seasons change with the scenery....

We've had a long, late Autumn this year... but the cold weather seems finally to be closing in with a vengeance and the last of the golden leaves are falling from the trees to form a frosty layer on the side of the road.

That can only mean one thing!  

Yes: time to start making casseroles and chillies and other soothing, luscious, slow-cooked meals.  It seems I'm not the only person to be thinking this, and over at Uborka they've been hosting CassFest all week, where various contributors are sharing their recipes for homely, slow-cooked goodness.

So far, we've had Lyle's Slow Chilli, minibeastgirl's Shepherd's Stew Pie, Karen's Roast Pepper Chilli, Stroppycow's Pork Belly and Pineapple, Pix's Slow Cooker Sausage Casserole and we've also had Swisslet's Stew.

Yeah.  I'm branching out into recipes.  I'M COMING FOR YOU, OLIVER!

Farmer's market shin beef, delicious root veggies, red wine and...er... a tin of anchovies.  Trust me, it's an umami thing.  Delicious.  Also, because this recipe was written by me, there's a pointless, rambling anecdote on why making cocktails is a science but cooking is an art.

You can read it all HERE.  It's bad form to just republish, innit.

Comfort food FTW because [adopts ridiculous Yorkshire accent and stares mysteriously into the far distance]

Winter is coming....

Wrap up warm and eat stew.