butternut squash and goat's cheese risotto.

Risottos, biryanis, arancini, sushi and paella... delicious dinner ideas all with the same ingredient. Rice! An Autumnal inspired dish, I've paired the earthy flavours of roast butternut squash with sweet red peppers, creamy goat's cheese and peppery rocket to create a comforting risotto recipe.

homemade red leicester bread.

It's pretty good being a foodie in Midlands. From countryside farm shops to the vibrant cities, there are so many amazing flavours to whet your appetite. Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire is the home of the pork pie, you can find Colston Bassett Stilton in Nottinghamshire and Bakewell tarts in Derbyshire's Peak District. From beers in Burton-on-Trent to baltis in Birmingham, there's a lot to be said about the food and drink around these parts. So when Haven asked me to share a local delicacy, I was spoilt for choice.

In the end I went with classic Red Leicester; the infamous orange cheese which dates back to the 17th Century. It's found in supermarkets far and wide, but to get the proper hard, crumbly but creamy Red Leicester it needs to be traditional Sparkenhoe. To celebrate this fantastic Leicestershire cheese, I've created a Red Leicester bread - perfect accompanied with some local homemade chutney!

friends of ham, leeds.

Friends of Ham is an independently owned establishment, known for their cheese boards, charcuterie and impressive craft beer offerings. Based in the North, their quirky venues currently span Leeds and Ikley, both hosting guests for drinks and grub alike. On a rather excellent recommendation, we went along last weekend for lunch in their Leeds branch.

the cheese market.

What could be better than a cheese board and your favourite bottle of wine? Cheese direct to your door, that's what. Simple flick through the artisan cheese selections and accompaniments over on The Cheese Market and await your fromage by post. The lovely lot asked if I fancied trying some of their products. How could I resist?

asparagus and cheddar tart.

shopping list

♥ 250g asparagus, boiled for 5 minutes
♥ 200g cheddar cheese, grated
♥ five eggs
♥ a sheet of ready made shortcrust pastry
♥ 150ml milk

so this christmas, my job was to made the starter for christmas dinner. it had to be for 11 people, from teenagers to grandparents - so nothing too fussy. i couldn't use the oven as that would be taken up with turkey and trimmings. but i didn't fancy just making a prawn cocktail, tomato soup or pate on toast!

i decided i would make a couple of flavours of tart. this one being asparagus and cheddar and one goats cheese and red onion tart - which is in the next post.

as i have been working during christmas and wanted something quick and simple (so i could go out on christmas eve!) i used jus roll ready to roll shortcrust pastry. this recipe is really simple with lovely results whatever your filling of choice! plus - i was super lucky in that the sheet of pastry fitted my baking tray perfectly.

preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

both follow a similar start - whisking the 5 eggs in a jug and then adding the milk. next add the filling to the base. this was a layer of most of the grated cheese followed by rows of asparagus on top. then slowly pour over the egg and milk mixture, followed by the last bits of cheese.

bake in the oven for at least 30 minutes, check with a little shake of the tin to see if it has set. if it still looks gooey or you just want a more golden finish, bake for another 10 minutes.

i served with a simple side of rocket and cherry tomatoes, with balsamic dressing.

product review: cut and serve cheeseboards.

love cheese? love your friends? love eating cheese with your friends? well, who doesn't? whether you're crazy about camembert or bonkers for brie, it seems that when cutting and serving cheese, there is one main rule of etiquette. each person should have an equal part of
the best and worst parts.

the answer? cut and serve cheeseboards from www.buysebastianbergne.com.

the cheese board family
the first cheese board is intended for cutting and serving small round soft cheeses such as camembert or st andré - the principal being that each person should have their part of the ‘best’ central part of the cheese. yummy!


the second cheese board is perfect for cutting segments of large round soft cheeses such as roquefort or dolcelatte. 

and lastly, the third cheese board is for cutting my faves - the harder cheese such as cheddar, emmental or red leicester.
though... not so sure i want to share them!

if you're not much of a cheese fan - i'd still recommend checking out the website. there are lots of quirky gift ideas for foodie fanatics and beginner bakers alike! :)

say cheese.

shopping list.
♥ a miniature camembert
♥ a few sprigs of rosemary
♥ a little chopped garlic
♥ your favourite bread

dipping and dunking soldiers into gooey egg yolk, liquorice into sherbert, nachos into salsa and biscuits into the perfect cup of tea. bliss.

crusty bread and baked boxed camembert is just another of these combinations of guilty pleasures.

and don't forget a dash of olive oil, fresh rosemary, chopped garlic and salt and black pepper before you put it in the oven.

in the picture above i had mine with roasted tomato and olive mediterranean bread.

bake at a low temperature, 180 degrees, gas mark 4ish, for around 15 minutes. or just when it looks too gooey and delicious to leave in any longer. beautiful.