A Scottish Mother's Spaghetti Bolognese Sauce

There is clearly a bit of a story attached to this recipe which it is better to relate before I proceed with the recipe itself. This recipe differs from any other that I have included on this blog - or anywhere else, for that matter - in that it is not one which I created or at least adapted. No, I am not committing plagiarism, nor have I been chatting up any elderly ladies of Italian descent: the recipe is actually my mother's.

This is a recipe which I vividly remember my mother (who has no Italian links) preparing from my earliest childhood but - even as a food writer and editor - I have strangely enough never asked her how she actually makes it until very recently. This is especially surprising, given the fact that it is so good. I therefore deemed to put that fact right and share it with the wider world at large. My mother (a vegetarian!) devised the recipe through trial and error, without clearly ever tasting it herself. I was certainly surprised myself both by certain inclusions and omissions from this recipe but please try it out for yourself before judging it.

The quantities in this recipe provide for two people.

Ingredients

1/2lb minced/ground steak (or beef)
2 small carrots (scraped and diced)
1 medium white onion (moderately finely chopped)
2 large closed cup mushrooms (moderately finely chopped)
8oz tomato puree
1 tbsp tomato ketchup
A little boiling water

Method

Brown the minced/ground steak in a large pot. Ensure that it doesn't burn. Add the carrots and the onion then enough boiling water to ensure that everything is submerged. Simmer gently for ten to fifteen minutes.

Add the mushrooms, followed by the tomato puree and ketchup. Stir very well and leave to simmer gently while the accompanying spaghetti is prepared according to the instructions on the packet.

Drain the spaghetti and arrange on the serving plates, prior to spooning the bolognese sauce on top. Freshly grated parmesan cheese can be added if and as required.

Footnote: I have to admit that there is one thing I always add to this recipe and that is salt. That again, however, is a matter of personal taste.

Bonus Recipe Today! - Bolognese Sauce with Cheese on Toast

I couldn't bring myself to publish this post with my own sole contribution to the recipe being the addition of some salt, so I decided to share with you a way in which I love to eat any leftover bolognese sauce.

Ingredients

2 tbsp Bolognese sauce
1oz grated/shredded cheddar or other hard cheese
1 slice of bread
Freshly ground black pepper

Method

The first step is simply to re-heat the Bolognese sauce. Toast the bread thereafter on one side and turn it over before spooning on and smoothing out the Bolognese sauce. Sprinkle the cheese carefully on top and grind the pepper liberally on top of the cheese. Place back under the hot grill until the cheese has melted and begins to bubble furiously.

This makes a great lunch idea for the day after the Spaghetti Bolognese has been served but remember to ensure that the sauce is refrigerated if being left overnight and very thoroughly re-heated prior to use.

Yet Another Bonus Today

Do you ever have a problem judging how much spaghetti to make per person? I know that it used to be a common problem for me! Not long ago, however, I found this clever little tool on Amazon. You simply determine how many people you are cooking for and use the appropriate hole to determine how much spaghetti to cook. Obviously, it is not foolproof, as peoples' appetites vary, but it should at least significantly reduce the amount of unrequired and cooked spaghetti you are forced to discard - or even worse, the number of occasions upon which you come up short!

Click on either the Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk panel below to go a long way to ensuring that your cooked spaghetti is of the right quantity in future.

Food Tip of the Day - Saturday, November 14th, 2009: What Can I Eat When I Have Tonsillitis?

Tonsillitis or any form of sore throat brings not only pain and discomfort but very often problems in determining what we are or are not capable of eating. It was while suffering from a bout of tonsillitis myself that I produced the website linked to below from a very personal perspective. I hope that anyone who is suffering from a sore throat at this time - or simply recognises that the possibility always exists in the future! - will find this site to be of benefit:

What Can I Eat When I have Tonsillitis

Poached King Scallops with Parsley Mashed Potatoes and Cream and White Wine Sauce

The process of how to cook scallops requires above all that considerable attention be paid to the concept of ensuring that the scallops not be over-cooked. If scallops are in any way over-cooked, they will acquire an extremely unpleasant texture, as well as losing much of their delicate flavour, and prove to provide a decidedly unpleasant eating experience. This recipe for scallops poached in milk provides for a very defined cooking method and virtually ensures that the scallops may be enjoyed at their very best. Please note also that the orange, "Roe," or, "Coral," as it is more properly called is entirely edible and should be left attached where possible.

Ingredients (Per Person)

5 King Scallops (Coral attached)
Approximately half a pint of milk
2 large maris piper potatoes
1 tbsp double (heavy) cream
1 tbsp white wine
1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley plus a small sprig for garnish

Method

The first step is to peel the potatoes and chop them in to approximately one inch cubes. Put them in to a pan of boiling, salted water and simmer for twenty to twenty-five minutes, until soft. When the potatoes are almost ready, put the scallops in to a small pot and add enough cold milk to ensure they are fully covered. Put them on a moderate heat and simply leave them until the milk just begins to simmer. At this stage, the scallops are cooked and should be removed from the milk with a slotted spoon.

