#readcookeat recipe : Triple layer vegetarian lasagne (A Long Ways From Home)

When I told you that I could do an entire week's menu plan using nothing but recipes inspired by Sgt Windflower in Mike Martins's A Long Ways From Home (click through for my review), I wasn't exaggerating. I've already made Fried Fish With Scrunchions (that's crispy bacon or pork scratchings to you and me), Chicken Fried Rice, Salmon Casserole and Salmon with Curry Sauce. I have several of Sgt Windflower's favourite sweet treats bookmarked too, but today, I was inspired by a mention of another savoury dish.

p178 Windflower could hear the bath running upstairs and passed a few minutes reading Sheila's magazines on the couch. He didn't get the fashion ones, but he loved the magazines with pictures and recipes. He was deep into how to make a three-level vegetarian lasagna when Sheila called him upstairs.

This time, the author didn't go into a detailed description of what went into the dish, so I had free rein to be as inventive as I liked. I headed down to the freezer to see what I could find and had a good clearout of all the veggies lurking in there. (I've shown you what I used below but feel free to adapt to suit whatever you have in the freezer.) The resulting dish was really tasty - you could detect each separate vegetable but the whole lot worked together really well. Thanks for another great dish, Sgt Windflower !

Triple layer vegetarian lasagne

ingredients :

10 lasagne sheets

600ml milk

3tbsp butter

3tbsp plain flour

100g + 100g grated cheese

salt, pepper, smoked paprika

drizzle of olive oil

2 onions

5 mushrooms

1 cup red kidney beans, drained

1 small can of sweetcorn

3tbsp tomato concentrate

2tbsp water

200g sweet potato

200g root vegetables (I used carrots and parsnips)

1 bag frozen green bean, courgette, spinach & pea puree

I used frozen root veg fries but you could easily make your own fresh.

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Put the root veg in the oven at 200g for 15-20 minutes until cooked through and starting to crisp up. (I didn't use my leftover broccoli and potatoes in the end but you could incorporate whatever you have.)

Next I prepared the frozen puree (again, you could make your own from fresh, or even use a tin of mushy peas if you're in a rush !)

Cook over a low heat for 10-15 minutes until smooth and creamy. Turn off the heat and reserve.

Chop and fry the onions and mushrooms in a drizzle of olive oil.

Add the red kidney beans and sweetcorn.

 Spoon in the tomato concentrate and squish it into the vegetables, then add the water. Not too much as you don't want it to be too runny. Turn off the heat and reserve.

Melt the butter in a large pan and stir in the flour to make a roux. Pour in the milk and bring to the boil, whisking constantly until it thickens. Add the seasoning and half of the cheese. If you're short on time, you could even use a packet cheese sauce mix.

Pour the beans mixture into the bottom of an ovenproof dish.

Lay three lasagne sheets on top (presoak them if needed - check the instructions on the packet) and spoon half of the cheese sauce on top.

Scatter the roasted root veg fries on top. Add another layer of lasagne sheets.

Pour the green veg puree on top.

Add another layer of lasagne sheets then the remaining cheese sauce and finish off with a couple of handfuls of grated cheese.

Bake at 180° for 30 minutes or so, until the cheese has gone golden brown and the pasta is cooked through.

This dish really packs in the veggies so it covers your 5-a-day in one ! It's a great way of getting the kids to tuck into some extra vegetables too because if you don't tell them, they'll never know half of what's gone in there ! If you have any left over, cut into single serve portions and freeze.

This was great for clearing out the veggies in the freezer so I'm adding it to this month's #KitchenClearout linky.

Linking up with the #readcookeat challenge over at Chez Maximka.

Linking up to the #EatYourGreens Challenge at A2K - A Seasonal Veg Table and The Veg Hog

#KitchenClearout December roundup and January linky

Well, there were less recipes using leftover turkey than I expected but this month's roundup still had a festive theme with lots of fun bakes using up lots of odds and ends out of the baking cupboard - I used up all my sprinkles but then bought some new ones so I didn't really gain any space !

