Cooking for pleasure

I love to cook but much of the time these days, cooking ends up being a functional thing. Just one more thing to tick off on the to-do list each day.

I have loads of cookery books but rarely use them . Most of the time I cook from memory or I make it up as I go along. A bit like my approach to parenting really!

Part of the reason for this is I find that planning meals from cookery books requires so much more time. There are always odd amounts of things, or slightly obscure things you might not be able to order in your standard online shop.

A compromise I have discovered are the recipe boxes from Riverford Organic Farms. There are a range of boxes to choose from each week, some with two and some with three recipes.

IMG_20150827_220529_resized

A Riverford box is delivered straight to your door, complete with easy to follow recipe cards and all the ingredients you will require for the meals you have selected. The herbs and spices come in little pots with the correct amount so there is no waste and no faffing around either.

Everything comes well packed and protected and boxes and packaging can be recycled for your next delivery.

I thoroughly enjoyed making some different meals for a change and following simple instructions. Timings were a little inaccurate for one of the dishes but in the main everything was as documented. All the meals were delicious. I made:

  • Peruvian garlic chicken with green chilli sauce, corn and smoky roasties
  • Baked courgettes with beef and oregano, served with rice and pine nuts
  • Curried carrot and chickpea fritters, with spinach raita

This would be particularly nice to do on a regular basis on a Friday and Saturday night when I like to set aside a bit more time to cook something a bit different.

Also if you don’t get to eat out much this is quite a nice compromise. The thinking, planning and selection of the food is all done, all you have to do is cook and enjoy.

IMG_20150827_220228_resized

Have you done anything like this before?  Do you enjoy cooking or do you delegate that job?

Let's Talk Mommy

Brilliant blog posts on HonestMum.com

The Dad Network

18 comments

  1. Oh that looks amazing! I used to love cooking for pleasure but lost the enjoyment recently. I’ll have to get back into it. Thanks for the inspiration!

  2. That Peruvian garlic chicken sounds absolutely amaing. You wouldn’t be able pass on the recipe by any chance, please? Would really love to try it. I love the idea of these recipes, but find the cost puts me off a bit. I haven’t checked out the Riverford one though. #brilliantblogposts

  3. It’s funny, I enjoy cooking but don’t do it much. I always feel like there isn’t enough time to plan and buy the food as well as cook it. Especially when blogging seems to take up so much time!

    I will cook from scratch occasionally and always enjoy doing it. Great post. x #BrilliantBlogPosts

  4. I don’t cook. I feel that I’m useless in the kitchen so my husband is the one who cooks and he actually enjoys doing it which is a relief for me LOL The idea of having a box full of the ingredients that you need in order to cook a meal sounds heaven. I think my husband will love that! I’m so glad to read that one of the dishes you got to try was a Peruvian one! I’m Peruvian and I can proudly say that we have some amazing dishes!! Your photo looks so yummy!! Thanks for sharing, xx
    #bigfatlinky

  5. I love cooking and baking. It’s usually random recipes I make up as I go along from what ever is in the cupboard or fridge. This looks amazing. Thank you ever so much for linking up to Share With Me. I hope to see you again soon. I apologize for my late commenting, just catching up on a hectic week. I appreciate all the blog support. Look forward to reading more of your SWM link ups. #sharewithme

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *