What's For Dinner?

[LadyCG]

I'm making a pasta bake, and what's left will be frozen in batches ready for the winter.

What's on your menu and is anyone else batch-cooking for winter?

[237SJ]

I get mine from Costco. They are quite nice.

[fraser]

had gammon,egg and chips at three,went down the pub for six pints of john smith's for desserts!!

[pastafreak]

Coincidentally, I just had a Wagyu burger...reduced from M and S. Grated Cornish cruncher cheese and horseradish mayo on the side. Not bad. Following it with coconut yogurt.

[237SJ]

Pasta - I`ve never understood why there isn't a Costco in the SW. I would have thought that will all the restaurants, b&bs etc there would have been a call for it.

[pastafreak]

Are they all up North or in the Midlands?* I've often read of the good deals to be had there.
*...they are in Bristol and Southampton...a bit far to go. And I don't drive.

[LadyCG]

Strewth, I've only just finished tidying up!

Bobbi, I'm glad you like it. I've never thought of doing a cake in mine. You must let me know how it turns out.

Webbo, you've got style! I love to add some goats' cheese to Pizza and chorizo sounds good too.

[LadyCG]

Fraser, you've got to live life to the max....

237, I don't think we've got a Costco near us..?

[jourdain2]

We had a (bought) sourdough pizza base w. tomato sauce - which was much, much cheaper than pizzas, even margharitas. I chopped up some left-over ham & chestnut mushrooms; added sliced tomatoes, fresh-picked from the vines in pots outside the kitchen window, and grated a mix of parmesan and cheddar on top. Quite the best pizza I've eaten in years and the whole lot cost less than £3 for 2 of us - used up some lettuce, onion & more fresh-harvested toms in a bit of salad to go with it.

Living where I do I always make sure that we can manage for a week in winter (it was like that in France, too) so I always make at least twice the amount and freeze it. e.g. Bolognese sauce. I've just frozen the first 2 punnets of boiled-down & pureed tomatoes to make a fresh sauce for winter. Then soon there will be sweetcorn to freeze as well.

[webbo3]

LadyCG
It was really good with extra cheese and toppings, put a bit to much on tho, the goats chees seemed to intensify in strength.

[LadyCG]

Jourdain, I think I prefer the sourdough variants of things. We had some lovely sourdough crumpets not too long ago.

I love the idea of making things like that and making savings. It's good to be creative. Where did you get the bases from?

The chap who fitted our kitchen built his own pizza oven and makes his own dough. It sounded really amazing the way he described it.

Death by cheese, eh, Webbo? I like the idea of goats cheese with a balsamic drizzle or some chopped up sundried toms, and maybe a bit of green pesto and rocket. Some people advocate the addition of artichokes but that's not for me.

[jourdain2]

It was a Crosta & Mollica base (made in Italy) a new range in Morrison's. I think it was £2.49.

[LadyCG]

Thank you, Jourdain, I'll look out for it. Saturdays tend to be takeaway days as I work from dawn to dusk and so does he.

Going forwards we are trying to think how we can create our own versions of takeaways by making our own curries and freezing them for when they're needed. I've got chicken curries, lamb curries, lentil daal and saag aloo in the freezer. I'd sooner make my own pizza than buy one - in fact I don't think I've ever had a takeaway pizza.