I can't help myself. Every now and again I have to treat myself to some pasta. My husband doesn't like it at all, and so I try very hard not to cook it, or at least not to cook it very often.
But every now and again . . . a gal has to do what a gal has to do. I crave pasta and it needs to be cooked. There is no getting around it.
I figure that at least if I cook a magnificent sauce for it, then I can cook him some rice or potatoes to go with it instead of pasta. He is usually happy with that.
I came across a delicious sounding pasta sauce recipe the other day on a blog, Inside the Rustic Kitchen. It was called a Pici with Tuscan Sausage Pasta.
I have never seen Pici pasta here but from her photos it looked like thick spaghetti.
I also didn't have any Tuscan sausages but I did have some lovely Italian Hot Sausage that I picked up at Costco last time I was there, so I decided to go with that.
I also wanted to be able to send a meal over to Ariana and Jose as I know their days are busy at the moment getting used to a new baby in the house.
I remember when I had my own children, and new babies in the house. I was always exhausted and I would have loved to have someone send us a meal over.
So I decided to adapt the recipe and make big pot of the sauce, some for my husband and myself and some to send over with some cooked pasta for Ariana and Jose to enjoy.
I did make a few changes to the recipe which you will note below.
What I really liked about the recipe is that it is very straight forward and didn't ask for crazy ingredients you might not have at home.
Well, maybe the red wine is a bit out of the ordinary, especially for Latter Day Saints, but I always have a small bottle each of good red and white wines in my larder just for cooking purposes. I always have carrots, celery, onions and garlic, and I grow rosemary in the garden.
I liked that it used fennel seeds. I love the taste of fennel . . . almost like the flavour of licorice, but milder. I was a tiny bit concerned at the amount.
1 TBS sounded like a quite a bit, but I gritted my teeth and threw it in, and was pleasantly surprised. It totally works, and it is not over-powering in any way.
Another thing I always have in my larder are good quality tinned tomatoes. I think anything you are going to eat deserves the best and so I always keep Cirio tomatoes in my cupboard.
The whole, the chopped, the passatta, the paste, etc. Cirio is the best in my opinion, and no I am not being paid to say so. Nor did they sent me free product to say so. I quite simply like them and I think you would too. This recipe uses two tins of the plum tomatoes. So rich and tasty.
Other than that there is the sausage (of course) just crumble it in and brown it before adding in everything else. I like to mash it with a wire potato masher as it browns.
This breaks it up really nicely as you can see, so you get a few larger bits, and a lot of smaller bits . . . the perfect consistency with pasta . . .
And of course there is garlic, which I love. Altogether this sauce was quite, quite delicious. I enjoyed mine on a bowl of whole wheat spaghetti with some freshly grated Parmesan on top and my husband enjoyed his on a baked potato with some grated cheese on top.
I sent Ari & Jose's over with some cooked radiatorre and cheese. I thought she could just dump it into a casserole dish and reheat in the oven or microwave.
*Italian Sausage Ragu*
Serves 4
Rich and packed with flavour. Serve with your favourite pasta for a real treat.
1 pound Italian sausage, skinned and crumbled
1 medium carrot peeled
1 stalk celery
1 small white onion, peeled
2 fat cloves garlic, peeled
1 TBS fennel seed
1 large sprig rosemary
1 TBS olive oil
1 TBS balsamic vinegar
1 tsp dark soft brown sugar
100ml red wine (3 1/2 fluid ounces)
2 (400g) tins plum tomatoes, undrained (2-14.5 oz tins)
200ml water (7 fluid ounces)
salt and pepper to taste
Your favourite cooked pasta
Finely chop the carrot, celery, onion and garlic. Set aside. Heat
the olive oil in a large saucepan with a heavy bottom. Crumble in the
sausage and cook, stirring to break it up even more with a wooden spoon
as it browns. Stir in the vegetables.
