Ellas Kitchen News

We had some lamb left over from our delicious Easter Sunday lunch, so I decided to make a Lasagna with it.  You could also just make a Shepherds Pie or Bolognese using the same recipe.

Ingredients

• Left over lamb (mince it with the magimix)
• 1 x lg pot of Dolmio Bolognese Sauce
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic chopped
• TBSP chopped rosemary (if you have it)
• Salt and pepper (to taste)
• Lasagna sheets
• Milk, butter, flour (to make a white sauce)
• cheddar cheese or any leftover cheese (not blue as it is too strong) for the topping.

Put a TBSP of olive oil in a deep frying pan or saucepan and cook the onion and garlic until soft.  Add the rosemary and cook 30seconds then add the jar of tomato sauce. I add a bit of water to the bottom of the jar and swill it out into the pan just to get all the bits!

Cook 3 minutes on medium heat then add the lamb, mix together and cook for 5 minutes.  Layer up with the lasagna sheets.  Make the *white sauce and pour over the top, then sprinkle with cheese.

*I have given you the link to a white sauce recipe

Cook for about 40 minutes at 170.

I was a little bored with the usual food I have been cooking for the children and a friend was raving about the Ottolenghi recipes so I thought I would try their Turkey and Sweetcorn Meatballs.  They were a huge success.  I did a little less cumin than they suggested so that it was not too overpowering,  I also didn’t make the roasted pepper sauce the first time but used a fresh tomato sauce.  It is up to you! The result was not unlike our Norwegian Meatballs in texture.  Have a go yourself as they are very easy and freeze well too.

Turkey and sweetcorn meatballs

• (from Ottolenghi “the cookbook”)
• Serves 4
• 100g sweetcorn kernels (fresh or frozen)
• 3 slices of stale white bread, crusts removed
• 500g minced free-range or organic turkey breast
• 1 free-range eggs
• 4 spring onions, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp finely chopped parsley
• 2  ½ tsp ground cumin
• 1 ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• Sunflower oil, for frying

• Roasted pepper sauce
• 4 red peppers
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 25g coriander, leaves and stalks
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1 small mild chilli, deseeded
• 2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
• 2 tbsp cider vinegar or white wine vinegar

Method

1)      Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas Mark 6. To prepare the peppers for the sauce, quarter them with a sharp knife and shave off the white parts and the seeds. Put them in a roasting tray and toss with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and ½ teaspoon of the salt, then roast in the oven for 35 minutes or until soft. Transfer the hot peppers to a bowl and cover it with cling film. Once they have cooled down a little, you can peel them, although it isn’t essential for this sauce. In any case, place them in a blender or food processor with their roasting juices and add the rest of the sauce ingredients. Process until smooth, then taste and adjust the salt if necessary. Set aside.

2)      For the meatballs, place a heavy non-stick frying pan over a high heat and throw in the corn kernels. Toss them in the hot pan for 2-3 minutes, until lightly blackened. Remove and leave to cool.

3)      Soak the bread in cold water for a minute, then squeeze well and crumble it into a large bowl. Add all the rest of the ingredients except the sunflower oil and mix well with your hands.

4)      Pour a 5mm depth of sunflower oil into your heavy frying pan. Allow it to heat up well and then fry about a teaspoon of the mince mix in it. Remove, let cool a little and then taste. Adjust the amount of salt and pepper in the uncooked mixture to your liking.

5)      With wet hands, shape the mince mix into balls, about the size of golf balls. Cook them in small batches in the hot oil, turning them around in the pan until they are golden brown all over. Transfer to an oven tray, place in the oven at 200C/Gas mark 6 and cook for about 5 minutes. When you press one with your finger, the meat should bounce back. If unsure, break one open to check that it is cooked inside. Serve hot or warm, with the pepper sauce on the side.