PASTA

ROBUST TOMATO SAUCE with herbs

A simple tomato sauce is the starting point for hundreds of pasta dishes and anyone who loves pasta won’t need a recipe for the basic mix of tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil and olive oil. The following recipe, however, takes this mix a step further, with the addition of extra herbs and Italian white beans. Canned tomatoes and dried herbs are often used in these sauces, but fresh ingredients have a very special appeal. I also toss in a few mushrooms because I think they enhance almost everything, and although the result is still a basic tomato sauce, it has a lot more personality and flavour than the simpler version.

• 45 ml (3 Tbsp) olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 small green pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and chopped
• 500 g ripe, juicy tomatoes, skinned and finely chopped
• 10 ml (2 tsp) tomato paste
• 15 ml (1 Tbsp) fresh oregano leaves
• 15 ml (1 Tbsp) fresh thyme leaves
• 2 bay leaves
• a few tufts of parsley
• sea salt, milled black pepper and a pinch of sugar
• 60 ml (¹⁄₄ cup) red wine
• 1 × 400 g can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed*
• a few fresh basil leaves, shredded
• 100 g brown mushrooms, wiped and sliced
• slivered black olives
• a pat of butter
• grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese for sprinkling

1. Heat the oil in a large pan and sauté the onion, garlic and green pepper. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, herbs (except basil), seasoning and wine. Cover and simmer over very low heat for 30–40 minutes. Stir occasionally and mash up the tomatoes with a wooden spoon. (The pan should be covered or the sauce will thicken too much, and the beans will thicken it even further.) Mix in the beans, basil, mushrooms, olives and butter and simmer, covered, for a further 15 minutes – you will probably need to add a little water or stock to keep it succulent. It’s the long, gentle simmer that’s important here to mellow the flavours – quick tomato sauces can be very tart. Serve on fettucine and pass the cheese. Serves 4 very generously.

* These are white kidney beans, larger than haricots, smaller than butter beans.

SMOKED SALMON PASTA with mushrooms and cream

I’m not a fan of smoked foods, but salmon is my downfall. Eat it with pasta in a restaurant, however, and it is often so richly extravagant one would not consider making it at home – not often, anyway. Now this recipe was devised with an eye to scaling the whole lot down – mushrooms to pad it out and milk and cornflour (I blush, I blush) to dilute the cream – and it really works rather well despite the liberties taken.

• 500 g button mushrooms, wiped and thinly sliced
• 6–8 spring onions, chopped
• 250 ml (1 cup) cream
• 250 ml (1 cup) milk
• 125 ml (¹⁄₂ cup) off-dry white wine
• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) tomato paste
• a little sea salt
• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) cornflour
• about 320 g smoked salmon, sliced into thin strips
• 400 g pasta screws

1. Put the mushrooms and spring onions into a large saucepan. In a separate bowl, stir together the cream, milk, wine, tomato paste, salt and cornflour until smooth, then mix into the mushrooms. Bring to the boil, then simmer, covered, over low heat for about 10 minutes until thick and creamy. Stir in the salmon and heat through.
2. Cook the pasta while the sauce is simmering, then drain and place in a large, heated serving dish. Pour the sauce over the top, toss until combined, and serve immediately with a dressed salad, passing a pepper mill at the table. Serves 6.

mushroom and spinach NOODLE BAKE

A layered pasta casserole is a fine example of comfort food, and this dish, with its succulent mix of vegetables, noodles and a blanket of sauce has a lot more style than macaroni cheese. As it can be completely assembled in advance, and sits well alongside a salad and bread, it offers a happy choice for informal entertaining.

• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2–3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 small or ¹⁄₂ large green pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and diced
• 250 g brown mushrooms, wiped and sliced
• 2 ml (¹⁄₂ tsp) dried mixed herbs
• 250 g ripe tomatoes, skinned and chopped
• 15 ml (1 Tbsp) tomato paste
• 5 ml (1 tsp) each sea salt and sugar
• milled black pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 60 ml (¹⁄₄ cup) red wine
• 500 ml (2 cups) shredded baby spinach
• 200 g spinach tagliatelle
• freshly grated nutmeg and Parmesan cheese for topping
• CHEESE SAUCE
• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) oil and a nut of butter
• 45 ml (3 Tbsp) flour
• 5 ml (1 tsp) mustard powder
• 500 ml (2 cups) warmed full-cream or low-fat milk
• 100 g Cheddar cheese, grated
• sea salt and white pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Add the onion, garlic and green pepper, toss until softening, then add the mushrooms and herbs. Reduce the heat and toss until aromatic, then add the remaining ingredients, except the spinach, pasta and topping. Cover and simmer, stirring off and on to mash up the tomatoes. Keep the heat very low to retain succulence – 15 minutes should do it. Just before it comes off the heat, remove the bay leaves, stir in the spinach and allow it to wilt. While the sauce is simmering, cook the pasta.
2. Make a white sauce as usual, adding the cheese and seasoning last. Lightly oil a baking dish, 28 × 18 × 6 cm. Cover the base with half the vegetable sauce and top with half the noodles. Repeat the layers, then pour the cheese sauce over the top. Sprinkle with nutmeg, then Parmesan, and bake at 180 °C for 35 minutes. Leave to settle for 10 minutes before serving. Serves 6.

