Pastitsio, Greek Pasta Bake

After 14 years of driving to the South of France every summer, due to my eldest daughter's access and equipment needs, last week we treated our younger two now adult children to a last minute package holiday.  My son likes history and Greek mythology, my middle daughter likes sun and sea, and we all like food, so we settled on Rhodes.  They tried their best to eat most of the popular Greek dishes, but the one of the dishes they didn't try was Pastitsio, a layered lasagne like pasta bake, so I introduced them to it.

Serves 4-6

500g long pasta tubes, pastitsio no.2 aka bucatini, or penne
2 tbsp olive or sunflower oil
1 large onion, finely diced
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 courgette grated, or a bag of baby spinach leaves (optional)
500g beef or pork mince, or a mixture of both
150ml red wine
500g passata
1 tsp dried mint

1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp cinnamon

1 bay leaf
2 eggs

500g greek style yoghurt

1/4 tsp nutmeg
100g grated halloumi, cheddar, or parmesan

Gently fry the onion in 1 tbsp olive oil in a saucepan. 

When the onion starts to look translucent add the courgette if using.  Fry for 5-10 minutes until soft.  Add the garlic and mince, breaking the mince up as you cook it.  When broken up and with very few raw pink bits, add the passata, rinse the carton out with the wine and add this, and the herbs & spices, apart from the nutmeg.  Cover and bring to the boil then turn down to a simmer, stirring from time to time, whilst you cook the pasta.

Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet.  

Just before the pasta cooking time is up, check the pasta sauce. It should be slightly thick, like single cream. If still too watery, take the lid off and continue to simmer whilst you drain the pasta.

Drain the pasta, tip into a large high sided baking dish, and stir through 1 tbsp olive oil. 

Turn the oven on to 180C.  

Beat the eggs into the yoghurt together with a pinch of salt and nutmeg.

Pour the meat sauce evenly over the pasta (if being traditional the pasta should be lined up all the same direction in the baking dish, but I have yet to bother to do this), then evenly cover this with the yoghurt and egg mixture.  Top with the grated cheese.

Bake for 45-60 minutes at 180C in the middle of the oven or until golden brown and bubbling. You may wish to turn the grill of for a couple of minutes to brown the top, but keep a close eye on it - the cheese burns quickly! 

Serve with a big green salad.

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Mexican Roast Potatoes & Beans

We seem to be alternating between pasta and rice for carbs recently, so I googled 'potato main meals' and turned up this Mexican Bean & Potato Bake.  It is a pretty versatile bake - the original recipe says to use kidney beans, but I was going to use pinto beans until I discovered I had leftover Chilli con Veggie.  You could also use Chilli con Carne if not vegetarian.  

Serves 4

1kg potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces

2 tbsp olive oil

1 pepper, cut into bite sized pieces (optional)

400g drained kidney, pinto, black beans, or leftover chilli

400 g tin chopped tomatoes

2 tsp smoked paprika (if not using using leftover chilli)

1 tsp ground cumin (if not using using leftover chilli)

1 tsp hot chilli powder (if not using using leftover chilli)

Salt & pepper

100g cheese, grated

Preheat the oven to 200C/190C Fan.

Toss the potatoes in the oil in a lasagne dish and roast for 45 minutes, stirring around half way through the roasting time, until lightly browned and nearly cooked through.

After 45 minutes, stir through the beans/chilli, tinned tomatoes, spices, salt and pepper. Sprinkle cover the cheese, and return to the oven for a further 30 minutes until bubbling hot, the potatoes are cooked through.  

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Pigs in Blankets Swirls

I started off thinking I was going to make Pigs in Blankets Sausage Rolls.  There are so many recipes out there, with red onion chutney, with cranberry sauce, with Camembert or Brie, with Camembert & Brie and Red Onion Chutney or Cranberry Sauce. But I thought I'd keep mine traditional with just sausagemeat and bacon, and opted for a swirl as I thought it less fiddly.

As ready rolled puff pastry is often vegan, it should be possible to make a vegan/vegetarian version of these with vegetarian sausages and vegetarian bacon.

