The next big thing..

Hi everyone

We all have the old dried spaghetti in the cupboard.  It was part of the revolution when I was growing up..if you could make spag bol you were somehow more sophisticated..hmm that may have more to do with my upbringing. 

Well quietly there has been a new revolution happening and it has nothing to do with stodgy green pasta (with fillings that taste like cardboard to me) and are in the "fresh" aisle of the supermarket. You only have to watch cooking shows in italy - the Greedy Italians or Jamie Oliver and Rick Stein wandering the hills of Tuscany to know that aint real pasta. 

The revolution is the arrival of pasta albeit dried or frozen from the motherland itself, Italy. Stocked in our supermarkets now the options abound and once you have tried it I doubt you will go back. Now I could extol the virtues of a pasta machine and making it yourself - and I will in another post. But we don't all have time for that so like a good olive oil for dressings if you can find italian made in your dried section or frozen in your specialty stores have a go.

Ive called this post the next big thing..its not just italian pasta, the next big thing in our home kitchens in my humble opinion is a little known couple of pasta - orzo and risoni. I say that because both are similar rice shaped pasta and they are soooo versatile and tasty. Nor do you have to have a culinary degree to use them to make delicious meals for your family - bye bye dried spaghetti.

You can find orzo in the international section of most supermarkets now. You can find Risoni in little dark blue cartons with the brand Barilla. I interchange them n these recipes.

So heres a really easy one for the quick side - Chorizo and spinach risoni salad. I usually have some chorizo in the fridge for cheese platters but if you don't have it use any other salty meat to hand - ham, bacon, pancetta, proscuitto, chopped up salami all will do. 

Ingredients

1 cup of risoni or orzo
2 or 3 chorizo sausages cut up into slices
a cup of baby spinach leaves - or rocket or basil if you prefer
200gm basil pesto - make it yourself if you like or use a brought one from the chilled section. I wouldn't recommend the ones you can get in the non chilled aisles they always just seem a bit too oily (which I assume is to help preserve them).
Good quality olive oil
Shavings of parmesan or if you don't like parmesan then some chopped feta is nice
optional toasted nuts - pinenuts or walnuts whatever you like for sprinkling on top at the end. 
Salt and pepper

In a pot cook the risoni or orzo according to directions. Usually takes about 10 mins of boiling in salted water. Drain the pasta once cooked making sure to keep a tablespoon or two of the water that the pasta has been cooked in aside.

Depending on your preference you can cook the chorizo with a little olive oil in a frying pan. If using bacon or pancetta cook lightly and then once cool chop. Depending on your taste and the strength of taste of the chorizo I sometimes just leave as it as it has been dried and won't kill you eaten this way. Same with the ham of course or the salami if using, just chop up.

Combine the pesto and a splash of olive oil just to loosen it up as a dressing.

Once the pasta is cooked, cool for about 5 minutes and then combine with the sausage and spinach. Add the dressing and the pasta water and toss. Taste and season as you like. Finally sprinkle over the cheese and the nuts and serve. How easy is that? Serve on its own for two or with bbq meat as a side. 

For something a bit more substantial you can serve risoni or orzo with a tomato base and roasted veges.  I used capsicum, red onion eggplant and zucchini in the recipe below but you can add or take away as you choose.  Ive made this dish with pumpkin or kumara or artichoke from the jar, olives and capers. 

Also with the sauce some porcini which has been rehydrated in some boiling water can give it a great flavor.

Ingredients are:

1 cup of risoni or orzo

Veges:
1 capsicum deseeded and sliced
1 red onion quartered
1 zucchini sliced lengthwise  and then halved
1/2 a large eggplant sliced lengthwise and then halved
1/2 a garlic bulb wrapped in foil
2 Tablespoons olive oil

Sauce:
1 x can of tomatoes chopped
1/2 onion finely chopped
1 clove of garlic finely chopped
a few slices of pancetta or bacon chopped
1 teaspoon of thyme - I prefer fresh
1/2 teaspoon of chill flakes - leave out if you dont like spice
1 tsp sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

Garnish
Basil leaves chopped or whole or if you don't have basil use italian parsley chopped roughly
freshly grated parmesan

Cook the pasta according to directions and retain 2 tablespoons of the pasta water after cooked. Drain the pasta and set aside. 

To roast the veges start by preheating the oven to 200 degrees.  Put all the veges bar the garlic in a large roasting dish and toss with the two tablespoons of olive oil. Add the garlic in foil to the side of the pan and roast for 20 minutes in the oven. Watch the veges as the zucchini tends to cook the quickest and may need to be pulled out earlier.

Meanwhile if using porcini mushrooms put them in a bowl with a few tablespoons of boiling water to rehydrate. 

For the sauce heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Fry the onion until tender. Add the pancetta, garlic and chill if using and salt. Fry for 1 minute.  

Add the tomato, thyme, strained porcini (water reserved) and stir. Bring the sauce pan to the boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. If its a bit dry or you want to wetter add the porcini liquid to the pot at the end. 

Place the cooked pasta in a bowl. Add the sauce and the veges and a good handful of the parmesan. Add the basil and toss to combine. Serve immediately and enjoy.

Final note you can replace macaroni with risoni or orzo for anew play on mac n cheese. Use it instead of arborio rice in risotto like dishes. Ill provide some more recipes soon.

Enjoy

Me xx