Spiced Meatballs with Fiery Tomato Sauce

~ What Lisa Cooked ~ Leave a comment

On 11th May 2016, This was Dinner…

Sticking with the new cook book. Why wouldn’t I? These jumped right off the page at me. I’m a huge fan of the meatball and in a delicious spicy tomato ‘soup’, yes please!

Mr Whaite must have access  to the juiciest tomatoes as I had to improvise a little with an additional tin otherwise my sauce would have been the size of one of those sachets you get in pubs. I also changed a few of the spices too just because I have unused spices falling out of the pantry.

Get set…

  • Quarter some tomatoes
  • Preheat the oven to 190°c (fan)
  • Get a few butter, red chillies, sour cream, beef mince, sumac, cayenne pepper, ground cinnamon, tin of chopped tomatoes, oil & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

Spread out the tomatoes and chillies on a baking tray and sprinkle with salt. Leave at room temperature for about half an hour to macerate.*

Mix the mince with the spices and some salt and pepper and form into meatballs, it should make around 16 if you use 500g mince. Leave to chill.

Pop the tomatoes and chillies in the oven and roast for around 15 minutes then pop the meatballs on the tray and cook for another 10 minutes.

Cover the meatballs in foil to keep warm. Put the charred tomatoes and chillies and any juices into a processor (remove the stalks from the chillies) and add the butter. Whizz up and add the tomatoes if yours is as dry as mine.

If you have added the tomatoes you will have to warm it through.

Dish it up…

Place the meatballs on the sauce and serve with a dollop of sour cream.

TWD_1105_Meatballs.jpg* To be fair I probably rushed this bit too.

Mackerel & Beetroot Salad

~ What Lisa Cooked ~ 2 Comments

Well this is daunting with 17 posts (photo only, at the moment) in my drafts folder. I’ll probably still be doing this by July! Is it really June? Although I may have lost my mojo it doesn’t stop me from buying new books and I recently purchased Perfect Plates in Five Ingredients by John Whaite. If you are looking for a new cook book I would thoroughly recommend it.

So Hugh uses three, John uses five, Jamie uses too many to count. I might write a cook book – This was Dinner with Four. Four hasn’t been done yet has it?

On 9th May 2016, This was Dinner…

Get set…

  • Slice some beetroot
  • Flake some smoked mackerel
  • Toast some hazelnuts
  • Cut up some lettuce
  • Get sour cream, wholegrain mustard & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

 

Mix the mustard with the sour cream.

Roughly chop the nuts.

Dish it up…

Arrange the lettuce on a plate then add the beetroot and the mackerel. Scatter with the nuts and serve with a dollop of the sour cream. Season to taste.

TWD_0905_Salad.jpg

This recipe is definitely more ‘inspired by’ than ‘taken from’ Perfect Plates. John Whaite’s is far more colourful than mine with his variety of beetroots. Try finding that in a Doncaster Morrisons along with his raspberry vinegar! Mine is definitely a more rugged version 😀

Pasta, Tomato & Blue Cheese

~ What Lisa Cooked ~ 2 Comments

Well it has been a while! I feel a little like I have lost my cooking mojo at the minute. No matter how much I plan, I’m not really sticking to it. So this is one factor in my lack of blogging. Then there is the fact that I’ve had my busiest period at work and I’m still playing catch up there. Then weekends are taken up by dogs and helping Mr S with the admin side of his business. Yes, it has definitely taken a back seat.

As I was so far behind I was going to ditch this post. Look at it! It doesn’t look like much does it? I decided to post it because it SHOULD have been good. I just made a poor choice on the pasta. So here we are:

On 14th May 2016, This was Dinner…

Get set…

  • Quarter some cherry tomatoes
  • Finely chop a garlic clove
  • Crumble some blue cheese
  • Get pasta, chilli flakes, good oil & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

 

Mix the tomatoes with the garlic and oil. Add the chilli flakes and some salt and pepper then give it another stir and leave to one side for about half an hour.

Cook the pasta according to the instructions then mix with the tomatoes and add the blue cheese.

Dish it up…

Finish with a pinch of pepper and a little more cheese if you have it.

TWD_1405_Pasta.jpg

Ha, I couldn’t even remember how I posted the blog!

This recipe can be found in Hugh’s Three Good Things, where he uses a lovely penne pasta.

‘Convenience’ Food

~ What Lisa Cooked ~ 3 Comments

I’ve never shopped at Iceland until recently. My image of Iceland was that ropey looking prawn ring that always appeared on their Christmas adverts. However all that changed when a Food Warehouse opened on a retail park close to me. You have to check out a new shop don’t you? It’s freezer upon freezer of frozen goods with fresh, canned and alcohol shelves along the way. Sack of potatoes anyone?

