Pimp My Beans

Baked beans are a store cupboard staple onboard but on their own can be a bit boring so why not try adding a couple of ingredients to jazz things up?

Ingredients
1 can baked beans
half a chorizo
2 good pinches of paprika (Spanish is best)
drop of oil (whatever is in the galley)
freshly ground black pepper
toast (optional)

Method
1. Heat the oil in a pan
2. Lightly fry the chorizo and add the paprika, stirring well
3. Sling in the beans and add a little black pepper
4. Serve on toast

Preparation time - 5 minutes
Serves 2

For more recipes click here

Hang on to your hats!

The crew of Cassiopeia - chartered from Fairview Sailing - had provisioned efficiently for our week’s cruise by ordering on-line and arranging delivery to the marina. Everything was still in the crates when we arrived which cut down the amount of ‘lifting and shifting’ dramatically with an added bonus of the crates fitting neatly into the storage space on our Bavaria 37 thus reducing the need to unpack everything.

Sunday night in Hamble kicked off with pitta bread and houmous starter followed by Greg’s chorizo casserole with pasta which was really simple to prepare and very tasty. Monday night found us moored in Royal Clarence Marina in Gosport, next to Dee Caffari’s Aviva, where Toby prepared a hybrid chilli con carne from kidney beans and haricot beans which was much appreciated after a fast sail down from Hamble.

Following a beat towards Cowes on Tuesday morning, which include a hi-line recovery exercise with Coastguard Rescue, we moored up in the Medina river for an excellent lunch of sausages in pitta bread accompanied by succulent cherry tomatoes and rocket in the cockpit. After a blustery afternoon's sailing, with winds gusting over 30 knots, we headed for shelter at Bucklers Hard in the Beaulieu River. Here, Neil prepared an onion salad starter, cooked us pork in disguise served with mashed potatoes and carrots and served up a cheesecake which set us up nicely for an after dinner walk along the river path to the Master Builder for a nightcap.

The forecast for Wednesday was still F6/7 so we abandoned our original plan to sail to Poole. Instead, we put 3 reefs in the main and sailed into Christchurch bay then onwards to the fairway buoy. Plans to have cornish pasties and beans for lunch were abandoned when the gas ran out and with rough seas giving 3-5m waves, we opted for a quick cheese sandwich instead. Returning to the Solent at about 8 knots, we headed for Yarmouth with the wind whistling through the rigging. Tonight, the galley had the night off and we eat ashore at Salty’s instead.

With the south-westerly wind still blowing a hooley, we stormed up the Solent to Wooton Creek then dropped the anchor in the shelter of Osbourne bay for lunch of cornish pasties and beans – this time cooked with a full gas canister. After practicing anchoring and MOB under sail, we headed for the relative calm of East Cowes marina and Neil’s sweet and sour chicken with rice. Neil had used a whole chicken which he jointed. The extra chicken pieces where cooked in the oven, with a special marinade of tomato ketchup and brown sauce, to have as a midnight feast when we returned from night sailing practice later on.

During the week, we eat mainly cereal and toast (courtesy of the electric toaster when on shore power) for breakfast varied with bacon butties one day and a full English breakfast on the last morning. Lunches were simple sandwiches or heated sausage rolls / pasties supplemented by a cup-of-soup - ideal for sailing in strong winds and moderate to rough seas.

PS no hats were lost overboard!

Photos by Toby Denham

B&B on the water

Out on the water for the first time this year on B&B - not a bed & breakfast but a Dehler 36SQ. Our skipper and host provisioned for a chilly sail which turned out to be quite sunny. To keep us warm inside, Brian prepared Heinz Chunky Vegetable "Big Soup" and sausage rolls for lunch. Very warming and filling and faster to prepare than sandwiches! Then for dinner, he prepared the yotties favourite - spaghetti bolognaise but with portobello mushrooms for extra taste. No wonder my sailing clothes are feeling snug.

Cork Week 2008 with Anticipation

My first experience of Cork Week Regatta was this year on Anticipation - a Beneteau First 40.7 owned and skippered by Pete Newlands who is based in Cowes. We set off from Cowes after a day's delay due to adverse weather and made slow, bumpy progress out West. After pulling into Dartmouth [due to technical problems and exhaustion] we set off again in better weather - passing the Lizard and Land's End out into the Celtic Sea.

This time I wasn't involved with the provisioning and it was interesting to see how Leanne went about it. There were 11 mouths to feed on the outbound delivery trip and Leanne cooked several meals for us to eat on the journey. These were made from fresh ingredients and frozen in a large tin foil tray. This meant that the food was more transportable and all we had to do was choose our meal, let it defrost and just pop it in the pre-warmed oven. Once most of us had stopped hanging over the rails to feed the fishes [i.e. after Dartmouth] we enjoyed pasta bake, mild green Thai chicken curry and spaghetti bolognaise - and managed to keep it down this time! Saving the tin foil containers also comes in handy as these can be reused for roasting vegetables or cooking bacon and sausages for breakfast.

