SPAGHETTI WITH RED ONION AND BOURSIN CHEESE

Good Afternoon to you,

Yesterday is gone.

Tomorrow has not yet arrived.

We only have today.

Let us begin.

Mother Teresa

Tick, tock, tick, tock, where is the time going, it seems to be moving on so very quickly.  I think you will agree, when I say, how quickly the month of September has sped by.    The nights are certainly drawing-in now, and do you know, here in England, it is dark by seven o'clock in the evening. Gone are the wonderfully light evenings, when I could garden until nine thirty at night, when the fancy took me.

But, on the plus side, we have warm, cosy nights to look forward to, with the curtains drawn and lamps and candles lit. We have warm fires to create a beautiful warm glow in our  rooms and we have comforting Autumnal food to make and enjoy during these colder months.

Now, after saying all of this, and painting an Autumnal picture for you, you will never believe it when I tell you, we had the most gloriously, sunny day yesterday.  After a couple of weeks of really, miserable, cold weather, we woke up to the most wonderful sunny day. So I listened to Mother Teresa's words, "We only have today. Let us Begin" and I am so glad I did, as I had the most wonderful day. I enjoyed the garden and I pottered around doing a little of this and a little of that.    I managed to catch up with all my washing.... my laundry bin is empty, which is always a good thing. My washing was blowing in the breeze and was dry by 3 o'clock in the afternoon......  I do have a pile of ironing to finish, but I won't dwell on that now.  

When you live in a country where,  in one day, you can experience all three seasons, when the sun shines unexpectedly, it is always such a wonderful treat and I am glad I heeded Mother Teresa's words, as today, we have returned to our cold Autumn weather.

.... and talking of treats, the meal I am making today, is a meal I consider a nice little treat.  It has red onion, bacon, mushrooms which I love, and my favourite soft cheese Boursin.  Ordinarily I would spread Boursin on a cracker or some fresh bread, but occasionally, such as today, I will use Boursin to create a nice creamy sauce.

So this is our treat today,

  

Spaghetti with Boursin Cheese.  This dish is full of flavour and so satisfying and I would think it fair to say, quite a quick meal to make.

So, if your ready, pop on your apron, and the music I have chosen to listen to today, I know, you will absolutely love,

Madeleine Peyroux.  Natasha, introduced me to Madeleine's gorgeous music a few years ago. That is one of the fabulous things about our daughters, they both love music, and if they hear music, which they think I will enjoy listening to, then they will always let me know.  We were living in Cyprus at the time and Natasha sent me this Cd, as she thought I would love it and she was certainly spot on, as I love Madeleine's bluesy voice. I have to say, I think there is a hint of Billie Holliday in Madeleine's voice. Take a listen to "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go", and also "Dance Me To The End Of Time" and let me know what you think.  I will be amazed if you don't rush out and buy this Cd yourself.

Oh dear, I do wax lyrical about the music I enjoy, don't I,  so I had better stop and get on, otherwise you will never get to cook Spaghetti with Boursin Cheese.

INGREDIENTS

2 cloves of smoked garlic

(normal garlic will be fine if you cannot find smoked)

1 red onion

125g button mushrooms

4 slices of bacon

150g Boursin Onion and Chive Cheese

2 tablespoons of Parmesan Cheese

1/4 packet of dried spaghetti

2 tablespoons of olive oil

METHOD

Place a large pan of salted water on the heat

and when it comes to a rolling boil, add the spaghetti

and cook in your usual way.

Cut the bacon into bite size pieces

(I use a pair of kitchen scissors, which I keep just for this,

purpose, as it is so much easier than using a knife)

Slice the onions

Slice the mushrooms in half or into quarters,

 however you prefer

Crush two cloves of garlic

COOK THE INGREDIENTS

Cook the bacon in a dry pan until slightly crispy.

Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside.

Remove any of the bacon fat.

Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook the sliced onions,

over a medium heat, until the onions are translucent

Add the crushed garlic and cook for a further minute

Add the mushrooms 

and cook

Add the cooked bacon and mix together

Add the Boursin Cheese

Add the grated Parmesan Cheese

and gently mix the ingredients together
Please do not bring to the boil, this is important,
you just want the cheese to melt into the other ingredients.

At this point, do a little taste test, you might find that

you need to add a little salt, but my bacon was

a little salty, so I did not use any salt.

When the spaghetti is al dente, drain, but reserve five

tablespoonfuls of the cooking water.

This is a fabulous tip from Jamie Oliver.

When the spaghetti is drained, return the spaghetti to the pan

and add a couple of tablespoons of cooking water

to the spaghetti, it stops the spaghetti

from sticking together. It may seem strange and I have to say I

had my reservations, but it works beautifully.

The three remaining tablespoons, I add to the Boursin mixture

just to loosen it a little.  If you prefer, add 4fl oz of milk.

Toss everything together,

and as always, there is that final flourish of

grated Parmesan Cheese and freshly ground black pepper.

I have to say, I am partial to spaghetti and I will let you into a little secret, I  have been known to use Philadelphia Cream Cheese, if I don't have any Boursin in the fridge.  I also sometimes cook spaghetti then toss some Philidelphia Cream Cheese through the hot spaghetti and sprinkle with black pepper..... now that is a quick meal.

There are days when I am happy to spend hours cooking and other days when I want to make a quick meal, but it has to have flavour and this Spaghetti with Boursin Cheese certainly does hit the spot.

.... and by the way, I have check my Preserved Lemons and they are ready and waiting to be used.  So on Sunday, I will be making a tagine..... George can't wait.

So until then, take care and I will see you later in the week.

This week I will be joining,

Yvonne at StoneGable

and

Cathy at A Peek Into My Paradise