Greek lamb stew with tagliatelle

Serves 4-5

This dish was created because I couldn’t bear to waste some dill! Can’t believe I spent about £6 on lamb to save the dill, but lamb is such a rare, expensive treat. And it does go quite a long way in this dish.  I then portioned this up and froze little bags of it as I am not feeding a family, although it would improve in flavour in the fridge a day or two after you cooked it.

Next time I might chop up the lamb smaller and cook for 2 hours to make a finer ragu style sauce for pasta or just some nice crusty bread.

• olive oil

• 500g lamb steaks ,  cut into chunks
• 1 aubergine , cut into chunks
• 2 onions, half chopped and half sliced into half moons
• garlic 2 cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes 
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tsp dried mixed herbs (or Herbes de Provence)
• 200ml chicken or lamb stock 
• ½ stick cinnamon 
• few sprigs fresh dill (or parsley if you don’t like dill)
• 1 lemon, zested (optional)
• grated parmesan cheese or crumbled feta
• 50g dried tagliatelle for each person (so 200g for 4)

Heat 1tbsp olive oil in a large wok or casserole with a lid. Season the lamb  and brown all over in two batches then remove. Add the aubergine and another splash of oil and cook for 2-3 mins until softened a little. As the aubergine soaks up so much oil, I poured a little of the meat juices that had run out of the lamb to the pan. This deglazed it which adds more flavour and made the aubergine cook quicker without even more oil. Lift out the aubergine and give the pan a wipe as it will probably be black by now! Then add the onions and garlic and cook for 5-6 mins until softened and translucent.

Tip the lamb and aubergine back with the tomatoes, tomato puree, stock, cinnamon and check seasoning. Simmer then put on a lid on (or transfer to a casserole if you used a wok) and cook for 1.5 hours or until the meat is tender and the sauce is rich. Remove the cinnamon stick. Sprinkle the dill or parsley over and lemon zest.

Cook the tagliatelle according to packet instructions and serve with the stew. Add either parmesan or feta to taste and eat.

Tuna and olive pasta

Tuna and olive pasta

Serves 2-3

I eat this at least once a month – usually in the run up to pay day when there’s nothing in the house to eat! If you have any leftover it will sit happily in the fridge until the next day. The sauce is quite punchy with salty olives and capers and a bit of warm heat from the chilli flakes, but you can always leave the chilli out if you are giving it to kids.

125g rigatoni or penne pasta

2 tsp olive oil

1 sprig rosemary (or use ½ tsp dried mixed herbs)

1 garlic clove, squashed

1 stick of celery, finely chopped, reserve a few leaves if there are any

400g tin chopped tomatoes

Seasoning

1 pinch dried chilli flakes

1 small can tuna

6 black olives, sliced

1 tsp capers, rinsed and chopped

3-4 basil leaves (only if you have any)

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 tbsp grated Parmesan, optional

Cook the pasta according to instructions – about 12-14 minutes.

Heat the oil in a sauté pan and add the rosemary , garlic and celery and cook until lightly golden. Then add in the can of tomatoes – be careful as it will probably splutter! – and the chilli flakes and season, but go easy on the salt. Leave to reduce and thicken – about 5 mins.

Flake in the tuna, but don’t break up too much. Then add the olives, capers and tear in the basil if using. Add the balsamic and cook for another minute or two. Fish out the garlic and discard.

Take off the heat and stir in the parsley and any chopped celery leaves.

Drain the pasta and toss in the sauce. Serve with parmesan if you like.

Divine and decadent mushroom and truffle oil tagliatelle

Divine and decadent mushroom and truffle oil tagliatelle

Serves 1

Wow! This is another dish which hardly warrants a ‘recipe’ but it tasted so good  do not let its simplicity deceive you! In fact it is good to keep the ingredients short because it is the truffle oil that does the talking in this dish. The shoddy picture just doesn't do it justice. I suppose a glug of cream would be nice but I didn’t miss it. Be a great dish to double up for serving on a date J

PS I bought the black truffle oil from the BBC Good Food Show. Was £6 for just 100ml but the nice boys that sold it said it was real truffle steeped in mild grapeseed oil and far superior to supermarket oils that just have truffle “flavouring” added to them. Maybe I’m a mug but I was sold on the taste

