Ham Shank: The Forgotten One-Pot Wonder

This recipe is a total throwback to simpler times, when dinner was literally boiled meat in a pot with a bunch of root vegetables. Doesn't sound appetizing? Then think again.

The ham shank is an incredibly flavorful, ridiculously inexpensive cut of meat, and this recipe hails from a time when every part of the animal was used because, well, meat was expensive. And it still is today, so next time you think that you need to save a bit of dough, ask your butcher for a ham shank. This whole big thing cost me £3, and we've gotten 2 meals out of it already, with leftovers to spare. If you like ham, you'll love it. It's simply a cheaper cut of meat that has been cured the same way.

For this recipe, I used potatoes, swede (that's like a big giant turnip, for my American readers), carrots, one red onion, a bulb of garlic, and a head of cabbage. The seasonings in the pot included 6-8 whole peppercorns, 2 bay leaves, 2 sprigs of rosemary and a handful of fresh parsley (stems and all). Cut up all your vegetables into big 2-inch chunks, and cut the head of cabbage into quarters. Try to aim to have everything cut to the same thickness so that it takes the same amount of time to cook.

Begin by covering the shank with water in a stock pot. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for approx 1-1 1/2 hours, skimming the top of the pot occasionally to remove any foam & sediment that might come out of the bone. Seriously though, leave it and don't worry about it, this is easy.

When the meat is fork tender, chuck everything except the cabbage in the pot, cover and cook for another 20 minutes, then add the cabbage and cook for the remaining 10. Drain the vegetables, lift out the ham and pull the meat off using forks and/or a knife.

To make a quick gravy, make a roux from 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp flour in a pan, then add a few ladles of the cooking water. Add white pepper and salt (to taste).

Tadaaa! A big, hearty, healthy, delicious meal that your great-grandmother would be proud of.

Mealplan Monday: Week of May 2nd

I know that Meal Prep Sunday is a thing, but my week begins on Monday. I highly recommend grocery shopping on a Monday, because most supermarkets don't get fresh deliveries on Sunday (and some not even on Saturday), so if you shop on a Monday you can be sure that you're getting the freshest food possible. Ok, rant over. Here's what my shopping bags were filled with this week:

You may notice some brand overlap, and that's because we went to both Aldi and Lidl. Spinach, blueberries and tomatoes are all 59p this week at Lidl, so I made sure to stock up. After a smoothie, a veggie quesadilla, and a vegetarian curry for dinner tonight, we've almost used a whole bag of spinach already!

The meal plan this week goes something like this:

Monday (Today!)
Breakfast: Kakaoboll (homemade, without all the sugar of the traditional recipe!)
Lunch: Leftover pulled pork & veggie quesadillas
Snack: Blueberry, strawberry, spinach & ginger smoothie - I've been trying to get as much fresh ginger into my system as possible to beat this cold I've got!
Dinner: Chickpea, butternut squash and spinach curry

I'm really excited about this milled linseed, sesame, cranberry and blueberry nonsense I found at Lidl. They also had a chia & goji berry one, but since I already have a Costco-sized bag of chia seeds, I opted for this one for my smoothies. Yum.

Tuesday
Breakfast: Overnight oats with blueberries & strawberries
Lunch: Leftover curry
Snack: Strawberries with balsamic vinegar - one of my favorite treats since childhood - and one of these delicious Pumpkin & Cinnamon fruit bars from Aldi. They have lots of other amazing flavors (sweet potato & ginger, blueberry & seeds, date & orange, cranberry & cherry) and yes, I've tried them all.
Dinner: Salmon Bahn Mi bowls - all the flavors of the beloved Vietnamese sandwich, with fresh salmon with a fish sauce caramel glaze, on a bed of buckwheat soba noodles.

Wednesday & Thursday
We are really busy both of these days, driving all over God's green earth to view houses for our move at the end of this month, so I'm guessing we'll probably eat out for lunches on both days. For dinners I might just make homemade pizzas topped with pesto, tomatoes and spinach, but it depends on how tired I am. For breakfast we have a big box of (Lidl's home brand) Weetabix to eat on the go, or as a quick bowl of cereal, come what may. I have a bag of dried apricots and some Gala apples to snack on in the car, as I inevitably get the munchies as soon as I leave the house.

Friday
Breakfast: Oaty breakfast smoothie with apples and cinnamon
Lunch: We have plans during the day, so probably eating lunch out (at Wetherspoons most likely, because *bargain*, and I love the grilled chicken and avocado salad there :)
Snack: Pumpkin & cinnamon bars
Dinner: Roasted vegetable panzanella, using up the leftover 1/2 butternut squash from Monday's dinner (which is still whole, wrapped up in the fridge and should keep just fine), roasted tomatoes, red onion, garlic, peppers, and homemade croutons on a bed of spinach (or lettuce, if we use up all of the spinach by then).

Saturday
Breakfast: Orange "creamsicle" oaty smoothie (milk, orange, vanilla, oats)
Planning to have a picnic or a BBQ if the weather cooperates, for which I'll go shopping in the morning, so no meal plan yet.

Sunday
Using up all of the leftovers in the house, and cooking up a bunch of lentils for use in salads and meals throughout the week.

Sunday 24th April in Photos

The hubs are I are both sort of obsessed with the idea of gardening/farming these days. Saw this book in the café at Country Market and definitely want to get a copy. 

The best "soda" ever. Pressed rhubarb and apple juices with sparkling water. That's all, folks. I will require a case of this stuff when the weather warms up. 

Now that I can have dairy in my diet again, I indulged in a latte and cake today. (Did someone say "cheat day"?

Visited the brother- and sister-in-law today. Auntie Zoe made Chloe a daisy crown! 

Their new kitchen is gorgeous! Steve helped out with some DIY stuff while we girls enjoyed the new room and played with Chloe in the garden. 

Is this the start of a mischievous grin? 

Hope everyone had a great weekend!