Modified Minestrone

We won a hamper thing in a raffle, and in it were some things my family doesn't ordinarily keep in our pantry... including a can of pink salmon, and some cannelini beans.  I used up the pink salmon by mixing it with cream cheese and spreading it on crackers, which was nice for the first few mouthfuls but then go too creamy and sickly for me.

But the beans stumped me.  I didn't know what to do with them.  Then I saw Rachael Ray put them in a soup.  And I was like "hey, minestrone!"  So following Jamie Olivers basic minestrone recipe, I kind of altered it to include the random ingredients in our pantry.

Unfortunately I was slack on this one and didn't take photos (because I didn't intend to write about it really) so you'll just have to use your imagination... picture a tomatoey soup with lots of bits in it including potato, beans and pasta.... om nom nom...

INGREDIENTS
1 x400g can whole or chopped tomatoes
1 x400g can rinsed cannelini beans
4 cups chicken stock
diced ham (around 200g)
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1/2 capsicum (bell pepper), diced
1 potato, diced
2 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 cup small pasta
1 small tsp crushed garlic
1 bay leaf
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp onion salt (if you have it)
1 tbsp BBQ sauce
2 tbsp tomato sauce
2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce (more or less depending on your tolerance)
1/2 cup grated cheese (ideally parmesan, but I didn't have any, so used Edam & Tasty - just as yum!)

sliced fresh bread to mop up soupyness

METHOD

• Heat pan with oil, and add ham, onion, garlic, carrot, capsicum, bay leaf and oregano
• Cook until veges are soft
• Add everything else except the pasta
• Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30 minutes
• 10 minutes before serving, add in the pasta
• Test the pasta to make sure it's cooked before serving, and taste constantly to adjust seasoning
• If the soup is too thick after the pasta is cooked, it can be thinned out with some more stock, or water
• Serve immediately with fresh bread

Seriously, I know it seems like a lot of ingredients, but it's so delicious, and really quite easy because most things all go in together.  Was delicious on a cold autumn night! :)

Pumpkin Quinoa Patties

Well hello to you! (Miranda quote, of course!)  Sorry for having been so slack on the new recipe front!  Busy busy life, especially now that I'm back at uni!  I will try to do something on here at least once a month! :)  I did actually make this recipe in March (and was going to write it up asap... clearly that didn't happen) *virtual slap on the wrist* - lots of family drama and tragedy is my excuse :(

Patties, with chips and peas :D

Aaaaanyway, my Belgian friend Fien made them from a recipe book her dad sent her, we had them one night at her house when a friend of ours who was gluten free and vegetarian came over.  They were so good I wanted to make some for my parents to try too.  They sounded really bizarre when I first heard of them, they looked amazing, and the taste?  Well you'll just have to read on to find out!  *cheeky*


INGREDIENTS
1 average sized butternut pumpkin
1 tbsp olive oil
230g quinoa
470ml water
1 cube chicken stock (or vegetable if vegetarian) - use GF stock if you're GF

Pre-Grilling

170g rice (basmati or wild preferably)
110g spring onions

85g dried cranberries
1 tbsp basil 
salt & pepper to taste
parmesan cheese (grated) - optional, but adds a real depth of flavour

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 200 deg C
• Slice pumpkin in half, remove pips
• Place pumpkin halves on oven dish, and brush with olive oil
• Bake for approx. 1 hour (until soft)
• Let cool, and scoop out pumpkin, discard peel, and mash
• Mix the 470ml water with the stock cube and add to a pot with the quinoa
• Cook quinoa 10 to 12 minutes, until the water is absorbed
• When cooked, let cool for 10 minutes
• Cook rice ( using whatever your usual method is)
• Mix quinoa and rice together
• Add to the pumpkin mash
• Add all the remaining ingredients, mixing well as you go
• Form patties (this is the messy bit, where you end up with orange hands!)
• Bake for a further 15-20 minutes in oven, pan, grill, barbecue, however you want really! 
  
