Family mealtimes - recipe ideas?

[SteveT]

'Glut of Tomatoes' soup.

Large pan with fitting lid.

Chop onion and cook in badger fat (or similar) until lightly coloured.

Remove the excess fat and rind off the bacon (which I do whilst it is still in the packaging).

Remove from the packaging and hold the rashers over the pan.

Take your scissors and cut through all the rashers so it looks as if its diced.

Let it all cook in the badger fat for a few minutes.

Shovel in the tomatoes.

Add a cup or two of water and a crocodile flavoured stock cube, I use beef but what ever you have lying around is OK.

Squeeze some tomato puree into the mix.

Cook slowly.

Take out a cupful first and then wizz it with a wizzer, then pour the cupful back in after wizzing.

Add salt pepper and other stuff to taste.

[Fuschia]

Great recipe, Steve.

[Maki]

I love this thread!

I am also trying to cook dinner so that we all eat at 6pm and here are my favs for convienience and being quick:

Gnocchi (sp?) with asparagas and boursin with some optional lemon zest grated in. My favourite!

Tuna steak with green beans and tomato salsa. So quick.

Cold Leek and potato soup.

Mini beef wellingtons (bought ready to roll pastry), it only takes 10 mins!

Most of these ideas come from the 'simple suppers' bbc good food recipe book.

[Fuschia]

paneer cheese marinated in tandoori spice and fried, with wraps, chutney, yoghurt and salad

not too hot!!!

[SteveT]

'Wicked' Glut Potatoes.

Dig out from the garden and drop into a bucket, get the hose with a good jet and point at spuds.

When they are clean pour soiled water onto a flower bed.

Take spuds inside and wash thoroughly.

Do not peal the spuds, just slice thinly 6mm but keep altogether in the shape of the potato and place in an oven dish or cast iron handle frying pan.

Fill with sliced spuds and tilt them to 45 degrees so that the edges stand out.

Place some badger fat on top of the spuds I use butter or oil (or goose fat if it's near Christmas) and bake for an hour at a high heat.

They come out brown and crispy at the top and they always seem to get eaten until finished.

[womanofdulwich]

mackerel risotto.

Fry onion, add arborio rice, until coated. Then add chicken/veg/fish stock until rice almost done. Throw in handfuls of whatever frozen veg you have. Then when nearly done flake in the smoked mackerel fillets. Add a bit of lemon juice/ saffron if you fancy.

[Smiler]

Bumping this thread as am hungry!

Salmon, bacon and pea risotto.

(I use the cheapy 2-fillet-packs of salmon from Somerfields).

Fry some smoked bacon (two or three rashers) and an onion (you can also add other veg if you like, e.g. peppers) in olive oil. Add risotto rice, bit of butter and (if you like!) small glass white wine, then vegetable stock. When rice nearly done (20 mins or so), add some frozen peas (or other veg, e.g. sweetcorn, asparagus) and, even later, salmon (in one-inch cubes).

Optional extras at the end: cheese, herbs (fresh mint or basil are good, but dried oregano also OK), squeeze of lemon.

Yum.

[iaineasy]

I could give you the meat pudding recipe...................... but then I would have to kill you.:))

[Fuschia]

someone asked for ideas for meals...

[Smiler]

Bumping again as kind of follows on from a discussion in another thread ("is there a market for it?")

[littleEDfamily]

Great to see life breathed back into this thread...tummy rumbling...

[ClareC]

Was at a loss last night as to what to cook (nothing in, needed to be quick as baby hungry etc, threw the following together, really fast and BabyI loved it!!

Jar of dolmio(tomato and onion one), tin of tuna and a tin of sweetcorn all heated in a saucepan, once hot, add cooked pasta, mix together, serve and add grated cheese to the top.

