese recipe Read More »

  I adore prawns. Could eat them everyday. Two favourite recipes are Donagh’s Gambas al pil pil and Clare’s prawn gnocchi. Prawns are expensive but often there are great reductions to be found in the frozen food section of the supermarket. Yesterday I discovered through MySupermarket.com that Tesco Finest Canadian prawns were half price. Perfect. Read More »

  Danny is picky about pasta. Won’t eat macaroni and the thought of penne has him panicking that I might actually have finally got up the nerve to cook it for him. “I like linguine, spaghetti, angel hair.” “Tagliatelle?” “Maybe.” I don’t ever mention ravioli since this terrible disaster. We eat a lot of spaghetti bolognaise. Read More »