Peanut and Cheese Loaf

For two weeks in May, my husband and I visited England together. We visited London, Charlbury, and Stratford-Upon-Avon. During our stay in Charlbury, we were housed in a lovely little spot called the Stable. The Stable is a self-catering cottage with full amenities, including an oven and stove top. During some of the rainy days, I would take the opportunity to shut in and do a bit of cooking.

The Stable's owners had thankfully supplied the building with cook books--we didn't have internet access, so the cook books were my only way of finding recipes. I found this one and made it once, then made a couple of alterations so it suited my purposes more!

Prep time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Difficulty: easy
Cost: About $10

Ingredients
-1/3 cup chopped peanuts
-1/3 cup chopped mushrooms
-1/2 cup breadcrumbs
-1 tbsp dried mixed herbs
-1/2 onion, chopped
-1 small potato, grated
-1 medium carrot, grated
-3/4 cup grated cheddar
-2 eggs, beaten

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, then spoon into a greased loaf tin or ring mold. Cook in oven for 40 minutes.

TIP: Sprinkle some extra cheddar on top for an extra cheesy taste. Garnish with salad ingredients if on its own--see picture for what I did with nasturtiums. Try substituting with cashews for a "meatier" texture.

This dish is ridiculously easy and is a fantastic substitute for meat loaf. It's very filling and one loaf will serve a large slice for 4 people. Double it up for an easy potluck offering.

A quick blog-related note: I know I haven't been updating much, but we recently moved into a house and I've been cooking up a storm, so more updates should be coming before long.

Using your noodle

Being on a constant fiddlehead binge of late, I knew a couple of weeks ago that I wanted to make a pasta dish with fiddleheads next. I'd tried them as a side dish and in a soup, and it was time to mix them in with a pasta. What I produced was a light-tasting dish that was filling and satisfying, and of course beautifully cheap! If you look at the picture to the right, you'll see that it's also got a cute curliness to it. (Matching bowl not included!)


Prep time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4-6 people
Cooking time: under an hour
Difficulty: moderate
Cost: Under $10

Ingredients

-spaghetti noodles
-fiddleheads
-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
-1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil
-1 tsp. lemon juice
-1 tbsp. basil
-salt and pepper, to taste
-1 tsp. white wine (optional)

Start by chopping the garlic. Cook very slowly on low heat in 1/2 tsp. olive oil, the lemon juice, and the white wine, if you opted for white wine. Add a sprinkle of salt. Allow to cook until the garlic becomes plump and golden brown.

While the garlic is cooking, prepare and cook the fiddleheads in the fashion I mentioned before. When they have finished, briefly cook them (only for about five minutes) in the garlic.

Boil the spaghetti until it is cooked to your liking, then strain it. Add 1 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. basil, and toss until the basil is evenly distributed. After, toss in garlic and fiddleheads as well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add some parmesan cheese if you want!

And there you have it. A lovely spaghetti dish with lots of omega-3 fatty acids and tons of flavor. The secret lies in slow-cooking the garlic so it soaks up the lemon juice and wine flavors, which complement the piquant garlic perfectly.

Now then, if you're a little confused by the whole process of cooking fiddleheads, I've created a very handy video guide. The only downside is that you have to put up with my inane prattling for about five minutes. I put some music in to make it marginally entertaining for you. Enjoy!



I will also be updating the "how to cook fiddleheads" post with this video so you can see my ugly mug every time you search for how to make fiddleheads. Do have fun.

This will probably be my final fiddlehead post until next year, as fiddleheads are sadly almost out of season, and thinking up another recipe probably requires more brain power than I have available.