On my June Kitchen Table: Super Speedy Eats!

A collection of the foodie products that I have been sent for review, or simply want to share with you this month. It turns they all fit into the category of quick and easy meals, enjoy!

Terra Nostra is, at first glance, a typical restaurant in the centre of St Ginesio, however they also make and sell high quality pasta and I was able try their Truffle Tagliatelle  and dried tomatoes Papparedelle.  Both were excellent quality pasta, the kind that easily retains a bit of bite and the flavourings in the pasta also adds to the dish.  Each pack also contains a sachet of flavoured oil, which has an authentic taste of the herbs or truffle oil as appropriate to the pasta type.

I made a simple seasonal dish of tomatoes slowly roasted in a pan with a little olive oil and garlic, then I added some sliced olives and at the last minute threw in some feta cheese cubes, this was mixed through the cooked Papparedelle al pomodori with the basil oil and made a really delicious and simple supper.
You can buy the Terra Nostra pasta through the e-shop  the prices are in euros and I have no information about purchasing in the UK.  8/10 

I'm not averse to a ready-meal, I always have a pizza in my freezer.  However, I'm not inclined to buy pasta dishes as ready meals as they are so easy to prepare.  I was intrigued by the blurb from Charlie Bigham's " the posh ready meal brand especially for twosomes. It's perfect for when you and your other half want to spend some quality time together, without having to sacrifice the taste!"  We don't have a Sainsbury's or Waitrose near where we live and Ocado don't deliver to our area,  but I managed to find a Sainsbury's on one of my frequent work trips. 

I was supposed to try out the new range of 'world' meals but there weren't any of those available in this store, so I took the chance to get the Moussaka and the Meatballs al Forno.  Each ready meal feeds two (although I did get the Moussaka to stretch to feed three) and costs £7.00. That's relatively expensive, but they are the best ready meals I have tasted, you could easily have thought they were homemade.  Himself was very impressed and enjoyed both dishes.

Another bonus is that the packaging is environmentally friendly using paper and wood rather than plastic, all of the packaging can be recycled.  Bighams recommend that you bake the dishes in the oven, but on one of the nights I was short of time and microwaved the dish for 6 minutes before finishing it off in the oven to crisp up the top.  9/10

Labels: #review, Charlie Bigham's, coconut, feta, fruit ices, lemon curd, Meatballs al Forno, Moussaka, olives, papparedelle, Smooze, strawberries, tagliatelle, tomatoes, yogurt

posted by Janice @ 21:08 4 Comments

Fat! - A cook book review

It's not the most appealing of book titles and those chops featured on the front don't really do justice to the variety of recipes in the book, which is actually really very good.




The chapters are divided into different types of fat:

Butter: worth it

Butter recipes include: Butter Chicken, Salted Caramel Sauce and Pepper and Orange Pound Cake which is definitely on my 'to make' list.  However, I had some sage leaves left over from making the Turkey Saltimboca so tried this recipe:



Spaghetti with Butter and Sage (serves 2)


Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
200g spaghetti (or tagliatelle)
115g unsalted butter
20 - 30 sage leaves

 Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Add the spaghetti (I didn't have any so used tagliatelle), stir, and return to a boil.  Adjust the heat so the water boils gently and cook until the spaghetti is al dente, 10-12 minutes.  Drain well.

While the spaghetti is cooking, cut the butter into pieces and place them in a large frying pan over medium-low heat.  When the butter is melted, add the sage leaves and cook, turning once, until the leaves are crisp and the butter begins to brown, about 7 minutes.
 
Add the cooked drained spaghetti to the frying pan and toss to coat with the sage butter sauce.
Season well with salt and pepper and serve immediately.  For such a simple dish, this was absolutely delicious and made a quick and easy supper for me after my yoga class this week.

Pork Fat - The King!

Recipes include: Country style Terrine, Dandelion Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing, Bacon Fat Spice Cookies

Poultry Fat: Versatile and Good for You

 Simple Roast Chicken
One 1.4Kg free-range chicken
A large handful of mixed fresh herbs such as parsley, chives, tarragon and marjoram
1 large clove of garlic
100g unsalted butter, softened
Coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper


Transfer the chicken to a chopping board and cut into serving pieces.  Add any juices from the chicken to the pan and place the pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, deglaze the pan, using a wooden spoon to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom, then strain through a fine-mesh sieve and serve the pan sauce with the chicken.

I pushed some of the herb butter up under the skin of the chicken as well as over the skin.  It certainly kept the chicken moist and the sauce was really flavoursome.


More Poultry Fat recipes:  Red Cabbage with Goose Fat, Cassoulet, Vegetable Cake

Beef and Lamb Fats: Overlooked but tasty

Recipes include: Roast Beef with All the Trimmings, Suet Pastry, Bone Marrow in Red Wine Butter Sauce, Cape Malay Lamb Shoulder.


I would certainly recommend this book, there are loads of interesting facts about the different types of fat as well as a range of recipes for all tastes.

The paperback edition of 'Fat' by Jennifer McLagan is published on 18th May 2012 at £16.99

Disclosure Statement: I received a copy of 'Fat' by Jennifer McLagan for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. The prices are correct at time of posting.

Labels: Chicken, cook book, fat, garlic, herbs, Jennifer McLagan, review, sage, tagliatelle

posted by Janice @ 12:45 8 Comments