Category: Pasta

Spaghetti with lemony garlicky tiger prawns

Published on by Hanna2 Comments

Several years ago the TV-programme Queer Eye for the Straight Guy was quite popular. It was not one of my favourite programmes, but sometimes I ended up watching it anyway. Already then I enjoyed the food clips the best, and this recipe is actually partly from there. The prawns were called lemony garlicky shrimps and were made in a similar way to these, but I think grated parmesan was included as well, and they were cooked in the oven and used as a snack. I have made these several times as a canapé or starter, but thought that pairing them with pasta would be nice. And it was! 

The prawns are marinated in lemon juice, olive oil and garlic and taste a lot and absolutely delicious. The breadcrumbs give the dish a bit of crunch, and makes it a bit more interesting, where as the sauce is there mainly to complement the dish and enhance the prawns instead of stealing their glory.

Spaghetti with lemony garlicky prawns, serves 2

200g raw peeled tiger prawns

1 lemon, the juice

3 garlic cloves, pressed

2 tbsp olive oil

100 ml breadcrumbs

250 g spaghetti

100 ml single cream

100 ml passata

1 tbsp Heinz chilli sauce

1 tsp persillade

white pepper, salt

olive oil

Mix lemon juice, oil and garlic in a bowl. Add the prawns and leave to mariante for about 10 mins. (If longer, cover and store in fridge.) Cook the pasta according to the instructions. Turn the prawns in the breadcrumbs and fry on medium heat until crispy and golden. Mix cream, passata, chilli sauce in a sauce pan and bring to the boil. Season with persillade, salt and pepper after taste. Save some of the pasta water, drain the pasta and mix with the sauce, oilve oil and if needed some of the pasta water. Plate the spaghetti and sprinkle over some persillade and place the prawns on top. Enjoy with a salad and a crisp white wine. 

Mushroom lasagna

Published on by Hanna1 Comment

I was quite proud of myself on Tuesday because I managed to cook, take photos and Skype with my friend Malin, all at the same time. My coordination skills are a bit like a man’s so I am thrilled over my ability to multi-task these three things.

It was too much for me to follow a recipe though, but I used this one for inspiration. And I can say that I was very pleased with my version. Creamy and comforting without being too rich. And although all the flavours are mild you can really taste the mushrooms which is great. This lasagna is a bit different, because it is without the tomato sauce, and that makes this version so much better.

The copper pan is out again!

Try it on a boring weeknight when you need a little comfort food, open a bottle of red wine and serve with some nice bread.

Before...
... and after.

Mushroom lasagna, serves 2 (and a small leftover lunch box)

Svamplasagne, 2 portioner + en liten lunchlåda

6-8 lasagne sheets

250 g mixed mushrooms or more (I had chestnut mushrooms and button mushrooms at hand)

butter

olive oil

flour

500 ml milk

100 ml single cream

300 ml grated cheese (I had red Leicester and Manchego)

1 large garlic clove, pressed

nutmeg

salt

vhite pepper

Rinse the mushrooms, cut the end of the stems off and slice them. Fry in plenty of butter and olive oil on high heat for a few minutes. Fry them quite hard to keep their texture in the oven. Season with salt and pepper when they’re fried, not during. 

Cook the pasta sheets in water with salt and oil (to prevent them from sticking to each other). Cook for 10 minutes, then drain and place on a plate with oil in between each sheet.  

Heat up milk, cream and garlic in a pan. Make a roux in another pan and add the warm milk bit by bit while stirring. Whisk while it thickens. Season with plenty of freshly grated nutmeg, salt and pepper. Add 150 ml grated red Leicester and let it melt.

Pour some of the cheese sauce into the bottom of a rectangular dish and spread it out with a spatula. Place a layer of pasta sheets on top, spread on some more sauce, scatter mushrooms and grated Manchego. Place another layer of pasta on top and repeat. The top layer should be pasta, cheese sauce and grated Manchego. Bake for about 30 minutes in 190C.

Pasta with mussels and sambal oelek

Published on by Hanna1 Comment

My mother used to have a wall full of copper pans and moulds in the kitchen when I was younger, which looked great in a country kitchen. And when she cooked paradise prawns on Fridays she always used a copper sauté pan. Unfortunately that pan can’t be used anymore as the tin has worn off and it is not easy to find someone who does re-tinning anymore as people in general have stopped using copper pans. A shame, because they are both pretty and very good to use.