  (Serve hot or cold)

Several things I want to say.  First of all, while this seems like a lot of effort, a lot of steps, and preparation, and being organised enough to begin making this with enough time to roast the pumpkin, IT IS WORTH IT.  There are the most amazing non-meat patties I have ever had.  Especially with aioli on them!  The cranberries give a touch of contrasting sweetness and juiciness, the quinoa is not even noticeable, yet it is so good for you!  The pumpkin is delicious, and I can't get enough of them!!

Finished Product!

Secondly, when it comes to the final cooking stage, it doesn't matter how you do them, just cook them kind of like you would with ordinary burger patties.  My only piece of advice is, the pumpkin can get quite sticky, and can cause your pattie to disintegrate, which, if you're anything like me, will make you incredibly angry and frustrated.  I HIGHLY recommend cooking them on the smooth plate of a BBQ, or in a George Foreman-type bench top grill that has non-stick plates.  You really don't want to miss this cooking step out, because it gives the patties a nice golden edge, and makes them taste EVEN better.

The patties we had for dinner, lined up in our George Foreman grill, with non-stick tinfoil (because the non-stick surface on our grill is wearing away now, it's so old and over-used ;P )

Thirdly - THIS MAKES A LOT OF PATTIES!!! Don't fret though, because if it is more than you or your family can eat, you can certainly freeze them!  I froze my extra patties (before the final cooking stage) with baking paper between each pattie (to stop them sticking together).  Now, I have a fast food, I can get 1 pattie out of the freezer, microwave for 1 min to defrost, and then do the last cooking step (in the grill, etc.).  Healthy fast lunch = WIN!

So there you have it, my new favourite vegetarian food!  I actually ended up making a lot patties out of it, so it's lasted a while (I made them in early March, it's now mid-April, and I've still got about 6 in the freezer :D ).  Enjoy!  And I would love you guys to comment back sometime about the recipes of mine you've tried!!

Crustless Quiche

Thought I'd better get a recipe in before October is over!  Gotta have at least one entry per month! ;) No, actually this month has been insane with uni work, haven't had time to try anything new (much) or write about it.

But now I'm on study leave, which gives me a little flexibility to do stuff like this, so here is today's lunch! 

INGREDIENTS
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup self raising flour

Before being cooked

salt and pepper

1/2 cup cheese (grated)
1 fried onion
Ham or cooked bacon
Veges - I used grated carrot and seasonal asparagus

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 180 deg C
• Whisk eggs, milk, flour and seasoning together
• Add everything else to the mix
• Spread in a silicone quiche/flan dish (silicone makes it so much easier to remove at the end)
• Bake for 45 mins, until gold on top and puffed up
• Let sit for a couple of minutes (to make it even easier to remove from silicone)
• Cut up and serve hot, or cold, with relish and sour cream (optional, but delicious)

So this was a super easy recipe to make, and my mum loved it.  I'm not a super egg fan myself (as I probably said when I wrote about the crustless broccoli quiches I made back when I began this blog!) but it was pretty nice.  Would be great for lunches too.

Shout out to Jeremy, one of my best friends, who I've known since we were 7.  This was his recipe/idea.


Recipe Inspiration: http://www.grownups.co.nz/read/lifestyle/food_and_wine/crustless-quiche-recipie

Macaroni Cheese

Tonight was a lazy night.  I wanted macaroni cheese for some reason (perhaps because I almost had it for lunch the other day but ended up having sushi...thus my craving was left unsatisfied haha).  

I had never made it before, and I googled a recipe.  Generally when I do this, I open 3 or 4 of the top recipes that come up, pick one, then see what different ingredients the others include, and then put that in the recipe I've chosen as well.  If that makes sense.  So, for example, in this one, the original recipe did not call for salt or paprika, but I added both, since they were in fact common in the other mac and cheese recipes I opened.

