A note about traffic

I have been wanting to mention for a few weeks now that I am getting some wonderful traffic to my blog and I am SO encouraged to see the spread of audience.  It seems I have an avid follower from Russia and one from Germany and I wanted to reach out and say "hi, and thank you for tuning in"!!  Please feel free to make comments, add suggestions or provide feedback, I'd be so curious to hear how my blog is being received in other parts of the world.
I love that my friends are sharing it with their friends or perhaps people are stumbling upon it on their own - either way, it's very cool and keeps me inspired to keep cooking for you.  I hope I'm inspiring you enough in the kitchen and with dishes which interest you.  I'd love to know that you are trying them for your own families and friends, and with success, so drop me a line anytime to share your thoughts.

Until the next cry for dinner... stay happy and healthy.  Love Mo

Spaghetti with sautéed cauliflower and brussel sprouts

I wasn't quite sure where this was going when I started out but I had sautéed brussel sprouts, bacon and butter in mind.  It soon turned into this absolutely delectable spaghetti which I intended to be low calorie but in the end I'm not so sure.  I'll add it up later, for now - lets just say I REALLY enjoyed it!  I sat outside watching the girls play, drinking a chilled glass of pinot grigio and the stress of another day of school holidays just melted away....

Ingredients:

spaghetti pasta

extra virgin olive oil

a knob of butter

1 cup cauliflower florets, cut small

1 cup brussel sprouts, cut in half (approx 6-8)

150g pork sausage

100g parmesan cheese, shaved
1 tblspn each of thyme, rosemary, sage - finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tblspn creme friache

red chili flakes

sea salt and pepper

2 slices stale bread, crumbed

Method:

• Boil the kettle for the pasta
• In a skillet or large fry pan, heat a 1 tblspn of olive oil and a knob of butter
• Add the brussel sprouts, cut side down and cauliflower, put a lid on and cook for approx 5 minutes stirring occasionally until they are slightly golden.
• Add the pork sausage to other side of the pan and cook, breaking it up as you go
• Add garlic and herbs and cook until fragrant

• In a separate, small pan, heat 1-2 tblspn of olive oil and add the breadcrumbs.  Fry off until crunchy and brown, approx 3-4 minutes.  Tip out onto paper towel to absorb the excess oil (!)

• Cook your spaghetti until al dente, retaining 1/3 cup of pasta water
• When cooked, add pasta to the sausage and vegetable mix, with some pasta water, the creme friache, a sprinkle of red chili flakes and most of the parmesan cheese.
• Heat through until all combined
• Serve immediately with a sprinkle of toasted breadcrumbs on top, extra chili flakes and parmesan if desired

Roasted Meat Lasagne

I will warn you now... this is seriously good.  It is a Jamie Oliver recipe although in his recipe he uses a combination of 5 meats: rabbit, pheasant, duck, pigeon and venison to make his Italian Hunters Lasagne. That is all a bit too hard for most, including me, so let's do it with Beef.  If you really want to knock yourself over with flavor... use Lamb. And as I've done many times, I use a combination of Beef and Lamb and it works so well.

This recipe is not quick but it is SO worth the effort.   I normally roast the meat and shred it at least the day before and make the meat ragu. It obviously gives it more time for the flavors to intensify, and then it just leaves me to make the white sauce on the day and pull it all together ready to bake.

I think what makes this different to a any other lasagne I would usually make is that the flavors are separated differently.  The onions and parsley are used in the white sauce, not in with the tomatoes, and the triple cooking of the meat makes the meat so incredibly tender and rich.

Ingredients:
Beef / Lamb : 2-3lbs (1-1.5 kg) of roasted, shredded meat.  So more like 4-5 lbs (2- 2.5kg) raw meat.

Tomato Sauce:
Extra Virgin Olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
sprig of rosemary
3 bay leaves
3 x 400g tins of good tomatoes

White Sauce:
3 cups of milk
a xml handful of fresh parsley, roughly chopped
1/2 tspn nutmeg
1/2 onion, peeled and sliced
6 black peppercorns
80g (2 3/4 ounces) butter
65g (2 1/4 ounces) plain flour
150g (5 1/2 ounces) parmesan cheese
sea salt and ground black pepper

To Finish:
grated mozzarella cheese, 100g (4 oz)
fresh mozzarella balls
sage leaves
lasagne sheets
* homemade fresh pasta sheets are obviously the best way to go with this dish but after all this effort you may not want to spend the extra time, I totally get it.  If you can buy some good fresh lasagne sheets, fantastic, otherwise the packet sheets are fine - just soak them first for a few minutes in hot water before compiling the dish to ensure they will cook through.


