Curly Fettuccini & Meatballs

Serves 4

Get This -

500g mince

1 onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 egg

1 cup of breadcrumbs

3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

5-6 basil leaves, roughly chopped

1/2 bunch Italian parsley, chopped
2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tins diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon brown sugar

olive oil, for cooking

curly fettuccini (or regular fettuccini or spaghetti)

grated parmesan to sprinkle

Do This -

1. In a large bowl add 1/2 of the chopped parsley, 1 garlic clove, mince, breadcrumbs, egg, parmesan cheese and a generous pinch of black pepper & salt. Mix with hands until well combined.
2. Heat some olive oil in a large pot to a medium heat and add onion & and remaining garlic clove. Fry till translucent and fragrant.
3. Roll the meatballs then brown them in the pot with the onions & garlic.
4. Add the tomato paste, canned tomatoes, the remaining chopped parsley, basil & bay leaves, sugar, salt & pepper.
5. Turn to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Or longer for more flavour. If the sauce seems a little dry add 1/2 cup of water.
6. Serve with curly fettucinni and sprinkle with parmesan and basil.

Fi's Minestrone

I found this recipe on Fi's blog Mummy Daze and thought it looked so good and so easy that I'd give it a go! It's absolutely delicious!!

Not my image, as per usual!

Serves 4 - with enough for seconds and leftovers

Get This -

2 tablespoons oil
ham/bacon/salami
onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

3 tablespoons tomato paste

800g tinned tomatoes

2 teaspoons stock powder

4.5 cups cold water

2 medium potatoes, cubed

1 large carrot, diced

zucchini, sliced

1/2 broccoli, chopped finely

1/2 cup frozen peas

750g tin cannellini beans, rinsed and strained

1/2 cup macaroni/broken spaghetti pieces

1 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 cups fresh baby spinach (if you have some)
salt & pepper

fresh basil

serve with a dollop of pesto

Do This -

1. Add diced bacon, onion, crushed garlic and oil to large pot. Cook over medium heat for 3 minutes or until onion is softened.
2. Add tomato paste, tinned tomato, stock and water. Cover, and bring to the boil. Add potato and carrots. Cook, uncovered for 15 minutes, or until cooked through.
3. When you are nearly ready to serve, add the beans, zucchini, broccoli, peas and pasta. Cook for 10-15 minutes or until pasta is just tender. Add sugar and vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix in baby spinach leaves just before serving.
4. Ladle into bowls and dollop with pesto and basil. Serve with toasted bread or oven-baked rolls - whatever you have handy.

I served it with parmesan instead of pesto, and fresh basil.

Bacon & Cheese Mini Muffins

from Taste.com.au

Makes 30

Get This -

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 short-cut bacon rashers, finely chopped

2 cups self-raising flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 tablespoons caster sugar

1/4 cup coarsely grated cheddar cheese

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup extra light olive oil

1/4 cup light sour cream

2 eggs

Do This -

1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Lightly grease a 12 x 1 1/2-tablespoon (30ml) capacity mini muffin pan.
   
2. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add bacon. Cook, stirring, for 6 minutes or until bacon is crisp. Drain. Allow to cool.
   
3. Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl. Stir in sugar, cheese and bacon. Whisk milk, oil, sour cream, eggs and pepper in a jug. Add to dry ingredients. Use a metal spoon to combine.
   
4. Spoon mixture into muffin holes to almost fill them. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of a muffin comes out clean. Stand for 5 minutes in pan before turning onto a wire rack. Repeat with remaining mixture. Serve warm or at room temperature.

From Taste.com.au and tweaked a little.

Devilled Sausages

As you know, I do not like using packet mixes or bottled bases. Who knows what's in those things!
So here's an easy recipe for devilled sausages...no packet required!

Serves 4

Get This -

• 500g beef or pork sausages
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 125ml water
• 2 onions, finely sliced
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
• 1 x 400g can diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• fresh parsley

Do This -

1. Heat oil in pan and brown sausages until cooked.
2. Remove sausages and chop into chunks.
3. Fry onions in the same pan until soft.
4. Combine all other ingredients with the water to make a sauce. Add to sausages and onions and stir until sauce begins to boil then reduce heat to a simmer. Stir occasionally and cook for at least 10 mins, but the longer the better. I like at least an hour.
5. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or your favourite herb. Serve with mashed potato or sweet potato, or on a bed of steamed rice with vegetables.

This recipe is from http://allrecipes.co.uk/ with a few tweaks.

Thai-Style Curry

This recipe is like a choose your own adventure story book.

You choose the type of curry.
You choose as many or as few vegetables as you like
You choose the meat or tofu...and come up with your own special thai-style curry.

Serves 4

 Get This -

• 2 tbsps thai red, green or yellow curry paste
• 400ml coconut milk
• 2 tbsps fish sauce
• 2 tbsps brown sugar
• 1 tbsp lime juice or 1 kaffir lime leaf finely shredded
• 400g - 500g diced chicken, pork, lamb, or prawns peeled and deveined. Or 300g tofu, diced and lightly fried
• fresh coriander
• 4 cups jasmine rice (cooked)

Choose your vegetables -

• small can bamboo shoots (drained and rinsed)
• small can water chestnuts (drained and rinsed)
• 125g baby corn spears, halved diagonally
• snow peas or snow pea sprouts
• capsicum
• carrots
• broccoli
• cauliflower
• shallots or onions
• beans or sugar snap peas
• zucchini

Do This -

1. In a wok or large saucepan, over medium high heat, combine coconut milk and curry paste, heat and stir constantly until the majority of the paste has dissolved. 2. And fish sauce, brown sugar and lime, stir until dissolved. 3. Add meat or tofu and vegetables, stir gently until well incorporated. 4. Let simmer for 10 - 20 minutes until meat and vegetables are cooked through. 5. Serve over rice or noodles and top with coriander or your favourite herbs.

Coleslaw

I'd never made coleslaw before. But today I thought I'd give it a go.

I don't know why I waited so long, it's easy!

And sooooo much better than any store bought coleslaw.

It was the perfect accompaniment to our easy Friday night frozen fish & chips!

I haven't added measurements for this recipe because you can add as much or as little as you like to suit your taste.

Get This -

• sugar loaf cabbage, finely shredded
• purple cabbage, finely shredded
• shallots, finely shredded
• carrot, grated
• fresh basil, finely shredded
• mayonnaise
• lime juice
• salt & pepper

Do This -

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl and serve.
2. Too easy!