Tag: oregano
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Spaghetti Carbonara With Cream
This rich creamy spaghetti carbonara will not win any health awards but jeapers it is tasty. 🙂
It also isn’t particularly authentic due to the addition of cream. I love the more traditional egg only version too (Spaghetti Carbonara) but this one is my go to comfort food pasta dish.
I make it in large batches as it freezes really well. Remember to use a low power setting on the microwave though when reheating.
You will be:
- Preparing everything
- Cooking the pasta
- Cooking the bacon and garlic
- Bringing it all together
- Serving
You will need:
- Ingredients:
- 6 to 9 rashers shortcut bacon
- 500g dried pasta
- 100g Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 200ml double cream (called heavy cream in other countries)
- 2 eggs
- 2 garlic cloves
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- a sprinkle or two of ground nutmeg
- a handful of fresh basil leaves
- half a handful of fresh oregano leaves
- a generous slug of olive oil
- table salt for the pasta water to taste
- Equipment:
- a long sharp knife
- a chopping board
- a whisk or fork for the eggs
- a fry pan
- a large pan to cook the pasta
Preparing everything
- Chop the 6 to 9 rashers of bacon (shortcut bacon is pretty lean but if you are using other types try remove most of the fat and rind if you like).
- Finely grate the 100g of parmigiano-reggiano (you can use parmesan but I recommend you try the real deal).
- Roughly chop the handfuls of basil and oregano leaves.
- Peel and finely dice the 2 garlic cloves.
- Whisk the 2 eggs.
- Fold the whisked eggs into the 200ml of double cream.
Cooking the pasta
- Put a large pot of water on the boil.
- Add a slug of olive oil and a good dash of salt to the water.
- Cook the pasta al dente while you do the next part.
Cooking the bacon and garlic
Throw a slug of olive oil into a fry pan along with the 2 sliced garlic cloves and cook the 6 rashers of chopped bacon.
Bringing it all together
- Drain the pasta but keep some of the water to adjust the amount of liquid in the finished dish.
- Add the pasta to the fry pan and on very low heat gently mix everything.
- Fold in the egg/cream mix, cheese, oregano, basil and some of the reserved pasta water until you get the consistency you like.
Serving
Serve directly with a large crusty garlic bread in the center of the table. It is great to watch your family and friends literally breaking bread with you.
Have cracked black pepper and extra cheese available of course. 🙂
A wine site I like, winefolly.com, suggests full bodied white wines or light bodied reds.
Enjoy,
PK
Here are some more Italian food and pasta recipe posts:
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PK’s NoRecipe Greek Butterflied Chicken Roast
This simple butterflied chicken marinaded with thyme, oregano, garlic, salt, pepper, lemon juice and olive oil smells amazing and will wow your family and friends.
If you have time:
- chuck several good slugs of the olive oil and lemon juice into a snap lock bag.
- add the other ingredients (chopped).
- close the bag, mix everything around.
- add the chicken halves, close the bag and massage it for a bit to get the oil etc into every nook and cranny.
- leave it overnight in the fridge or at least 2 hours.
- preheat your oven to 160C and get the chicken out of the fridge.
- cook the chicken in an non-stick oven tray for about 2 hours.
If you don’t have time or forgot to marinade the chicken:
- chuck several good slugs of garlic infused olive oil and lemon juice into a bowl.
- add the other ingredients (chopped but leave out the garlic) and mix with a fork.
- preheat your oven to 160C and get the chicken out of the fridge, season with salt and pepper.
- cook the chicken in an oven tray for about 2 hours, turning and basting with the oil mixture every 15 minutes or so.
Marinaded and already looking good:
Two hours at 160C:
A perfect summer’s day dinner, just add salad and friends:
Enjoy,
PK
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A Simple Greek Chicken Roast
This is a simple chicken roast, marinated in mix of thyme, oregano, garlic, salt, pepper, lemon juice and olive oil. It looks and smells amazing!
Here I have halved a whole chicken by cutting right down the middle. You could also butterfly it using this method.
If you have at least a 4.5 hours in advance:
- chuck several good slugs of olive oil and lemon juice into a snap lock bag.
- add into the bag a handful of chopped thyme and oregano and 1 -2 diced garlic cloves.
- also add some salt and pepper.
- close the bag and mix everything around.
- add the chicken halves, close the bag again and massage it for a bit, getting the marinade into every nook and cranny.
- leave it in the fridge for at least 2 hours (over night is better).