Method:
Meat Ragu:

• Pre heat your oven to 425'F
• I always sear the meat/s in the roasting tray on top of the stove before placing it in the oven. It helps to keep the juices in and creates a lovely crust and adds to the flavor. 
• Rub your meats with salt and pepper and extra virgin olive oil before searing for 2-3minutes on each side.
• For the beef - then spread a thin smear of dijon mustard over your beef and roast for usually around 50-75 minutes depending on (the size) of cut of meat, (23-25mins per pound for medium rare).  
• For the lamb, make three or four incisions into the meat and poke a sprig of rosemary and a clove of garlic into each cut before roasting for the roughly the same amount of time. 
• When it's done, and slightly underdone is good, remove it from the oven and allow to rest.

• Once cooled, strip all the meat and place in a bowl.  You do this by using a fork and shredding the meat by hand, which gives you the best result.  You can use a mini food processor and break it up into chunky pieces.  You do NOT want it ground so use a processor sparingly and only when your hand is so sore you can't keep going!

• Heat a pan and add a splash of extra virgin olive oil
• Slowly fry the garlic until colored, then add the rosemary, bay leaves and tomatoes.
• Cook gently for 45 minutes with the lid on
• Add the shredded meat to the tomato sauce with a little hot water if it's too dry, season well
• Simmer for 20 - 25minutes, stirring every now and then
• Remove the rosemary and the bay leaves
• Set aside to cool.
• Store in an airtight container until needed, or freeze if necessary at this point.

White sauce:

• Put the milk, parsley, nutmeg, onion and peppercorns into a saucepan and gently bring to just a boil
• Strain the milk and then put it back into the saucepan to keep warm
• In a separate saucepan, melt the butter and add the flour.
• Add the hot milk one ladle at a time until you have a thick smooth white sauce.  
• Once it's combined and heated through, add the parmesan and season if necessary

layer the meat, pasta, white sauce

Final Compilation of Dish:

• Preheat the oven to 360'F
• Boil the kettle and soak the lasagne sheets for 2-3minutes (if using store bought)
• Butter a large baking dish
• Add a thin layer of meat ragu to the bottom of the baking dish, add a little extra water if necessary to give the pasta something to cook against.
• Lay pasta sheets over meat, up over the sides if desired.
• Layer meat ragu over pasta
• Add a thin layer of white sauce
• Repeat with pasta sheets, meat, white sauce until you've run out of meat.
• Finish top layer with pasta, white sauce, a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese and fresh mozzarella balls
• Scatter some ripped sage leaves on top, drizzle with a little olive oil and bake for 45 -50 minutes until golden brown.

Serve this with a beautifully simple fresh mix leaf salad, pine nuts and shaved parmesan.  

Drizzle with my favorite combination of dressing:

- good extra virgin olive oil

- fig balsamic (Old Town Oil - Chicago)

- squeeze of lemon juice

- drop of minced ginger

- touch of white sugar

- sea salt and pepper

give it a good shake and that's it!  

An absolutely killer lasagne which will be hard to beat!

Prosciutto and Fig antipasto

What a lovely platter to share with friends.  Mixed meats, marinated artichokes, roasted red pepper, mozzarella balls, olives and feta with delicate figs wrapped in prosciutto with a hint of basil and a simple drizzle of dressing.  We hosted a Trivia night this week with some good friends and enjoyed this as our starter, followed by a Roasted Lamb Lasagne... (recipe to come). A fantastic, fun night accompanied by some deliciously simple, honest food.

Figs wrapped in prosciutto:

• Cut the figs criss cross at the top, not all the way down to the bottom.  Gently squeeze the base of the fig until the top almost blossoms and opens.  This not only looks incredible and enticing but allows the dressing to drip down inside the fig.
• Rip some green or purple basil leaves and push inside each fig
• For the dressing: mix and shake:
• 6 tblspn good extra virgin olive oil, 
• 3 tblspn lemon juice, 
• 1 tspn honey, 
• salt and pepper
• Drizzle the dressing over the figs and enjoy!

Granola

The smell of freshly baking granola filling the house on a saturday morning... unbeatable. This was something I've been meaning to do for some time now as I hate buying granola in stores, the healthier varieties are so incredibly expensive and this was so easy.  I had everything in my cupboard and throwing it all together and on a tray was too simple.  I love that you could go crazy with this and add anything you like.  My youngest daughter loves 'muesli', as we call it, so I thought I'd make this one pretty simple but you can add wheat germ, dates, apple sauce (instead of oil).  Serve with some non fat greek yoghurt and fresh fruit.  Have fun with it!

