Pasta

Penne with bacon, olives, garlic and basil in a rich tomato sugo

• 1L/ 1qt napolitana sauce
• 2 rashers rindless bacon
• 3 cloves garlic - finely chopped
• ½ cup pitted kalamata olives
• 2 Tbs vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion
• 1 red capsicum or 150gm/ 5oz roasted red peppers
• ½cup white wine
• ½cup extra virgin olive oil
• 10-15 basil leaves
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the bacon into strips or squares and fry in a saucepan in the vegetable oil on medium high heat. Chop the onion and when the bacon is browned add the onion to the pan. Cut the capsicum (red pepper) in half, discard the seeds and cut into slices. Add to the pan with the olives and cook until the pepper has softened a little.
Reduce the heat to medium add the finely chopped garlic and stir in. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and reduce the cooking liquor by half. Add the napolitana sauce and the olive oil, bring the sauce to a simmer and add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook on a low heat stirring occasionally. Shortly before serving stir in the coarsely chopped basil. Serve with cooked penne pasta.

Garlic prawn linguine with a creamy sauce

• per serve:
• 8-9 raw prawn cutlets
• 1 Tbs vegetable oil
• 2-3 garlic cloves
• 1 thick slice of lemon
• 50ml white wine
• 120 ml/ 4 fl oz cream (double cream)
• salt & pepper
• ½Tbs chopped parsely
• cooked linguine or other long pasta

Heat the oil in a frying pan on high heat. Add the prawns and lemon, season with salt and pepper and cook until the prawns are have changed color. Add the finely chopped garlic and stir into the prawns, add the white wine to de-glaze the pan. Reduce the wine by half and add the cream. Reduce the cream until it has a light coating consistency and check the seasoning. Add the pasta to the pan and toss through the sauce so the pasta is nicely coated by the sauce. Mix in the chopped parsely. To serve put the pasta in the bottom of a bowl and top with the prawns and sauce, discarding the lemon slice.

Pasta Ideas

Here are some ideas for other pasta sauces. The sauces are comstructed in the same way as the sauces above. So just to recap the main points:

1. Heat you pan before adding any ingredients to cook.
2. Deglase your pan with wine and reduce the wine by at least half before adding cream or tomato sauces.
3. Use a little galic in most sauces. It adds a little extra flavour.
4. Don't overcook or burn the garlic. It will make the sauce bitter.
5. season sauces with salt. Especially cream sauces as it aids in the digestion of rich creamy sauces.
6. Finish Tomato sauces with EVO (extra virgin olive oil). It adds depth to the flavour.
7. Use a good quality EVO.

Pasta Ideas

• Penne pasta with prosciutto eggplant and olives in a napolitana sauce.
• Spirelli pasta tossed with prosciutto, pesto, sundried tomato, olives and olive oil.
• Linguini with a bacon and spinach cream sauce.
• Fettucine with a creamy chicken and bacon cream sauce.
• Spaghetti with smoked chicken and roast red peppers in a balsamic cream sauce.
• Fettucine with smoked salmon and avocado in a creamy sauce.
• Spirelli pasta with bacon, chicken and mushrooms in a tomato sugo.
• Fettucine with bacon, chicken and mushrooms in a cream sauce, with a touch of garlic.
• Pappadelle with smoked chicken and semi dried tomatoes in a cream sauce.
• Penne pasta with artichokes, roast red peppers, onion, olives, fetta cheese and extra virgin olive oil.
• Fusilli pasta with atichokes, roast peppers, onion and olive in a rich napoli sauce.
• Penne Primavera with broad beans, asparagus and green pea puree in a white wine cream sauce.