Jamie Oliver Friday~Italian Bread & Cabbage Soup

I bet you thought I forgot about Jamie Oliver Fridays.My husband thought I did. However, with all the holiday festivities and foods and all the family get-togethers this month there was not time for me to shop especially for the recipes in his book. Had I planned appropriately I would have saved some cabbages from our garden, but cabbages are very affordable and easy to find in just about any supermarket. This recipe is very affordable and easy but I have a few words to say about it first..... .........Jamie, please stream- line your recipes! After I prepare one of your delicious recipes I have always remarked to myself " boy, I could have made that in fewer steps and with a LOT less dishes, pots and pans". This alone makes me absolutely positive he has someone, or hey, even a whole crew cleaning up after him! Unfortunately I am unable to see how I can do this until I make the recipe, my mind doesn't work that way, but our daughter has said the same thing about some of Jamie's recipes she has used. She is smarter than me though and usually figures this out BEFORE she begins cooking. However, I digress~ above is a picture of Italian Bread & Cabbage Soup just before I put it into the oven. I was so excited about this recipe! I photographed the recipe and I believe you can enlarge it. I won't do this anymore, I will write it out, but I wanted you to see how Jamie publishes his recipes. I like the anecdotes he includes and his personal way of speaking comes through in his writing, and my husband and I very much enjoy watching Jamie's cooking program on the Food Network because of the unique and quirky way he prepares and presents foods. Here is my bowl of Italian Bread & Cabbage Soup With Sage Dressing. I thought it was delicious! However, my husband does not like soggy or wet bread and this recipe calls for a lot of that. I liked this hot, but do not think I would like this as left-overs and you can see I made a big pan of this for the two of us. We decided I would make this again but here is what I will do...and I think it will be MUCH better : instead of a layer of bread I will use a layer of toasted cubes of bread, or a bag of purchased non-seasoned stuffing, or even a bag of seasoned stuffing. This would soak up the flavors but not get soggy and my husband would be happy with that. I will make this again, with croutons or stuffing, cut the recipe in half, and simplify the cooking process. So try it, you might like it! (I almost forgot, we grow and use a lot of sage but we did not want the sage dressing so we skipped that part and were happy we did, sorry Jamie.)

Jamie Oliver Friday & Thankful to Be Able To Post!

This is the Jamie Oliver meal we had last Friday. Here I thought I was a good little Girl Scout and prepared ahead of time with delicious results. However reality and life do exert their prerogative to totally thumb their noses at me and usurp my plans. I know this NEVER happens to any of you. Shortly after my last post our computer caught a virus and had to be sent to the computer hospital , whereupon we paid an extra fee to have our dearly beloved computer restored quickly. Our computer came home with amnesia and thanks to a dear friend ( and NOT the computer hospital ) we have some semblance of computer function and now I have to relearn my computer, and he has to re-learn us. Namely , I have to figure out where all the files and pictures are hidden , as the back-up disks the computer hospital made for us grouped all my precious pictures in strange ways and places. As I work out the game of hide-and-seek with my pictures I was able to locate Jamie's picture and download the last meal we made using his book. Here goes... Jamie's Balsamic-Baked Onions & Potatoes With Roast Pork "This dish has attitude-it uses a lot of balsamic vinegar but, trust me , it works really well!....I've chosen to serve them with pork, but beef or lamb works just as well." J. Oliver You Will Need:

• 3 and 1/2 pounds medium sliced waxy potatoes ( all purpose..we used potatoes from our garden) peeled and quartered lengthwise
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• olive oil
• 7 ounces butter, cubed
• a bunch of fresh rosemary leaves picked and chopped
• 1 whole bulb of garlic, quartered or smashed
• 5 medium red onions, peeled and quartered
• 1 and 1/2 cups cheap balsamic vinegar

For The Pork

• a small bunch of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and finely chopped
• 2 Tablespoons freshly ground fennel seeds
• 1 - 3 and 1/2 pound pork loin ( or beef or lamb of choice)
• olive oil
• 6 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 medium red onion, peeled and quartered
• 2 sticks of celery trimmed and chopped
• 4 bay leaves
• 2 wineglasses of white wine
• extra virgin olive oil

"Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Put the potatoes into a pan of boiling water and cook for about 8 minutes, then drain and return to the pan. Chuff them up a bit by shaking the pan. To prepare the meat, scatter a handful of finely chopped rosemary leaves onto a large chopping board. Sprinkle over some salt and pepper and the ground fennel seeds. Roll the pork ( or roast of choice) across the board, pressing down hard so all the flavorings stick to it. Get a large roasting pan that your pork will fit snugly into, and place it on a burner over medium high heat. Pour in a little olive oil and place the pork in, fat side down, sprinkled with any flavorings remaining on the board. After a few minutes, when the pork fat is lightly golden , turn it over and add the garlic cloves, onion, celery and bay leaves to the pan. Place on the bottom shelf of your pre-heated oven for an hour, basting it halfway through. ( For the last 20 minutes of cooking you may need to cover the pork with a bit of damp waxed paper to stop it coloring too much.) Get another roasting pan into which you can fit the potatoes in one layer, and heat it on the stove. When hot, pour a glug of olive oil into it and add the butter, rosemary and garlic. Add the potatoes and toss them in all the flavors. Add the onions and all the balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes on the burner to reduce the balsamic vinegar a little. Place the pan on the top shelf ( of oven ) and cook for around 50 minutes until potatoes and onions are dark, sticky and crispy- removing the pan to toss the onions and potatoes half-way through. After an hour , the meat should be cooked. Prick it with a sharp knife- if the juices run clear, it's done; if not, pop it back in the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes, keeping the potatoes warm . Remove it from the oven and let it rest on a plate for 10 minutes. Pour away most of the fat from the pan and mash up the garlic and onion. Place the pan over the burner and add the white wine. Simmer until the liquid has reduced by half,scraping all the meaty, marmitey goodness off the bottom to make a tasty little sauce, and season if necessary. Pass through a sieve into a serving pitcher. Then slice the pork and serve it with your incredible baked onions and potatoes, drizzled with the pan juices. Great with some nice greens on an arugula salad." J. Oliver The vegetable portion of this recipe is delicious all by itself! We decided the wine sauce was not worth the effort because the sauce from the vegetable dish was superior to it. The pork loin I bought was on sale, however this would be delicious as a beef or lamb dish too. And don't think this recipe requires an expensive cut of meat, it does NOT! Worth making and great eating. Thanks again Jamie! BTW, I served home-made buttermilk biscuits slathered in REAL butter and home-made yellow plum jam along-side this dish.

Jim & Jamie In The Kitchen

Tonight my husband, Jim, prepared dinner following one of Jamie Oliver's recipes. I asked him especially because venison is almost always cooked by him. Venison is deer meat. My husband is a hunter and any venison in our freezer is there because my husband was successful in his hunt.Not only does my husband hunt and kill the deer , he cuts and wraps the deer for the freezer. Thus, all venison we cook is thankfully received from God, and thereafter preserved and prepared by my dear husband. Jamie Oliver aptly named this dish : "Wild Mushroom & Venison Stroganoff For Two Lucky People" (If venison is not available to you, I think any beef fillet would do nicely) because the ingredients and flavors were a very pleasant surprise to us!

(above:My husband in the kitchen) Wild Mushroom & Venison for Two Lucky People

You will need:

• 7 ounces white rice
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 med. red onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• 11 ounces venison loin, fat and sinews removed, trimmed and sliced into finger-sized pieces
• sea salt & freshly ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 9 ounces mixed exciting, robust mushrooms, wiped clean, torn into bite-sized pieces ( we only had supermarket mushrooms, exciting enough for us)
• a small bunch of fresh flat-leafed parsley, leaves picked and roughly chopped, stalks finely chopped
• a knob of butter ( don't you just love the way the Brits describe this?)
• a good splash of brandy
• zest of 1/2 of a lemon
• 1/2 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
• a few little gherkins ( pickles) sliced

