My Bolognese sauce, as per my husband's request

I started blogging about food in 2006 (sometimes I find it hard to believe I am still here, to be honest) and for years now many people have written to me to tell me they learned how to cook with me (Brazilians, since I write in Portuguese, too). Every time I read the emails I feel joy in my heart, for I know how liberating learning how to cook can be – it was for me.

So here we are, almost eleven years later, and this time the “revolution” is happening in my home: my husband has been learning how to cook. :) It started with sandwiches, it evolved to salads and soups (very good salads and soups, by the way) and days ago he tried to make one of our favorite dishes: Bolognese sauce. I arrived home late after a tiresome day at the office and smelled something wonderful when the elevator door opened – for a moment I thought the smell could be coming from my neighbors’, but those people, besides being incredibly noisy and rude, don’t cook food that smell that great. :)

For my surprise, the smell was coming from my apartment and as I walked in I found my husband smiling at me: “surprise! I made your Bolognese sauce!” – I helped him cook the linguine and we had a delicious dinner.

He then told me he was a bit confused during the preparation of the sauce and that he had searched the blog to make sure he remembered all the steps – “I could not find the recipe on TK”, he said, and I told him I had not published it here. He said “it’s about time”, so here we are: I am sharing with you my Bolognese sauce – and I call it “my Bolognese” because I know it is not the most authentic one out there, but it is the one I have been making for years and that my husband loves so much. I don’t always have carrots and/or celery at home for the sofrito, so onions and garlic are the aromatics of choice; also, I hardly ever have 3 hours to wait for the sauce to come together, so mine is ready in 30 minutes or so. I hope you give it a go and if you do, please let me know how it went.

My Bolognese sauce
own recipe

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, finely diced
3 large garlic cloves, minced
250g beef mince
salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup (60ml) dry red wine
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 400g (14oz) can peeled tomatoes
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 bay leaves
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
handful of fresh basil leaves or fresh oregano leaves
300g linguine

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic, cook for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant, then add the beef and break it down with the spoon into smaller pieces. Cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is well browned. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the wine and cook again for 2-3 minutes or until wine is reduced – using a wooden spoon, scrape the brown bits in the bottom of the saucepan for extra flavor.

Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the canned tomatoes and smash them with a potato masher. Fill ¾ of the can with water, swirl it around and add to the saucepan. Season again with salt and pepper, add the sugar, the bay leaves, the thyme and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes or until thickened. Add the basil/oregano, stir to combine, remove the bay leaves and the thyme sprigs, cover and remove from the heat.
Cook linguine in a large pot of salted boiling water until al dente. Drain and stir in the sauce. Serve immediately.

Serves 3

Chicken fajitas with homemade tortillas

I always think about how much my understanding of food has changed over the last decade or so – I feel grateful for how much I have learned after I started writing this blog, back in 2006.

Back then, I had already been cooking for seventeen years, for at the age of 11 I was already cooking dinner for 5 people every night. But after the blog I have come to learn dishes I had never heard of before, new ingredients, amazing flavors, and all of that has improved my cooking immensely.

I first heard of fajitas a long time ago, and I don’t even remember where I first saw it. After that, I ate them a few times in a Tex-Mex restaurant, but I can tell you that nothing, nothing beat homemade fajitas, especially if they are served with homemade tortillas – it is a whole new thing completely.

These tortillas are so delicious that I make them quite often, even to be served with guacamole only – after he tried these for the first time, my husband told me he would never eat store bought tortillas again. :)

Chicken fajitas with homemade tortillas
own creation, inspired by lots of sources

Chicken:
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
a few drops of Tabasco
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
a few drops of Worcestershire sauce
1 large clove of garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
2 chicken fillets (about 250g in total), cut into strips
1 small yellow bell pepper (about 150g), sliced
1 small red onion, sliced in half moons
1 tablespoon water

Tortillas:
2/3 cup (94g) all purpose flour
1/3 cup (46g) whole wheat flour
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/3 cup (80ml) warm water

Start by marinating the chicken: in a shallow medium bowl, mix together 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, salt, pepper, Tabasco, cumin, paprika, Worcestershire sauce and garlic. Add the bay leaves and the chicken and toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, 2 hours if possible.

Now, the tortillas: in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix well the flours, baking powder and salt. Add the oil and water and mix on medium speed until a smooth and elastic dough forms, about 5 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 6 equal portions – each should be about 40g. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece of dough until you get a thin circle, 20-22cm (8-9in) in diameter. Heat a large nonstick frying pan over high heat. Grill each disc of dough for 1-2 minutes each side, or until a few brown spots appear on the surface – if you want soft tortillas, immediately transfer them to the plate and cover with a clean kitchen towel; if you want crispy tortillas, let them cool on a wire rack, without overlapping them. Repeat the process with all the remaining dough.

Cook the chicken: on a large nonstick frying pan over high heat, heat the remaining olive oil. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until tender. Add the chicken and cook, stirring a few times, until chicken is golden and cooked through, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the water, scrape the bottom of the pan to remove the delicious burnt bits and then serve immediately with the tortillas and guacamole, if desired.

