Sophie from St Ives, Cambs said:
I try to plan and cook from scratch, I have one monthly shop delivered, and try to go local for any bits. I wish... More
Ham, Roast Garlic and Spinach Pasta
Ingredients show imperial units
Serves 4
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled and left whole
- 25g butter
Butter
Unsalted is better for cooking.
Easy spread butter is ideal for sandwiches and toast.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Olive oil
Usually the darker green the oil, the richer the flavour.
- Extra virgin olive oil is good for drizzling on salads and should never be heated as this destroys the fine properties
- Lighter olive oil is good for adding to bread, or to flavour a salad or marinade for chicken, meat, fish or vegetables. Lighter olive oil can be gently heated and added to marinades and baking.
- 200g spinach, washed
- 3 tablespoons crème fraiche
Crème fraiche
The French version of soured cream, it’s twice as rich, and thicker than the British version of sour cream.
- It can be used to lace soups, sauces and stews or it can be spooned over puddings and stirred into sweet dishes. Great for adding to leftovers, as it is quite rich and can withstand being heated.
- Plain full-fat yoghurt can be used instead of crème fraîche in cooking as long as you heat it gently – adding a little cornflour, which can help to prevent it from separating.
- The best crème fraîche comes from a strictly controlled area of Normandy called Isigny-sur-Mer and it’s sold in larger supermarkets in the UK.
- 250g leftover gammon, roughly chopped
- Black pepper
Black peppercorns
Best used as a condiment.
They can be lightly crushed and used to spice up a creamy sauce or to coat fillet steak or chicken breasts.- Although it might seem odd, grinding black pepper over a bowl of strawberries enhances the flavour of the fruit.
- Pepper that is pre-ground is not fresh tasting and often has other ingredients mixed in.
- Choose the type of mill that suits you, and if you want coarser pepper you can loosen the screw on the top of the mill or crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar
- Hard cheese , grated
Cheese
Add to eggs for omelettes, grate onto soups or salads.
- Parmesan often goes rock hard or becomes horribly sweaty. Ideally, all cheese should be stored in a cool, airy place at a temperature of 46-50F/8-10C. However, most of us put it straight into the fridge. This is fine providing the cheese is kept loosely wrapped in its own airtight container so it isn’t tainted by other foods.
- Store it in the salad drawer, which is not quite as cold as the rest of the fridge and use a micro plane for grating.
-
400g Pasta
Pasta
Available in various shapes and sizes.
- Short tubular pasta (rigatoni, penne, macaroni) is best used in baked dishes with vegetables, cheese and meat.
- Smooth long pasta (spaghetti, linguine) is best with sauces like Bolognese, tomato and clams as these keep the pasta slippery and separate.
- Cup-shaped pasta (conchiglie, orichette) is designed to hold sauces with larger ingredients such as mushrooms, artichokes and tomatoes.
- Cut pasta (tagliatelle, fettuccine, farfalle) is best eaten with rich sauce made with cream, eggs or meat.
- Twisted pasta (fusilli, eliche, fettuccines, farfalle) the curly character of these pastas means that they will trap thin sauces such as pesto, garlic, and olive oil flavoured with chilli.
- Tiny pasta shapes (alphabet letters, fillini, vermicelli) cook quickly and are ideal for adding to soups and casseroles.
- Ravioli is stuffed pasta and can vary from cheese, vegetables and meat.
- Lasagne sheets and cannelloni are good pastas used in a baked layered meat or vegetables dishes.
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in boiling water according to packet instructions.
- Meanwhile, cook the garlic in a pan of boiling water for 4 minutes or until tender. Drain and toss into a large non-stick frying pan with the butter and olive oil and cook over a low heat until golden.
- Add the spinach and cook until it begins to wilt, add a few tablespoons of crème fraiche and the chopped gammon. Bring up to the boil, season wih pepper and toss into the cooked pasta. Serve in a bowl with grated cheese.
