Shepherds pie (but with a variation on the mash!)

I am not quite sure when it became folklore that kids like mash. When my daughter gagged at the sight of mash I thought it was unusual but have since spoken to many parents whose children are the same. Even if you like it, sometimes you feel like a less starchy option or just want a change. 

So this recipe is essentially the meat part of shepherds pie and I freeze it like this to give me the option to choose the topping on the day.   My kids like it with rice, My husband likes it with celeriac gratin. Just because we can never agree on anything in our house my favourite is swede or potato mash (heavily buttered and with tons of pepper).  Cauliflower mash would also work well.   If you are going for some sort of mash you could always add this to the dish before freezing so you have less to do on the day you eat it. 

High quality full fat lamb mince is essential. A glass of red wine adds depth but is not essential. The recipe specifies passata but the resulting dish is not overly tomato tasting. However the passata could swapped either partially or fully for lamb stock if you prefer.  

I am not generally a fan on mushed vegetables but in this recipe using a food processor to get a very finely chopped vegetables does work well. It also makes it easy to disguise the vegetables from picky eaters (I am not just talking about kids here, I know if wives who hide vegetables in their husband's dinners too!) You could even add more carrots or other vegetables such as mushroom or red carrot if you need to up the vegetsble quota. 

(I don't bother getting the special grater attachment out for magimix) I just use normal large blade).

I make at least triple the amounts below in one go and fill the freezer.   

Ingredients 

500g lamb mince 

1 large onion

1 large carrot 

2 sticks celery 

2 cloves of garlic 

1/3 bottle of passata (approximately 250ml)

1/2 tsp dried or fresh chopped rosemary 

Ghee or olive oil for cooking 

Method 

-Peel the carrots, garlic and onion and wash the celery 

-Chop the vegetables in half then process until finely chopped. 

-Add enough ghee or olive oil to cover the base of the pan and on a medium heat cook the vegetables for about ten minutes until softened 

-Add in the mince and stir round, till all the meat is browned 

-Add the rosemary, passata and seasoning 

-Turn down and simmer for half an hour (this develops the taste but you can miss this step out if in a rush and it will still be good) 

Wibbly wobbly jelly

The hardest part of making this dish is sourcing the gelatine sheets!  I buy mine from The Real Food Company in Crewe.  You can also source it from Amazon and even the baking sections of supermarkets (although I would plump for grass fed or organic gelatine, especially if you are making this regularly). 

Making your own jelly is incredibly simple and means you can create something that is yummy but also nutritious and sugar free!  The benefits of gelatine are numerous - it helps to heal the lining of the stomach and is great for nail and hair health. 

I like to use raspberries but any soft fruit will work. If you wish to use pineapple, kiwi, melon or papaya they will need to be cooked into a purée or the enzymes they contain will break down the gelatine. 

I use organic frozen fruit as it is cheaper but fresh would work also. 

If you want to change the quantities below keep a rough ratio of 125 ml liquid to a sheet of gelatine for a soft jelly (served in glass) or 100ml liquid to a sheet of gelatin for a firm jelly that you can turn out of a mould. 

Ingredients 

3 sheets of gelatine 

300g frozen fruit 

2 tbsp of honey (more if very sweet toothed!) 

Method

- Place the fruit in a pan with enough water to cover the base 

- Heat gently so that the fruit breaks down - you can help the process with a potato masher! 

- Once the fruit had disintegrated sieve the mixture into a bowl or jug (use a fine sieve so the seeds do not fall through). You can use the back if a spoon to push the mixture down and extract more liquid.

- Add the honey and stir thoroughly 

- Add filtered water until you have 400ml of mixture 

- Place the gelatine sheets in a large shallow dish and cover with water.  Ensure the sheets are kept separate so they can soften properly 

(During this time return the fruit liquid to the pan and heat very gently so that it stays warm as the liquid needs to be over 35 degrees for the mixture to set) 

- After 5 minutes remove the sheets, squeeze them to remove any excess water and add to the mixture 

- Stir thoroughly ensuring the sheets have fully dissolved 

- Pour the mixture into serving glasses (I also like to add a few slices of strawberry or blueberries)

-Refrigerate for a couple of hours until set.

The 'no it's not soup kids' noodle bowl

We have 'done' soup in our house. After two years of bone broth and soups the kids are rebelling and will only eat tomato soup. The solution to getting the gelatinous goodness of stock into them was either bribery or trickery.  We went for the latter and hey presto 'noodle bowls'. Which definitely in no way resembles any likeness to a concoction of stock, vegetables, chicken and herbs aka soup!

To be fair, it is different in that most of the vegetables are left raw which gives the dish a delicious crunch and leaves you with a holier than thou feeling, (although it is also fab served with a very crisp dry white wine!)

You need to have some chicken stock and cooked meat already so it's perfect for leftovers. It's super quick to prepare and therefore great for weekend lunches.  (We have had it in the evenings too but some people don't tolerate lots of raw food late at night).

What's great is how versatile this dish is as you can choose different vegetables for different people and make the adult version more spicy with the additional chilli.  

As the food is served immediately after meat is added to broth I don't heat it through but if you prefer you can heat it up in the stock - ensuring it is piping hot. 

The ingredients below should serve four. If your are grain free you can serve without the noodles or with courgette noodles.

We use tamari instead of soy as its s gluten free traditionally fermented product  - tastes the same but may be stronger so go easy if you are using it for the first time! 

