Pumpkin/ butternut squash with pasta

I'm a pumpkin fan, and as I've already mentioned I'm always looking for new and interesting ways of serving it. Unfortunately the love of pumpkin never came naturally to the rest of the family- although I do believe they are beginning to warm up to it.
It transforms any meal with its vibrant colour and it's healthy too! And isn't it great that it is no longer just an autumn vegetable.
So if you have a pumpkin or butternut squash sitting on the shelf what about combining it with pasta as part of a main meal?
Pumpkin is actually a traditional filling for Ravioli in Italy. I will be doing a blog about fresh pasta and homemade ravioli but today I wanted a quick meal for three so I used packet pasta. My recipe is all about the things I love, so not Italian just my recipe, so nothing exact just go with the flow. I used purple basil because I could- it is home grown and I thought the colour would be amazing. But traditional basil will do fine. Basil is one of my favourite herbs, but dried basil will just not cut it!

I used AH fresh pesto but you could make your own. In fact nothing beats homemade. Only when you make your own do you get the traditional pesto alla genovese with authentic ingredients like fresh basil, fresh parsley, pine nuts, crushed garlic, grated hard cheese- Parmigiano Reggiano (Parmesan) /Grana Padano or Pecorino and olive oil. Too often walnuts or cashew nuts substitute the pine nuts (or partly), not to forget use of cheaper oils. There is nothing wrong with experimenting using different nuts (try almond too) but what is wrong is the manufactures claiming the pesto is ‘traditional’ when clearly substitutes have been made. The main ingredients in the AH Pesto I used were 27% olive oil, 22% fresh basil, 20% rapeseed oil, 11% cheese, and merely 7% pine nuts.
This is fresh pesto:


Pumpkin/ butternut squash with pasta (pesto, pinenuts and purple basil)

Serves 3, (adjust accordingly)
220gr pasta
Oil for frying
1 small organic pumpkin, diced (or butternut squash)
1 onion
1 stick celery, finely diced
bacon/ salami (I used a mixture of both but use what you prefer)
1 ball mozzarella, roughly chopped (If you don't have any I'm pretty sure mascarpone would be great too and add a sprinkling of Grana Padano before serving)
butter
1 heaped tsp cumin ground (optional- I love this spice with pumpkin)
chili flakes
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tbsp pesto (green)
purple basil
pine nuts
salt pepper

Remove pumpkin skin and discard seeds. Dice into small pieces (uneven sizes). I liked the idea to get a kind of half puree/ half pumpkin pieces so I chopped uneven pieces to get a good texture.
Cook pasta. Dry-roast the pine nuts in a saucepan. Don't let them burn!
Fry first the bacon and then add the salami in a little oil until crispy. Set aside. In the same oil brown onion. Add pumpkin, celery and 1 tsp cumin and fry for a few minutes. Add some chili flakes and garlic.
Reduce heat and cook gently until tender. Add a big dollop of butter (or olive oil) and the bacon/salami, pesto, pasta and mozzarella cheese heat through.
Serve with a sprinkling of pine nuts and basil leaves.