"This venison stroganoff is absolutely fantastic , of course you can use the more traditional beef fillet instead of venison, and any mushrooms you like, but there's something about venison and wild mushrooms that works so well together. Have a go at this and you'll know what I mean." J. Oliver "Cook the rice according to the package instructions until it's just undercooked and drain in a colander. Put the rice back into the pan, cover with aluminum foil and leave to one side to steam~this will give you incredibly light and fluffy rice." "Heat a large frying pan on a medium heat and pour in a glug of extra virgin olive oil. Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes until softened and golden. Remove from the heat and spoon the onions and garlic out of the pan onto a plate. Keep to one side." "Season the meat well with salt, pepper and the paprika. Rub and massage these flavorings into the meat. Place the frying pan back on a high heat and pour in some more olive oil.Add the mushrooms and fry for a few more minutes until they start to brown.Then add the meat and fry for a minute or two before adding the parsley stalks ( you can do this in two pans or in batches if your pan is not big enough) and the cooked onion and garlic. Toss and add the butter and brandy." "You don't have to light the hot brandy, but flaming does give an interesting flavor so I always like to do this. Once the flames die down, or after a couple of minutes of simmering, stir in the lemon zest and all but 1 tablespoon of the creme fraiche and season to taste. Continue simmering for a few minutes. Any longer than this and the meat will toughen up~it doesn't need long, as it's been cut up so small." "Serve your fluffy rice on one big plate and your stroganoff on another. Simply spoon the remaining creme fraiche over the stroganoff, then sprinkle over the sliced gherkins* and the parsley leaves. Eat at once!"

*My husband and I almost did NOT add the sliced pickles. However, I am learning from following the recipes as precisely as possible that things I would have normally ignored because they seem yucky to me might not be as yucky as I imagined and here Jamie Oliver is RIGHT! We did add the gherkins ( pickles) and were very, very pleasantly surprised. Be sure you add pickles to this dish whether you use venison or beef. You'll be glad you did!The lemon zest also contributed to the taste experience, for the better. My husband did a wonderful job of preparing this dish following Jamie Oliver's recipe and if you are fortunate to have a bit of venison or beef this is well worth your time. I am giving you an A+ Jamie and Jim! Jamie well-named this dish " for two lucky people", and WE are!

Jamie Oliver's Cheese & Onion Salad With Dressing

This is our lettuce patch in the garden, the picture was taken in July. My husband has 3 beds of lettuces growing.He plants lettuce in the spring and it is still growing, although scarce and rangy this time of the year. Since I am following Jamie Oliver's wonderful cookbook as it relates to seasons in the garden ( and for those of you who frequent Farmer's Markets this would be the same) I decided to try out this recipe with some of our remaining lettuces. I harvested quite a bit of lettuce and washed and dried each leaf. I did munch on a lot of the lettuces as I was preparing this dish and they are oh, so good all by themselves and without any additions or adornments! My husband was away on business when I made this so I set a little tray for my dinner and added some chicken breast drizzled in *Mary's Cranberry Dressing. ( click* to view recipe).

Cheese and Onion Salad With Creamy Herb Dressing ( EASY!)

• 8 small shallots, peeled and finely sliced
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• white wine vinegar
• 1 romaine or cos lettuce ( I used ours from the garden)
• 1 Boston or Bibb lettuce, outer leaves removed, washed and spun dry, leaves separated ( we actually had some of this lettuce in our garden too)
• 4 large handfuls of mixed salad leaves ( such as arugula, oak leaf and a little dandelion) washed and spun dry, leaves separated ( picked from our garden)
• 4 ounces Roquefort cheese., crumbled
• a good handful of walnuts, toasted and crumbled
• optional: a small handful of chive or allium flowers

Jamie Oliver introduces this easy recipe by saying ," Have a go at this recipe, even if you don't particularly like onions in salads, as they're quite mild. You can use sweet red onions instead of shallots if you like. And feel free to use any interesting mixed salad leaves. "Place the shallots in a small bowl with a generous pinch of salt and pour over just enough white wine vinegar to cover. You'll pour away the excess salt and vinegar once the onions are pickled, so don't worry if you think it's a bit much! Scrunch everything together with your hands and leave to marinate for at least 10 minutes. To make the dressing you'll need: extra virgin olive oil, 2 Tablespoons Creme Fraiche, 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar . Mix 4 tablespoons of olive oil with the creme fraiche ( see note below) and the red wine vinegar . Whisk everything together and season to taste. Squeeze the shallots hard with your hands and drain. Place the salad leaves on a plate. From a height , sprinkle over the shallots and the crumbled Roquefort. Scatter over the crumbled walnuts-it's really nice if they're still a bit warm from being toasted. I like to drizzle over the dressing at the table. Finish by throwing some torn up chive or allium flowers if you have them."

