Courgette loaf (2)

It dawned on me recently that even though I like courgette bread, I've only made it a couple of times and never without grain flour (the previous ones were with spelt). So I thought it would be fun to experiment with a wheat-free, grain-free loaf. 

Courgette loaf

Pizza with courgette crust

I've been flat out with work for the last few weeks. That and also it's been rather warm, I've been doing a lot of salads and fish for dinner. When I wrapped up a case yesterday afternoon, I decided to take a breather and head out to get the necessary ingredients to make pizza at home.

Pizza with courgette crust, topped with ventricina salami, chorizo, roasted red peppers, chestnut mushroom, red onion marmalade, goat cheese, and baby spinach 

Beef & kale cauliflower rice bowl

I get beef mince quite often as it always seems to be on a special deal. The organic round steak mince from Tesco is quite good, flavoursome and lean, and is my choice of beef mince. I've made several tasty dishes using mince, such as chilli con carne, meatballs, barbecue beef stir-fry, and beef in lettuce cups. But I thought it was time to try a new dish using steak mince. And following my success at making cauliflower rice, I went ahead and mixed beef and kale together for this dish.

Beef & kale cauliflower rice bowl

Garden meatballs alla marinara

Garden meatballs alla marinara

Pan fried lamb chops with hand cooked potato and courgette chips

Grilled pork chop with mushroom mustard sauce

Grilled pork chop with mushroom mustard sauce, served with baby potato & courgette hash and steamed mange-tout

Marjoram pork chops

Marjoram pork chops with cranberry sauce and mustard,
served with potato & courgette hash

Oven roast chicken with vegetables

Roast duck & rendered duck fat

Grilled mackerel with garlic, chilli & lemon

Barbary duck with spicy mango salsa and potato & courgette chips

BBQ pork chop with roasted vegetables

Thai red curry with turkey

Turkey & vegetable balti

Rib eye steak

A few friends and colleagues have raved about the quality of fresh produce at Aldi and Lidl. While I don't usually shop there, mainly because they don't ever seem to stock most of my regular grocery items, I did pop in Aldi on my way back from the Beacon Hospital last. The Aldi out in Rockbrook is very neatly laid out and well stock. I had a look at their fresh meat section and was pleasantly surprised to find some quality cuts. I picked up a couple of Angus rib eye steaks (which I had never bought or cooked before) and Wicklow lamb rump steaks along with a few other items.

Courgette loaf (1)

This is a recipe I adapted from Rachel Allen. I saw her making this bread a few years ago on TV and was instantly intrigued by the idea of pairing courgette with sweetness rather than the usual savoury (I love it sliced, grilled, and sprinkled with a little bit of sea salt).