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Sausage and mushroom pasta with spinach

August 2013

A fantastically comforting and delicious dish ready in just 20 minutes. Works just as well with veggie sausages too.  Serves 2

Ingredients

4 sausages, cooked and sliced into bite-sized chunks
200g dry pasta, spaghetti or tagliatelle is ideal
200g mushrooms, sliced
half a teaspoon of dried chilli flakes
2 cloves of garlic
a small glass of dry white wine
three tablespoons of crème fraîche
2 large handfuls of fresh spinach
a small bunch of parsley, finely chopped.
A small squeeze of lemon

Method

  1. Place a large saucepan of water on to boil.
  2. Fry your mushroom slices in a deep frying pan until tender, add the chilli garlic and a generous grind of pepper.
  3. Plunge your pasta into the boiling water and cook according to packet instructions.
  4. Add the wine to the mushrooms and cook for 3 minutes on a medium heat to evaporate the harsh alcohol.
  5. Reduce the heat and add the crème fraîche and sausages to the mushrooms.
  6. Drain the pasta and add the spinach, parsley and lemon juice to the sauce. Check the seasoning, adding salt and more pepper if necessary.
  7. Mix the sauce into the pasta and serve with a sprinkling of cheese.

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Creamy Courgette and Bacon Carbonara.

September 2013

I wasn’t a fan of carbonara until I tried this recipe; the courgette and rosemary really freshens the dish up. Serves 2.

Ingredients

200g spaghetti
4 rashers of bacon
2 medium courgettes
a good pinch of black pepper
a sprig of rosemary
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 egg yolk
100g crème fraîche
1 good handful of parmesan or other hard cheese

Method

  1. Place a large pan of water on to boil for your pasta.

  2. Chop the bacon and fry it in a large frying pan until beginning to crisp and colour.
  3. While the bacon is frying, dice the courgettes into 1.5cm cubes discarding the middle of the courgettes if they are beginning to become fluffy and full of seeds.
  4. Add the courgettes to the bacon and continue to fry on a medium heat. When the courgettes are beginning to soften (after about 4 minutes) add the pasta to the water which should now be boiling.
  5. Finely chop the rosemary, discarding the woody stalks and add it to the courgettes and bacon along with the garlic and black pepper.
  6. Mix the egg yolk with the crème fraîche and 3 quarters of the cheese.
  7. When the pasta is tender, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water. Add the pasta immediately to the courgette and bacon and remove the pan from the heat.
  8. Mix in the egg and cheese mixture, adding a little of the pasta’s cooking water until you have a smooth and shiny sauce that coats the pasta. Serve immediately sprinkled with the remainder of the cheese. 

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Prawn, Chorizo and Courgette Spaghetti

A gorgeous summery dish perfect after a hard day.

Serves 2

A lovely dish, with a light delicate flavour, for summer evenings, preparation time 25 minutes. 

Ingredients

200g spaghetti
100g chorizo
200g courgette, diced
half a teaspoon of dried chilli flakes
6 medium-sized tomatoes
2 teaspoons of tomato puree
a small glass of white wine
200g cooked and peeled prawns
Juice of half a lemon
a few leaves of basil (for garnishing)

Method

  1. Place a large pan of water on the heat ready for your spaghetti.
  2. Peel the chorizo and cut it into mouth-sized chunks. Place in a heavy based frying pan on a medium heat. As the oil begins to seep from the chorizo, add the diced courgette and fry gently for 10 minutes.
  3. Blanch your tomatoes in the water you will later use for the spaghetti and carefully remove their skins and most of the seeds. Chop finely and add to the sauce along with the wine and continue to simmer.
  4. Throw in your spaghetti and boil for 12 minutes.
  5. 3 minutes before your pasta is cooked, add the prawns to the sauce to warm through, check your seasoning, I find this sauce benefits from a liberal grind of black pepper.
  6. When your pasta is cooked, remove the sauce from the heat and squeeze in the lemon juice.
  7. Drain the pasta and, in the cooking pan, combine the pasta and the sauce. To serve, sprinkle with basil and eat immediately. 

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Rocket and almond pesto pasta with courgettes and pan-fried salmon

July 2013

Healthy, hearty and a great idea when you need to use up some of the multitudinous courgettes we all accumulate in July. Serves 4. Preparation time 35 minutes

Ingredients

500g of courgette
1 pepper
1 onion
A small handful of fresh rocket plus extra leaves for garnish
30g almonds
50mls olive oil plus extra for vegetable roasting
50g grated parmesan cheese
1 clove of garlic
Juice of one lemon plus wedges to serve
350g penne pasta
4 skin on salmon fillets

Method

  1. Chop the vegetables into bite sized cubes , season with salt and pepper, place in a roasting tin and roast in a 180 degree oven for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.
  2. Heat a large pan of water ready for your pasta later.
  3. While the veg is roasting make the pesto, add the rocket, almonds, olive oil, lemon juice, grated cheese and garlic to a food processor and blend to a smoothish paste.
  4. Fifteen minutes into the veg cooking time and it’s time for the salmon. Pat the skin dry with a paper towel and season with salt. Place in hot frying pan skin side down for 5 minutes until golden. Flip the salmon fillets and place the pan in the oven with the vegetables for the last 10 minutes of cooking. Finishing fish and meat off in the oven cooks it more evenly ensuring a succulent end product with the crispy skin you get from frying.
  5. Now it’s time to boil your pasta. When it is done to your liking, drain and return to the cooking pan. Mix through the pesto and tender roasted veg
  6. Serve in a bowl topped with your perfectly cooked salmon, extra rocket leaves and lemon wedges. Lovely.