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The Kilkenny Observer Friday 29 April 2022
kilkennyobserver.ie
Food & Drink
Dine Me Come
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Sausage pasta bake Prep: 30 mins Cook: 1 hr and 30 mins Serves: 4
An Italian-American classic, this freezable sausage pasta bake is an ideal make-ahead family dish for busy days.
Ingredients • 400g rigatoni or penne • 125g ball mozzarella, chopped into chunks
For the white sauce • 1 tbsp butter • 1 tbsp plain flour • 350ml milk • 50g parmesan, grated, plus extra to serve
STEP 2 Meanwhile, make the white sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan and stir in the flour to
Prep: 10 mins plus 4 weeks infusing, no cook Makes: 4 litres Use seasonal rhubarb to make this G&T-witha-difference, or top the finished gin with soda water for a refreshing and gloriously pink summertime drink. Ingredients • 1kg pink rhubarb stalks • 400g caster sugar (don’t use golden - it muddies the colour) • 800ml gin Method STEP 1 Wash the rhubarb, trim the stalks and discard the base and any leaves. Cut the stalks into 3cm lengths. Put in a large jar with the sugar. Shake everything around, put the lid on and leave overnight. The sugar will draw the juice out of the rhubarb.
For the ragu • 2 tbsp olive oil • 6 pork sausages • 4 garlic cloves, sliced • pinch of chilli flakes (optional) • 1 tbsp tomato purée • 1 tbsp red wine vinegar • 2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
Method STEP 1 To make the ragu, heat the oil in a large shallow pan or flameproof casserole. Squeeze the sausagemeat from its skins in small balls straight into the pan. Sizzle for 10 mins until browned (don’t worry if the meat breaks up). Add the garlic and sizzle for another minute until starting to turn golden, then stir in the chilli flakes, if using, the tomato purée and vinegar. Tip in the tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and bubble for 30 mins.
Rhubarb gin
make a loose paste. Sizzle for a minute, then gradually whisk in the milk. Simmer gently for 10 mins, whisking occasionally to ensure the sauce stays smooth. Season and whisk in the parmesan. Remove from the heat and set aside. STEP 3 Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of boiling water for 9 mins, or a minute less than pack instructions. Drain and return to the pan. Scrape most of the white sauce into the pasta and stir to coat. Tip in most of the ragu and most of the mozzarella and stir until just combined. Pour the pasta mixture
into a large baking dish and spoon over the remaining white sauce and ragu. Dot with the rest of the mozzarella and sprinkle with extra parmesan. Leave to cool completely, then wrap and chill for up to a day, or freeze for up to two months. Defrost in the fridge for 24 hrs before baking. STEP 4 Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Bake for 25-30 mins until the top is slightly crisp at the edges and the cheese is melted. Leave to rest for 5-10 mins, then take the baking dish straight to the table for people to scoop onto their plates.
Anzac biscuits Total time 35 mins Makes; 20 These iconic biscuits were originally made to send to the ANZACs (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) serving in Gallipoli. Ingredients • • • • • • •
85g porridge oat 85g desiccated coconut 100g plain flour 100g caster sugar 100g butter, plus extra butter for greasing 1 tbsp golden syrup 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
Method STEP 1
STEP 2 After 24 hrs, add the gin, seal and shake everything around. Leave for about 4 weeks before drinking. You can strain the liquor off through a muslin-lined sieve and transfer to a bottle, but I often just leave the rhubarb and booze in the jar and ladle it into drinks that way. Over time the rhubarb and the gin go a much paler colour – this doesn’t look as dramatic. The upside is you that have to get through it fairly quickly!
Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Put the oats, coconut, flour and sugar in a bowl. Melt the butter in a small pan and stir in the golden syrup. Add the bicarbonate of soda to 2 tbsp boiling water, then stir into the golden syrup and butter mixture. STEP 2 Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the butter and golden syrup mixture. Stir gently to incorporate the dry ingredients. STEP 3 Put dessertspoonfuls of the mixture on to buttered baking sheets, about 2.5cm/1in apart to allow room for spreading. Bake in batches for 8-10 mins until golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Passion fruit martini Prep: 5 mins Serves: 2 This easy passion fruit cocktail is bursting with zingy flavours and is perfect for celebrating with friends. Top with prosecco for a special drink. Ingredients • 2 ripe passion fruits (they should have a crinkly appearance), halved • 60ml vanilla vodka • 30ml passoa • 1 tbsp lime juice • 1 tbsp sugar syrup • prosecco , to serve Method STEP 1 Scoop the seeds from one of the passion fruits into the glass of a cocktail shaker, add the vodka, passoa, lime juice and sugar syrup. Add a handful of ice and shake well, strain into 2 martini glasses, top up with prosecco, then add half a passion fruit to each. Serve immediately.
