Sausage and Cabbage Casserole

Back in January, this recipe popped into my inbox and caught my eye. I'll admit, I'm subscribed to so many recipe sites and blogs that I tend to skip over the emails and rarely follow them to their source. However, I'm so glad I did with this one! Super easy, fairly simple and completely satisfying. 

Let's be honest here: when has Deb from Smitten Kitchen ever led us astray? Never. So, it's no surprise that this was such a lovely dinner! I went with herb sausages but I think you can use whatever you have on hand. This recipe seems pretty adaptable and since it only has five ingredients (three of which you definitely already have - butter, salt and pepper) it's a great option for a weekday evening as long as you get home at a reasonable time. Since the cooking time is about 2 hours, you might be better off leaving this for a relaxed weekend night.  

Despite my family's Irish roots, I really didn't eat much cabbage growing up. As a result, I never add it to my shopping list or drop it in my basket on a whim. However, with this recipe, I'll definitely be doing that more often. In fact, the next time I make it, I think I'll double the recipe so that there are plenty of leftovers for lunch. With these quantities, we pretty much demolished it in one evening. What can I say? We're unapologetically greedy. 

In fact, we inhaled it so quickly that I completely forgot to get a finished photo! Oh well. I have no regrets. I think the simplicity of this dish is what makes it such a winner - really clean flavors with just the right amount of saltiness balanced by the cabbage that takes on all the lovely sausage flavor. I'd like to try this with maybe a caramelized onion sausage to see if that offers any additional benefits.  I also liked how economical this dinner was since sausages are usually available for under 5 pounds and the cabbage was only about 1 pound so with the bread that we had along side, the whole thing comes in well under 10 pounds. For two people, that's a pretty decent grocery bill. If you were having this along with more robust side dishes (such as baked sweet potatoes and salad), this could easily stretch to four people. 

Recipe via Smitten Kitchen

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 2 hours 

Serves: 2-4

Ingredients:

1 Savoy cabbage (approximately 2 lbs or 900g), coarsely shredded 

1 package of sausages (1 lb / 450g), casings removed 

2 tbsp salted butter

Salt

Pepper

Method:

Preheat oven to 300F / 150C.

Over high heat, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the shredded cabbage and boil for three minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water, then set aside.

Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish and add a third of the cabbage. Cover with half of the sausage meat, dotting the pieces around the dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and dot with butter. Repeat with another third of the cabbage and the rest of the sausage, adding more butter and seasoning. Finally, top with the remaining cabbage. Dot the top with butter and cover the dish tightly with parchment paper. Finally, add a layer of aluminum foil to the top and place in the oven.

Bake for 2 to 2 and half hours, removing the foil and parchment paper for the final 30 minutes or until the cabbage is soft and the sausage is fully cooked. Enjoy! 

Travel Caper: Raiding the French Pharmacy

In February, I escaped the confines of London for a Valentine's trip to Paris. While it was lovely to show Matt my favorite spots and spend time with my friends Laure and Vaite, one of the best reasons to visit France has to be the opportunity to raid their pharmacies! For years I've seen beauty bloggers extolling the wonders of these shops and I have to say, they were right. All you have to do is step into one of the many pharmacies around the city to see what all the fuss is about. I think it's fair to say that skincare is a major focus within these shops and the sheer volume of products is astounding. I wanted to get a photo within the shop but the pharmacist's expression suggested that might not be welcome... 

Anyway, I picked up six treats this time and have had a month and a half to test them out. Just as a preface, I'm not a beauty blogger by any means and am definitely more comfortable discussing different dishes and spices. My opinions below are from the point of view of a consumer rather than an expert so I'll probably not cover things as well as someone else might. However, so far, I'm really pleased with all of them and am looking forward to my next opportunity to check out more products. 

