Unplanned New Year’s Eve dinner - made up on the hoof!

Like a lot of people, I guess, not only are we trying to do more with less to use resources more wisely, but trying to spend as little time in supermarkets as possible to cut our risk of exposure to Covid. Since lockdown 1 in the spring we get most of our weekly shopping from a local farm shop, Boycott

Farm with only occasional visits to mainstream supermarkets for things the farm shop doesn’t stock.

 And, from daily meals being planned prior to lockdown we’ve started to ‘freewheel’ more and more - just making sure we have a rough idea of what we want to make with the farm shop haul and it usually works out. 

We don’t usually ‘celebrate’ New Year as such for a variety of reasons - but obviously this year Covid took the options away from most. And mid afternoon I realised we hadn’t planned dinner. But good ingredients gives you good options! I knew we had chicken breasts from the farm shop that unusually, we’d bought without a plan. I knew we also had some spicy snacking chorizo, cooked ham from Christmas, the last of a bottle of wine from our son, an unopened tub of single cream.... and it all made a very nice supper indeed!

Take 1 white onion, chopped, with 3 fingers of spicy snacking chorizo, again chopped. Fry gently for 5 mins in butter so the onions soften and the chorizo releases some of its oils and flavour, then set aside. 

Take 2 chopped chicken breasts and some chopped cooked ham, cook on a high heat for 5 mins til chicken is sealed, then set aside.

Return the onions & chorizo to pan on medium heat, add 1 tbsp plain flour & stir til absorbed. Add 100ml white wine in 3 stages, stirring after each addition. Then add 100ml chicken stock gradually, stirring until all absorbed.

Return the chicken & ham to the pan, mix and simmer while approx 150-200g dried pasta simmers in a pan of boiling water.

Drain the pasta when cooked, mix with the chicken, ham & sauce - let stand for a few mins to let the heat dissipate a little than stir in 2-3 tbsp single cream (optional)....serve and scoff.