I challenged myself with making a three-course meal all for under €20.00. I had made a cheese board, and a customized cocktail, so I thought, what more difficult thing to do than a posh three course meal for 2-4 people?
So, I embarked on my mission and went back to Dunnes.
Sorbet: €3.69; Parmigiano: €1.71; Spaghetti: €1.00; Mozzarella (each were €0.59, but I got 2): €1.18; Garlic Net: €0.49; Tomato Tray: €1.00; Medium Eggs: €1.00; Bacon Lardons: €1.00; Basil Pot: €1.00; Wild Rocket: €1.29. Total: €13.36
Course 1: Tomato and Mozzarella Salad with Wild Rocket with an Olive Oil Drizzle
For the first course, I thought it would be nice to have some greens as the main course is (spoiler alert) pasta. Tomato and Mozzarella are such a classic pairing, but I thought I’d add wild rocket to the list. I nicely arranged the rocket on the plate and then sliced the tomato and mozzarella, arranging them in an alternating pattern over the rocket. I think took some basil leaves and scissors—yes scissors—and cut up the fresh basil over the salad. I then sprinkled it with a dash of extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt.
Course 2: Spaghetti Carbonara
Now, this was a bit of a selfish decision—I had been wanting to learn how to make this dish for a while. I followed Jamie Oliver’s recipe here (https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta-recipes/gennaro-s-classic-spaghetti-carbonara/). I however used bacon lardons instead of pancetta purely because of the price difference. For 100 grams of pancetta it was almost €3.00 and for 150 grams (the amount needed for the recipe) of bacon lardons it was only €1.00. After some quick googling in the meat aisle, I came to the conclusion that both bacon lardons and pancetta come from the same part of the pig so going for the less expensive option wasn’t going to ruin my recipe. I also used 4 medium egg yolks instead of three large ones purely because of the size of my eggs—and I’m glad I did because if I had only used 3, I don’t think I would have had enough of the mixture to coat my pasta. For the pasta I also increased it slightly because I was trying to feed three people instead of two. Luckily, for 500grams of pasta it was only €1.00, so increasing the amount didn’t cost me a thing! Now, for the plating trick I discovered—take a serving fork or a large fork and twist the pasta around it, then place the twisted amount (still on the fork) into a soup ladle, and then plate. This creates a nest-type presentation which makes the dish look even more prettier. Finally, I sprinkled some parmigiano over the top and it is ready to serve.
Course 3: Lemon Basil Sorbet
This was my favorite part of the meal. When I was younger, we would always go to the farmers market on Saturday mornings in the summer and one time, the sorbet booth was serving lemon-basil sorbet. My life was changed forever. I would have never guessed that the two would work so well together. So, I was keen on remaking this creation. So, I took a carton of lemon sorbet and put it into a Tupperware and then I chopped up some fresh basil (using the scissor technique) and mixed it in with the sorbet. I then froze it until it was time to serve. When I tried this, I was not disappointed—it turned out even better than I expected. You can even say you made it because technically, you mixed the lemon sorbet and the basil! I garnished the scoops with some fresh basil leaves and your guests will be wowed by this magical creation!
Looking Back
I was really happy how this meal turned out and my friends were very impressed with how little I spent on such a, what they took as, fancy meal! Enjoy and happy eating.
xx Sharlene and Adeline
Things To Do For Under €20 