Ricotta Beef Burger Recipe

Hello again!

I love getting inspired by new new recipes and this one came as such a surprise to me. I have never tried any of Nigel Slater's recipes before but after watching him make this on Nigel Slater's Dish of the Day, I was seriously impressed with the creativity and versatility of these Ricotta Beef Burgers. The ingredients below will make about 8-10 burgers but this does depend on how big you like your burger!

The burgers do have a tendency to flake and fall apart in the pan but don't worry, this is normal! Just shape them the best you can and I promise the outcome will be a total reward! 

What Will I Need?

500g of Minced Beef

250g of Ricotta

3 tbs of Capers (optional)

A Bunch of Spring Onion - Finely Chopped

Salt & Pepper to Season

What do I do now?!

1> Break up the minced beef into a large bowl using your hands or a wooden spoon. 

2> Add the ricotta, spring onion and capers (if using), then season generously with salt and pepper.Mix well until you have a smooth, pink mixture. 

3> Now for the messy bit! Take a handful of the mixture and shape them into patties. I found making small, thick burgers (about 2-3cm deep) helped them stay together in the pan. 

4> You can grill or fry the patties but I found frying a lot easier to manage if bits do start to flake off! To do this, heat a little oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Fry the burger for about 10 minutes, flipping them over as necessary.  

...And of course, you can serve them however the heck you like!

Summer Vegetable Curry!

It's recipe time again !

I've been itching to write about this amazing summer vegetable curry since making it on Saturday! It's really one for everyone. I'm not a curry fan, in fact, I'd go as far as to say, I hate the stuff! But this is so inoffensive to the senses and has so much flavour!

You will need:

2 Tablespoons of Red Thai Curry Paste

500ml of Vegetable Stock

2 Onions, Chopped

2 Chicken Breasts or 1 Aubergine (for a veggie option) Chopped

75g Red Lentils

200ml Low Fat Coconut Milk

2 Red Pepper, De-seeded and Chopped into Chunks

140g of Frozen Peas

100g of Baby Spinach, Roughly Chopped

Rice and Chutney to Serve!

 What do I do now?!

1> To start with, heat the red thai curry paste in a large pan with a small splash of the vegetable stock. After about a minute add the onion and fry for 5 minutes until they are starting to soften. 

2> If you are making a veggie option, stir in the aubergine and cook for another 5 minutes adding a little more stock if it starts to stick.

3> Add the lentils, coconut milk and the rest of the stock and simmer for 15 minutes until the lentils are tender and have swollen slightly.

4> Add the peppers and cook for another 5-10 minutes.

5> If you are using chicken, begin to dry fry your chicken now until cooked through.

6> Stir through the peas, spinach and chicken and cook until the spinach has wilted!

Serve with rice and chutney! 

Enjoy!

Erin, xx

Pasta with Pancetta, Chilli and Lemon

I wanted to do a post about this quick and easy summer pasta recipe for you! It's so simple to make and would be perfect for a fuss-free afternoon lunch or supper. 

Ingredients!

450g of Pasta

130g of diced pancetta or 6 rashers of streaky smoked bacon

8 table spoons of olive oil

1 crushed garlic clove

3 red or green chillies, deseeded and sliced

The Juice of 1 lemon

Handful of chopped parsley

50g of Parmesan, grated

What do I do now?

1> The first thing to do is cook the pasta! Always go by the packet instructions and use plenty of lightly salted water!

2> While the pasta is cooking, heat a large frying pan and dry fry your pancetta or bacon for 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Add one table spoon of the olive oil, the crushed garlic and chilli and cook for another 4-5 minutes until tender. 

3> Stir in the remaining oil and the lemon juice and season well!

4> Drain your pasta and add to the chilli and pancetta sauce. I would always recommend adding the pasta to the large frying pan because it's a lot easier to lock all the flavour in! Add the chopped parsley and parmesan and toss well. Divide between four pasta dishes and serve with a little extra parmesan! 

Done!

This is super quick and a really lovely alternative to some of the heavier pasta sauces that can feel a little bit weighty in your stomach! 

I hope you enjoy! 

Erin xx