PEPPER GARLIC SPAGHETTI WITH RICOTTA

Another day, another little homework row - I dont know how Arabella and I are going to get through the next 11 years of prep - I expect it is going to be a bumpy ride. Thankfully I had chosen to cook something rather simple as otherwise our evening would have got even more complicated!!

This took 15 minutes in total and only needs a few ingredients so is perfect for a school or busy night when you have limited time.

Ingredients for 4 people:

400g pasta - I used spaghetti but you could also use fettuccine or linguine
40g butter
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
40g torn basil leaves
1 x 250g tub of fresh ricotta
Parmesan to serve

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water according to the packets instructions. Mine took 11 minutes until it was al dente. 

Whilst this is cooking, prepare the garlic and basil.

A couple of minutes before the pasta is ready, add the butter, garlic and pepper to a pan and cook for a 2 minutes maximum. I did slightly too long!!

Drain the pasta and then add it to the butter, pepper and garlic and toss to coat.

Stir through the basil.

Divide the pasta between the bowls.

Top with ricotta and sprinkle with Parmesan.

I love a quick and simple recipe and this certainly hit the spot. It only has a few ingredients however it is full of flavour - I love the garlic butter sauce. To be honest you could even have it without the ricotta. Arabella enjoyed it although she would swap the ricotta for some goats cheese but no surprise there!!

Read More..

SLOW COOKED ROSEMARY AND GARLIC SHOULDER OF LAMB

I am sure in past posts I have mentioned my love of Greece and especially Greek food, although Pascal is the exact opposite regarding the food and so it has been knocked off our holiday destination list…I guess I overdid it by dragging him there 3 summers in a row. Therefore I was dicing with danger when I suggested cooking a Greek lamb dish in the slow cooker which I had messed up completely when I tried to use it a few weeks ago (raw lamb anyone?)!!

This time I made sure I read all the instructions 3 times before attempting to do anything - luckily this slow cooking recipe was much more successful than my pressure cooking!!

Ingredients for 4 people:

3 garlic cloves
2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
Salt and Pepper
750g boneless lamb shoulder
500g potatoes, peeled and cut into 5mm slices (roughly)
1 small onion, chopped (we had shallots in the cupboard so used those instead)
300ml hot lamb stock

To serve:
Feta or halloumi cheese (or both)
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Hummus
Flat breads or wraps or pitas

Cut one of the garlic cloves in half and rub it round the slow cooker basin, then chop it finely along with one of the other garlic cloves and slice the onion (shallots in this case).

Mix all the dry herbs, rosemary and a crushed garlic clove together in a bowl and then rub over the lamb and season well.

Line the slow cooker basin with the potato slices, making a few layers.

Place the lamb on top of the potatoes and surround with the chopped onion/shallots and garlic.

Pour over the hot lamb stock.

Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 6-8 hours until the lamb is easy to pull apart (we did 7 hours).

Once it is ready slice the lamb.

Put the potatoes in a bowl.

Finally serve in a wrap - I had hummus, feta, tomatoes, lamb and cucumber with potatoes on the side - yum!!

This was an incredible meal!! The slow cooker has got the big thumbs up and we devoured everything. Even though I only like potatoes covered in melted cheese, these were exceptional and Pascal pronounced it the best Greek food he has ever had!! It was so easy too - great for any type of meal, I think we will will be doing this for our next dinner party and next weekend we will try slow cooked pulled pork. 

I thank my friend Sally very much for buying me this fabulous cooking contraption!!

Read More..