Gotta Love Leftovers!

Everyone knows that you can't have a roast turkey dinner without the obligatory leftover turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce sandwich.

Thanksgiving Dinner

As a Brit we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, however, this year I’ve decided that I’m going to use it as an excuse to put together a big old family roast dinner, though I’m actually going to wait until Saturday afternoon since we’ve all got the weekend off. I’ve been out, looking more than a bit weird buying all the Christmas staples a month early, and bought myself a fat assed turkey crown, a stack of pumpkins, cranberry sauce, bacon strips for days and a plethora of roughly seasonal vegetables, I have enough food to feed a small army. To try and make the meal a little more authentic, I’ve also spent the last few days looking at popular American Thanksgiving sides and trying to come up with my own take on a few of them, the results of which can be seen below.

Green Bean Casserole

You will need:
2 tbsp butter
1 large onion, chopped
200g mushrooms, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 tbsp plain flour
300ml milk
500g green beans
Salt & pepper to taste

Method:
1. Pre-heat the oven the 150°C.
2. Melt the butter in a large, high sided frying pan over a medium heat.
3. Add in the onions and mushrooms and cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until the onions soften.
4. Add in the garlic and cook for another minute.
5. Add in the flour, stir thoroughly and cook for 2 or 3 minutes to get rid of the raw flour taste.
6. Slowly add in the milk, stirring continuously until smooth.
7. Add the beans to a casserole dish, pour over the onion mixture and bake in the oven for 30 - 40 minutes.


Old School Stuffing

You will need:
1 tsp butter
1 onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 tsp sage
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
6 slices of dry thick cut bread, cut into chunks
2 fat pork sausages, skinned and cut into chunks
150ml chicken stock

Method:
1. Preheat to oven to 150°C.
2. Melt the butter in a pan over a medium heat.
3. Add in the onions and celery and cook until softened.
4. Add in the herbs, salt and pepper, cook for a further minute before removing from the heat.
5. Add the bread to a large bowl, pour over the onion and herb mixture, add in the remaining ingredients and mix well.
6. Line an oven proof dish with greaseproof paper, pour in the mixture and spread out evenly.
7. Bake in the oven for 30 - 40 minutes.


Brussel Sprouts

You will need:
1 tbsp butter, melted
500g sprouts, halved
A pinch of salt and pepper

Method:
1. Preheat to oven to 150°C.
2. Toss the sprouts in the melted butter to get an even coating.
3. Line an oven proof dish with greaseproof paper, tip in the sprouts, spread out evenly and season with salt and pepper.
4. Bake in the oven for 30 - 40 minutes.

There are a few other common sides, but I don’t think most of them need a recipe. I think it would just be patronising trying to tell someone how to bake a sweet potato, wrap bacon around a sausage or mash the humble spud.

Review: The Staff of Life, Ticknall

The Staff of Life
7 High St, Ticknall, Derby DE73 7JH

Firstly this is a truly gorgeous pub, set in equally gorgeous surroundings, I loved the place before stepping through the door.

The inside is just as nice as the out, clean, tidy and tastefully decorated. The pub is separated into several cosy rooms, each furnished with chunky, rustic furniture that suits the pubs country ascetic. Only having a fairly small bar the pub has a limited selection of beers, however the ones it does have are good quality and well kept.

We went on a Sunday afternoon so I chose to have the 2 course set menu, I had soup of the day starter followed by a roast beef dinner. The soup was spiced parsnip and it was beautiful, nicely seasoned with a rich creamy flavour and served with warm bread and butter, genuine comfort food. The roast beef was served with roast potatoes, a large homemade Yorkshire pudding and plenty of proper beef gravy. The beef itself was locally sourced and really good quality, the potatoes were crisp but still nice and fluffy inside and the Yorkshire pudding was clearly homemade and just purely epic. The meal comes with a side of seasonal veg, which unfortunately was disappointing as it was overcooked, a bit flavourless and slightly cold.

Whilst the pudding menu looked amazing I was far too full to actually try one. Overall the experience was excellent, the food was good and the atmosphere in the pub was very welcoming. I am looking forward to going back during the week or on a Saturday to enjoy the standard daily menu.