(almost) Authentic Bolognaise

Ages ago I read somewhere that spaghetti bolognaise was the dish most British people could make without a recipe.  I used to have my own version, but then some Italian friends, Gabriele and Emmanuela, taught us how to make a traditional bolognaise and it turned out I was making it more complicated than it needed to be (apparently I’m not the only one, although I still love a splash of worcestershire sauce).  I was sceptical about putting celery in bolognaise and when I had it in Bolgna I was disappointed with the lack of sauce but this recipe is delicious, and really simple.  The rule of thumb is to use equal quantities of meat and tomato so it’s easy to adapt the quantities for a bigger or smaller batch.  We usually make a big batch so there’s enough for a lasagne or a meal with spaghetti and some to freeze because it reheats really well.

I made two changes to the original recipe; Gabriele uses a mix of beef and pork, but I prefer the flavour of pure beef; and I confess I add a splash of red wine because apparently I’m incapable of cooking without a bit of alcohol!

Ingredients

• 800g minced beef (or minced beef and pork)
• 800g crushed tinned tomatoes
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 sticks celery
• 2-3 carrots
• Salt and pepper
• Pinch of herbs like thyme
• Optional: splash of red wine

 

1. Dice the onion, celery and carrots into small pieces.  Crush the garlic.
2. Fry the onion on a medium heat for a couple of minutes, then add the crushed garlic and a minute or two later, the carrot and celery.
3. When the vegetables have softened, add the meat and allow it to brown all over.
4. If you want to add red wine, add it when the meat is brown.  Then immediately add the tomato, seasoning and herbs and stir well.
5. Leave to simmer, covered, for 30-45 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened.
6. Enjoy with spaghetti and some parmesan cheese.
7. 
8. Alternatively, whip up a bechamel sauce and layer up with sheets of lasagne for a slower but really tasty meal.  Gabriele mixes the meat and bechamel together which is extra indulgent on spaghetti if you have any leftover meat, or my mum uses cheese sauce which is another taste sensation.

I hope you enjoy this streamlined bolognaise!

Mojito Cake

The lemons on the tree are starting to ripen again and a few weeks ago I fancied a lemon drizzle cake.  This sounds crazy but when I went to bed I asked the tree for some lemons and when I woke up the next day, I discovered it had kindly obliged. Two fresh lemons waiting in the patio!

I tried this Mary Berry recipe and although I prefer a drizzle made with icing sugar, the crunchy sugar on top gave me a great idea: replace the lemons with lime, add Bacardi, make it a mojito cake! (I think I was daydreaming about being at the beach now the autumn has definitely started.) My gin and tonic cupcakes have gone down well every time so that’s exactly what I did.  It doesn’t have a strong rum flavour, but it has the fresh lime, crunchy brown sugar and fresh mint you find in a lovely mojito. For my first attempt, I used dark brown sugar but for the second version I used light brown sugar, which gave a lighter texture and made a better syrup for the topping. You can make the topping less ‘family friendly’ by replacing the water in the topping with more rum if you want to.

Ingredients

• 225g butter
• 225g soft brown sugar
• 270g plain flour
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 4 eggs
• Zest of 2 limes
• 100ml white rum

 

For the topping:

• Juice of 2 limes
• 2 dsp white rum
• 1 dsp water
• 100g soft light brown sugar
• Mint leaves

1. Get the oven pre-heating to 160˚ and grease/line a tray of approx. 30cm x 24cm x 4cm or a round tin of about 20cm diameter.
2.  Put the lime zest, butter and sugar into a bowl and cream the butter and sugar. Putting the zest in at the beginning means it gets beaten about a lot and as a result it gives more flavour to the cake mix.
3. Add the eggs and rum and mix well, then add the flour and baking powder.  Don’t worry if you can still see bits of brown sugar in the mix, mine went into the oven with a lovely speckly look between the zest and the sugar and came out fine.
4. Bake for around 30 mins, or until a skewer comes out clean.
5. While the cake is in the oven, mix the water, sugar, lime juice, mint leaves and rum for the topping and leave them to stand.  This allows the sugar to partially dissolve and also infuses the syrup with the flavours of the mint.
6. When the cake is done, leave to stand for a few minutes, then poke all over with a skewer or a fork and pour the syrupy topping over it.  The undissolved sugar will sit on top and go hard as the cake cools, making a crunchy rum topping.
7. When it’s cool, enjoy with whatever beverage you prefer.