Ridiculously simple recipes that never fail.

Butter can be used instead of margarine.

Steak Casserole with Jacket potatoes

450 gm lean braising steak in steaks if possible
1 med onion thinly sliced
1 tin Baxter's Royal Game Soup.

Open tin, pour into casserole, add meat and onions. Put in oven 180 fan

Put jacket potatoes on top shelf

Ready in 1hr 30 mins.

I usually serve with some veg or other.

Gammon mushroom pie

Chopped up leftover gammon
Onion chopped very fine
Mushrooms sliced
Tin mushroom soup condensed variety
Put all ingredients in casserole then top with thin sliced potatoes and butter. Bake until potatoes are browned and bubbling.

I have used the pizza base recipe in the past but with a spoonful of sugar to make naan bread.

shysal

fevertree

Melt cheese in what cream though?

I don't think it matters. I use Elmea double light.

Oooh be careful there. Elmlea isn’t cream so you might get a different result using real cream fevertree.

What a great thread! I'm really fed up with recipes that need a pageful of ingredients, most of which I don't have, but these are brilliant.
Can we have a Gransnet 'Ridiculously Easy Recipes' cook book, please? I would also like a Gransnet 'Cooking for your Ridiculously Fussy DH' if someone would care to write one.

Easy cheese straws -

Put equal quantities of plain flour, grated mature cheddar and cooking marg (or butter) in a bowl. Mix together to form a dough. Roll out on floured board with floured pin. Cut into fingers and bake at, oh, I don’t know, gas 6 (no idea what the electric equivalent is, sorry) for about 20 mins or until faintly brown. Cool and eat! Oh, almost forgot, sometimes, if I remember, I add a good pinch of dry mustard powder or a dollop of ready made to the mix.

add a onion to pan lightly fry sometimes add red pepper Tin o fcondensed chicken soupmake as instruction I use milk not water and left over chicken or chicken and gammon from weekend roasts to make a quick pie always have puff pastry in freezer pastry is cooking in oven while you are cooking the filling. filling freezes really well I sometimes cook extra chicken just to make this and have as a quick standby great on jacket potato or wit pasta or rice.

Also, NotTooOld, Simple Recipes For One", please.

Glad this thread was resurrected. I was looking for the lemonade scones recipe recently. And am looking forward to simple cooking after the Christmas cooking marathon (which I enjoyed, bit enough is enough)

1 tin tuna, drained and flaked
1 tin Campbells condensed mushroom soup - do not dilute

Warm them together, while cooking enough pasta for 2.
Mix all together, serve with frozen peas.
My go-to really lazy dinner, and very tasty. Loads for 2, would do for 3 small eaters.

My very lazy meal when I am really down but need to eat, open freezer door, take out M&S ready meal, put in microwave,eat and enjoy.

Seriously though folks I have enjoyed reading these suggestions and have noted down several I know I will cook.
Some have been very inspirational.

Actually Doodledog that sounds a nice way to use up lots of odds and ends and would make a nice filling for what the Americans call 'hand pies' (I think), which are basically flat pasties. A bit like small Greggs pasties.

My easy meal is chicken and mushroom pie -
A pkt ready made pastry
Small packet of button mushrooms
Tin of Campbells condensed mushroom soup
Leftover cooked chicken
Brown mushrooms is a nonstick pan with a little oil
Mix with chicken and the mushroom soup (undiluted)
Line pie dish and put in filling and make a lid
Brush with egg or milk
Bake in moderate oven until nicely browned.

My current go to pud is called Burnt Basque Cheesecake and it's very easy.

If you remember the only cheesecake that was available in the delis and coffee shops back in the 60s which were quite dense, this is a bit like them but lighter.

Heat your oven to 200C. 180 fan, 400F.

First prepare a 20cm cake tin , either springform or with a loose bottom. Put a sheet of greaseproof paper in and fold the edges over. Then add another sheet and fold the edges over. Put something heavy into the tin to keep the paper in place. (You serve the cheesecake in it's paper)

600 gms cream cheese
175 gms caster sugar

Beat the above together for at least 2 minutes in a mixer. Longer if by hand

Add 3 eggs, one at a time, whilst beating

Add 300mls sour cream (I use creme fraiche) and beat

Finally add 25 gms of corn flour and 1/4 tsp of fine salt. And beat. You will have a liquid.

