Come dine with Sophie
and Dan: Today’s treat is… Mouth-Melting, Tummy-Tingling Lasagna!
Sophie’s Run Blogtour
2013
Hello there! My name is Sophie, and I am the main character
in the Rock Star Romance Trilogy by Nicky Wells. It’s very nice to meet you,
and a huge thank to my fabulous Sapphire
Star Publishing sister, Amy Gregory,
for hosting me here today.
Nicky, my author, is doing a blog tour for her second book, Sophie’s Run. No surprise there, I
guess, it’s the done thing, right? Ah, but not this one. You see, Nicky was so
blog-toured out from the first book only a few short months ago that she
figured you wouldn’t want to read any more about her, her and her. Instead,
she’s decided to take you on tour with me and Dan. It’s a journey of geographic
and culinary exploration and it involves an awful lot of cooking on my part.
Yes, cooking. The woman has me shackled in the kitchen, trying out all these
recipes. “I write what I know,” she told me. “I know how to cook, I make you
cook in the book, therefore you must learn to cook.”
True. Except slightly unfair, because today’s offering is
Dan’s domain, Dan being the lead singer of legendary rock band Tuscq, and my
main love interest throughout the course of the Trilogy. He cooks, and my, he’s
great at it too. I was just as shocked as you no doubt are! Take a look at this
excerpt from Sophie’s Run:
“I told you I could cook,” he announced, and opened the
oven door with a flourish. I could just make out a dish filled to the brim with
what looked like hot cheesy sauce. It smelled delicious. I took a closer peek
but he shooed me away, telling me to sit down at the table, which he had
already laid for two.
“What is this?” I managed, totally taken aback.
“Just a little treat,” Dan announced cheerfully, pulling
the rack out of the oven and revealing a perfectly cooked, mouth-watering
lasagna. “To apologize for my very bad behavior and my long sulk.” He set the
steaming dish on the table, narrowly avoiding knocking over an open bottle of
red wine.
“I got garlic bread, too…” he continued, deftly retrieving
it from the oven. “Oh, and salad.” He scurried to the fridge.
It was delicious, I can tell you. And wonderful amazing
things happened afterwards; I did wonder if he put something strange in there
but… nah, he wouldn’t. That’s all in the book though. Not the bit about me
wondering, that just occurred to me right now. But the wonderful, amazing
things. Anyway, I digress. I’m here to tell you how to make Dan’s
Mouth-Melting, Tummy-Tingling Lasagna!
Here’s what you need
to serve you and three of your best friends…
~Eight to ten fresh Lasagne sheets, whether home-made or shop-bought.
Really, fresh makes ALL the difference.
For the filling:
~500 grams of lean mince (I like steak mince, personally)
~1 onion, finely chopped
~two tins of chopped tomatoes
~two generous tablespoonfuls of tomato puree/concentrate
~two garlic cloves, crushed or slices
~one stick of celery, finely chopped
~one carrot, diced
~two good quality beef stock cubes (I know, I sound like a
snob, but the quality of the stock really makes the Lasagna great!)
~herbs: parsley, basil, oregano, dried or fresh; use
generously to taste
~salt and pepper
~a small teaspoon of ground cinnamon
~a dash of maple syrup (yes, you read that right!)
~a dash of heat, whether from a small diced chilli, dried
chilli powder or hot smoky paprika powder (my favorite); if you haven’t got any
of those in the house, a few drops of Tabasco sauce will do
~oh, and I nearly forgot: a generous glass of lovely red
wine, yes, yes, yes!
To assemble the
lasagna:
~a medium size pot of half-fat crème fraiche
~as much cheese as you like in your Lasagne, grated or
sliced (Cheddar, Mozzarella, Gouda, Monterey Jack or any other good melting
cheese will be great; you can always use a combination of several)
~a small helping of grated Parmesan cheese for the very top
of your Lasagna
~Milk
…and here’s what you
do:
In a large pan, fry the onion in some olive oil until
they’re turning glassy, then add the celery, garlic and carrots. Add the mince
in small helpings, allowing to brown. Some people like their mince really quite
crispy; sometimes I go there, but most often I just make sure it’s all browned
all over. Then pour on the tinned tomatoes; if you feel two lots isn’t enough,
add another tin. This is all about your taste and your preferences!
Mix well, then stir in the tomato puree and add
the stock cubes. (I use the gellified variety and they’re great!!). Add the
herbs and spices, the bay leaf and the red wine and bring to a boil.
