This is very useful to have in the freezer.

You can add a jar of shop-bought sauce to the ingredients if you like, and any vegetables finely chopped.  My favourites are a pepper, courgette, mushrooms. carrot – use up bits and pieces. just make sure you chop finely and simmer gently very slowly for a nice long time to soften everything

Basic Ingredients

1 onion, finely chopped

2 teaspoons garlic puree or to taste

1 tin tomatoes (about 15 oz size)

1 carton tomato passata (sieved tomatoes)

1 heaped teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried parsley

pinch brown sugar (NO MORE!)

pinch salt

shake of black pepper

olive oil

How to make it

1. Gently cook the onions in a little olive oil in a  large saucepan until they are softened.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and allow to simmer gently for about half an hour.
3. Stir occasionally and do not allow to burn! Add a little water if it seems too thick.
4. Adjust seasonings to taste.
5. Allow sauce to cool and freeze in portions. I use old Chinese takeaway cartons with lids and freeze in portions for 2 people. Then I can serve one carton with one bag of meatballs (16 in bag) between 2 people. Easy!

It doesn’t have any meat in it so it is very versatile when you want to use it. Just add mince, meatballs, chili and kidney beans etc, or use in lasagne, or use it on its own.

Tags: garlic, onion, passata, tomatoes
Posted in Vegetable based | No Comments »

This is a delicious vegetable soup, very easy to make and it freezes very well. The quantities given do produce a large amount of soup – I like to freeze it in individual portions so that a quick meal or snack is always available. The recipe as written will make two very large saucepans full. Try halving the ingredients if you want a smaller amount. It is very forgiving – you can omit things you don’t like and add those you do! If you half it you can omit one lot of lentils, whichever you like, as they thicken the soup, and you won’t need so much.

Ingredients

1 can mixed bean salad

1 can green lentils

2 cans chopped tomatoes

1 can baked beans

Handful of split lentils

2 large leeks

1 large onion

4 large carrots

2 parsnips

Green, red or yellow pepper

2 beef stock cubes

2 vegetable stock cubes

2 chicken stock cubes

salt and pepper

1 teaspoon mixed herbs

Water (enough to cover all ingredients)

How to make it

1. Chop all the vegetables up. If making the full quantity of soup and using two pans, divide the ingredients between the pans as you go, then you will have two identical soups to combine later.
2. Crumble the stock cubes and add the mixed herbs. I just like half a teaspoon in each pan, but you can adjust according to taste.
3. Cover all the vegetables with water, bring to the boil and simmer very gently until all the vegetables are soft. I sometimes leave it on a very low heat for an hour to bring out and blend all the flavours.
4. When the soup is ready, you can choose to leave it chunky as it is, or use a blender to make it creamy. I leave one pan ‘whole’ and blend the second pan, then mix the two together. This gives a creamy soup with chunks of vegetables which makes it very satisfying.
5. Divide into individual portions and freeze. It will also keep well in the fridge for a few days, so you could freeze one pan and eat the other!

Tags: baked beans, carrot, chopped tomatoes, green lentils, leeks, lentils, mixed bean salad, mixed herbs, onion, parsnip, peppers, stock cubes
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Ingredients

1 lb beef mince

3 small apples

1 onion

1 dessertspoonful curry powder

1 tablespoon vinegar

1 slice bread soaked in 1 cup milk

1 egg

Pinch salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 dessertspoon apricot jam

handul of raisins or sultanas

1 oz dessicated coconut

1 tablespoon chutney

How to Make it

1. In large frying pan, ightly fry the onion and apples. Set aside on plate.
2. Lightly brown the mince until no longer pink.
3. Drain the milk from the bread and reserve the liquid.
4. Add the bread to the mince.
5. Add salt, vinegar and sugar to mince mixture.
6. Add the onions and apples to mixture.
7. Beat the egg with the drained off milk and add to the mixture.
8. Stir in the jam, raisins, coconut and chutney (adjust or leave out according to taste).
9. Turn the mixture into the buttered pyrex dish.
10. Bake in oven for 40 mins at 350F, 180C 170C (fan oven).
11. Prepare small dishes of chopped and sliced accompaniments – banana, tomatoes, pineapple, dessicated coconut, chutney, peppers
12. Serve with boiled rice.

Tags: apple, apricot jam, banana, beef mince, Bread, chutney, coconut, curry powder, egg, milk, onion, peppers, pineapple, raisins, rice, salt, sugar, tomato, vinegar
Posted in Beef Mince Meals | No Comments »