Minced Lamb & Ale Hotpot

Wow, what's happened to the weather recently? Suddenly it feels like we've been transported into full blown winter, and the heating has started coming on in the morning despite the thermostat being set very low.

It's definitely time for soups and stews now so I decided to christen my new casserole dish with a warming minced lamb hotpot, using a few products provided by Unilever.

Minced Lamb & Ale Hotpot

1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
Knorr beef stock cube
Knorr Paprika pot
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
500g minced lamb
2 tbsp plain flour
350ml Ale
4 potatoes
2 parsnips
2 tbsp Flora Buttery, melted
salt & pepper

• Heat the oil in a large ovenproof casserole dish
• Add the onion and fry for 3-4 minutes, until softened
• Add the stock cube, paprika pot and garlic
• Mix well and fry for 1 minute
• Add the mince and fry until browned
• Add the flour and fry for a further minute whilst stirring all the time
• Add the ale and bring to the boil
• Simmer whilst preparing the potatoes and parsnips
• Slice the potatoes and parsnips about 1/2cm thick - no need to peel them
• Lay slices of potato and parsnip onto the mince and brush with melted butter & season with salt & pepper
• Place a lid on and bake in a 170C oven for 45 minutes
• Remove the lid and bake for a further 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are lightly browned

Serve with crispy baked Kale.

I was provided with a hamper of Unilever ingredients for use in this recipe

The Unilever Kitchen Brazil Challenge - Barbecue Pork and Black Bean Salsa

With the World Cup in Brazil kicking off tonight, with the first match between the hosts Brazil and Croatia, I will be off to the races! Yes I thought I would leave the men folk of the house shouting at the tv whilst I sup Pimms and laugh with the girls at Ladies Night at the local racecourse (and hopefully win a bit of cash too).

Fear not, as I am a good wife and Mum and will leave them fed and watered, and what better way to watch the footie than with a belly full of bbq food. The plan is to make some more barbecue pork as it went down so well last time I made it, with some wedges to accompany it.

I was challenged to come up with a Brazilian barbecue inspired dish by the people at the Unilever Kitchen, and provided with a hamper of goodies to help. I already have a post coming up for a pork and black bean stew (Feijoda) so I thought I would try something different but using similar flavours.

If you have the time to prepare the barbecue paste and marinade the meat in advance then it's worth doing, but if you don't then it will still be fine. If you are feeding a lot of people then just double or treble the sauce ingredients depending on how much meat you're using.

Barbecue Pork - serves 4

1 Knorr Beef stock cube

2 tbsp boiling water
1 Knorr Chilli flavour pot
1 Knorr Garlic flavour pot
1 tbsp smoked paprika
750g (approx) Pork shoulder steaks *

• Dissolve the beef stock cube in the boiling water
• Add the chilli and garlic flavour pots, along with the paprika, and mix to a paste
• Use the paste to coat the pork and set aside whilst you prepare the salsa
• Cook on a hot barbecue, checking that the meat is fully cooked before serving

Black Bean Salsa

200g cherry tomatoes, halved
100g sweetcorn
250g cooked black beans
1 Avocado, diced
handful of fresh coriander
juice of 2 lemons
1 red chilli (optional)
salt & pepper

• Mix all the salsa ingredients together in a bowl and season with salt & pepper

*TIP you could use a pork shoulder joint and slice it into steaks yourself as it's usually more economical