Lamb & Harissa Meatballs with Spaghetti

On Monday night I made these spicy meatballs, I served them with spaghetti but they'd also be lovely with cous cous and a dollop of yoghurt. Using ready made harissa paste is a quick and easy way of adding lots of flavour without spending hours over the stove. It works perfectly with lamb and adds a nice kick to the sauce, without being too spicy.

Serves 4
500g lean lamb mince
4 tbsp harissa paste
1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
500ml creamed tomatoes
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tbsp tomato paste
Small bag baby leaf spinach

1. With your hands, mix together the lamb mince and 2 tbsp of harissa paste. Shape the lamb into 16 meatballs. 
2. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a heavy based pan and cook the meatballs in batches, until browned all over. Remove from the pan and add the onion and garlic. Fry on a medium heat for 10-15 minutes until soft.
3. Add the creamed tomatoes, tomato paste, spices, a further 2 tablespoons of harissa paste and season well. 
4. Add the meatballs back into the sauce and gently simmer for 30 minutes, until the meatballs have cooked through and the sauce has thickened. Fold the spinach in for the last 5 minutes, so it wilts. Serve with spaghetti and pecorino!

Chicken, Spinach & Butternut Squash Curry

Last week I made this super tasty chicken curry. I don't tend to cook authentic Indian food at home as I can rarely be bothered to make my own curry paste and to me the shop bought ones taste pretty good. This takes about an hour and a half to make, so maybe not ideal for a school night, but it's well worth the time and effort.

I used chicken thighs and drumsticks as they're so much cheaper than breast meat (it was less than £4 for enough free range meat for 5 portions). Adding butternut squash and spinach is a handy way of getting a few of your five a day and in my opinion they're a great addition to any curry. The lentils help to thicken the sauce and absorb the excess liquid so you get a deliciously thick sauce, perfect for mopping up with some naan bread. I also nabbed some onion bhajis from work, which were perfectly crisp and full of flavour.

Serves 4-6

800g free range chicken drumsticks and/or thighs
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 onion, chopped
1 butternut squash, cut into bite size chunks
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp hot chili powder
2 tbsp curry paste (I used Pataks)
1 tin reduced fat coconut milk
1/2 jar passata
1 bag of spinach
6 tbsp red split lentils 

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees. Put the bite size chunks of butternut squash into a large baking tray in one layer, drizzle with oil and cook for 45 minutes or until soft.
2. Meanwhile mix the spices and garlic with a little oil to make a paste, spread the mixture over the chicken and leave to marinade for 20 minutes (or longer if you have time). 
3. Heat a little oil in a heavy based pan and fry the chicken until browned. Remove the chicken from the pan and add the onion. Gently fry for 10 minutes, then add the curry paste & lentils and fry for a few more minutes. 
4. Add the passata, coconut milk and chicken. Bring the mixture to the boil, then turn down the heat, put the lid on and cook for 40 minutes. Add the roasted squash for the final 15 minutes of cooking.
5. When the lentils have plumped up and absorbed the excess liquid, add the spinach a handful at a time and let it wilt. Once all the spinach has been added serve with brown rice.

Chicken marinading:

 Chicken, spinach & butternut squash curry:

Deliverance onion bhajis:

The finished article:

Spicy Lamb & Feta Burgers

Inspired by a recipe on Good Food, I decided to make lamb and feta burgers for dinner. Sainsbury's on Stoke Newington High St didn't appear to stock harissa, so I swapped it for a tablespoon of tomato puree and two tsp each of paprika, chili powder and cumin. I also added some garlic and ginger and swapped the mint for parsley as I have some growing on my balcony. As Valentine Warner would say, they were 'bloody good' served with plenty of salad, hummus and tzatziki. YUM!

Burgers ready to go in the oven:

Tasty tasty buuuurger:

Al fresco dining, that's how we do in Clapton:

Three Bean Chili

After a long weekend of meat eating in Shropshire, I decided to make us something vegetarian for dinner on Monday night. I really enjoyed this bean chili, but I'm not sure Chris is convinced by vegetarian food, as his first comment was how nice it would be with some chicken or beef in it. But considering this is a man who said 'I like vegetarian food, as long as it's got loads of meat in it', there probably isn't much hope of him becoming a fan of meat-free meals. Frezule and I will be eating the leftovers tonight, so lets hope she's a fan!

You can use any beans you happen to have in your cupboard, but I like to have a mix including baked beans; the sauce helps to prevent the tomatoes being too acidic and half a tin counts as one of your 5 a day. It's reasonably spicy, so a dollop of yogurt and some cooling avocado piled on top tasted great. It's also nice served with brown rice or with a roasted sweet potato, topped with cheese.

For the bean chili:
1 onion, diced
1 red pepper, chopped
1 courgette, chopped
250g pack mushrooms, quartered
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
3 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp hot chili powder
1 tin baked beans
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 tin kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 tin black eyed beans, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 squares of dark chocolate

1. Add the onion and garlic to a pre-heated pan with a little oil and allow to soften for 5 minutes. Then add the red pepper, courgettes and mushrooms and leave to cook on a medium heat for a further 10 minutes
2. Add the cumin, chili powder and paprika and cook for 1 minute, until the spices are fragrant
3. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and all the beans, bring to a light simmer, adding a little vegetable stock if necessary. Turn the heat down and leave to cook with the lid on for 1 hour
4. Once the sauce has thickened, add a few squares of dark chocolate and allow to melt into the sauce. Season and serve with roasted butternut squash, topped with yogurt and avocado

Vegetables with lots of spices:

Ready to eat:

With roasted squash, yogurt & avocado:

Spinach & Lamb Curry with Coconut Dhal

For last weeks Sunday night dinner I decided to make an Indian feast. I love homemade curry, but I normally end up making it with Patak's paste for ease, so I decided to make it from scratch.