Drain the potatoes well and return them to the empty pot. Add about a tablespoonful of the warm scallop poaching milk (more can be added if and when required) and mash them thoroughly. Reserve a generous pinch of the chopped parsley for the sauce and add the remainder to the potatoes, stirring it through well.

The sauce will only take seconds to make. Add the wine to a very small saucepan and bring it up to a simmer. Add the cream and stir it in gently until the sauce returns to a simmer. Stir in the parsley and the sauce is ready to serve.

Spoon the mashed potatoes on to a plate and arrange in a flat disc. Add the scallops on top before pouring over the sauce. Garnish with the remaining sprig of parsley and serve immediately.

Food Tip of the Day - Sunday, November 1st, 2009: Tips for Buying Seafood

There are those who would perhaps understandably assume when buying seafood that it is always going to be fresh. Unfortunately, however, this is far from being the case and anyone who is in the habit of buying seafood - or is even contemplating buying seafood - should always have some form of understanding of how to tell whether the seafood is indeed fresh or is perhaps past its best.

Tips for Buying Seafood

Easy Vegetable Stir Fry with Fried Rice

A vegetable stir fry is probably one of the easiest and quickest stir fries of all to prepare and as it has been some time since I have included a vegetarian option on this blog, I decided that this easy vegetable stir fry served with simple fried rice was one of the best ways to put that right.

Ingredients (Serves One)

1 red bell pepper (deseeded and sliced in to half inch wide strips)
1 small onion (peeled and quartered)
6 cobs of baby corn
Handful of mangetout
6 button mushrooms
1 clove of garlic (finely chopped)
1 tbsp corn oil for frying
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp light soy sauce (optional)

Fried rice

Method

Prepare the fried rice first as instructed via the link above and keep warm in a serving dish while you stir fry the vegetables.

Bring the wok up to a fairly high heat and add the corn oil. When the oil is equally hot, add the onion, followed by the pepper and then the baby corn. Stir fry for about thirty seconds before adding the remainder of the vegetables one at a time. Stir fry for about another minute before adding the soy sauce (if desired) and seasoning with salt and pepper.

Ensure that the seasoning is well mixed through the ingredients before turning off the heat and serving immediately on a bed of fried rice.

Food Tip of the Day - Thursday, October 29th, 2009: Cooking is Becoming a Lost Art

Cooking is becoming a lost art - how much do you agree or disagree with that statement? Do you believe that there are a similar percentage of the population skilled in the art of cooking as there were ten years ago? Twenty years ago? Fifty years ago?

The advances in technology as represented by refrigerators, deep freezes, microwave ovens: all are bound to have had an affect on the art of cooking. How long, however, before each and every one of us simply verbally states our requirements to a food synthesizer as in Star Trek...?

Cooking is Becoming a Lost Art

Braised Scottish Venison with Red Wine and Red Pepper Reduction

Venison is a meat which is used in a lot of traditional Scottish recipes. Although this method of cooking venison could hardly be classed as a traditional Scottish recipe - with the inclusion of red wine and red pepper - this method of cooking quality Scottish venison makes for a hearty, warming and delicious meal.

Ingredients (Serves One)

6oz Scottish venison (diced)
1 red bell pepper (deseeded and cut in to 1/2" strips)
1 small onion (finely sliced)
2 cloves of garlic (crushed or very finely chopped)
1/2 pint red wine
1/2 pint fresh beef stock
2 tbsp plain or all-purpose flour
2 tbsp sunflower oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2oz basmati rice
1 tsp freshly chopped parsley and small sprig of same for garnish

Method

Put the sunflower oil in to a large pot and bring it up to a medium to high heat. Put the flour in to a bowl and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the venison pieces and stir them around well in the seasoned flour. Shake the excess flour off each piece of venison and add them to the hot oil. Stir them around in the oil with a wooden spoon for a couple of minutes until they have completely browned and sealed. Add the onion, red pepper and garlic and stir in this way for another minute or so before adding the red wine and fresh beef stock. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer as gently as possible for at least two hours, until the venison is tender, stirring occasionally and well. Note that it is possible that a little more stock or wine will be required towards the end of the cooking time.

Around fifteen minutes before the venison is due to be ready, wash the rice thoroughly in running cold water through a sieve and add it to a pan of boiling, salted water. Cook for twelve minutes before draining well. Line a small ramekin with clingfilm that the film overhangs by at least an inch and pack the rice tightly inside, filled level with the top of the ramekin. Place the serving plate on top of the ramekin and carefully turn them over that the plate is now on the bottom. Gently hold the edges of the clingfilm and lift the ramekin away before carefully peeling the clingfilm away to leave the rice ready to serve as shown in the photograph.

