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Moussaka

Sounds all posh and expensive, but really it's not.

Ingredients:-

750g/1lb 10½oz Lamb mince (Beef and Pork worked in ours)

1 Onion, finely chopped

2 Garlic cloves, grated

1 tsp dried Oregano

1½ tsp dried Mint

½ Cinnamon stick. grated

1 tbsp plain flour (Gluten free if required)

400g tin chopped Tomatoes

2 tbsp Tomato purée

2 Aubergines, cut into 0.5cm slices

1 tbsp salt, plus extra for seasoning

100ml/3½fl oz olive oil

500g/1lb 2oz Maris Piper Potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

freshly ground black pepper

For the white sauce:-

Margarine

Flour

Milk

Salt & Pepper

Grated Italian style Cheese

Method:-

(1) Put the Mince, Onion, Garlic, Oregano, Mint, and Cinnamon in a large heavy-based frying pan and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring to break up the meat.

(2) Stir in the flour and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Add the Tomatoes and Tomato purée and bring to a simmer. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mince is tender and the sauce has thickened. Season again if needed and set aside.

(3) Meanwhile, place the aubergine slices in a colander and sprinkle with a tablespoon of salt. Set aside for 10 minutes.

(4) Rinse the aubergine slices under cold running water and pat dry with a clean tea towel. Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large heavy-based frying pan and fry the aubergines for 2–3 minutes on each side, adding more oil when necessary. Remove from the pan and set aside to drain on kitchen paper.

(5) Cook the potatoes in boiling water for 5 minutes, then drain in a colander under running water until cold.

(6) Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.

(7) To make the white sauce, melt the butter in a large saucepan and stir in the flour. Cook for a few seconds, then gradually stir in the milk. Add half the Italian style Cheese. Simmer the sauce gently for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring regularly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

(8) Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the sauce to cool. When cooled, stir in the egg.

(9) Spoon one-third of the meat sauce into a shallow ovenproof dish large enough to hold 2.5 litres. Cover loosely with a third of the potatoes and then a third of the aubergines, just arrange them roughly on top. Repeat the layers twice more, finishing with the aubergines. Pour over the white sauce, making sure it covers everything in a thick, even layer. Sprinkle with the remaining grated Cheese. Bake for 35–45 minutes, or until deep golden-brown and bubbling.

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Why is cooking from scratch better? Our opinion. Eat well on universal credit

Now this how you do Food Journalism! Article from The Guardian (Opens in a new Tab)

This is a beautifully written article and it highlights many issues.

However I’d like to add to it a bit if I / We may?

If you can’t be bothered reading - “Cook From Scratch”……..

Why do we cook everything from scratch? There are various reasons:-

(1) Cost. Generally I buy the most costly ingredient first, usually the Meat or Fish (Protein Component). We then assess what ingredients we have available and the sort of dish we intend to create. I then nip off and get whatever additional items we need. This might seem like a very time intensive way to deal with cooking / shopping? Well it is probably inefficient, but we have a number of supermarkets and independent shops within walking distance, for which we are grateful.

(2) Ingredient Control. Sue has Celiac Disease and over the last year or so has developed a Lactose Intolerance. They unfortunately often go hand-in-hand. So anything with the slightest trace of Wheat is banished from the flat. Dairy can be mitigated by Sue taking a Lactase Enzyme tablet or two before eating anything which contains Lactose. But really, it’s much easier to just not eat something which you know is going to make you ill.

(3) Quality of Ingredients. Processed food in a plastic tub, frozen, with a film which you prick….. Come on guys “Food Warehouse” are not exactly marketing their food as healthy, now are they? There are frozen meal businesses which offer high quality food, but it’s generally out of our budget.

(4) Enjoyment. We actually enjoy cooking together. Sue can’t get out of the flat without assistance, however as a couple of foodie with histories including cheffing and butchery it’s no great surprise that we enjoy the process of cooking a good meal on a budget together.

(5) Personal Engagement. When I have gathered the ingredients for a meal and we have created a recipe and cooked it, it’s often fun for us to natter about how it tasted, what we could do next time to improve it etc.

You don’t get any of the above when you microwave frozen ‘stuff’ after bursting the film with a fork.

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Moussaka

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