Serves 2

Marjoram orange roast chicken

I was thinking the other day about how drastically I have decreased my cookbook purchase addiction – maybe because of how much bigger my workload is compared to years ago, maybe because the food magazines I subscribe fill that need for inspiration and new recipes, maybe because some books were such disappointments (I am speaking to you, Ms. Lawson)…

My last purchase, as far as I recall, was on Oct 20 last year – this is definitely a new world record or something. :)
However, when I saw that Diana Henry had a new book coming out, I could not wait until I had it in my hands, for I am a huge fan of her beautiful work, plus she is a total dear and have spoken to me on Twitter a few times, even saying “obrigada” in Portuguese once. <3

The book is stunning and the recipes look delicious – and are simple, like the name of the book says. I love that. I decided to start with a chicken recipe and used Diana’s as inspiration, however I made it even simpler than hers. It was indeed delicious and the chicken meat was falling off the bones after a night spent in the fridge swimming in the flavorsome marinade.

Maybe I am cured from my cookbook addiction? I don’t know. What I know is that next time Diana publishes a new cookbook I will have it on my Ipad on the very same day. ;)

Marjoram orange roast chicken
adapted from the beautiful Simple

handful of fresh marjoram leaves, chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed then finely chopped
2 oranges
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 skin-on bone-in chicken thighs

In a bowl, mix the marjoram leaves, the garlic, finely grated zest and juice of 1 of the oranges, the olive oil, salt and pepper. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (overnight is great).

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Line a medium roasting tray with a double layer of foil and coat the foil with olive oil. Slice the remaining orange and arrange the slices on top of the foil. Arrange the chicken over the orange slices and pour over the marinade. Roast for about 60-80 minutes or until golden and cooked through – time might vary depending on how golden you like your chicken.

Serves 2

Spaghetti with meat and aubergine balls

I once told you that meatballs are a huge success at home, and I was not lying: I make them quite often, and always pop some of them (still uncooked) in the freezer – they can go to the oven directly from frozen, making my life a lot easier during weeknights (+ my husband can do that himself, which is always a plus). :)

I have posted meatballs made of beef, and meatballs made of eggplant, and today I present you a merge between those two kinds: eggplants get roasted, then their pulp is mixed with beef to create delicious, moist meatballs – they were very flavorsome and turned the spaghetti into something even more special.

Since this is a recipe by Antonio Carluccio there was no way it could go wrong.

Spaghetti with meat and aubergine balls
from the always delicious and beautiful Pasta

400g spaghetti
freshly grated parmesan or pecorino, to serve

Sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
100ml dry red wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
680g tomato passata
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
handful fresh basil leaves

Meatballs:
2 whole aubergines
olive oil, for drizzling the aubergines and for shallow-frying
300g minced beef
1 garlic clove, peeled and squashed to a paste
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
50g parmesan, finely grated
1 egg, lightly beaten with a fork
100g fresh breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon table salt
freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and brush it with olive oil. Cut the aubergines in half lengthwise and place them cut side up onto the foil. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil and bake for 30-40 minutes. Scoop the pulp out of the skins, transfer to a large bowl and mash the pulp. Cool. Discard the skins.

While the aubergines are roasting, make the sauce: heat the olive oil in a large saucepan, and fry the onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the wine and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and tomato passata. Season with salt and pepper, add the sugar, stir well and cook gently for 30–40 minutes. Stir in the basil and remove from the heat.

Meanwhile, continue with the meatballs by mixing together the beef mince, the aubergine pulp, garlic, nutmeg, parmesan, egg and breadcrumbs. Season with salt and pepper, mix well and shape into balls. Shallow-fry in olive oil to brown on all sides. Add the balls to the tomato sauce and keep warm.
Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain. Mix the past and the sauce carefully and serve immediately sprinkled with parmesan or pecorino.

Serves 4

Beef kofta in sweet-sour tomato sauce

I am a complete sucker for food magazines and because of that end up with tons of them and thousands of recipes to choose from. At this time of the year my favorite ones – Donna Hay and Gourmet Traveller - are all about grilling, since they are Australian magazines celebrating the same season as we are here in Brazil (summer). The grilled foods look amazing, but I live in a small apartment and don’t own a barbecue – therefore, the inspiration most comes from the European mags or older issues of my favorite ones.

These beef koftas are delicious and I made them in a matter of moments – some rice and a salad completed a very simple yet tasty meal. I found the recipe on Olive magazine, which is always a good source for quick recipes, and replaced the lamb for beef and the cinnamon for baharat, since it always goes wonderful with beef (like in the sfihas I make sometimes and that my husband eats like a madman).

Beef kofta in sweet-sour tomato sauce
slightly adapted from the always great Olive magazine

1 tablespoon olive oil, divided use
1 onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons baharat
1 teaspoon ground cumin
500g beef mince
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons pine nuts
1 x 400g can of chopped tomatoes
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar – I used sherry vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped parsley leaves

In a large nonstick frying pan, heat half of the olive oil and cook the onion until it’s soft and translucent. Add the baharat and cumin and stir for a minute. Remove from the heat, cool and then add half of the mixture to the mince along with the 2 tablespoons pine nuts. Season with salt and pepper and mix to combine. Divide it into 24 and roll each lump into a neat ball between your hands. Fry them in the remaining olive oil until they brown all over (you might need to do this in batches). Lift them into a sieve while you make the sauce.

Remove any excess oil from the frying pan, then put the rest of the onion mix back in the pan and cook until warm. Add the tomatoes, sugar and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Bubble the lot gently for 5 minutes, then add the kofta. Cook for 15 minutes, over medium heat, turning over the kofta half way. Make sure they are cooked through. Scatter on the remaining pine nuts and the parsley and serve.

Serves 4

Rita's stroganoff to celebrate good things

I was thinking about 2015 these days and about everything that has happened so far, of how my feelings and emotions fluctuated from one side to another, back and forth all the time. I was sad in the beginning of the year because I’d lost a job I liked and could not find another – the whole country is going through a bad phase and many people are out of jobs.

