Week 50: African Groundnut Stew

The Recipe
1 tbsp oil
1 small onion, diced
1 garlic cloves, diced
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into cubes
1/2 cup rice
4 cups broth (chicken, veggie or beef)
2 heaped tbsp peanut butter
1 (15-oz) can chickpeas (original recipe called for half of that, but I think it could use more)
1.5 cups salsa (that's about 1.5 230gr jars here)
1/2 zucchini, cut into cubes
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp dried thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and sweet potatoes and sauté 10 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are tender. Add the rice and vegetable broth to the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, 20 to 30 minutes, until the rice is tender. Add the peanut butter, chickpeas, salsa, zucchini, cumin, thyme, and salt and pepper; cook over low heat for another 10 minutes or until the zucchini is soft.

The Verdict
Yesterday was freezing cold, snow everywhere and my bike ride home from work took almost an hour. I was frozen to the bone and needed something to heat me up from the inside out.

This fit the bill perfectly. It was absolutely delicious, and as I had used hot salsa, it had a nice 'bite' to give that inner heat. For once I made the recipe exactly 'as is', which meant I only used half the can of chickpeas, and that was definitely too little, so I think I'll use the entire can next time. Also, I think it would work just as well with ordinary potatoes if you can't find the sweet ones.

Edit, Jan 4th, 2016: Tried making this yesterday but was too lazy to go shopping, so instead of the sweet potato I used 4 carrots, and instead of the zucchini I used a bell pepper. YUM! Almost better than the original. So satisfying and warming on a cold day.

Week 49: Elbow Macaroni Caserolle

BORING name, I know! But fortunately the dish itself was nothing like it :)

The Recipe
500g ground beef
1 can (~15oz) tomatoes
1 bell pepper, sliced
1 small can (8oz) corn
1 cup elbow macaroni
250g mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese - but buy the real stuff!
1 tsp BBQ or chili powder
Salt, pepper

Preheat oven to 175C.

Boil the macaroni according to the instructions on the package. Drain and transfer to an oven-proof dish.

Meanwhile, cook beef in a pot over high heat, until no longer pink. Add onion, bell pepper, mushrooms and corn and cook until the mushrooms have wilted and the onion is soft. Add stewed tomatoes, tomato paste and seasoning and stir to mix. Transfer to the oven-proof dish and mix thoroughly. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

The Verdict
It sounded pretty ordinary, but tasted FANTASTIC! Seriously, do NOT make do with inferior cheese. It has to be the real deal to work, but when it is, you'll be sad you didn't splurge and use 2 cups instead. Really easy, lovely comfort food and definitely worth a repeat!

Week 48: Southwestern Corn Chowder

The Recipe
1/2 tbsp butter
1 spring onion, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
1 medium carrot, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp chili
1/2 tsp oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
1 large potato, peeled and cut into pieces
2 small cans (~280g) corn
5dl chicken broth
1 cup milk

Melt the butter in a pot. Add white parts of spring onion, carrots, chili, oregano and salt and pepper. Cook until onions are soft. Add potatoes, corn, broth and milk. Bring to a boil and leave to simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the potato is done. Stir in green part of the spring onion and season with salt and pepper.

The Verdict
I really liked it. It had enough chili to give it a nice bite, but not so much as to leave it too spicy. It did lack something to the taste though, and I'm not entirely sure what. I'm tempted to say bacon though... but then everything is better with bacon ;) But something to add to the roundness of the taste, so other additions might work just as well.

Week 47: Fast and Easy Bean Stew

The Recipe
2 carrots, chopped
1 large potato, chopped
1 onion, chopped
100g cocktail sausages, halved
1 (15oz) can beans, undrained.
7dl (~3 cups) chicken or vegetable broth
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 cup salsa

Heat oil in a saucepan and sauté onion, carrot and potato for about 5 minutes. Add sausages, broth, beans, salsa, thyme and garlic powder. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 20 minutes.

The Verdict
I made a LOT of changes from the original recipe. The ratios were all off (IMHO), and it was only supposed to simmer for 10 minutes instead of 20 - but the potatoes and beans were no where near done at that point. So this is my adapted recipe, but I think it ended up quite nicely :) I used chicken sausages as that was all I could find at the time, but I'll probably stick with pork sausages another time. Still easy despite my changes (even if not as fast), and a lovely comfort food :)

Week 46: Jamaican-Style Beans and Rice

The Recipe
1 can (15oz) beans, undrained
1 cup rice
1 small can (6oz) coconut milk
Thyme
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
3 green onions, sliced
1 bell pepper, sliced
150g bacon, sliced

Cook rice.

Meanwhile, cook bacon and garlic in a saucepan over medium heat for a few minutes. Add beans, thyme, coconut milk, green onions and bell pepper. Heat through until warm and bubbly. Mix with rice and warm through immediately before serving.

The Verdict
A nice and low-key comfort meal. I used wild rice which I think was a mistake - for once I think regular parboiled would have been better. It was a pleasant mix of tastes though, and super-easy to make, so I'll probably make it again.

Week 45: Cuban Spicy Pork

The Recipe
2 pork chops
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp chili powder
3 tbsp salsa
1 tbsp honey
1 garlic clove, pressed
1 tbsp lime juice

Sprinkle cumin, cayenne pepper, salt and chili powder on each pork chop.
In a large zipper-topped plastic bag, combine salsa, honey, garlic, and lime juice; add seasoned pork chops; seal bag, turn gently and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.

Melt butter in a pan over high heat and cook the pork chops until desired doneness. Remove from pan. Add about 10-15gr butter and 1/2 cup of water to the pan and whisk until reduced slightly. Pour over pork chops.

Serve with baked potatoes.

The Verdict
Even I was worried about the amount of chili on these pork chops. 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper on each??? But I decided to trust the recipe and give it a try. Turned out, the person I got this from knew what she was doing! The mix of spicy to sweet was perfect, and the long marinating time (I'd given it 7 hours) made the chops sooooo moist and tender! I'd probably halve the amount of spices if making this for kids, but for myself - delicious!

Week 44: Creamy Spaghetti Cabonara

The Recipe
1/2 lb spaghetti, uncooked
110g bacon, finely sliced
1 bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup light cream (10-12%)
4tbsp grated Parmesan cheese- tossed with 1/2 tbsp flour
salt and pepper

Prepare pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, cook the bacon and garlic in a small pan over medium-low heat until the garlic is aromatic and the bacon is lightly browned. Add the bell pepper and cook for a few minutes.

Add the wine, increase heat, bring the wine to a boil and cook until it has reduced by half. Add the cream and bring back up to a slight simmer (not much--it will break) and whisk in the Parmesan cheese mixture, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat.

When pasta is done, drain it well and add it immediately to the bacon mixture. Add Parmesan cheese and toss quickly. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

The Verdict
Very nice indeed! :) Traditional Cabonara is often too rich for me, but I've discovered that the recipes that use either cream or eggs instead of both are right up my aisle. This was no exception and ended up absolutely delicious :)