SAUCY PASTA in a bowl

There are times when you have a craving for pasta but you have done pasta with pesto, pasta with olives, pasta with garlic and oil and herbs so often that you can taste everything in your head without going near the kitchen. There are times when you just want to put everything into a pot and go away. That’s when this fuss-free dish comes in useful. It’s not a mean or a lean meal – it can’t be, seeing it requires pecorino and pine nuts – but the chunky vegetable sauce is a simple doddle.

• 500 g brown mushrooms, wiped and chunkily chopped
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 400 g courgettes (baby marrows), pared and diced
• 1 large red pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and chopped
• 250 ml (1 cup) red wine
• 400 ml (1³⁄₅ cups) vegetable or chicken stock
• 10 ml (2 tsp) dried oregano
• 5 ml (1 tsp) sea salt
• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) each flour and softened butter
• 250 g pasta screws, cooked at the last minute
• grated or shaved pecorino, toasted pine nuts and olive oil to accompany

1. Put the mushrooms, onions, garlic, courgettes, red pepper, wine, stock, oregano and salt into a large saucepan. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat immediately, stir to mix, then cover and simmer very gently for about 30 minutes until the vegetables are soft and mingled into a succulent, dark sauce. Mash the flour and butter to a paste and add it in small pats, stirring – you might not need all of it, it depends on how much of the liquid has simmered away – use just enough to thicken the sauce to coat the pasta. Serve in deep bowls – first the pasta, then a ladleful of sauce, with the cheese, nuts and olive oil passed separately. The end result is hugely satisfying, so no bread required, but an undressed green salad with rocket is good. Serves 6.

pasta STROGANOFF

Also known as Slimmer’s Stroganoff because the sour cream used in traditional stroganoff has been left out, but it’s actually nowhere near a slimming dish – what mix of fried steak in a thick, creamy gravy can possibly be? Nevertheless, it has its virtues: it stretches a little fillet to feed a lot, it’s a change from bolognaise, and the flavour is good. Although stroganoff is often served on fluffy rice, tagliatelle or fettucine is used here. Add a big green salad, and you have a no-frills, pasta party dish, and a welcome change from bolognaise.

• 600 g fillet of beef
• 20 ml (4 tsp) Worcestershire sauce
• 3–4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 ml (¹⁄₂ tsp) dried thyme, crushed
• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) oil
• 250 g brown mushrooms, wiped and sliced
• 1 large bunch of spring onions, chopped
• 500 ml (2 cups) low-fat milk
• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) tomato paste
• 25 ml (5 tsp) soy sauce
• a pinch each of sea salt and sugar
• 20 ml (4 tsp) cornflour
• 45 ml (3 Tbsp) medium-dry sherry

1. Slice the beef across the grain into wafer-thin strips – most easily done if the beef is semi-frozen. Place in a large, shallow dish, add the Worcestershire sauce, garlic and thyme, toss to mix, then cover loosely and leave to stand for 45 minutes.
2. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and stir-fry the steak briefly, until just browned, tossing all the time. Add the mushrooms and spring onions, and keep tossing over medium heat until softening, then turn the heat to very low and add the milk, tomato paste, soy sauce, salt and sugar. Stir to mix, then cover and simmer very gently for 4–5 minutes. Mix the cornflour with the sherry, stir into the pan and allow to boil up, stirring, until the sauce has smoothed out and thickened. Serves 6.

the simplest VEGETABLE PASTA

When you read the recipe you’ll see how easy it is, and when you taste it you’ll know that it’s one you’ll turn to often: a couple of ingredients, a couple of minutes, and there you have a salubrious tangle of spinach fettucine with in-and-out-of-the-pan vegetables. Lots of flavour, little effort, and profoundly useful.

• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 6 spring onions, chopped
• 250 g large white mushrooms, wiped and sliced
• 1 red pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and julienned
• 120 g baby spinach, roughly torn
• 2 ml (¹⁄₂ tsp) freshly grated nutmeg
• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) white vermouth
• 200 g spinach fettucine, cooked and drained
• a few fresh basil leaves, torn
• a little sea salt
• 45 ml (3 Tbsp) butter
• 45 ml (3 Tbsp) grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese

1. Mix the oil, all the vegetables, the nutmeg and vermouth in a large saucepan. Heat, and toss for a few minutes, until just beginning to wilt. Add the fettucine, and toss together lightly, adding the basil, salt, butter and cheese. Simply super served with extra grated cheese, a flat bread topped with tomatoes and olives, and a green salad – undressed, but pass some good olive oil for those who want it. Serves 4.

PESTO PASTA with roasted tomatoes and butternut

This pasta dish is a real treat. Only a few ingredients required, and little effort involved, but the result is brilliantly flavoured, colourful, and quite different from most pasta and veg combinations. Do use Roma tomatoes – a variation of plum tomato, they are deep red in colour and the size and shape of a hen’s egg.

• 500 g Roma tomatoes, quartered
• 500 g peeled and cubed butternut (prepared weight)
• 45 ml (3 Tbsp) olive oil
• 5 ml (1 tsp) dried oregano
• 5 ml (1 tsp) sea salt
• a sprinkling of light brown sugar
• 200–250 g fusilli tricolore or pasta screws
• about 100 ml (²⁄₅ cup) walnut pesto, or to taste*
• shaved pecorino or Parmesan cheese and toasted pine nuts for serving

1. Place the tomatoes and butternut in a baking dish large enough to hold them in a single layer – 32 × 25 × 6 cm is just right. Moisten them with the olive oil, and sprinkle with the oregano, salt and sugar. Roast at 200 °C for about 30 minutes – the tomatoes should be wrinkled and the butternut soft. Meanwhile, cook the pasta, drain well, mix in the pesto, then tip into the roasted vegetables in the baking dish and combine everything gently. Top each serving with shaved pecorino cheese and roasted pine nuts, and if you pass a flat bread and some olive oil for dipping, you’ll have a hugely satisfying meal. I also add a bowl of undressed salad leaves – the crunchy freshness is welcome, as the rest of the meal is very generous with oil. Serves 4–6, depending on the amount of pasta and pesto you wish to use.

* See page 28, or use your favourite pesto.

PASTA PARTY SALAD with roasted vegetables

A magnificent party salad: a medley of vegetables, marinated in oil with fresh herbs, roasted until succulent, then tossed with pasta. It can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. Serve mounded on a platter, dotted with black olives and crumbled feta, with a warm flat bread on the side.

• 500 g aubergines (brinjals), cubed and dégorged
• 3 large yellow peppers (300 g), seeded, ribs removed, and sliced
• 500 g courgettes (baby marrows), pared and julienned
• 250–300 g brown mushrooms, wiped and chunkily chopped
• 2–4 slender leeks, wiped and sliced into 4 cm pieces
• 100 ml (²⁄₅ cup) each olive and canola or sunflower oil
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 45 ml (3 Tbsp) fresh lemon juice
• 5 ml (1 tsp) each sea salt and sugar
• 4 large sprigs each fresh rosemary, thyme and marjoram
• 250 g broccoli florets
• 375 ml (1¹⁄₂ cups) elbow macaroni

1. Place the aubergines, yellow peppers, courgettes, mushrooms and leeks in a very large porcelain baking dish, about 27 × 22 × 7 cm. Mix the oils, garlic, lemon juice, salt and sugar and pour over. Tuck in the herbs and toss to mix everything together, then cover and leave to stand for about 2 hours, tossing when you think of it. Roast, uncovered, at 220 °C for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, toss to mix, then reduce the temperature to 180 °C and bake for a further 20 minutes or until the vegetables are juicy and tender. Discard the stalks of the herbs – most of the leaves will have fallen off, adding their flavour to the juices. Steam the broccoli until just tender, and drain. Cook the pasta, then drain. Mix these with the vegetables and set aside to cool. Garnish as suggested above and serve at room temperature, or refrigerate (in glass) overnight, then garnish just before serving. Serves 8–10.

FAST FUSILLI with rocket and roasted garlic

… and broccoli and cherry tomatoes – all cooked in one pot. This is a really good answer to the quest for fast food that manages to be both tasty and trendy. If you roast the garlic in the oven at the same time that you’re heating the ciabatta and at the same time that you’re cooking the pasta, supper will be ready in under 30 minutes.

