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Posts Tagged ‘easy supper’
Saturday, September 12th, 2009 by urban foodie
 Inspired by many a spaghetti ai frutti di mare eaten in Italian restaurants far and wide, I decided to recreate this favourite pasta dish at home, and was delighted to discover a really rather splendid supper dish to add to the list.
It’s quick to make and doesn’t rely on hard to find fresh seafood, the supermarket seafood mix (prawns, mussels, squid) is quite good enough - although if you are lucky enough to have some then use that by all means.
I am convinced that a little bit of alcohol really brings out the best in tomatoes, here I’ve found another use for that bottle of Vermouth lurking in the cupboard (that way you can claim it is for cooking and not for those late night dirty martinis…).
Ingredients
200g seafood mix (or equivalent seafood)
1 tin chopped toms
1 onion
2 fat cloves garlic
1 green pepper
2 capfuls Vermouth
1 bunch parsley (generous handful when chopped)
1 lemon
250g Spaghetti
Olive oil, S&P
Serves 2
1 Chop onions and fry gently in olive oil
2 Whilst they are frying, chop green pepper finely and add to pan, then start chopping garlic
3 After 5 mins (onions should be soft, not browned) add Vermouth and cook off alcohol (2 mins)
4 Add toms and garlic, cover and simmer gently
5 Put pasta on and start picking and chopping the parsley
6 When pasta is done, add seafood and squeezed lemon juice to pan, drain the pasta and add to sauce along with chopped parsley. Lovely with a drop of dry rose and a hunk of bread to mop up the sauce
Tags: easy supper
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Saturday, August 15th, 2009 by urban foodie
 This is a realy quick and easy pasta sauce, a variation of an easy pasta dish I made earlier. The tomato sauce is big and sweet, garlicky with just the hint of warmth from the chilli. It’s a great base to add to, here I have used some chorizo that was lingering in the fridge, the other version is a veggie one with very young, soft goat’s cheese, the kind that doesn’t have a skin yet.
Ingredients
1 tin whole tomatoes
3 cloves garlic
1 capful balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes or a whole red chilli
2 big handfuls spinach (approx 200g)
20cm chorizo or 100g young, fresh goat’s cheese
Basil/oregano
S&P, olive oil
1 Crush/chop the garlic and fry gently in olive oil for a minute, add tinned toms (don’t break them up), chilli (the powder or the pepper kept whole) and balsamic plus oregano - if using - cover and simmer for 20 minutes, cover and simmer for 20 minutes
2 After 10 minutes put pasta on to boil
3 After 20 mins break up the toms with your spoon and add washed spinach (and basil, if using), cover to wilt
4 Once wilted, add goats cheese or lightly fried chorizo with it’s pan juices (no need to use any oil in your pan the sausage has plenty)
5 That’s it! Mix in the pasta and enjoy, dinner in 30 minutes
Tags: easy supper, mmm pasta
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Thursday, June 18th, 2009 by urban foodie
This is a classic summer staple, it takes minutes to make and is satisfying enough for a proper supper meal. You’ll feel full with hearty protein and veg without the lethargy of carbs which is ideal in these lovely long summer evenings when you want to be active until much later in the day.
It was one of the first meals I learnt to cook (at a later age than you might expect - this foodie used to be known as the girl who could burn water - how times have changed!). I love the huge dressing, all creamy salt and sharpness, against the crunch of the Cos (call it Romaine if you prefer, they are the same plant - Lactuca sativa).
Caesar Salad is great for summer entertaining as you can make the dressing and prepare all the bits well in advance, just taking a few minutes to flash fry the chicken and assemble at the end. And if you have pescatarian guests simply omit the chicken (no good for veggies because of the anchovies in the dressing I’m afraid).
Serves 2/3
Ingredients
1 medium head Cos/Romaine lettuce
2 small/med breasts of chicken
1 packet croutons (put in as much as looks right)
Parmesan, grate quite a lot with a potato peeler - again to your taste
Dressing
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons mustard
1 splash Worcester Sauce
4/5 anchovy fillets (or a tablespoon of anchovy paste)
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar (not balsamic, use cider vinegar if you haven’t got red/white wine vinegar)
4 tablespoons olive oil
Big squeeze of lemon juice
1 In a bowl, mash up anchovy fillets and then add all other dressing ingredients and mix well - taste and adjust oil/vinegar until you have a happy balance of creamy, salty sharpness.
2 Wash and break/chop up Cos into a bowl, shave parmesan onto a side plate until you have a good pile
3 Chop chicken breasts into thin short strips
4 When you are ready to eat heat a little oil in a frying pan and put in the chicken, leave it to fry on a high heat whilst you assemble the salad
5 Dress the lettuce, mix well, then add parmesan and croutons, mix again
6 Back to the chicken, turn and continue to flash fry until it is cooked through and both sides are nicely browned. Throw onto salad and serve immediately with some bread and a nice rose.
