What does Autumn make you think of? Colourful leaves? Conkers? Toffee apples? Sparklers? For me it's all of that, but more about the seasonal changes we make. That transition of being in sandals and switching to boots, and ditching caps for wooly hats! Although this is important it isn't just about clothing for me, I find I significantly change the type of food I eat and the meals I create. I have decided to swap some of those lighter meals for something a bit more wholesome, hearty and warming. You're probably automatically thinking of a roast dinner or a delicious meat pie? Yep! Well I'm excited to say I've teamed up with Red Tractor Beef and Lamb, to deliver a tasty Autumn pie for hubby and I in their #MiniRoast campaign.
In my household there is just my husband and I, often whenever we decide we fancy a roast dinner we'll head out to a pub, go around to my parents or invite our entourage of friends over to justify having one. We actually hardly just do it for two, something I'm really not 100% sure why. Perhaps it's time? Maybe it is effort? Who knows... either way we don't tend to have it on our own.
In collaboration with the #MiniRoast campaign, (all about being able to have a yummy roast for two using a smaller joint) we decided that we would go and get a tasty beef joint to create a delicious, wholesome and healthy pie for our meal. We don't tend to buy meat joints unless we are feeding quite a few people, so buying a little one was really weird to be doing.
Firstly we hunted along the shop's fresh meat fridges for a little beef joint with a Red Tractor Mark. You're probably wondering what I'm talking about? If you have spotted a Red Tractor Mark on any beef or lamb in your local supermarket, it is basically a stamp of assured quality. You can make that purchase knowing which farm the livestock came from, and more importantly that the farmers and suppliers have met the required standards set for top hygiene, safety and environmental protection of animal welfare. This is a set standard that goes throughout every stage of the process, basically all the way from the farm to your fork. For me this is the up most importance when I'm buying meat.
As Nick has just started a new job we really haven't had much time to stop and catch up. The worst part is that most evenings recently have been dinners on our laps in front of the TV. Not a good move and slippery slope for meal times! With the delivery of our new dining table I decided we'd have a midweek date night, the perfect opportunity to catch up and enjoy a delicious meal as a twosome. We hardly ever get a chance to cook together, so we decided to create a beef pie with homemade wholemeal pastry.
The pie creation didn't take too long to be honest, in fact whilst both in the kitchen cooking we got to chat and put the radio on. Somehow it made the experience suddenly enjoyable and not a chore, which cooking in the evening can often feel like after a hectic day - don't you think? The best thing I've found about the mini roasts is that they are very versatile, we'd originally planned a classic roast dinner but caught a glimpse of a steak and ale pie and thought let's create a pie as a duo. I even cut out little hearts to symbolise our first pie creation from our 10 years together! How sweet.
Sitting down and tucking into our homemade pie was so satisfying. Only when sat there did I realize how lazy I'd become, firstly to cook from scratch and secondly put down all technology and have a human conversation. The pie was so tasty that I'm already looking at more things to make, this may even become a weekly occurrence now because it had been so easy to do.
There are actually lots of amazing recipes on the Red Tractor website in there Mini Roast section, in fact there 6 you can try if you wish! For ours we simply adapted to our training needs, but they will give you a great starting point. If you're concerned about money and mini roasts, then I was honestly quite surprised how reasonable it was and we have over half a pie still left after one meal.
