The pointlessness of boob

This is likely to be the last blog of 2013 (and may very well only get published in 2014 as it is already late on 30 Dec and I have a lot to do tomorrow). Christmas went well and we thoroughly enjoyed our turkey chicken. Opted for chicken instead of turkey and as it was a 4kg bird, it looked like a turkey but tasted so much better! I love the brown meat on a chicken or a turkey and really cannot understand the obsession with breat meat. Dry, tasteless and really only to be used as a solid base for gravy! I must thank Field and Flower for their utterly amazing meat delivery. The 'new thing' for this post was my stuffing meatballs which were AMAZING! So, here goes:

Christmas stuffing meatballs

Ingredients:

500g pork mince
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 egg
a few slices of white bread
a handful of grated cheddar
mixed herbs
dried oregano
handful of walnuts
10 dried apricots
flour for dusting

Method

Literally throw all the ingredients in your food processor and mix well! I tend to do the onion and garlic first, then add the bread and then all the other ingredients.

Once well mixed, form into any size meatballs. We did golfball size ones for Christmas. I put a few in the body of the chicken (or neck cavity if doing a turkey) and then fried the rest off in a small bit of olive oil. Once fried, I transferred into a baking tray and roasted in the oven for about 20 mins before serving. Delish!

I had thought that they wouldn't work in a tomato sauce for a pasta dish because of the wlanuts and apricots but, on boxing day, COD made an unbelievable arrabiata sauce (add sundried tomatoes and lashings of red wine to a usual arrabiata) and popped the leftover meatballs in. Served with linguini and they were a huge hit!

I forgot to take a single photo! 

New Year's Eve

I am rounding the year off with good friends, yummy food and too much wine and the menu is as follows:

Smoked salmon blini nibbly bits with bubbles

Starter: Courgette and feta ravioli
Main: Lamb and butternut pie (use the awesome casserole recipe and add a puff pastry lid and I am making a veggie pie for one guest - will post recipe if it is a success)
Dessert: Chocolate Creme Brulee (this is a secret recipe......)

In other news:

• This year's cooking challenge was a new thing a month and then a rehash of old favourites into dinner party menus. Looking back through the blog, I did about 15 new dishes but not as well in the number of menus. Not bad considering we started the year with a small baby and I went back to work in August
• I start my new job on 13 Jan - yay for me
• EEROD is sleeping better (not quite perfect yet but we are getting there...)
• LOD adored Christmas and nicked all her sister's gifts. She is also 4 next Monday which presents another cake challenge! 
• I need a 2014 cooking challenge. Suggestions on a postcard please 
• Over and out for 2013. It's been a good one, despite the sheer lack of zzzzzz's x