Bioderma Micellar Water 

I've used this product about a million times before and I really love it. It's billed as a great way to remove makeup and pollution from your skin after a day of wear and tear and it's built up a huge cult following as a result. I find it really gets every last bit of makeup off and I tend to use just a little on a cotton pad after washing my face at night. It also offers a nice refresh during the day - particularly in the summer heat. I was a bit greedy and couldn't resist the special offer so I went ahead and got two bottles. I think Bioderma is available in most places outside of France but with a hefty markup. I've also seen that micellar waters are very popular at the moment and so there are a lot of other ones out there on the market. If you haven't tried it yet, I definitely recommend it! 

Next up, I have three new facial skincare creams - I'd never tried these before so I wasn't sure what to expect. So far, they seem to all be very nourishing without being greasy or leaving too much residue. Additionally, I was glad I went with these three because they seem to have very different uses. 

Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre 

This was another item that I'd heard a lot about through beauty blogs and the media. About a year ago (I think), this brand was released in Britain and there were tons of articles about it since it's such a cult favorite. I'd never tried it before and so was really curious about what kind of impact it might have on my skin. After using it for a month, I think the best way to describe it is as a light facial moisturizer. I find it goes on really smoothly and sinks in quickly. However, if you had dry skin or any other issue, this might not be the right one for you. I know they make a different version and I'm wondering if maybe that one is more heavy duty. All in all, I do like this cream but I'm not sure if I like it more than my old favorites. 

Lierac Diopticalm 

I'd been thinking of switching up my eye cream for a while and, when I came across this product online before my trip, I thought I'd give it a go if I could find it. So far, I like the packaging since you have the option of a fine tip applicator or you can unscrew the lower level if you want to apply a larger amount. Also, it does seem to be nicely moisturizing around the eye area so I'll definitely keep using it. However, I'm still on the fence about whether I'd want to repurchase this one or if I should hunt around the pharmacies here in London for an alternative. 

Avene Cold Cream

Growing up, my mom always extolled the virtues of cold cream as a makeup remover and moisturizer so this product was not exactly new to me. Also, my former flatmate Laure would always tell me about Avene products and how great they were. So, I thought this could be a nice opportunity to combine these recommendations. I've been using this cream in conjunction with the Embryolisse and Lierac products for areas that need a bit more love - such as around my eyes and on any dry areas. This one is definitely the heaviest of the three and does have a slightly greasy residue (although this dissipates pretty quickly). I don't think I'd ever use this as my sole face cream but I will definitely keep it on hand as an extra level of moisture when needed. However, I should point out that Avene products have the most noticeable scent of any of the items I bought on this trip and I can see why that might be a bit of a turn off for some people. If possible, I definitely suggest testing them out so you can see what I mean before purchasing. I believe Avene products are available here in the UK but again, I think you pay a bit extra for them. 

Finally, I rounded out this shopping trip with two products for the body. At the time, my skin was strangely dry (considering how much water I drink in a day) and so I was hunting for something to fight the winter weather. Fortunately, these two items really saved the day! 

Topicrem Ultra-Hydratant Lait Corps

I'll admit, I took a bit of a chance on this one. I'd done some research prior to my trip and seen this body cream listed on a lot of blogs. However, when I went to find it, I only found it packaged in duos. It seemed silly to go to another store so I went ahead and bought it. Luckily, it's just as good as expected! Really light but still nicely moisturizing - it's perfect for putting on quickly while getting ready for work. Completely non-greasy, I find it sinks in almost immediately. Definitely glad I went with the two pack! 

Avene Cold Cream for Hands 

This little hand cream was a bit of a last minute grab. I had been looking for something to bring back for my flatmate and I stumbled across these cute little hand creams. They're the perfect size to throw in a purse and are really rich. My hands get super dry during the colder months and this has been great for combating that annoyance. Again, it has the same scent as the facial cream so I can see that being a drawback for some people. However, the perfume wears off quickly while the cream lasts for ages. 

I had so much fun poking around the pharmacy (I went to a medium sized one on Rue de Commerce) and I do think it was worth dragging them back across the channel. While several of these items are supposedly available here in the UK (although I haven't seen them in my local shops), I think there's something so fun about trying out new products in a different setting. Can't wait for the next Parisian adventure so that I can find some more hidden gems!