Braised Chicken Livers

It's sunny!!!! We may just have arrived in Spring. To make the most of it I want to spend minimum time in the kitchen. Quick, wholesome and of course Weightwatchers conscious is what I have in mind.

I thought some nice fresh green Veg with a sweet Mash and some tasty Chicken Livers will be perfect for this lovely day.

I boiled a couple of Potatoes and roasted a Butternut Squash and a Sweet Potato in the Oven, which then got mashed together to make my sweet Mash.

For the Chicken Livers I sauteed an Onion in a little Olive Oil and then added the prepared Livers (500g) to the pan. Seasoning is white Pepper, Sea salt, Paprika a Bayleaf and a touch of Cayenne Pepper.

I then poured in a cup of ready prepared rich Gravy to create a luscious Sauce.  Simmered until the Livers are just cooked (about 7 minutes) and then sprinkled with fresh chopped Parsley.

A few green Spring vegetables simply steamed made a fitting accompaniment.

It was just srummylicious.

(One portion using about 150g Livers and 1 large spoonful of Sweet Mash are 6 Weightwatchers Points)

Linguettine with Stuffed Courgette Flowers

So here is my creation using the goodies, that I brought back from Naples.
I decided that stuffing the Courgette flowers would be essential, to give them more character and make them an important part of the dish rather then a simple ingredient.
Thinking about it, these stuffed flowers could well be a small appetiser on their own, or as it is so fashionable to do nowadays, an 'Amuse Bouche'.


Ingredients:
(serves 2 @ 10 Weightwatchers points each)
12 Courgette Flowers, cleaned, stamen removed, and kept aside
60g Buffalo Mozzarella, torn into12 pieces
1 Tomato, seeds and skin removed then diced and seasoned with a little Salt, Pepper and chopped Basil
120g Linguettine (dried) or alternatively Spaghetti will be good also
1-2 Garlic Cloves, chopped
1 x 50g tin Anchovies in Olive Oil, drain off of the oil, but leaving about 2 tsp aside and chop the anchovies roughly
a few Basil Leaves, torn


Start by stuffing the Courgette Flowers with a piece of the Buffalo Mozzarella and a few seasoned, diced Tomato pieces. Gently twist the top to close them.



Bring a pot of Water to the boil, season with a little salt and start cooking the Linguettine. They need 6 minutes to cook, however, they will finish cooking in the other pan, therefore I cook them for just about 4 1/2 minutes.
At this time start the other pan off with the Anchovies, it's Oil, Courgette Flower Stamens and Garlic. Bring everything to a medium heat and let it quietly sizzle, while the pasta cooks.

With tongs remove the pasta from the water and drop them straight into the anchovy mixture. Add a couple of tablespoons of the cooking water, then nestle the Courgette Flowers amongst the Pasta.
Cover the pan with a lid and let everything heat through on a low heat in it's own steam. This will  take only a few minutes.
Finally sprinkle the Basil Leaves over the top and wriggle them in.
I think it looks nice served right in the pan as it is.

Did I like my creation? The Mozzarella slightly melted inside the Courgette Flowers, yet still retained a subtle chewiness and the tomatoes giving it a tangy lift, I think I have just impressed myself a little bit.