Spoon the braised venison and red wine and red pepper reduction around the rice and garnish with the freshly chopped parsley.

Food Tip of the Day - Saturday, October 24th, 2009: How to Make Wine at Home

Wine is of course a very common ingredient in many cooking recipes, as well as being a common accompaniment to many meals. The only problem is that the cost of wine can very often be prohibitive and add substantially to the overall cost of preparing the meal.

Why not, therefore, consider making your own wine at home? The savings which can be achieved in the long term can be beyond significant and the freedom to choose one's own ingredients is all but limitless. The e-book package linked to below comes with all the information you need to begin making wine at home and is fully downloadable to your PC. Check it out today - and start saving money tomorrow!

Click Here! for full details of this magnificent offer and impress your friends and family with your soon to be acquired new talents.

Fried Chicken Livers and Onions with New Potatoes in Garlic Butter

Chicken livers are probably not as popular as such as ox liver or lamb's liver. They are obviously considerably smaller in size and even more delicate in texture and in flavour, however they serve very well as the principal ingredient in many good recipes. This recipe for chicken liver and onions with new potatoes in garlic butter is not only delicious, it is incredibly simple to make.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

1/2lb chicken livers
2 tbsp plain or all purpose flour
1 large onion (halved then sliced)
Generous pinch of dried sage
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tbsp sunflower oil
12 new potatoes
1 clove garlic (crushed)
1/2oz Butter

Method

Put the potatoes in to a pot, season with salt and cover with boiling water. Simmer for twenty-five to thirty-minutes.

Put the flour in to a bowl and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir well. Just over ten minutes before the potatoes should be ready, put the sunlflower oil in to a large non-stick frying-pan and bring it up to a medium to high heat. Add the chicken livers to the bowl of flour and stir them around well to evenly coat them in flour. Pick the pieces out one by one, shake them free of excess flour and add them to the frying-pan.

Fry the livers for around three minutes each side before adding in the onions and sage and stirring well. Fry for another couple of minutes before adding the balsamic vinegar for the last two minutes of cooking time, continuing to stir frequently.

Drain the potatoes and return them to the empty pot. Add the butter and the garlic and swirl around well to ensure good and even coating.

Serve the livers and potatoes immediately.

Food Tip of the Day - Sunday, October 18th, 2009: How to Make Fried Rice and Fried Rice Recipes

How to make fried rice is not a complicated process but there are a few steps required which many people are not aware of. They include the fact that the rice has to be cooked by the traditional boiling method prior to it being fried and that it also has to subsequently be allowed to cool completely. Failing to take note of either of these essential requirements is a recipe only for disaster.

The site linked to below is a new and developing one and therefore will include more recipes on an ongoing basis. It already contains, however, very precise details of how to make a basic fried rice and this is the principal instruction required.

How to Make Fried Rice and Fried Rice Recipes

Whiting Fillet in Fresh Breadcrumbs with Garlic Herb Potatoes and Coleslaw

Whiting is one of my favourite types of fish. Its clean, fresh, delicate flavour is beyond the compare of many and provided it is not over-cooked it will provide for a delicious and healthy meal. When preparing any type of fish in breadcrumbs, however, many people make the mistake of using packaged breadcrumbs or fish dressing from supermarkets, when nothing can beat the fresh breadcrumbs simply prepared at home.

Ingredients (Per Person)

1 fresh fillet of whiting
2 tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
3 or 4 new potatoes (or as desired)
1 clove of garlic (crushed)
1/2 tsp dried sage
1 egg
2 tbsp sunflower oil
Salt

Method

If using the larger new potatoes as I have done, they will require a total of forty minutes' cooking time. Smaller new potatoes will require only thirty minutes. In either case, they should first be boiled - unpeeled - for half the alloted time in salted water prior to being very well drained. One tablespoon of sunflower oil should then be added to a large bowl along with the sage and some more salt. This mixture should be stirred, prior to adding the potatoes and carefully stirring them around to coat them all in the seasoned oil. The potatoes should then be poured on to a pre-heated baking sheet and placed in the oven - pre-heated to 400F/200C/Gas Mark 6 - for the second half of their cooking time. The bowl should be left unwashed and set aside for later use.

When the potatoes are in the oven, a slice of semi-stale bread should be grated or shredded to make the breadcrumbs. If the bread is fresh, it should be sat on a vacant shelf in the oven for a minute or two to dry out a bit. The breadcrumbs should then be spread evenly on a dinner plate. The egg should be placed in a small soup plate or similar, seasoned with a little salt and beaten thoroughly.

Ten minutes before the potatoes are due to be ready, put the remaining tablespoon of sunflower oil in to a non-stick frying-pan and bring it up to a medium heat. Draw the whiting fillet through the egg-wash, ensuring all parts of the fillet are coated prior to patting it down in the breadcrumbs on both sides. The fillet should then be gently fried for about four minutes on each side.

