italian sausage ragu & silken pasta

As winter approaches, a warming rustic dish for cooler darker nights

~pasta~
4 eggs
400g 00 flour
fine semolina for dusting

~ragu~
4 or 5 Italian sausages (I used veal, pork & fennel)
handful small or cherry tomatoes
1 packet of passata (400g)
Maldon
freshly ground black pepper
raw sugar
fresh basil
olive oil
1 eggplant, diced
1 red onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
optional: red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

First, make the pasta. Mix the lightly beaten eggs with the flour until a soft dough forms, knead for 10 minutes or so until smooth and silky, then set aside under a bowl for 30 minutes. Roll the pasta by hand or machine and cut into 1.5cm wide ribbons. If rolling by hand, fold the rolled pasta sheets inward so that the two edges meet in the centre. Repeat until just a few centimetres across. Then, take a knife and cut into 1.5cm widths. Once complete, run the knife with the blade parallel to the bench under the pasta and once the blunt edge is under the line where the folds meet, turn up so that the pieces of pasta fall on either side of the knife. Give the knife a couple of gentle shakes and the ribbons should unfold. Place on a baking tray and toss with plenty of semolina to coat - this will prevent the pasta from sticking.

In a saute pan, heat a few generous glugs of olive oil and add the garlic and onion (and chilli if desired). Cook gently until the onion becomes translucent, then add the eggplant. cook gently until softened slightly. Push the contents to the edge of the pan and increase the temperature, adding a few more glugs of oil. Split the sausages open and break small chunks of the meat into the pan. Once browned, add the passata, salt, pepper and sugar (a full-fingered pinch). Cook gently for 10 minutes. Heat a large pot of water until boiling. Tear some basil leaves into the ragu and add the chopped fresh tomatoes (keep them quite chunky, cut into quarters at most). Continue to cook gently, adding water if the sauce starts to dry out.

Drop the fresh pasta into the water, stir well and cook for several minutes until done. Drain in a colander and toss with a little oil. Add to the ragu and finish with more torn basil and Parmesan.

meatballs

~meatballs~
400g beef mince
400g pork mince
1 egg
1 red chilli (finely chopped)
4 cloves garlic (crushed)
2T chicken stock liquid (concentrate)
1c fresh breadcrumbs
1T cumin seeds (or substitute 1T dried oregano)
1t coriander seeds
1t fennel seeds
Maldon
freshly ground black pepper

~sauce~
1 tin whole peeled tomatoes
1 jar/tin/carton passata
1 red chilli, finely chopped
1 red onion, sliced into fine segments
2 shallots, sliced as above
zest one lemon
olive oil
Maldon
raw sugar
freshly ground black pepper
few slugs red wine
fresh basil

Toast and grind in a mortar and pestle the coriander, cumin and fennel. Place all ingredients for meatballs into a bowl and mix by hand until combined (if omitting the cumin for oregano, add the oregano at this point). Make small or large balls and brown in olive oil in a large saute pan. Remove the meatballs and set aside. Heat some olive oil in the pan, adding the chili, onion and shallots, and cooking gently until translucent. Add the lemon zest at the end. then add the tomatoes, red wine and a few slugs of olive oil, seasoning with pepper, salt and sugar. Turn down the heat and simmer gently until reduced to a thick sauce. Scatter with fresh basil and then add meatballs to the sauce for the last five minutes. Toss in al dente spaghetti with more fresh basil - if the sauce is too thick, add a little of the pasta water. Serve scattered with torn basil and freshly grated Parmesan.

aubergine & chili penne

1 aubergine, chopped into 1cm square chunks
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 red chili, finely chopped
chili flakes to taste
olive oil
Maldon
Parmesan
basil leaves
2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes, cut into eighths
100g pancetta
freshly ground black pepper
squeeze lemon
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
pinch raw sugar

1 pkt Italian penne

heat some oil in a large pan and gently cook the onion, garlic, fresh chili and pancetta. add the aubergine and cook for several minutes. add the tomatoes and reduce slightly. season, including adding the chili flakes and sugar to taste. cook the pasta until al dente, drain and add pasta to the sauce in its pan. stir to coat, adding a handful of torn basil leaves, some grated Parmesan and a squeeze of lemon. drizzle with a little oil and serve.

spicy pancetta & basil penne

handful fresh basil
1 red chili, de-seeded and finely sliced
100g pancetta
handful sun-blushed tomatoes
penne pasta
olive oil
Maldon
freshly ground black pepper
Parmesan

Bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Add penne and cook until al dente. Meanwhile, gently fry pancetta and chili. Once pancetta is crisp, add roughly chopped tomatoes and cook for one minute. Turn off the heat and add 1/2 torn basil leaves, salt and pepper. Drain pasta and add to pan with rest of basil and a generous grating of Parmesan. Add slosh of olive oil as required. Toss and serve.

pancetta & basil ravioli

~pasta~
200g "00" flour
2 eggs

~filling~
125g ricotta
freshly ground black pepper
6 slices pancetta
1 clove garlic, crushed
handful fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
a pinch of Maldon salt
25g Parmesan

Place flour on bench in a mound. Make a recess in the top and break the eggs into it. Mix together until dough forms, knead until smooth and elastic and set aside to rest for 30 minutes.

Cook four slices of pancetta until crisp, add garlic, remove from heat and chop finely. Finely chop remaining two slices of pancetta. Put all filling ingredients into a bowl and mix.

Roll pasta out into two thin squares. Place one square on the bench, and divide the mixture into teaspoonfuls, placing at intervals on the pasta, leaving a couple of centimetres between each dollop of filling. Whisk one egg and brush between dollops. Place the second sheet of pasta over the first, so that the dollops of filling are sandwiched between the two layers of pasta. Gently press down around the filling, taking care to squeeze out the air. Run a pasta crimper between the dollops of filling to create the ravioli squares. Place on a dusted tray (semolina or "00" flour) and refrigerate until ready to cook.

Bring a large pot of water to the boil, then gently drop in the ravioli, boiling gently for six minutes or so until cooked.

In a shallow pan gently melt 50g butter, add 10 or so sage leaves. Pour over the ravioli and serve with a scattering of Parmesan, some flakes of Maldon and some freshly ground black pepper.

simple fresh tomato pasta

1 cup of fresh tomatoes (in season, any variety), finely chopped
3 or 4 heavy slugs of extra virgin olive oil
juice of one lemon
pinch of raw sugar
pinch of Maldon
parmesan and basil leaves

dried pasta (spaghetti or penne or whatever you like)

Place the tomatoes, lemon, oil and seasoning into a large dish and set aside to mingle.
Heat plenty of water and cook the pasta. Add drained al dente paste to the dish holding the tomato mixture and toss in the basil leaves and a small handful of freshly grated parmesan.

simple tuna spaghetti

1 can tuna
juice of 1 lemon
good handful chopped flat leaf parsley
three heavy slugs of extra virgin olive oil
pinch of sugar
freshly ground black pepper
2T rinsed capers
fresh parmesan

dried spaghetti

Squeeze out the liquid from the tuna and place in a bowl. Separate with a fork and add the oil, lemon, sugar, pepper and capers. Set aside and heat plenty of water for the pasta. Cook the pasta until al dente. Add the parsley to the tuna mixture and serve with the pasta (mixed in or on top as desired). Finish with some freshly grated parmesan.