This salad was delicious, I might bring it to our potluck and add pasta to it to make it a filling meal all on its' own!

~I have really learned a lot by reading through and following these recipes. I thought I had a pretty good understanding of basic cooking and putting meals together and usually take a look at a recipe that interests me , gather the basic ingredients and proceed on my own, winging it. Since I accepted my husbands' challenge to make one of JAMIE"S recipes every week and blog about it I have had to follow the recipe as precisely as possible, after all , these are HIS recipes. What I have learned is that there are so many subtle things in recipes I never paid attention to ( such as procedures, herbs and flavorings) that completely transform a meal or dish from" O.K. and tasty" to " delicious, interesting and tasty"! Now I know why many of my husband's lovingly prepared meals go beyond the ordinary. Guess there is a good reason to be storing all those herbs, sauces, oils,vinegars, etc, in the cupboards, pantry and refrigerator. NOTE:Creme Fraiche, this is used in a LOT of recipes that originate outside the U.S. We can buy it at Trader Joe's which is not close or convenient to us.I have searched for it in all our local ( local being within 25 miles) supermarkets and have not found it. You can make a substitute for it. Just Google "Substitutes for Creme Fraiche". I would give you the substitute for it here but found several and if you google it yourself you will find the best one for you. Anyone out there feel strongly about the best substitute for it? Let us know, please!

Jamie Oliver friday~Sweet Cherry Tomato & Sausage Bake~

Our garden is still going gangbusters with tomatoes and cucumbers, so of course I chose another Jamie Oliver tomato recipe. This Friday's recipe is Jamie Oliver's Sweet Cherry Tomato & Sausage Bake and it is very, very easy to make AND eat. You will need:

• 4 1/4 pounds lovely ripe cherry tomatoes, mixed colors if you can find them ( I used our garden cherry and Roma tomatoes , I chopped the Romas up into quarters)
• 2 sprigs each of fresh thyme, rosemary and bay ( from our garden)
• 1 Tablespoon dried oregano ( from our garden)
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 12 good-quality coarse Italian pork sausages
• extra virgin olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

"Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Get yourself an appropriately sized roasting pan, large enough to take the tomatoes in one snug- fitting layer. Put in all your tomatoes, the herb sprigs, oregano, garlic and sausages. Drizzle well with extra virgin olive oil and the balsamic vinegar and season with the salt and pepper. Toss together then make sure the sausages are on top and pop the pan into the oven for half an hour. After this time, give it a sake and turn the sausages over. Put back into the oven for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on how golden and sticky you like your sausages." "Once it's cooked, you'll have an intense tomatoey sauce. If it's a little too thin, lift out the sausages and place the pan on the stove to cook it down to the consistency you like-I tend to make mine quite thick- then put the sausages back in. Check the seasoning and then serve either with a good quality loaf of bread warmed through in a low oven for 10 minutes, great for mopping up the sauce~ or with mashed potato, rice or polenta, a green slald and a nice glass of wine." Jamie Oliver

This ( above) is what it looked like before I put it into the oven, and below I dished it up and put it on top of mashed potatoes. Our garden also has produced a LOT of potatoes . The sweet corn, green beans, potatoes, tomatoes and herbs all came from our garden.

I did not cook the sauce down until thick because I like it thinner, however, my husband said he prefers the sauce cooked down, and next time he would like this served over rice or noodles. So I baked the remaining sausages and tomatoes for another hour on low heat and it is perfect! Hunting season is drawing near for my husband and Jamie has a few game recipes I think we need to try. I am really enjoying this cook book because he does cook with what is in season in his garden and in his area of the world, England. Amazingly, his garden and game opportunities are very similar to ours which makes this a very practical cook book for us. Plus, Jamie's book, JAMIE AT HOME is a beautiful book, real eye candy!

