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    Wednesday, June 01, 2016

    Prawn and Spinach Cheesy Pasta Bake - Good for the Freezer or Wolf Down straight away

    Would you believe I had some Cooked Prawns leftover last Thursday.
    It may be that the beautiful Bluff oysters were so yummy, that we filled up on them
    Also, in the fridge, there was an unopened bag of baby spinach 
    Anyway, as usual…waste not want not
    Almost a boring refrain... BUT it’s all true
    Best way to get the most out of the prawns
    Turn into a Pasta Bake, easy to freeze too
    Now I know the Italians don't put cheese and seafood together
    BUT the French do, so I am going the French way
    If you are starting from scratch and your prawns are frozen
    They are so easy to cook

    Just toss the defrosted prawn tails with a slosh of Olive Oil
    Some sea salt 
    A grind of Freshly Ground Black Pepper
    1 clove Garlic finely chopped
    Grated zest of a lemon

    Into a 200C oven for just 6 mins
    Remove from the oven
    Squeeze juice of 1 small lemon and mix 
    Cool

    Now back to the main dish
    Enough to feed at least 6 People

    Ingredients
    2 cups  Cooked Prawns
    2 cloves garlic chopped very finely
    125 gms butter
    Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
    6 large cherry tomatoes chopped
    1 bag baby spinach
    1/2 cup flour
    5 cups milk


    1/2 cup grated cheese

    2 cups cooked prawns and juices
    Zest lemon

    Juice half lemon
    4 cups dry pasta of your choice
    Penne or Orecchiette perhaps
    Your choice

    Topping
    Extra grated cheese and
    Fresh Breadcrumbs


    Method
    Melt butter in medium size pan
    Gently sauté the garlic, till just cooked do not burn
    Add  chopped tomatoes

    Season with Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
    Sauté about a minute and then add the spinach
    Let it wilt
    Add the flour to make a roux and stir, cook down for about 3-4 minutes
    to get rid of the raw taste

    Meanwhile heat the milk and add to the roux
    Bring back up to a simmer, stirring so that it doesn't go lumpy
    and it thickens up nicely

    Let it simmer about 3-4 minutes,
    stirring constantly, to stop from sticking to the bottom of the pan

    Add the grated Cheese
    Hooray a Mornay sauce is born
    Throw in the Prawns, any juices, lemon zest and the lemon juice

    Meanwhile cook  the pasta
    till it is al dente
    About 8 minutes
    Drain and add to the sauce

    Transfer to a ovenproof dish
    Cover with extra grated cheese and some fresh breadcrumbs

    This can now be frozen or cook straight away
    180C oven for 20-25 minutes
    Till top is golden and the sauce is bubbling
    Delicious, Just enough for me in this  particular dish.
    And these containers for the Freezer