23.12.08: Veal piccata, mash, veg medley

It was a nice idea: since She jumped on the beef bandwagon, He decided to make Ramsay's veal piccata with - veal! (Normally we adapt it with pork.) Maris piper potato mash plus a side of steamed mangetout and baby sweetcorn filled out the plate, while a salad of baby leaves, pomegranate seeds and avo sparkled nearby.

HE SAYS: I thought I would splash out on the expensive veal tonight so We could both experience the joys of this recipe done authentically. Unfortunately for Her, She couldn't eat it and left Me with the job of eating two portions of the tasty, milky meat. Although the veal was great, I think pork works just as well or even better, adding a little more fulfilling, salty tastiness to the gravy. The mash worked well as a sauce sponge, and the mangetout & sweetcorn reminded us to eat our veg. Yum was the salad.

Her top-up of goat cheese and Dr Karg seeded spelt

SHE SAYS: I don't know what happened to my newfound beef tastebuds, but they conked out on this one. I've had veal before and liked it well enough, and the sauce smelled divine, but the main item grossed me out. It just tasted rancid to me, though He had His and Mine and was perfectly fine. Dang. I ate the rest of my meal with a good heart, esp the creamy-yet-chunky mash, and had a little snacky top-up (above) for good measure. The tarty little salad helped put it all to rights as well.

15.12.08: Pollo alla Cacciatora and mixed leaf salad

Tonite's instalment of the Cacciatora adventures included the carrot from the last episode plus a new variety of spelt (this time from a can). A mixed leaf salad made its presence felt.

HE SAYS: Yummy as always, this dish has yet to jump the shark. I nearly forgot to add the capers but She reminded me at the last second. The canned variety of spelt was still a good, lighter alternative to the usual rice and quicker to cook to boot.

SHE SAYS: Much the same review here, though I don't necessarily think spelt is lighter. I think it's heavier in texture, much like barley, but lighter on the digestive plumbing somehow, and more modest in flavour. The canned variety appears to retain its hull, and is pleasingly al dente - almost bouncy! Overall, I look fwd to this meal in the same way I look fwd to lemon chicken: I just know it's going to be extremely tasty, soothing and hearty.

28.09.08: Spelt penne with veg and tomato sauce

When Sunday means simple: She stirred up some panetta cubes, shallots, portobellini mushroms, capers, and an orange pepper with some glugs of red wine and a basil-tomato sauce from good ol' Lloyd to coat some spelt penne pasta (it's back in stock!). Shavings of grana padano took top honours, while a salad of figs, toasted sunflower seeds, avo and mixed leaves peered over the edge.

SHE SAYS: Soothing and subtle, nothing you shout about, but something you quietly enjoy and linger over. And it's all the more endearing for being easy and quickish. I do think pancetta cubes are not the world's most exciting seasoning - there's a shallow undercurrent of hamminess, not a smoky or salty surge of it. Capers gave us the most interesting note, as they tend to do. Sunflower seeds held their roasty own against the playfully seed-textured figs and creamy avo.

HE SAYS: Funny, unlike Her I thought the sauce was pretty rich and bold. With the cheese, capers and red wine it was, to my taste, salty and tangy (two flavas I especially enjoy). The spelt penne was lighter in texture, also less glutinous then it's wheat cousin and did a good job of holding and delivering the sauce to me gob. Agree with her that the pancetta did not add too much to the plate and we probably could leave it out next time without forfeiting taste. The inclusion of the figs always brightens up the salad, their appearance reminds me of passion flowers, which are also sort of beautifully alien looking, but figs are probably nicer to nibble.

24.08.08: Spinach & chorizo omelet and French green bean salad

It's the Sunday omelet made indulgent with chorizo and a little more healthful with spinach. a quick flip thru Jamie's Dinners brought us to a capery, shalloty, mustardy green French bean salad, for which she substituted the last two Tbs of wholegrain mustard. A salad of rosy toms, pear, and radishes kept it simple.

HE SAYS: The green bnz were great. They were nice and mustardy, with the capers adding a citrusy tartness. We don't eat many shallots and maybe we should begin to include them more, since they added a much more subtle flava then regular or red onions. The chorizo is always a crowd pleaser round these parts and was used to great effect tucked in the middle of the omelet with some mature cheddar and fresh spinach for company. I believe the omelet completed its mission to satisfy, with honours. The fragrant and sweet pear in the salad was yummy coupled with the ever-so-peppery radishes and the juicy tomatoes.

SHE SAYS: You can't go wrong with chorizo in every bite - and with chorizo, who needs bacon? Definitely got my fix. The green bnz were tangy and piquant with mild garlic flavour, definitely due for a repeat performance, but I might try French mustard for a slightly thicker consistency to the dressing next time. Salad gave Us the fresh and soothing contrast I was looking for, and the pear added a welcome sweet note.

