Archive for category Pasta

Tomato Cream Pasta with Chorizo in 30 minutes

Posted by blurcheryl in 30 minute Quickmeal, My Cook Book, Pasta on May 2, 2012

Last weekend I went to HomeDec Expo at KLCC and bought 5 copies of GoodFood Magazine for only MYR10. Eventhough it is past publications but I do not mind, afterall when does recipes has expiration right? I’d always love cookbook and everytime I passes by any bookstore I’ll be at the cookbook section.  

I did not take leave on Monday like most of my colleaque does and tts the Labour Holiday the next day. I love holiday and since I do not need to work the next day I decided to make this hearty meal. I know Hubby need some comfort food and I’d like to keep his tummy warm. 

Went to Village Grocer and bought a pack of Pasta (at last no more pasta at home) and saw they also selling Chorizo. F**k liao, so expensive lah!! But I always wanted to try Chorizo ever since  I saw Nigella Lawson use it in many of her recipes.

 The original ingredients needed for this recipe as per the photo above, as usual I did not follow and prepared a variation of it based on what I have at home. Truly Mrshomely.

First in a pot cook the pasta following packet instruction usually it takes 10-15 minutes. Then caramalized the onions and honey bake ham by slowly cooking it with olive oil. I am using the Olive Oil infused with Feta Cheese. I dont usually use the olive oil in such a way, it is quite a waste to use it for cooking but I figure I am using feta cheese later on so I steal abit from the bottle. Its so fragrant I tell ya!!

Caramelizing… yummmmm. Once its done, dish out and set a side.

 Now to make the sauce  snip the end of the Chorizo sausage package and squeeze out the fillings. Dont waste the sausage skin, its slightly harder than normal sausage skin and chewy. So I chop it into tiny tiny pieces and fry everything together. You need not to add anymore oil, as the pan already coated with olive oil. Dont forget to mash the chorizo feeling ops fillings, slow cook it until fragrant. Add chilli padi if you like some spicy to it, or pepper or chilli flakes on your own preference.

Then stir in 1 tbsp of tomato paste and 3tbsp of cream. The recipe call for creme fraiche but I do have balance of Whipped cream from the tiramisu I made recently, so I subsitute whipped cream with cream fraiche. All I need for the similar flavour was to squeeze some lime juice to the pasta befor serving.

When the pasta ready, add into the pan, add the caramalized onion and ham and stir evenly until coated with all the yummy sauce. Add some pasta water into the pan if the sauce is too thick or dry, a pinch of salt please.

 Tadaa!!! Serve with parmesan cheese or crumbled feta cheese with fresh herbs like spinach or sweet basil. I prefer feta cheese as I think parmesan too strong for this meal.

 My variation of pasta compared to the original recipe printed :P

 

 

 

 

 

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Cold Noodles with Tuna

Posted by blurcheryl in 30 minute Quickmeal, Asian, Healthy, Noodle, Pasta, Vegetable on July 7, 2011

Hubby ask me what’s for dinner a million time on the way back from work and I replied him bluntly that he should just have cornflakes with cold milk. He of course not happy with my reply but sometimes I prefer to skip cooking dinner so I have to pretend I am in bad mood to get my ways. When we got home and as I reach for the fridge for milk, * SCREAMS* No cold MILK!! Damn Damn Damn.

Hubby of course didn’t know what’s going on so I told him I am such a good wife, eventhough I am moody I will still cook him a nice meal. I have to think of something to cook randomly.

Aiyooooh.. Weather is so hot! What to eat? Porridge make me sweat more. Soup make me sweat too. Spagetti ah? Everyday also spagetti. Have to weigh my options based on weather this time. Hubby said I always on the aircond in the living room and the electricity bill skyrocketed. Cannot blame me what? Its the weather! I am forbidden to open wide the sliding door at the balcony or else all the freaking hateful bloodsucking mosquito would come in and attack the mosquito magnet. (mosquito magnet here refers to my hubby).

Check my fridge and here’s what I have

  • A pack of zuchinni bought from Cold Storage for RM5.99

Check the can food section

  • Still got Tuna in chilli oil

I still have lots of varieties of noodle left. I always stock up on noodles and if something happen during the Bersih 2.0 I think my supplies can last me for 2 weeks at least. heheheheh

I have to reduce my noodles stock anyway,  I decided to make cold noodles. I am not a fan of cold noodles and I hardly order any cold soba when I dine at any Japanese restaurant as I prefer piping hot noodles to burn my tongue so that I dont eat too quickly.

I think cold noodles is  a perfect dish for ridicously hot weather, its light and healthy too.

Here’s how I make them.

First, boil a a large pot of water with a couple of salt added. When the water is at boiling point, add the noodles and cook until al dente. Once the noodle is ready, remove it immediately from the salt water and give it a cold ice water bath,  ideally. Or you can just leave it aside and add a couple of ice cubes on the noodle and leave it alone to cool at room temperature so that the ice melt or chuck it into the fridge.

Get your can of tuna ready, discard the chilli oil you dont need it. Leave aside

Blanch the sliced carrot and zucchinni with another pot of hot water until slightly soft. Do not overcook it or the texture of the vegetables will turn mushy. Leave the vegetable to cool, or again add ice cubes. Meanwhile, thinly slice onion and you dont need to cook it at all. set aside.

Mix the vegetables and slice onion together, add some olive if you have. Throw in the cold noodles and toss (discard the ice water please).  

Then you may add the tuna in chilli, a couple teaspoon of olive oil, a pinch of salt and toss/mix again. 

Tadaa!! Cold Noodles with Tuna

To add a bit of zing to your palate on this dish, eat this cold noodle together with the garlic tomato puree!!