Cook, stirring for a further 8
to 10 minutes at which time they should be softened and the pan a bit
deglazed. Add the red wine and let it bubble up and reduce. Stir in the
fennel seed, rosemary sprig, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, plum
tomatoes and water.
Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer. Season
to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer for 45 to 50 minutes until the
sauce thickens and reduces, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust
seasong as required.
Cook your favourite pasta
according to package directions and serve hot with the sauce ladled over
top and some freshly grated Parmesan cheese if desired.
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This salad I am sharing with you today has actually been in my recipe queue for a few weeks now. I can't believe that it is the first of August today and I am just now getting to share it with you! The summer seems to be just flying by!
Ham, Gruyere & Spring Onion Crepes. If you have ever had the opportunity to go to a French market over on the Continent, you will most likely have seen Crepe Vendors.
Baking crepes in the open air and filling them with whatever your heart desires. Folded into quarters, and wrapped in paper, they are very easy to eat while you walk around browsing through the market.
You can get them filled with fruit fillings, nutella, cream and even with savoury fillings. My favourites are always the ones filled with ham and cheese.
Kind of like a Croque Monsieur, but in a crepe, not bread.
They also make for a quick, easy and light supper during the summer months when you are looking for something to make that isn't going to keep you standing over a hot stove for ages and ages.
I'm all for that. I can be lazy from time to time when it comes to cooking. No, I'm not kidding. Its true.
These are delicious. I like to use Gruyere cheese, which is a lovely melty Swiss type of cheese, but you could use cheddar, or Colby, or even Jack cheese if you wanted to.
You could even use a combination of cheeses. I like cheeses with a lot of flavour and so I choose Gruyere because it has a sweet and nutty taste, and goes really well with ham.
I like to pair it with a good ham . . . thinly sliced honey ham is good, or a thinly sliced dry cured oak smoked.
You are going to tear it into pieces, so just pick a nice ham, and one that you enjoy. The nicer the flavour of the ham you use, the less you will need of it. Fact.
People can find making crepes a little bit intimidating, but they really aren't hard to make at all.
I put the batter through a sieve to make for a smooth batter. Just use a good non-stick frying pan, lightly oiled and well heated.
You don't want them frying so much as you want the to bake in the skillet. Just pour a very thin layer and tilt the hot pan a bit to spread the batter out into evenly.
Let it cook until golden brown and then using a flexible spatula, flip them over to brown the other side. Easy peasy.
Once you have browned one side and flipped them over you can start filling them. They cook in literally about a minute if you pan is heated properly.
Not too hot, not too cold. Sprinkle the cheese on half of the crepe . . .
Let it cook for about 30 seconds to melt the cheese, then scatter over some torn ham and some chopped spring onion.
Fold in half again so that you have a triangle and put into a warm oven to keep warm while you cook the rest. Again, such a simple thing.
Like an omelet, but with a flour batter instead of an omelet batter.
These go together really quickly and are so delicious! You don't need to limit yourself to what I have used. Use your imagination and whatever is in the refrigerator to fill them with whatever appeals.
You could go completely vegetarian and fill them with sauteed vegetables and cheese, or maybe you have some leftover curried chicken or lamb. That would also be nice. A salad on the side makes for a complete meal!
*Ham, Gruyere & Spring Onion Crepes*
serves 4
Delicious
savoury pancake wrapped around torn sliced ham, Gruyere (Swiss) cheese and
chopped spring onions, to make a delicious quick supper. Serve a salad
on the side.
150g plain flour (1 cup + 1 1/2 TBS) sifted
3 large free range eggs, beaten
450ml whole milk (1 3/4 cup)
generous pinch salt
freshly ground black pepper
240g grated Gruyere Cheese (can use cheddar if you wish) (2 cups)
4 slices baked ham, torn
4 spring onions, trimmed, washed and thinly sliced
oil for frying
Sift the flour into a bowl along with the salt and pepper. Make a
well in the centre. Add the egg and milk and whisk all together until
smooth. If necessary put through a sieve to take out any lumps.
