Spinach, Carrot & Ricotta Timbales

I created these as a light lunch with some ingredients that we had left over in the fridge and pantry. They turned out so tasty and we could've eaten at least two more each. They are not that hard to prepare. The only tricky bit is rolling the bread slices and layering the ramekins, so not really rocket science. We do love a kick in our dishes so I put some Scotch Bonnet hot sauce in there but this is optional. You can even add a milder hot sauce maybe like Tabasco. Completely vegetarian, you can serve them as a starter, light lunch or even party food to impress family and friends. For four ramekins you will need...

• 125g ricotta
• Grated half carrot
• 60g cooked spinach
• Salt & pepper
• Hot sauce
• ¼ tsp paprika
• Pinch garlic granules
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 10g salted butter
• Oil spray or butter, for greasing
• 4 slices of white sandwich bread
  
  

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Using a sieve, squeeze out all the moisture out of the spinach. In a bowl add all the ingredients except the butter, bread & oregano. Mix them well until well blended. Set the mixture aside.
3. Grease well 4 ramekins, we used oil spray.
4. Remove the crusts from the bread slices and flatten each slice with a rolling pin, make sure it’s very thin. Using a glass or cookie cutter cut a circle disc off the centre of each of the flattened bread slices and place the disc at the bottom of the ramekin. With the remaining pieces of bread, line up the ramekins’ sides tightly and fill each ramekin with about a tablespoon of the mixture, divide the mixture between the 4 ramekins.
5. Divide the butter into 4 equal pieces and put a piece of butter on top of the filling in each ramekin. Now chop the crusts finely and sprinkle on the ramekins. Gently press down with your hand to create a seal. Sprinkle some dried oregano on top.
6. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until top is golden.
7. Take out of the oven and leave to set for 10 minutes. Now either serve warm in the ramekin or invert on a baking sheet and bake for a further 10 minutes to get a crispy crust all around.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Sausage & Onion Tomato Sauce

A family favourite, this sauce became one of my favourites when I was a kid and stayed that way since then. In Malta my mom used to prepare it using the unique Maltese sausage but here in England we use local sausages such as Lincolnshire sausages and also Cumberland sausages. It is very easy to prepare and wanted to share this recipe with you. For four people you will need...

• 8 Lincolnshire or Cumberland sausages (if using Maltese sausages use 4)
• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 500ml thick tomato passata
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil
• Grated Kefalotiri or Parmesan, to serve

How to...

1. Heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil in a shallow pan, add the sausages and cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes. 
2. Now add the onions and cook until onions are soft and transparent. Season with black pepper.
3. Add passata and simmer covered for about 20 minutes.
4. Serve with cooked pasta and sprinkle with the grated cheese and more black pepper.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Lasagne Nostrane - Our Lasagna

Lasagne are one of the best baked pasta dishes ever created, it is the proper Italian comfort food. Warm, saucy, cheesy mmmmmm!! Amanda & myself certainly love the most common version, the ones with a rich tomato based meat sauce and a silky smooth home-made white sauce. You can , obviously, use the stuff from jars that have been produced wherever, whenever and most importantly using a lot of preservatives to keep them in the jar for ages, but nothing beats a delicious freshly made meat sauce and/or white sauce. I have been meaning to put our take on the classic lasagne for ages so here it is and as I said it is quite rich so we nearly always have leftovers which Amanda and myself have for lunch the following day. You can also leave the lasagne to cool down and divide it into portions and freeze them to whenever you need them. Our take on lasagne is heavily influenced by Amanda's mother, I can remember that whenever she used to prepare it for us, I always (without fail) asked for seconds. Please try and do your own meat and béchamel sauces as they are so tasty and surely more genuine. Give it a go, you will need...

For the meat sauce

• 500g lean beef mince
• 500ml tomato passata
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste dissolved in 200ml boiling water
• Worcestershire sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 Knorr beef stock pot or Oxo cube
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Vegetable oil

For the white sauce

• 50g butter
• 50g plain flour
• 700ml whole milk, at room temperature
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• 200g ham, chopped
• 200g Edam or Cheddar cheese grated
• Small bunch of parsley, finely chopped (optional)

• 12-15 sheets uncooked lasagne

1. Start preparing the meat sauce by heating some oil in a saucepan along with the garlic. As soon as the garlic turns golden add the mince, Worcestershire sauce and some freshly ground black pepper and cook the mince until brown, drain excess fat in a bowl or leave all fat to evaporate and mince is dry, about 10-15 minutes. Now add the passata, tomato paste in boiling water, sugar and stock pot or cube and give it a good stir. Simmer covered on medium heat for about 20 minutes. Take off the heat and set aside.
2. Now it's time for the white sauce, melt the butter and add the flour on low heat. Stir constantly until you get a golden but not brown roux. Now, start adding the milk to the roux gradually, make sure you keep stirring all the time so as not to get any lumps. Keep stirring until you use all the milk and until you get a thick silky sauce. Season with some black pepper. Now add most of the grated cheese (leaving some aside), chopped ham and parsley (if using) and stir well always on low heat until the cheese is melted. Take off the heat and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven at 180°C.
4. To assemble the lasagne, get an oven dish (preferably rectangular) and spread some meat sauce, lay 3 lasagne sheets and then cover with white sauce, sprinkle some grated cheese, repeat the process until you use all the sauces, cheese and lasagne sheets. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30-40 minutes or until the top is golden. Serve hot!

Enjoy!!

R&A