Pour the mixture into the lined tin and knock the tin on the table top to remove any bubbles and bake for 50 minutes.

When you take it out it will be wobbly. Leave it on a stand (in the tin) for 3 hours. (I made one yesterday and ate it after 2 hours. ) It sets as it cools.

Carefully take it out of the tin (in it's paper) and serve.

Nigella serves it with a liqourice sauce. I serve it with pouring cream and some frozen mixed berries gently reheated.

I made it for Wednesday evening and we'll be finishing off the left overs tonight (Friday). It won't be as good as it will be denser. But eaten on the day it is made, it's a joy. Don't put it in the fridge to cool it.

henetha

Also, NotTooOld, Simple Recipes For One", please.

Sometimes it's just as easy to make larger quantities and then freeze some. Every now and then I make up a batch of sauce using minced beef which I then freeze in small boxes. I can make spag bol or shepherd's pie or moussaka. There's lots of dishes that you can freeze. In the past I used to cook 1lb beef for one meal of spag bol for the two of us, with 1/2 lb dry pasta. Now that quantity of beef will last for 3 meals for 2 and I cook 100gms rice or pasta. Smaller quantities but no difference to my weight.

AreWeThereYet

Actually Doodledog that sounds a nice way to use up lots of odds and ends and would make a nice filling for what the Americans call 'hand pies' (I think), which are basically flat pasties. A bit like small Greggs pasties.

I hadn't heard of hand pies, but I do sometimes make pasties - same sort of filling (or whatever's lurking in the fridge), but I cut round a saucer, spoon the filling on one half, fold, crimp, glaze and bake.

Yes, the turkey and ham pies saw off the Christmas leftovers, and I'm a great fan of 'fridge bottom' meals the day before shopping day.

I have a pie maker, which is basically a deep toastie maker, and it's great for using up leftovers. It came with a two-sided cutter, and you use one side to cut out a larger circle of pastry to line the bottom of the mould, fill it, then cut out a smaller circle for the lid, close the machine and leave it for 3 minutes or so and voila! You have pies. Mine makes two at a time (small ones), but you can get bigger ones that make up to six pies, I think.

I think us Grans are keeping the Campbells Soup factory going!

Here is my quick lunch when I’m on my own -

Cook your pasta, drain, reserve a quarter cup of cooking liquid.

Use same pan to warm quarter cup cream, add a handful of cheese (any sort). Stir. Two big handfuls of baby spinach goes in to wilt for a few moments, tip the drained pasta on top, and fold through abit of the cooking liquid to loosen.

Freshly ground black pepper.

Also works well with any bits of left over ham, or any half used packs of supermarket fresh herbs.

Today I did a shredded slice of ham and half a pack of parsley.

Glosgran

Very Easy Apple Dessert

Layer ginger nut biscuits with stewed apple in a glass. Leave in the fridge for biscuits to absorb moisture from the apple. Serve with whipped cream on the top and pieces of chopped preserved ginger or chocolate curls.

That sound good - could add a splash of something alcoholic ? as well!

Hasty pie -
Baked beans into dish
Add a slash of chilli sauce and tomato purée
Slices of cheese on top of beans
Then top with mashed or cooked sliced potatoes
Put in oven for as long as you like (but adjust temperature accordingly)
Eat with fried egg

Bonus ingredients are -
Fried onion
Mushrooms
Red pepper
Bacon
Sausages (which turn it into Cowboy Pie)

Perfect comfort food!

That's a good point, Dinahmo. I do sometimes make large quantities of shepherds pie, or similar, and freeze portions.

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Really nice potatoes...- for 1 perdon

Thinly slice 2 medium potatoes. Put in a bowel with 1/2 tablespoon of oil, any herbs you like and 2 tablespoons of grated parmesan. Mix up well to coat slices, then pile stacks in 2 or 3 greased muffin tin holes. Bale 35 -40 mins at 190 centigrade.

They go well with just about anything!!

Er person ...not perdon!!! Oops!

Bacon and tomato sauce for pasta

Fry a couple of rashers of bacon (or more of you prefer) until cooked, add a tin of tomatoes and plenty of pepper. Cook until reduced, then add to pasta.

It tastes much better than it sounds.