- preheat your oven to 160C and get the chicken out of the fridge.
- cook the chicken in an non-stick oven tray for about 2 hours.
If you don’t have time, follow this shortcut:
- chuck several good slugs of garlic infused olive oil and lemon juice into a bowl.
- add the other ingredients as above and mix with a fork.
- preheat your oven to 160C.
- massage some of the marinade into the chicken.
- cook the chicken in an oven tray for about 2 hours, turning and basting with the marinade every 30 minutes or so.
Marinated and already looking good:
Two hours at 160C:
A perfect summer’s day meal, just add salad and friends:
Enjoy,
PK
Here are some more chicken recipes and roasting posts:
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Moosey’s Sunny Tommies
Ben’s better half is a gardener and cook in her own right. This is her first post on the blog. Thanks and welcome to Moosey.
She writes:
Ever have the problem of too many tomatoes? Sick of Bruschetta but don’t want to let your hard grown fruit go to waste? “sun drying” tomatoes is a great way of storing excess fruit for a later date.
Steps:
Firstly, collect as many tomatoes as possible. We don’t let any, including fallen ones, go to waste. Of course, any with rot, disease or pest should go into the compost. For this recipe, the riper the tomatoes the better.
Wash tomatoes in a light vinegar solution to get rid of any nasties, and then let them dry. Larger tomatoes are sliced or halved, and smaller and cherry tomatoes just slit to allow the juice to escape. You may also wish to core larger tomatoes.
Gently squeeze the majority of the juice and seeds out. This is to help the drying process, and will speed it up. Once done, lay your tomatoes out in your dehydrator, sprinkle with salt and turn leave until they are nice and dry. Ours took ~36 hours because there was quite a few (and we forgot about them). Dried tomatoes will be reduced in size, shrivelled and leathery, but not tacky
Sterilise a jar (or jars) by boiling in water, and once dry fill tightly with your tomatoes. Now, add some flavour. I suggest garlic, thyme, oregano (all home grown of course) but really it’s up to you. Cover with a good olive oil, and pop into the fridge. Leave for a while, and enjoy on your next home made pizza, or as a snack during the day.
Kate Moosey
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PK’s NoRecipe Savoury Mince
A favourite since childhood, this is simple food that couldn’t be easier to cook. By now you probably know that I think ‘peasant’ food is best.
It freezes very well and what’s more, you can eat it by itself or stretch it out using rice, bread, noodles or other starchy sides. One of my favourites is savoury mince and cheddar in a toasted sandwich.
I think this recipe has a couple of standard ingredients and then add whatever you like extra. Have fun and experiment :).
What are the essentials?
- beef mince
- potatoes
- carrot
- onion
- garlic
- chicken or beef stock
- herbs like oregano, marjoram, thyme, bay leaves
- tomatoes or tomato paste
- pepper and salt to taste.
I also add red wine (boil it off of course) and anything else I have in my pantry or fridge that needs using.
Par-boil your potatoes:
Prepare your vegetables:
Sauté the onion in some olive oil:
Add the mince (browning it), herbs and stock (if using red wine bring to the boil) and then simmer until it is all reduced down to your liking:
This is the consistency I aim for:
Oh so tasty tonight and for tomorrow’s lunch:
I hope you like it,
PK
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PK’s Savoury Mince And Potatoes
A favourite since childhood, this is simple food that couldn’t be easier to cook. By now you probably know that I think ‘peasant’ food is best.
It freezes very well and what’s more, you can eat it by itself or stretch it out using rice, bread, noodles or other starchy sides. One of my favourites is savoury mince and cheddar in a toasted sandwich.
I think this recipe has a couple of standard ingredients and then add whatever you like extra. Have fun and experiment :).
What are the essentials?
- beef mince
- potatoes
- carrot
- onion
- garlic
- chicken or beef stock (try Italian Beef Stock: Brodo Di Manzo)
- herbs like oregano, marjoram, thyme, bay leaves
- tomatoes or tomato paste
- pepper and salt to taste.
I also add red wine (boil it off of course) and anything else I have in my pantry or fridge that needs using.
Par-boil your potatoes:
Prepare your vegetables:
Sauté the onion in some olive oil:
Add the mince (browning it), herbs and stock (if using red wine bring to the boil) and then simmer until it is all reduced down to your liking:
This is the consistency I aim for:
Oh so tasty tonight and for tomorrow’s lunch:
I hope you like it,
PK
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