Two Ham Hocks....Sunday May 6th to Wednesday May 9th 2012

Two Ham hocks, picked up reduced from the cooked food counter at Sainsbury's. Two cost £3, and made me four meals. Don't forget as you read this with the sun in your eyes, that the week in question was FLIPPING cold...

Glazed Gammon and Carrots - Sunday 6th May

Lovely little ham hocks, I took the skin off one and roasted it again with a glaze of mustard and demerara sugar. Served with Jersey Potatoes and Vichy Chantenay carrots. You just cook the carrots, then glaze them in butter a little sugar and a bit of the cooking water. Sprinkle with parsley.

Gammon Red Flannel Hash with Fried egg - Monday 7th May 

The rest of that gammon hock chopped up, mixed with chopped boiled new potatoes, grated beetroot and sliced onions, all fried up until going crispy. Topped with a fried egg.  Really scrummy!

Gammon and Egg Potato topped Pie - Tuesday 8th May

Another gammon hock to use up...I thought the same sort of thing as a fish pie, but with gammon instead of the fish. So a bechamel sauce, peas, parsley, hard boiled eggs, and chopped ham. Topped with mashed potatoes, dotted with butter and cooked like a shepherds pie.  Sadly, there was something wrong with the potatoes, they were gluey. I cooked two lots, in case I'd done something wrong, but they were still gluey. 

So no more old potatoes for the time being. We will just have new potatoes which are in season, haven't been stored, and so are in better condition.  

This was tasty, but not up to my standards to be honest. Not one to make again for me. But I think children would like it. 

Ham Broth with Puy Lentils, Cannellini beans and Pasta Shells - Wednesday 9th May 

The last of the ham stripped away, I had the two bones, cooked in the pressure cooker to make a rich broth. Then cooked with carrots, celery, lentils, beans and pasta shells. Finished with lots of chopped parsley, and a slice of newly baked brown bread. 

The bread was delicious, made from a recipe I developed based round a Dan Lepard one from The Handmade Loaf. 

You can read further about it on A Greedy Piglet.  - it is the very slow one :)