I also didn't follow the instructions exactly (to my own detriment... I will explain in my evaluation!), trying to do a Rachael Ray and add "starchy cooking water" from the pasta to the sauce to make the sauce and pasta "marry" as Rachael says.  I shall tell you what happened after the recipe.  :)

INGREDIENTS

500g macaroni

50g butter

2 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk

2 cups (250g) grated cheese

parsley

1/2 tsp salt

paprika

METHOD

• Put macaroni on to cook as per packet instructions
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan
• Cook, stirring, for 1 minute over medium-low heat
• Stir in flour, cooking until it has thickened a bit
• Gradually add milk, stirring until smooth
• Stir until mix comes to a boil
• Reduce heat
• Add salt, and a pinch of paprika and parsley (to taste!)
• Stir well
• Simmer for 2 min
• Add cheese slowly, stirring continuously over a low heat
• Turn off heat, and either mix drained pasta thru sauce, or sauce all over drained pasta (whichever dish is big enough!)

So yes, my minor indiscretion was the addition of "starchy cooking water".  Note to self, this makes the sauce go all granulated, gritty and curdled (as Mum said).  I will NOT be doing that in future haha!

Other than the funny texture, it was actually really delicious.  I can imagine it would be better with bacon (or ham) chopped up in it, and some fresh peas... but hey, I like my meals colourful, and I've never understood the whole mac and cheese thing - it seems too plain to me haha!  But I did like this, and will make it again!  So easy and quick! 

Recipe Inspiration: http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/13955/classic+macaroni+cheese

Tuna Pasta Bake

Well hello lovely blog readers!  I'm ever so sorry it has been a while since I posted a new recipe!  What can I say, I've been incredibly busy with uni and work and trying to have a life :)  I've still been cooking and such, but not really any new recipes until tonight! 

I've had this little baby tucked away in the back of my recipe book, in the 'to try' pile, and finally tonight, I did!  It was very easy, and I felt like it was *almost* made from scratch so probably better for you?  But I think the cheese might ruin that theory haha!

INGREDIENTS

230g dry pasta shells (I used a mixture of different ones)

1 small red capsicum (not in season & too expensive right now, so I didn't put this in)

1 can (305g) condensed cream of mushroom soup

2 tsp dried parsley flakes (or fresh if you have it!)

1 cup milk

pinch of chilli powder (optional)

1 can (170g) tuna in springwater, drained and flaked

1 cup frozen corn, thawed and drained

1 cup grated cheese

salt and pepper to taste

1 onion, finely chopped

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 220 deg C (and butter an ovenproof casserole dish - I forgot to do this...  it didn't stick though, so it's ok)
• Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil over high heat
• Add pasta, stir and cook until it's about 2 minutes before being done
• Drain pasta and set aside
• In the same pan, whisk mushroom soup and milk together
• Bring to a simmer over a low heat
• Stir in tuna, corn, onion, capsicum, parsley, chilli powder, and half of the cheese
• Add the cooked pasta and stir
• Season with salt and pepper
• Spread the mixture in the casserole dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese
• Bake for about 30 mins, or until the top is golden brown

I have an admission to make.  I *may* have burnt the top.  Kind of.  Well cooked.  It was very brown.  BUT still delicious!!  I don't normally like mushrooms, either as a vege or a flavour, but it worked, and it wasn't over powering.  The cheese and milk helped water down the flavour, and of course, pasta was nom nom nom as always.

Definitely will make it again!!!

Recipe Inspiration: http://www.ivillage.com/tuna-and-pasta-bake/3-r-63970#ixzz1oCUrJvwy

Broccoli Cheese Soup

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.  I LOVE BROCCOLI.  There is absolutely nothing like fresh broccoli, steamed to perfection.  None of this frozen rubbish if I had my way!  However, I will not hold it against you if you have not got access to fresh broccoli, and choose to use frozen florets for this recipe - but I will not be held accountable for the soggy outcome!   

Imagine my delight when I saw that broccoli was majorly on special at the supermarket this week... combined with the 3 cheeses Mum and I had picked up (Gruyere, Edam and Tasty - also Parmesan, but I decided not to include Parmesan in this soup because I have other plans for it!)... It was SOUP time!  I've had this recipe up my sleeve for a while, and had just been waiting for the right time to use it.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups chicken broth

1 onion, diced

2/3 cup flour

1/2 cup butter (I used about 250g, if that's an easier measurement!)

pepper to taste

4 cups milk

4 cups grated cheese (I used a mixture of gruyere, edam and tasty cheddar)

lightly steamed broccoli (quantity up to you!)

