Seasonal Depression Needs A Tasty Antidote.

I came to the conclusion a while ago that we are too reliant on foods of convenience and flavoured chicken snacks. Every meal you eat should be really tasty, fresh and homemade (no I haven't joined Jamie Oliver's army). So I made the decision to try and do that. Of course I have my off days, like today when I spent a good hour watching Dollhouse and eating chocolate frosting out of a tub... but I'm unemployed, I'm allowed to do that.

Look at my homemade bread. LOOK AT IT. It's so pretty.

I was stood in the supermarket checkout queue on Saturday with my usual vegetable filled middle class shop, when I checked out the couple in front's shopping. Pukka pies... Chicago town pizzas... creamy Homepride pasta sauces... How can they live like that? Eat those foods for every meal? I remember a time when I was forced to do the same because it was "cheaper" than cooking proper meals. Even if that was true I would never go back to the processed "food" from jars and packets for my everyday meals. Our generation is the first in a long time to have a lower life expectancy than our predecessors... and people wonder why?

So I thought I'd let you have a sneak peak into a few things I've been eating this week. Having to only cook for one, I haven't really had a lot of motivation so I've stuck to things that are really quick and easy to cook but still a.) cheap, b.) healthy and c.) tasty. Everyone wins.

Pea and Pesto Soup

Pea and Pesto Soup with my Homemade Granary Bread

Nigella Express is a great source of really fast and scrummy meals. Her recipe for pea and pesto soup was so cheap that I will be making it a regular staple in my diet. Tin of peas 43p, Jar of pesto 98p, 1 lime 30p, spring onions 70p... All you students take note! And even though when my uncle saw the colour of it and recoiled because it is just so green, I can safely say: trust me it is gorgeous.

Recipe can be found here... OR buy Nigella Express here.

 (Her books are a tad pricy, so get a lovely other half to buy them all for you!)

Tuna Melt Quesadillas

I've never had a tuna melt before. Scandal. Especially as I love tuna and I love cheese. So this week for lunch I made myself some of these bad boys. So good. 

You will need:

• Tin of Tuna
• Mature Cheddar Cheese
• Tin of Sweetcorn
• Spring Onions
• 1 Fresh Green Chilli
• Tortillas

What to do:

Mix all the ingredients (except the tortillas) in a big bowl.

Heat a frying pan.

Use a pastry brush (preferably a silicone one so you don't get bristles all over your food) to oil one side of your tortillas.

Flip them over and fill one side with tasty goodness.

Fold it in half and place it into the frying pan.

Fry for a few minutes on either side until the cheese has melted and the tortilla is golden brown.

Please make sure the cheese has cooled a bit before eating!

Pumpkin Pan Fry

Part of me was quite upset when I discovered Nigel Slater was gay. I thought he would make the perfect husband... well I'm sure he does for someone but not for me. His recipes are a recent discovery for me, since I've started watching the second series of Simple Suppers (it's on after Saturday Kitchen). Every dish he cooks (and there's always five!) on that programme makes me salivate. Every time I visit Tesco I see their seasonal squash selection and I am always looking for an excuse to buy one - they are just so pretty! So on seeing Nigel cook this recipe (and he did it with a butternut squash), I had finally found my reason.

The recipe for pumpkin pan fry can be found here.

Now I have a little treat for you, blog readers. Rob's birthday has just passed and I decided to make him a cake (he was worried too). The cake was a chocolate chip loaf sponge with chocolate buttercream. Now, on first look you will probably think that I have asked a 4 year old to help me with my decorating. That would have been a nice afternoon, if I had any close relatives that were of that age. So the following is all my own doing. 

It was one of those things that once I'd started it, I regretted even thinking about it in the first place. I think Rob appreciated my efforts. He does love his football... Oh it's not a football cake? Battlestar Galatiwhat? Alright geek, whatever you say.