Tags: Chicken, easy supper, Quick Supper, salad
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Saturday, April 18th, 2009 by urban foodie
 I like chard, that sometimes maligned poorer cousin of the spinach, but it can be a little overpowering in its earthiness. I think it needs absolutely to be matched by other strong flavours to mellow it out a bit. If you are wondering what to do with the chard in your veg box (I don’t know many who buy it in the shops), or you fancy a bit of an adventure with a new veg then this omelette with its bold olives, sharp feta and barely cooked garlic is the easy supper treat for you.
It takes under 30 minutes and is a sure fire winner in our house, full of flavour and freshness.
Ingredients
1 medium onion
handful black pitted olives (super plain, tinned are best here, no kalamatas here please)
4 medium eggs
two big handfuls of chard
2 medium cloves garlic
splash balsamic vinegar
1 chop onion into thin strips (cut in half top to bottom then slice across thinly)
2 in a frying pan, sautee the onion gently in a 10cm pool of oil and a mean splash of balsamic (about a tablespoon)
3 after about 10 minutes wash chard, chop olives add to pan
4 crush garlic into pan and mix well, cover with a flat baking tray and cook for 3 minutes until chard is properly wilted
5 meanwhile beat eggs, S&P the mixture and put the grill on
6 add eggs to pan (when chard is done) and crumble feta on top
7 cook on hob for a few minutes and finish off under the grill - serve with bread, salad and a nice table wine
Tags: chard, easy supper, feta, omelette, Quick Supper
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Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009 by urban foodie
 Trying to fit in your weekly portion of oily fish can sometimes be a bit of a strech for the imagination. For some reason I never cook salmon, don’t know why, it seems to have dropped off my radar. Maybe I should think about a salmon recipe next… But this is a delicious and easy recipe that uses smoked haddock or mackerel.
Traditionally it is a breakfast recipe, great for Saturday lunch/brunch, but I also like it for a weekday supper. A tasty dish that makes you feel like a Victorian!
When I want to make a traditional recipe I always turn to the master Delia and this is an adaptation of one of hers.
Ingredients
150ml rice (measure in a measuring jug)
300ml water/poaching liquid
450g smoked haddock/smoked mackerel
70g butter
1 onion
3/4 teaspoon hot curry powder
2 eggs
3 tablespoons fresh parsley
100g peas
1/2 lemon
S&P
1 Put the room temperature eggs into just boiling water and simmer for 1 minute, take off heat and cover, put to one side to finish cooking
2 If using smoked haddock poach for about 7 mins in about a pint of water - if using smoked mackerel skip this step
3 Chop onion and fry gently for 5 mins in 2/3 of the butter, add curry powder, fry for half a minute
4 Add rice and stir, add the water/cooking liquid, stir once and cover, simmer very gently for 15 minutes.
5 After 10 minutes add peas
6 Flake fish, chop eggs and parsley and add to pan with a squeeze of lemon and the last knob of butter. I like it piping hot but it can also be eaten warm.
Tags: curry, easy supper, Eggs, oily fish, Quick Supper, rice
Posted in Kid Friendly, Recipes | 1 Comment »
Monday, January 26th, 2009 by urban foodie
 Mr UF made a very tasty roast chicken on Sunday, sage and lemon, simple and delicious.
As usual we didn’t finish all of it (even a small chicken is to much for two, even when the two are such hearty eaters as us!). This means that a chicken on Sunday is really a wonderfully giving dish, the carcass is whistling away in the stock pot as I write with a couple of bay leaves, an onion and some whole peppercorns for stock, that just leaves the leftover chicken meat…
If you are more numerous in your house I’d always get a slightly bigger chicken than you need to ensure leftovers, highly economical and full of flavour.
Usually the leftover chicken meat would go in a risotto but this time I have knocked up a very easy pasta sauce using one of it’s favourite friends, the mushroom.
Ingredients
250g mushrooms (about 6 large white mushrooms or equivalent fancy ones)
100g leftover chicken (a decent couple of handfuls)
100ml creme fraiche (or cream if that’s your preference, but I love the sourside)
100ml white wine
250g penne
1 teaspoon thyme (dried is fine)
olive oil
S&P
Serves 2
1 Put on the pasta to boil
2 Chop the mushrooms and saute in a little olive oil
3 Once they are cooked, after about 3 minutes, sprinkle in the thyme, add the white wine and reduce by about half
4 Stir in the shredded chicken and heat through (you could also use diced fresh, in which case start with the chicken and then add the mushrooms etc once it is done)
5 Drain the pasta and add the mushroom and chicken mixture to it, stir in the creme fraiche/cream and serve immediately with either a green salad or a bit of baguette if you are after a real carb rush
Tags: Chicken, easy supper, leftover chicken, mushroom, pasta, penne, Quick Supper
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Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 by urban foodie
 This is a throw it together dish that turned out even better than expected - the sweet leeks and bacon are complimented by the slight sharpness of the creme fraiche. Keep the tagliatelle al dente to maintain interesting textures, oh and the peas keep everything tasting fresh.
Quick and easy, dinner in about 30 minutes.
