I forgot to take meat out of the freezer today so had to do something new for tea with chorizo out of the fridge and prawns.  After scouting around online for inspiration, I came up with this..

Serves 2 and a small boy

Ingredients

1 chorizo (the long ones in a sealed packet) – thinly sliced

4 tbsp olive oil

knob of butter

1 tsp paprika

3 garlic cloves – crushed

1 red onion – sliced thinly

250g bag of frozen prawns – defrosted

2 green (or red) chillies – deseeded and chopped OR half teaspoon of dried chilli flakes

Handful of baby spinach

300g spaghetti

Method

Put a large pan of water on to boil (for the spaghetti)

Put a second pan on a high heat and when hot turn down to a medium heat and add the chorizo, fry until the oils from the chorizo start to run.

Remove the chorizo from the pan with a slotted spoon and put to one side for now.

Turn down the heat and add the oil and butter.  Once the butter has melted (keep on a low-med heat), add the red onion, garlic and chilli and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the onion is soft.

Add the chorizo back in to the pan and cook over a low heat for 5 minutes minutes.

Your water should be boiling now so add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook for 10 mins (longer for softer spaghetti).

Add the prawns to the pan with the chorizo and stir so that the prawns are coated in the oil and leave for a minute or so before stirring in the spinach.  Put a lid on the pan and turn off the heat.  Leave until the spaghetti is cooked.

Once the spaghetti is cooked, rinse and pour in a little olive oil, stir then put spaghetti into the pan with the chorizo and prawns.

Shake the spaghetti into the chorizo and prawns and serve.

Ive entered this pasta dish too!

What can I say, I love this dish. Its soooo easy to make, quick and delicious! Sorry but the ingredients list isn’t precise, I don’t measure anymore but go by my own tastes.

Serves 3-4 people

Ingredients

Leftover roast chicken or 1 chicken breast (oven cooked or pan fried)

300g pasta (any sort)

Couple of handfuls of baby spinach

200g packet of Pine Nuts

For the pesto

1 packet or large handful of fresh basil leaves

1 fat garlic clove

Approx 25g of the pine nuts (I like the large ones)

5 or 6 thick shavings of Grand Padano/Parmesan cheese

A few glugs of olive oil

Handful of spinach leaves – I prefer baby spinach

Method

Roast the chicken in the oven if using a fresh breast. I use on the bone breasts from the butchers and cook at GM6 for about 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the pesto -

Put the pine nuts in a frying pan and dry fry on a medium heat (no oil needed) until they are nice and golden and the oils have come out.

Place all of the pesto ingredients, except for the oil in a blender and blitz, now slowly drizzle in the olive oil until it reaches the desired texture. I blitz mine for a minute or so, this is usually enough time for it to be very smooth. Keep tasting and add more cheese/basil if desired. Set to one side.

About 15 minutes before the end of the chicken cooking time, put a pan of water on to boil and cook the pasta as per the packet instructions.

A few minutes before the pasta is cooked, put the remaining pine nuts in the frying pan and dry fry on a medium heat until golden brown.

Drain the pasta once cooked and stir in the spinach to wilt slightly, now stir in the pesto (adding as much or as little as you want), add the pine nuts and then finally the chicken.

Serve and enjoy.

I’ve entered this dish in the 5 Star Makeover at Fivestarfoodie.com, where this month’s contest is pasta.

This is one of our favourite recipes.

Serves 4.

Ingredients

500g Rigatoni pasta (I use ½ bag of the large pasta)

400g lean minced beef

100g smoked diced pancetta

2 tablespoons olive oil

30g salted butter

1 onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 celery stick, finely chopped

150ml white wine

200ml vegetable stock

150g Mascarpone

½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

4 tbsn chopped flat leaf parsley

100g freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Salt and pepper to taste

To make the white Ragu use a large saucepan.

Heat the olive oil and the butter and fry the onion, celery, carrot and pancetta for approximately 10 minutes on a moderate heat until softened and golden.

Add the beef and mix well allowing the minced meat to crumble. Cook, stirring frequently, until the meat has browned. Approximately 10 minutes.

Pour in the wine and cook until evaporated. Season with salt and pepper and add the stock. Lower the heat and simmer, without the lid on, for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Mix in the mascarpone, parsley and nutmeg and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

In the meantime, in a large saucepan, cook the pasta in boiling water, drain and add immediately to the sauce.

On a high heat, mix the white Ragu and the pasta together with a wooden spoon for approx 1 minute.

Serve immediately with plenty of grated Galbani Parmigiano Reggiano on top.