Then my nephew was born and brought so much love and joy to my life, and exactly because I was unemployed I was able to be around him and help my sister in law look after him ever since his first days of life. We have such a strong bond that he smiles and throws himself at me every time he sees me.

I kept thinking that sometimes what at first might seem like a bad thing might actually turn into something good. And I think about my family, how great it is to have my brother, my sister in law and my nephew so close – it fills me with joy to look at table and see everyone together, sharing a meal, laughing, being a family. I made this stroganoff weeks ago for lunch on a Sunday and it was a hit – when I was cooking I saw this big pot of food on the top of the stove and even thought it was too much for 4 people and that there would be some left for a packed lunch on Monday, but everyone liked it so much it was all gone - we ate it all while talking, laughing and being a family. <3

Rita's stroganoff
from the lovely Rita Lobo

2-3 tablespoons olive oil
700g sirloin, cut into 5x2.5cm strips, room temperature
250g button mushrooms, cut into 3-4 slices each lengthwise
1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ cups (360ml) heavy cream
1 ½ tablespoons tomato purée
1 ½ tablespoons ketchup
1 ½ tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 ½ tablespoons cognac – I used sherry
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and add half or 1/3 of the beef – do not fill the pan or the beef will cook in their own juices instead of brown. Brown all the beef in batches, adding more oil after each batch is browned. Set aside.

Add ½ tablespoon of the oil, then the onion and cook until translucent, stirring occasionally to avoid burning – scrape the bottom of the saucepan to remove all the browned bits. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the tomato purée and ketchup and stir to combine. Return the beef to the saucepan, add the Worcestershire sauce and the cognac and stir to combine. Gently stir in the mushrooms.

Drizzle with the heavy cream and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Serve immediately with rice or pasta.

Serves 4

Meatballs alla Norma

As someone who loves anything related to food, I love reading about it, making and eating it (obviously), but I also find it amazing to talk about it with different people and learn what they like, what they don’t like and how their tastes change with time.

I have those conversations with my husband all the time, and he tells me about the food he ate as a kid, things he loved and things he couldn’t stand, how it took him so long to appreciate all sorts of vegetables, and that his mother would be really glad to see him finally eating like an adult (she passed away in 2011).

Every time Joao and I talk about those things I feel more inspired to cook, and when he asked me to make meatballs – one of his all time favorite dishes – I remembered Jamie Oliver’s meatballs alla Norma and thought that a bit of eggplant in the meatballs wouldn’t hurt.

I love eggplant. :)

The eggplant sauce tasted divine with the meatballs; Jamie served his over polenta, but since it was too hot here I went with spaghetti instead and some bread to mop up the sauce – a simple yet delicious meal that I get to replicate anytime I want with the meatballs I stashed in my freezer.

Meatballs alla Norma
slightly adapted from the always delicious Save with Jamie: Shop Smart, Cook Clever, Waste Less

Meatballs – recipe here

Sauce:
1 large eggplant
olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 400g (14oz) can diced tomatoes
salt and freshly ground black pepper
handful fresh basil leaves

Dice the eggplant into 1.5 cm cubes, then season well with salt and leave for 15 min in a colander.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Line a large baking sheet with a double layer of foil and brush it with olive oil. Place the meatballs onto the prepared sheet and bake until firm and cooked through (about 30 minutes) – bake as many as you want, the recipe yields about 25 meatballs. You can freeze uncooked meatballs for up to 2 months and bake them directly from frozen.

While the meatballs are in the oven, make the sauce: take handfuls of the eggplant and squeeze out the excess salty liquid, then put into a saucepan on a medium heat with a lug of oil to cook for 10 min, or until golden, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Stir in the sweet chili sauce and balsamic, add the tomatoes and 3 tablespoons water. Season with salt and black pepper, then simmer for 10-15 min, or until thickened. Stir in the basil and remove from the heat.

Add the meatballs to the sauce and serve immediately.

Serves 4

Chilli con carne and guacamole, and being cocky

I guess that once you start cooking and baking and the years go by it’s sort of inevitable to become a little cocky: I try to exercise modesty on a daily basis, but there are times when I’m eating something – savory or sweet – and I think: “I could make this, and a lot tastier” (and I bet some of you reading this right now are nodding your heads in agreement, relating to that feeling). :D

And let’s not forget that we can make the food better and for a lot less money.

I’ve managed to cut down our meat intake quite substantially (which is great), but our occasional fixes include chilli con carne, something my husband loves to eat when we go out for Tex-mex food (I lean towards guacamole, just love the stuff). I told him I would try making the chilli con carne at home and he was more than pleased with the idea.

I immediately reached out for Dean Edwards’ wonderful cookbook and the result was an amazing chilli con carne: very flavorsome, spicy to perfection, and insanely easy to make. I prepared the chilli con carne in advance and urge you to do the same if at all possible: it tasted great the day I made it, but it was even better the day I served it. The recipe below yields a lot and leftovers are delicious over some fluffy rice or as pasta sauce.

For the guacamole, I used one of Martha’s recipes – after mixing the ingredients, I drizzled the mixture with plenty of freshly squeezed lime juice, which not only boosts the flavor but also stops the avocado from getting brown. It tasted really good and paired perfectly with the carnivore part of our meal.

Chilli con carne
slightly adapted from the delicious Mincespiration!