Five minutes before the end of the scheduled cooking time for the potatoes, add the crushed garlic to the bowl used earlier. Remove the potatoes from the oven, tip them in to the bowl and stir them around in the oil residue and garlic. Return them to the baking sheet and the oven for the final five minutes.

The fish and the potatoes may then carefully be plated up and a spoonful of coleslaw added as a final accompaniment.

Food Tip of the Day - Friday, October 16th, 2009: Vegetarian or Carnivore? Which is Right?

The debate rages on on a daily basis: which is right? The vegetarian or the carnivore?

Opinions are clearly very varied indeed on this contentious issue, with many actively campaigning on behalf of one side of the argument or the other. There is one important factor of this debate, however, which many often neglect: who has the right to judge?

Vegetarian or Carnivore: Which is Right?

Lambs' Liver, Bacon and Onion Casserole with Roasted Potato Slices

Liver and onions is a popular combination but they are most often cooked together in a frying-pan. This recipe is a little bit different in that although the cooking process begins with the frying-pan, it is mostly undertaken in the form of oven casseroling.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

4 slices of lambs' liver
1 large onion (sliced)
4 rashers of bacon
1 pint of fresh chicken stock
2 tbsp plain flour
3 tbsp sunflower oil
4 large roasting or baking potatoes
Salt and pepper

Method

Put your oven on to preheat to 350F/180C/Gas Mark 4. Pour one tablespoon of sunflower oil in to a frying-pan and bring it up to a medium heat. Add the onions and bacon and fry for a couple of minutes before removing to the casserole dish.

Put the flour on a plate and season well before drawing each slice of liver through it to evenly coat both sides. Fry the liver for about a minute each side to seal and add it to the casserole dish. Pour the warm chicken stock over the meat and cover the dish before putting it in to the oven for forty-five minutes.

I prefer not to peel the potatoes but this is a matter of personal preference. Peeled or unpeeled, therefore, cut them in to quarter-inch thick slices. Add the remaining two tablespoons of sunflower oil to a large basin or bowl and season well with salt. Put the potato slices in to the bowl and stir very carefully but thoroughly to coat each of them in oil. Place the slices on a warmed baking sheet and in to the oven for the final thirty minutes of the casserole's cooking time. Turn them after fifteen minutes.

Arrange the cooked potato slices in a circle around the edge of a large plate. Add some of the bacon and onions to the centre of the plate and serve the slice of liver on top.

Food Tip of the Day - Wednesday, September 30th, 2009: Tips for Making Pizza Healthy

Pizza is very often classed as a junk food, along with such as burgers and french fries. I think this is a great shame as pizza can in reality be an extremely healthy food to consume.

This article therefore considers some tips for making pizza healthy and blows the myth out of the water that pizza is just like any other, high in saturated fat, junk food.

Tips for making pizza healthy

Tender Fillet of Veal in Breadcrumbs with Herb Roast Potatoes and Red Cabbage Salad

Veal can of course be a very expensive meat to buy but it is so delicious if prepared correctly that the outlay is more than worth it every so often. This tender fillet of veal just melted in the mouth and went very well with the accompanying herb roast potatoes and red cabbage salad. This recipe is for two people.

Ingredients

2 fillets of veal
12 (approx.) baby new potatoes (unpeeled)
1/2 small red cabbage
1 tbsp chopped coriander (cilantro in USA)
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 eggs
5 to 6 tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
2 tbsp sunflower oil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried sage
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Put the potatoes in to a large pan of boiling, salted water to parboil for fifteen minutes and the oven on to preheat to 400F/200C/Gas Mark 6, a flat baking tray inside to also heat.

Chop/shred the red cabbage with a sharp knife and put it in a fairly large bowl. Add the coriander and white wine vinegar and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir very well and cover until required.

Put one tablespoon of sunflower in to a large mixing bowl and add the herbs, seasoning with salt. Stir well. Once the potatoes have boiled for fifteen minutes, drain them well before adding them also to the bowl and swirling them around until they are evenly coated in the herb and oil mixture. Put them on to the baking tray and in to the heated oven for another fifteen minutes.

Break the eggs in to a shallow but wide dish and beat with a fork. Place the breadcrumbs on a large dinner plate and evenly spread them out. Add a tablespoon of sunflower oil to a large non-stick frying pan and bring up to a medium heat. Dip each fillet of veal in turn firstly in to the egg then pat both sides in the breadcrumbs and repeat before placing them carefully in to the warmed pan. Fry for ten minutes, turning them over carefully after five minutes, then turn off the frying pan and leave them to rest for the final few minutes of the potatoes' cooking time.

Plate up your meal and enjoy your dinner.