Sage, courgette and pasta with pine nuts

Sage is one of the herbs that positively thrives in my garden, it has even moved house with us! And it has been replanted on several occasions.
Apart from pairing it off with onion (sage & onion stuffing) and chicken until recently I didn't really know quite what else to do with it.
Sage is a perennial herb with a very strong flavour that tends to overide everything else- so a little bit goes a long way- perhaps if the truth be known I was a little bit afraid of it!
It was after a Italian cookery workshop given by Victor Russo (I will be doing a blog on Italian cooking soon) that I really started using the herb on a regular basis in my kitchen. We didn't actually use it in the workshop on the evening self. But there was something about the look on his face when he described the taste of fried sage with pasta and the words 'Mamma mia' that just days later had me rushing out into my garden to pluck a handful of sage leaves. I always choose the smaller young leaves, they are flavourful and tender. I carefully wash and dry them. You can fry them in butter or olive oil. They become crisp and delicate, the taste is aromatic and simply amazing- spot on Victor!
Fried sage, courgette pasta for two:
Today I was preparing a meal for two and because I wanted something simple, quick and tasty I opted for sage and pasta. I love Italian food and creamy rich sauces but sometimes simplicity is perfection. It was a wholesome and satisfying meal.
I started to cook about 150gr of dried whole wheat pasta.
And grated some (parmesan) cheese that I put in a dish.
I toasted a handful of pine nuts in a dry pan for a few minutes and left aside.
I then heated a little olive oil and fried the (washed and dried) sage leaves (handful), roughly ripped if they are large. They will be done in just a few minutes. These also went to one side.
In the same pan I browned several bacon rashes (chopped) I lastly added a clove of garlic and a spring onion and cooked briefly and set aside.
Using the same pan I stir fried a whole (medium sized) courgette finely diced. When it was done (still al dente) I added a little white wine, and seasoning. (use lemon juice if you prefer)
I drained the pasta which was now ready and added this to the courgette with nearly all the pine nuts and sage (reserve some for garnishing), the bacon/onion and most of the cheese.
Stir carefully and serve. Sprinkle the remaining cheese, pine nuts and sage leaves and drizzle with virgin olive oil. Mamma mia!

This was a bit haphazard but a rough list of ingredients:
fresh Sage leaves
150gr Pasta
several bacon rashers (or pieces)
parmesan cheese
Olive oil/ utter
pine nuts, about 30gr
1 medium courgette
70-100ml wine oo dash lemon juice/ zest
salt pepper, virgin olive oil

Now I just hope I'm not going to get 'pine nut syndrome' or 'pine mouth' as it's widely referred to- an intriguing taste disorder, occurring 1-3 days after consumption of certain pine nuts and lasting anything up to two weeks! The symptoms are a bitter metal taste in the mouth making practically all other food and drink unpalatable! Even water tastes likes battery acid!
How very odd! It's something I luckily haven't (yet) experienced. Even stranger while some people get this taste disturbance, others do not, even though they have eaten from the same batch of nuts. So perhaps there is a genetic factor involved and I am just one of the lucky ones. I do get a very disagreeable odour when I eat asparagus- but it doesn't stop me eating it!
While 'pine mouth' sounds very unpleasant it doesn't actually seem to be harmful so I will keep risking it!

Apparently the 'culprits' are largely from China so try and stick with ones that you know the origin of- (European nuts are claimed to be fine) although obviously it is difficult when ordering in a restaurant to know the source of the seeds.
It is unclear whether or not toasting/roasting the nuts makes a difference- but I always toast mine.
It can be extremely upsetting for the sufferers since the cause is not immediately apparent and these symptoms can suggest anything from Diabetes, brain tumors and liver failure! But thank goodness for Google: the link to pine nuts can soon be made. (it is so widespread)
But there are still people unaware of the unpleasant side effects of pine nuts and for this reason I am mentioning it on my blog- I would hate to put anyone off their food! I can hardly imagine it myself- fancy all food and drink tasting vile- even chocolate!
Apparently if you are unfortunate to fall victim the best thing to mask the taste is spicy food, another reason to keep checking my blog- coming soon recipe's from my Thai themed evening.

Tagliatelle with Black Garlic

I couldn't wait any longer- after yesterday's post about black garlic curiosity got the better of me, I had to try cooking the garlic. I decided to take an easy path and made a quick pasta. How I love pasta.
I cooked 300gr tagliatelle. Fried 250gr diced bacon, added 1 finely chopped onion, until it was just begining to brown. I added several mushrooms, 4 cloves of black garlic sliced, a few freeze dried Spanish pepers, a few chopped black olives, about 2 tsp capers and some sundried tomato (in oil). When the pasta was just cooked I added a little olive oil and about 150gr Philadelphia cheese (original), 25gr Gran padano salt and pepper and mixed thoroughly. I carefully put the two together.
I served it with a stir fry of Italian vegetables and a side salad. How I love my vegetables and salads.

Oh my, the garlic was divine, next time I won't be afraid to add more. The balance was good although I don't usually use so many ingredients in one dish. By omitting regular garlic I was afraid I wouldn't get the full taste! I didn't miss it at all and I certainly didn't miss smelly fingers!