Ingredients 

2 litres of chicken stock

1tsp Chinese 5 spice

A thumbnail of  ginger, chopped

1large clove garlic, chopped

1/2 red chilli seeded & chopped (optional)

1 1/2 sweet peppers, chopped finely

1 bunch of spring onions finely chopped

1 pak choy 

1 carrot, chopped into thin batons 

Chicken or other left over meat, sliced.

3 bunches buckwheat or rice noodles.

Tamari sauce 

Method 

-Bring the stock and five slice to the boil.  (You can separate this into two pans if you wish to have one 'chillified' and one plain) 

-If you are using rice noodles they can now be cooked in the stock, buckwheat noodles are best cooked in a separate pan, rinsed in cold water and then added to serving dish at end 

- When noodles have couple of minutes to go add the pak choi and the garlic. 

- When the noodles are ready ladle them out into the bowls. Layer the meat and vegetables over the top. Then ladle over the remaining stock to fill up the noodle bowl. 

- Add desired amount of tamari sauce upon serving 

Fak'd bars - raw fruit,seed and nut flapjacks

My kids love Nakd bars and as ready made stuff goes I am happier for them to eat these than biscuits full of trans-fats, sugar and other nasties.  However I like the idea of using less sugar (even if it is natural fruit sugar) and more seeds.  Making your own also allows you to use seeds and nuts that have been previously soaked and dehydrated which reduces the phytic acid levels making them more easily digestible.

This first version went down well but the kids (ever honest) did point out that the commercial bars have cocoa and raisins. I have therefore agreed they may have been slightly misled under the trade description act and will try a cocoa version tomorrow! 

 I used the nut butter for added stickiness and almond flour for extra bulk but both these could be omitted if need be - stick in a handful more dates instead. 

Keep in the fridge so they maintain their shape.  Any crumbly bits would taste fab sprinkled over some natural yoghurt 

Ingredients 

200g pitted dates 

50g almond flour 

3 tbsp coconut oil 

1 tbsp honey 

2 tbsp nut butter (I used crunchy almond butter)

100g sunflower seeds

100g pumpkin seeds 

Method 

Mix the coconut oil, honey, dates and nut butter in the food processor until it makes a sticky paste 

For a chunky bar with whole seeds remove this mixture from the processor and in a bowl, mix in the seeds and flour by hand 

For a more blended taste add the seeds to the blender and mix until clumping into a ball / desired size of pieces 

Spoon the mixture into a baking tray lined with grease proof paper

Lay another piece of greaseproof paper on the top and press down by hand or with a rolling pin 

Put the covered tray into the fridge to chill for at least one hour then cut into pieces 

Beef casserole

This is a simple dish for the stress rich and time poor.  Undoubtedly there are more sophisticated dishes out there but this recipe proves how easy it is to make a delicious dinner when you are using proper stock and good quality ingredients like organic vegetables and grass fed beef.  Once you realise just how easy, you will never buy a stock cube again! 

If you are paleo / low starch this works well with roasted butternut squash or even just a generous portion of greens. In our house half go for this option and the other half for heavily (goats) buttered mash. Add some sauerkraut or pickles for fermented goodness!  

The ingredients below would make enough for a family of four but I would always double these as you then have another meal for another night. As with all casseroles it tastes even better made one day in advance. If I am organised enough I make this just before I have family or friends visiting for the weekend as its a good 'banker' to have prepared. 

If you want to give this dish a deeper flavour add in half a dozen chopped anchovies in at the same time as the vegetables.   The kids will never tell I promise! 

The method below involved browning the meat and sweating vegetables which does improve the flavour but all of these ingredients could just get bunged into a slow cooker if pushed for time (however I would then ensure the wine and stock have been heated in a pan till simmering to ensure there is enough heat to start the cooking process) 

Ingredients 

500-600g of shin of beef cut into inch size chunks 

1 large carrot (cut into batons) 

1 medium onion (cut in half and then sliced) 

1 stick of celery (finely chopped) 

Approx 1/4 bottle of red wine

500ml home made stock (beef is ideal, chicken will work) 

2 -3 bay leaves 

1 - 2 tbsp of organic or grass fed beef dripping (or ghee) 

Salt and pepper for seasoning 

Method 

Preheat the oven to 80C or the slow cook setting 

Chop the vegetables and set aside 

In an ovenproof casserole pot heat a tbsp of oil on a medium-hot hob and add in the beef.  Cook for a couple of minutes ensuring you stir it so the meat browns all over which will seal in the flavour. 

Remove the meat and add the vegetables to the pan, adding more oil if necessary 

Cook the vegetables for at least five minutes so they have softened then add the meat back in and stir

Add in the wine, stock, bay leaves and seasoning and bring back to heat until you get a vigorous simmer 

Cover the pot and put in the oven to cook for at least 6 hours. The meat will become more tender if left for eight. 

Guacamole

This is a world away from bland mushy shop bought guacamole.  It has a bit of a kick - it can easily be made more or less spicy by changing the amount of chilli used.

You could mash the avocado to create a very smooth texture but it also works well with a coarser finish with some small chunks of avocado. 

Ingredients 

2 ripe avocados 

1/4 of a medium onion   

Approx 1 inch of a green chilli (deseeded) 

1/2 tsp cider vinegar 

1tsp olive oil 

Small clove of garlic 

Salt 

Method

Roughly mash the avocado 

Crush the garlic 

Very finally chop the onion and chilli 

Combine all ingredients and add salt to taste