It is funny how rarely things pan out in an even, measured fashion. I usually enjoy a very quiet January / February, over-wintering as I think most civilised, with any non-work time spent under a duvet, or eating stew / curry / pudding in rotation. This year, between birthdays, birth-days, and gorgeous friends visiting, I have been tempted out of hibernation and into a social whirl, so it was inevitable that the gent and I should somehow, by accident, find a cute new nest to move into. 6 months early and at a ridiculously busy time.
Hence, there has been little energy spent on cooking or writing. A plus side has been discovering which fast food is a sublime joy (an 'Adana kebab' from Cirrick on Green Lanes); which fast foods I will be very happy to leave behind forever (supermarket ready meals: ready for being discontinued, I hope); and how long I can keep going without getting scurvy (longer than you would think).
The house-move is mere days away and yesterday, after an emotional evening of forcing 4 paperbacks into the 'charity' pile - and forcing the other 400 into boxes to move - I decided enough was enough. A girl needs carbs. And to feel the weight of a saucepan in her hands once more.
I cubed and roasted a butternut squash and tumbled these together with some cooked gnocchi, then covered these with an aromatic sage sauce. This was kept company by steamed leeks alongside, cut into pleasingly plump logs.
To make the sage sauce: fry chopped sage leaves in butter: this smells heavenly, so enjoy it for a full minute or more - but don't let the butter burn. Turn up heat, splash in white wine and let bubble down to half its volume. Add double cream and heat through, then finish off with a squeeze of lime, parmesan and seasoning. I also fried small sage leaves in butter until crispy for decoration, and I would do more of these next time, they tasted so good.
+ + + + + + + +
To keep me awake during the day, I continue with my favoured past time of seeking new coffee haunts. The latest Roy-award goes to 'Store Street Espresso' (no website but they are @StoreStEspresso on Twitter) which has a really wonderful, light space, minimally decorated with allusion to the building site (in a good way) and serving all the coffees a choosy girl could hope for.
I am torn between anxiety that these lovely Aussie-inspired coffee spots are in danger of becoming generic, and being delighted that the dots are linking up on my 'coffee map'. I enjoy the safety of knowing places where each cup of coffee will be, without a doubt, extremely good. So thank you Store Street Espresso, and the Department of Coffee and Social Affairs, for making my life just that little bit better.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment