Recipes

BAKED Tomato risotto

At first I cooked up the onions and carrots and made them smooth in the food processor with the tomatoes. Then, as time passed, I introduced more texture into the risotto. The type of feta is important as it can be quite strong tasting. We eat one with this risotto that is mild and smooth. The feta is carefully spread across all the risotto (which is in a relatively thin layer in the bowl) in order to enable feta with every mouthful.

For me, and my husband, I like to add a salad dressed in balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Once I did a pesto + cooked peas and green bean mix and spooned some on the top, which was delicious.

This recipe makes around six serves.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

1 onion, small dice

2 carrots, small dice

375g of Carnaroli Rice (or another risotto rice such as Arborio)

1 can of chopped tomatoes (400g)

2 teaspoons of powdered vegetable stock

4 cups of boiling water (that’s 1 litre)

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

 150g Feta - we use a type of goat feta as it has a milder taste

Method

1. Get a heavy pot (cast iron) that can be used on the stove top and in the oven

2. Heat the oven to 180 degrees celcius

3. Put the pot on a low-medium heat and pour in the oil and add the onions. Cook until soft ~5-10 minutes

4. Add the carrots and cook for 5 minutes

5. Add the rice and stir to mix for a minute

6. Put in all the other ingredients except the feta, stir it well and then bring the risotto to a simmer

7. Put the pot into the oven with the lid on and cook for 20 minutes or until the rice is cooked. Check at 15 minutes and add more boiling water if it needs more liquid. The risotto should be still a little saucy

8. Serve up and sprinkle on the feta. I use shallow bowls as it cools the risotto quickly

TUNA WRAPS

I tried this one day to mimic a kind of sushi filling but inside a wrap (a nice kind of orderly parcel).

My son also eats tuna straight out of the can. This seems odd, because tuna is strong smelling… but he likes it for some reason. It is definitely worthwhile trying foods that may seem unlikely as you never know - it may work!

Ingredients

Canned tuna

1 grated carrot

2T mayonnaise

Soft wraps

Method

Drain tuna, flake into a bowl and mix in the grated carrot and mayonnaise. Smear this on to a wrap, and roll.

spaghetti bolognese

This recipes makes three meals for us, two adults and two children = 12 serves. My children eat serious amounts of spaghetti bolognese.

Ingredients

1 brown onion, small dice

5 large carrots, grated (I use my food processor grating attachment)

1 kg beef mince

1/4 cup of tomato paste

2 cans of chopped tomatoes (2 x 400g)

500ml beef stock made up from concentrate

2T red wine vinegar

3-4 bay leaves

Spaghetti cooked according to packet directions

Method

1. Cook the onion on a low-medium heat for around 5-10 minutes until soft

2. Add the grated carrots are cook for another 10 minutes

3. Add the mince and mix everything up well, cook until meat is browning. This may take a while but it makes the bolognese taste good

4. Add all of the other ingredients and mix well, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for at least 30 minutes, ideally an hour. Add more water if it gets too dry

5. Take out bay leaves before serving with the spaghetti