1 carrot, cut into thin sticks

crusty bread for dipping

METHOD

• In a small covered pan, simmer chopped onion and chicken broth for 15 - 20 min, stirring to prevent onion sticking to the bottom, until onions are soft

MEANWHILE...

• Heat milk in the microwave for 2 minutes
• In a medium sized stockpot, melt butter, then add flour and pepper
• After a few minutes, whisk in warmed milk
• Stir and heat together on medium0high heat until soup starts to thicken
• Add the chicken broth and onions, stirring well until blended
• Add carrot sticks (you may like to pre-steam/cook these, depending on how much crunch you like in your soup!) and cook for a few more minutes, stirring often
• Add cheeses, one handful at a time, allowing the cheese to melt between each handful, and stirring well!
• Add steamed broccoli
• Cook, stirring constantly until you are satisfied with the consistency of the broccoli (some like it soggy, some still like a bit of crunch - it comes down to personal preference!)
• Serve immediately, with crusty bread for dipping!

What can I say.  You KNOW my obsession with the dark green vegetable, and who doesn't LOVE cheese.  Srsly.  To put this simply, without using expletives that my mind keeps urging me  to use, it was like A GIANT BOWL OF STEAMED BROCCOLI WITH COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF THE MOST AMAZING CHEESE SAUCE EVER.  Did caps lock make my point?  I am SUPER in love with this soup.  So SMOOTH (the soupy bit, not counting the veges) with crunchy-ish carrots and broccoli, accompanied by amazing baguette (insert French stereotype here).  

WOW.

Go make it.  Now.  I don't care if it's summer where you live.  You need this soup. 

Although as a side note in tiny tiny writing, possibly not the healthiest soup?  I mean yes, it has vegetables, but honestly... all that cheese and half a cup of butter?!  It's definitely a "special occasion" recipe, not a weekly one!

Recipe Inspiration:
http://www.food.com/recipe/panera-broccoli-cheese-soup-150384
http://www.acooksquest.blogspot.co.nz/2010/11/87-broccoli-cheese-soup.html#more

Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf

Another recipe that appears repeatedly on www.pinterest.com is for chicken parmesan (or chicken parmigiana) which is essentially a chicken breast, crumbed, baked (or fried) and covered with a tomato (marinara) sauce, and grated parmesan cheese, then grilled.  This was a dish my mum and I used to order a lot at one of our regular "haunts" when we lived in Malaysia.  Something we never made or ate at home.

Anyway, all the recipes I saw for the chicken breast version looked long and convoluted, with many steps.  However, I'm all for simple, quick and easy, so when I saw a meatloaf version of chicken parmigiana, I was sold on the idea.  All that remained was to find somewhere that sold (or would make me) some minced/ground chicken.  Luckily there's still an old fashioned butchery in a neighbouring town who were more than happy to help me in my quest; heck, they even made the mince fresh especially for me!  :)  No such quality service like that in your supermarket butcher section, that's for sure! 

Meatloaf tends to have a bad reputation in general and I'm not sure why.  It's quite yummy, in all its' forms really.  Served with boiled potatoes and steamed greens, it's a great meal.  Or in winter, with mashed potato and gravy for some good comfort food.  I have even seen a recipe for meatloaf cupcakes?!  SAY WHAAAAAAT.  I'm going to try this one day.  Perfect little savoury bites.  Omigoodness.