When I was back home last time I found an unused copper pan in a charity shop for less than £4, which of course made me very happy. My mum has also managed to spare a few copper things for me. For me it is happiness to melt butter in a teeny tiny copperpan with a spout, on my gas hob instead of using a microwave (that we don’t even have).

Start with onions, garlic and leek.

When people ask me which country I prefer out of Sweden and England, I can never give anyone a straight answer – I love both countries! The conservative part of me loves England and all its old buildings and the fact that you don’t change anything unless there is a strong reason for it while the efficient part of me never will understans why people still have two taps on a basin instead of a mixing tap in England and why triple glazing is so rare. The old-fashioned part of me is appalled by the ‘out with the old, in with the new’ mentality Swedish people sometimes have while English people appreciate most old things. There are always two sides of things and I happen to like them both. 🙂

Add everything but the mussels and let it reduce to intense the flavours

Back to copper pans. On Monday when I got home from work and was really tired it made me happy to cook a pasta sauce in my £4 copper pan. 🙂  

Add the mussels last and let them warm up

Pasta with mussels and sambal oelek, serves 2

250 g pasta

1 large schallots or 1 small regular onion

2 cloves of garlic, pressed

10 cm leek, cut lengthwise and sliced

400 g chopped tomatoes

50 ml water

4 tbsp creme fraiche

2 tbsp or more sambal oelek

a pinch of sugar

2 dashes concentrated vegetable or fish stock

salt

white pepper

chopped parsley or Gourmet Garden parsley

180 g mussels in brine

perhaps some lemon/garlic or truffle oil for serving

Cook the pasta according to the packet. Heat up some olive oil in a pan and cook the onions soft on low heat for a few minutes. Add the garlic and leek and let it cook for a few more minutes. Add everything but the mussels and let it reduce a littl. Season to your taste. When the pasta is nearly cookes, add the mussels to the sauce to warm up. Drain the pasta. Serve with oil of your choice. 

Pasta bake with spicy sausage, mushrooms and chilli

Published on by Hanna4 Comments

I really love pasta bakes, they are the ultimate clearing-out-the-fridge-companion, as you can thow anything in it and it still tastes good, and I love the crispy cheese on top, very comforting. So Christopher and I have been debating the pasta bake for a few weeks. Me pro, he against. But then suddenly, he gave in and said we could try it. That means I won, right? 😉

This is the sausage I used, but if you haven’t been to Hungary recently chorizo works just as well.

When I put the dish down in front of him, he said it looked really good and smelt lovely, and to his surprise he really enjoyed it, he didn’t just have a second helping but a third. Smugly I said ‘Well I wasn’t going to make a crappy pasta bake’, and he explained that he ate a lot of pasta bakes at Uni but they weren’t as good, so that was he expected. I think I have converted him now. 

Adding the cheese to the sauce. Yum!

I find it much easier to make this creme fraiche based sauce instead of a proper bechamel, it is much quicker and perfect for a weekday dinner. And you can use the half fat creme fraiche, I sometimes do.

I promise your kitchen smells good by this step! 🙂

Pasta bake with spicy sausage, mushrooms and chilli, serves 3-4

250 g dried pasta (any shape but spaghetti/tagliatelle)

150 g spicy sausage/chorizo

1 can sliced mushrooms

For the sauce:

300 ml creme fraiche

3-4 tbsp chilli sauce (I used Heinz and Reggae Reggae)

2 tsp Gourmet Garden Parsley blend or 1 tbsp chopped parsley

100 ml grated cheese and more to put on top

a splash of concentrated vegetable stock

salt & white pepper

Cook the pasta and drain it. Fry the mushrooms in a knob of butter and olive oil until they have a nice colour, remove from frying pan. Cut the sausage into slices and fry these in the same pan until the have a nice colour (this intensifies the flavour). Mix all the ingredients for the sauce in a saucepan and bring to a boil, season to taste. Grease an oven-proof dish with butter and pour in half of the pasta. Distribute half of the mushrooms and sausage on top, and add some of the red cooking juice from the sausage too, it will add some more flavour. Then pour nearly half of the sauce on top as well. Repeat with another layer and sprinkle plenty of grated cheese on top. Bake for 15-20 minutes in 200C.

