Time to slow down and enjoy cooking again
The world is moving so fast any more.
Fast cars.
Fast food.
Fast times.
Instant this.
Instant that.
Sometimes, you just need to slow things down a bit. What better place than in the kitchen. I find the art of cooking to be very enjoyable and relaxing.
The best thing about the cooking I do is that there are no exact measurements. A pinch of this, a dash of that. If I'm missing one ingredient, I will substitute something else. These are foods that were made by women on farms of long ago. They didn't follow an exact recipe and neither do I.
So, you can slow down and not worry about getting everything perfect.
It won't look pretty on the plate, but it will taste absolutely delicious and it will be good for you too.
Fast cars.
Fast food.
Fast times.
Instant this.
Instant that.
Sometimes, you just need to slow things down a bit. What better place than in the kitchen. I find the art of cooking to be very enjoyable and relaxing.
The best thing about the cooking I do is that there are no exact measurements. A pinch of this, a dash of that. If I'm missing one ingredient, I will substitute something else. These are foods that were made by women on farms of long ago. They didn't follow an exact recipe and neither do I.
So, you can slow down and not worry about getting everything perfect.
It won't look pretty on the plate, but it will taste absolutely delicious and it will be good for you too.
Nan's Meatloaf
- 500 gram Beef mince
- 200 gram Pork mince
-- OR --
200 gram Sausage meat - 1 large Onion chopped
- 1 tablespoon Capers drained and finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon Tomato puree, concentrate
-- OR --
1 tablespoon Catsup - 1 teaspoon mustard
- 30 grams Water biscuits (saltines)
-- OR --
6 Oatcakes - 1 Egg
- 4 - 6 slices bacon
Method:
Mix the meats together. Add all the remaining ingredients, except the bacon.Form into 1 large or 6 small loaves. Place in a deep baking tray and cover with the smoked bacon. When I put the meatloaf into a casserole dish, I always make a trench all the way around the outer edge then drain off some of the fat half way through cooking.
Cover with foil for the first 60 minutes.
Bake at Gas mark 6 for 75 - 90 minutes, until completely cooked and meat runs clear.
Note: Use any combination of minced meat totalling 700 - 750 grams.
Note: Use up to 1/4 cup any type bread or cheese biscuit crumbs; I like to use matzo meal.
Variations:
Add barbecue sauce instead of catsup for a BBQ version
Add Italian seasoning to the mix and top with bolognaise sauce and parmesan cheese before baking .
Yields: 6 Servings
Serve with a sauce made with mayo, tomato puree, celery salt, and a dash of Tabasco. - Or, combine mayo with diced chipotle chillies in adobo sauce for a spicier sauce
Support the Slow Food Movement
Slow it down a notch, take some time to enjoy your food. Then let the rest of the world know.
Serve up your meatloaf with some freshly steamed vegetables
Nan's Spaghetti Bolognaise
This is a great way to "hide" vegetables from reluctant eaters.
- 3 slices smoked streaky bacon, chopped
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 large pepper, seeded and chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 large carrots, chopped
- 1 courgette, chopped (optional)
- 1 aubergine, chopped (optional)
- 4 - 6 large mushrooms, chopped
- 400 gm beef mince, extra lean
- 1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
- 1 Tablespoon concentrated tomato puree
- 1 400gm chopped tomatoes
- 1 400gm creamed tomatoes
- 1 small wineglass red wine
- 1 small glass water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 inch parmesan cheese, from rind
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 12 black olives, pitted and chopped
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 1 handful fresh oregano, finely chopped
- 1 handful fresh basil, finely chopped
- 1 handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
Method
Using a deep heavy pot, slowly cook the chopped bacon in half the olive oil until it is browned and crisp.Add the onion, pepper, garlic, courgette, and aubergine and sauté until the onion is soft and translucent.
Remove the vegetables and add a bit more olive oil if needed.
Bring up to heat again and cook off the mince until it is browned. Add the crushed fennel, chilli flakes and concentrated tomato puree and stir for a minute or two.
Add the vegetables back to the pot. Add the remaining ingredients, except the oregano, basil, and parsley. Bring up to boil. Decrease heat, cover, and leave to simmer for at least 30 minutes. The longer it can be left to simmer, the better.
Just before serving, take off the heat and stir in the finely chopped herbs. Remove any thyme sprigs.
Serve over spaghetti or jacket potatoes. Use it as a filling for omelettes. Or it can be used as a pizza topping.
Freezes well.