Without further ado, here are this month's offerings :

Spanish-style Lemon, Rosemary & Paprika Chicken and Potatoes is a great midweek alternative to a full roast dinner and it used up the end of a jar of paprika, the end of a tin of lemon-infused olive oil and some rosemary rock salt that I found at the back of my spice rack.

My Brie with fruit and nuts en croûte didn't come out quite as I wanted because for some reason, the cheese wouldn't melt, but it did successfully use up the end of a bag of almonds, pumpkin seeds, soya beans and cranberries.

Creamy Chicken & Chorizo with a Peruvian Kick used up  some leftover baked potatoes, a pouch of cooking sauce and a half-tub of crème fraîche, as well as various odds and ends from the fridge. It was very tasty too.

Minty snowflake dream triple-layered chocolates looked fab but were surprisingly easy to make.  They used up the end of a block of white sugarpaste, as well as some peppermint extract that has been in the cupboard for years.

Chicken fried rice tastes great, is quick and simple to make and is perfect for using up the leftovers from the Sunday roast.

Another simple festive recipe to make with the kids, Chocolate Star Snowman Fool used up half a tub of marscapone that was lurking in the fridge.

Our Santa and Snowman Biscuits were dead easy to make with our festive cookie cutters and embossers and they used up lots of odds and ends of sugar dough and food colouring.

I renamed our Chocolate Mendiants Reindeer Poo, which made the kids laugh. They tasted great though and finished off a bag of chocolate covered blueberries. You could use anything in them though, from dried fruit and nuts to sweets.

Beef & Vegetables with Almonds could be adapted to use up whatever leftover meat you have in the fridge (including turkey !) and it also cleared out the contents of the veggie drawer in the fridge, as well as a few ends of bottles of condiments.

Finally Jane from Onions and Paper linked up this beautiful Butternut Squash Soup with Cheese Puffs which looks ideal after all the festive over-indulgence. It's perfectly suited to the cold weather we're having at the moment too.

Let's see what's feeling unloved in the back of the cupboard/freezer/spice rack and make something with it this month. Time to turn them into tummy-fill rather than landfill !

Fancy joining in? Have a rummage through your kitchen cupboards, spice rack, freezer or fridge and see if there's anything that needs using up then come and share your creations with us. Or if it's way past its sell-by date, throw it in the bin and come and tell us what you found ! It would be great if you could add my badge and a link to this post for anyone else who wants to get involved.

Globecooking recipe : Fried fish with scrunchions (Newfoundland) #readcookeat

As we've been visiting both sets of grandparents over Christmas, yesterday was my first time back in the Madhouse kitchen for ages, and I decided to recreate another of Sgt Windflower's recipes from Mike Martin's A Long Ways From Home. (Click through to read my review.) As the food-loving Mountie lives in Newfoundland, he mentions lots of fish recipes, and this one caught my eye.

p350 "How about some fish for supper?" he asked.

"That would be great," said Auntie Marie and his Uncle Frank added, "I'm starving too".

"It won't take me long," said Windflower as he put a package of frozen cod in the microwave to thaw. While he was waiting, he peeled some potatoes and cut up some broccoli. When the microwave beeped, he took out the cod and dried it on a paper towel.

Then he rolled it in flour and spiced it up with salt, pepper and a heavy hand of Cayenne pepper. He cut up some fat back pork and heated it in an iron skillet to create the perfect medium for the fish. He gently laid the cod into the skillet and let it cook on a medium-high heat for five minutes on each side.

Auntie Marie came into the kitchen a little later and set the table. Windflower put potatoes on each plate and poured a little of the pork fat from the frying pan over them. He then placed a portion of the fried codfish on the plates and covered it with the fried pork scraps, called scrunchions. He split the steamed broccoli between the three of them and called his uncle to come and eat.

