Tag Archives: Spaghetti

Spaghetti con Ricci di Mare, spaghetti with sea urchins


August 7, 2013

Few things that one can place on you tongue that are more delicious than sea urchins. It’s the eggs in the female sea urchin that you eat and they are at it’s best and plump when harvested at the time of the full moon. A small island such as Pantelleria being so removed from the mainland urban centers and their unnatural disturbing city lights, it’s no doubt this makes our sea urchins all the more special when it’s time to collect some . When we harvest a lot I make this really luxurious pasta dish, Spaghetti con Ricci di Mare!

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Spaghetti con Ricci di Mare
Serves 4

Ingredients
One large pot with lid filled with water and placed on the stove to boil for pasta
1/2 pound (500 grams) dry spaghetti
The eggs from 60 fresh sea urchins, about 1/2 cup (1.2 dl)
2 Tablespoons of sea water which you save from the inside of the sea urchins when you clean them (have it in a cup beside the time for cooking)
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
2 shalots minced
1 Tablespoon olive oil for frying
1/2  cup (1.2 dl) white wine
5 Tablespoons (75 ml) of milk
4 sprigs parsley chopped.
2 Tablespoons (25 grams) of butter
Salt and to taste for pasta water and ricci sauce

Method
Bring pasta water and salt to the boil in a saucepan.

In  a large saute pan heat olive oil and cook the shallots and garlic soft and golden. Lower the heat slightly, add the sea water and 2 tablespoons of sea urchin eggs, stir and simmer together with the onions for a minute or two. Add wine, milk and half of the parsley let simmer. Place the pasta into boiling water to cook the pasta. Take about 1/4 cup (6 Tablespoons) of the boiling pasta water in a cup and add the butter to melt. Mix this into the sauce, taste if you need to add salt, this might vary depending on how salty the seawater from the sea urchins.

When the pasta has 30 seconds left on the recommended cooking time drain in colander, mix with the sauce, rest of the sea urchins and the rest of the parsley, serve immediately!

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Spaghetti alla Puttanesca


December 4, 2012

Spaghetti alla puttanesca is a flavorful, spicy and delicious pasta. The original recipe is with anchovies, tomatoes, olives, garlic and capers. This pasta has become a recurring classic dish in my kitchen. You could easily exclude the tuna and replace it with a couple of more anchovies as the original recipe. Just make sure you taste as the sauce cooks so it doesn’t get too salty.

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Spaghetti alla puttanesca
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 lbs ( 450 gram ) of spaghetti (cook al dente according to the instruction on the package)
1 fresh red chili finely chopped or 1 tsp dried chili flakes
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1/2 medium sized yellow onion finely chopped
3 Tablespoons olive oil
6 filets of anchovies roughly mashed in pieces using a fork
16 pitted and chopped black olives
3 Tablespoons of capers from Pantelleria! http://shop.underthealmondtree.com/  
(make sure you drain the capers first in cold water before adding to the sauce)
12-15 cherry tomatoes
1 can chunky style tomatoes
1/4 cup (0.6 dl) white wine
7 oz ( 200 grams) of good canned tuna in olive oil
2 Tablespoons of grind lemon zest
4 Tablespoons of finely chopped flat leaf parsley

Method
Heat a large pan and add oil, garlic, chili, onion and the anchovies. 
Sauté until it is soft and the ingredients have melted together. Add cherry tomatoes, white wine, canned tomatoes, capers and olives. Season with sugar, black pepper and salt as needed. Make sure you test the saltiness before you add any salt. Most likely, the anchovies and capers will provide all the salt you’ll need.

Cook the spaghetti according to the instructions on the package.
Let the sauce cook together for about 12-15 minutes, if it ends up a little dry add a little of your pasta water.
 One minute before serving, stir in the tuna and lemon zest and taste the seasoning.
 Mix the sauce with the spaghetti, sprinkle some parsley and serve right away.

The rain brought back the arugula


November 13, 2012

arugula-CF056099This arugula in was planted just before the summer and came in beautifully by the beginning of June. But in August we were ready to give up on it. Although we had been watering and pampering the leaves continuously, it looked burnt, brown, dried and hopelessly dead. I was convinced that this was the end for this little salad. Then suddenly 3 weeks ago it started to rain in Pantelleria. Four days of rain and there is now new fresh strong arugula spreading. It’s the beginning of November, we now have more arugula than we can eat, and it looks and tastes better than ever. Usually I would just eat the arugula as a salad, mixed with tomatoes and some buffalo mozzarella seasoned with olive oil, basil and sea salt or just with other mixed greens and olive oil, but since we now have so much of it I decided to make a pesto. With this arugula I didn’t have to add any pepper because of its strong, naturally spiciness, but this you have to try for your own taste what suites you. This pesto is great as a bread spread or to make a pasta like this spaghetti below.arugula pesto-CF055795 Arugula pesto
Ingredients
5 oz (150 grams) arugula
2 cloves of garlic
3 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon peel
1 tablespoon of sea salt ( I used Maldon sea salt)
1 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup (40 gram) of pine nuts
1/2 tablespoon caster sugar
5 oz (150 grams) of parmesan cheese
Optional (if it’s needed, a little black pepper)
Method
Rinse the arugula and mix with all the other ingredients using a hand mixer or a food processor.
Taste to see if you want to add more sea salt.
The flavor of arugula differs a lot so if you thinks it’s a little pale in taste,  just add some fresh grounded black pepper.

spaghetti with arugula pesto-CF055984 Spaghetti with arugula pesto
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 cup (2.4 dl) of arugula pesto
14 oz (400 grams) of spaghetti
Method
Boil pasta water with salt. Cook the spaghetti according to the time on the package.
In a large bowl on the side, put 1 cup or more of the arugula pesto.
When there is 1 minute left on the cooking time for the spaghetti, take 1/4 cup of the boiling pasta water and add with the pesto, stir the water in the pesto, this will heat up the temperature in the pesto sauce a little bit.
When the pasta is ready, mix it with the pesto and serve with some extra parmesan cheese.
Ceramic bowl and dinner plate from NEW KAM MAN