As the summer approaches, trees blossom and bulbs come to life, I find myself turning my back on the heavy, comforting foods of winter, and beginning to think of barbecues, outdoor dining, lighter meals for lighter evenings.
Of course, living in a first floor flat in Edinburgh, outdoor dining and barbecues won't kick in until later on in the year - until I trust the weather not to do something disgusting just as I've carted all the ingredients down the stair and out the back door.
So for now I'm throwing open the windows (then closing them again when it gets chilly) and inviting the summer into my kitchen.
And to do that, without the impractical fun of the barbecue, I've got out the griddle pan.
I'll be honest with you - the griddle pan is an all-year-round feature in this flat. Got so hot it smokes and threatens to set off fire alarms, it's the only way I know to cook steak so it's charred outside but still red inside - and that happens all winter long.
Although I have a fondness for Le Creuset I only managed to fund by making an honest man of The Husband, my griddle pan is a cheapy from Ikea that actually predates him by several years. I got it as a Christmas present when I was a post-grad student in 2002. It's still going strong.
But now I've started using it for other things - things I want to cook lightly, but intensify their natural flavour - a sure sign the summer is here.
This is one example, cooked on the first really summery Saturday of the year. Just to warn you - although it's incredibly easy, and probably takes only 20 minutes of work, it requires a little thinking ahead. If you're cooking it for dinner, pop the lamb in to marinate ideally at lunch time, but in any event, when you put the butternut squash in to roast, a good 50 minutes before you'd like dinner on the table.
For the lamb and marinade, serves two.
250-300g whatever lamb meat looks likely in the supermarket. Shoulder or leg, probably. Cut into chunks, fat trimmed.
Rosemary sprigs, just ordinary 6 inch ones from a packet if you've killed your rosemary plant like me, 4-6 depending on how much meat you've gone for.
Juice of one lime
For the cous cous
Half a butternut squash (or a whole one if you're hungry!)
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Frylight/olive oil
100g cous cous
Mint (fresh, ideally)
Parsley
Chives if you have them handy
Two tomatoes
Lemon or lime juice
Stock cube
Glug of extra virgin olive oil if you fancy
At lunchtime, ideally, strip all leaves but the top ones from the rosemary sprigs, chop lightly, and place in a non-metallic bowl with the lime juice. Toss the lamb in it, and cover with clingfilm to stop it drying out. Periodically, when you're in the kitchen for more tea, give it a stir. (You can add olive oil to the marinade if you like, it stops the lamb drying out so you don't need the clingfilm. But you don't need it.)
You can roast the butternut squash now, or later - I like doing it earlier on because then dinner itself is the work of minutes.
Heat the oven to 180C ish (for a fan oven).
Tackle the butternut squash. Take a SHARP peeler and peel it. Then take a SHARP knife and halve it, scooping out the seeds, and cut it into inch sized chunks. The peeler and knife must be sharp - if you use something blunt, you'll probably lose a finger in the process of peeling and cutting the wretched thing, and you'll certainly lose the will to live.
Bung it a roasting tin with some frylight or olive oil, and a sprinkling of cayenne pepper if you fancy it, and roast for 40 minutes. Allow to cool (unless you're doing it at the last minute, when leave it hot!)
Just before eating, start to heat your griddle pan, and put the kettle on while you assemble the skewers. Use a real metal skewer or something else pokey and sharp to make holes in the lamb so you don't break your rosemary twigs, and thread the lamb on them.
Cook the lamb skewers in the griddle pan for up to ten minutes, turning regularly, depending on how pink you like your lamb. I think we did ours for about six.
Meanwhile, make up your cous cous according to packet instructions with the boiling water, but lob a stock cube in, and cover it and leave it to do its thing.
While you're waiting, cut up the herbs and the tomato and juice the lemon or lime. When the cous cous is ready, stir these through, with a good glug of extra virgin olive oil if you're not trying to be good, and the butternut squash.
Heap the cous cous into pasta bowls or deep plates, and put your lamb skewers on top.
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