Somethings wrong.
Something very wrong.
Its 9am Saturday 1st October, I'm outside enjoying the usual changes of my habitat expected at this time of year. Golden marmalade coloured leaves are sophisticatedly swaying through the air as if they've just enjoyed a cheeky autumn warmer slurp of sloe gin, settling finally with all the other condiment coloured leaves that spread over our lane like they have just been smothered on a piece of hot buttered sourdough.
Bare branches eerily shadow over me having lost their once more admiring robust green covering, now brazenly reveal witch like fingers that I'm sure are trying to reach my sides to poke for my covering of fatness.
Blackberries have all but disappeared ( i may of had a hand in that! ) and elderberries are starting to wane, all the usual signs are there, positively singing a harvest corus that the season of robust autumn is well and truly underway, yet there is one thing that leads me to believe that autumns sometimes gender confused seasonal sister is not quite ready to pass over the reigns just quite yet.
I'm wearing shorts ( red in honour of the oncoming season ) and the ttemperature is 24oc at 9am Saturday 1st October - Somethings clearly not right.
The heat of the sun bears down upon the carpet of leaves, igniting their rouge golden shimmer into small flickers of flames gently lapping at my flip flop wearing feet as make my way to the car.
The black leather interior sizzles as my bare skinned legs make contact with it ( I was going to say ' Like when streaky fat laden bacon meets a hot pan' but Ive got more dignity than that), ill say it again - Somethings wrong and i don't like it.
Everyone else is clearly lapping up this unusual Mediterranean like heat, but I'm not buying it.
This 'miracle' Indian summer type weather is going to be a far distant merry dream when we become submerged and immersed in one of the most torrent winters yet to come, sorry to be pessimistic but I'm sure were going to pay a high price for what we are all basking in right now.
Whilst the whole of the Cheshire population roll up their sleeves and prepare for the supermarket version of westlemania, battling their way to what ever BBQ out of season foodstuff they can get their hot and sweaty hands on , I'm pondering over the true autumnal English produce that not so abundantly enough line our shelves and wondering how i can make it resemble a summer type dish that will entice and for fill the wishes of my BBQ obsessed husband who like the rest of the county likes to throw some coals on the barbie at the slightest glimmer of sun.
Various anonymous variety's of squash & pumpkins that vary from tennis ball sized to mammoth monster sized boulders , deeply heavenly plum aubergines and beautiful in their own distinguished way celeriac's can all prominently fit into the comfort food category, one that doesn't go hand in hand that well with a 28oc heat.
Sticking to my guns and never able to pass a memorising handsomely looking squash by, i decided on the below dish. I wasn't entirely sure that R would forgive me for not bringing home the last battered packet of supermarket beefburgers or the e number injected ' fresh' bread rolls to accompany them, but as soon as his first rather large fork full of food entered his mouth, all memories of playing with charcoal and fire evaporated into the smoothing warm October night air.
Autumnal chicken, chorizo and magnificent squash salad - with if desired a roasted garlic mayonnaise dressing.
Seasonal salad-
2 x pieces of free range chicken thighs, skin and bone still attached
2 x free range chicken legs
1 small squash, cut up into chunks
1 ring of chorizo cut into angular bite sized pieces
1 tsp paprika
Salt and Pepper
olive oil / rapeseed oil
Large handful of cherry tomatoes
Some sherry vinegar
A few oregano leaves
Mixed lettuce leaves
Pre heat your oven to 180oc
Place all your chicken pieces into a large roasting tin, coat with oil then sprinkle over the paprika and a generous pinch of salt and peeper. Next add a shimmering splash of sherry vinegar - not too much.
Place in the oven and set the timer for 15 Min's.
Take out at 15 Min's and add all of the chunks of squash and the chorizo, give a good coating in the oil and replace back to the oven for another 15 Min's.
Take out again and add the cherry tomatoes, and the oregano leaves, if the chicken is looking dry throughout this process don't be afraid to add a little more sherry vinegar, but USE IT SPARINGLY, the last thing you want to do is to turn your dinner into a salt and vinegar tasting salad
Once cooked place the salad leaves onto a serving platter then put your chicken, squash, chorizo and tomatoes decoratively over the leaves and drizzle accordingly with the roasted garlic dressing.
Roasted Garlic Mayonnaise Dressing
Place a whole garlic bulb into a preheated oven for about 25 - 30 Min's.
Once cooled slightly removed the chosen number of cloves by oozing them out of their paper jackets ( how many cloves is up to your discretion, not quite as intense and powerfull as raw garlic, roasted garlic is pleasingly sweet and not as likely to draw attention to having unpleasant breath).
Now break the cloves down with a fork and add-
2 tablespoons of a quality mayonnaise
2 teaspoons of natural yogurt
A fancy drizzle of olive oil
A small dash of lemon juice
Salt and pepper
Mix well together, adding more or less of any of the above until you have reached your perfect combination.
