A new broom sweeps clean …

or … time to “spring clean” your pantry/cupboards and throw away all the store cupboard items that are well past their “best before” dates – if you think you've nothing lurking in there you've a shock coming!

The reason I'm suggesting this radical move is quite simply store cupboard stash has a limited life. Herbs and spices for example lose their umph – you'll be surprised what you find.

What we're aiming for is to clear the decks so that you can re-stock your pantry with a list of staples you'll use on a regular basis and some not so frequently. This will be a personal list for you but I'll give you some ideas from my own. You'll see that by creating your stash that the boring day to day cooking becomes so much easier when you know you've already got the basics.

My pantry has the usual suspects, orzo and penne pasta - stock cubes and pots, I really rate the stock pots and the range now is great. Rapeseed and vegetable oil - the best for general use and a light olive oil apart from extra virgin for dressings. A decent quality balsamic vinegar is a must for me, as good a quality as you can afford. My pantry extravagance is Panko breadcrumbs.

You can create the same pantry principle for your freezer and, to a lesser degree, your fridge. In my freezer I generally have an “emergency” bag of cauliflower cheese and I always have petit pois. In my fridge is a block of parmesan – not the ready grated variety – I'm not being a snob here, the blocks have a long life as does cheddar cheese of your choice. I'm not really sure why but cheese is the ultimate emergency staple I suppose because it's so versatile be it in a sauce or in a toasted sandwich in mashed potatoes with sautéed onions, blah blah.

A stock of microwave boxes and foil containers with lids in various (small to medium) sizes – both ideal for freezing individual meals – if you are using your oven for “sides” like baked potatoes, then your defrosted home made ready meals that you're going to create - in a foil tray - go straight into the oven. If you're going to freeze liquids, i.e. stock, soups etc., you can get resealable pour & store bags especially for this purpose – a really good product, very strong and inexpensive – check out your cheap high street shops.

This list will grow with the passage of time!

The aim of the game...

...is that you plan your meals for a week and then make your shopping list from that plan. The majority of the cooking is all done in a morning when you are in the kitchen anyway cooking, for example, a weekend roast.

If you give this a try what you should notice is how little food you waste and therefore how much money you save.

Time to fess up – how much food and money do you throw away each week? It begins with wandering around the supermarket, whether physically or on line and buying food because it looks good, or was on offer, or was a good idea at the time, with no real idea of how the random purchase would fit in to a meal.

How many of these random purchases do you discover, shrivelled and buried in the fridge, forlorn and forgotten, only fit for that not so happy hunting ground for decomposing food in the sky!

By making small changes you can reap massive rewards so plan your week, make your list and do you shopping and try not to deviate – are you really that interested in schlepping round a supermarket?

Sound like a plan?!

Autumn thoughts

… and a refresher course!

We've had a good summer by UK standards, but now we're into October and the mornings are darker until the clocks change at the end of the month and then, eek dark by 4pm!

It's time to re-group and get back into the swing of being organised.

Those who have been with me since the beginning will know that it all began talking about multi-tasking – making the best use of the time you spend in the kitchen. So, time for a refresher and, for those who are new to the concept :

Ask yourself :

“How do you shop and cook now?”

“How many times each week do you visit a supermarket?”

“How much food and consequently money, do you waste each week?”

“Are you constantly asked – what's for tea?”

If your answers are along the lines of, “badly”, “more than I should”, “too much” and “yes!” you might like to read on.

You'll save time, money and stress too, not to mention pick up tips and ideas to adapt to suit you and yours.

Coming up is a repeat of that same multi-tasking formula giving you recipes and suppers for an Autumnal week. As the new season begins so our needs and requirements change, the kids are back at school and although the weather isn't immediately horrible, it is certainly more changeable.

Ugh!

How to win friends!

Here's another fast sweet treat – it's a chuck it all in one pan with minimal prep. This is perfect for a slob out weekend afternoon catching up on the latest download – I think it used to be called a duvet day.

The beauty of this recipe is it makes loads, so plenty for everyone – it makes two tray bakes full. The only pieces of kit required are a large saucepan and the trays – standard size – 30x7cms approx and an empty wine bottle (aka rolling pin).

If you don't want the volume then halve the recipe – really?

Popchoc

125g unsalted butter

300g chocolate – 150g dark, as good a

quality as you can afford, 150g milk

3x15ml tbsps golden syrup

200g Hobnobs

150g mini marshmallows

200g toffee popcorn

Melt the butter, chocolate and syrup in a saucepan. Put the biscuits in a strong food bag, secure the top of the bag and crush – a rolling pin works but an empty wine bottle will do the job just as well! You want texture with the crumbs so don't be too heavy handed.

Add the biscuits to the melted mixture – let the mixture cool for a minute or two, then add the marshmallows and the popcorn – mix well and tip into the trays. Fridge it for at least a couple of hours, longer if possible – it will not deteriorate!

Cut into pieces to suit – consume!

Here it is – in the pan, then the tray, then ready to roll!

Hope it's popular!

Back to the practical!