I'd never heard of scrunchions but a quick google revealed that they are pork rind or pork back fat, fried until crispy. I decided to use a packet of lardons that were in the freezer, as they are very fatty and would (I imagine) give a similar flavour. I wasn't sure about the mixture of bacon and fish but it actually works really well, with the saltiness of the lardons bringing out the flavour of the fish. Sgt Windflower used cod but I had some coley in the freezer so I used that. I did respect his choice of accompaniment though - broccoli and potatoes.

 Fried fish with scrunchions

ingredients :

2 fillets of cod (or coley)

1 cup plain flour

1tsp Cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

a generous grind of black pepper

150g bacon lardons (or fat back pork)

potatoes and broccoli, as an accompaniment

Fry the bacon/fat back pork in a large frying pan until they release their fat and go crispy. Remove the lardons to a dish but leave the fat in the pan.

Put the flour in a shallow dish and mix in the spices.

Lay the fish in the flour so it is evenly coated on all sides.

Transfer the fish to the frying pan with the bacon fat and cook for a few minutes on each side until golden brown and cooked through. Serve with the potatoes and broccoli and drizzle a little of the remaining fat over the potatoes and fish.

*** Don't miss my country-by-country globecooking recipe index ***

If you fancy some more Newfoundland cuisine inspired by Sgt Windflower, how about Salmon Casserole, Newfoundland Raisin Molasses Bread, Smothered Salmon or my roundup of Newfoundland food ?

Fancy cooking the books? Head on over to the #readcookeat linky at Chez Maximka.

Kids' book review : Factivity Robots & Gadgets Sticker Book

Last week, Pierre was delighted to find one particularly well-wrapped present under the Christmas tree. "Look Mum, it's really pretty. And it doesn't say who it's from. It must be from Father Christmas !". Well, it was actually from Parragon Books but I won't tell him if you don't !

 

Inside was a vibrantly coloured Robots & Gadgets Sticker Book, from the Factivity range. Last year we reviewed their Human Body Factivity book, which got a rapturous reception, not least because it came with a detailed plastic skeleton to put together and explained such delightful concepts as poo, sick and farts !

This one comes with eight pages of stickers, many of which are used to complete the various activities in the book, along with lots more to decorate your pictures, school books and, if your child is anything like Pierre, bedroom door !

Pierre started flicking through the pages and was instantly fascinated, drawn in by the bright colours, cute illustrations and numerous interactive elements (for example drawings to complete, stickers to add, mazes and matching games). As a parent, I love the way it deals with highly complex concepts in a simple, child-friendly way. 

It starts off with an overview of what a robot is, dealing with the questions of how and why they are made.

Then it goes on to look at the different robots and gadgets that are used in everyday life, many of which your child is probably familiar with without ever having really thought about them being robots or how they work. Pierre suddenly realised that the automatic vacuum cleaner at his grandparents' house, his Teksta puppy and the crane machines at the amusement arcades are all examples of robots. I love the way the book makes him really think about the world he lives in and draw on his own experiences to understand things.

The texts are very factual and highly educational but they are extremely short, often in speech bubbles, so they don't seem overwhelming and will appeal to even the most reluctant readers. They are also perfectly unisex, featuring just as many girls as boys, so they will appeal equally to both sexes.

The activities cleverly integrate STEM skills, such as this Robo-Cars game, which involves counting the squares to direct the car around the route. Pierre thought it was great fun and had no idea he was practising his maths and logic skills !

Once your child has understood the basic concepts behind the technology and thought about robots and gadgets that (s)he already knows about, the book takes you on a voyage of discovery, seeing robots that they may not be familiar with. I think I learnt just as much as Pierre and we both found it fascinating. I loved hearing Pierre say "ooooooh ... so that's how such and such works", then explaining it all to me in his own words.

You are also invited to problem-solve and get creative, inventing your own robots and gadgets.

After seeing how many robots imitate the way animals move (with the examples of snakes, armadillos and pondskaters), Pierre came up with a dog and a rabbit robot.

Or should that be a rabbot ?!

