Classic Spaghetti Bolognese

I am a sucker for a good bowl of traditional spaghetti bolognese. When I used to work in an office, I'd always come home late and tired, and the only type of pasta I managed to cook up would involve warming up a jar of ready-made pasta sauce. Don't get me wrong, there are some decent ready-made sauce on the market, but nothing beats pasta sauce that is homemade with fresh ingredients and lots of love! I got this recipe from Donna Hay, and it does take over an hour to make the sauce, but if you have the time, the final result is well worth it.

I also tossed together a simple salad out of whatever veggies were available in the fridge. I think this one consisted of lebanese cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, carrots and avocado. So simple yet always a great all-round side dish. It will pretty much go with any of your favourite dressings.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 brown onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1kg beef mince
⅓ cup (90g) tomato paste
2 x 400 g cans chopped tomatoes
2 cups (500ml) beef stock
1 bay leaf (I didn't have any, but the pasta still tasted great)
sea salt and cracked black pepper
400g spaghetti
flat-leaf parsley leaves, to serve

shaved parmesan, to serve

Method:
1. Heat a large deep frying pan over high heat. Add the oil, onion and garlic and cook for 1 minute or until the onion is soft.
2. Add the mince and cook for 5 minutes, breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon.
3. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring to combine. Add the tomatoes, stock, bay leaf, salt and pepper and stir to combine. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 1 hour or until thickened.
4. Place the pasta in a saucepan of salted boiling water and cook for 10-12 minutes or until al dente. Drain and keep warm. Divide between bowls and top with the Bolognese, parsley and parmesan.
Serves 4.

Rosemary Chicken with Orange-Maple Glaze

I just came across one of the best chicken breast recipes ever, YAY!!! Just the name of the dish itself sounds delicious. This was a huge hit with the hubby for sure. As I was cooking, the smell of the orange-maple glaze flowed through the apartment and my hubby kept coming into the kitchen and checking out my progress! The chicken breast was tender and just perfect with the orange-maple glaze.

I put together a quick salad to go with the dish, consisting of baby spinach, walnuts and sliced nashi pears, topped with a homemade lemon vinaigrette dressing. Apparently, some cubes of blue cheese will finish the salad off nicely, however we prego women are not allowed to eat those!















Ingredients
3/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup dry white wine (but the dish still tastes good without)
1/4 cup maple syrup or maple-favoured syrup
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil

Method
1. Bring orange juice and wine to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat slightly, but keep high enough to continue a low boil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in maple syrup and continue boiling for another 5 to 6 minutes, stirring frequently, until glossy and just slightly thickened. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl mix together the rosemary, salt and pepper. Rub mixture on both sides of chicken breasts, and set aside.
3. Melt butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken breasts, cover skillet and saute for about 5 minutes on each side until lightly browned. Pour orange-maple mixture over chicken (mixture will boil and bubble). Reduce heat to simmer; cover and let cook for another 10 minutes, basting occasionally, until chicken is cooked through and sauce has turned into a rich, thick glaze.

Potato Salad

I love carbs and I love potatoes. So it follows naturally that I get cravings for a nice potato salad once in a while. I don't like my potato salads fancy... just a chunky, creamy salad with bacon and egg will do just fine. I think you'll like this one too!

Ingredients
4 medium sized potatoes
2 eggs
5 ounces bacon
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Method
1.Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain and set in the refrigerator to cool.
2. Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop.
3. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
4. Chop the cooled potatoes, leaving skin on. Add to a large bowl, along with the eggs, bacon, onion and celery. Add mayonnaise, salt and pepper to taste. Chill for an hour before serving.

Baked Barramundi Fillets

I am probably one of the last people on earth that would freely choose to eat fish over other meats... I'm just not a big fan at all... but I've had to give fish a try ever since discovering that the omega 3 is pretty important for my bud whose been growing inside my tummy. Plus, it's Lent season and we've been trying to do Fish Fridays.

So I tried this simple fish recipe, and have to admit that it worked for me and I'll probably do it again in the future, even after my buddy leaves my tummy!

Ingredients
1 clove garlic, minced
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 (6 ounce) fillets barramundi (or other white fish like halibut are also great)

Method
1. In a stainless steel or glass bowl, combine garlic, olive oil, basil, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and parsley.
2. Place the fish fillets in a shallow glass dish or a resealable plastic bag, and pour the marinade over the fish. Cover or seal and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour, turning occasionally.
3. Preheat the oven to 230 degrees celcius.
4. Place fish fillets in the oven for 15 - 20 minutes, or until fish is done when easily flaked with a fork.

