Staples

Yesterday I had no time to blog as my aunt and various cousins descended on me for lunch. One of my favourite recipes for an easy lunch, which can be made in advance, frozen and simply reheated is a lamb casserole with apricots. Soak some dried apricots in half a pint of water overnight. Brown the cubed lamb in a casserole, preferably in dripping, but otherwise in a mixture of butter and olive oil, and keep warm. Slice 4-6 onions and a couple of garlic cloves and fry gently in the casserole for 10 minutes. Add 1-2 teaspoons each of cinnamon, carroway seeds and cardamom and 1-2 tablespoons of plain flour (depending how much meat you're using). Stir for a minute or two. Then add the meat and the apricots and their water, give the whole thing a good stir and put it in the oven on about 150 degrees for an hour and a half. I also made a dead easy bread and butter pudding using a pannatone which I'd bought in Florence and ready-made custard from M&S. Not bad!