Mr S picked up a couple of bits yesterday and decided to get us some Friday lunch treats instead of the shakes we have been taking to work.

Luckily he bought chicken wings for himself and as he was working from home this didn’t pose a problem as they were oven bake. However, the chicken katsu for me was another matter. Oven AND microwave. That’s not very ‘convenient’ is it? How many people have an oven at work? I couldn’t save it for home either as we don’t have a microwave.

So we had to cook the chicken pieces last night and I then only had to microwave the sauce and rice. To be honest it would be just as quick to make this from scratch!

Iceland

 

Verdict? Pretty tasty really but 25 mins in oven for the chicken and messing about with the microwave, sauce in one min. Still, only two quid.

Oh and they sell these:

20160513_142614.jpg

I only eat these if I’m a little hungover and they are better than buying them from Greggs as the pastry is crisper.

That’s why ThiswasDinner goes to Iceland.

Cinco de Mayo Tacos

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On 5th May 2016, This was Dinner…

I want to say that I made these especially for Cinco de Mayo but it was entirely a coincidence that I saw them in this month’s Good Food mag and made them on the 5th!

These beautiful tacos are quick and what can be more healthy than a recipe with black beans, avocado and pomegranate seeds? I even left cheese of the menu on these which frankly feels like sacrilege when tacos are involved.

All that was missing was the margarita.

Get set…

  • Drain & rinse a couple of tins of black beans
  • Finely chop 4 garlic cloves (3 for the beans, 1 for the guacamole)
  • Roughly chop some coriander (most for the guacamole, some for the salsa)
  • Finely chop 2 green chillis (1 for the guacamole, 1 for the salsa)
  • Finely chop an onion
  • Halve & stone a couple of avocados
  • Juice a lime
  • Get cider vinegar, honey, smoked paprika, ground cumin, pomegranate seeds, tortillas (I used corn & wheat ones), oil & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

Mash up the avocado roughly with a fork and add the garlic, coriander & chilli along with a pinch of salt. Stir in the lime juice and pop the stone back on top to stop it going brown. Pop it in the fridge until you are ready.

Mix the pomegranate seeds with the other chilli, the onion and the coriander. Chill.

Heat the oil very gently in a pan and add the garlic, as it starts to turn golden (be careful not to burn it) add the beans.

Pour in the spices and stir then add the vinegar and the honey and season.

Cook until the beans start to soften, crush a few occasionally until you get the consistency you see in the photo.

Dish it up…

Well the choice is yours but I went with tortilla – black beans – guacamole – salsa – and finish with a flourish of hot sauce. Don’t forget the napkin to wipe your chin!

TWD_0505_Tacos

I can’t recommend these enough. I wish I’d done extra to take to work on Friday. Wait! I had Friday off!

These can be found in the current edition of BBC Good Food so there’s no link.

Chorizo & Chickpeas

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On 25th April 2016, This was Dinner…

What to do with a load of unused stuff in the fridge/pantry?

Yes, I know it is hard to believe but I have an unused chorizo! No, I don’t come down in the middle of the night like Nigella and eat it directly from the fridge! What do you think I am?

As Summery as this dish looks it has been blooming freezing this week. In fact, as I sit here in what is the hottest sunshine we have had this year, only a couple of days after this pic was taken we had snow!

I used dried chickpeas and did all the hard work with them yesterday.

Get set…

  • Thickly slice a chorizo
  • Halve some cherry tomatoes
  • Cut some bread into big chunks
  • Slice some lettuce
  • Grate some parmesan
  • Chop some mint
  • Get olives, lime, oil & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

Heat a pan and cook the chorizo until starting to crisp, remove and set aside.

Add the bread chunks to the pan and cook, tossing regularly, until crisp.

Toss the tomatoes and chickpeas in a little oil and squeeze in some lime juice. Season well and add the mint.

Dish it up…

Pop the chickpeas on a bed of lettuce then scatter over the olives, the chorizo and the croutons then sprinkle with parmesan and another squeeze of lime juice.

TWD_2504_Chick_Chorizo

Obviously you can just go with the flow with this one and throw in whatever you have to hand.

Butter Chicken

~ What Lisa Cooked ~ 2 Comments

On 24th April 2016, This was Dinner…

Oh my! I put this on the shopping list for the month a few weeks ago but in the meantime I happen to watch Vivek Singh make a more authentic one on the last Saturday Kitchen episode involving James Martin. I thought ‘Wow! I;m on to a winner with butter chicken I think’ and I was right.