Makes 2 servings

Homemade Pizza Party

We made pizzas today and they just turned out brilliant. This was the first time that I made my own pizza sauce and I tell you, once you go homemade you can never go back to store bought pizza sauce! The toppings just worked so well with the pizza sauce and the thin pita crust... and it all looked so pretty too!

Ingredients - Pizza Sauce (makes 4 servings)
3 tbs olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 can of tomato paste
1 can of diced Italian tomatoes
1 1/2 tbs dried oregano

Ingrediants - Crust and toppings
The amount of crust and toppings you buy really depend on how many people you are serving and how much they like to load on those toppings (if you have more males you can never go wrong with lots of meat!)
For the crust I used 8-10 inch thin and round pita bread
For toppings I used:
salami pepperoni
hungarian salami
sliced bacon
canned pineapple bits
sliced button mushrooms
sliced cherry tomatoes
shredded mozzerella and tasty (cheddar) cheese

Method
1. Preheat a saucepan over a medium high heat then add the olive oil and onion. Sauté until the onions soften and begin to turn golden, and then add the garlic. If you add the garlic with the onion, it will burn in the time it takes the onions to begin browning. Continue to sauté for a few more minutes, being careful not to scorch the garlic.
2. Add the tomato paste and canned tomatoes and stir well, crushing them with the back of the spoon. Add oregano, while continuing to stir then bring to a simmer. Let simmer for 30 minutes, until thickened. If you like, puree in the food processor until smooth.
3. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celcius. Place each piece of pita crust on a sheet of aluminum foil.
4. Ladle some pizza sauce into the middle of the crust and spread the sauce evenly over the surface of the pita, leaving "unsauced" about 3/4" to 1" of the crust. This will allow the edge of the crust to rise a little and crisp more quickly. Remember how thin the crust is, so a thin layer of sauce will do.
5. Layer some shredded cheese over the sauce.
6. Place your favourite toppings on the pizza and finish off with another layer of shredded cheese.
7. Place the pizza and aluminum foil on a cooking sheet and bake in the oven for 8 miinutes or until the edge of the crust is crispy.

Spring Spinach Salad with Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette

I'm not sure why I call this the Spring Spinach Salad. Maybe it's the alliteration, or maybe the dish just looks like the colourful springtime with all the fruity bits! It's a great looking (and tasting!) salad that is super easy to make. The Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing complements the salad well by giving it a sweet and tangy taste (sorry I forgot to take photo of the dressing but I'm sure you can imagine!)

Ingredients - salad
4 cups baby spinach leaves
1/2 (11 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained
3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1/2 cup slivered or sliced almonds

Ingredients - dressing
2 tbs balsamic vinegar (a little less if you want it less tangy)
1 tbs honey
1 tbs olive oil
1/4 tsp soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Method
1. Toss salad ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, put dressing ingredients together and mix well. Pour over salad and serve!

Makes 3 servings.

Bacon and Mushroom Linguini

First of all, a tribute to my lovely friend Li Yin and her sister Ai, they have a cooking blog (http://www.sowhatscooking.blogspot.com) that inspired me to ultimately create my own, so of course I'm going to feature one of their recipes right off their blog (thanks ladies)! I can't emphasize how simple this dish is to make and yet how much it pleases. I don't have kids yet, so at the moment the quality of my dishes is based on my hubby's response (a very complex algorithm).

Simply put:
Quality Quotient = Speed at which hubby eats x Volume that hubby eats x Decibels of his slurping

Or something like that! But it is a very very reliable formula! Anyway, this dish scored very high in Quality. I made 4 servings so that we would have some left-overs, and he ended up eating 3 servings!

Ingredients
320g linguini
1/2 Tbsp olive oil or cooking oil spray
200g rindless short-cut bacon, chopped
1 brown onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
200g button mushrooms, sliced
375ml can light & creamy evaporated milk
1/2 cup shredded parmesan or light tasty cheese
1/3 cup shredded fresh basil

Method
1. Cook pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until its al dente or just follow the instruction on the packet. Drain and return to the pan.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large non-stick frying pan over moderate heat. Add oil or spray bacon with oil. Cook bacon and onion for 3 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms; cook for another 3-4 minutes or until mushrooms are tender. Reduce heat.
3. Add milk and bring to a simmer. Stir in cheese and basil. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Add sauce to pasta and toss to combine. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings.