sausage

Fresh Sausage, Spinach and Tomato Bowl

Fresh Sausage, Spinach and Tomato Bowl

 

*Serves 3

This is a great recipe because it is quick and easy to make. When you are looking for fresh ground pork, sausages are a great cheat. More often than not, they already have a great combination of herbs and spices mixed in. Visit your local butcher and explore the different free range options.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup brown rice
  • coconut oil
  • 300g salsiccia sausage
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons dried chili flakes
  • 1 teaspoon dried coriander
  • ½ red onion, finely chopped
  • 150g rosa tomatoes halved
  • 2 generous handfuls baby spinach
  • olive oil to dress 

Instructions:

Cook the brown rice as per packet instructions. Once it is ready and fluffy, set aside.

In a medium frying pan over a medium heat add the oregano, chili flakes, and coriander with a teaspoon of coconut oil. Fry for a minute to release all of the flavours. Add the onions and saute until soft. 

Slice the sausage open, discarding the skin, and add the meat to a frying pan over a medium heat. The sausage can sometimes have more or less fat, so adding oil to the frying pan is not always necessary. However, if you see that the sausage and pan is a bit dry, you can add a teaspoon of coconut oil. Fry until golden bowl, about five to ten minutes. 

Meanwhile, in a large salad bowl add the tomatoes and spinach. Add the rice and toss. Once the mince is ready its time to build your bowl starting with the salad and ending with the mince and a dash of olive oil. 

Food Tip:

My goal is for all meat eaters to become mindful of their choices. Do you know where your meat comes from? Visit your local butcher and discuss healthy free range meat. Most meat in supermarkets is no longer free range and is mass produced. Be a conscious consumer and make healthier choices by knowing where your food really comes from.

-Melissa 

 

 

Risotto salsiccia funghi

Risotto salsiccia fungi
Risotto salsiccia fungi
Risotto salsiccia fungi
Risotto salsiccia fungi
Risotto salsiccia fungi
Risotto salsiccia fungi

I met Maybe Corpaci a few years ago, when I was adamant that I was going to be a fashion photographer. Yes you heard me! Just two years ago I would never have thought (in my wildest dreams) that my career path would end up in food. 

Maybe worked at the wildly popular and very well known Elle magazine South Africa. I was a photographic assistant to the incomparable fashion duo, Elford De la Foret at the time and surprisingly, Maybe and I connected over food. 

In retrospect, I should have already known then that the stars were aligning into a shape of a crockery pot. Needless to say, all these years later; Maybe and I decided to do a little cook for you. 

Maybe is a fiery Italian women that is fearlessly beautiful and knows her way around the kitchen. When I asked her what we would be cooking, a singular booming word was the reply, Risotto!

Now, I might be many things, but certainly not one to argue with an Italian who wants to cook the elusive risotto and show me the ropes.

So here it is. 

Believe it or not, I over salted it at the end; so watch out for that. The salsiccia sausage and the broth both have plenty of salt, and coupled with the Parmesan, leave the dish perfectly seasoned.

A rookie error on my part, never to be repeated.

However, having said that, allow your guests to season for themselves if they are so inclined, but caution them accordingly.

A simple, "Put down the salt Grandma!" should suffice.

Ingredients:

  • 1 small onion, chopped 
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil 
  • 150 grams salsiccia sausage 
  • 1 cup risotto
  • ½ a cup of white wine  
  • 1 liter beef broth 
  • 1 teaspoon saffron 
  • 4 wild mushrooms (shitake) sliced. 
  • 3 knobs of butter 
  • 40 grams of Parmesan cheese 

Instructions: 

Chop the onions finely and add to a casserole pot with your olive oil and soften. Make sure the pot has a lid. 

Remove the sausage from the skin and break it up with your fingers. Add it to your onions and fry until golden brown. 

Add the risotto and fry on a medium to high heat until the grain becomes slightly translucent. 

Add ½ a cup of white wine and cook for 2-3 minutes. You want the alcohol to evaporate. 

Add your beef broth one ladle at a time. Keep stirring. As the liquid absorbs add more broth feeding your risotto. Your cooking time should be 15-18 minutes. 

At the 13-minute mark add a tablespoon of broth to the teaspoon of saffron in a separate bowl. Let the saffron steep for 3 minutes. Add the saffron to the risotto. 

Slice the mushrooms and fry with a little butter in a separate frying pan over a high heat until golden brown. 

Add the mushrooms to the risotto and fold through. Remove from heat and pot the lid on the casserole. Let the risotto sit for 3 minutes before serving.

-Melissa