Vermicelli With Lemon Sauce and Capers...

Vermicelli With Lemon Sauce and Capers

This time of year I find that I indulge a little too much in festive treats and comfort food. I’m not sure whether it’s the martinis that are festive and the mashed potatoes comforting – or the other way around. In any case I do like to ease up a bit and have some meals that are a little lighter and less intense then a bowl full of mash. I have always had a fondness for Vermicelli or Angel Hair Pasta as it is known across the pond and this recipe sounded too good not to try.

The recipe I based this on is by Kyle Phillips and I found it on About.com. It is a real winner and I feel it works perfectly on a cold winters day. It brings a little bit of sunshine to your dinner plate. I pretty much followed the recipe but I didn’t remove the garlic from the cream (and I used a lot more garlic – I am after all a garlic-oholic) and at the end I added a Tbsp or so of capers. Yummy!

You can find Kyle’s original recipe here

Vermicelli With Lemon Sauce and Capers (serves 4)

Ingredients

1 pound Vermicelli

Zest of 1 lemon (make sure to used unwaxed lemons if you can)

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 clove garlic (I used 3 large cloves)

1 cup cream

1 cup grated Parmigiano (I used Grana Padano)

1 Tbsp of capers

Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

Set slightly salted pasta water on to boil

In a large pot sauté the garlic in the butter and when it browns discard it (I didn’t let the garlic brown and I didn’t discard it. I had it minced quite finely and didn’t find it too overpowering)

Add half the cream and all the zest from the lemon – keep the sauce warm

When the water boils cook the pasta till it’s al dente and drain it

Stir the pasta into the sauce and toss it for a minute or two over moderate heat (at this point I added about 3/4 of the Grana Padano cheese)

Make sure to stir in sufficient cream to keep the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pan (with the final few tosses I added the Tbsp of capers)

After a minute or so scoop the vermicelli into a serving bowl

Serve at once with the rest of the grated cheese

Get stuck in and enjoy with a side of garlic bread!

Sausage Hotpot With Sweet Potato Mash...

It has been cold, dark and drizzly here in the UK (no surprises there really!). This type of weather always makes me crave good old fashioned comfort food. Mashed potatoes had been on my mind for sometime and there was a pack of sausages in the fridge. Bangers and Mash – classic comfort food! Somehow though, it just didn’t seem right. I was in the mood for something a little bit different.

Not being sure what to make I decided to visit one of my favourite recipe websites. The BBC GoodFood website is full of great recipes and ideas. It never fails to inspire my cooking and give me direction in the kitchen.

Their recipe for Frying-Pan Sausage Hot Pot is on my favourites list. It really is an easy recipe to make and it tastes delicious. I decided to use this recipe as a base for my own sausage hotpot which would help use up some of the vegetables beginning to languish in my fridge. It also gave me an excuse to make sweet potato mash which is always a treat.

This is a great recipe to play around with so get in the kitchen and have some fun!

Luna Raye’s Sausage Hotpot with Sweet Potato Mash

Ingredients

• Drizzle of Olive Oil

• Drizzle of maple syrup OR a teaspoon of soft brown sugar to help caramelize the onions

• 2 small red onions thinly sliced

• 6 plump good-quality sausages (I used English pork and caramelized onion sausages) You can keep the sausages whole but I prefer to cut them into thirds.

• 1/3 of a glass of good red wine

• 175ml vegetable stock (My favourite is Marigold Swiss Vegetable Bouillon Powder)

• 4-6 broccoli spears chopped into halves

• 1 large carrot chopped

• 1 can of cannellini beans

For the sweet potato mash

(I like to use a mixture of sweet potatoes and white potatoes for this mash – I find it has a nicer texture)

• 4 small russet potatoes

• 3 large sweet potatoes

• 2 cloves of garlic minced

• Knob of butter (approx ½ Tablespoon)

• Freshly chopped parsley (about 4 Tablespoons)

• Season with salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper.

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in the pan and add the sliced red onions. Add a pinch of salt and either a drizzle of maple syrup OR a teaspoon of soft brown sugar

2. Cook over a medium heat until the onions are nice and soft. Once soft remove them from the pan and set aside

3. Get your sweet potatoes and russet potatoes on the boil so they will be ready when the hotpot is under the grill

4. Place the pan back on the heat and start cooking the sausages. It’s up to you if you want to keep them whole or cut them into pieces. Just make sure they are thoroughly cooked. Usually 8 – 10 minutes is enough

5. Prepare your grill and turn it to medium / high

6. Add the following to the pan with the cooked sausages:

• red wine

• vegetable stock

• caramelized red onions

• chopped carrot

• broccoli

• drained and rinsed cannellini beans

7. Gently stir and allow the mixture to bubble away for about 5 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken

8. Remove from the hob and place under the grill

9. Check to make sure your potatoes are done. Drain and place back to the pot with a knob of butter and the minced garlic

10. Mash until smooth. Add salt, lots of freshly ground black pepper and the freshly chopped parsley. Stir everything in well to make sure the mash is seasoned throughout

11. Remove the frying pan from under the grill. The carrots and broccoli should be softened and not overdone

12. Spoon the sweet potato mash onto plates and serve up the bubbling hotpot!

Enjoy!