Baked pasta with sausage, sage and butternut

Tags

bechamel sauce, butternut, Cheese, comfort food, gratin, Pasta, sausages, toulouse sausages

This dish is pure comfort food at its very best. It combines all of my favorite comfort foods, pasta, bechamel sauce, sausages and cheese and is cooked like a gratin thereby giving a delicious crusty, cheesy topping. What more could you want? It is inspired from a northern Italian recipe. In the original version, large pasta shells or conchiglioni are used and the sausage stuffing in placed in the shells but if you cannot get hold of them, feel free to use any large pasta such as penne, cavatappi, fusilli, rigatoni or even rotini.

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeds discarded, chopped into small cubes
2 teaspoons olive oil
10 sage leaves, chopped
6 pork sausages (I used Toulouse sausages)
1 teaspoon nutmeg
350g / 12oz pasta
50g / 2oz butter
50g / 2oz plain flour
850ml / 1 ½ pints milk
50g / 2oz parmesan, grated
100g / 4oz grated cheese (emmental, mozzarella mix)

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 200 C / 400 F
Place the butternut in a saucepan with a little water and cook for about 10 minutes until soft
Heat the oil in a frying pan
Add the sage leaves and sizzle for about 1 minute
Remove the sausages from their skins and divide into small balls about the size of a marble or hazelnut
Add the sausage balls to the pan and fry until golden brown
Add half the butternut to the sausage mixture and set aside
Mash the remaining butternut with the nutmeg and any liquid in the pan
Cook the pasta according to package instructions
Melt the butter in a saucepan
Add the flour and stir, cook for 1 to 2 minutes
Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly
Cook for 2 to 3 minutes over medium low heat until you have a smooth, thick sauce
Add the mashed butternut, parmesan and seasoning
Spread the sauce and butternut mixture on the bottom of a large, shallow baking dish
Drain the pasta
Place the pasta on top of the sauce
Pour the sausage and sage mixture over the pasta
Scatter the grated cheeses over all
Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown
Enjoy!

Lamb shank curry soup

Tags

comfort food, curry, Lamb, lamb shanks, puff pastry, Soup, stew

This is a very hearty and tasty soup which is made extra special as it is hidden under a blanket of crispy, fluffy and buttery puff pastry with just the shank bone peeking out. The smell of the spices when you break the crust is simply amazing. This is a recipe that lends itself very well to you playing around with the quantities to suit your taste, more curry, less curry, more liquid or more stewlike.

Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
4 lamb shanks
1 heaped tablespoon curry powder (depends on your preference-I use 2)
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 leeks, white parts only, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed
3 cm / 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1¼ L / 5 cups good beef stock (homemade is best)
1 lemon cut in half
1 large apple, peeled and sliced (granny smith works well)
700g / 1½ lbs baby potatoes, quartered
2 rolls of ready puff pastry
Fresh cilantro/coriander roughly chopped
1 beaten egg

Method:
Preheat the oven to 150C/300F
Melt the butter over medium high heat in a large ovenproof dish with a lid
Add the lamb and brown the shanks on all sides
Place the lamb on a plate
Reduce the heat to medium low
Add curry powder and cook while stirring for 1 to 2 minutes
Add oil, onion, leeks, garlic and ginger and cook for 3 minutes
Add the thyme, rosemary, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, beef stock, lemon and apple and stir well
Return the lamb to the dish and bring to a boil
Cover with a lid and place the dish in the oven for 2 hours
Add the potatoes and check if enough liquid – you can add a bit of hot stock if needed
Cover and return to the oven for another 45 to 60 minutes
Remove dish from oven and increase the temperature to 200C/400F
Portion the soup into 4 ovenproof large soup bowls discarding the lemon and place 1 shank in each with the bone sticking up
Sprinkle on some fresh cilantro
Unroll your puff pastry and cut out 4 circles a bit larger than the tops of your bowls
Brush some beaten egg on the rim of your bowls and place the pastry over the bowl allowing the bone to poke through the top
Press with your fingers on the edge of the pastry to help the pastry stick to the bowl and seal the edges
Brush the tops with the remaining egg
Cook for about 20 to 25 minutes until golden
Serve immediately
Bon appétit !

Cauliflower soup with smoky bacon

Tags

appetiser, appetizer, bacon, cauliflower, comfort food, Soup, starter

I recently made this soup for a weeknight dinner for Stuart and myself and posted a photo on my Instagram and Facebook pages.  By the following morning, I was inundated with requests for the recipe and thus begins my return to blogging.  It is so easy to make but looks like you spent hours slaving over a hot stove.  Perfect starter to a fancy meal or just dinner for two with some crusty bread.  Prep takes about 20 minutes and cooking time 40 minutes.
Serves 6

Ingredients:
6 slices bacon
400g/14oz potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large cauliflower, broken into florets
1 branch of celery, sliced thinly
1 medium onion, peeled and diced
1 leek, white part only, cut into thin slices
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
Parsley
1 bay leaf
80g/3oz freshly grated parmesan
3 tablespoons thick crème fraîche
1,5L/3 pints chicken stock
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 pinches nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat
Add the celery, onion, leek and garlic and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, do not let it colour
Add the potatoes, 3/4 of the cauliflower, stock, bay leaf and nutmeg
Bring to the boil, lower heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes until veggies cooked
Remove the bay leaf
Add the crème fraîche and parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste and keep warm
Place the remaining 1/4 cauliflower on a baking sheet, drizzle with 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
Roast for 15 minutes
Add the bacon, cut into small pieces, to the hot baking sheet and return all to the oven for 5 minutes
Using a stick blender, purée the soup for a few minutes
Pour the soup into preheated soup bowls, add a few pieces of roasted cauliflower and some crispy bacon to each bowl
Add parmesan, sprinkle with parsley and drizzle with olive oil

Bon appétit !