Have
ready a large non-stick skillet. Lightly grease with oil and heat.
Pour 1/8th of the batter into the hot skillet, tilting to cover the
bottom with the batter evenly. Cook until golden brown. Carefully flip
over, and brown on the other side. Sprinkle a portion of cheese on half
the crepe, top with some chopped onion and torn ham. Fold half the
crepe over to cover, and then fold in half again until you have a
triangle. Keep warm in a low oven while you cook the remaining crepes.
You should have at least 8, maybe a couple more.
My husband is not a man who enjoys eating with his hands. He even eats his burgers with a knife and a fork. To each their own!
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Bon Appetit!
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Usually on Sunday if I am on the ball, I will put something into the slow cooker for our dinner before I leave for church in the morning.
Normally it will be red meat of some kind. To be honest I am not fond of chicken in the slow cooker. I find it almost gets over-cooked and I don't like the texture of it.
Beef on the other hand, or pork, lends itself quite well to being cooked in a slow cooker, especially the cheaper cuts.
I especially love Beef Brisket done in the slow cooker, either whole as a pot roast, or as I have done today, cut into chunks and as a stew.
Brisket is one of my favourite cuts of beef and is beautiful when prepared this way.
And is is such a simple thing as well. Cubes of brisket (I like to cut mine into 1-inch cubes) is tossed with well-seasoned flour and then browned in a bit of oil, on top of the stove in a skillet.
Really brown it well on all sides. It is the colour from this initial browning that will help to colour your stew.
The juices from the meat also caramelise a bit which adds flavour. Don't crowd the pan when you are browning. Do it in batches if need be.
Crowding it means your meat won't brown properly. Handy tip here.
Onions and garlic are added as well as some stout (Guinness) and beef stock.
Stout makes for a lovely and richly flavoured gravy. Pour it all into the slow cooker, and then let the slow cooker (crock pot) do the rest.
Six hours on low does the trick. You will have fork tender chunks of beef, in a really rich beautifully flavoured gravy . . .
And plenty of it . . . and so beautiful spooned out over a lovely pile of creamy mash. I cheat sometimes and use the frozen mash. Especially after church.
It is so simple to use and just as good as fresh mash. I add a bit of butter and cream to mine, which makes it even tastier.
Today I cooked English Petit Pois to serve with it, which really went down a real treat. I love Petit Pois. I always buy them. I like them a lot more than the regular ones! So sweet and tender!
The smell of this when it hits your nose as you walk back into your house immediately starts your taste buds to tingling and your mouth to watering.
You will hardly be able to wait until you have the rest of the meal ready before digging in, but you must . . .
Trust me when I tell you. It is well worth the wait. Well, well worth it . . .
This is just so, so, so good. I know it might seem like winter food to some, and yes, it is, but sometimes in the summer you get a cool day (like today) and you just crave something like this.
Today was the day. It went down a real treat!
*Braised Brisket with Stout & Onions*
Serves 4
A
delicious stew that cooks long and slow in a slow cooker. You can also
do it in the oven if you wish or on top of the stove. I like to pop it
into the slow cooker on Sunday mornings and then I have a delicious
dinner waiting for us when we get home from church. I serve with mashed
potatoes and a vegetable.
2 large onions, peeled and chopped
a few springs of thyme
1 bay leaf, broken in half
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
oil for browning
2 pounds beef brisket cut into chunks
6 TBS flour well seasoned with salt and black pepper
240ml Guinness/stout (1 cup)
240ml Beef stock (1 cup)
Heat the oil (about 1 TBS) in a skillet with a heavy bottom. Toss
the beef with the seasoned flour. Shake off any excess and then brown
the beef on all sides in the hot oil. You want it to have a good colour
so do it in batches if need be.
