Last week...

Monday. As in last week, not yesterday... I'm behind in the blog again...

A slice of Mrs Jiffler’s chocolate cake cheers me up on the train where there is a man with a mobile phone behaving like:
A, He’s never used a cell phone before
B, He’s never been a train before
C, He’s never been allowed out in public before

The woman opposite me looks jealous of my cake. Ha! Its only 9:15 in the morning so I feel pretty decadent.

I have a blast around the shops, including my first revisit to Gabbotts farm since the lamb-mince annoyance, fruit and veg (fruit selection a bit uninspiring at the moment), and the fish man. For some reason I buy a big bunch of fresh mint - I’ve got no idea what I’m going to do with that, but it smells nice.

For tea – two handfuls of chicken wings in a sweet chilli marinade. These take about 50 minutes in the oven and are a sticky treat eaten with fingers.

While I’m waiting for the chicken to cook I rustle up a quick salad of rucola, lollo biondo (for bulk), spring onions and a couple of baby toms, dressed with balsamic vinegar.

Tuesday

Funny day today – feeling a bit like I’m jetlagged and disorientated. This is probably due to the travelling to London and the clocks changing I guess. Or maybe I need a beer…

Anyhow, the fishmong has filleted a mackerel for me and so I lay out the grey v-shape in a baking dish and poke my nose into the cupboard for inspiration.

Spicy is the way to go, so I quickly soften a diced shallot in some olive oil and throw in the remains of my parsley plant (RIP), some finely chopped red chilli, and a spoonful of some posh smoked paprika. I drizzle this aromatic cooking sauce over the fish and bung it in the oven.

There is still some residual paprika-infused oil left in the pan, so I thinly chop a handful of new potatoes and sauté, adding to a sliced clove of garlic and some slices from a massive sweet pepper that I bought yesterday.

On the plate, with a bit of salad the whole ensemble looks great (no photo unfortunately) and tastes even better. The mackerel is lovely and meaty and survives the piquant sauce well. My flat mate emerges after the plate is clean and remarks that the kitchen smells good…