Pasta with girolles

Published on by Hanna2 Comments

On my lunch break on Friday, I made a quick visit to the wonderful Borough Marke. I found some girolles, cepes and Jerusalem artichokes that got to come home with me. I didn’t really have a plan of what to use the mushrooms for when I bought them, I just can’t resist the golden girolles. If I had known I was to use them in a nice creamy sauce with a splash of cognac, with pasta, I would have bought lots more, so the pasta – girolle ratio isn’t what it should be, but it still tasted lvoely.

Pasta with girolles, serves 2

pasta of your choice (about 250 g dried pasta)

girolles

olive oil

a knob of butter

400 ml cream

1-2 cloves of garlic, pressed

1 splash of cognac

1 tsp chilli sauce

2 tsp persillade

grated parmesan (Parmiggiano reggiano is to prefer)

chopped parsley

Cook the pasta. Heat up oil and butter in a sauté pan until it is really hot. Fry the mushrooms for a while, sprinkle on some salt and pepper. Turn the heat down and add the cream, add the other ingredients apart from the parsley, and adjust the seasoning to taste. Drain the pasta and add it into the sauce. Serve with some more grated parmesan, some nice bread and a glass of wine.  

Pasta with sardines

Published on by Hanna2 Comments

Inspired by Chris’ cookbook Bringing Italy home by Ursula Ferrigno, I made pasta with sardines the other day.

A great low-budget dinner that was really tasty!

Pasta with sardines, serves 2

Spaghetti

Sauce:

1 onion

1/2 fennel

1 can chopped tomatoes (Cirio)

Italian herbs

chilli flakes

vegetable stock

2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 packet sardines in water

Topping:

breadcrumbs

1 clove garlic, pressed

parsley

chilli flakes

olive oil

Pour some olive oil in a saucepan and fry the onions and fennel for a few minutes until soft. Add the chopped tomatoes, vegetable stock, seasoning and let it simmer for a few minutes. When it has reduced slightly, add the sardines and let it cook for 10-12 minutes. Cook the spaghetti. In a small frying pan, take two tbsp of the tomato sauce, a handful of breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley and chilli flakes and cook it crusty and golden in olive oil. When the pasta is cooked, drain it but save some of the water in case the tomato sauce is too thick. Add some of the tomato sauce and mix it in with the pasta. Plate the pasta, pour some of the remaining sauce over the pasta, add some the breadcrumbs and drizzle some olive oil over the plate.

Quick lasagne with aubergine and courgette

Published on by Hanna4 Comments

I love aubergine! So this is a weekday favourite of mine. Christopher doesn’t love them, but tolerates them, and together with pasta he quite enjoys it. This is a speedy version of lasagne as you use a tub of cream cheese instead of the bechamel sauce. Together with the soft vegetables the cheese becomes nice and creamy. 

Quick lasagne with aubergine and courgette, serves 4

1 aubergine

2-3 courgettes

oilve oil

lasagne sheets

1 tub (200 g) Philadelphia

1 can chopped tomatoes with basil (I love Ciro’s)

vegetable stock

salt pepper

grated cheese

Wash the vegetables and cut the ends off, slice in 5 mm thick slices. Fry these until soft in olive oil on medium heat. Make them in batches. Meanwhile, pour the chopped tomatoes into a saucepan and reduce on low-medium heat, add vegetable stock and season. In an oven dish, start with a layer of tomato sauce, next a layer of pasta, a little bit more tomato sauce, a layer of courgettes, dollops of cream cheese, and start again from the pasta layer but substitute the courgettes with aubergine this time around and use courgettes in the top layers. Finish off with pasta sheets, tomato sauce and the grated cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes in 200 C.

I never know what to serve with this dish, it feels a bit unnecessary to serve a salad with this amount of vegetables, have you got any tips?

Chicken cannelloni with bacon

Published on by Hanna1 Comment

Cannelloni is great to serve at dinner parties, it is tasty and you can prepare it the day before and have time to greet your guests. Served with garlic bread and a nice salad it can be a feast!

