Spicy Sausage Rolls

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	Some friends are coming for aperitifs this evening, so I decided to make a few sausage rolls.   Here in France meat in pastry products are not common.   It is hard to find any of those traditional staples of British fare, such as Steak Pie or indeed the humble Sausage Roll. I also know from past experience that my French friends love the culinary differences between our two cultures and thoroughly enjoy some of the things I cook that they otherwise would have little knowledge of.  Of course, I'm never sure whether that's because of the difference in our cultures or simply because they can't recognise the food I have tried to prepare. So, this morning I made Spicy Sausage Rolls
	Here's the recipe, and it really is simple I use shortcrust pastry, but lots of people prefer puff pastry.  Either way, you should end up with a delicious, slightly different, sausage roll
For the Sausage Meat	400gms minced pork 100gms minced beef 2 good tablespoons of rolled oats a good dash of worcestershire sauce a couple of drops of tabasco (I put in 4) a dash of sea salt a beaten egg
For the Pastry	For the pastry I prefer to use a shortcrust pastry,  Here's a recipe I often follow: Jean's Shortcrust Pastry
Method	Pre heat the oven to 190°C Mix together the meat and then stir in the oats and salt. Beat the egg and add the worcestershire sauce and tabasco then stir this into the meat mixture, adjusting consistency by adding more oats if it's too wet Make the pastry and roll out into a thin sheet. Roll the meat mixture into a thin sausage and place on the sheet of pastry towards one end. Carefully roll the pastry around the meat and cut once it has enclosed it. Place this seam side down on a baking sheet and repeat for the next roll.   Continue until you run out of pastry....or of meat!!!! Brush with a little milk and make several pricks in the pastry to allow steam to escape Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, or until brown.  Turn over and bake the bottoms for a further 5 minutes Allow to cool and then cut into bite sized pieces

If you're feeling lazy, you can simply use a pre-made pastry, like I often do.  and you can substitute sausage meat for the minced pork and beef, but if you do this, do pay attention to what you are actually getting in your sausage meat!!!!!

Cheese on Toast

The other evening I couldn't decide what to prepare for a simple supper in front of the TV. After a lot of debate with myself, I finally opted for cheese on toast and it was delicious I started with my home made multigrain bread which I sliced and then toasted on one side. Then I spread butter on the untoasted side and added a dash of French mustard

After this I added the four cheeses....  First some thin slices of Dutch Maasdammer,  next a couple of slices of my favourite Cantal entre deux, a thin slice of Brie was added before finishing with a covering of grated Emmental...  Pop under a high grill until the cheese has melted and is starting to bubble.

I was going to describe this as a light supper..... but maybe not!!!

Marinated Mushrooms

The other day I had some friends drop by and as the temperature was about 30C (high 80's F) I decided to barbecue some pork and burgers.

I'm afraid I was so busy barbecuing that I didn't get any photos, but I'm sure, as always, the words will whet your appetite.

I far prefer barbecuing on an open fire and preferably wood rather than charcoal.  I can't really explain it but, to me, there is little comparison between the taste of food cooked on wood and the taste of food cooked on charcoal.  The former, I guess, is just so much smokier.

Anyway, on this occasion I accompanied the barbecue with some simple salads.  I was pretty busy and was trying to save work!!!!!

One simple salad I served is marinated mushrooms. 

The recipe is simply slice mushrooms and marinate them for a couple of hours in a vinaigrette  dressing.   Over the years, I have found that a balsamic vinaigrette really complements the woody mushroom taste so that is what I now always use and I use what ever mushrooms I have but really like the big bold "Champignons de Paris" that we get here, (a kind of huge button mushroom).

To make the vinaigrette I use one part water and one part balsamic vinegar.   To this I add some crushed garlic and a selection of herbs (I use herbes de Provence).

Give it a good shake then add 5 parts of olive oil, (I prefer extra virgin).

Give this mixture a really good shake and then let stand for an hour or two before using to allow all the herbs to infuse the liquid.

Slice the mushrooms into a bowl and cover with the vinaigrette and leave to marinate for a couple of hours

there you have it, a simple, delicious accompaniment.