INGREDIENTS

500g chicken mince

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 egg

1 small onion, finely diced

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup pasta sauce (tomato/marinara - homemade or store bought)

1/2 cup cheese (for the top... I just used Edam)

METHOD

•  Preheat the oven to 180 deg C
• Line meatloaf tin with baking paper
• Combine the ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, thyme, oregano, basil, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese in a large bowl
• Mix well, but try not to over-handle it (it can get tough)
• Put the mixture in the meatloaf tin
• Top with pasta sauce
• Bake, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes
• Take out and sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese on top
• Bake again until cheese is golden and melted
• Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving

 

This recipe has ended up in my "favourite recipes" book already, and I've only made it once!  While I have to go out of my way to get the chicken mince, and also only use 1/2 a cup of pasta sauce (leaving me with the remainder of the jar to find a use for), I fully don't mind - it's 100% worth it!!  This meatloaf was amazing.  The tomato sauce and cheesy topping works beautifully with the herbs in the meat, and arghhhh I just cannot explain how delicious it was! 

Just go and make it for yourself!!  Om nom nom...!

Recipe Inspiration: http://joelens.blogspot.co.nz/2010/06/chicken-parmesan-meatloaf.html

Homemade Pizza

One of my favourite weekend lunches to make is homemade pizza.  It's fast and easy.  Often we have ham, and shredded cooked chicken for during-the-week-lunches to put in sandwiches, but it doesn't all get used up.  Homemade pizza is the perfect way to use up these things before they go off, and makes a delicious lunch.  

I'm going to share with you my personal favourite toppings.  Of course, homemade pizza is so simple, and versatile, you can make it any which way you want to.  

INGREDIENTS

2 pre-made pizza bases

Topping #1: Hawaiian Wannabe

spaghetti from a can (instead of tomato sauce/puree base)

diced onion

ham

pineapple (optional)

grated cheese on top

Topping #2: BBQ Chicken

baked beans (instead of tomato sauce/puree base)

sliced red onion

shredded chicken

sliced capsicum (optional)

BBQ sauce, squirted in a lovely swirl

grated cheese on top

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 180 deg C (fan bake)
• Chuck all the toppings on the pizza
• Cover in grated cheese
• Put the pizzas in the oven and bake until cheese is melted and golden
• Cut and serve immediately!

in the oven

Hawaiian Wannabe

BBQ Chicken

Delicious!

Big Batch of Spaghetti

I was going to try making mi goreng from scratch for lunch, but decided we didn't have enough fresh veges to make it a worthwhile stirfry.  So then I decided I really felt like a big bowl of pasta in tomato sauce.  I set about making a sauce, based loosely on a recipe (see bottom of this post) I found on Pinterest a while ago.  It's almost a version of the vodka cream sauce, but without the vodka.  But mostly, I just made it up as I went along!

Serves 5 - 6 (it makes A LOT!)

INGREDIENTS

1 can whole peeled tomatoes (drained half the sauce they were in)

1 can tomato puree

2 tablespoons tomato paste

a squirt of tomato sauce

1/2 cup strong chicken stock

1 big teaspoon crushed garlic

1 big onion, diced

2 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons butter

garlic salt (to taste)

oregano (dried or fresh)

basil (dried or fresh)

1/4 tsp chilli powder (to taste)

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup grated cheese

2 tablespoons cornflour mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water (to thicken)

spaghetti, cooked according to packet instructions to al dente 

METHOD

• Fill a pot with salted water and cook the spaghetti to al dente 
• Meanwhile, heat oil and butter in a pan, add garlic and onion and saute until tender
• Add chicken stock and simmer for a couple of minutes
• Add drained tomatoes, tomato puree, tomato paste, tomato sauce, basil, oregano and garlic salt.  Simmer for 10 minutes
• Mix in sour cream, cheese and cornflour/water mixture, simmer for another 5 minutes, stirring continuously
• Drain cooked pasta, and stir through the sauce
• Serve immediately, with cheese to sprinkle on top

It certainly satisfied my craving for a big, glorious bowl of spaghetti.  And of course, it's fun to eat!  Even if you do end up with a red ring of sauce around your mouth, like I always seem to! :D  The other good thing is that this dish doesn't sit heavy in your stomach - you feel full, but not disgustingly bloated or anything.  :)

Recipe Inspiration: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/09/pasta-with-tomato-cream-sauce/

Crustless Broccoli Cheese Quiches

I have a confession to make.  You know how most kids think broccoli is the worst vegetable in the world, and kids cartoons always make giant broccoli out to be the enemy of all children, something evil that deserves to be hated...?  Well, I was the kid who ATE those kids share of broccoli.  I LOVE BROCCOLI!  I always have.  I always will.  I could never understand why so many kids hated it so much.  It's one of my favourite vegetables.  Nothing better than fresh steamed broccoli, perhaps with a bit of grated cheese on top that's melted from the heat... om nom nom. 