Makes 18

320g pack ready rolled puff pastry

300g pack streaky bacon

6 sausages

Remove the sausages from their casing by squeezing or cutting off and mash together.  I bought Co-op Irresistible Cumberland Sausages and found the casing incredibly soft so just squished them together with my fingers.

Roll the pastry out on it's greaseproof paper on a chopping board.

Spread the sausagemeat evenly all over the pastry, right up to the edges.

Cover the sausagemeat with strips of streaky bacon in the direction you are going to roll (this makes slicing easier), spacing them out evenly and again right up to what will be the ends of your roll.  I rolled the long side to make smaller swirls, so made sure I had a slice of bacon right up to the left and right hand side.

Carefully roll up the pastry like an Artic Roll.

Slice into 2cm rounds with a sharp knife.  If the greaseproof paper the pastry came on has not been too damaged/cut in the process, arrange the swirls on this on a large flat baking tray or on new piece if needed with a bit of space between them.

Bake at 180C for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.  Best eaten warm, but my son was very happy to eat cold swirls for breakfast on his way into college.

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Choc Chip Banana Bread Breakfast Muffins

More Grab & Go breakfast muffins for my 17 year old son, which he likes to alternate with Bacon & Cheddar Muffins I posted earlier, as he runs out the door to catch the bus to college.

Makes 12

100ml vegetable or light olive oil

75g sugar (optional)

2 ripe bananas (I freeze overripe bananas rather than throw them away, specifically to make this)

225g self raising flour or gluten free self raising flour

100g porridge oats

100g dark chocolate chips or cocoa nibs

1 tsp baking powder

2 large free range eggs

Put all the ingredients, apart from the chocolate chips/cocoa nibs, into a food processor and whizz until smooth. 

Add the chocolate chips/cocoa nibs and whizz to mix them in evenly. 

Divide the mixture into 12 muffin cases.  I use a generous vintage ice cream scoop, which only made 10 muffins the last time I made them.

Bake at 180C for 20 minutes, turning them through 180 degrees half way through the cooking time, until golden brown.  They are cooked through when a metal skewer comes out clean when pushed into the centre.  If not, cook for a couple more minutes then check again.

Keep in an airtight container for 5 days, or freeze.

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Basic White Sauce

This basic white sauce is so useful - for lasagne, macaroni cheese, fish pie etc. I cannot claim credit for the method - Delia Smith should take that, for her all in one method.  No more lumpy white sauce for me. I find it works a treat, if you keep a close eye on it. I can be vegan, if made with plant milk.

Makes 600ml white sauce 

600ml cold whole or plant milk

1 tbsp vegetable or light olive oil

50g/2 heaped dessertspoons plain flour

Ideally in a non-stick pan, add all the ingredients and whisk with a silicone whisk (as you can see, my old non-stick pan has been scratched by using a metal whisk over the last few years) to break up any lumps of flour.

Heat over a medium heat, stirring constantly with a silicone spatula to stop forming into lumps on the bottom of the pan.

After a minute or so you should start to notice the sauce start to thicken.  Keep stirring.  Once it begins to bubble, turn the heat down the lowest and keep stirring until it is smooth and glossy.

If adding anything else (cheese, nutmeg, or garlic etc) add it now and stir in well.  

Use immediately, or keep over a low heat and stir regularly to stop a skin from forming.

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Caramelised Onion Pasta

Social media keeps on pushing caramelised onion spaghetti/linguine recipes my way.  So I gave one a go.

The recipe I roughly followed was a little greasy, not a surprise with all the butter, oil, cream, and cheese, so I added anchovies, chilli flakes, and lemon zest to cut through the richness.  If you don't mind having pasta without much sauce you can omit the cream and add the parmesan and zest after tossing through the cooked onion mixture.

Serves 4

400g spaghetti

4 brown onions, peeled and finely sliced

4 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

15g butter

1 tbsp olive oil, including anchovy oil using

1 tin anchovies in olive oil, chopped

1/2 tsp chilli flakes

300ml double cream

100g grated parmesan or grana padano

Zest of 1 lemon

Fresh parsley

Fry the sliced onions in the melted butter and olive oil over a medium heat for 20-25 minutes, stirring from time to time, until brown and meltingly soft. 