Ingredients
1 leek
1/2 packet bacon (4 rashers)
2/3 tablespoons creme fraiche
big handful of peas (frozen are fine)
5/6 tagliatelle nests
Serves 2
1 Chop and wash the leeks and sautee gently in a pan with olive oil and a little butter. Turn the heat right down and cook, covered, very gently for 25 minutes, stirring every few minutes. You should only be able to hear the whisper of a sizzle
2 After 10-15 minutes slice the bacon widthways into thin strips and add to leek pan, don’t put the lid back on, do turn the heat up a bit
3 After 20 minutes, cook the pasta in fiercy boiling water for 5 or so minutes
4 Put peas in pasta pan for last 2 minutes
5 Drain pasta & peas and mix all ingredients in pan, dolloping in creme fraiche. Serve with a crisp side salad
Tags: bacon, easy supper, Quick Supper, tagliatelle
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Monday, January 12th, 2009 by urban foodie
 This is a gorgeously easy, frugal and tasty supper that is perfect for January when energy levels and bank accounts are at their lowest ebb. It’s from that master of unpretentious real food, Nigel Slater, from his fabulous book Appetite.
Just potato, bacon and stock with a generous hand of sage to bring a delightful herby savour. It takes just a few minutes to put together and uses only half a packet of bacon/pancetta, so you can keep the rest for another supper later in the week - like Baked Eggs with Kale or Bacon Cabbage and Potato.
Ingredients
From Appetite, by Nigel Slater (as ever I have tweaked to my taste, but that’s the beauty of the Slater recipes they are made for adapting to the meal you cook them for).
Waxy potatoes - 14 smallish ones
Olive Oil
Butter
Bacon or pancetta
Good chicken stock (fresh or a quality bouillon - I used the stock from my Christmas cider and mustard baked ham)
4 sage leaves
1 leek - optional
Feeds 2/3
1 Heat the oven to 180 C, slice the potatoes into £1 coin thick slices, slice the bacon and leeks too
2 Fry the potatoes until just golden
3 Butter a shallow baking dish or roasting tin and layer the potatoes, bacon, sage and leek (if using) into the dish, add just enough stock to reach to top layer, dot with butter and pop in the hot oven
4 Forget about it and go and have a nice sit down, after about an hour it is ready, serve with bread for mopping up the abundant sauces
Tags: bacon, easy supper, potato, sage
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Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008 by urban foodie
 Between my euro city jaunts I did manage to whip up a lovely little recipe that I’d like to share with you. It is very simple, takes half an hour to cook and, so long as you don’t try to pack whilst you do it (and burn the leeks a bit), is a real cinch. The result is a simple but tasty bowl of pasta, the sweet buttery leeks beautifully complimented by the sherry and parmesan.
Ingredients
2/3 medium leeks
Knob butter
Parmesan
Farfalle pasta
Olive oil
Capful of dry sherry
S&P
1 Wash leeks and chop from base to pale green bit in 1cm rounds
2 Heat a biggish knob of butter and a splash of olive oil in a pan with a lid, add the leeks, S&P, cover and cook very gently for 25 minutes
3 After 15 minutes add a capful of sherry to the leeks and put pasta on to boil (I used farfalle but you can use any shape), when it’s done drain and add to leek pan
4 Serve in bowls, grate a good amount of parmesan on top, et voila! Done, supper the easy way.
Tags: easy supper, Kid Friendly, leek, pasta, Quick Supper
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Monday, November 3rd, 2008 by urban foodie
 I haven’t got many dishes where mushrooms are the star, they tend to get used either for mushroom gravy or to put on Saturday breakfast toast. I’m not sure why, I do love mushrooms, so I thought I’d bring them to the fore by adapting a recipe orginally meant for aduki beans. If you’ve never had them I urge you to go out and get some immediately, they are very small, very savoury, very nutty little delights.
If you don’t fancy beans though just use all mushrooms, a mix of types would be extra nice.
Ingredients
200g mushrooms (any kind)
1 tin aduki beans (about 200g or replace with 200g more mushrooms)
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
2 heaped teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon tomato paste
100ml red wine
1 tub creme fraiche
Olive oil, S&P
Fresh coriander (3 tablespoons chopped - optional)
Serves 3 (or 2 in my house!)
1 Chop onion and fry gently for 10 minutes in a generous pool of oil (15cm diameter) at the bottom of a big pan
2 Whilst onions are cooking drain and rinse beans, chop onions and prepare garlic for crushing
3 Add paprika, tomato paste and crush garlic into pan, stir well
4 Add mushrooms and fry for 3 minutes to brown, add aduki beans (if using) and cook for a further 3-4 mins
5 Add red wine and same amount of water, S&P and bubble quietly for 10 minutes (I put on the rice at this point)
6 Take off heat and stir in creme fraiche to your taste (I like 3 heaped tablespoons) serve over rice (brown is extra nutty and white a suitable foil) with chopped coriander sprinkled on top, a nice glass of red on the side.
Tags: aduki bean, easy supper, mushroom, Paprika, stroganoff
Posted in Kid Friendly, Recipes | 3 Comments »
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