Dysfunctional Planner

This is my second American Express meal. It’s totally free if you have and American ExpressGold card which I don’t but my husband does, I sound like and advert I am not. I just thought I would blog my experience as it happens.

I am a little stressed and it hasn’t started yet. Last time a one hour meal too me two so this time I am starting at 3pm in the hopes we eat at 6pm, but it doesn’t matter if we run over.

It begins with a cooking leaflet and a shopping list, I ordered about £40 pounds worth with of ingredients so not bad for a 3 course meal for two. I bought lots of herbs that are not my favourite but I think sometimes you just have to follow instructions and try things. They send you a vegetarian option if you don’t eat fish but as we do I am having salmon and Gavin is having cod instead. Me fussy eater doesn’t eat goats cheese either so he is having camenbert.

The vegetable tart was going so well. I made the yummy pesto and the tomato sauce. When the vegetables had been char grilled I was feeling confident. I cut the pastry into perfect circles and even chilled it for 15 minutes to keep the puff nice and cold.

I put it all together and I was nothing short of proud. Then I cooked it for the allotted time, which turned out not to being enough. It tasted great but the bottom wasn’t cooked at all. The goats cheese needed longer am just annoyed at myself that after 3 hours of cooking all I had to show for myself was a very soggy bottom.

I was full and tired but Gavin was still hungry so I made the main course. He was supposed to have cod but I couldn’t find it ( I may have frozen in whoops, that or my fridge hates me) so gav just had a chicken breast with a choron sauce, baby potatoes and a herb salad. I am not a fan of dill or tarragon but it was on the list so input it in and it was fine.

It was really good but l was full and didn’t need any more food.

Then I had to finish desert. I saved desert till the next day. I made a like posset which is yummy and left that to set in the fridge. My merengues needs longer but I couldn’t let them cook longer as I had to get on with dinner and I only had one oven. The posset was yum and again I would make that again. The cornflake crisp was yummy but I had to buy a whole box of cornflakes to use a handful.

Things I learnt:

• How to cut an onion
• An easy way to zest
• Invest in good ingredients
• Start earlier than you think
• That pastry sometimes needs longer so go with colour rather than time
• That rocket pesto is yummy ( I hate rocket so this is a revelation for me)
• That washing up halfway through was a blessing
• My fridge hides things from me

In summary

This is a great experience. Even though my tart didn’t work every element was really tasty. The pesto and tomato sauce I will make again. I felt like I used a lot of ingredients and had a lot of food left over, some of that I don’t mind but now I have to come up with recipes to use the rest of the ingredients up.

Will I do another one……. Of course.