Cold Comfort

I don’t know what possessed me to buy a tiny shift dress almost a month ago. Magazine pages and have been full of summer frocks for weeks now. Pictures tell us we should have bare, race-horse legs up to our necks, tanned and ready for display on the streets. That’s all well except it’s bloody freezing outside and still blowing gales. I needed a hat, a hood and another hood this morning and got back to the house looking like I’d landed in the middle of puddle-happy articulated lorry. That would be unlikely given HGV’s are now banned from Dublin City and are now relegated to join the other saps in the world’s biggest car park; the M50. This weather doesn’t inspire brisk walking, walking and crying from the pain of stinging rain in your face yes, but happy exercise no. Given how much I love my food the only way I can maintain a bodyweight that suits my tiny frame is by walking lots. If I don’t walk I get a belly where my chin should be, a bit like Bridget Jones. I also get an extra belly on top of my own. Nigella Lawson gets “good fat” i.e. sexy and curvy with stuff to grab onto in the right places. I end up looking like Ronnie Barker.

If I can’t walk I clean. This is great as I really don’t like housework. I accept that a house should be clean, for hygiene reasons. But tidy too? That’s something I struggle with. To match my cranky, stodgy frame of mind I like comforting, stodgy food that I could cook in my sleep. This dish goes one better as my nine-year-old makes it himself. Finally, after thousands of home-cooked meals. Getting anything edible  handed to you by your offspring is a biblical experience. One day my youngest handed my a plate of dry toast, I was moved to tears. As we say in

Ireland

any eejit could make this dish. All the ingredients come from Lidl so it’s cheap too. If you want to up your vitamin intake, by all means have a salad beside it. The paprika chorizo from Lidl is excellent and mildly spicy, the cans of plum tomatoes are fine, sweet and juicy and the spaghetti is, well spaghetti. Their parmesan is sold in chunks from the wheel and the olive oil is strong and fruity.

Pasta with Chorizo and Tomato Sauce a la Lidl

Serves 2, or just you if you are really hungry, or in mood, like me.

You will need

1 shalott, finely sliced

150g of the chorizo, or more, sliced

1 can plum tomatoes, roughly chopped, you can do this by sticking a knife into the can

1 tblsp tomato puree

Pasta, your usual amount for two

1. Put a large pan of water on to boil, add salt and the pasta
2. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and gently cook the shallot for about 5 mins
3. Add the chorizo and colour on both sides
4. Pour in the tomatoes, the will spit at you, and add the puree, stir and cook for 5 mins uncovered
5. Serve by spooning the sauce onto the drained pasta. Sprinkle with parmesan and enjoy with a nice ruby cabernet, also from Lidl!

Comments

[Jenny@wheresthesalt]

Oh joy! I can't wait till our toddler hands me something to eat which she's made all by herself. At 2, I think we've a way to go yet!

She does enjoy a good stab at brown bread dough though - to let out the fairies :)