AUGUST 2017FOODTOLOVE.COM.AU 147
Vegetable cacciatore
SERVES4 (WITH LEFTOVERS)PREP AND
COOK TIME40 MINUTES
⅓ cup (80ml) extra virgin olive oil
1 large (200g) brown onion,
chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
6 (400g) flat mushrooms, cut into
1cm thick slices
2 tablespoons plain flour
2 medium (600g) eggplants,
cutinto3cmpieces
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
½ cup (125ml) red wine
810g can crushed tomatoes
2 medium (240g) zucchini, chopped
⅓ cup (50g) pitted Kalamata olives
400g small spiral pasta
½ cup loosely packed fresh
flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 In a large, deep frying pan over medium-
high heat, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil.
Cook onion, stirring, for about 5 minutes
or until fragrant and translucent. Add the
garlic; cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove
from the pan to a bowl and set aside. Heat
another 1 tablespoon of the oil in the same
pan and add mushrooms. Cook, stirring,
until golden brown – they will release
some liquid and become soft, then the
liquid will evaporate. Cook to this point,
then transfer to a bowl.
2 Place the flour in a large bowl and
season with salt and freshly ground black
pepper.Tosstheeggplantinflourand
shake off any excess. Pour the remaining
oil into the same pan and swirl to coat.
Place the eggplant in the pan and turn for
about 5 minutes or until starting to brown.
Add the tomato paste and oregano leaves,
and stir for 2 minutes. Add the wine; cook,
scraping the browned pieces from the
base of the pan and simmer for 2 minutes
or until reduced by half. Add tomatoes,
zucchini and onion mixture; simmer,
covered, for 5 minutes. Return mushrooms
to pan with the olives; simmer, covered,
for another 5 minutes. The sauce should
be rich and thick, and the vegetables soft.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3 Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large
saucepan of boiling well-salted water until
al dente – tender but with some bite. Drain
pasta; place in a large shallow serving bowl.
4 Pour the sauce over the pasta and
scatter with parsley.
Sauce suitable to freeze. Not suitable
to microwave.Slow-cooked lamb with dates
SERVES4-6 PREP AND COOK TIME4 HOURS½ cup (75g) plain flour
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons salt
¼ cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
8 small (2.4kg) Frenched lamb shanks
1 bunch fresh coriander
5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled, sliced
2 medium (300g) brown onions, halved
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 small fresh red chillies, stems removed
1 litre (4 cups) beef stock
810g can crushed tomatoes
1 cup (230g) pitted dried dates, chopped
coarsely
¼ cup (35g) slivered almonds, toasted
¼ cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
couscous, to serve1 Combine the flour, cumin, coriander,
cinnamon and salt in a shallow dish. Heat
1tablespoonoftheoilinalarge
flameproof casserole or saucepan over
medium-high heat. Toss the lamb shanks,
onebyone,intotheflourmixturetocoat
thoroughly. Shake off the excess flour.Julie’s tips
This casserole can also be made in a
slow cooker. Reduce stock to 2 cups.
Transfer mixture in Step 3 to a slow
cooker, cover and cook on High for
2 hours. Remove lid and cook on
Highforafurther4hours.Orcook
on Low for 8 hours, remove shanks
and transfer liquid to a large saucepan;
boil, uncovered, until thickened.Cook four of the shanks in the pan
for about 5 minutes or until
browned all over. Remove from
the pan. Repeat with another 1
tablespoon of the oil and the
remaining shanks. Reserve the
excess flour mixture. Wipe out the
pan with paper towel and reduce
theheattolow.
2 Meanwhile, wash the coriander
well. Scrape the roots. Refrigerate
the leaves for another use. Place
the coriander roots and stems,
ginger, onion, garlic and chillies
into the bowl of a food processor
and blitz to a smooth paste. Place
the remaining oil in the pan and
add the coriander mixture. Stir
with a spatula for about 3 minutes
or until mixture dries out, starts to
crackle and becomes fragrant.
3 Whisk the reserved flour
mixture with ¼ cup of the beef stock in a
medium bowl until smooth. Whisk in
remaining stock. Whisk the stock mixture
into the pan. Stir in the tomatoes and
dates until combined. Return the lamb
to the pan and make sure all the meat is
submerged. Place the lid on the pan and
bring just to the boil over medium-high
heat. Reduce heat to medium-low. Remove
lid; simmer gently for 2 hours or until the
meat is falling off the bone. Rearrange the
shanks periodically to make sure they
cook evenly and stir the base of the pan
to prevent sticking and burning. Once
the lamb is cooked, if the sauce needs to
thicken, remove the shanks and simmer
the liquid, uncovered, until thickened as
much as you like. Season to taste.
4 Scatter lamb with almonds and mint
leaves. Serve with couscous, if desired.
Suitable to freeze. Not suitable
to microwave.