• 250–275 g fusilli or farfalle
• 300 g broccoli florets, halved
• 400 g cherry tomatoes, slit on one side, but not cut through
• a large handful each of rocket and baby spinach leaves, rinsed and dried
• about 15 ml (1 Tbsp) basil pesto
• 60 ml (4 Tbsp) olive oil
• 60 ml (4 Tbsp) grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese
• sea salt if necessary
• 12–16 plump cloves garlic, unpeeled
• shaved Parmesan cheese to serve

1. Cook the pasta as usual, in a large, deep saucepan with lots of water, a little salt and a dash of oil.
2. Shortly before it’s done al dente, drop in the broccoli and tomatoes, return to the boil and, after a few minutes, when the broccoli looks tender, drain in a colander and tip everything into a large, warmed serving dish. Quickly mix in the rocket, spinach, pesto, olive oil and cheese. Check seasoning and serve with the garlic (see below) and hot, crusty Italian bread and shaved Parmesan. Serves 4 modestly.

ROASTED GARLIC

Place the separated cloves (unpeeled, but loose, papery skin removed) in a small ovenproof dish. Add a little olive oil, toss to coat and then roast at 200 °C for about 25 minutes until browning and smelling good. Pass them around and allow diners to squeeze the smooth, mellow pulp into their pasta.

PASTA PUTTANESCA SALAD with basil oil

This zesty pasta dish is usually served hot, but it also makes a vibrant salad. The sauce – plenty of tomatoes, with anchovies, chillies and olives – is rather different from most pasta sauces, while the dark, dense basil oil is a personal twist that adds both richness and flavour.

• 30 ml (2 Tbsp) olive oil
• 1 × 50 g can flat fillets of anchovied sardines, drained and briefly soaked in milk
• 1 bunch of spring onions or 6 baby leeks, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 × 400 g cans chopped tomatoes in juice
• 12 black olives, stoned and slivered
• 1–2 fresh chillies, seeded and chopped
• 1 large yellow pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and thinly sliced
• a handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley
• a little sea salt and about 10 ml (2 tsp) sugar*
• 250 g fusilli tricolore
• BASIL OIL
• 30 g fresh basil leaves, washed, dried
• 250 ml (1 cup) oil
• a small pinch each of sugar and salt

1. Heat the olive oil with the oil from the anchovies in a wide frying pan. Add the spring onions and garlic and stir for a minute. Add the remaining ingredients, except the pasta. Simmer over low heat, uncovered, stirring until thickened. Taste. If not hot enough, add a sprinkling of crushed dried chillies. Simmer for 10 minutes more. Cook the pasta, then turn into a serving dish. Add the sauce, toss to combine, then leave to cool – the sauce will gradually be absorbed. Cover and leave for up to 2 hours or refrigerate overnight in a covered glass bowl.
2. Blend all the basil oil ingredients well. Pass round in a jug to be trickled (sparingly) over each serving. (Can also be refrigerated overnight.) You could also pass a bowl of grated pecorino. Serves 6.

* This may seem like a lot of sugar, but canned tomatoes are tart and need long simmering to mellow them. As the cooking time in this recipe is short, you will need a little extra sweetness.

PASTA, BEAN AND ROCKET SALAD with pine nuts

A bright, succulent mixture of colourful fusilli tossed up with stir-fried vegetables; added substance comes from the borlotti beans, and lots of flavour from the rocket, cheese and nuts. Super for lunch with a hunk of flat bread.

• 75 ml (5 Tbsp) olive oil
• 4–6 spring onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 red pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and julienned
• 125 g courgettes (baby marrows), pared and julienned
• 125–250 g button mushrooms, wiped and chunkily chopped
• sea salt and milled black pepper
• 15 ml (1 Tbsp) balsamic vinegar
• 200 g fusilli tricolore (mixed pasta screws)
• 1 × 400 g can borlotti beans, drained and rinsed
• 30 g (about 500 ml/2 cups) rocket, torn
• 75 ml (5 Tbsp) grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese
• 45–60 ml (3–4 Tbsp) roasted pine nuts*

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the spring onions, garlic, red pepper and courgettes and stir-fry for a few minutes before adding the mushrooms.
2. Toss until softening, then remove from the stove, season, and add the vinegar. Tip the just-cooked and drained (not rinsed) pasta into a bowl, add the beans, the stir-fry mixture with all its juices, and the rocket.
3. Toss gently until combined, cool, then cover loosely and leave for an hour or so.** Just before serving, fork in the cheese and check the seasoning. Serve on a big platter, topped with the pine nuts. Serves 6.

* The pine nuts are not listed as a garnish as they are an integral part of the salad, but because they’re so expensive you want to see them, and that is why they’re on top. When roasting, do it properly – that is, let them get really nut-brown – it makes a huge difference to the flavour.

** This salad should be served at room temperature. If you have to make it in advance, it can be refrigerated (in a covered glass bowl) for up to a day, but it will lose out on the fine flavour.