Nigella Lawson is one of my favorite cooks. She is English, writes well, and is also an innovative foodie. I particularly like her cookbook, “NIGELLA EXPRESS.” Here is her explanation of what she is trying to do.
“There are few things so likely to put a strain on the working day as knowing that you’ve got people coming over for supper a few minutes after you’ve walked in the front door, let alone taken your coat off. I don’t wish to sound negative. I do, it’s true, have a tendency toward slight hermit-like cocooning, especially in the winter, but I also love to be in a room full of friends in the evening. And if I think about it, most of the time when I do have people over for supper, it is during the week. Weekends can get so taken over by my children’s social life, there really isn’t any time for my own. But that suits me. One of the good things about a midweek supper party is that no one expects the grand treatment. And I always, always prefer the mood to be informal. ”
Notice that she doesn’t refer to “dinner,” the much more informal word, “supper,” is used instead. This is important, because in your own head you will be much more likely on the spur of the moment to invite friends over for a meal you call supper. DON’T call in February and set up a date for March; instead call today (it’s first Friday in C’ville!) and say “let’s hit all the openings downtown and then come back here and have supper.”
The recipe below from “NIGELLA EXPRESS” will fill the bill, although you will have to brave the Friday crowd at Whole Foods or Food of All Nations to get Halloumi cheese. You can substitute any sausage for the merguez sausage specified in the recipe below, but you can’t do without the Halloumi cheese, which does NOT melt when cooked.
MERGUEZ WITH HALLOUMI AND FLAME-ROASTED PEPPERS
- 12 oz. of merguez or any spicy sausage
- 1 8 oz. jar roasted peppers
- 1 8 oz. block of halloumi cheese
- 1 T. garlic-infused oil
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Put the sausages in a low-sided roasting pan, this makes the cooking time quicker. (I cut the merguez sausage into bite-size pieces). Slice the halloumi into 1/4 inch slices and lay them on and around the sausages. Take the peppers out of the jar and strew them around the sausage and cheese, cutting them into smaller pieces as you go. Cook for 15 – 20 minutes, by which time the sausages should have browned and the cheese colored in places. (Mine took all of 20 minutes). Serves 4.
Make a salad, serve with French bread and you’ve got SUPPER!
