Food With Friends – a festive occasion

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apples, asparagus, blue cheese, Chefs, Cook Books, Cooking Through The Seasons, Cooks, eggs, feta cheese, food and drink, Food Blogs, Food Writing, garden salad, Lifestyle, olives, paoched eggs, potatoes, Prawns, red onion, roses champain, salad leaves, Spices, steamed rice, tarts, Tomato sauce, tomatoes, Vegetarian, vinaigrette

December brought with it the usual joy of sharing meals and enjoying quality time with family and friends. Keeping things simple yet festive was as always high on my list of priorities; these are some of my favourites dishes served this season.

For Christmas day

Prawns in spicy tomato sauce, served with steamed rice and a garden salad

Under the sway of the palms

Asparagus, red onion and blue cheese tart

Simple but fabulous warm Potato slices and olives, tossed together in an anchovy and garlic vinaigrette served with slivers of tuna and topped with a poached egg.

A bitterly cold day-Delicate moreish little balls of meat & A good bottle of wine

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Cheese, Chefs, Cooks, Entertainment, food and drink, Food Blogs, Herbs, ingredients, Meatballs, Mince, Pancetta, Parmesan, Pork, S.A. Food Blogs, Tomato sauce, Veal, wine

Busy day and it is bitterly cold, I have barely ten minutes before the butcher closes. Dashing in I join the end of a long queue, but at least it gives me time to cast my eye over the long display counter to pick out what I want. I want something that can simmer and putter its way to perfect tenderness. The veal and pork mince conjures up images of delicate meat balls cooking slowly in a rich, mouth mopping tomato sauce; I ask the butcher to provide me with a fine mince of equal proportions of both veal and pork. I head for home and the welcome warmth of the kitchen, to quickly prepare the meal and then to sit back and enjoy the company of good friends for an hour in front of the warmth of the fire while the food slowly takes care of itself as it gently bubbles away, releasing the most gorgeous mouth watering fragrance into the air as it cooks.

Veal & Pork Meatballs

These are the most delicate, moreish little balls of meat that will have you licking your fingers and mopping the juices until nothing but a clean plate is left. A perfect dish for family and good friends.

Serves 4

Ingredients

250 g minced veal

250 g minced pork

1 large egg

3 tablespoons chopped parsley

60 g grated Parmesan cheese

1 slice of day old bread, soaked in a little milk, then squeezed dry

60 g finely diced pancetta

Sea salt

Freshly ground pepper

The Cooking sauce

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion finely diced

2 tablespoons tomato puree

½ tsp. castor sugar

Water, sufficient

Method

Place all the meatball ingredients in a bowl and mix together gently but thoroughly. Shape into 12 even size balls, and then flatten slightly into oval shapes about 1 cm thick.

Place the olive oil in a heated pan and gently fry the meatballs until well browned on each side and then transfer to a casserole or suitable ovenproof dish.

In the same frying pan add the onion, tomato puree, sugar and 100ml water, stir well and cook for about 5-10 minutes; season with salt and pepper.

Pour the sauce over the meatballs, add some water, the water should almost cover them. Cover with a lid and simmer over low heat for about 1 hour.

You can serve the saucy meatballs with ribbon pasta, rice or just hunks of crisp bread.