He also cleverly incorporated his stickers to enhance his drawings. This robot has hooks for hands so that he can carry your shopping bags home. I'd like one of those please. I also love the way he decided to call it Rolly because it has wheels !

The Factivity Robots & Gadgets Sticker Book has an RRP of £6.99, which is great value because it kept Pierre busy for ages, as well as teaching him (and me!) loads along the way.

Parragon hadn't quite finished spoiling us though. I also received a lovely parcel of festive goodies, including a funky Christmassy spatula, perfect for all our festive baking, some festive cupcake cases and cake toppers and a chocolate bookmark. They managed to cover all of my favourite things - reading, cooking and chocolate  - so a big thank you to Parragon !

star rating : 5/5

RRP : £6.99

• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Parragon Book Service Ltd (6 Dec. 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1474845258
• ISBN-13: 978-1474845250
• Product Dimensions: 21.6 x 0.4 x 27 cm

Disclosure : We received the book in order to write an honest review.

My New Year's Challenges for 2017

Well, we made it into 2017 ! It's been a weird old year, what with the Brexit and Trump shockers, several horrific terror attacks and what seems like a million unexpected celeb deaths, especially in the past few days. Last week I took a look back over the year here at The Madhouse, sharing some of our happiest memories of each month. Today, I decided to look forward and plan some fun challenges (more than the usual joyless new year's resolutions - it's all in the name !) to keep me motivated over the coming year.

1. Get Fit(bitting) ! I've been trying to win a Fitbit for ages and when my watch died just before Christmas, I decided it would be a great time to splash out on one with my Christmas money (because it acts as a watch as well as a fitness tracker). I've been trying it out for the first time today and I love it ! If any of you have a Fitbit, let me know and I'll add you to my friends list for the challenges. I also LOVE the idea of the solo challenges or "adventures". I've signed up to one that will start tomorrow based on the route of the New York Marathon - my step count will walk me round the virtual route, unlocking photos and panoramic views of the monuments I pass as I go. When I've finished that, I've seen some other based on the trails of the Yosemite - how cool is that ?!

2. Get cooking - and more specifically, get through some of my huge backlog of bookmarked recipes from magazines, recipe books, blogposts, foodie websites ... There are so many things that have caught my eye that I never find time to make them all !

3. Get geocaching ! This is more of a continuation than something new, as I've been a big fan of geocaching for a couple of years already. I'm a bit stuck in the 190's though because there haven't been many new local caches lately and I've done most of the ones that I can get to easily, but there have been two new ones listed today so I'm hoping to get out and find them tomorrow. It will help get my step count up for the FitBit adventure too ! I have yet to create my own caches so that's something I want to try out this year. I already have an idea for a great location close to where we live. I think I might buy some travelbugs of my own to release too, so I can track them as they (hopefully) move around the country and even the world. If you want to find out more about my geocaching adventures so far, head over to my geocaching posts.

4. Get comping ! I started off the year with quite a few little wins but they all seemed to dry up for the second half of the year. This year I need to up my game and try some of the creative competitions or hunt out some less popular competitions with hardly any entries. 

5. Get reading ! I've just signed up to this year's GoodReads reading challenge and chose 52 books as my target. It sounds like a lot but I managed it (and in fact surpassed it) this year. Check out my list of books that I read in 2016 here (which links to reviews for all of them - maybe we can compare notes if you've read any of them). I'm off to a good start - I've already finished one book already, although I did start it in the final days of December !

6. Get FLYing ! A couple of weeks ago, I saw a mention of FlyLady and remembered how much the Madhouse kids used to enjoy the kids' challenges and the idea of tidying for fifteen minutes with a timer. I started a big dejunk before Christmas, giving away lots of books, clothes and toys to various charity collection points, so now I need to reorganise those areas and keep the momentum going. I've signed up for the daily email prompts with mini challenges - anything that makes decluttering fun has to be a good thing !

