Don't Sweat the Aubergine

stock later, but to reduce the sauce you’ll have to put the whole stew (you can’t very well drain the sauce from the mince) on a very gentle heat, uncovered, and wait for the desired reduction to take place. Be careful, too, with the salt, because Worcester and soy sauce are very salty. Break up the patties with a wooden spoon.
    Put the casserole, covered, in a gas mark 1/140°C oven (see Gently does it, here ). As with any stew, you’re aiming to warm it up slowly towards the gentlest possible simmer; check on progress from time to time, and adjust the temperature accordingly. The time in the oven should be 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
    Peel the potatoes, cut them into slices about 1.5cm thick, cover with cold, salted water, bring to a gentle simmer, and cook until tender. Drain them, and return them to the hot saucepan to dry. Mash them; a smooth purée doesn’t seem necessary for a shepherd’s pie, so use a hand-held masher rather than a food mill or a potato ricer (see Mashed potato, here ).
    Spread the potatoes on top of the mince, in the casserole or, if that seems too big, in some other oven dish, and dot the butter on top. Bake in a gas mark 1/140°C oven for about 20 minutes, then brown the surface under the grill.
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VARIATIONS
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    Garlic isn’t really a shepherd’s pie kind of vegetable, but do include it if you like. Mushrooms work well, though: add them when the onions and celery have been cooking for 10 minutes or so, and stir them around until their juices have poured out and evaporated. Delia Smith’s recipe includes 75g of swede, chopped up small. She also suggests half a teaspoon of cinnamon (not to my taste), and a tablespoon each of parsley and thyme.
    Most recipes for Bolognese sauce and shepherd’s pie tell you to use meat stock, but that’s not something I have around the house very often. For shepherd’s pie, you could use a stock cube. Half a cube, I find, adds savouriness, whereas a whole one is too assertively artificial. Or try stock in a carton or bottle, or a tin of consommé. If your stock is good, and if you don’t fancy ketchup or Worcester sauce or herbs, you could make a perfectly delicious shepherd’s pie with just the mince, the vegetables and the stock.
    A cheese crust on the potato is a nice enhancement. Add a topping of grated Cheddar, or pecorino, or Parmesan, before putting the pie in the oven.
MEATBALLS
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HOW TO MAKE THEM
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    For 4
    200g beef mince
    200g pork mince
    2 heaped tbsp grated Parmesan
    3 tbsp breadcrumbs Pinch of cinnamon
    1 garlic clove, salted and mashed
    Zest of 1 lemon
    1 egg, beaten
    Salt and pepper
    Olive, sunflower or groundnut oil for frying
    In a bowl, mix the ingredients, apart from the oil, with your hands. I find that the breadcrumbs, and to a certain extent the Parmesan, help to retain a loose texture – without them, the meatballs become compacted when cooked. The egg is not always essential, but can help to bind the ingredients.
    Pick up small portions of the mixture, and roll them gently into balls between your hands. I like golfball-sized portions.
    Warm a heavy frying pan over a medium heat, pour in a little oil, and fry the meatballs in batches, turning once. The heat should be sufficient to brown each side in about a minute. Remove the browned meatballs to a plate.
    Make a tomato sauce ( see here ). Drop in the meatballs, and simmer gently, covered, for about 15 minutes. If the tomato sauce is already thick, you may find two problems: that you cannot submerge all the meatballs in it (which is why you cover the pan); and that it sticks to the bottom of the pan as it cooks further. You may need to finish the dish in the oven, instead.
    Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
    You could also make a meat loaf with the above ingredients. Chop an onion, fry it gently in a tbsp or two of olive oil until golden, and tip it with its oil into a loaf tin (mine is 7cm x 16.5cm). Gently pack the meat mixture on top, and bake at gas mark 4/180°C for an hour. You may find some juice floating on the surface. Throw it away. Run a knife round the edges of the loaf, and turn it out on to a plate. Again: serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
A BOILED DINNER
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HOW TO MAKE IT
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    For 6
    900g piece of gammon
    3 onions, peeled
    1 leek, tough green parts removed, washed ( see here )
    Some gammon is very salty, and may need soaking in several changes of water for about 24 hours. Ask your butcher. I doubt that gammon from the supermarket will need