What great easy meals do you cook for your family? Come and share them please (-:

[mosschops30]

After last nights 'pasta' disaster I need some inspiration.

We dont eat red meat anymore, and I'm not a big fan of pork.

Would like some suggestions for easy meals I can cook our fave at the moment is chicken breasts smothered in pesto with roast veggies and potatoes but its becoming a bit boring.

Here's a rival veggie chilli dish, using Quorn...

Fry a chopped onion and some dried chilli flakes in oil
Add Quorn mince and fry for a few mins (til defrosted)
Add a tin of chopped toms, half a cup of red wine, tin of kidney beans, a load of tomato puree, some cumin and (if needed) chilli powder
Simmer for 20 mins
Serve with rice and grated cheese

You could cheat Mosschops and just buy a jar of white sauce

Rissotto

To oil add finely chopped red onion, finely chopped rep pepperand finely chopped celery (about 3 sticks). Soften.
Add lots of mushrooms
Stir in half a pack of Arborio rice
Add 1.75 pint stock
Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally
Add 2oz parmesan and some roughly chopped sun dried tomatoes
Serve
Sprinkle with more parmesan

Veggie Sausages (also same recipe makes nice burgers too

Mix 4 slices of fresh breadcrumbs with about 8oz grated cheese, 2 tablespoons chopped leek or onion, and 2 tbls of chopped parsley.

Stir in 1 tablespoon of mustard (could do less to taste), 1 whole egg and 1 egg yolk. Season to taste.

I also like to add some finely chopped mushrooms, but this is optional too.

Kneed together and then divide into sausages or burgers.

I leave them like this and cook in the oven for anout 10-15 minutes. You cook grill or pan fry too.

The original recipe told you to dip the sausages in whisked egg white and to coat them in breadcrumbs, prior to cooking but I never bother.

passatta is sieved tomatoes. Could just as easy use a tin of tomatoes though, or Nigella uses a tin of tomato and chunky vegetable pasta sauce.

That is what I do. Don't use all the milk if you think it will be too runny.

gnnochi with cheese sauce, cauliflower and broccolli, also good with bacon and tomatoes on the top. Very quick, especially if you cheat and use a ready cauliflower cheese (tesco's is nice and nothing weird in it)

Paula I do the same topping on my chilli, did you know cornmeal is the same thing as polenta which you can find in the indian section of the supermarket?

White sauce is a doddle to make. It was the very first thing I learnt to cook, but honestly some milk mixed with cream works fine.

how do you make proper white sauce COV? I always use the easy way out

Warmed mascarpone makes a very yummy alternative to white sauce

Corned beef hash with crusty white bread and butter

yes I can make a decent white sauce and always make a cheese sauce from scratch but when I'm cooking fish, then flaking it and checking for bones and boiling potatoes its just one ecxtra hassle.
The milk and cream will be great.

Thanks hula that risotto sounds lovely

god havent made corned beef hash for ages. do i just boil and mash the pots then add fried onions and corned beef and whack it in the oven?

Melt butter, add flour mix together add milk, nutmeg, a blob of mustard, salt and pepper, and stir. If I get any lumps I just whizz them out with hand held blender. Doddle.

i boil the onions with the potatoes rather than fry. But yep, that's basically it. We like corned beef hash sandwiches with ketchup

Thanks COV. How much milk and flour?

mmm wezzle that sounds like a proper saturday afternoon on the sofa watching lame film food

Really depends how much sauce you need to make. I'm afraid I am not a measuring kind of cook, just kind of make it up as I go along.

First glance, and I mis-read thread title as 'what greasy meals do you cook....'

Oh greasy mals - that would have to ba a bacon sarnie yum!

Butternut squash rissotto - cheap and easy. just need a shallot or small onion, butternut squash, dried sage, chicken stock and aborio rice.

Tonight am having quickest meal ever - tagittelli mixed with a pack of cooked mussles in white wine/garlicy sauce - sprinkle on a bit of parsley and parmesan and thats it.

Corn beef hash is a great one - v cheap too. This delia recipe is yummy.

We had Butternut squash risotto for dinner tonight.l It really is the best sort of comfort food

Gnocchi with pancetta, peas, sweetcorn and grated cheese. I use the tricolour baby gnocchi from Waitrose.

There was a great risotto thread a while back - will see if I can find it...

Risotto a go-go!

Rice bake -

finely chopped onion
grated courgette
clove of garlic
2-3 big cupfuls cooked rice
1/2 cup milk
1 beaten egg
handful grated cheese

Fry up the onion, garlic and courgette for 5-10 minutes.
Add the rice and milk and simmer till milk is all absorbed.
Mix in egg and half the cheese, put into greased dish, top with the rest of the cheese, and bake on Gas 7 for about 45 minutes.
Really good with salad and new potatoes, or with steamed veg and garlic bread.