The Bolognese that just keeps on giving...

Bolognese with Garlic Chickpeas and Spinach

Every week I try and make a vat of Bolognese as it's one sure fire way of getting vegetables into my fussy children.  I freeze if off into portions to make a multitude of meals from spag bol, mince and cheese pies, mincy rice, cottage pie, mince on toast etc.  Today I made a batch and fed the kids spaghetti bolognese.  I then fried up some chick peas in garlic, added some baby spinach leaves, and then some bolognaise to create a tasty gluten free dinner.   Served with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese and a green salad, all that was missing was a fat glass of wine.  I have decided to avoid alcohol until I can't stand it anymore to kick start the weight shift.


Bolognese Recipe

Ingredients
2 onions
2 cloves garlic
2 courgettes
2 carrots
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 kg lean beef mince
100g fat free chopped bacon bits
1 fat glass of red wine
2 400g cans chopped tomato
Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper

Method

Put the onions, garlic, carrots and courgettes  into a food processor and whizz into a mush.

Heat the olive oil in a pan and add the vegetables and bacon, sauteeing for 10 minutes on a low heat.  Turn up the heat and add the mince, stirring until browned.  Add a few splashes of Worcestershire sauce during this browning process.  Add the wine, chopped tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.  Simmer for 2-3 hours until rich.  Sometimes I add a cup of milk to the bolognaise along with the wine just to make it even richer and luxurious, but it's not necessary.

And the next day...

This afternoon my children requested mince and cheese pies made in the little pie maker my son gave me for mothers day.  Honesly with left-over bolognese it takes all of 5 minutes to make these pies.  Firstly you need an electric pie maker.  These make nice little pies, a good size for children. 

You also need some reduced fat pre-rolled pastry, leftover bolognese and some low-fat cheese.

Cut the pastry with the rings that come with the pie maker, one large ring for the base, one small for the lid.

Place the pastry base in the pie maker, one for each pie.  Add a spoon of Bolognese to each pie, and top with some grated cheese.  Finally top with a pastry lid.  Close the lid of the pie maker, and leave for 5 minutes to cook.

And finally you have two tasty, but healthier than the pie shop pies enough to please the most fussy little and big eaters.  BTW The reduced fat pastry has 4 weight watchers pro points which is roughly the same as 2 slices of regular bread)  But not for me today, as I'm not eating wheat.

Thaislaw

It's mid-week and I'm trying to control my calorie intake as I seem to have overdone the naughties over the weekend. Had a peek in the fridge in the hope of finding some kind of healthy but tasty ingredients. Spotted a bag of coleslaw - ie ready shredded carrots and cabbage with a couple of sachets of dressing which inspired me to whip up some of my favourite asian flavoured coleslaw...

Thaislaw

500g shredded cabbage and carrot (ready bagged from the supermarket or do it yourself)

3 Tbs freshly squeezed lime juice

2 Tbs sweet chilli sauce

1 Tbs fish sauce

1 Tbs oil

1 handful coriander leaves

additional chilli if required

Open bag of coleslaw and empty contents into a mixing bowl. I discard the dressing sachets straight into the rubbish as they usually have that fake mayonaissy taste which I really despise. In another bowl mix the remaining ingredients to make a dressing. You will need to check the balance of salty/sweet/spicy flavours and adjust accordingly. If chilli is your friend, add more in the form of fresh birds eyes, or the dried variety. Toss the dressing through the slaw to thoroughly coat all the vegetables and leave to infuse for about 20 minutes. Serve with your favourite cold cuts. I find cold shredded roast chicken or beef works pretty well. Today I added some shaved beef from the deli. If you really want to posh it up, you could add some dried shrimp and crushed roast peanuts. This dish is reminiscent of my favourite thai green papaya salad.