Cheesy Frozen Vegetables with a Touch of Thailand

This is an easy cook meal - averages 20 minutes from start to finish - really warming for winter, especially after a long day's driving.

Ingredients:

250 grams pasta shells

500 grams frozen mixed vegetables

4 tablespoons margarine or butter

1 medium tin coconut milk or a packet of coconut milk powder (add 2 cups water)

2 tablespoons flour

125 grams parmesan cheese

Herbs to taste - basil and chives work really well (obviously the weekend I cooked this dish for the pictures, the herbs were left at home - oops!!!)

2 cloves garlic

In a saucepan, bring to the boil water. Add pasta shells, lower heat to simmer and stir occasionally during next 15 minutes.

In another saucepan, melt butter or margarine. Add flour and stir until a paste forms, stirring regularly to ensure you don't get any lumps.

Mix in coconut milk or powder (adding water to powder)

Add mixed vegetables and garlic to white sauce. Simmer for 15 minutes.

Mix pasta and herbs into vegetable mix for last 5 minutes.

Season with pepper to taste

Remove from stove and stir in cheese.

Serve immediately into soup type bowls. This is also great with a few green salad vegetables, such as lettuce, tomato and cucumber. If you have any over, it is quite OK to refrigerate (not freeze) for use the next day.

So, until next month, safe travelling and happy cooking. If you have a favourite recipe which is easy to handle in your van, please share it with us. They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, but somehow he seems to want variety in his food.

Chrissy