Spinach & Ricotta Canelloni

Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni
Would you like to know how to make this in record time with minimum fuss - read on.
You will need:
1.Fresh Lasagna sheets from the deli section (my pick is Latina) made with egg and thinner than a lot of other brands
2.Fresh ricotta in the basket
3.Frozen spinach for convenience(fresh is nice too)
4.Grated Romano Cheese
5.Grated cheddar & mozzorella cheese
6.Eggs
7.Nutmeg
8.Salt & Pepper
9.Tomato sugo (store bought or home made)
Method
1.Mix the ricotta eggs cheeses (leave a cup full of mixed cheeses aside to pop on the top of the dish before baking)
2.In this mix add the squeezed out spinach salt pepper nutmeg to form a paste like like mixture (Do not mix in a food processor)
3.Cut the pasta sheets to about lengths of 15cm long
4.Lay the mixture along one edge and roll the pasta over this to form a cylinder - put to one side and continue until the mixture is used
5.Using a low baking dish smear the bottom of the dish with olive oil and 1/2 cup of the sugo. (see below quick tip for easy homemade sugo)
6.Arrange the cannelloni in a row (don't cram them in too much)
7.Spoon remaining sugo over the top and and the sides of the dish to cover and moisten the cannelloni during baking.
8.Sprinkle with the remaining cheese Cover tightly with foil and bake at about 180c for 35minutes
The dish is ready when the cannelloni have risen
Tip: To keep the pasta from drying out during baking i like to water down the sugo and add around the outer edges of the dish. This helps the pasta to cook and absorb the tomato flavours
Tip:Make a huge batch of the cannelloni up to step 4. Gently place in a tupperware container with baking paper to seperate them and stop from sticking. Place in the freezer for up to 3 months. These can be used on a busy day popped into the baking dish with the sugo and on the table to eat within the hour
Home made sugo(Add a large can of chopped tomatoes to a some good olive oil (1/4 cup) basil oregano large spoon of tomato paste and garlic in a pot -let this slowly simmer on low for as long as you can for the flavours to develop-that's it-so easy)
Let me know how you go?

Noodles in a Flash

I searched the vegetable crisper and found some zucchini, capsicum, onion, mushroom and chinese sausage or pork mince in the freezer.

Diced it up and and quickly fried in some olive oil, ketchup manis and a glug of stock

Hot water over some dry chinese noodles for about 5 minutes, drain the noodles and stir through the colourful medley and dinner is ready in less than 30 minutes. Simple, fast delicious, just the way i like it

Creating Generative Value

Australia has fastest-rising food prices of any major developed nationBy John Rolfe
From: The Daily Telegraph
November 09, 2009 12:01AM

http://www.news.com.au/money/money-matters/australia-has-fastest-rising-food-prices-of-any-major-developed-nation/story-e6frfmd9-1225795572738
Costs Rising

John Rolfe of the Daily Telegraph has reported that “Australia has the fastest rising food prices of any major developed nation”. His claim of rising grocery costs to the tune of 40 per cent are quite alarming given that most Australians are already struggling with the escalating costs of mortgages and fuel. Rolfe notes Australia’s unique and volatile position in comparison to other countries. Australia’s rate of increase is “a quarter quicker than prices have risen in Britain, twice as fast as in France and nearly three times the speed of Germany”
Reasons Why?
Rolfe attributes this trend not to the fodder of usual suspects including drought, the GFC, rising transport costs, recent natural disasters or government influence, instead he squarely points the finger of blame at the unique supermarket duopoly that exists in Australia. University of NSW professor Frank Zumbo’s confirms the main reason is the “cosy” duopoly of Woolworths and Wesfarmers (owners of Coles).
The question that is raised is how a duopoly can continue to exist in an environment where the government is selling out on everything for the sake of the almighty dollar. Privatisation has been an important tool of government in Australia for the past two decades. We need only to look at the sale of prisons, airports, Telstra, water, gas and electricity services to see that nothing is immune.
Australia however has one of the most concentrated grocery markets in the world. The ABS suggests Woolworths and Wesfarmers account for almost 80% of supermarket sales, over 50% of alcohol retail, 44% of petrol retail and 25% of all retail in Australia.
Government Influence
With the governments’ recent shut down of consumer watch dog Choice’s attempt at a Grocery Choice website one wonders what the dollar value is for the government to so blatantly support the duopoly.
The question is how we can as consumers combat this issue. Woolworths and Coles give more shelf space to their own brand items. Name brand products are disappearing off the shelves – with only the top selling items remaining. This means less variety, or choice, and the loss of familiar brands from the aisles. For supermarkets, it creates a shift in bargaining power further down the supply chain; Australian farmers and wholesalers have little choice but to sell through the supermarkets’ own brands and are forced to compete with cheaper, often heavily subsidised, foreign imports.
What can we do?
• Shop at independent grocers and small supermarkets.
• Choose local, independent Australian owned brands, over generic supermarket house brands.
• If you’re buying a home brand, read the label and look for “Product of Australia’ and ‘Made in Australia’’ over imported.