The recipes were both from Good Food, which always offers a good range of recipes. For the lamb and spinach curry I used 400g lamb rather than 600g and doubled the amount of spinach, but other than that I kept to the recipe. It had a good amount of heat, but maybe could have done with some extra cumin, coriander and turmeric. By not using an oily paste and adding plenty of spinach it tasted a lot fresher than your average curry. I only made half the lentil recipe, as I just wanted it as a side dish. I added twice the amount of water and cooked them for a hour until they were really soft, I also added a teaspoon of madras curry paste to spice them up a little.

Both dishes were really tasty and simple to make, it's well worth buying your own spices although I do still think you can make a great curry if you use a good paste. The left over lentils made a quick and easy Monday night meal, with some naan bread for dipping.

Lamb curry cooking:

Amazing lentil curry:

Finished lamb curry:

Shepherds Pie with Goats Cheese

After a long trip to IKEA on Sunday afternoon I decided to cook one of my mum's recipes. There's something very comforting about cooking a meal you're used to eating at home with your family. My version wasn't a patch on my mum's unforunately, as I put too much stock into the sauce and didn't have the time to let it reduce. Nevertheless, it's a great take on a traditional shepherds pie; the spices and goats cheese add a middle eastern flavour which works beautifully with the lamb.

Serves 4 - 6
500g lamb mince
1 sweet potato
1 large onion
2 sticks celery
2 carrots
1 courgette
Chopped fresh thyme & rosemary
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp paprika
Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp tomato puree
Bouillion powder
1 tbsp Flour
850g potatoes
1 Capricorn goats cheese

Method:

1. Fry the lamb until lightly browned. Add the chopped onion, carrot and celery and fry for 10 minutes. Then add the chopped courgette and sweet potato, fry until soft. 
2. Add the flour, spices and herbs. Gradually add the stock, then add the puree, Worcestershire sauce and seasoning. Simmer for an hour until the sauce has thickened.
3. Meanwhile boil the potatoes for 20 minutes until soft. Drain and mash with a little milk and butter.
4. Put the meat into a dish and top with the mash and slices of goats cheese. Cook in the oven for 30 min and serve with winter greens.

Before:

After:

Vegetable Tagine

With a fridge full of random ingredients from various different meals, I decided to create my own version of a vegetable tagine. I hate letting anything go to waste (mainly because I’m poor!), so creating my own recipes with left over ingredients is a great way to save money and hopefully end up with something tasty for dinner.

It’s a very simple and cheap recipe as it doesn’t contain any meat, and helps you on your way to 5 a day! I’ve never been to Morocco (it’s on my very long list of places I’d like to visit), but I doubt this recipe is particularly authentic, but it does taste goooood!

Serves 4 hungry people:

Half a butternut squash

2 red onions

1 red pepper

1 carrot

2 parsnips

8 dried apricots

4 cloves garlic

2cm piece of ginger

1 tsp light muscovado sugar

1 tbsp harissa paste

1 tbsp tomato paste

3 tsp paprika

3 tsp cumin

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tins chopped tomato

Chopped mint to serve

Method:

1.       Put the chopped vegetables into a roasting tray and sprinkle on 1 tsp of paprika. Drizzle with oil and put into a pre-heated oven for 45 minutes. Check on them every 15 minutes to make sure they’re not sticking to the tin.
2.       Fry the ginger and garlic for 1 minute, then add the spices and fry for a further minute. Add the chopped tomatoes, sugar, harissa and tomato paste and bring to a light simmer. Leave on the hob on a low heat to allow the sauce to thicken. If it gets too thick add a little vegetable stock to loosen it up.
3.       Add the apricots to the sauce for the final 5 minutes, then add the cooked vegetables and coat thoroughly with the sauce. Serve with couscous and top with the chopped mint.

Veggies roasting:

Tagine & couscous:

Moroccan Meatballs

This is a recipe adapted from a few that I’ve read online, I love Moroccan food and the more spice you put in the better! These are great as meatballs, or you can serve them as burgers with pitta, hummus and salad.

Serves 4:

500g lamb mince

2 red onions, finely chopped

4 cloves of garlic, grated

2cm piece of ginger, grated

4 tsp ground cumin

4 tsp ground coriander seeds

2 tsp paprika

2 tbsp harissa

Chopped fresh mint

2 tins chopped tomatoes

Tabasco

Method:

1. Fry the onion, garlic and ginger for 5 minutes until soft. Then add the spices and fry for 1 minute.
2. Add the onion & spice mix to the lamb, half the harissa and the chopped mint. Mix with your hands and shape into 24 balls.
3. Fry the meatballs in batches until browned on all sides. Add the tomatoes, the rest of the harissa and some tabasco to taste.  You may also want to add a sprinkling of sugar if the sauce is too acidic.
4. Simmer for 30 minutes and serve with couscous or pasta.

According to Chris, this looks ‘disgusting’, but I promise it was nice!