A great spicy family mince dish

I am always looking for recipes to feed a crowd, dishes that are made from 'cupboard items', are inexpensive and that are easy to 'throw together' for a quick tasty, nutritious meal. I also like recipes where the meal is in one dish, (which saves on washing up) can be prepared ahead of time and warmed through when needed.

This recipe came from an article written by Annabel Langbein published in the Listener dated 13th November 1993. At the time Annabel lamented the rapid growth of takeaways and ready made meals. She wrote at length about how important it was to learn to cook basic meals, encouraging people to do so by producing simple recipes and saying what a shame the art of cooking for yourself and the family was so underrated. Here we are nearly 20 years later and I feel her article is still so very relevant. Making ends meet is really tough for some families right now. While it really isn't that hard to make an inexpensive meal, it does mean you have to plan and of course make the time. 
I like this dish because it uses vegetables and a few canned products to provide a good solid meal with simple full flavour. At first glance the mixture of ingredients does look a little odd, but feedback from my best critic said it was surprisingly very good. I thought it was too, we agreed perhaps serving it for three nights in a row might have been a bit too much though!  I think the little ones would like it. I really hope you try it.
(It's great to see 20 years later Annabel has become such a successful TV cook and a publisher of so many fantastic cook books).

Spicy Mince and Tomatoes - Annabel Langbein

1tbsp oil

1 large onion chopped into small pieces

500g topside mince (or other lean mince)

2tbsp mild curry powder (to taste)

2tsp ground cumin

1 can chopped tomatoes in juice

400g canned spaghetti

½ cup water

About 1 cup diced peeled pumpkin or kumara

A shake of Worcestershire sauce

2-3tbsp tomato sauce

1 cup grated cheese

Heat the oil in a large pan and brown the onion, mince, curry powder and cumin over a high heat, stirring frequently (cook in batches if the meat looks as though it will not brown quickly). Add all the other ingredients, except the cheese, the mixture will be sloppy. Stir to combine and put into a casserole dish. Cover with cheese. Either bake (uncovered) in oven at 160 °C for an hour or cover and microwave at 50% power for 10-12 minutes.

Serve with a bold green salad. Serves 4 - 8 depending on portions.

NB - I think baking this dish in an oven is best and it can easily be doubled to serve a big crowd, just make sure the casserole dish is big enough!

Using my handy Dutch oven

makes a large dish for the family