Midweek meals: Five cosy family dinners you can cook in an hour or less

These dishes are perfect for cooler autumn evenings

These comfort food recipes are sure to satisfy

Tagliatelle with mozzarella and fresh basil

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

A quick, comforting lunch or dinner

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Italian

Ingredients

• 350g of dried tagliatelle

• 2 shallots, finely sliced

• 4 cloves garlic, crushed

• 180mls tomato passata

• 1 tsp chopped thyme

• 2 balls mozzarella, cut into large cubes

• A bunch of fresh basil, roughly ripped up

Method

1. Cook your pasta.

2. Sauté the shallots in a dash of olive oil until translucent and add the garlic for the last minute. Add in the passata and thyme. Allow to bubble on a low heat for ten minutes. Season to taste.

3. Toss your pasta in the sauce and toss in the mozzarella and basil. Season and serve.

 

Money-saving chilli con carne

recipe by:Mitch Lane - Feed Your Family For Under A Fiver

This speedy meal for four uses storecupboard ingredients.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 50 mins

Total Time

 55 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 1tsp vegetable or olive oil

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

• 2 green chillies, finely chopped, plus 1 to serve

• 500g minced beef

• 41g packet of chilli con carne seasoning

• 400g tin chopped tomatoes

• 130g tin kidney beans, drained

• 300ml beef stock (made with a stock cube)

• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Put a pan on a medium heat and add the oil and the onion and soften for three to four minutes. Add the garlic and chillies and continue to cook for a further two minutes. If you’re not keen on a lot of spice just use one chilli and remove the seeds.

2. Add the mince and break it up with the back of a spoon, ensuring that there’s no big lumps. Cook the meat until it’s nice and brown. Be generous with the salt and pepper and then add the chilli con carne seasoning. Mix well.

3. Add the tomatoes and kidney beans and stir. Then pour in the beef stock and simmer for 30 minutes. The simmering is very important (it’s like a fine wine that gets better with age).

4. Serve with sliced chilli.

 

Chickpea and butternut squash stew

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

This tasty veggie dinner can be made in a slow cooker

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• A dash of rapeseed oil

• 2 red onions, diced

• 6 cloves of garlic, crushed

• 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed

• 3 tsp ground cinnamon

• 2 tsp chilli powder

• 3 tsp cumin seeds

• 1 tin chopped tomatoes

• 2 tsp honey or golden caster sugar

• 1 tin chickpeas, drained

• 1 tbsp of golden raisins

• 50 mls stock

• To serve:

• Steamed couscous for four

• 2 scallions, sliced

• 2 tbsp slivered almonds, toasted

• A spoon of natural yoghurt

Method

1. Put all of the ingredients for the stew into a large ovenproof dish. Place it into your preheated over without a lid. Allow to bubble away until the squash is soft. You can add a little more stock as it bubbles if you feel the squash is soaking up all of the liquid.

2. Serve with the couscous, scallions and the yogurt and slivered almonds on top.

3. You could serve it with freshly chopped coriander or some preserved lemons as well if you wish.

 

Chicken and mushroom humble pie recipe

recipe by:The Batch Lady

You can make this dish vegetarian by swapping the chicken for a similar meat substitute.

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 35 mins

Total Time

 55 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 1tbsp olive or vegetable oil

• 115g frozen chopped onions

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces

• 300g chestnut mushrooms, sliced

• 2tbsp plain flour

• 240ml chicken stock

• 200ml milk

• 1tsp wholegrain mustard

• 1 sheet pre-rolled puff pastry

• 1 egg, beaten

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large, deep-sided frying pan over a medium heat, then add the onions and chicken pieces and cook, stirring, until the onions are soft and the chicken is sealed. Add the sliced mushrooms to the pan and stir to combine with the chicken and onions, then cook, stirring occasionally, for five to seven minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the mushrooms have released all their water.

2. Add the flour to the pan and stir to coat the chicken and vegetables, then pour in the chicken stock and stir well. Slowly pour in the milk, stirring and thickening the sauce as you do, then bring the mixture to the boil, reduce the heat to low and leave to cook for 10–15 minutes, until thickened, then stir through the mustard and season well with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and set aside.

3. If you're cooking now… Preheat the oven to 180˚C/350˚F/gas mark 4. Pour the pie filling into a large, ovenproof baking dish smaller than the sheet of pastry, then lay the pastry over the top of the filling and tuck in the edges. Brush the top of the pie with the beaten egg, then transfer the pie to the oven for 30–35 minutes, until golden and well risen. Cut into generous wedges and serve hot with mash and veg alongside, if you like.

4. If you're making ahead to freeze… Leave the filling mixture to cool to room temperature, then ladle into a large, labelled freezer bag and freeze flat with the sheet of pastry alongside for up to three months.

5. Then… Remove the pie filling and pastry sheet from the freezer and leave to defrost in the fridge, ideally overnight. Once defrosted, preheat the oven to 180˚C/350˚F/gas mark 4 and assemble, cook and serve the pie in the same way described above.

 

Smoky Chicken & Chorizo

A comforting one-pot wonder for winter nights

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 30 mins

Cooking Time

 60 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 30 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• 8 chicken thighs, bone in and skin on

• 100g dry-cured chorizo, diced

• 1 onion, chopped

• 1 large carrot, peeled and diced

• 2 celery stalks, diced

• 3 large garlic cloves, crushed

• 1 bay leaf

• 1½ tbsp smoked paprika

• 1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano (or 1 tsp dried oregano)

• 1 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary

• 1 tsp ground cumin

• ½ tsp chopped fresh thyme

• ¼ to ½ tsp chilli flakes, depending on how spicy you like your food

• a pinch of saffron

• 200ml white wine

• 1 x 700g jar of tomato passata

• 1 x 400g tin of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

• 80g black Kalamata olives, pitted and halved

• 1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

• fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Trim off any excess skin from the chicken thighs and put a wide, shallow, heavy-based casserole dish over a medium-high heat without any oil. When the pan is nice and hot, reduce the heat to medium and add the chicken thighs, skin side down, to render out the fat.

2. Cook for 5 minutes without moving them around, then flip them over and cook for 5 minutes on the other side too, until nicely browned. Remove from the pan and set aside on a plate.

3. Add the chorizo and cook for 5 minutes, until it has released its oil into the pan and crisped up a bit. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chorizo to the plate with the chicken. Pour off all the oil that has been released from the chicken and chorizo, as there will be a lot of fat in the pan now, then add 1 or 2 tablespoons back in.

4. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

5. Add the onion, carrots and celery and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 10 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic, bay leaf, smoked paprika, oregano, rosemary, cumin, thyme, chilli flakes and saffron and cook for 1 or 2 minutes more, just until fragrant.

6. Pour in the wine and let it bubble up for 1 or 2 minutes, stirring to deglaze the pan, then stir in the passata and add the browned chicken thighs and chorizo back in. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the casserole dish and transfer to the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until the chicken is fully cooked.

7. Near the end of the cooking time, stir in the cannellini beans and olives to warm them through.

8. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then scatter over the chopped parsley. Serve straight to the table.