So when I fell upon a recipe for crustless (aka easy!) broccoli cheddar quiches, after having had a massive delivery from some kind friends of eggs straight off their farm, I was very excited.  The recipe used up 6 of the eggs, which was good (meant the sudden excess of eggs wouldn't go to waste!), and Mum had got broccoli from the supermarket on the weekend (2 big heads of broccoli for $3!  Cheap as!) so we had lots of that to use too.

I made it as a side dish for dinner, and my parents ate the left overs for breakfast.   I love that you can make them in muffin trays, perfect portion control, perfect serving size, and they cooked up lovely.  Although the original instructions said to make it into 4 ramekins, I actually liked the muffin tray idea... plus we didn't have any ramekins haha!

Made 11 quiche cupcakes (normal muffin size)

INGREDIENTS

6 eggs

10oz broccoli "florets", cut as big/small as you want (10oz = about 1 & 1/4 cup)

1/2 cup milk

2.5 teaspoons melted butter

Salt and pepper - to taste (optional)

Pinch of chilli powder (optional)

3/4 cup grated cheese (original recipe says sharp cheddar, but I just used Edam)

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 180 deg C
• Microwave broccoli for 1 minute with a little water, drain, and pat dry with paper towels
• Whisk eggs, milk, melted butter, 1/2 tsp salt, pepper and chilli together until mixed
• Stir in broccoli and cheese
• Divide mixture evenly between the muffin tray cups, filling 3/4 of the way up the cup
• Poke any bits of broccoli sticking up back down (you don't want it to burn in the oven)
• Bake until golden (about 15 or 20 mins, depending on your oven)

They DO rise when they are in the oven, and get all puffy, but then they deflate as they cool down, into dense little eggy cheesy bites of delicious.  Serve immediately, or eat cold, or eat as left overs - they're good any way!!

I think I will experiment with some other fillings at some point... tomatoes, or ham, or red onion, or normal onion might be a nice addition.  I'll let you know if I do.  :)  I personally didn't really enjoy all the egg, but I'm not big on egg anyway (it takes a very special egg for me to eat it haha).  Mum and Dad loved them though, so we'll go with "they are delicious".  I mostly liked them for the broccoli, if I'm being honest.  :D

Recipe inspiration: http://www.marthastewart.com/318409/crustless-broccoli-cheddar-quiches

AMAZING Pasta Sauce

Tonight for dinner, I made a variation of the Spaghetti with Vodka Cream Sauce that I made earlier in the blog.  Having cream that needed using, and feeling somewhat confident having made the basic recipe a couple of times, I decided to try and play around a little bit.  The result?

THE MOST AMAZING PASTA EVER!

Ok, so I'm not being terribly modest, but hell.  That was some damn good pasta!  I don't think I'll EVER make the basic Vodka Cream Sauce again!  I'm going to do it this new way from now on, because it was so good.  It was terribly refreshing, not heavy sitting in your stomach, and it's vegetarian (which is a bonus - cheap, and you don't need meat at every meal - sometimes it's nice to have a change up... after all, we are omnivores!).  

Another good thing is that it has lots of vegetables in it, but you barely even notice!

INGREDIENTS

dry pasta (enough for 4 - 5 + serves), cooked al dente, drained, kept warm - I used penne tonight!

