Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the garlic; cook 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, and wine. Bring to a simmer and cook 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Once the tomatoes have simmered into a sauce, stir in the butter and season with salt and pepper.
Fill a large pot with lightly-salted water; bring to a rolling boil; stir in the linguine and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through but is still firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Drain well in a colander set in the sink.
Season the shrimp with the Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the shrimp and cook until pink on the outside and no longer translucent in the center, about 5 minutes. Stir the shrimp into the pasta sauce, then stir the sauce into the linguine to serve.
Cut ribs into small portions of 2 or 3 bones each. Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add the salt, black pepper and dried red chili to the water. Boil the ribs in seasoned water for 20 minutes. Drain, and let the ribs sit for about a half an hour.
Meanwhile, preheat the BBQ to high. Lightly coat the ribs with BBQ sauce. Cook the ribs over high heat for a 5 to 10 minutes on each side to get a nice barbecued look to them.
Place BBQ ribs in a slow cooker. Pour remaining BBQ sauce and one bottle of stout over the ribs; this should cover at least half of the ribs. Cover, and cook on High for 3 hours. Check ribs every hour or so, and add more stout if needed to dilute the sauce. Stir to get the ribs on top into the sauce. The ribs are done when the meat is falling off the bone. The ribs were cooked completely in the first process, the rest is about flavor and texture.
Cook's note
If you add too much stout, the sauce will get very thin. It is best to drink most of the second bottle
Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Trim as much fat as possible off the spare ribs, then place them in a saucepan. Cover with cold water and add 2 tablespoons of the vinegar. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes, skimming the fat from the surface from time to time.
Meanwhile, combine the remaining 1 tablespoon vinegar, the oil, orange rind and juice, tomato puree, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and chili powder in a small pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 4–5 minutes or until the mixture is slightly reduced.
Drain the spare ribs and arrange them in a single layer in a large roasting pan. Pour over the orange juice mixture and turn the ribs to coat them evenly. Loosely cover the ribs with foil and roast for 20 minutes.
Remove the foil and roast for a further 20–25 minutes, turning and basting occasionally, until the ribs are dark brown and sticky. Transfer to a large serving dish and serve warm.
COOK'S TIP
Spare ribs are one of the fattier cuts of pork. Trimming off any visible fat, simmering in water and then roasting until crisp is clever ways to reduce their fat content.
Heat oil in a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Add ginger, lemon grass, chilies, and garlic. Cook 1 minute, stirring. Add chicken and cook, stirring, 5 minutes or until chicken is cooked.
Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Combine lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar; pour over chicken.
Add onion, mint, and coriander, reserving a few leaves for garnish. Toss gently. Place salad in individual bowls, garnish with remaining coriander. Scoop portions of salad onto lettuce leaves to form parcels or cups for eating.
cook's tip
For a quick version of this salad, buy a cooked chicken. Remove the skin and bones, then finely chop the chicken breast meat or shred it with a fork.
In a large bowl, gently toss beans, sweetcorn, onion, tomatoes, lime juice and lemon zest. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Mix in basil just before serving.
Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C. Scrub or peel the root vegetables, according to their type and your taste. Halve or quarter large potatoes. Cut large carrots or parsnips in half lengthways, then cut the pieces across in half again. Cut sweet potato, swede or kohlrabi into large chunks (about the same size as the potatoes). Leave shallots or pickling onions whole.
Place all the vegetables in a large saucepan and pour in enough boiling water to cover them. Bring the water back to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5–7 minutes or until the vegetables are lightly cooked, but not yet tender.
Drain the vegetables and place them in a roasting pan. Brush the vegetables with olive oil and sprinkle with cracked black peppercorns. Add the herb sprigs to the pan and place the pan in the oven.
Roast for 30–35 minutes or until the vegetables are golden-brown, crisp and tender. Turn the vegetables over halfway through cooking time. Serve hot, garnished with extra sprigs of thyme or rosemary, if desired.
Lightly oil the cooking grate. Cook the wings 8 to 12 minutes on each side, until juices run clear. The larger pieces will take slightly longer to cook.
Melt the butter in a saucepan, and mix in the Tabasco, pepper, and salt.
Place wings in a large container with a secure lid. Pour sauce over the wings, and seal. Shake wings with the sauce until thoroughly coated.
Tip:
If you don't want to fire up the barbecue, just cook the wings under your oven's grill.
Pour the vodka and peach schnapps into a cocktail shaker with the ice and shake well. Strain into 2 martini glasses and top up with champagne. Garnish with strawberries.
Make the pancake mix accord into packet instructions (or use your favorite recipe).
Prepare a range of fruit that can be used as face features - smiley apple mouths - banana slices or strips - grape or berries for eyes and nose be creative
Serve the pancakes with the fruit in the center of the table and let the kids make their own face. Before you know it they will have eaten plenty of fruit and be too full to eat the pancake.
Cream makes great hair or beards if you have it available.
In a bowl combine the flour, brown sugar, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt then mix together with a whisk for two minutes. In another bowl, stir together pumpkin puree, cinnamon, ginger, egg, milk, vegetable oil, lemon juice and lemon zest.
Add dry ingredients to the wet and mix well but do not overdo mix. The goal is to create a lumpy batter.
Grease a nonstick frying pan about 12 cm in diameter, put it on the heat and when it is hot pour a ladle of the mixture. Allow cooking until they are covered in bubbles. Then turn and cook the other side.
Serve the pumpkin pancakes still warm dusted with icing sugar or maple syrup.