Makes approx 1 kg, 2 lbs

Ingredients:
4 cups rolled oats (not 1 minute oats)
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup dried fruit (cranberries, dates, apricots, raisins whatever you like)
4 tblspn walnut oil or vegetable oil or a combination
1 tspn kosher salt
1 tspn cinnamon
1/3 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup unsweetened coconut

Method:

• Mix all these ingredients together in a large bowl until well combined.  
• Pre-heat the oven to 325'F
• Pour out granola onto a large baking tray and bake for approx 40-45 minutes stirring every 10minutes until golden brown.
• Allow to cool
• Store in an airtight container.

Spinach, ricotta and feta rolls

A nice twist on the traditional sausage roll, these vegetarian rolls are great as a lunch or cut larger for dinner with salad or vegetables.  The girls even enjoyed them after getting over their 'green' fear.  They have a wonderful subtle flavor and the little bit of nutmeg brings it all to life.  I was tempted to pipe this mixture into cannelloni shells but I'll save that for another time.  Make a double batch and freeze them or share them with friends.

Makes 12 standard size rolls
225 calorie per serve (1/6 sheet)

Ingredients: 
1.5 cups ricotta cheese
4oz (113gm) Greek non fat feta
1/4 tspn nutmeg
1 box frozen spinach, defrosted and chopped
3 tblspn parmesan cheese
Cracked pepper, to season
1/2 brown onion, finely chopped
Olive oil
Puff pastry sheets x 2
1 egg, lightly beaten for brushing pastry
Sesame seeds (optional)

Method: 

• Let 2 sheets of puff pastry defrost on the counter top. 
• Heat a small pan and add a drop of olive oil. Finely dice the onion and cook until translucent. Set aside to cool. 
• Defrost the spinach in a microwave for a few minutes and then allow to cool before squeezing the excess water out by rolling it in paper towel. 
• In a large mixing bowl, add the ricotta, feta, parmesan and cooled spinach and onion. Season with nutmeg and pepper and mix until well combined. 
• Spread the puff pastry sheet out flat on a lightly floured counter. 
• Cut the sheet in half horizontally and spoon out a length of mixture in the middle of each section. 
• Prick the top edge of each section with a fork and brush with a little milk before rolling the sheet over and sealing. 
• Cut into three even lengths (for adults) or into 9 smaller pieces (for children or as an appetizer). 
• Freeze at this point for future use or else heat an oven to 360'F (180'C) and brush with the beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds before baking for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Thai Fish Cakes

Fish cakes can either be so delicious or so dry. I don't often order them when I'm out because I have been disappointed so many times.  This recipe was totally easy, and left the cakes moist, light and full of flavor.  The dipping sauce was sensational, Mark was raving about it from the couch at every bite, so definitely a real winner for us.  I pan fried the fish cakes in a little oil to get them nice and golden brown but I'd be interested to see if they worked just as well baked in the oven.  This was an adaptation of a recipe from taste.com.au and the dressing was so good unchanged I'll be using that again with so many different things.

Makes 14 small fish cakes
Serves 2-3
Calorie: approx 280-300 per serve

Ingredients:
500g (1 lb) skinless fish fillets, bones removed (I used cod)
2 tblspn red curry paste
2 tblspn fish sauce
1 egg
1 tspn white sugar
1/2 cup green beans, finely chopped
1/3 cup cilantro, finely chopped
3 fresh kaffir lime leaves, stalk removed and finely diced OR just use juice of half a lime
vegetable oil for frying

Dipping sauce:
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 lebanese cucumber (2 inches) deseeded and finely chopped
1 long red chili, deseeded and finely chopped
2 tspn fish sauce
2 tblpsn roasted peanuts, finely chopped

Method:

• To make the dipping sauce, bring the vinegar, sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan to dissolve the sugar. Turn down to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes until slightly syrupy. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
• In a mini processor, process the peanuts and then the cucumbers.  Add to the cooled vinegar mixture with the chili and fish sauce.  Set aside.
• In a food processor, add the fish, curry paste, fish sauce, egg and sugar and process until combined.  Transfer to a bowl and add the beans, cilantro and kaffir lime to the mixture until mixed through.
• Mold into small patties using about 2 tblpsn of mixture at a time.  Place on a lined baking tray ready to refrigerate for about 1 hr before cooking, if time allows.
• Using a wok or pan, pour in approx 1/2 " or 1.5cm vegetable oil and heat over medium/high heat until hot.  Cook fish cakes in batches until golden brown, turning until cooked through - approx 5-8minutes. 
• Serve with dipping sauce.

