Garlic Bread

There's nothing worse than being extremely hungover and having no garlic bread in the house.  This is handy for those situations as g-bread is one of my hangover foods.  But I think this recipe tastes sooo much better than supermarket versions so if you want to impress someone or simply just indulge I'd recommend this;

Garlic Bread

Ingredients

• Butter
• Parsley
• Garlic
• Bread (baguette/ciabatta)
• Parmesan/Cheddar (optional)
• Olive Oil

Method

1. Put about 25g of softened butter (or as much as you fancy) into a bowl with a big tsp of parsley and 1 crushed or chopped garlic.  Mix together.
2. Drizzle some oil over the bread which has been chopped in half or into small slices.  This will make the bread so juicy, but don't go too mad.
3. Now spread the garlic butter on to the bread.
4. You can then add some grated parmesan or cheddar cheese on top.  Add some more herbs if you think it needs it, I added some more oregano.
5. Now depending on what bread you got, some baguettes are oven baked ones and require you to bake for 10 minutes.  I used ciabatta bread today and grilled on both sides until the butter melted and the bread began to brown a little bit (I like it a little golden brown, not burnt!).
6. Now eat!!

Lasagne

Serves: 4

Time: 1 hour

Equipment

• Saucepan
• Wooden Spoon
• Casserole Dish
• Cheese Grater
• Chopping Board
• Chopping Knife

Ingredients

• Oil
• 1 Large Onion
• 2 Garlic Cloves
• 25g Butter
• 800g Minced Beef
• 2 Tins of Chopped Tomatoes
• Tomato Pureé
• Red Wine Vinegar
• Salt and Pepper
• Oregano
• Basil
• Paprika
• Parsley
• 3 Diced Tomatoes
• 3 Chopped Mushrooms
• Lasagne Sheets
• White Sauce
• Grated Cheese (Cheddar and Parmesan)

Method

1. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in the pan then melt the butter in the pan. Meanwhile chop the garlic and onion and add to the pan once the butter has melted and the oil has been heated.  Stir and cook until the onion has softened (about 3 mins).

2. Now add the mince to the pan, separating it as you do so.  Continue to separate using the wooden spoon. 

3. Continue to cook and stir until the meat has browned, then and add a pinch of salt and a tbsp of pepper and stir.

4. Open two tins of chopped tomatoes and add to the pan.  Then add a tbsp of basil, oregano and paprika and a tsp of parsley and stir.  Add a tbsp of tomato pureé and a glug of red wine vinegar, stir again.

5. Allow to boil then lower the heat, cover with a lid then simmer for 20-30 minutes. The sauce should have thickened by then and not be as watery.

6.  Now begin with the white sauce.  You can buy packets of this in the supermarket, instead of making it from scratch.  It's a lot easier, you just add 300ml of milk and cheese.  The instructions will be on the packet, you should keep an eye on it and stir continuously.  The cheesier the sauce the better the taste.  You will know it's ready when it has thickened.

7. Now grease the casserole dish with some butter and add the first layer of mince and even it out.

8. The next layer will consist of lasagne sheets. Unfortunately I only had 6 sheets left so I had to make the most of them, normally if the sheets are crinkled you should have them going in the same direction and cover all of the meat, you can break the sheets up to ensure this.

9.  Now the third layer is the white cheesy sauce.  You should cover all of the sheets, this helps it cook.  Continue with the 3 layers until you have run out.

10.  On the final layer after you have topped the lasagne sheets with the sauce add a layer of grated cheese (and Parmesan) you can also sprinkle small pinches of oregano and basil and some chopped tomato.

11. Cover the lasagna and place it in a preheated oven at 180 Degrees Celsius for 20 minutes.  Then remove the tin foil and bake for a further 10 minutes to ensure the cheese has melted.

12. Remove and serve!