Ragu & Courgette Spaghetti

Traditionally, ragu is a flavour for the pasta - the pasta being the bulk of the meal and tummy filler - the sauce below would serve 6-8 people. Since we are using courgette as our pasta you will find that you will want the sauce to be more dominant in your meal, so the below will serve 4 people nicely. Ingredients (use organic ingredients where possible) Serves 4 people 500g minced beef (chuck/braising steak) or lamb 2-3 tablespoons of ghee/butter 2 large onions, diced 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 tablespoon of tomato puree 16 large tomatoes, roughly chopped, or 2 cans of chopped tomatoes (we like Biona) 2 bay leaves 250ml homemade beef/chicken stock or water 2 small glasses of red wine 2 large carrots Sea salt and black pepper, to taste 1 teaspoon of mixed spice or nutmeg 4 large courgettes Instructions 1.Heat 2 tablespoons of butter/ghee and fry the onions on a low heat until softened, not browned, then add the garlic, bay and any other herbs that you choose. Add the extra tablespoon of butter or ghee if needed. 2.Increase the heat and add the minced meat to the pan and brown, using a wooden spatula to break it up as you go. 3.Pour in the red wine to deglaze the pan, then the tomatoes, puree and broth/water. 4.Bring to the boil, cover with a lid and then reduce to a gentle simmer for 1 ½ hours until rich and thickened, stirring occasionally. Even better after 3 or 4 hours. 5.Ten minutes before the end of cooking, add the grated carrots and season with sea salt and a good grind of pepper. 6.Meanwhile, use a spiralizer/julienne peeler on the courgette. Or use a vegetable peeler and then a knife to slice the courgette strips into spaghetti type strands. 7.Wilt the courgetti using a little butter and water in a pan. Or, to be more authentic in your service and to save time and washing up, just run some of the sauce hot from the stove through your spirals and the heat and salt in the sauce will soften them. 8.Stir the parsley through the ragu, check the seasoning and serve on top of a pile of courgette spaghetti with fresh parmesan and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil to serve. 9.Alternatively stir half the sauce through a bowl of courgetti and then serve each portion with a little more ragu on top, a drizzle of olive oil and fresh parmesan. Recipe from London healthy foodies Hemsley and Hemsley www.hemsleyandhemsley.tumblr.com