Prawn, aubergine and green bean curry

After all that rich festive food, has you got a craving for something a little different, well I have just the recipe for you. A delicious prawn, aubergine and green bean curry, rich in tasty vegetables ideal to serve with rice for an informal supper.

Its so darn easy as well, and can be on the table in about 30 minutes start to finish, if you want to impress your guests why not whip up some roti or naan to serve alongside this dish.

What you need

• Bag of frozen raw king prawns - defrosted or fresh prawns
• 1 onion - peeled and roughly chopped
• Good handful of chopped green beans (I used frozen homegrown)
• 1 aubergine - topped tailed and cut into chunks
• 2 tomatoes- chopped
• Squirt of tomato puree (or you could use passata)
• Fish stock or coconut milk if you like a creamy finish (I do)
• Salt and Pepper
• Curry paste (from a jar or make your own)
• A little coconut oil or vegetable oil

What you do

• Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the onion and fry until softened and translucent
• Add the curry paste to the pan and cook for a few minutes to release the flavours, add the aubergine to the pan, stir fry adding a little more oil if necessary.
• Once the aubergine is starting to soften add all the other ingredients to the pan except for the prawns
• Cook until the sauce starts to reduce and the vegetables are cooked, add the prawns and simmer until they are cooked through.
• Serve strewn with fresh coriander and the accompaniments of rice and roti
• Enjoy

Coast at the Glendower Hotel, Lytham St Annes.

The Glendower Hotel is a family run hotel in the genteel seaside town of Lytham St Annes, recently refurbished, MR LF and myself were lucky enough to invited to the press launch lunch in their newly opened restaurant "COAST".

With the emphasis on seafood, COAST is set to become the dining destination for locals and visitors alike once word gets out of the quality dining experience now available. Supplied by local fishmongers - Lannigans and the farmers of the Fylde's rich agricultural lands, the menu is a great showcase of local produce, cooked with love, care and attention.

Craig Brown has recently been appointed of the Head chef at COAST, formerly of the gastro pub chain Green Crab, Fylde Rugby club and the Villa Country House Hotel. The talented kitchen team want to provide a classic twist across the spectrum of British Food, with a strong emphasis on local ingredients.

Craig's ethos, is that fresh produce is absolutely essential to exemplary food. Right here in St Annes, COAST is in an exceptional location for sourcing the very best ingredients from both land and sea.

Our delightful amuse buche, a great start to a lovely meal, accompanied by some great artisan style breads and olives.

After making our choices from the wide ranging menu, Mr LF chose the ham hock terrine with homemade piccalilli and granary bread, a perfectly balanced dish with enough poke in the pickle to offset the rich porky terrine.

My choice was the asparagus with crispy egg, as I was intrigued by the pink grapefruit and citrus hollandaise. A delicious combination  and the citrus flavours worked beautifully alongside the asparagus and egg.

On to our mains, Mr LF chose the hotpot, which was a deconstructed version and apparently tasty enough to give Lancashire's Michelin starred chef a run for his money. The dish was also a generous man sized portion.

Given that COAST's emphasis is seafood I chose the plaice dish which included the ultra local ingredient "Lytham shrimp". A delicious balance of flavours and textures which had been prepared with great attention so that the fish was perfectly cooked and the samphire crunchy, just like I like it !

For dessert we both selected the chocolate mousse, which was also the most popular dessert dish with the rest of the table too. A decadent combination of chocolate and cherries which rounded of the meal beautifully.

The service was attentive and friendly and we loved the driftwood feel to the decor, providing a modern contemporary ambiance to the restaurant. 

The Glendower Hotel is part of the Best Western Group and is situated on North Promenade, Lytham St Annes. Over looking the iconic Sand dunes, the 60 room hotel is ideally situated for short break, weddings, corporate events and has stunning coastal views.

Lunch was provided on a complementary basis however I was not required to write a review (positive or otherwise), all comments, views and opinions are my own.

Prawn, pea and rocket risotto

The rocket patch in the garden is now in full overtime mode, its beaten us into submission and just gone for broke, overflowing the paths and despite our best efforts giving batches away to all visitors to our household,  yet still more grows.

The flavour of our wild rocket is really spicy with notes of parmesan cheese so it needs careful combining with other ingredients, this recipe is nicely balanced with sweet peas and king prawns and green spicy hints from the rocket. Depending on your preference you can either cook it in the oven or by the traditional method on the hob.

What you need

• Olive oil
• 1 small white onion - finely chopped or you could use a shallot
• Garlic - couple of cloves, peeled and finely chopped
• Hot fish or vegetable stock
• Raw king prawns or frozen defrosted
• Good handful fresh rocket, 3/4 of it chopped finely, few leaves still whole for garnishing
• Ramekin of frozen petit pois or garden peas, defrosted
• Risotto rice - about 200g

This recipes makes enough for 2 greedy adults

What you do

• Firstly decide whether you are going to cook your risotto in the oven or on the hob, if you are plumping for oven baking then you will need a flameproof casserole dish, I use my trusty Le Crueset shallow casserole with lid otherwise you will need a large frying pan.
• Heat the oil in pan and add the onion and cook slowly without colouring until soft, now add the garlic and cook for a few minutes longer, now stir in the rice.
• Now if cooking in the oven add most of the stock on a high heat, cover with the lid and place in you oven heated to 180c, if cooking on the hob, gradually stir in most of the stock and simmer until absorbed. It normally takes about 15 minutes either way.
• Were back on the hob now, stir in the prawns and the remaining stock and cook stirring until all the stock is absorbed and the prawns are pink.
• Stir in the peas and chopped rocket, cook very gently just to warm the peas through, remove from the heat cover and let stand for a couple of minutes.
• Serve garnished with the whole rocket leaves and a drizzle of olive oil.