As part of my continuing efforts to work my way through every one of Italian Foodie’s recipes (!), I had a go at the rather exotic sounding “Spaghetti Aglio, Olio E Pepperoncino“. This roughly translates as “Spaghetti with garlic, oil and chili“. The recipe is as simple as it sounds - just gently heat some good extra-virgin olive oil, lightly colour the sliced garlic, then add some finely-chopped red chili and fresh flat-leaf parsley. Add some good quality spaghetti to the sauce (as the Italians do) and serve with plenty of grated Parmesan cheese. Very tasty and makes a great change from “red sauce”. Check out Lorraine’s recipe here. Thanks once again Lorraine!
I saw this recipe on Italian Foodies and it looked so super (and different) that I was determined to try it. I suffer from red sauce-itis, where out of habit I expect pasta to be coated with tomato or garlic, or a combination of both. So this was something entirely different for me. It tasted delicious - very light and fresh. I did take the liberty of adding a handful of toasted pine; Lors, I hope you approve of this deviation!
Check out the recipe yourself, the photos are as impressive as the dish tastes.
I’ve been craving pasta lately. It must be from looking through the great pasta recipes on italian foodies recently. I’ve never thought of pasta as hangover food, but when I woke up just before noon today with “a bastard behind the eyes“, pasta was the only thing I contemplated making. Something rich and comforting…
This simple recipe relies very much on “store cupboard” ingredients. I fried some diced pancetta in a little oil until crispy. I then added a clove of garlic that was pounded with some sea salt using a mortar and pestle. (Pounding garlic with salt, rather than chopping it, makes a huge difference to food.) I added a small tub of double cream (about 200ml), a tablespoon of good pesto from a jar (for shame!) and a couple of handfuls of grated Parmesan cheese. I then added some hot pasta and a few grinds of black pepper.
I can think of few meals from my own repertoire that offer as great a reward for such little effort. Time spent? About 15 minutes from start to finish. The mind boggles as to why people buy this shit.
Everyone loves pizza. For my money, it’s the best hangover food. It’s made using a regular yeast bread dough. This recipe yields enough dough for two large pizzas, or three smaller ones. I like to split the dough into three balls as I can vary my toppings more, but you can please yourself.
Toppings are only limited by your imagination. If you’re short on inspiration, have a look at Darina’s suggestions in the excellent Ballymaloe Cookery Course.
Ingredients
- 340g strong white flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp (heaped) sugar
- 5g dried yeast (I use McDougall’s)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 210 ml tepid water
Method
- Mix the dry ingredients. Sieve together the flour, salt, sugar and dried yeast into a large mixing bowl.
- Add your wet ingredients. Rub in the olive oil and add the tepid water. Ensure the water is not too hot.
- Mix to a loose dough (add a little extra water or flour if necessary) and turn out onto a clean work surface, lightly dusted with flour. Cover the dough with the bowl and leave to rest for 5 minutes.
- Now, time for a workout. Knead the dough for at least 10 minutes until the dough is smooth. Use a food processor with a dough hook, if you have one.
- Clean your mixing bowl with hot water, then lightly brush the bowl with olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl and cover with cling film. Place the bowl in your airing cupboard or beside a radiator. Prove the dough for about 1.5 to 2 hours. The dough should have doubled in size.
- Pre-heat your oven to 250C. Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and “knock back”. This means kneading the dough for a minute to knock some of the air out of it. Split the dough into 2 or 3 balls.
- Roll or stretch each ball into a pizza shape and place onto a pre-heated baking sheet. Lightly coat with tomato sauce and add your toppings. Cook each pizza for 12-15 minutes.
Serve with cold beer, and a sloppy, self-satisfied grin … 
