More chicken and chorizo

Busy day today.  The Woo has been giving the front room and hall a good old clean as it's all been a bit neglected with recent events.  Sam did the first floor bathroom but forgot to clean the loo!  I was busy painting the new guest bedroom after the departure of Joe to pastures new.  He's sharing a house near Gillingham with the rest of his band.  Check them out, by the way.  They're called The Vibes and are a great covers band for weddings etc.  They're on YouTube and have a site if you google the name.

Didn't get out shopping as I wanted to get as much done in the bedroom as possible.  We want it ready for Joe and Claire when they come on Wednesday.  We did pop up and see Arthur early evening, though, just to make sure he was OK.  He's doing really well in the circumstances and is being well looked after by the family.  Good timing, too, as he gave us a couple of yummy looking, garden fresh yellow courgettes.

So this evening it's a 'use up what's in the fridge' day with freebie courgettes!

Chicken and chorizo rice with mixed vegetables
We had a bit of raw chicken left over from yesterday and loads of chorizo so I came up with this twist on my jewelled rice that's been blogged about before.

In a large pan I softened a small sliced onion in about 25g of butter and the usual lug of olive oil to prevent the butter from burning.  To this was added a couple of finely chopped big fat garlic cloves from the farm shop, a couple of sliced red chillies, about a teaspoon of tomato puree and a sprinkle of dried oregano.  As this was softening I sliced up about 8" of chorizo and diced about 150g of chicken breast.  This was added and the heat turned up a bit to colour the chicken on all sides.  I diced it in about 1cm cubes so it cooked through really quickly.  Once the chicken was coloured I added a handful of frozen peas, about half a small tin of sweetcorn, half a dozen small mixed heritage tomatoes (again from Hadlow Farm Shop) which I halved/quartered depending on size and the sliced courgette.  This was all stirred together and cooked through.

Once done I added enough cooked brown rice for the two of us, seasoned with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and mixed it all together.  Easy and yummy!

Allotted time

Found out yesterday that I am now the proud owner of a five rod (steady campers!) allotment at Longmead...which for you non-locals is about 10 minutes walk from home.  Well overgrown but all mine so watch this space for updates!

Back with a vengeance!

First post for a while after a few difficult weeks so it might take a while to get back in the groove...bear with me!

The Woo's had a nightmare time recently looking after her mum and that, coupled with a glut of eggs from the girls, had her wanting a frittata for supper.  We've had a bit of a chicken and chorizo vibe going on for a few days and that got me thinking...

My chicken and chorizo frittata...bet you didn't see that one coming!!

In an oven proof frying pan I softened a finely sliced small onion in about 25g of unsalted butter with a glug of olive oil to make sure it didn't burn.  To this I added three finely chopped cloves of garlic, a chopped up red chilli, about 8" of chorizo (on offer in Sainsbury's at the moment at two whole rings for £4) which was finely sliced, 150g of cubed chicken breast (small dice), about two teaspoons of tomato puree and some sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Once this was cooked through I added half a dozen lightly seasoned, lightly beaten eggs and swirled the pan to ensure that there was an even covering of yellow gorgeousness.  This was cooked on a medium heat for a few minutes and then whacked in a 180* oven for about 3 minutes to cook the egg to setting point.  The main thing is to make sure the chicken is cooked through but if you make sure the dice is small it will be done in just a minute or three.  This was the end result.  We like ours slightly underdone as we know how fresh the eggs are but you can adjust the oven time to suit your preference.

With this I served some new potatoes which had been dressed in butter, wholegrain mustard and honey.  The excess dressing I drizzled over a salad of little gem lettuce, cucumber, spring onions and heritage tomatoes all from Hadlow Farm Shop...the tomatoes a tasty bargain at only £2.20 per kilo!

As a sad end note I would like to add...

Wendy's mum, Jen, passed away late Wednesday afternoon after a battle with that bastard cancer thing.  I had only known her two years but loved her dearly; as did everyone who knew her.  She will be so so sadly missed but I am daily blessed by being part of the loving family that she and her husband, Arthur, created.  Sleep soundly, Jen.