Category Archives: Pasta

Conchiglie with Anchovies Capers and Olives

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Super salty. Super simple.

ThisIngredients: (Serves 3)

400g conchiglie
olive oil
5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
15 anchovy fillets, chopped
1 Tbsp capers, drained and dried
2 Tbsp olives, pitted and halved
1 Tbsp lemon juice
75g grated parmesan
4 Tbsp parsley, chopped
4 Tbsp basil, chopped
salt and pepper

Preparation & Cooking:

Follow packet instructions to cook the conchilglie until al dente in salted water, then drain and return to the pan.

A couple of minutes before the pasta is finished cooking, heat some oil in a large pan and fry the garlic for 2 minutes over a medium heat. Add the anchovies, capers and olives, cook for another minute.

Add the pasta, lemon juice, herbs and parmesan to the frying pan, season to taste. Take the pan off the heat and toss for a minute.

Drizzle on some extra virgin olive oil and dust with some chopped herbs and parmesan.

Bing bang bosh. Finito. Consume.

Pasta alla Carbonara

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As I’ve been busy this couple of days, today’s entry is the seemingly simple pasta (spaghetti) alla carbonara. For somebody new to cooking who wants to master a classic pasta dish, there are few better places to start than the carbonara. Combining egg, cheese and pig with pasta just can’t go wrong. Having said that, the dish throws up a few dangerous pitfalls that must be heeded in order to avoid complete disaster. Carbonara can easily become a sopping, sloppy mess or spaghetti littered with nuggets of crusty scrambled eggs. Yuck. Unhappily, I have suffered both of these equally unpleasant end results, the former in Rome too. One can avoid the risk of a sloppy endgame by sticking to a recipe that doesn’t use cream and/or wine, and personally, I think it’s better for it. Therefore, and I’m sure you agree, it’s time to raise some consciousness around the issue of bad carbonara.

Ingredients: (serves 3 big mouths)

400g spaghetti (or any pasta of your choosing)
2 garlic cloves, peeled and squashed
olive oil
175g cubed pancetta, rind removed (lardons)
pepper
3 eggs, beaten
75g Parmesan/pecorino, finely grated
1 big bunch of fresh parsley, finely chopped

Preparation & Cooking:

Boil spaghetti in salted water until al dente. While pasta cooks, squash garlic cloves with the side of a knife and add to a frying pan with some oil and the lardons. Fry until the lardons are crispy and beginning to brown slightly, 5 minutes. Discard garlic cloves, remove from heat and set aside.

Photo 16-07-2014 18 44 14

Pig & Pasta

Once spaghetti is cooked al dente, drain thoroughly and return to the pan. In a bowl, beat eggs and mix with most of the cheese – saving some for garnish – parsley and some pepper. Pour this into the pan with the spaghetti, add the pancetta too, and toss over a low heat. It is essential to toss rather than stir, without a vertical motion you are guaranteed to end up with some scrambled egg floating around, spoiling it for everybody.

Postscript:

Garnish with grated Parmesan, chopped parsley, and pepper. Wrap it around your fork and pop it in your gob.