pasta con baccalà in rosso

This delicious traditional Italian pasta recipe is made with salt cod in a tomato sauce: the salt cod needs a couple of days prep in advance but it’s really easy and really worth it. It’s the most delicious combination of textures and the salt cod has a divine flavour. Salt cod is an excellent store cupboard ingredient too. 

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baccalà alla Napoletana

This Italian recipe is made on Christmas Eve and holidays but I like to eat it anytime and it’s made with the unbelievably delicious dried salted cod which is rehydrated in the fridge for 3 days before you cook it (salted dried cod is a brilliant store cupboard ingredient and it’s available in most supermarkets in the world food section or a Spanish or Italian deli). It’s a complete meal with the potatoes, just add a crisp green salad and that’s lunch or dinner sorted… if you are extra hungry you could add some roasted sourdough with olive oil and a scraping of fresh garlic. It’s even delicious served at room temperature. if you haven’t got time to soak the salt cod, you can use fresh cod cut into chunks and put it in the stew to poach for the last ten minutes of cooking or till cooked through.

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Vietnamese(ish) noodle salad

A colourful refreshing salad that is really tasty and healthy and full of fresh veg, herbs and noodles. You can add hot fried prawns to it if you fancy and If I want to make a lower carb version I use zero noodles (there are lots of makes…) which have no carbs and are available in most supermarkets, Asian shops and online.

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spaghetti con la bottarga

I have been meaning to put this Sicilian recipe on the blog for a long time as I adore it and love bottarga. Bottarga is a dried, salted fish roe which is a condiment that adds the unique flavour of the sea to the pasta. You can buy it in most Italian delis or online and a little goes a long way, as you only use a small amount. The breadcrumbs add a bit of texture and you can add some lemon zest too like I do. It’s perfect for dinner for two with a salad.

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baccalà mantecato

I had this Venetian tapas served with drinks in Venice. It is unbelievably delicious and perfect as canapés and as an hors d’œuvre or just for lunch. It’s also been served on polenta in Harry’s Bar for decades. The salt cod is whipped to a smooth consistency with olive oil and slavered on crostini or polenta. You can now get salt cod in the international section in most supermarkets or in Caribbean, Spanish and Italian delis.

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smoked salmon tartines with pink pickled eggs

These smoked salmon tartines are loaded with flavour; they are made with tangy pink pickled eggs and capers with a big sprinkle of fresh chopped chives on crunchy toasted sourdough. I love them for brunch, lunch and they’re perfect on a picnic.

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pasta with zucchini and prawns

This Italian recipe is so delicious and packed with all the summery flavours. I use frozen raw jumbo king prawns (shell on) from the supermarket (Sainsbury’s) that I thaw first, fresh ones are great if you prefer. I could eat this every day as I really love it…

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pasta con le sarde

A traditional Sicilian recipe for pasta with the amazing flavours of fennel, anchovies, saffron, wine, pine nuts and lemon with crunchy bread crumbs on top. I searched high and low for fresh sardines but my fishmonger said they were out of season, so I used good quality tinned ones in olive oil and they are absolutely fine. I make mine with spaghetti Nero but any long pasta works.

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japanese (ish) slaw with or without sashimi

This slaw is refreshing and perky and has lots of crunchy veg and creamy avocado. You can serve it on its own or with sashimi or sushi, sushi rice, or a tin of crab, or boiled eggs or roasted salmon.

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caldeirada

This Portuguese smokey seafood stew is cooked all in one pot, so after you have prepped the ingredients, it’s only a matter of adding them in stages to the pot. It’s got potatoes and a delicious tomato and wine broth with saffron. I use defrosted frozen seafood for my recipe, except the mussels, which can be left out, but fresh seafood is great, obv,  and you can add any mixture of seafood you fancy. Traditionally it’s served with roasted garlic bread, or rice.

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