8. Get bloggy housekeeping ! When I got back from our summer holiday this year, I was greeted with an email telling me that I'd been given a google penalty for having follow links in sponsored posts. I don't do paid posts but I do write lots of reviews and I always use a no-follow link when I got the product for free. However, for the first few years when I first started blogging, there was no such things as follow/no-follow links (or, at least, nobody had ever heard of them) so I have about 8000 posts to go through, swapping over links to no-follow. I keep putting it off but made a half-hearted start over the Christmas holidays, and it's actually quite cathartic, so I think I'll carry on, especially as I've been removing loads of broken links for companies that have ceased to exist from the early days.

9. Get French ! Six months on, we still have no idea what Brexit actually means, so I've decided to bite the bullet and apply for French nationality. Depending on what reciprocal agreements are made, there's a chance I may no longer be able to work as a teacher in the Education Nationale without being European, so I don't really have a choice. Luckily, I do get to keep both nationalities. I'm not looking forward to running the gauntlet of French bureaucracy though - it's always a nightmare so wish me luck !

What about you? Have you set yourself any targets, challenges or new year's resolutions this year?

Dreamworks Trolls Keychain review

As soon as it hit the UK screens in October 2016, Trolls, the hair-raising comedy-filled musical adventure created by Dreamworks with the voices of Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Gwen Stefani and James Corden, became an instant hit. Trolls are known for their crazy, colourful and magical hair and are the happiest creatures ever to burst into song. However, their world of rainbows and cupcakes is potentially changed forever when their leader, Poppy, must embark on a rescue mission that takes her far beyond the only world she has ever known. Will she succeed?

We have yet to see the movie but we've seen extracts and Juliette has fallen in love with the wild-haired characters. I secretly like them too because they remind me of the original Trolls that were all the rage in my own childhood. There were squeals of delight at The Madhouse when we received a Trolls Keychain to review.

We received a medium sized keychain featuring DJ Suki and her trademark earphones. Her character profile explains : "Meet DJ Suki. She always carries her headphones for impromptu musical moments, DJing with only natural critters to create totally unique sounds. DJ Suki comes with her own bug brush to create playful up-dos and upbeat attitudes ! Clip her on to your bag, and take her with you wherever you go."

Juliette has decided to clip her on her school bag when she goes back to school and has been having great fun brushing her hair into weird and wacky styles.

You could also start a collection, because as well as being available in five different characters in this size (RRP £5.99), they are available as Mega Keychains (£9.99, 7 to collect) or Keychain Capsules (£1.99, 6 to collect). There are also  Trolls Keychain 4 packs and Trolls Mega Keychains 4 pack Gift Pack (RRP £14.99 and £24.99).

Disclosure : We received the product in order to write an honest review.

Chicklit review : Miracle on Regent Street - Ali Harris

For most of the year, my favourite type of book is crime fiction, but at Christmastime, I do like to indulge in some festive chicklit because it never fails to deliver the classic feel-good mix of romance, mulled wine and dreams coming true with a little bit of Yuletide magic.

Miracle on Regent Street does exactly what it says on the tin. It tells the story of Evie, an unlucky-in-love twenty-something whose lack of self-esteem translates into her choice of a life of invisibility, hiding away behind unflattering, unremarkable clothes, living in her sister's shadow as her unofficial nanny and working behind the scenes as a stockroom girl at London department store, Hardy's.

It used to be one of the finest stores in the country but, after a century of existence, it has lost its way, and its customers, and is almost certain to close down. It needs a miracle worker or at least a very good store redesigner - will Evie be up to the job, despite being tucked away in the basement out of view, and will she manage to heal her broken heart along the way? It's Christmas - of course she will !

As well as being uplifting, heartwarming and soul-soothing, it also has some important life lessons for us all about not trying to be someone you're not, chasing your dreams and never giving up, even when there is only the smallest chance of success.

star rating : 4.5/5

RRP : £6.99

• Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK (13 Oct. 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0857202901
• ISBN-13: 978-0857202901
• Product Dimensions: 13 x 0.1 x 19.8 cm