Bacon and Tomato Pasta

Penne pasta with a tomato and parmigiano regiano sauce salsa, with bacon chunks, garlic and herbs.

I cooked the bacon first at a medium heat, together with the garlic, which takes around fifteen to twenty minutes, until the bacon pieces are slightly browned. Then I added boiling water and pieces of the cheese (about 75g). Cooked for twenty minutes to half an hour until the cheese has melted, stirring frequently.

Then I added about 150g of tomato passata, plus the herbs basil, oregano, and a pinch of paprika. Added a dash of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce. Stirred together thoroughly. This is essentially a neopolitan style salsa, which is the basis of many excellent Italian meals.

I left it  to cook at a low heat under glass for another twenty minutes to half an hour. During which time I prepared the wheat-free, gluten free pasta from Sainsbury's. I boiled water, and added about a third cupful of the dried pasta. I also added a quarter teaspoonful of turmeric, for both flavour and colour. The pasta was stirred frequently to prevent sticking.

The pasta was ready to serve in ten minutes. I spooned the salsa into a pasta bowl and used a slatted spoon to capture all of the bacon chunks. The pasta was drained, and decanted into the bowl. The dish was served with black pepper. Delicious!

Breaded Chicken with Spicy French Fries

The breaded chicken breast came from Sainsbury's supermarket. It had been in the freezer, but was thoroughly thawed before cooking.

The French fries/chips were made from two semi-peeled potatoes, sliced into ovals, and then subdivided into chips.

The chips were decanted into a bowl, and stirred through a spicy salsa, made with tomato ketchup, worcestershire sauce, paprika, oil from a jar of grilled red peppers (sunflower oil), oregano, coriander and rosemary.

Both the chips and the breaded chicken pieces were cooked in a large glass roasting tray. The oven was preheated to 200 deg C. and the tray was placed in the middle. Cooked for twenty-five to thirty  minutes.  Served with freshly ground black pepper and a squeeze of tomato ketchup.

Peppered Pastrami and Haricot Bean Casoulet

Some left over diced peppered pastrami combined with haricot beans, onion, shredded tomato, mushroom, tomato puree, boiled potato, plus two pinches of basil, one pinch of oregano, and two dashes of worcestershire sauce.

The pastrami was stir-fried in some sunflower oil for about ten minutes, until thoroughly cooked. Chopped onion, shredded tomato and mushroom was added and stir-fried at a low heat for a further ten minutes.

After that the haricot beans were added (in this case I had half a tin of baked beans in the fridge, and I used those), along with boiling water and tomato puree. Simmered for a further fifteen minutes.

Add pre-boiled potato pieces, plus the basil, oregano, and the worcestershire sauce. Stir thoroughly, and serve piping hot!

Leek and Chorizo Soup

A pretty simple soup, made with one large leek, three carrots, 100g of spelt grain, 50g of green lentils, and around 150g of chorizo sausage.

The vegetables were cooked for 45 minutes in water until all were soft. Then they were mashed for two minutes.

Diced chorizo was added, and the soup was cooked for another hour at a low heat under glass.

Add two pinches of rosemary, and a teaspoonful of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce, ten minutes before the cooking is complete.

Serve with buttered bread (wheat free or otherwise).