Stir in the chop anchovies, garlic, and chilli. Fry until the anchovies start to break up.

Pour in the cream, cheese, lemon zest and heat gently whilst you cook the pasta.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and mix into the creamy sauce.  

Sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving if using.

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Chinese Congee (Rice Porridge/Soup)

Rice porridge may sound unappealing, but this simple Asian dish is great comfort food and can be taken in a soup flask as a packed lunch. 

Congee is the Mandarin name, Jook in Cantonese, Chok in Thailand, and Cháo in Vietnamese. I regularly had it for breakfast backpacking in Malaysia, Thailand, and Hong Kong.

The classic congee is just rice simmered in water or stock until it breaks down essentially to mush, and flavoured with ginger and soy.

Shredded chicken, minced pork, or egg can be added to the classic congee for protein, but I like to make a plant based version with vegetable stock, tofu, and colourful vegetables.

Serves 2

1 litre vegetable stock

1 cup cooked rice, white rice is traditional but I prefer brown rice

1 tbsp finely grated ginger

2 large cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed

200g firm tofu, grated

1 large carrot, grated

1 pak choi, thinly sliced 

2 spring onions, finely chopped

Seasonings - chilli oil, sesame oil, chilli flakes, soy sauce, and/or fish sauce to serve

Add the rice, garlic, and ginger to a pan.  Pour over the stock and bring to the boil.

Boil for 5-10 minutes uncovered until the rice is a runny porridge consistence. 

Stir in the tofu, carrot, and pak choi to heat up.

Serve when congee comes back to the boil.  Sprinkle each serving with a chopped spring onion, and season with what ever you have to hand and to your own taste.

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Easy Marry Me Chickpeas

Marry Me Chickpeas, or Marry Me Chicken, have been appearing frequently on my social media feeds.  When Marry Me Chickpeas appeared just after I had cooked some chickpeas I thought I'd give it a go.  These make a very tasty change to chickpeas in curry or Middle Eastern dishes.

Serves 4

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 leek, cleaned and finely sliced
1 pot red pesto*

2x 400g tin chickpeas

1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
½–1 tsp dried red chilli flakes
500ml vegetable stock

grated parmesan to serve (optional)

*if making a vegan version, substitute the pesto for 100g sun-dried tomato and 50g cashews or almonds whizzed into a paste with some of the oil from the tomatoes and little water to make a paste.

In a saucepan, fry the sliced leek, chopped onions, and crushed garlic in the olive oil over a medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the leeks and onions have start to soften.

Stir in the rest of the ingredients.

Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 5-10 minutes.

I served ours over brown rice, and the children's with pasta.  Some recipes suggested serving with a green salad and crusty bread.

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Ghanaian Red Red Bean Stew

To complement the Ghanaian Very Hot Shito Sauce we bought our son at Christmas, I made a Red Red Bean Stew last night.  Red Red is a Ghanaian dish, make with black eyed beans, tomatoes, red peppers, scotch bonnet chilli, and red palm oil - hence it's name.  Given the strength of the Shito Sauce I decided substitute scotch bonnet chilli for sweet red pepper.

Although a plant based dish in itself, Red Red is often served with tinned mackerel or pilchards. I added chicken, as my teens are less keen on vegan/vegetarian dishes that we are.

Serves 4

2 tbsp vegetable oil

4 chicken thighs (optional)

1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped

1 cm root ginger, roughly chopped

400g carton of passata

2 tins cooked black-eyed beans and their liquid

2 vegetable stock cubes

1 tsp Caribbean curry powder (or 1 tsp Indian curry powder, 1/2 tsp turmeric, & 1/2 tsp ground allspice)

1/4 tsp chilli powder

Brown the chicken thighs, if using, in the olive oil in a pan big enough to make the stew, and remove from the hot oil.

Liquidise the onion, garlic, bell pepper, and root ginger with some of the bean water to make a loose paste.

Fry the liquidised onion and pepper mixture in the hot oil for a few minutes.

