... and another great product that you should enjoy on its own. No need for cooking, no need even for bread with tomato on the side, just eat it as such, maximum with a tiny bit of bread (the beer is mine).
LASAGNA
The thing about lasagne is that though it looks like 'easy food' it is rather laborious to make. We normally make two and freeze one (freeze it without the cheese on top).
You need:
- 1 kg of minced beef meat
- 250 g of minced pork meat
- two big onions (diced)
- four carrots (diced thinly)
- two cloves of garlic (diced very thinly)
- lasagna sheets (we use 16 for our oven tray and we buy the pre-cooked ones but the normal ones work well too provided you boil them foes a couple of minutes first)
- one bay leave
- four table spoonfuls of flour
- two table spoonfuls of butter
- 1 l of milk
- tomato sauce ( first six spoonfuls and then 10 more - see our recipe)
- one glass of white wine
- cheese (to taste)
- salt
- olive oil
In a big pan fry the onion and the carrots with the bay leave over low heat until the onions are translucent (12-15 minutes). you can also add celery to this if you wish. Then add the clove of garlic and fry for 5 more minutes ( all over low heat)
Separately put a bit of olive oil in a pan and fry the minced meat separating it with two wooden spoons so that you do not get lumps. Do this until the meat gets brown ( it is difficult to calculate how long this will take as it depends on the quality of the meat - if it is not very good meat you may get lots of water in the pan so you will have to way until all of it evaporates - or just get rid of it with a spoon). Add the meat to the onions and carrots, add the tomato sauce, salt and mix it all well. Add the white wine and let it all bubble under high heat first and then low heat for 15 minutes.
In yet another pan prepare the béchamel sauce: heat the butter in a pan. Then add the flour (stirring well so that it does not get burn).After 3-4 minutes add the milk and salt and keep stirring until you get bubbles and then for five or six minutes afterwards while the sauce thickens. If you get lumps just blend the sauce with a hand held blender just after you add the milk.
At this point you can start assembling the lasagna: put some béchamel sauce fist, then the meat, then the lasagne sheets, then tomato sauce, then béchamel again, meat, lasagne sheets, more béchamel on top and a bit of tomato sauce. Top it all with the cheese. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 200 degrees.
You need:
- 1 kg of minced beef meat
- 250 g of minced pork meat
- two big onions (diced)
- four carrots (diced thinly)
- two cloves of garlic (diced very thinly)
- lasagna sheets (we use 16 for our oven tray and we buy the pre-cooked ones but the normal ones work well too provided you boil them foes a couple of minutes first)
- one bay leave
- four table spoonfuls of flour
- two table spoonfuls of butter
- 1 l of milk
- tomato sauce ( first six spoonfuls and then 10 more - see our recipe)
- one glass of white wine
- cheese (to taste)
- salt
- olive oil
In a big pan fry the onion and the carrots with the bay leave over low heat until the onions are translucent (12-15 minutes). you can also add celery to this if you wish. Then add the clove of garlic and fry for 5 more minutes ( all over low heat)
Separately put a bit of olive oil in a pan and fry the minced meat separating it with two wooden spoons so that you do not get lumps. Do this until the meat gets brown ( it is difficult to calculate how long this will take as it depends on the quality of the meat - if it is not very good meat you may get lots of water in the pan so you will have to way until all of it evaporates - or just get rid of it with a spoon). Add the meat to the onions and carrots, add the tomato sauce, salt and mix it all well. Add the white wine and let it all bubble under high heat first and then low heat for 15 minutes.
In yet another pan prepare the béchamel sauce: heat the butter in a pan. Then add the flour (stirring well so that it does not get burn).After 3-4 minutes add the milk and salt and keep stirring until you get bubbles and then for five or six minutes afterwards while the sauce thickens. If you get lumps just blend the sauce with a hand held blender just after you add the milk.
At this point you can start assembling the lasagna: put some béchamel sauce fist, then the meat, then the lasagne sheets, then tomato sauce, then béchamel again, meat, lasagne sheets, more béchamel on top and a bit of tomato sauce. Top it all with the cheese. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 200 degrees.
FRIED AUBERGINES WITH SALMOREJO
We were not going to add any other post until next week. However we have just realised that, though we have 25-35 average page views per day, today we have had 2,368 page views just from Israel!! In case this person or persons from Israel are reading this post - can we ask you please to click on our adsense advertisement when you look at our blog again? if you really like our blog that much you can be the person that does take us to our £40 target and we would be so very grateful to you :-)
To get you there, there goes a Middle East inspired dish (with a Spanish twist). You need:
- an aubergine: cut in round slices (half a centimetre thick)
- salt
- flour
- one egg
- olive oil ( a generous amount)
- salmorejo (follow our separate recipe)
Salt the aubergines. Coat them with flour. Beat the egg and coat the floured aubergines with the egg. Heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and fry the aubergines until they are golden turning them so that they get golden on both sides ( it should take 2-3 minutes on each side) Put them over kitchen paper so that some of the frying oil is absorbed. Serve them with salmorejo so that you deep the aubergines in the salmorejo as you go. The acidity of the vinegar in the salmorejo goes really well with the oily aubergines.
Some people prefer to fry the aubergines after coating them in flour ( i.e. not using the egg). They become more like chips. If you do this serve them with a bit of honey (drizzled on top of the aubergines).
