Month: November 2015

Garlic Prawn Linguine

~ rinaforster ~ 2 Comments

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Prior to having kids I used to make this dish with lots of chilli, but I’ve taken the chilli out and it still tastes delicious. The good thing is that it’s ready in the same time it takes to cook your pasta too!

First get your linguine cooking according to packet instructions

For the sauce, add a large glug of olive oil in to a large frying pan, next add some chopped parsley (fresh if you have it, otherwise dried is fine)  and 2 cloves of crushed garlic. Heat in the pan on a medium heat for 2-3 minutes, try not to let the garlic brown. Next add approx 250ml of white wine and turn the heat up to the max to bring to the boil. Once boiling turn the heat down slightly to a medium high heat and allow the sauce to simmer to allow the alcohol burn off. Next add approx 150ml of passata and 8-10 quartered cherry tomatoes. Allow the sauce to simmer for another 5 minutes until the pasta is a minute away from being ready. Now add 250g of raw shelled prawns to the sauce and stir in, cook for a minute until the prawns are pink and ready, try not to over cook the prawns. They shouldn’t need more than 2 minutes. When the pasta is ready, strain and add to the frying pan, mix everything in and cook for a further 30 seconds, plate up and serve with a little parsley on top

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Chicken stuffed Mozzarella and Pesto

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This is so tasty and yet so simple to make. I serve this dish with some yummy garlic potatoes which will need to go in the oven first. Preheat you oven to 190(fan) and then quarter / cut in to 6th some new potatoes. Mix with half a diced onion, crushed garlic and drizzle with olive oil. Season, put in the oven and cook for approx 25 minutes. Meanwhile make the chicken

For the chicken you will need to butterfly two chicken breasts, this just means slicing in half across the depth so you can open it up like a book, see pic below. Next speed some pesto inside and lay some mozzarella on one half and fold the chicken breast back over to cover the stuffing. Now grill on a griddle pan over a height hear for 5 minutes on each side and then place the griddle in the oven and cook for a further 15 minutes until cooked. Easy peasy!

Serve with some buttered greens and a big smile

 

 

 

 

 

Quickie Pizza

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These are great for when you’ve not got much time and you want something quick but healthy.

All you need is some wraps, I use the Warburton wraps in the photo below as they are bit thicker than the normal circular wraps, some cheese, passata, and what ever toppings you fancy

I usually raid the fridge for any veg that needs using up, the cupboards for some sweetcorn and the fridge for some ham or chicken

First spread the passata over the wrap, top with your choice of filling and cheese thrn cook in the oven for 10 minutes 180fan and enjoy.

 

Polpetti Conchiglioni – aka meatballs and pasta

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Meatballs is definitely up there as one of my favourite dishes and I think most people would agree with me.

With this recipe I make the sauce from scratch too but trust me, it’s the simplest of sauces and the taste difference is well worth the extra minute it will take

First make the meatballs by mixing together a 500g pack of mince meat with (roughly) 2 teaspoons of dried basil, 2 teaspoons of dried parsley and 2 tablespoons of grated parmesan and season with salt and pepper. Make up into meatballs, this mixture should make approximately 25 meatballs

Next fry the meatballs on a medium to high heat until browned all over then remove from the pan and set aside whilst you make the sauce.

In a food processor blitz 6 ripe tomatoes with 1-2 cloves of garlic, half an onion and a handful of basil leaves (if you don’t have any fresh, just use a large heaped teaspoon of dried basil but you can mix that in after you’ve blended the ingredients) and that’s the sauce prepped

Once blitzed pour out in to the frying pan that you used to cook the meatballs and add a dollop of tomato puree and another 2 teaspoons of grated parmesan, mix and bring to the boil then simmer for 5 minutes, next add the meatballs, mix them in the sauce and cook for a further 10 minutes whilst you cook some pasta.

Serve with a large glass of wine and some crusty bread to mop up all the lovely sauce

 

 

Pulled Chicken burger with Sweet Potato wedges

~ rinaforster ~ 2 Comments

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This pulled chicken slow cooker recipe only contains 4 ingredients; 8 chicken thighs, 100ml passata, a diced onion and a teaspoon of chipotle paste – or more if you like it hot – I find a teaspoon just gives it enough flavour without heat. Put all four ingredients in a slow cooker and cook whilst your working or entertaining those pesky kids.

