Linguine with prawns and cherry tomatoes

Ingredients (for 2 people)

200 grams egg pasta (tagliatelle or linguine)
100 gr king prawns, peeled
200 gr cherry tomatoes (organic if possible!)
crushed dried chili peppers, a big pinch
extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, peeled but whole
fresh basil (5 leaves)

1. Heat half a tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan with the 2 cloves of garlic and chili until the garlic starts gently frying (not burning!). Add in the prawns and let them become golden.
2. Cut the tomatoes in half and add them in. Cover with a lid and lower the heat. At the last moment, stir in the basil leaves (they shouldn't cook too much).
3. Boil your pasta according to the package instructions and drain when al dente.
4. Add the pasta to the sauce in the pan, and increase the heat, mixing constantly until all the extra liquid is absorbed and the pasta is well mixed with the condiment.

Enjoy!

Aubergine and goat's cheese Pasta Gratin

This is a main dish that is super easy to make and that everyone loves. It's vegetarian but absolutely full of flavour! A surefire success for a potluck dinner;)

Image credits: thecomfortabledish.com

Ingredients

500 gr orecchiette or penne pasta
2 large aubergines
300 gr cherry tomatoes
150 gr goat's cheese
fresh basil
50 gr grated parmesan cheese
50 gr pitted black kalamata olives (ok, these are greek, but they're so tasty!)
extra virgin olive oil

1. Cut the aubergines in 2 length-wise, make a few longitudinal cuts in the pulp, and wrap them in tin foil.
2. Cook them for 40-50 minutes in the oven at 180°C, until the pulp is completely soft.
3. With a spoon, take out the pulp from the skin, and mix it with the goat's cheese, oil (to taste) and a pinch of salt with the help of a food processor.
4. Cook the pasta following instructions on the packaging, drain it, and mix it in a large bowl with the aubergine cream, the cherry tomatoes cut in quarters, 2 tablespoons of olives and the basil.
5. Pour everything in a large oven pot, and garnish with some more olives, basil, a generous drizzle of grated parmesan and some olive oil.
6. Place in the oven again at 180°C, until you see the surface becoming golden and crispy.

Enjoy!

Fresh spelt salad with tuna and capers

Tasty, quick recipe, ideal for the summer but also perfect for a dinner party - it contains only a handful of ingredients, but the flavour is wholesome, and it's super healthy too!

Ingredients (4 people)

12 fistfuls of spelt (easy to find in most supermarkets)
100 gr of canned tuna (in olive oil, not water or brine!, for best results)
small capers and flat-leaf parsley to taste
1 clove of peeled garlic
Extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt (for cooking the spelt)


Cook the spelt as you would cook pasta (but longer! usually 25 minutes), in boiling salted water - follow cooking instructions on the spelt's packaging for best results.
Drain the spelt and place it in a bowl; mix it with the tuna (drained from its oil), the capers and  a mix of finely chopped parsley and garlic. Mix well with 1 and a half table spoons of good quality extra-virgin olive oil, and serve lukewarm.

Gnocco Fritto (Fried bread ribbons)

Ingredients (calculate 100 gr of flour per person, if serving this as a main course)

500 gr wheat flour
30 gr unsalter butter
1/4 liters of a half-and-half mix of lukewarm sparkling water and milk
salt
frying oil (the traditional recipe commands frying in pig's lard:)

Mix all the ingredients together with your hands until you obtain a smooth, non-sticky but elastic bowl of dough. Place it in a bowl to rest for 30 minutes, then tear it in small pieces and roll it in very thin sheets (0.3 cm) with a rolling pin. Cut the sheets in triangles or squares, then deep fry them in the oil once it reached a very high temperature, in a deep frying pan - the hotter the oil, the deeper the pan, the shortest it takes for the gnocco to fry and thus the less oil it absorbs! It just needs about 10 seconds of cooking - as soon as it starts making bubbles on the surface, it's done. Lay your gnocco on a plate covered in kitchen paper to absorb the excess oil, then serve with a large plate of Italian cured meats (pancetta, prosciutto di Parma, coppa, salame, etc..). Since the dish is quite heavy, it's best to accompany it just with simple raw veggies cut in sticks and presented with a dipping vinaigrette of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Also serves as a great starter or accompaniment to a yummy dish of Italian antipasti (prosciutto, preserved vegetables, olives, etc..).

Pineapple and king prawn skewers (spiedini)

Image credits: eatfish.ca

Ingredients

500gr king prawns, peeled

1 large fresh pinapple, diced (in cubes of approx 3cm length)

[for the marinade:]

15cl freshly squeezed orange juice (not from a bottle!)

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon mustard

1 tablespoon brown sugar

Prepare the marinade first, by mixing all the above ingredients in a bowl; then soak the prawns in it for 2 hours at least. Then create the skewers by alternating one prawn and one pineapple cube - use about 4-5 pineapple cubes per skewer, and add the rest to the marinade.

Place the marinade with the pineapple in a large shallow pan, and let it evaporate on low heat for 10/15 minutes, until it becomes more dense and gravy-like.

Lightly grill the skewers, salt and pepper to taste, and serve them with this sauce on the side.