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
500g beef mince
1 large onion, finely diced
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 small red pepper, deseeded and finely diced
3 bacon rashers, finely sliced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 × 400g cans of chopped tomatoes
1 × 400g can of red kidney beans – I used 150g pinto beans I’d cooked the day before
200ml beef stock
sea salt black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
20g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), grated
2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander, for serving

Heat half the olive oil in a large saucepan over high heat and brown the mince. Do this in batches if necessary so you don’t overcrowd the pan. Remove the beef from the saucepan and set aside. Add the remaining olive oil to the saucepan and cook the onion, garlic, pepper and bacon for about 5 minutes or until golden and fragrant. Add the cumin, cinnamon, cayenne pepper and oregano and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Tip the mince back into the pan and add the tomatoes and stock. Cover the pan and cook over a low heat for an hour, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t catch in the bottom of the saucepan. Add the beans (and more water if mixture is too dry) and cook for another 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, add the sugar and chocolate and stir to incorporate. Sprinkle with chopped coriander before serving. If making it in advance, let cool completely before refrigerating, covered.

Serves 5-6

Guacamole
slightly adapted from Martha

1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
1 large red chilli, finely chopped
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
freshly ground black pepper
2 ripe Hass avocados
1 small tomato chopped
juice of 1 large lime

In a large bowl, mix together the onion, chilli, 2 tablespoons of the cilantro, salt and black pepper. Crush the avocados into the onion mixture, leaving the mixture chunky. Fold in the tomatoes. Drizzle with the lime juice and mix to combine.
Sprinkle over remaining cilantro and serve.

Serves 2-3

Beef, lemon and pecorino meatballs and favorite TV characters

As I finished watching season 5 of Sons of Anarchy, I started thinking about favorite characters in TV series – I have some favorites myself, characters I supported and cheered for (or still do) even if they’re not the nicest people around (hello, Walter White). :)

When it comes to SoA, for instance, it is agonizing to have a favorite character – let’s just say that Kurt Sutter and George R. R. Martin could easily be best friends – but even so Chibs is the one I like the most, I just adore him and his accent. <3 Samantha Jones and Peggy Olson are my favorites in SATC and Mad Men, respectively, and although everyone in Seinfeld was really funny George Costanza was and will always be my #1. :)


Do you have favorite TV characters? I would love to hear about it.


I have favorites when it comes to food, too: meatballs have a very special place in my heart, and the hubby loves them too. I am always interested in trying new meatball recipes, especially ones with a twist like Ottolenghi’s leek meatballs I made the other day. The ones I bring you today are delish, very easy to make, and here the cheese acts both as seasoning and binding agent – no need to add breadcrumbs and eggs. I served them with tomato sauce and Andrew Carmellini’s polenta because it was a very cold day, but I am sure the meatballs would be great as a snack with a bit of Tabasco and a glass of very cold beer on a summer day.

A bit of a warning, though: all that cheese melting in the oven will smell so good you’ll want to dive in as soon as the meatballs are ready – trust me on that. :)

Beef, lemon and pecorino meatballs
slightly adapted from the delicious Olive magazine

400g beef mince
½ red onion, grated
1 garlic clove, minced
finely grated zest of ½ lemon
handful fresh oregano leaves, chopped
30g finely grated pecorino
salt and freshly ground black pepper – I used ½ teaspoon of salt, be careful because pecorino is already salty

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Line a large baking sheet with a double layer of foil. Brush the foil with vegetable oil.
Place the beef, onion, garlic, zest, oregano, pecorino, salt and pepper in a large bowl and mix to combine (I prefer to use my hand to do that). Shape mixture into balls (the job becomes easier if you lightly wet the palms of your hands). Place the meatballs onto the prepared sheet and bake until golden and cooked through (about 20 minutes).
Serve with tomato sauce or whatever strikes your fancy. :)

Makes about 18

Leek meatballs and what "Breaking Bad" and "Sons of Anarchy" have in common

One of the many reasons why I love Breaking Bad is that the show never compromised – I never felt like something was being done to please the audience, or that something had been suddenly changed to give us a happy ending. I love it when TV shows don’t take the coward route just so the viewers can feel less shocked – for instance, I might not like GoT but I truly admire the courage of the people behind it.

Now that I have finished watching season 1 of the excellent Sons of Anarchy I feel that this is not the coward kind of show, which makes me love it even more - apparently the people behind it don’t compromise either so season 2, here I go, and as soon as possible.

These meatballs, with a huge amount of leeks combined with the beef, were a wonderful surprise: incredibly light in texture, easy to make, delicious and great to have in the freezer (they can go to the oven still frozen, just bake them for a little bit longer), they might not be your typical meatballs but are certainly worth trying.

I might not accept silly, coward TV shows but I’m more than willing to accept meatballs made with more leeks than beef, especially when they taste this good. :)

Leek meatballs
slightly adapted from the über beautiful Jerusalem: A Cookbook

450g leeks, trimmed
300g beef mince
1 fat garlic clove, minced
1 egg
90g breadcrumbs
salt and freshly ground black pepper
handful of parsley leaves, chopped

Cut the leeks into slices, rinse well, and steam them for about 20 minutes until completely soft. Drain and leave to cool. Squeeze any residual water using a colander.
Pulse the leeks in food processor to chop, but don’t turn them into a paste. Transfer to a large bowl and add the beef, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper and parsley. Mix to combine, then try to shape the mixture into balls – the job becomes easier if you lightly wet the palms of your hands. If the mixture is too wet, add 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs and mix again. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and brush the foil lightly with oil. Place the meatballs onto the foil and bake until golden and cooked through (about 30 minutes). Serve immediately.

The uncooked meatballs can be frozen for up to 1 month.