For the sweet potato wedges, just cut 2 sweet potatoes in to wedges, rub some oil, salt and pepper and cook in the oven 180fan for approx 25 minutes depending on how chunky you make the wedges

Serve your pulled chicken in a bun, I find the brioche buns complement the smoky sweet taste of the chipotle. Top with some refried beans or pinto beans and avocado if you have any

Enjoy

 

Spinach pasta with Lemon Sea Bass

~ rinaforster ~ 2 Comments

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This is a delicious yet simple pasta sauce which provides a great way of getting some spinach in to your kids!

For the pasta sauce

Wilt a bag of fresh spinach in a large saucepan over a medium heat and once done stir in a knob of butter and saute for a couple of minutes. Next add one tablespoon of milk, one tablespoon of cream cheese and a liberal sprinkling of parmesan cheese. Give everything a good stir until the cheese has melted and then take off the hob and whizz in a food processor. Pour over some cooked pasta and add some toasted pine nuts. Done!

For the Sea Bass

Heat a glug of oil in a frying pan over a medium to high heat. Once at temperature place the sea bass skin side down and cook for 2-3 minutes. Whilst it’s cooking season and grate some lemon rind and squeeze some lemon juice over the top. Turn over and cook on the other side for 1-2 minutes or until cooked. Serve hot

Sausage and bean stew

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Who doesn’t like sausage and beans??

This is a great hearty meal for when the nights start to get colder and darker and we want something warm and filling

I use a slow cooker for this but you can use a casserole dish in the oven if you don’t have one.

In your pot, put 6 meaty sausages, a can of plum tomatoes, a dolop of tomato puree, a diced onion, two teaspoons of paprika, two teaspoons of cumin powder, a couple of cloves of crushed garlic and a tin of canellini beans. Give everything a good mix and season then cook on a slow cooker all day or in an oven for 1-2 hours on about 160 fan – if you’re cooking in the oven you may need to add a mug full of water as the sauce will reduce more so just have a quick check after an hour.

Serve at the end of a long and stressful day with some mash potatoes

 

Lemon and coriander Tuna steak

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You can’t get much simpler than this tuna steak!

Marinate some tuna steaks in olive oil, lemon juice and coriander – naturally these ingredients would take better when bought fresh but for an everyday cost effective way of fish I use frozen tuna steak thawed out the night before, lemon juice from a bottle and coriander paste. Season to your taste.

Once marinated, flash fry the steaks for a couple of minutes on each side and serve immediately.

I served mine with rice salad which is a great way of using up left of rice from the night before. To this rice simply add a glug of olive oil, salt, pepper, bbq seasoning, lime juice, any kind of store cupboard tinned beans, (pinto, kidney or mixed bean salad etc) and then dice up any salad vegetables you have to hand, again I used peppers, tomatoes, sweetcorn and cucumber. Give it a good stir and voila 

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Blueberry Pancakes

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Great for Sunday mornings!

In a big jug pour 300ml milk, 1 egg beaten,200g of sf flour, 1 tsp baking powder, a pinch of salt and a knob of melted butter. Give everything a good mix, then stir in a couple of handfuls of blueberries.

Put a pan on a medium to high heat then pour a approximately half a ladle of pancake mix into the pan, cook for about a minute on each side until nice a brown

Serve with as much fruit as you like and squeeze of maple syrup  or treacle!

Eat!

Breakfast Egg Muffin

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These are really simple to make and kids love them, they think they’re getting a treat. You can make these as exotic or as simple as you like

In the past I’ve made ham and cheese, spinach and parmesan, salmon, goats cheese and spring onion, and cheddar and chives. All delicious!

For the ham and cheese, I’d use about 2 slices of ham cut in to squares along with approx 30g of grated cheddar; for the spinach and parmesan, use 2 teaspoons of parmesan and 2 -3 cubes of defrosted spinach; and finally for the goats cheese version use approx 30g of goats cheese, 2-3 leaves of smoked salmon and a sprinkling of chives or spring onion

Simply beat together 6 eggs, season and throw in what you like. Pour the mixture into cupcake tins (4 large eggs makes about 6 muffins) and bake at 180(fan) for about 20min until risen

Eat hot!

Let me know of any other flavours you try out