The Cheesy Post

Right now, I am craving cheese like it's nobody's business (what does that even mean, anyway??)

(Heaven)

This, after a breakfast of mozzarella. But one of my many mottoes is: Cheese makes everything better. I love cheese. Haloumi, Brie, Camembert, Cheddar, Gruyere, Jarlsberg, Parmesan Reggiano, Bocconcini, Buffalo Mozzarella - the stuff is divine. As a result, I had to come up with something quick and cheesy to satisfy my cravings, without resorting to cheese toast. This was made up on the fly, so I'll be refining it in the future.

Warning: Will cause your arteries to quake in terror. There is not so much a sauce as there is just ridiculous amounts of melted cheese. This recipe is hugely unhealthy but there are just some days when that's exactly what you need.

This recipe serves 1.

Ingredients:

• 20g Parmesan Reggiano, finely grated
• 70g good quality Cheddar, diced (I like Watsonia Cheddar)
• 20g Mozzarella, grated
• 1 tsp dried flaked onion (or use 1/4 of a fresh onion, finely diced and sauteed with a little butter in the microwave)
• 1 level tbsp cornflour
• Generous dash of milk (approx 40-50ml)
• 100-125g dried risoni
• 1L freshly-boiled water
• 1/2 level tsp chicken salt
• 1 tsp olive oil & 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 tsp ground nutmeg

1. Put the boiling water, risoni, oil and plain salt in a large (2L) microwave dish. Partially cover with a lid, and cook for 10 minutes, or until tender.
2. Remove and drain. Return the pasta to the dish. Add the cheeses, milk, nutmeg, chicken salt and onion to the dish and stir well. Microwave for 2 minutes.
3. Remove and sprinkle the cornflour evenly over the pasta mixture. Stir in quickly to prevent lumps from forming. Microwave for 2 more minutes or until 'sauce' has reached desired thickness.

Enjoy!

Ideas:

• If you want to make this healthier, reduce the amount of cheese and add some sort of vegetables, such as canned drained corn, baby spinach or cooked broccoli florets. Asparagus might also be a nice addition. I don't recommend mushrooms (as much as I love them) as the flavour of the mushroomy juices can really overwhelm the cheesy taste.

*Update: This is EXTREMELY cheesy. You may wish to share with a friend. I'm 2/3s of the way through and starting to flag.

Healthy Pasta Bolognese

High in flavour, and high in nutrients.

Now, I love carbs. I don't understand people who go on low carb diets; they're almost always my favourite part of every meal and I don't feel full without some carbs, be they pasta, noodles, rice, potatoes, and so on. One of my two most frequently used carbs is pasta. I love to try different sauces with different types of pasta. This recipe is essentially a bolognese that I've personalised to increase the nutrient factor, without compromising on taste.

This recipe will serve 4 people (easily), or two people with leftovers for lunch the next day). It can be completed in 90 minutes, but it's preferable that it take 120 minutes, and I often like it best when it has simmered for 3 hours (or 180 minutes).

Ingredients:

• 400-500g dried long pasta, e.g. spaghetti, fettucini
• 250g beef mince
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed or very finely diced (if you're lazy like me and don't want smelly fingertips, use about 2/3 of a tablespoon of garlic paste)
• 1 cup (or more) of diced miscellaneous vegetables, e.g. eggplant, capsicum, etc.
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• 100ml red wine (sometimes I splash in a little more)
• 1/4 cup quinoa, rinsed*
• 1/3 cup red lentils, rinsed
• 1 x 310g can of corn, drained
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms (white, portobello, swiss brown, etc)
• 1-2 sticks of celery, finely diced
• 1 large carrot, finely diced
• 1 beef stock cube (I like Massel)
• 1 tbsp dried mixed italian herbs
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 2 x 400g canned tomatoes
• 1 tsp salt (it'll be used to salt the pasta so don't bother using a gourmet salt)
• Freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano, to serve

I know there are a lot of ingredients but this dish is really easy to cook - so do not fear! I love to use spaghetti, though I'll add some other ways of modifying this dish at the bottom of the recipe- I love thinking of ways to make recipes more versatile. Do use freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano if you can. I recently started buying all my cheeses fresh from the local market's deli hall and they are so much better than the pre-grated, frozen packaged types.