2 tbsp oil

2 medium onions, diced

1 & 1/2 tsp salt, divided

a pinch of dried chilli powder (to taste - but be frugal, trust me)

1 generous teaspoon of crushed garlic

1 cup vodka

1/2 cup vegetable or chicken stock (I made it quite strong for extra flavour)

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can whole tomatoes

1/2 cup cream

diced capsicum (bell peppers)

1 medium carrot, grated

cherry tomatoes, halved

mushrooms (optional - I fried these on the side in a bit of butter for my Dad to add to his sauce - I personally don't like mushrooms)

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

2 tbsp cornflour mixed in 2 tbsp cold water to thicken (if necessary, add at the end)

shaved or grated parmesan cheese, for on top!

METHOD

• Heat oil, add onion and sauté until tender.
• Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, chilli, and garlic; sauté 1 minute.
• Add vodka (when cooking with alcohol, there is always the chance of it catching on fire, so be very careful); bring to a boil
• Reduce heat, and simmer 3 minutes or until liquid is reduced by about half
• Stir in 1 tsp salt, stock, and cans of tomatoes (you may want to smoosh the whole tomatoes up a bit as it simmers); bring to a boil
• Add diced capsicum, grated carrot and halved cherry tomatoes.  Season with dried basil, oregano and garlic salt.
• Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes, tasting the sauce and adjusting seasoning if necessary
• Mix in cream, stirring constantly while cooking for another 2 minutes
• If the sauce is a little thin, mix the cornflour and water and add to the sauce, simmering for a few more minutes while stirring constantly
• Serve immediately on al dente pasta, with cheese to garnish.

It smelled and looked so good, I wanted to eat ASAP and I forgot to take a picture on the bench... hence why you can see my legs haha!

Then once you've eaten this pasta, come back to my blog and thank me for introducing you to the best sauce of your life! ;)  It's so easy.  It may look like a lot of steps, but it's really not, and I've kept it as simple as possible! :)  I prepared all my diced veges first so I could just chuck them in as needed, so that keeps it easy. :)

Happy cooking!

Quick & Easy Nachos

Mexican food is not common in my diet.  The only time we eat it is if I cook it myself.  Until now, my limit was burritos.  Don't get me wrong, they are delicious, I love them to bits.  But I felt like expanding my Mexican repertoire, and had got Mum to buy a can of Mexican style chilli beans at the grocery store a while ago.  The can has been sitting there, tormenting me, going "You don't know how to cook me!  You don't know what to do with me!  You suck!".  Yes, cans of food have been talking to me.  (Maybe I need to see someone?)

So the other day, I thought "Screw YOU.  I AM going to cook you" and started googling easy nacho recipes.  Funnily enough, a recipe popped up using the exact can of chilli beans I had sitting in the pantry.  It was meant to be.  I asked Mum to grab some chopped tomatoes in a can (because I've used all the ones we had haha oops) on her way home, plus a few of the other ingredients. 

Making the nacho chilli was pretty easy, and there wasn't much prep, so I was pleased.  And to serve, everyone can assemble their own - always fun!

INGREDIENTS

500g lean mince

1tsp oil

420g can mild (or hot) chilli beans

420g can Mexican style chopped tomatoes

1 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp onion salt

pinch of dried chilli powder (to taste, be frugal is my advice - that stuff is POTENT!)

1 onion

1 carrot, grated and peeled

Diced capsicum (bell peppers) - I used red, orange and yellow, just add as much as you want.

Serve with:

Cheese flavoured corn chips

Sour cream

Tomato salsa

Grated cheese

METHOD

• Heat some oil in a frypan, and brown the mince, capsicum, grated carrot and onions together.
• Add the tomatoes and chilli beans, and the salts and chilli powder.  Make sure you taste as you go to adjust seasonings to your preference - I found the original recipe that inspired this meal a bit bland, so all the seasonings are my own ideas, trying to flavour it up a bit!
• Simmer for 10 mins, until cooked and you're happy with the seasoning.
• Assemble!  Nacho chips on the bottom, pile on some mince, grated cheese on top (can be grilled if you can be bothered, but the heat from the mince melts the cheese anyway - just as good!), salsa and sour cream!

Quite possibly my favourite part of the meal was the sour cream haha.   I'm a sour cream fiend!  Om nom nom.  Mum and Dad really enjoyed them, but I still wasn't 100% happy with the seasoning in the mince.  However, when all together with the garnishings, it came together nicely and was just like bought nachos (but better, cos I added more veges!  Woot!)

