You can use your favourite filling but if you really want to surprise guests add a couple of spoonfuls of chilli con
You can use your favourite filling, but if you really want to surprise guests add a couple of spoonfuls of chilli con carne and seal the pototoes.4 large jacket potatoes 80g butter 100-120g good quality smoked ham, diced 120g farmhouse Cheddar, grated 3-4tbsp single cream 2tbsp chopped chives Salt and freshly ground black pepperPre-heat the 190C/gas mark 5 Bake the potatoes for 11/2 hours, or until soft. You can wrap them in foil, but I prefer the baked skin flavour. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for about 10 minutes.Cut a slice off the side of each potato (reserving the slice) large enough to fit a dessert spoon in to scoop the potato out.Scoop out as much of the insides of each potato as you can, keeping it as intact as possible. Mash the potato in a bowl and mix with the ham, cheese, chives and cream and season. Re-fill the potatoes through the hole and replace the piece you removed.Return the potatoes to the oven for 30 minutes and they’ll be ready to go. You can then keep the beans in a Thermos flask, adding the croutons when you pour out into cups.Spuds you’ll really likeServes 4 I’d almost forgotten what a great meal a jacket potato makes And cheap, too. I’ve been put off them by all those pub and canteen fillings for leathery jacketed, luke-warm spuds, such as tuna and sweetcorn, frozen prawns and any other left-over sandwich-bar filling.
Add the pimenton, sugar and tomato pur?and stir over the heat for a minute then add the tomatoes, beans and ketchup, season, add a cup of water and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring every so often until the sauce is thick.You can serve these on toast, or make large chunky croutons cooked in olive oil. If you’ve got lots of people round you could keep a pot of these hot near the fire.1 onion, peeled and finely chopped 1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed 4 rashers of smoked streaky bacon, rind removed and finely diced 1tbsp olive oil 1/2tsp pimenton (Spanish paprika) 1tsp brown sugar 2tsp tomato pur?1 x 400g can of chopped tomatoes 2 x 400g cans of good quality beans (or a mixture), drained and washed 2tbsp tomato ketchup Salt and freshly ground black pepperGently cook the onion, garlic and bacon in the olive oil for 3-4 minutes until the onions are soft but not coloured. The bacon can be replaced with diced-up chorizo so the beans take on a spicier, smoky flavour. You can use any kind of bean for this, like flageolet, cannellini, borlotti, black eye, or to make it even more interesting use a mixture.
Simmer for a few more minutes and serve.Bonfire baked beansServes 4-6 Home-made baked beans can be fun and it’s reassuring to know exactly what’s going into them. Add the flour and mix well then slowly stir in the hot vegetable stock, a little at a time to avoid lumps forming Season and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the pumpkin and continue cooking for 15 minutes or so.Blend a ladleful of the soup, including bits of pumpkin and chorizo, in a blender until smooth then return to the pan with the parsley. Because, remember, remember, bonfire parties needn’t only be on the fifth of November.
Pumpkin and chorizo soupServes 4-6 Every year we see more and more varieties of pumpkin and squash in the shops, and they make such delicious, hearty soups. This is a nice chunky fireside soup that’s almost a stew, with a little bit of its own heat.
Cooking chorizo is best for this, not the slicing variety which is drier and hence tougher when cooked.1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped 1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed 1tsp fresh thyme leaves 120g cooking chorizo, cut into 1cm chunks, or slices 2tbsp olive oil 1tbsp flour 1.5 litres hot vegetable or chicken stock 500-600g peeled weight of firm fleshed pumpkin, or squash, cut into 11/2-2cm chunks Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1tbsp chopped parsleyGently cook the onion, garlic, thyme and chorizo in the olive oil in a covered pan for 3-4 minutes, stirring every so often, without colouring. Well, I didn’t want them trampling all over my lovely new floors.I thought about doing mini toad-in-the-hole that you could serve straight from the Yorkshire pudding tin, but instead I opted for these favourites. Next time, though, I shall stick marshmallows on to rosemary-stalk skewers for toasting over the fire. There was plenty left over for a burn up in the cast-iron fire pit in the garden, so I had a bonfire-party dress rehearsal with hearty dishes to keep everyone out of the house and outdoors round the fire.
In addition to the used tea bags and old newspapers they also left behind the chippy trimmings from the past three months, and some good chunks of firewood. The builders have finally moved out at home, just as we were getting used to their company. What started as a relatively small project turned into major refurb, and just as I’d got used to a constant stream of PG Tips, The Daily Sport and little piles of dust in the corners, they’ve cleared off. They included well-known names like Hidalgo’s La Gitana, Tio Pepe from Gonzalez Byass and good old Harveys Pale Cream. Given its uniqueness and quality in-depth, it’s a shame that a style still often perceived as old-fashioned is having to fight so hard to receive its just desserts. The trophy winner was the fabulously nutty, evolved dry Domecq Amontillado 51-1a VORS, 30 Years Sherry, £45, Steep Hill Wines, while one of the most surprising top 100 winners was the excellent Perez Barquero Gran Barquero Pedro Xim?z, Montilla, 50cl, £6.49, Waitrose EAnthony Rose is Glenfiddich Wine Writer of the Year.
