16.10.08: Chickpeas with cumin and sherry

He took down the wok and gave a quick fave a stir: Nigella's chickpeas are lookin' mighty fine with the addition of a soft-boiled egg, some ho-made harissa (missed ya!), and some wild/brown rice. A tomato, fresh mozzarella and spinach/watercress salad sat quietly ready for its star turn.

HE SAYS: This was a simple and quick one tonight, though not short on taste either. Once again, I found these regular chickpeas to be more velvety and soft and better value then their organic counterparts. This dish also gave us a great reason to bring out the harissa from the fridge, It didn't disappoint. Its salty and hot lushness brought exotic flava to the bowl and adding an egg to the top created a little bit of gooey, squidgy yumminess. As for the salad, a more pared down variety this time with the mozz and tomatoes. As tradition dictates, I chose to drizzle on some olive oil, a pinch of salt and black pepper, and a drop of balsamic vinegar to intensify the deliciousness.

SHE SAYS: Mmm, nice and velvety, and the intense cumin fragrance and flava were battling for dominance with the salty, garlicky harissa. That's my kinda fightin'. The subtle salad made for a creamy, mildly acidic treat, and a welcome break from the beetroot repetition.

31.08.08: Lamb burgers in pitas with carrot fixin's, grilled broccoli and tomato-mozzarella salad

Going for the grill: We finally managed to bring Her favourite Saturday treat, the lamb 'hetties' from Twickenham Farmer's Market, back to the nest for home consumption. Hetties are burgers, made with a mix of herbs and exceptionally fresh lamb - like maybe two days in from pasture- and one stall at the market flips 'em fresh off the grill into white buns for instant enjoyment with apple or tomato chutney. We have no idea why they're called hetties, but we bought some patties, panfried them up, then tossed in the sliced, blanched broccoli for a few good stirs to soak up the flavour-flav.

A carrot salad, based on this recipe (but without the grain and seeds) stuffed in the toasty pita rounded out the action, with sultanas, mint, fresh coriander, orange juice and a plop of ho-made harissa (yes, it's back thanks to yesterday's double-team, double-batch sesh!). Tomato, mozzarella and pea shoot salad loosened up with some olive oil brought a softer touch to the plate.

SHE SAYS: The best sage-y, rosemaryish flavour comes thru in every mouthful of the ever-lovin' hettie. I was afraid maybe I didn't cook these enough as they were quite pinky inside despite a good while in the pan, but the ones at the market are fairly pinky too, and these were delish. They're so fresh I don't think a little underfrying would matter. Broccoli finally tenderised and absorbed a good bit of hettie flavour, and improved with a little lemon sprinkle. All other salads did their job of moistening and sweetening and palate cleansing...all good, but a little too much prep for Her liking on a Sunday eve.

HE SAYS: Very tasty lamb burgers with a fantastic citrusy carrot salad, yum. The broccoli added some fibre but also benefitted from being grilled in the pan juices, increasing their depth of flava and making them not too firm and dry. The moz salad created a light, fresh finale to another rainy and grey Sunday.