This is bit of a big moment for me. After years of doing other people's recipes (well . . . . Jamie's) I have started to come up with my own. This is the first one that I wanted to share with you, it's a simple and quick pasta dish that is totally delicious. Give it a go and tell me what you think. Vegetarians can just leave out the prosciutto.
Serves 2
4 slices prosciutto or parma ham
300g mushrooms - I like shittakke, but it's up to you
1 clove garlic, finely sliced
good pinch of crumbled dried chilli - but adjust to your taste
a few sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked
250g tagliatelle
1 heaped tablespoon mascarpone cheese
zest and juice of half a lemon
a big handful of rocket
olive oil and extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
parmesan for grating
Heat a large frying pan on a medium-high heat and add a little olive oil. Put your kettle on to boil and put a large saucepan on the hob. Once the frying pan is hot, add your prosciutto and fry on both sides until golden and crispy, then remove from the pan but keep the small amount of beautiful leftover oil in, as this will add an incredible flavour to your mushrooms.
Tear or slice your mushrooms in half and add to the pan with a touch more olive oil, give the pan a little toss.
Once the mushrooms get a little colour on them add the finely sliced garlic, the dried chilli and the thyme leaves, everything will start to smell amazing.
Toss everything in the pan for a few minutes until the garlic has softened and has a nice golden colour. If the pan starts to look a little dry, add a touch more oil.
Pour the boiling water from the kettle into the saucepan and add a good pinch of salt and the pasta.
Cook the pasta according to the packet instuctions, until al dente.
Once the pasta goes in, turn the heat down under the mushrooms and add the mascarpone. Once the mascarpone is half melted, add a ladle of the water from the pasta pan. This will not only stop your finished pasta from going claggy and sticky, it adds a gorgeous creamyness and silkyness to your sauce. Then add the zest of half your lemon. Season to taste with pepper and give it a good stir.
Roughly chop the crispy prosciutto.
Put the rocket into a bowl and halve your lemon.
Once the pasta is cooked, drain it but reserve a bit more of the pasta water. Add the pasta to the mushroom pan and give everything a really good toss.
Add a little of your reserved pasta water and the chopped crisy prosciutto. The sauce should be nice and creamy, add a little more pasta water if it needs it. Toss again and divide onto warmed plates.
Squeeze one half of the lemon over the rocket and dress quickly with your fingertips.
Divide the rocket on top of the pasta and grate over some parmesan and finish with a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil. The rocket will wilt a little because of the heat from the pasta, something that I really like, but feel free to serve it on the side if you prefer.
Eat straight away and hopefully you'll enjoy it as much as me!
No comments:
Post a Comment