Jamie Olivers Summer Tomato Pasta

It's my Jamie Oliver Friday! He has some tasty dishes in his book that require fresh from the garden tomatoes, and boy do we have those, in abundance. This is the first year ever we have had so many tomatoes ripen. The Pacific Northwest summers in our neck of the woods don't usually lend themselves to ripe tomatoes and corn this time of the year so Hubby and I are tummy tickling grateful . My recipe for this Friday is Jamie Oliver's Summer Tomato Pasta. This recipe is EASY!

You will need:

• 1 pound dried fusilli ( pasta)
• sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 6 tablespoons butter, cubed
• 2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 large bunches of mixed soft herbs ( like green and purple basil, marjoram,flat-leaf parsley,thyme tips and oregano) leaves picked , a few baby leaves reserved, the rest roughly chopped. ( we got this from our garden)
• 1 and 1/2 pounds mixed cherry tomatoes, roughly chopped ( we got these from our garden)
• extra virgin olive oil
• a block of Parmesan cheese for grating

"Pour some boiling water from the kettle into a pan over the heat and add the pasta and some salt. Place a large metal or earthenware bowl on top of the pan. Put the butter, balsamic vinegar and chopped herbs in the bowl and warm until the butter has melted. Now squeeze in the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, then remove the bowl ( from the top of boiling pasta pan) and put to one side. Give the pasta a stir." "With clean hands ( I hope this is standard procedure for you while cooking) really scrunch the tomatoes and all the flavors in the bowl together. Have a little taste and decide whether they need some more seasoning or vinegar." "When the pasta is cooked according to the package instructions, drain it in a colander, reserving some of the cooking water. Tip the pasta into the bowl with your tomatoes and stir the sauce into the pasta. Drizzle with a good glug of extra virgin olive oil , loosen with some of the reserved cooking water if need be, and sprinkle over the reserved baby herb leaves. Serve with a block of Parmesan cheese for grating over. Lovely with some olives thrown in." Delicious, and as I said above, easy! This weekend is going to be a busy one. The Harvest Fest is tomorrow, and there is a farm tour in Pierce County that has our little community center on the tour. It is also supposed to rain, of course! I think I will be bringing my little propane heater to warm my feet while I spin wool. Maybe I will be wearing one of my wool rugs on my lap too. Immediately after the Harvest Fest we have an event to be part of that will be life-changing for some of the participants... God is gracious and He is kind. Maybe I will write about this event later, for now we are hopeful and excited about the future . Praise God! "And may you have the power to understand ...how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love really is....then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God." Ephesians 3:18-19

Jamie's Beef Carpaccio With Marinated Bean Salad

This is sooooooooooo delicious! I never knew how adding just the right combo of ingredients and following such a simple recipe that included a few easy techniques I have never tried, could be so very good and...well, easy!Much easier and quicker than you would think , given how wordy the recipe is. My husband and I were very happily surprised. I had another recipe to present tonight but my husband said I needed to do this one, so here goes..... "Carpaccio is very thinly sliced raw meat....you don't need loads of meat for this, just a couple of slices per person, which should allow you to spend a little more on a good-quality piece of beef." You will need:

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 9 ounces green or mixed beans, topped but not tailed ( we got them from our garden)
• 1 -1lb. piece of beef fillet
• few sprigs of fresh thyme ( got these from our herb garden)
• olive oil

For the marinade:

• 2 small shallots or 1/2 a small red onion, peeled and very finely chopped
• a handful of fresh soft herbs ( chervil, parsley, yellow inner celery, tarragon), leaves picked and chopped
• 1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• extra virgin olive oil

"Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Drop the beans in and cook for about 5 minutes. When perfectly done drain them in a colander." "To make the marinade, mix the shallot or onion in a bowl with the herbs, mustard, vinegar and 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Season with the salt and pepper to taste, then add the hot cooked beans and toss. Put to one side to allow the beans to cool down and take on all the fantastic flavors." "Place the beef fillet on a chopping board and season it all over with salt and pepper. Run thyme sprigs under hot water for a few seconds-this will help release their fragrant oils. Strip the leaves from the stalks and chop them up roughly. Sprinkle the thyme over the fillet, then roll the meat around the chopping board so that any excess seasoning and herbs stick to it." "Get a heavy frying pan very hot and add a splash of oil, followed by the beef fillet. Fry for 1 minute only, turning it every few seconds to sear and encrust all the lovely flavorings onto it. Take the meat out of the frying pan and put it on a plate to rest for a minute. ( once seared, you can serve straightaway or you can keep the meat covered on a plate until needed. I prefer not to keep it in the fridge.)" "Using a sharp knife, now slice the seared fillet this thick:---- Lay each slice on a board and flatten as much as you can by pressing down on them with the side of a chopping knife-it works a treat. Lay 2 or 3 slices out flat on each plate. Season again lightly and place a pile of beans on top, spooning over some of the marinade. Sprinkle over any leftover herb leaves and drizzle with some good extra virgin olive oil." Jamie Oliver ( Jamie At Home) I am enjoying trying out new recipes that include fresh herbs and vegetables in season. We still have loads of tomatoes and beans, carrots, corn and potatoes to harvest. According to the weather man we are in for frost very soon so I am taking advantage of Jamie's late summer recipes .

Jamie Oliver's Incredible Baked Cauliflower & Broccoli Cannelloni

This is the first recipe I tried out of my new Jamie Oliver Cook Book. Jamies' book is based on the seasons in a garden and what other meats and produce are most available in particular seasons. As our garden and our daughter's garden are producing abundances of tomatoes and broccoli and cauliflower now, I started in his late summer / early fall section with 'Incredible Baked Cauliflower and Broccoli Cannelloni .

Ingredients

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound broccoli & 1 pound cauliflower, washed , florets and stems chopped(*from our daughter's garden~ and he really does mean CHOPPED!)
• olive oil
• 7 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
• small bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked (*from our herb garden)
• 1 ounce can best quality anchovies in oil, drained and chopped, oil reserved
• 2-3 small dried chilies, crumbled
• 2 cups good quality tomato sauce. ( *tomato sauce made from our garden tomatoes)
• good quality red-wine vinegar
• 2 cups creme' fraiche
• 7 ounces finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 16 cannelloni tubes
• small bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked ( *from our daughter's garden)
• 7 ounces mozzarella cheese (*Jamie says "tear"over the recipe, but I grated this & sprinkled liberally over the top)
• extra virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bring a large sauce pan of salted water to boil and drop in the chopped broccoli and cauliflower. Boil for 5-6 minutes, until cooked, then drain in colander reserving some of the cooking water(*You don't need to save more than 2 cups). Heat a wide saucepan, pour in a couple good glugs of olive oil and add the garlic. Fry for a few seconds, then add the thyme leaves, anchovies, anchovy oil and chilies and continue frying for a few seconds more before adding the cooked broccoli and cauliflower with around 4 tablespoons of the reserved cooking water. Stir everything together, put a lid on the pan leaving a little gap, and cook slowly for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring regularly-overcooking the veg not only intensifies their flavor but gives you the texture you need for this recipe. Remove the lid for the last 5 minutes to let the moisture evaporate, then use a potato masher to crush the veg. Take the saucepan off the heat, taste the vegetables and season carefully with salt and pepper.( *This alone would make a delicious veg dish!) Spread the mixture on a baking sheet to cool. Meanwhile, get yourself another baking dish or roasting pan ( the right size for fitting the cannelloni tubes snugly side by side ) and pour in the tomato sauce with a pinch of salt and a swig of red wine vinegar. (*Jamie does not say anywhere to pre-boil the cannelloni, but I did anyway not trusting it to be done enough otherwise. I am glad I did. I precooked the tubes for about 6 minutes and they were easy to handle and baked up perfect) Now, to make a really quick and easy white sauce, mix the creme' fraiche with half the Parmesan, a sprinkling of salt and pepper and a little of the cooking water to thin it down. Spoon your cooled broccoli and cauliflower mixture into the tubes. (*Jamie proceeds to talk about turning a sandwich bag into a squeeze bag to squirt into the tubes, which I did, then gave up and spooned it into the tubes which turned out to be way easier and less messy. I stood the tubes in a chunky glass to stand them up for easier filling.) Fill the tubes up~don't be stingy!~and place them in a single layer on top of the sauce. Lay the basil leaves over the cannelloni and spoon your white sauce evenly over the top. Season with black pepper, sprinkle over the remaining Parmesan and tear over the Mozzarella. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and bake for 30 to 40 minutes , or until golden on top. This is delicious! I will make this many more times, but after making it for the first time following Jamies' advice I have decided he probably has help with the clean up because I used most of my big pans and bowls. I know now how to streamline the making of this recipe without changing a thing. So very worth making! Thank-you Jamie~ NOTE: I have posted Jamie's recipe according to his book, any comments with an asterisk are mine. I have not added all Jamies' wonderful comments on gardening, his experiences and colorful anecdotes because it is HIS book and well worth purchasing for it's beauty and practicality. I have added some of my own remarks to make some things more clear or explain some things that might be very clear to the British reader but not to many Americans.

