Peter: Yes, this was practical because you could prepare it in advance.

Anna: Although our nights of rocking are over for the time being as we have the baby sleep trained, for now, so I can actually cook in the evenings again! That said, I’m so knackered it’s nice to have something we just need to heat up.

Peter: I do like a bit of chorizo and there was certainly plenty of that. And it is good and filling.  Perfect food for a cold winter night.

Anna: What a shame the potatoes didn’t cook properly as the cooking temperature was too low. Having to fish them out and microwave them separately did slightly defeat the objective of having dinner already prepared, but we’ll know for next time.

Peter: In the meantime we’ve got two more suppers ready in the freezer.

Andrew (12): Is this a new recipe?

Maureen: Yes. It’s from the Rachel Allen book, “Easy Meals.”

Andrew: Oh. That’s why I didn’t like it then.

Tim: Why don’t you like it?

Andrew: It didn’t have the same sort of…. (pause while he mentally searches for the word he wants)

Maureen (trying to help him finish the thought): …Massive amounts of butter and cheese?

Andrew (finally finding the word he wants): Flavour. It doesn’t have the same kind of flavour.

Nicholas (8): I didn’t like it very much.

Tim: I was looking forward to it…

Maureen: I feel a “but” coming on.

Tim: You’re right. There is a but in there. So let me finish. I was looking forward to it, but it wasn’t as good as I hoped.

Maureen: For me, I have a fundamental problem with baked risotto. It always tastes weird. I don’t see why it’s so much trouble to make it the proper way when you have to add the stock and stir. The stirring only takes 17 minutes if you do it correctly. That’s not a very long time, and the payoff is a much more delicious dish than a baked one.

Tim: So I guess you won’t be making it again.

Maureen: You guessed right. The next time I make risotto, I’ll make the traditional one.

Anna: No, no, no, no. Hang on. The sweet potato mash and cavolo nero were not part of Rachel o’Rachel’s recipe. Wasn’t there just one pan for the pork?

Peter: Yes, you cooked the pork and then made the sauce and added the chops back in again.

Anna: So really, if we hadn’t had side dishes, this was a one-pan meal.

Peter: I guess, but you’re not going to eat a pork chop on its own.

Anna: Still, we created the volume of washing up, not Rachel’s recipe. Now then, enough about dirty pots and pans, what did you think of the pork chops?

Peter: It was a good chop, you could tell they were from Drings by their size. This was a way you wouldn’t normally do a pork chop. I was brought up on them covered in stuffing.

Anna: ?! I thought this was delicious. Perfect for a Sunday night alternative to a roast.

Peter: You do like a bit of pork, don’t you?

Anna: Indeed. Was it easy to cook?

Peter: It was very straightforward. If only you’d let me chop an onion…..

Georgia: I really enjoyed cooking this.

Ella: Is that because you are a shiny vampire?

Georgia: I am not a shiny vampire.

Kirstin: What are you two talking about?

Georgia: You know, from Twilight.

Ella: I hate Twilight.

Georgia: Oh my God, how can you not like Twilight? It’s epic, it’s gory, it’s amazing.

Ella: It has kissing.

Georgia: Well, yeah. It is a romance.

Ella: It has kissing.

Kirstin: When you’re both older, I’ll tell you about the subtext too, but for now, tell me about this recipe, which has nothing to do with vampires.

Georgia: It has Wheatley.

Kirstin: Uh-oh, now we’re onto AI’s. OK. Let’s just talk about this recipe, shall we?

Ella: So. We accidentally melted all the marshmallows and it’s looked a little like sick at the end.

Kirstin: Well that’s just delightful, that is.

Georgia: Oh yeah, that was slightly my fault. But it’s going to taste yummy!

Ella: We love eating all the ingredients as we go along too. You can’t go wrong with marshmallows, crunchy bars and chocolate.

Kirstin: Seriously, I cannot wait to try it!

Maureen: Yum. This is great.

Tim: Yes. I agree. I like this.

Andrew (12): Me too.

Nicholas (8): I think it’s okay, but I do like it.

Maureen: When Rachel Allen says it only takes 7 minutes of preparation time and 5 minutes of cooking time, she’s not kidding.

Tim: Was it really that fast?

Maureen: Yes, although it stayed on the hob while we waited for you to get home from work. The thing that took the longest was soaking the rice noodles.

Maureen: Should I make this again? It’s just like Wagamama!

Tim: Yes.

Andrew: I guess so, but I don’t think it’s exactly like Wagamama. It’s still good, though.

Nicholas: Maybe.

Maureen: This was so quick and easy to prepare, I could see myself making this for my lunch. But I will definitely be making it again for dinner.

Cook’s Notes: I can’t recommend this one highly enough for a healthy, quick and delicious meal. The one thing I will do differently the next time I make it is I’ll go to the trouble of peeling the ginger. Rachel says not to bother, but I think it’s a little bit nicer if the ginger slices have been peeled.

Peter: Yes it’s nice, even for winter. It felt like a meal rather than a big starter.

Anna: It is substantial, yes. We had more steak than the recipe calls for. And a bit more cheese too. Piggies that we are.  I also put the onions back in the oven after I added the balsamic to them which made them lovely and caramalised. Would you like this again?