Learn more about the slow food movement
Slow Food Nation: Why Our Food Should Be Good, Clean, And Fair
Amazon Price: $15.30 (as of 01/06/2010) 
Bob Warden's Slow Food Fast
Amazon Price: (as of 01/06/2010)
Slow Food Nation's Come to the Table: The Slow Food Way of Living
Amazon Price: $19.77 (as of 01/06/2010)
Slow Cooker Comfort Food: 275 Soul-Satisfying Recipes
Amazon Price: $18.21 (as of 01/06/2010)
Slow Food: The Case for Taste (Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History)
Amazon Price: $8.47 (as of 01/06/2010)
Santa Fe Beef Enchiladas
My husband and I both like our Mexican food to be somewhat hot, so adjust the amount of chillies in your own recipe for your own taste.
Because this cooks slowly for several hours you can use cheaper cuts of beef with it. I tend to use braising steak.
You will also notice from pictures that I tend not to follow my own recipes.
Because this cooks slowly for several hours you can use cheaper cuts of beef with it. I tend to use braising steak.
You will also notice from pictures that I tend not to follow my own recipes.
- 1 pound boneless beef
- 1 tin tomatoes
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, crushed and minced
- 2 large red chilli peppers, seeded and chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 heaped tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/8 tsp ground chilli
- 1 tomato tin of water
- 6 - 8 corn tortillas
- 1 cup grated extra mature cheddar cheese
Method
Combine beef, tomatoes, chillies, onion, garlic, salt, cumin, turmeric, and ground dried chilli in a large ovenproof saucepan, over a moderate flame. Add a can full of water.Heat to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and place in a low heat over (gas mark 2 -3) for 3 - 4 hours, until tender. Add more liquid if necessary.
Remove from heat, cool.
Remove beef, separate into shreds with a fork, set aside, reduce liquid slightly if needed.
Spoon a few tablespoons of the sauce into the meat and 2 - 3 spoonfuls into a 9x13x2-inch baking dish.
Place a small bit of beef onto each tortilla. Roll up and place into baking dish.
Pour the remaining sauce over the top.
Top with grated cheese.
Bake at about 350F for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.
Garnish with sour cream, olives, and spring onions if you wish.
Beef Enchiladas
Our Salsa Recipe
We dish up these enchiladas with soured cream and salsa on the side.
Mix together in a bowl:
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 red jalapeno, seeded & finely chopped
1/2 sweet pepper, finely chopped
2 tomatoes, cut out the seeds and finely chop
juice of 1 lime
large pinch of salt
Taste and adjust seasoning and lime as desired.
Helpful links
Learn more about the slow food movement.
And a useful link for converting any ingredients from metric to imperial, and oven temperatures from gas mark to fahrenheit, or vice versa.
And a useful link for converting any ingredients from metric to imperial, and oven temperatures from gas mark to fahrenheit, or vice versa.
- SlowFood UK
- Web page for the UK slow food movement.
- Slow Food International | good, clean and fair food
- Slow Food is a non-profit, eco-gastronomic member-supported organization that was founded in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people's dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world.
- Slow Food USA
- Webpage for Slow Food USA
- Online Conversion - Various Cooking Conversions and Calculators
- All the cooking conversation help you will ever need. I use this page a lot.
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I'm glad you stopped by
submit
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Reply
- BevsPaper BevsPaper Jul 29, 2009 @ 6:32 pm
- Got some great sounding recipes! I make a pretty mean meatloaf...never thought of putting bacon on top. My hubby would like that! My favorite slow meal is to cook chicken and noodles in the crock pot all day. It's very good!
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Reply
- flighty02 flighty02 Jul 9, 2009 @ 6:12 am
- Those enchiladas look great! Welcome to The Cooks Cafe group
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Reply
- mbgphoto mbgphoto Jun 21, 2009 @ 9:37 pm
- This looks great. I especially liked your meatloaf recipe. The bacon seems like a nice touch. 5*
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Reply
- Treasures-By-Brenda Treasures-By-Brenda May 10, 2009 @ 9:35 am
- Welcome to the Culinary Favorites From A to Z group. Don't forget to come back and add your lens to the link list so that it will appear on the group page!
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Reply
- NanLT NanLT Apr 22, 2009 @ 11:41 am | in reply to KimGiancaterino
- Awww -- thank you. For the blessing and the feature.
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The Food For Everyone Foundation's mission is to teach and assist families everywhere to grow successful and sustainable vegetable gardens, and really enjoy the experience.
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