Delishuss Blog

Just another WordPress.com site

Chicken and Pesto Lasagne June 11, 2012

Filed under: Chicken,Pasta — delishuss @ 9:31 pm
Tags: , ,

I was looking for a healthyish lasagne and came across this one on the goodfoodchannel.co.uk. It turns out that it’s not actually that healthy, there’s lots of  various cheeses in it. I did try and reduce the calories and fat by using low fat mozzerella and creme fraiche. I really liked the recipe but if I was going to make it again, I would just use beef mince. I’m afraid I don’t think that chicken/turkey mince cuts the mustard. The pesto in this recipe, is a nice change from the norm. Hope you enjoy.

Prep time: 40 min

Cook time: 30 min

Serves 6

 

Ingredients

500 g minced turkey or minced chicken

1 onion, finely diced

1 clove garlic, crushed

6 tomatoes, roughly chopped

4 tbsp tomato purée

1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into strips

½ tsp dried oregano

250 g egg lasagne sheets

225 g spinach

250 g ricotta cheese

4 tbsp basil pesto

150 ml creme fraiche

125 g mozzarella, grated

25 g parmesan, grated

 

Method

1. Dry-fry the minced chicken or turkey and onion for about 5 minutes until browned and the onion is beginning to soften.

2. Add the garlic, tomatoes, tomato purée, red pepper and oregano. Cook for 2-3 minutes then pour over 150ml of water and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

3. Meanwhile, soak the lasagne sheets in boiling water or as directed on the packet.

4. Put the spinach in a colander or sieve over the sink and pour over boiling water until the spinach has wilted. Press gently to remove as much water as possible then put the spinach in a bowl with the ricotta and pesto. Mix well.

5. Set the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Put 2 sheets of lasagne in the base of a 2.5-litre ovenproof baking dish and pour over half the chicken mixture. Top with half the ricotta mixture. Add another 2 sheets of lasagne and most of the remaining chicken mixture, reserving a couple of tablespoons for the top.

6. Add the remaining ricotta mixture and top with the last two lasagne sheets. Spoon over the reserved chicken mixture then spread with crème fraîche and sprinkle with the grated Mozzarella and Parmesan.

7. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until piping hot in the centre and golden brown.

 

 

 

Double Cheese Macaroni March 10, 2012

Filed under: Pasta — delishuss @ 12:31 pm
Tags: , , ,

The jury is a bit out on this one but I thought I would post it anyway for you to try and see what you think.  I took the recipe from the Quick and Easy cookbook. Let me know if you do try it.

Serves 4

Ingredients

225g dried macaroni

250g ricotta cheese

1 1/2 tsp wholegrain mustard

3 tbsp snipped fresh chives

200g cherry tomatoes, halved

100g sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped

Butter or oil, for greasing

100g cheddar cheese, grated

Salt and pepper

 

Method

1. Bring a large saucepan of lightly salterd water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until tender but still firm to bite. Drain.

2. Mix the ricotta with the mustard, chives and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the macaroni, cherry tomatoes and sun-dried tomatoes.

3. Grease a 1.7 litre shallow ovenproof dish. Spoon in the macaroni mixture, spreading evenly.

4. Preheat the grill to high. Sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the macaroni mixture and cook under the preheated grill for 4-5 minutes, until golden and bubbling.

5. Serve the macaroni sprinkled with extra chives.

 

Creamy Sweet Chilli and Bacon Penne February 20, 2012

Filed under: Fast Food,Healthy Eating,Meat,Pasta — delishuss @ 10:50 pm
Tags: , , , , ,

My mum passed this onto me this week. I wasn’t so sure about it but I’m up for giving most things a try. I haven’t pointed it but I reckon it wouldn’t be too bad.

It probably took me about 20 minutes in total to prepare.

Serves 1

Ingredients

40g pasta

2 medallions of smoky bacon, chopped

1 large tablespoon of sweet chilli light philadelphia cream cheese

1 large tablespoon of light cream cheese

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/4 red pepper

1/4 orange pepper

1 clove of garlic, crushed

One cal cooking spray

 

 

Method

1. Boil the pasta according to the packet instructions, normally 8-10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan and spray with the one cal spray. Add the bacon and fry for 4 minutes.

3. Add the peppers and onion and fry for a further 4 minutes. Add the garlic and fry for another minute or so.

4. Pour a little of the pasta water into the frying pan with the veg and bacon. Stir in both cream cheeses and blend in. Once the sauce has been heated, drain the pasta and add to the frying pan. Stir everything together.

I was going to say that you should add some chopped parsley but there’s no real need, there’s enough going on as it is.

 

Hope you enjoy.

 

 

 

Chicken with Creamy Penne

Filed under: Chicken,Pasta — delishuss @ 10:38 pm
Tags: , ,

I made this a week or so ago but didn’t get time to post. It’s dead easy and really yum. Anything with pasta in it is a winner for me.  I got the recipe from the Quick and Easy cookbook and it does what it says on the tin.