Makes about 25

Predictions and beef stew - or according to my husband, THE beef stew

Years ago I read an article on how the 2012 Oscars would be about the battle between Glenn Close and Meryl Streep, for Albert Nobbs and The Iron Lady respectively. Months went by, not everyone was that thrilled with Glenn’s performance (I adore her, think she should have two Oscars already but haven’t seen the movie yet), Viola Davis rose up to the occasion, becoming Meryl’s main opponent, and the latter took home the statue even though it should have gone to Rooney Mara’s hands.

Months ago I read another article about Oscar predictions, on how the 2014 Award would hold the duel between Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman. Well, that never happened: Diana tanked big time and apparently Grace of Monaco is taking the same route.

The moment I saw the first released photo of Daniel Day Lewis in character as Lincoln I knew for sure he would sweep each and every award out there, and I have the feeling Steve Carell will do the same with Foxcatcher – you can come back here months from now and either congratulate me or make fun of me. :D

Predicting Oscar winners can be a tricky thing, but predicting if a dish will turn out good is a lot easier: as I cooked this beef stew, crisping the bacon first, then browning the beef, then sweating the vegetables –
building layers of flavor, as Jamie Oliver would say – I knew it would taste amazing, and it did. What I couldn’t have imagined, however, was that my husband would call this the best beef stew he’d ever had – that was a surprise, and a very nice one. <3 Beef stew, or according to my husband, THE beef stew
slightly adapted from Do-Ahead Dinners: How to Feed Friends and Family Without the Frenzy

½ large onion
1 medium carrot, peeled
1 small stick of celery
2 garlic cloves, peeled
olive oil
70g bacon in small cubes
500g round steak in bite sized pieces
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons crushed canned tomatoes
2/3 cup (160ml) red wine – not your cheapest, not your best
2 tablespoons water
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh oregano, + a few leaves extra for serving

Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F. Place the onion, carrot, celery and garlic in a food processor and process until finely chopped. Set aside.
Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large ovenproof pan and fry the bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon. Put the beef and flour in a freezer bag along with a good pinch of salt and pepper and give the bag a vigorous shake to coat the meat. In batches, brown the beef all over on a high heat and remove to a bowl (place it in the same bowl of the bacon and avoid excess washing up). :)
Reduce the heat and add the butter, followed shortly by the vegetables and another pinch of salt and pepper. Gently cook, stirring occasionally, until softened – about 10 minutes. Return the meat to the pan along with the bacon, tomato purée, wine, water and herbs. Bring to a boil, cover and pop in the oven for 2 hours (check after 1 hour and add water if necessary). Taste the sauce for seasoning and serve – if not serving at once, cool completely and refrigerate.

I refrigerated it overnight and it tasted even more delicious; just let the saucepan come to room temperature, add a splash of water and reheat it over low heat.

Serves 2 (with some leftovers)

Stuffed cabbage parcels - different from the ones my mom used to make

Still on the changing of tastes subject, there are foods nowadays that I adore that I didn’t as a kid (or as even a young adult). I’ve written about it already, but these cabbage parcels made me think about it again because my mom used to make a version of them when I was little and I simply hated it. You might think that I had issues with the dish because I was a kid and kids hate veggies but, that was not it – I would eat a bowl of raw cabbage, just drizzled with lime juice and sprinkled with salt. The problem to me was that the rolls were mushy and watery, and the stuffing (made with a mix of rice and beef mince) would become a compact rock inside the cabbage leaves – and my mom was an excellent cook, which makes me feel sorry for everyone else eating cabbage rolls made that way. :S

These cabbage rolls, however, a recipe a slightly adapted from Anna Del Conte, are a total different story, and that is why I felt like making them as soon as I read the recipe: instead of rice, the mince in the filling is paired with sausage and parmesan – off to a good start already, right? And I added a healthy handful of parsley because everything tastes better with fresh herbs. Then the rolls are baked instead of cooked in water in a pressure cooker – another great step to avoid a watery dish. And, to make it all even tastier, there’s tomato sauce involved, and I’m a sucker for anything with tomato sauce.

The cabbage rolls turned out delicious and to me this has become THE way of cooking them – my husband, who also grew up with cabbage rolls made the other way, loved them, too. :)

Stuffed cabbage parcels
from the always mouthwatering Delicious UK

400g green cabbage, outer leaves discarded (or kept for another dish)
350g lean minced beef
2 sausages, skins removed, crumbled
3 tablespoons grated parmesan
1 large egg
salt and freshly ground black pepper
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
30g white bread, crusts removed
5 tablespoons whole milk
1 clove
generous handful parsley leaves, chopped
2 garlic cloves, halved
olive oil for greasing
4 very ripe tomatoes
25g unsalted butter

Cut off the core end of the cabbage, then gently unfold and separate the leaves. Wash them.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add the cabbage leaves, then blanch for 3 minutes. Remove them carefully from the water using a slotted spoon and put in a single layer on a double thickness of kitchen paper.
Filling: in a large bowl, combine the beef, sausage meat, parmesan and egg. Season with salt and pepper, the nutmeg and mix to combine. In a small saucepan, place the bread, milk and clove and cook over low heat, stirring, until the bread has absorbed the milk. Discard the clove and tip the mixture on the bowl with the meat, mixing to combine. Season again if necessary, then mix in the parsley.
Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Set aside a shallow large heatproof dish (one that can hold the cabbage bundles without overlapping) and rub it with the 1 clove of garlic (set aside – you’ll use it again in this recipe) and some olive oil. Pat the cabbage leaves dry with kitchen paper, then remove the tough center stalk. Place 1 heaped tablespoon of stuffing in the middle of each leaf, then roll into bundles, tucking under the ends. Place the bundles side by side on the prepared dish. Halve the tomatoes, remove the seeds and place them in a food processor with the garlic cloves (the one you rubbed the dish with, too), salt and pepper. Whiz until pureed and pour over the cabbage. Dot the bundles with the butter, cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Serve immediately.

