Chorizo and bean casserole

By 28 December we were fed up of turkey so drastic measures were needed. I had loads of veg in the fridge and some chorizo sausage so I decided to try a chorizo casserole for the first time. 

Ingredients: 

1 yellow pepper

1 red pepper 

2 red onions (any onion type wil do) 

4 sticks of celery 

3 carrots 

1 chorizo sausage twist 

4 pork sausages 

1 tin of plum tomatoes 

3 cloves of garlic 

1 chicken stock cube 

1 teaspoon of cumin 

1 and a half teaspoons of smoked paprika 

1 teaspoon of dried thyme (mixed herbs will work too) 

Splash of Worcester sauce 

1 tin of baked beans or if you have a well stocked larder you might have adiki beans (never used them) 

Rapeseed or olive oil for cooking 

150 ml of red or white wine 

50 ml water 

(This is the twist of chorizo I used）

Method: 

Dice the peppers, onions, celery, carrots and fry then in a pan with the oil. Fry for five minutes. 

The chorizo sausage should be peeled and cut into generous chunks and added to the pan. 

Add the pork sausages whole to the pan 

Fry for five minutes. 

Finely chop the garlic and add it to the pan. 

Add the cumin, paprika and dried herbs. 

Stir until well mixed through. 

Add the red or white wine (I prefer red) and stir it for a while to cook off the alcohol. 

Add the tin of tomatoes and the sash of Worcester sauce. Make sure you break up the plum tomatoes in the pan. 

If you have adiki beans follow instructions as to how to cook them but I just threw in a whole tin of baked beans just before adding the final ingredient.

Finally add the chicken stock cube and add the 50 ml of water to cover the sausage. Add more volume of water if needed. 

Cover with a lid 

Cook at 200 Celsius for 30 minutes and serve with crusty bread or creamy mash potato. 

We had empty plates all round. 

Clotted cream and honey deliciousness

I had breakfast last weekend in a Greek restaurant in London. It was naughty but I needed the full English breakfast .... 

It was delicious ..... But what was most delicious was a little sweetener we had just after we sat down. 

Freshly baked and toasted bread in a basket and a little pot of clotted cream covered in honey. 

The combination of the clotted cream and the honey smeared on the crusty bread was magnificent. 

I highly recommend it for breakfast or a snack at any time of the day or night. 

I think it would also be gorgeous on a fresh scone .... And sour dough bread would work too.... 

I may be dreaming about its deliciousness for some time .. 

Give it a try. 

B xxx

PS The Christmas lights and Paddington Beat trail were great