So… yesterday I tried something a little new. Instead of writing out a blog, I recorded some short videos and posted the content to my Instagram story. Sadly, I have no photos of the different stages, but check out my instagram story highlights to see a step by step guide! (@gffoodobcecd)

Instead, I am going to give a brief summary of the steps so you can follow along in future, if you decide to give this delicious recipe a try.

Ingredients:
– 4-6 Good quality Italian sausages (preferably spicy)
– 2 Onions (I used white because we had no red, but either work well)
– 2 Cloves of garlic
– 2 Bay leaves
– 1tsp dried chilli flakes (or more/less to flavour)
– 2 400g Tin tomatoes (Crushed/diced/peeled)
– 1/3 Bottle of red wine
– Grates nutmeg (to taste)
– Parmesan
– 1tbsp of creme fraiche/double cream
– Salt and pepper
– Oil

1. Skin the sausages and crumble the meat into small chunks- I did mine slightly too big so broke them down more as they were cooking
2. Heat the sausage meat in a large pan with your oil
3. Once browned, add the onions, garlic, bay leaves and chilli (Always remember you can add MORE chilli, but you cannot take it away)
4. After the onions have browned on a low heat (around 20 mins), add the wine
5. Allow the wine to evaporate on a higher heat
6. Pour in the tins of tomatoes, stirring in all the ingredients, and lower the heat
7. Add a lid to your pan and allow to cook on a very low heat for 45-60 mins (At this point we went to the pub!)
8. Once thickened, season the sausage sauce with grated nutmeg and salt- it may already have strong pepper flavours from the sausage meat, so make sure you taste as you season!
9. We grated a fairly big chunk of parmesan and used around 3/4 of this to add into the pasta, the remainder was for serving
10. Once off the heat, stir in the creme fraiche/double cream- this can be done to taste, but I recommend around 1tbsp
11. Serve your sauce over pasta, or mix the pasta straight into the pan
12. ENJOY!

The recipe really was this simple, and tasted delicious. It’s a great recipe for entertaining, and can be left to cook itself for the majority of the time. Also, it makes your kitchen, and the rest of your house, smell like an Italian dream!

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Although it is nearly summer here in Australia, I have got a pre-exam cold, and what I have really been craving is a hearty meat stew to blow away the cobwebs. I know it is getting very chilly in the UK now too, so this is perfect on a dark autumnal eve.

Like usual, I got this recipe from BBC GoodFood, and it didn’t disappoint! I only loosely followed the ingredients and measurements and added a few extra ingredients. My housemate also let me use her slow cooker, which was a great new experience for me.

My ingredients were:

• 1 Onion
• 2 Celery sticks
• 3 Carrots
• 5 New potatoes
• 1 Leek
• 2 Bay leaves
• 2tsp Dried thyme
• 2tbsp Tomato purée
• 2 ½ Beef stock cubes
• 900g Beef/kangaroo mix
• Parsley
• Oil
• Salt and pepper

I began the dish by prepping all my veggies.

Firstly, I chopped the celery into even (ish) chunks, the size is up to you! I am not a fan of celery at all, but once it was cooked, I was pleasantly surprised that it added to the flavour. Maybe these chefs do know what they’re talking about?! I halved the carrots, also cutting them into rough chunks, along with one leek, and finely diced the white onion. I also quartered the potatoes, ready to be parboiled.

In a large frying pan, I added the onion, celery and a glug of oil. This cooked on a low heat until the ingredients began to soften, and the onion started to turn translucent. Following this, I added the carrots, leek, bay leaves and dried thyme and continued to fry for a couple more minutes. In a separate saucepan, I also par boiled my potatoes for around 10-15 minutes.

When all the veggies were mixed, I added the tomato puree, along with 800ml of boiling water. At this point, I transferred all of the ingredients, including the potatoes, into the slow cooker and ensured everything was combined, before crumbling over the beef stock cubes. At this point I also added a large helping of pepper and gave the stew a big mix. I tasted the broth and added a little more thyme.

I cleaned out the frying pan and began to prep my meat. I used a combination of beef and kangaroo as this worked out as the best price, as well as the fact that I am trying to incorporate kangaroo into every meal whilst I have the opportunity! Obviously, if you are in the UK and you do not know an exotic butcher, beef will do just fine!

I pan-fried the chunks of meat in batches, each with a little oil, until they were all well browned. Once this was complete, I added the meat to the slow cooker. If at this point you need more liquid, you can add extra water.

I gave everything a big stir and it was ready to cook! I chose to use the high-power setting, which meant that cooking time was 4 hours, however if you are going to be out all day, you can leave it on low for 8-10 hours. I guarantee as well, if you will be out the house all day, you will be greeted at the door by amazing rich meaty aromas.

