Traditional Dinner Date Menu

On a first date you should meet in a busy public place, but when you get to know each other a bit better, a dinner date can be a great way to impress your date.

You could slave away in the kitchen for hours creating jus, foam, or anything else that’s synonymous with fancy restaurants, or you could opt for popular home cooked comfort food with good local ingredients like bangers and mash.

This recipe might look long, but it’s tasty and not as tricky as the long list of ingredients might suggest.

Bangers and mash with onion gravy

Bangers and mash is a simple option that depends on using good quality ingredients and serving it fresh. Ask your butcher for their tastiest sausages, select very starchy potatoes like russet Burbank or Maris Piper and cook your peas at the last minute.

Ingredients

• 6 good quality sausages (this number depends on the size of the sausage and how hungry you are)
• 450 g/1 lb of potatoes
• 30 g/1 oz of butter
• 4 Tbsp double cream
• 1 onion (red or white depending on your preference)
• 1 sprig of thyme
• 100 ml red wine
• 100 ml stock
• 100 g  of peas

Method

• Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6
• Put the sausages in a roasting tin and put into the preheated oven for 15 minutes, turning half way through the cooking time, or when they are browned on top
• After 15 minutes, chop the onion and add it to the pan of sausages
• Put the pan back into the oven and cook for a further 20 minutes
• Add the thyme, stock and wine to the sausages and cook for a further 20 minutes
• After putting the sausages back in the oven, cut up the potatoes and place them into a pan of cold water
• Have a well-earned rest for 5-10 minutes
• Bring the potatoes to the boil and then reduce the heat
• Cook the potatoes for approximately 10 minutes, or until they are tender
• Remove potatoes from the heat, mash throughly with a masher, a food processor, a blender, or ricer and stir in the butter and cream
• Cook the peas until they are warmed through, but not stodgy
• Serve everything together, spooning the onion gravy on top.