Posh nosh for less dosh!

Firstly, let me take this opportunity to thank you all for taking the time to read my posts and wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy new year! I hope none of you are planning on rushing out and buying the latest exercise gimmicks for the new year, new you con, as I will be doing healthy lifestyle for less posts in January. As promised on my Facebook page, I'm going to share my goats cheese tart with you, definitely not for slimming this one. It's not the cheapest as the goats cheese was £1.70 per person however the end result is nothing short of spectacular (if you like goats cheese that is, otherwise it will be gross!) A child could put it together it's very simple. The onion relish is the perfect accompaniment. Another fancy looking meal that's easy to throw together for a special occasion costing very roughly £2.00 per person it's a cheap alternative to eating out!

4 circles of goats cheese
Block of puff pastry
4 small/med red onions
2 tbsp sugar (I use brown but white will work to)
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
20g butter
Salad to serve

Preheat the oven to 200 and place a handful of salad on each plate

Stand the goats cheese on the rolled out puff pastry and cut a circle an inch wider than the cheese, as you can see I did a cheddar and tomato one for my son Chase
Scrunch (it's a technical term) the pastry around the sides of the cheese so it's surrounded
Season with pepper
Place in the oven for 30 minutes or until the cheese is golden
While the tarts are cooking slice your red onions and place them in a frying pan with the butter on a med/high heat

Add the sugar and balsamic and cook until sticky and soft

All that's left is to plate up make pretty and enjoy!

M&S veg on an Aldi budget

Let the crossing of the sprouts and par boiling of the roasties commence! Quite a lot of the prep work can be done in the week leading up to Christmas so you can relax a bit more on the day, enabling you to enjoy it with your family, heck you could even squeeze in a nap! I would like to share with you my tips on making the vegetables a bit special and I'm not talking carrot crush Royle family style (I loved that episode, they just don't make them like they used to). I have accomplished great things in my house, I have converted my husband into a vegetable lover (even cabbage!) and the children love it too! With these simple twists and methods, you need not fork out extra for prepared vegetables again. To give you even more time on the day you could even cook the vegetables and freeze them until you need them (it's good enough for Aunt Bessie!) Most of all I hope you all have a fantastic Christmas and new year with your families, don't lose sight of what it's all about.

Swede puree

Peel and chop the swede into similar sized cubes and boil until soft.

Place in a food processor and blitz until smooth.

Spiced red cabbage

In a pan add 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar, 2 tbsp brown sugar, 2 tsp mixed spice

Finely shred the cabbage and add to the pan

Cook for 5 minutes on a high heat stirring occasionally then turn down low for 15 minutes until soft

If the liquid disappears just add a small amount of water to keep from drying

Sticky parsnips

Peel and half the parsnips and par boil for a couple of minutes.

Coat them in honey and place in an oven proof dish with a tbsp oil (if you like a kick use sweet chilli sauce too)

Roast for 15 minutes on high 

Roast potatoes

Peel and chop potatoes as large as you want your roasties to be

Boil for 5 minutes and drain the water

Shake the pan with the lid on vigorously to 'fluff' them up

Leave the lid off to allow steam to escape

Put 3 tbsp oil in a roasting tin and heat in a high oven for ten minutes

Carefully place the potatoes in the tin coating them in the hot fat and roast for 30-40 minutes on high until crispy