Serves 4 – with this amount of filling I got 16 cabbage bundles

Baked moussaka eggplants and understanding references

I was listening to an FM radio station weeks ago and when they started playing Katy Perry’s “Roar” it suddenly hit me: her teenage fans don’t understand the references on her song, do they? I don’t think they do because they’re not old enough for that.

I don’t mean to be cranky - I don’t get tons of references either (and it’s pure joy when I do get them). :) It’s just that sometimes we might let something nice go unnoticed because of our lack of reference, which is such a pity. I guess that because of the blog and all these years of reading and being curious about food I immediately felt like making this recipe when I saw it – otherwise I would probably not pay much attention to a dish called “moussaka”.

These stuffed eggplants were a hit at home – my husband and I loved them, and a plus is that they’re easy to make. I replaced the passata called for in the recipe for tomato sauce I’d made the night before (using canned tomatoes and lots of fresh basil, thyme and oregano) and I think that made the dish even tastier.

Baked moussaka eggplants
slightly adapted from the delicious Taste Magazine (I got a digital subscription through zinio.com)

2 small (about 500g total) eggplants, halved lengthways
1 ½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ onion, finely chopped
1 fat garlic clove, crushed and finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons dried oregano
250g beef mince
¼ cup red wine
½ cup tomato passata*
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
50g sourdough, chopped – better if stale
50g grated fresh mozzarella
30g feta, crumbled or grated
basil leaves, to serve

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Line a roasting pan (large enough to hold the 4 eggplant halves side by side) with foil.
Using a sharp knife and a spoon, scoop out the eggplant flesh leaving a 1cm border. Finely chop the flesh. Place the shells on the prepared pan, brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes or until it starts to soften.
In a large saucepan, heat ½ tablespoon of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for2 minutes or until soft. Stir in the chopped eggplant and cook for 3 minutes or until tender. Stir in the garlic, cook until fragrant, then stir in the cinnamon and half the oregano. Transfer to a bowl.
Heat 1 teaspoon of the remaining olive oil in the same saucepan. Add the beef and cook until brown. Return onion mixture to the saucepan, stir in wine and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the passata and vinegar, season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes or until thickened. Divide the mixture among the eggplant shells, cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. In the meantime, place the bread, cheeses, remaining oregano and olive oil in a small bowl and mix to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove the foil, spread the cheese mixture over the eggplant and bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until topping is golden. Sprinkle with the basil and serve.

* I’d made tomato sauce (using canned tomatoes and lots of fresh basil, thyme and oregano) the day before and used it instead of the passata

Serves 2

Beef meatloaf with spaghetti sauce

Jamie’s Money Saving Meals hasn’t been aired here in Brazil yet but luckily for me there are some episodes available on You Tube – I have watched six of them (not sure if there are more) and really liked the concept: the food looks delicious and not at all hard to prepare, and when I saw him making meatloaf with tomato sauce and spaghetti I knew exactly what would be the next Sunday lunch at my house. :)

I found the recipe online and tweaked it a bit to make it more what my husband and I like – we’re not huge pork eaters, though we wouldn’t want to live in a world without bacon. :) The meatloaf goes really well with the pasta and leftovers (if there are any) are delicious in sandwich form (I like mine with a spoonful of Dijon mustard).

Beef meatloaf with spaghetti sauce
slightly adapted from here

Meatloaf:
3 carrots
extra-virgin olive oil
½ onion, finely chopped
500g beef mince
60g fresh breadcrumbs
1 heaping teaspoon dried oregano
handful of fresh oregano, chopped
handful of fresh parsley leaves, chopped
30g feta cheese, grated
1 large egg
a few drops of Tabasco
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Sauce and pasta:
½ tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 x 700ml jar of passata
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and freshly ground black pepper
handful of fresh basil leaves, torn
handful of fresh oregano leaves

For assembling the dish:
30g Cheddar cheese
400g dried spaghetti

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Peel the carrots, quarter lengthways, then place in a 20x30cm (8x12in) roasting tray, drizzle with the oil and bake for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in a small saucepan and cook the onions, adding a pinch of salt, until translucent. Cool. Transfer to a large bowl, add the beef, breadcrumbs, dried and fresh oregano, parsley, feta, egg, Tabasco, salt and pepper. Mix lightly with your hands (don’t overmix or the meatloaf will be tough), then shape into a loaf (roughly 20cm long). Make a space in the middle of the tray with the carrots and add the meatloaf. Cook for a further 25 minutes, or until the meatloaf is golden and cooked through.
While the meatloaf is in the oven, make the sauce: in a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and the dried oregano and cook until slightly golden, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the passata (with a splash of water from the empty jar), the sugar, season with salt and pepper and cook for 15-20 minutes or until slightly thickened. Stir in the herbs, cover and remove from the heat.

Have a large saucepan of salted boiling water ready (for the spaghetti).

Remove the tray from the oven and carefully pour the sauce around the meatloaf. Top the meatloaf with a spoonful of tomato sauce, then the grated Cheddar and pop the meatloaf back into the oven for a further 5 to 10 minutes, or until golden and delicious, and the sauce is bubbling. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti according to packet instructions, then drain. Serve it with the sauce in the baking tray and the meatloaf.

