Baltic Bolognese

The night before I prepared the dish on the blog today was a very special night; my dining partner and I had been to the pub with two dear and important friends of mine, who live in the south these days, plus another mate who is a good lad. Later that night I had dropped my dining partner off and on the way home saw a rare Owl, its ghost-like face illuminated in the headlights of my car, hunting by the side of a remote country crossroads.

The next morning the snow, which had caused great stress a little over two weeks earlier, returned and thwarted our plans. However we knew it was only temporary. After revisiting that 1999 classic video game "Metal Gear Solid", this time in downloaded form on my Playstation Three, it was time for a chilly walk in the snow. The temperature was positively Baltic and my dog needed her trendy red coat to keep warm.

When we returned home I needed something to warm up and settled on a spicy Bolognese meal on this Baltic winter's day.

The ingredients for the Bolognese Sauce were as follows:

Three Banana Shallots, topped, tailed, peeled and sliced finely.
Five Tomatoes, cut into cubes.
One clove of Garlic, topped, tailed and finely sliced.
One Leek, topped, tailed and sliced width-ways.
One teaspoon of Smoked Paprika.
One Bird's Eye Chilli cut into four pieces; using protective gloves while cutting.
One teaspoon of dried Basil.
One teaspoon of dried Oregano.
One teaspoon of Black Pepper.
One tablespoon of Tomato Puree with Chili.
Eight Ounces of Quorn Mince.
Ten ounces of Red Leicester Cheese cut into cubes.

For the Spaghetti:

Twelve Ounces of Spaghetti.
Ten ounces of Caramalised Onion Cheddar cut into cubes.

On the player was my hero Frank Zappa's collaboration with radical classical composer Pierre Boulez "Boulez Conducts Zappa: The Perfect Stranger." I do have the odd classical album in my collection which otherwise consists of Rock of many kinds, Folk, a hint of Jazz and a sprinkling of Rap. However readers I am not a collector of genuine classical music and albums such as Zappa's collaboration with Pierre Boulez are the exception and not the rule.

The album is a bold and successful statement of purpose as it comprises of orchestral pieces of Zappa's work conducted by Boulez interspersed seamlessly with tracks recorded and performed by Zappa purely on his syn-clavier.

Onto the method then for this meal. It was as follows:

1. Fry, on a medium heat, the Garlic, Shallots, Leek, Herbs, Spices and Tomato Puree for twenty minutes in a Le Cresceut with Olive Oil while stirring regularly.

2. Add the Tomatoes and mince and fry for another twenty minutes ensuring the Tomatoes become soft and slushy so they can be stirred into the rest of the sauce.

3. In the meantime boil the Spaghetti in a pan of boiling water for fifteen minutes.

4. Serve the Spaghetti with chunks of the Caramalised Cheddar atop it.

5. Add the Red Leicester to the Bolognese Sauce and let it melt in.

6. Serve the Bolognese Sauce with the Pasta and consume it.

The taste of the Sauce was rich but without being sickly. The sharpness of the Chili and Paprika provided warmth and energy while the Quorn Mince gave protein. The melted Caramalised Cheddar with Onion meanwhile gave the Spaghetti and rich and tangy taste.

Side of Spaghetti- the food dished out and ready to eat.