Eating for two, cooking for three?

Well, it's all getting a bit confusing up in here. For those of you who don't know me personally, I'll just fill you in - I'm pregnant! And as of tomorrow, I'm 20 weeks, so about halfway there. You may have noticed that I haven't been posting as much, and when I have, it's been about cake. Let's blame it on the pregnancy, shall we? But now that it's out in the open, a few points:

• No, I will not change the title to 'Eating for two, cooking for three.' Reason 1: Then I'd have to change it again in another 20 weeks to eating for one, cooking for three. And branding is everything - I don't want to send you mixed messages, do I? Reason 2: Doctors don't actually recommend you 'eat for two' until the third trimester, and even then it's only an extra 200-300 calories a day.

• To bring you up to speed on me: the last 20 weeks have been relatively problem-free. Very little nausea, no vomiting at all. I've been lucky on that front. My appetite has been pretty big though, especially for carbohydrate stuff (thought that might be because of the weather as well). Sample day: porridge, apple, sandwich, banana/yogurt, bread/soup, pasta. Uh, yeah.

• While I've still craved fruit an awful lot, my love o' the veggies, at least of late, has subsided a bit. And when I do, it's sweet veggies like carrots that I've preferred. I assume I'll get over it. Or at least a I hope I will!

• I haven't been as creative as I normally am - I've kind of been recycling tried-and-true recipes that I know won't put me off. But I haven't completely stopped looking for new things - I tried a new recipe from Bon Appetit this week that is absolutely fabulous - Ham Artichoke and Potato Gratin. Highly recommend. Cut down the butter though, and use olive oil spray where possible. I used parmesan instead of comte. Was enough for two nights worth, and I cut down the recipe by a third. Used tinned artichokes rather than frozen. Served with green beans one night and carrots another.

So I hope I'm FINALLY entering a phase where I get back on top of things and start creating a bit more, though to be fair I'm kinda busy with this little bun in the oven at the moment. Stay tuned...

Things I want to eat this autumn

It's harvest time, my friends! Autumn begins today, the 21st of September. Cue the hordes of people rolling in piles of russet-coloured leaves.

There's going to be so much good food to eat in the next couple of months that I hesitate to try and choose a favourite. But there are definitely a handful of foods that I just can't wait to eat, and that I've been spending the last few weeks thinking about.

Apples
Today I've been crunching on some Egremont Russet apples, thanks to them arriving a little early this year at Lathcoat Farm's orchards. They're not much to look at, with their dusty olive-coloured skins, but those skins belie the beautiful flavour and texture inside. Do try them.


How to eat them? Well, first, just eat them raw - they're one of the most wonderfully portable fruits, and I plan on having AT LEAST one a day until the New Year.

But cook them too! My friend Martha recommended I have baked crabapples with cinnamon, which sounds like a perfect dessert for a chilly night. Now, she had the luxury of a crabapple tree in her backyard growing up - and unfortunately I can't fit one of those on my balcony in Hackney. But I'll try a really tart variety in hopes that I can mimic the outcome.

Apples are also divine in cake - here's one I made earlier. I've decided I'm going to make lots of these sorts of cakes this autumn - that way I can control the ingredients, using wholemeal flour and unrefined sugar. It's cheaper and lasts longer too.

Squashes
Butternut squash, pumpkin, pattypan, onion - the varieties, like apples, are seemingly endless. There are several dishes I plan on repeating this autumn from past seasons, but I'm also looking to find some new ones.

Cue Nigel Slater and his new book Tender. He always seems to know just what I'm thinking, ol' Nigel. Well, thanks to Nige and the Observer, we've been treated to a few recipes ahead of time here, including a rather delectable sounding Pan-cooked pumpkin with duck fat and garlic. I look forward to trying that out, as well as his simple idea of a "soup-stew with haricot beans, late tomatoes, cheese and pumpkin".


Mussels
Ah, mussels. They're so cheap, yet so delightful! A trip down to Belgo's will remind you how revered mussels are to the Belgians, as they should be to us. I myself am headed to Borough Market this Saturday to pick up a bag or two - they're really cheap in September.


I fancy returning to the classics - moules marinere, where mussels marry so beautifully with celery, onions, white wine and garlic, as well as trying some new ideas too - mussel pasta with mushrooms and rosemary (which screams autumn to me), or a creamy mussel sauce to top a piece of beef (I can't remember where I've seen that, but I know I have somewhere...)


Okay, those are just a few ingredients that I'm going to be using in the next months - I'm also looking forward to experimenting more with game and foraging for mushrooms. What's on your list?

the PERFECT kedgeree

I’ll admit up front – this wasn’t my idea, so I can’t take credit. When we were dreaming up recipes this week, my husband suggested a smoked haddock kedgeree, and I jumped on it. Smoked flavours, exotic spices and sweet peas sounded right up my alley.

I reworked this Waitrose version of the recipe for our own purposes, and I say, it was bloody lovely.

Smoked haddock kedgeree
(serves 2)

150g wholegrain brown rice
1 tbsp olive oil
300g smoked haddock fillet
3 black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
200 ml skimmed milk mixed with 150 ml water
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cardamom pods
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp hot chilli powder
25 g flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
50g frozen peas
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten
1 lemon, halved

Boil the rice for 35 minutes.

After about 15 minutes of the rice cooking, place the haddock in a saucepan with the peppercorns and one bay leaf. Cover with the milk and water mixture and bring the heat to medium. Bring up to a gentle simmer, then cook for about 8 more minutes.

Remove the haddock fillets out of the milk and allow to cool. Peel off the skin and break the fish into large flakes.

Wipe out the pan you were using, and heat the olive oil over med-high heat. Add the finely chopped onion and cook for a couple of minutes; then add the second bay leaf with the cardamom pods, turmeric, cumin and chilli powder. Fry for three more minutes.

Mix in the hot rice and ensure it gets really coated with the spices. Then add the frozen peas and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for a few minutes, then add the fish. After a few more minutes, stir in the beaten egg and the parsley. Keep stirring, so that the egg doesn’t stick to the bottom. Serve topped with more pepper and a lemon half.

Calories: for ½ of the entire amount cooked, it’s 570 cals. But of course, I had one portion while Pete had 2 portions, so my meal was about 380, while his was 760.

pasta!

In chilly times like these, pasta is a perfect cheap option for dinner. Thus my little concoction last night:

Bucatini with red onions, garlic, chilli and breadcrumbs
(serves 2)

250 g bucatini (thick spaghetti)
3 tbsp olive oil
50 g breadcrumbs
1 medium red onion, sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
1 large red chilli, deseeded and chopped


Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat; add the onions and allow to cook slowly for about 10 minutes.

While the onions cook, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the bucatini, which takes about 8-10 minutes to cook.

Toast the breadcrumbs over medium heat with 1 tbsp of olive oil.

When the bucatini's done, drain (reserving about 100 ml of pasta water). Leave to the side for a moment.

Bring the heat up on the onions to high and throw in the chilli, garlic and half the breadcrumbs. Saute for about 2 minutes, ensuring the garlic doesn't brown.

Add the pasta and the pasta water and toss. Add the last tbsp of olive oil and toss a little more.

Serve immediately, topped with the other half of the breadcrumbs.

I must confess, I was tired and didn't count the calories in this one. But I estimate it's about 750. Winter comfort food and all that.