Bring on the cooler weather

It's supposed to be getting cooler at this time of year, but as I write this I'm sitting in brilliant sunshine, not a skeric of breeze and it's approaching 27 degrees - very unusual for the last week of autumn in this part of Australia.  This is usually the time of year when we start thinking about and cooking up rich, hearty and comforting meals.  The kind that involve a long, slow cook and then a big bowl that you can wrap your hands around to warm them up.  So, in preparation for the winter months, that will inevitably arrive in these parts, below is a very adaptable Lamb Ragu with pasta.  Once you read through the recipe, you will realise that you can throw in whatever you like and there's no need to stick strictly to the measurements (where I've given measurements).  I've cooked this on the stove, as my saucepan's create a water seal, but you can cook this in the oven, slow cooker or pressure cooker - however you feel comfortable.

I've also included a recipe to make your own pasta too.  It's not a difficult process, but you'll need some time and a pasta machine to roll it out.  I love that my $15 pasta machine (bought from a discount department store a few years back) is still going strong! If you're keen to try making your own pasta, keep an eye out for a cheap machine next time you're at the shops. The amount of dough in this recipe will feed 8 or more people.  I'm not usually feeding that many people so once it's rested I usually divide it in half, wrap one piece in glad wrap and put it in the freezer for another day.

Lamb Ragu (serves 4)
2 lamb shanks (500 - 600g) - buy them already frenched if you can, it will save you some time
Olive oil
1 small-medium red onion, halved and slice thinly
3 - 4 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1/2 small red chilli, seeds removed, finely diced
1 - 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1/4 - 1/2 cup dry red wine
1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes
1 cup water (or vegetable stock)
large handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
salt and pepper
Fresh pasta sheets (make your own or use torn up fresh lasagna sheets)
Parmesan cheese

1. Heat a medium-sized heavy based saucepan over a medium-high heat.  Add a tablespoon or so of olive oil.  Place lamb shanks in pan and brown all over (2 - 3 mins per 'side').  Remove from pan and set aside.  If there's a lot of fat in the pan, drain most of it out.
2. Add onions, garlic, chilli and rosemary and cook over medium - low for 6 - 8 minutes, until onion softens and starts to caramelise.
3. Pour in the red wine and stir to deglaze the pan.
4. Add the tomatoes and water, stir to combine.  Add lamb shanks back to the pan, season with salt and pepper and put the lid on.
5. Allow to gently simmer for 3 hours, or until the meat is beginning to fall off the bones.  Turn the lamb shanks over each hour during this time.
6. Remove the lamb shanks and allow to cool slightly.  Remove the meat from the bones and shred.
7. Turn up the heat on the sauce and allow it to reduce to a thicker consistency.  Add the lamb back to the pan, along with parsley and stir to combine.  Season.
8. Serve over fresh pasta, with extra chilli or chilli flakes, parsley and parmesan cheese on top.

Notes

• Once the sauce is reducing add sliced pitted olives or roasted capsicum.
• You can omit the red wine, and just go straight to adding the tomatoes, as this too will deglaze the pan. No need to add any extra liquid as there'll still be enough to cook the meat.
• If cooking in oven, once you've combined everything in step 4 transfer to a casserole dish and cover with alfoil.  Cook at 150C for 3 hours, turning meat every hour.  Then continue from step 6 back in your first saucepan.
• Left over meat sauce will freeze well.  
• You can make this 2 - 3 days ahead of time and keep refrigerated.

Pasta
250g Pasta flour
pinch salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
water

1. Place flour and salt in a medium sized bowl, and make a well in the middle.
2. Pour oil, eggs and egg yolks into the well and mix with your hands to form a smooth dough.
3. If it's a little dry (this depends on the size of your eggs) add some water a little bit at a time until it comes together.
4. Roll dough on floured bench until it becomes a smooth consistency (3 - 5 minutes, depending on your flour and your strength!).
5. Wrap dough in glad wrap and allow to rest on the bench or fridge (if the weather is warm) for 1 - 3 hours.
6. Remove from fridge and divide into 3 - 4 portions.  (At this stage I divide in half, wrap half and freeze it.) 
7. Working with one portion at a time (keep the others covered), roll them through your pasta machine, dusting with flour as needed, until you have long thin sheets.  Cut or tear into desired size, dust with flour and set aside.  Repeat with remaining portions.
8. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook pasta in batches (depending on size of pan) for 2 - 3 minutes, until al dente.  Strain and serve (or keep warm whilst cooking remaining pasta).

Notes

• Make the pasta whilst the lamb is cooking.  Lay the sheets into a container and dust each layer with flour and store in the fridge till required.
• Thaw frozen dough in the fridge, then dust with a little flour and give a quick knead before rolling through pasta machine.

What more could you want?

You know the saying 'a picture is worth a thousand words', well perhaps in this case it's 'a picture is worth a thousand calories'!  Well maybe not quite that many, but quite a few nonetheless.  The recipe below caught my attention through not only it's picture, also by the fact it combines several of my favourite things - cheesecake, chocolate and brownies.  It sat in my inbox for a couple of days whilst I debated what size the 'bite' should be.  The original recipe (found here) calls for the use of a mini-muffin tin and goes on to detail the amount of mixture to put in each, starting with a tablespoon of brownie mix.  It could be a lost in translation issue from using a recipe from the US, but those two details didn't match for me. I changed my mind several times and in the end used normal size muffin tins and pretty much doubled the cooking time.  The end result - an amazing chewy brownie with the extra special mouthful of cheesecake.  What more could you want?

Brownie Cheesecake Bites
Makes approx 24

Brownie mix
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons espresso coffee (or 1 tbsp instant if you must, mixed with 2 - 3 teaspoons boiled water)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups caster sugar
250g unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups plain flour

1. Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat.
2. Combine eggs, cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso and vanilla extract in a large bowl. It will be a very thick paste.
3. Add sugar and melted butter, and whisk gently to combine.
4. Stir in flour and mix till thoroughly combined, using a wooden spoon or spatula.

Cheesecake mix
250g cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons caster sugar
1 large egg yolk

1. Mix all ingredients until well combined.
2. Spoon into a piping bag.  If you don't have a piping bag, just snip the corner off a snaplock or other plastic bag instead.

Assembly

1. Line muffin tin with patty pans (or lightly grease with butter).
2. Spoon a generous tablespoon of brownie mix into each patty pan.
3. Pipe a generous teaspoon of cheesecake mixture on top.
4. Add another teaspoonful of brownie mix on the top.
5. Swirl the two together if you like.  Smooth the top. (They won't rise very much, so it's ok to fill them quite full.)
6. Bake at 180C, for 25 - 30 minutes.  Check halfway through and rotate in the oven if necessary.  
7. Test with a skewer or toothpick when they start to look firm enough.  The skewer should come out mostly clean and maybe with a few crumbs on it (as long as it's not liquid!).  Remember it's a brownie so you want it to be fudgy and not completely dry.
8. Allow to cool on wire racks.  
9. Make yourself a coffee and try not to eat them all at once!

Variations

1. Blitz some mixed berries and add to cheesecake mix.
2. Stir a few chocolate chips through the brownie mix.
3. For an adult version, swap half the espresso for Kahlua or Tia Maria