Not Chow Mein Mince & Not Samosas

I'm sure this recipe came into being perhaps in the 70's, when here in Australia, folks were beginning to discover 'cuisines' that involved things other than meat and three veg.  It's such a classic from my childhood that I still make it today.  I love it, my oldest son loves it, hubby loves it and it contains a lot of cabbage, which is REALLY good for you.  I have changed the ingredients to remove the old faithful 'packet of chicken noodle soup' (man that stuff was in everything back then!) and when I run out of Keen's Curry Powder, I'll be making my own from whole spices.  And this recipe is a super easy one pot meal to boot!

I don't think my Mum ever ran out of this stuff, it was always in the cupboard!

Chow Mein Mince

Ingredients

500 grams mince
2 teaspoons curry powder (I normally use 1 teaspoon when making for the kids)
2 onions, quartered
1 carrot
1 stick celery
2 teaspoons chicken stock paste
500 grams (2 cups) water
280 grams rice, rinsed
¼ cabbage

Directions

1. If using Thermomix to chop cabbage, place large-ish chunks into TM bowl and chop for 2-3 seconds on speed 4. Remove and set aside.  If not using Thermomix, finely shred the cabbage using a knife.  The shreds of cabbage need to be quite small so that the full amount will fit into the TM bowl.

2. Place onions, carrot and celery into TM bowl and chop for 5 seconds speed 5. Add the oil and mince and cook at 100ºC for 10 minutes on speed 1. Add the stock paste, water, rice, chopped cabbage (and any other chopped veggies) and continue cooking at 100ºC for 20 minutes on speed 1 + reverse (MC off, basket on top to prevent splatters). Use the spatula every 5 minutes or so to give the mixture a good stir to ensure all the rice and cabbage is pushed under the liquid.

3. Check to ensure the rice is cooked, remove to Thermoserver and allow to sit for a few minutes before serving. This recipe makes too much for one meal in this family.  In fact, there's enough for lunch the next day plus more.  So, today, I got to thinking about how I could jazz this very basic meal up a little.  Samosas?  Well, kind of... Not Samosas Ingredients 1/2 batch of rough puff pastry (either EDC or this one or the bought stuff) leftover Chow Mein Mince  Directions 1. Roll out the puff pastry to 3mm thick.  Use a knife or pastry cutter to cut out square or circles (or whatever shape excites you). 2.  Place a teaspoon (or so) of the mince mixture in the centre of the pastry, wet one half of the edges with water, fold over the pastry and seal by pressing together with your fingers. 3.  Brush with egg wash and bake in a hot oven until the pastry is cooked, golden and crispy. These are a great finger food idea for your next party.  If you make a batch of the mince mixture specifically for the Not Samosas, I recommend using the full amount of curry powder.  As there is a reasonably small amount of filling, they are very mild with only half the curry powder.      Happy 'Not' Days :D

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Meat & Spinach Lasagne

This is one of my favourite lasagne recipes.  I found it on the back of a Leggo's Lasagne Sheet packet a few years ago, but I haven't seen it printed for ages.  I even checked the Leggo's web site and it's not listed.  I'm very glad I wrote it down when I did.
When I made it yesterday, I also had some mushrooms that needed using up so they were added at the same time as the red capsicum.  We had leftovers today for lunch and the flavour was out of this world.  I think it should be a rule that lasagne is always made the day before it is eaten.  The world would be a happier place I'm sure.

Ingredients

• 2 packets lasagne sheets
• *** MEAT SAUCE ***
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 small red capsicum, finely chopped
• 400 grams mince
• ¼ cup white wine
• 250 grams frozen spinach, thawed and drained
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 410g can tomatoes
• ½ teaspoon mixed dried herbs
• ½ cup water
• *** CHEESE SAUCE ***
• 2 tablespoons butter
• ½ cup plain flour
• 1 ½ cups cheese, grated
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• 600 ml milk

Directions

1. MEAT SAUCE:

2. Melt butter, add onion and garlic and fry until soft.

3. Stir in capsicum and cook for a further 2 minutes. Add mince and cook until brown.

4. Mix in wine, stir for 1 minute and blend in spinach.

5. Add tomato paste and tomatoes and season with salt, pepper and herbs.

6. Add water and simmer for 30 minutes.

7. CHEESE SAUCE:

8. Melt butter in saucepan, add flour and fry off for 1 minute. Remove from heat and slowly add milk stirring constantly to avoid lumps.

9. Return to heat and bring to the boil to thicken the sauce. Add cheese and nutmeg and pepper.

10. Remove from heat and place plastic wrap on surface of sauce to prevent skin from forming. Set aside until ready to assemble.

11. ASSEMBLY:

12. Place a thin layer of meat sauce in the base of a lasagne dish.

13. Cover with a single layer of lasagne sheets. Cover the lasagne sheets with a layer of meat sauce. Drizzle on a layer of cheese sauce.

14. Repeat step 2 finishing with a layer of pasta and a final layer of cheese sauce.

15. Bake in a moderate oven for 45 minutes ensuring the top layer is golden brown.

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