To get you there, there goes a Middle East inspired dish (with a Spanish twist). You need:
- an aubergine: cut in round slices (half a centimetre thick)
- salt
- flour
- one egg
- olive oil ( a generous amount)
- salmorejo (follow our separate recipe)
Salt the aubergines. Coat them with flour. Beat the egg and coat the floured aubergines with the egg. Heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and fry the aubergines until they are golden turning them so that they get golden on both sides ( it should take 2-3 minutes on each side) Put them over kitchen paper so that some of the frying oil is absorbed. Serve them with salmorejo so that you deep the aubergines in the salmorejo as you go. The acidity of the vinegar in the salmorejo goes really well with the oily aubergines.
Some people prefer to fry the aubergines after coating them in flour ( i.e. not using the egg). They become more like chips. If you do this serve them with a bit of honey (drizzled on top of the aubergines).
LESS IS MORE - TOMATOES
This led to a discussion about how if you are lucky enough to get a really fresh wild fish (almost impossible nowadays) you should try to do as little as possible to it.
Same goes for any other really good quality product. No sauces, no masking the flavour - just respect the product.
So we are including a new label called 'less is more'.
Our first 'less is more' product is homegrown tomatoes ripened in the full Spanish sun. Just add olive oil, salt and vinegar and enjoy.
FLAVOURED MILK ICE-CREAM
Anyway, this is a very traditional ice-cream (and cold drink) in the Mediterranean cost of Spain. It tastes a bit like rice pudding but without the rice.
You need:
- 1 l of milk
- 100 ml of cream
- rind of one lemon
- one stick of cinnamon
- 70 gr of sugar
- 4 egg whites
Boil the milk, lemon and cinnamon with 40 gr of sugar. As soon as it boils take it off the heat and let it cool down. If you put this into the fridge and drink it when it is very cold this is called 'leche merengada' (literally 'meringed milk') Add the cream to the milk.
Separately whisk the four egg whites with 30 gr of sugar as if you are going to prepare a meringue. Mix this with the milk (carefully so that you do not loose the air). Put it into the ice-cream machine (or in a tray into the freezer and move it with a fork various times every hour and a half or so). When you are going to serve it sprinkle a bit of powdered cinnamon on top.
APPLE PASTE
This is very similar to 'membrillo' but it has a more delicate taste. My grandmother made this every year with the apples from her farm (she also made her own sheep milk cheese…though I helped her many times to stir the milk I, regretfully, cannot remember her cheese recipe)
You just need to follow our apple jam recipe but with more sugar. For each kilo of apples you need 750 gr of sugar and half a lemon. So peel the apples and cut them into cubes. Toss them with the lemon juice so that they do not get brown. Put them in a pan with the sugar and boil for around 40 minutes (first high heat and as soon as it bubbles reduce it to low heat). Stir it often with a wooden spoon.
When the mixture gets brown put it into a tin or in a foil tray. Let it cool down and cover it with the tin top or with the paper of the foil tray ( you can also do this in a plastic container really). If it is properly covered it lasts forever in the fridge. We made ours in September and it is still great in August.
You just need to follow our apple jam recipe but with more sugar. For each kilo of apples you need 750 gr of sugar and half a lemon. So peel the apples and cut them into cubes. Toss them with the lemon juice so that they do not get brown. Put them in a pan with the sugar and boil for around 40 minutes (first high heat and as soon as it bubbles reduce it to low heat). Stir it often with a wooden spoon.
When the mixture gets brown put it into a tin or in a foil tray. Let it cool down and cover it with the tin top or with the paper of the foil tray ( you can also do this in a plastic container really). If it is properly covered it lasts forever in the fridge. We made ours in September and it is still great in August.
YOGURT CAKE
This is easy to make as you use the yogurt pot for the measurements, so no need for scales. Most Mediterranean countries have a version of this cake.
You need:
- a 170 gr greek yogurt
- 4 eggs
- 1.5 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1 yogurt measurement of sun flour oil (we did this with lemon flavoured oil that we had once bought by mistake and never found a use for it. You can also do this with very mild olive oil)
- 3 measurements of yogurt of plain flour
- 2 measurements of yogurt of sugar
- 1 lemon
- a pinch of salt.
Preheat the oven at 180 degrees. Mix the sugar and eggs with an electric whisker. Add the yogurt and the oil. Then add the grated peel of the lemon. Separately mix the flour and baking powder and salt and fold the yogurt mixture with the flour. Put it all into a round cake tin (greased with butter) and bake for 45 minutes.
If you do this with a standard 125 gr yogurt pot then use only 3 eggs and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. All other measurements remain the same. Keep the baking time to 35 minutes only.
You need:
- a 170 gr greek yogurt
- 4 eggs
- 1.5 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1 yogurt measurement of sun flour oil (we did this with lemon flavoured oil that we had once bought by mistake and never found a use for it. You can also do this with very mild olive oil)
- 3 measurements of yogurt of plain flour
- 2 measurements of yogurt of sugar
- 1 lemon
- a pinch of salt.
Preheat the oven at 180 degrees. Mix the sugar and eggs with an electric whisker. Add the yogurt and the oil. Then add the grated peel of the lemon. Separately mix the flour and baking powder and salt and fold the yogurt mixture with the flour. Put it all into a round cake tin (greased with butter) and bake for 45 minutes.
If you do this with a standard 125 gr yogurt pot then use only 3 eggs and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. All other measurements remain the same. Keep the baking time to 35 minutes only.
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