Pasta and Meat Balls

My mum was one of those people that demanded you were in the kitchen with her while she cooked. How dare you watch TV while she was slaving away?! The weirdest thing was that she would never let you touch anything. Never! I used to wonder what the point was, a few times out loud and I received dirty looks and once a slap as answers to my “wondering”.

One afternoon she called me in to her room and asked me in front of my dad how to make one dish she had prepared several times. I was like see this woman oh. She wants to cause trouble. Never! If I fumbled now I won’t hear the last of it. My dad would find a way to relate it school and how I don’t listen in class etc. This wasn’t going to happen to me. I cracked my brain and dug out images of how she prepared it and what ingredients she used. I recited the method step by step. When I was done she had a huge smile one her face, seeing her smile my dad started clapping. I had passed the test.

Phew!

“Oya, go and make it for your dad, he is very hungry.” mum said

My heart sank. It’s one thing to know the steps to make a dish, it’s another thing to actually make it. I did as I was told and it turned out really good. Till this day all I have to do it watch a cook show without even taking notes and I would be able to prepare what ever the cook or chef is making.

I guess there was a point in just watching her cook after all.

Ingredients:

250g of fusilli pasta (I used macaroni because I had run out of fusilli)

500g of minced meat

3 tbs of plain breadcrumbs

½ medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 scotch bonnet (ata rodo), chopped

1 cup full of chopped spring onions

½ cup tomato puree

3 tbs of corn flour

2 tbs of vegetable oil

250g of grated cheese

4 Knorr cubes

Salt to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven to about 180 degrees Celsius. Boil the pasta as per packet instructions in slated water and drain and keep aside. In a large mixing bowl, add the minced meat, onions, garlic, scotch bonnet and 1 Knorr cube. Mix thoroughly with your fingers. Roll the meat mixture into balls. Make sure they are not too large. Place then on a clean flat plate.

In a medium sized sauce pan heat the oil for a minute and fry the tomato puree for about 2 minute with one Knorr cube on medium heat. Mix the corn flour with cold water to make about 250ml of corn flour liquid. Lower the heat and add the corn flour mixture to the sauce pan containing the tomato puree. Continue to stir gentle to avoid lumps forming. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Taste to see if the last Knorr cube is required. Gentle add one meat ball at a time to the sauce pan. Do not stir. Simmer for another ten minute to ensure the meat ball is cooked through. Add salt to taste.

In an oven safe bowl, spread 1/3 of the pasta to cover the bottom of the oven dish then add 1/3 of the meat ball sauce to cover the pasta and sprinkle 1/3 of the grated cheese. Repeat this two more times. Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes.

First Layer

Second Layer

Enjoy with green salad.