Serves 2

Ingredients

200g dried penne

1 tbsp olive oil

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

4 tbsp dry white wine

115g frozen peas

5 tbsp double cream

Salt

4-5 chopped fresh parsley, to garnish

 

Method

1. Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook for about 8-10 minutes, until tender but still firm to the bite.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan, add the chicken and cook over a medium heat for about 4 minutes on each side.

3.  Pour in the wine and cook over a high heat until it has almost evaporated.

4. Drain the pasta. Add the peas, cream and pasta to the frying and stir well. Cover and simmer for 2 minutes.

5. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.

 

Roasted Vegetable Pasta Bake January 30, 2012

Filed under: Healthy Eating,Pasta,Weight Watchers Recipes — delishuss @ 10:14 pm
Tags: , , , ,

The leader at my Weight Watchers gave us this recipe. It’s from the Filling and Healthy Day booklet. It’s really good. You could make a batch and freeze it, although I haven’t tried freezing it yet. The recipe doesn’t mention salt and pepper but I think it needs a fair bit. Also I over complicated the method, word of advice follow the method below and it will save you a lot of time. There’s no points value for this one but it’s pretty low, just calculated whatever weight of pasta you use, the oil, the quark and the egg.

Ingredients

Any vegetables that you like and are suitable for baking (e.g. celeriac, butternut squash, courgette, red pepper, and red onion)

1 fresh chilli, chopped

1 1/2 cans tinned tomatoes

150g wholewheat pasta

1 tub quark

chopped fresh herbs of your choice

1 egg

chopped fresh basil

 

Method

1. Roast veg with 1 teaspoon of healthy oil and the chilli until soft and coloured.

2. Add chopped tomatoes and plenty of fresh herbs and continue to cook in the oven until reduced and thick.

3. Add the freshly cooked wholemeal pasta and top with a mixture of quark and beaten egg.

4. Bake until golden and garnish with torn fresh basil leaves.

 

Tip:  Beat the egg and the quark together in a bowl. Then use a spatula to spread the quark and the egg mixture.

 

 

Pasta Arabiata December 26, 2011

Filed under: Pasta — delishuss @ 7:07 pm
Tags: , , ,

Belated Happy Christmas everyone. I hope you all had a nice enjoyable day.

As like most houses on Stephen’s Day, there was some leftover ham from the Christmas dinner. I didn’t fancy having  turkey and ham again so I decided to whip up some pasta. I thoroughly enjoyed this recipe. It was ready in a matter of minutes. Fantastic.

 

Serves 1

Ingredients

1 tablespoon of olive oil

75g pasta of your choice ( I used Fusilli)

1/2 an onion, chopped

1 clove of garlic, crushed

1/2 red pepper

200g of arabiata style chopped tomatoes (can be found in Lidl), alternatively if you can’t get those, just use half a finely chopped chilli and fry off with the garlic.

75g-100g chopped ham (gamon style ham)

40g grated cheese

Salt and black pepper

 

Method

1. Start by putting the pasta on to boil. Cook according to the packet instructions.

2.  Meanwhile, heat a saucepan and add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the peppers and onion and cook for 5-6 minutes.

3. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.

4. Then add the ham and fry to a further 2 minutes.

5. Add the chopped tomatoes, bring to the boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer for about 10 minutes.

6. Taste and season if necessary. Stir in the cooked pasta.

7. Remove to a serving dish. Sprinkle over the cheese and place under the grill for a few minutes until the cheese is melted.

Then relax, have a glass of wine and put the feet up.

 

Penne with sausage, pancetta and Swiss chard December 19, 2011

Filed under: Favourites,Pasta — delishuss @ 9:25 pm
Tags: , , ,

I saw this recipe being made on Saturday Kitchen on BBC and was dying to try it. So that I did and I wasn’t dissapointed. It’s really easy to make and really tasty. Possibly not so good for the waistline but sure what odds. Word of warning though, don’t do what I do and shake the chilli flake pot into the frying pan 🙂

Ingredients

Preparation method

  1. Trim the ends of the Swiss chard and cut the green leaves off the white stems.
  2. Cut the stems into fine matchsticks and blanch in boiling salted water for 1-2 minutes, or until soft. Drain and set aside.
  3. Blanch the green leaves in boiling salted water for 4-5 minutes, then drain and chop roughly.
  4. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan, add the onion and garlic and cook gently for 5-6 minutesm, or until soft.
  5. Add the pancetta and sausage meat and cook over a low heat for 20 minutes, then drain off the excess fat.
  6. Add the cream to the sauce and bring to the boil. Stir in the dried chilli and the blanched Swiss chard stalks and their leaves, then cook for 4-5 minutes. Season to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
  7. Cook the penne in a large pan of boiling water, according to packet instructions, until al dente. Drain, reserving a few spoonfuls of the cooking water.
  8. Add the pasta to the sauce, mix well and add a little of the reserved water if necessary to loosen the sauce.
  9. Cook gently for 2 minutes, then serve with freshly ground black pepper and grated parmesan.