Peter: Yes. I would say you have to choose your steak carefully though. Only the best quality will do as it is the hero of the dish.

Anna: So a salad to have when you want a special treat that isn’t too heavy. This is your recipe. Yum.

Kirstin: Simple and straightforward. I’ll show you the book.

Georgia: I’ve got one of them, but never cooked anything from it. So how is it organised? Five ingredients or less? Hmmm? Or fewer, surely?

Tom: Ouch! That’s because the supermarket gets it wrong too.

Georgia: I judge a supermarket by whether it gets it right. But I like these categories apart from that. But it makes me think, did she have an editor, though? Nice layout, anyway.

Alex: I’m fascinated by treadmill desks.

Tom: I’m sorry I mentioned them.

Alex: I could get my wife, my mother, everyone, off my back.

Kirstin: Tom, you should have told him about them, after dessert.

Alex: It may not have looked like the most beautiful of puddings, but it was delicious.

Georgia: It’s hard to make a crumble look good. And crumbles normally weigh you down, but this doesn’t. It’s not too sugary. How do you make it? I’m scared of crumble.

Kirstin: It has cholocate chunks instead. I didn’t put cinnamon in as it was optional. This is unusual, because it has almond in it too. You know crumble is really unmade pastry?

Georgia: Rachel’s a bit wholesome looking, isn’t she? Does she live in West London?

Kirstin: That’s what she’s selling. And no, she lives in Ireland!

Georgia: Did you use real pears? Nigella has that pudding with tin pears. It takes nanoseconds.

Kirstin: Yes, I used real pears. I peeled and cored each one. Lovingly. And I would definitely make this recipe again!

Peter: Not true. We could watch the Monte Carlo rally.

Anna: Technically yes. So, last night’s dinner. What did you think to it?

Peter: Initial impressions: Where is it?

Anna: What do you mean?

Peter: The portions for the casserole were small.

Anna: I thought it was just right. But you do like more than two sausages.

Peter: In retrospect it was quite filling. But on the plate it looked small.

Anna: There’s a solution for that. Serve on it on a smaller plate.  I liked the way the sausages just fell apart. That may have been because they had longer in the oven than the recipe called for as I had to keep the dinner warm while I fed the baby. But it was a great recipe – dead easy, really yummy and we’ll be doing it again as it’s perfect for the type of meal we eat in the evenings now.

Peter: The tart was nice. Simple and fresh.

Anna: I loved the way it filled the house with the smell of cinnamon. I’m a sucker for cinnamon.

Peter: This was a zero effort recipe was it?

Anna: Your mum made it and I think it was pretty easy. She did say though that she couldn’t toss the pears in the butter and sugar mix as the recipe called for because the mixture went solid. Instead she crumbled it on top, like a crumble in fact, and it worked very well I think.

Peter: It was a good meal. Hearty winter fare.

Maureen: Yum. This is great. We got home late, I threw all these things in a pot, and now we have a delicious dinner.

Tim: I’m amazed at how quickly it all cooked.

Maureen: I know. It was all done in 30 minutes. Believe me when I say this was A LOT less stressful than any of those 30-Minute-Meals of Jamie Oliver’s. I really like it.

Tim: Me too.

Maureen: This is a perfect weeknight dinner.

Nicholas (8): I definitely don’t like it.

Maureen: What don’t you like about it?

Nicholas: The sauce isn’t that good. And then when it goes on the potatoes, which I do like, it makes the potatoes taste bad too.

Maureen: What do you think about the chicken?

Nicholas: I can’t tell you because of the sauce. Right now, I’m trying to hunt down the spots without the sauce.

Maureen: You’d better watch it. You’re going to get a reputation as a picky eater if you keep this up.

Cook’s Notes: Be extra careful when you add the leeks and the potatoes to the pot after browning the chicken. In my haste to eat I was careless, and so a big splash of hot olive oil landed on the inside of my wrist. Ow. The burn is still healing. I still would eat this again, though.

Tom: Are you sure it’s not beeth, Miles? Or beef even?

Miles: No, it’s chicken.

Kirstin: I love this. I would happily eat this every week. I’m not sure why it took so long to cook. I think I got distracted by cats, iMovie and radiators that needed bleeding.

Tom: Chicken, bacon, rice, peas. Four things I love. Yum!

Ella: I like it.

Kirstin: Well then eat some more please! Stop playing with your food! Even Oscar has had more than you!

Oscar: Mwaow.

Tom: He had some earlier. What were those chicken pieces in a bowl?

Kirstin: I had to poach some chicken pieces.

Tom: Well, Oscar grabbed one of them, wrestled it to the floor, killed it, and ate it.

Kirstin: Now he’s licking his lips. Miles, will you try a pea?

Miles: I don’t want to. Does it taste like broccoli?

Kirstin: Yes! Go on, try it!

Miles: It doesn’t smell the same as broccoli! Arghhhh!

Kirstin: It’s just a pea! Try it! I’ll give you a meringue!

Miles: I’m just going to think about it for a sec.

Kirstin: Well make it a fast sec because cold peas aren’t all that.