Spot on A Great New Cook Book and Cooks

This is my birthday present from my daughter and her family and I love, love, love it! I thoroughly enjoy Jamie Oliver's cooking show on the Food Network, but as it is now on very early in the morning I do not get a chance to see it. Our daughter's family DVR's it and we watch it together at a more ( to my way of thinking ) reasonable hour. Even better, I usually have a grandchild or two in my lap as we watch Jamie..oh joy! My husband is the "foodie" in the family and I thoroughly enjoy doing the table setting,being the go-for, and clean-up help when he prepares delicious meals , quite often, for friends and family. After all, my reward is that I get to eat fine food and drink fine wine and visit with people we love. Such a small price ...but I digress. My daughter asked what I wanted for my birthday and I suggested maybe a DVD of Jamie Oliver, not realizing he had a cookbook published. What a cookbook! It surpasses his show. It shows pictures of his gardens, him hunting, cooking outdoors, and much more...all done very practically too. As the wife of a hunter, it is refreshing to have a healthy view of such a much-maligned endeavor. Well prepared game of any sort is a rare thing now-a-days. I cannot say enough in favor of this cook book, and I will be reading it from cover to cover...and I have only read one other cookbook that way...might write about it later. All this to say that my husband suggested I cook through this book and blog about it like the movie "Julie, Julia". Nope, not going to do that, but I have decided I will blog every Friday starting next week about recipes from Jamie's book, and cook my way through it. Jamie's book is orderd seasonally and I will prepare his recipes accordingly. I will start with Autumn recipes and hopefully my husband will give me a LOT of help and we will have opportunities to share these meals with friends and family . I have been very, very busy preserving the harvest and bounty of the garden my husband so lovingly prepared, planted and tended. All he asks is that I do not let the fruit and vegetables go to waste. Until this year , my poor husband's labors have oft been wasted or ended up as chicken food because I am at the fairs from mid- August til the end of September and when home am too exhausted to do much canning, freezing, etc. Then I am ashamed for the waste and sad for my husband's hard work for naught. No more! I have canned pickles, jams, and tomorrow will can Tomato Jam, a recipe I found on this wonderful blog: One Perfect Bite* ( click here). I am excited about trying this jam out on broiled French Bread with a dollop of goat cheese on top. Another book my daughter and her family have ordered for me is by Nigella Lawson*( click here). I have seen a few of her shows ( Nigella Bites) on the Food Network, but she, too, is now on way too early for me. There is just something so pleasant about a woman who loves to cook AND eat too! I watched her prepare a few egg dishes awhile ago and thought I could get excited about cooking like that. Can't wait for my new cook book by her! Meanwhile, because I have been busy canning produce I have been making easy breezy dinners. That is O.K. with my husband because he has been coming home from work and straight-way working on finishing his new Honey house / pump house. It is looking good and we have been needing a new pump-house and water pump for a long time. It has room for all my husbands' bee-keeping equipment, and also has been prepared for extracting and storing honey. Yay! Dinner tonight was sliced ripe tomatoes, with baked chicken, toast and FETA PEPPER DIP , thanks to Noble Pig *( click here)! It is good, try it, you'll like it! "Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat, to drink and enjoy oneself in all one's labors in which he toils under the sun during the few years of his life which God has given him; for this is his reward." Ecclesiastes 5:18