That Barry White Moment...

It’s that moment. That moment that you set eyes on a hot plate of something delicious.

You start salivating and you can quite literally hear Barry White playing in your head. Listen closely…. 

My comfort food theme song. Source YouTube

Strange? Yes! A welcome emotion on a cold day? Yes!

Know what I’m talking about? (you all scream Yes!)

Comfort food...mmmmm. After a busy couple of days, and some very chilly weather, last night felt the perfect night for some good old fashioned comfort food.

If you want the official Little Kitchen definition for comfort food it’s rich, saucy, delicious and absolutely loaded with carbs ;) It can usually partner with a good bottle of red wine like they are long lost soul mates, and it has to involve a couch somewhere along the line. That’s comfort food. And so is this:

Spicy Sausage and Mushroom Pasta

Serves 4. Okay who am I kidding? Serves 2 ;)

Ingredients

• 500g Pasta - I used the bow-tie one, but Penne will be just as good.
• 1 Chorizo sausage - I used the Woolworths one - delicious
• 500g Lean beef mince
• 1 Punnet of button mushrooms
• Fresh Basil
• Fresh chili
• Fresh Garlic
• Olive Oil
• Mozzarella
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 400g tin of chopped and peeled 

 Ready...Steady...Cook! Images my own.

Method

Heat the oven to 180 Degrees. 

Add chopped garlic and a pinch of chili depending on your taste into a warm pan with some olive oil, and gently fry. Be careful not to burn the garlic, it will be all you can taste.

Once this mixture is browning nicely, add about a tablespoon of hand torn fresh basil. Someone once told me that torn herbs hold their flavour much more than chopped or cut herbs. Not sure how true this is, but it feels creative so go with it!

Fry lightly in the olive oil until it smells and looks delicious. Be careful not to dry out the basil leaves, they should still be shiny with Oil. 

The base flavours are often the most important. Images my own. 

Slice up the button mushrooms and add to the herbs and garlic, stir so that they are evenly covered. Remember the trick with mushrooms, don't ever wash them, as they absorb monumental amounts of water. If they are dirty rub them down with some kitchen towel or invest in one of those fancy little mushroom brushes. Just don't wash them. Put a handful of mushrooms in at a time, I find that if you put them all in together they release liquid and go all soggy. Not ideal.

Get your water for the pasta on to boil. Pinch of Salt in the water, and get it boiling. 

The prep. Images my own. 

Next... get going with your Chorizo. I find working with Chorizo extremely tough, I end up eating most it before it even gets to the board. Try and resist!

I traditionally buy the Woolworths Chorizo, but there is no denying that it is a pricey purchase. You can swop this with spicy Spanish sausages or add regular sausage meat and generously add in smoked paprika and extra chili. 

Chop the Chorizo into bite size pieces and pop them into a blender, to grind them up. If you don't have a blender, don't panic. Slice and dice the sausage into small pieces which will mix well with the Beef mince. 

Life is too short grind a Chorizo by hand. Images my own. 

Add the Chorizo to the cooked mushrooms, stir and let simmer for about 5min. 

Make sure the pan doesn't become too dry, add a splash of Olive Oil if the contents start to stick. 

Pop in the mince, and give it a good stir, mixing the mince, chorizo, mushrooms and herbs. Make sure the mince browns evenly. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the tin of tomato paste and one tin of chopped and peeled tomatoes. Stir and simmer until evenly mixed and looking delicious. ABout 8-10min depending on the heat of your stove. 

Don't forget about your water on the boil. Once it has come to a fast boil, pop your pasta in and give it a good stir. Depending on what your pot is like, I often add the tiniest dash of olive oil into the water to ensure it doesn't stick together. This really isn't a hard and fast rule, all depends how I'm feeling and how the pasta is looking. Sticky pasta is my worst.

Once the pasta is Al Dente (not mushy, cooked, but still firm). Drain using a colander and stir into the meat mixture and simmer for about 2min.

All coming together. Images my own.

Grate some cheese, I used mozzarella, sprinkle generously on top. Pop in the oven for 10min until the cheese is melted. 

Cheese. Glorious Cheese. Images my own. 

Serve with fresh rocket, extra chili and if you managed to avoiding polishing off the Chorizo, add some extra slices of Chorizo to top it off.

Out of the oven. Into bowls. Into hungry tummies. Images my own.

I’m desperate for feedback on the blog, so let me know if you’ve tried any of the recipes and how it went.

Alternatively hit me up with one of your comfort food favs...I am always looking for a new couch friend :)

Enjoy

xx C