Frugal Recipes

Check out this amazing recipe for potato rosti with creamed spinach and poached egg - for £1.36 per person!

Recipe #24:  Potato rosti with creamed spinach and poached egg (serves 5)

In our brand new Frugal Recipe series, we'll be looking at cheaper cuts of meat and cheaper, more sustainable fish and how to make them into some fantastic meals over the next couple of months.

I'll be showing you some recipes that are great alternatives to (and in my opinion equally delicious as) the more expensive pork chops, chicken breasts and unsustainable cod options.

An obvious alternative to meat and fish is vegetarian so this week I'll be showing you a recipe that will make you forget about meat and fish for one evening - the ingredients work so well together in this dish. If you really feel you can't go without meat, just add a couple of slices of crispy streaky bacon.   

Ingredients

• 4 large baking potatoes (66p)
• 450g of fresh spinach (£1.70)
• 35g of fresh parsley (68p)
• 150ml of single cream (40p)
• 6 organic medium free range eggs (£1.82)

• 250g of Wensleydale cheese (£1.58)

The cupboard staples...

Salt, black pepper, olive oil, 1 garlic clove (from last week) butter and nutmeg.  

Total cost

If you already have the cupboard staples, then according to mysupermarket.co.uk, this trolley was cheapest at Tesco, where it came to £6.84 - that's £1.36 per head!

Instructions

• The best thing to do is to make the rosti first as it can keep warm whilst the spinach and eggs are cooking and then taken out when the dish is ready to assemble. Grate the potatoes and wrap in a clean, dry tea towel to squeeze them dry - you need to get as much moisture out of the potatoes as possible. Then get a medium frying pan, splash in a little olive oil and add the grated potato so it makes one large cake - fry for around 5 minutes on a medium heat until the potato softens (season with salt and black pepper). Then turn over, add a little butter around the sides of the rosti and cook for a further 3 minutes. Cover with foil and place in the oven on a low heat to keep warm.
• Now for the spinach and eggs. Finely slice one garlic clove and fry off in a saucepan with a little butter for 1 minute, add the spinach and wilt down for a further 30 seconds. Then add a grate of nutmeg (quarter of a teaspoon), salt, pepper and around 100ml of cream. Heat through and add a good handful of chopped parsley. Cover to keep warm.
• The poaching egg debate is fiercely contested in some quarters, so soft poach the egg your favoured way. My preferred way is to get a deep frying pan full of water (so when you add the eggs the yolks just break the surface) and up to the simmer. Add a dash of vinegar and a pinch of salt. Now add the eggs and simmer for 3-4 minutes all the time spooning the water over the top of the yolks. This will get you the perfect soft poached egg.
• Now to serve. Cut the rosti into 5 pieces; place a piece of rosti on the plate. Top with the spinach mixture then the poached egg and sprinkle over some grated cheese and a twist of black pepper.

• Happy eating!

A bit about our Chef, Paul Warburton

Paul Warburton, a lovemoney.com staff member, had a hectic career in the world of hot kitchens and screaming chefs before joining the lovemoney.com products development team.

During these years, under the tutorage of some great chefs, he honed his skills in cooking for numbers within a tight cost and portion-controlled environment.

Now he's planning to regularly offer his help to all budding chefs in the lovemoney.com community, so you can enjoy his original, low-cost recipes with your family and friends every Friday for free!

What lovemoney.com readers have said about Paul's other recipes

"We enjoyed this recipe very much: easy to make and even easier to eat!" varneyrob

"I made this recipe and it was absolutely delicious! Seriously good! Five of us feasted on it, and feasted well..." Ibeshy

"I made this recipe on Saturday night, and my 13 year-old son promptly requested it again for the following night!" Malcolm Wheatley

"This is a cracking risotto recipe. Just had it for lunch & it's a winner. More recipes please. Thanks." SavvyLass

"Another delicious offering from Paul. Thank you - keep 'em coming!" Palefire

Please add your own comments using the comments box below!

If you like this recipe, why not also try Paul's other Frugal Recipes: Rabbit, bacon and thyme pie Pork, chorizo and cannellini bean stew Twice cooked pork belly, roast parsnips and sweet apple red cabbage Rolled breast of lamb with garlic mash and Savoy cabbage | Lemon & rosemary chicken thighs |  Thai Pollock curry with egg noodles | Chunky pea and ham soup| Spaghetti alla carbonara | Pork stroganoff | Green chilli meat balls, sunflower seed couscous salad and mint yoghurt |  Tagliatelle with air dried cured ham and minted peas | Beef, thyme and mushroom loaf with potato dauphinoise | Mixed bean and coriander green curry with fragrant rice | Egg Florentine with smoked cheddar and rocket salad | Beef, mushroom and thyme pie | Spicy tuna, bean and coriander lasagne |  Beef koftas with a feta, spinach and fresh mint salad | Chorizo and pea risotto | Sausage and rosemary hotpot | Beef & thyme (Lacashire) hotpot