Serves 4

Meatballs – Jamie’s and mine

I’ve been making these meatballs for so long I cannot remember when the first time was – they’re one of my husband’s favorites (and he doesn’t have that many favorite dishes). They’re delicious with both pasta and rice, but lately Joao’s been eating them in sandwich form – very Joey Tribbiani. :)

Adapted from one of Jamie’s recipes, found on this blog.

Meatballs – Jamie’s and mine
adapted from The Naked Chef

500g ground beef
2 teaspoons dried oregano
a couple of splashes of Tabasco
1 teaspoon table salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste (I use a lot)
½ teaspoon garlic infused olive oil (or use regular olive oil + 1 garlic clove, minced)
1 large egg
1/3 cup homemade breadcrumbs + about 1/3 cup extra to roll the meatballs
½ large onion, processed*
generous handful of flat leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Line a large baking sheet with a double layer of foil. Brush the foil with vegetable oil.
Place the beef, dried oregano, Tabasco, salt, black pepper, olive oil (and garlic, if using), egg, 1/3 cup breadcrumbs , onion and parsley in a large bowl and mix to combine (I prefer to use my hand to do that). Try to shape some of the mixture into a ball – if too wet, add 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs and mix again. Grab 1 ½ tablespoons of the mixture and shape into compact balls (the job becomes easier if you lightly wet the palms of your hands). Roll the meatballs in the extra breadcrumbs. Place the meatballs onto the prepared sheet and bake until firm and cooked through (about 40 minutes).
Serve with tomato sauce.

* I’ve tried this recipe with chopped, processed and grated onions and to me the best way of using them is processed – chopped with a knife the onion pieces are too large (which makes rolling the meatballs more difficult) and grated the onion becomes too wet

Makes about 25

Rolled flank steak

Discovering new food blogs is always an interesting thing. I love going through their archives, checking texts, recipes and photos, getting to know a little about that foodie – who will probably become a blogger friend.

One of my latest “findings” is packed with beautiful photos and delicious recipes, and the girl behind it is a huge Martha fan, like me. I’m talking about Mimi.

She is hosting an event called “Martha Mondays” and I really liked her idea. One of the rules was to cook a recipe from this gallery and, to please my dear husband – who has been eating tons of chicken and fish lately because of me – I chose a beef dish.

If I keep making dishes like this, Joao will end up joining the Martha fan club as well. :)

Rolled flank steak

680g (1½ lb) flank steak - I used a different cut
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ cup (57g/2oz) shredded mozzarella cheese – I used the yellow mozzarella we have here, made from cow’s milk
4 scallions, sliced
¼ cup (57g/2oz) roasted red peppers, cut into thin strips
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 230ºC/450ºF with rack in center. Between two sheets of plastic wrap, pound steak to 1.25cm (½-inch) thickness with a meat mallet or heavy skillet. Using a sharp knife, score the steak on one side in a cross-hatched pattern. In a large bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, and garlic. Place the steak inside and marinate at least 20 minutes or up to overnight.

Remove steak from marinade. Lay steak on cutting board, scored side down, with a short end facing edge of work surface. Cover steak with cheese, scallions, and peppers, leaving 1.25cm (½-inch) border on the long sides and 5cm (2-inch) border at the far short end. Season with salt and pepper. Starting from closest side, roll up tightly. Using kitchen twine, tie steak crosswise.
Season with salt and pepper.

Place, seam side down in a lightly oiled baking dish or on a rimmed baking sheet, and roast until juices run clear, 35 to 40 minutes for medium rare. Let rest 10 minutes, and remove string before slicing.

Serves 4 – I used a 400g steak and my husband ate 80% of it. :)

Rolled flank steak

Tyler and Agdah's meatballs

I’m sure that most of you have your favorite meatball recipe – perhaps even a family classic. But these were such a hit at home I had to share them with you.

My dear fellow Brazilian blogger Adgah posted these meatballs a while ago and they looked so delicious – the exact kind of food Joao is crazy for. She adapted this recipe, from Tyler Florence, and I followed her version (which is the one I’m posting here).
I had a few myself and the mix of cooked onions, parsley and basil gives the meatballs a wonderful flavor – not to mention that melting cheese is always a winner in my book.

And I was right about Joao – he loved these.

Tyler and Agdah's meatballs

olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, smashed*
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh parsley leaves
a handful of basil, chopped
1 cup (240ml) milk
2 very thick slices firm white bread, crusts removed – I used whole wheat bread
1kg ground beef
1 large egg
1 cup freshly grated parmesan
salt and freshly ground black pepper
200g mozzarella cheese, cut into chunks – I used the yellow mozzarella we have here, made from cow’s milk and used as pizza topping

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in an ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and parsley and cook until the vegetables are soft but still translucent, about 10 minutes. Take the pan off the heat and let cool.

Pour enough milk over the bread in a bowl to moisten and let it soak while the onions are cooling. Combine the meats in a large bowl. Add the egg and parmesan and season generously with salt and pepper. Use your hands to squeeze the excess milk out of the bread and add that to the bowl along with the cooled onion mixture. (Hang onto the pan - you'll need it to cook the meatballs.) Gently combine all the ingredients with your hands or with a spoon until just mixed together. Don't overwork or the meatballs will be tough. Divide into 10 equal pieces and shape them into 10 nice looking meatballs.

Preheat the oven to 175ºC/350ºF.

