Spaghetti Bolognese

This is a dish for a boy's/girl's night in or a party. Don't make this for a date. Unless you're comfortable enough to fall asleep on each other!

You will need:

For the pasta:
300 gms of spaghetti
a drop of refined oil
a pinch of salt
a vat of boiling water

Let the water come to a boil. Put in oil and salt and pasta and cook for 7 minutes. That's the average time. But please refer to instructions on the pack.

For the sauce:
A pressure cooker
4 diced tomatoes
2 cans of Bloody Mary Mix
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
500 gms. of mutton mince
4 tablespoons tomato puree
12 pods of garlic, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1 big bunch of fresh basil
1 tablespoon of fresh pepper
2 strips of bacon, chopped
11/2 cups of water

Heat the oil. Add the bay leaf, bacon, onions and garlic and brown. Add the mince and cook it on high flame until it's well-browned. Add the tomatoes, Bloody Mary mix, tomato puree, pepper, water, 1/2 the basil and cook for 20 minutes after the first whistle. Open and mix with the pasta and garnish with fresh basil.

Anisha's Roast Lamb for Effortless First Impressions

This is one of my signature dishes and it always runs out no matter how much I make. I've had promise family/close friends a second batch the next day because the guests have had a go and there's nothing left for any of us. So here's the roast lamb, often made, seldom tasted by me. I recommend it for a great first date when you'd rather not load up on sluggish carbs.

You will need:
A pressure cooker
A leg of lamb (about 800 gms) that fits into the pressure cooker
3 bay leaves
salt, to taste
3 -4 tablespoons of oil
1/2 cup water

A marinade made up of:
2 tablespoons of soya sauce
2 tablespoons of tomato ketchup
2 tablespoons of worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons of garlic paste
1/2 tablespoon of crushed pepper


Prick holes in the leg of lamb with a fork and pour the marinade all over it. Leave overnight in the refrigerator. Take it out and let it thaw for a bit before you brown it. Put oil in the pressure cooker, add the bay leaves and the leg of lamb and brown it lovingly and slowly. Now, add the rest of the marinade and and 1/2 a cup of water and cook it for 40 minutes after the first whistle. Once done, take the lamb out and reduce the marinade into a gravy and serve with a lightly tossed green salad. Leftovers can be shredded and saved for lamb sandwiches.

Red Wine Sangria

This sangria has had sent many a tough liver tottering home. I had once bought a big bathtub and made it and placed it in the centre of the room for a party. The lemon juice and the bathtub are my flourishes and I also recommend caramelizing the demerara for an added twist.

You will need:

1 bottle of dry red wine
1 cup of seedless grapes
1 red and 1 green apple, cored and cut into 1/2 inch wedges
2 tablespoons of demerara sugar
3 tablespoons of Grand Marnier
3 tablespoons of regular brandy
3 cinnamon sticks
juice of 4 freshly squeezed lemons
2 cups of orange juice

Mix it all and let it sit for two hours. Freeze and serve.

Strawberries and Cheese with Rum Ganache

You will need:

1/2 a bar of cooking chocolate
2 small tetra packs of cream
5 tablespoons of orange juice
1 teaspoon of coffee
Any old liqueur - Cointreau, Kahlua, Grand Marnier - or just use plain Old Monk
Strawberries
Cheese cubes
toothpicks or skewers, preferably skewers

In a deep bottomed pan, melt the chocolate, cream, coffee, liqueur, orange juice on very slow heat. Take strawberries and cheese cubes and put them on skewers. Put the melted chocolate mix in a big bowl and place the skewers in a big platter and serve.

Chicken in Mushroom Sauce

This is my Janet Maami's recipe. I've modified it a little.

Ingredients

1 whole chicken, curry cut
2 packets of mushrooms
1 chicken stock cube, I use Kallo's organic stock
1/2 tablespoon of freshly ground pepper
6 tablespoons of onion paste
2 tablespoons of ginger and garlic paste each
2 bay leaves
A sprig of fresh herb of something - preferably tarragon or rosemary

In a litre of water, throw in a stock cube and let it dissolve.
In the meantime, coat the chicken with breadcrumbs and brown them in butter in a frying pan. I like to mix in a little spice in my breadcrumbs, so try some chilli flakes and dry oregano. Keep aside.
Take a big pot and add a tablespoon of oil, when it sizzles, drop in 2 bay leaves.
Add the onion, ginger and garlic pastes and brown.
Once done, add the mushrooms and let them cook.
In 5 minutes, add about 2 big cups of the dissolved stock, the chicken, salt, pepper and a fresh sprig.
Cover and cook till tender. Garnish with some more fresh herbs and serve with french bread and a green tossed salad.

Coq Au Vin

This is a great signature dish for a party. Remember to pop it into the oven an hour before everyone walks in so the aromas scent your home.

1 big chicken, curry cut

8 tsb. butter (that's why it's a party dish)

1 1/2 cups of burgundy wine, you may use any red

2 pkts. mushrooms, chopped in big pieces without stalks

1 pkt. small white onions

1 pkt. bacon

8 pods of garlic, smashed 

2 sprigs of thyme

1 cup of flour

salt and fresh ground pepper, to season, remember butter and bacon are both salty

Clean and pat dry the chicken. It needs to be dry so you can coat it evenly with flour, if you like dry it with a kitchen paper towel. 

Mix the flour with salt and pepper. I use lots of fresh ground pepper in most things and there is no substitute for it.

Roll the chicken in it.

Put one tablespoon of butter in the pan, brown chicken in batches. Add butter when you think it sticks. Remember the chicken should come out a beautiful brown.

Rinse pan.

Fry bacon till crisp. Keep aside.

In the bacon fat, brown the onions and garlic. Add mushroom and thyme.

Now lovingly layer the pieces of chicken in a big casserole. Borosil is good. 

For every layer of chicken, add some wine, the onion mix and bacon and then the chicken and so on. 

Preheat oven to 200*c and bake for an hour.

Remember to use good wine, or it looks rather purple even though it still tastes delicious.

Grilled Fish

500 gms. of any fish, Rawas, or if you can manage it, Red snapper

2 tablespoons of mustard sauce

a big handful of thyme, plucked from the stem

a big handful of dill, roughly chopped

Salt, to taste

One teaspoon of olive oil to baste your baking tray

Mix all the ingredients except for the olive oil. Clean fish and pat dry and simply cover one side of it with the mix. Place them on the tray with the mustard side facing up and pop into the oven at 250 centigrade for 15 minutes. The fish is ready to eat with french bread and a salad.