Note: I used spinach as I forgot to get the chard in the shop, it works well I think.

 

 

Creamy Mushroom and BaconTagliatelle August 7, 2011

Filed under: Fast Food,Pasta — delishuss @ 5:51 pm
Tags:

For anyone that knows me, I have a complete aversion to mushrooms. So this recipe was not for me. Feeling a little hungover myself and my other half fancied a bit of pasta. So he got creamy mushroom and bacon tagliatelle and I had tomato and bacon tagliatelle. Feedback from my guinea pig was very positive.

Serves 1

Ingredients

2 slices bacon, chopped

40g mushrooms, chopped

1 small onion, chopped

50ml white wine

1 garlic clove, chopped finely

60g tagliatelle

50ml cream

1 tablespoon of olive oil

splash of liquid stock

Some chopped parsley to serve

Salt and pepper to season

Method

1. Boil the pasta according to the packet instructions.

2. Meanwhile, heat a frying pan and the olive oil. Add the onion and saute for a couple of minutes.

3. Add the bacon and mushrooms and fry until the bacon is browned. Add the garlic and fry for a further 2 minutes.

4. Add the wine and let the alcohol burn off. Stir in the liquid stock and reduce the heat.

5. Add the cream and stir. Taste for seasoning and add if needed.

6. Stir in the pasta and coat the pasta with the sauce. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.

 

Bolognese Bake June 26, 2011

Filed under: Meat,Pasta,Weight Watchers Recipes — delishuss @ 5:47 pm
Tags:

This is great. I got it from the Weight Watchers magazine. The propoints value is high enough but you don’t need any accompaniments except maybe a green salad.

11 propoints per serving

Serves 6

Ingredients

1/2 tsp olive oil

1 onion, diced

1 garlic clove, chopped

500g pack lean beef mince

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1x 400g cans chopped tomatoes

150ml beef stock with 1/4 cube

100ml red wine

175g macaroni

1 large courgette, diced

1 large yellow pepper, de-seeded and diced

For the topping:

2 tbsp plain flour

1 tsbp low fat spread

600ml skimmed milk

2 eggs, beaten

A good grating of nutmeg

80g gran padano cheese, grated

 

Method

1. Heat a large frying pan, add the oil, then the onion and garlic and fry for 4-5 minutes on a fairly brisk heat to soften and colour.

2. Add the beef and some seasoning and fry for about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until it is browned all over.

3. Add the oregano and cinnamon  and stir it in for 30 seconds, then add the tomatoes, stock and wine. Simmer for 15 minutes until reduced but still juicy.

4. Meanwhile, cook the macaroni for about 8 minutes, or two-thirds of the time stated on the pack. Drain. Stir the macroni, courgette and pepper into the meat sauce and tip into a large baking dish with fairly high sides.

5. Preheat the oven to gas mark 6/200 degrees fahrenheit/180 degrees celsius. Put the flour, spread and milk in a large pan and whisk over a medium heat until it comes to the boil. Don’t stop whisking or you will get lumps in your white sauce. Reduce the heat and cook for a further 5-10 minutes, stirring often, until thickened. Take the sauce off the heat, season well, and beat in the egg, nutmeg and half the cheese.

4. Pour the sauce over the meat and macroni, then scatter the remaining cheese over the top. Bake for 20 minutes or until the top is golden and slightly risen. Serve with a leaf salad.

 

Ragu alla Bolognese May 18, 2011

Filed under: Meat,Pasta — delishuss @ 9:05 pm
Tags: , ,

Hi there, I have to confess sometimes I resort to a jar of sauce for a Bolognese. Really there’s no excuse, as sauces are so easy to make. Here’s an authentic Italian recipe for you, from ‘Mama’s Italian Cookbook’. Very tasty, yum. Hope you enjoy it.

The recipe serves 4

Ingredients

25g dried ceps

125 ml lukewarm water

1 tsp butter

50g pancetta, diced

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

2 small carrots, finely diced

2 celery sticks, finely diced

300g beef mince

1 pinch sugar

Freshly grated nutmeg

1 tbsp tomato puree

125ml red wine

250g passata

1 oxo cube (not in the original recipe)

Salt and pepper

Method

1. Soak the ceps in the water for 20 minutes.

2. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the pancetta and fry.

3. Add the onion and garlic and fry until the onion is translucent. Stir in the carrots and celery and cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently.

4. Add the beef and fry, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper, a pinch of sugar, oxo cube and some nutmeg.

5. Stir in the tomato puree and cook for a minute or two then add the wine.

6. Mix in the passata. Thinly slice the ceps and add them to the sauce.

7. Pour the soaking water through a fines sieve into the suace. Thicken the sauce by cooking it over a low heat for 1 hour.