Tuna Nicoise Salad

Looking for a funky new salad?  Try my version of a tuna nicoise salad, this is divine.  It has all you need in a meal, with a low calorie count to boot. A nicoise normally uses a lot more potato but by reducing it to a few small chunks each you are greatly affecting the calorie count.  If you want to go further, omit it all together and substitute a few brussel sprouts instead.  This salad is kind of like an American chopped salad but with a cleaner approach, it's not over taken by ranch dressing that confuses the flavors so much.

The dressing is simple and really complimentary.  The French often use rosemary, tarragon, chive and anchovy as a base which would all taste fantastic but the simplicity of the thyme and sherry vinegar work so well.  I am in week two of my (serious) fitness journey and have lost 4.8 lbs (2.2 kg) this last week so I am really pumped and keen to keep up my effort so I am searching high and low for some tasty low calorie meals for you.  Harder to find than I thought to be honest, so I have been eating a lot of grilled protein and salads, but this one has been my favorite so far!

Serves 2
280 Calories per serve


Ingredients:
0.25 lbs (120g) Yellowfin Tuna fillet
Mixed salad leaves
1/4 cup Mixed seeded, brine cured black and green olives
1/4 cup Cherry tomatoes
2 Eggs, hard boiled
1 small red potato, boiled and cut into 6 or 8
1/4 cup Thin green beans, blanched

Dressing:
3 tblspn Olive oil
1 tblspn Lemon juice
1/4 tspn dijon mustard
1/4 tspn sugar
Salt and pepper
1 tsn sherry vinegar
1 tblspn fresh thyme

Method:

• Boil the eggs, allow to cool.
• Use the same water, add salt, to blanch the green beans.  Place them in cold water once boiled for 1-2 mins.
• Trim the tuna of any sinew.  Season with salt and pepper.
• Heat a small pan on medium to high heat.  Sear tuna for approx 3minutes on one side, then 1-2 minutes on the other. You want it rare in the middle. Allow to rest, then slice it thinly. 
• Peel and cut the potato into four pieces, place in a microwave dish and cook.  Cut into appropriate size pieces once cooked.
• Combine all the dressing ingredients in a small container, shake and set aside.
• Arrange the salad leaves on the plate, and place the ingredients in sections over the leaves.
• Arrange the tuna on top and pour over the dressing and serve.

Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls

The first time I made these was at a friend's house for a casual dinner party... each couple had their own tray of ingredients and a pan of hot water and as we chatted and drank beer, we rolled our own!  It was the perfect way to control our hunger as each one took a few minutes to put together and we enjoyed them as we went.  They are super easy to make and you can virtually put anything you like in them. These are the essence of summer for me.  Cilantro, mint, shrimp and fresh cucumber... be creative and get rolling!

 Calorie per roll: approx 40

 This amount made 15 pieces.

Ingredients:

Roast chicken breast, shredded or poached chicken or cooked shrimps

Mint

Cilantro

Vermicelli noodles

Julienne carrots

Julienne cucumber

Radish

Rice paper, spring rolls skins

Thai sweet chili sauce

Method:

• Shred the breast meat of the roast chicken 
• Slice the carrot, cucumber and radishes using a mandolin
• Boil and cook the vermicelli noodles as per instructions.  Drain, allow to cool.
• Prepare all the other ingredients and display on a plate or board so all your ingredients are at hand
• Pour warm/hot water into a large container or pan to soak the rice paper rolls in.
• Soak the rice paper rolls for a few minutes until soft
• Layer the contents in the center of the rice paper rolls, adding the mint and cilantro and a little drizzle of sweet chili sauce in the centre.  Fold the two sides in and then roll to secure the edges.
• Serve with sweet chili sauce or a blend of fish sauce, chili sauce, vinegar and a dash of water to mix a slightly lighter sauce.

If you wish to go vegetarian, substitute the chicken for pan fried tofu.

To roll the rice paper rolls, place the ingredients at the bottom center, fold each side across and then as tightly as you can roll so all edges are secure.  The skins are quite delicate so be careful not to over stuff your fillings. 

Best baby back ribs

I enjoyed my first Tailgating experience last weekend...a bunch of us went to see the Dave Matthews Band at Alpine Valley, WI.  Brilliant concert and tailgating was a great way to waste away the anticipation of the event and the afternoon!  As per traditional style, we were set up with as many coolers as the truck could carry, filled with a greater proportion of drinks to food.  We forfeited the bean bag game and stocked the truck with fold out chairs and a grill.

