Prawn and Chorizo Carbonara

This is so simple it barely counts as a recipe, but it's a satisfyingly delicious meal for mid-week, when time is precious and few. It can be on the table in under 12 minutes which is impressive.

With a smoky, warming flavour from the chorizo plus the comforting pasta stodge, it really does tick all the boxes.

As I'm on what feels like a never-ending 'diet' to shift the remaining baby weight, and Glen is  attempting to shift a few pounds  before holiday season, portion sizes reflect this. You may want to increase for larger appetites.

I've omitted from using any additional olive oil, relying on the oil released from the chorizo instead, to shave off a few extra calories, but you may want to add this if you're not watching your weight.

The below makes enough for two:

Prawn and Chorizo Carbonara

Here's how:

• x2 chorizo cooking sausages
• 150g raw prawns
• 1 red chilli
• 1 clove garlic
• 40g Grana Padana cheese
• 1 egg
• 100g dried pasta (I used penne)
• Salt and pepper to season

Firstly fill and boil the kettle and then fill a large pot with the water and place on a low heat with the pasta. Place a frying pan on a low heat too.

Finely slice the garlic and chilli, and cut the chorizo sausages into rounds of about the thickness of a £1 coin, and then half them. Add to the frying pan.

Now into a bowl crack the egg and grate in the cheese and season generously with salt and black pepper. Give a good mix.

Two minutes before the pasta timer goes off, add the prawns to the pan, they will cook in no time at all, and you'll know they're cooked through as they will become pink all over.

Before draining the pasta, scoop out a mugful of the pasta water and set aside.

Drain the pasta and add to the chorizo and prawn mix on the heat, mix and then remove from the heat completely.

Now pour over the egg mixture and stir well, the heat from the pasta will cook the egg, as with carbonara, so don't feel tempted to place back on the heat or you'll end up with scrambled egg in your pasta.

Make sure you stir well to ensure all of the pasta gets a good coating and add 1-2 tbsp of the pasta water to loosen up the consistency.

Serve with just a smattering of grated cheese and a final seasoning. Enjoy!

Pastitsio - The Greek Lasagna

If you've never had the pleasure before, Pastitsio is often referred to as the 'Greek Lasagna' or 'Pasta Pie'. Instead of the thin lasagna sheets of the Italian variety, tubular pasta is used, and a thicker version of the bechamel sauce sits atop the finished dish. 

For me it evokes some fantastic memories of two summers, and countless holidays spent in Corfu in my twenties - great times, and the beginning of my love affair with Greek food, one of my favourite cuisines that I think is hugely underrated. What's more, this is a hearty, family classic, a crowd pleaser, and is devoured every time I cook it.

For my pastitsio I use the typically Greek method of thickening the bechamel sauce, adding a beaten egg once the sauce is off the heat, as well as Greek yoghurt, it just helps the sauce hold together more firmly once baked. I have used penne here, as I simply had some in the cupboard, but it also works with the more traditional bucatini or rigatoni - any tubular pasta.

Also I like to reduce the meat sauce right down by cooking for at least an hour and a half as a traditional Pastitsio is easily distinguishable by it's definite layers, rather that an oozing meat sauce moving into the layers below. I use a lot less pasta for a family sized Pastitsio than in a traditional dish too as it lightens it up hugely! 

Pastitsio

Pastitsio - Greek Lasagna

The below comfortably serves six.

Here's how:

• 300g tubular pasta - I use penne 
• 500g steak or beef mince
• 1 white onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 large tomatoes
• 250g passata 
• 2 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 glass of red wine
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Pinch sea salt
• Pinch black pepper

For the topping:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 200ml milk
• 1 tbsp creme fraiche
• 2 tbsp Greek yoghurt (plain natural yoghurt will also be fine)
• Bayleaf
• 2 tsp black pepper
• Pinch sea salt
• 3 tsp nutmeg
• 100g Reggiano Parmigiano or other hard cheese

First prepare the meat sauce. Begin by finely dicing and mincing the garlic and adding to a heavy bottomed pan with the olive oil to soften and flavour the oil.

Roughly chop the tomatoes and set aside for the minute. 

Once the onion and garlic is softened add the meat to the pan to brown off. You can season with salt and pepper at this point and also add the cinnamon. Use a wooden spatula to break up the meat as it cooks and avoid any clumps. 

Once browned, add the chopped tomatoes and cook for several minutes, then add the passata, tomato puree, red wine, oregano and thyme and mix well. Now leave to cook for at least an hour, or more if you have the time.

The meat sauce for pastitsio

To make the topping sauce, add the butter to a non-stick frying pan and place on a low-medium heat and allow to melt. Add the flour a bit at a time, and use a balloon whisk or just a wooden spoon to mix thoroughly, repeat until all of the flour is added and then slowly add the milk, in the same process, stirring and pressing the floury bits down, till it all becomes one. Once all the milk is added, add the bayleaf and the black pepper and grate over the nutmeg. Be really generous with the nutmeg this is an important, flavour, and with the egg and yoghurt that will be added later, this delicate flavour can get lost if you're too cautious.