Heat a bit of olive oil in the frying pan over medium heat and brown the meatballs on all sides, about 10 minutes – be careful not to tear them apart. Put them into a baking dish and bake until the meatballs are cooked through, about 15 minutes.

* instead of the cloves, I used a garlic infused olive oil I made a couple of weeks ago (I got the idea from one episode of "Nigella Express")

Makes 10 – I used 1 heaping tablespoon of beef mixture to format each meatball and got 40; half of them were eaten fresh and the others were frozen (while still raw).

Sfiha

Besides the cake, I made savory snacks for the boys’ birthday get together at my house last month. Simple yet good food, easy and quick to put together, because they’d arrive at lunch time and I would not have much time to cook. So I went for mini carne louca sandwiches and sfihas.

As much as it sounds like a big cliché, Brazil is a melting pot and we have been influenced by many different cultures. Our food is a great example of that. Italian, Portuguese, Japanese – you’ll find all those flavors in our menu. Not to mention the dishes we inherited from the indians (Brazil’s first habitants) and from the slaves that came from Africa centuries ago.

There’s also a large Syrian-Lebanese community here (at least in Sao Paulo), so sfihas are extremely popular. These are so delicious, I’m sure you’ll love them – I did, even though I can’t stand beef. And my Italian/Portuguese/German family loved them, too.

Sfiha

Filling:
½ kg (17 ½ oz) ground beef
2 ripe tomatoes, seeds removed, finely diced
½ onion, finely diced
½ cup chopped parsley
2 teaspoons salt
juice of 1 lime
freshly ground black pepper*

Dough:
30g fresh yeast
500ml warm milk – I used 1% fat
3 tablespoons sugar
1 ½ teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
5 ½ cups (about 780g) all-purpose flour – I used only 730g

Start with the filling: place all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well until smooth. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 220ºC/428ºF.

Now, the dough: place the yeast in a large bowl and add the milk. Mix well with a fork until the yeast is dissolved. Add the sugar, salt and oil. Start adding the flour, gradually, mixing with a wooden spoon until a smooth dough forms. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let it rest for 5 minutes. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it for about 5 minutes. Take small portions of dough – the size of a walnut – and make them into balls. Place onto a floured baking sheet, cover with a kitchen towel and set aside for another 5 minutes.
Using your fingers – I used a rolling pin, it was a lot easier – open each dough ball into a circle. Place ½ tablespoon of beef filling** into the center of the circle. Fold in the lower third of the circle towards the center of the sfiha, then the left and right thirds of the circle, forming a triangle. Pinch the ends together to seal the filling inside.
Place the sfihas, 1 inch apart, onto an oiled baking sheet.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden.

If you prefer your sfihas softer, place them inside a pot right after they’re out of the oven and put the lid on (I did not do that).
You can also use an egg wash on the sfihas before baking them, which I think is completely unnecessary.

* the original recipe calls for 1 teaspoon bahrat; I didn’t have any in my pantry, that’s why I used black pepper instead.

** the ground beef is used raw in the filling and releases water and blood after being mixed with the other ingredients. To prevent the dough from being watery, I placed the filling inside a colander over a bowl and squeezed the small portions of filling between my fingers to get rid of any excess liquid before putting them in each dough circle.

Makes 60

Trivial food - steak with herbs

A dear friend of mine, who happens to have a lovely blog written in Portuguese, asked the other bloggers about the trivial food they cook at home.

I have lunch close to work and my dinner is always the same, so I though I should share one dish that João loves - beef. I mean, steak - he'll gladly have it everyday.

To change things a little, once the steak is grilled, I remove it from the pan and add a bit of butter. When it's melted, I add a generous amount of chopped fresh herbs - I usually use parsley, chives and basil or rosemary. Once everything is well combined I pour it over the steak. I serve it with sliced onions browned in olive oil, rice and salad.

It's not an actual recipe but it's a hit with my picky husband! :)

Giant stuffed steak

I was looking for something on my other blog archives when I saw a stuffed pork loin I made last year. Then I decided to make something similar, using beef instead.
There’s a dish here called “bife à rolê” that my husband likes a lot – steaks are filled with chopped carrots, bacon and green olives, secured with toothpicks and cooked in a simple broth (most people here use a pressure cooker for that). It’s similar to bracciola, except for the tomato sauce.
I created a giant “bife à rolê”, stuffed with farofa and served it with fresh homemade tomato sauce – click here and here if you’re interested in my other recipes with farofa.
Although I thought the farofa had disappeared at the end, João loved this dish.

Giant stuffed steak

450g rump/top sirloin, cut as a very large steak
1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
½ small onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped bacon
2 tablespoons pitted and chopped green olives
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
salt
freshly ground black pepper
boiling water, enough to cover the beef – you may use beef stock if you like, but be careful with the amount of salt
your favorite tomato sauce

Make the farofa: heat olive oil in a small saucepan, over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until golden. Add the onion and cook until golden as well. Add the breadcrumbs, olives and parsley, season with salt and pepper, mix well and remove from heat. Set aside to cool. Place the steak open on a chopping board and season with salt and pepper. Spread the farofa on the center and roll the steak, closing all the sides so the stuffing won’t fall out. Secure with cooking string:

In a large saucepan, heat butter over high heat until it’s melted. Add the stuffed steak and cook until all the sides are evenly and nicely browned.
Add the boiling water (or stock, if using), season with a bit of salt, close the lid and cook until the beef is tender – I used a pressure cooker (in a hurry!).
Remove from the pan, cut the string and remove it.
Heat the tomato sauce and spread it over the steak.
Slice it when serving.

Serves 2 very well, with rice, potatoes or a nice salad.