Stir the curry powder and chilli into the onion paste, then stir in the tomatoes, beans, and crumbled stock cubes.

Add the chicken back to the stew if using.  There should be enough liquid to cover all the ingredients in the pan with about 1cm of water.  Add more tap water if there isn't.  If too much liquid, you can reduce this whilst the stew cooks.  Cover (leave the lid off it too much liquid), and simmer for 20 minutes.  

Red Red could be cooked in a slow cooker. After frying the onion paste and dry spices,  pour into a slow cooker together with the rest of the ingredients and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

Serve with rice, or plantain.

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Nordic Salmon Soup/Chowder

Lohikeitto (Finland), Fiskesuppe (Norway), Laxsoppa (Sweden), and Fiskisúpa (Iceland) are all Nordic creamy salmon and potato soups or chowders. This is a simple warming meal in a bowl that takes just over 30 minutes to cook.  I based my recipe on an online recipe for Lohikeitto, and added extra potatoes to make this into a simple dinner for 4.

Serves 4

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 leeks, washed and sliced

2 carrots, peeled and cut into bite sized pieces

1kg potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces

1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed 

1 litre fish or vegetable stock

400g salmon, skinned and cut into large chunks

200ml double cream (I only had 100ml hence mine not looking very creamy)

Small bunch of dill, finely chopped (didn't't have any but would definately add it next time)

Sweat the leeks in the olive oil in a large covered pan over a gentle heat, stirring from time to time.

When the leeks have wilted down to half their size at the start (about 20 minutes), add the carrots. Sweat in the covered pan for a couple of minutes whilst you chop the potatoes. 

Add the chopped potatoes, garlic, and stock which needs to just cover the potatoes.  Put the lid back on the pan, bring to the boil, then turn down to a simmer for 10 minutes.

When the potatoes are cooked through stir in the cubed salmon, cover and simmer for 5 minutes to cook the salmon.  When the salmon is cooked, pour in the cream and chopped dill.  Heat the creamy soup gently and remove from the heat when it is steaming but not boiling.  

Serve.

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Chicken, Sweetcorn, & Egg Noodle Soup

A quick filling soup made with leftover cooked chicken (or Christmas turkey). Vegetarian and vegan alternatives are detailed at the end of the recipe

Serves 4

3 litres chicken stock

3 nests rice noodles 

340g tin of sweetcorn or 1 mug frozen sweetcorn

2cm root ginger

1 large garlic clove

300g shredded cooked chicken

1 egg, beaten 

4 spring onions, chopped

Sesame oil

Chilli Oil

Liquidise the sweetcorn, ginger, and garlic with the water from the tin, or some warm chicken stock to thaw the frozen sweetcorn.

Bring the chicken stock to the boil. Add the liquidised sweetcorn and the noodle nests.  Cover, bring back to the boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions. I used Aldi Brown Rice Noodles which say take 5-10 minutes to cook, and in the end took 7 minutes.

Stir in the shredded chicken, turn up the heat a little, and bring back to the boil.  When bubbling, dribble over the beaten egg.  Leave for a minute for the egg to cook in the hot soup then divide into four bowls.  

Sprinkle a chopped spring onion over each bowl and drizzle with sesame oil and chilli oil to serve.

A vegetarian version can be made with vegetable stock and grated firm tofu instead of chicken.  And a vegan version can be made with vegetable stock, tofu, and 2 tbsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp cold water stirred in instead of egg to thicken the soup a little. 

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Easy Aloo Gobi, Indian Potato & Cauliflower with Green Lentils

Most Indian recipes call for a long list of spices.  We do have these, but I thought I'd make an easy Aloo Gobi with a ready mixed spice blend. I used a spice mix called Chaat Masala as it needed using up (and goes well with potatoes - see Yotam Ottolenghi's Chaat Masala Potatoes), but Garam Masala, or even curry powder would work well.

I also added a tin of green lentils, and some ground flax seeds, for more fibre and to thicken the dish a little.