Chicken cannelloni with bacon, 2-3 portions

350-400 g chicken fillet

4 slices of bacon

1 packet ricotta

3-4 tsp italian herb seasoning

1 tsp chilli flakes

1 tsp persillade

a knob of butter

plain flour/sauce flour

chicken or vegetable stock

400-500 ml milk

grated cheese

about 15 cannelloni tubes

Cook the chickem in a pan or in the oven with some olive oil and maybe some barbecue seasoning, salt and pepper, leave to cool a little and cut into small cubes. Fry the bacon cut into pieces, and drain off the excess fat on some kitchen towel. In a bowl, mix the ricotta with the herbs and spices, and plenty of salt and pepper. Fold in the chicken and bacon and fill the tubes with the ricotta-mixture. It takes a bit of time, but after a while you get the hang of it. I use a teaspoon. You can also use fresh lasagne sheets that you roll up, but they usually break quite easy. Drizzle some olive oil onto an oven proof dish and place the filled tubes in it. Next make a roux by melting the butter, adding enough flour for the butter to soak up and adding the milk. Whisk the whole time on low heat. It takes a while for the sauce to thicken, season with some stock, throw in some of the grated cheese and some salt and pepper. Some grated nutmeg will be nice too. When the sauce is thick, pour it over the pasta tubes and sprinkle some cheese on top. Bake in 180-200 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

 

 

Spaghetti with scallops

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Scallops is another one of my favourite foods. I like both the silky smooth texture and the nice flavour that is very different to any other seafood. Together with pasta it makes a nice light main course.

Spaghetti with scallops, 2 portions

spaghetti (my favourite is De Cecco linguine)

8 king scallops (more if you buy smaller ones)

5-6 sunblush tomatoes in olive oil

1 clove garlic (or more), pressed

some chopped parsley

1 tsp chilli flakes

1/2 lemon, the juice

salt

extra virgin olive oil

Start off my removing the small muscles on the scallops that are too chewy to eat. Next chop the parsley and tomatoes. Cook the pasta, and then get started on the rest. In a small frying pan heat up a knob of butter and some olive oil, medium-medium high heat. Cook the scallops, first 2-3 minutes on one side and when they have got some colour and you can see that they are cooked halfway through or so, turn over for another 2-3 minutes. You don’t want to cook them for too long and you don’t want them underdone, so check by making a small cut with a knife if you need too. Season the scallops with salt and white pepper. Remove the scallops onto a sideplate and rinse the frying pan quickly. Pour in some fresh olive oil (quite a lot) and turn the heat down, throw in the garlic and tomatoes, chilli flakes and parsley and squeeze out the lemon juice. Put some salt and pepper in there too. Let it cook for 1-2 minutes and then turn the heat off. Drain the pasta, pour in the tomato mixture and if it feels dry pour in some more olive oil. Plate the pasta and place four scallops on every plate. Drizzle on some more olive oil and sprinkle on some salt.

Pasta with tiger prawns, red pepper pesto and mushrooms

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Yesterday I wasn’t really prepared to make dinner, as I expected us to go out before going to the Proms. But the koncert didn’t start until late, so I was more in the mood of going home and relax until going there, so I quickly had to come up with something. Defrosting prawns doesn’t take long, and making this pasta dish doesn’t take long either – a perfect weekday dinner.

Pasta with tiger prawns, red pepper pesto and mushrooms, 2 portions

Pasta, I took farfalle

200 g cooked and peeled tiger prawns

1 can sliced button mushrooms

250 ml single cream

3 tbsp red pepper pesto

1 clove garlic, pressed

a splash of chilli sauce

some chilli flakes

stock

Italian herb seasoning

salt

white pepper

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the packet. Fry the mushrooms in some olive oil until they have got some colour. Then lower the heat and pour in the cream, followed by the other ingredients for the sauce, except the prawns. Bring to a boil, have a taste and adjust the flavours according to taste. If the sauce gets too thick, pour in a little milk. When the pasta has a minute or so to cook, pour the prawns into the sauce so they heat up. Drain the pasta and serve the sauce. If you have some fresh parsley at hand (I didn’t), chop it and sprinkle on top of the sauce. Enjoy!