Something old, something new

This weekend I decided to make pumpkin soup again (perhaps you have seen my Thai inspired pumpkin soup) but this time I used Thai GREEN curry paste. Otherwise I almost kept to the same ingredients.
Since my trip to Thailand earlier this year I have been inspired by Thai food. It is certainly a style of food that has been growing on me. Before my holiday I rarely cooked Eastern dishes and didn't even own a wok! Now I always have two pots of the basic curry paste: green and red on hand. Basically it is a mix of lemongrass, red (for red curry paste) or green chilli (for green curry paste) garlic, galangal, onion, salt, bergamot and coriander. You certainly don't have to feel guilty using paste since it is quite accepted, although you could start from scratch. I use paste and extra fresh ingredients, I will be posting a Thai curry recipe very soon on my blog. Watch this space.
As I didn't have any orange juice on hand I decided to use apple juice, which is quite an unusual combination since I don't recall seeing any apple's in Thailand! I needn't have worried because here is the result- an empty pan, I didn't even get time to get it on picture!
Thai inspired Pumpkin soup 2
1 small biological pumpkin ( or butternut).
1 large onion
fresh green chili pepper (to taste) I used about 1/4
Thai green curry paste (to taste) I used 1 heaped tbsp.
1 clove garlic
Oil (olive)
Coriander (ground, to taste)
500ml stock (chicken or vegetable)
200ml apple juice
1/2 - 1 tin (200- 400ml) coconut milk
salt and freshly ground pepper
Serving suggestions: pumpkin seed oil (or creme fraiche, knob of butter)
Serves 4
Method:
Cut the pumpkin in slices, remove peel, (you can use a potato peeler) stringy parts and seeds, discard. Chop the flesh in pieces. Dice the onion. De-seed the pepper and finely chop. Heat a little oil in a large pan. Fry the onion and green pepper for a few minutes. Add the curry paste (to personal taste). Stir and add the pumpkin, garlic (chopped) and fry for a few more minutes. Add salt, black pepper and coriander to taste. Add orange juice and coconut milk and heat through. Add stock and bring to boil, simmer for 15- 20 minutes (until pumpkin is soft, a little longer if you are using a butternut). Cool slightly and blend. Reheat. Serve with topping of choice. I added some pumpkin seed oil and it was amazing!
(I used just a half tin of coconut milk that was leftover but feel free to add a whole one.)

I have been very much dreaming of desserts lately which is very unusual for me, since normally I am quite satisfied with some yoghurt at the end of a meal. I very much hope to make a Tiramisu soon and a good old English Trifle. But because the Kwark-Cheese cake was so good I decided to make another one. In my opinion a little bit of what you fancy does you good; Food cravings could well be a sign of deficiencies in specific nutrients- well that's my excuse ;-)
This time I made it easier by replacing the cottage cheese (which needed to be sieved) with Philadelphia cheese ( I used ‘light’). I think it was even better! My craving has been satisfied.

Lemon Kwark-Cheesecake 2
10 digestive biscuits (180gr) Last time I used Verkade, this time I used AH brand and needed more than 10 to get the same weight.
85gr butter
2-3 tsp brown sugar
500gr kwark (low of high fat to choice) I used organic kwark, low fat
185gr Philadelphia cheese (I used light)
1 small carton cream (200ml)
80gr castor sugar (or more for a sweeter cheesecake)
juice and grated rind of 2 small or 1 large lemon
10gr gelatine, 6 sheets
Water
1 spring form, lined. 20cm (last time I used 24cm)
Compote (topping)
Method:
Break up biscuits in a plastic bag with rolling pin (or pestle, which I prefer to use). Heat butter in a small pan until melted. Add biscuit crumbs and brown sugar (optional). Press in the base of a spring form with the back of a spoon. Cool in refrigerator. Beat the kwark until smooth. Add the Philadelphia cheese, sugar and lemon rind, mix. Soak the gelatine in a little water for 5 minutes. Heat the lemon juice (do not boil!) stir in (drained) gelatine and mix until everything has dissolved, heating if necessary but do not boil. Leave to cool slightly. Whip the cream until stiff, being careful not to over whip! Add cooled gelatine to kwark mixture and stir carefully but thoroughly. Fold in cream. Pour into baking tin. I lined mine with baking paper. Refrigerate for 4 hours. Add topping just before serving. I used a mix of compote and jam.