500g salad or all round potatoes

2 tbsp light olive oil

1 small cauliflower

1 small onion

1 large clove of garlic

1 tbsp chaat masala or garam masala, or 1 tsp hot curry powder

1 can green lentils, including liquid 

1 mug frozen peas

3 tbsp ground flax seeds

Turn the a medium heat on under the olive oil in a large sauté pan and start chopping the potatoes into bite sized piece.  Place the potatoes cut size down in the pan as you cut them.

Once potatoes are all cut and frying gently, cut the cauliflower into similar sized pieces to the potato.  

When you can smell fried potatoes, turn the potatoes over with a slice, make a clearing in the middle of the pan and add the cauliflower.  Cover with a lid whilst you peel and thinly slice the onion.

Flip over the cauliflower and potatoes when you have sliced the onion. Mix the cauliflower into the potatoes and make a clearing in the middle of the pan for the sliced onion. Put the lid back on until the garlic is peeled, sliced and ready to go into the middle of the pan.

Whilst the onion is frying (don't worry if there not much oil left in the pan - browning adds flavour!), sprinkle over your chosen spice and stir every thing together.

Pour in the cooked lentils and their liquid, and another can of water from the tap.  Cover and bring to the boil.

Once boiling add the frozen peas and the ground flax seeds.  Bring to the boil again, this time without the lid.  Once boiling, set a timer for 5 minutes to make sure the potato is cooked (You should be able to push a for into a piece without it feeling hard like uncooked potato. If it crumbles it is definitely cooked!), to cook the peas, and dry the dish out a little.

Serve with chutney and/or extra chilli if wanted.

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Jamie Oliver's Creamy Mushroom Soup

I make Jamie Oliver's Creamy Mushroom Soup every few weeks, and although I know most recipes by heart that I cook regularly, this one I cannot.   So in fear that one day Jamie's recipe will vanish from his website I will copy it here.

600g mushrooms

1 onion

2 sticks of celery 

3 cloves of garlic

a few sprigs of fresh flat-leaf parsley

a few sprigs of fresh thyme

1 tbsp olive oil

1.5 litres organic chicken or vegetable stock

75 ml single cream

Brush the mushrooms clean if required and tear into pieces.

Peel and finely slice the onion, celery and garlic, then pick the parsley, finely chopping the stalks. Pick the thyme leaves.

Heat a splash of olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat, add the onion, celery, garlic, parsley stalks, thyme leaves and mushrooms, pop the lid on and cook gently until softened.

Pour the stock into the pan and bring to the boil over a medium heat, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 15 minutes.

Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper, then whiz with a stick blender until smooth.

Pour in the cream, bring just back to the boil, then turn off the heat.

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Sourdough Pizza

Dad is the pizza baker in our house, and I am the sourdough baker.  He was away for the night, so I thought I'd try making sourdough pizza.  This should, in theory be started the evening before, but I started the morning I was making pizza for dinner and it worked out fine, if lacking a strong sourdough flavour

100g lively sourdough starter
375 g water

10 g salt 

500g bread flour 

Mix sourdough starter, water and salt in a bowl in a large mixing bowl with a strong plastic spatula.  Stir in flour until it forms a sticky dough.

Cover with a plastic bag, shower cap, or tea bowl and leave to rest for 30 minutes. 

After 30 minutes, wet the fingers of one hand and 'stretch and fold' the dough, pushing your fingers down one side of the bowl, lifting and stretching this handful up and folding it down onto the centre like an envelope flap. Do this the oppposite side to where you first folded and then either side.

Stretch and fold more times at 30 minute intervals (set a timer as a reminder).  

Cover the stretched dough and leave to prove for 6-12 hours, or until doubled in size.

Tip out onto a floured surface and divide into 4 equal pieces (roughly
246g each). Shape into balls and place into individual covered containers in the fridge for at least 6 hours, and up to 3 days.  Pizza dough can be frozen at this stage, but the longer it is stored in the freezer the less bubbly the cooked base will be.

A hour before cooking, take the dough out of the fridge. Cut greaseproof paper to fit the baking trays or pizza stones you are using, flour lightly, and tip a ball of dough onto each one.  

Turn the oven on to preheat to 250C or as high as it goes, and put the baking trays/stones in.

Carefully stretch the dough out into a round with your hands, trying not to squash all bubbles.