I checked on the stew occasionally, giving it a stir now and then, to make sure all of the seasoning had time to absorb into the veg and meat. For the last 30 minutes I removed the lid, to reduce the amount of liquid in the stew and to thicken it up slightly. This can also be achieved by adding 2tsp of cornflower and a splash of cold water in the last 30 minutes of cooking.

Finally, I was able to take a break from revision and have some well needed brain food! I added a handful of chopped fresh parsley to finish the whole dish off. The reason I chose a stew was in an attempt to kick a horrible cold, and although I cannot claim it had medical properties, it felt like a warm hug!

I managed to get 6 portions out of all of the ingredients and shared it around my housemates too. I served the stew with thick gluten free toast; however, the recipe recommends a buttery mash accompaniment as well. I must add, the recipe does not include potatoes, that was an extra I added, but I am sure two potato varieties in one meal is not a bad thing!

The overall dish cost more than I would usually spend on cooking, mainly because of the price of the meat, however, it was really worth it. I also have lots left over in the freezer, for any occasional blustery Australian days or sudden runny noses!

Here is the link to the original recipe: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/slow-cooker-beef-stew

* First off, I have to say, this meal was bloody delicious *

I love simple cooking, and I especially love a tray bake! The other day I was feeling a little glum, so I treated myself to a new cook book- Joe Wicks, Cooking for Friends and Family. As much as I enjoy cooking for others, what I really had in mind for this book was that I could make big dishes and freeze them- making my life easier! Not only are the dishes low in carbs and fat, all the recipes have really clear guides, and also highlight whether or not they’re good for freezing.

Today, my chicken parmigiana is both reduced carb and freezable- perfect. I had to do a huge shop today, and instead of going to Aldi, I managed to get everything in Coles Supermarket. I was pleasantly surprised by some of the bargains I found, especially a loaf of GF bread for $1.27. As I bought (nearly) all the ingredients today, I am able to do a cost per serving too, this will be at the bottom of my blog!

So, here we go… Chicken Parmigiana!

My ingredients were:

• 4 Chicken breasts
• 2 Aubergines
• 600g Tin tomatoes
• 50g Tomato puree
• Mozzarella (I used 210g bocconcini)
• 2tsp Italian herbs
• Fresh basil (Sadly I couldn’t find any)
• 1tbsp Balsamic vinegar
• Salt + Pepper
• Oil

 

Start with a preheated oven. Mine is set at 250 degrees, but it is a useless university halls oven- Joe Wicks recommends 190 degrees.

The first step is to prep the chicken and the aubergine. I started off by tenderising the chicken breasts. Only doing two at a time, I laid one piece of cling film over a chopping board (hard surface is required), placed two chicken breasts on top of that, and then another layer of cling film again- like a cling film sandwich. Using a rolling pin (or other blunt object) I then bashed the chicken, so that it became thinner and flatter. I repeated this with the second two breasts.

Once this was completed, I seasoned both sides of the chicken and pan fried, once again, in batches of two because I had a small pan. The pan had a drizzle of oil in, which I ensured was hot before adding the chicken. They only needed around 1 minute on each side, it is only to brown the edges, the actual cooking happens in the oven a little later! Once again, I repeated on the other two breasts.

The prep for the aubergine is very similar. Using a sharp knife, I carefully sliced each aubergine into around 6/8 slices, depending on your desired thickness. If you wanted thin strips, a mandolin may be useful, however, I found the knife did the trick! In the same pan as before, I added another drizzle of oil and browned the aubergine on both sides, making sure each piece was well seasoned. This took about 3 batches so that I didn’t overcrowd the pan.

As my aubergine was in the pan I started on my tomato sauce. This was really simple. In a jug, I mixed together 600g tin tomatoes, tomato puree, Italian herbs, basil, balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper. I chose diced tomatoes; however, the recipe does call for chopped- I guess it is up to personal preference, and how chunky you like your tomatoes. Sadly, I couldn’t find any fresh basil in Coles today, so my sauce went without. Despite this, it was still really tasty, but I imagine the basil gives it a deeper, more Italian-y flavour.
Now for the fun part- the construction. For this you need a large oven-proof baking tray or roasting tin.

I started by pouring 1/3 of the tomato sauce into the tray. Following this, I added ½ of the cooked aubergines, followed by a layer of half the mozzarella. Seasoning with each layer. The next step was the chicken, which overlapped a couple of the slices of the mozzarella/bocconcini- Bocconcini are mini mozzarella balls, which I find easier to source here in Aus. Finally, the remainder of the aubergine was added, along with the remaining sauce and leftover slices of mozzarella to finish.

