Cottage pie

Perfect comfort food! Home cooking doesn't get much better than a delicious cottage pie fresh and hot from the oven. The rich meat filling (with lots of hidden vegetables) with the buttery, crispy cheese topped mash will satisfy everyone.

Serves 2-4
(We eat quite big portions so adapt this accordingly - we saved one portion of mince mixture to freeze - if you were using all the mince then do slightly more mashed potato!)
- olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 500g lean beef mince
- 150g mushrooms, sliced
- dried mixed herbs
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- generous dash of Worcester sauce (Lea & Perrins)
- generous glug of red wine
- 450ml beef stock
- 600g potatoes, chopped
- dash of milk
- large knob of butter
- cheddar cheese

1. Heat some olive oil in a large pan, then add the onions and carrots, and soften for a few minutes

2. Add the mince to the mixture and cook until browned, stirring to break up the meat.

3. Add the mushrooms and sprinkling of dried herbs, and continue to cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Add the tomato purée, Worcester sauce and the red wine.

5. Bring to the boil, then simmer for about half an hour, or until the sauce is reduced and thickened.

6. Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees, and boil the potatoes in salted water.

7. When the potatoes are done (after about 20 minutes), drain and return to the pan. Add the milk and butter and mash until smooth and creamy.

8. When the mince filling is ready, pour into a circular baking dish, and top with the mashed potato, smoothing with a fork. Top with a lot of grated cheddar!

9. Bake in the oven, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling, and the top golden brown. Serve straight away with some green veg! 

Enjoy :)

Beef Bourguignon

I'm surprised to say that I don't think I've ever even tried beef bourguignon before, so when I wanted to cook this for mother's day I decided to stick with Lisa Faulkner's recipe, since her recipes always turn out well and are delicious - this was no exception. I even served it with mustard mash, as she suggested, and it all worked beautifully together, everyone loved it. I would highly recommend this recipe, even though I don't have any others to compare it to (I've heard Lorraine Pascale's is also good), because the beef was so tender and the flavours were amazing from the shallots, wine and bacon mm mm. Perfect for a special occasion.

Serves 4-6

- 500g stewing/braising steak

- flour, for dusting

- olive oil, for frying

- 200g bacon lardons

- 300g shallots, peeled and halved

- 3 garlic cloves, crushed

- 2 tbsp tomato purée

- 125g button mushrooms

- 500ml red wine

- 250ml beef stock

- 1 bouquet garni (dried parsley, thyme, rosemary and bay leaf)

- salt and pepper

- mustard mash - potatoes, milk, butter, wholegrain mustard

1. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees.

2. Coat the beef in seasoned flour.

3. Heat a generous amount of oil in a large casserole dish and brown the meat. Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat and set aside.

4. In the same dish, add the lardons, shallots and garlic and fry until browned.

5. Add the tomato puree and mushrooms. Return the beef to the dish and add the wine, stock and herbs.

6. Bring to the boil then cover with a lid and cook in the oven for around 3 hours. Serve with mustard mash!

Enjoy :)

Pasticcio

Sorry for this unappetising picture - camera quality isn't great and I always find pasta bakes impossible to present nicely - especially when I'm starving and want to eat it quickly! My dad has made this in the past and I loved it - it's a Greek dish since it has cinnamon and greek yogurt in it which gives it that warming but fresh flavour. It's really comforting as it's pasta and mince, and the tomatoes and yogurt/egg topping almost make an omelette like texture on top. I can't really describe this dish in a way that does it justice, it's a very different pasta dish but in a oh-my-god-why-haven't-I-tried-this-before way! It's a lot more simple than other pasta bakes like lasagne as there is no slaving over the pan trying to make the perfect bechamel sauce. Although this takes a long time simmering and baking in the oven, it is easier than most other dishes and is worth it - you won't be disappointed.

Serves 4

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- 1 onion, chopped

- 2 garlic cloves, crushed

- 450g lamb mince

- 2 tbsp tomato purée

- 2 tbsp plain flour

- 300ml chicken stock

- 1 tsp ground cinnamon

- 200g dried macaroni

- 2 beef tomatoes, sliced

- 300ml Greek yogurt

- 2 eggs, beaten

- handful of cheddar, grated

1. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees. Heat the oil in a large pan and soften the onion and garlic. Add the lamb mince, breaking it up with a wooden spoon and cook until browned all over.

2. Stir in the tomato purée and the flour, cooking for 1 minute, then add the chicken stock and the cinnamon. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and cover for around 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Meanwhile, cook the macaroni according to packet instructions in salted water. When cooked, drain, and add the pasta to the mince mixture.

4. Spoon into a large ovenproof dish.

5. Arrange the tomato slices on top

6. Mix the yogurt with the eggs then spoon over the top evenly, and sprinkle with cheese.

7. Bake in the pre-heated oven for around 45 minutes.

Enjoy :)