A taste of Summer

Pasta with sun-dried tomatoes, capers and olives

Serves 4

300/320 g pasta (spaghetti, linguine or short curly pasta)

1 clove garlic

4/6 tablespoons olive oil

8 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil

5 pitted black olives

1 tablespoon pickled capers

Oregano

Hot chili pepper, or powder

4 tbsp tomato puree

Salt

Toasted breadcrumbs (optional)

Chop the garlic finely and fry it gently in a pan with the oil. Meanwhile, chop the tomatoes, olives and capers coarsely and add them to the mixture. Add the tomato puree, some chili pepper or chili powder, according to your taste and a pinch of oregano. Stir and let the sauce thicken over medium heat. Taste, adjust salt and then turn off the heat and  set aside. Cook the pasta in abundant boiling salted water, drain it “al dente”. Put the pan with the sauce on the fire, pour the pasta and toss for a few minutes so as to coat well. If you want, sprinkle with some toasted breadcrumbs and  serve immediately.

Soups

Onion soup au gratin

Serves 4

800 g yellow onions

2 dl dry white wine

1 bay leaf

½ liter of vegetable stock

1 tablespoon flour

100 g hard fontina cheese  or mild provolone

40 g butter

Salt, pepper

1 loaf of baquette bread

Peel the onions and cut them into thin slices. Put them in a saucepan with the butter and allow to simmer over very low heat for about 20 minutes. Add the bay leaf. Add the wine, let it evaporate, pour the broth (or hot water) and cook for about 40 minutes. Take a ladle of broth, mix it with the flour, then pour it back onto the onions. Add salt and abundant pepper and cook for another 10 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Cut the bread into slices about ½ cm thick, put them in a tray lined with baking paper and brown them under the oven grill on both sides. Put the slices of bread into 4 small ramekins, pour the soup, sprinkle with grated cheese and put in the oven at 220 degrees for about 15 minutes until golden-brown.

Side Dishes

Potatoes with artichokes

Serves 4

5 artichokes

4 medium potatoes

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

1 clove garlic

2 dl vegetable broth

2 tablespoons olive oil

A small onion

Salt, pepper

Juice of one lemon

Cut the stem of each artichoke so that only about 4 cm remains and peel it. Discard the tough outer leaves and cut about 3 cm off the top of each artichoke. Halve the artichoke and discard the choke, if any. Halve again and place the artichoke wedges in a bowl of cold water acidulated with the lemon juice.  Peel the potatoes and cut into cubes. Finely slice the onion and fry it gently in a pan with the oil. Add the potatoes and artichokes and stir to blend well. Season with salt, pepper, pour the broth and cook with the lid over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Finely chop the parsley with the garlic and add to the vegetables and cook for another 5 minutes. Uncover the pan and continue to cook until water evaporates.   

One-dish meal recipes

Sausage with carrots

Serves 4

6 carrots

4 sausages, casings removed

½ onion

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 dl dry white wine

2 dl vegetable broth

salt

Finely chop the onion and fry it gently in a pan with the oil along with the sausage cut into pieces of a cm or so, for about 5 minutes. Add the carrots, peeled and cut into slices and the parsley. Pour in the wine and let it evaporate. Adjust with salt and add the broth (if you haven't any broth add some warm water). Cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Cream sauces

Zucchini and smoked salmon cream sauce

2 zucchini

½ shallot

4 tablespoons olive oil

150 g smoked salmon, sliced

100 ml fresh cream

Salt, pepper

In a large skillet heat the oil, add the finely chopped shallot and the zucchini thinly sliced. Cook over medium heat until the zucchini is cooked, about 10 minutes. Add the cream, stir well and cook for a minute or two, adjust salt and pepper. Remove from heat, add the salmon, cut into small pieces and stir to flavor. Combine to pasta and serve immediately.

Something Sweet

Crunchy almond caramel brittle

 

Ingredients

250 g flaked almonds

250 g sugar

Toast the flaked almonds by placing them in a heavy pan over medium heat until golden brown, stirring often. In another pan, pour the sugar and let it caramelize over low heat, without stirring. When the caramel is golden brown add the almonds and stir quickly. Spread the mixture quickly on a sheet of parchment paper (be careful because the mixture is very hot), cover with another sheet and roll with a rolling pin about half a centimeter thick. Let it cool down and break it into pieces. Store in an airtight container.

Fresh pasta

Twisted Cavatelli (my version) 

Ingredients - serves 4

300 g double-zero flour

60 g  semolina

Sift flours together and form a mound. Make a well in the middle and pour ½ cup of warm salted water. At first use a fork to combine and then use your hands until the dough begins to form. Add water by the tablespoon until dough comes together and knead for about 10 minutes until soft and  elastic. Form a ball and let set for about half an hour, covered with a kitchen cloth. Divide the dough into 4 pieces and roll each piece to ½ inch thick rope, working from the center to the edges to maintain an even thickness. Cut the rope into ¼ inch wide pieces and wrap each piece around a knitting needle until it slightly curls. 

For this version of "cavatelli" I twisted the dough a few times around the knitting needle. Arrange on a floured tray and leave to dry. Cooking pasta takes only a few minutes.