Add the onions and cook until they
begin to soften. Add the garlic and cook just until fragrant. Add the
beef stock and bring to the boil, stirring up any browned bits.
Pour
the whole mixture into a medium sized slow cooker. Add the sprigs of
thyme and the bay leaf. Stir in the stout. Cover and cook on low heat
for about 6 hours, until the meat is tender and the gravy well
flavoured.
If need be you can thicken the gravy with a bit of flour
shaken together with some cold water until smooth (about 1 TBS flour,
and 120ml/1/2 cup water) pour this into the beef, give it a stir and
cook on high for about 15 minutes until thickened.
In fact it makes me hungry just seeing it. Perhaps that's because I know how delicious it really is! Bon Appetit!
Think of things like Spotted Dick, or Hollygog Pudding. See what I mean??? With names like that, you immediately want to know more!
Such was the case when I ran across this biscuit recipe that I found in a baking book I have entitled Mary Berry's Baking Bible, over 250 classic recipes.
Such was the case when I ran across this biscuit recipe that I found in a baking book I have entitled Mary Berry's Baking Bible, over 250 classic recipes.
Yes, Mary Berry of the GBBO fame. I saw this recipe and I thought to myself . . . wow, I wonder what is the story behind those.
I was determined to establish a history but alas, I was unable to find out.
I can only think that the recipe must date back to a time in English history when the church was held in very high esteem.
And these were the sort of biscuits (cookie) that might be baked and trotted out on special occasions, especially occasions when the church Bishop might be in attendance!
It certainly makes sense as one would want to bring out the very best on just such an occasion and these are certainly the very best! They are also cut into fingers! DUH!
Crumbly, buttery and sweet, exactly what one would expect from a shortbread type of biscuit. These are perfect, and even tastier than what I always thought was my best classic shortbread biscuits.
In fact I would go so far as to say they are as good as my Peppermint Petticoat Tails, and that is saying a lot!
I am a connoisseur of short bread biscuits. I have always loved them. In fact short breads are not safe in any room that I am in because I will pester them and pick at them, until they are gone.
I don't think I am alone in that! I think most people have a fondness for a good shortbread biscuit.
Sweet and buttery, short almost like pastry, but moreish like a cookie. Mmmm . . . I hope you will try these and soon.
Don't just save them for a special occasion or visitor. Surely YOU are worth a treat like this once in a while yourself!
*Bishop's Fingers*
Makes 12 fingers
A delicious shortbread cookie topped with flaked almonds. Delicious with a hot cuppa.
100g plain flour (3/4 cup minus 2 tsp.)
25g ground almonds (scant 1/3 cup)
25g semolina (2 TBS + 3/4 tsp)
100g butter (7 TBS)
50g Castor sugar (1/4 cup)
few drops almond extract
25g flaked almonds (1/3 cup)
caster or granulated sugar for dusting
Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F/ gas mark 3. Lightly butter a shallow 7 inch square baking tin.
Whisk
together the flour, almonds and semolina. Drop in the butter, sugar
and almond extract. Rub together with your fingers until the mixture
just begins to come together. Knead lightly until smooth and then press
into the prepared pan, smoothing the top over with the back of a metal
spoon. Sprinkle the flaked almonds over top.
Bake
for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven until a very pale golden
brown. Mark into 12 fingers with a knife and sprinkle with the
remaining sugar. Leave to cool in the tin. when completely cold cut
into fingers and lift out carefully. Store in an airtight tin.
Whether you bake these for yourself, or you bake them for the Bishop, or another special occasion you are sure to love these lovely biscuits.
I mean Mary Berry . . . you just know up front that the recipe is a winner! Pour the tea now and pinkies at the ready
. Bon appetit!
Note - I didn't have any semolina in the cupboard today, but I did have Cream of Wheat which is pretty much the same thing, and it worked beautifully!
Note - I didn't have any semolina in the cupboard today, but I did have Cream of Wheat which is pretty much the same thing, and it worked beautifully!
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