It is a truth universally acknowledged by my family that when I get bored I cook!


There are 3 significant factors that have contributed to my present fit of boredom.

The first is the weather, snow is pretty and fun for a while but the continued arctic conditions that we have been experiencing in Swampland over the last few weeks is beginning to grate on my nerves.
The second is the economy, no-one has any money and if they do they are holding onto it. In my line of work, which is making sure stuff is built and delivered on time, the recession has hit hard and assignments are thin on the ground.
The third is that all the hockey has been called off due to a layer of snow on the astro turf. Normally at this time we are well into pre-seaon training and test games. 

This combination of factors has left me twiddling my thumbs and diving for the cookery books.

Cloggy and the Baby Clogs have taken my renewed interest in all things culinary with good spirit and only role their eyes at each other when 'they think I cant see them, they should know by now that I SEE EVERYTHING!

Now .... I am not gonna attempt a 'Julie & Julia'  style monologue but until the weather or the economy picks up, or I get bored of cooking too and find something else to fill my time, I'm gonna be writing about my Kitchen Nightmares.

                                         Sunday -  A proper beef & mushroom pie

Couldn't be arsed to make a roast dinner, there is always way too much washing up involved, so opted to make a pie instead. The fact that pie making produces more washing up than a roast dinner has been duly noted!

Ingredients;- Beef, Carrots, Onions, Mushrooms, Bacon, flour, sugar, stock cubes, water, herbs and - my favorite - Beer.
Method;- Brown off the beef - Sweat the onions and carrots - Chuck the flour and sugar into the carrot/onions, stir it and then put the beef back in - Add the beer, stock cubes and hot water - stir it - add the herbs and bung it in the oven for 2 hours - fry the bacon bits and mushrooms - take beef out of oven and add bacon and mushroom - leave it to cool - Make pastry - Make pie - Cook it in oven for 40 mins and serve with somethng seasonal and green.

It was a great pie - very tasty!