This recipe uses the same principle and marinade as the pulled chicken. When it's slow cooked it doesn't look particularly inviting – however brisket cooked this way holds its form and so can be sliced very thinly and immersed in the marinade.

It takes minutes to prep :

Slow cooked brisket

1 flat piece of brisket – size to suit your needs – cut it in half

if it's too large for the slow cooker

2 tbsp Worcester sauce

½ tsp chilli

pinch of cayenne

250ml tomato ketchup

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tsps lemon juice

1 garlic clove, crushed or 1 tsp garlic paste

125ml maple syrup

Place the brisket in a slow cooker – low setting. Place the remaining ingredients in a bowl and mix, by hand, until well blended.

Pour over the brisket and cook for 6 hours. Lift out the brisket and slice thinly, cover with the sauce. Serve immediately or is just as good cold.

Here's what it looks like served on a bed of rice :

I don't expect that the impoverished student will be able to afford a piece of brisket but, if your idea is to supplement from home you have two options – cook it and freeze it in portions, ready for delivery or, if you want to encourage the DIY student cooking approach then you could take the brisket when you visit along with the ingredients for the marinade.

Speaking of freezing – the bowl pictured was frozen and defrosted, so I can assure you it works well. I would recommend that if you are freezing portions then it's best to freeze before slicing but in reality it probably won't last long enough!

What to serve with the brisket?

Check out the Stromboli recipe – use the sliced brisket as an alternative topping. If speed is required then cheat big style and top a shop bought pizza base, spread with tomato paste, add a generous layer of sliced brisket, drizzle with the marinade and top with mozzarella.

It would be really good in a wrap with whatever bits and pieces are in the fridge – students please note - check use-by dates! One staple I have in my own store cupboard is a jar of sliced black olives. I appreciate they aren't everyone's bag but they are versatile and tasty, don't take up space – remember though that the student will need to “fridge” once opened.

Finally, what a sandwich it would make – complete with a drizzle of the marinade!

When the dosh runs out …

… a treat from home

Far be it from me to be a kill joy or a spoilsport if you prefer – it's not all about boring sustenance – there has to be a sweet treat – it's good for the soul – not so much the waistline but hey a little indulgence every now and again doesn't hurt.

The following recipe could be made easily by the student, but, if you are planning a food drop it's really quick to make – you'll be very popular!

I've made this fudge recently and it disappears without trace.

Chocolate Pistachio Fudge

350g dark chocolate, chopped

(as good a cocoa solid as you can afford -

ideally minimum 70%)
1x397g can of condensed milk

30g unsalted butter

pinch of salt

150g pistachios

Put the chocolate, condensed milk, butter and salt in a heavy-based pan on a low heat and stir to melt.

Put the nuts in a strong bag – secured and bash with a rolling pin until a mixture of big and little pieces.

Add the nuts to the melted chocolate and condensed milk and stir well.

Pour into a foil tray 23cm square and smooth down the top.

Let it cool and fridge until set. Can then be cut into small pieces – I remove from the tray, cut it in half and set the other half aside. Cut into half and half again and repeat, turn and then cut into squares.

It can be frozen and eaten straight away.

My thanks – again - to Nigella Lawson's “Nigella Express” for this recipe, yet again it does exactly what it says on the condensed milk tin!

Just to prove my point, here's a photo – if you look at the one in “Nigella Express” it doesn't look much different.

On the complicated level – nil – on the taste level – oh brother, 20 out of 10!

By the way, when I said it disappears without trace there are two ways of looking at it – your nearest and dearest might want to secure the stash – I wouldn't fancy the chances of it still being in the fridge left unsupervised!

First Term Survival

… is definitely a learning curve for both the student and the parent. As a student it's probably mixed feelings – “yippee freedom - do as I please” to the realisation - nay horror, that the production of food and laundry isn't the work of the respective fairies! As a parent it's resisting the temptation to phone or message every day or even “I was just passing and thought I'd pop in to see how you were” despite the fact that it's a 150mile round trip!

If you took my advice and invested in a slow cooker, here's another vital recipe, requiring no expertise at all other than may be knowing the difference between a teaspoon and a tablespoon measure – might be an idea to add a set of measuring spoons to the essential kit list.

Pulled chicken

4 large chicken breasts

2 tbsp Worcester sauce

½ tsp chilli

pinch of cayenne

250ml tomato ketchup

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tsps lemon juice

1 garlic clove, crushed or 1 tsp garlic paste

125ml maple syrup

Place the chicken breasts in a slow cooker – low setting. Place the remaining ingredients in a bowl and mix until well blended.

Pour over the chicken and cook for 6 hours. Shred with two forks and cook for a further 30 minutes.

Serve the chicken and sauce in brioche buns - aka slider rolls or burger buns if preferred, with coleslaw.

Alternatively you can buy individual bags of frozen rice that can be microwaved in 2/3 minutes.

The ingredients for the marinade are easy to stash staples, some of which you've already got on your “suitable for a small space” list – even lemon juice is available in small bottles!

I've made this many times and there's plenty of marinade to cook 6 chicken breasts – great economy – leftovers can be frozen – you'll be lucky!