I was in charge of catering so I dug deep and went for absolute 'dude food'.  Baby back ribs and buffalo wings.  I had never made ribs before so I was eager to see how these would turn out.  From the feedback I got from the regular rib-eating crew, these were awesome.  Total mouth watering, falling off the bone, succulent ribs of goodness.  They tasted like they had been smoked all day but the preparation was very simple; rub, marinate, bake and grill. Being able to finish them off on the grill when you are ready makes them the perfect barbeque favourite to share with friends.  They will be the rockstar of any party!

After baking for 2.5hrs, final grilling and basting

Finished ribs, cut into smaller portions, serve
with extra bbq sauce or blue cheese dressing

Serves 4

Ingredients:
4 tspn kosher salt
2 tspn cracked black peppercorns
2 tspn cayenne pepper
4 tblspn paprika
4 tblspn dry mustard powder

2 full Baby back ribs (approx 6 lbs/3kg)

Sweet baby rays - barbecue sauce (or other store bought bbq sauce)
low salt chicken broth/stock (optional)

Method:

• Combine all the dry ingredients to create the rub.
• Cut the racks into manageable sizes of 6-8 ribs.
• Rub the ribs on both sides with the dry rub.  
• Wrap the ribs in a double layer of aluminum foil and seal all the edges.
• Place ribs in the refrigerator on a baking tray for 12-24hrs to marinate.
• The following day, unwrap the ribs gently and squirt a line of Sweet Baby Rays - Original, Barbecue Sauce over each portion of ribs.  Do not over do the sauce, the ribs will create their own juice when baking and combined with the rub, create a beautiful moist glaze.  Re-wrap the ribs in foil tightly and place on a lined baking tray (to avoid any escaping juices blackening your tray)
• Pre-heat the oven to 350'F / 180'C
• Bake for approx 2 - 2 1/2hrs depending on your oven.  You want the ribs tender but not falling apart. (Closer to 3hrs if using spareribs). 
• When cooked, allow to cool.  Tip any cooking juices into a jug and set aside.  
• When cooled, place the ribs and the juice back in the refrigerator until ready to grill.  These can be made up to 3 days in advance, the flavor will just intensify as time goes on.
• On the day: Heat a grill to medium-hot.  
• Combine barbecue sauce and chicken stock with the cooking juices and whisk to measure approx 1 cup of liquid used to baste the ribs while grilling
• Grill the ribs and baste regularly for 7-10 until ribs are heated through
• Cut racks into small portions to serve

Fried Rice

In our house this is known as "Grandad's Fried Rice".  My girls request it every single time they see him and he never lets them down.  I make mine with a few more tasty bits in it to suit us but this simple version can be ready in about 15 minutes, or as long as it takes to cook your rice and I promise it will be gobbled up by your littlies.

Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 cups jasmine or long grain rice, steamed
6 slices of bacon (you could use ham steaks)
3 eggs, scrambled
handful frozen corn kernels
1 carrot, finely grated
1 tblspn soy sauce
1 tblspn sesame oil
1 tblspn butter

Method:

• Cook your rice in a rice cooker, microwave rice cooker or by boiling it - 10-15 mins or as required
• Heat a large wok or non-stick pan
• Add butter and pour in your scrambled eggs.  Stir regularly to ensure eggs are cooked through, and retain a smooth ribbon like texture.  Remove once cooked and set aside.  
• Add the bacon to the wok and cook until browned.
• Leave any oils from the bacon in the pan and now add your carrot, corn (and any other choice of vegetable, ie. peas, red pepper, mushroom, cilantro or spring onion) and the cooked eggs, and heat through.
• Add your rice and a little oil to keep it loose and moving around the pan.
• Add the soy sauce and mix well to combine.
• Serve in small bowls with chopsticks and extra soy sauce if needed

I usually make this amount and freeze some for the kids for another time, it defrosts well if you add a little water to it when defrosting. Otherwise we eat it with them and I add some additional things to our portion, ie. red chili peppers, spring onion, mushroom and pork.  If using pork, I find pork ribs or chops, something with a little fat on it, dice it up into small pieces and soak in soy sauce before rolling it in plain flour.  I cook this off after the eggs with a little oil to get it crisp and crunchy.  The kids like it too however its not "Grandads Fried Rice" that way! 