Today I lost track of time needed to come up with a meal in minutes, so it just had to be a 15 minute pastaThis recipe was based on a quiche I made years ago. The combination of butter, mushrooms and sherry is very satisfying.
Smoked chicken pasta in a mushroom and sherry sauce
300gr pasta of choice
200gr smoked chicken pieces (or pre-cooked chicken breast)
2 small spring onions
250gr chestnut mushrooms thickly sliced
2 celery sticks, chopped
White sauce (40gr butter, 40gr cornflour, 400ml milk)
Salt Pepper
fresh parsley and celery herb, finely chopped
sherry 2-3 tbsp (to taste!)
butter/olive oil
carton creme fraiche 200ml
Serves 4
Method:
Boil a large pan of water.
Heat a good knob of butter (or olive oil) and gently cook chopped celery. Remove celery and set aside. Cook pasta for time indicated on packet.(al dente- with a bite)
Make a roux sauce with butter, cornflour and milk. Add mushrooms, cook gently for a few minutes. Add celery, seasoning, sherry, chicken, creme fraiche and lastly spring onion and herbs. Heat thoroughly.
Serve with a fresh mixed salad, and walnuts. I added a dash of pumpkin seed oil. Delicious! This wonderful oil, known as 'green gold' deserves more than a mention and I will be addressing this very soon.

201 Meals in Minutes- Pasta Fantasta

Sometimes you just need a quick meal, one that can be literally made in minutes. A dish that can be put together in a shorter time than it would take to order a pizza (and have delivered) to pick up a take-a-way. Pasta fits the bill perfectly- it is very handy food and can be very adapted into many dishes, it is very satisfying and it doesn't need peeling! I can be eating within 20 minutes!
You could fall back on a store bought sauce or even worse a packet, but it is no comparison with fresh, contains far too much salt and a homemade sauce is almost as easy anyway not to mention cheaper!
What are the options: You could go for an all time favourite: macaroni cheese but it does get a bit monotonous after a while. You could go for Dutch macaroni but that is way over the top- an Italian nightmare! They are obviously out of their comfort zone because packet mixes are very popular. It is a tomato based sauce with way too many ingredients to have any particular flavour and how ever short you cook the pasta it always ups up mushy!
When I'm in a hurry and that happens a lot due to business commitments. We run a flexible company and sometimes accommodating to other people’s needs means I am often left with little time in the kitchen but hungry mouths to feed!
Just before I reach for the pasta pot I open my fridge.
I glance around (the joys of having a well stocked fridge) for what I have on hand for inspiration to put together up a delicious pasta with sauce. Now the Italians eat a lot of pasta and little sauce but I prefer a good heaping of sauce. I do adhere to the Italian concept and choose out a few ingredients and not too many flavours like in Dutch Macaroni!
An example is a few weeks ago when I was time limited and needed to come up with a healthy dish and quick. I had some left over pesto sauce in the fridge so I decided to make:
Pesto pasta
Pasta 300gr
1 bell pepper red
2 large tomatoes (sliced)
1 courgette (cubed, not too small)
1 clove garlic
salt pepper
white sauce: 40gr butter 40gr cornflour Note: plain flour will do but cornflour (maizena) will give a much better result 450ml milk
bacon cubes about 250gr
1 large onion chopped
red pesto sauce (fresh- very easy to make or jar will do fine)
paprika pepper
chili flakes
fresh basil leaves and pine nut kernels.
Parmesan cheese
Serves 4