Add the grated cheese, retaining just enough to scatter over the top, and stir through, until combined. The sauce should slowly thicken. Whilst still on the heat, stir through the creme fraiche until combined then take off the heat. The sauce should be thick and glossy at this stage. Now add the Greek yoghurt and stir through, which will bring the temperature of the sauce down. Finally beat the egg in a separate bowl and then stir this through the sauce, which will thicken it further. Now set aside while you cook the pasta.

Cook the pasta according to packet instructions and then drain and allow to cool for a few moments, until cool enough to handle. 

In the dish you'll be baking the Pastitsio, arrange one layer of pasta. It's traditional to have all the tubular shapes facing the same way and be in a pattern, as I have done with the penne here.

Layer one - pastitsio

Once that's done, spread over the meat sauce, make sure all the pasta is covered. 

Layer two - the meat sauce - pastitsio

On top of the meat sauce, add the final layer of pasta, again try to organise neatly, as it will hold together nicer when you serve. 

Once the meat topping is completely covered in pasta, pour over the thickened sauce, and use a knife or the back of a spoon to spread over all of the pasta shapes. 

Pastitsio

Add a final grating of nutmeg, scatter over the cheese and a season again. Leave for at least 30 minutes before baking, again, this just helps to hold the final shape.

Pastitsio

Place into a pre-heated oven at 180-200degrees and bake for 35 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Serve with a salad of your choice and enjoy!

Pastitsio

Some other favourite Greek recipes of mine:

Briam (Vegetable Stew)

Prawn Saganaki

Pork Souvlaki

Gemistes 

Greek Chicken One Pot

Greek Yoghurt & Honey Baked Cheesecake

Greek Salad

Tzatziki

Feta & Spinach Open Tart

Walnut and Basil Pesto

This is a gorgeous pesto recipe (served here with penne and spinach leaves simply stirred through), it makes a good batch that works well with a heap of different meals and keeps for a good week in the fridge. It makes enough for at least five different meals, if not more.

I used walnuts once as I didn’t have any pine nuts in stock and this is now my go-to for pesto as I love the silky, almost creamy finish that walnuts afford.

This couldn’t be simpler to make and I have a few posts coming up that will demonstrate the versatility.

You can play around with the quantities too – this is a quicky that works for me, but you might prefer more garlic, basil or even oil for a thinner consistency.

Also when I’m making a batch for the baby to enjoy, I tend to use a Cheddar rather than Parmesan as it tends to have a slightly lower salt content and also it’s something I always have in stock.

Here’s how:

About 30-40g fresh basil – stalks as well as leaves
60g walnuts
2 cloves garlic
5 tbsp good quality olive oil
Pinch of salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

60g Parmesan or other hard cheese

Firstly peel and roughly chop the garlic. Roughly chop the walnuts too then add both to the blender. (You can use a pestle and mortar but I blitz it all together in my blender.)

Add the basil as is, the olive oil, salt, pepper and lemon juice and grate in the cheese.

Blitz together on a medium mode for 1 minute which should leave you with a smooth, creamy pesto. Taste and add seasoning to your preference – add more lemon if you prefer it slightly zingy.

To make the pictured dish – simply cook 75g penne per person to pack instructions. Before draining, retain 1 tablespoon of the cooking water. Drain the pasta and return to the pan on the lowest heat.

Add 1 tablespoon per person of the pesto and stir through thoroughly ensuring every piece is coated. Stir the spinach leaves through and serve immediately.

Penne with Smokey Tomato & Vegetable Sauce (Vegetarian)

There are tons of variations of tomato based pasta sauces but this is one of my new favourites. With the addition of fresh chilli for heat and enhanced by smoky paprika, it’s a simple meal but incredibly enjoyable. 

The longer you cook off the sauce the more intense the flavours become, but it can be ready, realistically, in twenty minutes so is perfect for mid-week. I make enough here for two for dinner and two smaller portions which make perfect lunchtime fodder for the next day.

Here’s how:

·         1 tin of chopped tomatoes

·         1 onion

·         2 cloves garlic

·         50g pitted black olives

·         1 red pepper

·         1 red chilli

·         2 tbsp tomato puree

·         2 tsp smoked paprika

·         Salt & Pepper

·         1-2 tbsp olive oil

Firstly roughly dice the onion and slice the garlic then add to a pan on a low heat in about a tablespoon of olive oil and gently sauté.

Finely slice the chilli and add to the pan. Slice the pepper and olives and similarly add to the pan.

Once all veg is starting to soften, add the tin of tomatoes to the pan with the tomato puree. Season generously and add the paprika and stir through with a wooden spoon.

Cook off for twenty-thirty minutes, stirring regularly. Taste and add seasoning if needed or if you’d like a more smoky flavour, another teaspoon of paprika.

Cook the penne according to the packet and before draining use a ladle to capture half a ladle full of the cooking water and add to the sauce and stir through.

Drain the pasta and add to the sauce, stirring through to ensure all pasta is evenly coated.

You can of course add some fresh parsley or basil at this point before serving – but personally I don’t bother, it’s practically perfect without.

Enjoy!