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Copycat Lasagna

Posted by blurcheryl in Bake, Lamb, My Cook Book, Pasta on May 27, 2011

Why I made Lasagna:

  1.  I learned of this recipe inspired from watching the Masterchef Australia recently.
  2. Also that box of dry lasagna sheets has been around for more than 3 months at home, without seeing daylight.
  3. I have minced lamb
  4. Recently bought a few bottles of wine
  5. Red wines paired with rich food like this is superb
  6. I am lazy to go out eat
  7. I want to stay home watch TV
  8. Impress my hubby
  9. Still there’s parmesan cheese left

These are some of the ingredients I prepared.

I added the oil cooked shallots and garlic inspired by Masterchef Australia for the meat sauce.

This is the recipe printed on the San Remo Instant Lasagna box.

Meat Sauce
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
60g ham, finely chopped ( omitted)
1 medium onion, finely chopped (substitute with oil cooked shallots)
1 carrot, finely chopped (omitted)
1 stick celery, finely chopped (omitted)
1 clove garlic, crushed (substitute with oil cooked garlic)
500g beef mince (made meatball -lamb and pork)
5 tablespoons tomato paste (subsitute with pasta sauce)
125ml dry white wine (omitted)
375ml water (didn’t really follow)
1 chicken stock cube (own measurement, chicken stock)
salt, pepper and pinch of nutmeg (omitted nutmeg)

Cheese Sauce
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons plain flour
500ml milk
salt, pepper
125g mozzarella cheese (cubed or grated)

Meat Sauce
Heat oil in a medium saucepan, add  and cook gently for 3 minutes. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Cook, stirring, until onion is soft. Add mince and cook stirring, until brown.

Stir in tomato paste, wine and water into which stock cube has been dessolved. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Cheese Sauce
Melt butter in medium saucepan, stir in flour and cook for 2 minutes over gentle heat. Remove from heat and gradually stir in milk. Return to heat and stir until thick and smooth.

Season with salt and pepper, add mozzarella and stir over low heat until cheese melts.
Lasagna
Preheat oven to 180ºC.

Pour 125ml meat sauce into base of lightly greased baking dish. Alternate layers of lasagna, meat and cheese sauces, ending with cheese sauce layer. Sprinkle top with grated parmesan cheese if desired.

My lasagna!

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Bacon and Courgette Aglio Olio

Posted by blurcheryl in 30 minute Quickmeal, Bake, Just Food, My Cook Book, Pasta, Pork, Vegetable on May 19, 2011

Recently I bought a good deal voucher online knowing that the voucher can be utilise for dine-in or getting the meat at the counter. Look at our selections of Chicken Sandwich Ham, Turkey Hams, Honey Glaced Ham, Pancetta, Bacons Affummicata  Cotta, Salami Napoli and Brutwurst Sausages all for the price of RM54.90 only.

Got so excited over those meats, I decided to cook pasta again for dinner. Here’s the ingredients:

  1. Spagetti
  2. Chilli Flavored Olive Oil
  3. Olive Oil Margarine
  4. Feta Cheese with Olive
  5. Courgette sliced
  6. Bird’s eye chilli finely chopped and seeds removed
  7. Bacon Slices
  8. 4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
  9. Rock Salt
  10. Chilli Flakes

Bring a large pot of salt water to boil, add a teaspoon of cooking oil and cook the spagetti to ‘al dente’. Follow the instruction printed on the package. Once cook, drain the spagetti but reserved 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.

After that, heat the pan with Olive Oil Magarine add  bacon and the  chopped garlic and brown it. Set aside. With the heated pan cook the courgette until soft, you may add another knob of the margarine/ olive oil if the pan is too dry. When the courgette is cooked, throw in the bacons, garlic, chopped chillis, chilli flakes give it a good quick stir fry. Pour in 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water into the pan, and add the spagetti  and stir thoroughly with all the ingredients. Do not reduce the heat, make sure the water is reduced and add salt to taste, then its done!

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Gorgeous Milky Carbonara

Posted by blurcheryl in My Cook Book, Pasta, Pork, Vegetable on May 16, 2011

This is a healthier version of the usual traditional creamy carbonara spagetti. I substitute the cream with the use of low fat milk for the sauce and it turn out pretty well minus the potential increasing wasteline.

Some might wonder if it may taste bland but its not! Its delicious!! 

The ingredients here for 1 person meal.

  1. Spagetti
  2. 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped/ crushed
  3. 1 egg yolk
  4. 3/4 cup low fat milk
  5. Grated parmesan cheese
  6. Olive oil
  7. Margarine
  8. Salt/ Pepper/ Chilli Flakes
  9. Meat of your own choice.

Boil the salt water in a pot, add a teaspoon of cooking oil and cook the spagetti. Follow the instruction printed on the packet. Once it is cooked, remove the spagetti from the pot and set aside.

Fry the meat, bacon, pancetta or whatever rocks your appetite. I marinated the chicken breast a night before and wrap it in a tin foil before roasting it in the oven. You can make this in advance, especially you are cooking on a workday. Save a lot of time.

To make the sauce, crack one egg, separate egg yolk and egg whites.  You may keep the egg whites but for me I hate to keep things overnight as I always forgot to cook them. So what I did was fry the egg whites and serve it.

For the sauce: Combine milk, egg yolk, pepper to taste, chilli flakes just a bit (optional), a pinch or two of salt, grated parmesan cheese, and whisk everything together. Set aside.

Use a pan, fry the garlic with some olive oil, add spaggetti into the pan just to heat it. Remember to switch off the gas/ fire by now. Add the sauce mixture into the pan, add a knob of magarine. Toss everything quickly and thoroughly and mix until the sauce thickened.

Voila!! Dinner is served in 30 minutes (preparation and cooking time)

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