Again, no photo sorry, but I can assure you it looked delicious.  :D

Recipe Inspiration: http://www.foodinaminute.co.nz/Recipes/Quick-Easy-Nachos

Spaghetti Cups

In New Zealand, where I live, there is this staple food.  It's called spaghetti.  And I'm not talking about dried pasta that you cook to al dente, and serve with a variety of sauces.  I'm talking about spaghetti out of a can, it comes already soft and soggy, with a delicious tomato sauce.  It's one of my favourite things, I've eaten it my whole life.  It's incredibly versatile, and amazing.  It's like the little sister of baked beans.  Everything you can do with baked beans, you can do with spaghetti from a can; on toast, in a toasted sandwich, as a pizza sauce base, heated up straight from the can, in casseroles, in meatloaf, on meat pies, anything.

When I lived overseas, that was one thing I missed a great deal was spaghetti from a can.  We used to even (and I'm not kidding or exaggerating) get trays of the cans sent over to Malaysia especially.  And we were frugal, we used it sparingly, to make it last as long as possible (we lived in Malaysia for 3 years) because it was hard to get the trays sent over.

So, my spaghetti of choice (because there are many brands available here) is Watties Spaghetti.  Just the plain original stuff (none of the crap with the added cheese, bacon, or sausages... ick!).  Now in most of the recipes I make, I'm going to try not to use specific brands, but honestly, there is NOTHING like Watties Spaghetti, so this is an occasion where I am going to break my own rules.  :)

Now this recipe, it's so simple.  You make bread cups.  You fill them.  You bake them.  You eat them.  YES.  Simplicity at its finest.

INGREDIENTS

12 slices of bread (white, multigrain, whatever you have)

50g butter (I thought, golly that's a lot, but you do use it all!)

1 x 300g can Watties Spaghetti (or baked beans, if you'd really prefer!)

Grated cheese

1 onion, finely diced

Some ham, cut into small pieces

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 180 deg C (aka moderate oven).
• Cut the crusts from the bread (and keep aside... I'll tell you why later!) and brush one side of each slice with a little melted butter - I used a rubbery pastry brush - super easy!
• Push the bread buttered side down into 12 muffin tins and bake for 15 mins, or until golden and crispy - depends how you like your toast.
  
• Meanwhile, mix the can of Spaghetti with diced onion and ham (and anything else you fancy adding!)
• Fill the bread cups evenly with a spoonful of the mixture, and then top with grated cheese
• Pop them back in the oven for another 15 mins, or until the filling is hot and the cheese is melted and golden and amazing. 

And now, you stuff your face!  Haha but seriously, how easy is that?  And delicious.  They're almost like little pizza cups.  I love that they make a good lunch item, I'm definitely going to make these during the week this year to take to uni for cheap lunches.  I'll let you in on a little secret, they're also really nice cold!  So you don't even have to worry about heating them up!  BONUS!  

And who says this is just a lunch item?  Go NUTS.  Crack some egg in there, or bacon, or heck, just eat one of these ones for breakfast!  And the range of fillings... my goodness.  Baked beans, shredded chicken, cheese, and BBQ sauce make amazing fillings too!  Use your imagination!  Perfect.

Recipe inspiration: http://www.foodinaminute.co.nz/Recipes/Mini-Spaghetti-Pies

Edit: OH SNAP! I forgot to tell you what I did with the leftover crusts.  I thought this was very clever and resourceful of me, because cutting the crusts off 12 pieces of bread seemed like a waste.  So.  I got a flat oven tray, drizzled some oil in the bottom, tossed the crusts in there, shook 'em around a bit to make sure they all got some oil, and chucked that in the oven when the bread cups were first in the oven.  VOILA breadsticks!  I took them out when golden, and they are going to be PERFECT for dipping in anything dippy, like hummus, or other fancyful dips!  YAY! :)  Much better than buying breadsticks for $6 a box (or something equally ridiculous)!