Turkey Burgers

A low calorie, super tasty and completely filling burger pattie for the whole family.  Even my husband rated it which surprised me, he's not usually one for turkey. This is as far as you can get from a greasy beef burger and so full of flavor it was hard not to like it.

I have just started the Jillian Michaels "12 Week Body Revolution" so I hope to be posting some lower calorie meals for the next few weeks.  As much as I love my food and feel I am a pretty healthy cook most days, I haven't counted calories since I was 16 yrs old so this will be enlightening for me as well as for you. I am only on Day 2 and I'm actually starting by doing the seven day detox, metabolic re-balance diet which is pretty lean on anything fun but this burger pretty much fits that bill.  I ate it without the bun and had a side salad instead and it came in at 283 calories. It was a Rachel Ray's recipe I found online and with a few changes, I almost adore it.

Serves 4
283 calories per serve

Ingredients:
525g / 1 1/3 lb ground turkey (or ground chicken)
100g / 1/4 lb feta
1 box of 283 g / 10z frozen chopped spinach
1 tblspn butter
1 tblspn extra virgin olive oil
1/2 red onion, thinly diced
2 cloves of garlic
2 tspn oregano, fresh or dried
1 tblpsn grill seasoning - I used The Spice House: Greek, "Billygoat" seasoning but McCormacks Montreal Steak Seasoning was also recommended

Yoghurt (aioli) dressing:
1 1/2 cups greek natural non fat yoghurt
2 inches of cucumber, diced
1/2 lemon, juice
1 tspn minced garlic
salt

Method:

• Defrost the spinach either using a microwave or at room temperature. Wring out the excess fluid from the spinach using a paper towel. 
• Heat a pan and melt the butter and oil. Cook the diced onions and garlic for approx 5min, until cooked.  Remove from heat, set aside in a bowl and allow to cool. 
• Mix the spinach, ground turkey, feta and cooled onions and garlic together in a large bowl.  Add the seasoning mix, oregano and a little drizzle of olive oil to help mix and bind the patties.
• Divide the mixture and form into 4 large patties, 1 inch thick.
• Refridgerate for at least 1 hour before cooking on the grill to avoid the patties falling apart.
• Make the yoghurt dressing by combining the ingredients in a mini processor and processing until it becomes a smooth sauce.
• Grill your patties on a hot grill for approx 6 minutes each side
• Serve on a toasted bun or ciabatta, with yoghurt dressing, sliced cucumbers and mixed lettuce leaves or with a salad.

Spaghetti Bolognese

I love nothing more than a deep red, rich tasting spaghetti bolognese.  This one has morphed over the years as our family has changed but I have been cooking it like this for years now and it is by far my girls' favourite dish, Georgia particularly.  It's always one to leave with the babysitter as I know there will be no fuss at the dinner table!  

I always make this quantity so I can freeze small portions for the girls or for another time or to make it into a quick, no fuss lasagne.  I also use this meal on days when I will out in the afternoons for school activities and want something ready when we walk in the door, so use your slow cooker.  I brown the meat and onions first in a pan and pull it all together on the stove top and then put it in the slow cooker and let it cook over the day on low.  The clean up is then done and out of the way usually by 9am and all I need to do is cook the pasta when we get home and grate some parmesan.  As we know, these types of dishes just get better the longer you cook them so get cracking on this early and you'll have it in the slow cooker within 20minutes and can forget about it all day long. 

Serve 6-8

Ingredients:

1 large brown onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

olive oil

1 cup carrot, blitzed or pureed 

3 ribs of celery, blitzed/finely diced

1 1/2 kg / 3 lbs of mixed mince/ground meat - beef, pork, veal.  1:1:1 is perfect

3 x 410g/14.5oz tins tomatoes, pureed

170g/6oz tin tomato paste

1 - 1 1/2 tins (410g/14.5oz) water

2 bay leaves

1 massive handful (total) of basil, parsley, thyme, oregano, rosemary - freshly chopped

(you can use a dried Italian herb blend if you prefer but try to boost with fresh herbs where you can)

1 cup good quality red wine (something you would want to drink)

250g / 1/2 lb bacon or ham, finely diced or 'blitzed' in a mini-processor

sea salt and cracked pepper to season

Method:

• Dice the onions. I always do these by hand as they never get diced evenly in a processor and I end up with large pieces (detectable by the younger generation)
• In a mini processor, place your celery and carrot and blitz to a fine grate.* set aside.  Then blitz the ham or bacon.
• Chop your herbs or put those in the processor too if you like with the bacon.
• Heat a non stick pan with a good glug of olive oil and when hot, add the onions.  Cook until clear approx 3-5 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook until fragrant and then brown the meat.  You may need to do the meat in two batches depending on the size of your pan. 
• Cook the bacon or ham. Add all the meat back into the pan
• Add the celery and carrot and cook until tender.  
• At this point, either transfer all your cooked ingredients to the slow cooker and continue to add the tomatoes etc to the slow cooker or continue to cook over the stove.
• With all your meats combined with the onions, garlic, bacon, celery, carrot, now add the herbs and tin tomatoes.  I use a hand processor to puree the tomatoes a little, it helps to thicken the sauce and avoids the girls pulling pieces of larger tomato out of the finished dish.
• Add the red wine, water, tomato paste and bay leaves. Stir occasionally.
• Cook over a low heat for approx 1 hour until the sauce reduces.  Add more water as necessary to enrich the flavor and allow to reduce again.
• Remove the bay leaves, season and serve with spaghetti and freshly grated parmesan cheese
• If you are using a slow cooker, I keep it on low all day and then remove the lid about 30 minutes before I want it, if possible, to help thicken the sauce.  
• For the adults I add a few red pepper flakes when serving to give it a kick but that's a personal preference and totally optional.

* I cook carrots regularly and puree them for all sorts of meals and so I have them in my freezer at all times.  If you are using pureed carrots use approx 4 or 5 large ice cube portions, they help to thicken the sauce and no one knows they are there!

Palak Paneer, Homemade Cottage Cheese with spinach

I have cooked this one over and over again and I love it.  It's like a big creamed spinach with the kick of turmeric and punch of chili and cumin.  This is my sister-in-law Cat's favourite, who is vegetarian and now a favourite for us too.  I love making the paneer from scratch, in fact I've never bought the store-paneer before but I'm sure it would be fine.  I won't judge, too much, if you do take the shortcut. However it is a great process to do with your kids, to show them how to separate the curds from the whey. Retell the Little Miss Muffet nursery rhyme while you do it!  Another recipe from my masterclass with Ajoy Joshi.

Paneer (cottage cheese)
4 lt (4 qt) whole or full fat milk
1 2/3 cups (400ml/13fl oz) heavy cream
2/3 cup (150ml/5 fl oz) white vinegar

Making Paneer:

• Line a large flat bottomed sieve with a double layer of cheesecloth (muslin) allowing it to overhang the sides of a sieve. Place the sieve inside another large bowl. 
• Pour milk into a large saucepan, if possible a saucepan that will fit inside the sieve.
• Bring slowly to a boil over a medium heat, stirring gently and occasionally (with a metal slotted spoon). This usually takes about 20-25mins.
• When milk is almost boiling, add the cream and bring to the boil again.  When the milk mixture comes to the boil you will start to feel the vibrations in the metal spoon you are using and the milk will bubble and froth.
• Pour in vinegar when it hits boiling point and immediately remove from the heat.  Set aside for 2-3 minutes and do not stir.
• Using a large slotted spoon, gently lift the curds from the whey and place in the lined sieve
• Once all curds have been removed, carefully gather the loose ends of the cheesecloth together in the middle and twist so that the whey is squeezed out from the curds in the cheesecloth and you can almost tie the cloth in a knot.  The curds will form a thick, round disk about the size of a dinner plate.
• Return the whey in the bowl back into a pan small enough to sit on top of the paneer in the sieve, to act as a weight and set it on top.  Set aside at room temperature with the weight on top of the paneer until paneer is firm, about 25minutes.
• Then remove the pan from the top of the paneer and carefully untie the cheesecloth.  
• Use in the palak paneer recipe as instructed.
• Alternatively, Transfer the paneer into a tuperware container for later use and add enough whey to cover it.  This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. 

Palak Paneer

Ingredients:
2 large bunches (approx 400g / 900oz) spinach, well rinsed.
2 tspn turmeric
2 tblspn water
3 tblspn vegetable oil and ghee (or butter) combined
4 tspn cumin, ground
3 yellow onions
1/2 tspn salt
2 tblspn coriander seeds, crushed
1 1/2 tblspn grated ginger
2 fresh green chili's
1 tspn chili powder
4 tomatoes, deseeded
1 recipe paneer, cut into 1 inch square pieces.
1 tspn dried fenugreek leaves

Method:

