Eats/Reads

We thought we had absolutely nothing to eat in the house - and then we realised we had the ingredients for tuna casserole. Not exactly the most sophisticated dish but this is a tasty version - with, notably, no canned cream of mushroom soup (which about 99.9 per cent of the recipes we found online called for). The toddler was a bit suspicious of it but in the end ate several pieces of fusilli and a couple handfuls of the meat and sauce, once we separated them for her. If you don't have kids, add some dry white wine or sherry in the sauce and double or triple the garlic. Next time we'll try putting bread crumbs on top, under the grated cheese. 1 pound fusilli 2 tbsp olive oil 2 onions, chopped 4 cloves garlic, chopped 1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced 300 g tinned tuna 1 cup frozen peas 6 tbsp butter 6 tbsp flour 3 cups milk 1/4 pound grated cheddar cheese Cheddar Parmesan Melt the butter, then stir in the flour. Slowly add the 6 cups milk on low to medium heat, stirring constantly. Y...

I was totally winging it with this one and it came out very tasty! I wanted to stew some meat because it makes for great family meals - very easy to eat for the family member who still doesn't have all her teeth. The rest was just a mix of what I remember from making other stews and Marcella Hazan tomato sauces (ie, LOTS of olive oil!). We ate it with pasta but it could also have been served over rice, with potatoes - or even with potatoes cooked in it. 2T veg oil 800g pork 1/2 cup olive oil 2 onions, chopped 2 medium carrots, sliced thin 1/2 courgette, sliced thin About 1/4-1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced thin 1/2 head garlic, chopped 2 splashes dry sherry 1 tsp oregano 1 enormous bay leaf 3 400ml/14 ox tins tomato 250ml/1 cup chicken stock 1 Tbsp flour (Would have added dried basil if I'd had it. Instead, chopped up some fresh basil and cilantro and used that as a garnish before serving) Heat veg oil in Dutch oven until very hot. Add cubed meat and brown on all sides. Set aside. Add...

Wild Boar Korma Curry Notes: This was good but next time, more fresh garlic and ginger. The paste isn't that zesty. And add chilis or chili sauce at the table (didn't add chilis because sharing with toddler). 2 Tbsp oil 1 onion, chopped 6 mushrooms, sliced 3 Tbsp korma paste 1/2 c yogurt 1/2 c milk 1/4 c water 400 g wild boar 4 dried apricots, chopped 1 cup peas About half a ripe mango, chopped. Saute onion and mushroom in oil until soft. Add korma paste and cook for 1 minute. Add milk, yogurt and water. Add boar and apricots. Bring to simmer, cover and cook about 1 to 1.5 hours, until boar is soft. Mix in peas and mango. Cook about 5 minutes until peas are done. Serve with rice or noodles. -- 15/2/10: Finally got this right! Yummy Fish Korma Curry. 1 onion, chopped 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 inch fresh ginger, minced 3 Tbsp korma paste 3 mushroom, sliced 1 tin coconut milk 1/4 c plain yogurt One large fillet pollock, cut into large chunks (10-12 ounces) 1/2 cup fresh mango, d...

This recipe is nothing fancy but it's tasty and flexible, depending on what you have on hand. It is inspired by an Annabel Karmel recipe for kids but altered a bit. It can be fed to toddlers (my daughter loves it) or to adults. It served as the basis for our first 'family meal' - where all three of us ate the same dish. Imagine! If you don't have courgette (zucchini to you Americans) or celery, you can substitute another type of squash, or potato, or just use more carrot and onion. You could add a clove or two of garlic if your toddler is willing. If you don't have tuna, you can use ground beef, or make it veggie, or add some grated cheese before serving for extra protein and fat. You could probably also use flaked salmon or trout, or perhaps even chicken, but I haven't tried those yet. Let me know how it goes if you do! 6 Tbsp olive oil 1 small onion, chopped 1 small or medium carrot, chopped 1 stick celery, chopped 1 small courgette, chopped 2 400g/14 oz tins...

This was intended as a dish for my 14-month-old daughter. But alas, she turned her nose up at it. She took one bite then started chanting, "Milk! Cheese! Bread!" (Her favourite foods, along with lentils.) Luckily it's also pretty tasty for adults. Next time, though, if I make it for adults, I will add more onion, some garlic, and maybe some dried or fresh chili, to make it a little more exciting. This can be eaten as is, or meat eaters can add some grilled and flaked/shredded fish or chicken. Or you can have a poached egg on top. Here's the simple version I made for the baby. Anyone with toddlers can try it on their kids, just leave out the salt and pepper (unless your kids like pepper!). Some olive oil Half an onion About 500g frozen spinach (we buy this organic frozen spinach which comes in 80g cubes) 2 carrots, sliced thin 2 Tbsp butter 2 Tbsp flour 1 cup milk Hunk of cheese, grated fine 1 lb pasta Salt and pepper Saute onion in olive oil. Thaw spinach in fridge ah...