Get set…

  • Cut some chicken breasts into chunks
  • Finely slice an onion
  • Crush a few garlic cloves
  • Finely grate some ginger
  • Chop some coriander
  • Get passata, garam masala, cashew nut butter, double cream, butter & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

Heat some butter in a large pan and cook the onion until softened.

Add the chicken and cook until starting to brown.

Add the garlic and ginger along with some garam masala and stir for a minute. Pour in the passata and gently bring to the boil. Reduce and lave to simmer for about 20 minutes.

Stir in the cashew nut butter and some of the cream and season to taste.

Dish it up…

With some wilted spinach and steamed rice. Sprinkle with coriander (which isn’t shown here).

TWD_2404_Butter_Chicken

It’s yet another BBC Good Food recipe but if you fancy putting some extra effort in then here’s the one from Saturday Kitchen.

Greek Inspired Lamb Meatballs

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On 23rd April 2016, This was Dinner...

I’ve actually made these Donna Hay meatballs before but forgot to add the feta and served it on top instead. I did it right this time and even though they were very good last time they were even better this time.

Get set…

  • Crumble up some feta
  • Finely chop some rosemary
  • Grate some lemon rind
  • Prepare some chicken stock
  • Halve some cherry tomatoes
  • Chop some mint leaves
  • Get couscous, lamb mince, honey, chapatis, houmous, baby spinach, oil & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

Pour the chicken stock over the couscous, cover and leave until the stock is absorbed.

Combine the couscous with the lamb, honey, lemon rind, rosemary and some seasoning  and shape into small balls, flattening slightly. Cover and chill for 15 minutes.

Heat a little oil in a pan and cook the meatballs for about four minutes each side, depending on the size and thickness of yours.

Dish it up…

Spread a chapati with houmous and add the spinach, tomatoes and mint then place a couple of meatballs on top then roll, wrap or whatever you want. Just enjoy.

TWD_2304_Meatballs

As I said earlier, this is a Donna Hay recipe and can be found in her book – Fast, Fresh, Simple which I highly recommend.

Greek Lamb & Macaroni Bake

~ What Lisa Cooked ~ 2 Comments

On 18th April 2016, This was Dinner…

If you’re a regular reader of my blog you will know I love a pasta bake. This BBC Good Food recipe has a suggestion to serve with garlic bread! All those carbs? I don’t think I could manage it! Oh and there was plenty of leftovers for lunch at work the next day, always a winner.

Get set…

  • Preheat the oven to 190°c (fan)
  • Finely chop an onion
  • Finely chop a couple of garlic cloves
  • Grate some parmesan
  • Prepare a small amount of beef stock
  • Get lamb mince, macaroni, ricotta, tin of chopped tomatoes, ground cinnamon, milk, dried oregano, oil & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

Heat some oil in a pan and add the onion. Cooking until softened then add the garlic and cook for another minute.

Add the mince and cook until browned, breaking it up as you cook.

Add the cinnamon and stir. Add the stock and allow it to reduce. Sprinkle in the oregano then add the tomatoes and cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Remove the lid and season then cook for another 15 minutes until the sauce has thickened.

Cook the pasta then drain.

Mix the ricotta with most of the parmesan and some seasoning and stir in the pasta.

Pour the mince into a large oven proof dish then top with the pasta. Scatter over the remaining parmesan. Bake for around 20 minutes.

Dish it up…

Get a great scoop into a bowl and feel the comfort of the pasta bake.

TWD_1804_Lamb_Bake2TWD_1804_Lamb_Bake

Chicken & Chorizo Paella

~ What Lisa Cooked ~ 7 Comments

On 15th April 2016, This was Dinner…

I had some paella rice in the cupboard and some chicken thighs in the freezer so it made sense to take inspiration from this BBC Good Food recipe in the March edition. Apart from the chorizo, most things are store cupboard anyway so I didn’t need to pick anything else up.

Get set…

  • Cut some chicken thighs into pieces
  • Thickly slice a chorizo
  • Prepare some chicken stock
  • Finely slice a large onion
  • Finely chop a garlic clove
  • Chop some parsley
  • Get saffron, paprika, turmeric, paella rice, frozen peas, lemon, oil & seasoning ready

Throw it together…

Heat some oil in a pan and brown the chicken. Remove and set aside.

Add the chorizo and cook until it starts to release oil. Remove and set aside with the chicken.

Add the onion and cook until softened. Then add the garlic and cook for another minute.

Add the spices and stir then add the rice and stir again.

Pour in the stock and bring to the boil then add the chicken and chorizo and cook for around 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the peas and cook for a few more minutes. Check the seasoning.

Sprinkle with the parsley.

Dish it up…

Serve with a squeeze of lemon.

TWD_1504_Paella

I was going to put some cooked prawns in but forgot to get them out of the freezer in the morning.