Now it is time for the oven! For the first 15 minutes of cooking, cover the roasting tin with tinfoil, and after this time is up, remove the foil and cook for a further 15 minutes. The smells coming from the oven during cooking will be like an Italian, fragrant pizza restaurant!

I served my parmigiana with a few gem lettuce leaves and it was good to go! I think the chicken would go well with a number of accompaniments, including rice and even some green seasonal veggies.

This dinner was honestly SOOOO delicious! I even let two of my housemates try it, to share the amazing flavours- which, I must say, is a rarity for me, because I rarely share food. I am so glad I have 3 more portions in the freezer.

To make the dish EVEN better, it was relatively low cost, the most expensive aspect being the chicken. However, when this is split into 4 portions, all of which were a really good size, it doesn’t amount to a lot at all! All in all, each serving would cost $4.45 AUD, totalling to £2.41 GBP. Absolute bargain!

I am really pleased with how this dish turned out, and how easy the recipe was to follow! I really recommend this recipe, along with many more from Joe Wicks.

Although I am currently having some on-off beautiful weather in Australia, I am aware that the nights are drawing in back in the UK. Although it is sad to wave goodbye to summer, the time calls for hearty winter meals and tasty autumnal recipes! With this in mind, here is my recipe today, Chilli Con Carne.

Despite the sun here, I do still love a warm meal at the end of the day, and chilli is perfect for making in batches and freezing. As well as this, it’s simple once you know how, and it can be done on a budget!

This is a great recipe from BBC GoodFood (I will link it at the bottom), my ingredients are:

• 1 Large onion
• 1 Red pepper
• 2 Garlic cloves
• 1tsp Cayenne pepper
• 1tsp Paprika
• 1tsp Ground cumin
• 500g Beef mince
• 1 Stock cube (beef)
• 400g Tin tomatoes (chopped/diced/crushed)
• 1 Square dark choc (I used 70%)
• 2tbsp Tomato puree
• 1 Tin red kidney beans
• Oil
• Salt + Pepper

To Serve:

• Rice
• Sour cream/crème fraiche

I started by preparing the veg, which was really simple. Using my amazing new garlic plate, I minced 2 cloves of garlic to a chunky paste. However, if you are not lucky enough to have an amazing garlic plate, using a mincer, or finely chopping would work too! I diced the large onion, and also roughly chopped my red pepper.

(Check my insta to see my post about the little garlic plate, and the link to where you can buy one!)

In a large pan, I started by heating a glug of oil, and, once this was hot, I added the onion, cooking until it became translucent. Once the onion was soft, I added the garlic paste and red pepper, stirring the three ingredients together.

Now time for the spices! I added all the spices by eye, however I have included the exact measurements from the recipe to make it easier. In went the paprika, cumin and cayenne pepper. If spicy food isn’t to your fancy, you could use mild chilli powder. At this point, the smells from the pan should be spicy and fragrant. It is important to make sure all the ingredients are evenly combined.

After a good stir, I left this to cook for around 5 minutes on a medium heat.

To my pan, I added the mince and slowly began breaking it apart- however, it is important to keep some of the larger chunks, as to give the chilli texture. After the meat had had a good sizzle in the pan, I carried on stirring for around 5 minutes, until all the pink had become brown. This should be done on a high heat to ensure it is cooked through.

To create the sauce, I first added the stock. Into a 300ml jug of boiling water I crumbled 1 beef stock cube. This enhances the meaty flavour and juices from the mince, whilst combining with the spices- it should REALLY be smelling good now.

Next I added the tin of tomatoes, I chose diced, just because that’s what I could grab from Aldi, however, any other variation would be perfectly fine too. I also added 2tbsp of tomato puree. So far, I’ve yet to find tomato puree in a tube in Australia, however, the organic puree I got from Aldi in a tin seems just as good, if not better.

Now time for the magic ingredient- the dark chocolate. The chocolate acts as a natural sweetener, that deepens the flavour of the tomato sauce. It is important to only add a small amount, so that the actual chocolate flavour is unidentifiable. (Note, I had to change pans here so I could use a lid!!!)

At this point, the sauce should be bubbling away. Give it a good stir and pop the lid on the pan. This should then cook on a low heat for 20 mins. I checked occasionally, to check the consistency of my sauce, and to ensure the chilli wasn’t catching on the bottom of the pan. Mine did a little, so I added a couple of tablespoons of water, which made this issue disappear straight away. Also, if it is looking a little dry, add some water too. The mixture should be looking thick, juicy and bubbling away nicely.

After the 20 minutes are up, it is time to add the last ingredient, the kidney beans. I drained and rinsed the tin and stirred the beans into the chilli mixture. Turning the heat back up, so the mixture boils again, this then cooks for another 10 mins.