Introducing Your Topic "Why home cooking?"

Cost
The cost of insurance goes up, we start phoning around to compare prices and change companies. The cost of fuel goes up we drive around or get the latest phone app to tell us where to fill up this week. The grocery bill goes up…………….we moan and groan about trying another grocery store next week if we get the time. Groceries are one of the largest weekly expenses for most families. How much is your weekly shopping bill………….don’t forget all those things like a coffee on the way to work, mid week Japanese take away, it all adds up. So maybe this is great experiment to try out for your-self. How much money can you actually save if you were to move away from takeaways, processed foods and last minute panic grocery buying?

Having an idea of what is in the pantry and freezer at the beginning of the week may sound a bit obvious but it’s surprising how many people get stuck buying things they already have at home when they are in a flap at the grocery store. (At one stage I had 15 cans of baked beans in my pantry).

Having a repertoire of quick and easy recipes that you can cook with your eyes closed is also important. Write them down somewhere. Photocopy the recipe that inspired your version and paste them all into the one book and title it DINNER IDEAS.



Health

This is a no brainer; home cooking is simple, usually made from things like real ingredients. It’s fresh, so you know what is missing - preservatives, additives, colours, unnecessary amounts of salt, sugar and fat. All those things that go into pre prepared meals and concoctions to make them last longer on the shelves. They assault our taste buds and generally insult us as consumers. There are lots of great sites with helpful information about adapting a healthier life. The theory is that if you eat healthy food with a minimum of processing, like fruit, vegetables and whole grains this will help reduce your caloric intake and your weight which in turn can help to minimize health problems. I prefer to look at the positives but if are interested in some of the more disturbing information regarding the commercial food industries there is a mountain of information about what is going on.

Social
Dinner can become a time to gather round and connect with your family and friends. To me fast food usually means fast eating. I rush to the take away place to grab it, I rush home before it gets cold, I throw it on the table and by the time I have put out some napkins and glasses it’s all over. A real meal takes a little time and a bit of care. People come to the kitchen to see how it’s progressing; there is the possibility of a nice glass of wine while dinner simmers or perhaps the kids can set the table while you talk about the weekend.

Narrating Personal Interest

Ingredients
As the daughter of a repressed European feminist making a new life in Australia I found myself repeatedly chased out of the kitchen and back to the study. The dream that my mother channelled through me was one of a new breed of independent and educated professional woman with the hope that every last drop of domesticated kitchen bound woman in my blood would be squeezed out of me. Fast forward 25 years – I am independent, educated (what ever that means) and semi professional, but ancestry is hard to shake. I work and then go home and spend most of my time in the kitchen trying to deliver the love that I have for my family in the form of a meal to the dinner table each night. It’s become a passion and I try to weave this tapestry of food, family and the happiness that comes from both into my own family home.
The difference (as I have explained to my mother) between me and the 50’s woman who was literally tied to her Wedgwood stove and Westinghouse Chill Box is that I have a choice. I choose to be a mother and wife and independent working woman. I choose to try and do all of it, except on Sunday mornings when I choose to pull the covers over my head.
Preparation
I troll the Internet for unique and obscure food websites. This has given us many interesting creations including a bright green version of beef casserole. I am not sure what the chemical reaction was that evening but thankfully no one needed to be taken to casualty as a result.
Recipe
So the passion comes not only from the love of experimenting with ingredients, spices, colours and textures but also from the belief that few traditions are more important in the world than that of gathering around the dinner table each night. It’s not just dinner time but an opportunity for us all to come together from our different directions and distractions throughout the day. The evening meal becomes a ritual where we can be fed and nourished and replenished from the demands of our hectic modern lives. I like to think that perhaps I am a conduit for the good ideas and love that come from those seemingly mundane gatherings and shared meals.