Stewed Squid with Pasta

Years ago, I used to love eating stewed squid from one of my favourite little Greek Restaurants in London.  Unfortunately, the restaurant has been long gone, so when I came across some lovely fresh squid a little while ago, I just had to try and recreate this lovely dish.

Stewed Squid with Pasta

Ingredients

Pasta of choice
Olive oil
1 red onion - finely sliced
4 garlic cloves - finely sliced, or crushed
1-2 small chillies - seeds removed, finely diced
Handful of fresh parsley - leaves and stalks trimmed separately
1 red pepper - finely sliced
Paprika
Red wine
400g tin chopped tomatoes
500g squid - tubes sliced into rings and tentacles cut into pieces


Boil a large pan of water and cook pasta to directions on packet.

Meanwhile, heat a spoonful of oil in a large saucepan.  Gently stir-fry the onion, garlic, chilli and parsley stalks until soft.

Add the peppers and a shake of paprika and fry together for another minute or so.

Add a good splash of red wine and the tomatoes. Stir and bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes.

Bring back to the boil and stir in the squid pieces. Cover and simmer very gently for 4 minutes.  (You don't want to overcook the squid, or it will become rubbery!)

Sprinkle the parsley leaves over and serve with pasta.

Enjoy!

Caryl ♥

Linguine with Courgettes & Mushrooms

When you need to use up your veggie box quickly, this is a really tasty and easy meal to throw together.

Olive Oil
Garlic Cloves (I used about 6 because we love garlic!)
1 x large onion, sliced
3 x large courgettes (zucchini), halved lengthways, then sliced thinly across
1 x large punnet brown mushrooms (approx 400g), sliced thinly
Pine Nuts (kernels)
Parmesan cheese, grated


Fry the garlic and onions in a large pan, with a little olive oil, until starting to brown.  Add the courgettes and continue stirring until they soften.  Add the mushrooms and stir until they just start to release their juices, then pop the lid on the pan.

Let the veggies cook while you go check the last of your emails for the day and finish putting away whatever's left of the In Caryl's Kitchen: Blueberry Chia Seed Muffins you made earlier.

Check the veggies and give them a good stir.  There should be a good amount of the juices in the pan and the veggies will be soft.  Throw in what's left of the packet of pine kernels and pour the mixture over cooked linguine (or any pasta of choice).

Serve with grated parmesan cheese over the top.  You can, of course, add any extra seasonings, but we like this one really simple!

Enjoy!

Caryl ♥

Bolognese Sauce

While I don't like to eat a lot of red meat, what I do like is a good bolognese sauce.  I do a nice vegetarian style one with lentils, but tonight was a a good night for a meaty-mushroom style one.

Ingredients

Olive Oil
1 x large onion, chopped
4 x cloves garlic, crushed
2 x sticks celery, finely sliced
1 x large carrot, finely diced
6 x rashers smokey bacon, chopped
500g x lean beef mince
Plain flour
400g (approx.) large brown mushrooms, roughly chopped
Sherry
400g can chopped tomatoes
1-1/2 (approx. ) cups beef stock
Tomato puree
Dried oregano
Bay leaves


Fry the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and bacon in a large pan until the veggies are tender and the bacon is nicely cooked.

Add the beef mince and a good shake (approx. 1 large tablespoon) of flour.  Stir well and cook (still stirring) until the beef has browned.

Throw in the mushrooms and continue to stir through until they start to release their juices.  Pour in a large dash of sherry and stir well, scraping up the stickiness from the bottom of the pan.

Pour in the tomatoes and beef stock.  (I used an organic stock cube this time, because I'd run out of home-made stock).  Stir well and add a good squeeze of tomato puree, a good shake of oregano and a couple of bay leaves.

Bring to the boil, then turn down to simmer and cover the pan with a lid.

Leave it to simmer and thicken, while going to pick up your daughter from ballet, after asking your sons to check it and give it an occasional stir while you're out.

When you get back, give it another stir, scraping up the bits at the bottom of the pan again because your sons didn't stir it for you while you were out!

Adjust the seasoning and pour sauce over your cooked pasta of choice.  Add parmesan shavings and enjoy!

If there is any over, this is really nice on toast (although that's only ever happened once before in this house)! :)

Cheers,
Caryl ♥

Macaroni Cheese with Broccoli

One of my daughter's favourite meals, ever since she was very small, is macaroni cheese.  I've been promising it to her again for ages and as she has a friend over tonight, I came through with my promise.

I like to make it with veggies thrown in to make it more interesting and colourful.  I can only give approximate quantities because I throw in whatever is lying around.  Here is my latest version.

500g packet of fusilli pasta, because we've run out of macaroni
Butter
2 x onions, chopped
4 x cloves garlic, chopped
6 x smokey bacon rashers, chopped
1 x head of broccoli, chopped into small pieces
Plain flour
Mustard powder
Milk - approx. 3 cups? (I don't actually measure this)
Cheese, grated - approx. 2 cups? (I used a good strong Cheddar)
Nutmeg, grated


Put a large pot of water on to boil.  When ready, cook the pasta as directed.

Meanwhile, melt a small chunk of butter in a large saucepan.  Stir in the onions, garlic and bacon.  Cook until the bacon is done.  Stir in the broccoli pieces.

Add some flour (approx. 1 big spoon), and a pinch or so of mustard powder, and stir well until thoroughly mixed through.

Slowly pour in the milk, constantly stirring and cook until it starts to thicken.  Add cheese and stir into mixture until melted.  Season with some grated nutmeg - I personally add about a small spoonful, but just a pinch would do.

When pasta is cooked, drain and add the sauce.  Give it a good mix around and serve.

If you're wondering what to drink with this, I had a glass of champagne from the bottle I opened "just because" a couple of days ago!

Cheers, enjoy!

Caryl ♥