FEED YOUR FAMILY FOR: Fancy Bangers and Mash

I've cooked this dish several times before and even served it to my friends at schoolies last year.
It is a bangers and mash with poached pear slices and "caramelised" carrots and onions. It's essentially a classic prole dish like ratatouille but revitalised by the sweetness of the caramel sauce which also challenges bland british cooking.
Quick, easy and cheap enjoy!

Ingredients:

• Sausages
• Potatoes (any kind)
• Onions
• Carrots
• Pears (not nashi)
• Brown Sugar
• Cream/ Milk (for the mash)

Method:

1. Peel, wash and boil potatoes in a pot. if you are in a rush its good to cut them into smaller chunks as they soften faster. (or if you are not fussed you can even microwave them in microwave tupperware with a bit of water. however from experience this should only be the last resort)
2. Chop up onions into half moons and carrots and pears into wedges. (dont forget to peel them!) and pop into a pot of boiling water until soft along with 1, 2 sticks of cinammon and a couple of star anise.
3. At the same time start frying the sausages
4. Take out potatoes and mash them stirring in milk/ cream and salt to taste.
5. Heat up a pan and melt brown sugar over low fire until it becomes a caramel
6. Strain the onions, carrots and pears and plate with bangers and mash.
7. Pour caramel sauce over the OCP and serve hot.

*note: i know its not REALLY caramelisation!!!

FEED YOUR FAMILY FOR...

This is my first post about food that I cook so please bear with me as I indulge in the magiks of the kitchen.

The Vaiano Risotto recipe is a delicious, straightforward, authentic Italian risotto taken directly from my former accounting teacher Mr. Vaiano's collection of fail-proof family dinner recipes. I had my first go at this last year and my family loved it for its simple organic flavours. The ingredients used were what we had sitting in the fridge/ pantry at the time except the arborio which I had to make a special trip out to Coles to buy.


The core ingredients for this dish:

• arborio rice
• tinned tomatoes

With everything else interchangeable and replaceable including:

• marinated diced chicken pieces
• broccoli
• fresh tomatoes
• spring onion

Method:

1. Chop all the meat and veg up and then stir fry them
2. Cook the arborio rice in a pot or rice cooker (make sure you have your settings correct.) You will want to make sure you are using a risotto rice such as arborio, carnaroli or nano as these types of rice stick better creating the unique texture of risotto rice. Asian rices such as jasmine cannot be used.
3. Mix in the tinned tomatoes (with juices) with the rice in the pot making sure there is a nice reddish colourage to the rice. If there isn't add tomato sauce.
4. Transfer the rice and the meat and veg into a large pot or steamer and mix it all up under a medium heat.
5. Add salt to taste then serve while hot.