PASTA WITH TOMATO SAUCE

SIMPLE & QUICK MEAL AGAIN...

What a day! I haven't had not even time to do the beds today... The house is a mess and the last think I want to do is a "fancy" meal. Pasta again? At my place isn't a problem... My husband is Italian, so he will never get sick of pasta... good for me!

This one is our traditional "pasta red sauce". It is the simplest of them all. I just fry some chopped garlic in olive oil, add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste and let it fry a little. Add 1 jar of tomato passata, 2 teaspoons of sugar and cook for about 15 minutes or until thick. I never add salt to my sauce as I like it sweet, boosting the flavors of tomato. I was given some deep fried sausage shape meat balls yesterday, so I add them to my sauce 10 minutes before sauce was ready. To make it complete, I topped all with a "generous" amount of Parmesan cheese (grated) and served with bread to soak sauce that is left on plate ( they usually leave plates white again!!!)

CAPPUCCINO KISSES

Yesterday I went shopping and saw a product that was new to me... Next to condensed milk on the shelves was this can which said Coffee'n'milk. You know; Brazilians love coffee. My breakfast since I was 4 ou 5 years old was bread (panino), butter, cheese and a cup of sweet and fresh brewed coffee (that's right; kids in Brazil drinks coffee!). The combination of cheese and hot coffee in the mouth is fantastic and brings me memories! Anyway... I invented a recipe inspired by the little sweets called BRIGADEIRO (I posted recipe in this blog) but instead of just chocolate this has a deep coffee flavor and was a very nice mouthful dessert to have after a meal.
That's what I did:

1 can of Coffee'n'milk

1 can(same as above) of milk

1 tbs margarine

2 tbs of drinking chocolate

1/2 cup of almond meal

1 tbs of cornflour

extras to coat sweets:

caster sugar/almond meal

Mix the first six ingredients in a pan. Let the mixture cook over low heat stirring it constantly until the mixture loosens from the bottom of the pan and it is thick . Put the mixture on a greased plate and allow it to cool down completely. Roll 1 teaspoon of mixture into small balls. Tip: Grease your hands with butter before making the small balls. Wash your hands once in a while if necessary. Mix caster sugar and almond meal in a bowl and roll the small balls in this mixture to cover. 6. Place balls in small paper patty cases and then on a serving plate.