Broccoli and Anchovy Pasta

I realise this may not sound delicious to everyone but for the 5% of the population who are with me that both broccoli and anchovies are delicious, it's great!

If you're not keen on fish, don't discount anchovies because they tend to have a lovely savoury flavour rather than an overly fishy one like in this pasta dish.  They also work brilliantly with lamb.

Chicken in Sherry Sauce

Ah... sherry, beloved of Grandmas... boring eh?  NO!  Sherry rocks!  Forget your thoughts of cream sherries of your Grandma, it is a delicious fortified wine which can take you from deliciously dry and crisp Finos and Manzanillas, fantastic with tapas to Pedro Ximenez which is delicious as a dessert wine.  My favourite is those labelled as Solera taking some of the citrus fruitiness of Palomino with the sweetness of Pedro Ximenez.

So anyway... try it, I urge you.  A bit more about sherry at the end for those of you keen to learn more.

But in the meantime, sherry is often used in cooking in Spain but it's not normal to use the sweeter sherries in savoury dishes.  This was an invention of mine which might sound strange but it is delicious.  Imagine the stunning sweetness and depth of flavour of roasted onions and then you're getting the idea.

Chorizo and Butterbean Soup

Soup season is definitely here.  When I get home at night in the dark a bowl of thick, hearty soup is definitely top of my list.  What's great about using pulses in soup is they naturally break down slightly as the soup cooks thickening it beautifully.

I've used butterbeans here but haricots would also be good.  All in all this takes about 20 minutes to cook, great when you need something quick after a hard day.

What's in season in November?

I can't believe it's November already!  Where has the year gone?  At the start of November, you can just about convince yourself it's still autumn, by the end we could be into the first hard frosts or even snow and thoughts start to turn to Christmas preparations.

November is perfect for root vegetables and parsnips are first on my list.