This is the time of year when all of our good intentions come home to roost. Then they gleefully, mercilessly peck away at those promises we made ourselves so rashly and so enthusiastically only a few weeks ago. Suddenly Christmas is almost here and those saintly aspirations – to make homemade presents and cards, or to throw a party for friends and neighbours – are fading as fast. Well, it may be abit late to knit your nearests-and-dearests mittens or stick it to Hallmark with a stack of seasonal potato-print cards, but it's definitely not too late to throw a great party.
Today's recipes are some of my favourite crowd-pleasing dishes. They're simple to prepare, and they double or triple up beautifully. You can make them ahead, too, and bung them in the oven when everyone arrives. While you're at it, you can even make an extra dish and tuck it into the freezer so there's something delicious to feast on in the funk between Christmas and New Year, when even the keenest of cooks can suffer from kitchen fatigue.
Some of my all-time favourite dishes are made with leftovers or thrifty minced meat, and when it comes to cooking for the hungry hordes, they really come into their own. All of today's recipes make a little meat go an awfully long way. Ibegin with my mum's shepherd's pie, a favourite withme for almost as long as I can remember. Bobotie is another nation's variation on the shepherd's pie theme – comforting and soul-feedingly delicious. And pasticcio is the great Italian crowd-pleaser – a labour of love if you make the meatballs from scratch, but amatter of minutes if you go down the cheaty sausage route.
Once you've decided on the main event, all you need to complete your friendly, stress-free feast is some good cheese, maybe some well chosen charcuterie from your favourite deli (or mail-order from the excellent Trealy Farm, perhaps), a few loaves of great bread, and a big salad of winter leaves dressed simply in olive oil, a squeeze of lemon and a bit of flaky sea salt. So cast off all that boring good-intentions guilt and concentrate on the important business of having a fine time.
Shepherd's pie
My mum's recipe, and so my favourite. I think using the leftovers from roast lamb or coarsely chopped fresh meat gives it a better flavour and texture. Serves six to eight.
2 tbsp olive oil
1kg leftover roast lamb, coarsely chopped (or 1kg uncooked lamb leg or shoulder, coarsely chopped)
2 large onions, peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
Any juices or gravy saved from the joint, and/or concentrated lamb stock made from the bone
1 small glass red wine, about 125ml
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the mash
1.2kg floury potatoes, such as King Edwards, Wilja or Desiree, peeled and cut into even-sized chunks
150ml whole milk
120g butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan or wide saucepan big enough to accommodate all of the ingredients. Brown the meat all over in batches, then transfer to a plate.
Heat the remaining oil over a medium heat and sweat the onions in the same pan with a pinch of salt until just beginning to turn lightly golden – about 10 minutes. Add the carrots and garlic, sauté for a couple of minutes, then return the meat to the pan, along with any gravy, juices or stock, the wine, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce, then season. Simmer gently for a few minutes, adding a little water if the mixture looks dry. Taste for seasoning and add a little more ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, salt or pepper, if you like. Simmer gently for 20–30 minutes, until the meat is tender and the flavours well blended – if you're using fresh meat, it may take a little longer. Do a final taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary. Again, add water, or wine, to loosen the mixture if you think it needs it. I like it well lubricated but not soupy.
Heat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. While the meat is cooking, make the mash. Boil the potatoes until tender in a pan of well-salted water. Drain into a colander and leave to steam for several minutes. Warm the milk and butter in the pan until simmering, add the potatoes and mash smooth – they need some texture or they'll soak into the meat. Season with salt and pepper.
Tip the meat into a pie or casserole dish, pile the mash on top, covering the meat, and use a fork to rough up the surface of the mash. Bake for 30–40 minutes, until the mash is browned and the sauce is bubbling up around the edges. Leave to cool for a few minutes before serving.
Bobotie
This classic South African dish is awinning combination of minced lamb and spices with an element of sweetness added by the dried fruit and tangy chutney. Make it with lamb, or a combination of minced beef and pork. Serve with plain boiled rice (or a pilaf) and extra mango chutney. Serves six to eight.
4 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing the dish
1.2 kg minced lamb
2 onions, peeled and finely diced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2-3 tbsp garam masala
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground turmeric
1 slice white bread, crusts removed, soaked in water for a minute, then squeezed dry
3 tbsp tomato purée
Juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon
3 tbsp mango chutney
100g sultanas
80g ground almonds
4 bay leaves
4 eggs, lightly beaten
250ml whole milk (or yoghurt)
30g flaked almonds
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat the oven to 170C/335F/gas mark 3. Heat half of the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Brown the lamb mince, then transfer to a bowl. Add the remaining oil to the pan and sauté the onions on a medium-low heat until softened. Add the garlic, garam masala, cinnamon, ginger and turmeric, and sauté for a minute. Return the meat to the pan and stir in the bread, tomato pureé, lemon juice and zest, chutney, sultanas and ground almonds. Add 150ml water and simmer for 10 minutes. Season, transfer to an oiled casserole and add the bay leaves. Cover tightly with foil and bake for an hour.
Remove from the oven and turn up the heat to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Whisk the eggs and milk with a good pinch of salt and pour over the meat. Scatter on the almonds. Bake for another 15 minutes, until the top is bubbling and golden brown.
Pasticcio
A huge dish of meatballs, tomato sauce and bubbling cheese is about as welcoming and cheering adish as I can think of. Making meatballs is a great family activity, but a sausage version is a brilliant timesaver – simply fry up some of your favourite sausages, cut into chunks and stir into the passata. Serves eight to 10.
1 litre passata
60ml red wine
500g dried penne
200g parmesan, grated
3 balls mozzarella, sliced
1 handful basil leaves, roughly torn
A little olive oil
40g butter
For the meatballs
600g minced beef
600g minced pork
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
50g parmesan, freshly grated
A pinch of cayenne pepper
A dash of lemon juice
A few sprigs of oregano, parsley and/or basil, chopped
Olive oil, for frying
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the béchamel sauce
1 litre whole milk
1 bay leaf
100g butter
100g plain flour
Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Combine all the ingredients for the meatballs, and roll into small balls. In a large frying pan, heat alittle oil and fry the meatballs in batches until nicely browned all over. As they are ready, transfer to a bowl containing the passata. When all the meatballs are browned, deglaze the pan with the wine, scraping up any bits, and tip into the bowl.
To make the béchamel, warm the milk with the bay leaf until barely simmering, then set aside and keep warm. In a separate pan, melt the butter and stir in the flour. Cook gently, stirring, for a couple of minutes, then slowly whisk in the warm milk. Simmer gently for five minutes, stirring, until thickened, and season to taste.
Cook the pasta in a large pan of boiling, salted water, and drain when still nicely al dente. Mix thoroughly with the béchamel.
Grease a large casserole dish with olive oil. Spread a third of the pasta mixture over the bottom, sprinkle over a quarter of the parmesan, then ladle over a layer of meatballs and tomato sauce. Make a layer of mozzarella slices (one whole cheese's worth), top with some basil, season with black pepper and trickle on some olive oil. Repeat the layers twice more. Dot the final layerof mozzarella with a little butter and sprinkle on the last quarter of the parmesan. Cover tightly with foil.
Bake for 30 minutes, remove thefoil and cook for another 15–20 minutes, until the top is crusty andgolden brown.
Visit us at the new River Cottage Canteen and Deli in Plymouth; rivercottage.net for details.