• Place the spinach in a large saucepan or frying pan.  In a small bowl combine the water and 1 tspn of the turmeric and add to spinach.  Adding turmeric to spinach while cooking, helps retain the bright green color of the spinach.
• Cook over a medium-high heat until the spinach is wilted, 3-5 minutes.
• Remove and place on a paper towel to drain the excess water and allow to cool.
• Using a mini-processor or blender, puree the spinach.
• In a large frying pan or wok, heat the oil and ghee (or butter) over a medium heat.  Add cumin and cook until fragrant, 1 minute.  Add the onions, salt and cook uncovered, stirring often until they are clear, about 5 minutes.
• Add the crushed coriander seeds, ginger, chili pepper, chili powder and remaining teaspoon of turmeric.  Cook, stirring until fragrant, about 3 mins.
• Stir in the tomatoes, and cook for about 5minutes before adding the pureed spinach.  Mix and combine well.  
• Add the paneer when you are almost ready to serve, stirring it in gently to coat with sauce.
• Cook over a medium to low heat until the paneer is warmed through and sprinkle with fenugreek leaves (if using) and serve.

Serve with papadums, chappati or naan and steamed rice as part of a Indian meal.

Beef Vindaloo

A fabulous beef curry, simple, fresh and spicy.  It uses tamarind concentrate which has a wonderful citrus almost vinegar flavor which cuts through the hot chili's nicely.

I always go heavy on the chili's in this dish as I usually team it with milder chicken or lamb curries.  You can adjust to suit your tastes by using less of the dried chili's, however I would suggest you keep the full amount of fresh chilis in and deseed them if you want a sweeter version.  But be brave and go hot for a tradition vindaloo! This recipe is from Ajoy Joshi's Indian Home Cooking book and I have used it at least a dozen times, with great success.

serves 8-10 as part of an Indian meal

Ingredients:
5 dried red chili peppers, broken into small pieces
1 tspn cumin seeds
1 tblspn black peppercorns
1 1/2 tblspn finely grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 tblspn crushed garlic
1/2 tspn ground turmeric
1/2 cup vegetable oil and melted butter combined, use half/half
1 lb (500g) brown onions, about 3 medium, finely diced
1 tspn salt, plus extra to season
2 lb (1kg) beef chuck, excess fat removed, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
about 4 cups water
4 fresh green chili peppers, diced
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 tspn tamarind concentrate
1/2 sugar

Method:

• In a spice grinder, grind the dried chili pepper, cumin seeds and peppercorns to a powder.  Place in a bowl and combine with ginger, garlic and turmeric.  Set aside.
• In a frying pan, heat the oil and butter mixture over a medium-low heat. 
• Add onions and salt. Cook, uncovered, stirring often, until the onions are dark golden in color, about 15-20 mins.  Raise the heat to medium-high and add beef.  Cook, turning beef pieces for 5 minutes.  Do them in batches if necessary to allow them enough space to brown.
• Add the spice mixture and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 2-3 minutes.
• Pour in enough water to cover beef.
• Add fresh chili peppers and bring to a simmer.  Cook over low heat, partially covered, stirring occasionally until the liquid is reduced by half, about 1 hour
• Stir in vinegar, tamarind and sugar.
• Taste and add more salt if necessary
• Cook uncovered until the sauce reduces and thickens, about 30 minutes

Serve hot with steamed rice and a cucumber and yoghurt raita.

I've been Down Under and back...

The girls and I have just returned from a wonderful trip back home to Australia to see family and friends so I need to apologize for abandoning you mid-curryfest.  I was intending to post while I was away but I got too engrossed with eating and shopping and socializing! I will post the rest of those delicious Indian curry recipes this week as well as a few of my more traditional, family-friendly staple recipes my friends have enjoyed in the past and are waiting on seeing here on the blog. I received some lovely feedback from my followers in Australia and I'm starting to realize the impact I'm having in your kitchens and I am so thrilled.  It seems I am succeeding as a go-to site for many of you before you think about dinner and I couldn't be happier, that's exactly what I intended this site to be.  I'm very chuffed, thank you for your support.

I am feeling almost human again now after our long and delayed trip home, although with my unusual sleep patterns it seems I will get a lot done between the hours of 3-6am this week before the rest of the house awakes.  I look forward to posting some new and exciting recipes inspired from my trip home and particularly from my masterclass cooking session with world renowned French Chef, Philippe Mouchel, from restaurant PM 24 in Melbourne.  My Dad and I went to his French Bistro class in South Melbourne and learned some incredible dishes. I will be trying them again at home soon and would love to share them with you.

Thanks again for reading, I hope I can keep inspiring you and provide some tried and tested recipes for you to fall back on as we enter the midst of winter in Australia and a brutally hot summer in the US.  Stay happy and keep cooking!