Top as desired.  Ours usually have a homemade tomato sauce, mozzarella and then the children choose toppings such as pepperoni, jalapeños, anchovies, olives, sliced mushrooms, bacon lardons, cooked or cured ham, and my son's favourite - pineapple (pictured).  We have also made non-tomato pizzas with creme fraiche, garlic, mushrooms, and lardons. And a favourite of mine is rocket, goats cheese, pine nuts, and olive oil.

When the pizza is ready, and the oven is up to temperature, take the trays/stones out of the oven one at a time.  Place on a heatproof surface near the prepared pizza and slide the greaseproof paper onto the tray/stone. Place back in the oven and cook 10 minutes or until the edges of the pizza are brown and crispy.  If your oven does not go to 250C your pizzas will take longer to cook.

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Makaronopita, Greek Macaroni Cheese

Quite simply, Makaronopita is Greek macaroni cheese made with feta, to which I added some chard.

Serves 4

250g macaroni

250g chard or spinach

1 clove of garlic

600ml milk

50g plain flour 

1/4 tsp nutmeg

300g feta

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 free range eggs, beaten 

100g cheddar cheese, grated 

Cook the macaroni according to the instructions on the packet.  Drain, return to the pan and toss in 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil.

Clean and roughly chop the chard or spinach. Heat 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a saucepan and wilt the chard, adding the crushed garlic just before turning off the heat.  Stir the wilted chard into the cooked pasta.

Whisk milk, flour, extra virgin olive oil, and nutmeg together in a saucepan.  Heat gently, stirring with a spatula until it starts to thicken.  Once it starts to thicken, turn the heat down to the lowest and continue stirring until it starts to bubble.  Stir in the beaten egg, then pour over the pasta, chard & feta, and mix thoroughly.

Pour into an oiled high sided baking dish, sprinkle over the grated cheddar, and bake for 40-45 minutes at 180C until golden brown.

The greek recipe website I based this on said to let the dish rest for 30 minutes before serving, but we are all too impatient/hungry so served it immediately!

19/10/24 I made a cheats version of this, using a pot of cottage cheese instead of the white sauce, and omitted the egg as I thought there was enough protein. It worked really well.

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Bavarian Bread Soup

For the first time in 10+ years I burnt 4 sourdough loaves meat for the local farm shop, forgetting to set a timer. Most has now been sliced and frozen, but the hard 'knobby' ends were diced into large croutons and left out to dry.

I had thought about making a Ribollita (Tuscan Bread, Bean & Kale Soup), but a quick google turned up a a new bread based soup to try - Brotsuppe, a Bavarian Bread Soup.

Unsurprisingly for a Germanic recipe, the original recipe is not vegetarian or vegan, using butter, beef stock, cream, and egg.  But it can easily be made vegetarian buy using vegetable stock, or vegan by using olive oil as I did, vegetable stock, vegan cream, and omitting the egg (or liquidising 100g tofu)

Serves a hearty 4-6 (makes 2 litres)

100g cubed brown bread or sourdough

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, peeled & thinly sliced

1 large garlic clove, peeled & crushed

1 heaped tbsp plain flour

1.5 recently boiled water

3 crumbled stock cubes, beef, chicken, or vegetable

100ml dairy or vegan cream

1 egg or 100g tofu (optional)

Fry the bread in the olive oil in a soup pan over a medium heat until golden brown.

Add the onions and garlic and fry as best you can amongst the cubed bread.  After a few minutes stir in the plain flour, followed by the water and stock cubes.  Bring to the boil, scraping the bottom of the pan with a spatula or flat ended wooden spoon. Once boiling, cover, and turn down to a simmer for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes simmering, liquidise the soup with a stick blender.  Pour in the cream and egg, and liquidise again.  Heat gently, stirring continuously for about a minute for the egg to cook and thicken the soup slightly.

If you don't have a liquidiser, simply stir in the cream and beaten egg (if using) at the end of the cooking time.

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Potato & Beef Goulash

Most goulash recipes call for at least 1kg of beef for 4 people, but I found this recipe for Goulash Soup in my saved recipes.  In fact it only called for 250g of beef and 250g of potato to make a soup for 6.  So I increased both the beef and potato to make a soupy frugal stew for 4.