Toast pine nuts (dry in a pan). Keep to one side.
Boil large pan of water.
Depending on the leanness of your bacon you can add a little frying fat (I always use mild olive oil) to the pan. Fry bacon pieces with onion until cooked but not overdone. Remove from pan with slotted spoon. Set aside in a dish. Heat the same pan and add courgette, garlic, bell pepper and stir-fry, lastly add tomatoes and a sprinkling of ground sweet paprika cook briefly until vegetables are al dente.
Add a large knob of butter, make roux with cornflour. It's very easy melt the butter add the corn flour and stir with a wooden spoon, Cook for a few minutes, you should have a smooth paste. Add milk, all at once or in parts whatever you feel comfortable with. Heat gently- keep stirring ( the lumps will disappear as the sauce becomes warm)and DON'T leave the pan! Boil to thicken, keep stirring for a few minutes. Add pinch chili flakes, pepper (salt if necessary). Add onion/bacon mix heat. Add pesto (to taste a good couple of tablespoons), extra parmesan if desired and roughly ripped basil leafs. (I also had a half a carton creme fraiche leftover so I added that)
The pasta needs careful timing and should be added to the boiling water be ready simultaneously with the sauce. Obviously each pasta sort has its own cooking time. Cook al dente (with a bite) Drain and add vegetables, mix carefully.
Serve pasta-vegetable mix on plates, pour on sauce, add pine nuts and whole basil leaves.

Pasta with Fennel and leek
2 small Leeks
1 large Fennel
250gr diced bacon
White sauce (see above)
Diced cheese of choice
Salt Pepper, Nutmeg
(Olive) oil
Serves 4
Yesterday I had to prepare a quick meal for my working son-you have guessed it- Pasta.
I glanced in the fridge and came out with leek and fennel. That was the basis for my sauce.
I had some diced bacon.
I proceeded as above. I set the bacon/ onion mix (this time two small shallots) aside and cooked the fennel in the bacon juices with a little more olive oil, added the leek and cooked for a few minutes, added a good grind of fresh nutmeg, salt and pepper. I love re-cycling my pans, even though I have a dishwasher.
I made the basic white sauce and added some diced cheese, don't worry about grating it will melt sufficiently, I prefer having cheesy lumps when it adds to the enjoyment. It was delicious, in particular the fennel a pleasant aniseed taste still with enough bite.

One of our all time favourites is fresh spinach. A bit like Spinach Lasagna with less than half the cooking time! Just add the cooked, well drained and chopped spinach to the basic sauce with your choice if cheese. Cover with extra grated cheese and flash it under a grill if you require the crispy topping associated with lasagna.
The kids will love it! Sauces are a sure good way of getting children to eat their vegetables and to drink their milk at the same time!
You will feel clever using up ingredients that are (almost) past their best, that blue cheese that is rather too strong than is pleasant will make an excellent pasta sauce.
You not only have a satisfying meal but also a relatively healthy one with protein, carbohydrate and vegetables.

Do you have a major time limit: substitute bacon for ham or (smoked) salmon. Or even smoked chicken or tinned tuna. Prawns or white fish is delicious, unfortunately two persons here refuse (as yet) to eat fish.
I hope you are beginning to see the versatility of pasta.
You can add virtually any kind of vegetable; leek, fennel, celery, broccoli, bell peppers, tomatoes, courgette, chicory, spinach. Or tinned artichoke.
Add anchovies, capers, olives or (fresh) herbs; parsley, basil, sage or particularly good is dill (add fresh herbs just before serving). I am sometimes extravagant and use saffron.
Another favourite is mustard. Wholegrain mustard not only tastes great but looks good.
Walnuts are also delicious in a pasta sauce, add towards the end, toast lightly for better results.
Don't just stick with milk but try adding (substituting part of the milk) some cream, creme fraiche, coffee milk works well too, mascarpone or ricotta or a small tin of tomato puree for a lovely pinky/orange pasta. Or what about some white wine?
I think I will try using Dutch kwark one of these days.
Mushrooms are also a favourite with pasta and don’t need long cooking times.
Try all sorts of cheese, adding at the end. Gorgonzola is particularly good.
Don't overdo the ingredients, I can't emphasize enough the idea is to have few ingredients for full flavour. As with the salads less is more.
Keep the pasta dishes looking great by serving them with some fresh green salad on the side, a dash of olive oil and balsamic vinegar and you'll be on to a winner. What's more the variations you will come up with will amaze your family. The array of different types, shapes, colours, and tastes of pasta will keep the fun alive....now who wants to go back to boring old macaroni cheese?