17.08.08: Pork piccata, potatoes and spinach

Sunday can't get much tastier: the pork version of Ramsay's veal piccata, lush with capers and créme fraiche, made boiled potatoes and spinach steamed with nutmeg feel like swank restaurant fare. The salad borrowed panache from some asparagus grilled earlier for lunch, plus radishes, leftover lime-zest beets, and lots of curly, spicy watercress.

HE SAYS: A winter-warmer-comfort-food-esque dinner in August - with the summer we've had it's not so strange. The pork was tender and perfectly seared on both sides, and the gravy was so moreish with the capers adding that extra rich deliciousness, I thank the lord for those spuds which helped mop up that tasty elixir of life. The asparagus injected the salad with bold, salty chargrilled yumminess that played well with the can't-be-beat beets.

SHE SAYS: It's that Sunday dinner feeling...kinda brown, kinda roasty, kinda salty, kinda creamy...offset by some virtuous veg. I'm always a little concerned about cooking pork and tend to nurse it along to a cardboard consistency, but this batch retained a nominal tenderness. The sauce was a little thin compared to previous efforts, but pooled nicely throughout the plate. Potatoes and spinach made excellent sauce conveyors, and the potats themselves had a nutty, sweet flavour (charlottes?).

28.06.08: Out to Angelo's

Aaahh, dining al fresco at Angelo's - nothing better after a long day at the summer sales. And if We're wrong, We don't wanna be right.

She had the Scaloppinni Meunaia, veal with a lemon-caper-white-wine sauce and veg...

...while He indulged in the Paglia and Fieno: sausage, mushrooms, peas and garlic in a tomato sauce.
We were already relaxed and happy, finishing off generous pours of the house red, when The Man himself - Angelo, of course - came out in his natty pinstriped suit and swore he could not let us leave without complimentary tiramisu...

...and law! Free espresso to boot!

HE SAYS: A very pleasent night out with the missus, all al fresco and all. My pasta was cooked just right, the sausage was herby and smoky and the tomato sauce was rich and not too sweet. Angelo's tiramisu was very creamy and melt-in-the-mouth good. The strong espresso was not too bitter and managed to keep me awake for a couple of hours past my bedtime.

SHE SAYS: I thoroughly enjoyed my down-home plate of meat and veg, mopping up the salty, creamy sauce with every forkful. The thyme-coated potatoes were especially yummy. Since I try to avoid big plates o' pasta (wheat thing), this is my fave item on the menu. Dessert and coffee were such a pleasant surprise, and though Angelo has bestowed tiramisu upon us a couple times before, it's been a while. It was deeply delish, more cream than sponge, and the espresso was the perfect dark-roasted delight in a tiny cup. The long-lasting light and cool evening breeze made this a strong contender for the year's Best Meal Out.

13.05.08: Pork piccata and butternut squash + sweet potatoes

Comfort food: Ramsay's veal piccata in pork chop form, with a capery, garlicky, herby creme fraiche - white wine sauce accompanied by butternut squash and sweet potato cubes (look familiar?) spiced with ras-al-hanout. The simplest of salads with Sweetfire beetroot looks on.

SHE SAYS: Saucy! Great flavour, but my chops were pretty tough - took forever to brown. Mmm, me love the capers. V. pleased with my idea for seasoning the veg cubes - I'd made a mix of nutmeg, cinnamon and cardamom, but it was way too strong. Then the ras caught my eye, and now I know.

HE SAYS: What a lovely sauce, of course! Could've been a little more liquidy, but still delishy. The butternut squash and sweet 'tator cubes worked well in their new boiled incarnation but the chops were too tough to call this meal a Tuesday nite classic. Sweetfire beetroot never fails to dress up any salad, end of.

01.03.08: Pork piccata with roast potatoes and a speshy salad

A decadent Saturday night special: He made a pork piccata, including creme fraiche, capers and white wine, adapting the recipe from Ramsay's Fast Food, while She roasted potatoes in duck fat and plopped a delicious sweet potato, green bean and goat cheese salad from Mei (a tiny cake cafe in Putney on Upper Richmond Road) in a bowl with a few extra salad leaves.

HE SAYS: Gotta start with the sauce: dee-lish! Could have done with a few pieces of bread to mop up. The pork cutlets were a good substitute for veal - I would have used it, but Waitrose was closed, and they're the only ones who sell it around here. It takes a while to get them golden brown, but it was worth making the extra effort. Did I mention the sauce? The white wine, capers and creme fraiche...what a combo. Anytime a sauce requires you to deglaze the pan with wine and scrape up all the remnants, you know you're in for a treat.

Enjoyed the salad for the sweet potatoes and green beans, but although I like feta, I didn't like this cheese - too goaty. The roasty potatoes were tasty as usual, and seemed very fancy with the duck fat infused with five-spice. Would pay top dollah for this meal.

SHE SAYS: The sauce was divine - we licked not only the plates, but the pan AND the spatula. Pork was a perfect substitute for veal, and certainly cheaper. The duck fat endowed the potatoes with that unbeatable crispiness, and I was happy to discover Mei's salad was as yummy as it was gorgeous. Agree the cheese was v. goaty, but I like that.