Serves 4

1 large onion, peel and finely sliced
1 large clove of garlic, peeled and finely sliced 
500g braising beef, cubed 

1 red pepper, chopped

1 tbsp olive oil
1tbsp paprika
1tsp hot smoked paprika
1 tsp caraway seeds

400g chopped tomatoes

1 litre beef stock

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 kg potatoes

In a casserole dish, fry the sliced onion in the olive oil over a medium high until golden brown.

Push to one side and fry the beef until outside of the cubes looks browned/cooked.  Stir in the red pepper and garlic, and fry for a few minutes.

Take off the heat for a minute and stir through both kinds of paprika and caraway seeds. Then stir in the chopped tomatoes, beef stock, and vinegar. Return to the heat, cover and bring to the boil.  Once boiling turn down simmer, keep covered, and cook for 1 hour.

After one hour, chop the potatoes into large chunks and push under the liquid in the stew.  If there is not enough liquid, add a little boiling water to ensure everything is covered by about 1cm of liquid.

Simmer for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

Serve with leafy greens or a salad.

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Air Fryer Toad in the Hole

Not a regular dish at home, but thought I'd try it out as the kids love sausages and most comfort foods.

On the plus side, it is quick and filling. But even though it was not as greasy as my memory of Toad in the Hole, two out of three of us agreed we'd rather have bangers & mash.

Serves 2

4 good quality sausages

1 tbsp olive oil

70g plain flour

1 egg

100 ml milk

Salt & pepper to season

Toss the sausages in the oil in an air fryer liner and cook at 200C for 5 minutes.  After 5 minutes turn the sausages over and cook/brown the other side for another 5 minutes.

Whilst the sausages are cooking, beat the flour, egg, milk, salt and pepper into a smooth batter.

When the second 5 minutes is up, pour the batter over the sausages and cook for a further 8-10 minutes until the batter has puffed up and is a dark golden brown.

In an attempt to make it healthy I served it with a homemade red cabbage coleslaw, but nobody had room for it.

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Vegan Curried Parsnip Soup

During Veganuary a few years ago, I came up with the bright idea of adding cashews (or white beans if you have a nut allergy) to my 'normal' curried parsnip soup rather than dairy cream. This is now my new 'normal'. 

Makes 4 large bowls

200g parsnips

50g carrots

250g white potatoes

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped

1 fat garlic clove, peeled and roughly chopped

1 tsp medium curry powder

1 tsp garam masala

25g unsalted cashew nuts, or a can of white beans

1 litre recently boiled water

2 vegetable stock cubes 

Scrub the root vegetables with a vegetable brush, trim, roughly chop, but there is no need to peel.

Fry the onion in the soup pan with the vegetable oil over a medium heat until it starts to turn a golden colour.

Stir the ground spices into the onion, then stir in chopped root vegetables, and add the rest of the ingredients. If you want a more presentable soup, you can keep the cashews aside soaking in 100ml of the boiled water.  Liquidise the cashews and water separately to make a cashew cream, and swirl this into the liquidised soup before serving.

Cover and bring to the boil. Once boiling, keep the lid on and turn down to a simmer for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, take off the heat and liquidise.

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Pastina, Simple Italian Vegetable & Pasta Soup

Maybe because I've been under the weather, but a lot of Pastina recipes have popped up on social media over the last week.

Pastina literally means 'tiny pasta', but seems to have come to mean a simple restorative soup of liquidised vegetables with soup pasta. I'm guessing Italian nonnas would have grated or finely diced the vegetables rather than reached for the liquidiser?

Serves 4

1.5L good quality chicken or vegetable stock

1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped or finely diced

1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped or finely diced

1 large stick of celery, roughly chopped or finely diced

100g orzo or soup pasta

Simmer the vegetables in the stock in a covered saucepan for 20 minutes.  

Liquidise the soup and vegetables if this is your preference.  Add the soup pasta and simmer for the cooking time on the packet, until tender.  Stir from time to time to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pan.

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