Vegetable and Lentil Cobbler

We tried this for the first time last night and I have to say it was really very flavoursome and filling.

In a large pan fry chopped garlic, onion and chilli, frying until browned and softened. Next add chopped celery, mushrooms, sweet potato, broccoli and fry until the vegetables are starting to soften and then add a tin of chopped tomatoes.

Bring the mixture to the boil and add vegetable stock and mixed lentils. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes with the lid on the pot.

To make the scones rub together 50g of butter and 150g of self raising flour then add beaten egg and milk mix to form a dough. Knead gently and then form into balls. Put the balls on top of the stew and bake for a further 20 minutes in the oven this time with the lid off the stock pot.

When the scones have browned serve. This dish is very filling and you really dont need huge portions of it.

Walking in the Woods

Last night after work we decided instead of heading straight home we would take a walk through Rivelin Valley along the route of the river and explore the many mill ponds, mill races and dams along the way. 

Evidence of a former industrial past is everywhere along the route, quite a change from its once working life the river now races through the valley with no work to do. The former dams, mill races and ponds now forming a pleasant and rural green space for people to enjoy and relax around.

T-Boned

No not the boat, me!

This massive T Bone steak very nearly defeated me last night. But I bravely battled through finishing it as well as the sides of fresh salad, garlic and rosemary sweet potatoes and garlic and chilli mushrooms.

These monster steaks were the last of a batch we bought from Lincoln market at the shockingly cheap price of four for £10. If anything Liam's was even bigger!

Must stock up again soon as the freezer is looking a bit bare!

Goats Cheese and Red Onion Tart

Its been a while since I last posted a recipe for you to try so heres one I rustled up yesterday as a quick and easy Monday evening meal.

It really doesnt get much simpler than this.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Take a sheet of ready rolled extra light puff pastry. Score a border into the pastry about 1cm from the edges.

Spread a light coating of tomato puree onto the pastry base and add a sprinkling of mixed herbs. Next add a scattering of grated reduced fat mature cheddar, fried red onions (you need loads of onion. I used four medium red onions to make two tarts!!) and add chopped goats cheese to the top.

Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the pastry has browned nicely and risen around the edge.

This was such a simple and easy dish to make yet it was still so tasty and filling. The lack of meat didnt even seem to bother the other half despite it not being meat free Thursday yet!!

On Fire!

The skies above Burton Waters lit up with a sunset like fire yesterday evening. A very nice display by Mother Nature.

Just Chilling

So far we have had a weekend of just chilling. Yesterday in Saxilby and today in Lincoln city centre. Loving it.

Up to Date

So there we are back up to date after a brilliant two weeks on board Naughty-Cal. She couldn't have performed any better and gave a faultless cruise never stepping a foot out of line. We are so proud of our little boat.

So now we can settle into a more sedate pattern of cruising for the next few weeks as we get ready for our next break afloat over the August bank holiday weekend. Naughty-Cal can have a well deserved rest with just weekends spent tootling around on the river to occupy her. 

We have a few small jobs to do before we are ready for the bank holiday cruise to Hull but nothing out of the ordinary. The main task is refueling which we hope to make inroads into this weekend with quick refill of 60 litres or so, with a further top up just before we go. Other than that it is a couple of minor jobs, replacing the immersion in the calorifier, this has been playing up for a few months now sometimes working, sometimes not, but appears to have given up the ghost now so we will replace it. The only other minor job is replacing the shower waste hose which connects the shower plug hole to the sump box. This has developed a slight leak but before it gets too bad we want to replace it. Both minor jobs that are quick and cheap to fix.

For this weekend at least however we will just enjoy being on board. We don't plan to do anything strenuous this weekend. It is all about sitting back, chilling out and relaxing, and that goes for both us and Naughty-Cal.