Golden Scallops, Sun-Blush Mash and Greens

Meal 72 - August 28th - Golden Scallops, Sun-Blush Mash and Greens

There are some recipes in the 15 minute meals book which, for whatever reason, have been deemed unfit for the TV show. This includes all the breakfast recipes, eight fish recipes and an assortment of others. Some of them are a bit weird. There's that Mexican Salad for instance which stretches the definition of "meal" a bit. The Mustard Lamb which was wrong on various levels. Most of them have a hint of afterthought about them and I wonder whether they really are the creative fruits of JO himself or whether some office bod just dreamed them up after deciding the book needed padding out a bit more. This particular recipe looked like it had been thrown together by a work experience kid.

Falafel Wraps, Grilled Veg and Salsa

Meal 71 - August 25th - Falafel Wraps, Grilled Veg and Salsa

Is it me or do some 15 minute meals bear a rather striking resemblance to each other? We decided to cook this one because we had a few of the ingredients already in our cupboards, but it turns out that the reason for this is that they are almost identical to the fajitas we cooked the other day: grilled veg? Check. Salsa? Check. Wholewheat tortillas? Check. The only real difference was the falafels, which were not drastically different to the veggie burgers I made recently. This was not a good sign - those veggie burgers were mediocre at best.

Sizzling Chicken Fajitas, Grilled Peppers, Salsa, Rice and Beans

Meal 70 - August 23rd - Sizzling Chicken Fajitas, Grilled Peppers, Salsa, Rice and Beans

It's Friday again, bank holiday weekend again and another opportunity to tick a few more 15 minute meals off my list. For some reason I haven't done any chicken meals for over two months so I decided to fix that anomaly by attempting these sizzling fajitas. Fajitas are something which I used to cook on a semi regular basis, particularly as a quick, risk free option to cook for friends, but to be honest I always used pre-made fajita spice mix - I've never really considered the DIY option. According to Jamie, that DIY option consists merely of a heaped teaspoon of sweet smoked paprika. Have I been wasting my money on this pre-made stuff all this time, or is this Jamie equivalent overly simplified in order to save time, money and calories?

Seared Asian Beef, Best Noodle Salad and Ginger Dressing

Meal 69 - August 20th - Seared Asian Beef, Best Noodle Salad and Ginger Dressing

I love a good surprise. Like when you find a fiver in your pocket that you didn't know was there. Or when someone brings cake into the office. Today I was not expecting great things from this seared Asian beef meal. The picture made it look like someone had been on a bit of a rampage around a greengrocers and chucked together whatever they could find, along with some noodles and rump steak. There was nothing about it which made me think it would have any wow factor.

Crab Bolognese and Crunch Fennel Salad

Meal 68 - August 17th - Crab Bolognese and Crunch Fennel Salad

This weekend marks the return of Premier League  and I'm writing this post just as THFC kick off their opening match against Crystal Palace. I'm a little nervous - Palace are newly promoted and are most people's favourites for relegation but Tottenham have a knack of cocking things up. Anyway, speaking of cocking things up, I decided to attempt another crab dish, just a couple of weeks after my last one, which, I'm sure you'll remember was a disaster.

Happy Cow Burgers, Old-School Coleslaw and Corn on the Cob

Meal 67 - August 14th - Happy Cow Burgers, Old-School Coleslaw and Corn on the Cob

I have no problem with vegetarians or vegetarianism (what with our weekly veg box I have actually come to embrace it this year) but have never really felt any desire to become a full-time veggie. This is partly due to a lack of imagination. I would probably eat a lot of lettuce, beans on toast and Linda McCartney sausages. Perhaps an omelette if I was feeling adventurous. I'd probably miss out on a plethora of crucial vitamins and minerals. Secondly, I have always been mildly disturbed by the way that some food manufacturers make vegetarian foods look like their meat based equivalent. I've been to Thai buffet restaurants that make tofu look like bits of chicken in a stir fry. They even pump it with some dodgy vegetarian flavourings to make it taste like the real thing.

Greek Style Toastie - Hot Sandwich Heaven

Meal 66 - August 11th - Greek Style Toastie - Hot Sandwich Heaven

With a trip to the phenomenal Burger and Lobster planned for this afternoon, breakfast would be very much taking a back seat on the eating front today - an amuse bouche to the main event if you will. Still, we would need something to see us through the afternoon and thought that this toastie might do the job. If it was anywhere near as good as the smoked salmon and egg toastie we would be in for a treat.

Mexican Salad, Charred Avo and Popcorn Beans

Meal 65 - August 10th - Mexican Salad, Charred Avo and Popcorn Beans

There is obviously quite a variety of meals in the 15 minute meals book. Some have been real 15 minute wonders. Some however have not taken 15 minutes. And some are just not meals. Case in point: this Mexican salad.

Ricotta Fritters, Tomato Sauce and Courgette Salad

Meal 64 - August 7th - Ricotta Fritters, Tomato Sauce and Courgette Salad

Weekday evening time has been at a premium lately and this lack of midweek 15 minute meals is putting my challenge in serious peril. Today I had to get up at 5:30 for an early start at work so wasn't exactly feeling top of my game. So surely I'd choose a meal which was a guaranteed winner right? Err, no - I handed meal choice responsibilities to Lolz who chose a mushroom heavy veggie number which looked like it could easily go wrong.

The Best Fish Baps, Mushy Peas and Tartare Sauce

Meal 63 - August 3rd - The Best Fish Baps, Mushy Peas and Tartare Sauce

It's a sunny Saturday afternoon and, rather than our regular Saturday evening 15 minute meal, I decided to make an impromptu lunch before we head to the park to catch some rays and drink some ale. You may remember that my last attempt at a fish dish was a bit of a disaster so, rather than let that memory linger and cloud my views on the 15 minute meals fish section which has, on the whole, been excellent, I decided to dive right back in and tackle the issue head on. (How many fishing puns can you spot there!)