60g tagliatelle

1 tsp butter

1 field mushroom, finely chopped

Salt and pepper

2 spring onions, chopped

¼ tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary - a bit of parsley would also be nice

1 tsp black truffle oil

1 tbsp grated parmesan

Cook the tagliatelle for 9-10 mins until al dente. Meanwhile heat the butter in a small frying pan and gently fry the mushrooms with some seasoning on a low heat. When beginning to soften and release moisture add the spring onion and rosemary and continue to cook gently for about 4 minutes until the mushrooms are dark and the onions have lost any rawness.

Drain the pasta and tip in with mushrooms, toss together and drizzle over the truffle oil. Place in a bowl and sprinkle over the parmesan and extra pepper if you like. Eat seductively by yourself or with someone also tasty.

Kind of Mediterranean Pasta Bake

Mediterranean Pasta Bake

Serves 1

Leftover turkey and pasta sauce to use up! Pasta bake is a-calling! I tend to go through phases of eating pasta quite a lot and then don't use it again for weeks. No one said I'm normal :)

60g pasta e.g rigatoni

Olive oil

½ turkey or chicken breast, diced

50g smoked bacon lardons

½ clove garlic, chopped

½ stick celery, diced

Few olives, sliced

1 tsp capers

¼ jar tomato and basil pasta sauce

2 tsp parsley, chopped

1 tbsp grated Parmesan

Cook the pasta in boiling salted water for about 15 mins until tender.

Meanwhile fry the turkey or chicken, bacon and celery in frying pan for a few mins until cooked. Add the olives, capers, pasta sauce and parsley and simmer gently for 3-5 mins to heat through.

Mix with the drained pasta and transfer to an oven-proof dish. Sprinkle over cheese and cook under a grill until toasty and bubbling. Eat!

Creamy pesto turkey, asparagus and spinach pasta

Creamy pesto turkey, asparagus and spinach pasta

Serves 1

More asparagus and spinach to use up! This is such a quick and comforting dinner – using just a little cream cheese and adding the pasta water makes a fab low fat sauce. Love it! Sprinkle with parmesan if you have any.

50g rigatoni

Salt

5 asparagus stalks, cut into 2in lengths

Handful spinach

1 tsp oil

1 turkey breast steak, sliced into thin strips

2 cherry tomatoes, quartered

1 tsp pesto

1 tsp cream cheese

Black pepper

Boil the pasta according to instructions in salted water. Add the asparagus for last 4 mins and the spinach just before draining.

Meanwhile heat the oil and fry the turkey breast strips until just cooked – about 2-3 mins. Throw in the cherry tomatoes and add the pesto and cream cheese. Loosen with a few tsp of pasta cooking water until you have sauce. Season with black pepper and then add the drained pasta and vegetables. Toss to coat then serve. Mmmm

Chorizo and Broccoli Storecupboard pasta

Chorizo and Broccoli Storecupboard pasta

Serves 1

This came about as another leftovers dish, hence the name. You maybe able to tell I hate waste. It sounds really basic but actually it is both fresh and rich, with fully pronounced flavours. And it’s good for you! You could of course add anything you have such as courgette or use bacon instead of chorizo. I didn’t add garlic because I had lots at lunchtime!

50g Rigatoni, or other pasta shapes

Splash olive oil

¼ onion, diced

Few slices of chorizo, cut into strips

Small pinch chilli flakes

 Small pinch mixed dried herbs

½ can chopped tomatoes

3-4 black olives, sliced

Few broccoli florets, quartered

Seasoning

1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

Get the pasta on to boil and cook as per instructions.

In a small saucepan heat the oil and add the onions and some salt. Fry for a couple of mins until starting to soften. Add the chorizo and stir until it starts to crisp. Add the chilli, herbs, tomatoes, olives and seasoning to taste. Cook for about 5-6 mins, adding extra pasta water to stop it drying out.

When the pasta has 3 mins to go, add the broccoli to the water and cook until the pasta is done. Drain and tip into the tomato sauce. Stir to coat then pile into a bowl sprinkled with parmesan.