Hello Fellow Cookers!
To be honest I am not a big fun of Spaghetti. I think it was ruined for me sometime in primary school when it was served bland with a side of watery stew and 3 cubes of meat. Nevertheless I am glad to say that in my adult life I have rediscovered the joy of spaghetti and now I share it with you.
This is a simple spaghetti dish with one of my favourite herbs, Rosemary which was gifted to me this Christmas. Looking back I wish I wouldn’t have dried out all the Rosemary and planted my own Rosemary bush in a flower pot…hmm should check out a gardening blog to see if that is possible. On this note I would encourage you to get your own fresh Rosemary and dry it out for yourself. ‘Do it yourself’ Rosemary in my opinion has a much richer flavour than the stuff bought in supermarkets.
In as much as the Spaghetti was a hit what made the dish really good were the meatballs I made to accompany them. Meatballs are a great alternative to ground beef and can act as a double edged sword; they can be eaten dry as a starter, a cocktail dish, sandwich filler, pizza topping or a light snack or they can be incorporated into a stew to make a wholesome balanced dish. Both ingredients are very versatile and can be mixed and matched with your favourite protein or starch.
As per the requirements of any good recipe I have the required measurements in the ingredients section, but in my opinion cooking is a sensual experience, so feel free to add more butter for a richer taste or more Rosemary for an aromatic flavor. As always the choice is yours because you know your palate best.
SPAGHETTI
Serves 3
INGREDIENTS:
-350g spaghetti
-3 tablespoons dried rosemary (to grind use food processer or a pestle and mortar)
-2 tablespoons butter/margarine/oil
-Salt to taste
-4 cups of water
METHOD:
-Put water to boil.
-Add ground Rosemary, Butter/ Margarine/ Oil and Salt and bring to boil
-Once the water has boiled add the Spaghetti.
-Once the Spaghetti is ready, drain off excess water and serve.
*For Spaghetti I would advise that it is better to have more water when boiling than less so that the Spaghetti becomes soft for those who like soft spaghetti and so that the Spaghetti does not stick together. If you realize the water is less as the Spaghetti boils one can add more water. I will also acknowledge that there are many ways to cook Spaghetti some have a 1st boil where they cook the spaghetti and drain the water, then they cook it again so it doesn’t stick together. There are many methods which all lead to the desired outcome.
MEATBALLS
Serves 3
INGREDIENTS:
-1/2 kg ground beef
-2 onions finely chopped
-100 grams coriander finely chopped
-1/2 a green pepper finely chopped
-1/3 cup breadcrumbs
-2 eggs
-Salt to taste
-Oil for frying the meatballs (optional, if baking the meatballs you will not need the oil)
-1/2 a teaspoon black pepper
-3 table spoons soy sauce (optional)
-2 tablespoons mixed spice (a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamoms, cloves, ginger and bay leaves) optional.
* For the mixed spice adding a mixture of either of the spices or one of the spices will be sufficient.
METHOD:
-If using an oven preheat the oven to 350 degrees F or 175 degrees Celsius
-In a bowl mix the ground beef, onions, coriander, green pepper, breadcrumbs, eggs, soy sauce, pepper and the spices.
-Once well mixed, shape the meat into balls. However don’t make them too small or too big 3 cm or there about in diameter will do. If you have an ice-cream scoop it can also suffice for shaping the meatballs.
-If you are serving the meatballs dry you can consider dusting the meatballs with breadcrumbs for an aesthetically pleasing appearance though this is optional.
-If you have an oven put them on a baking tray that has been lined with grease proof paper and put them to bake for 20 minutes.
-If you do not have an oven shallow fry them for 15 – 20 minutes until well cooked.
STEWED MEATBALLS
Serves 3
INGREDIENTS:
-1 onion finely chopped
-2 teaspoons garlic finely ground
-1 tablespoon Mixed spice (optional)
-4 tomatoes (grated)
-1 tablespoon curry powder/royco
-Salt to taste
-1 1/2 tablespoons cooking oil
-Cooked Meatballs
METHOD:
-Fry onions, garlic and mixed spice in oil until the onions are translucent.
*It is a good practice to fry spices as opposed to adding them during the cooking process as this brings out their flavor more.
- Add the tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes form a red paste.
* Instead of using fresh tomatoes one can used a ready made tomato mixture like Ragu which comes in different flavours, it is definitely a faster alternative. If you use this there will be no need for the curry powder or royco)
-Add in curry powder or royco and salt.
- When the mixture is simmering add in meatballs.
-When ready serve hot!
Below are pictures of the meatballs dry and the meatballs stewed with the Spaghetti on the side.
As always I encourage you to be adventurous and add your favourite spices to the process, mine is just a rough guideline.
Happy cooking folks!
B
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