1. Add 1/2 tbsp olive oil to a deep saucepan (or saucepot), and heat over moderately-high heat until sizzling. Add the beef mince and brown, stirring and poking to break up any lumps. When the beef is brown and cooked through, push it to one side. Add 1 tbsp of oil and add the diced onion, garlic and celery. Cook until translucent.
2. Add the sliced mushrooms, miscellaneous vegetables and mix with the other ingredients in the pot. Reduce heat slightly, stirring to ensure that the ingredients don't stick. When the mushrooms are soft and cooked, add the red wine, Massel stock cube and about 1/4 of the herbs. Ensure that ingredients are well-combined and the stock cube has completely dissolved (biting into a badly dissolved stock cube is not a fun experience for the taste buds).
3. When the liquid has reduced slightly, add the canned tomatoes. Mix. Add the rest of the ingredients (except the Parmesan, pasta, salt and the last of the olive oil). Reduce heat to low, partially cover and simmer for 60-120 minutes, depending on how much time you have. The longer the better (I like to leave it for 3 hours so that the flavours have time to mingle with each other). Check regularly, adding water and stirring the mixture as necessary.
4. Approximately 15 minutes before your meal, boil enough water to cook the pasta that you're going to use. Add the salt and olive oil to this. Boil your pasta according to the packet instructions or until al dente. I tend to like mine done just past al dente, so I just use a fork to grab bits of pasta to try once it hits the 10 minute mark. When the pasta is finished, drain it, reserving about 1/4 cup of the boiling liquid.
5. Add the reserved liquid to your pasta sauce** and increase the heat. When the bolognese starts to bubble, turn off/remove from the heat. Season to taste with salt, pepper or a pinch of sugar (only if necessary, which based on my experiences with this pasta in unlikely), serve the bolognese over the cooked pasta and top with some of the Parmesan Reggiano.

Bon appetit!

Ideas:

• Use a short textured pasta, cooked to just before al dente. Add to the sauce and pour into a baking/casserole dish. Top with parmesan, mozzarella and any other good melting cheeses that you like, and bake under a preheated 150°C oven set to grill for 10-15 minutes or until brown and melted.
• Serve with a light green salad or some peeled chilled cucumber, thinly sliced.
• Stir through baby spinach before serving.
• For dinner parties, you could use the first suggestion but bake the pasta in individual ramekins instead of a large baking/casserole dish.

* Quinoa is a grain that is similar in appearance to cous cous. It can generally be found at specialist shops and organic stores, but is increasingly available in mainstream supermarkets.

** Adding some of the pasta water introduces the pasta's starch to your sauce, making it better at clinging to the pasta.

Pie and Prejudice

Welcome, welcome to The Ladies of Shallot.

The eponymous ladies have different areas of passion and (somewhat dubious) expertise when it comes to cooking. Nevertheless, we all enjoy food, and each other's company, and thus The Ladies of Shallot was born.

Lady Number One is a twenty-something brunette of mixed heritage. I enjoy cooking, am a bibliomaniac, and I'm a little bit OCD. I'm a geek and proud of it. I love Nigella Lawson's attitude to food and cooking. I loathe coriander and lemongrass with a passion (while, oddly, enjoying lemons) and adore rosemary. I have a particularly soft spot for all foods savoury and carbohydrate-loaded. Oh, and custard.

Lady Number Two is also a twenty-something brunette latina studying in France. I didn't know how to cook until I arrived to the Old Continent and was forced to. But having a very French Boyfriend with good cooking skills, I have learned all of the basics - and how to spice them up just a bit (on a tight budget) to make something out of the ordinary. Oh, and I love pasta.

Lady Number Three is (wait for it, I don't want to shock you) another twenty-something brunette, this time with a knack for experimenting with different crafts (of which cooking is one). I have a particular soft-as-nougat spot for making desserts and baking. In my abundant spare time I wear a tiara and am a kind and just ruler to my cat and dog, who are the most loyal of subjects even if they never pay their taxes. I have an extreme sweet tooth and a fondness for milk and cookies that will put a five year old's to shame.

We don't pretend to be experts at cooking. It's something we all enjoy and do on a regular basis. All recipes are to our particular tastes and you should adjust recipe seasonings to your tastes. We also bear no responsibility for any incidents or mishaps that might occur while you are trying out our recipes - if you don't have a basic understanding of kitchen safety and behaviour, you probably shouldn't be here (this is the prejudice part).

We reserve the right to remove comments that we deem to be inflammatory, troll-like, spam, or just plain rude. We are more than happy to hear about suggestions or modifications to our recipes and would love feedback on how they went. Cooking experiences are best shared.

Adieu, and happy eating!