Something very wrong.
Its 9am Saturday 1st October, I'm outside enjoying the usual changes of my habitat expected at this time of year. Golden marmalade coloured leaves are sophisticatedly swaying through the air as if they've just enjoyed a cheeky autumn warmer slurp of sloe gin, settling finally with all the other condiment coloured leaves that spread over our lane like they have just been smothered on a piece of hot buttered sourdough.
Bare branches eerily shadow over me having lost their once more admiring robust green covering, now brazenly reveal witch like fingers that I'm sure are trying to reach my sides to poke for my covering of fatness.
Blackberries have all but disappeared ( i may of had a hand in that! ) and elderberries are starting to wane, all the usual signs are there, positively singing a harvest corus that the season of robust autumn is well and truly underway, yet there is one thing that leads me to believe that autumns sometimes gender confused seasonal sister is not quite ready to pass over the reigns just quite yet.
I'm wearing shorts ( red in honour of the oncoming season ) and the ttemperature is 24oc at 9am Saturday 1st October - Somethings clearly not right.
The heat of the sun bears down upon the carpet of leaves, igniting their rouge golden shimmer into small flickers of flames gently lapping at my flip flop wearing feet as make my way to the car.
The black leather interior sizzles as my bare skinned legs make contact with it ( I was going to say ' Like when streaky fat laden bacon meets a hot pan' but Ive got more dignity than that), ill say it again - Somethings wrong and i don't like it.
Everyone else is clearly lapping up this unusual Mediterranean like heat, but I'm not buying it.
This 'miracle' Indian summer type weather is going to be a far distant merry dream when we become submerged and immersed in one of the most torrent winters yet to come, sorry to be pessimistic but I'm sure were going to pay a high price for what we are all basking in right now.
Whilst the whole of the Cheshire population roll up their sleeves and prepare for the supermarket version of westlemania, battling their way to what ever BBQ out of season foodstuff they can get their hot and sweaty hands on , I'm pondering over the true autumnal English produce that not so abundantly enough line our shelves and wondering how i can make it resemble a summer type dish that will entice and for fill the wishes of my BBQ obsessed husband who like the rest of the county likes to throw some coals on the barbie at the slightest glimmer of sun.
Various anonymous variety's of squash & pumpkins that vary from tennis ball sized to mammoth monster sized boulders , deeply heavenly plum aubergines and beautiful in their own distinguished way celeriac's can all prominently fit into the comfort food category, one that doesn't go hand in hand that well with a 28oc heat.
Sticking to my guns and never able to pass a memorising handsomely looking squash by, i decided on the below dish. I wasn't entirely sure that R would forgive me for not bringing home the last battered packet of supermarket beefburgers or the e number injected ' fresh' bread rolls to accompany them, but as soon as his first rather large fork full of food entered his mouth, all memories of playing with charcoal and fire evaporated into the smoothing warm October night air.
Seasonal salad-
2 x pieces of free range chicken thighs, skin and bone still attached
2 x free range chicken legs
1 small squash, cut up into chunks
1 ring of chorizo cut into angular bite sized pieces
1 tsp paprika
Salt and Pepper
olive oil / rapeseed oil
Large handful of cherry tomatoes
Some sherry vinegar
A few oregano leaves
Mixed lettuce leaves
Pre heat your oven to 180oc
Place all your chicken pieces into a large roasting tin, coat with oil then sprinkle over the paprika and a generous pinch of salt and peeper. Next add a shimmering splash of sherry vinegar - not too much.
Place in the oven and set the timer for 15 Min's.
Take out at 15 Min's and add all of the chunks of squash and the chorizo, give a good coating in the oil and replace back to the oven for another 15 Min's.
Take out again and add the cherry tomatoes, and the oregano leaves, if the chicken is looking dry throughout this process don't be afraid to add a little more sherry vinegar, but USE IT SPARINGLY, the last thing you want to do is to turn your dinner into a salt and vinegar tasting salad
Once cooked place the salad leaves onto a serving platter then put your chicken, squash, chorizo and tomatoes decoratively over the leaves and drizzle accordingly with the roasted garlic dressing.
Roasted Garlic Mayonnaise Dressing
Place a whole garlic bulb into a preheated oven for about 25 - 30 Min's.
Once cooled slightly removed the chosen number of cloves by oozing them out of their paper jackets ( how many cloves is up to your discretion, not quite as intense and powerfull as raw garlic, roasted garlic is pleasingly sweet and not as likely to draw attention to having unpleasant breath).
Now break the cloves down with a fork and add-
2 tablespoons of a quality mayonnaise
2 teaspoons of natural yogurt
A fancy drizzle of olive oil
A small dash of lemon juice
Salt and pepper
Mix well together, adding more or less of any of the above until you have reached your perfect combination.
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