Very simple, quick, healthy and she loved it! Result!! Tasty good to me too although I was quite hungry ;-)

[ludoscotts]

this is a great idea,

few fail safes for our house

is home made ish pizza

buy garlic and herb naan bread,

spread on some chopped tomatoes mixed with some puree to thicken and more dried herbs if you like,

then let the kids go crazy with whatever they want, onions,sweetcorn, tuna, ham chorizo, peppers etc

you can get creative and make faces etc but a great one for kids to get involved in.

sprinkle on some crated cheese and put in oven at 200 for 10mins.

home made burgers

again my little ones loves making these,

good quality mince, 1 tsp (or more in adult ones)of wholegrain mustard,chopped spring onions(approx 1 per person)

crushed or puree garlic little bit to taste.

mix together in a bowl

pull apart and shape in to burgers(approx 500g will make 6 )

grill on med for approx 15mins

stuffed chicken

really easy and soooo tasty!

chicken breasts, cut an upside down T into them (so you can stuff down and to the sides of the breast)

line the breast with a couple of slices of chorizo.

fill with salsa(for this I mix chopped tomatoes, garlic, herbs, tom puree and spring onions)

another layer of chorizo on top.

grated cheese on top then pop in oven at 200 for 20 mins.

leftovers pasta,

I always keep some cheese and a tub of creme fraiche in the fridge or long life cream

then see what we have in the fridge,

fry up what you have onions, courgettes, peppers, bacon, garlic etc once everything has softened and browned off

add in the cream to heat then stir in some grated cheese, keep adding until it suits your taste.

Very quick and tasty and great way to use up bits in fridge.

tasty mash(great for weaning)

boil up some potatoes, add in some leeks to soften and for last 5mins some spinach.

Mash together with some milk and butter.

great way to get spinach into little ones.

will add some more as I think of them.

[Pickle]

Thought I'd share this recipe, kids tucking in enthusiastically as I type so a definite winner (and mine is long gone, I liked it too!).

Italian meatballs with parmesan & lemon

450g lean minced beef

25g fresh breadcrumbs

garlic clove, crushed

50g parmesan

1 egg yolk

3 tablespoons green pesto

grated zest & juice of 1 lemon

Mix it all together, don't overmix otherwise meatballs end up too stodgy. Put in the fridge while you get the sauce ready.

I made a sauce by frying off some onions & celery, adding garlic, 500ml passata and a tsp of sugar. Bring it to the boil, then plop the raw meatballs into it. Cook in the oven (180C ish) for about 30 minutes.

I served it with spaghetti.

Yum!

[SouthLondonKids]

Hello-My favourite recipes are pasta bakes, lasagna (you can use tomato sauce or not and make a filling with lots of cheese and vegetables such as courgettes, radicchio, peppers), home made pizza, focaccia with cherry tomatoes, omelettes, stuffed roast peppers (with italian rice and parmesan cheese)...I am trying to add more and more recipes to www.southlondonkids.co.uk/sticky-fingers but they are not all there yet...keep checking regularly if you wish!

Eva

[bluesuperted]

Great thread that I've bookmarked for future reference as starting babyled weaning with my little boy in a few weeks.

As we speak Dazeykat's lentil chicken (almost!) is cooking in the oven, smells yummy, thanks!! :)

[sillywoman]

So, I have a packet of Sainsbo's finest diced beef in my fridge. Defrosted it by accident thinking it was mince. We had beef stew last night so would be uproar if I tried to offer that again quite so soon.

So what I'm wondering is; have you any suggestions as to what else I might cook with it? How can I 'sell' it to my notoriously picky family? Any suggestions gratefully received.

[gwod]

super retro 70's style fondue?

[ClareC]

Kebabs or fajitas

[sillywoman]

Fajhitas - hmm, there's a thought. Without sounding too much like the rubbish cook that I am - how would I do that then?!

gwod - that's a retro too far for me. Thanks though :)).

[ClareC]

I usually just stir fry the meat with peppers and Onions then serve with the warmed up wraps plus salsa, guacamole or chopped avocado, sour cream, grated cheese and diced tomato's available so everyone DIY's their own wraps depending on likes / dislikes.

A side salad is quite nice with them too :-)

Edited because I forgot the onions!

[Fuschia]

Curry?

[Gussy]

a pie?