When the 10 mins was over, I seasoned the chilli. The recipe does say you will need more seasoning than you anticipate, and I also found this to be true. I did end up adding a lot of salt and pepper, but as it is split into portions, I wouldn’t worry about it. The seasoning really makes the dish come together. You can do this to taste, adding a little at time, until its perfect for you.

Once this is done, and all stirred in together, replace the lid and take the chilli off the heat, it then has to stand for 10 minutes. This last 10 minutes is really worth it, allowing all the flavours to infuse. However, I was really hungry at this point, and the amazing chilli smell was very tempting- somehow, I did manage to wait the whole 10 minutes.

To serve the dish, I boiled brown rice, and added a big spoon of sour cream. Sour cream in Australia is more like crème fraiche at home, so either would be great.

Although this isn’t the most beautiful dish, it really tastes amazing, good enough that I went back for seconds (and maybe a small bowl for thirds).

Like I said, this can be made on a budget, with beans and tomatoes costing around 50p/80c a tin. Lean mince can also be bought at a good price, especially in Aldi. The extras like paprika, cumin and cayenne are some staple spices I would recommend to everyone, and I use a lot in my kitchen. It is definitely worth the time it takes to cook, and now I have lots of more portions in my freezer for colder days.

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/3228/chilli-con-carne

 

Once again, I found myself sifting through my freezer, before I finish Uni for the year, and I came across a pack of lean turkey mince. Not only is turkey mince far cheaper than beef or lamb mince it is also far healthier. I really enjoy treating myself, but it is great finding healthier recipes that taste just as good!

I have made turkey burgers before which were delicious, but I fancied making something a bit different, so this time I chose turkey Bolognese. As turkey mince is less calorific, less fatty and higher in protein it was a great choice after a busy few days in the gym, whilst also delivering that comfort food feeling with the rich tomato sauce and pasta.  I found a great recipe by The Kitchen Alchemist and was excited to give it a go.

My ingredients were

• 450g Turkey mince
• 450g Passata
• 1 White onion
• 1 Red pepper
• 1 Red chilli
• 2 Small cloves of garlic (or 1 large)
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1tbsp Sugar
• 1tsp Chilli flakes
• 2tbsp Mixed herbs
• Salt and Pepper (heavy on the pepper)

 

I started off by heating a big drizzle of oil in my casserole dish over a high heat on the hob. Once the oil had become piping hot I added the diced onion, red pepper and the finely chopped red chilli. I used a little water to ensure the ingredients didn’t stick to the pan as they browned.

After about 5/10 minutes I introduced the turkey mince; breaking it up with my wooden spoon so that it began to cook all over. Once the turkey mince had coloured I then added the minced garlic and continued to cook for a few more minutes.

The next ingredients I needed to add were the 450g passata- you could use chunky chopped tomatoes instead- chilli, sugar, salt and pepper. At this point I also added 1tbsp of dried basil and another of dried oregano. These herbs give the dish a more Italian feel and make the sauce smell, and taste, amazing.

Once everything was combined and mixed together I turned the hob down to a low/medium heat and covered the pan with the lid. I then left this to simmer for around 25 minutes. In this time all of the amazing spices, herbs and flavours marinated into the turkey mince and passata giving it a rich flavour.

Whilst the Bolognese was still simmering I cooked up a big portion of whole-wheat pasta. I was making enough for one portion for myself and another to take to work, however, I managed to cook enough for a small family?!

After the 25 minutes were up I added two ladles of pasta water- just as the pasta was nearing the end- and the juice of one lemon. The recipe calls for one juicy lemon and I was in luck. Once the lemon and pasta water had been added to the Bolognese I gave it a big stir, ensuring all the liquid had soaked in.

I drained off the pasta once it had cooked and got ready to plate up. At this point it would be the perfect time to add fresh parsley or basil and a hearty helping of parmesan cheese, however I am trying to save money and reduce food waste, so I didn’t add these ingredients to my shopping list. Instead, once my Bolognese was piled onto my pasta, I added another sprinkle of pepper and it was ready to eat.

I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome as I am always very aware that no Bolognese will ever come close to my Mum’s! But, however, I think I did give it a good shot and I am happy I will have got a good helping of protein too.

As I said, turkey mince is really good value, I got mine in Aldi for about £1.40, and the Bolognese recipe has made enough for about 4/5 portions. To make the whole big batch the cost would be around £2.75 (inc. an estimation regarding the price of dried herbs), making it an amazing 70p per portion.

Not only can this be eaten with pasta, but the recipe also suggests using it as a side to a crispy jacket potato, or with rice, as an alternative to chilli. I would definitely recommend this easy yet tasty recipe. If you fancy it, follow the link below:

https://www.thekitchenalchemist.co.uk/recipes/2014/11/16/spicy-turkey-pasta