A great recipe: ragù bolognese

Ragù Bolognese

Spaghetti Bolognese is a typical Britalian dish created bearing in mind the ethnic Italian origin but adapted to suit British taste. This dish doesn't exist in Italy - the original dish originates in Emilia Romagna and it's called tagliatelle alla Bolognese. The main difference is that flat ribboned pastas are used instead of spaghetti and the ragù sauce doesn't contain herbs at all.

Genuine ragù Bolognese is a combination of at least two types of meat, like lean minced beef and pork, plus oil and butter, a little wine, an onion, plump ripe tomatoes and tomato paste.


25g (1oz) butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium-sized onion, chopped
250g (9oz) minced beef
250g (9oz) minced pork
6 tablespoons white wine
1kg (2lb) polpa di pomodoro (tomato pulp)
1 teaspoon concentrated tomato purée
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method

Heat the oil and butter in a pan and fry the chopped onion. Then add the meat and fry until golden brown. Stir in the wine, tomato pulp and tomato purée. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover with a lid and leave to simmer for about 2 hours stirring from time to time.

Serve with freshly cooked tagliatelle and sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan, if desired, but purists like this dish without.

Another recipe: Palmiers

I had forgotten about this recipe until someone mentioned palmiers on the TES (Times Educational Suppliment) Forum. I made these for Christmas because I love the palmiers that you can buy at the patisserie Paul in London. I hope you like these.

Palmier Recipe
Ingredients: Makes 24

75 g/3 oz caster (superfine) sugar
225 g/8 oz puff pastry (paste), thawed if frozen
25 g/1 oz/2 tbsp butter, melted

Method:

Sprinkle the work surface with a little sugar. Roll out the pastry thinly to about 25 x 30 cm/10 x 12 in. Brush with a little melted butter and sprinkle liberally with sugar. Fold the long sides in so they nearly meet in the middle, then flip one folded side over the other. Wrap in clingfilm (plastic wrap) and chill for at least 30 minutes.


Using a sharp knife, cut into 24 slices and place on a wetted baking (cookie) sheet. Bake in a preheated oven at 220°C/425°F/gas mark 7 for 10 minutes. Turn each palmier over and bake for a further 3-4 minutes until crisp and golden brown all over. Sprinkle immediately with more sugar and transfer to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight tin.

More on the stew!

I was asked if the stew turned out well. Yes it did. I found some frozen turkey broth and bits of turkey in the freezer when I defrosted it. So it became the basis for the stew.

Defrosted Fridge Stew:

1 to 1 1/2 cups of chicken/turkey broth and bits of meat
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into cubes
1 small can of tomatoes
1 onion, finely chopped
1 leak
2-3 cloves of garlic
Make sure liquids cover the meat and vegetables and so add water if you don't have enough broth
salt, pepper and whatever other seasonings you like to taste

1. Peel and chop onion and then fry on low heat in butter (with a bit of olive oil to stop butter from burning. Add chopped garlic.

2. Slice leak into 1/2 inch pieces (make sure the leak is clean) and fry with onion and garlic.

3. Add cubed potatoes and sweat potato and continue to fry for 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Add liquids and seasonings.

5. Simmer till vegetables are cooked.

Enough for 2 and a bit left over for the next day's lunch.

Defrosting the Fridge! And cranberry muffins!

I never thought that I would again have a refrigerator that I would have to defrost. I remember having one many years ago as a student but since then I've either bought my own or rented somewhere that had one that didn't need defrosting. Why is this such a problem? I just don't like doing it and keep putting it off. Today I can't put if off another moment since I can no longer get anything past the wall of ice guarding the entrance to my tiny freezer compartment. In fact, I only just managed to get the food in it, out. (As a side bar for those who don't live in the UK, you need to know that there are still many people living with only an under-the-counter refrigerator that takes very little, especially in the freezer.) (Please don't chastise me for saying that when, yes I know, there are many people who live without clean water, let alone a frost-free refrigerator!)

I used to long for a North American refrigerator but I would need a much larger kitchen so for now I cope and for as long as possible ignore the tell tale signs of glaciation. Where is all this leading me? To recipes to use up some of the interesting items I have found lurking at the back. For example there are two partially used jars of cranberry sauce. One is definitely from this past Christmas. I'm not sure about the other. However, there isn't any mold so I'm going to bake something with them. I remember a recipe for muffins using left over sauce so here it is. It's especially good for the day after Christmas or Thanksgiving when you have so much left over sauce!

Cranberry Muffins

2 cups flour (8oz cups)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup cranberry sauce
1/4 cup oil
1 cup cranberry sauce
1/4 cup oil
1 egg
1 cup milk

400F (200C) for 20 minutes

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.

2. Stir in the cranberry sauce. In another bowl, beat the oil and egg slightly.

3. Stir in the milk and pour into the flour mixture. Stir until just moistened.

4. Drop batter into well-buttered muffin tins - about 18 - and bake.

These are best eaten warm!

I have some frozen cranberries as well so I must go off and see what I can do with those.

Brownies

I went into my local farm shop today. Have I mentioned the farm shop before? It's on one of the farms that was hit by foot and mouth last summer. I needed some fruit and veggies to last through to the weekend but I also wanted to take 4 banana muffins to Coral, the owner, who had kindly saved me a bunch of over ripe bananas (which of course I used to make the muffins). While I was there, I was asked about American brownies. What were they like? Were they like a chocolate sponge with chocolate chips? Well, no, I said, and promised to make them some for the weekend. I'm not sure why they are so interested. I wonder if they were thinking of selling some.

My favorite brownie recipe is Nigella Lawson's. However, it is very expensive to make. So, instead, I'm going to make one out of the Canadian Living Cookbook from years ago. I've never made it before so we will have to wait till tomorrow to find out what it's like!

Ingredients

2 oz of unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1. In small saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate with butter, remove from heat and add vanilla; set aside.

2. In mixing bowl, beat eggs lightly. Gradually beat in sugar. In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt; stir into egg mixture. Stir in chocolate mixture, then nuts.

3. Spread in greased 8-inch (2L) square pan. Bake in 350F (180C) oven for about 25 minutes (brownies should appear slightly under-baked in center). cool; front if desired. Makes about 16 squares.

Chocolate Brownies for Christmas

Emma and I love some of Nigella Lawson's Chrismas recipes and in particular her brownies. They are to die for! So here we go:

SNOW FLECKED BROWNIES

Ingredients:
375g best quality dark chocolate

375g unsalted butter at room temperature at least

1 tablespoon real vanilla extract

6 eggs

350g sugar

1 teaspoon salt

225g plain flour

250g white chocolate buttons, preferably Montgomery Moore, or just chop same amount of good white chocolate

tin measuring approx 33cm x 23cm x 5.5cm

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4/350F.
Line your brownie pan base and sides.
Melt the butter and dark chocolate together in a large heavy based pan.
In a bowl or wide mouthed large measuring jug, beat the eggs with the sugar and vanilla.
Measure the flour into another bowl and add the salt.
When the chocolate mixture has melted let it cool a bit before beating in the eggs and sugar, and then the flour.
Finally fold in the white chocolate buttons. Beat to combine smoothly and then scrape out of the saucepan into the lined pan. Bake for about 25 mins.
The brownies are ready, when the top is dried to a paler brown speckle, but the middle is dark and dense and gooey still; remember that they will continue to cook as they cool.