Sausages with Red Onion Gravy

Despite the fact that it's June, we've had some pretty awful weather recently. Sunday before last was more like a dreary winters day than mid-summer, so I decided to make my favourite comfort meal; sausages and mash. There's something about smooth, creamy mash with crispy, meaty sausages which tastes so delicious. We added butter, milk and wholegrain mustard to the mash which was a great addition. I also made a red wine and onion gravy to go with the mash and served it with plenty of vegetables on the side, perfect food for a cold and rainy day!

For the gravy:
1 red onion, sliced
Knob of butter
1 heaped tsp plain flour
1 tbsp redcurrant jelly
1 large glass of red wine
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
A few sprigs of rosemary

1. Gently fry the red onion in the melted butter until soft. add the flour to the onion and fry for a further minute.
2. Add the red wine and allow to cook down until the alcohol has burnt off. Add the redcurrant jelly, balsamic vinegar and rosemary and leave to gently simmer for 10 minutes
3. If the mixture gets too thick add a little stock or water to loosen it. Serve poured over plenty of mashed potato

 Lots of gravy:

Home Made Pizza

A few weeks ago we decided to make our own pizza using a Jamie Oliver recipe. It was a bit of a disaster, as the dough was so sticky that it was impossible to handle. I'm not sure if this is how it was meant to be or if we measured out the ingredients incorrectly, but I think it probably could have done with some extra flour. When it came to rolling the mixture out, I couldn't stop it from sticking to the surface and rolling pin which made it difficult to get the base thin enough. Transferring the pizza base to the baking sheet without it falling apart was also a bit of a mission. When we got the first pizza out the oven we realised we'd forgotten to flour the baking tray, so we had to saw it off with a knife. Despite all this, the toppings were really delicious; it's just a shame the base was too thick as it meant it was stodgy in the middle and hard rather than crispy on the edges. I'm not sure if there's anywhere you can buy good quality pizza bases, as choosing your own topping makes for a much better pizza, but the hours we spent trying to make the bases meant it probably wasn't worth the hassle. If you're better at making pizza dough than I am, the toppings below are delish:

Tomato sauce:
250ml passata
4 garlic cloves
A good handful of basil, chopped
Plenty of seasoning

1. Simply mix the ingredients together and spread over the rolled out base

Chili beef topping:
250g beef mince
2 green chilies, diced
1 ball mozzarella
Half a red onion, sliced
Half a red pepper, sliced
4 mushrooms, sliced

1. Fry the beef until browned, add the chilies and cook for a further minute
2. Top the passata with chili beef, add the sliced vegetables and dot with the mozzarella. Drizzle with Tabasco to taste

Goats cheese topping:
Half a butternut squash, deseeded, cut into small chunks
A few sprigs of thyme, chopped
1/2 red onion, sliced
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp redcurrant jelly
Goats cheese, sliced

1. Roast the butternut squash with the thyme and some oil, for 45 minutes or until soft.
2. Meanwhile lightly fry the red onion in a little oil until soft. Add the balsamic vinegar and let it reduce, add the redcurrant jelly and allow to melt into the onion. Take off the heat and allow to cool.
3. Top the pizza with the roasted squash, balsamic onions and slices of goats cheese - tasty!

Chili Beef Pizza:

Plenty of Tabasco:

Goats Cheese & Butternut Squash Pizza: