It was my Dad’s birthday this week and with the forecast for the weekend being dry weather we headed down to their house for a barbecue. I thought it would be nice to take some homemade burgers along so knocked up a batch this morning.
Author: minceandskirlie
Writer, poet, musician, and sometime IT professional in the North East of Scotland.
Prawn and chorizo paella
I’m a big fan of paella and we often make the trip to the international market when it visits especially to get a portion for lunch. Unfortunately the market is getting hugely overpriced in the current economic climate so I thought I’d try making my own and save us an expensive trip in the future.
After checking a few recipes online and a quick detour to the supermarket on the way home I got down to work. The end result was perfect. Exactly what I was hoping it would be. Tasted exactly the same as the overpriced paella from the market at a fraction of the price and it only took half an hour to make. Definitely one to make again.
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Mince, tatties and skirlie
Mince, tatties and skirlie
serves 2This is one of those recipes that has come to define Scottish food over the years. Perhaps unfairly considering the broad range of cuisine which is actually on offer here. Aside from that when mince and tatties is done well it can be a brilliant meal. Tender mince in a rich gravy, with the seasoned crunch of the skirlie and creamy mash to finish it off.
Building a better relationship with food.
I can’t stop thinking about food. I’m conscious that other people are more relaxed about the subject and will go whole hours without images of food flitting through their head.
It never used to be like this. I just used to come home, take a cardboard box out of the freezer and throw it into the oven for twenty minutes. Unfortunately this, coupled with working in an office environment and an… um… active social scene, meant I ended up in a clothes shop desperately trying to fit into 38″ trousers because I refused to go past the 40″ barrier. Something had to change.
A fitness regime followed and out went the ready meals and frozen food. In came some tentative efforts at cooking from scratch. I bought a book of basic recipes using 3 or 4 ingredients, learned a few classics (chilli, spaghetti bolognese) and got to work being a bit healthier.
Five years, eight inches and a few stone later I can’t imagine ever going back to the days of frozen chicken breasts, Fray Bentos pies and microwave curries. I get so much pleasure from thinking about what I want to eat, planning it, cooking it then devouring it. These days I scan the TV channels looking for cooking programs to learn new skills or get new dish ideas from and my kitchen worktop is groaning under the weight of a growing collection of recipe books.
It’s not just cooking though. My new education into the world of proper food has changed my attitude to eating out as well. A few years ago all I wanted from my weekend was a hangover and some good stories at the end of it. Now I curse the hangover as a waste of my time and given the choice I’d rather spend the money on a good meal in a favoured restaurant, than pint after pint in the pursuit of a vague memory of a night out and a very sore head the next day.
Basically I’m trying to explain why I’ve started this blog. I suspect it’s for much the same reasons as most other food bloggers. I think about food a lot and I like to talk about food, so I thought I’d start writing down the thoughts on a blog before they pop out of my head for good and perhaps other foodies will comment on them and give me some more ideas.
So I’m going to post up some recipes I like, some ideas I have and some opinions on meals I’ve eaten. Most of the restaurants will probably be based in Aberdeenshire as that’s where I live. I’ll try and remember to take pictures as well, though I can’t promise the quality will be any good.
It won’t just be about food either. I can be just as serious about whisky, beer and wine. Though the latter is still a subject I would confess to know fairly little about. Fitness will also feature heavily as I believe, and am forced into this by my own vices, that to be able to enjoy all this great food and alcohol you have to work pretty hard to burn it off. So I’ll probably post up some thoughts on exercise and some of the stuff I’m doing through the week to make me think I deserve my good eating at the weekend.
If you’re reading this blog please let me know what you think by posting comments in response to the articles and I hope you enjoy it and get some good ideas.
Thanks
Chris
Mince and Skirlie
Mince and Skirlie 