Immediately turn down the heat, cover and leave to simmer for at least an hour,
stirring occasionally
About twenty minutes before you want to start cooking, turn
on your oven to about 180 centigrade/350 Fahrenheit.
Then you’re ready to assemble your Lasagna. Choose a
suitably-sized, oven-proofed dish. By suitably sized I mean a dish big enough
to accommodate your Lasagna sheets, but not so big that all the liquid runs out
from your Lasagna and pools in the bottom of the dish away from the pasta. It
also needs to be reasonably deep… You
know what I mean! J If using shop-bought fresh Lasagna sheets,
follow the instructions on the packet; some need soaking in boiling water for a
few minutes, others are ready to go. And here’s what you do next.
Put a small glob of olive oil in the bottom of your dish.
Put in the first Lasagna sheet. Pour on a tiny bit of milk, then put the next
sheet on top. Now ladle on a generous helping of your mince-sauce-filling. Top
with a few spoonfuls of crème fraiche and a handful of cheese. Place the next
Lasagna sheet on top, pour on a bit of milk, place another sheet on top, and
then add more meat filling. Repeat until you run out of sheets and/or your dish
is full! When you’ve used the last sheet, put a bit more of your meat filling
on top (be sure to save some for this purpose!) then add generous amounts of
crème fraiche, lots and lots of cheese and a sprinkling of parmesan. Awesome!
Put in the oven and bake for about 20 to 30 minutes. There’s
no hard and fast rule here, everything depends on your pasta as the sauce is
already cooked and hot. After 20 minutes, try poking a knife in the middle; if
it goes through easily, everything is bubbling merrily even in the middle, and
you get the sense the pasta is cooked, you can probably eat. If you meet
crunchy resistance, cook for another few minutes. Lovely!
I hope you enjoy! And spare a thought for me and Dan and
everything that happens after he makes me that lasagna. See you in Sophie’s Run~ Rock on!
About Nicky Wells: Romance that Rocks Your World!
Rock On! Nicky Wells writes fun and glamorous contemporary
romance featuring a rock star and the girl next door. A signed author with U.S. publisher, Sapphire
Star Publishing, Nicky is in the
throes of publishing her Rock Star Romance Trilogy. Nicky loves rock music,
dancing, and eating lobsters. When she’s
not writing, Nicky is a wife, mother, and occasional teaching assistant.
Originally born in Germany, Nicky moved to the United
Kingdom in 1993, and currently lives in Lincoln with her husband and their two
boys. In a previous professional life, Nicky worked as a researcher and project
manager for an international Human Resources research firm based in London and
Washington, D.C.
Sophie’s Run
Her famous star remains her rock while life takes her
on a little detour…
Who says that the
road towards true love is straight and even?
Sophie is certainly discovering that it is anything but.
So
she has finally found the man of her dreams! Well… she knows who he is, even
though she hasn’t actually quite met him yet.
But she misses her opportunity, and then her life goes crazy. Rock star and ex-fiancé, Dan, keeps getting in the way of her new
romance—even if he is just trying to be helpful. A
fire, an impromptu mini-trip with Dan, and a dreaded wedding later, Sophie is
still struggling to meet the love of her life. Then, just as she is getting it
together with her perfect man, best friend Rachel commits an act of unspeakable
betrayal.
Sophie has had
enough. Confused and distraught, she decides that it is time for radical
change. Surprising herself and shocking
her friends, she embarks on a secret journey and eventually gets her life back
on track.
Sophie’s Run GIVEAWAYS
1) Standard Giveaway
Nicky Wells is giving away one delicious chocolate gift to a lucky winner in the UK or North America!
The small print: This Gift prize is a product of Unique Chocolate. The Gift prize is subject to availability in your country. If the Gift prize is not available in your country, Nicky Wells reserves the right to offer a substitute gift prize of a similar nature at her discretion. Nicky Wells will require the winner’s postal address for shipping purposes.
Rafflecopter Links:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/OTI2ZmY2ZjlkMzQ0YzMxZGFhOTJkMzFjZjBhY2Q2OjI=/
2. Bonus Giveaway
Nicky Wells offers a giveaway of one Amazon gift voucher worth $20/£15 for one lucky winner. To enter, simply share your thoughts on Sophie’s Run with Nicky. Email your comment to nickywells@sapphirestarpublishing.com and your name will be entered into the draw. Competition closes 1 May 2013.