Arriving in Crosshaven just over 4 days after departing Cowes, one enterprising crewmember managed to find a bottle of wine and a case of beer despite it being 3 a.m. in the morning. This didn't last long but was a welcome arrival drink as we don't drink alcohol on passage.

After a brilliant night's sleep, we spent the next day making sure everything was in good order for the start of the racing. There was some time off in the afternoon and rather than just succumb to the fast food stands, Wil and I walked to the Farmer's Market in the village to have a look around. Here were enticing stalls of local produce where we nibbled our way around then settled on some mackerel pate, homemade fishcakes, dinky little round courgettes, bright red peppers, succulent tomatoes and salad with nasturtium leaves. Armed with a bottle of high quality olive oil and a nice bottle of wine, we headed back to Anticipation. As everyone else was content to brave the fast food stands, we had the yacht to ourselves. Wil is a genius in the galley so all I had to do was open the wine and have a stab at making Melba toast to go with the pate. Delicious!

In the following days, we were totally focused on racing, winning all 9 races in our class!!! We did take a litlle time out to visit some local restaurants during the event. Then it was goodbye to a successful Cork Week and back to Cowes. This time, the weather was favourable and we made it the return passage in less than 48 hours.

Fast Cruising: Falmouth - Dartmouth

On the morning of our first fast cruise from Falmouth to Mevigissey, hardly a breath of wind stirred across the starting line outside Falmouth but once passed St Anthony's Head the breeze picked up, the spinnaker was hoisted and A Day At The Races surged ahead! We anchored under sail outside the harbour entrance to Mevigissey and after a lunch of chicken and avocado wraps we weighed anchor using the power from the sail only and blasted across to Fowey.. Mooring up off Pont Pil, we had dinner on board Vectis Secundis with Kate after pre-dinner drinks in the cockpit. The scenery is stunning here and we were quite content to view Fowey from this aspect. Next day, we did take the water taxi across to have a coffee at the yacht club and go exploring. There are some fabulous food shops in the town mostly selling local produce. Fowey is famous for its mussels so a few kilos were purchased from FoweyFish for a moules marinere back on board to be enjoyed that evening.

Then it was off to Plymouth the next day for dinner at the Royal Western Yacht Club overlooking Queen Anne's Battery Marina. Before setting off for Salcombe, we visited the market in the city centre and bought some scallops, prawns and monkfish for a seafood spaghetti on board. On arrival in "The Bag", our haul from Plymouth was quickly turned into a magnificent feast with a little cream added to the seafood for a touch of luxury. Our final leg from Salcombe to Dartmouth dawned grey and blustery and we raced eastwards towards Dartmouth in next to no time. Our final evening in Dartmouth saw torrential rain but that didn't deter everyone from putting on their evening finery for dinner at the Royal Naval College. After dinner, the fast cruise prizes were awarded and A Day At The Races won her class and was joint overall winner with Fioreun, a much larger Beneteau.

A Few Days in Falmouth

We arrived in Falmouth a few days before the start of the Little Ship Club West Country Cruise which attracted over 25 yachts from all points of the compass.

Falmouth is a real hub of activity for all things nautical. With several marinas, the National Maritime Museum and lots of sailors - both local and visiting from far flung places [more of that later ...] We moored up near the Town Quay which was only a stone's throw away from the bustling High Street with its fishmongers and cafes. Also nearby, were the best showers I've encountered for a long time ... constant hot water and a shower cubicle the size of a small room to yourself. Beats going for a shower next to the car park in Dartmouth!

The day after we arrived,the Falmouth working boats were racing in the harbour under grey skies and gusty conditions. We braved the elements to sail out for a grandstand seat and were rewarded with the magnificent sight of these wooden vessels going full pelt with their bright coloured topsails on show. Also racing were gaffers "Jolie Brise" and "Alice" in full flight.

After a private dinner at the National Maritime Museum on Saturday and fish 'n' chips on Sunday, we decided to buy a crab the next day to eat on board. We bought our crab from Arwenack Fisheries in the High Street. Here, the crabs are delivered fresh each morning, cooked for 20 minutes in boiling salted water and are ready to be sold by 10 o’clock. It took a bit of effort to prepare but the results were worth waiting for. Click here to go to recipes and click on crab salad to find out how it's done.

One unexpected event happened: I came across two friends who had just returned from crossing the Atlantic in a Twister 28 called "Pouncer". Spying the aforementioned "Pouncer" one afternoon, there was no mistaking this was Jane & Charlotte from Greenwich. After leaving a note, Jane turned up later for a cup of tea and a good gossip. Arriving in Falmouth was their first landfall since Bermuda and they were having a rest before pressing on with the final leg to Greenwich.

Reluctantly it was time to go and head off into the east but the rain had stopped and a fair breeze blew to take us and the rest of the LSC fleet towards Dartmouth.

Day 5 - A Day at the Races: River Yealm to Falmouth

We slip our mooring at 0730 in brilliant sunshine and weave our way downstream. Again, the northerly wind does not materialise so we're forced to motorsail towards St. Anthony's Head.

Mackerel lines out again but no bites this time.

Arrive Falmouth 1700 and treat ourselves to fish & chips with a bottle of chilled muscadet.